Richard Lawson, Vanity Fair's chief critic and co-host of its awards podcast Little Gold Men,  joins us for our annual Oscars episode to discuss father themes in this year's nominated films. From the chest-beating patriarchs of Avatar 2 to the unhappily married backdrop dads of Everything Everywhere All At Once to the leering father-daughter Lifetime body horror of The Whale, we're cheering and jeering Hollywood's best attempts at capturing "dad stuff." We also get into the sexual predation and abusive careerism of a female protagonist in Tar, the drama of male friendship in The Banshees of Inisherin, the daddy longing of Marilyn, and the lineage-poisoning effects of PTSD in All Quiet on the Western Front. Then it's on to Richard's official winner predictions (crib them if you want to sweep your Oscars pool) and tips for approaching Cate Blanchette at a party without fully disassociating and being sucked into a nearby air vent. We're Petra's father and we urge you to hit play.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tellmeaboutyourfather.substack.com