OscarWatch Podcast

OscarWatch is whole again. After a brief absence, Alex Riviello returns to the co-host chair. As a special treat, the guys are joined by Chris Olson of The Pop Culture Lens Podcast, who elevates the level of conversation by several degrees simply by walking into the room. Together, we tackle Eastwood's seminal western, Unforgiven. We talk the demythologizing of both The Man With No Name and the American west, the masks that all the men carry in the film and what that means for masculinity as a whole. It gets deep, but it's a lot of fun

Plus, Alex and Chris go off on a tangent about the Waxwork series. You can take the nerd out of Creature Corner, but you can't take the Creature Corner out of the nerd.

Find us on Twitter and Instagram at @oscarwatchpod. Find us on Facebook and join the conversation. Drop us an email at [email protected] and be sure to subscribe and review on iTunes. We really appreciate you listening! Spread the word!

The Pop Culture Lens Podcast: http://thepopculturelens.podbean.com/

Check out Chris Olson on Twitter @chrstphrolson and read his musings on a wide variety of topics at seemsobvioustome.wordpress.com

OscarWatch is whole again. After a brief absence, Alex Riviello returns to the co-host chair. As a special treat, the guys are joined by Chris Olson of The Pop Culture Lens Podcast, who elevates the level of conversation by several degrees simply by walking into the room. Together, we tackle Eastwood's seminal western, Unforgiven. We talk the demythologizing of both The Man With No Name and the American west, the masks that all the men carry in the film and what that means for masculinity as a whole. It gets deep, but it's a lot of fun

Plus, Alex and Chris go off on a tangent about the Waxwork series. You can take the nerd out of Creature Corner, but you can't take the Creature Corner out of the nerd.

Find us on Twitter and Instagram at @oscarwatchpod. Find us on Facebook and join the conversation. Drop us an email at [email protected] and be sure to subscribe and review on iTunes. We really appreciate you listening! Spread the word!

The Pop Culture Lens Podcast: http://thepopculturelens.podbean.com/

Check out Chris Olson on Twitter @chrstphrolson and read his musings on a wide variety of topics at seemsobvioustome.wordpress.com

OscarWatch is joined once again by Greg from the This Was Rad podcast and we decide to 'Argo-f***-ourselves' with Ben Affleck's 2012 Best Picture winner. Greg has some very strong opinions on the whole 'based on a true story' disclaimer in front of a lot of films, Steve is gradually convinced to change his mind about the legacy of this film and both mourn the loss of VHS. July 20th marked the day Japan finally stopped producing VCRs and we mark it well. We also have a heated debate about who's the better Affleck: Casey or Ben.

Send your emails and questions to [email protected] Find us on social media! Tune in and listen. Subscribe and leave a review - any kind of review! - on iTunes.

Next week, we travel to the "wild" west with The Man With No Name...

This week, Greg from This Was Rad! joins the discussion of the late Michael Cimino's seminal work of wartime horror, The Deer Hunter. The guys talk bloat in films both past and present, and how when they were long back in the day, it was for a reason. Though, even here, there is a tricky and extended first act which could really use a trim. Finally, they also get into the harrowing, random nature of violence, as epitomized by the film's central motif: Russian Roulette.

Fun fact: did you know that Christopher Walken won an Oscar for his role in this? Yes, Christopher 'Wow' Walken is an Academy Award winning actor. Let that sink in, and other random moments from this week's episode of OscarWatch.

Drop us a line at [email protected], hit us up on social media and be sure to check out This Was Rad! at @thiswasrad on all your favorite platforms.

Next week, Ar-go-f*** yourselves!

Alas, due to scheduling, our great host Alex has had to take a step back from his duties. So this week, Steve is flying solo in this pared down episode about All the King's Men, the 1949 Best Picture winner that even today, some 70 years later, has a lot to say about the American political machine. The rise and fall of Willie Stark is one of the all-time great dramas both in literature and in film and it shows that power not only corrupts, but it infects and infests everything around it as well. "Very great motion picture" indeed!

As always, email us at [email protected] if you like what you hear, or especially if you don't like what you hear! Subscribe and review on iTunes. We'll see you at the movies.

For the first time, OscarWatch heads to the Golden Age of Hollywood for a little slice of Americana: Frank Capra's adaptation of the Depression-era play, You Can't Take It With You. The screwball comedy elements may not have aged well, but the class battles are still relevant for this day and age. Albeit with far less cynicism. Alex and Steve talk the other, more worthy films that were also nominated - 10 in all! - and go on a slightly longer than anticipated tangent about Orson Welles and his infamous broadcast. So, where does this land in the exemplary canon of Frank Capra? Listen in to find out.

As always, thanks for listening! Send us an email at [email protected] for all your comments, criticisms and notes! We look forward to hearing from you.

OscarWatch ships up to Boston for this wicked episode to take a look at Martin Scorsese’s Irish gangland epic, The Departed. You know what they say, the seventh time’s the charm. The great master of American cinema was nominated for best director six times before finally securing the little gold man. But was this the most deserving of Scorsese’s long and, frankly stunning, oeuvre? Alex and Steve debate the finer points of careerism, filmography and just what an award means. Plus, we explore the many differences and similarities between this film and the Hong Kong original, Infernal Affairs.

Also, Steve embarrasses his Masshole heritage by botching a Boston accent.

Listen in! And you can send us your thoughts, comments, criticisms and witticisms to [email protected] and we promise we’ll read them on our next episode!

As always, thanks for taking the time to listen to us talk. We couldn’t do it without your ears!

We look at our first 'IMPORTANT' movie to have won Best Picture. One cannot deny the significance of Schindler's List as a tool for history, but is it worthy of being called a 'great' movie? Alex and Steve hash out the themes and ideas behind Spielberg's Holocaust drama and one makes a strong case that the Beard's other film from that year, Jurassic Park, could be a more worthy recipient.

Touching, moving, horrific, maudlin? Call it whatever you will. Schindler's List, this week on OscarWatch.

As always, you can reach us with any comments or criticism at [email protected]

Next week! We're shipping up to Boston (whoa oh oh...)

OscarWatch draws its eye towards one of the few comedies ever to hold the title 'Best Picture', the engaging, highly irreverent and still charming Annie Hall, from director Woody Allen. Alex and Steve discuss the filmography of Allen, the ups and downs of relationships, the effect of an artist's life on his or her work and that little film from a galaxy far, far away that Annie Hall had to defeat in order to win. We try to frame it within a context of Art Hollywood vs Blockbuster Hollywood, but Steve just really wants to talk about Jedi all day.

Spoiler Alert: the film is quite wonderful and has aged perfectly in the nearly 40 years since its release. It's the quintessential Allen film, and one of the best movies about New York ever.

Do you think Allen was pleased about being a member of a very, very special club of films? I wonder what Groucho would say.

If you have comments or criticisms, feel free to drop us a line at [email protected], or find us on social media. We would love to hear from you. We hope you enjoy this look back into neuroticism.

Crash is often thought to be the worst film ever to win Best Picture. Alex and Steve take a look back on the 2005 movie and determine that there is a good chance that YES, YES IT IS. Paul Haggis's (Casino Royale) film is less a story and more a screed, a manipulative, melodramatic screed about how, in the words of Avenue Q 'everyone's a little bit racist'. We try to figure out the best way to describe the plot and also offer up many counter-alternatives to the Academy. Why couldn't Doom win Best Picture? Sure it was bad, but was it this bad? We ask the tough questions.

If you have thoughts, comments or criticisms about our handling of the film, let us know. Drop us an email at [email protected]