Screen or Stream

Glitz, glamour, celebrity? Well yes, there’s all that at the 93rd Annual Academy Awards, but the reason we watch the Oscars is to celebrate the films of the previous year. And what a year 2020 was, so we need something to celebrate. Hear our predictions and thoughts on the winners live as the show plays out. Not a conventional episode for us, but we wanted to do something special for the long-delayed ceremony this year. So we worked out a way to stream and commentate, and record it all for your enjoyment.

We’ve done our homework so this episode should sync with the ABC broadcast as available for replay on Hulu in the US and 7Plus in Australia. However at least in Australia, this will only be available for another week and a half or so. So if you want to watch along with the commentary, better check it out before it’s gone.

Conversation from the commercial breaks has been shuffled around into dead spots in the broadcast where we were silently watching, but for the most part this is live reaction to the show. Including its unorthodox ending. To say any more would spoil the fun.

Timestamps:

• Introduction and Opening (0:00)
• Original Screenplay (4:17) Announced (6:57)
• Adapted Screenplay (9:34) Announced (11:43)
• International Feature (14:58) Announced (18:25)
• Supporting Actor (22:39) Announced (26:30)
• Make-Up (31:07) Announced (32:54)
• Costume Design (34:59) Announced (36:42)
• The MPTF introduced by Bryan Cranston (37:10) Recipient (40:58)
• Directing (44:14) Announced (47:40)
• Sound (50:31) Announced (52:08)
• Live-Action Short (54:44) Announced (55:59)
• Animated Short (59:03) Announced (1:00:25)
• Animated Feature (1:02:38) Announced (1:06:08)
• Documentary Short (1:08:56) Announced (1:10:28)
• Documentary Feature (1:13:46) Announced (1:17:05)
• VFX (1:21:38) Announced (1:23:38)
• Supporting Actress (1:24:54) Announced (1:26:26)
• Production Design (1:30:51) Announced (1:32:55)
• Cinematography (1:34:34) Announced (1:35:41)
• Editing (1:38:04) Announced (1:41:17)
• Humanitarian Award introduced by Viola Davis (1:43:58) Recipient (1:45:37)
• Score (1:52:26) Announced (1:53:13)
• Song (1:57:06) Announced (1:59:10)
• QuestLove’s Oscar Trivia (2:01:34)
• In Memoriam (2:07:44)
• Best Picture (2:12:38) Announced (2:19:04)
• Lead Actress (2:21:53) Announced (2:23:24)
• Lead Actor (2:24:28) Announced (2:26:00)
• Our final thoughts (2:26:51)

Features Availability:

• Apple TV+: Greyhound | Wolfwalkers
• Amazon Prime Video: Borat Subsequent Moviefilm | Emma [AU Only] | One Night in Miami | Sound of Metal | Time [US Only]
• Disney+: Mulan | Onward | Soul | The One And Only Ivan
• Disney+Star [AU Only]: Nomadland
• HBO Max: Emma | Tenet
• Hulu: Another Round | Better Days | Collective* | Nomadland | Quo Vadis, Aida?* | The Man Who Sold His Skin* | The Mole Agent* | The United States v. Billie Holiday*
• Netflix: A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon | Crip Camp | Da 5 Bloods | Hillbilly Elegy | Love And Monsters | Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom | Mank | My Octopus Teacher | News of the World [AU Only] | Over the Moon | Pieces of a Woman | The Midnight Sky | The Trial of the Chicago 7 | The White Tiger
• Digital Stores [AU Only]: Another Round | Better Days | Tenet
• Digital Stores [US Only]: Judas and the Black Messiah (AU/US) | Love And Monsters | Minari | News of the World | Pinocchio (AU/US) | Promising Young Woman (AU/US) | The Father

Shorts Availability:

• Disney+: Burrow
• Netflix: If Anything Happens I Love You, A Love Song for Latasha, The Present, Two Distant Strangers
• Pluto: Hunger Ward
• ShortsTV VOD Package Only: Opera, White Eye
• Vimeo Free/VOD: Genius Loci, Do Not Split, The Letter Room, Yes-People

May the 4th be with you! It’s Star Wars Day for our US audience, but in Australia it’s already Sith Day, time for Revenge of the 5th. What better way to celebrate than by getting Dionne’s first reactions to Revenge of the Sith after she’s just seen it for the first time? We dive into the prequel trilogy but especially that final film, as well as two animated endeavours that both introduced fan-favourite villains long before they were ever seen in live-action.

Darth Maul, battle droids and Qui-Gon Jinn. Dooku, clone troopers and coarse sand that gets everywhere. We preface our discussion of Episode III with a highlights tour through Episode I: The Phantom Menace (1999) and Episode II: Attack of the Clones (2002).

In the concluding season of Clone Wars: The Micro-Series (2003), the Jedi barely escape from a formidable General Grievous revealed in this series a year before his appearance on the movie screen. Grievous returns near the end of the Clone War to kidnap Chancellor Palpatine. This animated precursor to Episode III comes from visionary Genndy Tartakovsky and deepens Anakin’s tragic fall to the dark side with a detour to help the planet Nelvaan.

Infamous variety show, The Star Wars Holiday Special, aired on TV in 1978 and was largely a bizarre first TV entry in the Star Wars franchise. The highlight was a 12-minute animated short, The Story of The Faithful Wookiee (1978), which introduced audiences to an animated Boba Fett, two whole years before he’d arrive in cinemas via The Empire Strikes Back (1981).

Finally, we witness Order 66 and the creation of the Galactic Empire and Darth Vader in Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith (2005). We discuss Anakin Skywalker’s tragic downfall, CG Yoda, Coruscant space battles, concept art, coughs, comics, cameos, Chewbacca’s family, Cinefex, Mustafar, and the combination of breakthrough digital technology, miniature work and practical effects.

Timestamps:

• Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace (1999) & Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones (11:34)
• Star Wars: Clone Wars: Micro-Series (2003) (30:10)
• Star Wars: The Story of the Faithful Wookiee (1978) (44:24)
• Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith (2005) (53:15)
• Star Wars: Obi-Wan Kenobi (2022) (40:14)

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• Our Website (under construction)
• Subscribe on Apple Podcasts

The King has returned! Legendary's Monsterverse continues as Kong's ekes out existence in what remains of Skull Island and Godzilla reappears after years, only to attack an Apex Cybernetics facility. It's not long before he sets his sights on Kong, as he is being transported across the ocean, a pawn in Apex's quest for an elusive power source.

This latest instalment, Godzilla vs Kong (2021) directed by Adam Wingard, pits the two remaining titans against each other in a series of spectacular battles, against colourful and creative backdrops, with an additional contender revealed late in the piece. 

We meet young Jia (Kaylee Hottle), the adoptive daughter of Monarch anthropologist Ilene Andrews (Rebecca Hall) and lone friend of Kong. Her bond with Kong forms the heart of the film, as the action escalates and Kong finds himself outmatched.

We discuss the human element and all their motivations, the ease of reaching Hollow Earth, creature design, fight choreography, believability of CG animation through motion performance, visual style, continuation through comics, the possibilities of future sequels and a detour into an uncommon source of inspiration; theme park rides such as those at Universal Studios and Warner Bros. Movie World.

Availability:

• Godzilla vs Kong (2021): Currently in cinemas & on HBO Max (til April 31). Disc & Digital releases due June 2021

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Whether you call them titans or Kaiju, these two are iconic movie monsters. Godzilla has long reigned as the King of the Monsters, defeating all adversaries as both destroyer and protector. King Kong was unveiled as the Eighth Wonder of the World in the eponymous 1933 film, now he’s the last surviving member of his race, reigning over Skull Island. In this episode from the vault, we went exploring Legendary’s Monsterverse and their renditions of the giant ape and atomic lizard on the big screen, as well as Kong’s journey from the 1930’s to now.

Since their debut, these creatures’ stories have been told and retold. Remade and reimagined. We look back to Kong’s beginnings and his various cinematic outings. King Kong (Merian C. Cooper, 1933) features legendary stop-motion animation from Willis O’Brien. King Kong (John Guillermin, 1976) stars Jeff Bridges and Jessica Lange in a big budget Dino DeLaurentiis production that relies more heavily on a man in a suit for its effects. King Kong (Peter Jackson, 2005) carves out a performance from motion capture and CG-animation. We also touch on Mighty Joe Young (Ron Underwood, 1998) as well as his first title fight in King Kong vs. Godzilla (Ishiro Honda, 1962).

In the first American attempt since Godzilla (Roland Emmerich, 1998) is realised more closely to his Japanese heyday outings. He looms large and defeats the MUTOs to protect humanity in Godzilla (Gareth Edwards, 2014). When he’s brought back, the roster of titans expands as we’re introduced to Mothra, Rodan and King Ghidorah in Godzilla: King of the Monsters (Michael Dougherty, 2019). The godlike being stares down the opposition and obliterates them in epic fashion.

The performance capture of these larger than life creatures are carried through the films by T.J. Storm as Godzilla and both Terry Notary and Toby Kebbell contributing to Kong and are big factor as to why they’re so fun to watch. Others being the spectacle in scale, cinematography, choreography and action, with Skull Island excelling in its vivid colour palette too. Not all the humans are forgettable, we do highlight our favourite characters.

Plus we touch briefly on Shin Godzilla (Hideaki Anno, 2016) and Rampage (Brad Peyton, 2018). Finally, we theorise about how Godzilla and Kong will fare in the match-up teased at the time. You can tune in next week to hear what we thought of Godzilla vs Kong (Adam Wingard, 2021). And those of you who want to hear our thoughts on on the Oscars might be able to find us on Discord when they air…

Timestamps:

• King Kong (1933) (03:30)
• King Kong (1976) (6:06)
• Mighty Joe Young (1998) (14:53)
• King Kong (2005) (28:35)
• Kong: Skull Island (2017) (36:41)
• King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962) (1:00:35)
• Godzilla (2014) (1:09:20)
• Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019) (1:20:45)
• Rampage (2018) (1:39:00)

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Zack Snyder’s Justice League hit streaming and we decided to discuss the entire history of the DC Extended Universe movies so far. This massive tour through the DCEU is 2.5 hours total, rivalling even Snyder’s work in its duration. To kick things off we consider our introductions to DC characters, especially our first Superman encounters across animation, television and film.

Launching into Man of Steel we compare Christopher Reeve to Henry Cavill, consider the messianic Christ allegory, Kryptonian design, superpower development and Hans Zimmer. As we move to Batman v Superman we highlight the brilliant casting choices of rounding out the trinity with Batfleck himself Ben Affleck, Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman, as well as the Wonder Woman unaired pilot, and Martha, Martha, Martha.

Margot Robbie excels in her Harley Quinn debut in Suicide Squad, Jared Leto as Joker not so much. Joel Kinnaman’s Rick Flagg and the gross texture of Killer Croc also get a mention. Then, Wonder Woman finally receives a solo live-action film complete with a bombastic score, wartime feminism, and a lacklustre romance?

The original 2017 release of Justice League was a rapid-fire mess that mishandles Flash, sidelines Cyborg, mangles Superman’s face and bathes the end of the world in a red filter. After that, cheesy underwater melodrama abounds in Aquaman, so we talk primarily about Jason Momoa in the titlular role.

Zachary Levi shines as kid turned superhero Billy Batson in Shazam. A movie with some odd lore, stranger villains, a Black Adam connection and its own upcoming sequel too. For something completely different, Birds of Prey with breakout star; Harley’s Perfect Egg Sandwich not to mention a completely colourful look and introductions for Black Canary and Huntress.

Sequel Wonder Woman 1984 suffers pandemic release woes as well as criticisms over Steve Trevor’s “return”. Diana gains some new abilities in this excessive sequel, and we gain a perfect Pedro Pascal performance as Maxwell Lord.

In the practically fan-demanded redux of Zack Snyder’s Justice League; Steppenwolf gets a more imposing appearance, Cyborg becomes the heart of the movie, Flash demonstrates the extent of his powers, Snyder indulges (especially with the slow-mo), Batman is redeemed, Martian Manhunter is introduced and a future with both Darkseid and the Knightmare reality is teased.

Finally, we look to the future with Harley Quinn and Peacemaker on HBO Max plus The Suicide Squad, Aquaman 2, Shazam Fury of the Gods and Black Adam all on the horizon.

Topic Timestamps:

• Introductions to DC & Superman (00:20)
• Man of Steel (2013) (13:24)
• Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) (32:20)
• Suicide Squad (2016) (46:34)
• Wonder Woman (2017) (57:57)
• Justice League (2017) (1:05:36)
• Aquaman (2018) (1:12:25)
• Shazam! (2019) (1:20:20)
• Birds of Prey (2020) (1:26:16)
• Wonder Woman 1984 (2020) (1:34:37)
• Zack Snyder's Justice League (2021) (1:44:30)

Title Availability:

All DCEU movies except Zack Snyder's Justice League:

• Apple | Amazon | Google | Microsoft | Youtube | Fetch (AU)
• DVD | Blu-ray | 4K UHD

Most titles are also available via these platforms:

• HBO Max | VUDU | RedBox | Fandango | DirecTV | AMC OnDemand | Sling | TNT | TBS | Tru | Telstra (AU)
• DVD | Blu-ray | 4K UHD

Zack Snyder's Justice League only:

• Binge & Foxtel Now (AU) | HBO Max (US)

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You can find us online via DIY Film School:

• Subscribe on Apple Podcasts
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An Easter egg from the vault as we discuss a slew of then-recent Superhero sequels; Incredibles 2, Deadpool 2, Avengers: Infinity War and Ant-Man and the Wasp, as well as theorising on the future of Marvel and DC fare.

Serge joins us as our first guest on the show. We discuss The Incredibles movies and how the sequel differs, its focus on superhero teamwork, villain misdirect, the levels of humour for a young and adult audience and the ever-popular Jack-Jack.

For Deadpool 2 we talk about the charm of Ryan Reynolds, the marketing mislead around X-Force, the tonal shifts throughout, Vanessa being fridged, Cable dropping the C-bomb, and the future of the franchise under Disney.

It's been over 20 movies of build-up, does Avengers: Infinity War live up to the hype? We talk about the connective tissue of Age of Ultron and Civil War especially, superhero fatigue, the various team up pairings, our thoughts on Avengers 4 (we still didn't know the Endgame title back then!) and how many of the character deaths may be permanent.

Still in the MCU we talk about Ant-Man and the Wasp. The nature of the quantum realm and its narrative importance, the charm of Paul Rudd, Antz vs A Bug's Life, the comedic success of this series, villains and the introduction of The Wasp.

Finally, we discuss a number of trailers for upcoming superhero/comic book fare from Marvel, DC and others. As well as a brief discussion on the surprise sequel reveal from the end of Split and what that means for Glass.

Titles & topics this episode:

• Incredibles 2 (2018) (1:30) [ DVD | Blu-ray | UHD | Disney+ | Amazon | Google Play | Youtube | Microsoft | Apple TV | Fetch | FandangoNOW | VUDU | DirecTV | AMC On Demand ]
• Deadpool 2 (2018) (23:43)

  [ DVD | Blu-Ray | UHD | Disney+Star (AU) | Amazon | Google Play | Youtube | Apple TV | Microsoft | Fetch | Hulu | VUDU | DirecTV | RedBox | Sling | Spectrum On Demand ]

• Avengers: Infinity War (2018) (39:53)

  [ DVD | Blu-Ray | UHD | Disney+ | Amazon | Google Play | Youtube | Apple TV | Fetch | VUDU | FandangoNOW | DirecTV | AMC On Demand | SlingTV | TNT | TBS | Tru TV ]

• Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018) (1:00:10)

  [ DVD | Blu-Ray | UHD | Disney+ | Amazon | Google Play | Youtube | Apple TV | Microsoft | Fetch | VUDU | FandangoNOW | DirecTV | AMC On Demand | SlingTV | TNT | TBS | Tru TV ]

• Future of Superhero movies (1:26:10)

  We discuss trailers and theories for Avengers 4, Captain Marvel, M. Night Shyamalan's Glass, Shazam, Aquaman, Birds of Prey and Wonder Woman 2

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You can find us online via DIY Film School:

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Our first episode recorded together in 2021. A pair of films now Oscar-nominated, both centring on protagonists searching for purpose and meaning in their lives, linked also by their passion for music.

Riz Ahmed stars as Ruben in Darius Marder's Sound of Metal on Amazon Prime. Ruben, a drummer in a metal band, he struggles to come to terms with a sudden sharp decline in his hearing. We discuss its deaf representation, the original story idea, impressive sound design, nuanced performances and unlikeable characters.

Jamie Foxx stars as Joe, a music teacher turned wayward soul eager to return to his life on Earth with the help of fellow soul, Tina Fey's cynical 22 in Pete Docter & Kemp Powers' Soul from Disney Pixar. We talk about the core message, depression, the POC transformation trope, design influences and the score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross.

Finally, we share brief thoughts on John Lee Hancock's The Little Things, starring Denzel Washington, Rami Malek and Jared Leto. While underwhelmed by the film, we love the WarnerMedia HBO Max deal bringing its 2021 film slate to streaming concurrently to cinema releases in the wake of the pandemic.

Titles this episode:

• Sound of Metal (2020) (07:58)

  [ Amazon Prime ]

• Soul (2021) (43:15)

  [ Disney+ | Disc | Digital ]

• The Little Things (2021) (1:01:20)

  [ Cinemas | WarnerMedia HBO Max deal ]

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You can find us online via DIY Film School:

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• Our Website (under construction)
• Subscribe on Apple Podcasts

A belated Black History Month celebration of recent titles starring Black leads, covering a mix of documentary, drama and horror films. The majority of these are available to stream, so do check them out.

First, HBO’s Black Art: In the Absence of Light a look at the importance of David Driskell in the recognition of work by Black artists, and putting focus on artists working right now and what inspires, influences and motivates them.

Next a pair of romance films. On Amazon Prime, Sylvie’s Love, following a burgeoning ill-timed love between Tessa Thompson and Nnamdi Asomugha. From Netflix, Malcolm & Marie, charting an evening where a conversation becomes the catalyst for relationship breakdown between Zendaya and John David Washington.

On the thriller and horror fronts, we both watched Janelle Monáe endure horrendous treatment in Antebellum, as well as the haunting of refugees Some Dirisu and Wunmi Mosaku in His House on Netflix.

Finally, Luke shares some first reaction thoughts on the legacy sequel, Coming 2 America, on Amazon Prime starring Eddie Murphy and Jermaine Fowler.

Titles this episode:

• Black Art: In the Absence of Light (2021) (1:00)

  [ HBO | HBO Max ]

• Sylvie’s Love (2020) (21:13)

  [ Amazon Prime ]

• Malcolm & Marie (2021) (31:04)

  [ Netflix ]

• Antebellum (2020) (55:23)

   [ Hulu | Amazon Digital | Google Play | Microsoft | VUDU | Youtube ]

• His House (2020) (1:20:20)

  [ Netflix ]

• Coming 2 America (2021) (1:31:46)

  [ Amazon Prime ]

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You can find us online via DIY Film School:

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• Our Website (under construction)
• Subscribe on Apple Podcasts

Let's take another trip back into our archive of unpublished early episodes. Here we have a triple feature discussion from 2018 of then-recent animated films from around the globe.

A wholly unique take on Batman, he's cel-shaded CG-animated and thrust back in time to feudal Japan, in Junpei Mizusaki's Batman Ninja. The first feature film from Studio Ponoc, Mary and the Witch's Flower explores familiar territory. Directed by Alberto Vázquez and Pedro Rivero, subversive Spanish title, Birdboy: The Forgotten Children, explores a ravaged post-apocalyptic society and its oddball animal inhabitants.

We hope you enjoy this deep cut from the vault. Please excuse the lesser sound quality, we were still figuring out this whole podcast thing.

Titles this episode:

• Batman Ninja (2018) (1:50) [ DVD | Blu-ray | HBO Max | Netflix (AU) | Amazon | Google Play | Microsoft | Youtube | iTunes (AU) | Fetch TV (AU) | VUDU (US) | FandangoNOW | RedBox | DirecTV ]
• Mary and the Witch's Flower (2017) (40:30)

  [ DVD | Blu-Ray | Stan | Netflix (US) | Amazon | Google Play | Youtube | iTunes | Fetch TV (AU) | VUDU (US) | FandangoNOW | RedBox | AMC OnDemand ]

• Birdboy: The Forgotten Children (2015/2017) (1:04:20)

  [ Stream: Amazon Prime (AU) | Kanopy ] [ Rent/Buy (US): Amazon | Google Play | Microsoft | VUDU | Youtube ]

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• Our Website (under construction)
• Subscribe on Apple Podcasts

Our season break hiatus came a little early and has lasted quite a while. But Luke returns with friend and guest Harry in Dionne’s stead, for an anniversary celebration of Mark Cousins’ documentary series on cinema history; The Story of Film.

Harry is relatively new to considering the wide world of cinema as art and upon recommendation has been watching Cousins’ documentary series as a “way in” to understanding the history of cinema and important milestones and key figures.

Enthusiasm proved infectious and Luke decided to rewatch alongside Harry to discuss viewing choices and insights from the series. Join us for a spirited talk about film through fresh eyes, in a wide-ranging discussion featuring an eclectic assortment of titles.

We discuss an Iranian documentary short about a village where those suffering leprosy live, in Forough Farrohkhzad's The House is Black (Khaneh siah ast). The intense emotion laid bare in close-up in Carl Theodor Dreyer's The Passion of Joan of Arc. Harry espouses a newfound love for Agnès Varda's work with the discovery of her intimate portrait of Rue Daguerre shop owners in Daguerréotypes.

Luke closes out the episode with a couple of recommendations. The rhythms of life, as seen on screen in a 24-hour period assembled from cinema, in Christian Marclay's video art installation piece The Clock. Finally, delving into the nature of self identity in Derek DelGaudio's filmed hybrid magic act meets performance and spoken word stage show; In & Of Itself.

Titles this episode:

• The House is Black (1963) (14:30) [ DVD ]
• The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928) (34:25) [ Amazon Digital | HBO Max | Criterion Collection Disc | Criterion Channel | Kanopy ]
• Daguerréotypes (1976) (1:01:15) [ Criterion Collection Disc | Amazon Digital | Criterion Channel | Mubi | Fandor ]
• The Clock (2010) (1:18:45)

  [ Not currently in exhibition ]

• In & Of Itself (2020) (1:27:40)

  [ Hulu ]

Other Links & Mentions:

Harry mentioned this one when we discussed the Criterion Collection. Please do check out his reviews!

• DaisukeBeppu's Youtube Channel

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Harry will return for another chat or two further along his journey. Though we just might have another unconventional episode in store for you next week…