Sister Cinema

The Chosen One archetype is a tale as old as time, yet so many iterations of it feel different and fresh. For this week's episode we dig into two of the biggest young adult chosen one characters from the 21st century. Our first is the massive blockbuster series that launched so many careers, Harry Potter. Then we have the other worldly Hunger Games, featuring one of our favorites Jennifer Lawrence. Enjoy!

We're mixing it up and talking about one specific character in film and his evolution through the years: The Joker. We have 5 iterations of this character through the years that we dig into, each putting a unique twist on the character (for better or worse). We start with 1966's Batman, jump to 1989's Batman, then The Dark Knight in 2008, followed by Suicide Squad in 2016, and we end on the very recent Joker from 2019. We hope you enjoy this fun character and a new twist on our typical podcast format. 

Who says silent movies are a thing of the past? A film is made up of so many elements, and sometimes dialogue is the smallest of those. This week we break down a couple of movies from the growing genre of films with minimal dialogue. First up is Christopher Nolan's historical war flick Dunkirk, full of explosions and very little conversating. Then we move to John Krasinski's directorial debut A Quiet Place, well known by audiences as the movie you don't bring any candy into. Enjoy!

Welcome to our Christopher Guest, I mean Mockumentaries episode. We've touched on this genre before, but this week we dig deeper into two iconic mockumetary films. Our first film, Waiting for Guffman, is a fantastic showcase (literally and figuratively) of comedic talents before anyone really knew who they were. Our second film needs no introduction, so I'll just say "It goes up to 11". Enjoy!

Another year, another award season. Join in the fun of trying to somehow read the minds of those behind choosing the winners. I promise we will get most of these wrong, but it's fun to try. And in the process we get to mildly over examine nominated movies (and not nominated movies, oops). Congratulations winners!

Once again we get to enjoy a Christmas tradition loved by so many; arguing over whether or not certain movies actually qualify as "Christmas" movies. This year we tackled two very different films. First up is the 80's animatronics masterpiece Gremlins. So much to say, so little time. Then we jump to the mess of a holiday rom-com known as Love Actually. Our disdain is palpable y'all. Merry Chrysler!

Love them or hate them, Hallmark-style holiday romance movies is a vast and deep genre of Christmas movie with a huge cult following. This week we love and hate on a couple of picture-perfect examples of these films. First up is ABC Family's The Spirit of Christmas in which a classic I-don't-believe-in-love woman falls for a ghost (obviously). Then we jump to the groundhog day-esque 12 Dates of Christmas featuring a hopeless-romantic woman learning the true value of Christmas and a nice guy. They may not be groundbreaking, but they're hella fun to talk about.

Greek life can be very appealing, especially to people going through a mid-life crisis! In this episode we tackle the world of sororities and fraternities via two classic comedies, with a special guest! Old School, one of the first movies for Will Ferrell to star in, is a cult classic that has some great one-liners and less great plot points. The House Bunny, in contrast, was less of a blockbuster but arguably has stood the test of time a little better. Either way, we had a fun time with these movies. Enjoy!

Hooray, we made it to our 50th episode! Not that we did anything different for it, we just needed you to know. Moving on. This week we're talking about a genre that tends to get overlooked when discussing films; animated movies, especially when they aren't a Disney or Pixar one. But they're great and we have two case studies that prove it. Ponyo is an adorable masterpiece that helped bring the brilliance of Studio Ghibli to an American audience through American voices. Persepolis is an incredible realization of a graphic novel onto the big screen, depicting the life of a young Iranian woman trying to find herself through the turbulence of the Islamic Revolution, and just the general turbulence of being a young girl. These movies are proof that good, sincere cinema can simply exist on a piece of paper.

It's time to get crazy, but not exactly the fun kind. This week we're breaking down two picture perfect examples of cinematic descent into madness. First we cover the breathtaking debut performance of Elizabeth Olson in Martha Marcy May Marlene (what a title). Then we jump to physiological-thriller-teetering-on-horror that is Black Swan. Both are really a must. Enjoy the descent!