With its first female-led installment in the Marvel Studio franchise, most people are asking what took so long? But in one corner of the Internet, CAPTAIN MARVEL is a bridge too far, especially for those angered by star Brie Larson's progressive calls for diversity and inclusivity. LA Times film writer Mark Olsen (@IndieFocus) is joined by Kenneth Turan (@KennethTuran), Jen Yamato (@jenyamato), Justin Chang (@JustinCChang), Tracy Brown (@tracycbrown) and Sonaiya Kelley (@sonaiyak ) to discuss the politics surrounding CAPTAIN MARVEL and the merits of the film itself -- its indie directors, its '90s nostalgia and its cast, including Reggie, the cat thespian.

Despite what's been called a "despicable" Best Picture win, L.A. Times feature writer and reviewer Mark Olsen (@IndieFocus) talks with Justin Chang (@JustinCChang), Mary McNamara (@marymacTV) and Glenn Whipp (@GlennWhipp) about how real change may have arrived at the Academy. Plus, Jen Yamato (@jenyamato) and Amy Kaufman (@AmyKinLA) get their Gaga fix on, and share the scoop on what was going on off-camera at the Academy Awards.

On this week’s episode of The Reel, L.A. Times feature writer and reviewer Mark Olsen (@IndieFocus) previews the 2019 Academy Awards with Justin Chang (@JustinCChang), Mary McNamara (@marymacTV) and Glenn Whipp (@GlennWhipp). They discuss their favorite films of the year and explore some of the possible outcomes in this year's top award categories.

On this week’s episode of The Reel, L.A. Times feature writer and reviewer Mark Olsen (@IndieFocus) is joined by Director Spike Lee and two of his longtime collaborators, composer Terence Blanchard and editor Barry Alexander Brown. They discuss the success of their latest, “BlacKkKlansman” and the lasting impact of the film.

On this week’s episode of The Reel, L.A. Times feature writer and reviewer Mark Olsen (@IndieFocus) was joined by Director Steven Soderbergh, to talk about his new film “High Flying Bird,” which premiered at Slamdance Film Festival last month. The Oscar-winning filmmaker takes us inside his movie-making process, including what it's like shooting a movie entirely on a smartphone.

On this week’s episode of The Reel, L.A. Times feature writer and reviewer Mark Olsen (@IndieFocus) was live in Park City, Utah for the 2019 Sundance Film Festival. After watching many of this year's movies and documentaries, he sat down with Justin Chang (@JustinCChang), Amy Kaufman (@AmyKinLA), Kenneth Turan (@KennethTuran) and Jen Yamato (@jenyamato) to discuss the best films they saw and why.

On this week’s episode of The Reel, L.A. Times feature writer and reviewer Mark Olsen (@IndieFocus) sits down with Glenn Whipp (@GlennWhipp) and Justin Chang (@JustinCChang) to take an early look at the 2019 Oscar nominations. They discuss key takeaways from the nominated films, including an increase in internationally focused nominations and the significance behind the “best director” category.

On this week’s episode of The Reel, LA Times feature writer and reviewer Mark Olsen (@IndieFocus) sits down with Meredith Blake (@MeredithBlake), Robert Lloyd (@LATimesTVLloyd), and Yvonne Villarreal (@villarrealy) to discuss HBO’s latest season of 'True Detective' starring Mahershala Ali. They also reflect back on David Chase's HBO series ‘The Sopranos’ 20 years after its premiere.

This week Mark Olsen (@IndieFocus) leads a discussion about the importance of last week's Golden Globes and how they might shine a light on what we can expect from the Oscars as we start to wrap up awards season.

This week Mark Olsen (@IndieFocus) talks to reporter Carolina Miranda (@cmonstah) after she and director Alfonso Cuarón walked through the streets of the Mexico City neighborhood where he shot his film Roma.