The Next Picture Show

James Gunn’s new closing entry in his GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY trilogy for Marvel revolves around a tragic backstory for Rocket-don’t-say-Racoon that draws from a history of creation-vs.-creator narratives that stretches back to Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. But Gunn himself has cited the cruel experimentations of H.G. Wells’ Doctor Moreau, and specifically the 1932 film adaptation ISLAND OF LOST SOULS, as the reference point for Rocket’s journey. So we traveled through the fog of time to explore Erle C. Kenton’s depiction of Moreau’s island, where the animal-man makeup effects and Charles Laughton’s unique take on the mad scientist take center stage. Plus, a listener request for commentary track recommendations invites a slew of suggestions from our resident enthusiast.  

Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about ISLAND OF LOST SOULS, GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOLUME 3, or anything else in the world of film, by sending an email to [email protected], or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730.

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Kelly Fremon Craig’s winning new adaptation of Judy Blume’s ARE YOU THERE GOD? IT’S ME, MARGARET is as gentle and good-natured as the other film in this pairing, Todd Solondz’s WELCOME TO THE DOLLHOUSE, is acerbic and off-putting. But both films are frank in their own way about a stage of life that cinema often ignores, so after talking through MARGARET’s warm and welcoming 1970s vision of suburban New Jersey adolescence, we bring DOLLHOUSE’s grim and grungy 1990s depiction into the discussion to compare the films’ respective takes on puberty, peer pressure, crushes, and bullying. 

Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about WELCOME TO THE DOLLHOUSE, ARE YOU THERE GOD? IT’S ME, MARGARET, or anything else in the world of film, by sending an email to [email protected], or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730.

Next Pairing: Erle C. Kenton’s ISLAND OF LOST SOULS and James Gunn’s GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL. 3

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Inspired by the new adaptation of Judy Blume’s classic coming-of-age novel ARE YOU THERE GOD? IT’S ME, MARGARET, we’re beginning this pairing by looking back at another rocky journey through adolescence in the New Jersey suburbs — though Dawn Wiener’s journey in Tom Solondz’s 1995 indie WELCOME TO THE DOLLHOUSE is considerably rockier. Where MARGARET is gentle and warm, DOLLHOUSE is as prickly as its protagonist, and unsparing in the way it mines dark comedy by stacking the decks against her at every turn. Whether that comedy is worth the accompanying discomfort is a topic of discussion this week, along with the film’s left-field ending move and Solondz’s continuing adventures in the cinematic Wienerverse. Plus, a listener letter about BEFORE SUNRISE raises a question for discussion: Has any genre of movie benefitted from the addition of cell phones?

Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about WELCOME TO THE DOLLHOUSE, ARE YOU THERE GOD? IT’S ME, MARGARET, or anything else in the world of film, by sending an email to [email protected], or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730.

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The first few months of the year have a reputation — arguably an unfair one — as a dumping ground for films unlikely to draw blockbuster crowds or notice from awards-giving bodies. Here at The Next Picture Show, we don’t subscribe to the idea that no movies of value come out during these months, but we will acknowledge how rarely one of these films makes it onto our final Best of the Year lists. So before summer movie season commences and wipes our collective cultural consciousness of what preceded it, Scott and Keith got together for a special one-off episode focused on ten such films. Whether they end up being the best of the year, or just the best of the first third of the year, they’re worth a closer look.

Please share your picks on the year’s best so far, along with any other comments, thoughts, or questions, by sending an email to [email protected], or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730.

Next Pairing: Todd Solondz’s WELCOME TO THE DOLLHOUSE and Kelly Fremon Craig’s ARE YOU THERE GOD? IT’S ME, MARGARET.

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Like Cameron Crowe’s JERRY MAGUIRE, Ben Affleck’s new AIR takes place in the world of sports but is more concerned with matters off the playing field. In the case of AIR, those matters ultimately come down to a triumph of capitalism and marketing, leaving us all a little confused about the film’s rooting interests, but nonetheless entertained by its confident showmanship. But is that enough for the film to hold its own against JERRY MAGUIRE? We hash it out in Connections by tracing the two films’ character analogues and respective ideas about showing us the money. 

Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about JERRY MAGUIRE, AIR, or anything else in the world of film, by sending an email to [email protected], or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730.

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Ben Affleck’s new AIR is a feel-good capitalist tale about a guy-behind-the-guy who bets it all on a single sports star, a.k.a “pulling a Jerry Maguire,” but that premise really only represents one half of Cameron Crowe’s 1996 crowd-pleaser. Much like its protagonist, JERRY MAGUIRE splits its attention between sports and romance, and how successfully the film marries the two is a topic of some debate in this week’s discussion, along with the general efficacy of Tom Cruise, romantic lead. 

Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about JERRY MAGUIRE, AIR, or anything else in the world of film, by sending an email to [email protected], or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730.

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While the new RYE LANE shares a basic premise with 1995’s BEFORE SUNRISE — two strangers meet by chance and spend the day exploring a city and getting to know each other — Raine Allen-Miller’s film operates as a romcom first and foremost. Whether that’s to the film’s benefit or detriment is at the heart of our discussion of the new film, and RYE LANE’s romcom nature proves a frequent point of contrast when placed alongside BEFORE SUNRISE in Connections. It also inspires this week’s Your Next Picture Show challenge, to provide an on-the-fly recommendation of a great 21st-century romcom. 

Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about BEFORE SUNRISE, RYE LANE, or anything else in the world of film, by sending an email to [email protected], or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730.

Next Pairing: Cameron Crowe’s JERRY MAGUIRE and Ben Affleck’s AIR

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The new Sundance hit RYE LANE is broadly speaking a romantic comedy, but it is more specifically a walk-and-talk romance, focused on two attractive young strangers who share a moment that turns into a day spent traveling around a city while getting to know each other. That naturally pointed us in the direction of Richard Linklater’s BEFORE SUNRISE, in which strangers on a train make a momentary connection that they decide to extend through the night — and, eventually, through two more films in the resulting trilogy. It’s hard not to discuss those subsequent films in this week’s revisitation of BEFORE SUNRISE, and we don’t entirely succeed, but we do our best to remain in the moment of Jesse and Céline’s first date as we discuss the film’s interest in transitory moments, cynicism in the face of romance, and all the varied ways in which humans communicate. 

Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about BEFORE SUNRISE, RYE LANE, or anything else in the world of film, by sending an email to [email protected], or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730.

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The John Wick series originated as the straightforward story of a skilled killer on a mission of revenge, but since then its mythology has expanded to encompass four films spanning multiple countries, an ever-mounting body count, and increasingly opaque motivations for Keanu Reeves’ titular revenger. We’re joined once again by Vulture critic and friend of the show Alison Willmore to discuss the newest entry in the Wickiverse, whether its extreme closing speed offsets a baggy middle section, and how the film’s illusion of closure is undercut by an array of spinoff-ready characters. Then we return to the origin of this pairing by bringing POINT BLANK back into the discussion to talk codes of honor and disposable underlings as they pertain to men on a mission of revenge.

Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about POINT BLANK, JOHN WICK: CHAPTER 4, or anything else in the world of film, by sending an email to [email protected], or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730.

Next Pairing: Richard Linklater’s BEFORE SUNRISE and Raine Allen-Miller’s RYE LANE

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The revenge narrative has proven fertile ground for film in general (indeed, this is not our first pairing inspired by the subject) and the John Wick franchise specifically, which has just spawned its fourth chapter tracing a one-man killing machine’s path of righteous destruction across the globe. It’s also provided us with a fine excuse to revisit 1967’s POINT BLANK, the John Boorman cult classic that follows Lee Marvin on a more localized but no less brutal revenge tour of his own. So in preparation for John Wick’s globe-trotting mayhem, this week we’re joined by Vulture film critic and returning guest Alison Willmore to talk over POINT BLANK’s alternately dreamlike and bleak portrait of a man who’s lost his humanity — symbolically or literally, depending on your read — plunging violently back into the human world.

Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about POINT BLANK, JOHN WICK: CHAPTER 4, or anything else in the world of film, by sending an email to [email protected], or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730.

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