The Next Picture Show

Like H.G. Clouzot’s DIABOLIQUE, Cory Finley’s directorial debut THOROUGHBREDS develops around a plot between two women who enter into a pact to murder a purely malevolent man, but to much different effect. After discussing our reactions to THOROUGHBREDS’ hyper-formal style and disconcerting ending, we dig into how the two films compare and contrast in terms of their many stylistic flourishes, their motivations for murder, and their respective killer conspiracies. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.

Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about DIABOLIQUE, THOROUGHBREDS, or both by sending an email to [email protected], or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. Your Next Picture Show: • Keith: Serge Bromberg and Ruxandra Medrea’s CLOUZOT’S INFERNO• Genevieve: Anna Deavere Smith and Kristi Zea’s NOTES FROM THE FIELD• Scott: Clarence Brown’s INTRUDER IN THE DUST

Outro Music: The Sweet Hurt, “All The Things”

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Cory Finley’s stylish directorial debut THOROUGHBREDS follows an unlikely pairing of women as they endeavor to kill a domineering man in their life, a setup reminiscent of H.G. Clouzot’s classic 1955 shocker DIABOLIQUE, which took that premise and then applied one of cinema’s all-time greatest twists. In this half of our pairing, we dig deep into DIABOLIQUE, discussing whether its legendary ending is “spoiler-proof,” admiring the skill with which Clouzot keeps viewers off their guard (and how it differs from the approach of Clouzot’s contemporary, Alfred Hitchcock), and debating what makes for a believable on-screen drowning. Plus, a glimpse at the mountain of feedback we received on our episodes pairing STALKER and ANNIHILATION.

Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about DIABOLIQUE, THOROUGHBREDS, or both by sending an email to [email protected], or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. 

Outro music: “Deadly Valentine” by Charlotte Gainsbourg

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We take another science-fiction-adjacent journey into the unknown via Alex Garland’s new ANNIHILATION, a distinctive cinematic vision that nonetheless calls back to Andrei Tarkovsky’s 1979 film STALKER in terms of its structure and filmmaking — if not quite the specifics of its dreamlike narrative and themes. After discussing what puzzled and delighted us about ANNIHILATION, we discuss what connects it to STALKER, and how both challenge viewers in their own way. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.

Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about STALKER, ANNIHILATION, or both by sending an email to [email protected], or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. Your Next Picture Show: • Genevieve: Dorota Kobiela and Hugh Welchman’s LOVING VINCENT• Tasha: Duncan Jones’ MOON• Keith: Saul Bass’ PHASE IV• Scott: Travis Wilkerson’s DID YOU WONDER WHO FIRED THE GUN?

SHOW NOTES:Works Cited:• “So, the lady or the tiger? 28 stories that make the audience choose the ending”  by Tasha Robinson et al (The A.V. Club) • “The original scripted ending of Annihilation sounds better” by Tasha Robinson (The Verge)• “Annihilation Co-Composer Ben Salisbury Explains How That Weird Little Melody Wound Up in the Film’s Trailer” by Marissa Matinelli (Slate.com)• Instagram account @petrifiedrainbow

Outro Music: Crosby, Stills & Nash “Helplessly Hoping”

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Alex Garland’s new ANNIHILATION is a loose adaptation of a novel, but its premise, themes, and style give it just as strong a connection to Andrei Tarkovsky’s 1979 philosophical science fiction film STALKER. In this half of the pairing, we venture into STALKER’s mysterious Zone on a search for meaning and metaphor within an enigmatic cinematic landscape that’s as beguiling as it is intimidating. Plus, feedback on some recent episodes that were, and episodes that might have been.

Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about STALKER, ANNIHILATION, or both by sending an email to [email protected], or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. 

Outro music: “Meditation” by Eduard Artemiev

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We return to the deep, dark waters of the id to unpack what SHAPE OF WATER director Guillermo Del Toro saw in Jack Arnold’s 1954 horror-sci-fi classic CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON that inspired him to literalize a relationship between a woman and a fish-man. After analyzing the range of reactions we had toward Del Toro’s film and debating whether it is a “snowglobe movie,” we plunge into the connections that link the two films, from the obvious character analogs to their not-so-obvious shared nostalgia. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.

Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON, SHAPE OF WATER, or both by sending an email to [email protected], or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. 

Your Next Picture Show: 

• Keith: Joe Dante’s MATINEE

• Scott: William Wyler’s MRS. MINIVER

• Tasha: Agnieszka Smoczynska’s THE LURE

Outro Music: Sally Hawkins, “You’ll Never Know”

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Guillermo Del Toro has made clear that his new THE SHAPE OF WATER stems directly from his obsession with 1954’s THE CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON, and his desire to see the “romance” between the monster and leading lady work out. We unpack that desire by revisiting Jack Arnold’s horror-sci-fi classic, to consider the film’s place in the Universal Monsters pantheon and mid-century sci-fi boom alike, ponder what makes the image of a screaming woman being spirited away by a monster so enduring, and pinpoint the Herzogian echoes in the film's ill-fated excursion to the Amazon. Plus, some feedback on our recent episodes on A FUTILE AND STUPID GESTURE and PHANTOM THREAD.

Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON, SHAPE OF WATER, or both by sending an email to [email protected], or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. 

Outro music: “Underwater Love” by Smoke City

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David Wain’s new A FUTILE AND STUPID GESTURE brings the deconstructive spirit of his cult comedy classic WET HOT AMERICAN SUMMER to the biopic formula, putting a meta, self-aware spin on the story of Doug Kenney, co-founder of The National Lampoon. After digging into the benefits and limitations of Wain’s approach as applied to a sprawling biopic-slash-portrait of a scene, we talk over how the two films work together, as points of comparison as well as contrast. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.

Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about WET HOT AMERICAN SUMMER, A FUTILE AND STUPID GESTURE, or both by sending an email to [email protected], or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. 

Your Next Picture Show: 

• Keith: Elaine May’s A NEW LEAF

• Genevieve: Michael Almeryeda’s MARJORIE PRIME

• Scott: Abbas Kiarostami’s 24 FRAMES

Outro Music: Martin Mull, “The Time Of My Life”

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David Wain’s new biopic spoof A FUTILE AND STUPID GESTURE had a pretty ignominious Netflix debut, but that seems in keeping with the comedic director’s history of films that are unappreciated in their time but grow a cult following — a history that was established with 2001’s WET HOT AMERICAN SUMMER, a Sundance flop that’s now rightly considered a comedy classic. In the first half of our comparison of the two films, we talk over our WET HOT impressions then and now, share some theories for why it didn’t hit with critics or audiences, and consider the limitations of Wain’s affectionate but ultimately insincere, sketch-comedy-influenced style. Plus, some feedback on our recent episodes on PHANTOM THREAD and I, TONYA.

Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about WET HOT AMERICAN SUMMER, A FUTILE AND STUPID GESTURE, or both by sending an email to [email protected], or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. 

Outro music: “Higher and Higher” by Craig Wedron and Theodore Shapiro

Articles cited: 

• Tonya Harding Would Like Her Apology Now, by Taffy Brodesser-Akner (New York Times)

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With PHANTOM THREAD, Paul Thomas Anderson has repurposed REBECCA to his own ends, telling a personal story that’s unique from the original yet still resonates with echoes of Hitchcock’s gothic romance. We tug at the many threads Anderson has woven throughout his film, before diving into what unites it with REBECCA, from the two films’ character analogs to their complementary relationships with food. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.

Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about REBECCA, PHANTOM THREAD, or both by sending an email to [email protected], or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. 

Your Next Picture Show: 

• Genevieve: William Oldroyd’s LADY MACBETH and Frederic Tcheng’s DIOR AND I

• Scott: Michal Marczak’s ALL THESE SLEEPLESS NIGHTS

• Keith: Christopher Landen’s HAPPY DEATH DAY

• Tasha: Brian Taylor’s MOM AND DAD

Outro Music: Chic, “I Want Your Love”

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Paul Thomas Anderson has made it clear that his new PHANTOM THREAD is a purposeful riff on Alfred Hitchcock’s 1940 Best Picture winner REBECCA, inspiring us to return to Manderley for a reflection on the film that brought Hitchcock to Hollywood (and to producer David O. Selznick, whom he famously clashed with). We talk over what REBECCA gained and lost from being produced under the Hays Code, what it signaled for Hitchcock’s career going forward, and what to make of the two big relationships (or would-be love triangle) at its center. Plus, some belated but welcome feedback on our CALL ME BY YOUR NAME discussion.

Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about REBECCA, PHANTOM THREAD, or both by sending an email to [email protected], or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. 

Outro music: “Walking With a Ghost” by Tegan and Sara

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