"Motherless Brooklyn" marks a twenty-year journey for writer, director, producer, and star Edward Norton and Norton joins me to discuss the film on Episode 11 of The Fourth Wall.

Norton is truly one of the great talents of our generation whose diverse body of work has spanned across films such as “Primal Fear” and “American History X,” both of which earned him Academy Award Nominations, “Fight Club,” “The Incredible Hulk,” and “Birdman” just to name a few. In the mere twenty-some minutes we chatted, it became clear that not only is Norton a massive fan of cinema, more specifically film noir, but is riveted by projects that have something to say about our current societal moment. He's a firm believer in Joseph Campbell's concept of transparency and that the most potent art is that which reflects our own image back at us. For all the "Chinatown" callbacks and reverence for classic film noir, it was precisely this concept that allowed Norton to get to the heart of his take on "Motherless Brooklyn."

During our conversation, we go deep into the films that excite and inspire Norton along with how growing up the grandson of a community builder helped shape his approach to "Motherless Brooklyn" and why movies like "The Big Sleep" and "Chinatown" were so influential. "Motherless Brooklyn" hits theaters this Friday, November 1st.

1991's "Terminator: Judgement Day" is finally getting a proper sequel in the highly anticipated "Terminator: Dark Fate," and my guest for Episode 10 of The Fourth Wall is the film's director Tim Miller.

Tim has become somewhat of a rising star given the breakout success of 2016's "Deadpool." While the filmmaker sadly departed the sequel due to creative differences (see Tim's original plan for "Deadpool 2"), a new opportunity arose in the form revamping the Terminator franchise. A veteran of the visual effects industry, Tim became acquainted with James Cameron while Blur Studio (Tim's visual effects, animation, and design company) completed work on "Avatar." From there, and with the help of several abysmal Terminator sequels, the cogs began to turn, and the notion of a proper sequel to "T2" started becoming a reality. It's easy for many filmmakers early in their career to buy into their own hype (especially coming off of one of the most profitable R rated films of all time), however, with Tim the idea of openness and collaboration is something he very much encourages and stems from the environment he's fostered at Blur.

During our conversation, Tim's desire to genuinely make a good movie that audiences will not only enjoy but that he himself is proud of became apparent, and many of "Dark Fate's" key contributions came from members of the cast to which Miller praised to no end. We also discussed the film's prominent Latinx representation, working with Arnold Schwarzenegger and Linda Hamilton, how Hamilton wanted to go even darker with Sarah Conner this go around, emerging filmmaking technologies that excite Tim the most, and much more.

Charlie Chaplin lampooning Hitler’s bombast and fragility in “The Great Dictator” (1940) marked one of film comedy’s all-time “truth to power” moments. But 80 years after WWII, how best to laugh at fascists when they seldom don the brownshirt? With the release of Taika Waititi’s “Jojo Rabbit”—a would-be charming comedy about a Hitler youth whose imaginary friend is der Führer—Chance and Noah ask themselves why, how, and when skewered Nazis are funny. After reviewing “Jojo,” Chance and Noah duck back to “The Producers” (1967) and “Top Secret!” (1984) to examine how Nazis became a source of irony and camp for filmmakers like Mel Brooks and the ZAZ trio. As always—down with Hitler; all the way down.

"The Bourne Legacy," "Jason Bourne," and "Treadstone" producer Ben Smith joins me for Episode 9 of The Fourth Wall to talk about expanding the World of Jason Bourne in the Bourne spin-off series.

Making for the perfect blend of "24" meets "Heroes," the series marks an almost decade long journey for Smith as he's had his heart set on expanding the world that Robert Ludlum created. Perhaps much of this influence comes from the involvement of "Heroes" creator Tim Kring, who Smith discussed collaborating with, and stunt coordinator from "The Bourne Ultimatum," but at the heart of it, what excited Smith the most was the opportunity to explore the mythology of not only the films but Ludlum's novels in order to tell very personal and interconnected stories that were affected by the geopolitical landscape of today. "The base that Ludlum created is very rich," said Smith, "and I think it's a perfect fit for television. You just have a lot more real estate to dive into a lot of different characters which is what we've done on 'Treadstone.'"

For those unaware, "Treadstone" tells the origins of the secret government organization that led to the birth of Jason Bourne. Taking place in 1973 and present day, the series follows these sleeper agents from the Cicada Program (another program under the Treadstone umbrella) as they mysteriously begin to awaken around the globe ten years after audiences meet Jason Bourne in "The Bourne Identity." The prospect of crossing over "Treadstone" with Matt Damon's Jason Bourne or even Jeremy Renner's Aaron Cross is certainly something that would excite fans of the franchise and even Smith himself, however, it all comes down to what the story requires. "What's happening in the world of Bourne is independent of what's happening right now in 'Treadstone,'" said Smith. "There is crossover mythology, but there is no planned tie-in today."

During my conversation with Smith, we discussed the long journey to creating "Treadstone," balancing character storytelling with that signature Bourne action, the work that went into the stunt choreography, his relationship with Ludlum's novels and the Bourne franchise as a whole, and actors he'd like to see play in the expansive Bourne sandbox.

As much as people say, "You're your own worst enemy!", it's never been truer than for the protagonists of "Gemini Man" (2019), "Fight Club" (1999) and "Us" (2019). Whether through movie-science cloning, mental illness or oppressive class structures (with a healthy dose of late capitalism in all three), this week, the Be Reel guys are looking at movies that pit protagonists against literal manifestations of themselves. Around the 28-minute mark, Noah and Chance are thrilled to be joined by Brad Pitt devotee and Letterboxd queen Mia Vicino to examine “Fight Club” on its 20th birthday and celebrate “The Year of Pitt.”

Ryan is joined by Clint Worthington (Consequence of Sound, The Spool) to discuss "El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie," the epilogue to Vince Gilligan's groundbreaking series that hit Netflix this past weekend.

We speak to director/producer/actor/dancer Carolina Monnerat about Brazil and the movies she's made, including the new "Queen of Lapa."

Prepare for #MaximumDiscourse, and set phasers to stun. "Joker" - the Todd Phillips-directed dark superhero drama based on Batman's most iconic nemesis - is finally here, and there are certainly thoughts to be had. On this episode, Ryan is joined by Chris Evangelista (/Film) to unpack the controversial film, and tackle the overall discussion happening in the film community at large.

After a brief hiatus while Ryan was on paternity leave, The Discourse is back! On this episode, Ryan is joined again by Jenny Nulf (Austin Chronicle, Austin Asian American Film Festival) to talk Fantastic Fest 2019, the films in September that we missed ("It: Chapter Two," "Hustlers," and more), and dedicate the main review segment to "First Love," the latest film from Takashi Miike.

This week's Be Reel trio—"Ad Astra" (2019), "High Life" (2019), and "Interstellar" (2014)—draws on the revelations of therapy couches as much as astronomy. With special attention on the critically acclaimed new James Gray/Brad Pitt drama, Noah and Chance unpack these sagas of fathers, children, and the literal and metaphorical light-years between them.