Watch With Jen™

Returning to the podcast today, we have a fan favorite and one of my besties - that's right it's our very first guest and my Pandemic Movie Club buddy - the Edgar award-winning author of "She Rides Shotgun" and "Love and Other Wounds," Jordan Harper. A screenwriter and producer of such shows as "The Mentalist" and "Gotham," who also crafted one of the most beautiful pilots for "L.A. Confidential," which CBS stupidly didn't pick up, currently, Jordan is back in the writers' room for the third season of the Starz series "Hightown."

Additionally (and goddamned annoyingly, if you ask me), he finished not one but two novels during the pandemic and they're both excellent. The first book, called "The Last King of California" is a gritty work perfect for fans of "Shotgun" that will be published this year in the UK, and the second, the topical epic Tinseltown thriller "Everybody Knows" will hit shelves everywhere next year. I can't wait for you to read them both!

Since we talk crime movies all the time, because - as Raymond Chandler might say - murder is his business, Jordan and I opted to put on on our fedoras and have some laughs this week at the genre's comedic side in this engagingly fast-paced eighty-eight-minute conversation. So join us for some friendly intrigue as we take a tour of the secret passageways of the movies "Deathtrap," "Clue," "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?" and "So I Married An Axe Murder" and prove that (in the right hands) murder can be fun.

Originally Posted on Patreon (3/15/22) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/63839960

Logo: Kate Gabrielle (KateGabrielle.com)

Theme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music Archive

You're receiving an early bonus episode this week because daylight saving time is on Sunday and winter is almost gone, so I figured the best way to say goodbye to the days of cool temperatures and early darkness is with a roundup of recent Blu-ray releases. Featuring a very eclectic collection of titles that were largely so obscure that guests weren't able to track them down to join me, the first half of this very casual, laid-back episode finds me walking you through the new Chabrol box set from Arrow as well as "Only the Animals," "Gold Diggers of 1933," "Song of the Thin Man," "The Three Musketeers" (1948), and "Wayne's World."

While this section of the episode is a throwback of sorts to the early days of this podcast where you heard me offering solo film recommendations (and trying to make good on a promise to some listeners who miss this casual, impromptu approach), the second half serves up a very delightful conversation with one of my best friends. Joining me to deliver a passionate defense of one of her favorite underrated Alfred Hitchcock movies - "Stage Fright" (1950), which was just released by Warner Archive Collection - I adore talking to artist Kate Gabrielle about all things classic movies. She's always a joy and fittingly, her love of physical media inspired her to design the tee I'm wearing in the photo (which is available at KateGabrielle.com). And although next week will find us going back to the episode style you're used to hearing from Watch With Jen, I hope this installment will amuse you all the same!

Originally Posted on Patreon (3/11/22) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/63666474

Logo: KateGabrielle.com

Theme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music Archive

This week, I was thrilled to welcome Washington City Paper film critic Noah Gittell back to the podcast for the first time since he joined me for an epic discussion last May on '90s duality in the films "Zero Effect" and "Fight Club." A reporter at BBC Talk Movies and a guest lecturer at Smithsonian Associates, Noah is also a freelance contributor at such notable outlets as The Atlantic, The Ringer, The Guardian, Polygon, and The Economist.

In this fast-paced contemplative episode, he joins me to take a closer look at one of the most creatively fertile periods in the life of our favorite wild and crazy guy - Steve Martin. A comedian, actor, writer, director, producer, musician, magician, and Mensa level genius, Steve Martin is a man who has worn a number of hats throughout his fifty-plus year career but for the purposes of our conversation, we decided to zero in on Martin in the mid to late 1980s as he began embracing his career as an actor.

From his supporting turn as a sadistic dentist in "Little Shop of Horrors" to his great ensemble studio comedies "Three Amigos!" and "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels" to his surprisingly sweet, sexy, and sophisticated "Cyrano de Bergerac" adaptation "Roxanne," in this 52-minute discussion, Noah and I evaluate all sides of the Martin persona from the fully absurd to the downright horny.

One of the world's most beloved entertainers you've heard discussed on Watch With Jen in past installments on David Mamet (for "The Spanish Prisoner"), Physical Media - Part 3 (for a new edition of "Planes, Trains, and Automobiles"), and '90s Romcoms (for "Father of the Bride") while this is our first episode dedicated to the actor, it's safe to say, it won't be our last.

Originally Posted on Patreon (3/8/22) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/63509809

Logo: KateGabrielle.com

Theme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music Archive

In this very special episode, The Black List's Director of Community Kate Hagen returns to the podcast to help me welcome one of our all-time favorite filmmakers to Watch With Jen. A Los Angeles based independent writer-director who's won both a MacArthur Genius Grant along with a Peabody Award, Allison Anders' acclaimed films include her terrific debut "Border Radio" (co-directed with UCLA classmates Kurt Voss and Dean Lent), "Gas Food Lodging," "Mi Vida Loca," "Grace of My Heart," "Things Behind the Sun," and more.

Although we'd mainly planned to come together to celebrate the 30th anniversary of her award-winning sophomore feature "Gas Food Lodging," soon our richly free-flowing conversation opened up to span the beloved director's entire career. Whether she's describing her time spent inspiring Harry Dean Stanton's performance on the set of "Paris, Texas" while working as a PA for Wim Wenders, directing Brooke Adams on "Gas Food Lodging," collecting Greta Garbo's records, or appearing in Paul McCartney's liner notes, Anders' stories will delight film students, buffs, and professionals alike. Filled with laughter, great advice, and creative inspiration, this is one of our best episodes so far.

Originally Posted on Patreon (3/4/22) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/63342725

Logo: Kate Gabrielle (KateGabrielle.com)

Theme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music Archive

This week, I'm so thrilled and proud to welcome back one of my dearest pals and the hardest working man in pod business, Mr. Blake Howard. The brains behind the stellar One Heat Minute Productions that launched with an in-depth minute-by-minute investigation and appreciation of Michael Mann's "Heat," he's released numerous pods since, including "All The President's Minutes," "Josie and the Podcats," "Zodiac: Chronicle," and also, the excellent "Increment Vice," hosted by our good friend, the film essayist Travis Woods. With several more releasing now like "Miami Nice," "Rum and Rant," "Too Much Movie," plus essays on heist films at Vague Visages, his busy family life with his lovely wife and two young children, and a new career as a teacher, Blake Howard is one of the busiest and most talented people I know... and also, the nicest.

Always down to talk about movies, even when it's before six a.m. in Australia, in this episode, he joins me to discuss three underrated films and performances we enjoy featuring character actor James Caan, including "Comes a Horseman," "Hide in Plain Sight," and "The Yards." Along the way, we tackle the Caan mystique for better and worse, what he brings to his roles, and reevaluate some of his other films along the way.

While editing today's episode, I realized that all you really need to know about our friendship is that it began with me confessing that because I love De Niro so much, I actually texted an undercover cop to make sure Pacino's shoot was clean in "Heat" to try to retroactively save his character's life! (Texting wasn't around when I first saw it in '95 but when I revisited it a few years ago, I had the luxury to annoy a friend.) Thus, it's perfect that our relationship comes full circle in this episode as we officially announce our next co-project together all about De Niro's "Midnight Run." We'll see you in the next life.

Logo: KateGabrielle.com

Theme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music Archive

Originally Posted on Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/63171958

Joining me for a fun, feisty, fast-paced conversation about some of the funniest romcoms from the period we both came of age is prolific Rotten Tomatoes approved film critic and podcaster Rachel Wagner. The woman behind not only the website, pod, and YouTube Channel Rachel's Reviews but also the incredibly popular Hallmarkies Podcast as well, Rachel is a veteran interviewer in her own right and has a keen interest in both obscure animation and the genre that brings her back here today. Less focused on film history than it is on providing listeners with a good nostalgic movie quote-filled hang, in this roughly hour-long exchange, Rachel and I take a closer look at the '90s romantic comedy heyday of the "Father of the Bride" remake along with "While You Were Sleeping," "Clueless," "Notting Hill," and more.

Originally Posted on Patreon (2/24/22) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/62971521

Logo: KateGabrielle.com

Theme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music Archive

Striking while the iron is hot and while people's schedules are most open, we're back with another bonus episode for you this week and you are definitely in for a treat.

A writer and filmmaker based in Los Angeles, today's guest Duncan Birmingham was an executive producer and screenwriter for IFC's "Maron" and also served as a co-executive producer and writer on the Starz series "Blunt Talk" as well. Additionally, Duncan's short films have premiered at such festivals as Sundance and AFI, and his screenplay "Swingles," which was bought by Paramount, was also on The Black List. Recently, his lively, irreverent short-story collection "The Cult in My Garage" was published by Maudlin House in 2021, and in other exciting news, he just wrapped his first feature-length film as a writer-director called "Who Invited Them?" starring Ryan Hansen, Melissa Tang, Timothy Granaderos, and Perry Mattfeld.

In easily one of my favorite research-intensive episodes so far on Watch With Jen, Duncan joined me to cover the incredible run of films made by chronically under-discussed Oscar-winning editor turned masterful '70s director Hal Ashby. An empathetic collaborative filmmaker who was fascinated by human relationships, in this rich ninety-minute conversation, we delve into the films "Harold and Maude," "The Last Detail," "Shampoo," "Coming Home," and "Being There."

Here you'll hear stories about Ashby fighting with the studios over marketing and foul language, his notably democratic film sets where everyone had a voice, ambitious abandoned projects, as well as thoughts on the performances that would garner 11 Oscar nominations throughout the decade, not to mention the way that contemporary filmmakers still seek inspiration in his work today. Settle in; it's a good one.

Originally Posted on Patreon (2/19/22) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/62775976

Theme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music Archive

Logo: Kate Gabrielle (KateGabrielle.com)

Today's guest, the great Dana Stevens has been Slate's chief film critic since 2006 as well as a veteran podcaster in her own right, serving as a co-host of the magazine's long-running weekly culture pod, "The Slate Culture Gabfest," which you should definitely seek out. An accomplished journalist whose work has also appeared in such esteemed publications as The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Atlantic, and Bookforum, Dana's latest opus is the passionately written and phenomenally well-researched new book Camera Man: Buster Keaton, The Dawn of Cinema, and The Invention of the 20th Century. Not just an outstanding title, her book really is about all of those things cited within it, which is what makes it so endlessly fascinating from start to finish.

In this fast-paced conversation, the knowledgeable and witty author joins me to discuss her exciting new book, the surprises she's made along the way, as well as the shorts Fatty & Mabel Adrift (featuring Keaton's contemporaries Roscoe Arbuckle and Mabel Normand), Good Night, Nurse! (with Arbuckle and Keaton), and the certified classic Keaton feature Sherlock, Jr. The kind of episode you'll want to listen to with a pen and a sheet of paper so you can make a note of all of the terrific titles Dana references and recommends from its earliest moments, silent film buffs, in particular, are sure to appreciate this one.

Originally Posted on Patreon (2/16/22) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/62644819

Theme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music Archive

Logo: Kate Gabrielle (KateGabrielle.com)

Join us for "a ride with a trickster and a javelin man to a town down by the sea," in this engaging, analytical feature-length conversation dedicated to FX's 2010 wonderful one-season wonder series "Terriers." A sun-drenched San Diego set comedic crime show about scrappy unlicensed private eyes who are brilliantly brought to life by real-life friends Donal Logue and Michael Raymond-James, the series was created by "Ocean's Eleven" and "Matchstick Men" screenwriter Ted Griffin.

Recommended to me almost exactly a year ago by my good friend, Pandemic Movie Club buddy, and "Peckerwood" and "Fierce Bitches" author Jed Ayres, it's only fitting that he chose to focus on "Terriers" for today's chat. The man behind the terrific blog Hardboiled Wonderland, which I've been fortunate enough to contribute to on occasion, there's nobody better suited to breaking down the building blocks, unforgettable characters, and ingenious twists of the whodunnit genre than Jed.

Covering everything from the unbelievable chemistry of the actors and the throwaway lines that tell us so much about the characters they play to the way it cleverly subverts genre tropes and more, this episode was made with not only the show's fans in mind but also for those who, like Jed and me, adore the films, books, and series that helped create this irresistible world. Enjoy!

Originally Posted on Patreon (2/11/22) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/62429171

Theme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music Archive

A Rotten Tomatoes approved film critic and journalist who writes for "Variety" and Fresh Fiction TV, this week's guest Courtney Howard is also a member of the Los Angeles Film Critics Association, as well as Critics Choice, and the Online Film Critics Society.

Holding an informal meeting of the cinematic Gen X Babysitter's Club with me this week to tackle the late '80s-early '90s studio comedies "Adventures in Babysitting," "Three Men and a Baby," and "Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead," Courtney's return to the podcast marks a lighthearted change of pace from some of the more dramatic epics and crime movies you'll frequently hear discussed on Watch With Jen.

Along the way, we recall our earliest experiences with these movies, serve up fascinating behind-the-scenes information about the making of and reaction to each film when they were released, and reference a number of others that would create the perfect lineup for an impromptu Babysitting Film Festival.

So hit the road, leave your newborn with your boisterous bachelor pals, drop F-bombs only in tandem, lie about going to Vassar on your job application, and enjoy this breezily entertaining chat.

Theme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music Archive

Originally Posted on Patreon (2/7/22) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/62242290