Watch With Jen™

This week on the podcast, we have a woman who truly needs no introduction - one whose voice is or should be (especially if you're a cinephile) her own introduction. A film writer I remember reading as far back as Cinematical and The Village Voice as well as the author of Seduction: Sex, Lies, and Stardom in Howard Hughes's Hollywood, and books on George Lucas, Al Pacino, and Meryl Streep, Karina Longworth is the historian and podcaster behind the acclaimed, addictive, and utterly fascinating series You Must Remember This, as well as the recent show Love is a Crime with Vanity Fair.

Dropping in to tell us all about the exciting new season of You Must Remember This: Sammy & Dino, in this fun hour-long chat we discuss Dean Martin's film career from 1958-1960. In addition to focusing on the films The Young Lions, Some Came Running, and Rio Bravo, Karina was also kind enough to discuss the resurgence of The Rat Pack nostalgia in the mid-'90s, humor me during a segue about Gen X's two Coreys, and shout-out Clueless as well. You're bound to get a kick out of this one.

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

Originally Posted on Patreon (11/1/21) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/58167211

Happy Halloween from Watch With Jen, care of this episode that will put you in the mood for the spooky season. One of my oldest Twitter friends from way back in the fail whale days, I'm so pleased to be joined today by the wonderfully witty Scott Weinberg.

A prolific film writer for twenty years as well as a Jack of All Trades, Scott Weinberg has created such great podcasts as the new Overhated (which you can find on his Patreon Weinberg+) as well as co-created '80s All Over and more. Additionally, he's produced a few indie films, narrated audiobooks, and you can find his byline everywhere.

Extremely knowledgeable about horror, in particular, in this spirited, freewheeling, rapid-fire episode, we tackle the remakes of such genre classics as Invasion of the Body Snatchers, The Thing, The Fly, The Blob, and Dawn of the Dead, while also discussing their predecessors and the films' underlying and sometimes subversive themes. The perfect accompaniment to your horror movie marathon plans for Halloween, today's pod is both a whole lot of fun... and far less trick than treat.

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

Originally Posted on Patreon (10/27/21) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/57932809

Planning to travel? It always helps if you have the right guide. And when it comes to New York City, I have the perfect one for you today, especially if you're a film fan, because he literally just wrote the book on it. That's right, this week on the podcast, I was so honored to have back my talented friend Jason Bailey.

The author of the brand new book Fun City Cinema, in this entertaining and informative episode, Jason tells us all about writing and researching his new critically acclaimed nonfiction work and breaks down a few films along the way. A gifted film writer, critic, and historian who's the editor-in-chief of the site Crooked Marquee, additionally, Jason Bailey is an author of four additional books on film, and a freelance journalist with bylines everywhere from The New York Times to Vulture to The Playlist and beyond.

Tying in with both Jason's book (releasing Tuesday, October 26) as well as the outstandingly diverse New York City collection currently available on The Criterion Channel, in this installment, we zero in on The Garment Jungle (1957), The Incident (1967), The Out-of-Towners (1970), and Little Murders (1971).

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

Originally Posted on Patreon (10/23/21) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/57771748

If you follow me on social media, you'll recall that earlier this year, I fell head over heels for Columbo. From creating a popular episode-by-episode mega-thread on Twitter to deciding that Peter Falk (who I'd long loved) was going to be one of my most-watched actors for the year on Letterboxd, I soon began steering even the most casual conversations with acquaintances back to my new favorite television obsession.

Interacting with a number of fellow fans on Twitter, I started getting requests for an episode devoted to the series and eagerly recruited the great Noel Murray to join me to discuss five of his favorite Columbo mysteries. His selections include "Murder By the Book," "Étude in Black," "An Exercise in Fatality," "By Dawn's Early Light," and "Columbo Goes to College."

An Arkansas-based freelance writer who covers TV, movies, and pop culture for The A.V. Club, The New York Times, The L.A. Times, Polygon, Vulture, and more, it was so great to chat with Noel about all things Columbo in this celebratory, fast-paced episode.

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

Originally Posted on Patreon (10/15/22) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/57445815

Is there a doctor in the house? Well, as it happens, this week there definitely is. A doctor of women surrealists and a freelance writer specializing in visual culture, art, couture, Old Hollywood, and more, the lovely Sabina Stent joins us to talk about some of her favorite generational soundtrack movies, including American Graffiti, Dazed and Confused, and Reality Bites in this warm, nostalgic, analytical episode that's bound to make you want to pack a mix CD, jump into your car, and drive all night.

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

Originally Posted on Patreon (10/8/21) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/57166998

On the podcast this week, I welcomed back a very talented and thoughtful writer as well as a man recently (and affectionately) dubbed "Film Twitter Royalty." Peter Avellino's long-form essays on the movies that fascinate and frustrate him make his blog Mr. Peel's Sardine Liqueur a must-read for cinephiles. In a conversation that's equal parts witty nostalgia and astute film criticism, we took a look at the (recently) late, beloved comedy star Charles Grodin's work in the films "The Heartbreak Kid," "Seems Like Old Times," "The Lonely Guy," and "Midnight Run," and in the midst of discussing all of the food in these movies, found ourselves getting very hungry along the way.

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

Originally Posted on Patreon (9/30/21) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/56816129

An accomplished lawyer and a highly readable film critic at her own site MovieMom.com and at RogerEbert.com, where she's also an editor, this week, I was so pleased to welcome back the friendly and wise Nell Minow. The author of over 3,000 reviews since the 1990s, Nell has also written a handful of terrific film books, including 101 Must-See Movie Moments and The Movie Mom's Guide to Family Movies.

Expanding upon a thoughtful, well-researched, and eye-opening article she wrote for RogerEbert.com on "19 Films That Celebrate the Art of Female Friendship," in this episode, we discuss the evolution of women in film over the years. Taking a closer look at the difference between sidekicks, frenemies, and true friendships onscreen, the pros and cons of the Bechdel Test, rebuttable presumption, and the stuffed animals we told all our secrets to as kids, in this fun, freewheeling chat, we focus on the films How to Marry a Millionaire, Steel Magnolias, and Set It Off and serve up plenty of food for thought.

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

Originally Posted on Patreon on 9/24/21 here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/56568689

This week, I was so pleased to welcome back one of the funniest guests I've ever had, the quick-witted, fresh, and very clever Sean Burns. A staff writer at WBUR's The ARTery and contributing writer at North Shore Movies, Sean Burns was Philadelphia Weekly's lead film critic from 1999-2013 and worked as the movie section contributing editor at the Improper Bostonian from 2006-2014. Additionally, a graduate of NYU's Tisch School of the Arts and the recipient of an award for excellence in criticism from The Greater Philadelphia Society of Professional Journalists in 2002, Sean's reviews, interviews, and essays have also appeared in Metro, The Village Voice, The Boston Herald, Nashville Scene, Time Out New York, Philadelphia City Paper, The House Next Door, Movie Mezzanine, RogerEbert.com, and more. Additionally, he's also a projectionist who can tell you exactly what's wrong if you're messing up the presentation of a movie at an AMC Theater.

Following up on an impromptu pact we made the last time Sean was a guest where we impossibly discovered that although we were both movie-obsessive teens at the time, neither one of us had ever bothered to see Disclosure, we turned that promise into today's theme. Investigating the sexy, sleazy side of Michael Douglas, in this very funny, adults-only episode, we take a closer look at Fatal Attraction, Basic Instinct, Disclosure, and Solitary Man in order to evaluate the man, the myth, the Michael in Lothario Mode. The ideal soundtrack for your household chores or whatever you decide to do in the kitchen (just please, take the dishes out of the sink first) and the ultimate conversation to hear on your way to dance awkwardly in a deep v-neck sweater in a nightclub on a Saturday night, I know you'll dig this one.

Note: Due to content & language - perfectly fitting our subject, of course - this episode is rated E for Explicit.

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

Originally Posted on Patreon (9/18/21) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/56321819

Pack your sunglasses, suits, smokes, and Stetson hats, and get ready for a tour of international crime movies. In case the title of today's show didn't already give it away, this episode is different. Inspired by some of the requests I received from Patreon donors at "The Right Stuff" level who were looking for segments about new westerns, John Woo, and crime movies in general, I put together my first compilation episode based solely on the wishes of Watch With Jen fans.

Fine-tuning the topics and enlisting the help of a few friends, including Blake Howard, Jordan Harper, and Kate Gabrielle, I created this epic collaboration that clocks in at the length of Ivan Sen's brilliant Aussie western Goldstone, which is one of the films you'll hear discussed today. I hope you'll enjoy these terrific conversations and want to thank you so much for your continued support! There are plenty of surprises ahead, including a new monthly spin-off podcast you'll learn about towards the end of this episode.

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

Originally Posted on Patreon (9/14/21) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/56159326

This week, I welcome one of my dearest friends back to the podcast. A talented freelance illustrator, blogger, and film fan, Kate Gabrielle is the designer of both the season one and two versions of our gorgeous Watch With Jen logo. As a professional artist, she's not only worked with the TCM Film Fest, Netflix, Doubleday, Mental Floss, and more but also runs her own brightly colored, uplifting shop KateGabrielle.com as well.

In her third solo and fourth total appearance on the show so far, Kate returns to discuss four movies starring one of her favorite actors, the gifted Dirk Bogarde. Focusing on So Long at the Fair, Darling, Modesty Blaise, and Accident - all of which she introduced to me - we delve into what makes these titles distinct works of classic British cinema and of course, what Bogarde does so well in all of them.

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

Originally Posted on Patreon 9/10/21 here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/56012404