Worth Watching

Wow did we love Ghost Dog more than we expected! From independent director Jim Jarmusch and starring Forest Whitaker’s unexpected turn as Samurai, this is a beautiful and thoughtful precursor to The Sopranos and John Wick.

But is it truly inspired by Rashomon? Listen in to find out!

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Does this Ethan Hawke vehicle meet the definition of a Rashomon-inspired film? Is it okay to date yourself without consent? Does the future happen if you say screw it and take a nap instead?

Answers to these questions along with a deep dive into the impact Robert Heinlein had on one of your hosts, a unique rendition of “Baby Jane”, discussion of the song “I’m My Own Grandpa” and more!

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Denzel Washington, Meg Ryan, Lou Diamond Phillips, Scott Glenn and many more amazing actors, in an Edward Zwick production inspired by Rashomon. Nothing could go wrong!

Nothing could go wrong, right?

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We dive into this very Rashomon-inspired episode of the X-Files, considered by many to be one of the best TV episodes ever.

We do a deep dive into the amazing Charles Nelson Reilly as we try to suss out what actually happened to two lovers on one very strange night...

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What is truth? Who is Kaiser Soze? Is this a true Rashomon film? How many people can be canceled in one film?

Only we know the truth!

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This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit betterangels1.substack.com

And so we begin, watching a film where our task as a viewer is to serve as judge, jury, and possibly executioner at a trial where everyone seems to be lying to us.

This was an incredibly important film that put Kurosawa and Japanese cinema on the map and created a new genre of story that has become embedded in world culture.

Does it live up to the hype? And who is the killer? Join us to find out!

(Also stay for the bonus content to hear about a modern day true crime Rashomon story!)

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This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit betterangels1.substack.com

For our next film season topic, we're going to watch an influential Akira Kurosawa film, and then the films inspired by that film to see how they compare.

To help provide context for this journey, we're joined by Peter Tasker, author of On Kurosawa

for a great conversation about Kurosawa, the Yakuza, the Samurai and how Kurosawa created the modern concept of Samurai, whether the director is still relevant in the West, and more!

 

Peter's website

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This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit betterangels1.substack.com

We go back to cover this reconstruction that we originally skipped. This story came after Web Planet, and the contrast couldn't be more stark.

This one has great writing, great acting, and a distinct lack of dancing bees.

But is great writing and acting enough to make it a proper Doctor Who story? Join us as we wrestle with this question!

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Marco! Polo!

We finish up the first lost Doctor Who story, and you know what, it was pretty good! For details, listen up...

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This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit betterangels1.substack.com

We've pulled the emergency break and gone into reverse -- we're going back and covering the missing stories that we didn't watch the first time, starting with the tragically lost Marco Polo from the first season.

Stay for the bonus content to hear an extended discussion of how ChatGPT fares with summarizing Doctor Who!

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This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit betterangels1.substack.com