Citizen Dame

This week is all about Robert Mitchum! From The Night of the Hunter to His Kind of Woman and plenty of movies in between, the Dames talk about his career, his unexpected charisma, and how we still find him a little terrifying. Also, Lauren hypothesizes that he is, in fact, a vampire. We also talk a *little* bit about the hoopla over Eternals.

The Dames ease from Spooky Season into Noirvember with a discussion of Expressionist director Fritz Lang. Including: Is Metropolis Lang's most watched work? What can M and The Testament of Dr. Mabuse say about contemporary America? How Lang's interest in unlikable protagonists and likable villains contributed to the development of film noir Plus: Karen justifies her Dune reaction. 

This week! The Dames are talking all about the films of Wes Craven! From The Hills Have Eyes to Scream 4, the horror master has given us some of the genre's most iconic characters, with a few other gems thrown in. Also, in memory of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, her husband and the American Film Institute have created a scholarship fund to help pave the way for future cinematographers. If you w...

For this bonus episode, the Dames discuss Lana and Lilly Wachowski's Oscar-winning film, The Matrix. What still works? What definitely doesn't? And how is Keanu Reeves NOT the coolest part of this movie?

For this bonus episode, the Dames discuss the perfection of James Whale's 1935 classic, The Bride of Frankenstein.

As Spooky Season continues, the Dames discuss all things vampiric, including: A brief history of sexy scary monsters Transgressive sexuality, Freudian nightmares, and rapacious aristocrats Why Bela Lugosi is the best Dracula Twilight's de-fanging of the vampire Why Coppola's Dracula is really problematic Plus! The Last Duel kerfuffle and why a medieval epic about rape might not be such a big hit r...

This week! The Dames are kicking off Spooky Movie Season with a deep dive into the evolution of horror, especially in the later years. From the Satanic Panic of the 70s and 80s to the social justice films of today, we explore all the things we love about modern horror movies, with a little bit of classic appreciation thrown in for good measure. We also spend a little bit of time discussing Neon's...

The Dames take on documentary and film criticism this week, discussing how we talk about documentary filmmaking and why it's important for critics to divide their feelings about the subject from critique of the film itself.  Plus! Are we intimidating? Why is Crisp Rat playing Mario? And other important questions of the day. 

This week we're talking genres! What are the genres, how do they work, or why do they matter? Plus listener questions and deep dives into Nia DaCosta's Candyman and the 1947 film, Nightmare Alley.

The Dames teach a master class in film criticism, including: How to read a film beyond the plot and dialogue When critics should take a step back Historical and cultural context and subtext Subjectivity and objectivity Plus! The Matrix Resurrections trailer and our reactions to James Wan's Malignant. 

This week! How are people getting things so wrong? Why do we love movies? Is Taxi Driver more of a Paul Schrader film than a Martin Scorsese film? Stuff we've been watching like Theater of Blood, Sunset Boulevard, and What We Do in the Shadows - Season 3 is finally here!

The Dames provide their most whiplashy of whiplash episodes, discussing: Disney films and cultural context Why you're all wrong about the current season of Ted Lasso Horror films based on urban legends Nia DaCosta's Candyman

Catch a clip of our August bonus episode, a deep dive into the joy and wonder of the 1988 Oscar-winning movie, Who Framed Roger Rabbit. Supplemental Reading: 15 Things You Might Not Know About Who Framed Roger Rabbit  

This week the Dames talk about the wonderful world of animation for grown ups!  Plus: The ongoing "theatrical experience" debate  Jurnee Smollett and Misha Green are getting their Black Canary movie! Brief reviews of The Green Knight and The Night House And Listener Questions! For further reading: https://www.indiewire.com/2021/08/film-critics-challenge-studios-in-person-screenings-1234653798/

The Dames discuss the term "Hitchcockian" in celebration of Alfred Hitchcock's upcoming birthday! What does "Hitchcockian" mean? Why is it so overused? And why does Brian De Palma suck so hard? Plus: Why are superhero directors so obsessed with Martin Scorsese? James Gunn is a dingbat, and Our feelings about The Suicide Squad

This week we're talking! Ghostbusters: Afterlife trailer and nostalgia h ttps://twitter.com/mattzollerseitz/status/1420064165381558273 David Ayer defends his Suicide Squad: https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/suicide-squad-david-ayer-warner-bros-1234990360/ Scarlett Johansson vs. Disney: https://www.thewrap.com/disney-to-black-widow-star-scarlett-johansson-20-million-is-plenty/ Lis...

The Dames discuss: Female directors and blockbusters: https://www.forbes.com/sites/travisbean/2020/05/09/box-office-the-25-highest-grossing-movies-ever-directed-by-women/?sh=6d5354355e7c Roadrunner, Anthony Bourdain, and the ethics of documentaries: https://twitter.com/futurecanon/status/1415714075267448836 Julia Ducournau's historic Cannes win for Titane: https://www.cnn.com/style/article/cannes-...

In this grab bag episode, the Dames discuss what we've been watching lately (Zola! Fear Street! Black Widow!), more Twitter kerfluffles, and some great listener questions about Guys and Dolls, Oscar nominations, and best comedies by decade. Be sure to follow us on Twitter and Instagram @citizendamepod and Letterboxd @citizendame.

The Dames have a lot to unpack in this episode, including: Summer blockbusters and why you're wrong about them! That thing that happened that makes us mad Why a certain director needs to STFU about Bruce Lee: https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/shannon-lee-quentin-tarantino-hate-bruce-lee-or-sell-books-1234977088/?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social Tom Cruise's birthday! 

We are closing out Pride Month by talking about the films of JOHN WATERS! Plus: Elaine May is getting an Oscar! — an Honorary Oscar, that is Britney speaks! Britney Spears was back in court asking a judge to end the conservatorship that has controlled her life for 13 years. Here's her full statement: https://variety.com/2021/music/news/britney-spears-full-statement-conservatorship-1235003940/ Oh,...

In honor of Pride Month, our listeners have selected Céline Sciamma's Portrait of a Lady on Fire for our June bonus episode. Check out this excerpt, and then go to patreon.com/citizendame to subscribe and hear the rest.

The Dames discuss the 2021 Tribeca Film Festival. Plus: Anthony Mackie's recent comments about Sam and Bucky's relationship, and how Disney/Marvel want to have it both ways: https://variety.com/2021/tv/awards/anthony-mackie-falcon-winter-soldier-paul-bettany-wandavision-podcast-1234999174/ https://twitter.com/ZREllor/status/1405611013274312711   Does Batman? Well? DOES HE? Hot Movie Dads

This week! The Dames are discussing the films and career of the great Lois Weber: director, writer, and Hollywood badass. We also catch up on a few films we overlooked in our Pride episode.

The Dames celebrate the start of Pride month with a discussion of favorite LGBTQ+-themed films! Plus: Cannes found FOUR WHOLE FEMALE DIRECTORS! Favorite Palme d'Or winners across the ages! Apparently Shrek 2 premiered at Cannes? The Conjuring 3 has Catholic imagery! And other shocking revelations.

In this grab bag episode, the Dames talk about Twitter, nitwits, director cults, studio movies, movie theaters, people getting tased at movie theaters, trailers, film criticism, Taika Waititi, Cruella, A Quiet Place Part II, the Amazon/MGM acquisition, and more.