Commedia dell'Cinema: A Comedy Movie Podcast

This week Jordan and Emily discuss Maren Ade’s 2016 tragicomedy Toni Erdmann! A beautiful story of a whacky ass dad and his business lady daughter. They discuss how the film balances its dramatic and comedic moments, Ade’s long production, and its international success.

In honor of that little local award show "The Oscars", Emily and Jordan give out their awards for the best comedy movies and performances of the year! They discuss the heavy hitters (Banshees of Inisherin, Triangle of Sadness, Everything Everywhere All At Once) and some of the smaller, quirkier comedies (Spin Me Round, Weird: The Al Yankovic Story, All My Friends Hate Me, Bodies Bodies Bodies). Th...

Jordan and Emily dive into Jaques Tati’s masterpiece Playtime. They discuss Tati’s troubled production, his precise and hilarious choreography, and the massive impact Tati and Playtime have had on comedy.

Emily and Jordan take on cult comedy classic HEATHERS. They discuss the importance of the film being made when it was, casting ‘what-ifs’, and explore the film’s massive impact on American teen comedy.

Emily and Jordan talk Albert Brooks’ wonderfully psychotic MODERN ROMANCE. They discuss Brooks’ emotionally open approach to comedy writing and performance with his co-writer Monica Johnson, and the influence Albert Brooks had on generations of comedy writers.

Arden Jurskis stops by to discuss Hal Ashby’s incredibly influential dark rom-com HAROLD AND MAUDE, plus the state of the Oscar race and of course, the MCU.

This week, Emily and Jordan talk about one of the most important rom-coms of all-time, Billy Wilder’s The Apartment, starring Jack Lemmon and Shirley Maclaine! They get into the many different forms of comedy Wilder utilizes in direction and the script, the film’s iconic performances, and its wide-ranging influence.

Emily and Jordan have writer and comedian Nat Torres on the show to talk A Fish Called Wanda, the Monty Python semi-reunion that won Kevin Kline an Oscar. Topics include John Cleese being an old crank, the film's timeless comedy, and possible reasons why such a silly movie was taken so seriously by the Academy.

This week, Emily and Jordan have guest Nako Narter on the show to discuss Juno. Kicking off our mini-series on Oscar-winning comedies, topics include nepotism king Jason Reitman's career, Diablo Cody's path from blogger to Oscar winning screenwriter, and the era in which indie comedies could make blockbuster money.

Bridesmaids was at the forefront of a seismic change for comedy and the film industry, but how much of that was intended by writers Kristin Wiig and Annie Mumolo, director Paul Feig, or producer Judd Apatow? This week, your hosts break down the comedic theories behind Bridesmaids, the many careers the film helped launch, and what its success meant for the industry going forward.

This week, your hosts discuss Forgetting Sarah Marshall, written by and starring Jason Segel, directed by Nicholas Stoller. Emily and Jordan discuss the film's growing status among fans of the Apatow era, its surprisingly meta connections,  and interesting casting and screenplay 'what-ifs.'

In the first episode of Commedia dell'Cinema, Emily and Jordan discuss The 40 Year-Old Virgin, directed and co-written by Judd Aparow with star Steve Carrell. Topics include the state of feature comedy circa 2005, the introduction of Apatow's improvisational style, and the influence this film had on its stars and an entire industry.

Welcome to Commedia dell'Cinema! Each week on Commedia dell'Cinema, hosts Emily Walborn and Jordan Wold take you behind the scenes of a different big screen comedy classic. They'll dig into each film's impact on audiences and comedic filmmaking while exploring the comedic theories behind making these movies so dang funny! Premiering December 29th!