Films for Today

With the release of Ari Aster's highly anticipated intense examination of the contemporary political landscape, Eddington , this week's episode discusses both the justifications for and the potentially detrimental risks of contemporary activism. We also briefly discuss: The Sweet East (2023) d. Sean Price Williams Contact Us Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/filmsfortoday/?hl=en Email:...

Following last week's brief mention of the neorealist movement in 1970s Los Angeles, this week's episode focuses on Charles Burnett's Killer of Sheep to explore the multidimensionality of social rebellion. Contact Us Email: contact@jimmybernasconi.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/filmsfortoday/

Following recent conversations on the importance of creating authentic art, this week's episode switches focus in discussing Thom Andersen's 2003 documentary, Los Angeles Plays Itself, and reflecting on how significantly inactive attention can not only obfuscate reality but impact society. We also briefly discuss: Bless Their Little Hearts (1983) d. Billy Woodberry Contact Us Email: contact@jimmyb...

In light of current intergenerational divides, mixed in with recent conversations about the ever-haunting burden of existential thinking, this week's episode focused on Nicholas Ray's 1955 classic, Rebel Without a Cause , to contemplate how comforting older generations might be when we face objective uncertainty. Contact Us Email: contact@jimmybernasconi.com Instagram: https://www.instagra...

Featuring friend of the show Christopher Smol, this week's episode focuses on Paul Schrader's 2017 psychological drama, First Reformed , among a few others that similarly explore the burden of moral imperatives felt by alienated individuals confronting wide-scale problems. We also briefly discuss: Winter Light (1963) d. Ingmar Bergman Diary of a Country Priest (1952) d. Robert Bresson Nigh...

In light of Matthias Glasner's new film, Dying, as well as recent conversations on the potentially transcendent nature of human identity, this week's episode focuses on Alexander Payne's 2004 romantic dramedy, Sideways , to contemplate why creative expression might be crucial to our relationships with others. We also briefly discuss: Dying (2024) d. Matthias Glasner Death in Venice (19...

Following recent conversations on love and the elusiveness of fixed human identities, this week's episode focuses on Krzysztof Kieślowski's highly-acclaimed The Double Life of Veronique to contemplate our seemingly inevitable and dynamic interconnectedness. We also briefly discuss: The Conversation (1974) d. Francis Ford Coppola Black Narcissus (1947) d. Emeric Pressburger & Michael Po...

Following recent conversations on the prospective emergence of novel formidable entities (namely AI), this week's episode examines John Carpenter's 1983 sci-fi classic The Thing , to contemplate what human societies might do when seamlessly infiltrated by evil. We also briefly discuss: Alien (1979) d. Ridley Scott Videodrome (1983) d. David Cronenberg Hellraiser (1987) d. Clive Barker Jura...

Following numerous references to Babylon on various past episodes, it feels necessary to dive deeper into Damien Chazelle's perceptive epic and contemplate how it may prove to be a masterpiece of tomorrow. We also briefly discuss: Singin' in the Rain (1952) d. Stanley Donen and Gene Kelly Boogie Nights (1997) d. Paul Thomas Anderson Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse (1991) d...

Following past discussions on confronting modern life through the eyes of children, this week's episode focuses on Michael Haneke's Palme d'Or-winning film, The White Ribbon , to contemplate the sinister art of making false claims to innocence. We also briefly discuss: The Innocents (1961) d. Jack Clayton Remains of the Day (1993) d. James Ivory The Zone of Interest (2023) d. Jonathan Glazer The C...

Following recent discussions on the lovelessness of modern society, this week's episode examines Jeff Nichols' 2012 coming-of-age drama, Mud , to contemplate how we might be able to overcome the apparent love-forsakenness of the contemporary Western world. We also briefly discuss: The Beach (2000) d. Danny Boyle 28 Years Later (2025) d. Danny Boyle Close (2022) d. Lukas Dhont Contact Us Em...

Following some fairly recent episodes on the persistence of subjective experience, this week's episode examines Elia Kazan's 1954 classic, On the Waterfront, to contemplate the interconnectedness of truth and the conscience. We also briefly discuss: Jerry Maguire (1996) d. Cameron Crowe The Insider (1999) d. Michael Mann Contact Us Email: contact@jimmybernasconi.com Instagram: https://www....

Following recent conversations on toughness, intelligence and love, this week's episode centres on Miguel Arteta's elevated coming-of-age rom-com, Youth in Revolt, to revisit (once again) Carl Jung's concept of "the shadow". We also briefly discuss: Me, Myself and Irene (2000) d. Bobby and Peter Farrelly Contact Us Email: contact@jimmybernasconi.com Instagram: https://www.ins...

Combining recent conversations about ambition and discovering hidden emotional depths, this week's episode contemplates how Gus Van Sant's iconic 1997 film, Good Will Hunting , considers what desires we have to fight the hardest for. We also discuss: Paterson (2016) d. Jim Jarmusch Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956) d. Don Siegel Contact Us Email: contact@jimmybernasconi.com Instagram:...

Following recent episodes on subjectivity, postmodernism and beauty, this week's episode examines the manifestations of these concepts in the 2007 Disney Pixar film Ratatouille. We also briefly discuss: Inglourious Basterds (2009) d. Quentin Tarentino Licorice Pizza (2021) d. Paul Thomas Anderson Contact Us Email: contact@jimmybernasconi.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/filmsfortoday/

Following last week's episode, being something of a call to actively seek modern beauty, this week's episode focuses on Paulo Sorrentino's newest film, Parthenope , to reflect on the extent to which 'the beautiful' has been valued in recent times. We also briefly discuss: The Brutalist (2024) d. Brady Corbet Anora (2024) d. Sean Baker Contact Us Email: contact@jimmybernasconi.c...

Following recent episodes on the concept of 'style as substance', this week's episode looks to Sam Mendes' iconic 1999 drama, American Beauty, to contemplate how we can access the epitome of style. We also briefly discuss: Office Space (1999) d. Mike Judge Playtime (1967) d. Jacques Tati Contact Us Email: contact@jimmybernasconi.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/filmsfortoda...

Following last week's discussion on the utility of idyllic cultural constructs, this week's episode contemplates the ways in which Bruce Robinson's iconic 1987 iconic black comedy, Withnail & I, meditates on identity, essence and subjectivity. Contact Us Email: contact@jimmybernasconi.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/filmsfortoday/

Following past conversations on the inevitable fallibility of attempting to establish idyllic social structures, this week's episode examines how Edgar Wright's 2007 comedy, 'Hot Fuzz' approaches the multifaceted and slippery nature of fascism. We also discuss: The Wicker Man (1973) d. Robin Hardy If (1968) d. Lindsay Anderson Contact Us Email: contact@jimmybernasconi.com Instagram...

Following recent discussions about Jim Jarmusch's explorations of style as substance, this week's episode focuses on his 2016 film Paterson , starring Adam Driver. We also briefly discuss: Persona (1966) d. Ingmar Bergman Perfect Days (2023) d. Wim Wenders Contact Us email: contact@jimmybernasconi.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/filmsfortoday/

In response to recent shifts in the cultural view of masculinity, this week's episode looks to Wim Wenders' iconic 1987 romantic fantasy, Wings of Desire, to examine the link between masculine sacrifice and vulnerability. We also briefly discuss: Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956) d. Don Siegel The Truman Show (1998) d. Peter Weir Drive (2011) d. Nicolas Winding Refn Contact Us Email: c...

Following last week's conversations about ecological and economic collapse, this week's episode looks to Quentin Dupieux's latest film The Second Act , to contemplate the possibility of an oncoming cultural collapse. We also briefly discuss: Rubber (2010) d. Quentin Dupieux Deerskin (2019) d. Quentin Dupieux Official Competition (2021) (d. Mariano Cohn, Gastón Duprat) Babylon (2022) d....

Following last week's critique of romanticising the "simple" life, this week's episode takes a full 180 by contemplating the fallibilities of modern romantics in Joshua Oppenheimer's narrative debut, The End. We also briefly discuss: Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) d. James Cameron Joker: Folie à Deux (2024) d. Todd Phillips Contact Us Email: contact@jimmybernasconi.com Ins...

Following past discussions on the indifference of nature in the face of mankind's modern ambitions, this week's episode delves into the hidden realities of subsistence living by examining Satyajit Ray's Pather Panchali (1955). We also briefly discuss: Flow (2024) d. Gints Zilbalodis Edge of Tomorrow (2014) d. Doug Liman Contact Us Email: contact@jimmybernasconi.com Instagram: https://w...

Given a myriad of topical events, this week's episode focuses on Francis Ford Coppola's exploration of the fine line between agency and intimacy in his 1974 masterpiece, The Conversation. We also briefly discuss: Blow Out (1981) d. Brian de Palma The Rule of Jenny Pen (2024) d. James Ashcroft Contact Us Email: contact@jimmybernasconi.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/filmsfortoday/