Seventh Row Podcast

Associate Editor Brett Pardy recently defended his PhD about film and empathy. We discuss his research, what inspired him to get into the topic, and how Seventh Row ties in. This episode also features Editor-in-Chief Alex Heeney and Executive Editor Orla Smith. On this episode: Brett's Doctoral Dissertation (0:45) Related episodes (4:48) Brett's origin story for getting into this study (9:36) Cult...

We discuss Benedict Cumberbatch at his best, worst, & poshest, from The Power of the Dog to The Courier to The Electrical Life of Louis Wain . This episode features Editor-in-Chief Alex Heeney, Executive Editor Orla Smith, and regular guest Caitlin Merriman.  Show notes : The Power of the Dog is streaming on Netflix The Courier is available on VOD and streaming on Prime The Electrical Life of Loui...

Alex and Orla report from the 2022 Berlinale Film Festival, and introduce you to the films they loved, from Laia Costa-starrer Lullaby, to Swedish YA film about grief, Comedy Queen. On this episode: Related episodes (1:10) Joachim Trier challenge (2:14) What we had screeners for (5:22) Berlin's films for young audiences (11:21) Alis (Clare Weiskopf & Nicolás van Hemelryck) (14:31) Comedy Queen (Sa...

We discuss This is Going to Hurt , an early contender for best show of the year, the excellence of Ben Whishaw, why Ambika Mod is such an exciting newcomer, and how it brilliantly discusses the mental health of National Health Service workers. This episode features  Editor-in-Chief Alex Heeney, Executive Editor Orla Smith, and Contributing Editor Lindsay Pugh Content warning: This episode discusse...

Over the course of one month, we challenge you to watch one Joachim Trier feature film per week, in chronological order, to catch up to The Worst Person in the World . Click here for more details.

On today's episode, we'll be doing something a little different. Instead of our usual discussions of films with a panel of critics,  Alex interviews British actress Olivia Vinall about performing Shakespeare. In this conversation, we talk about each of Olivia's four Shakespearean roles: Desdemona, Cordelia, Juliet, and Rosalind. We talk about how she finds a way into the text, what it's like worki...

We've been harsh on Kenneth Branagh and his self-mythologising, including his recent Belfast. On this episode, we want to be kind and look back to Branagh's amazing Much Ado About Nothing. This episode features Editor-in-Chief Alex Heeney, Executive Editor Orla Smith, Associate Editor Brett Pardy, and regular guest Caitlin Merriman. Show notes and related episodes : See our 21st Folio podcast page...

Alex Heeney & Orla Smith discuss the highlight of Sundance 2022: creative nonfiction. We discuss active listening, reframing history, and a risk taking volcanologist couple. On this episode: Related episodes (1:26) Sundance overview (4:22) 32 Sounds (Sam Green) (8:59) Reframing history: Framing Agnes (Chase Joynt), The Janes (Tia Lessin), & Tantura (Alon Schwarz) (29:27) I Didn't See You There (Re...

We discuss the ups and downs of Sundance 2022, and chat about some of the festival's fiction films, including Sharp Stick and Living . This episode features Editor-in-Chief Alex Heeney and Executive Editor Orla Smith. Become a Seventh Row member and get access to the full episode, as well as all other podcast episodes older than six months. Show notes : Read our selections of the 10 best films of...

The entire Seventh Row editorial team is here to talk about site favourite Joachim Trier's new film, The Worst Person in the World. This episode features Editor-in-Chief Alex Heeney, Executive Editor Orla Smith, Associate Editor Brett Pardy, Contributing Editor Lindsay Pugh, and Editor-at-Large Mary Angela Rowe.  On this episode: Existential detours: Joachim Trier's cinema of indecisions and revis...

Joel Coen's first solo film is an adaptation of Macbeth starring Denzel Washington and Frances McDormand. We wonder why and discuss what makes for a good Macbeth adaptation. This episode features Editor-in-Chief Alex Heeney, Executive Editor Orla Smith, Associated Editor Brett Pardy and Editor-at-Large Mary Angela Rowe. Show notes : Read Alex's 2015 review of Justin Kurzel's Macbeth Listen to the...

Lindsay Pugh joins hosts Alex Heeney and Orla Smith for a discussion of two rom-coms about unwanted pregnancies, Ninjababy and Obvious Child . On this episode: Joachim Trier ebook (1:23) Related episodes (2:55) Why we are talking about these films (7:30) Obvious Child (11:40) The rom-com landscape of 2014 (16:59) Obvious Child 's depiction of women's bodies (18:02) How has Obvious Child aged? (26:...

Alex and Orla count down the 30 best films of 2021 and discuss the process behind creating the list. On this episode: Why this bonus episode is free to everyone (0:00) Selecting the list and where we look for films (0:56) Another strong year for Indigenous films (7:37) Why we only have three American films (16:02) Films directed by women (19:00) The importance of psychological complexity and new a...

We're celebrating the legacy of Aboriginal Australian actor David Gulpilil. Gulpilil died on November 29th 2021, at age 68, leaving behind him a career of rich performances, despite the many ways the industry underserved him for decades. On this episode, we particularly focus on Charlie's Country , as a film that was so personal to Gulpilil, and which features probably his best performance. We als...

We contextualize Kenneth Branagh's Belfast as the newest entry in his decades long self-mythologising project and discuss "the Branagh scale". This episode features Editor-in-Chief Alex Heeney, Executive Editor Orla Smith, Associate Editor Brett Pardy, and regular guest Caitlin Merriman. Show notes and related episodes : Ep. 118 : The Souvenir Part I and II Bonus 19 : Who is the Poshest Actor in B...

We discuss the recent BFI restoration of Mike Leigh's 1993 classic Naked, starring David Thewlis. Podcast hosts Alex Heeney and Orla Smith are joined by regular guest Lindsay Pugh. On this episode Peterloo in Process: A Mike Leigh collaboration (2:21) Related episodes (9:06) Our favourite Mike Leigh films (14:52) Naked (21:57) David Thewlis (29:15) Why do we like this film? (35:44) Why this title?...

Editor-in-Chief Alex Heeney and Executive Editor Orla Smith are joined by Fiona Underhill and Caitlin Merriman to battle it out: who is the poshest actor in Britain? And what defines 'posh' in such a class-conscious country? Show notes: Our ebook Tour of memories: The creative process behind Joanna Hogg's The Souvenir provides the trademark Seventh Row 360-degree view of Hogg's filmmaking process...

Joanna Hogg calls The Souvenir Part II "a film about the making of Part I." Back in 2019, we wrote an ebook about the making of Part I. On this episode, find out how Part II changes how we see Part I and builds Julie's character arc. This episode features Editor-in-Chief Alex Heeney, Executive Editor Orla Smith, and special guest Fiona Underhill. On this episode Fiona Underhill, The Souvenir super...

Tickets for The Seventh Circle: A Symposium on Gender, Sexuality, and Disability in Horror Cinema, have reopened for one week only! Get your ticket before Sunday at midnight. Purchase at http://seventh-row.com/seventh-circle 50% discount code: SeventhCircleDec21 (expires Friday Dec 10th at midnight EST).  

We loved Julia Ducournau's Raw . On this episode, find out what we think about her follow-up, the Palme d'Or winning Titane . This episode features Editor-in-Chief Alex Heeney, Executive Editor Orla Smith, and Editor-at-Large Mary Angela Rowe. It is a sequel to Episode 112 : The modern female monsters of Raw and Thelma . Content warning: This episode discusses body mutilation. Titane is available...

This episode focuses on site favourite Andrew Haigh's newest project, The North Water , starring Jack O'Connell and Colin Farrell. We discuss how this on-the-surface unusual work fits into Haigh's thematic interests. This episode features Editor-in-Chief Alex Heeney, Executive Editor Orla Smith, Associate Editor Brett Pardy, and special guest Fiona Underhill. It also features an excerpt from Alex'...

The Tragedy of Macbeth at the Almeida Theatre was live streamed from October 27-30. We chat about Saoirse Ronan's and James McArdle's dynamite performances, the show's staging, and its attempts to give livestreamed theatre a cinematic look. This episode features Editor-in-Chief Alex Heeney, Executive Editor Orla Smith, and Editor-at-Large Mary Angela Rowe Show notes : Read Alex's review of Ammonit...

We are making a few changes to our podcast schedule

Our new podcast format with member's only bonus episodes every second week debuts. Alex interviews Orla about what it's like watching Girls separated from the weekly episode discourse. Alex and Orla discuss the difficult of reading shows with empathy for terrible people, great acting, and the difference between Hana and Lena Dunham. Show notes : You can listen to our first 15 bonus episodes by bec...

We revisit The English Patient on its 25th anniversary and consider its complicated legacy. The episode features two first-timers and two superfans. This episode features Editor-in-Chief Alex Heeney, Executive Editor Orla Smith, Associate Editor Brett Pardy, and special guest Andrew Kendall On this episode: The English Patient and its reviled Oscar legacy (7:10) The state of modern literary adapta...