The Big Picture

We are drafting again! Sean, Amanda, and Chris Ryan reunite for a draft of the best movies of 2020. Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins Guest: Chris Ryan Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Sean and Amanda are joined by Joanna Robinson to react to ‘Wonka’—what works, what doesn’t work, musicals in the 2020s, and whether a movie can subvert its early reputation as a meme (1:00). Then, Sean is joined by Jonathan Glazer and Johnnie Burn, the director and sound designer, respectively, of ‘The Zone of Interest’ (1:12:00). They discuss recreation in film, interpretive sound design, their o...

Sean is joined by Andy Greenwald and Charles Holmes to revel in the top film at the box office, Hayao Miyazaki’s final film, ‘The Boy and the Heron’ (1:00). They talk about Miyazaki’s whole career, including their top five Studio Ghibli movies (41:00). Then, Amanda rejoins the pod for a detailed discussion of the 2023 Palme d’Or winner, Justine Triet’s French courtroom drama ‘Anatomy of a Fall’ (1...

Sean and Amanda instantly react to the Golden Globes nominations and what it portends for the Oscars (1:00). Then, they are (somehow) joined by Julia Roberts (28:00) and friend of the show Sam Esmail to discuss ‘Leave the World Behind,’ Esmail’s adaptation of the Rumaan Alam novel. Esmail sticks around for an in-depth conversation about adaptation, set design, costuming, casting, working for Netfl...

Sean and Amanda react to the surprise box office hit of the weekend, ‘Godzilla Minus One’ (1:00); share preliminary thoughts about ‘Poor Things’ and why it’s seemingly losing steam in the awards races (18:00); and then open up the mailbag to answer your questions on all things Oscar season (32:00). Finally, they update their Best Picture power rankings (1:30:00). Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda D...

Sean and Amanda are joined by Chris Ryan and Adam Nayman to share their respective lists of the five best movies released in 2023, including titanic works from master filmmakers, blockbuster hits that captured the zeitgeist, and smaller movies that challenged viewers to consider their artistry deeply. Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins Guests: Chris Ryan and Adam Nayman Senior Producer: Bobb...

Sean and Amanda are joined by Wesley Morris to unpack their feelings about Todd Haynes's ‘May December.’ They discuss the complicated nature of the performances, hypothesize its potential for awards season, and much more (1:19). Later, they talk about their shared love for the newest concert film, ‘Renaissance: A Film by Beyoncé,’ and highlight their appreciation for its impressive technical feats...

Sean and Amanda briefly share thoughts on Disney’s ‘Wish’ (1:00), before digging deep into Emerald Fennell’s ‘Saltburn,’ including its cast, its spotty plot, its relation to Fennell’s first feature, and more (5:00). Then, they share their top five “big swing” movies (1:07:00). Finally, Sean is joined by ‘Holdovers’ director Alexander Payne to discuss reuniting with Paul Giamatti, casting an actor...

Sean, Amanda, and Chris explore the high highs of Ridley Scott’s ‘Napoleon’—in particular the battle scenes—while trying to sort through their feelings on why the movie doesn’t come together as a whole quite how they hoped it would (1:00). Then, they try to place ‘Napoleon’ in the historical context of “great men” movies and share their top five in the genre (40:00). Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Aman...

Sean and Amanda review two divergent releases from this past weekend—a continuation of the Hunger Games intellectual property, ‘The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes’ (1:00), and Alexander Payne's latest feature, ‘The Holdovers’ (30:00). Then, Sean is joined by writer, director, and actor Eli Roth (1:07:00) to talk about ‘Thanksgiving,’ his feature-length follow-up to the fictional tr...

With Ridley Scott’s ‘Napoleon’ hitting theaters, Sean and Amanda are joined by Chris Ryan to build the Ridley Hall of Fame, selecting his 10 films most worthy of preservation (1:00). Then, Sean is joined by filmmaker Errol Morris to talk about his new John le Carré documentary, ‘The Pigeon Tunnel,’ Morris’s interviewing style, how he chooses subjects, the overlap between documentary and drama film...

Sean and Amanda are joined by The Ringer’s Joanna Robinson to discuss the successes and failures of ‘The Marvels’ and what it portends for Marvel’s hopes to pull out of their relative recent tailspin (1:00). Then, Sean talks with ‘Dream Scenario’ writer and director Kristoffer Borgli about how he get his career kick-started, making films in the United States vs. Europe, and working with Nic Cage (...

Sean and Amanda are joined by Chris Ryan to discuss the trio’s collective favorite movie of 2023, David Fincher’s ‘The Killer’ (1:00). Then, Adam Nayman joins the show to give his take on ‘The Killer,’ the state of American auteur directors in 2023, and where the film fits into Fincher’s larger project (48:00). Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins Guests: Chris Ryan and Adam Nayman Senior Prod...

Sean and Amanda review Sofia Coppola’s ‘Priscilla’ (1:00), including the performances of its leads, Jacob Elordi and Cailee Spaeny, its set and costume design, where it slots in with her film canon, and more. Then, they take stock of the Best Picture Oscars race (47:00) and share the 10 movies they think are most likely to be nominated (1:02:00). Finally, Sean is joined by Coppola to talk about wh...

We are drafting again! Sean, Amanda, and Chris Ryan reunite for a draft of the work of acclaimed director David Fincher. Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins Guest: Chris Ryan Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Sean and Amanda discuss the somewhat surprising dominant movie at the box office, ‘Five Nights at Freddy’s,’ a horror adaptation of a popular video game series (1:00). Then, they review ‘Pain Hustlers,’ the David Yates–directed drama about the opioid crisis starring Chris Evans and Emily Blunt (27:00), before running through Blunt’s career to this point and laying out her “movie star playbook” (36...

Sean and Amanda debut a predictions-based game surrounding this year’s Oscars ceremony (1:00). Then, Sean is joined by frequent guest Alex Ross Perry to open the mailbag and answer questions about the current state of horror, how the WGA strike and new agreement affects filmmakers and writers like him, the state of physical media, and more (57:00). Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins Guest: A...

Sean, Amanda, and Chris are joined by David Sims and Griffin Newman of ‘Blank Check’ to draft their favorite lawyer movies—a broadening of the courtroom drama and legal thriller genre that gets contentious with two new guests involved in the draft. Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins Guests: Chris Ryan, Griffin Newman, and David Sims Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner Learn more about your ad choi...

Sean and Amanda discuss Martin Scorsese’s three-and-a-half hour epic ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’ and everything that it entails. They explore the adaptation of the David Grann book and how Scorsese and screenwriter Eric Roth shifted the perspective in the film (10:00), Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert De Niro’s repeated collaborations with Scorsese (23:00), the spellbinding performance of Lily Gladst...

Sean and Amanda discuss the surprise box office smash hit of the year, ‘Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour’—what it means for the movie industry, whether any other artists are powerful enough to follow in Swift’s footsteps, and the ripples her music dominance has had on larger pop culture. Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podca...

Sean and Amanda review a trio of movies—‘Fair Play’ (1:00), ‘The Royal Hotel’ (30:00), and ‘Cat Person’ (40:00)—before having a wider conversation about the current role of sex in cinema (52:00). Then, Sean is joined by ‘Fair Play’ writer-director Chloe Domont to discuss her debut feature, the process of having a movie acquired out of Sundance, and the kinds of projects she’s interested in tacklin...

Sean and Amanda discuss the quartet of Wes Anderson short films that dropped on Netflix and the trend of established auteurs exploring the short film genre (1:00). Then, they run through a long list of the films they think have a chance at getting a Best Picture nomination at the Oscars and rank the 10 they think are most likely to garner that nomination (35:00). Finally, Sean is joined by Grant S...

Sean is joined by Chris Ryan to review the latest film in the ‘Exorcist’ universe, ‘The Exorcist: Believer’ (1:00). Then, they discuss the ways that horror franchise filmmaking has enveloped David Gordon Green’s career (23:00), before zooming out to take stock of the last five years in horror by awarding "horror Oscars" to one film per year (40:00). Host: Sean Fennessey Guest: Chris Ryan Senior Pr...

With ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’ just weeks away, Sean, Amanda, and Chris gather to run through the long list of films that Martin Scorsese has made and build a 10-movie Hall of Fame to Marty’s career. Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins Guest: Chris Ryan Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The 21st Century Sci-Fi Canon, ‘The Creator,’ and ‘No One Will Save You’ Sean is joined by Chris Ryan to discuss all things science fiction. First, they cover Brian Duffield’s new film, ‘No One Will Save You’ (4:33) before turning to Gareth Edwards’s ‘The Creator’ (14:58) starring John David Washington. Later, they come together to form the 21st Century Sci-Fi Canon featuring their ten favorite sc...