The Establishing Shot

The 1990s and 2000s were some of Spielberg’s most successful decades! We see him come into his own as a director and mogul of the movie industry. He solidifies his legacy as a household name, and silences his harshest critics by showing his ability to make both popcorn blockbusters and “important” and artful films. This episode looks at takeaways from the middle career of Spielberg and then looks...

There is nothing quite like a scene that happens underwater. One of my favorites comes from The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou when Steve and the rest of his crew have a transcendent moment encountering the infamous Jaguar Shark that ruined Steve’s life. In this episode we explore other such scenes with a draft of underwater scenes in movies. We took somewhat different approaches to this draft to...

Harrison Ford has been one of the most treasured American actors since his breakout role as Han Solo in Star Wars and was solidified as a film icon as Indiana Jones when Raiders of the Lost Ark released only a few years later. This week we talk about his Hollywood and acting personas, the ups and downs of his career (mostly ups even in his lesser films), and most importantly do a movie draft where...

Nearly 20 years after Indiana Jones rode off into the sunset with his father, Spielberg returned to our favorite tomb-raiding professor of archaeology in his older years with Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. In the opinion of my guest and I, this film certainly has its flaws with some undercooked characters and questionable CGI but is largely undeservedly maligned for all the wrong reasons. We talk a...

Hostage and kidnapping stories actually have a rich history in film. From serious dramas, to edge-of-your-seat thrillers, to comedies, there was a lot of great cinema to choose from for this week’s movie draft. This draft follows up our discussion of Spielberg’s Munich, and it is fully of fun discussion of some of the most fun and/or thrilling hostage movies. https://www.establishingshotpod.com/ F...

Munich is one of Spielberg’s least discussed movies and undeservedly so. It displays some of his best action set pieces, contains serious contemplative political and ethical questions, and has all of the iconic Spielbergian shots and framing. And that is not even to mention that its subject matter dealing with Israeli-Palestinian conflict is still just as relevant as ever. My guest and I marvel at...

As a belated companion to our Catch Me If You Can episode, we are doing a movie draft of Leonardo DiCaprio performances! Leo is arguably the biggest movie star of his era. Making the turn from young heartthrob to a medium for auteurs to explore conflicted characters through was impressive. And he has worked with nearly all of the great directors of a generation. An old friend and avid Leo fan join...

With his adaptation of the sci-fi classic War of the Worlds, Spielberg continues his 2000s science fiction fun with yet another 9/11 coded film with a broken family and troubled father. Join me and the Nerds & Jesus podcast as we talk about these themes, the Tom Cruise factor, Dakota Fanning’s breakout child performance, the mix of practical and digital effects, and the blockbuster-ness of it...

Have you ever thought of watching movies as a spiritual practice? Abby Olcese’s book Film for All Seasons: Experiencing the Church Year at the Movies explores this idea by taking the stories that inspired the church calendar and connecting those occasions with films that explore similar themes. In this interview, we talk about how Abby got her start in writing about film, the art of storytelling a...

With The Terminal, Tom Hanks rejoins Steven Spielberg for their third collaboration and certainly their most lighthearted to date. This film represents some of the worst and best of Spielberg. It is charming and fun at times with its fun cast and remarkable set. But it is also weighed down by an inscrutable plot, strangely motivated characters, and bad jokes. We talk about all of its highs and low...

The 2025 Oscars are here! With the ceremony coming up this Wednesday, I went through all the categories from production to design to cinematography to the big categories of acting, directing, and best picture. Some categories like lead actress, editing, and animated feature are pretty tough to choose this year. But I give my best predictions for what will win, and I also give my own personal nomin...

What do you get when you combine the star studded power of Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks with the blockbuster filmmaking genius of Steven Spielberg with a globe-trotting, fast paced crime drama? Turns out you get a really good and entertaining movie in Catch Me if You Can! During our discussion of this movie we talk about the incredibly fast production, the star studded cast, the Spielbergian fa...

The stardom of Tom Cruise might have been at its peak in the 80s and 90s, but his steady work throughout his career shows that he has that timeless star quality that people go to the movies to see. He has moved from fatherless son to protective father personas; he has moved from making his way through working with many auteur directors to creating his own franchise; and it would be reasonable to s...

Minority Report feels like the deepest dive into hard sci-fi that Steven Spielberg has ever attempted, and it is also his first collaboration with fellow Hollywood superstar Tom Cruise. That combination makes for an interesting conversation in this episode as we discuss everything from working with a star to inventive sci-fi visuals to existential questions that are common to the genre and more! h...

While artificial intelligence has burst on the scene as a huge cultural topic in recent years, there is a long history of AI stories in film. This week, we do a movie draft of films dealing with artificial intelligence. We talk about the ways the films we choose explore the topic, how so many of these films are more relevant today than ever, and enjoy discussing the wide variety of styles and stor...

With A.I. Artificial Intelligence, Steven Spielberg dove headfirst into sci-fi storytelling more than he ever had before. With incredible production design, another great child performance for Spielberg in Haley Joel Osment, a pinocchio infused, existential sci-fi story, and especially the Stanley Kubrick collaboration, this was an incredible feat even for Spielberg (even if it was and still is a...

It is a new year, and we could all use a bit of inspiration. So, this week I share my Top 5 Inspirational Movies list along with Melvin from Cinematic Doctrine. This is obviously not the definitive list of inspirational movies, but it is a collection of films that have truly inspired us in some way or another. I know my list in particular tries to cover some different categories of inspiring movie...

Largely considered the best (or one of the best) WWII movies ever made, Saving Private Ryan showed that Spielberg could make just about any kind of movie and do it masterfully. We talk about how he pulled it off, his collaboration with Tom Hanks, the themes of war movies, that iconically brutal open at Omaha Beach, and more in this episode! https://www.establishingshotpod.com/   Feedback: Email us...

If you are like me, you likely grew up watching Disney Animated Classics! There are a ton of great ones from early films like Snow White and Pinocchio to more recent additions like Moana and Encanto. In this movie draft, we battle it out for our favorite Disney classics to see who can build the best group of films, and we might just go on a few nostalgia trips along the way. This draft was origina...

This is a rerun of a movie draft we did of films in the Top 100 of all-time worldwide box office earnings back in Episode 3. It makes for an interesting draft because the list is surprisingly bereft of really incredible movies with a few exceptions. You are mostly choosing from blockbuster crowd pleasers. I am happy with the results, though! Only 6 films have broken into the Top 100 since that dra...

When December rolls around, it is time to start watching Christmas movies! It has been a joy to grow my little family with our own little Christmas traditions, and movies are a big part of that. So, this week, continuing my family Chritsmas movie favorites series, I bring on my wife and kids to talk about their favorite Christmas movies. This is a very special episode for me, and I hope it is for...

Growing up, watching Christmas movies was always a part of our family tradition. This week, I am joined by my mom and sister to hear to hear about their favorite Christmas movies. They also share the favorites of my dad and brother-in-law who were not able to come on. I hope you enjoy their choices and make sure to watch some great holiday movies with your family this year! https://www.establishin...

What is better at Christmas time than cozying up with your family for a great Christmas movie?! While we can’t really do that on a podcast, I thought I would spend the next few weeks with my family hearing about their favorite Christmas movies. This week, I am joined by my wife’s side of the family for some great Christmas movie recommendations. I hope you enjoy their choices and make sure to watc...

Happy Thanksgiving! This week, we are playing a rerun of the movie draft we held all the way back on episode 2 of the show with Jacob Phillips: the Movie Sequels Draft. This was a really fun draft! I hope you enjoy revisiting it or hearing it for the first time! https://www.establishingshotpod.com/   Feedback: Email us at establishingshotpod@gmail.com Leave a voicemail from the button on the right...

A new era of Spielberg’s career was launched when he partnered with Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen to start a brand new studio from scratch: DreamWorks SKG. I talk through the history of this endeavor and what it means for Spielberg’s career. I also do a bonus review of the 2010 samurai film 13 Assassins, a movie chosen for review by a supporter of the show.  https://www.establishingshotpod.c...