The Rolling Tape

Doug Pray and Laura Gabbert both got their start at UCLA graduate film school where they studied under Professor Howard Suber. After graduating, both went on to successful careers making documentaries, with some notable credits between them including “Love, Lizzo” (2022), “Disclosure” (2020) and now “The Power of Film” (2024). Pray and Gabbert reunite with Howard Suber on their passion project “Th...

With Oscar nominations for the 96th Academy Award Ceremony being announced in less than a week, our team speeds through each category to share their final thoughts and predictions for what to expect on Tuesday, January 23rd. Follow our team online: Danny Jarabek Website , Letterboxd , Instagram , Twitter , TikTok , and Linktree Eugene Rocco Utley on Letterboxd , Instagram , and Twitter Paul Rai on...

We aren’t recording on a Wednesday, but we are here wearing pink because today we’ll be reviewing the newest iteration of Mean Girls, the movie musical based on a musical based on a movie based on a book written by Tina Fey, directed by Samantha Jayne and Arturo Perez Jr., and starring Angourie Rice, Reneé Rapp, and Auli’i Cravalho. Don’t end up in our burn book and listen to us review our first f...

We’re closing out our predictions episodes today before we finalize all of our predictions for every category by talking about 3 in particular today: Costume Design, Production Design, and Makeup and Hairstyling. Follow our team online: Danny Jarabek Website , Letterboxd , Instagram , Twitter , TikTok , and Linktree Paul Rai on Letterboxd , Instagram , and Twitter Evan Miller on Letterboxd , Twitt...

Based on the true story of the Von Erich family, director Sean Durkin dives into the 1980’s world of professional wrestling with The Iron Claw, his third feature film. Starring Zac Efron, Jeremy Allen White, and Harris Dickinson, we review the triumph and tragedy of the wrestling quartet and their domineering father and coach who pushes them to the biggest stage in the sport. Chapter Timestamps: 0...

Continuing the conversation leading up to the 96th Oscars, our team breaks down the sub-picture categories: Best Animated Feature, Best International Feature, and Best Documentary Feature, with their predictions and callouts of what to expect with these nominations. Follow our team online: Danny Jarabek Website , Letterboxd , Instagram , Twitter , TikTok , and Linktree Eugene Rocco Utley on Letter...

Based on Alice Walker’s novel of the same name, The Color Purple was originally adapted by Steven Spielberg in 1985 and went on to be nominated for 11 Oscars including Best Picture. Today, we review the 2023 adaptation from director Blitz Bazawule who introduces “a bold new take on the beloved classic.” The film stars Fantasia Barrino, Taraji P. Henson, Danielle Brooks, and Colman Domingo. Chapter...

Grab your buddy and sit down for this latest double feature of The Rolling Tape where we discuss the dynamic partnerships of cinema and what makes them so unique to play out on-screen. For this discussion of companionship in film, we will be covering Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) and RRR (2022). Follow our team online: Danny Jarabek Website , Letterboxd , Instagram , Twitter , TikTok ,...

Today we’ll be conducting a review of Bradley Cooper’s sophomore feature, Maestro telling the story of Leonard Bernstein alongside his wife Felicia with Cooper in front of and behind the camera. The film is currently streaming on Netflix. Podcast Website Link Website & Publications: www.therollingtape.com Instagram: @therollingtape Twitter: @therollingtape Letterboxd: @therollingtape Support o...

With two major award bodies - the Golden Globes and the Critics Choice Awards -  making their nominations for their 2024 ceremonies, our team breaks down the nominations, our thoughts on them, and how we believe they offer insight for this year's everchanging Oscars race. Follow our team online: Danny Jarabek Website , Letterboxd , Instagram , Twitter , TikTok , and Linktree Eugene Rocco Utle...

Yorgos Lanthimos and Emma Stone reunite to tell the fantastical tale of Bella Baxter, a young woman brought back to life by an unorthodox scientist. Poor Things stars Stone alongside Willem Dafoe, Mark Ruffalo, and Ramy Youssef as they journey through Bella’s evolution into a free and liberated woman as she experiences the vastness of the world around her. Chapter Timestamps: 0:00:00 Introduction...

Continuing coverage and updates on the award race for the 96th Oscars season, our team discusses the implications and potential impact that the American Film Institute's and National Board of Review's ten best films lists have on the awards race; along with predict another three sets of nominations between Best Original Score, Best Original Song, and Best Sound. Follow our team online: E...

After eight years since his previous film and supposed retirement, Hayao Miyazaki returns with his twelvth feature film, The Boy and the Heron, giving us what seems to be one of his most personal and self-reflective efforts to date. Seeing success both critically and through box offices, this film delivers the adventures of Mahito struggles and adventures while proccessing the death of his mother;...

Continuing the conversation leading up to the 96th Oscars, our team dives into their predictions of what will be nominated for Best Cinematography, Best Editing, and Best Visual Effects.   Follow our team online: Eugene Rocco Utley on Letterboxd , Instagram , and Twitter Paul Rai on Letterboxd , Instagram , and Twitter Evan Miller on Letterboxd , Twitter , Instagram , and TikTok Films mentioned: L...

Todd Haynes directs one of his most provocative films yet with May December now streaming on Netflix. Tabloid romances, psychosexual perversion, and a shortage of hot dogs define the film starring Natalie Portman, Julianne Moore, and Charles Melton based on a screenplay by Samy Burch. Chapter Timestamps: 0:00:00 Introduction 0:08:01 May December Non-Spoilers 0:24:07 May December Spoilers 1:43:02 O...

Studio Ghibli was founded in 1985 by directors Isao Takahata and Hayao Miyazaki, and since has grown massive acclaim within not only the world of animation, but within cinema as a whole. Between its recognizable animation style and consistently magical stories, the studio has established a singular presence worth examining. For this, we will be discussing the action epic Princess Mononoke (1997) a...

Emerald Fennell is back with her sophomore feature and another incisive look into human nature at a crossroads of social hierarchy. Saltburn features Barry Keoghan as Oliver Quick, an Oxford student drawn to the air of aristocracy played by Jacob Elordi, Archie Madekwe, and Rosamund Pike. Chapter Timestamps: 0:00:00 Introduction 0:26:42 Saltburn Non-Spoilers 0:46:52 Saltburn Spoilers 0:00:00 Oscar...

The world of the Hunger Games returns with The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, a prequel to the previous four films in the franchise. Adapted from the novels of Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games has been a widely popular franchise for over a decade, but is now expanding to share a glimpse into Panem 64 years before meet Katniss Everdeen. Chapter Timestamps: 0:00:00 Introduction 0...

Join us for a "Noir" vember-themed double feature looking at the theme of Film Noir through the lens of two 1940's classics: Double Indemnity (1944) and Out of the Past (1947). Follow our team online: Eugene Rocco Utley on Letterboxd , Instagram , and Twitter Sara Ciplickas on Letterboxd , Instagram , and Twitter Gabe Lillianthal on Letterboxd , Twitter , Instagram , and TikTok Film...

We’re getting into the Christmas spirit a little bit early this year, but don’t let Alexander Payne know that we all will be reviewing the warm and fuzzy feelings of The Holdovers starring Paul Giamatti, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, and Dominic Sessa. Grab a Miller High Life with us, the champagne of beers, and listen in to our review. Chapter Timestamps: 0:00:00 Introduction 0:20:40 The Holdovers Non-Sp...

The monster film brings our darkest fears to screen. It puts us face-to-face with the things we fear most as a collective society. Today, we examine how the monster film has changed over time and place in film history, what makes a great movie monster, and how history and culture has changed our perception of what to fear. For this, we will be examining the original Godzilla (1954) and its histori...

Today we discuss one of the year's most highly anticipated and high-caliber pedigree films in Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon. One of our greatest living filmmakers is back and possibly bigger than ever, blending his trademark crime drama with the western depicting the 1920’s depiction of Osage nation murders. Chapter Timestamps: 0:00:00 Introduction 0:20:04 Killers of the Flower...

We are introducing 4 more prediction categories covering all of the performance categories including Best Lead Actor, Best Lead Actress, Best Supporting Actor, and Best Supporting Actress. We’ll break down all of the major contenders in each to discuss who has the best shot at composing this year’s acting quarter at the Oscars. Follow our team online: Danny Jarabek Website , Letterboxd , Instagram...

The western is a genre most popular from the 1940s to 1960s that takes the frame to the vast and lawless American West, exploring a land amidst its transition from a frontier to a country. Within a world yet to be tamed, we see an America stripped down to its survival, and thus, showing some of its true colors and values within it. We examine two films: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (1966) a qui...

Continuing the conversations of this year's awards season, we move onto our next set of categories to predict for the 96th Academy Awards, including Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Original Screenplay. We will continue adding predictions for all 23 categories with each successive news episode. Follow our team online: Danny Jarabek Website , Letterboxd , Instagram , Twitter ,...