Worthy

The Worthy boys tap dance their way over to Paris in order to discuss the Technicolor MGM musical film ‘An American in Paris’. Inspired by the 1928 orchestral composition by George Gershwin, this 1950s classic adaptation presents the French city with bright and lavish recreations of the iconic landscape. Our hosts also take a deep dive into the climactic 17-minute dialogue-free ballet featuring Ge...

The Worthy boys head backstage to dissect the drama between Eve Harrington (Anne Baxter), a super fan who becomes consumed by ambition and betrays her older mentor, Margo Channing played by Bette Davis. We discuss ageism in Hollywood and how the industry has improved or maybe not improved as much as it should. All About Eve went on to receive 14 nominations, beating and setting the record for most...

Ben and Jon breakdown the announcement of the 94th Academy Awards nominations. The Worthy hosts go through the highlights, snubs, and surprises of this year's nominees and categories.  If you like this episode and the show, please leave a review! It really does help us. Give us a follow on Instagram at WorthyPodcast and on Twitter @WorthyPod. Subscribe on Spotify, Twitter, or wherever you may get...

We mob together to discuss Willie Stark’s rants and political fall from grace as we’re discussing the 22nd Best Picture winner All The King’s Men. This 1949 film takes the gaze of a noir film and applies it to a political thriller about a local farmer turned politician. All The King’s Men was based on the popular novel by Robert Penn Warren from 1946. We descend into the earthly mess that is polit...

Worthy hosts give their end of the year recap and personal Top 10 films of 2021. In this episode Ben and Jon discuss the state of films and their experiences with going back to theaters to watch the newest in Hollywood. Ben and Jon also give some early Oscar predictions for the 94th Academy Awards and what they hope to see as 2021 Oscar season approaches. From Dune to Belfast to No Time To Die, th...

Chestnuts roasting on an open fire, a Worthy Holiday special to listen to. Ben and Jon talk about Holiday Movies and where they have appeared in Oscar history. Our hosts also dive into what makes a Holiday movie a "Holiday Movie" and the popularity of the genre among different celebrations during the holiday season.  So warm up to your favorite podcast listening spot and check out this special Hol...

‘Hamlet’ and the 21st Academy Awards Link in bio… The Worthy family seeks revenge as we discuss Laurence Olivier’s 1948 Shakespeare adaptation of ‘Hamlet’! We discuss the work of Shakespeare being adapted to film and whether to strongly diverge from the text or duplicate the words of the playwright. We even talk about our own experiences with Shakespeare and how we’ve changed as we’ve gotten older...

The Best Picture breakdown by Worthy hosts, Ben Smith and Jon Roberts, dives into one of Elia Kazan’s first films “Gentleman’s Agreement”. The film deals with the issues of anti-semitism in America and a journalist who pretends to be Jewish in order to understand the central conflict. Gregory Peck’s performance helped to lead this film to its Best Picture win at the 20th Academy Awards. This episo...

Only 18 horror movies have won Oscars and only 6 horror films have been nominated for Best Picture in the Academy Award's 93-year history. Why do we watch the horror genre and how has it changed over time? Where does the Academy lie with horror films and what films have they missed in the past? And can a horror film even be Worthy?  These are all the questions we discuss in this special Halloween...

We return home after the second World War to talk about the 1946 best picture winner ‘The Best Years of Our Lives’. Our cold open digs into the thematic storytelling in a movie's title and what they can imply to an audience before and after watching. It’s impossible to speak about this post war film without honoring the wonderful performances by the three leading actors:  Fredric March, Dana Andre...

The Best Picture breakdown by Worthy hosts, Ben Smith and Jon Roberts, explores Billy Wilder’s drama “The Lost Weekend”. The film centered on an alcoholic's weekend binge took home the Oscar for Best Picture at the 18th Academy Awards. Ray Milland’s performance in the lead role garnered him the Best Actor award from that same year. This episode on “The Lost Weekend” covers the dark themes and tone...

The Worthy Boys are back for a special bonus episode about the 2021 summer box office joined by Sean from Math Teacher Movies on Instagram! We dive deep into our favorite films, biggest surprise, and biggest disappointments of the summer. We explore the Rock's sexuality in film and even Scarlett Johansson's lawsuit against the media behemoth Walt Disney Studios!   Follow Sean on Instagram @mathtea...

In episode 17, we go the way of Catholicism, highlighting Bing Crosby as a priest from East St. Louis transferred to St. Dominic's Church run by Barry Fitzgerald. The warmth in the performances and the pictures' soulful songs garnered Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor, and even Best Song.  We even discuss whether Best Score is Worthy of being a category in the Academy Awards! Going My Way sings it...

In episode 16, we fly to Casablanca to hang with Rick Blaine in his nightclub the "Rick's Café Américain". We discuss what a “Classic Hollywood” film means to us and how that occasionally overlaps with some Best Picture Winners. From the dynamic contrast lighting to the constantly engaging cinematography we gush over the film's technical elements. We even debate whether the script changes forced b...

The Best Picture breakdown by Worthy hosts, Ben Smith and Jon Roberts, focuses on propaganda films in this episode. The 1942 film and 15th Best Picture winner “Mrs. Miniver” became a rallying cry for American and British audiences during World War Two. The reflection on the importance of that moment in time led to the film’s box office success. This episode on “Mrs. Miniver” also focuses on the pe...

The Best Picture breakdown by Worthy hosts, Ben Smith and Jon Roberts, ventures into the mind of one of the most prolific director of Old Hollywood, John Ford. His black and white 1941 epic “How Green Was My Valley” garnered Ford his 3rd Best Director award and only Best Picture win. The film revolves around a Welsh coal mining family through the eyes of the youngest son Huw (Roddy McDowall).  The...

The Best Picture breakdown by Worthy hosts, Ben Smith and Jon Roberts, takes a twisted turn into the world of Alfred Hitchcock and his 1940 classic “Rebecca”. One of the few Hitchcock films to take home an Academy Award, this Joan Fontaine and Laurence Olivier starring film will certainly leave you in suspense. In this episode of Worthy, Ben and Jon discuss the technical achievements of Hitchcock...

The Best Picture breakdown by Worthy hosts, Ben Smith and Jon Roberts, dive into the second half of the 1939 classic, “Gone With The Wind''. The fallout of events from the first half of the film and how the main characters adapt to their changing landscape is the focus of this episode. The behind the scenes aspect of the film’s director carousel is important to understand the differences between e...

The Best Picture breakdown by Worthy hosts, Ben Smith and Jon Roberts, dive into part one of the classic, “Gone With The Wind”. One of Classic Hollywood’s Crown Jewels is an epic tale starring Vivien Leigh, Clark Gable, Hattie McDaniel and Olivia de Havilland. In this episode of Worthy, Ben and Jon thoroughly discuss the glorified racism of the Antebellum South and how crucial it is to view this f...

The Best Picture breakdown by Worthy hosts, Ben Smith and Jon Roberts, dive into Frank Capra’s 2nd Best Picture winner and 3rd Best Director led film “You Can’t Take It With You”. Adapted from the Pulitzer Prize winning play of the same name, starred icons like James Stewart, Jean Arthur, Lionel Barrymore and Edward Arnold. In this episode, Ben and Jon discuss the importance of Capra to the cinema...

The Best Picture breakdown by Worthy hosts, Ben Smith and Jon Roberts, are faced with another “biopic” as this episode explores the 10th Academy Awards and 10th Best Picture winner ‘The Life of Emile Zola’. This picture is based on the famous French muckraking writer, Emile Zola and his quest to free a falsely imprisoned Captain in the French Army. With ten nominations, ‘The Life of Emile Zola’ re...

The Best Picture breakdown by Worthy hosts, Ben Smith and Jon Roberts, head back to the bright lights of Broadway this episode to explore the 9th Academy Awards and 9th Best Picture winner “The Great Ziegfeld”. This Robert Z. Leonard film tells the true life story of the ups and downs of Florenz Ziegfeld Jr., famed producer of extravagant broadway shows. This biopic would also go on to win the Bes...

Ben and Jon react to the results of the 93rd Academy Awards! The Worthy hosts go through the highlights, snubs, and surprises that unfolded at Hollywood's biggest night.    If you like this episode and the show, please leave a review! It really does help us. Give us a follow on Instagram at WorthyPodcast and on Twitter @WorthyPod. Subscribe on Spotify, iTunes, or wherever you may get your podcasts...

The Best Picture breakdown by Worthy hosts, Ben Smith and Jon Roberts, take the high seas in this episode to explore the 8th Academy Awards and 8th Best Picture winner “Mutiny On The Bounty”. This Frank Lloyd directed epic tells the notorious tale of Captain Bligh (Charles Laughton) and the crew that abandoned him. The film also starred Clark Gable as the leader of the mutinous crew, Fletcher Chri...

The Best Picture breakdown by Worthy hosts, Ben Smith and Jon Roberts, explores the 7th Academy Awards and 7th Best Picture winner “It Happened One Night”. One of the last examples of pre-code Hollywood, this film focuses on the budding love story between Ellie (Claudette Colbert) and Peter (Clark Gable). Led by the direction of Frank Capra, this screwball comedy pulled off one of the rarest feats...