Eavesdropping at the Movies

Spent all morning listening to this podcast doing DIY and now keen to see One Battle in VistaVision. Have I missed the boat in the UK? Seen it twice and consider it a must see for anyone who hasn’t seen it. Full disclosure I took a film module with Jose at Warwick, always interested in his thoughts.

I cried. A LOT.

468 – Pillion Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. Possibly the sweetest and lightest gay BDSM biker film ever made, Pillion opens up conversations on power dynamics, …

The wonderful PILLION opens up conversations on power dynamics, consent and boundaries, and made Mike cry. It's surprisingly sweet for a BDSM biker film, and director Harry Lighton shows remarkable control of tone for his first feature. See it. wp.me/p9y1IP-3u6

467 – It Was Just an Accident Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. One of Iran’s most celebrated filmmakers, Jafar Panahi, has spent the last quarter of a century in conflict wi…

Jafar Panahi's brilliant IT WAS JUST AN ACCIDENT is, despite the gravity and darkness of its subject matter, an energetic and entertaining tale of former political prisoners who capture a man they suspect was their torturer. See it.

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I remember (and describe in the podcast) when Jon Stewart had Cliff May on The Daily Show, agreed that it was a war crime, then hastily and unconvincingly took it back the next day because apparently it was too uncomfortable to have said that.

Not very good. Tedious. Self-important. Stupid. But I liked the bit where an American has to defend the dropping of the bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, criticism of which seems to be a surprisingly strong taboo in American culture.

466 – Nuremberg Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. Russell Crowe shines in Nuremberg as Hermann Göring, who became the face of the Nazi Party following Hitler’s …

We cover a lot of ground in our discussion of the mediocre NUREMBERG. Its performances are its highlight - mostly - and everything else is questionable. But it gets you into a good chat. eavesdroppingatthemovies.com/2025/11/28/4...

465 – Die My Love Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. Jennifer Lawrence gives a career-best performance as a new mother struggling with depression and a rocky relationshi…

DIE MY LOVE offers a career-best performance from Jennifer Lawrence and fluid, tonally sensitive direction from Lynne Ramsay. Their artistry brings great depth of feeling out of what might be otherwise simple material. See it at the cinema.

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464 – Bugonia Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. Yorgos Lanthimos’ fourth collaboration with Emma Stone yields a darkly comedic thriller about two conspiracy t…

BUGONIA is funny, absurd, tragic, misanthropic, fundamentally unsound but too entertaining not to forgive. We compare it with EX MACHINA to show where the storytelling falls short, think about its title, reminisce about Covid lockdowns... it's got the lot. wp.me/p9y1IP-3ii

463 – Frankenstein (2025) Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. Another classic Gothic horror is remade for the modern age: first we saw Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu, and now Gui…

What does FRANKENSTEIN have in common with ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER? Find out within. (The answer is parenting.)

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462 – Tron: Ares Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. Far from an outstanding film, but amazing to look at and too much fun not to recommend, we had a great time in Tron:…

TRON: ARES is Pinocchio and Frankenstein with neon-oozing motorbikes, and as entertaining as that sounds. (We think that sounds entertaining.) It's far from a great film, but it's fabulous to look at, and too much fun not to recommend. wp.me/p9y1IP-39P

461 – One Battle After Another – Second Screening Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. Listen to our first podcast on One Battle After Another here. We’re joined by our resident Paul Thomas Anderso…

We’re joined by our resident Paul Thomas Anderson expert (and Mike’s brother), Stephen, for another discussion of ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER. He's always terrific value on the podcast and his contributions in this edition continue to show that. wp.me/p9y1IP-39M

José Arroyo in Conversation with James McEvoy on Film Programming at the Warwick Arts Centre What does a Film Programmer do? I talk to James McEvoy to find out what programming the Warwick Arts Centre cinema, a three-screen cinema, based on a university campus but also serving a local and …

What does a Film Programmer do? I talk to James McEvoy, Cinema Programmer at the Warwick Arts Centre to fid out: notesonfilm1.com/2025/10/20/j...

460 – The Smashing Machine Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. Mike isn’t impressed with The Rock’s attempt to take on a dramatic role in an intimate biopic after deca…

What Mike sees in The Rock's performance as desperate Oscar bait and a cynical grasp for artistic legitimacy, José sees the good side of, although we're in agreement that THE SMASHING MACHINE has problems that its positives don't overcome.
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459 – A Big Bold Beautiful Journey Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. A Big Bold Beautiful Journey, directed by former video essayist Kogonada, is beautiful to look at and very likeable,…

A Big Bold Beautiful Journey, is beautiful and likeable, but derivative and ultimately unsatisfying. We discuss its lighting, its attitude towards people's histories, and why a rubbish script Mike once wrote makes him particularly keen to sneer at it. wp.me/p9y1IP-37C

458 – The Long Walk Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. Cheap, simple, high-concept and reasonably graphic, The Long Walk is a throwback to the days of the B-movie. In its …

Not as dumb as Mike anticipated - but still quite dumb - THE LONG WALK develops surprising thematic depth, showing us a dystopian, totalitarian America in desperate need of revolution, and asking its characters what achieving one might take.

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457 – One Battle After Another Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. By far Paul Thomas Anderson’s most expensive film, with a budget some four or five times what he’s used …

ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER is unmissable. A state of the nation film that should define the national conversation. Complex, funny, energetic, and demonstrative of even greater range to Paul Thomas Anderson's abilities than we'd previously thought.

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456 – Together Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. Commitment is scary. It’s especially scary when you drink water from a cursed puddle that wants to make a hybr…

First-time director Michael Shanks shows a good instinct for tone in TOGETHER, a wonderfully imaginative and original body horror about the fear of commitment. It's one of the best horrors - maybe best films full stop - that we've seen in a while. wp.me/p9y1IP-2XV

455 – Eddington Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. Most film and TV has quietly agreed to pretend that the Covid pandemic never happened. Perhaps it’s too awkwar…

EDDINGTON recalls the days of lockdowns, mask mandates and conspiracy theories – days of particular hostility and division in the USA, in which individual freedom does constant battle with the greater good. It's a mixed bag but ambitious.

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454 – Weapons Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. One of the most hotly-anticipated horror films in recent memory, Weapons begins with seventeen third-grade children …

WEAPONS is interesting, ambitious, creative, and just a bit overpraised. We find plenty to like and plenty to criticise, and reopen the discussion two weeks after having seen it to reconsider it. wp.me/p9y1IP-2XQ

453 – The Shrouds Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. A psychosexual thriller that’s neither psychosexual nor thrilling enough, The Shrouds is a disappointment. The…

A psychosexual thriller that's neither psychosexual nor thrilling enough, THE SHROUDS is a disappointment from David Cronenberg. eavesdroppingatthemovies.com/2025/09/01/4...

The second of two podcasts in which a comedy Tim who enjoys odd social interactions turns out to be a fantastic presence on the cinema screen and capable of leading a whole film without losing the unique vibe and energy that makes their comedy great.

452 – The Ballad of Wallis Island Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. Mike loves Tim Key. This much has been true for some time, and he’s thrilled to discover that the comic poet&#…

TIm Key's unique approach to wordplay and social interactions is put front and centre in THE BALLAD OF WALLIS ISLAND, a simply lovely comedy about grief, loss, and loneliness, that filled the Mockingbird cinema with laughter. wp.me/p9y1IP-2U0

The first of two podcasts in which a comedy Tim who enjoys odd social interactions turns out to be a fantastic presence on the cinema screen and capable of leading a whole film without losing the unique vibe and energy that makes their comedy great.

451 – Friendship Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. We talk adult male friendships, stress and surreality in our discussion of Friendship, in which oddball everyman Tim…

With its idiosyncratic tone, stressful focus on social awkwardness, and departures into surreality, FRIENDSHIP won't be for everyone, but we highly recommend it. Tim Robinson is a fascinating screen presence, and the film earns big laughs from meaningful subject matter. wp.me/p9y1IP-2TV

Okay

Yeah yeah he's his son. It's the same role

450 – The Naked Gun (2025) Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. The Naked Gun is rebooted with Liam Neeson in the part that was once Leslie Nielsen’s, and he shows just how h…

THE NAKED GUN is rebooted with Liam Neeson in the part that was once Leslie Nielsen’s, and he shows just how hard comedy can be. We discuss everything the film gets wrong. If only they’d asked us for help. wp.me/p9y1IP-2RQ

449 – Bring Her Back Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. YouTubers-turned-directors Danny and Michael Philippou demonstrate a real eye for visual design and an ability to cr…

The Philippou twins share a good eye for imagery, and in BRING HER BACK they put it to use eliciting some truly disgusting effects. We discuss the duo's good delivery of information but weak storytelling, and question the ethics of the use of child actors. wp.me/p9y1IP-2OM

It's also called Jurassic WORLD Rebirth. I keep making this mistake