Culture Gabfest

The Timothée Chalamet vs. the Blue Aliens Edition

Jan 7, 2026
This discussion features Sam Adams, a film critic stepping in to analyze the latest film trends, and Michael Schulman, a New Yorker staff writer known for his insightful cultural commentary. The duo delves into Timothée Chalamet's polarizing role in 'Marty Supreme,' exploring its charm and flaws. They also debate the cultural impact of 'Avatar: Fire and Ash,' with Adams defending its spectacle and Schulman questioning its lasting significance. The conversation turns lively as they tackle the meaning of cultural impact in today's cinematic landscape.
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INSIGHT

Shameless Hustle As Character Study

  • Marty Supreme frames shameless hustling as a character trait that the film interrogates rather than celebrates.
  • The movie balances charm and moral damage to show ambition as both magnetic and destructive.
ANECDOTE

Caught By A Movie Feeling

  • Stephen Metcalf compares seeing Marty Supreme to watching Catch Me If You Can as a kid, valuing the sense of it being 'actually a movie.'
  • He uses that comparison to praise the film's confident filmmaking in its early stretches.
INSIGHT

Design And Exhaustion In The Safdie Style

  • Stephen Metcalf finds the film immersive and carefully constructed in its first half but increasingly repetitive and exhausting later on.
  • He reads the sperm imagery as an explicit metaphor for a macho, megalomaniacal drive underlying Marty.
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