Culture Gabfest: The Strange Lionization of Luigi Mangione

On this week’s show, the hosts chew over Nightbitch, Marielle Heller’s (Queen’s Gambit, Can You Ever Forgive Me, The Diary of a Teenage Girl, MacGruber), fourth feature film. Amy Adam stars as “Mother,” a former artist who has given up her creative pursuits to care for her infant son full-time — a transition so taxing, that she begins dissociating and transforming into a dog at night. And while there’s a lot to like here (it’s an adaptation of Rachel Yonder’s magical realism novel of the same name, for example), does the film ever achieve lift-off? 

Then, the three rip Black Doves to shreds, Netflix’s latest espionage show starring Keira Knightly, Sarah Lancashire, and Ben Whishaw that has far too many plot holes to name (although, Stephen does try to.) Finally, the panel digs into the strange case of Luigi Mangione, the suspected shooter in the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson — and the internet’s sardonic, if not jubilant, reaction to the fatal shooting.

In the exclusive Slate Plus segment, the panel explores the celebrity look-alike contest: a puzzling and mildly delightful phenomenon that’s been sweeping the nation. (Read Nadira Goffe’s excellent reporting on the Timothée Chalamet tournament that started it all, here.)

FINAL CALL: We are down to the final week! To submit your question for our annual call-in show (for inspiration, check out last year’s episode), please call (260) 337-8260 to leave us a voicemail, or record a voice note and email it to us at culturefest@slate.com. 

Or, email us at culturefest@slate.com if you just want to gab. 

Endorsements:

Dana: The Year of Lear audiobook, written by James Shapiro and narrated by Robert Fass. 

Julia: Tree.fm — a project by Sounds of the Forest and aporee, where you can tune into forest soundscapes from around the world. 

Stephen: A cover of Richard and Linda Thompson’s “Down Where the Drunkards Roll,” performed by Loudon Wainwright III and Rufus Wainwright. 

Podcast production by Jared Downing. Production assistance by Kat Hong.

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