Watch With Jen™

Returning to the podcast today, we have a fan favorite in the form of Mr. Jordan Harper. One of my dearest friends, this podcast's very first guest, and my Pandemic Movie Club, and Game Night crew buddy, Jordan is the Edgar award-winning author of She Rides Shotgun, Love & Other Wounds, The Last King of California - releasing in September in the UK - and Everybody Knows, which will be available everywhere in 2023.Additionally, a screenwriter and producer of such shows as The Mentalist, Gotham, and Hightown, Jordan crafted one of the most beautiful pilots for L.A. Confidential, which CBS stupidly did not pick up, but was so acclaimed he screened and did a virtual panel on the show at the ATX TV Festival. A Missouri native - and yes, that will come up in today's conversation, Jordan currently lives in L.A. along with his talented screenwriter girlfriend Megan Mostyn-Brown, and adorable dog Ellroy.Welcoming Jordan back to celebrate the release of The Last King of California next week in the UK, in this rich, thoughtful, fresh conversation, we explore a trio of films that center on criminal families (of the blood variety), including James Foley's At Close Range, David Michôd's Animal Kingdom, and Debra Granik's Winter's Bone.Theme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music ArchiveLogo: KateGabrielle.comOriginally Posted on Patreon (9/14/22) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/71974209

In his last appearance, film writer Sean Burns joined me to take a look at Michael Douglas in lothario mode in one of the pod's most hilarious and popular adults-only episodes. And this week, he's back to dissect five films starring one of the podcast's most beloved and covered character actors in the form of Jack Nicholson's turns in Easy Rider, Five Easy Pieces, The Shining, Terms of Endearment, and The Crossing Guard. In addition to astute insights and Nicholson storytelling, you'll hear the hilarious Burns bring out my feistier side the deeper we get into the episode. So sit back as we curse like sailors, critique strip club numbers, lovingly poke fun at filmmaking pretensions, and compare the pretty, dull young actors of today to salad dressing. It's another fun conversation indeed!A film critic for WBUR's Arts & Culture and a contributing writer at North Shore Movies and Crooked Marquee, he was Philadelphia Weekly's lead film critic from 1999-2013 and worked as contributing editor at the Improper Bostonian from 2006-2014. His reviews, interviews, and essays have also appeared in Metro, The Village Voice, Rolling Stone, The Boston Herald, Nashville Scene, Time Out New York, Philadelphia City Paper, and RogerEbert.com.A graduate of New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, Burns was a recurring guest on the late David Brudnoy's WBZ 1030 AM radio show, and in 2002, received an award for Excellence in Criticism from the Greater Philadephia Society of Professional Journalists. His writing has been called "jocular but serious, more like a 1940's daily reporter pounding out columns on a manual typewriter than a typical twenty-first-century navel-gazing film critic." Meanwhile, his sisters still tell him that he "swears too much and drive like an old lady."Logo: KateGabrielle.comTheme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music ArchiveOriginally Posted on Patreon (9/9/22) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/71745247

This week, we're welcoming back a woman I had so much fun dissecting Roger Moore's Bond era with the last time she appeared on the podcast towards the end of Season 2. Julia Ricci is a Senior Programmer at Heartland Film in Indianapolis, Indiana, which organizes the Heartland International Film Festival and the Academy Award-qualifying Indy Shorts International Film Festival. She has been part of the programming team since 2018, selecting films for the festivals' shorts, features, and retrospective slates, and has programmed 17 short films that went on to become Oscar nominees and winners in the Live Action, Documentary, and Animated Short categories.Prior to Heartland Film, Julia was a researcher for Turner Classic Movies and The Criterion Collection's former streaming platform FilmStruck, and appeared on TCM as a Guest Fan Programmer. She has a degree in History from Ball State University and is a regional Emmy nominee for the documentary short "Legacies of Perfection: Auburn, Cord, Duesenberg," from 2013.Returning to celebrate three classic underdog sports stories set in Indiana, in this episode, we look at beloved family favorites Breaking Away, Hoosiers, and Rudy, and also investigate our relationships to these films and sports in general, and discuss what makes the genre so timeless and compelling.Theme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music ArchiveLogo: Kate Gabrielle (KateGabrielle.com)Originally Posted on Patreon (9/2/22) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/71424071

This week, I was so pleased to welcome two friends and the hosts of The Film Stage's excellent podcast The B-Side, which covers movie stars in a fascinating way by focusing not on the films that made or kept them famous but the ones that actors made in between. The delightful show just celebrated its four-year anniversary and I had such a fun time joining hosts Dan Mecca and Conor O'Donnell to discuss a handful of films starring Marisa Tomei last year.A producer and filmmaker living in Pittsburgh, Dan Mecca started The Film Stage with Jordan Raup in college at Buffalo and Conor O'Donnell is a post-production supervisor based in New York City and also serves as a critic for The Film Stage.Joining me to celebrate four former crew members turned directors and the diverse films that resulted from their work, in this episode, we tackle Douglas Trumbull's Silent Running, Jack Fisk's Violets are Blue, Ava DuVernay's Selma, and Jesse V. Johnson's Avengement.Originally Posted on Patreon (8/26/22) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/71068857Theme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music ArchiveLogo: Kate Gabrielle (KateGabrielle.com)

This week, I was so pleased to welcome a new friend to the podcast. An actor and an acting teacher in his native Canada, Robert Bellissimo has appeared in numerous television shows, feature films, commercials, and plays. Two recent credits include PRIVATE EYES starring Jason Priestly and ROBBERY, which starred Art Hindle as well.A passionate cinephile for twenty years, in his late twenties, he realized he wanted to explore storytelling in a more in-depth way. When the Covid-19 lockdown began in March of 2020, he took advantage of his free time and created his high-quality YouTube Channel Robert Bellissimo at the Movies. Reviewing and introducing viewers to some of cinema's greatest films, over the past two years, he's interviewed many industry professionals who work in and around theatre, TV, and/or film, including yours truly who's been honored to appear on the channel twice - the first to discuss Scorsese's GOODFELLAS and more recently, returning to tackle Hitchcock's NOTORIOUS as well.Joining me to discuss the life and career of his favorite filmmaker John Cassavetes, in this in-depth feature-length episode, we focus on the beginning, middle, and end of Cassavetes' oeuvre in the form of SHADOWS, A WOMAN UNDER THE INFLUENCE, and LOVE STREAMS. Additionally sprinkling in throughout our conversation some of the director's thoughts on filmmaking, acting, men, women, and life in general, this is an episode that I hope Cassavetes devotees will love.Theme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music ArchiveLogo: Kate Gabrielle - KateGabrielle.comOriginally Posted on Patreon (8/17/22) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/70659691

This week, I'm thrilled to welcome back one of the sharpest critical minds working today, plus a guest that longtime listeners will remember hearing discuss Sofia Coppola's entire filmography with me in the first season of this show. I had such a fun and engaging conversation with the great Roxana Hadadi in that episode that it inspired me to shape the future of this podcast accordingly as a series devoted to these in-depth deep dives on topics my guests are truly passionate about.A TV critic with Vulture, who also writes about film and pop culture, previously Roxana was the film editor and a critic with Pajiba, and her reviews, essays, recaps, and other writing have also been published by The AV Club, Polygon, RogerEbert.com, The L.A. Times, Crooked Marquee, The Playlist, Fox Digital, GQ, and Inverse.Today, Roxana joins me for a richly analytical conversation to appreciate and evaluate the moral, ethical, political, interpersonal, stylistic, and narrative implications of one of the best television shows of the 2010s in the form of FX's THE AMERICANS. Approaching the series through various critical lenses, this spoiler-filled feature-length conversation is a must for fans of the show and I hope it's as enjoyable for you to listen to as it was for us to record. The second television-focused episode of the season so far - following an early installment devoted to TERRIERS - the next series that you'll hear dissected on Watch With Jen is MR. INBETWEEN, coming in early fall, and more episodes devoted to the medium will be announced soon.Theme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music ArchiveLogo: Kate Gabrielle (KateGabrielle.com)Originally Posted on Patreon (8/10/22) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/70336915

A very talented, versatile, and witty performer with more than 150 credit listings on IMDb, as an actor, James Urbaniak has brought to life Dr. Venture on Adult Swim's The Venture Brothers, the scene-stealing Arthur (who was my favorite character) on Hulu's Difficult People, and Grant on Comedy Central's Review. Additionally, he's also a podcaster in his own right and the creator of the scripted shows Getting On With James Urbaniak, A Night Called Tomorrow, and I Will Never Lie to You.Returning for the first time since our fascinating and very fun Charles Laughton episode late last season where he gave me a crash course in the '30s era of the great British actor, it was so great to have him back this time to discuss a character actress of a different decade. In this, our 150th episode of Watch With Jen (yes, really!), we take a look at a woman who is synonymous with the 1970s, in the form of Faye Dunaway.Focusing on her tremendous turns in notable classics, we begin in the late '60s with Dunaway's breakout turn in Bonnie and Clyde, then move into the '70s with Chinatown, Three Days of the Condor, and Network, and finally wrap things up with the controversial Mommie Dearest in the early '80s, which she considers the end of an era. An engaging and research-filled episode full of great Urbaniak witticisms and observations, devotees of Dunaway, acting, and/or '70s cinema lovers won't want to miss this conversation.Theme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music ArchiveLogo: Kate Gabrielle (KateGabrielle.com)Originally Posted on Patreon (7/28/22) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/69704390

Returning to the podcast this week, we have the impressive critic, in-demand lecturer, and insightful author Mr. Adam Nayman, who longtime listeners will remember hearing last summer around this time as he joined me to discuss the life and career of actress Gene Tierney. A contributor to The Ringer, Criterion, CinemaScope, and more, additionally, our Toronto-based guest has written thoughtful books on SHOWGIRLS, Ben Wheatley, the Coen brothers, Paul Thomas Anderson (which will come in handy today), and the recently released David Fincher: Mind Games from the great publisher Abrams.In this fascinating and rich conversation, we take a look at the way that John Huston's previously classified post-World War II documentary LET THERE BE LIGHT, John Frankenheimer's 1962 classic THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE, and writer-director Paul Thomas Anderson's 2012 film THE MASTER all deal with elements of mind control and psychotherapy where U.S. veterans are concerned.Note: Although it isn't overly graphic, in an abundance of caution, I checked the Explicit box for this week's episode across your favorite podcast platforms due to our analysis of a certain infamous scene in THE MASTER, so you might not want to listen with young children.Logo: Kate Gabrielle (KateGabrielle.com)Theme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music ArchiveOriginally Posted on Patreon (7/22/22) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/69440460

This week, I'm so happy to welcome a fellow podcaster to Watch With Jen. Conrado Falco is a filmmaker, film lover, foodie, soccer fan, and co-host of the excellent pod The Criterion Project along with my good friend Rachel Wagner. Additionally, he's the co-host of the podcast Foreign Invader and co-creator and co-star of the science fiction comedy series Wormholes, which you can find on YouTube by searching for Wormholes: The Series.Joining me for a thoughtful, celebratory, and humanistic celebration of the actor Owen Wilson, in this fast-paced conversation, we sum up the appeal, strengths, and career of Wilson and the films Zoolander, The Darjeeling Limited, and How Do You Know, in particular.Logo: Kate Gabrielle (KateGabrielle.com)Theme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music ArchiveOriginally Posted on Patreon (7/13/22) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/69050335

Returning to the podcast once again, we have my very talented friend and an official (and very popular) friend of the show. William Boyle is the acclaimed novelist behind such titles as Gravesend, The Lonely Witness, A Friend is a Gift You Give Yourself, City of Margins, and the brand new Shoot the Moonlight Out. In addition to crafting these wondrously humanistic Lumet-like character-driven ensemble crime epics, Bill is also quite a pop culture buff and one hell of a good movie trivia game player as well.One of the biggest things we have in common, beyond just a real love for film in general (of course), is our great affection for character actors - especially when it comes to the true "actors' actors" we grew up watching onscreen in the '80s and '90s. In past episodes, we tackled the careers of Nicolas Cage, David Morse, and Mickey Rourke, and today, we're adding another incredibly talented performer to the roster.In this very comprehensive and celebratory two-hour conversation, we zero in on the prolific, staggeringly great, and endlessly inventive early to mid-'90s work of actress Jennifer Jason Leigh. Delving into the films Rush, The Hudsucker Proxy, Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle, Georgia, and Kansas City, we take a look at her power, range, vulnerability, and courage in these vital performances and reference her other films as well.Note: In citing a shockingly funny anecdote involving our subject giving a very gritty audition for a romcom, I said a certain word that I thought might not be appropriate for audiences listening with their children so am marking the box for "Explicit" on this one out of an abundance of caution.Theme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music ArchiveLogo: Kate Gabrielle (KateGabrielle.com)Originally Posted on Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/68321241