
Deep Cut: A Film Podcast
Deep Cut: A Film Podcast is a director-focused film podcast featuring deep-dive discussions about international, art-house, and independent cinema. Each episode we discuss either a director's most popular film or a "Deep Cut Pick": a personal favorite chosen by one of us. We've covered movies from filmmakers like Hirokazu Kore-eda, Agnes Varda, Éric Rohmer, Kelly Reichardt, Wong Kar-wai, S.S. Rajamouli, Bong Joon-ho, and more.
Looking for film recommendations off the beaten path? This is the pod to follow!
Links to our Discord and other socials here: https://deepcutpod.com
Latest episodes

Jul 27, 2024 • 58min
076. Kiyoshi Kurosawa: License to Live
In the first of our deep cut picks for our Kiyoshi Kurosawa series, Ben introduces the others to Kurosawa’s License to Live (1998) because he really needed to talk to somebody after a stunning ending. Eli digs into the film’s comedic sensibilities, finding similarities with fellow Japanese director Takeshi Kitano, while Wilson finds himself “so sad” contending with Kurosawa’s trend of nihilism across his body of work. By the end of the episode we ask ourselves: what does it mean to have lived “enough”?
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Links:
Ben’s Letterboxd review of License to Live
Kurosawa Interview about his double feature choices at the 2014 Entrevues Belfort Int’l Film Festival

Jul 14, 2024 • 1h 15min
075. Kiyoshi Kurosawa: Cure
In this episode, the Deep Cut trio delve into the captivating world of Kiyoshi Kurosawa with his breakout hit, Cure (1997). Tune in to the beginning of a mega series on Kurosawa: director for hire and the master of nightmares. Ben and Wilson find themselves at odds as Ben's annoyance with the film's villain fails to dampen Wilson's thirst for him. Eli questions the fragility of our existence, thinks about the depths of human nature, and contemplates the idea that we are all capable of evil. Listen for a banger episode!
Get cured on our FREE patreon, discord server, and our socials @ deepcutpod.com
Links:
Eli’s Summer 2022 Diary Episode with his first reaction to Cure.
(There is no) Cure Video Essay on the Criterion Channel.
Kurosawa/Hamaguchi discuss Cure on the Criterion Channel.

Jun 29, 2024 • 1h 26min
074. Luca Guadagnino: Challengers
Game. Set. Match. The boys tackle the hottest movie of the season and kick off a Luca Guadagnino series with our review of his latest film CHALLENGERS. This episode (recorded pre BRAT) sees Eli comparing Guadagnino to the iconic Charli XCX, Wilson explaining how all roads that lead to Challengers also lead to his own life, and Ben saying he wants to play tennis because “I love my bro and his wife”.
Who’s your favorite A(rt)T(ashi)P(atrick) player? Tell us on the discord server. Find our FREE Patreon, discord server, and all our links @ www.deepcutpod.com
Links:
Luca Guadagnino on Indiewire’s Filmmaker Toolkit Podcast
Justin Kuritzkes on the No Challenges Remaining Podcast
Merissa Lombardo on the Art Hyphen Podcast
Ben’s BIG FACE Letterboxd List
Eli's essay on Suspiria

Mar 11, 2024 • 1h 38min
073. 2023 Film and TV in Review
The Oscars may tell us Hollywood’s popular picks, but what about the… Deep Cut picks? Deep Cut’s 2023 in Review is ready to give the last word on yesteryear’s best in motion pictures. Tune in for debates on the year’s biggest hits and hot takes on the year’s shabbiest flops. It all culminates in Wilson, Ben, and Eli’s top three favorites of the year…
Share your favorite films of 2023 in our Discord server. Find our free Patreon, discord server, and all our links @ www.deepcutpod.com
Alphabetical list of all films mentioned in our 2023 in Review and their directors:
A Brighter Summer Day (Edward Yang)
A Holy Family (Elvis Lu)
Anatomy of a Fall (Justine Triet)
Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret. (Kelly Fremon Craig)
Barbie (Greta Gerwig)
Beau is Afraid (Ari Aster)
Blackberry (Matthew Johnson)
Blue Giant (Yuzuru Tachikawa)
Close (Lukas Dhont)
Closing Time (Russell Goldman)
Do Not Expect Too Much from the End of the World (Radu Jude)
Elegies (Ann Hui)
Evil Does Not Exist (Ryusuke Hamaguchi)
How to Blow Up a Pipeline (Daniel Goldhaber)
Killers of the Flower Moon (Martin Scorsese)
Knock at the Cabin (M. Night Shayamalan)
Kokomo City (D. Smith)
May December (Todd Haynes)
Menus-Plaisirs - Les Troisgros (Frederick Wiseman)
Monster (Hirokazu Kore-eda)
No Bears (Jafar Panahi)
Oppenheimer (Christopher Nolan)
Passages (Ira Sachs)
Poor Things (Yorgos Lanthimos)
Ponniyin Selvan: II (Mani Ratnam)
Return to Seoul (Davy Chou)
Rye Lane (Raine Allen Miller)
Showing Up (Kelly Reichardt)
Skinamarink (Kyle Edward Ball)
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, Justin K. Thompson)
Sparta (Ulrich Seidl)
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem (Jeff Rowe)
The Eight Mountains (Felix Van Groeningen, Charlotte Vandermeersch)
The Taste of Things (Tran Anh Hung)
The Zone of Interest (Jonathan Glazer)
They Cloned Tyrone (Juel Taylor)
Tótem (Lila Aviles)

Feb 21, 2024 • 45min
072. Hirokazu Kore-eda: Monster
We go back to our Deep Cut roots with Kore-eda's latest, but don't call us Monster(s) for skipping out on the previously released Broker!
Awarded the Queer Palm at Cannes in 2023, Monster is a return to form (and Japan) for Kore-eda, igniting a sprawling conversation about the film and its connections to his larger ouevre. We debate the film's visual treatment, the limits of its Rashomon-esque structure, and share our thoughts on what kind of story the ending is really trying to tell.
Find refuge from the storm in our free Patreon, discord server, and all our links @ www.deepcutpod.com
Links:
Jessica Yeung's Review
Kore-eda Interview with Filmmaker Magazine (2009)
Ben's Video Essay on Still Walking (Spoilers!)

Feb 4, 2024 • 1h 5min
071. Marilou Diaz-Abaya: Moral
Join us for a Deep Cut episode on the exceptional 1982 film Moral from director Marilou Diaz-Abaya. The trio are blown away by the intricate script work and editing within the film, and they finally help coin the acronym GFWTM (Go Fucking Watch This Movie) for Wilson to use in the future. Eli and Ben discuss how Diaz-Abaya and screenwriter Ricky Lee can achieve an impactful broader perspective in this web of life film. Will Ben ever add this film to his Best Friend Film Canon letterboxd list? Listen in to find out.
Are you a fan of Filipino cinema? Tell us on our Discord server! Find our free Patreon, discord server, and all our links @ www.deepcutpod.com

Jan 27, 2024 • 39min
070. Kelly Reichardt: Showing Up
Join us as we SHOW UP for Kelly Reichardt’s latest work: Showing Up. Reichardt teams up again with regular collaborator Michelle Williams in their portrait of a grumpy artist. Wilson analyzes the performances of Michelle Williams and Hong Chau, Eli appreciates the film’s humor and subtlety, and Ben is fascinated by the film’s focus on the ordinary. Together, we also reflect on what it means to live a life of art-making.
We're digging a big hole in our free Patreon, discord server, and all our links @ www.deepcutpod.com. Come see!

Jan 26, 2024 • 44min
069. Todd Haynes: May December
May you join us this December for a Deep Cutversation on May Deepcutber? Wait, this is confusing... what's NOT confusing is the moral clarity of American director Todd Haynes' latest pressure-cooker drama about the evils of our time. While Eli sees horror lurking beneath the pleasant cinematography of Christopher Blauvelt, Ben ponders the omission of a cathartic ending from Samy Burch's script, and Wilson lauds the core performances of Natalie Portman, Julianne Moore, and Charles Melton. Don't be naïve–– tune in!
You can join our Patreon, but we might not have enough hot dogs. Find our free Patreon, discord server, and all our links @ www.deepcutpod.com

Nov 29, 2023 • 59min
068. Frederick Wiseman: Menus-Plaisirs - Les Troisgros
Bon appetit! The DC Trio are in for a treat this week as we savor Frederick Wiseman’s latest documentary, MENUS PLAISIRS - LES TROIGROS, a scrumptious looking film about three French restaurants, and the family that runs it. From the bustling kitchen to the tense moments shared between members of the Troigros dynasty, the trio immerses themselves in this four-hour culinary exploration. Ben and Eli ponder the central question of the work and Wilson finds a strong appreciation of Wiseman’s perspective on the food industry.
MENUS PLAISIRS - LES TROIGROS is out now in theaters. A big thank you to the folks at Zipporah Films for helping make this happen.
Ever had an unforgettable meal? Let us know on our discord! Find our free Patreon, discord server, and all our links @ www.deepcutpod.com

Nov 4, 2023 • 59min
067. Marilou Diaz-Abaya: José Rizal
The DC Trio takes a plunge into a new director and dives into the works of Marilou Diaz-Abaya, one of the leading figures of the second golden age of Filipino cinema. In the first episode, Wilson shares his love for a national cinema that is deeply tied to his roots. What better way to be introduced to Pinoy cinema than through a biopic of one of the nation's most infamous historical figures? Eli's intrigue in José Rizal's life and his choices add to the discussion, while Ben brings his own perspectives with nostalgic "watched this in class" vibes from the flick.
What is your deep cut historical biopic? Let us know on our discord server! Find our free Patreon, discord server, and all our links @ www.deepcutpod.com