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Available Episodes

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Episode 111: 28 Years Later & Night of the Living Dead
Zombie films, the first and latest. Sarah Watt, Jeremy Downing and William Chen discuss 28 Years Later (2025) and Night of the Living Dead (1968). Our conversation begins with confusion as we realise some podcast hosts were under the impression we were focusing on 28 Days Later (2002). We compare the cinematography of Anthony Dod Mantle in both 28 Years Later and 28 Days Later. We discuss the merits of 28 Years Later, including the performances, storytelling, pacing and narrative left turns. We get into a awkward and sinister inclusion of Jimmy Savile lookalikes in the film and the divisive ending. Our conversation moves to Night of the Living Dead and discussing our experiences watching the film, as well as Dawn of the Dead (1978), Day of the Dead (1985), Land of the Dead (2005), Diary of the Dead (2007), and Survival of the Dead (2009). We praise the performance of Duane Jones and allude to the representation politics of Night of the Living Dead and Dawn of the Dead, casting a man of colour in both lead roles. We discuss the breadth of the genre and how zombie films have developed over time.
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1:05:27
Episode 109: The Last Showgirl & Barb Wire
Pamela Anderson starring films. Sarah Watt, Jeremy Downing and William Chen discuss The Last Showgirl (2024) and Barb Wire (1996). We begin by discussing Barb Wire and showering it with praise (excuse the pun). We celebrate the 90s-ness of the film. We talk about all the homages and connections we noticed in Barb Wire, including Casablanca (1942), Batman Forever (1995), Alien 3 (1992), Mad Max (1979), Romeo + Juliet (1996), Candyman (1992), Strange Days (1995), and Total Recall (1990). We praise the cast, including Xander Berkeley, Udo Kier and Temuera Morrison. We discuss the production values of Barb Wire, including the visual effects, action, cinematography and other production values. Our conversation explores the criticism of Barb Wire and how the tastes of audiences shifted over the 90s, making connections to Waterworld (1995), Cutthroat Island (1995), Hook (1991) and Charlie's Angels (2000). We move our discussion to The Last Showgirl, directed by Gia Coppola. We talk about the strength of the performances from Pamela Anderson, Brenda Song, Dave Bautista, Billie Lourd and Jamie Lee Curtis. We unpack the script, the tone, the direction and the ultimate aim of the film, with differing reactions from Sarah, William and Jeremy.
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49:26
Episode 108: Companion & Her
Artificially Intelligent girlfriends. Sarah Watt, Jeremy Downing and William Chen discuss Companion (2025) and Her (2013). Both films have director-writers in Drew Hancock and Spike Jonze, respectively. We start by discussing the vision of the future Her presents and how much has come to pass - 'prescient' is the word we all describe the film as. We celebrate a number of elements of Her that we enjoy. The conversation then moves to a discussion of Companion and how we found the film not as complex as Her. We discuss the films in connection to Lost In Translation (2003), Barbarian (2022), Ex Machina (2014), M3GAN (2022), Hereditary (2018), Midsommar (2019), Beau Is Afraid (2023), Heretic (2024), The White Lotus (2021-) and Yellowjackets (2021-). We praise the performances of Joaquin Phoenix, Amy Adams, Sophie Thatcher and Jack Quaid. We end with a discussion about real-world AI today and how the films connect to matters at hand.
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54:45
Episode 107: Anora & Pretty Woman
Week-long liaisons. Sarah Watt, Jeremy Downing and William Chen discuss two films about a young sex worker asked to be a date for a week: Anora (2024) and Pretty Woman (1990). We discuss our initial experiences watching the Gary Marshall's Pretty Woman. We praise the film's creation of tropes, archetypes and memorable movie moments. We celebrate the performances, especially Julia Roberts. We talk about the types of romantic comedies like Pretty Woman that made up a lot of our movies back in the 1990s and early 2000s. We shift our discussion to Anora and gush over the quality of the film. We talk about the comedy elements of the film, the improvisation, the production design, makeup, costume design and the prowess of director Sean Baker. We praise the performance of Mikey Madison as Anora and also Yura Borisov as Igor, both up for acting Oscars. We finish our conversation by looking at connections between the two films.
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58:12
Minisode: Oscars 2025
Minisode: Oscars 2025 by Cinema in Context
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24:01