Eavesdropping At The Movies

Boy oh boy, there's a lot to talk about, and the word of the day is denial. Specifically, Mike's unspoken, subcutaneous, existential denial that 1995's Jumanji is crucially meaningful to him, because how else can you explain the tension in the air as he grapples with the simple question, "Do you recommend the new Jumanji?" Ironic, really. The new Jumanji depicts characters who are forced to confront harsh truths about themselves, and in doing so forces Mike to confront the fact that he can talk about Jumanji for an hour with very little prompting. And that new Jumanji provides a surprising amount of food for thought. We discuss how the film uses and satirises videogames, how much it made us laugh, the Jonas Brothers, Mike being a sucker for a happy ending as usual and José rolling his eyes, the stereotypes from which the central characters are built, how the film has its sexist cake and eats it, the ways the stars play off each other and suit their roles, aspects of performance, the muddled nature of the wor

We visit a French-Algerian political thriller from 1969. It also happens to be a bona fide classic that won a ton of awards, enjoyed great popularity, and even succeeded in markets where it was subtitled or dubbed. Neither of us has seen it before; both of us are glad our first encounter with it was on a cinema screen. We discuss its relevance to society today - the reason the mac is screening it, no doubt - the precision and economy of its editing and storytelling, its control of information, its title, its geographical setting, its surprising sense of humour, and indeed something we both found left rather a bad taste in the mouth. We also run down the eleven films from 1969 that outperformed it at the US box office, and José learns about The Stewardesses. Recorded on 14th January 2018.

Mike's brother corrects our pronunciation of director Jia Zhangke's name, helping us settle into a discussion of his ambitious, deeply moving tale of friendship and loss that spans two and a half decades. We talk about motifs of keys and coats, themes of capitalism and home, the changing aspect ratios and clarity of the image, the documentary feel to its portrayal of Fenyang and the way of life there, and much more besides. We admire almost everything and still can't get Go West out of our heads. Recorded on 11th January 2018.

Ai Weiwei brings displaced peoples from across the world together in his documentary on the global refugee crisis. We discuss their plight, the film's use of poetry, Weiwei's imagery, and the countless ways in which he humanises people who are insulted, ignored, used as bargaining chips, and condemned to lives of confinement with no end in sight. Recorded on 9th January 2018.

Michael Haneke's precise, layered Happy End takes on - what else? - the bourgeoisie, and sees Eavesdropping welcome 2018 and iTunes availability at last! Opening with praise for the extraordinary image quality provided by the mac's 4K projector, we consider the film's surprising comic sensibility, its observation of different social strata, how our expectations shaped our experiences of what we saw (or didn't see), Haneke's careful craft and subtle subversions of cinematic conventions, and his continued exploration of violence as a central theme. And, finally, in a revelation to rival Psycho and The Sixth Sense, we nervously admit that we enjoyed the film as one would enjoy a Hollywood comedy or a trip to the zoo. Even now it's tough to come to terms with that. Perhaps that is Haneke's greatest achievement and truest subversion. We never before knew that he wanted us to have a good time. Recorded on 7th January 2018.

Eavesdropping celebrates the New Year with a snappy, sharp crime flick about the world of underground, high-stakes poker. We discuss the material's weakness, our different takes on Molly's character, the film's descent into schmaltz, daddy issues, Sorkin's directorial mediocrity, the audience's response to his dialogue, and the way Star Wars is dominating every bloody screen in every bloody cinema. At the end José makes Mike choke on his own laughter. Recorded on 1st January 2018.

José likes Zac Efron for once, but little else. Mike is an ITV snob and just wants the film to be more Communist. Listen in to find out how The Greatest Showman rounded out our 2017. Recorded on 27th December 2017.

José and Mike return to a galaxy far, far away, in search of new perspectives and thoughts on The Last Jedi. Mike in particular has been itching to talk more about it since he feels he was unfairly lukewarm the first time. We ruminate on what makes Star Wars feel different to other sci-fi; how films feel tighter and shorter on second viewing; Han's dice; confusion on the resistance cruiser; why we still disagree about Mark Hamill's performance; whether a Jedi can survive in space; and the differences between the First Order and the Empire, and Hux's construction as a figure of fun. And in a shocking climax, José claims that Mike doesn't know anything about love. Recorded on 21st December 2017.

It's beautiful to look at. It's populated with rich characters. Adam Driver is filmed as a Byronic hero, desperately romantic and at his sexiest. Matt Moore joins us for this discussion and points to how the film focuses on female characters and interestingly alters the focus of the series. We discuss how the film represents a shift from an aristocratic focus on blood and destiny to a more democratic purview on social change everyone, of whatever race or ethnicity, can engage in. Mike came out of the film gleefully playing with a lightsaber only to sit down and slash through what he saw as the film's weaker points, though he points out how Rian Johnson is the right director for the film and how, in spite of its faults, it truly does feel like a Star Wars film. Recorded on 17th December 2017.

Our patient, deliberate conversation closely mirrors the feeling of The Red Turtle, Studio Ghibli's wordless, Oscar-nominated fable. We consider aesthetics, allegory, gender representation and subversion of genre amongst other issues this strange, delicate film raises. Also discussed are the experiences of cinema screenings and home viewing, and José finds time to get in another swipe at The Disaster Artist. Recorded on 14th December 2017.

Cinema's biggest in-joke is dramatised in James Franco's fan project about the worst film ever made. We discuss the mean-spirited nature of finding films so bad they're good, the lack of direction in The Disaster Artist, the quality of Franco's central performance, and why we find the film so self-indulgent. Recorded on 11th December 2017.

We begin with an embarrassing admission from Mike and some reminiscences of stars past from José before discussing Film Stars Don't Die in Liverpool, a biopic of Gloria Grahame's relationship with a younger man, which features two towering performances and not very much else. For once, Mike doesn't believe it's his terrible cruelty that prevents him from crying in a film - but what, then, is it? Also - thoughts on The Electric in Birmingham, the UK's oldest working cinema. Why don't we discuss it more? It's independent, it's notable, it should be an art house. We finally get around to it. Recorded on 3rd December 2017.

Paddington returns to cinemas with a whimsical puff of upper middle class smoke from a lovely old warm cosy steam train. How nice. Mike wasn't really looking forward to this. So. Did he make it through Paddington 2? What do we make of the vision of Britain it constructs? How does its action outperform Justice League's? Is it fair to think of it as just Wes Anderson but somehow even more revoltingly cutesy? Is there anything wrong with outrageous accents? Isn't Hugh Grant great, honestly? Recorded on 26th November 2017.

Sean Baker's The Florida Project incites ruminations on the representation of underclasses in cinema; the emergence of a new American neorealism; clichés of slice-of-life and childhood films; what audiences owe to films that are truly reaching, even beyond their grasp; why a man who can cry at Toy Story can't open himself up to stories of genuine human pain; and how revolting the colour lilac is. Recorded on 22nd November 2017.

Some days you just can't help but mock a bad movie. Recorded on 18th November 2017.

We visit Sidney Lumet's classic version of Murder on the Orient Express to compare and contrast with Kenneth Branagh's. Which performances do we prefer, what do we make of the differences in style and tone? José, with Poirot-esque precision, interrogates Mike, because it's his first time seeing the 1974 film, and indeed it turns out that Mike is the real murderer. Recorded on 12th November 2017.

Innocence meets experience. Mike doesn't know whodunnit; José remembers the 1974 adaptation fondly. Mike wants to talk plot; José wants to talk cast. Mike is enthusiastic about the film's Poirot-centric approach; José is less keen. Although we approach it from different angles and don't always see eye-to-eye, we find a great deal of food for thought in Kenneth Branagh's film of Agatha Christie's classic novel. Recorded on 12th November 2017.

The Killing of a Sacred Deer becomes a kind of litmus test for our morality. Mike finds Barry Keoghan's vengeful teen hateful; to José, he's a hero. This is a film that, under discussion, opens you up more than you are able to open it up. Recorded on 2nd November 2017.

Jigsaw's back after a seven year absence, with new traps and twists and torture. One of us is very excited about this. The other has never seen a Saw film. Recorded on 30th October 2017.

A new thing from Marvel. Is it better than the average thing from Marvel? The seats certainly moved, we can say that much, and that is an acceptable substitute for character and plot. Recorded on 25th October 2017.