The Reel World

Ranking the Lynne Ramsay Films

Let the great Willow Maclay explain Lynne Ramsay to you:

“In the cinema of Lynne Ramsay, everyday life turns unfamiliar through the shockwaves of horror, grief, and death. Ramsay, with her astute inclination toward expressive visual detail, emphasizes the fallibility of human nature by reckoning with one of its core concerns: mortality. For her, there is no way to escape its looming rot. In her movies, the lead characters, often women, deal with catastrophic events — the death of a loved one, the drowning of a best friend, the aftermath of a school shooting — in their own strange, complicated ways. These people don’t have the answers to life’s greatest challenges, and Ramsay doesn’t expect them to unravel, by her movies’ ends, the profound mysteries of existence. Instead, she focuses on the internal processes required of those trying to move forward in the wake of horror. In her work, the scars from our past continually influence who we are today.”

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There Will Be Movies – Ep. 107: The Northman

You think you know The Lion King? You know nothing of The Lion King. Oh, sorry, Hamlet. You know nothing of Hamlet.

Crawl into our weird shamanic chamber, start howling like a wolf, and learn all about Olde English Oral Tradition, Bjork’s film career and of course unique Icelandic apps.

There Will Be Movies – Ep. 106: The Batman

It seems Matt truly can just have everything he wants as he follows up on his most controversial selection ever last week with truly exhaustive detail on The Batman, resulting in one of our longest episodes ever. Sorry, Ben.

This is a first for this particular podcast, which used to have a ‘No Capes’ rule, but we tossed most of these restrictions out for this volume, which means the floodgates really burst as we get into one of fiction’s most enduring characters, the career of Matt Reeves, the various influences of this movie and its messy development history and try and solve some riddles together.

Pack a lunch!

Ranking the Spike Lee Films

Films Still to Watch: Miracle at St. Anna

Films Still to Rewatch: Jungle Fever

With Spike Lee, there is the style and there is the politics. That is not to say these things should (or even can) be not discussed together because they are interwoven. You need to discuss the what of Lee films along with the how. The what of Spike’s films are often what draw me to him. The politics cannot be separated, ignored, or coddled because in many ways Spike Lee films feel like essay films. They have a very specific point they are making – regardless of whether or not that this is the point Lee is trying to make.

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Ranking The Shield Seasons

It took me a long time to finally watch The Shield in full. A decade-plus ago I had dipped my toe in the waters but did not get in. I heard all the praise from all the credible sources. I knew I had to get to it. And I finally did this year. I am delighted to report that the show is as good as people say.

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There Will Be Movies – Ep. 105: The Harder They Fall

The tradition continues as Matt brings his annual eyebrow raising pick for Ben to politely tear apart. That’s right it’s time to talk the Netflixification of film, why everything looks so clean and what the heck has happened to most of these actors’ careers as we talk The Harder They Fall.

(Sorry Mike!)

Ranking the Kelly Reichardt Films

Ranking Kelly Reichardt films is an absolutely fool’s errand. Every time I watch one of them I think, “That has got to be one of her better ones.” Anyway, I am a fool, so…

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Ranking the Safdie Brothers Projects

Still Need to Watch: The Pleasure of Being Robbed

The Safdie Brothers have split up, and your boyfriends are very upset about it. Anyway, this living, breathing column will track all the nonsense they get up to as best as possible in the years to come. There appears to be a lot of mystery behind their split and speculation runs rampant. I am not entirely sure of what to make of the split, but I hope there is plenty of work from both of them to explore in the years to come.

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There Will Be Movies – Ep. 104: The Last Duel

Come and listen to two idiots locked in a life-long grudge talking about two idiots with a life-long grudge. Who’s to say which pair are less qualified to talk about the subject matter, really? At least there’s insane costuming and accent choices to lighten the tone!

There Will Be Movies – Ep. 103: The Worst Person in the World

Players of ‘Stuff Matt Likes in Movies Bingo’ should have their cards at the ready as we head to Norway to experience some deep Millennial Malaise. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll hear about The Benjis.