What the corpus says about Casablanca (1942)

What was said about it (9)

1. [The Big Picture · Thirteen Awards Movies to Watch Out for, Oscar Do-Overs, and More From the Mailbag · 0:50:25 · Amanda Dobbins (0.80)] Citizen Kane ↔ Casablanca · programming · Younger viewers resist classics because they feel they must watch five canonical films first; a recent episode showed they refuse Citizen Kane even on streaming. · "we just went through a whole episode where people refuse to watch Citizen Kane on streaming."
2. [The Big Picture · ‘Resident Evil’ Absolutely Rips! · 1:33:55 · Chris Ryan (0.50)] Evil Dead ↔ Casablanca · lineage · Evil Dead has been ripped off so many times it is foundational, like Casablanca. · "it's like Casablanca at this point."
3. [The Big Picture · ‘A Minecraft Movie’ Is the Most Important Movie of the Year So Far. And These Flicks Are the Best … · 0:56:42 · Sean Fennessey (0.65)] Casablanca ⇒ The Good German (the host's read) · lineage · The Good German is an exercise in post-Casablanca style filmmaking. · "It is a kind of exercise in a post-Casablanca style of filmmaking."
4. [Blank Check — Patreon · Return of the Jedi · 0:13:00 · unknown (0.30)] Casablanca ⇒ Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi (the host's read) · lineage · Jabba's court is conceived as Sydney Greenstreet crossed with Casablanca. · "The concept is he's sort of like Sidney Green Street and then Casablanca, yeah."
5. [The Big Picture · The 1990 Movie Draft · 0:18:22 · Sean Fennessey (0.55)] Home Alone ↔ Casablanca · theme · For a kid in 1990, Home Alone was as monumental as Casablanca or the Wizard of Oz. · "for me, at this time, Home Alone was Casablanca"
6. [The Big Picture · ‘Ghostbusters: Afterlife,’ ‘Tick, Tick ... Boom!,' and Our Top Five Feel-Good Movies · 1:21:59 · Mike Mills (0.90)] Come On, Come On ↔ Casablanca · craft · The framing in clean single shots is like Casablanca. · "It's like, it's like out of Casablanca or something."
7. [The Big Picture · ‘A Minecraft Movie’ Is the Most Important Movie of the Year So Far. And These Flicks Are the Best … · 0:12:31 · Sean Fennessey (0.80)] A Minecraft Movie ↔ Casablanca · contrast · Sean concedes Minecraft is no classic but is something newish. · "Minecraft is not Casablanca, and I'm not trying to say that it is."
8. [The Big Picture · Thirteen Awards Movies to Watch Out for, Oscar Do-Overs, and More From the Mailbag · 0:51:01 · Sean Fennessey (0.80)] Casablanca ↔ Sullivan's Travels · contrast · Casablanca still means something to the American moviegoer, while a Preston Sturges carousel on HBO Max would mean nothing to most. · "is there a carousel on HBO Max that says the Preston Sturgis collection? And does that mean anything to anyone?"
9. [Blank Check — Patreon · The Shining · 1:13:58 · Tim Simons (0.45)] Casablanca ↔ The Shining · much copied · Casablanca and The Shining are both so copied that first-time viewers find them corny. · "like every movie copied it."

Fun items about it (3)

1. [The Big Picture · Thirteen Awards Movies to Watch Out for, Oscar Do-Overs, and More From the Mailbag · 0:51:29 · Bobby Wagner (0.85)] Casablanca · fun · Producer Bobby admits he saw it once in college and it is not important to him; the hosts hold a gentle on-air intervention. · "I think I watched it once in college, but it's not important to me."
2. [The Big Picture · Thirteen Awards Movies to Watch Out for, Oscar Do-Overs, and More From the Mailbag · 0:52:08 · Sean Fennessey (0.70)] Casablanca · fun · Sean tells Bobby to watch it and text him when they start singing La Marseillaise. · "And then when they start singing the Marseilles, just text me like you were right."
3. [Blank Check — Patreon · Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation · 1:25:13 · unknown (0.30)] Casablanca · fun · Casablanca is said to host a famous movie set: Scooby-Doo 2. · "Scooby-Doo 2 monsters on leash."

One hop out: what recommends the films most often joined to it (17)

1. [The Big Picture · ‘A Minecraft Movie’ Is the Most Important Movie of the Year So Far. And These Flicks Are the Best … · 0:16:04 · Sean Fennessey (0.70)] A Minecraft Movie ↔ The Last Starfighter · theme · A 10-year-old picking up a sword to fight an evil pig echoes 80s kid-hero movies. · "movies I saw as a kid, like the last Starfighter or, um, invaders"
2. [The Big Picture · Top Five Gen X Director Debuts, the Fate of ‘Black Widow,’ and a Potential Oscars Disaster · 0:21:06 · Sean Fennessey (0.80)] Errol Morris ↔ Citizen Kane · programming · The Academy hired Errol Morris for short documentaries, one of which produced Donald Trump misreading Citizen Kane. · "he completely misreads Citizen Kane and misunderstands it and then kind of sort of predicts his own future in some respects"
3. [The Big Picture · ‘Ghostbusters: Afterlife,’ ‘Tick, Tick ... Boom!,' and Our Top Five Feel-Good Movies · 0:34:54 · Sean Fennessey (0.60)] Ira Glass's This American Life ⇒ Come On, Come On (the host's read) · lineage · The radio-producer device is in the Ira Glass tradition, not the conspiracy podcaster. · "I think it's a little bit more in the tradition of Ira Glass than it is necessarily in the tradition of the conspiracy theory podcaster"
4. [The Big Picture · The 1990 Movie Draft · 0:37:12 · Sean Fennessey (0.70)] Home Alone ↔ Mita Kimes · programming · The Rewatchables did a Home Alone episode with Mita Kimes. · "we did an episode of it on the rewatchables with Mita Kimes"
5. [The Big Picture · ‘A Minecraft Movie’ Is the Most Important Movie of the Year So Far. And These Flicks Are the Best … · 0:16:04 · Sean Fennessey (0.70)] A Minecraft Movie ↔ Invaders (as heard; likely Invaders from Mars) · theme · Same echo. · "movies I saw as a kid, like the last Starfighter or, um, invaders"
6. [The Big Picture · Emergency Mailbag: The Oscars Are Streaming and Hollywood Is Fighting Over Trolls | The Big Picture · 0:58:09 · Sean Fennessey (0.55)] Citizen Kane ⇒ Mank (the host's read) · lineage · Mank is partly inspired by Pauline Kael's essay on who truly authored Citizen Kane. · "it's in part inspired by that very famous Pauline Kale, story raising Kane, about the true authorship of Citizen Kane"
7. [The Big Picture · ‘Ghostbusters: Afterlife,’ ‘Tick, Tick ... Boom!,' and Our Top Five Feel-Good Movies · 1:14:04 · Mike Mills (0.90)] Ira Glass ⇒ Come On, Come On (the maker said so: Mike Mills interview on the episode) · lineage · Johnny is a WNYC-style old-school radio journalist; Ira Glass is a big influence on Mills. · "Ira Glass has been like a big influence, big hero to me."
8. [The Big Picture · The 1990 Movie Draft · 0:39:14 · Sean Fennessey (0.70)] Sean Fennessey ↔ Home Alone · programming · Pick 4 (round 2), category comedy: Personally meaningful; took it off the board before others. · "Um, so I'll take Home Alone and comedy."
9. [Blank Check — Patreon · Mank · 1:13:08 · David Sims (0.80)] Citizen Kane ⇒ Mank (the maker said so: David's interview with cinematographer Erik Messerschmidt) · lineage · Messerschmidt told the interviewer he wanted low, deep-focus photography evoking Citizen Kane, not noir. · "He's like, no, I want to do it low to the ground, lots of deep focus, evoking citizen Kane."
10. [The Big Picture · ‘Ghostbusters: Afterlife,’ ‘Tick, Tick ... Boom!,' and Our Top Five Feel-Good Movies · 0:33:19 · Sean Fennessey (0.60)] Come On, Come On ↔ Ghostbusters: Afterlife · theme · Come On, Come On depicts a non-traditional family, in contrast with the Reitman point. · "In a family that, to the Reitman point, is not a traditional family"
11. [Blank Check — Patreon · Panic Room · 1:40:31 · unknown (0.40)] Panic Room ↔ Home Alone · theme · The back-and-forth between burglars and the family is compared to Home Alone. · "it's like Fincher doing Home Alone, right?"
12. [Blank Check — Patreon · Mank · 1:10:06 · Sean Fennessey (0.50)] Citizen Kane ↔ Mank · craft · Like Citizen Kane, Mank has a complicated relationship to its lead; Mank mirrors the attitude of the man himself. · "Yeah, as much as Citizen Kane, the movie has a very complicated relationship to its lead character."
13. [The Big Picture · ‘Ghostbusters: Afterlife,’ ‘Tick, Tick ... Boom!,' and Our Top Five Feel-Good Movies · 0:34:40 · Sean Fennessey (0.50)] Come On, Come On ↔ Ghostbusters: Afterlife · theme · Both put a podcast/radio figure on screen. · "which is, um, a podcast character of its own"
14. [The Big Picture · ‘Ghostbusters: Afterlife,’ ‘Tick, Tick ... Boom!,' and Our Top Five Feel-Good Movies · 0:56:48 · Sean Fennessey (0.60)] Pee-wee's Big Adventure ↔ Come On, Come On · theme · All the feel-good picks are about when you see them, like Come On, Come On and Afterlife. · "all of these movies for me are about when you see them, just like, come on, come on, is about when you see them."
15. [The Big Picture · ‘Ghostbusters: Afterlife,’ ‘Tick, Tick ... Boom!,' and Our Top Five Feel-Good Movies · 1:02:18 · Sean Fennessey (0.70)] Come On, Come On ↔ Beginners · theme · Mills says Come On, Come On, 20th Century Women and Beginners are about primary family relationships (dad, mom, child). · "you have a dad film and a mom film and now in come on, come on."
16. [The Big Picture · ‘Ghostbusters: Afterlife,’ ‘Tick, Tick ... Boom!,' and Our Top Five Feel-Good Movies · 0:34:18 · Sean Fennessey (0.80)] Come On, Come On ↔ Beginners · craft · Come On, Come On is the most stripped down of Mills's movies versus the busyness of Beginners and 20th Century Women. · "this was the most stripped down of his movies relative to kind of some of the like busyness, the kind of intentional busyness of beginners and 20th century women"
17. [The Big Picture · ‘Ghostbusters: Afterlife,’ ‘Tick, Tick ... Boom!,' and Our Top Five Feel-Good Movies · 1:04:45 · Mike Mills (0.90)] Come On, Come On ↔ Buster Keaton's films · craft · Mills made Johnny an uncle so every scene plays like a Buster Keaton movie of not knowing what to do. · "So it's like a it's like a Buster Keaton movie all of a sudden, you know?"

Who said it, by their latest sketch (6)

1. [speaker] Sean Fennessey · latest sketch, The Big Picture · ‘Resident Evil’ Absolutely Rips! · Loves gory, funny, fast genre movies with craft and confidence, especially 87-minute films that never overstay. Can't stand ponderous elevated horror that fills out its runtime with introspection and sad family history. A sucker for the Carpenter-era lineage, Die Hard homages, and directors who break studio dogma. · stances: Resident Evil is one of the best films of the year; Horror movies have become a drag; fun genre experiences are needed; Short running times are a virtue; Video-game films work best when great filmmakers get creative license
2. [speaker] Amanda Dobbins · latest sketch, The Big Picture · ‘Mamma Mia!’ Meets ‘The Strangers'! It’s a Movie Swap! · Loves The Strangers' withholding craft and a good tense horror film without gore, but likes fun, communal movies like Mamma Mia. She dislikes supernatural or gory horror, which irritates her more than it scares her. She is a sucker for stars and for Googling a movie mid-recording. · stances: The Strangers is scary because of what it doesn't show or explain; Ending explanation weakens it; no answer would be better; Prefers 'withholding' filmmaking; Defends Mamma Mia as joyful and intentional
3. [speaker] Bobby Wagner · latest sketch, The Big Picture · Best Picture Power Rankings and a ‘Poor Things’ Deep Dive. Plus: Julianne Moore and Todd Haynes! · As the producer in the room he saw The Boy and the Heron in a theater, enjoyed it for the grannies, and offers a second-chances reading of Poor Things. · stances: Poor Things reads as optimistic, about second chances
4. [speaker] Chris Ryan · latest sketch, The Rewatchables · ‘Friday the 13th’ · A franchise and genre scholar who likes Jason, the early sequels, and Manhattan; attention to trivia, tropes and critic reception. Treats slashers as a canon with tiers. · stances: Parts 1, 2, 4 and Manhattan are the good ones; The series finds its legs at 4
5. [speaker] Mike Mills · latest sketch, The Big Picture · ‘Ghostbusters: Afterlife,’ ‘Tick, Tick ... Boom!,' and Our Top Five Feel-Good Movies · Loves French new wave and Italian cinema (Fellini, Godard), Buster Keaton, radio journalism (Studs Terkel, Ira Glass), and Chekhovian small stories like Bob's Burgers. Drawn to personal, uncommercial, non-plot-driven films and to the fable image of a child and adult. Suspicious of tidy 'truth'; likes masking and nerves in interviews. · stances: Fatherhood deepened and broadened his work; Each film is a bet of all his chips on a primary relationship; Long shelf lives and strangers' personal stories are the highest honor; Blur the boundaries between documentary and acting
6. [speaker] Tim Simons · latest sketch, Blank Check · Fearless · Adores Bradley Whitford, Jeff Bridges, and unbridled positivity about moviegoing. Lover of old movies he has not seen yet. Can be contrarian ('movie MAGA mode') about near-consensus films and U2. Moved by performance and craft more than plot. · stances: Fearless is uniformly excellent, the first 30 and last 20 minutes transcendent; Jeff Bridges is peak, subtle and singular; the Fearless ending locks all puzzle pieces; nitpicks consensus classics

The shows' running bits (1)

1. [bits] The Big Picture: Drafts (Hosts and guests draft films in rounds; every pick is a recommendation with an argument); Hall of Fame (A star's or director's best, ranked and argued); Countdowns (Ranked lists, top five or top ten)

The whole prompt

You are a clerk at Video Culture, a video store. A customer just finished Casablanca (1942) and wants to know what to watch next.

Below is what people who love movies said on three podcasts (Blank Check, The Rewatchables, The Big Picture) about Casablanca (1942) and the films around it, one line each. Every line starts with where it came from, in brackets: [show · episode · time · speaker (how sure we are it was them)]. A [pairs] line says how often two films were put side by side. A [speaker] line says what that person likes. A [bits] line lists a show's running bits: a format, not an opinion.

[The Big Picture · Thirteen Awards Movies to Watch Out for, Oscar Do-Overs, and More From the Mailbag · 0:50:25 · Amanda Dobbins (0.80)] Citizen Kane ↔ Casablanca · programming · Younger viewers resist classics because they feel they must watch five canonical films first; a recent episode showed they refuse Citizen Kane even on streaming. · "we just went through a whole episode where people refuse to watch Citizen Kane on streaming."
[The Big Picture · ‘Resident Evil’ Absolutely Rips! · 1:33:55 · Chris Ryan (0.50)] Evil Dead ↔ Casablanca · lineage · Evil Dead has been ripped off so many times it is foundational, like Casablanca. · "it's like Casablanca at this point."
[The Big Picture · ‘A Minecraft Movie’ Is the Most Important Movie of the Year So Far. And These Flicks Are the Best … · 0:56:42 · Sean Fennessey (0.65)] Casablanca ⇒ The Good German (the host's read) · lineage · The Good German is an exercise in post-Casablanca style filmmaking. · "It is a kind of exercise in a post-Casablanca style of filmmaking."
[Blank Check — Patreon · Return of the Jedi · 0:13:00 · unknown (0.30)] Casablanca ⇒ Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi (the host's read) · lineage · Jabba's court is conceived as Sydney Greenstreet crossed with Casablanca. · "The concept is he's sort of like Sidney Green Street and then Casablanca, yeah."
[The Big Picture · The 1990 Movie Draft · 0:18:22 · Sean Fennessey (0.55)] Home Alone ↔ Casablanca · theme · For a kid in 1990, Home Alone was as monumental as Casablanca or the Wizard of Oz. · "for me, at this time, Home Alone was Casablanca"
[The Big Picture · ‘Ghostbusters: Afterlife,’ ‘Tick, Tick ... Boom!,' and Our Top Five Feel-Good Movies · 1:21:59 · Mike Mills (0.90)] Come On, Come On ↔ Casablanca · craft · The framing in clean single shots is like Casablanca. · "It's like, it's like out of Casablanca or something."
[The Big Picture · ‘A Minecraft Movie’ Is the Most Important Movie of the Year So Far. And These Flicks Are the Best … · 0:12:31 · Sean Fennessey (0.80)] A Minecraft Movie ↔ Casablanca · contrast · Sean concedes Minecraft is no classic but is something newish. · "Minecraft is not Casablanca, and I'm not trying to say that it is."
[The Big Picture · Thirteen Awards Movies to Watch Out for, Oscar Do-Overs, and More From the Mailbag · 0:51:01 · Sean Fennessey (0.80)] Casablanca ↔ Sullivan's Travels · contrast · Casablanca still means something to the American moviegoer, while a Preston Sturges carousel on HBO Max would mean nothing to most. · "is there a carousel on HBO Max that says the Preston Sturgis collection? And does that mean anything to anyone?"
[Blank Check — Patreon · The Shining · 1:13:58 · Tim Simons (0.45)] Casablanca ↔ The Shining · much copied · Casablanca and The Shining are both so copied that first-time viewers find them corny. · "like every movie copied it."
[The Big Picture · Thirteen Awards Movies to Watch Out for, Oscar Do-Overs, and More From the Mailbag · 0:51:29 · Bobby Wagner (0.85)] Casablanca · fun · Producer Bobby admits he saw it once in college and it is not important to him; the hosts hold a gentle on-air intervention. · "I think I watched it once in college, but it's not important to me."
[The Big Picture · Thirteen Awards Movies to Watch Out for, Oscar Do-Overs, and More From the Mailbag · 0:52:08 · Sean Fennessey (0.70)] Casablanca · fun · Sean tells Bobby to watch it and text him when they start singing La Marseillaise. · "And then when they start singing the Marseilles, just text me like you were right."
[Blank Check — Patreon · Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation · 1:25:13 · unknown (0.30)] Casablanca · fun · Casablanca is said to host a famous movie set: Scooby-Doo 2. · "Scooby-Doo 2 monsters on leash."
[The Big Picture · ‘A Minecraft Movie’ Is the Most Important Movie of the Year So Far. And These Flicks Are the Best … · 0:16:04 · Sean Fennessey (0.70)] A Minecraft Movie ↔ The Last Starfighter · theme · A 10-year-old picking up a sword to fight an evil pig echoes 80s kid-hero movies. · "movies I saw as a kid, like the last Starfighter or, um, invaders"
[The Big Picture · Top Five Gen X Director Debuts, the Fate of ‘Black Widow,’ and a Potential Oscars Disaster · 0:21:06 · Sean Fennessey (0.80)] Errol Morris ↔ Citizen Kane · programming · The Academy hired Errol Morris for short documentaries, one of which produced Donald Trump misreading Citizen Kane. · "he completely misreads Citizen Kane and misunderstands it and then kind of sort of predicts his own future in some respects"
[The Big Picture · ‘Ghostbusters: Afterlife,’ ‘Tick, Tick ... Boom!,' and Our Top Five Feel-Good Movies · 0:34:54 · Sean Fennessey (0.60)] Ira Glass's This American Life ⇒ Come On, Come On (the host's read) · lineage · The radio-producer device is in the Ira Glass tradition, not the conspiracy podcaster. · "I think it's a little bit more in the tradition of Ira Glass than it is necessarily in the tradition of the conspiracy theory podcaster"
[The Big Picture · The 1990 Movie Draft · 0:37:12 · Sean Fennessey (0.70)] Home Alone ↔ Mita Kimes · programming · The Rewatchables did a Home Alone episode with Mita Kimes. · "we did an episode of it on the rewatchables with Mita Kimes"
[The Big Picture · ‘A Minecraft Movie’ Is the Most Important Movie of the Year So Far. And These Flicks Are the Best … · 0:16:04 · Sean Fennessey (0.70)] A Minecraft Movie ↔ Invaders (as heard; likely Invaders from Mars) · theme · Same echo. · "movies I saw as a kid, like the last Starfighter or, um, invaders"
[The Big Picture · Emergency Mailbag: The Oscars Are Streaming and Hollywood Is Fighting Over Trolls | The Big Picture · 0:58:09 · Sean Fennessey (0.55)] Citizen Kane ⇒ Mank (the host's read) · lineage · Mank is partly inspired by Pauline Kael's essay on who truly authored Citizen Kane. · "it's in part inspired by that very famous Pauline Kale, story raising Kane, about the true authorship of Citizen Kane"
[The Big Picture · ‘Ghostbusters: Afterlife,’ ‘Tick, Tick ... Boom!,' and Our Top Five Feel-Good Movies · 1:14:04 · Mike Mills (0.90)] Ira Glass ⇒ Come On, Come On (the maker said so: Mike Mills interview on the episode) · lineage · Johnny is a WNYC-style old-school radio journalist; Ira Glass is a big influence on Mills. · "Ira Glass has been like a big influence, big hero to me."
[The Big Picture · The 1990 Movie Draft · 0:39:14 · Sean Fennessey (0.70)] Sean Fennessey ↔ Home Alone · programming · Pick 4 (round 2), category comedy: Personally meaningful; took it off the board before others. · "Um, so I'll take Home Alone and comedy."
[Blank Check — Patreon · Mank · 1:13:08 · David Sims (0.80)] Citizen Kane ⇒ Mank (the maker said so: David's interview with cinematographer Erik Messerschmidt) · lineage · Messerschmidt told the interviewer he wanted low, deep-focus photography evoking Citizen Kane, not noir. · "He's like, no, I want to do it low to the ground, lots of deep focus, evoking citizen Kane."
[The Big Picture · ‘Ghostbusters: Afterlife,’ ‘Tick, Tick ... Boom!,' and Our Top Five Feel-Good Movies · 0:33:19 · Sean Fennessey (0.60)] Come On, Come On ↔ Ghostbusters: Afterlife · theme · Come On, Come On depicts a non-traditional family, in contrast with the Reitman point. · "In a family that, to the Reitman point, is not a traditional family"
[Blank Check — Patreon · Panic Room · 1:40:31 · unknown (0.40)] Panic Room ↔ Home Alone · theme · The back-and-forth between burglars and the family is compared to Home Alone. · "it's like Fincher doing Home Alone, right?"
[Blank Check — Patreon · Mank · 1:10:06 · Sean Fennessey (0.50)] Citizen Kane ↔ Mank · craft · Like Citizen Kane, Mank has a complicated relationship to its lead; Mank mirrors the attitude of the man himself. · "Yeah, as much as Citizen Kane, the movie has a very complicated relationship to its lead character."
[The Big Picture · ‘Ghostbusters: Afterlife,’ ‘Tick, Tick ... Boom!,' and Our Top Five Feel-Good Movies · 0:34:40 · Sean Fennessey (0.50)] Come On, Come On ↔ Ghostbusters: Afterlife · theme · Both put a podcast/radio figure on screen. · "which is, um, a podcast character of its own"
[The Big Picture · ‘Ghostbusters: Afterlife,’ ‘Tick, Tick ... Boom!,' and Our Top Five Feel-Good Movies · 0:56:48 · Sean Fennessey (0.60)] Pee-wee's Big Adventure ↔ Come On, Come On · theme · All the feel-good picks are about when you see them, like Come On, Come On and Afterlife. · "all of these movies for me are about when you see them, just like, come on, come on, is about when you see them."
[The Big Picture · ‘Ghostbusters: Afterlife,’ ‘Tick, Tick ... Boom!,' and Our Top Five Feel-Good Movies · 1:02:18 · Sean Fennessey (0.70)] Come On, Come On ↔ Beginners · theme · Mills says Come On, Come On, 20th Century Women and Beginners are about primary family relationships (dad, mom, child). · "you have a dad film and a mom film and now in come on, come on."
[The Big Picture · ‘Ghostbusters: Afterlife,’ ‘Tick, Tick ... Boom!,' and Our Top Five Feel-Good Movies · 0:34:18 · Sean Fennessey (0.80)] Come On, Come On ↔ Beginners · craft · Come On, Come On is the most stripped down of Mills's movies versus the busyness of Beginners and 20th Century Women. · "this was the most stripped down of his movies relative to kind of some of the like busyness, the kind of intentional busyness of beginners and 20th century women"
[The Big Picture · ‘Ghostbusters: Afterlife,’ ‘Tick, Tick ... Boom!,' and Our Top Five Feel-Good Movies · 1:04:45 · Mike Mills (0.90)] Come On, Come On ↔ Buster Keaton's films · craft · Mills made Johnny an uncle so every scene plays like a Buster Keaton movie of not knowing what to do. · "So it's like a it's like a Buster Keaton movie all of a sudden, you know?"
[speaker] Sean Fennessey · latest sketch, The Big Picture · ‘Resident Evil’ Absolutely Rips! · Loves gory, funny, fast genre movies with craft and confidence, especially 87-minute films that never overstay. Can't stand ponderous elevated horror that fills out its runtime with introspection and sad family history. A sucker for the Carpenter-era lineage, Die Hard homages, and directors who break studio dogma. · stances: Resident Evil is one of the best films of the year; Horror movies have become a drag; fun genre experiences are needed; Short running times are a virtue; Video-game films work best when great filmmakers get creative license
[speaker] Amanda Dobbins · latest sketch, The Big Picture · ‘Mamma Mia!’ Meets ‘The Strangers'! It’s a Movie Swap! · Loves The Strangers' withholding craft and a good tense horror film without gore, but likes fun, communal movies like Mamma Mia. She dislikes supernatural or gory horror, which irritates her more than it scares her. She is a sucker for stars and for Googling a movie mid-recording. · stances: The Strangers is scary because of what it doesn't show or explain; Ending explanation weakens it; no answer would be better; Prefers 'withholding' filmmaking; Defends Mamma Mia as joyful and intentional
[speaker] Bobby Wagner · latest sketch, The Big Picture · Best Picture Power Rankings and a ‘Poor Things’ Deep Dive. Plus: Julianne Moore and Todd Haynes! · As the producer in the room he saw The Boy and the Heron in a theater, enjoyed it for the grannies, and offers a second-chances reading of Poor Things. · stances: Poor Things reads as optimistic, about second chances
[speaker] Chris Ryan · latest sketch, The Rewatchables · ‘Friday the 13th’ · A franchise and genre scholar who likes Jason, the early sequels, and Manhattan; attention to trivia, tropes and critic reception. Treats slashers as a canon with tiers. · stances: Parts 1, 2, 4 and Manhattan are the good ones; The series finds its legs at 4
[speaker] Mike Mills · latest sketch, The Big Picture · ‘Ghostbusters: Afterlife,’ ‘Tick, Tick ... Boom!,' and Our Top Five Feel-Good Movies · Loves French new wave and Italian cinema (Fellini, Godard), Buster Keaton, radio journalism (Studs Terkel, Ira Glass), and Chekhovian small stories like Bob's Burgers. Drawn to personal, uncommercial, non-plot-driven films and to the fable image of a child and adult. Suspicious of tidy 'truth'; likes masking and nerves in interviews. · stances: Fatherhood deepened and broadened his work; Each film is a bet of all his chips on a primary relationship; Long shelf lives and strangers' personal stories are the highest honor; Blur the boundaries between documentary and acting
[speaker] Tim Simons · latest sketch, Blank Check · Fearless · Adores Bradley Whitford, Jeff Bridges, and unbridled positivity about moviegoing. Lover of old movies he has not seen yet. Can be contrarian ('movie MAGA mode') about near-consensus films and U2. Moved by performance and craft more than plot. · stances: Fearless is uniformly excellent, the first 30 and last 20 minutes transcendent; Jeff Bridges is peak, subtle and singular; the Fearless ending locks all puzzle pieces; nitpicks consensus classics
[bits] The Big Picture: Drafts (Hosts and guests draft films in rounds; every pick is a recommendation with an argument); Hall of Fame (A star's or director's best, ranked and argued); Countdowns (Ranked lists, top five or top ten)

Recommend three to six films, and only films that appear in these lines. A series, a TV film, or a franchise counts too when a line recommends it or pairs it with Casablanca (1942); name it the way the line names it. Don't recommend Casablanca (1942) itself. For each one, give one short reason in your own words and say whose reason it is: the show, named exactly as the brackets name it, and the speaker when the line names one (an "unknown" speaker is just the show). If the lines are thin, say so plainly rather than stretching them.

Keep a contrast a contrast. When a line sets two films apart, the reason is how they differ; never turn it into a way they're alike. A line with ⇒ puts the source first and what drew on it second, and one marked "the maker said so" is still the host reporting it: say who said it, and never state an influence as fact.

You know only what's on these lines. Add no fact they don't state: not who directed a film, not what kind of film it is, not when it came out, unless a line says so. Say nothing about the store or how anything rents here.

Talk the way a clerk talks to a customer at the counter: plain text, titles written plainly with no asterisks or other markup, no headings, no lists of more than six, no JSON.