The gang were unable to record together this week, so please enjoy Ed's recent appearance on the Big Questions podcast from Oxford Sparks at the University of Oxford. Host Emily Elias spoke to Ed about the science in films like King Kong, Pi, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Office Space and Superman III, and they listened to scientists assess just how feasible those "what if" scenarios might be. There's also a brief Recommendations segment at the end for good measure.

MATT GOT A DOG!

Also, Disney revealed a bunch of details about their forthcoming streaming service which, in addition to a few other stories from this past week, paints an interesting/terrifying picture of the streaming landscape, one which could be fundamentally reshaped by Disney and its franchise menagerie. Matt and Ed discuss the potential Disney+ has to challenge Netflix, the debut of the Criterion Channel, and how streaming services relate to a Supreme Court Case from 1948. Also, dogs.

00:00:00 - 00:02:35 - Intro

00:02:36 - 00:47:25 - Matt & Ed discuss the present and future of streaming

00:47:26 - 00:52:10 - SRS Recommends & Outro

Double Jeopardy, The General's Daughter, Payback. These are just some of the timeless classics that were released in 1999, alongside utterly forgotten duds like Fight Club, The Talented Mr. Ripley, The Blair Witch Project, The Matrix, The Sixth Sense, All About My Mother and Eyes Wide Shut. Matt, Emily and Ed assemble to discuss some of their favourite films from a vintage movie year, tease out some of the themes shared by a broad and disparate array of great films, and look at how Hollywood has changed over the past 20 years. Ed also enters some sort of fugue state at one point when the subject of the upcoming Cats movie comes up.

00:00:00 - 00:36:44 - Intro & News

00:36:45 - 01:30:51 - Matt, Emily & Ed discuss the films of 1999

01:30:52 - 01:36:34 - SRS Recommends & Outro

Jordan Peele's Us is still tearing it up at the box office and inspiring spirited debate online, so Matt and Ed decided to talk in-depth about the film's story, its themes, and its malleable allegory. Needless to say, there are spoilers. They also discuss Apple's latest move in the streaming wars, try to pitch long-forgotten game shows that deserve to be revived on the service, and pay tribute to Scott Walker and Agnès Varda.

00:00:00 - 00:30:43 - Intro & News

00:30:44 - 01:12:05 - Matt & Ed discuss Us (SPOILERS, I CANNOT STRESS THIS ENOUGH - Ed)

01:12:06 - 01:22:00 - SRS Recommends & Outro

Here is the opening scene to Letterkenny, as mentioned by Ed during Recommends.

Twenty goddamn years ago this week, The Matrix was released in the US, an event which launched the careers of the Wachowskis, spawned a briefly unavoidable and fitfully brilliant multi-media franchise, and had a seismic impact both on popular culture and how American action movies look and are made. To mark this anniversary, Ed and Emily discuss the enduring legacy of The Matrix, the Wachowskis' subsequent work, and some of the many, many parodies the films inspired.

00:00:00 - 00:12:40 - Intro & News

00:12:41 - 00:47:43 - Ed & Emily discuss The Matrix

00:47:44 - 00:54:46 - SRS Recommends & Outro

Inspired by a rewatch of the Mission: Impossible franchise, Ed and Emily discuss instances where they changed their minds about a work of art, how their relationships to specific filmmakers have evolved over time, and being able to admit when you don't like canonically "great" movies. They also discuss the college admissions scandal involving Lori Loughlin and Felicity Huffman, Netflix's weaselly cancellation of One Day at a Time, and James Gunn's surprise reinstatement to the MCU.

00:00:00 - 00:22:17 - Intro & News

00:22:18 - 00:49:31 - Ed & Emily discuss changing your mind about art

00:49:32 - 00:54:07 - SRS Recommends & Outro

Now that the dust has settled from last week's Oscars ceremony, Ed and Emily are ready to stir it up all over again by dissecting the winners of awards season, and what the victory of Green Book means for Hollywood more generally (assuming it means anything at all). They also discuss the controversy over possible changes to the Academy's bylaws that could exclude Netflix films in the future, and the best joke from long-forgotten 1990s animated anthropomorphic procedural Fish Police.

00:00:00 - 00:06:01 - Intro

00:06:02 - 00:35:44 - News

00:35:45 - 01:16:23 - Ed & Emily discuss the Oscars, Green Book, and awards season

01:16:24 - 01:23:39 - SRS Recommends & Outro

In a shorter than usual episode, Matt and Ed go without a theme and talk about some of the big film and TV stories of the week, including the Independent Spirits Awards, the sudden end of Netflix's Marvel TV universe, and the death of Stanley Donen.

Inspired by the absolutely stacked cast for the new version of Dune, Matt, Emily and Ed spend this week's episode talking about movies with notable ensembles, as well as which genres benefit from a deep bench and the factors, both commercial and artistic, that can compel filmmakers to work with a big cast. They also try to parse the latest Oscars broadcast drama and the Aladdin teaser.

00:00:00 - 00:01:34 - Intro

00:01:35 - 00:27:45 - News

00:27:46 - 01:05:06 - Matt, Emily & Ed discuss movies with notable ensembles

01:05:07 - 01:08:57 - SRS Recommends & Outro

Inspired by M. Night Shyamalan's Glass (which is mentioned briefly, but in a spoiler-free fashion), Matt and Ed discuss examples of long delayed sequels, particularly ones made by the same creators as the originals. They also talk about the dispiriting experience of watching the Super Bowl, the freshly completed BAFTAs, and the death of Albert Finney.

00:00:00 - 00:06:30 - Intro

00:06:31 - 00:29:35 - News

00:29:36 - 00:57:10 - Matt & Ed discuss Long Delayed Sequels

00:57:11 - 01:02:55 - SRS Recommends & Outro

In this episode, Ed and Emily cast their minds back to the golden age of physical media and misspent youths listening to Futurama audio commentaries, watching Lord of the Rings documentaries, and learning about the art and craft of filmmaking through special features and DVD extras. They also discuss the return of The L Word and the closure of Ultraviolet.

Here is where you can watch Original Cast Album: Company, as recommended by Ed

00:00:00 - 00:01:15 - Intro

00:01:16 - 00:18:43 - News

00:18:44 - 00:45:40 - Ed & Emily discuss Special Features

00:45:41 - 00:51:16 - SRS Recommends & Outro

The Oscar nominations were announced this week, so Matt, Ed and Emily sat down to talk about the generally mediocre slate, the specific nominees and categories they do like, and the surprising snubs. They also discuss the 4% campaign and the ethics of making serial killer movies.

00:00:00 - 00:03:00 - Intro

00:03:01 - 00:25:14 - News

00:25:15 - 00:58:33 - Matt, Ed and Emily discuss the Oscar nominations

00:58:34 - 01:04:10 - SRS Recommends & Outro

Having previewed the exciting movies of 2019 last week, this episode is all about the cool and interesting stuff coming to the small screen. Matt and Ed discuss some of the original ideas, long-gestating adaptations of great novels, and revivals that they're looking forward to, as well as the broader trends that continue to shift and roil the television landscape.

- Here is a link to H.bomberguy's charity Twitch stream, as mention in the News section

00:00:00 - 00:32:07 - Intro & News

00:32:08 - 01:29:24 Matt & Ed preview the year in TV

01:29:25 - 01:35:21 - SRS Recommends & Outro

All three hosts are reunited this week to look at what a new year in film has to offer. Matt, Ed and Emily each pick one movie from the first eight months of 2019 and advocate for why they think they could be good or interesting, and along the way they discuss their New Year's resolutions, the plot of the Clint Eastwood movie Space Cowboys, and the moral turpitude of Dr. Robotnik.

00:00:00 - 00:12:29 - Intro

00:12:30 - 01:40:49 - Matt, Ed & Emily preview the films of 2019

01:40:50 - 01:41:36 - Outro

Happy New Year! With Matt away, Ed and Emily catch-up on some of the news that broke over the holidays - including Louis C.K. going full right-wing whiner as an attempt to resurrect his career, the dismally small number of Hollywood films directed by women in 2018, and several dubious decisions made by Netflix - before digging into the Black Mirror movie/game Bandersnatch.

00:00:00 - 00:03:56 - Intro

00:03:57 - 00:45:57 - News

00:45:58 - 01:13:54 - Ed & Emily discuss Black Mirror: Bandersnatch

01:13:55 - 01:20:10 - SRS Recommends & Outro

- Here is a link to Shannon Strucci's series Fake Friends, which Ed mentions in Recommends

It's the last episode of the year, which means it's Best Of time! Matt and Ed run down some honourable mentions before tagging Emily in to count down and discuss the Shot/Reverse Shot Top Ten Films of 2018, as determined by their eldritch ballot system. There's also way too much discussion of The Greatest Showman for an episode about a) good films b) films released in 2018 and c) good films released in 2018.

00:00:00 - 00:05:34 - Intro

00:05:35 - 00:17:22 - Honourable Mentions

00:17:23 - 00:30:23 - A rundown of the Box Office hits of 2018

00:30:24 - 01:47:48 - The Top Ten Movies of 2018

01:47:49 - 01:50:49 - Outro

Inspired by two striking movies from 2018 about jobs and work - Andrew Bujalski's Support the Girls and Boots Riley's Sorry to Bother You - Ed and Emily talk about some of their favourite movies and TV shows about the experience of doing a job. They also discuss the relatively boring Golden Globes nominations and the far from boring drama surrounding the Oscars.

00:00:00 - 00:20:13 - Intro & News

00:20:14 - 01:04:05 - Ed & Emily discuss movies and TV shows about work

01:04:06 - 01:13:13 - Outro & Recommends

It's an All News episode of Shot/Reverse Shot this week as Matt and Ed discuss the future of streaming in a post-FilmStruck world, the trailer for the computer generated remake of The Lion King, and the deaths of Nicolas Roeg and Ricky Jay. They also find time to discuss Ed's ill-advised decision to watch Gotti, Fred Durst's directorial style, and sea shanties.

00:00:00 - 00:12:45 - Intro

00:12:46 - 00:48:14 - News

00:48:15 - 00:52:01 - SRS Recommends & Outro

00:52:02 - 00:55:27 - Shanty Talk!

- "Monologue: An Antelope from The Lion King Wonders Why He Was Invited to the Celebration of Simba's Birth" from McSweeneys, as recommended by Matt

- "Secrets of the Magus", the New Yorker profile of Ricky Jay from 1993

To honour William Goldman, the acclaimed screenwriter who passed away last week, Matt, Emily and Ed talk about their experiences with his work, then have a broader conversation about depictions of writing in film. They also mark the passing of Stan Lee, chew over the Independent Spirit Awards nominees, and say "Detective Pikachu" six thousand times.

00:00:00 - 00:39:50 - Intro & News

00:39:51 - 01:18:46 - Matt, Emily and Ed discuss William Goldman & films about writing

01:18:47 - 01:24:56 - SRS Recommends & Outro

Inspired by Disney's planned big-budget streaming TV shows, as well as stylistically daring episodes of current series, Matt, Emily and Ed spend this week's episode discussing ambitious television, including the massive scale storytelling of Game of Thrones, the claustrophobic use of long takes in The Haunting of Hill House, and the ways in which TV shows appropriate the aesthetics of video games. Mainly it's an excuse for them to rave about It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia,and there's some socialist turtles for good measure.

- If you're in Glasgow, go to Emily's comedy variety show The Salon at The Old Hairdresser's on November 21st!

- If Super November is playing near you, go see it and try to spot Emily!

00:00:00 - 00:32:45 - Intro & News

00:32:46 - 01:05:32 - Matt, Emily and Ed discuss Ambitious Television

01:05:33 - 01:14:47 - SRS Recommends & Outro