Watch With Jen™

This week, I was so pleased to welcome back to the pod one of my crime writer friends' favorite crime writers & a man whose taste in film, literature, & poetry is an endless source of delight on Twitter. Adrian McKinty was born & raised in Belfast, Northern Ireland, & then studied philosophy at Oxford University before he moved to Australia & New York. He is the author of more than a dozen crime novels, including his Dagger & Edgar nominated debut DEAD I WELL MAY BE, the critically acclaimed Sean Duffy series, as well as the smash international bestseller & award-winning standalone thriller THE CHAIN.A man whose books have been translated into over thirty languages, Adrian has won the Edgar Award, the International Thriller Writers Award, the Ned Kelly Award (three times), the Anthony Award, the Barry Award, the Macavity Award, the Theakston Old Peculiar Crime Novel of the Year Award. Adrian's most recent novels include the smash bestseller THE ISLAND & the latest Sean Duffy mystery THE DETECTIVE UP LATE.After having such a delightful first conversation with Adrian about EXCALIBUR & LORD OF THE RINGS earlier in the year (& then chatting with him once again for the upcoming MIDNIGHT RUN-THROUGH pod series with Blake Howard's One Heat Minute Productions), I couldn't wait to bring him back to discuss movies with me once again. Emailing me while working on his next book, Adrian came up with an ingenious idea to look at the ways that the Coen Brothers address creative blocks in the films BARTON FINK & INSIDE LLEWYN DAVIS.Witty yet highly analytical, in this episode, we check into the hotel from hell to explore the life of the mind in the 1991 film first & then take a folksy walk through early '60s Greenwich Village in search of a cat in one of the Coens' final works as a filmmaking team. The perfect companion to your holiday travels this week in the United States, it's a must for fans of the filmmakers & especially those who adore FINK, which is dissected in great detail in this entertaining conversation.Originally Posted on Patreon (11/18/23) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/93115677Theme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music ArchiveShop Watch With Jen logo Merchandise in Logo Designer Kate Gabrielle's Threadless Shop

This week, I was so pleased to welcome back two friends & the hosts of The Film Stage's excellent podcast The B-Side, which covers movie stars in a fascinating way by focusing not on the films that made or kept them famous but the ones that actors made in between. A producer & filmmaker living in Pittsburgh, Dan Mecca started The Film Stage with Jordan Raup in college at Buffalo & Conor O'Donnell is a post-production supervisor based in New York City & also serves as a critic for The Film Stage. In the 39th episode of the podcast this season, the boys from The B-Side join me to discuss the career & main overarching theme that you will find in the filmography of child actor turned Academy Award-winning director Ron Howard. A man who's been working hard his entire life growing up on film sets where he'd see hundreds of craftsmen quietly executing their jobs with skill & precision in an industry that tends to overlook these individuals in favor of picture-perfect movie stars, Ron Howard is utterly fascinated by the working man. Particularly drawn to studying the work-life balance & the way we all struggle to care for family, friends, & ourselves while at the same time earning a living with purpose, since he stepped foot behind a camera, Howard's gravitated to these tales as a filmmaker. While we touch on numerous pictures that he's made and collaborators he's worked alongside throughout his career in this infectiously delightful & insightful feature-length conversation, we focus primarily on the films PARENTHOOD, THE PAPER, & THIRTEEN LIVES. Originally Posted on Patreon (11/12/23) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/92808304 Theme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music Archive Shop Watch With Jen logo Merchandise in Logo Designer Kate Gabrielle's Threadless Shop

Returning to Watch With Jen this week, we have my very talented friend and an official (and very popular) friend of the show. William Boyle is the acclaimed novelist behind such titles as Gravesend, The Lonely Witness, A Friend is a Gift You Give Yourself, City of Margins, and Shoot the Moonlight Out. In addition to crafting these wonderfully humanistic Lumet-like character-driven ensemble crime epics, Bill is quite the pop culture buff and one hell of a good movie trivia game player.In this entertaining follow-up to the first installment of a new pod series focused on French Crime Movies that we launched in Season 4, Bill is back to chat about another trio of terrific works released across three decades: director Alain Corenau's CHOICE OF ARMS, Claude Chabrol's TORMENT (aka HELL), and Guillaume Canet's TELL NO ONE.Originally Posted on Patreon (11/7/23) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/92467704Theme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music ArchiveShop Watch With Jen logo merchandise in Logo Designer Kate Gabrielle's Threadless Shop

Peckerwood novelist and Hardboiled Wonderland blogger Jed Ayres returns to the podcast this week for a two-hour extravaganza devoted to the man famously dubbed "the poet laureate of wild assholes with revolvers," Mr. Elmore Leonard. One of the godfathers of contemporary crime fiction and an influence on every single writer working in the genre today (whether they realize it or not), Jed and I investigate the western genre that launched the Navy vet lovingly nicknamed Dutch. Revisiting a few films you've heard discussed on Watch With Jen in the past, including 3:10 TO YUMA and THE TALL T (both from 1957), we then explore some of the revisionist westerns made from his books or penned directly for the screen by Leonard in the late '60s and early '70s, including HOMBRE, THE MOONSHINE WAR, VALDEZ IS COMING, and JOE KIDD. A perfect way to kick off Noirvember since these are indeed works of Western noir, after these films were released at the end of the genre's heyday, Elmore Leonard moved to crime fiction. Fans of the author's work won't want to miss what is likely just the first of multiple eps devoted to Leonard. Originally Posted on Patreon (10/30/23) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/91886163 Theme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music Archive Shop Watch With Jen logo merchandise in Logo Designer Kate Gabrielle's Threadless Shop

Returning to the podcast this week, we have the witty and wonderful writer-director Jessica Ellis. A graduate of UCLA and the American Film Institute who made her feature filmmaking debut with the acclaimed coming-of-age movie What Lies West, Jessica is one of the brightest lights on Twitter and never fails to make me smile. In this thoughtful, charming, and nostalgia-filled conversation that's perfect for Halloween, we share amusing stories from our lives and explore the way that magic has been used onscreen in the films Something Wicked This Way Comes, The Illusionist (2006), & Now You See Me. Originally Posted on Patreon (10/23/23) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/91522593 Theme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music Archive Shop Watch With Jen logo merchandise in Logo Designer Kate Gabrielle's Threadless Shop

"Because there was once a god who walked the Earth named Warren Oates." - Richard Linklater Friendly, feisty, fresh, and so-very funny, Bright Wall/Dark Room staff writer & contributing editor Travis Woods is as passionate about film as he is endearingly supportive of all who love it. The host & creator of producer Blake Howard's podcast Increment Vice (which took a look at Paul Thomas Anderson's INHERENT VICE one scene at a time), Travis has also contributed physical media commentary tracks &/or video essays for a few of his favorite films of all time, including the recent Imprint Films release of BRING ME THE HEAD OF ALFREDO GARCIA starring his favorite actor (& raison d'être), Mr. Warren Oates. Joining me to preach the gospel of Oates in his thoughtful, sometimes philosophical, & always entertaining laid-back style, my Pandemic Movie Club buddy & I go deep on the films TWO-LANE BLACKTOP, THE HIRED HAND, DILLINGER, COCKFIGHTER, & BRING ME THE HEAD OF ALFREDO GARCIA. Likely just the first installment on Oates since we stuck with the first half of the '70s, fans of the actor will undoubtedly flip for this feature-length conversation on one of both serious cinephiles' & great filmmakers from Peckinpah to Malick's most beloved screen presences. Originally Posted on Patreon (10/14/23) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/90966824 Theme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music Archive Shop Watch With Jen logo merchandise in Logo Designer Kate Gabrielle's Threadless Shop

This week, I was so pleased to welcome one of the best film writers currently working today - the wonderful Sheila O'Malley - back to the podcast. A regular film critic for RogerEbert.com and a member of the prestigious New York Film Critics Circle, Sheila's work has also appeared in Film Comment, The New York Times, The L.A. Times, Criterion Collection, Sight & Sound, and other outlets. Additionally, a scene from her full-length script JULY AND HALF OF AUGUST was turned into a short film, which played at the Albuquerque Film and Music Experience, as well as at EbertFest. She's also written the narration scripts for two tribute reels played at the Lifetime Achievement Oscar ceremony, one for recipient Gena Rowlands (read by Angelina Jolie) and one for recipient Anne V. Coates (read by Diane Lane). Always a must-read, when she isn't doing everything else, Sheila writes about actors, movies, and Elvis at her outstanding personal site, The Sheila Variations. Returning for the first time since last winter when she joined me to discuss BLUE HAWAII on one of our winter physical media episodes, we had so much fun cracking each other up about Elvis movies that we couldn't resist tackling five more together this time. Focusing on a group of films that Sheila considers to be underrated for one reason or another, whether that's because it's a western, features a remarkable performance, or is the epitome of what a '60s Elvis romcom musical could be when it's done well, in this sparkling conversation, we cover KING CREOLE, FLAMING STAR, GIRL HAPPY, LIVE A LITTLE LOVE A LITTLE, & THE TROUBLE WITH GIRLS. Originally Posted on Patreon (9/24/23) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/89764018 Theme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music Archive Logo: KateGabrielle.com

This week, I'm honored to be joined by not one but two brilliant screenwriters, Larry Karaszewski & Daniel Waters. Larry Karaszewski & his writing/directing/producing partner Scott Alexander are best known for writing unusual true stories such as the films ED WOOD, THE PEOPLE VS. LARRY FLYNT, MAN ON THE MOON, AUTO FOCUS, BIG EYES, DOLEMITE IS MY NAME, & the hit television miniseries THE PEOPLE VS. OJ SIMPSON: AMERICAN CRIME STORY. The team has won Emmys, Golden Globes, Producers, & Writers Guild Awards. Additionally, Larry is also a former Governor & Vice President of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Sciences. Born in Ohio & raised in Indiana, Daniel Waters is the Edgar award-winning screenwriter of the 1988 cult classic HEATHERS starring Winona Ryder & Christian Slater. Additionally, the man who wrote or co-wrote the films BATMAN RETURNS, HUDSON HAWK, THE ADVENTURES OF FORD FAIRLANE, DEMOLITION MAN, & more, he's also the writer-director of HAPPY CAMPERS & SEX & DEATH 101.Dear friends & movie buddies since their teenage years in Indiana, in this witty & well-researched ninety-minute conversation, the two champion the incredible '70s run of filmmaker Michael Ritchie. Focusing on Ritchie's view of America in the films DOWNHILL RACER, PRIME CUT, THE CANDIDATE, SMILE, THE BAD NEWS BEARS, & SEMI-TOUGH, before his wildly uneven '80s era, this episode is a must for '70s film fans. Originally Posted on Patreon (9/18/23) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/89431917 Theme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music Archive Logo: KateGabrielle.com

Following up on our great Brian De Palma episode with Megan Abbott & Alison Gaylin that was released last week, we have our second of three installments this month featuring two tremendous guests. Centered on one of our greatest film stars in the form of Robert Mitchum, you'll hear two different conversations with two brilliant women, recorded over the course of the summer to clock in at a combined total of two hours. If anyone deserves that much time & attention, it's Robert Mitchum!First up, we have blogger & historian Raquel Stecher, who joins me to cover some of the actor's most famous performances in the films OUT OF THE PAST, BLOOD ON THE MOON, RIVER OF NO RETURN, THE NIGHT OF THE HUNTER, & THE FRIENDS OF EDDIE COYLE. After that, actress-turned-producer Amy Robinson returns to share her thoughts on the man whose six-decade-spanning career she did a deep dive into during the pandemic. In addition to a general appreciation of what Robert Mitchum brought to film history, she chose to tackle one of his most unexpected & fascinating collaborations with his good friend Deborah Kerr, with whom he starred in the films HEAVEN KNOWS MR. ALLISON, THE SUNDOWNERS, THE GRASS IS GREENER, & REUNION AT FAIRBOROUGH. A wide-ranging conversation that touches on several other memorable films, stars, & directors, you'll want to be sure to listen to this one with a notebook & pen in order to write down all of the titles we work into these two terrific chats. Originally Posted on Patreon (9/13/23) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/89228681Logo: KateGabrielle.com Theme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music Archive

This week, I am honored to welcome a dynamic duo of acclaimed bestselling crime writers to the podcast & two women who've both won the Edgar and numerous other awards. Additionally, good friends who've also collaborated on the graphic novel NORMANDY GOLD, it's the wonderful partnership of Megan Abbott & Alison Gaylin. Author of such must-reads as DARE ME, THE TURNOUT, & GIVE ME YOUR HAND, Megan Abbott's latest novel BEWARE THE WOMAN is a modern gothic nightmare that you won't be able to put down. Alison Gaylin is the author of such gripping works as IF I DIE TONIGHT, NEVER LOOK BACK, & THE COLLECTIVE, & her latest title is a brand new Sunny Randall novel, ROBERT B. PARKER'S BAD INFLUENCE. Joining me to discuss the career of Brian De Palma, one of our most singular yet controversial filmmakers, in this breathlessly paced, contemplative & infectiously fun conversation, the two writers share their thoughts on the director's works, legacy, critics, popular sources of debate, & the films SISTERS, BLOW OUT, & BODY DOUBLE. As a fun bonus for listeners, similar to the way that I wove voice-over into an earlier fourth-season episode with Megan Abbott devoted to Paul Schrader, once again, I've recruited the vocal talents of a friend (today, in the form of past guest Peter Avellino) to read excerpts from past De Palma interviews I discovered & enjoyed during my research.Originally Posted on Patreon (9/7/23) here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/88932927 Logo: KateGabrielle.comTheme Music: Solo Acoustic Guitar by Jason Shaw, Free Music Archive