The Playlist Podcast Network

Rebecca Hall talks about her role as an emotionally closed-off physicist in Amazon Prime's humanist sci-fi series "Tales From The Loop" with the Deep Focus host Rodrigo Perez. Hall is also making her directorial debut with the upcoming film "Passing," starring Tessa Thompson and Ruth Negga. It's an adaptation of Nella Larsen's 1920s Harlem Renaissance novel, which explores the practice of racial passing, a term used for a person classified as a member of one racial group who seeks to be accepted by a different racial group. But for Hall, it's a complicated story for her to reckon with the legacy of her own complicated family -- a bi-racial grandfather and mother who grappled with some of the same issues of identity. We also talked about her approach to acting, her career, her many roles, working with Christopher Nolan, and much more. It's a long, hour-long podcast, so buckle in, and hopefully, you'll enjoy it. 

Like everything, it's been a strange world for the film industry in the midst of COVID-19. On this long-belated episode, Ryan Oliver is joined by Playlist Managing Editor Charles Barfield, and the former hosts of Playlist Podcast Adjust Your Tracking - Erik McClanahan and Joe von Appen - to discuss the state of theatrical moviegoing. We speculate on if theaters will hit their proposed July release date, in time for Christopher Nolan's "Tenet," and if it's the right thing to do. We also discuss how the industry is adapting amidst the pandemic (such as PVOD and selling titles to other streaming services) and further cementing co-existence between theatrical and digital. It's a broad topic with no easy answers, but the discussion remains thoughtful. If you have the means, please consider donating to Black Lives Matter (https://blacklivesmatter.com/) and the NAACP Legal Defense Fund (https://www.naacpldf.org/), among other organizations. All shows and episodes are a part of The Playlist Podcast Network—which includes The 4th Wall, Be Reel, Indie Beat, and more—and can be heard on iTunes, AnchorFM, Soundcloud, Stitcher, Spotify, and iHeartRadio. To listen on this page, you can stream the podcast via the AnchorFM embed below or up top. Follow us on iTunes, and you’ll get this podcast as well as our other shows regularly. Be sure to subscribe, and drop us a comment or a rating as we do appreciate it.

He’s been called the Lizard King, the Iceman, the Dark Knight, and is perpetually applying for the post of your Huckleberry. Val Kilmer is one of the most fascinating and elusive screen presences of the last 40 years. In the wake of Val's new memoir, Noah and Chance chronicle the highlights of a roller-coaster career from 1985 to present. The questions are as high-minded and dire as Kilmer’s work: was Val the most talented actor of his generation? And if that’s true, why was he done making relevant work by age 45? We certainly acknowledge there are far more important things in the world right now, but we hope you’ll come along with us when you can, at least from "Real Genius" to "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang."

Over the last decade, you’ve undoubtedly seen both Sam Hargrave and his work without even knowing it. In fifteen years, he has racked up 80 credits working as either a stunt performer or stunt coordinator in both television and film. He's doubled for Hugh Jackman, Chris Evans, and Justin Timberlake, along with many others; and is responsible for staging some of the biggest and most exciting action sequences in recent years. Hargrave served as a stunt coordinator on "Avengers: Endgame," "Deadpool 2," "Captain America: Civil War," "Atomic Blonde," and all but the first film in the "Hunger Games" franchise, just to name a few. While stunt performance allowed Hargrave to make a name for himself, his true passion always lied with directing. In April, he was finally able to turn that passion into a reality with his directorial debut with "Extraction." "Extraction" is a Netflix Original action film written by Joe Russo, produced by the Russo Brothers, and starring Chris Hemsworth and David Harbour. The film tells the story of a mercenary sent in to extricate the son of an international crime lord from the clutches of kidnappers. When Hemsworth’s character (Tyler Rake) is double-crossed, he faces enemies on all sides as he battles to protect the boy and escape town. "Extraction" was an instant hit for Netflix. According to the streaming service, the film "is well on its way to becoming the biggest-ever film premiere on Netflix — with a projected 90 million households getting in on the action in the first 4 weeks." The movie appears to have been the right movie at the right time. While movie theaters are shut down and virtually all theatrical releases have been postponed, Netflix offered an exciting action film produced by the directors of the biggest movie of the past decade, featuring one of today’s leading men, and directed by one of the premier stunt coordinators in the business. People seemed more than willing to tune in. Perhaps much of this has to do with a yearning for more mid-budget action movies. The filmmaker himself even cited the works of Jackie Chan and John McTiernan along with "Rambo"  as works that impacted his filmmaking sensibilities. During our conversation with director Sam Hargrave, we discussed not only "Extraction," its success, and the already announced sequel (and whether he’ll be involved), but also action movies in general, as well as Netflix as a vessel for more niche films to be made and seen. We also learn what action films inspired him as a director and filmmaker, and find out what he has been watching while stuck at home during the pandemic.

American independent film lost a guiding light this month with the sudden passing of Lynn Shelton. From 2006 to 2019, Shelton created a multi-film roadmap for considering the dimensionality of place (often Seattle) and deep personal meaning from simple conversation. This week, Be Reel looks back at "We Go Way Back" (2006), "Humpday" (2009), "Your Sister's Sister" (2011), "Laggies" (2014) and "Sword of Trust" (2019) to celebrate an aspirational career, cut tragically short.

Hollywood and Bollywood both suffered an incalculable loss last month with the untimely passing of actor Irrfan Khan. Known to American audiences for his character work in "Life of Pi" and "Jurassic World", the icon in India spent 30 years embodying quiet masculinity in chameleonic performances. Today, Chance and Noah look at some of his most notable Bollywood films: "Paan Singh Tomar" (2012), "The Lunchbox" (2013), and "Piku" (2015). To start the show, Chance is joined by Vulture contributor Mallika Rao to discuss Khan's career and her tremendous remembrance of the actor, which you can read below. https://www.vulture.com/2020/05/the-undefinable-something-of-irrfan-khan.html

A candid and affable Josh Trank ("Chronicle") gets on the line to get candid about his "Fantastic Four" failures, his fruitful collaboration with Tom Hardy (which may yield more films) and his latest movie, the surreal fever dream that is "Capone" (or "Fonzo" as he still refers to it), starring the aforementioned "Mad Max" star.  For the belatedly returning (?) podcast show Deep Focus very-infrequently hosted by The Playlist Editor-in-Chief Rodrigo Perez.

This week in the ever-flowing slipstream, Be Reel hosts Chance Solem-Pfeifer and Noah Ballard turn their sights to Ryan Murphy's Netflix original miniseries "Hollywood," a send-up/revisionist history of postwar... Hollywood. Over seven hour-long episodes, we follow the cast and crew of the fictional film "Meg" (Laura Harrier, Darren Criss, Samara Weaving, and more) as they rewrite American movie lore and vanquish countless obstacles for LGBTQ artists and artists of color. But is "Hollywood" an alluring political reverie or anachronistically reductive mumbo-jumbo? Well ... action. Episode Discussion Times: Ep. 1 - 6:20 Ep. 2 - 15:40 Ep. 3 - 26:20 Ep. 4 + 5 - 32:30 Ep. 6 - 41:05 Ep. 7 — 48:45

While Apple TV+'s first wave of content was met with a lukewarm response, it hasn't stopped the tech company from continuing to collaborate with A-List talent. The tech company has already joined forces with such talent as M. Night Shyamalan, Steven Spielberg, Jason Momoa, Jennifer Aniston, Reese Witherspoon, Kumail Nanjiani, Octavia Spencer, and countless others. However, the top tier collaborations don't stop there. In Apple TV+'s latest drama, "Defending Jacob," Academy Award-nominated director, Morten Tyldum ("The Imitation Game," "Passengers"), assembled an all-star team to bring to life an adaptation of the bestselling novel. The show has quickly become a topic of weekly television discourse. Starring Chris Evans, Michelle Dockery, Jaeden Martell, and Pablo Schrieber, "Defending Jacob" follows an assistant DA (Evans) and his family as their lives are uprooted following the shocking accusation that his son may be a murderer. The series not only features A-List talent in front of the camera but behind the camera as well. "Dawn of the Planet of the Apes" and "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" screenwriter, Mark Bombock, pens the script while Tyldum directs all eight episodes of the series. While Tyldum has had great success with his feature films, he's no stranger to television. The director helmed episodes of Amazon Prime's "Jack Ryan" and Starz's "Counterpart" and excels at bringing a cinematic sensibility to the format. That sensibility proved to be critical in constructing the visual language "Defending Jacob." Using the atmosphere to emphasize character drama, Tyldum specifically looked to some of his favorite adult thrillers and one of cinema's most influential voices. It's easy to get wrapped up in the atmosphere and mystery Tyldum crafts in "Defending Jacob," as it's immediately the first thing that hits you. However, Tyldum still wanted to ground the story as much as possible. Chris Evans' experience in live performance gave him exactly what he was looking for as it helped anchor the drama in reality. During our conversation with Tyldum on episode eighteen of The Fourth Wall, we talk about the importance of casting Chris Evans in the lead and why his lack of experience in roles like this is precisely why Tyldum wanted him. We also discuss the key to a successful book adaptation, taking creative liberties with the source material, THAT surprise casting choice, whether he prefers the binge model vs. week-to-week, the future of the theatrical experience, and much more. Additional reporting by Zach Pope

Heading into 2016, no director showed more promise than Justin Kurzel. After shocking audiences with his disturbing and intimate examination of the Snowtown Murders in 2011's "Snowtown," the filmmaker instantly became one of Australia's exciting new voices. This excitement only amplified following his striking adaptation of Shakespeare's "Macbeth" starring Michael Fassbender and Marion Cotillard. Personifying the playwright's own words of "sound and fury" with fire and blood, Kurzel created a visual mood poem that solidified his mastery over cinematic grammar. Kurzel's continued exploration of "outlaws" paired with "Macbeth's" astonishing visuals and primal action sequences positioned him nicely for a successful adaptation of the popular video game franchise "Assassin's Creed." Sadly (while I enjoyed and defend that film),  the film was met with harsh criticism. At the time, Kurzel was living in London and the failure of "Assassin's" paired with a detachment from Australia caused the filmmaker to feel a bit lost. It was during this period of soul searching and missing home that Kurzel found Peter Carey's novel, "True History of the Kelly Gang." "True History," both the novel and Kurzel's film, tells the story of famed Australian bushranger turned legend Ned Kelly (George MacKay) and his gang as they oppose British rule and flee from the authorities during the 1870s. As opposed to more historical examinations of Kelly, "True History" is a fictitious interpretation told through the perspective of the infamous outlaw himself. It's precisely this lens that grabbed hold of Kurzel in a way the legend from his childhood hadn't before allowing him to return to his filmmaking roots. During my conversation with director Justin Kurzel, we not only discuss his relationship with Ned Kelly but delve into his fascination with morally gray characters. We also discuss how Kurosawa, Béla Tarr, Gus Van Sant's "Elephant," and Scorsese's originally storyboards for "Raging Bull" helped shape his filmmaking sensibilities, how Ted Kotcheff's "Wake in Fright" influenced "True History," his experience making "Assassin's Creed," why "Joker" inspired him, and much more.