Eavesdropping at the Movies
@eavesdropping.bsky.social
Film podcast by @mjglass.bsky.social and @josearroyo.bsky.social.
As one emerges from the cinema, thoughts are shared, conversations overheard. José wants to capture that feeling. Mike wants to make jokes.
As one emerges from the cinema, thoughts are shared, conversations overheard. José wants to capture that feeling. Mike wants to make jokes.
BUGONIA is funny, absurd, tragic, misanthropic, fundamentally unsound but too entertaining not to forgive. We compare it with EX MACHINA to show where the storytelling falls short, think about its title, reminisce about Covid lockdowns... it's got the lot. wp.me/p9y1IP-3ii
464 – Bugonia
Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. Yorgos Lanthimos’ fourth collaboration with Emma Stone yields a darkly comedic thriller about two conspiracy t…
wp.me
November 13, 2025 at 6:32 AM
BUGONIA is funny, absurd, tragic, misanthropic, fundamentally unsound but too entertaining not to forgive. We compare it with EX MACHINA to show where the storytelling falls short, think about its title, reminisce about Covid lockdowns... it's got the lot. wp.me/p9y1IP-3ii
What does FRANKENSTEIN have in common with ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER? Find out within. (The answer is parenting.)
wp.me/p9y1IP-3hg
wp.me/p9y1IP-3hg
463 – Frankenstein (2025)
Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. Another classic Gothic horror is remade for the modern age: first we saw Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu, and now Gui…
wp.me
November 9, 2025 at 12:53 PM
What does FRANKENSTEIN have in common with ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER? Find out within. (The answer is parenting.)
wp.me/p9y1IP-3hg
wp.me/p9y1IP-3hg
TRON: ARES is Pinocchio and Frankenstein with neon-oozing motorbikes, and as entertaining as that sounds. (We think that sounds entertaining.) It's far from a great film, but it's fabulous to look at, and too much fun not to recommend. wp.me/p9y1IP-39P
462 – Tron: Ares
Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. Far from an outstanding film, but amazing to look at and too much fun not to recommend, we had a great time in Tron:…
wp.me
October 28, 2025 at 4:18 AM
TRON: ARES is Pinocchio and Frankenstein with neon-oozing motorbikes, and as entertaining as that sounds. (We think that sounds entertaining.) It's far from a great film, but it's fabulous to look at, and too much fun not to recommend. wp.me/p9y1IP-39P
We’re joined by our resident Paul Thomas Anderson expert (and Mike’s brother), Stephen, for another discussion of ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER. He's always terrific value on the podcast and his contributions in this edition continue to show that. wp.me/p9y1IP-39M
461 – One Battle After Another – Second Screening
Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. Listen to our first podcast on One Battle After Another here. We’re joined by our resident Paul Thomas Anderso…
wp.me
October 23, 2025 at 4:50 AM
We’re joined by our resident Paul Thomas Anderson expert (and Mike’s brother), Stephen, for another discussion of ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER. He's always terrific value on the podcast and his contributions in this edition continue to show that. wp.me/p9y1IP-39M
Reposted by Eavesdropping at the Movies
What does a Film Programmer do? I talk to James McEvoy, Cinema Programmer at the Warwick Arts Centre to fid out: notesonfilm1.com/2025/10/20/j...
José Arroyo in Conversation with James McEvoy on Film Programming at the Warwick Arts Centre
What does a Film Programmer do? I talk to James McEvoy to find out what programming the Warwick Arts Centre cinema, a three-screen cinema, based on a university campus but also serving a local and …
notesonfilm1.com
October 20, 2025 at 12:45 PM
What does a Film Programmer do? I talk to James McEvoy, Cinema Programmer at the Warwick Arts Centre to fid out: notesonfilm1.com/2025/10/20/j...
What Mike sees in The Rock's performance as desperate Oscar bait and a cynical grasp for artistic legitimacy, José sees the good side of, although we're in agreement that THE SMASHING MACHINE has problems that its positives don't overcome.
wp.me/p9y1IP-39J
wp.me/p9y1IP-39J
460 – The Smashing Machine
Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. Mike isn’t impressed with The Rock’s attempt to take on a dramatic role in an intimate biopic after deca…
wp.me
October 20, 2025 at 12:50 PM
What Mike sees in The Rock's performance as desperate Oscar bait and a cynical grasp for artistic legitimacy, José sees the good side of, although we're in agreement that THE SMASHING MACHINE has problems that its positives don't overcome.
wp.me/p9y1IP-39J
wp.me/p9y1IP-39J
A Big Bold Beautiful Journey, is beautiful and likeable, but derivative and ultimately unsatisfying. We discuss its lighting, its attitude towards people's histories, and why a rubbish script Mike once wrote makes him particularly keen to sneer at it. wp.me/p9y1IP-37C
459 – A Big Bold Beautiful Journey
Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. A Big Bold Beautiful Journey, directed by former video essayist Kogonada, is beautiful to look at and very likeable,…
wp.me
October 14, 2025 at 3:09 AM
A Big Bold Beautiful Journey, is beautiful and likeable, but derivative and ultimately unsatisfying. We discuss its lighting, its attitude towards people's histories, and why a rubbish script Mike once wrote makes him particularly keen to sneer at it. wp.me/p9y1IP-37C
Not as dumb as Mike anticipated - but still quite dumb - THE LONG WALK develops surprising thematic depth, showing us a dystopian, totalitarian America in desperate need of revolution, and asking its characters what achieving one might take.
wp.me/p9y1IP-37z
wp.me/p9y1IP-37z
458 – The Long Walk
Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. Cheap, simple, high-concept and reasonably graphic, The Long Walk is a throwback to the days of the B-movie. In its …
wp.me
October 6, 2025 at 8:28 PM
Not as dumb as Mike anticipated - but still quite dumb - THE LONG WALK develops surprising thematic depth, showing us a dystopian, totalitarian America in desperate need of revolution, and asking its characters what achieving one might take.
wp.me/p9y1IP-37z
wp.me/p9y1IP-37z
ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER is unmissable. A state of the nation film that should define the national conversation. Complex, funny, energetic, and demonstrative of even greater range to Paul Thomas Anderson's abilities than we'd previously thought.
wp.me/p9y1IP-370
wp.me/p9y1IP-370
457 – One Battle After Another
Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. By far Paul Thomas Anderson’s most expensive film, with a budget some four or five times what he’s used …
wp.me
October 3, 2025 at 5:41 AM
ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER is unmissable. A state of the nation film that should define the national conversation. Complex, funny, energetic, and demonstrative of even greater range to Paul Thomas Anderson's abilities than we'd previously thought.
wp.me/p9y1IP-370
wp.me/p9y1IP-370
First-time director Michael Shanks shows a good instinct for tone in TOGETHER, a wonderfully imaginative and original body horror about the fear of commitment. It's one of the best horrors - maybe best films full stop - that we've seen in a while. wp.me/p9y1IP-2XV
456 – Together
Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. Commitment is scary. It’s especially scary when you drink water from a cursed puddle that wants to make a hybr…
wp.me
September 11, 2025 at 5:14 AM
First-time director Michael Shanks shows a good instinct for tone in TOGETHER, a wonderfully imaginative and original body horror about the fear of commitment. It's one of the best horrors - maybe best films full stop - that we've seen in a while. wp.me/p9y1IP-2XV
EDDINGTON recalls the days of lockdowns, mask mandates and conspiracy theories – days of particular hostility and division in the USA, in which individual freedom does constant battle with the greater good. It's a mixed bag but ambitious.
eavesdroppingatthemovies.com/2025/09/08/4...
eavesdroppingatthemovies.com/2025/09/08/4...
455 – Eddington
Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. Most film and TV has quietly agreed to pretend that the Covid pandemic never happened. Perhaps it’s too awkwar…
eavesdroppingatthemovies.com
September 8, 2025 at 12:57 PM
EDDINGTON recalls the days of lockdowns, mask mandates and conspiracy theories – days of particular hostility and division in the USA, in which individual freedom does constant battle with the greater good. It's a mixed bag but ambitious.
eavesdroppingatthemovies.com/2025/09/08/4...
eavesdroppingatthemovies.com/2025/09/08/4...
WEAPONS is interesting, ambitious, creative, and just a bit overpraised. We find plenty to like and plenty to criticise, and reopen the discussion two weeks after having seen it to reconsider it. wp.me/p9y1IP-2XQ
454 – Weapons
Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. One of the most hotly-anticipated horror films in recent memory, Weapons begins with seventeen third-grade children …
wp.me
September 5, 2025 at 9:04 AM
WEAPONS is interesting, ambitious, creative, and just a bit overpraised. We find plenty to like and plenty to criticise, and reopen the discussion two weeks after having seen it to reconsider it. wp.me/p9y1IP-2XQ
A psychosexual thriller that's neither psychosexual nor thrilling enough, THE SHROUDS is a disappointment from David Cronenberg. eavesdroppingatthemovies.com/2025/09/01/4...
453 – The Shrouds
Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. A psychosexual thriller that’s neither psychosexual nor thrilling enough, The Shrouds is a disappointment. The…
eavesdroppingatthemovies.com
September 2, 2025 at 6:30 PM
A psychosexual thriller that's neither psychosexual nor thrilling enough, THE SHROUDS is a disappointment from David Cronenberg. eavesdroppingatthemovies.com/2025/09/01/4...
Reposted by Eavesdropping at the Movies
The second of two podcasts in which a comedy Tim who enjoys odd social interactions turns out to be a fantastic presence on the cinema screen and capable of leading a whole film without losing the unique vibe and energy that makes their comedy great.
TIm Key's unique approach to wordplay and social interactions is put front and centre in THE BALLAD OF WALLIS ISLAND, a simply lovely comedy about grief, loss, and loneliness, that filled the Mockingbird cinema with laughter. wp.me/p9y1IP-2U0
452 – The Ballad of Wallis Island
Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. Mike loves Tim Key. This much has been true for some time, and he’s thrilled to discover that the comic poet&#…
wp.me
August 26, 2025 at 7:51 AM
The second of two podcasts in which a comedy Tim who enjoys odd social interactions turns out to be a fantastic presence on the cinema screen and capable of leading a whole film without losing the unique vibe and energy that makes their comedy great.
TIm Key's unique approach to wordplay and social interactions is put front and centre in THE BALLAD OF WALLIS ISLAND, a simply lovely comedy about grief, loss, and loneliness, that filled the Mockingbird cinema with laughter. wp.me/p9y1IP-2U0
452 – The Ballad of Wallis Island
Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. Mike loves Tim Key. This much has been true for some time, and he’s thrilled to discover that the comic poet&#…
wp.me
August 26, 2025 at 7:49 AM
TIm Key's unique approach to wordplay and social interactions is put front and centre in THE BALLAD OF WALLIS ISLAND, a simply lovely comedy about grief, loss, and loneliness, that filled the Mockingbird cinema with laughter. wp.me/p9y1IP-2U0
Reposted by Eavesdropping at the Movies
The first of two podcasts in which a comedy Tim who enjoys odd social interactions turns out to be a fantastic presence on the cinema screen and capable of leading a whole film without losing the unique vibe and energy that makes their comedy great.
With its idiosyncratic tone, stressful focus on social awkwardness, and departures into surreality, FRIENDSHIP won't be for everyone, but we highly recommend it. Tim Robinson is a fascinating screen presence, and the film earns big laughs from meaningful subject matter. wp.me/p9y1IP-2TV
451 – Friendship
Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. We talk adult male friendships, stress and surreality in our discussion of Friendship, in which oddball everyman Tim…
wp.me
August 22, 2025 at 5:29 AM
The first of two podcasts in which a comedy Tim who enjoys odd social interactions turns out to be a fantastic presence on the cinema screen and capable of leading a whole film without losing the unique vibe and energy that makes their comedy great.
With its idiosyncratic tone, stressful focus on social awkwardness, and departures into surreality, FRIENDSHIP won't be for everyone, but we highly recommend it. Tim Robinson is a fascinating screen presence, and the film earns big laughs from meaningful subject matter. wp.me/p9y1IP-2TV
451 – Friendship
Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. We talk adult male friendships, stress and surreality in our discussion of Friendship, in which oddball everyman Tim…
wp.me
August 22, 2025 at 5:12 AM
With its idiosyncratic tone, stressful focus on social awkwardness, and departures into surreality, FRIENDSHIP won't be for everyone, but we highly recommend it. Tim Robinson is a fascinating screen presence, and the film earns big laughs from meaningful subject matter. wp.me/p9y1IP-2TV
THE NAKED GUN is rebooted with Liam Neeson in the part that was once Leslie Nielsen’s, and he shows just how hard comedy can be. We discuss everything the film gets wrong. If only they’d asked us for help. wp.me/p9y1IP-2RQ
450 – The Naked Gun (2025)
Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. The Naked Gun is rebooted with Liam Neeson in the part that was once Leslie Nielsen’s, and he shows just how h…
wp.me
August 13, 2025 at 1:05 AM
THE NAKED GUN is rebooted with Liam Neeson in the part that was once Leslie Nielsen’s, and he shows just how hard comedy can be. We discuss everything the film gets wrong. If only they’d asked us for help. wp.me/p9y1IP-2RQ
The Philippou twins share a good eye for imagery, and in BRING HER BACK they put it to use eliciting some truly disgusting effects. We discuss the duo's good delivery of information but weak storytelling, and question the ethics of the use of child actors. wp.me/p9y1IP-2OM
449 – Bring Her Back
Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. YouTubers-turned-directors Danny and Michael Philippou demonstrate a real eye for visual design and an ability to cr…
wp.me
August 2, 2025 at 6:15 AM
The Philippou twins share a good eye for imagery, and in BRING HER BACK they put it to use eliciting some truly disgusting effects. We discuss the duo's good delivery of information but weak storytelling, and question the ethics of the use of child actors. wp.me/p9y1IP-2OM
Reposted by Eavesdropping at the Movies
The first Jurassic Park sequel that doesn't have loads of shit bits!
JURASSIC PARK REBIRTH is easily the best JURASSIC PARK sequel, possibly because it cribs so much from the original, but it has plenty of ideas and style of its own too. Easy to recommend. wp.me/p9y1IP-2NO
448 – Jurassic World Rebirth
Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. The seventh instalment in the Jurassic Park (now Jurassic World) series, Jurassic World Rebirth might be the first o…
wp.me
July 28, 2025 at 8:59 PM
The first Jurassic Park sequel that doesn't have loads of shit bits!
JURASSIC PARK REBIRTH is easily the best JURASSIC PARK sequel, possibly because it cribs so much from the original, but it has plenty of ideas and style of its own too. Easy to recommend. wp.me/p9y1IP-2NO
448 – Jurassic World Rebirth
Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. The seventh instalment in the Jurassic Park (now Jurassic World) series, Jurassic World Rebirth might be the first o…
wp.me
July 28, 2025 at 8:54 PM
JURASSIC PARK REBIRTH is easily the best JURASSIC PARK sequel, possibly because it cribs so much from the original, but it has plenty of ideas and style of its own too. Easy to recommend. wp.me/p9y1IP-2NO
SUPERMAN kicks off the DCU with audiovisual histrionics - one of us found it truly exhausting to endure. But we agree on the appeal of David Corenswet in the lead role. His moral compass, coupled to an appealing physique and mild lack of smarts, plays well. wp.me/p9y1IP-2NL
447 – Superman (2025)
Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. DC, which for the best part of two decades has failed to put together a cinematic universe of comic book adaptations…
wp.me
July 25, 2025 at 8:11 AM
SUPERMAN kicks off the DCU with audiovisual histrionics - one of us found it truly exhausting to endure. But we agree on the appeal of David Corenswet in the lead role. His moral compass, coupled to an appealing physique and mild lack of smarts, plays well. wp.me/p9y1IP-2NL
Fabulous fun, extraordinary to look at, and filled with all the detail a fan could hope to take issue with, F1 ticks every box for an expensive genre action movie. Is it great? No. Is it good? Yes. Can an advert be considered art? We are checking. wp.me/p9y1IP-2Ns
446 – F1
Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. Hollywood collaborates with the FIA, the motorsport governing body, to try to convince us that Formula One is not, i…
wp.me
July 22, 2025 at 4:32 AM
Fabulous fun, extraordinary to look at, and filled with all the detail a fan could hope to take issue with, F1 ticks every box for an expensive genre action movie. Is it great? No. Is it good? Yes. Can an advert be considered art? We are checking. wp.me/p9y1IP-2Ns
@mattzollerseitz.bsky.social Hi Matt. We just published our discussion of Riefenstahl. You and/or your followers might be interested in it. No expectation, but if you listen to or share it, please enjoy! If that's the right word. pod.fo/e/2e3525
Eavesdropping at the Movies: 445 - Riefenstahl
In the 1930s, Leni Riefenstahl infamously directed two propaganda films, Triumph of the Will and Olympia, for the Nazi Party. For the rest of her life, which ended in 2003, she denied knowledge of ...
pod.fo
June 11, 2025 at 6:24 AM
@mattzollerseitz.bsky.social Hi Matt. We just published our discussion of Riefenstahl. You and/or your followers might be interested in it. No expectation, but if you listen to or share it, please enjoy! If that's the right word. pod.fo/e/2e3525
Reposted by Eavesdropping at the Movies
I had real problems with this in the moment, because I think Leni Riefenstahl is not that interesting and I thought the documentary missed a significant trick in failing to explore the legacy of her work. But on reflection my estimation of it has grown, and the conversation it led to was a good one.
RIEFENSTAHL is an excellent example of how to tell a complex tale with intention, clarity, and concision, while allowing for interpretation of the material presented, and it’ll be the basis of endless conversations. Highly recommended. wp.me/p9y1IP-2Il
445 – Riefenstahl
Listen on the players above, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, or YouTube Music. In the 1930s, Leni Riefenstahl infamously directed two propaganda films, Triumph of the Will and Olympia, for the Na…
wp.me
June 11, 2025 at 6:16 AM
I had real problems with this in the moment, because I think Leni Riefenstahl is not that interesting and I thought the documentary missed a significant trick in failing to explore the legacy of her work. But on reflection my estimation of it has grown, and the conversation it led to was a good one.