Let's Finally Watch This

Season 4 Wrap-up & Epilogue

Fri, 05 Dec 2025 05:00:00 -0500

It’s time to wrap up our fourth season of Let’s Finally Watch This. Looking back at our season of heavy-hitters (and a few oddballs), we consider some of the unexpected themes and this season's emphasis on directors. Then we dive into the heart of the episode–our Ranking of Essentialness for this season’s movies! We also share our personal favorites from the season.

Thanks for joining us again for this exciting journey through the decades of film!

Show Notes

Episode 46 - Cinderella (2015)

Fri, 21 Nov 2025 05:30:00 -0500

It's 2015. Franchises rule the box office. Disney, a powerhouse studio for decades, is in the middle of its current run of live-action remakes. This year's movie, Cinderella, is directed by Kenneth Branagh, known for his Shakespearean adaptations and portrayal of Hercule Poirot. The story itself is nothing new, but Branagh presents it with lavishly and directly, making it one of the best-reviewed of the modern remakes.

What Cinderella offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: gorgeous costumes and sets; solid, traditional storytelling; a sincere, admirable heroine; and, arguably, everything one wants, and nothing one doesn't, in a Cinderella movie.

Show Notes

Episode 45 - King Kong (2005)

Fri, 14 Nov 2025 05:30:00 -0500

It's 2005. Peter Jackson, director of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, follows that triumph by remaking one of his favorite movies--King Kong. By taking the original, iconic 1933 film and expanding it with his own knack for special effects and epic-length storytelling, Jackson creates a version that, as critic Roger Ebert says, "is like the flowering of all the possibilities in the original classic film.”

What King Kong offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: more of everything the original film contained; three tonally distinct stories (drama, action, and disaster); a timeless 1930s setup; and one intense giant-ape-vs-three-T-rexes battle scene.

Show Notes

Episode 44 - Jumanji (1995)

Fri, 07 Nov 2025 05:45:00 -0500

It's 1995. Combining the blockbuster era with CGI creates the opportunity for all sorts of movies--including ones with jungle creatures rampaging through city streets. Director Joe Johnston, who started his Hollywood career designing spaceships for Star Wars, utilizes computer and practical effects to bring a malevolent board game to life in Jumanji, starring Robin Williams, Bonnie Hunt, and a young Kirsten Dunst.

What Jumanji offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: the more sobering origin of the newer Jumanji movies; Robin Williams playing his patented boy-in-a-man's-body role; a largely effective blend of horror and action; and badly aged monkey CGI.

Show Notes

Episode 43 - Cocoon (1985)

Fri, 31 Oct 2025 05:30:00 -0500

It's 1985. The culture is saturated with youth-targeted science fiction and fantasy films. And then there's Cocoon, directed by Ron Howard, a quirky movie featuring three elderly men as protagonists. Aliens disguised as humans are recovering cocoons from the ocean and storing them in the pool of a rented house when the old men discover that the water of the pool rejuvenates them. It's a fountain of youth, but will they share it? And will the aliens let them continue using it?

What Cocoon offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: an exploration of life, death, and aging; a gentler, more compassionate portrayal of aliens; a plot that's not quite conventional; and lots of old people.

Show Notes

Episode 42 - Jaws (1975)

Fri, 24 Oct 2025 05:45:00 -0500

It's 1975. No one knows it yet, but this is when the Blockbuster Age begins. It starts with a movie called Jaws, directed by an up-and-coming director named Steven Spielberg. If you don't know, Jaws is about a killer shark. It's the reason an entire generation feared going into the water. At the time of its release, it became the highest-grossing film of all time--and also the blueprint for a revolution in the filmmaking business.

What Jaws offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: Spielberg's masterful, timeless directing; John William's iconic score; three men alone on the sea; the growing, largely unseen menace of the shark; and ""You're gonna need a bigger boat."

Show Notes

Episode 41 - Doctor Zhivago (1965)

Fri, 17 Oct 2025 06:00:00 -0500

It's 1965. Three years previous, director David Lean released his masterpiece Lawrence of Arabia. Now, he returns with another historical epic, exchanging desert vistas for the mountains of Russia and the society of Soviet Revolution-era Moscow. Based on the Nobel Prize-winning novel, Doctor Zhivago follows the titular doctor (and poet) as his life and loves intersect with the violence and utopian dreams of the Bolshevik Revolution.

What Doctor Zhivago offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: stunning, wide-screen cinematography; a sweeping epic in a period not often covered by Hollywood; a story of, um, romantic adultery; and a frustratingly opaque protagonist.

Show Notes

Episode 40 - Rebel Without a Cause (1955)

Fri, 10 Oct 2025 05:30:00 -0500

It's 1955. It's a time we look back at with nostalgia, thinking it a simpler, more peaceful time. But in one of first important "juvenile delinquent" films, Rebel Without a Cause, director Nicholas Ray and actor James Dean explore teen culture and find that the kids are not all right.

Following a little over 24 hours of the lives of Dean's Jim Stark, the disturbed "Plato," and Judy, the bully's girlfriend, the movie shows the search for meaning and mentors that seem to plague a generation of angry, confused, and lost teens.

What Rebel Without a Cause offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: the iconic James Dean in that red jacket, a haunting lecture in an observatory, a tragic "Chickie Run," complicated child-parent relationships, and a surprisingly modern look at growing up from 70 years ago.

Show Notes

Episode 39 - Anchors Aweigh (1945)

Fri, 03 Oct 2025 05:30:00 -0500

It's 1945. VE Day was May 8, but the war continues in the Pacific. Meanwhile, MGM entertains Americans back home with musicals such as Anchors Aweigh, starring Gene Kelly and Frank Sinatra as two navy sailors on a four-day shore leave near Hollywood. Hoping to spend time picking up girls, they find themselves involved in the life of aspiring singer "Aunt Susie." An eager boy and a lie are excuse enough to provide plenty of opportunities for romance, spectacle, and a happy ending.

What Anchors Aweigh offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: the engaging song-and-dance duo of Gene Kelly and Frank Sinatra, a convoluted set-up, the musical talents of real-life conductor José Iturbi, and a cameo of a famous cartoon mouse (no, not that one).

Show Notes

Episode 38 - Mutiny on the Bounty (1935)

Fri, 26 Sep 2025 09:00:00 -0500

It's 1935. One source of escapism during the Great Depression was the big budget spectacle--and Mutiny on the Bounty was one of the most expensive of its time. Based on the books which were inspired by true events, it follows the voyage of the HMS Bounty to Tahiti under the draconian command of Captain Bligh, as the crew, especially executive commander Christian Fletcher, weigh whether such harsh treatment is worthy of mutiny.

Filled with drama, danger, moral dilemmas, and island romance, Mutiny on the Bounty is probably the best-known movie from faithful Hollywood studio man and director Frank Lloyd.

What Mutiny on the Bounty offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: the iconic, sourly tyrannical Captain William Bligh; classic Hollywood doing big-budget sea adventure; island romance; and Clark Gable without a mustache.

Show Notes

Episode 37 - Battleship Potemkin (1925)

Fri, 19 Sep 2025 09:00:00 -0500

It's 1925. The Russian Revolution is over. Vladimir Lenin believes that “the cinema is for us the most important of the arts," leading the Soviet Union to create the world's first professional film school. With a genius for editing that is still discussed today, director Sergei Eisenstein creates a movie that was once considered the greatest movie ever made.

Battleship Potemkin tells the inspired-by-a-true-story tale of the sailors of the titular battleship and their struggle against their oppressive officers and government. It's art, but it's also propaganda.

What Battleship Potemkin offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: an entry point to discuss Soviet montage theory and the Kuleshov effect; a masterfully edited silent epic; the famous Odessa Steps sequence; and a powerfully visceral film.

Show Notes

Episode 36 - The Birth of a Nation (1915)

Fri, 12 Sep 2025 10:00:00 -0500

It's 1915. Film is innovating, but some companies don't believe that longer features are viable. Enter director D.W. Griffith, who with The Birth of a Nation, pushed the medium forward with a three-plus-hour historical drama that is often considered the first film masterpiece.

Featuring white Southerners as the heroes against uneducated, just-freed slaves, it is also undeniably racist and one of the most controversial films of all time.

What The Birth of a Nation offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: a pioneering example of early film full of impressive scale, technique, and talent; a deeply one-sided view of Reconstruction; an unironic triumphal scene with the KKK as the good guys; and a whole lot to wrestle with concerning the intersection of great filmmaking and deplorable themes.

Show Notes

Episode 35 - The Misadventure of a French Gentleman Without Pants at the Zandvoort Beach (1905)

Fri, 05 Sep 2025 09:00:00 -0500

Welcome to Season 4 of Let's Finally Watch This.

It's 1905. Movies are in their infancy, including Dutch film. This silent Dutch comedy, directed by Willy Mullens, begins with a man napping in a beach chair until he is surrounded by the incoming tide. And then he removes his pants to keep them dry. And then...well, the movie is less than 6 minutes long, so I don't want to spoil it.

What The Misadventure of a French Gentleman Without Pants at the Zandvoort Beach offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies (besides an outrageously long title): a front row seat to movie-as-novelty, extras who stare at the camera, part chase and part "actuality, and the experience of watching the oldest surviving Dutch film.

Show Notes

The Consensus Movie Podcast Crossover

Fri, 03 Jan 2025 09:00:00 -0500

Here's a surpise mega-length bonus episode for you! We join forces with Kordell Cabe and Justin Warfle, hosts of The Consensus Movie podcast, to journey through the last century of cinema history and share our favorite movies from each decade. Join us for a wide-ranging discussion of the movies that have impacted us from the 1920s on.

Season 3 Wrap-up & Epilogue

Fri, 06 Dec 2024 12:00:00 -0500

It's time to wrap up our third season of Let's Finally Watch This. We start by making a few observation about this season as a whole before diving into the heart of the episode--our Ranking of Essentialness for this season's movies! We also share our personal favorites from the season.

Thanks for joining us for yet another journey through the decades of film!

Show Notes

Episode 34 – The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)

Fri, 22 Nov 2024 09:00:00 -0500

It's 2014. Franchise movies abound, and American blockbusters are making bank around the world. But some directors, like Wes Anderson, are making movies that defy blockbuster conventions and that experiment with film style. The Grand Budapest Hotel, considered by many to be Anderson's magnum opus, follows concierge Monsieur Gustave and his Lobby Boy protege Zero as Gustave inherits a famous painting, is accused of murder, breaks out of jail, and escapes from fascist Zubrowkan troops (among other escapades).

What The Grand Budapest Hotel offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: a star-studded cast, including Ralph Fiennes, Adrian Brody, Willem Dafoe, Jeff Goldblum, and Owen Wilson, among others; a nostalgia for the culture of old Europe; an odd couple pairing with fussy, pompous Gustave and simple-minded Zero; and Anderson's unique, meticulously constructed style.

Show Notes

Episode 33 – Mean Girls (2004)

Fri, 15 Nov 2024 09:00:00 -0500

It's 2004. Teen movies exploded as a genre in the 1980s and have continued largely unabated since. With Mean Girls, comedian Tina Fey helps bring forth a teen movie that resonates with its viewers, both reflecting high school girl culture and critiquing it. The plot follows previously homeschooled Cady Heron's involvement in the popular girl clique "The Plastics," her slow transformation into a Plastic herself, and the fallout that follows.

What Mean Girls offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: an honest look at mean girl culture; rumors, gossip, and a Burn Book; laughs alongside the moral fall and recovery of Cady Heron; and possible flashbacks to your public school career.

Show Notes

Episode 32 – Forrest Gump (1994)

Fri, 08 Nov 2024 09:00:00 -0500

It's 1994. The top-grossing film is The Lion King, but right after that is Forrest Gump. Gump, played by Tom Hanks, wins audiences with his memorable phrases ("Life is like a box of chocolates"), his optimistic outlook, and his "right place, right time" escapades through American history. It's a comedy, a drama, and a movie that left its mark on culture.

What Forrest Gump offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: a singular, iconic character perfectly played by Tom Hanks; a meditation on the tumultuous second half of the 20th century; a series of fortuitous events where the nice guy always comes out on top; and a story that refuses to fit neatly into normal categories.

Show Notes

Episode 31 – The Terminator (1984)

Fri, 01 Nov 2024 09:00:00 -0500

It's 1984. A glance at the year's top ten grossing movies shows we're deep into the blockbuster era. Director James Cameron makes his mark on science fiction with The Terminator, an action-thriller that combines the relentless threat of a horror movie with a time travel backstory--and it captured the culture's imagination. It's a film that even if you haven't seen it, you know about Skynet, the Terminator robots, and Sarah Connor.

What The Terminator offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: Arnold Schwarzenegger as a relentless killing machine; a well-constructed backstory that takes a small cast and gives it big stakes; plenty of violence and mayhem; and the iconic line, "I'll be back."

Show Notes

Episode 30 – Chinatown (1974)

Fri, 25 Oct 2024 09:00:00 -0500

It's 1974. It's the height of New Hollywood, and Chinatown, directed by Roman Polanski, is a quintessential example of the darker subject matter and bleak outlook often associated with the movement. Considered one of the greatest movies of all time, this neo-noir crime drama follows private investigator J. J. Gittes, played by Jack Nicholson, as he digs into a world of government corruption, murder, and tangled family relationships amidst a Los Angeles drought.

What Chinatown offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: a tightly written, highly regarded script; a compelling mystery based in Los Angeles's historical water wars; a complicated femme fatale who knows more than she is willing to share; and a bleak, though famous, ending.

Show Notes

Episode 29 – A Fistful of Dollars (1964)

Fri, 18 Oct 2024 09:00:00 -0500

It's 1964. The Golden Age of Hollywood is over, and New Hollywood is about to begin, an era known for anti-heroes, changing morality, and less traditional plots. At the same time, the spaghetti western emerges, ushered in with A Fistful of Dollars, starring Clint Eastwood as the "man with no name" and directed by Sergio Leone. This is a different type of western, a grittier, less black-and-white western, that takes place in a town where rival gangs rule and the coffin-maker is kept busy.

What A Fistful of Dollars offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: an seminal example of the evolution of the western; a mysterious, iconic anti-hero protagonist; a tale of crime and harsh justice; and a lot of cool, grimy, sweaty close-ups backed by Ennio Morricone's now famous score.

Show Notes

Episode 28 – Seven Samurai (1954)

Fri, 11 Oct 2024 09:00:00 -0500

It's 1954. The American occupation of Japan had ended a few years before, and Japanese cinema is beginning to make an impression on the world scene. Released the same year as the original Godzilla, Seven Samurai is an essential classic from director Akira Kurosawa. Poverty-stricken farmers threatened with bandits decide to hire samurai to protect their village. This seemingly simple plot begins a massively influential film and an undisputed classic of cinema.

What Seven Samurai offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: a window into famed director Kurosawa's style; the plot that popularized the "assemble the team" trope; a microcosm for war, love, life and just about everything else; and the character Kikuchiyo--when you watch it, you'll know.

Show Notes

Episode 27 – Double Indemnity (1944)

Fri, 04 Oct 2024 09:00:00 -0500

It's 1944. The Second World War is still raging, and the two top grossing films are musicals. However, Double Indemnity, directed by Billy Wilder, is a different sort of film, a seminal example of film noir. It begins with insurance salesman Henry Neff confessing to a murder, and it follows his involvement with unhappy wife Phyllis Dietrichson and their plan to kill her husband and collect the insurance money without being caught...if they can.

What Double Indemnity offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: an outstanding example of film noir, a fascinating framing device, a quintenssential femme fatale, and an examination of temptation, guilt, and the consequences of what follows.

Show Notes

Episode 26 – It Happened One Night (1934)

Fri, 27 Sep 2024 09:00:00 -0500

It's 1934. It Happened One Night, a film nobody thought would do particularly well, sneaks in just before the Hays Code is enforced. The movie, directed by Frank Capra, follows pampered heiress Ellie Andrews (Claudette Colbert) as she tries to escape her controlling father and join her fiancé. She meets with ex-reporter Peter Warne (Clark Gable) on the bus to New York. Hijinks ensue, and love blossoms. It's a romantic comedy that influenced many, many afterward, and one of three movies to win all five major Academy Awards.

What It Happens One Night offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: an early and quintessential example of a romantic comedy, Colbert and Gable's pitch-perfect onscreen chemistry, witty dialogue and colorful characters, and an iconic hitchhiking scene.

Show Notes

Episode 25 – Sherlock Jr. (1924)

Fri, 20 Sep 2024 09:00:00 -0500

It's 1924. Buster Keaton, one of the cinematic greats of this era, is at the height of his career. Called "The Great Stone Face" due to his distinctive stoical expression, Keaton's films include dangerous physical stunts and impeccable comedic timing. Sherlock Jr. is no exception. Keaton plays a movie projectionist who hopes to become a great detective as he tries to untangle mysteries and win the girl both in real life and in his daydreams.

What Sherlock Jr. offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: 45-minutes of superbly paced comedy; a quintessential look at one of film's great actor/directors; a series of perfectly orchestrated set pieces; a wild, "how did they film that?" motorcycle ride; and plenty of laughs.

Show Notes

Episode 24 – Cabiria (1914)

Fri, 13 Sep 2024 09:00:00 -0500

It's 1914. Out of Italy comes what many classify as the first film epic. In this silent film, the girl Cabiria survives an eruption from Etna, is kidnapped by pirates, nearly offered to the god Moloch, and spends years as a servant. Meanwhile, Roman soldier Fulvius Axilla and his Samson-like servant Maciste cross paths with Cabiria and their destinies are entwined as Rome wars against Carthage and years pass.

What Cabiria offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: an epic story set against major moments in Italian history, the iconic and unsettling "Temple of Moloch" scene, engaging characters (mostly) in wide-ranging plot, and the one-and-only strongman Maciste.

Show Notes

Episode 23 – The Impossible Voyage (1904)

Fri, 06 Sep 2024 09:00:00 -0500

It's 1904. French director Georges Méliès is at the height of his career, creating fantastic, creative movies in the early days of cinema. Like his earlier A Trip to the Moon, this film is about a fantastic voyage, but as the Institute of Incoherent Geography visits mountain villagers, the surface of the sun, and monster-infested oceans, it is in some ways a more frantic and adventurous movie.

What The Impossible Voyage offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: a 20-minute feast for eyes and imagination; another example of Méliès' cinematic experimentation and opulent sets; and an almost fever-dream level series of cartoonish escapades.

Show Notes

Season 2 Wrap-up & Epilogue

Fri, 29 Dec 2023 09:00:00 -0500

It's time to wrap up another season of Let's Finally Watch This. We start by making a few corrections, filling in a few gaps in this season's discussion of film exhibition, and discussing how film continues to change up to the present.

But, then, the heart of the episode--our Ranking of Essentialness for this season's movies! We also share our personal favorites from the season.

Thanks for joining us for another journey through the decades of film!

Show Notes

Episode 22 – The Tale of the Princess Kaguya (2013)

Fri, 01 Dec 2023 09:00:00 -0500

It's 2013. The top-grossing film of the year is Disney's Frozen, but that's not the only important fairy-tale based animated film released this year. In Japan, Studio Ghibli released The Tale of the Princess Kaguya, a beautiful, compelling retelling of the Japanese folk tale, "The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter." It's a film that lets us experience Japanese history, Japanese animation, and the creative ability of Studio Ghibli co-founder Isao Takahata.

What The Tale of the Princess Kaguya offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: beautiful, water-color-inspired art; a thematically rich retelling of a popular folk tale; scenes of beauty, melancholy, and longing; and a 100% Rotten Tomatoes rating, even after 10 years and 97 reviews.

Show Notes

Episode 21 – Elf (2003)

Fri, 24 Nov 2023 09:00:00 -0500

It's 2003--and it's the holidays. Many of our standard Christmas movies were released in the 1940s, but since the 1990s, there has been a resurgence of Christmas movies, creating a number of new holiday classics. Among those is Elf, directed by Jon Favreau, a movie nearly everyone has seen, except for Let's Finally Watch This co-host Timothy Deal.

What Elf offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: a modern Christmas comedy that is both family friendly and heartfelt; love-him-or-hate-him Will Ferrell as the Christmas-obsessed Buddy the Elf; deep discussions of the proper use of fruits in children's books; and an introduction into the four food groups: candy, candy cane, candy corn, and syrup.

Show Notes

Episode 20 – Sleepless in Seattle (1993)

Fri, 17 Nov 2023 06:00:00 -0500

It's 1993. Multiplexes have arrived, and there are plenty of movies to show—Jurassic Park, Tombstone, Schindler's List, the original Super Mario Bros. movie.... Okay, not all are great, but it was a time of the blockbuster. In the middle of this comes Sleepless in Seattle, an iconic romantic comedy with the now-classic pairing of Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan.

What Sleepless in Seattle offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: a near-religious search for romantic "magic," clever writing with an unconventional romantic comedy structure, great acting by Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks, and references to Cary Grant and tiramisu.

Show Notes

Episode 19 – The Right Stuff (1983)

Fri, 10 Nov 2023 09:00:00 -0500

It's 1983. The blockbuster age has started, and the top-grossing movie of the year is The Return of the Jedi. However, another pivotal space movie is also released this year, The Right Stuff, a film examining the early years of the space race. Based on the book by Tom Wolfe, The Right Stuff follows the journey of the Mercury Seven as they undergo grueling trials and first-of-their-kind flights.

What The Right Stuff offers offers casual move fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: cutting-edge (at the time) editing of flight and space, a fascinating (and mostly accurate?) retelling of a slice of American history, an ambitious scope, and a tribute to men who had "the right stuff."

Show Notes

Episode 18 – The Sting (1973)

Fri, 03 Nov 2023 09:00:00 -0500

It's 1973. We're in the middle of the New Hollywood era, when movies tended to be more uncoventional and often darker. However, some movies are still all-around fun. The Sting, an Academy Award-winning caper movie featuring Paul Newman and Robert Redford, dives into the underworld of the 1930s with effortless skill. Two con men attempt to take revenge on a crime boss by swindling him out of his money, and the audience is along for the ride.

What The Sting offers offers casual move fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: stylish suits, clever cons, card sharks, a smart script, and plenty of "The Entertainer."

Show Notes

Episode 17 – 8½ (1963)

Fri, 27 Oct 2023 09:00:00 -0500

It's 1963. We're crossing the Atlantic to visit Italy, a preeminent filmmaking country. In the 1950s-60s, Italian film was largely known for Commedia all’Italiana (“Comedy in the Italian way”), spaghetti Westerns (westerns made in Italy), and Post-Neorealism (a movement moving past realism to explore existential themes). Famed Italian director Frederico Fellini pushes past this last in his critically acclaimed 8½, an avant-garde surrealist comedy-drama about a director trying to figure out what he wants to say in his new movie.

What 8½ offers offers casual move fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: a seamless blending of past, present, and dreams; a meta-examination of creativity and the inner life; a romatically confused and self-focused main character; and a compelling, one-of-a-kind movie experience.

Show Notes

Episode 16 – Shane (1953)

Fri, 20 Oct 2023 09:00:00 -0500

It's 1953. We're in the middle of the Golden Age of Hollywood; we're also in the pinnacle decades of the western, a truly American plot. Westerns have been around almost as long as movies (see The Great Train Robbery). Shane is an essential and quinessential example of the genre. It tells the story of homesteaders in an isolated Wyoming valley defending their land from land-hungry ranchers, with the help of enigmantic gunslinger Shane.

What Shane offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: a slow-burning plot; classic western elements expertly arranged; impactful use of gunfights; and the name "Shane" repeated numerous times.

Show Notes

Episode 15 – Shadow of a Doubt (1943)

Fri, 13 Oct 2023 09:00:00 -0500

It's 1943. World War 2 is raging, and nearly all the movies are war-related in some way. Into this comes a story of evil visiting idyllic small-town America. The director is the master of suspense, Alfred Hitchcock; and the movie, Shadow of a Doubt, is not as flashy or as well-known as some of his others, but it is a compact, character-driven story. Hitchcock himself said several times that it was his favorite film.

What Shadow of a Doubt offers casual move fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: a tense cat-and-mouse game; discussions of murders, real and imaginary; an examination of the space between appearance and reality; and, of course, Hitchcock's signature visuals.

Show Notes

Episode 14 – 42nd Street (1933)

Fri, 06 Oct 2023 09:00:00 -0500

It's 1933. It's the Depression, and audiences want movies that don't sugarcoat the truth, but they want escapism too. That means it's time for a new type of musical. Hollywood released more than 100 musical films only three years earlier in 1930, but by 1933, they had largely disappeared as a genre. Choreographer Busby Berkeley helped revive them with several films, including this episode's movie, 42nd Street.

What 42nd Street offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: punchy dialogue, newly-minted Broadway archetypes, an iconic new way to film dance numbers, and "non-escpaist escapism."

Show Notes

Episode 13 – The Ten Commandments (1923)

Fri, 29 Sep 2023 09:00:00 -0500

It's 1923. The building blocks of classic Hollywood are coming together and the people are enjoying silent movies in their movie palaces in the years following the Great War. Director Cecil B. DeMille, known for the biblical epic 1956 movie The Ten Commandments, releases a movie with the same title in this year.

What this first The Ten Commandments offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: an epic Biblical "prologue," engaging pre-noir framing of light and dark, a possibly heavy-handed morality tale, and an early example from DeMille's extensive filmography.

Show Notes

Episode 12 – Mabel’s New Hero (1913)

Fri, 22 Sep 2023 09:00:00 -0500

It’s 1913. The movie industry is starting to move from the East Coast out west, and nickelodeons are a growing staple of American society. Out of those burgeoning years of the movie industry and newly minted movie stars come Mabel Normand, Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle, and the Keystone Cops, all of whom are involved in this episode's short, Mabel's New Hero.

What Mabel's New Hero offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: a loveable but bumbling boyfriend, a dastardly "divil among the women," a plucky heroine, and wonderfully infectious physical comedy.

Listen in to find out more!

Show Notes

Episode 11 – The Great Train Robbery (1903)

Fri, 15 Sep 2023 09:00:00 -0500

Welcome to season 2 of Let's Finally Watch This, a podcast for casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies. Once again we're traveling through the century, highlighting one movie from each decade from 1903 to 2013. In each episode, we'll highlight what's going on film history, how the chosen film affected future movies, and, of course, whether the movie itself is actually worth watching.

It's 1903. Moving pictures are still an novelty, and narrative films are still in the early stages. One of the most popular films of the year is The Great Train Robbery, directed by Edwin S. Porter. It's a distinctly American movie about outlaws...robbing a train.

What The Great Train Robbery offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: an action-oriented plot, realistic early effects, and an iconic final shot (pun intended).

Listen in to learn more!

Show Notes

Let’s Finally Watch This: Season 1 Wrap-Up

Fri, 30 Dec 2022 09:00:00 -0500

It's the end of Season 1. It's been a trip. Now it's time to look back at the constants and changes that accompanied a century of film. We'll also give our own Ranking of Essentialness for this season's movies. We've enjoyed this trip through cinema history, and we hope you've enjoyed this initial season of Let's FInally Watch This as well. See you next year!

Let’s Finally Watch This: Episode 10 – Life of Pi (2012)

Fri, 09 Dec 2022 09:00:00 -0500

It's 2012. Movies are experimenting with 3-D and Blu-ray is making inroads. This movie, considered a prime example of good 3-D storytelling, follows Pi, an Indian man whose story will, according to some, "make you believe in God." That story involves being adrift at sea with a Bengal tiger.

What Life of Pi offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: a gorgeous, visually brilliant experience, even in non-3-D; an exciting journey combined with spiritual questions; iconic shots of a man and a tiger stuck in a boat; and an ending that may change your view of the movie.

Listen in to learn more!

Show Notes

Let’s Finally Watch This: Episode 9 – Gangs of New York (2002)

Fri, 02 Dec 2022 09:00:00 -0500

It's 2002. Sequels and franchises are everywhere, and digital filmmaking is just beginning. This movie, however, is the exception that proves the rule. Gangs of New York, directed by Marin Scorsese, fully embodies 1862 New York as it examines tribalism, crime, and revenge in the relationships of immigrant and "native" Americans.

What Gangs of New York offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: an immersive, fully realized setting; exploration of a largely unexplored aspect of American history; an electrifying performance by Daniel Day-Lewis; and far too much reveling in the corrupt underbelly of Civil-War era New York.

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Show Notes

Let’s Finally Watch This: Episode 8 – Unforgiven (1992)

Fri, 25 Nov 2022 09:00:00 -0500

It's 1992. The Age of Blockbusters continues, but a wide assortment of genres are making their way to the box office. New independent filmmakers are up and coming. This movie, Unforgiven, is a revisionist western following a reformed outlaw and assassin as he decides to take on one last bounty to help provide for his two children.

What Unforgiven offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: a morally ambiguous story about justice and sins, current and past; scenes of beauty amidst a stark setting; a playing with and against western tropes; and Clint Eastwood.

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Show Notes

Let’s Finally Watch This: Episode 7 – Blade Runner (1982)

Fri, 18 Nov 2022 09:00:00 -0500

It's 1982. The era of blockbusters is upon us, movie technology is changing, and science fiction is popular. Into this mix comes Blade Runner, a visually groundbreaking sci-fi/noir set in far-off future of 2019, where detectives call blade runners track down and kill rogue replicants (androids) which have been outlawed on Earth.

What Blade Runner offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: a soul-weary Harrison Ford; a dark, gritty futurescape that left an indelible mark on science fiction; a uniquely 80s synth soundtrack; and (possibly) deep questions about what it means to be human.

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Show Notes

Let’s Finally Watch This: Episode 6 – The Poseidon Adventure (1972)

Fri, 11 Nov 2022 09:00:00 -0500

It's 1972. "New Hollywood" is in full swing with its loosening moral standards, greater artistic freedom, and more ambiguous endings. But it's also an era of disaster movies, with this episode's movie, The Poseidon Adventure, being a prime example, as passengers of the overturned ship struggle for survival.

What The Poseidon Adventure offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: an archetypal disaster plot; effective sets and suspense; themes of life and survival; and Ernest Borgnine and Gene Hackman screaming at each other.

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Show Notes

Let’s Finally Watch This: Episode 5 – Lawrence of Arabia (1962)

Fri, 04 Nov 2022 09:00:00 -0500

It's 1962. We're in early "New Hollywood Era," when movies begin to lean into more complex themes and ambiguity. This episode's movie is Lawrence of Arabia, an epic historical drama about British officer T.E. Lawrence and his time in the Ottoman Empire regions of Hejaz and Greater Syria during World War I.

What Lawrence of Arabia offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: incredible landscapes, epic scale, intriguing character study, and pushing four hours of film.

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Show Notes

Let’s Finally Watch This: Episode 4 – Singin’ in the Rain (1952)

Fri, 28 Oct 2022 09:00:00 -0500

It's 1952. TV is competing with movies, so movies are going color and going for spectacle. This episode's movie is Singin' in the Rain, a musical full of romance, comedy, and charm starring Gene Kelly, Donald O’Connor, and Debbie Reynolds.

What Singin' in the Rain offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: energetic dance numbers, laugh-out-loud humor, brilliant colors, and an all-around great time.

Show Notes

Let’s Finally Watch This: Episode 3 – The Magnificent Ambersons (1942)

Fri, 21 Oct 2022 09:00:00 -0500

It's 1942. World War II looms large on the American mind--but not in this movie. This episode's movie is The Magnificent Ambersons, a family drama about changing times directed by Orson Welles.

What The Magnificent Ambersons offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: intricate cinematography, complex characterizations, and a behind-the-scenes story as interesting as the movie itself.

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Show Notes

Let’s Finally Watch This: Episode 2 – Horse Feathers (1932)

Fri, 14 Oct 2022 09:00:00 -0500

It's 1932. Silent films are out. Talkies are in. This episode's movie is Horse Feathers, a Marx Brothers comedy (ostensibly) about a college president trying to recruit football players for the big game--but that's just an excuse for the humor.

What Horse Feathers offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: ridiculous hijinks, musical numbers, indiscriminate mockery, and one crazy football game.

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Show Notes

Let’s Finally Watch This: Episode 1 – Nosferatu (1922)

Fri, 07 Oct 2022 09:00:00 -0500

It's 1922. It's the era of silent films, and our first classic movie of the century is Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror, a early (and unofficial) Dracula film directed by F. W. Murnau.

What Nosferatu offers casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies: iconic imagery, German expressionism, early vampire lore, and a haunting (but not scary) experience.

Listen in to find out more!

Show Notes

Let’s Finally Watch This: Episode 0 – A Trip to the Moon (1902)

Sun, 11 Sep 2022 01:38:00 -0500

Welcome to the test episode for Let's Finally Watch This, a podcast for casual movie fans who have always meant to watch classic movies.

In this limited, 10-episode season, we'll take you through a century of film, highlighting one movie from each decade from 1922 to 2012. We'll highlight what's going on film history, how the chosen film affected future movies, and, of course, whether the movie itself is actually worth watching.

For our test episode, however, we're going all the way back to 1902, to watch the famous early film A Trip to the Moon. Whether you've heard of it or not, you've probably seen it referenced without knowing it. Join us as we embark on a journey to finally watch a number of classic movies we've always meant to watch.

Shownotes