Films Change Lives

David T. Johnson on WEAPONS

We discuss: Film as a gratifying experience, a roller-coaster ride! The value of shared or collective experience Wanting to extend the film by talking about it Classi

Episode 9: J. M. Tyree on FARGO

We discuss: Representing the American Midwest, the especially lives of people in Minnesota Tonal ambiguity and cinematic strangeness! Carter Burwell’s genre-bending sc

Episode 8: Chris Becker on MARCEL THE SHELL WITH SHOES ON

We discuss: The wonderment Marcel inspires The voices of Jenny Slade and Isabella Rossellini The genesis of the movie The treatment of everyday objects as precious, s

Episode 7: Kimberly van Vulpen on TÓTEM (2023)

We discuss: The reality of hospice care Michelle Aaron’s book Death and the Moving Image (Edinburgh University Press) Familial, cultural, and cinematic strategies for

INTRODUCTION: Films Change Lives

This podcast reflects my love of cinema and hearing about the films that have changed other people’s lives for the long term. While I’m an established scholar, editor, an

Episode 3: Jennifer Fleeger on CODA

We discuss: The dearth of nuanced representations of deaf people on film, and CODA as an important new example ASL in cinema: pitfalls and opportunities for relaying ph

Episode 2: Conor Power on THE QUIET GIRL

We talk about The deceptively simple plot of The Quiet Girl Exquisitely nuanced visual and sonic details of life within it The distinctively Irish vision and mindset o

PILOT: All of Us Strangers

Please forgive the relatively low-grade quality of this pilot episode. We recorded it at home via Zoom, which felt right because of the personal subject matter. It was a

Episode 5: Kristi McKim on LADYBIRD

We discuss: Greta Gerwig’s distinct directorial approach Authentically representing teenage life and being Social class in America Emotional realness Meaningful elli

Episode 6: Dan Burns on PETITE MAMAN

We discuss: A children’s film for adults Family and friendship Grief Non-linear time Maximalist fiction in contrast with this minimalist film Father/child dynamics

Episode 4: François Kiper on CACHÉ

We discuss: Algeria’s War of Independence Willful forgetting and the obligation to remember colonial history The reality of France's (post)colonial impact Personal an