Citizen Dame

This week, we discuss Orson Welles' noir classic, Touch of Evil. Charlton Heston and Janet Leigh star as a Mexican official and his wife who find themselves embroiled in a drug trafficking scandal that also involves an American detective (Welles) and his questionable methods of bringing people to justice.

We kick off Noirvember 2024 in style with Charles Laughton's exceptional directorial effort: The Night of the Hunter, starring Robert Mitchum as a fire and brimstone "preacher" who preys on widows in Depression-era West Virginia, but meets his match in two small children hiding an expensive secret. The Night of the Hunter was Laughton's only film as a director, in which he employed a blend of silent film and stage techniques that make it one of the most unique and effective noirs in cinematic history.

For our 300th episode, we finally discuss Jennifer Kent's brilliant 2014 horror film, The Babadook.

The Dames interrogate one of the more controversial of the great horror films: 1968's Rosemary's Baby, starring Mia Farrow and John Cassavetes, and directed by Roman Polanski. A complicated, multi-faceted film that's not always easy to talk about, both for its content and the feelings surrounding its director, there's no doubt that we have a lot to say about this one...including whether it might, maybe, be feminist (or not). We'll be back next week with Episode 300, talking The Babadook with a special guest!

This week, we continue Spooky Movie Month with vampires! Specifically, the 1994 Neil Jordan horror adaptation, Interview With a Vampire. We're talking Tom Cruise, Anne Rice, Louis' incessant whining, and the way Kirsten Dunst would be unfairly branded for years to come.

Spooky season is upon us, which means SPOOKY MOVIES! We kick off this season with a legendary giallo: Dario Argento's 1975 film Deep Red, starring David Hemmings and the remarkable Daria Nicolodi. Murder has never been so weird.

This week, the Dames wrap up Fall Festival season with Taika Waititi's Oscar-winning Jojo Rabbit. From (Fox) Searchlight, the film was nominated for six Academy Awards including Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Picture. With so much humor and heart, we explore the brilliance of this World War II film told through the perspective of a 10-year-old Nazi.

The Dames go deep (hehe) on Guillermo del Toro's glorious magical realist fable (and Best Picture winner) The Shape of Water, and its deceptively simple narrative that combines fairy tale, biblical allegory, and transcendental love into something that is truly unique. Is this just the "fish-fucking movie" or is it so much more? Next week, we'll be discussing Taika Waititi's Jojo Rabbit, so get ready for that!

This week, the Dames dive into the twisted thriller, Gone Girl. Gillian Flynn adapted her own novel into the screenplay of one of David Fincher's most popular and debated movies. In this episode, we're talking all about everything that is so good and so wrong about this movie, from Rosamund Pike's Oscar-nominated performance to Ben Affleck refusing to wear a Yankees cap. Join us!

We kick off fall festival season with a lineup of major films that had their premieres at festivals past. This week we begin with Ang Lee's seminal queer western Brokeback Mountain (2005). How far we've come (and how far we still have to go). Next week will be David Fincher's Gone Girl!

This week, the Dames discuss another Hitchcock masterpiece, the 1948 thriller Rope. Starring Farley Granger and John Dall, this single-location technical experiment also marks the first time Alfred Hitchcock worked with star James Stewart.

We continue with our Hitchcock month with one of the more controversial movies in his oeuvre: Vertigo, widely considered to be Hitchcock's masterpiece. But is there really a reason for that? What makes this film stand out? Why does everyone love Vertigo so much—and the most important question...do we?

Welcome back, friends! After a very short break, the Dames return to celebrate the Master, Alfred Hitchcock's 125th birthday with his 1943 film, Shadow of a Doubt. Theresa Wright and Joseph Cotten star in this twisty, suspenseful tale set in California's wine country.

In honor of the great Shelley Duvall, the Dames discuss three films she made with Robert Altman: Nashville (1975), 3 Women (1977), and Popeye (1980). We maybe didn't know exactly what some of these meant, but man were they fascinating! Our Criterion giveaway is still running, so let us know what one Criterion disc you would love to own! We'll pick a winner on July 25!

Hello, again! This week the Dames are celebrating Criterion with something extra fun: cinematic blindspots. Our chat includes a look at Targets (1968), Thelma and Louise (1991), and Smiles of a Summer Night (1955).

We're back with a second part of our ongoing series "Karen Loves Tom Cruise (and Lauren Thinks He's Neat)"! This time, we're chatting about three very different thrillers from three very different directors, all starring Mr. Cruise: A Few Good Men (1992), Minority Report (2002), and Collateral (2004). How many of these should Tom have won an Oscar for? The answer may surprise you. Next week, we'll be chatting about some Criterion Channel films that one or both of us have overlooked: Smiles of a Summer Night (1955), Targets (1968), and Thelma and Louise (1991).

The Dames wrap up Pride Month with a look at three great films about lesbians. First, it's the very sexy Bound (1996) from the Wachowskis. Then we chat about Rafiki, Wanuri Kahiu's 2018 coming-of-age story that was banned in her home country of Kenya. And finally, Rose Glass's newest film, Love Lies Bleeding (2024), starring Kristen Stewart and Katy O'Brian.

As Pride Month continues, the Dames go into the career of Rock Hudson, one of the most famous closeted actors of classic Hollywood. In this episode, we focus on three of Hudson's melodramas with Douglas Sirk, and how Hudson's star persona and undercurrents of queerness inform the films: Magnificent Obsession (1954), All that Heaven Allows (1955), and Written on the Wind (1956). Next week, we'll be chatting about lesbian films: Bound, Rafiki, and Love Lies Bleeding.

It's Pride Month and this week we are talking about a pair of essential documentaries. With 1990's Paris Is Burning, director Jennie Livingston spent 7 years examining the drag scene in New York in the 1980s, leading to a groundbreaking film that is still discussed today. And in 2020, director Sam Feder brought Disclosure to Netflix, chronicling the experience of trans filmmakers and actors in today's Hollywood.

The Dames go in-depth on Alfred Hitchcock's masterpiece, Psycho. Spoilers abound, with discussions of the film's performances, twists and turns, how Hitchcock connects emotionally with his audience, and why the sequels and prequel fail to live up to the original!