Costume Drama Rewind

Tainted love never dies - we review the BBC tv movie version of Philippa Gregory's "The Other Boleyn Girl" from 2003 and the 2008 American movie. Which is worse? Hard to say.

Today, we're talking about THE defining movie of the 1990s, James Cameron's Titanic, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet, Billy Zane, Kathy Bates, and a production budget equal to the gross domestic product of several Scandivanian countries.

We're reviewing the Tim Burton classic Sleepy Hollow. Released in 1999, it stars Johnny Depp, Christina Ricci, Michael Gambon, Miranda Richardson, Casper Van Dien, Richard Griffiths, Michael Goff, and Christopher Walken. 

Today's film is Operation Mincemeat, which came out in 2021, is directed by John Madden, and stars every single prestige British actor, including Colin Firth, Matthew McFayden, Penelope Wilton, Kelly McDonald, and Jason Isaacs, aka Lucius Malfoy, aka the next Mr. Laura Skog.

Welcome to season three of Costume Drama Rewind! We're back with a movie historians love to hate. Released in 2000, Gladiator was directed by Ridley Scott and stars Russell Crowe, Joaquin Phoenix, Connie Nielsen, Ralf Möller, Oliver Reed, a hologram of Oliver Reed, Djimon Hounsou, Derek Jacobi, and DUMBLEDORE!

Welcome to season three of Costume Drama Rewind! Today we're bringing you a preview of our third season and sharing some fun memories from a historic and historical trip we took together at the beginning of summer. 

Batter up! We're talking about “42,” the 2013 movie about Jackie Robinson. It was directed by Brian Helgeland, and stars the late great Chadwick Boseman, Harrison Ford, Nicole Beharie, and Andre Holland.

 In honor of the recent 544th anniversary of Thomas More's birth and the upcoming 36th anniversary of Megan's, we're covering the 1966 film, “A Man for All Seasons,” which was adapted for the screen from the 1960 play by Robert Bolt.

We're having the hap, hap, happiest Christmas since Bing Crosby danced with Danny f*@#ing Kaye! In this episode, we look at how filmmakers handled extremely recent history, that of WW2, in 1946 and 1954 with "It's a Wonderful Life" and "White Christmas" respectively. Among the topics we discuss are 1950s nostalgia for the 40s, entertainers who served in WW2, how veterans were treated after the war, and how banks work (apparently everyone in Bedford Falls needs a refresher).

Happy Thanksgiving from Costume Drama Rewind, where we're marking the holiday by reviewing the animated classic “The Mouse on the Mayflower.” Did the Pilgrims really get rescued from all their troubles by a mouse in a tiny hat? Probably not, but that's also not the weirdest or least accurate thing going on with this little movie. 

It's the most famous murder spree in history - and as it turns out, the most misunderstood. To close out Spooky October, we're talking about "From Hell,” which stars Johnny Depp, Heather Graham, Bilbo Baggins, and Rubeus Hagrid. 

We're back, baby, we're back, and just in time to release part one of this SPOOKY OCTOBER Halloween Weekend Double Feature! Let's travel back to Heian Japan with "Hoichi the Earless," the third segment from the 1964 anthology film, "Kwaidan." We're talking about the Genpei War, how vengeful ghosts could threaten the political state, and Lafcadio Hearn (best name ever?).

We're back from our summer break and kicking off our second season with "Gettysburg," the 1993 war epic, directed by Ron Maxwell and starring Jeff Daniels, Martin Sheen, Tom Berenger, Kevin Conway, and Stephen Lang. Instead of just walking you through each part of the battle, in this episode, we're here to provide some context for what happened during these three days, what the stakes were for the Union and the Confederacy, and what the result meant for the American Civil War going forward.*Despite what "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter" may have told you, there appear to have been no actual vampires in the Battle of Gettysburg.

The poignant last chapter of Little Women, Harvest Time, picks up five years after we last left the March girls and their supporting characters, er, husbands. We get only a brief, impressionistic glimpse of one day in their lives, but it’s enough to show us that, even though there are some shadows in the sunshine, all will be well for Meg, Jo, and Amy… sorry, Beth. In that spirit, we’re leaving off Jo March Madness - and the first season of Costume Drama Rewind - with our own Harvest Time. We’ll announce our winners, talk about the long-term cultural impact of the Little Women, and leave you with a few final, burning thoughts. 

It's our last review episode of #JoMarchMadness. We’re talking about the 2018 version starring #sarahdavenport and the 2019 starring #saoirseronan. Tune in to find out which Jo March comes out on top!

We’ve been members of the Busy Bee Society (IYKYK) lately, but we’re excited to drop the next episode of #JoMarchMadness! How will the 2017 BBC version starring Maya Hawke stack up against the 1994 classic starring Winona Ryder? 

The woman behind Little Women: who was she, and how did her life converge or diverge with the book and characters that made her famous? Join us for this special minisode in the middle of #JoMarchMadness to learn a little about Louisa May Alcott. 

In our first review episode for Jo March Madness, we review the 1933 and 1949 films, starring Katharine Hepburn and June Allyson, talk about the (many) similarities and (few) differences, and rate them against one another to see which will move on to the next round. 

Little Women has been remade for film and television again and again over the decades, with some of the leading actresses and directors of each successive era. Join Costume Drama Rewind as we celebrate Women’s History Month by identifying the ultimate, the definitive, the perfect version of Little Women. In this short special episode, we let you know what to expect and how we’ll score each film - and, in case it’s been awhile, refresh your memories of Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy. Visit us on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter to get your Jo Madness Bracket!

In which we explore some of the D.C. historic context of the movie and assign fedoras.

In which Megan makes good on her threat to sing, we learn more about the social, economic, and political struggles that led up to and continued after the Russian Revolution, and we award kokoshnik tiaras to the film.

In which we discuss just how messed up Henry II and his family were, the fact that Laura had never seen "Love Actually" until last month, and how many crowns to award the film.

In which we give our listeners a double episode covering two movies about World War One, requiring us to rank the films in terms of pickelhaube helmets and metal tommy helmets.

In which we're back from a very extended Thanksgiving break, and we're looking at post-Downton Abbey Dan Stevens play Chaz Dickens himself, Dickens' impact on how we celebrate Christmas today, and how many holly-bedecked top hats to rate the picture.

In which we examine the historical context behind Robert Kennedy's assassination and announce our votes for how many campaign boater hats the movie gets.

In which we learn about why every lighthouse seems to be haunted, that Laura is banned from picking movies for the foreseeable future, and we decide how many U.S. Lighthouse Board uniform caps to award to Robert Pattinson and Willem Dafoe.

In which Laura won't shut up about her celebrity crush on Benjamin Walker, we learn more about Abraham Lincoln's life and that of his family and friends, and Megan demonstrates her detailed knowledge of the Civil War and the topography between DC and Gettysburg. But how many stovepipe hats will it get?

In which we learn the real history of the Salem Witch Trials and why they have a prominent place in American folklore, and in which Laura makes an apology to the Beverly Historical Society. We also determine how many stereotypical white Pilgrim coifs to rate the movie, while sneering at the idea that Puritans' outfits never progressed past the fashions of 1620.

In which we announce the beginning of our SPOOKY October series, learn more about why you automatically associate Victorians with ghosts and creepiness, and get a bit too acquainted with Megan's diehard Benedict Cumberbatch/Sherlock obsession while answering "How many deerstalker hats?"

In which there's a Twin Peaks reference, and we might as well bill the squeaky chair as a co-host. Also starring: SPAM, spies, Jack the Ripper, and Kate Middleton. Awarded? Fabulous scarf headbands.

In which we’ve got yellow journalism, child homelessness, and Young Christian Bale, discuss the differences between the movie and stage musical versions, and our squeaky chair guest stars as a judge in assigning the number of flat caps.

In which Laura tries to spend 3.5 hours talking about the entirety of maritime history, and Megan makes her choose only her favorite whale facts before awarding Quaker hats.

In which we intone the name Michael Gambon more than is probably necessary, and we speculate on Helen Mirren's extracurricular activities and how many cloche hats the film merits.

In which Nick Carraway is judgy, but we judge harder in how many boater hats to award.

In which Megan assumes our listeners tune in for the annual state opening of Parliament, and in an historic first, we actually agree on a rating (inexplicable feather hair decorations).

In which Megan apologies profusely to Westminster Abbey staff, and we show our approval for the film with powdered wigs.

In which the podcast launches, and we have different opinions about the intrinsic value of this film, as well as how many tricorn hats to award it.

Megan and Laura brief you on what to expect from Costume Drama Rewind. Get your hats ready.