OscarWatch Podcast

In which to say 'Thank you' to those who walked this path alongside.

We say farewell with a look back at one of the finest works ever produced, Charlie Chaplin's City Lights (1931), a film that is sure to make you fall in love all over again. Steve tears up, Amy laughs and we all stare in awe at how well this little film where no words are ever said can still hold up to this day. Not to spoil anything, but this movie is absolutely hilarious and as charming as the day is long. We thank you for listening to us for all these episodes. Like the Tramp at the end, you make us smile and perhaps, we'll meet again on the street. Our eyes no longer blind.

All aboard to ride that (Czech New) wave with a look at the Best Foreign Language film of 1967, Closely Watched Trains. This episode, Amy and Steve reveal some sordid histories of theirs, Steve admits to some "funny" feelings during a particular scene and the two discuss how boys and girls' "coming of age" narratives are very different (and awfully skewed towards the former). And who knew a Czech film that takes place during the Nazi occupation could be so damn funny? Plus, Steve cheers the ending that finally does what he wants it do...right? All that and a butchering of Czech names, this week on the podcast. Thank you for listening. Drop us a line at oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and find us on social media @oscarwatchpod . Happy New Year!

Our pitch, in 25 words or less: This week, we talk Altfans, making movies, murder, underrated Robbins, Scacchi, Gallagher (and those eyebrows!) and of a time before meta was meta. We guarantee! Thanks for listening!

Amy and Steve get captured and thrown in the brig with our Christmas gift to ourselves: Billy Wilder's Stalag 17. A film with a special place in Amy's heart! We discuss the great William Holden (in his only Oscar winning role...and was it actually for something else?) and Steve realizes that yes, there is such a thing as "too much comedy" in an otherwise very serious film. Some films are hung around a great performance and no one does it better than Holden! And a question to you: which is better, this, The Great Escape or River Kwai? All that and more, this week. A very merry holidays to all of you. Thank you all for listening. We cannot do this without you. Thanks for listening, and be sure to chime in with your thoughts to oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and find us on social media @oscarwatchpod

"How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard." A brief message on the future, and fare thee well.

Are you listening closely? This week, as part of our all request Christmas Giftathon, we take a very close look back at the ultimate superhero showdown: Batman vs Wolverine, The Prestige (2006), a film that Steve simply cannot stop watching. And yes, don't worry folks, it is superior to The Illusionist in every single way. But what makes this Christopher Nolan film so appealing so many years later? And how great a screenplay is this? And why wasn't Bowie nominated?! For that matter, why wasn't this nominated for more. It has only grown in esteem in the years. We talk magic, suspense, the nature of Causality (and how Nolan may actually really hate it) and Amy definitely shows off her skills by pointing out how 'hey! isn't that this other guy in a beard?' All this and more, this week on the podcast! And thank you for listening!

A dominating narcissist destroys everyone around him in an attempt at immortality, and also there's a vampire! Hey-o! As part of the Christmas Gift month of requests, Amy (or should I say, Herr Direktor?) and Steve take a look back at the underloved 2000 film, Shadow of the Vampire. What is it about art as destruction that we find so compelling? And why, through all the blood, is this actually rather funny? Plus, we all definitely agree: John Malkovich brought his own costumes. Film history, the eternal life of film and a stern reminder, if it's not in frame, it doesn't exist! on the podcast. Thank you so much for listening!

We begin our Christmas Gift month with a trip to America...through the eyes of those who came here. Avalon is little remembered these days but as Amy and Steve both discover, it is both a little timeless and also very timely. We thrill over the much underappreciated Armin Mueller-Stahl and marvel at watching America as only immigrants can. And when the bitter thesis drops, it's a stab to the gut. Plus, Amy is clearly team Sam in the great turkey carving fight: be punctual people. Life is too short to be holding up other people, dammit. All that and so much more with this, our first listener request in December. Thank you all for writing in. I'm sorry we can't get to all of them this month but I assure you, we will get to all of them. If you have a request of your own, or want to side with Gabriel in the turkey fight, drop us a line at oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and be sure to find us on social media @oscarwatchpod Next week, if it's not in frame, it doesn't exist!

Whether it's 1951, 1971 or 2018, there are some things that exist outside of time. Anarene may not be real but there are towns like it all over the country. Amy and Steve look at how the more things change, the more they stay the same in Peter Bogdanovich's transcendent film, The Last Picture Show. Is it a post-apocalyptic film? It sure starts that way and is somehow even bleaker than more traditional fare. Plus, nobody respects Shepherd or Bottoms here, but the awards heaped on Ben Johnson and Cloris Leachman are well earned (even if Steve thinks Leachman was on a different tv show in the 80s). Never has hopelessness and ennui been more effective and nuanced than here, and we talk all that, Hank Williams and more. Like what you hear? Write us an email at oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and find us on social media @oscarwatchpod Stay tuned! December is upon us!

We mourn the passing of screenwriter William Goldman this week with a look back at the beloved fantasy, The Princess Bride. A film that was not that well known in its day, but has since become a cultural favorite. Joining Amy and Steve to talk fencing, fighting and true love is guest co-host Brian Hartz who is back to drop trivia bombs and love of swords into the mix. Just what makes this such a classic? And how have the lines been adopted into pop culture? Steve has some issues with plotholes, but as he is rightly shouted down, do they really matter? Plus, a question: who is prettier - Robin Wright, or Cary Elwes? All this and so much more on this very special, somewhat somber and very INCONCEIVABLE episode. Happy Thanksgiving everyone! And thank you for listening. Write in with your thoughts to oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and find us on social media @oscarwatchpod Til next time...as you wish.

In honor of the 100th anniversary since the end of World War I, Amy and Steve look back at the 3rd Academy Award winner, All Quiet On The Western Front, a film that time has hardly touched...and we wonder if that's a good or bad thing. We have seen all it has done before; but put yourself in the shoes of someone back then, imagine how this modern work would appear? Plus, sure he has some cheesy moments, but why wasn't Lew Ayres nominated? And the limited categories are felt here, as Louis Wolheim deserves a place at the table. All this, and Amy explains the film's title...and more, this week on the podcast. Thank you for listening. See you next week. Write us an email at oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and follow us on social media @oscarwatchpod

The most important election in our lifetimes has just passed us (I hope we are still standing) and so what better way to celebrate democracy and America than with that most American of all films, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. Directed by an immigrant, by the way! Wait...you mean this film didn't win Best Picture?!? How could that be? Well...we get into that, with a little preview of the banner year that 1939 was. Amy and Steve get to the heart of why this is so beloved and why every politician should watch this before doing anything. Plus, Stewart gets a lot of credit but what about Jean Arthur? So what if she can't cast movies, that's not her job! All that, and what would Steve and Amy use if they ever found themselves filibustering on the senate floor! The answers will probably in no way surprise you! May you listen to this for as long as we still have an open and free internet. Write us an email with your Listener Requests to oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and be sure to follow us on social media @oscarwatchpod Next week, we honor the end of World War One with a look back at the Best Picture winner, All Quiet On The Western Front.

In honor of Dia de los Muertos, Amy and Steve look back on last year's Best Animated Feature winner, Coco. While we normally ask how the film has aged, we instead ask how we think the film will be received in the future. Steve once again vents his annoyance (however unfounded) at this song winning over a different, more Hugh Jackman-y number. He also has some righteous anger over the makeup of how the underworld is basically just a sillier version of the real world. But he does love a good absurd bureaucracy! Most of all, we talk of family and how you're stuck with them, both here and there and how maybe we two hosts cannot fully understand it, but again, that is precisely the power of Coco: that it tells a universal truth with a very different cultural lens. All that and more, this week on the podcast. Send in your requests for our December lineup! There's plenty of time get your picks in to oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com; and find us on social media @oscarwatchpod Next week, we remind ourselves what actually makes this country great as we take a trip to Washington...

No, it's not a dream, this is really happening. Amy and Steve are once again returning to the banner year of 1968 to discuss another genre film that broke boundaries and that we think may have deserved a Best Picture nom, Rosemary's Baby. A warning: we do discuss director Roman Polanski, criminal and briefly get into what he did. However, we also marvel that such a cruddy human being can also create such a boldly, proudly feminist film - as polemic as anything the 1960s created. And just why wasn't Mia Farrow - who is in every scene! - not considered? Is this film really just reinforcing why you should never be friends with your neighbors? And of course, Steve gets mighty upset at New York real estate. Question to you all: Guy Woodhouse: worst husband or THE WORST husband? All that, the music, the adaptation and more this week on the podcast. Send in your requests for our December gift month, four weeks of you calling the shots. Write in your pick and tell us briefly why you love it and why we should talk about it to oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and be sure to find us on social media @oscarwatchpod Next week, feliz dia de los muertos todos!

Just when you thought it was safe to go back into the bathroom...Hitchcock takes even that sanctuary away from us. Join Amy and Steve as they discuss one of the most influential films in history, Hitchcock's Psycho. How influential? It birthed the slasher and while it wasn't prescient, it sure informed us what was to come in the 1960s. And it is more than just the famous shower scene - but don't worry, we talk all about that - it is a wickedly crafted film from start to finish, as unsettling as only a master filmmaker can create. Plus, that music! And can we be honest? Anthony Perkins is a catch and a half. All that, plus we talk incels and the modern man...and more, this week on the podcast! Send in your thoughts on Psycho and your picks for what we should talk about this December, which is listener request month! The email is oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and we'd love to hear from you. Follow us on social media @oscarwatchpod Next week, these goddamn New York apartments, amirite?

Heeeeeere's...OscarWatch! We begin our October celebration of Shoulda Beens with a look at Stanley Kubrick's The Shining, a film that few liked when it was released but many came around on as the years went by. What is it about this movie that inspires revision and, as it turns out, an obsessive - nay, rabid - cult of fans? Joining Amy and Steve is #1 Kubrick fan Brian Hartz (who also chimed in on our 2001 episode) as they discuss the unsettling nature of the film, the indictment (or elevation) of misogyny, just why Jack works so well - and why Danny deserved a nod; and why we've all been overly harsh on Shelley Duvall. Brian also lays into some interesting takes on the music used, and we all throw up our hands and debate just what the hell happened in the end. All that and so, so much more on one of our longest episodes to date! Your requests keep coming in and we want more! What films should we discuss come December? You tell us! Write us an email and a brief paragraph on your choice to oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com to make your claim! There's still plenty of time, but the more, the merrier! Next week...you know what you need after this movie? A nice showe--dammit!

Baa Ram Ewe! Baa Ram Ewe! Baa Ram Ewe...really should listen to our hosts discuss the magical and adorable Best Picture nominee, 1995's Babe. The second half of our George Miller double feature explores the writer/director's central theme of flying your own flag, whether that's dancing, not being sexual chattel or wanting to be a sheep-pig. Steve gets misty eyed thinking of this film; and Amy gets to experience it for the first time. Yes, we love the animals (especially Ferdinand the Duck) but we adore James Cromwell in this, his only ever nominated role. We can all agree that Christmas is indeed (emotional) carnage. All this and more, this week on the podcast. Write us in your Listener Requests and tell us why your recommendation is good (or bad!) at oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com; we'll be talking about what you want to listen to all December long. Next week, a month-ish of the best horror films that never were nominated begins. Won't you come and play with us forever, and ever, and ever...?

Tap along if you feel like a penguin without a song...Amy and Steve tackle the George Miller directed tale of a lone figure wandering a barren wasteland in a quasi-ecological story while fighting the forces of the status quo. Yes, it is Happy Feet! (Why? What else could it be?) The 2006 Best Animated Feature is not without its critics, but as we learn, it was a bit of a down year for animation; besides, Pixar can't win all the awards, can it? We tackle the music - does it work? Does it make you dance? The message! Or rather, the messages. We reaffirm our love for Hugh Jackman and Steve wonders if the savior should also get the girl, but then we remember it's a kid's movie. But do kids like it? Amy has her own story to tell. Thanks for listening! Be sure to write us your thoughts to oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and send in your requests! December is gift month and we want to review the movies you love! Next week, the George Miller double feature continues...

Hop on the back of this moving truck and let's play the ivory keys with a look at vintage Nicholson and his nominated role, Five Easy Pieces. Wherein we ask: why do we love watching Nicholson self destruct? And what is the film trying to say about the human - specifically the male - experience? Some people just like to run, I suppose. Steve admires any movie that can play it this close to the vest, and Amy says there's more to Rayette than at first glance. And, of course, we put it between our knees and talk the famous diner scene. All that and more, this week. Write to us! Give us a film to discuss. We're doing an all listener request this December! Write an email (no FB or Twitter) outlining a film that won, was nominated or you think should have been a contender and if we like your argument, we'll talk about it on the show with a shout out to you! Our Gift to you, our listeners. The address is oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com Next week, let's tap our toes. It's getting cold in here...

We pay tribute to the one and only Burt Reynolds with a look back at his one and only Oscar nomination: PTA's landmark Boogie Nights, a movie so good it obviously wasn't nominated for Best Picture. Joining our intrepid duo this week once again is Shahir Daud of The Only Podcast About Movies, who brings his professorial swagger and learns us a thing or two. We talk Reynolds, the porn industry, the bonds of family and of course, THAT soundtrack. Can we talk for five minutes about a single shot? You bet we can! All that and more on this DD sized episode of Oscarwatch. Thanks for listening. Write us in with your thoughts to oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and find us on social media @oscarwatchpod. In December, we are beginning a listener request Gift month! Listen to the podcast for details and write in the films you want us to review. Our gift to you. Next week, our regularly scheduled program: Five Easy Pieces

To honor the passing of Broadway giant and screenwriter Neil Simon, who died recently at the age of 91, our hosts fall in love with his 1977 romcom, The Goodbye Girl. What more do you need than a script as punchy and witty as this? At long last, a worthy comedy deserving of Best Picture...that happened to be released when one of cinema's greatest comedies also happened to come out! Oh, the injustice! Plus, is Richard Dreyfuss really only 30 in this? Steve admits his ignorance towards Marsha Mason, though says that the kid is one of the few precocious children he can actually stand. And of course, love. How it swoons, how it laughs, how it's messy and how this is one of the most relatable romantic comedies ever made. Listen in! If you don't, I have a lawyer acquaintance downtown...and be sure to write us in with your thoughts to oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and follow us on social media @oscarwatchpod RIP Neil Simon

We seize the day with another inspiring, rousing podcast about the 1989 Best Picture nominee, Dead Poets Society. The movie that all taught us a little Latin and reminded a generation of who that Whitman guy was. How has the film held up? And is it better subtitled 'See! Rich White Guys Have Problems, Too!' Plus, we figure out just what seizing the day is NOT (cough Knox cough) and Amy points out a smattering of plot inconsistencies that, Steve admits, don't bother him. Finally, just how would Robin Williams survive in this day of 'teaching to the test'? So stand on your desk! Give a yawp! Your captains are here, and listen in. Remember, we are food for worms. Will your verse not include hearing our discussion? Write in with your thoughts to oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and follow us on social media @oscarwatchpod Next week: spader, soderbergh & cannes

There's acting. There's good acting. And then there's Daniel Day Lewis, a man so talented he only needs one limb to wow you in his first of three Best Actor winning films, My Left Foot. A fine film elevated by a great performance...and we don't always mean Mr. Day Lewis, either, for Best Supporting Actress winner Brenda Fricker is every bit his equal. Plus, Amy brings her own personal history into this and we reflect on how it is impossible to remove one's experiences from watching a film. And Steve once again curses that we could've had 'Academy Award winner Tom Cruise' this year, but nooo...all that and the dickishness of artists, bad haircuts and she had how many kids?!?! and so much more. Thanks for listening. We hope you've enjoyed our little stopover in 1989. Almost done! Send us a line with your thoughts to oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and find us on social media @oscarwatchpod

It's hot out there, so what better way to pass the time than with a look back at a snub so great we're still talking about it nearly thirty years later? Joining us for our discussion is special guest Steven van Patten. He helps us break down the music, the culture, the incredible cast, the heat, anything and everything - and yet we leave so much undiscussed! He even drops a theory that further clarifies the relationships between the characters. Plus, we ask: does anyone actually do the right thing? All this and more. As relevant now as it was then, if not moreso, failing to nominate Do The Right Thing remains one of the Academy's numerous wrong things over the years. And that's the double truth, Ruth. So, up you wake! Grab a slice, turn the AC on, dunk your head in a tub of ice and listen up! And as always, fight the power. Drop us a line with your thoughts to oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and be sure to find us on social media @oscarwatchpod Next week, grab that foot and paint!

The film world has been agog at the recently announced changes to the Academy Awards format. Hosts Amy and Steve break down the new rules, regulations, try to figure out why (hint: money & millennials) and generally try to keep their cool while not breaking their computers. Can we live in a world with a Best Picture and a Best Popular Picture? We'll soon find out; but it's not one either host is ready to be a part of.

We come to it at last: 1989, one of the greatest years in film. Seriously, look up all the movies that came out and tell me that's not a stacked deck? And yet... Driving Miss Daisy has been maligned since the very moment it won the Academy Award for Best Picture nearly thirty years ago. Is the world right to condemn this movie? Amy and Steve, your valiant hosts, aim to answer that very question. Join them through discussions of friendship, cinematic tropes, quite the conversation on race relations in America and a look inside the Academy's head at the time. Did they, in fact, do the...right thing? Fasten your seatbelts. It's going to be a bumpy night. Send us your thoughts to oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and follow us on social media @oscarwatchpod Next week, a 'Shoulda Been A Contenda' joint...

Our hosts look at the beautiful side of ugly, and the ugliness in the beautiful with a conversation about the 2013 Best Foreign Language film, The Great Beauty. Sure, we all wanted to be artists when we grew up, but would we all end up as insufferable as everyone in this movie? Amy and Steve are split on this one and one is very, very passionate about it! Join us for a trip through the majesty of Rome, the frustrations of age and the sheer absurdity of life...maybe together we can all find something a little beautiful, a little perfect. Now that would make a great book, wouldn't it? Thanks for listening! Send us your thoughts to oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and follow us on social media. Next week, we begin 1989 in earnest. Glorious, glorious, passionate earnest...

Hoo boy, it is hot out! How better to spend a sweltering summer day than holed up inside a bank after a robbery goes spectacularly wrong? Amy and Steve discuss the classic 1975 crime caper, Dog Day Afternoon. But first, they have to get their love of Sydney Lumet out there in the open; few are better, or more unloved these days. We lament the passing of 1970s Al Pacino...but then remember that he's been killing it on HBO these past many years, so I guess it's okay that he hasn't been nominated in over 25 years? Forty years on, just how does the central motivation work in our "enlightened" times? All this, the heat, humidity, a look at America's love for the outlaw and goddamn New Yorkers, this week on the podcast. Thanks for listening! Write us, won't you? The address is oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com, and follow us on social media @oscarwatchpod

America! F--- Yeah! concludes this week. What can possibly be more American than unfettered, naked capitalism? So grab a seat - I hope you paid - because you're going to sell us a pen, it's Leo. It's Marty. It's The Wolf of Wall Street. But can you make a movie about such deplorable people and not start to sympathize with the characters? And how is it that a seventy year old man has more energy and life to his movies than all the 30 something mumblecore directors combined? Amy and Steve discuss the excess, the charm, the Thelma! and of course, Beni-fucking-Hana...and more! this week on the podcast. So grab hold of the American dream. Money makes you a better person...right? Write to us with your thoughts at oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and be sure to follow us on social media. Next week, the dog days are over.

Don your best zoot suits. Glue on that toupee and fire up the science oven, it's our lookback at that ode to 70s excess, American Hustle. The latest entry in the Amy T. Top 100, the film has been a long time coming on this podcast. But how will our hosts respond to each other's opinions? The answer may shock you! We delve into the razzle dazzle of the film - is it too much? Is it only that? The acting - does improv really work when in a film like this? And just what constitutes an "original" movie, as argued by our hosts. This is week three of our four week series 'America! F-- Yeah!' Plus, what he hell does "from the feet up" mean anyways? So bust out the disco soundtrack, we're in for a hustle. Write in with your opinions to oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and be sure to follow us on social media @oscarwatchpod Next week: what could possibly be more American than wanting MORE, MORE, MORE?

Happy Fourth of July! We continue our 'America! F---, Yeah!' series with a look back at the most American president ever, Steven Spielberg's 2012 Best Picture nominee, Lincoln. Let's pour a toast out to all of those poor bastards who were nominated for Best Actor alongside Daniel Day Lewis, though as we will quickly realize, our hosts are far from in sync about this movie and DDL's performance. Can the first three minutes of a movie really force someone to walk out? Yes, yes they can. Plus, remember when the film came out when all was hopeful? Yeah, neither do we and now this movie is just depressing. Things have changed in politics...but have they really? That and so much more this week on the podcast. So, in the immortal words of Honest Abe himself: "Party on, dudes!" and be sure to tell us your thoughts at oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and find us on social media @oscarwatchpod Next week on our series, America ain't nothing but a con job and therefore, we Hustling this one.

Our two very white hosts discuss a topic that they are absolutely experts in, Steve McQueen's 2013 Best Picture winning film, 12 Years A Slave. The latest entry in our VERY IMPORTANT FILM series. As unflinching and uncomfortable an experience as one may have at the theater, the movie is absolutely designed to make you squirm. Not for its brutality, but for the insidiousness of its story and the mirror it holds up to our world some 170 years later. The more things change, and all that. But is it enough to just show it? And why can't Solomon be half as interesting as literally everyone else around him? Can a good man like Cumberbatch really be a good man in this system? And Patsy. Your worst days are Patsy's best dreams. All that and of course, Brad Pitt, this week on the podcast as we kick off our 'America! F--- Yeah!' series looking back at those films that highlight our true American values. Thanks for listening. Be sure to write us, you don't need to make your own ink out of berries, just send us an email at oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and find us on social media @oscarwatchpod; we'll come for you, I swear. Next week, speaking of white saviors...

Pull up a seat and get ready for a whole lot of not kissing! Amy and Steve go back to the days before Netflix, when the movies were too big for any one screen to fill, to celebrate the 1989 Best Foreign Language Film, Cinema Paradiso. A love story for the ages...not between man and woman, but between man and the movies. Does its quaint, rosy colored Odyssey hold up some thirty years later? Have we finally found an adorable Italian kid that Amy DOESN'T want to take home? And do we need resolutions or 50 extra minutes when the original says so much already? Plus, Steve gets to wax poetic about his second greatest job: projectionist! All that, a beautiful Morricone score and much more. The square is ours. Won't you join us for one more trip to the movies? Thanks for listening. Drop us a line at oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and follow us on social media @oscarwatchpod Next week, we begin a four week stint into the heart of our culture in what we're calling 'America: F-- Yeah!' First up, that most American of pastimes...slavery!

HAPPY 100 EPISODES! To celebrate this illustrious milestone, we are throwing ourselves an Incredi-ball and there's only one film to do that with: 2004's Best Animated Feature winner, The Incredibles. Just in time for the long overdue sequel, Amy and Steve take a look back and see just how incredible this film is...or has a decade of superhero glut ruined the magic for us? We also get to trash talk those most vile of vile villains: Objectivists! And the Libertarians who are ruining everything. Finally, isn't this all really Mr. Incredible's fault? And aren't we over this yet? All this and more, including how awesome Holly Hunter is on this, our very special centennial episode! Thank you for being a part of the last 100 and we hope you'll stick around for the next 100...and beyond! Write us an email at oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and find us on social media @oscarwatchpod Next week, we return to Italy for another tale of tiny adorable kids, love and the magic of movies...

We feel the bitter cold on this, our third journey with David Lean as he takes us to the Russian Revolution with his sumptuous adaptation of Doctor Zhivago. Amy and Steve ponder why the titular actor is not, in fact, the first billed, try to dissect Russian history is about two minutes - to varying degrees of success - and come to the conclusion that the most interesting characters are the two that the film does not pay enough attention to. And how addicting is that score from Maurice Jarre? All that, and just how hard it is to be Omar Sharif caught between two of the most gorgeous women ever. The worst, amirite? Did Doctor Zhivago deserve to win over The Sound of Music? Tune in and find out. Then write us with your thoughts to oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and talk to us on social media @oscarwatchpod Next week: Episode 100 is going to be INCREDIBLE!

Terrence Malick's sumptuous meditation on combat asks many questions, and Amy and Steve are here to answer them as best we can with this look at (yet another) 1998 Best Picture nominee, The Thin Red Line. Our hosts bunker down and attack the hill of storytelling and what moments matter and are required in your film. What is the strength in asking a question - especially one you never intend to answer? Or, does Malick actually answer it and perhaps we are too thick to see it? Maybe. More likely, we're getting blinded by how beautiful James Caviezel is in this film. Seriously, call us! Finally, who the hell wasn't in this movie?! Of course, we ask: is this the World War II film that deserves the recognition that year? All that and more, this week on the podcast. If you don't write us, let us feel the lack. We hope you do, though. Write us at oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and find us on social media @oscarwatchpod Next week, we reconsider David Lean...again!

Just in time for summer, Amy and Steve grab the biggest boat we can find and set sail for shark infested waters with a look back at Steven Spielberg's gamechanging film, Jaws (1975. The old adage 'less is more' has never been truer than with the iconic shark, who is still terrifying swimmers 40 years later. More than a sharkfest, the film works because of its three main characters; because who doesn't love Quint (or his introduction?). And no conversation about the movie is ever complete without a long discussion of John Williams' iconic score. All that and a bucket of chum, this week on the podcast. Thanks for listening! Do you think Jaws deserves its place in history, or like Bruce the Shark, does it fall apart under scrutiny? Drop us a line at oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and find us on social media @oscarwatchpod Next week...this great evil. Where does it come from? How'd it steal into the world?

Join hosts Amy & Steve, along with special guest Brian Hartz, as they celebrate the 50th anniversary of Stanley Kubrick's ultimate trip, 2001: A Space Odyssey. A film so influential in cinema that, of course, it was nominated for Best Picture...right? Wrong! So, in honor of this momentous occasion, we introduce a new category of film: Shoulda Been A Contenda, those films that for whatever reason were not nominated for the big one. Kubrick is renowned for never winning an Oscar...for director. He did walk away with his only statue for overseeing the effects work here; effects that still hold up to this day. We discuss what Steve calls "the sin of tools" and question whether violence and civilization go hand in hand; just what why did HAL go crazy and kill everybody, and Amy gives the greatest summation of the plot in history. All this, and more! Like the legendary music, that brilliant flash-forward and those monkeys... Write us an email with your thoughts to oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and be sure to find us on social media @oscarwatchpod Next week, we're gonna need a bigger boat...

Special guest Shahir Daud of The Only Podcast About Movies joins in for a discussion at what the great critic Pauline Kael said was "the greatest movie of all time", Vittorio de Sica's Bicycle Thieves. Or is it The Bicycle Thief? By whatever name you call it, the influential Italian neorealist film provokes a deep discussion on "poverty tourism", the differences between America and Italy in the post-war environment, how time and tide affect how we view films, the failures of institutions and the morality of stealing... and just how adorable that kid is. Seriously, he's got that face! Be sure to find Shahir on his own podcast, and thanks for listening. Write us in with your thoughts to oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and follow us on social media @oscarwatchpod Next week, we introduce a new episode category and sing Daisy...

The duo hitches up the wagon and heads west for greener pastures with a look back at the 1931 Best Picture winner, Cimarron. A movie very much of its time, the film straddles the line between progress and "the way things were" both in terms of story, and in how famed silent actor Richard Dix handles a speaking role. Hint: there is no line that cannot be belted out of the park for a homerun. But how have the values of Cimarron and its supporting characters fared in the last 80 years? Do listen in. Another hint: if you were mad at Three Billboards, have I got a movie for you! Thanks for listening. Write us in with your thoughts to oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and be sure to follow us on social media @oscarwatchpod Next week, we're gonna steal some bikes.

In honor of the passing of legendary director Milos Forman, Amy and Steve are looking back at one of his most iconic films, the 1975 Best Picture winner, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. Starring the one and only Jack Nicholson, the hosts debate if Jack ever actually acts; whether Louise Fletcher deserved that Best Lead Actress Oscar she so famously won; the positive side of ECT and how books and movies can be very different things. Plus, what is the deal with Chief, anyway? So grab your Juicy Fruit and be sure to demand your cigarettes. Thanks for listening in. Write us with your thoughts to oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and be sure to find us on social media @oscarwatchpod Next week: the hell kind of name is Yancey, anyways?

We finish our stay in 2010 with our last ReConsideration, Darren Aronofsky's descent into madness: Black Swan, wherein Natalie Portman slowly goes insane trying to be perfect. What does Aronofsky think of art and artists? We think something rather untenable, but who better to look at obsession than the most obsessive director currently working? Of course, we talk Portman - she won Best Actress. Kunis, Cassel and another in our long list of difficult mothers, Barbara Hershey. The dancing is superb, the effects sublime and subtle and the horrors very, very intimate. And you thought the ballet was boring. Thanks for listening. Drop us a line at oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and be sure to find us on social media @oscarwatchpod Next week, we pay tribute to the late Milos Forman with a look back at Cuckoo's Nest.

We continue our descent into 2010 with a look at David Fincher's The Social Network, a movie that makes us go 'Oh yeah, all this stuff involving Zuckerberg totally makes sense!' Though a Fincher film, Amy and Steve talk at length about the film's writer, the legendary Aaron Sorkin and the good - and bad - that often comes with him. Is it so hard to write women, dammit?! Plus, Steve confesses that simple A to B storytelling is boring and that more films should play with time like this. And while the film is about our age, the themes of friendship and betrayal, of pride and jealousy have been around since stories first began. Did it deserve Best Picture? Well, you'll have to stick around and listen. Thanks for tuning in. Write us with your thoughts at oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and find us on social media @oscarwatchpod Next week, our final stop in the 2010 train sees us soaring high in the sky, like a swan.

This week, we look at the harsh morality tale, In A Better World which went home with the Oscar for Best Foreign Language film over some considerable competition. Parents beware, there are children in danger in this one. A prescient film about the nature of violence in society in general and young men in particular, Amy and Steve discuss whole and half measures, and the pulling of punches. Can you have a film like this end on the note it does? Plus, why do non-Hollywood actors look so real? Thanks for listening. Drop us a line with your thoughts at oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and find us on social media @oscarwatchpod Next week, for your reconsideration...another surprisingly prescient and relevant film, The Social Network.

We've got a friend! Original co-host Alex Riviello returns to discuss the ins and outs of 2010's Best Animated Film winner, Toy Story 3. Haven't we seen this one before? Doesn't it bear an awful resemblance to its predecessor? But as Steve notes, what can you expect from the guy who just copy and pasted Episode IV? Plus, we discuss the utter darkness in this supposed "kid's" movie, why Woody is actually a sociopath, the religious overtones of the storyline, debate exactly who is the God here (is it kids? is it toys) and why, when you think about it, the idea of Toy Story is utterly TERRIFYING. All that and more as we continue our stay in 2010. Thanks for listening. Be sure to drop us a line with your thoughts to oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and be sure to follow us on social media @oscarwatchpod Next week, we tackle the 2010 Foreign Language winner In A Better World

Our first stop in 2010 takes us to the royal drama of a man searching for not only his voice, but the courage to take on the approaching storm. The King's Speech brought everyone's favorite Mr. Darcy his Oscar glory and who knew listening to him curse a blue streak could be so much fun? Amy and Steve discuss the ins and outs of this acting tour de force, the ins and outs of what a director does (it's more than just yelling 'cut!') and what, exactly, makes a film "Oscarbait". All this and more. Did the film deserve to win? Tune in to find out. Thank you for listening. Write us an email with your opinion to oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and find us on social media @oscarwatchpod Next week, we continue our 2010 retrospective and would like to remind you that you got a friend in me...

A new segment where Amy and Steve look back at notable Foreign Language films that came up short at the Oscars. For the debut, we could think of none better than (recently en-goldened) Guillermo del Toro's dark fantasy drama, Pan's Labyrinth. Considered GdT's Spanish masterpiece, the film uses the 'young child escapes reality into a fantasy land' trope common to fairy tales and adds that del Toro darkness to the proceedings. Horrific violence, death and despair mix alongside the beautiful - and terrifying - creatures of fantasy. Amy and Steve debate the reality of the reality of the situation, figure out that maybe the bad guy is just a bit too much, find some striking parallels to recent BP winner, The Shape of Water and finally decide whether this should have won out over The Lives of Others. All this and a declaration that Blade II is the best Blade movie, this week on the podcast. Write us with your thoughts at oscarwatchpod@gmail.com, and find us on social media @oscarwatchpod Thanks for listening.

We would like to remind everyone that we are big, it's the podcasts that got small. Continuing our look at the year 1950, we set our sights on Billy Wilder's timeless time of obsession and faded glory, the one and only, Sunset Boulevard. A Hollywood film about Hollywood unlike any other. Amy and Steve discuss - at length - the beauty of the acting, from both Holden and Swanson, to how delicious the scripting can be (are there two better lines spoken in film history? We think not!) and just why this may endure better than its conqueror, All About Eve. Plus, that music, Eric von Stroheim and so much more. Join us. We're ready for our close-up. Thanks for listening. Write us an email at oscarwatchpodcast@gmail.com and be sure to find us on social media @oscarwatchpod Next week, Guillermo! But for what?

We add three more films to the roster here at OscarWatch: The Shape of Water, A Fantastic Woman and Coco. In this special, no muss, no fuss edition of the podcast, Amy and Steve recap the 90th Annual Academy Awards, a show that was long in time and had many things a long time coming. The big winner was del Toro, but there were so many things to be happy for; and even better, so few things to be mad about! So, be sure to Get Out and read it all in The Post, and don't forget to Call Me By Your Name (hint, it is I, Tonya) and this may seem like the Darkest Hour, but i assure you that the Shape of Water is not, in fact, a Phantom Thread. All that, montages, Kimmel, the best speeches, the most memorable moments. Hollywood knows how to party and there is no bigger or brighter hootenanny than the one, the only... The Oscars. Listen in, and we return to our regularly scheduled program soon.

The 90th annual Academy Awards are upon us and there has been no better year to just throw darts at a board! Seriously, this race is as wide open as we all can remember it, with no intimidating frontrunner and with every film garnering its share of awards - and complaints. Perhaps, given the fractured nature of ourselves and the side that art comes from, this is not a surprise. Still, Amy and Steve are here to help you navigate the pitfalls of the MAJOR categories (sorry, shorts! find a different home!) and we absolutely guarantee* that our predictions will make winners of you all for your own office Oscar pool. The Superbowl of Film begins, and we're here to lay down the odds! Join us! * - guarantee not guaranteed