The Pestle: In-depth Movie Talk, No Fluff | Film Review | Spoilers

We scorch Ben Stiller’s “Tropic Thunder” and discuss: Cinematography, selling satire; Story & Writing, satire vs tropes; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “I think that the power is the principle. The principle of moving forward, as though you have the confidence to move forward, eventually gives you confidence when you look back […] The post Ep 325: “Tropic Thunder” appeared first on The Pestle.

We dive into Tom Cruise’s “Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning” and discuss: Editing dialog-heavy scenes; Story & Writing, exposition dumps, the real villain; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “Disobedience is the true foundation of liberty.“ – Henry David Thoreau Notes & References: AGI (Artificial General Intelligence) (wiki) Emergent Phenomena (wiki) Watch us […] The post Ep 324: “Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning” appeared first on The Pestle.

We drill into Paul Thomas Anderson’s “There Will Be Blood” and discuss: Story & Writing, plot vs character; Daniel Day-Lewis; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends upon his not understanding it.“ – Upton Sinclair Notes & References: *first 15 […] The post Ep 323: “There Will Be Blood” appeared first on The Pestle.

We cross into Matthew Vaughn’s “Stardust” and discuss: Cinematography, polished camera moves; Story & Writing, fairytale rules, character wants, love; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “My bounty is as boundless as the sea, My love as deep. The more I give to thee, The more I have, for both are infinite.“ – […] The post Ep 322: “Stardust” appeared first on The Pestle.

We trek across Cormac McCarthy’s “The Road” and discuss: Cinematography, compositions, first frame last frame; Story & Writing, structure, morality, terse dialog; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.“ – […] The post Ep 321: “The Road” (2009) appeared first on The Pestle.

We summon Ryan Coogler’s “Sinners” and discuss: Story & Writing, fairytales, flashbacks, and protagonists; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “If art is to nourish the roots of our culture, society must set the artist free to follow his vision wherever it takes him.“ – John F. Kennedy Notes & References: Eric Roth […] The post Ep 320: “Sinners” appeared first on The Pestle.

We surveil Rami Malek’s “The Amateur” and discuss: Story & Writing, how world-building impacts the audience experience, setting up your character arcs; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “What idea havers don't understand is that it's in the making of all of the microdecisions that the actual work of creation takes place, and […] The post Ep 319: “The Amateur” (2025) appeared first on The Pestle.

We devour Eva Green & Ewan McGregor’s “Perfect Sense” and discuss: Cinematography, contrast, camera movement; Story & Writing, scene character, relationship epidemics; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “Yes, there is joy, fulfillment, and companionship, but the loneliness of the soul in its appalling self-consciousness is horrible and overpowering.“ – Sylvia Plath Notes […] The post Ep 318: “Perfect Sense” (2011) appeared first on The Pestle.

We double-cross Tom Cruise’s original “Mission: Impossible” and discuss: Cinematography, split focus diopters; Story & Writing, the opening, big set pieces; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “Without promotion, something terrible happens… nothing!“ – P.T. Barnum Notes & References: David Koepp (IMDB) Robert Towne (IMDB) Watch us on YouTube! xx Art Spotlight: “The […] The post Ep 317: “Mission: Impossible” (1996) appeared first on The Pestle.

We drift through Sofia Coppola’s “Lost in Translation” and discuss: Cinematography, specificity & purpose with the camera; Story & Writing, Tokyo & language as a metaphor; Performances, Scarlett Johansson doing Marvel movies; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “I try to just make what I want to make or what I would want […] The post Ep 316: “Lost in Translation” appeared first on The Pestle.

We dig through Steven Soderbergh’s “Black Bag” and discuss: Cinematography, practical lighting; Story & Writing, story engine, subplots; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “A success, to me, is the ability to keep working. That’s success. It has nothing to do with money; it’s the ability to keep getting things made, period.“ – […] The post Ep 315: “Black Bag” appeared first on The Pestle.

We dissect Bong Joon Ho’s “Mickey 17” and discuss: Story & Writing, Mickey’s metaphor, creepers; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “We don't own the planet Earth, we belong to it. And we must share it with our wildlife.“ – Steve Irwin Notes & References: Arcadia (wiki) – refers to a vision of […] The post Ep 315: “Mickey 17” appeared first on The Pestle.

We bet big on Steven Soderbergh’s “Ocean’s Eleven” and discuss: Cinematography, subtlety, and bounce lighting; Story & Writing, heist rules, problems and solutions, rule of repeats; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “Oh, I just wish someone would try to hurt you so I could kill them for you.“ – Frank Sinatra Notes […] The post Ep 313: “Ocean’s Eleven” (2001) appeared first on The Pestle.

We rush towards Céline Sciamma’s “Portrait of a Lady on Fire” and discuss: Cinematography, broad lighting and portraits; Story & Writing, layers, freezing time, power of groups, Celine’s writing process; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “Women have served all these centuries as looking glasses possessing the magic and delicious power of reflecting […] The post Ep 312: “Portrait of a Lady on Fire” appeared first on The Pestle.

We gather ’round Tarsem Singh’s “The Fall” and discuss: Cinematography, transitions, locations, power of choreography; Story & Writing, layers of stories, stuntmen, how we all tell our own stories; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “When we give someone our time, we actually give a portion of our life that we will never […] The post Ep 311: “The Fall” (2006) appeared first on The Pestle.

We baptize Jennifer Lopez’s “The Cell” and discuss: Cinematography, realizing dream states; Story & Writing, metaphors, redeeming broken people; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “The goal of education is not to increase the amount of knowledge but to create the possibilities for a child to invent and discover.“ – Jean Piaget Notes […] The post Ep 310: “The Cell” (2000) appeared first on The Pestle.

We ingest Neil Burger’s “Limitless” and discuss: Wes discusses the color grading process on his new short film 00:00-29:00; Story & Writing, opening scenes, voiceover, structure, exposition; Cinematography, inserts as storytelling, color for storytelling, how voiceover impacts the coverage; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “What will limit us is not the possible […] The post Ep 309: “Limitless” (2011) appeared first on The Pestle.

We take 30 seconds with Michael Mann’s “Heat” and discuss: Cinematography, dolly moves, unmotivated lighting; Sound, shootout realism, sound design, Moby music; Story & Writing, good guys and bad guys, runtime; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “You must learn to be slow in a hurry.“ – Wyatt Earp Notes & References: Heat […] The post Ep 308: “Heat” (1995) appeared first on The Pestle.

We commission Adrien Brody’s “The Brutalist” to discuss: Cinematography, oners, breaking up the frame with style and tone; Story & Writing, immigration, symbolism; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “When you get to know a lot of people, you make a great discovery. You find that no one group has a monopoly on […] The post Ep 307: “The Brutalist” appeared first on The Pestle.

We bless the “City of God” and discuss: Cinematography, contrast, perspective; Story & Writing, voiceover; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “Find the toughest guy in the room. Embrace him like a brother. And then slam his head against the wall.“ – Al Capone Notes & References: Chicken cam was apparently a camera […] The post Ep 306: “City of God” appeared first on The Pestle.

We bolt through Ron Howard’s “Rush” and discuss: Cinematography, contrast; Story & Writing, voiceover, setting up stakes, character arcs; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “If everything seems under control, you’re just not going fast enough.“ – Mario Andretti Notes & References: Anthony Dod Mantle (iMDB) – has also shot Slumdog Millionaire, 28 […] The post Ep 305: “Rush” (2013) appeared first on The Pestle.

We tap Robert Eggers’ “Nosferatu” and discuss: Cinematography, wide framing; Story & Writing, character development, plague; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “To write something you have to risk making a fool of yourself.“ – Anne Rice Notes & References: Ignaz Semmelweis (PBS.org) – Tried to convince doctors to wash their hands to […] The post Ep 304: “Nosferatu” appeared first on The Pestle.

We put Wes Anderson’s “Rushmore” front and center to discuss: Cinematography, center framing; Story & Writing, dry humor, heart; Todd recounts his experience of working as a background extra in Rushmore; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “The more relaxed you are, the better you are at everything“ – Bill Murray Notes & […] The post Ep 303: “Rushmore” appeared first on The Pestle.

We conjure both seasons of League of Legends’ “Arcane” and discuss: Story & Writing, building character, moments vs montages; Music, animation, favorite moments; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “We are shaped and fashioned by what we love.“ – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Notes & References: Alex Seaver – the name of the […] The post Ep 302: “Arcane” appeared first on The Pestle.

We creep into Hugh Grant’s “Heretic” and discuss: Cinematography, shooting in small spaces, dramatic reveals; Story & Writing, self-talk as exposition, philosophical stories; Special Guest Hamish Purdy talks about working on Heretic, and set decoration; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “I think that when you consider the beauty of the world and […] The post Ep 301: “Heretic” appeared first on The Pestle.

We traverse Christopher Nolan’s “Interstellar” and discuss: Story & Writing, comparing the original 2008 Jonathan Nolan draft vs the final co-written draft with Christopher Nolan; Special Guest Raul Vega talks scoring films, creating digital instruments for Hans Zimmer, and working on the music of Interstellar with Hans Zimmer; and other such stuff and things and […] The post Ep 300: “Interstellar” part 4 appeared first on The Pestle.

We combat Ridley Scott’s “Gladiator II” and discuss: Story & Writing, sequels, comparing II to the original; Cinematography, how running multiple cameras and fewer takes can impact the story; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “The technology keeps moving forward, which makes it easier for the artists to tell their stories and paint […] The post Ep 299: “Gladiator II” appeared first on The Pestle.

We consume a chill pill to discuss Stanley Kubrick’s “2001: A Space Odyssey” and discuss: Cinematography; Story & Writing; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “I don’t pretend we have all the answers. But the questions are certainly worth thinking about.“ – Arthur C. Clarke Notes & References: Filming the Leopard scene (2001italia.it) […] The post Ep 298: “2001: A Space Odyssey” appeared first on The Pestle.

We grin at Naomi Scott’s “Smile 2” and discuss: Cinematography, editing, and sound, jumpscares; Story & Writing, theme, exposition; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “Do you remember when you found out you wouldn’t live forever? People don’t talk about this, but everybody had to go through it because you’re not born with […] The post Ep 297: “Smile 2” appeared first on The Pestle.

We evoke Sam Raimi’s original “The Evil Dead” and discuss: Getting your reps in; Cinematography, interesting angles; Comparing to the sequel; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “Jim Cameron is proof that if you are good, you’ll get promoted.“ – Roger Corman Notes & References: The Evil Dead budget was 350k (in 2024 […] The post Ep 296: “The Evil Dead” (1981) appeared first on The Pestle.

We camp at Sam Raimi’s “Evil Dead II” and discuss: Letting the movie dictate the terms of the experience; Cinematography, style, story, and budget; Story & Writing, cut to the chase, motivating character choices; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “I’m too obsessed that the people who say critical things about me are […] The post Ep 295: “Evil Dead II” appeared first on The Pestle.

We sparkle through Richard Kelly’s “Donnie Darko” and discuss: Story & Writing, we try to figure out what’s it all about; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “If you have abandoned one faith, do not abandon all faith. There is always an alternative to the faith we lose. Or is it the same […] The post Ep 294: “Donnie Darko” appeared first on The Pestle.

We take the mask off of Todd Phillips’ “Joker: Folie à Deux” and discuss: Cinematography, blocking; Story & Writing, Arthur vs Joker, judging the viewer; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “The trees here are in misery, and the birds are in misery. I don’t think they sing. They just screech in pain.“ […] The post Ep 293: “Joker: Folie à Deux” appeared first on The Pestle.

We stop time in Francis Ford Coppola’s “Megalopolis” and discuss: We, uh, review Megalopolis; Story & Writing, exposition, melodrama; Afterwards we’ll rank our top 5 or 10 films; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair!” – Percy Bysshe Shelley from the poem “Ozymandias” Watch us on […] The post Ep 292: “Megalopolis” appeared first on The Pestle.

We floor it through Keanu Reeves’ “Speed” and discuss: Cinematography, motivated camera movement, dramatic angles; Story & Writing, heightened storytelling, packing in the action, Jack & Annie; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “If you spend enough time with yourself in silence, you’ll be surprised what goes through your head.“ – Sandra Bullock […] The post Ep 291: “Speed” appeared first on The Pestle.

We keep it real with Tim Burton’s “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” and discuss: Cinematography, closeups vs mediums and wides for comedy & connection; Story & Writing, but/therefore storytelling, sequels honoring their predecessors, Lydia’s arc; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “With movies, you are always in search of a good story, one that everyone will […] The post Ep 290: “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” appeared first on The Pestle.

We jump in the line of Tim Burton’s “Beetlejuice” and discuss: Cinematography, motivating unmotivated lighting, reveals; Story & Writing, rules for adventure, plot vs emotional arcs; Music, double music cues, setting the tone; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “You don’t know whether chimps are going to kill you or kiss you. They’re […] The post Ep 289: “Beetlejuice” appeared first on The Pestle.

We burst into Fede Alvarez’s “Alien: Romulus” and discuss: Story & Writing, body horror, Andy, dystopias; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “Science fiction writers, I am sorry to say, really do not know anything. We can’t talk about science, because our knowledge of it is limited and unofficial, and usually our fiction […] The post Ep 288: “Alien: Romulus” appeared first on The Pestle.

We anoint Shia LaBeouf’s “A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints” and discuss: Cinematography & Directing, camerawork, continuity vs performance; Story & Writing, the saints; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “It is not death that a man should fear, but he should fear never beginning to live.“ – Marcus Aurelius Notes & References: […] The post Ep 287: “A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints” appeared first on The Pestle.

We stride through Jim Henson’s “The Dark Crystal” and discuss: Cinematography, lighting, camerawork; Puppetry & Directing, process preceding/creating story; Special Guest Elissa Marie talks art, building a business as an artist, and being named Best Visual Artist in Austin; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “When I was young, my ambition was to […] The post Ep 286: “The Dark Crystal” (1982) appeared first on The Pestle.

We pop into Ryan Reynolds’s “Deadpool & Wolverine” and discuss: Story & Writing, macguffins, stakes, comedy; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “Just one supernova can temporarily outshine an entire galaxy of 100 billion stars.“ – Michio Kaku Notes & References: “Supernova” by Mad Valley – Todd’s latest music track “Bye Bye Bye” […] The post Ep 285: “Deadpool & Wolverine” appeared first on The Pestle.

We make a res with Christian Bale’s “American Psycho” and discuss: Cinematography, lighting a flat shot, hallway composition; Story & Writing, symbolism; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “Well first of all you have to make the character strong so that people can follow that. And then hopefully that character can integrate with […] The post Ep 284: “American Psycho” appeared first on The Pestle.

We sincerely reminisce about Stephen King’s “Stand By Me” and discuss: Cinematography, rule of thirds; Story & Writing, coming of age stories, friendship, facing your own mortality; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “That’s the worst, I think. When the secret stays locked within not for want of a teller but for want […] The post Ep 283: “Stand By Me” appeared first on The Pestle.

We tiptoe through Lupita Nyong’o’s “A Quiet Place: Day One” and discuss: Writing & Story, suspending disbelief, theme & plot; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “I’ll tell you what freedom is to me: no fear. I mean really, no fear!“ – Nina Simone Notes & References: Joseph Quinn (iMDB) – Stranger Things […] The post Ep 282: “A Quiet Place: Day One” appeared first on The Pestle.

We go to war with “Godzilla Minus One” and discuss: Cinematography, revealing scale; Story & Writing, Godzilla the metaphor; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “War does not determine who is right – only who is left.“ – Bertrand Russell Notes & References: Japan war atrocities(wiki) Unit 731(wiki) Firebombing Japan (wiki) Budget is […] The post Ep 281: “Godzilla Minus One” appeared first on The Pestle.

We drop into Dwayne Johnson’s respawn of an old classic, “Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle” and discuss: Cinematography, shooting night for night instead of day for night; Story & Writing, physical comedy, character arcs; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “Being in the same room with people and creating something together is a […] The post Ep 280: “Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle” (2017) appeared first on The Pestle.

We rub George Miller’s “Three Thousand Years of Longing” and discuss: Cinematography, how compositing, motion blur, and depth of field help tell the story; Story & Writing, Enzo, Storytelling; Wes rants about why this movie may not have done well in theaters; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “If I had a flower […] The post Ep 279: “Three Thousand Years of Longing” appeared first on The Pestle.

We stowaway in George Miller’s “Furiosa” and discuss: Story & Writing, mercy in the wasteland, teleporting; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “When life itself seems lunatic, who knows where madness lies? Perhaps to be too practical is madness. To surrender dreams — this may be madness. Too much sanity may be madness […] The post Ep 278: “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” appeared first on The Pestle.

We give “Fallout” a thumb’s up and discuss: Story & Writing, Lucy’s character arc, great exposition; Guest Joe Howes solves cold fusion during an offscreen scene; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “You only know me as you see me, not as I actually am.“ – Immanuel Kant Notes & References: *Correction: Fallout […] The post Ep 277: “Fallout” appeared first on The Pestle.

We crash into “The Fall Guy” and discuss: Story & Writing, great stakes, breaking the rule of repeats; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “I think if you have ability and talent in one way, you have it in all ways. I’m not a jack of all trades; I’m a master of many. […] The post Ep 276: “The Fall Guy” appeared first on The Pestle.

We narrate Will Ferrell’s “Stranger Than Fiction” and discuss: Cinematography, infinite zoom, story through shadows; Story & Writing, rule of repeats, naming conventions, ticking clock; and other such stuff and things and stuff. “Kind words don’t cost much. Yet they accomplish much.“ – Blaise Pascal Notes & References: “Office Zombies” short film – Wes’ first […] The post Ep 275: “Stranger Than Fiction” appeared first on The Pestle.