SEEING FACES IN MOVIES SEEING FACES IN MOVIES

Felicia is joined by Nathan Cowles to discuss Éric Rohmer’s first film in his A Tale of Four Season series, about a man being tossed around by three different women in A Summer’s Tale (1996).

We chat about Rohmer’s way of writing women, his choice to work with a woman cinematographer and how that lends to a unique gaze behind the camera. Along with the importance of the script and the quiet moments that expose the protagonists inner truth.

This is the Rohmer series opener and I’m beyond excited to share this series with you - we’ve got four great guests to cover a wide range of Rohmer’s work this month - I hope you follow along!

Send us your thoughts on the episode - are you satisfied with our protagonist’s ending? Let us know by sending us a message on any of our social platforms or by email: seeingfacesinmovies@gmail.com

Follow Nathan here:
Letterboxd: @cowles
YouTube: @Cowles
IG: @cowles.mov

Sources:
https://agoodmovietowatch.com/a-summers-tale-1996/

https://variety.com/1996/film/reviews/a-summer-s-tale-1200445995/#!

https://mubi.com/en/notebook/posts/dangling-man-close-up-on-eric-rohmers-a-summers-tale

https://www.criterion.com/films/29650-a-tale-of-summer

https://cinemasentries.com/a-summers-tale-movie-review-dissecting-love-and-sex-with-philosophical-precision/

https://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/20/movies/a-summers-tale-from-eric-rohmers-seasons-cycle.html

https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/8387-eric-rohmer-s-tales-of-the-four-seasons-another-year

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hHoU9_3pmq4&t=128s&ab_channel=TIFFOriginals

OUTRO SONG:
Fille de corsaire by Sebastien Erms

FILMS MENTIONED:
A Clockwork Orange (Stanley Kubrick 1972)
Eraserhead (David Lynch 1978)
Inglorious Basterds (Quentin Tarantino 2009)
Funny Games (Michael Haneke 1997)
My Night at Maud’s (Éric Rohmer 1970)
The Green Ray (Éric Rohmer 1986)
Suzanne’s Career (Éric Rohmer 1963)
Breathless (Jean-Luc Godard 1961)
Call Me By Your Name (Luca Luca Guadagnino 2017)
Aftersun (Charlotte Wells 2022)
The Bakery Girl of Monceau (Éric Rohmer 1963)
Claire’s Knee (Éric Rohmer 1971)
La belle noiseuse (Jacques Rivette 1991)
The Fifth Seal (Zoltán Fábri 1976)
Design For Living (Ernst Lubitsch 1933)
Les amours imaginaires (Xavier Dolan 2010)
Mommy (Xavier Dolan 2014)
Tom at the Farm (Xavier Dolan 2015)

Felicia is joined by Peter Merriman to discuss Yasujirō Ozu’s tale about aging parents and their relationships with their older children, in Tokyo Story (1953).

We chat about why Japan original didn’t think they could market this film in North America, and how it eventually became one of the most universal film texts that audiences continue to relate to.

This mark’s the end of the Ozu series, it was an honour and beautiful experience revisiting and watching some of his films for the first time in preparation. There is an Ozu film out there for everyone, and I hope you find it and it changes your life.

Send us your thoughts on the episode - do you prefer Ozu’s colour or black and white film era? Let us know by sending us a message on any of our social platforms or by email: seeingfacesinmovies@gmail.com

Sources:
https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/301-tokyo-story-compassionate-detachment

https://www.criterion.com/current/top-10-lists/371-rashaad-ernesto-green-s-top-10

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2023/aug/31/tokyo-story-review-yasujiro-ozu

https://www.sensesofcinema.com/2003/great-directors/ozu/

https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520396722/directed-by-yasujiro-ozu

https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520296817/transcendental-style-in-film

https://www.enotes.com/topics/yasujiro-ozu/critical-essays/lindsay-anderson

OUTRO SONG:
Tokyo Story Theme by Takanobu Saitô

FILMS MENTIONED:
The American Friend (Wim Wenders 1977)
The Holdovers (Alexander Payne 2023)
Anatomy of a Fall (Justine Triet 2023)
Barbie (Greta Gerwig 2023)
Oppenheimer (Christopher Nolan 2023)
Tenet (Christopher Nolan 2020)
Dune: Part 2 (Denis Villeneuve 2024)
Bring Me the Head of Tim Horton (Guy Maddin 2015)
Justice League (Zack Snyder 2021)
Dawn of the Dead (Zack Snyder 2004)
An Autumn Aftenoon (Yasujirō Ozu 1964)
Late Spring (Yasujirō Ozu 1949)
Make Way For Tomorrow (Leo McCarey 1937)
Tokyo Twilight (Yasujirō Ozu 1957)
I Was Born, But… (Yasujirō Ozu 1932)
Tokyo-ga (Wim Wenders 1985)
Sans Soleil (Chris Marker 1983)
A Man Escaped (Robert Bresson 1957)
Mommie Dearest (Frank Perry 1981)
Toni Erdmann (Maren Ade 2016)
Paris, Texas (Wim Wenders 1984)
Wild Strawberries (Ingmar Bergman 1957)

Felicia is joined by Bryan Loomis (from What a Picture Podcast) to discuss Yasujirō Ozu’s silent comedy about two brothers who begin to see their father in a new light.

Send us your thoughts on the episode - do you prefer Ozu’s silent or talkies era? Let us know by sending us a message on any of our social platforms or by email: seeingfacesinmovies@gmail.com

Listen to our previous episode:
All The President’s Men (D.O.P. Gordon Willis 1976)

Follow Bryan here:
Website: PODCAST | What a Picture (whatapicturepod.com)
What a Picture Podcast: https://anchor.fm/what-a-picture

Sources:
https://www.highonfilms.com/i-was-born-but-1932-ozu/

http://www.midnighteye.com/reviews/i-was-born-but/

https://blogs.iu.edu/establishingshot/2020/02/17/sublime-tragicomedy-i-was-born-but-1932/

https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/i-was-born-but/

https://harvardfilmarchive.org/calendar/i-was-born-but-2023-06

https://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/25/movies/25iwas.html

OUTRO SONG:
Birthday by The Sugarcubes

FILMS MENTIONED:
All The President’s Men (Alan J. Pakula 1976)
Perfect Days (Wim Wenders 2023)
Pather Panchali (Satyajit Ray 1955)
Horse Money (Pedro Costa 2014)
Trust (Hal Hartley 1990)
Late Spring (Yasujirô Ozu 1949)
Tokyo Story (Yasujirô Ozu 1953)
Walk Cheerfully (Yasujirô Ozu 1930)
Good Morning (Yasujirô Ozu 1959)
Early Summer (Yasujirô Ozu 1951)
Autumn Afternoon (Yasujirô Ozu 1962)
Trouble in Paradise (Ernst Lubitsch 1932)
Lady Bird (Greta Gerwig 2017)
Miracle in Milan (Vittorio De Sica 1951)
Housekeeping (Bill Forsyth 1987)

Felicia is joined by Malik Nelson to discuss Yasujirō Ozu’s overlooked film about two sisters grappling with the return of their mother who abandoned them in Tokyo Twilight (1957).

Send us your thoughts on the episode - do you prefer Ozu’s black and white or in colour films? Let us know by sending us a message on any of our social platforms or by email: seeingfacesinmovies@gmail.com

Follow Malik here:
Letterboxd: @atelopusfarci
IG:@malachimalik_

Sources:
https://nyunews.com/arts/film/2019/10/28/tokyo-twilight-4k-film-restoration-review/

https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/634-eclipse-series-3-late-ozu

https://www.sensesofcinema.com/2019/cteq/tender-restraint-tokyo-twilight-yasujiro-ozu-1957/OUTRO
SONG:
Tokyo Twilight Theme by Takanobu Saitô

FILMS MENTIONED:
Late Spring (Yasujirō Ozu 1949)
Tokyo Story (Yasujirō Ozu 1953)
Written on the Wind (Douglas Sirk 1956)
Dead Man (Jim Jarmusch 1996)
Good Morning (Yasujirō Ozu 1959)
20th Century Women (Mike Mills 2016)
Frances Ha (Noah Baumbach 2013)
Stella Dallas (King Vidor 1937)

Felicia is joined by Seth Vargas to discuss one of the most touching and heartbreaking story of a father and daughter dynamic, in Yasujirō Ozu’s Late Spring (1949).

We chat about how Ozu perfected the genre of family dramas, by keeping the visuals simple yet effective. We also how the characters in this film bridge old and new world Japan.

Send us your thoughts on the episode - which is Ozu’s ‘season’ films is your favourite? Let us know by sending us a message on any of our social platforms or by email: seeingfacesinmovies@gmail.com

Follow Seth here:
Movie Friends Podcast (website)
Twitter: @moviefriendspod
IG: @moviefriendspodcast
YouTube: @moviefriendspodcast

Listen to our previous episodes:
Le bonheur (Agnès Varda 1965)
Woman in the Dunes (Hiroshi Teshigahara 1964)

Sources:
https://www.criterion.com/current/top-10-lists/294-andrew-ahn-s-top-10

https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/421-late-spring-home-with-ozu

https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/great-movie-late-spring-1972

https://www.sensesofcinema.com/2003/great-directors/ozu/

OUTRO SONG:
Late Spring by Senji Itô

FILMS MENTIONED:
Le bonheur (Agnès Varda 1965)
Woman in the Dunes (Hiroshi Teshigahara 1964)
Ghostwatch (Lesley Manning 1992)
Dune 2 (Denis Villeneuve 2024)
The Rage: Carrie 2 (Katt Shea 1999)
Cannibal Holocaust (Ruggero Deodato 1985)
Set It Off (F. Gary Gray 1996)
I Was Born, But… (Yasujirō Ozu 1932)
Flirt (Hal Hartley 1995)
Pride of the Yankees (Sam Wood 1942)
Good Morning (Yasujirō Ozu 1959)
Tokyo Story (Yasujirō Ozu 1953)
Me and You and Everyone We Know (Miranda July 2005)
The Heiress (William Wyler 1949)
Paper Moon (Peter Bogdonavich 1973)

It’s bonus episode time.

In today’s Special Features episode Felicia is joined by Charles Forsman and Joey Gantner to discuss the only punk sci-fi film that matters, Repo Man (Alex Cox 1984).

We chat about how Alex Cox not only made one of the most important films about punk culture but how he was able to successfully infuse other genres to make it a complete story. Along with how members of the LA Punk community came together to create an authentic piece of cinema that continues to grow more of a cult following over the years.

Send us your thoughts on the episode - what is your favourite song on the soundtrack? Let us know by sending us a message on any of our social platforms or by email: seeingfacesinmovies@gmail.com

Follow Charles here:
Crowdfunder for his new comic Chesley: http://crowdfundr.com/herecomeschesley/
Podcast: batandspider.com
Spotify: Bat and Spider
IG: @batandspider
Twitter: @batnspider

Follow Joey here:
Spotify: Out of the Podcast
Tape Record Label: sludge-people.com
IG: @sludgepeople
IG: @outofthepodcast

Sources:
https://www.inverse.com/entertainment/repo-man-oral-history-1984?s=08

https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/2743-10-things-i-learned-repo-man

https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/2736-repo-man-a-lattice-of-coincidence

https://medium.com/framerated/repo-man-unmissable-punk-sci-fi-cult-classic-b5ea8c2b4066

https://cinephiliabeyond.org/alex-coxs-screenplay-cult-classic-repo-man/

https://filmobsessive.com/film/film-analysis/film-genres/cult_film/repo-man-and-the-definition-of-the-cult-film/

OUTRO MUSIC:
A Gain - A Loss by The Plugz

FILMS MENTIONED:
To Live and Die in L.A. (William Friedkin 1985)
Full Metal Jacket (Stanley Kubrick 1987)
Dracula (Tod Browning 1931)
Clerks 3 (Kevin Smith 2002)
20th Century Women (Mike Mills 2017)
Star Trek: The Voyage Home (Leonard Nimoy 1986)
Young Guns (Christopher Cain 1988)
Paris, Texas (Wim Wenders 1984)
Kiss Me Deadly (Robert Aldrich 1955)
Effects (Dusty Nelson 1979)
Tammy and the T-Rex (Stewart Raffill 1994)
Blood Beat (Fabrice-Ange Zaphiratos 1983)
Straight to Hell (Alex Cox 1987)
Walker (Alex Cox 1987)
Sid & Nancy (Alex Cox 1986)
Suburbia (Penelope Spheeris 1983)
Miracle Mile (Steve De Jarnatt 1988)
Night of the Comet (Thom Eberhardt 1984)
Out of the Blue (Dennis Hopper 1980)