Screenshot

BBC Radio 4

Ellen E Jones and Mark Kermode guide us through the expanding universe of the moving image revealing fascinating links and hidden gems from cinema and TV to streaming and beyond.

  1. 6 DAYS AGO

    Death

    Viewers are so used to seeing death and dying on screen, often in dramatic or unrealistic ways. Ellen and Mark explore how films and TV are drawn to personifications of death, why we need more realistic depictions and who is making them.  Mark speaks to film critic Kim Newman about the way in which personifications of death have been portrayed throughout cinema history, from The Seventh Seal to the Final Destination series. Mark then talks to director Kristen Johnson about her film, Dick Johnson is Dead. Ellen talks to academic Michele Aaron about how death and dying has been depicted in film and if we need more realistic depictions. Producer: Hester Cant A Prospect Street production for BBC Radio 4

    43 min

  2. 3 OCT

    Painters and Painting

    2025 marks 250 years since the birth of JMW Turner - the great 19th century landscape artist, whose expressive, atmospheric paintings transformed British art. His life and genius was also unforgettably brought to the screen in Mike Leigh’s 2014 film Mr Turner, starring Timothy Spall. Ellen E Jones and Mark Kermode look at the long relationship between cinema and painting. Mark speaks to cultural historian Professor Sir Christopher Frayling on Hollywood's approach to the history of art, from Kirk Douglas as Van Gogh to Salma Hayek as Frida Kahlo. He then talks to actor Timothy Spall on how playing JMW Turner led to a parallel career as a painter. Ellen explores the relationship between painting and cinematography with cinematographer Sir Roger Deakins. She also speaks to artist Cathy Lomax on the painterly in cinema - and the cinematic in painting. Producer: Jane Long A Prospect Street production for BBC Radio 4

    42 min

  3. 26 SEPT

    Yuppies

    As cult classic American Psycho turns 25 this year, Ellen and Mark investigate the world of yuppies on screen and ask, are yuppies a thing of the past or more prevalent than ever? They talk to director of American Psycho Mary Harron, co creators of BBC/HBO drama Industry and indie film director Whit Stillman. Ellen speaks to director Whit Stillman, whose ‘doomed bourgeois in love’ trilogy chronicles the lives of yuppies in the late 80’s. Ellen talks to him about his affectionate take on the era and whether his aunt really did invent the phrase ‘yuppie’. Mark speaks to Mary Harron, director of American Psycho. They discuss the film's surprising legacy and the casting of Christian Bale in his now iconic role as product-obsessed super-yuppie Patrick Bateman. Ellen then speaks to Konrad Kay and Mickey Down, co creators of finance-world drama, Industry. They discuss their love of American Psycho and the way in which wealth is portrayed on screen. Producer: Queenie Qureshi-Wales A Prospect Street production for BBC Radio 4

    42 min

  4. 8 AUG

    Twin Peaks

    For a very special 100th episode of Screenshot, Ellen E Jones and Mark Kermode explore the cult classic TV show. The great surrealist American filmmaker David Lynch died in January 2025 at the age of 78. Lynch's films spanned the underground midnight movie Eraserhead, the black and white heartbreaker The Elephant Man and the critically beloved Mulholland Drive. Yet the director was perhaps most appreciated for the TV show he co-created with screenwriter Mark Frost - Twin Peaks. Mark speaks to Mark Frost about his relationship with Lynch, and about the impact and legacy of their ground-breaking series. The pair discuss how pressure to solve the central murder of high school student Laura Palmer impacted Twin Peaks, and how the revival of the series in 2017 - after a 25 year hiatus - now seems fated. Meanwhile, Ellen talks to critic and die-hard Twin Peaks fan Jourdain Searles about the series' dedicated cult following. And she speaks to actor Tim Roth, star of Reservoir Dogs and Rob Roy, who got a chance to work with his hero David Lynch in 2017 on Twin Peaks: The Return. Producer: Jane Long A Prospect Street production for BBC Radio 4

    43 min

  5. 1 AUG

    Police Procedurals

    Ellen E Jones and Mark Kermode are on patrol, investigating why the police procedural continues to be so arresting for audiences. Mark meets the film writer and critic Kim Newman who charts the beginnings of the genre and some of its tropes. Next, he talks to the director and documentarian Sandhya Suri, to discuss her feature film debut, Santosh, that follows the journey of a widow turned police constable. Meanwhile, Ellen discusses how fiction aimed to mimic reality in 90s TV series, Homicide: Life on the Street, with actor from the show, Kyle Secor. She also speaks to Simon Ford, executive producer of the documentary series, 24 Hours in Police Custody, who explains how dramatic structure borrowed from fiction has helped the award-winning programme tell wider stories about the world around us. Producer: Mae-Li Evans A Prospect Street production for BBC Radio 4

    42 min

  6. 25 JUL

    Remakes

    Remakes continue to proliferate on our screens. Over the last few months, we’ve had live action remakes in cinemas of classic animations Snow White, Lilo And Stitch, and How To Train Your Dragon, along with legacy reboots of the horror hit I Know What You Did Last Summer and DC’s Superman, and - coming soon - a new spin on the 1980s comedy The Naked Gun. So is this all just evidence of a dearth of creativity in Hollywood? Or are there some artistically valid reasons to re-make existing films? And can a remake ever be better than the original? Ellen E Jones and Mark Kermode delve into the past, present and future of the remake. Mark speaks to critic Anne Billson about the remakes she considers worthy of our attention, from Brian De Palma’s Scarface to John Carpenter’s The Thing. And he also talks with Jim McBride who, in 1983, directed Breathless - a remake of Jean-Luc Godard’s French New Wave classic A Bout de Souffle, which Mark has long considered superior to the original. Ellen talks to TV critic Roxana Hadadi about what television can bring to the remake party - and about the TV series that managed to improve on their source material. And Ellen also speaks to Noah Hawley, showrunner of the multi-Emmy winning Fargo and upcoming Alien: Earth TV series, about the creative possibilities of TV reboots. Producer: Jane Long A Prospect Street production for BBC Radio 4

    42 min

  7. 18 JUL

    Scotland

    30 years after Mel Gibson's Braveheart cloaked Hollywood in fake tartan, Ellen E Jones and Mark Kermode take the high roads and the low roads to look for the real Scotland on screen. Ellen talks with Tayside journalist Kayleigh Donaldson about the trouble with Braveheart, why veteran Scottish director Bill Forsyth's hyper local comedy dramas Local Hero, Gregory's Girl, and That Sinking Feeling have such international appeal, and why movies such as Ben Sharrock's Limbo tell a different kind of story about Scotland. Comedian and writer Frankie Boyle tells Ellen why Gregory's Girl is one of Scotland's most beloved films, why Lynne Ramsay's New York City based thriller You Were Never Really Here starring Joaquin Phoenix as a violent mercenary feels so Scottish, and his reservations about Danny Boyle's Trainspotting. Mark reconnects with legendary Scottish actor and star of Succession Brian Cox who has returned to Scotland to make his directorial debut Glenrothan. They discuss Brigadoon, Braveheart (which starred Brian Cox), cultural neglect, and the Powell & Pressburger classic movie set on the Isle of Mull, I Know Where I'm Going. Producer: Freya Hellier A Prospect Street production for BBC Radio 4

    43 min

  8. 11 JUL

    In the Mood for Love

    Ellen E Jones and Mark Kermode celebrate 25 years of In The Mood For Love - director Wong Kar Wai's acclaimed romantic drama starring Maggie Cheung as Mrs Chan and Tony Leung as Mr Chow - two neighbours in 1960s Hong Kong, bonded by a revelation about their respective spouses. Critically beloved on its first release back in 2000, the film is now reaching an entirely new generation of young film fans, thanks in part to its popularity on social media sites like Letterboxd and TikTok. Mark speaks to critic and sometime filmmaker Tony Rayns, who was a key part of Wong Kar-Wai's team for many years, working closely with the director on the English subtitles for his films. Tony gives Mark the inside story of the production of In The Mood For Love, as well as some insight into the enigmatic director's sometimes chaotic working methods. Ellen takes a trip to The Prince Charles Cinema in London's Leicester Square - where film fans in their early 20s have been packing screenings of In The Mood For Love - to try to get a sense of why Wong Kar Wai's modern masterpiece has developed such a devoted fanbase. And she speaks to Paul Vickery - Head of Programming at the Prince Charles - about the film's continuing popularity with audiences. And Academy Award-nominated cinematographer Bradford Young tells Mark how he fell in love with the work of Wong Kar-Wai - and why he thinks In The Mood For Love is still resonating with young viewers a quarter century on. Producer: Jane Long A Prospect Street production for BBC Radio 4

    42 min
See All (104)

Hosts & Guests

About

Ellen E Jones and Mark Kermode guide us through the expanding universe of the moving image revealing fascinating links and hidden gems from cinema and TV to streaming and beyond.

Information

  • Creator
    BBC Radio 4
  • Years Active
    2021 - 2025
  • Episodes
    104
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © (C) BBC 2025
  • Show Website
    Screenshot

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