Criterion Reflections

I’m a fan of the Criterion Collection and have about a dozen or so titles in my home collection. So I’m always interested in podcasts that focus on the series. Unfortunately, most are just of the “two guys blowing smoke” variety, often ill-informed and merely expressing like or dislike. That doesn’t tell me anything. David respects the listener enough to provide historical context, where a movie fits in its cinematic tradition, and informed biographical information about directors, actors, screenwriters, and the culture which produced the film. And he does so without being pedantic (the only exception to this would be the review of Saló, but that film is such an outlier that, really, all bets are off. So if you’re looking for informed commentary on movies, this is a great place to start.

Meandering host, I came to hear a discussion of a clasdic film but her thoughts about host’s life, vscstionboksns. Enough. I bailed. Horrible studio quality. Skip it

Overall, I’ve enjoyed this podcast and would recommend it to anyone who wants a variety of in-depth perspectives on cinematically significant titles. I like the fact that David brings on younger voices who are often seeing the 70s films for the first time, or at least weren’t born when they were first released. However, there is a noticeable dearth of women’s perspectives, which in several cases (Klute, Straw Dogs, The Last Picture Show to name a few) leave a gaping hole in the analysis.

I love the chronological format, and David is a mad genius. I feel like I am getting some pretty good insight into this fraught time (late 60s), which also give me insight into our current time. Thanks David! Also, thanks for having on Jordan Essoe, who is just dreamy.