The Watchers

This week, Andrea and Jodie watched The Silence of the Lambs, a quiet little drama about gender in the workplace, mentorship, art appreciation, canine companions, and the importance of strong female friendships.Recommended Reading: “30 years in, The Silence Of The Lambs’ Jame Gumb still deserves better” - By Harmony Colangelo Next week, we’re welcoming October in with the 1999 psychological thriller, The Talented Mr. Ripley. If you're reading this, that means you've probably got your podcatcher of choice open right now. It would be SO helpful if you gave our little show a follow. If you like what you hear, you could even leave us a review.Follow:The Watchers on Instagram (@WatchersPodNJ)Andrea on Instagram (@AQAndreaQ)Jodie on Instagram (@jodie_mim)Thanks to Kitzy (@heykitzy) for the use of our theme song, "No Book Club."

Hey Watchers fam, quick note! No new episode today. We foolishly thought we’d somehow find enough hours in September to stay on track, but that was obviously hubris on our part. We’ll be back in your feed next week with Silence of the Lambs, a full episode, and no plans to take any more time off for the rest of the year. In the meantime, give this one a listen for a few recommendations of stuff to check out while you wait for our return, as well as–depending on where you live–some upcoming events you might be interested in. Thanks for sticking with us. Rate/review if you haven’t, share us with a friend, and we’ll see you next week! To ask Rainn Wilson a question for This Helps With Marlon Morgan’s live podcast recording, head to thishelpspodcast.com/askTickets to Laughing Together’s All-Star Improv Jam on September 29th in San Diego, CA are at wellnesstogether.org/conferenceJoin Beautiful/Anonymous for our 500th episode, recording live at Smodcastle Cinemas in Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey, on October 17th: punchup.live/chrisgethardIf you're reading this, that means you've probably got your podcatcher of choice open right now. It would be SO helpful if you gave our little show a follow. If you like what you hear, you could even leave us a review.Follow:The Watchers on Instagram (@WatchersPodNJ)Andrea on Instagram (@AQAndreaQ)Jodie on Instagram (@jodie_mim)Thanks to Kitzy (@heykitzy) for the use of our theme song, "No Book Club."

Last week, Andrea and Jodie checked into One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest to talk rebellion, institutions, and what it takes to be a woman in a male-dominated field. This week, we’re shipping up to Cambridge for a rewatch of Girl, Interrupted. It’s another Winona Ryder voiceover project and the film that gave Angelina Jolie the world’s worst bangs. We get into how Susanna Kaysen felt about seeing her memoir on screen, the 90s all-star cast, and what it says about decades of not-so-great mental-health care for women.Next week, get ready to sink your teeth into Jonathan Demme’s Oscar-winning classic, The Silence of the Lambs.P.S. Our apologies for the unannounced break last week! Missed you terribly. We'll never leave you again.If you're reading this, that means you've probably got your podcatcher of choice open right now. It would be SO helpful if you gave our little show a follow. If you like what you hear, you could even leave us a review.Follow:The Watchers on Instagram (@WatchersPodNJ)Andrea on Instagram (@AQAndreaQ)Jodie on Instagram (@jodie_mim)Thanks to Kitzy (@heykitzy) for the use of our theme song, "No Book Club."

This week on The Watchers, Andrea and Jodie check themselves in for a review of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. We trace the long and winding road to bringing this film to the screen, talk about its unconventional on-location set, and reflect on how it launched so many of our favorite actors’ careers. We also unpack the deep misogyny baked into the writing of Nurse Ratched as a monstrous woman. Next week, we’re staying in the psych ward for the Cuckoo's Nest companion piece Girl, Interrupted.If you're reading this, that means you've probably got your podcatcher of choice open right now. It would be SO helpful if you gave our little show a follow. If you like what you hear, you could even leave us a review.Follow:The Watchers on Instagram (@WatchersPodNJ)Andrea on Instagram (@AQAndreaQ)Jodie on Instagram (@jodie_mim)Thanks to Kitzy (@heykitzy) for the use of our theme song, "No Book Club."

This week on The Watchers, Andrea and Jodie are snowed in with Stephen King’s Misery, Rob Reiner’s chilling two-hander adaptation that won Kathy Bates her Oscar and taught us to fear typewriters, sledgehammers, and devoted fans bearing soup. We talk about King’s real-life inspiration for the story, the long and winding road to casting Paul Sheldon, and why this movie manages to be terrifying, funny, and oddly cozy all at once.Next week, we’re moving from one devoted nurse with a questionable bedside manner to another, trading Annie Wilkes for Nurse Ratched in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.If you're reading this, that means you've probably got your podcatcher of choice open right now. It would be SO helpful if you gave our little show a follow. If you like what you hear, you could even leave us a review.Recommended Reading:"Retrospective: 30 years later, ‘Misery’ still loves company" - Eddie Mouradian Follow:The Watchers on Instagram (@WatchersPodNJ)Andrea on Instagram (@AQAndreaQ)Jodie on Instagram (@jodie_mim)Thanks to Kitzy (@heykitzy) for the use of our theme song, "No Book Club."

This week on The Watchers, Andrea and Jodie revisit Stand by Me, a beloved film that, nearly four decades later, still lands with kids and adults. We talk about why the nostalgia feels real instead of cheap, the oft-discussed ways the actors’ real lives mirrored the roles they played, and whether or not we can make the case that it counts as a Jersey movie.Next week, you cockadoodie listeners better not go anywhere because we’re coming back for Reiner’s second entry in the King Cinematic Universe, Misery.If you're reading this, that means you've probably got your podcatcher of choice open right now. It would be SO helpful if you gave our little show a follow. If you like what you hear, you could even leave us a review.Follow:The Watchers on Instagram (@WatchersPodNJ)Andrea on Instagram (@AQAndreaQ)Jodie on Instagram (@jodie_mim)Thanks to Kitzy (@heykitzy) for the use of our theme song, "No Book Club."

This week on The Watchers, Andrea and Jodie hop on their bikes and pedal straight into the summer of 1970 with the coming-of-age classic Now and Then. Often called Stand by Me for girls, we talk about where that comparison lands, where it misses, how the film captures girlhood friendships, our draw toward the nostalgic, and which parts still work on rewatch. We also cover how Now and Then handles grief, first crushes, and the awkward limbo between kid and teen.Next week, we’re heading down the tracks for the only natural follow-up to Now and Then, Rob Reiner’s Stand by Me, a darker, sharper coming-of-age story about friendship, mortality, and that one summer that changes everything.Recommended Reading:“​What White Girl Coming-of-Age Movies Don’t Do For a Black Girl” - Zoé SamudziIf you're reading this, that means you've probably got your podcatcher of choice open right now. It would be SO helpful if you gave our little show a follow. If you like what you hear, you could even leave us a review.Follow:The Watchers on Instagram (@WatchersPodNJ)Andrea on Instagram (@AQAndreaQ)Jodie on Instagram (@jodie_mim)Thanks to Kitzy (@heykitzy) for the use of our theme song, "No Book Club."

This week on The Watchers, Andrea and Jodie bundle up for a double dose of March family goodness with Little Women, starting with the beloved 1994 version and bringing in Greta Gerwig’s more meta 2019 adaptation. We talk about what makes this story so enduring, why every generation gets the Jo it needs, and how both films handle what's really at the heart of Louisa May Alcott’s classic. We also get into 1994’s all-star 90s cast, the importance of women-led movie sets, and what Alcott really thought about the men in her novel. Plus, significant haircuts, compulsory heterosexuality, Freudian analysis, and other Watchers classics.Next week, we’re sticking with girlhood, nostalgia, and formative trauma but trading bonnets for bikes with 1995’s coming-of-age drama, Now and Then.Recommended Viewing:“Why The Costumes of Little Women did NOT deserve an Oscar” - Micarah TewersIf you're reading this, that means you've probably got your podcatcher of choice open right now. It would be SO helpful if you gave our little show a follow. If you like what you hear, you could even leave us a review.Follow:The Watchers on Instagram (@WatchersPodNJ)Andrea on Instagram (@AQAndreaQ)Jodie on Instagram (@jodie_mim)Thanks to Kitzy (@heykitzy) for the use of our theme song, "No Book Club."

This week on The Watchers, Andrea and Jodie are heading to 1960s Massachusetts with Mermaids, the coming-of-age dramedy that gave us Big Hair Cher, yet another Winona Ryder voiceover, and Christina Ricci's first major role. We talk about the movie’s unique (somewhat perplexing) tone, how it captures the confusion of girlhood, and the enduring charm of Bob Hoskins.Next week, we're traveling back a century or so for another movie about a family of girls enduring New England winters, 1994's star-studded and heartbreaking earnest Little Women.If you're reading this, that means you've probably got your podcatcher of choice open right now. It would be SO helpful if you gave our little show a follow. If you like what you hear, you could even leave us a review.Follow:The Watchers on Instagram (@WatchersPodNJ)Andrea on Instagram (@AQAndreaQ)Jodie on Instagram (@jodie_mim)Thanks to Kitzy (@heykitzy) for the use of our theme song, "No Book Club."

This week on The Watchers, join Jodie and Andrea under the moon in Brooklyn Heights for our review of Moonstruck, the romantic comedy that won Cher her Oscar, gave us Nicolas Cage at full Nicolas Cage, and explored the power of a good makeover. We dive into the various non-Italian actors tasked with populating Cher's Italian family, the iconic Castorini home, and the film's surprisingly tender treatment of its flawed but lovable cast of characters.Next week, we’re sticking with Cher, but trading moonlight for mermaid tails. We’re watching Mermaids. Get ready for unconventional parenting in the form of marshmallow kebabs, teenage rebellion in the form of Catholic piety, and 1990's most desirable bachelor in the form of the late, great Bob Hoskins.If you're reading this, that means you've probably got your podcatcher of choice open right now. It would be SO helpful if you gave our little show a follow. If you like what you hear, you could even leave us a review.Follow:The Watchers on Instagram (@WatchersPodNJ)Andrea on Instagram (@AQAndreaQ)Jodie on Instagram (@jodie_mim)Thanks to Kitzy (@heykitzy) for the use of our theme song, "No Book Club."

Andrea and Jodie are stopping by Truvy's beauty shop to revisit the southern tearjerker Steel Magnolias. We talk about the film’s deeply personal backstory, the stacked cast, and how Steel Magnolias made space for older women in a way that still resonates. We reflect on how this movie landed differently on rewatch, especially for those of us who are starting to feel more like Ouiser than Shelby. Plus: our favorite quotes, behind-the-scenes gossip, and, of course, that scene from Yellowjackets.Next week we’re headed north to Brooklyn Heights for big hair, big feelings, and that big pizza pie in the sky. We’re watching Moonstruck. Get ready for Cher at her Oscar-winning best, Nicolas Cage in all his unhinged glory, and another standout performance from Montclair theater queen, Olympia Dukakis.Recommended in this episode:"An Inside Look at Steel Magnolias from Robert Harling" Gun and Garden, April 2018The Right Match: A Short DocumentaryIf you're reading this, that means you've probably got your podcatcher of choice open right now. It would be SO helpful if you gave our little show a follow. If you like what you hear, you could even leave us a review.Follow:The Watchers on Instagram (@WatchersPodNJ)Andrea on Instagram (@AQAndreaQ)Jodie on Instagram (@jodie_mim)Thanks to Kitzy (@heykitzy) for the use of our theme song, "No Book Club."

This week on The Watchers, Jodie and Andrea are back in the kitchen for our full Season 4 recap of The Bear. From standout episodes to side character gold, we’re breaking down what worked, what wobbled, and what we’re still thinking about. Plus, we hand out our Season 4 Superlatives, including Best Richie Line, Best Fak Moment, Biggest Cry, and more. And of course, we share our hopes, dreams, and predictions for Season 5.Don’t forget, we’re covering Steel Magnolias on Monday as part of our Yellowjackets side quest. See you then!If you're reading this, that means you've probably got your podcatcher of choice open right now. It would be SO helpful if you gave our little show a follow. If you like what you hear, you could even leave us a review.Follow:The Watchers on Instagram (@WatchersPodNJ)Andrea on Instagram (@AQAndreaQ)Jodie on Instagram (@jodie_mim)Thanks to Kitzy (@heykitzy) for the use of our theme song, "No Book Club."

This week on The Watchers, Jodie and Andrea are talking about Harold and Maude, Hal Ashby’s unconventional romance that’s become a cult classic, an aesthetic touchstone, and (maybe?) the origin story of the manic pixie dream girl. We get into: why Maude might be the blueprint for the trope, and why she also transcends it. Why Harold is relatable to those of us who might delight in our melancholy, even if Maude is really who we should be putting on our vision board, the movie’s deep influence on today’s filmmakers (looking at you, Wes Anderson), and how Ashby originally had a very different vision for the film's soundtrack, including plans for another musician to both score the film and star in it.Recommended Reading:"A Boy of Twenty and a Woman of Eighty" By Leticia Kent"The Greatest Comedic Tragedy: How Harold and Maude Redefined Holocaust Humor" - Film CredIf you're reading this, that means you've probably got your podcatcher of choice open right now. It would be SO helpful if you gave our little show a follow. If you like what you hear, you could even leave us a review.Follow:The Watchers on Instagram (@WatchersPodNJ)Andrea on Instagram (@AQAndreaQ)Jodie on Instagram (@jodie_mim)Thanks to Kitzy (@heykitzy) for the use of our theme song, "No Book Club."

A show where two from Jersey’s distant endswatch goonies, girls, class presidents unglued.From clueless cliques to matricidal friends,now 90s Romeo comes neon-hued.We trace the plot through fish tank, fire, and storm,sing praises for our queen, Mercutio,who dances on the screen in perfect form.No man more grave than Harold Perrineau.Our tragic teens, Danes and DiCaprio,a letter meant to save Claire, left unsent,breaks the heart of blonde and brooding Romeoand ends the so-called Life of JulietNext week? A dour boy who drives a hearse.Now? Say Harold and Maude to end this verse.If you're reading this, that means you've probably got your podcatcher of choice open right now. It would be SO helpful if you gave our little show a follow. If you like what you hear, you could even leave us a review.Follow:The Watchers on Instagram (@WatchersPodNJ)Andrea on Instagram (@AQAndreaQ)Jodie on Instagram (@jodie_mim)Thanks to Kitzy (@heykitzy) for the use of our theme song, "No Book Club."

This week on The Watchers, we’re heading to True Directions and diving deep into the 1999 cult classic But I’m a Cheerleader. We talk about Jamie Babbit’s queer filmmaking roots, RuPaul out of drag, and the Barbie dreamscape of repression and resistance. Plus: what But I'm a Cheerleader can teach us about camp, queer longing, and the limits of satire.Don’t miss next week’s episode on Baz Luhrmann's William Shakespeare's Romeo + JulietIf you're reading this, that means you've probably got your podcatcher of choice open right now. It would be SO helpful if you gave our little show a follow. If you like what you hear, you could even leave us a review.Follow:The Watchers on Instagram (@WatchersPodNJ)Andrea on Instagram (@AQAndreaQ)Jodie on Instagram (@jodie_mim)Thanks to Kitzy (@heykitzy) for the use of our theme song, "No Book Club."

This week on The Watchers, Jodie and Andrea revisit Election, Alexander Payne’s dark, hilarious, and deeply cynical take on high school democracy. We get into the film’s multiple narrators, shifting POVs, and why it still feels so sharp 25 years later. From Tracy Flick’s overachieving rage to Jim McAllister’s petty unraveling, we trace how the film breaks down ambition, morality, and why, in 2025, people are still getting Tracy Flick wrong.Next week, we’re watching But I’m a Cheerleader, Jamie Babbit’s bold, surreal, and very pink satire about queerness, conformity, and finding love at gay rehab.If you're reading this, that means you've probably got your podcatcher of choice open right now. It would be SO helpful if you gave our little show a follow. If you like what you hear, you could even leave us a review.Recommended Reading:The Movie Election 25 Years On - Scott DetrowWhat America Gets Wrong About Tracy Flick - A.O. ScottFollow:The Watchers on Instagram (@WatchersPodNJ)Andrea on Instagram (@AQAndreaQ)Jodie on Instagram (@jodie_mim)Thanks to Kitzy (@heykitzy) for the use of our theme song, "No Book Club."

This week on The Watchers, Jodie and Andrea are heading to North Shore High to take on Mean Girls, a defining entry in the canon of girlhood, but one we both struggled with more than expected. We get into what makes the movie mean, what it gets wrong that Clueless gets so right, and how it lands in 2025, when girlhood is messier, more public, and more scrutinized than ever.Next week, we’re revisiting Election, Alexander Payne’s razor‑sharp satire of ambition, repression, and suburban malaise.Recommended Reading:“Mean Girls”: A Time Capsule of Casual Bigotry - Glenda Brown”Fey Grateful That Film Seems to ‘Stick With People’” - Ashley SpencerI Adore “Mean Girls,” But Let's Stop Acting Like Teen Girls Are Mean" - Amanda ScherkerIf you're reading this, that means you've probably got your podcatcher of choice open right now. It would be SO helpful if you gave our little show a follow. If you like what you hear, you could even leave us a review.Follow:The Watchers on Instagram (@WatchersPodNJ)Andrea on Instagram (@AQAndreaQ)Jodie on Instagram (@jodie_mim)Thanks to Kitzy (@heykitzy) for the use of our theme song, "No Book Club."

This week, Jodie and Andrea are covering Amy Heckerling’s 1995 teen rom-com, Clueless. It’s the hyperstylized, deceptively smart, deeply girly ’90s take on Emma that shaped a generation. We get into makeover culture, some casual narratology, teen magazine aesthetics, ska music, why Cher’s makeover actually fails, and how Wallace Shawn is honestly perfect. Plus, Andrea gives a breakdown of the elusive PC game, Jodie goes JSTOR mode, and we consider whether or not it really is a proto-feminist masterpiece.Next week on The Watchers, we’re covering Mean Girls. Tina Fey’s sharp-tongued, early-2000s take on high school hierarchy, it’s a film with a massive pop culture footprint and a defining entry in the girlhood canon.Recommended Reading: Playthrough - Clueless (CD-ROM, 1997) “‘Just a Girl’ Should Have Been a Hit From Clueless, and Other Behind-the-Scenes Secrets from the Soundtrack” by Jillian Mapes“Clueless at 20: Revisiting the Soundtrack With a Classic Track-by-Track Review” by Kenneth Partridge“Furiously Franchised: Clueless, Convergence Culture, and the Female-Focused Franchise”, Cinema Journal, Kyra HuntingBoth articles listed below can be found in ReFocus: The Films of Amy Heckerling edited by Frances Smith and Timothy Shary“Can I Please Give You Some Advice?: Clueless and the Teen Makeover” by Alice Leppert“Cher and Dionne BFFs: Female Friendship, Genre, and Medium Specificity in the Film and Television Versions of Amy Heckerling’s Clueless” by Susan Berridge

This week, Andrea and Jodie are talking Dazed and Confused, Richard Linklater’s attempt at an anti-nostalgia movie about the last day of school. We get into the vibes, the music, what makes the meandering plot work, and why, as adults, the hazing hits a little harder and the movie feels meaner than we remembered. Still, it’s a hangout classic with killer needle drops and a cast full of future stars.Next week, we’re watching Clueless. Written and directed by Amy Heckerling. As smart as it is stylish. It’s an endlessly rewatchable Beverly Hills take on Emma, packed with iconic outfits, sharp dialogue, and one of the most lovable casts of the ’90s.Recommended Reading:“Dazed and Confused: Not So Long Ago, But Very Far Away” -  Chuck KlostermanAlright, Alright, Alright: The Oral History of Richard Linklater's Dazed and Confused - By Melissa MaerzIf you're reading this, that means you've probably got your podcatcher of choice open right now. It would be SO helpful if you gave our little show a follow. If you like what you hear, you could even leave us a review.Follow:The Watchers on Instagram (@WatchersPodNJ)Andrea on Instagram (@AQAndreaQ)Jodie on Instagram (@jodie_mim)Thanks to Kitzy (@heykitzy) for the use of our theme song, "No Book Club."

Hello, you’ve reached the winter of our discontent. Andrea and Jodie watched Reality Bites. Written by Helen Childress and directed by Ben Stiller, it’s the 1994 Gen X anthem that follows a group of post-college friends trying to figure out life, love, and how to afford rent in Houston. We dig into Gen X authenticity, that killer soundtrack, and the irony (we know it when we see it) of a movie about not selling out being released by a major studio, jam-packed with product placement. We talk about the tension between Childress’ original screenplay and the version that ended up on screen. We’re pretty hard on Stiller. He deserves it.Next week, we’re watching Dazed and Confused, written and directed by Richard Linklater. It’s the last day of school in 1976, and not much happens. It’s a hangout classic about freedom, boredom, and figuring out what comes next.Recommended reading: “Welcome to the World of the Emotionally Mature: Reality Bites at 25+” - Elisabeth Geier“Revisiting Seminal Gen X Film 'Reality Bites' 30 Years Later” - Sean BurnsIf you're reading this, that means you've probably got your podcatcher of choice open right now. It would be SO helpful if you gave our little show a follow. If you like what you hear, you could even leave us a review.Follow:The Watchers on Instagram (@WatchersPodNJ)Andrea on Instagram (@AQAndreaQ)Jodie on Instagram (@jodie_mim)Thanks to Kitzy (@heykitzy) for the use of our theme song, "No Book Club."