The Big Picture

Sean and Amanda are joined by Yasi Salek to discuss ‘Better Man,’ the bizarro Robbie Williams biopic in which he is rendered as a CGI chimpanzee (1:00) and ‘One of Them Days,’ the Keke Palmer and SZA action comedy produced by Issa Rae and directed by Lawrence Lamont (29:00). Then, Yasi departs and Sean and Amanda explore ‘Back In Action,’ the spy-action-comedy starring Cameron Diaz and Jamie Foxx that jumped up to number one on Netflix (53:00). Next, Chris Ryan joins to weigh in on ‘Wolf Man,’ ‘Flight’ Risk,' and ‘Presence,’ a trio of movies of wildly different quality from three accomplished directors (1:06:00). Finally, Sean is joined by Steven Soderbergh to discuss his 35th feature film ‘Presence,’ a tense thriller experimenting with point-of-view and form (1:40:00). Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins Guests: Yasi Salek, Chris Ryan, and Steven Soderbergh Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner Video Producer: Jack Sanders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Sean and Amanda give their instant reactions to the Oscar nominations announced this morning, including their takes on what films are running hot and which ones seem to have cooled off over the past few months (1:00). Is ‘Emilia Pérez’ the full-on front-runner? Will recent stories about the use of AI in ‘The Brutalist’ sour its chances in the big categories? Plus: They check in on the state of the Big Oscar Bet from September, when they attempted to predict the nominations and winners in 11 categories (1:07:00). Then, Sean is joined by the director of ‘Flow,’ Gints Zilbalodis, to discuss his nontraditional path to the director’s chair, the unexpected mass appeal of the film, how he found his particular animation style, and more (1:16:00). Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins Guest: Gints Zilbalodis Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner Video Producer: Jack Sanders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Sean and Amanda are joined by Chris Ryan to draft, in auction format, some of the movies they’re most excited for this year. They review the results and the rules from last year’s two auctions before launching into this year’s slate, including some mega-blockbusters like ‘Mission: Impossible—The Final Reckoning,’ ‘Jurassic World Rebirth,’ and ‘F1,’ as well as some smaller but still exciting indies like ‘Marty Supreme’ and ‘The Phoenician Scheme.’ Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins Guest: Chris Ryan Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner Video Producer: Jack Sanders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Sean and Amanda are joined by Chris Ryan to reflect on the monumental loss of David Lynch, and try to take measure of the impact his films have made on them personally and the film culture at large (1:00). Then, they run through a number of guild nominations and assess the relative strength of the awards contenders (21:00). Finally, they review ‘Den of Thieves 2: Pantera’ and discuss its star Gerard Butler’s essential performance at the center and whether the overall movie lives up to the first in the franchise (1:08:00). Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins Guest: Chris Ryan Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner Video Producer: Jack Sanders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Sean and Amanda discuss the latest out of the guild award nominations and what it portends for Oscar chances (1:00). They then look ahead to the rest of 2025 and share their 25 collectively most anticipated movies of the year (31:00), including new films from favorites of the show like Paul Thomas Anderson, Wes Anderson, Richard Linklater, Bong Joon-Ho, Steven Soderbergh, and Luca Guadagnino, as well as long awaited follow-ups from exciting young directors like Chloe Zhao, Celine Song, Joseph Kosinski, and more. Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner Video Producer: Jack Sanders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Sean and Amanda discuss the successes, shortcomings, themes, and performances of Halina Reijn’s ‘Babygirl,’ an erotic thriller/black comedy starring Nicole Kidman, Harris Dickinson, and Antonio Banderas (1:00). Then, they build the Kidman Hall of Fame, choosing 10 installations in her film career that best represent her full body of work (41:00). Finally, Sean is joined by Reijn to discuss making the movie, building chemistry between the stars, why she was so interested in exploring the sexual themes and power dynamics in the movie, the importance of humor, and more (2:01:00). Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins Guest: Halina Reijn Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner Video Producer: Jack Sanders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Sean and Amanda are joined by ‘House of R’ host Joanna Robinson to react to the 2025 Golden Globes, an up-and-down award show highlighted by strong performances from Brady Corbet’s ‘The Brutalist’ and Jacques Audiard’s ‘Emilia Pérez.’ They also discuss the movies they were surprised performed weaker on the evening, like ‘Anora,’ ‘Conclave,’ and ‘Wicked.’ Finally, they evaluate the entertainment of the broadcast and host Nikki Glaser. Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins Guest: Joanna Robinson Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner Video Producer: Jack Sanders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In her triumphant return, Amanda shares her overarching thoughts on the movies and shows from the past few months that she’s been out on parental leave (1:00). Then, Sean and Amanda predict the winners of each film category for Sunday’s Golden Globes (52:00. Plus: they introduce a new yearlong project for 2025 in which they count down their collective favorite films of the century so far. Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner Video Producer: Chia Hao Tat Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Sean is joined by Adam Nayman for an extensive examination of the themes, production, and style of Brady Corbet’s ‘The Brutalist,’ one of the most anticipated and audacious movies of the year (1:00). They discuss the idea of a new movie aiming at the canon, Corbet’s filmmaking style and the marketing associated with it, the chapterized structure of the storytelling, the performances both at the center and on the edges of the frame, and more. Sean is then joined by Corbet (1:17:00) to discuss the circuitous route to getting the film on the big screen; how he sees a director’s job; writing with his partner, Mona Fastvold; working with Adrien Brody; and more. Finally, Brody joins the show to talk about what was so appealing about the 'Brutalist’ script, how he accessed the personal themes of the character he plays, the different technological hurdles of shooting in the long-dormant VistaVision format, and more (2:08:00). Host: Sean Fennessey Guests: Adam Nayman, Brady Corbet, and Adrien Brody Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner Video Producer: Jack Sanders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Sean is joined by Chris Ryan and Rob Mahoney to discuss the new Robert Eggers vampire film, ‘Nosferatu,’ releasing on Christmas and starring Lily-Rose Depp, Bill Skarsgard, and Nicholas Hoult (1:00). They discuss the original ‘Nosferatu,’ now more than 100 years old, Eggers’s vision of the character and story, and the long history of vampires in cinema, before ultimately each sharing their five favorite vampire movies (43:00). Then, Sean is joined by Eggers to talk about the production of the movie, why vampires persist in storytelling, the themes of the film, and more (1:11:00). Host: Sean Fennessey Guests: Chris Ryan, Rob Mahoney, and Robert Eggers Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner Video Producer: Jack Sanders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Sean is joined by Chris Ryan and Mallory Rubin to dig all the way into ‘A Complete Unknown,’ James Mangold’s Bob Dylan biopic starring Timothée Chalamet. They discuss, among other things, the musical performances of Chalamet and his costar Monica Barbaro, the supporting performances around the edges of the movie, Mangold’s ability to tackle one of the most central pop cultural figures in American history, the moment the film is trying to capture, and more. Host: Sean Fennessey Guests: Chris Ryan and Mallory Rubin Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner Video Producer: Jack Sanders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Sean starts the episode with a monologue about the up-and-down state of the movie release calendar after a handful of extremely disappointing movies like ‘Kraven the Hunter,’ ‘Mufasa: The Lion King,’ and ‘Lord of the Rings: The War of Rohirrim’ hit theaters recently, before they give way to stronger films like ‘The Brutalist,’ ‘Nosferatu,’ ‘A Complete Unknown,’ ‘Babygirl,’ and more (1:00). Then, he’s joined by Joanna Robinson to talk about the winners and losers, broadly, of the year in movies (6:00). They then share their latest Best Picture power rankings (1:08:00). Finally, Sean is joined by ‘Nickel Boys’ director RaMell Ross to discuss the revolutionary style and vision of the film, adapting Colson Whitehead’s novel, his path to becoming an artist, and more (1:25:00). Host: Sean Fennessey Guests: Joanna Robinson and RaMell Ross Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner Video Producer: Jack Sanders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Sean remarks on the release of the Oscars shortlists in below-the-line categories, international features, and documentary features, before discussing his five most underseen movies of 2024 (1:00). Then, he’s joined by a rotating cast of Ringer colleagues to discuss each of their favorite underseen movies of the year (40:00). Finally, he’s joined by James Cameron and Gale Anne Hurd to discuss the 40th anniversary of ‘Terminator’ (1:59:00). Among other things, the three talk about the challenge of getting it made before their careers had really taken off, the filmmaking style, shooting on location in L.A., and the prescience of the story. Host: Sean Fennessey Guests: Chris Ryan, Mallory Rubin, Charles Holmes, Yasi Salek, Joanna Robinson, Rob Mahoney, Amanda Dobbins, James Cameron, and Gale Anne Hurd Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner Video Producer: Jack Sanders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Sean is joined Joanna Robinson and Rob Mahoney to run through five of their favorite individual performances from the year in acting (1:00) before discussing Marielle Heller’s ‘Nightbitch,’ the story of a stay-at-home mom—played by Amy Adams—who is experiencing the normal stresses of motherhood and life while undergoing a more surreal transformation (43:00). Then, they select which 10 performances they would include if they were tasked with building the Amy Adams Hall of Fame (1:04:00). Finally, Sean is joined by Pablo Larraín to discuss ‘Maria,’ the third film in his recent trilogy about misunderstood and highly successful and famous women (1:54:00). The two discuss Angelina Jolie’s performance at the center of the movie, the unique challenges of portraying something as ineffable as opera singing, and how Larraín decides which moments to home in on when creating these works of historical fiction. Host: Sean Fennessey Guests: Rob Mahoney, Joanna Robinson, and Pablo Larraín Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner Video Producer: Jack Sanders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We are drafting again! And Amanda is back! She and Sean are joined by Chris Ryan to pick their faves and foil their pals in a draft of the movies from 2021. Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins Guest: Chris Ryan Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner Video Producer: Jack Sanders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices