Filmspotting

A new film from Martin Scorsese is always an event, but THE IRISHMAN is one that, for many, won’t happen at a movie theatre. After a short theatrical run in select cities, Scorsese's latest - which reunites the director with Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci, and adds Al Pacino to the mix - will show up on Netflix. Adam and Josh, fresh from their own theatrical screening, consider the film in the context of Scorsese's work, specifically his career-spanning gangster movies. Plus, a review of Jia Zhangke's ASH IS PUREST WHITE (2019), the fourth and final film in the Contemporary Chinese Cinema Marathon. 0:00 - Billboard 1:09 - Review: "The Irishman" Steve Earle, "The Last Gunfighter Ballad" 32:52 - Donations 35:36 - Next Week / Notes 41:27 - Polls [Scorsese / Hanks] 53:48 - Chinese Cinema #4: "Ash Is Purest White" 1:15:15 - Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 2014, director Robert Eggers brought 17th century Puritan New England to frighteningly vivid life in THE WITCH. For his follow-up - THE LIGHTHOUSE - Eggers skips ahead to the late 19th century and the results are no less unnerving. Adam and Josh debate the effectiveness of Eggers' formal gambits - black and white photography, immersive sound design, boxy aspect ratio - and the all-in performances from stars Willem Dafoe and Robert Pattinson. Plus, the Contemporary Chinese Cinema Marathon continues with 2017's OUR TIME WILL COME, a historical drama set in WWII-era Hong Kong.  0:00 - Billboard 1:19 - Review: "The Lighthouse" 30:45 - “Lighthouse” Spoilers Jamie Drake, "When The Tide Comes In" 37:41 - Next Week/Notes 44:02 - Massacre Theatre 50:40 - Chinese Cinema #3: "Our Time Will Come" 1:12:27 - Outro / Outtake Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Steering clear of plot details for one of the most praised films of the year is no easy task, but Adam and Josh managed to pull it off ahead of their screening of Bong Joon-ho's PARASITE. The subject of rave reviews since its Palme d'Or-winning debut at the Cannes Film Festival back in May, Bong's film tackles class warfare as only Bong can – with social commentary mixing freely with black comedy and even a little horror. That review and the second film in the Contemporary Chinese Cinema Marathon, 2014's THE MIDNIGHT AFTER from Hong Kong's Fruit Chan. 0:00 - Billboard 1:42 - Review: "Parasite"King Grizzard and the Lizard Wizard, "Mars for the Rich" 31:35 - Josh recs: "Pain and Glory" 35:20 - Next week / Notes 39:28 - Polls [Movie Mentors / Favorite Scorsese] 49:52 - Chinese Marathon #2: "The Midnight After" 1:15:22 - Outro / Credits Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Back in '99, the trailers and movie posters for AMERICAN BEAUTY implored us to "look closer." For their 9 From '99 review, Adam and Josh give the divisive Best Picture winner the closer look it asked for, but they don't always like what they see. Is the movie hypocritical and mean-spirited? Is it merely an overwrought sitcom? Or is it redeemed by its sincerity and the strength of its supporting cast? Also on the show, Adam's conversation with Godfrey Cheshire, author of the new book "Conversations with Kiarostami." Cheshire's book is a companion to a 25-film Abbas Kiarostami retrospective currently touring the U.S. And the first film in the Contemporary Chinese Cinema Marathon, 2010's LET THE BULLETS FLY, a furiously paced action comedy directed by Jiang Wen. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Between its late-August premiere at the Venice Film Festival (where it won the festival's top prize) and its release in theaters here in the States, Todd Phillips' JOKER has provoked every possible response, with some calling it among the best films of the year and others calling it the absolute worst – not to mention the much-discussed fears that the movie was "dangerous." No surprise then that when Adam and Josh finally got around to seeing it, they split – not just on the film itself, but on everything from the film's score to star Joaquin Phoenix's take on the iconic villain. That review, plus listeners weigh in on their favorite Phoenix performances and a preview of the upcoming Chicago International Film Festival. 0:00 - Billboard 1:00 - Review: "Joker" Dehd, "Pushing the Crowd" 36:13 - Next week / Notes 42:00 - Polls (J. Phoenix Performances / 2010s Movie Mentors) 50:43 - Preview: Chicago International Film Festival 1:03:07 - Close Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices