Welcome to The B-Side! Here we talk about movie directors! Not the movies that made them famous or kept them famous, but the ones that they made in between. Today we discuss Spike Lee! One of our absolute favorite filmmakers! Our B-Sides today are: Girl 6, Get on the Bus, Summer of Sam, Passing Strange, and Chi-Raq. We discuss what makes Lee a singular artist, his early films and early success, his celebrity as a commercial star, and his unbridled, unwavering optimism as a stylist. Spike Lee has mentioned that Crooklyn is the movie most fans mention to him, I’ve written about Lee’s incredible movie openings, and Conor and I celebrate his maximalist aesthetic. There’s also his ambitious alchemy of tone. Consider the minefield scene from Da 5 Bloods, which we talk about. It’s funny for a moment, then awfully tragic. There’s discussion about our dream Patreon mini-podcast series Macht Speed (a deep dive on the career of Gabriel Macht), the Spike Lee-Quentin Tarantino feud, and the audacity of ambition it takes to make a movie like She Hate Me. Be sure to give us a follow on Bluesky at @tfsbside.bsky.social. Enjoy!

Take one step into the world of festivals and you'll understand that making a movie isn't just "making a movie." Even if one has the fortune to get some money for the script they've slaved over, get some actors in front of a camera, and survive the labyrinthine editing process, a veritable mountain of tasks faces those hoping to actually get the thing up and running. I might not know anybody who's better-learned in these spaces than my friend Gabe Klinger, who has worked in festivals, programming, criticism, and filmmaking, with his third feature, Isabel, debuting at this year's Berlinale. Music courtesy of Lex Walton: “Love Theme from an Unreleased Film” from the album Giving It Up.

Welcome to The B-Side, from The Film Stage. Here we usually talk about movie stars and not the movies that made them famous or kept them famous, but the ones they made in between. Today, however, we talk about Oscar movies (!), or better yet, movies that remind us of Oscar movies! Conor and I welcome back the great Chris Feil, co-host of This Had Oscar Buzz! Today, we dive into defunct Academy Awards categories!  The movies include In Old Chicago (which won the Oscar for Best Assistant Director, a category that was discontinued after this 1938 ceremony), The Americanization of Emily (which was nominated for Best Cinematography (Black-and-White) in its final year of competition), the much-maligned film adaptation of A Little Night Music (which won for, deep breath, Best Music, Original Song Score, and Its Adaptation or Best Adaptation Score), and finally Sleepers (which was nominated for Best Original Dramatic Score, back during the time when there were two categories for music, Original Dramatic Score and Original Musical or Comedy Score). We talk about the upcoming (or just-aired, depending on when you listen) 2026 Academy Awards, the recent Oscar season and its surprises, changes that could be made to the format to make it more interesting, and personal favorites from the 2025 movie year. Additionally, we talk about Elizabeth Taylor singing in A Little Night Music, the endurance of the animated film Shrek (which won the first Oscar for Best Animated Feature back in 2002), and that time James Garner and Steve McQueen had a falling out because Garner starred in Grand Prix. Be sure to give us a follow on Bluesky at @tfsbside.bsky.social. Enjoy!

Last month brought suitable mourning for Robert Duvall and Frederick Wiseman, whose legacies are so enshrined that the lengthy obituaries published by major outlets could have—likely were—written years ago. But immediately after came a quieter announcement that hit me hardest: Tom Noonan, the actor best-known for his collaborations with Michael Mann and Charlie Kaufman, and a filmmaker who made formally elegant and emotionally lacerating features based on his own plays. (As discussed in my 2021 interview with him.) While his passing may, to various film institutions, not seem so notable as Duvall or Wiseman, I noticed that the online reaction was essentially as instant and admiring. It’s perhaps impossible to experience a Noonan performance, with that tall frame and mellifluous voice, and come away feeling like you’d seen any other actor. My friend, the critic Keith Uhlich, had known Noonan closely, working with him in both theater and cinema. I considered here and now the proper time to reminisce on Noonan’s work, and a unique opportunity to Keith tell intimate stories of him as both an artist and friend. Music courtesy of Lex Walton: “Love Theme from an Unreleased Film” from the album Giving It Up.

Welcome back. After a brief hiatus, I am so happy to bring you episode 19 of this podcast project. Few subjects make a better benchmark than Werner Herzog, who quite literally needs no introduction and to whom I will accordingly not grant such. He is presenting his new film, Ghost Elephants, a documentary concerning South African naturalist Steve Boyse and his quest for a near-mythical species of elephant. (Our own appreciative review, from the film's Venice premiere, can be found here.) Those who’ve seen Herzog’s previous documentaries will be familiar with certain of its formal traits, but this is less a work about obsession, or pain, or even failure than many of those. As he brings up in our interview, it poses an interesting question: how does one live with success? On our call we were joined by his producer, Ariel Leon Isacovitch. There is a belief that to win friends and influence people, it can be useful to refer to people by their first name. I forgot to change my Zoom display name from Jordan Raup, this website’s editor in chief, which is why Isacovitch—surely someone who has found success—kindly calls me such. Lest you be distracted amidst a conversation with one of cinema’s truest legends.

Welcome to The B-Side! Here we talk about movie stars! Not the movies that made them famous or kept them famous, but the ones that they made in between.  Today we celebrate one of our great Welshmen: Anthony Hopkins! Our B-Sides include When Eight Bells Toll, Juggernaut, Spotswood, and Instinct. Our guest is the great Brian Raftery, whose new book Hannibal Lecter: A Life “traces the many lives and crimes of Hannibal Lecter: his disturbing debut in Thomas Harris’s 1981 novel Red Dragon; his rise to infamy in beloved films like Michael Mann’s Manhunter and Jonathan Demme’s Academy Award–winning The Silence of the Lambs; and his unexpected comeback in the cult-hit TV series Hannibal.”  We discuss Hopkins’ iconic voice, his tumultuous early years and struggle to become a leading man. There’s his honest and interesting autobiography, his incredible range, his Wales-connection to the great Richard Burton, and his incredibly practical outlook to the acting profession. Brian, Conor, and I go long on the actors that have played Hannibal, the movie Freejack, Hopkins’ directorial efforts August and Slipstream, and that time Hopkins played a working man’s James Bond named Phil (When Eight Bells Toll). There’s love paid to Bill Forsyth, Jodie Foster, Kate Burton, and The Edge.

Welcome to The B-Side! Here we talk about movie stars! Not the movies that made them famous or kept them famous, but the ones that they made in between. And sometimes we’re lucky enough to talk to the movie stars about their B-Sides. The great Sam Rockwell joins us today to chat about his new film, Gore Verbinski's Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die, as well as B-Sides like Lawn Dogs, Safe Men, Snow Angels, and The Winning Season. We marvel at the range Rockwell has, the sheer amount of films he’s made (big and small alike), and the line reads from the Martin McDonagh comedy Seven Psychopaths. 

Welcome to The B-Side! Here we talk about movie stars! Not the movies that made them famous or kept them famous, but the ones that they made in between.  Today we celebrate Canadian greatness. We celebrate Rachel McAdams! Our B-Sides include The Lucky Ones, The Time Traveller's Wife, Passion, and Every Thing Will Be Fine. We also spend some time on The Hot Chick, and do a couple of Rachel McAdams-inspired quizzes at the top of the episode. It’s fun! We talk about her new Sam Raimi movie Send Help. We reflect on McAdams’ stratospheric rise to stardom within the first few years (and films) of her career, that time she dated Ryan Gosling, and her many accents over the years. We also shout-out the sheer amount of great filmmakers she’s worked with over the years: Wes Craven, Ira Sachs, Woody Allen, Terrence Malick, Brian De Palma, Cameron Crowe, Antoine Fuqua, Tom McCarthy, Wim Wenders, Mark Osborne (animated), Sam Raimi, and Kelly Fremon Craig. That’s incredible! There’s the limited amount of press she has done over the years (though this podcast episode is lovely, about her and her dear friend) and the fact that the hit movies she’s starred in throughout her career are mostly not made for movie theaters anymore. We speak to her comedy chops and her constant alignment with the directors she works with. She’s a pro! And finally, we show some appropriate respect to the Michael Sucsy-directed romance The Vow. The woman loves a movie wherein time is manipulated!

On a special 2025 wrap-up podcast, The Film Stage co-founder and editor-in-chief Jordan Raup is joined by managing editor and Emulsion host Nick Newman and The B-Side co-host Conor O'Donnell to discuss our favorite films of the year. We also discuss our favorite first-viewings of the year, favorite documentaries, the most overrated and most overlooked films of 2025. Before signing off, we provide a look ahead at our most-anticipated films of 2026, plus a few films coming this year we've already seen to have on your radar. On the episode, we also discuss The Film Stage's Top 50 Films of 2025: https://thefilmstage.com/the-film-stages-top-50-films-of-2025/ The Film Stage's 100 Most-Anticipated Films of 2026: https://thefilmstage.com/the-100-most-anticipated-films-of-2026-part-one And more of our year-end features: https://thefilmstage.com/tag/best-of-2025/ Thanks for listening all year long, and stay tuned for more conversations!

Welcome to The B-Side! Here we talk about movie stars! Not the movies that made them famous or kept them famous, but the ones that they made in between. Today we discuss America’s everyman and one of its most indelible movie stars: James Stewart! Our returning guest is our dear friend Mitchell Beaupre, Head of Editorial at Letterboxd and our B-Sides today include Vivacious Lady, You Gotta Stay Happy, No Highway in the Sky, The Far Country, and Fools' Parade. We debate what it is exactly that made Stewart so relatable and endearing to millions, we marvel at his WWII service and how it affected his on-screen demeanor, and we acknowledge that even though he starred in dozens of westerns most people still remember him better as George Bailey from It’s a Wonderful Life. Mitchell, Conor, and I discuss the incredible films he made with Anthony Mann, the late pictures he made with Andrew V. McLaglen, and the early starring roles in his career. We also mention how he was one of the most reliable box office stars over decades, a legendary ladies man in his younger days, and a staunch conservative throughout his life. There’s also the already-infamous trailer for the forthcoming James Stewart biopic. Wow, does it look bad! Listen below and subscribe here. Be sure to give us a follow on Bluesky at @tfsbside.bsky.social. Enjoy!

Welcome to The B-Side! Here we talk about movie directors! Not the movies that made them famous or kept them famous, but the ones that they made in between. Today we celebrate filmmaker James L. Brooks! His new movie Ella McKay is in theaters now! Our returning guest is very good friend Adam Drosin, and together we are The Brooks Brothers. Our B-Sides today are I’ll Do Anything (musical cut included), Spanglish, and Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret. We discuss Brooks’ impossibly successful career as a producer of both film and television, his keen eye for talent (his support of superb filmmaker Kelly Fremon Craig), and, of course, his reckoning with failure. There’s also the recipe for that sandwich in Spanglish, Julia Roberts’ feelings about Nick Nolte on the set of I Love Trouble (which came out the same year as I’ll Do Anything, a rough year for Nolte professionally), and that Gracie Films fanfare. We also give The Critic some deserved love. We ponder the editing choices in Brooks’ 2010 debacle How Do You Know and celebrate his acting in the masterpiece Modern Romance (directed by Albert Brooks!). Cinematographer John Seale also said in an interview that the movie he shot that he used the most film on was Spanglish!