Selena (1997)

Ryan definitely wouldn't have picked this topic if left to his own devices; he's not a big Selena listener and he's not usually fond of biopics for iconic musicians (he later had to cut a lot of ranting on the latter subject out of the episode because it veered too far away from relevancy). Sylvan, on the other hand, had an adolescent obsession with the charismatic Tejano vocalist profiled in this film. Shot less than two years after the death of its subject, Selena helped make Jennifer Lopez a star while providing a salve for mourning fans. Ryan was far from this movie's target demo, but he's been assured that Selena is a beloved institution within a certain subset of Latina women in particular and millennial women in general. Topics under discussion include Jennifer Lopez' performance, the easygoing camaraderie of the cast in general, the understated storytelling touches of writer/director Gregory Nava, the tropes found in biopics of iconic musicians (Ryan didn't trim out all of his diatribe), and Selena's commentary upon what it was like to be a performing artist at the crossroads of disparate cultures.