Oscar Poker Podcast

Jeff Wells and Sasha Stone for a quickie chat about recent events. What happens when someone’s career ends overnight after a hit piece in a Hollywood trade? Tune in to find out. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heplus.substack.comThe free version of the first half of Misfits #6 is also at www.hollywood-elsewhere.com.

During the pod I mentioned the likelihood or advisability of John Cena wearing a “sock” during his nude moment at the Oscars.  Nobody bit (one or two of my colleagues vaguely shuddered) so the subject fell by the wayside.  But the Hollywood Reporter has done the reporting.  [See below link.]Just like my having also mentioned the obvious about the advisability of Lily Gladstone, who has grown significantly since filming of KOTFM in ‘21, trying Ozempic route going forward.  Others have obviously done this but only a bad person (and I mean someone deserving of condemnation) would mention it. Lily will never be Emma Stone, but elemental logic tells us she’d be more employable if she could at least return to her KOTFM weight.   Do you think Amy Schumer could have played the lead in “Trainwreck” at her current proportions?  Directors and agents and casting directors don’t tiptoe around this topic (or dodge it).  Tom Hanks didn’t dodge it.  Everyone understands that Brendan Fraser lost his star luminosity when he got fat and lost much of his hair.   Just saying. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

Greetings to HE fans and Oscar Poker loyalists (posted on Sunday, 2.25):Podcast-wise longtime HE partner & soulmate Sasha Stone and I have decided to politely and graciously part company, at least for the time being. HE’s “The Misfits” is the new deal — a Zoom video group discussion thing as opposed to the two-person audio chat that “Oscar Poker” was— it’s now three or four revolving participants per weekly episode, discussing the usual ebb and flow, twists and turns, etc. HE founder and relentless author Jeffrey Wells is, as you might expect, a locked-in, never-say-die fixture. Today’s trio was Glenn Kenny, author of the forthcoming “The World Is Yours: The Story of Scarface”, “Exit Interview” author Kristi Coulter, and Manhattan & East Hampton movie hound, comedy writer and co-host of “Talking Pictures” co-host Bill McCuddy.Others will join in as things evolve. We’re just playing it by ear for the time being. Perhaps Jeff Sneider and Eddie Ginley will jump in next week or down the road. The door is open. I would love it if I could persuade Sasha to drop in from time to time, but that’s up to her, of course. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heplus.substack.comIs Taylor Swift a high-maintenance handful or not?  Is anyone paying any attention to that slanderous Nikki Finke /James Mangold 15 Year-0ld bullshit about Jeff?  How doomed is Joe Biden, and is there any way out of the coming Binary From Hell?  Is the fix really and truly in?  And why isn’t Sasha interested in talking about “The Seven Year Itch”? They’…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heplus.substack.com[#image: /photos/54cc039b0a5930502f5f6ec7]|||View more images of Kate Winslet from the pages of Vanity Fair. Above, photograph by Annie Leibovitz.|||Without an agenda or any sense of urgency, Sasha and Jeff acknowledge that there’s nothing to discuss about the Oscars other than the Best Actress situation (i.e., Emma Stone vs. Lily Gladstone) and that no…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heplus.substack.comYou know something’s up (or down) when your conversational energy keeps sputtering. One thing’s for sure and it’s this: things have changed big-time since 2009. Tech community-wise. Attractive movie star-wise. Culturally, politically, every which way.007:00 - He’s Just Not That Into You, movies they don’t make anymore. 009:00 - History of the internet…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heplus.substack.comWhat happened to poor Greta Gerwig?  How did Sterling K. Brown and Colman Domingo slip into their respective elite nominee rosters?  What happened to poor Alexander Payne?  What is the deal with everyone doing backflips over “Anatomy of a Fall,” which is a relatively decent courtroom film, but come on…what IS this?Well, mostly Sasha’s with Jeff piping i…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heplus.substack.comThe usual political and cultural factors in Oscar balloting are evaluated by the brilliant Sasha Stone, who knows Oscar statistics like few others.  Plus, there is the matter of  Eric Roth’s original “Killers of the Flower Moon” script, which was written seven years ago.  Plus the coming horror of the Presidential election.  Sasha gets angry at Jeff for…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heplus.substack.comDoes Anyone Remember Diane English’s “The Women”?The ensemble farce about wealthy, ambitious women was released in 2008 (i.e., over 15 years ago), and truly represents a world that no longer exists. Sasha explains how it all changed while Jeff (who watched this remake of George Cukor’s 1939 original last night) patiently takes it all in.Will Emma Stone…

Developing Award Trends, Forecasts (NSFC, Golden Globes)National Society of Film Critics Calls. The N.Y. Times vs. Taylor Swift. I’m a Cannibal, You’re a Cannibal. Random Golden Globe Predictions. What is life without a little suspense?NY Times story on TaylorTaylor Swift playing All Too WellThe Beatles’ I Want to Hold Your HandPast Lives trailer:Society of the Snow trailer: This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

Paul Schrader on the witness stand — should he give a damn about cultural appropriation? And should he man up about his “Flower Moon” diss? Plus what’s up with the curious but apparently undeniable rejection of “Maestro” on the message boards? And will the advancing Macedonian army of Paul Giamatti take the city of Alexandria? And is there a stronger consensus out there for any contender other than “Oppenheimer”?Subjects covered:Paul Schrader’s reluctance to direct a script he wrote about three black brothers.Paul Schrader’s comments on Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon. What happened with Maestro?Radical Chic by Tom WolfeWhat would David Carr’s fate be now?2022 Oscar year and why the same patterns play out.Oppenheimer as the frontrunner - can it win? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

Even though Oscar Poker had been moribund for two weekends / sidelined by tech issues and whatnot, it was time to record again, and so  Jeff and Sasha went to own on a rainy Sunday afternoon and went to tow. All hail Adam Carolla’s spot-on analysis about sports vs. award season and politics.Points hit:How the Oscars lost their brand.Adam Corolla and Rob Schneider on the Oscars.Leave the World Behind - a movie produced by the Obamas and whether or not that creatively healthy.Having freedom of mind as opposed to being “in the bubble.”Complimenting Jeff for not being an Oscar whore.Jeff’s ongoing annoyance with Lily Gladstone and Barry Keoghan.The Best Picture standouts, according to Jeff — Poor Things, Maestro, The HoldoversThe Boys in the Boat is an “old-fashioned” movie.The return of “traditionalism” with Barbenheimer.The 4K Titanic Blu-ray is great.Was Joan Baez molested? What is she trying to say?Therapy is ruining everything.How erasing boundaries led to helicotper parenting in the 90s, which led to “safetyism.”Why is Todd Haynes’ May December so successful with critics? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heplus.substack.comThe first 30 minutes are free, the rest is behind the paywall. All proceeds go to keeping Hollywood-Elsewhere afloat.Jeff and Sasha actually converse within the same time zone! (Sasha is in Lakewood, Ohio — a flush lakeside suburb of Cleveland — while Jeff is in the equally flush Wilton.) The most staggering moment comes when Sasha predicts that “Barb…

It’s a podcast on the fly, with Jeff on his phone and Sasha in a hotel room in Nebraska. —Jeff continues to grapple with Lily Gladstone and her frontrunner status.—Was Poor Things too much sex that it obliterates any deeper meaning? How does it compare to Barbie? —Is the “woke” thing forever? Is it our new normal? —The Holdovers is an unusual film in its depiction of a strong male role model for wayward boys. —The reactions to the Color Purple, Jeff finally will be seeing American Fiction. —The Oscars don’t decide quality. They never have.—Jeff on Napoleon and why didn’t they case someone short?No timecode this week. Please think about becoming a paying subscriber, then you will get all episodes for the month. This is a free episode. Here’s the Barbie scene referenced:/end This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heplus.substack.comThis podcast will offer a free excerpt for the first 30 minutes. The rest is behind the paywall.Jeff and Sasha again settle into the reality of things.  Alas, the topics aren’t coming to mind, but please be patient.  Most of our chat is paywalled, but you know how that goes.  We definitely discussed Best Picture and Best Supporting Actor contender, and…

Jeff and Sasha recap some of his 11.3 “Maestro” screening, a turn-on event, which also included the Incredible Weeping Guy plus the (hopefully temporary) loss of his elephant-hide wallet. Plus “Anatomy of a Fall”, Best Supporting Actress contenders, a fight with an old friend…We chatter a bit about politics, then move on to whether or not the identity-focused politics of Hollywood has ruined storytelling. 0:00:00 - Jeff’s fight with his childhood friend over politics. 0:13:00 - Politics stuff — Israel/Hamas briefly.0:14:00 - Jeff’s cat meows. 016:00 - Joe Biden and Dean Phillips0:18:00 - Trump Derangement Syndrome0:26:18 - Jeff on Maestro0:28:00 - A Star is Born0:36:00 - Nyad0:39:00 - Grading on a curve0:40:00 - Jeff’s friend openly weeping during Maestro0:43:00 - Why storytelling matters0:44:00 - The Holdovers - Alexander Payne’s film about kids left over at boarding school over Christmas0:48:00 - The Taste of Things - a French film starring Juliette Binoche.0:48:47 - Jeff’s friend “gasping and weeping” - what makes us cry in movies. 0:56:20 - May December - Todd Haynes’ film starring Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore1:00 - Anatomy of a Fall - a French movie starring Sandra Huller about whether or not she murdered her husband. 1:20 - Most searched sex positions in New York Post1:21 - Sasha’s road trip to Ohio for Thanksgiving.1:22 - Best Actress is heating up.1:30 - Sex in Anatomy of a Fall?1:33 - Supporting Actress - Da’Vine Joy Randolph in The Holdovers, Penelope Cruz for Ferarri, etc. 1:33 - Outro This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit heplus.substack.comThis is our first premium episode. We plan to offer one or two free episodes and the rest behind a paywall. This will have a free version and a paid version. Matthew Perry, “Bad News Bears”, “The Killers” absent from AMC and Cinemark theatres, Dean Phillips, “Maestro” screenings, Sasha admits Trump might be a sociopath but still thinks the Democrats ar…

“Jeff and Sasha delve into two new movies — “Fair Play” on Netflix, a story about a financial realm power couple whose relationship falls apart when the woman is promoted over the dude, and “The Burial,” a story about a scrappy lawyer taking on a powerful corporation. We also talk about “Killers of the Flower Moon” hitting theaters and the reaction therein.Then we delve into Israel, Hamas, Biden, Trump, and all manner of political chaos…we scream at each other as we always do when these subjects come up. "WARNING: Lots of F-bombs throughout.000:00 - Intro/Paywall008:56 - The Burial012:56 - Fair Play025:00 - Killers of the Flower Moon043:00 - Hays Code/Woke048:00 - Dave Chappelle and Gaza/Hamas100:00 - Long debate about politics, TrumpTrailer for the Burial with Jamie Foxx and Tommy Lee Jones:Trailer for Fair Play:Clip from Killers of the Flower Moon:Link//End This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

Jeff and Sasha express delirious love for David Fincher’s “The Killer”, Jeff enthuses about Penelope Cruz’s supporting performance in “Ferrari” and then they go down the list of supposed (or fanciful) Oscar contenders according to Gold Derby “experts.”  The lack of serious enthusiasm so far for “The Holdovers’” Paul Giamatti, an obvious Best Actor contender is appalling.To add this podcast to your feed — click this link. // This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

Shaken and stirred  by Hamas vs. Israel and disagreeing about the regional history, Jeff and Sasha contemplate David Fincher’s “The Killer,” Spike Lee’s bizarre praising of Lily Gladstone, Scorsese’s dull moralizing and what critics are allowed to say(and are not allowed to stay) about Andrew Haigh’s ”All Of Us Strangers.”  Hint:  If you’re not into the sex scenes, you’re a total homophobe.00-25:07 — Politics, Israel, Afghanistan, etc.25:07 — Killers of the Flower Moon and Spike Lee’s opinion about Lily Gladstone winning Best Actress.28:38 —Spike Lee and Jeff’s feelings on Oppenheimer and dropping the A-bomb.37:36 — All of Strangers.48:00 — Death Trap and gay sex.1:00:04 — David Fincher’s The Killer1:00:14 — Killers of the Flower Moon This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

Jeff and Sasha considered many topics earlier today (i.e., Sunday, 10.1) including the first big NYFF viewings of Yorgos Lanthimos’s “Poor Things” (which contains, by the way, a really tasty dance sequence).  How will this imaginative, brazenly sexual Frankenstein-like film be received by the New Academy Kidz (i.e., the identity-above-quality crowd) and how will it settle in with older traditional liberals?  Toward the end we talked about the now permanently banned “George”, and why he finally got the HE axe.01:00 — Strike/AI04:00 —Superhero movies/box office pre-COVID05:00 —Weakening celebrity cred09:52 —Barbie14:40 — Snow White20:00 — Does “woke” ruin movies? 21:00 — Does opposition to “woke” make people uncomfortable?24:00 —The cocoon of the left / what’s wrong with being a liberal?28:00 —Trans stuff31:00 —Movies at the theater back in the 1960s40:00 — The shrinking Oscar race44:00 — Poor Things49:00 —Juliette Binoche lead or supporting54:00—If Barbie was Poor Things55:00—Banning George from the comments60:05—Politics stuff70:00—Online media overtaking television70:01—Sideways couldn’t be made today just because of the launch of the iphone and social media, and what a great movie it is. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

Jeff and Sasha lament the Biden 2024 campaign situation, the suppression of Woody’s ‘Coup de  Chance,”  discuss Maher+ Carville, rate the leading Best Actor & Best Actress contenders, etc.Scott Feinberg’s predictions here.06:46 - Bill Maher, James Carville10:40 - Woody Allen’s Coup de Chance17:54 - How to stop caring what other people think18:49 - Should Biden drop out?30:00 - The WGA Strike ends35:00 - Best Actor Throwdown41:00 - Paul Giamatti and Sideways60:00 - Leonardo DiCaprio, Killers of the Flower Moon61:01 - Best Actress65:00 - Martin Scorsese, Killers of the Flower Moon70:00 - Supporting Categories76:00 - Best Picture80:00 - Best Director84:00 -Annette Bening, Nyad89:00 - MaestroDave Portnoy and the Washington Post:Working Class Hero live: This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

Post-Toronto Oscar Poker: “American Fiction”, Lauren Boebert, Russell Brand, Sexual Behavior Then & Now, The Top Five Best Picture Contenders + the Divine Transportation of “The Pot-au-Feu.”Time code: American Fiction, TIFF: 2:44Drew Barrymore: 12:42Lauren Boebert: 18:26TIFF People’s Choice Award: 34:12Russell Brand + Me Too: 35:37Kristi Noem/Corey Lewandowski affair + Biden and Harris 50:36Best Picture + Pot Au Feu” one hour: 3 minsKillers of the Flower Moon: one hour: 10 minsMississippi Burning: one hour: 12 minsThe Parallax View: one hour: 15 minsJFK and Anti-government/paranoid movies One hour: 23 minsMississippi Burning:Parallax View scene:Boebert://end This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

Jeff and Sasha face the music…uhm, the issues of the moment. Bradley Cooper’s Leonard Bernstein schnozz. Rachel Zegler’s woke Snow White flick. The sad finances behind the “Blind Side” situation. Telluride forecastings.Some useful videos…. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

On a fine Sunday afternoon, Jeff and Sasha hopped around from topic to topic like Brer Rabbit —- hippity-hop, hippity-hop. It’s a little early to call any Oscars, but (a) white males will once again face an uphill challenge and (b) how does Greta Gerwig not land a Best Director Oscar next year? Plus a short riff on “Jules,” the white-skinned, black-eyed alien who befriends Ben Kingsley while sharing a move from David Cronenberg’s “Scanners.”Jules trailer:From Box Office Mojo: This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

No topics du jour this time. Instead Jeff and Sasha let their hair down and share abbreviated versions of their life stories and career histories. Who they are, what they’ve been through, how they got to this point, etc.Jeff writes for Hollywood-elsewhere.com, and Sasha writes for awardsdaily.com (and Substack). Jeff’s photos:Sasha’s photos: This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

Monday’s Sasha-and-Jeff chat was all over the map. Recalling the late William Friedkin, of course, and “The Exorcist” in particular. The “Barbie” Oscar prognosis. The annual competition for woke identity politics awards, formerly known as the Oscars.Jeff’s cat interjects now and again. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

Jeff checks in from Canada. Will Barbie’s blow-out box office launch it into the Best Picture race? And if so, how many Oscar nominations are we talking about? With a rumination on happiness for women and how Isabella Rossellini has found it by running a farm in the Hamptons. We talk film festivals and the landscape of the awards race.From Box Office Mojo: This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

Jeff and Sasha discuss (and argue about to some extent) the glorious monetary success of the misandrist “Barbie” as well as the successful, much-respected “Oppenheimer.” Plus an assessment of the sudden difficulty faced by the early fall festivals due to the SAG/AFTRA and WGA strikes.Annette Bening with Diane Nyad and Jodie Foster. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

Sasha shares her impressions of a recent “Oppenheimer” screening (which included with a pair of selfish 20something women who were texting all through it). Jeff, who won’t see “Oppie” until Thursday evening, asks questions about this and that aspect while quoting from other reviews. Plus a little “Barbie” action. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

Jeff and Sasha examine the surprising surge of “Sound of Freedom,” the apparent absence of a horrific nuclear climax in “Oppenheimer,” that WaPo piece about lost younger men and the general wokester assault upon masculinity. . This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

Jeff and Sasha barely touched upon the wonderful world of cinema, save for reminding each other that “Mission Impossible 7” opens on Tuesday, and that a full-blast trailer for Ridley Scott’s “Napoleon” will be attached to the feature. Topics were mostly of social-cultural nature, and that’s fine. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

“Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” shortfall, but they didn’t have anything novel or exciting to add to the conversation.  So they kicked around the new Rock Hudson doc (“All That Heaven Allowed,” MAX) and then pondered some Telluride ’23 possibilities and recalled the assassination of “Empire of Light”….aagghh, I don’t know.  It all just kind of mashed and merged together after a while.’Link to Michael’s Telluride siteHappy 4th. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

No matter what the topic, Jeff and Sasha are reminded that there isn’t a single aspect of Hollywood diversion these days that hasn’t been modified, influenced, or compromised by the urge to educate and enlighten by way of progressive guilt-tripping.  Hollywood, in short, has totally torpedoed the classic idea of entertainment and Average Joes are sick of the preaching.Talking Indie 5, Drive-Away Dolls, rare journalism of Michael Cieply at Deadline.Show notes:Link to Michael Cieply story.Critical Drinker’s video:Drive-Away Dolls trailer: This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

Average Joes & Janes appear to be pushing back against non-binary fanaticism in the form of “The Flash” and “The Elemental”, both of which have decisively tanked.  There’s also an allegedly fair-minded doc called “No Way Back: The Reality of Gender-Affirming Care” that was dumped by AMC after strong wokester pressure to do so.  Plus there’s the mixed matter of Jennifer Lawrence’s “No Hard Feelings,” which opens on Friday. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

Jeff and Sasha hopped all around this time — Woody Allen’s “Coup de Chance”, “Air”, the still unexplained “French Connection” censorship thing, Kate Hepburn and Arnold Schwarzenegger docs, etc.. They recorded a few hours before the announcement of the motorcycle death of Treat Williams…condolences. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

What will Best Picture 2024 look like? We get into it. Talking Oppenheimer, Killers of the Flower Moon, The Killer, Barbie…Jeff and Sasha recorded too early to discuss the outrageous ”French Connection” censorship matter — that’ll be for next time. For now the topic is the likeliest 2924 Best Picture contenders & why identity is all that matters today. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

“Jeff and Sasha talk about Pauline Kael’s “problematic comments” on Othello, whether actors must be gay to play gay roles, and how would Carnal Knowledge play today?”The Pauline Kael passage in question:Olivier is the most physical Othello imaginable. As a lord, this Othello is a little vulgar—too ingratiating, a boaster, an arrogant man. Reduced to barbarism, he shows us a maimed African prince inside the warrior-hero, Iago’s irrationality has stripped him bare to a different kind of beauty. We are sorry to see it, and we are not sorry, either. To our eyes, the African prince is more beautiful in his isolation than the fancy courtier in his reflected white glory.Part of the pleasure of the performance is, of course, the sheer feat of Olivier’s transforming himself into a Negro; yet it is not wasted effort, not mere exhibitionism or actor’s vanity, for what Negro actor at this stage in the world’s history could dare bring to the role the effrontery that Olivier does, and which Negro actor could give it this reading? I saw Paul Robeson and he was not black as Olivier is; Finlay can hate Olivier in a way Jose Ferrer did not dare—indeed did not have the provocation—to hate Robeson. Possibly Negro actors need to sharpen themselves on white roles before they can play a Negro. It is not enough to be: for great drama, it is the awareness that is everything.Full review This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

Jeff and Sasha spend more time than usual due to Jeff’s need to do his laundry. The first part is slightly nosier than the second part. Topics covered: Louise Malle’s “Damage” and its sexuality, the new “Dead Ringers” and “Killers of the Flower Moon” toward the end. And of course, why “Are You There God, It’s Me Margaret” bombed. PROFANITY warning, F-bombs, etc. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

Jeff and Sasha dig into three filmed dramas with strong female leads — one excellent and two that are fairly deplorable.  The goodie is “Full Time,” a currently-streaming French drama about a divorced mother of two struggling to stay afloat.  Baddie #1 is “Obsession” (Netflix), a multi-part, woke-minded adaptation of Josephine Hart’s “Damage” but mainly a remake of Louis Malle’s same-titled 1992 film.  Baddie #2 is “Fatal Attraction” (Paramount +), a limited series remake of the 1987 Adrian Lyne film.  “Full Time” is honest and real —the baddies are basically about woke revisionism in which the female leads are no longer femme fatales but troubled women who are misunderstood. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

Jeff and Sasha talked just to talk. Despite having nothing burning in their minds they wound up chatting for nearly an hour about…well, interesting stuff. Really. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

Consumed by exhaustion and depression over the deranged and grotesque Oscar triumph of “Everything Everywhere All Once,” Jeff and Sasha contemplate the end of the Hollywood world they’ve known for decades…a world they lived on and off and worshipped like evangelicals since they were teenagers. And now it’s wokey-woke time, and the Monsters Are Feasting on Maple Street. In Memoriam segment: This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

Jeff and Sasha talk about whether Everything, Everywhere All At Once and Bonnie and Clyde can be compared, along with the state of Hollywood and the awards race, and various issues in culture. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

Jeff and Sasha assess the state of the world (and perhaps even the universe) in the wake of the glorious BAFTA Awards, which celebrated “All Quiet on the Western Front” and all but blanked “Everything Everywhere All At Once.”  Sasha basically ran the table and Jeff listened, but it was all to the good. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

As if into a swimming pool, Jeff and Sasha slip into three topics of immediate interest — the death of Racquel Welch, reflections upon “Deliverance” and “The Banshees of Inisherin”, and a letter of complaint sent to the N.Y. Times about alleged “dangerous inaccuracies” in its reporting about trans issues.  Our understanding is that the NY Times is totally in the woke progressive camp on pretty much all fronts, and that includes trans issues.  What these woke bullies seem to saying to the Times is “don’t report fairly and dispassionately on trans issues…that’s not good enough and that’s not what we want…you need to JOIN THE TEAM!” This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

Hours after the Armie Hammer Air Mail story broker, Jeff and Sasha jumped right into it.  They considered all the metaphors and woke ramifications.  They also contemplated the Pamela Anderson doc (Netflix), which moved Sasha to tears, as well as Anderson herself (and, in Jeff's view, her appalling taste in husbands).  Also some more Oscar stuff. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe

Two days ago (1.21) Sasha Stone and I discussed Tuesday morning's (1.24) announcement of the '23 Oscar nominations, and the obvious fact that Top Gun: Maverick, which will certainly be among the chosen few, is the only prospective nominee that feels truly commanding. Authoritatively, I mean."Despite the familiarity and the formulaic strategy, TG:M is the only finalist that feels home-runnish...not to mention the achievement of having joined forces with Avatar: The Way of Avatar to save and even restore a classic, life-giving Hollywood dynamic (thrills, popcorn, warm seats) to exhibition itself...there's no ignoring the metaphor." This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit heplus.substack.com/subscribe