Show Notes
“Kurosawa, you dog.” – Eli.’ “It’s like edging, in cinema.” – Wilson “What is this, looney tunes?” – Ben Kurosawa can only make the kind of movie that leaves us both perplexed, impressed and dropping memorable reactions. Listen on as we unpack the film’s critique of the next generation of hustlers and entrepreneurs, figure out what it’s trying to say through its allegory, and finally answer if anything can beat a jet2 holiday. Links: The Kinetoscope: Cinemagoing in Japan Buy our stuff at our FREE patreon, discord server, and our socials @ www.deepcutpod.com Timestamps: 00:00 Intro 04:36 Ben and Wilson's general reactions 12:14 Eli's experience watching at Lincoln 16:31 Cloud plot summary 20:34 Compared to other Kurosawa films 25:00 Sano and the younger generation 32:41 Nihilism and cynicism 36:42 Locations and spaces 40:50 What is this movie trying to say 42:37 Takimoto 46:31 Akiko 49:04 Dorsality 51:49 Sound 52:56 Productively frustrating critique of late-stage Capitalism 56:22 Kurosawa's reversals 58:26 Odds and ends and questions
More from Deep Cut: A Film Podcast
Eli sits down with friend of the podcast Russell Goldman (013. Zack Snyder's Justice League; 058. Sundance 2023 Dispatch) to discuss the making of his upcoming feature debut, Sender, starring Britt Lower, Rhea Seehorn, Jamie Lee Curtis, Anna Baryshnikov, and David Dastmalchian. Russell tells Eli about overcoming obstacles during production, the movie’s journey at festivals, and the creative collaborators Russell worked with to bring Sender to life. Visit sendermovie.com to learn more about the film and find festival screenings near you before its Dark Sky Films release in Spring 2027! Place a Smirk order in our FREE patreon, discord server, and our socials @ www.deepcutpod.com Timestamps: 00:00 Intro 06:31 The Journey to making Sender 12:30 Assembling the team 23:04 Overcoming obstacles on set 28:39 Sender’s relationship to evolving technology 40:53 How audiences may encounter Sender 44:06 Closing
Following his interview with Mary Stephen at the 50th Hong Kong International Film Festival, Wilson has invited the storied director to return to Deep Cut to discuss her new hybrid documentary feature and her work editing the films of Éric Rohmer. As Palimpsest: Story of a Name garners praise around the international film festival circuit for its sensitive, witty exploration of her family’s history, Stephen dives into a different side of her personal history with the French auteur. Listen in as we ask Stephen’s thoughts on Rohmer’s process with actors on set, the authority Stephen had over the edit, and how parents tell–– or, don’t tell–– stories to their children. Tells us about your family history in our FREE patreon, discord server, and our socials @ www.deepcutpod.com Timestamps 00:00 Intro 03:51 Melvil Poupad: Hot or Not 05:21 Rohmer’s personal and professional life 08:42 Working as a Rohmer collaborator 11:10 A Summer's Tale preproduction 13:02 The Rohmerian Type of Woman 14:40 Blocking and editing in A Summer's Tale 21:06 Creative input as an editor 25:10 Mary’s sense of time 27:52 An Autumn’s Tale 35:55 The themes of Palimpsest 38:19 The Ending of Palimpsest 45:29 Mary's Relationship with her father 51:11 Mary as a director 54:34 Advice for younger filmmakers and personal deep cut
Fall in love with three beautiful podcast hosts; fumble the bag with all three. To prepare for our upcoming interview with director Mary Stephen, we study her work editing Éric Rohmer’s A Summer’s Tale. Almost five years following our initial series on the French auteur, have our thoughts changed on his calm naturalism? We compare his work to more recent Deep Cut director Hong Sang-soo, discuss the structure of his scenes, and wonder about how Stephen helped sculpt time in this film. Most importantly: do we really find that pouty French twink hot? Spend your summer break in our FREE patreon, discord server, and our socials @ www.deepcutpod.com Timestamps: 00:00:00 Intro 00:06:00 A Summer Tale context 00:10:38 General reactions 00:20:02 Film structure and opening 00:24:47 Gaspard’s conundrum 00:30:48 Margot 00:36:08 What is the film trying to say? 00:38:15 Naturalism and conversations 00:44:05 The passage of time 00:46:15 The audience’s trust 00:50:17 Hong v Rohmer, closing tangents
Eli flies in from his foray into his favorite film fest, the 64th installation of the New York Film Festival. It’s a year full of delicate, considerate, humanistic films: Sandra Wollner’s Everytime, Ira Sachs’ The Man I Love, Jordan Firstman’s Club Kid, and Mike Leigh’s Tender Loving Care. Ben and Wilson share their thoughts on two more films in the lineup, Hong Sang-soo’s The Day She Returns, and William Greaves’ Once Upon a Time in Harlem. Also, just for the heck of it, hear what Wilson thinks about Kore-eda Hirokazu’s latest, Look Back. Join the club, kid: find our FREE patreon, discord server, and our socials @ www.deepcutpod.com Keep walking in our FREE patreon, discord server, and our socials @ www.deepcutpod.com Timestamps: 00:00 Intro 06:40 Everytime (2026) dir. Sandra Wollner 13:05 The Man I Love (2026) dir. Ira Sachs 23:17 Club Kid (2026) dir. Jordan Firstman 27:31 Tender Loving Care (2026) dir. Mike Leigh 32:37 For The Moon (2026) dir. Eric Baudelaire 38:44 The Day She Returns (2026) dir. Hong Sang-soo 44:07 Once Upon a Time in Harlem (2026) dir. William Greaves, David Greaves 47:25 Look Back (2026) dir. Hirokazu Kore-eda 50:59: Upcoming festival coverage
Before Paul Verhoeven was Hollywood’s pervert-auteur of choice, he was making massive hits in Dutch cinema like this episode’s focus, Katie Tippel. Ben’s main question for this episode: what is Paul Verhoeven’s worldview? To answer, the Deep Cut trio explores the economic and sexual exploitation of Tippel’s world, the surprisingly modern-feeling period filmmaking, and lots of nudity. Links: Adam Nayman on Katie Tippel Ben’s review of Mahjong Jump rope double dutch style in our FREE patreon, discord server, and our socials @ www.deepcutpod.com Timestamps: 00:00:00 Intro 00:03:51 Summary, context, and general reactions 00:19:08 Verhoeven's worldview 00:33:43 Prostitution and sexuality 00:48:47 Historical films and the feeling of modernity 01:04:00 Exploitation?