Blockbusters and Birdwalks
At Blockbusters and Birdwalks, you’ll listen to reviews and conversations about all kinds of movies, from Academy Award winners to exploitation masterpieces with a mix of commercial hits and obscure favorites thrown in for good measure. The point is recognizing that movies present our culture with the building blocks of social memory, enabling each of us to enjoy ourselves because movies are fun.
Blockbusters and Birdwalks
"CODA" (2021), a conversation
August 21, 2023
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Garrett Chaffin-Quiray
Garrett Chaffin-Quiray and Ed Rosa mourn the decline of theatrical movie-going and celebrate sentimental entertainment.
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Referenced media:
- “Belfast” (Kenneth Branagh, 2021)
- “Don’t Look Up” (Adam McKay, 2021)
- “Drive My Car” (Ryusuke Hamaguchi, 2021)
- “Dune: Part One” (Denis Villeneuve, 2021)
- “King Richard” (Reinaldo Marcus Green, 2021)
- “Licorice Pizza” (Paul Thomas Anderson, 2021)
- “Nightmare Alley” (Guillermo del Toro, 2021)
- “Power of the Dog” (Jane Campion, 2021)
- “West Side Story” (Steven Spielberg, 2021)
- “Marty” (Delbert Mann, 1955)
- “Our Gang” (also known as “The Little Rascals”) (Hal Roach, 1922-1944)
- “Barbie” (Greta Gerwig, 2023)
- “Oppenheimer” (Christopher Nolan, 2023)
- “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One” (Christopher McQuarrie, 2023)
- “Top Gun: Maverick” (Joseph Kosinski, 2022)
Audio quotation:
- “CODA” (Sian Heder, 2021)
- “Polybius Cypher” (written by John Williams, and performed by the San Francisco Symphony, from “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” (James Mangold, 2023))
- “Closer to Fine” (written by Amy Ray and Emily Saliers, and performed by Brandi Carlile and Catherine Carlile from “Barbie” (Greta Gerwig, 2023))