エピソード

  • "Ready Or Not 2," "They Will Kill You," And The Decline Of Social Satire Horror
    2026/04/02
    This week we’re eating the rich with two new horror films that share devilishly similar premises: Ready Or Not 2: Here I Come and They Will Kill You both feature women fighting back against satanic cults run by rich elites in order to protect an estranged younger sister, written with wry humor aimed at the ultra-wealthy. Neither film did particularly well critically or at the box office, but they raise a fascinating question for Critical Darlings: Has the Trump-era social satire horror film finally run out of steam? In this episode, Richard and Alison trace this specific strain of metaphor-driven social horror, deconstruct it, and try to distinguish it from socially aware classics like Rosemary’s Baby. From racial allegories like Get Out, the trauma-informed The Babadook, class satires like The Menu, and alternate-reality anthology TV like Black Mirror, we ask why the recent crop of these types of movies are starting to feel so creaky, while less directly metaphorical films like Weapons feel more fresh. Next week, we’re trading our cult robes for overalls as we hop on a Launch Star and blast off with our best friends Mario, Luigi, and of course Birdo, to orbit The Super Mario Galaxy Movie.' Read and subscribe to Richard's newsletter at ⁠Premiere Party,⁠ and read Alison at ⁠Vulture. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 時間 13 分
  • Project Hail Mary And Lessons For Family Blockbusters
    2026/03/26
    Beam me up…Rocky!? Critical Darlings is back, from outer space, in our new feed, talking about the first blockbuster of the year. Project Hail Mary, directed by Phil Lord and Chris Miller for Amazon, is a family-friendly science fiction film about Ryan Gosling on a risky space mission with a cute alien pal. The movie is a critical and commercial success and feels livelier than so many would-be blockbusters. But what is it about Hail Mary that works where last year’s Gosling-led The Fall Guy failed? Is this the return of the ’80s-era cute puppet friend movie? Is Gosling the hottest middle school teacher ever?Alison and Richard also get into the film itself, with sidebars on Gosling and Lord and Miller’s filmographies, and dig into Amazon’s upcoming film slate, James Bond, and whether the studio could become a significant player in a post-Paramount-merger landscape. Finally, we check in on the vibes around The Mandalorian and Grogu and Alison’s newest crush, Rotta the Hutt. Read and subscribe to Richard's newsletter at Premiere Party, and read Alison at Vulture.
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    1 時間 14 分
  • The 2026 Oscars Ceremony with Griffin Newman
    2026/03/17
    It’s Critical Darlings’ biggest morning! After a marathon season, we react to this year’s Academy Awards: the winners, losers, presenters, performances, and awkward play-offs. One Battle After Another and Sinners nearly split the ballot with One Battle and Paul Thomas Anderson taking the biggest prizes in Best Director and Best Picture, while Sinners took home Best Actor, Score, Adapted Screenplay, and Cinematography. But for as many questions as the ceremony answered, it raised more: Do Sinners and Amy Madigan’s wins signal a shift in how the Academy sees horror? What exactly is the Best Casting Oscar tracking? Are we now doomed to see Timmy eat a raw elk in an Iñárritu film? As part of this special episode, we also check in with Critical Darlings fashion correspondent Ben “The Other Ben” Hosley on this year's Oscars fashion, review the best popcorn buckets of the year with Vulture’s Rebecca Alter, and reveal the future of Critical Darlings. Subscribe to Richard's newsletter, ⁠Premiere Party,⁠ and read Alison's work at ⁠Vulture. ⁠Follow Critical Darlings on Instagram⁠⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 時間 53 分
  • Critical Darlings Trailer
    2026/03/16
    Welcome to Critical Darlings, where critics Richard Lawson and Alison Willmore cover the latest film driving the conversation—from big summer blockbusters to festival favorites, buzzy streamers, and major awards contenders. New episodes every Thursday. Produced by Benjamin Frisch Subscribe to Richard's newsletter, ⁠⁠Premiere Party,⁠⁠ and read Alison's work ⁠⁠at Vulture.⁠⁠ Follow @blankcheckpod on ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠, ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠, ⁠⁠Threads⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    2 分
  • One Battle After Another And Oscar Predictions with David Sims
    2026/03/12
    What time is it? It’s time to study the revolutionary texts with David “Rocketman” Sims! On our last episode before The Oscars, we’re talking about One Battle After Another, Paul Thomas Anderson’s epic about parental legacy, revolutionary identity, and a dad trying to charge his Goddamn phone. But first we reflect on the influx of last-minute Oscar narratives, before getting into One Battle After Another’s plot and politics, sidebar on Leonardo DiCaprio’s legacy at the Oscars, and finally give our official Critical Darlings Oscar Predictions for Sunday’s ceremony. Read more about Richard’s predictions at ⁠Premiere Party,⁠ See you on the other side! Subscribe to Richard's newsletter, ⁠Premiere Party,⁠ and read Alison's work at ⁠Vulture. ⁠Follow Critical Darlings on Instagram⁠⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 時間 29 分
  • Sinners And The Academy’s Growing Genre Acceptance with Sam Sanders
    2026/03/05
    This week we’re joined by Sam Sanders of The Sam Sanders Show to discuss Sinners, the most nominated film in Academy Awards history. With sixteen nominations across directing, writing, music, and acting categories, Sinners is a somewhat surprising record breaker, as genre films, especially films with horror elements, are rarely awarded by The Academy. On this episode we discuss the film, why it was able to break through, if Sinners counts as a genre film; and if so, what genre it represents. We also get into what effect the Warner Bros. Paramount merger might have on the Oscars, the film’s blunt sexuality, Michael B. Jordan’s double act, and what to make of the film's coda. Finally, Sam makes an impassioned case for Sung Song Blue and Kate Hudson’s nominated performance. Check out Sam’s interviews with Kate Hudson, as well as some of the cast and crew of Sinners on ⁠The Sam Sanders Show. Subscribe to Richard's newsletter, ⁠Premiere Party,⁠ and read Alison's work at ⁠Vulture. ⁠Follow Critical Darlings on Instagram⁠⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 時間 28 分
  • Sentimental Value and Belated Oscar Breakthroughs with Joe Reid
    2026/02/26
    This week we’re in hygge mode, uncovering traumas in our generational home with the host of This Had Oscar Buzz, Joe Reid! One of the breakout Oscar films of the year is Joachim Trier’s Sentimental Value, a warm, realist Norwegian film about a difficult but brilliant director (Stellan Skarsgard), his two daughters (Renate Reinsve and Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas), and an American actress cast in the auteur’s new film (Elle Fanning). All four performances earned Oscar nominations, along with nominations for Best Picture, Best International Feature, Best Film Editing, and Best Original Screenplay. Sentimental Value also highlights a recurring phenomenon in Hollywood, wherein the Academy will pass over a director’s breakout film but shower the follow-up with nominations. In Trier’s case, his previous film The Worst Person in the World received nominations for Best International Film and Original Screenplay but, in our opinion, deserved many more. We try to break down how and why this happens, whether films about filmmaking have an innate appeal to Oscar voters, how Fanning’s star power helps bridge the international gap for voters, and the film itself, including its deft intermingling of artistic expression and sublimated generational trauma. With Joe's guidance, we also check in on some of the Oscar-buzziest films of the year that didn't pan out, check in on the state of the acting category race and some potential upsets, and celebrate The Secret Agent's breakout star Tânia Maria and her new role as Burger King spokeswoman. Subscribe to Richard's newsletter, ⁠Premiere Party,⁠ and read Alison's work ⁠at Vulture. ⁠Follow Critical Darlings on Instagram⁠⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 時間 18 分
  • The Secret Agent And The Increasingly International Academy
    2026/02/12
    Viva Brazil! Today we discuss Best Picture nominee The Secret Agent, the simmering, colorful Brazilian thriller about a man on the run, starring the dreamy Wagner Moura and directed by Kleber Mendonça Filho. The story, about retaining personal and political memory under authoritarianism, has proven resonant with an international audience and awards bodies, garnering three additional Oscar nominations for Best International Feature, Best Casting, and Best Actor for Moura. On this episode, we discuss The Secret Agent itself, how it fits into and subverts the tropes of international films at the Oscars, the Eurovision-like process for international nominations, check in on the Berlin Film Festival, and do a very special Il Postino corner. Subscribe to Richard's newsletter, ⁠Premiere Party,⁠ and read Alison's work at ⁠Vulture. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 時間 33 分