Wilder and Merser are late to join the admirers of the extraordinary film Hamnet, but only because Merser wasn’t sure she wanted to take the emotional journey.

“I can’t believe I almost missed this incredibly special film. It may be one of the best movies I’ve ever seen, for so many reasons.”

In this episode of Screen Thoughts, Wilder and Merser dive deeply into a film layered with grief, love, marriage, art, motherhood, memory, and the mysterious way great loss becomes great creation. When a film is this rich, there are endless layers to examine, and not one emotional stone goes unturned in this remarkable conversation.

You will be glad you experienced Hamnet through the eyes of two women who do not let a single moment pass unappreciated.

Remarkably Bright Creatures is one of the quietest films I’ve seen in years, and maybe one of the most powerful because of it. Starring Sally Field and Lewis Pullman, the film unfolds slowly, patiently, almost tenderly, as it explores grief, loneliness, friendship, aging, and the strange ways human beings find each other again after heartbreak. And at the center of it all is an octopus named Marcellus, who may understand more about humanity than the humans themselves. - Christine Merser, Critic

In this episode I take a deep dive into The Reluctant Fundamentalist, a film that should have been front-row center but never got its moment. I talk about Riz Ahmed’s extraordinary performance, the quiet brilliance of Mira Nair’s direction, the music that pulls you into another cultural syntax, and the way the film exposes America’s post-9/11 blind spots without shouting. It is a story about identity, belonging, and the small humiliations that shape a life. And maybe more than anything, it’s a reminder that no one becomes a fundamentalist in a vacuum — and we should stop pretending otherwise. - Hollister

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