The Actor and The Engineer Podcast

This is a film podcast by two people that come at movies from different angles. Paul is a trained actor and Josh is a broadcast engineer. They have lively conversations about all aspects of old and new films: technical, emotional, acting, directing, writing, music, special effects, and more. Check out the website at www.actorandengineer.com and email [email protected].

Ep 365 - Top Tens of 2023 04/06/2024

Ep 365 - Top Tens of 2023 We finally got around to watching as many 2023 films as we could. We are nailing down which ones were our favorites (or best, or highest regarded by us) and why!! /episode/index/show/actorandengineer/id/30706673

Ep 364 - Dune Part 2 with Justin Arner! 03/28/2024

Ep 364 - Dune Part 2 with Justin Arner! This week we go back to Arrakis with our special guest Justin Arner (multi-award winning creative producer). We talk about Villeneuve using shot selection for optimal storytelling, Hans Zimmer's overwhelming score and question some of the casting choices. /episode/index/show/actorandengineer/id/30575323

Ep 363 - Oscarcast 2024 03/08/2024

Ep 363 - Oscarcast 2024 It's time for the golden statues! We go through who we think will win and who we would want to win in the biggest Oscar categories, and Josh has a golden addition to his shelf. /episode/index/show/actorandengineer/id/30288338

Ep 362 - The Zone of Interest 02/29/2024

Ep 362 - The Zone of Interest We dive into Jonathan Glazer's The Zone of Interest, an unconventional holocaust/family movie. The concept, the filmmaking techniques and the haunting sounds of the score and sound design come together with the grounded performances to form a film that is engaging and confrontational. /episode/index/show/actorandengineer/id/30161673

Ep 361 - American Fiction 02/13/2024

Ep 361 - American Fiction Cord Jefferson's biting and funny satire/familiy drama is the subject of this week's podcast. We get to see Jeffrey Wright, Sterling K. Brown, Tracy Ellis Ross, and a host of other actors put in great performances with a that know's what it is doing. Once you are in the theater, Jefferson nudges you with humor, anger, outrage and real touching moments. /episode/index/show/actorandengineer/id/29925843

Ep 360 - Oscar Noms and Maestro 02/01/2024

Ep 360 - Oscar Noms and Maestro This week we reflect on the Oscar nominations and celebrate some of the choices while scratching our heads about others. Then we tiptoe into a light critique on Bradley Cooper's new film Maestro (also Oscar nominated!) /episode/index/show/actorandengineer/id/29745018

Ep 359 - Poor Things 01/23/2024

Ep 359 - Poor Things Yorgos Lanthimos plus Emma Stone equals another movie you can't look away from. With committed performances from Willem Dafoe and Mark Ruffalo added, this film is both funny and thought-provoking. /episode/index/show/actorandengineer/id/29605463

Ep 358 - May December 12/27/2023

Ep 358 - May December We talk about Todd Haynes' new meta movie featuring Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore that is loosely based on a true story, how it points out society's voyeuristic tendencies and why audiences will always be interested in stories like this. /episode/index/show/actorandengineer/id/29239718

Ep 357 - Saltburn 12/11/2023

Ep 357 - Saltburn Emerald Fennell has returned with a film starring Barry Keoghan and Jacob Elordi about the British upper crust and the gaze of the outsider. Was it successful? Was it shocking? We get into it in our new episode. /episode/index/show/actorandengineer/id/29018213

Ep 356 - The Killer 11/28/2023

Ep 356 - The Killer It's a new Fincher film! We talk about Fassbinder, the sound design, the drop-in performances (including Tilda Swinton), ham hands and Fincher's tenuous relationship with the Oscars. /episode/index/show/actorandengineer/id/28818863

Ep 355 - Anatomy of a Fall 11/15/2023

Ep 355 - Anatomy of a Fall This week we talk about how Justine Triet's new film is able to turn a courtoom drama into an engaging and tight film with a great performance by Sandra Hüller. We have some Oscar predictions and get into the use of language in the film and "truth" in the courtoom. /episode/index/show/actorandengineer/id/28651318

Ep 354 - Killers of the Flower Moon 11/02/2023

Ep 354 - Killers of the Flower Moon It's a rare treat to talk about a new movie from one of the living masters of the craft, Martin Scorsese. We break down what we liked about the performances, including the quiet confidence of Lily Gladstone. We also talk about the score, production design and undulating pacing of the film. /episode/index/show/actorandengineer/id/28494020

Ep 353 - Quick Cuts (Kubrick, Brazil and Starman) 10/18/2023

Ep 353 - Quick Cuts (Kubrick, Brazil and Starman) Paul saw a play with Karen Allen and Reed Birney! And we talk about Josh watching Kubrick on the big screen, double features and Starman. /episode/index/show/actorandengineer/id/28354427

Ep 352 - Past Lives 10/10/2023

Ep 352 - Past Lives Paul talks about his recent experience performing in a Steve Martin play and we talk about Celine Song's quiet, but confident debut film starring Greta Lee. /episode/index/show/actorandengineer/id/28275113

Ep 351 - Oppenheimer 08/21/2023

Ep 351 - Oppenheimer Paul is in a new play!!! We get into that and also train our sights on one of the biggest movies of the summer. We talk about Christopher Nolan's sprawling cast, sharp editing and keen visual effects (No CG!) /episode/index/show/actorandengineer/id/27804804

Ep 350 - Barbie 08/10/2023

Ep 350 - Barbie Now it's time to listen to two guys talk about the Barbie movie... Wait!!! Don't go!! We really have some good thoughts about the winking and honest script, the properly plastic and practical set design and the tightly integrated soundtrack! /episode/index/show/actorandengineer/id/27709641

Ep 349 - Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning Pt 1 08/01/2023

Ep 349 - Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning Pt 1 (Movie Trailer Voice) - Ethan Hunt is back and he's better than ever. Hang on for over two hours of thrills, spills and chills! And whatever you do, don't...look...down... (End Movie Trailer Voice) In this episode we watch 61 year old movie nerd jump off a cliff and we love every minute of it!!! Haley Atwell is a great addition to the cast and the macguffin is good enough to not get in the way of all of the stunts! /episode/index/show/actorandengineer/id/27620772

Ep 348 - Indiana Jones 07/19/2023

Ep 348 - Indiana Jones Grab your hat and your whip. We are talking all things Indiana Jones, including the new Dial of Destiny! /episode/index/show/actorandengineer/id/27506259

Ep 347 - Quick Cuts (The Godfather, All About Eve, Succession, Tarantino) 06/28/2023

Ep 347 - Quick Cuts (The Godfather, All About Eve, Succession, Tarantino) This week Paul talks about meeting Karen Allen (!!!) and Josh watches a bunch of movies (The Godfather, All About Eve, Tarantino Rewatch). Our next episodes will focus on Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse and Asteroid City. /episode/index/show/actorandengineer/id/27310509

Ep 346 - The Searchers and Shane: Should Have Seen 06/08/2023

Ep 346 - The Searchers and Shane: Should Have Seen We return to a theme that we haven't done in a while. Would you believe that neither one of us had seen The Searchers or Shane? Well, this week we correct that injustice. We talk about The Duke and his playing against type, watching these movies in 2023 and how Shane got all of those Oscar nominations. /episode/index/show/actorandengineer/id/27077724

Ep 345 - Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 05/22/2023

Ep 345 - Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 Showtime, A-holes! The Guardians are back for one last adventure in this configuration, and they have to deal with Adam Warlock and a guy who is channeling Katherine Helmond's facelift from Brazil. /episode/index/show/actorandengineer/id/26919504

Ep 344 - Beau Is Afraid 05/08/2023

Ep 344 - Beau Is Afraid We wade into the mind of Ari Aster (maybe too far?) and his take on mommy issues and anxiety. /episode/index/show/actorandengineer/id/26774043

Ep 343 - Top Ten of 2022 04/11/2023

Ep 343 - Top Ten of 2022 We finally have gotten around to our favorite films of 2022! We each count down our favorites and sprinkle some honorable mentions in there. Paul also talks about finishing up his run of performances in Richmond! /episode/index/show/actorandengineer/id/26502945

Ep 342 - Oscarcast 03/11/2023

Ep 342 - Oscarcast We go through the big categories for the big night and pick who we would vote for and who we each think will win. /episode/index/show/actorandengineer/id/26195481

Ant-Man and The Wasp Quantumania 03/02/2023

Ant-Man and The Wasp Quantumania We catch up with Scott Lang and his family mostly in the quantum realm and get to see Jonathan Majors once again as Kang. Then we sprinkle on a bit of our perceptions of Cocaine Bear. Watch us on YouTube /episode/index/show/actorandengineer/id/26100537

Ep 340 - Women Talking 02/20/2023

Ep 340 - Women Talking This episode we focus on Sarah Polley's new film focusing on the the importance of being heard. We get into why this needed to be a film instead of a play, how the cinematography and shot selection contributed to the narrative and which scene should have gotten Jessie Buckley an Oscar nod. /episode/index/show/actorandengineer/id/25984758

Ep 339 - Babylon and Top Gun: Maverick 02/07/2023

Ep 339 - Babylon and Top Gun: Maverick This week we are finally getting to two spectacle movies that definitely benefit from being seen in the theater. Babylon is uncompromising and ambitious and Top Gun: Maverick lived up to the hype, in spite of its seemingly "lazy" concept. The movies are back! (fingers crossed) /episode/index/show/actorandengineer/id/25855017

Ep 338 - Quick Cuts - Glass Onion, The Menu, The Whale, Barbarian, Triangle of Sadness 01/23/2023

Ep 338 - Quick Cuts - Glass Onion, The Menu, The Whale, Barbarian, Triangle of Sadness We are back with a quick cuts episode of what we have been watching. How many of these will get Oscar noms? /episode/index/show/actorandengineer/id/25697817

Ep 337 - The Fabelmans 01/04/2023

Ep 337 - The Fabelmans We look back at Steven Spielberg looking back at his young life through a well-lit, richly textured lens. Josh enjoyed the journey while Paul was left with questions... Check out our youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@actorandengineerpodcast9968 /episode/index/show/actorandengineer/id/25499982

Ep 336 - The Banshees of Inisherin 12/20/2022

Ep 336 - The Banshees of Inisherin This week we talk about Martin McDonagh's film about the complexities of friendship, family, community and creating art. Great performances across the board, with a beautiful setting utilizing natural light and a pitch-perfect score. /episode/index/show/actorandengineer/id/25379820

The Actor and The Engineer Podcast

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