Who The Hell Are We?

Authors Melanie Benjamin and Edward Kelsey Moore talk books, movies, aging, ambition, and everything in between. Each episode features one book or one movie—something to read, something to watch, and plenty to say. It’s a podcast about stories, friendship, and figuring it out as you go. Suggestions and comments: [email protected] Podcast Substack: melanieanded.substack.com More: melaniebenjamin.com | edwardkelseymoore.com

Sexy Rexy 07/28/2025

Sexy Rexy The Ghost and Mrs. Muir (1947), a ghost story with real romantic power. Gene Tierney is luminous, Rex Harrison is “Sexy Rexy,” and the ending still breaks our hearts. 📬 Email us: 📰 Substack: 🌀 Originally released: July 4, 2022 /episode/index/show/whothehellarewe/id/37582430

Rules of Civility - Amor Towles 07/24/2025

Rules of Civility - Amor Towles Melanie and Ed begin a new movie-book rhythm with their first book episode: Rules of Civility by Amor Towles — a novel of restraint, elegance, and quiet ambition in 1930s New York. 📧 🔗 melanieanded.substack.com /episode/index/show/whothehellarewe/id/37528345

Klaatu Barada Nicto 07/19/2025

Klaatu Barada Nicto Melanie and Ed discuss the 1951 sci-fi classic The Day the Earth Stood Still and explore why Klaatu’s quiet alien warning still resonates. 📧 🔗 melanieanded.substack.com 🌀 Originally released: November 24, 2024 /episode/index/show/whothehellarewe/id/37463380

Nuns and Roses 07/17/2025

Nuns and Roses A Technicolor convent clings to a cliff in Black Narcissus (1947), where desire, memory, and madness simmer. Ed and Melanie unpack Kathleen Byron’s unforgettable performance, Deborah Kerr’s quiet power, and colonialist shadows. 📧 🔗 melanieanded.substack.com 🌀 Originally released: October 15, 2023 /episode/index/show/whothehellarewe/id/37435310

Best thing in a mediocre movie - the story of her career 07/06/2025

Best thing in a mediocre movie - the story of her career Lena Horne leads a dazzling cast in Stormy Weather (1943), but the film holds back from giving her a real role. Melanie and Ed revisit this musical landmark with admiration and frustration. 📬 Email us: 📰 Subscribe: /episode/index/show/whothehellarewe/id/37295875

Strong women put in their place 07/01/2025

Strong women put in their place Hepburn dazzles, Grant simmers, and Stewart steals a kiss — but we’re asking what the movie does to its strongest character. Wit, weddings, and one quietly devastating rewatch. 📬 Email us: 📰 Subscribe: /episode/index/show/whothehellarewe/id/37240415

I’m Divorcing My Husband Over This Movie 06/28/2025

I’m Divorcing My Husband Over This Movie The team watches Robinson Crusoe on Mars (1964)—Melanie immediately wants a divorce. Monkey chaos, Cold War weirdness, and a survival story that forgets to care. 📬 Email us: 📰 Read and subscribe: whothehellarewe.substack.com 🔁 This episode originally aired on September 9, 2020. /episode/index/show/whothehellarewe/id/37204240

A Party Full of Mirrors 06/19/2025

A Party Full of Mirrors REISSUED for Pride Month | The Boys in the Band (1970) A queer dinner party implodes in Mart Crowley’s groundbreaking pre-Stonewall drama. Melanie and Ed revisit the 1970 film and reflect on its dated portrayals, raw emotion, and lasting legacy. Subscribe at whothehellarewe.substack.com Email us: /episode/index/show/whothehellarewe/id/37078475

Read. Watch. Repeat. 06/17/2025

Read. Watch. Repeat. After more than 100 episodes of delightful chaos, Melanie and Ed are finally giving *Who the Hell Are We?* a little structure—just a little. From now on, they’ll alternate between one movie and one book, with plenty of time in between for tangents, updates, and whatever else comes up. First up: The Philadelphia Story (1940) The book? Tune in next time to find out. Comments and suggestions: [email protected] Substack: https://melanieanded.substack.com /episode/index/show/whothehellarewe/id/37048175

Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? 04/30/2025

Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? Melanie and Ed love watching old movies and dishing on them. This week's movie is WILL SUCCESS SPOIL ROCK HUNTER (1957), starring Jayne Mansfield and Tony Randall, with Betsy Drake, Joan Blondell, John Williams, Henry Jones, Lili Gentle, and Mickey Hargitay, and with a cameo by Groucho Marx. Send podcast comments and suggestions to Don't forget to subscribe to the show! /episode/index/show/whothehellarewe/id/36368420

Torch Song 03/08/2025

Torch Song Melanie and Ed love watching old movies and dishing on them. This week's movie is TORCH SONG (1953), starring Joan Crawford and Michael Wilding. Send podcast comments and suggestions to Don't forget to subscribe to the show! /episode/index/show/whothehellarewe/id/35589570

The Holiday 12/21/2024

The Holiday Melanie and Ed love watching old movies and dishing on them. This week's movie is THE HOLIDAY (2006), starring Kate Winslet, Cameron Diaz, Jude Law, and Jack Black. Send podcast comments and suggestions to Don't forget to subscribe to the show! /episode/index/show/whothehellarewe/id/34562490

Valentino 11/24/2024

Valentino Melanie and Ed love watching old movies and dishing on them. This week's movie is VALENTINO (1977), directed by Ken Russell and starring Rudolf Nureyev, Leslie Caron, Michelle Phillips, and Carol Kane. Send podcast comments and suggestions to Don't forget to subscribe to the show! /episode/index/show/whothehellarewe/id/34122221

The Day The Earth Stood Still 11/24/2024

The Day The Earth Stood Still Melanie and Ed love watching old movies and dishing on them. This week's movie is THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL (1951), starring Michael Rennie, Patricia Neal, Hugh Marlowe, Sam Jaffe, Billy Gray, Frances Bavier and Lock Martin. Send podcast comments and suggestions to Don't forget to subscribe to the show! /episode/index/show/whothehellarewe/id/34121931

Fistful of Dollars 11/08/2024

Fistful of Dollars Melanie and Ed love watching old movies and dishing on them. This week's movie is FISTFUL OF DOLLARS (1964), directed by Sergio Leone and starring Clint Eastwood in his first leading role, alongside Gian Maria Volonté, Marianne Koch, Wolfgang Lukschy, Sieghardt Rupp, José Calvo, Antonio Prieto and Joseph Egger. Send podcast comments and suggestions to Don't forget to subscribe to the show! /episode/index/show/whothehellarewe/id/33844982

Shadow of a Doubt 07/20/2024

Shadow of a Doubt Melanie and Ed love watching old movies and dishing on them. This week's movie is SHADOW OF A DOUBT (1943), directed by Alfred Hitchcock, and starring Teresa Wright and Joseph Cotten. Send podcast comments and suggestions to Don't forget to subscribe to the show! /episode/index/show/whothehellarewe/id/32227012

Georgy Girl 06/18/2024

Georgy Girl Melanie and Ed love watching old movies and dishing on them. This week's movie is GEORGY GIRL (1966), starring Lynn Redgrave, Alan Bates, Charlotte Rampling, James Mason, and Rachel Kempson. Send podcast comments and suggestions to Don't forget to subscribe to the show! /episode/index/show/whothehellarewe/id/31797762

Random Harvest 05/06/2024

Random Harvest Melanie and Ed love watching old movies and dishing on them. This week's movie is RANDOM HARVEST (1942), starring Ronald Colman and Greer Garson Mel and Ed make book recommendations with similar themes. Send podcast comments and suggestions to Don't forget to subscribe to the show! /episode/index/show/whothehellarewe/id/31145033

Trapeze 04/28/2024

Trapeze Melanie and Ed love watching old movies and dishing on them. This week's movie is TRAPEZE (1956), starring Burt Lancaster, Tony Curtis and Gina Lollobrigida. Mel and Ed make book recommendations with similar themes. Send podcast comments and suggestions to Don't forget to subscribe to the show! /episode/index/show/whothehellarewe/id/31016798

The Rose Tattoo 04/14/2024

The Rose Tattoo Melanie and Ed love watching old movies and dishing on them. This week's movie is THE ROSE TATTOO (1955), starring Anna Magnani, Burt Lancaster, Marisa Pavan, and Jo Van Fleet. Mel and Ed make book recommendations with similar themes. Send podcast comments and suggestions to Don't forget to subscribe to the show! /episode/index/show/whothehellarewe/id/30818558

Sudden Fear 03/01/2024

Sudden Fear Melanie and Ed love watching old movies and dishing on them. This week's movie is SUDDEN FEAR (1952), American film noir thriller film directed by David Miller, and starring Joan Crawford and Jack Palance Mel and Ed make book recommendations with similar themes. Send podcast comments and suggestions to Don't forget to subscribe to the show! /episode/index/show/whothehellarewe/id/30192098

Stormy Weather 02/04/2024

Stormy Weather Melanie and Ed love watching old movies and dishing on them. This week's movie is STORMY WEATHER (1943), starring Lena Horne, Bill "Bojangles" Robinson, and Cab Calloway. Mel and Ed make book recommendations with similar themes. Send podcast comments and suggestions to Don't forget to subscribe to the show! /episode/index/show/whothehellarewe/id/29789318

*insert lame excuse here* 01/05/2024

*insert lame excuse here* Melanie and Ed love watching old movies and dishing on them; their audio engineer let the holidays, day job, COVID, and aliens delay posting this episode. This week's movie is SHAFT (1971), starring Richard Roundtree, Moses Gunn, Charles Cioffi, Christopher St. John, and Lawrence Pressman. Mel and Ed make book recommendations with similar themes. Send podcast comments and suggestions to Don't forget to subscribe to the show! /episode/index/show/whothehellarewe/id/29356288

Cold [vodka] Opening 11/04/2023

Cold [vodka] Opening Melanie and Ed love watching old movies and dishing on them. This week's movie: A MATTER OF LIFE AND DEATH (1946), starring David Niven, Roger Livesey, Raymond Massey, Kim Hunter and Marius Goring. Mel and Ed make book recommendations with similar themes. Send podcast comments and suggestions to Don't forget to subscribe to the show! /episode/index/show/whothehellarewe/id/28515404

10th Anniversary! 10/15/2023

10th Anniversary! Melanie and Ed love watching old movies and dishing on them. This week's movie: BLACK NARCISSUS (1947), starring Deborah Kerr, Sabu, David Farrar, and Flora Robson, and featuring Esmond Knight, Jean Simmons, and Kathleen Byron. Mel and Ed make book recommendations with similar themes. Send podcast comments and suggestions to Don't forget to subscribe to the show! /episode/index/show/whothehellarewe/id/28319210

The Umbrellas of Cherbourg 09/01/2023

The Umbrellas of Cherbourg Melanie and Ed love watching old movies and dishing on them. This week's movie: THE UMBRELLAS OF CHERBOURG (1964), Written and directed by Jacques Demy, with music by Michel Legrand. Starring Catherine Deneuve and Nino Castelnuovo. Mel and Ed make book recommendations with similar themes. Send podcast comments and suggestions to Don't forget to subscribe to the show! /episode/index/show/whothehellarewe/id/27916290

Cowabunga, Big Kahuna 07/25/2023

Cowabunga, Big Kahuna Melanie and Ed love watching old movies and dishing on them. This week's movie: GIDGET (1959), starring Sandra Dee, Cliff Robertson, James Darren, Arthur O'Connell, and the Four Preps. Mel and Ed make book recommendations with similar themes. Send podcast comments and suggestions to Don't forget to subscribe to the show! /episode/index/show/whothehellarewe/id/27566229

Maurice 07/08/2023

Maurice Melanie and Ed love watching old movies and dishing on them. This week's movie: MAURICE (1987), starring The James Wilby, Hugh Grant, and Rupert Graves. Mel and Ed make book recommendations with similar themes. Send podcast comments and suggestions to Don't forget to subscribe to the show! /episode/index/show/whothehellarewe/id/27407070

NUTS! 06/18/2023

NUTS! Melanie and Ed love watching old movies and dishing on them. This week's movie: BATTLEGROUND (1949), starring Van Johnson, John Hodiak, Ricardo Montalbán, George Murphy, and James Whitmore. Mel and Ed make book recommendations with similar themes. Send podcast comments and suggestions to Don't forget to subscribe to the show! /episode/index/show/whothehellarewe/id/27184995

Melanie's Potty-Mouth T-Shirt Reveal 06/08/2023

Melanie's Potty-Mouth T-Shirt Reveal Melanie and Ed love watching old movies and dishing on them. This week's movie: CAT PEOPLE (1942), starring Simone Simon, Kent Smith, Tom Conway, and Jane Randolph. Mel and Ed make book recommendations with similar themes. Send podcast comments and suggestions to [email protected] Don't forget to subscribe to the show! /episode/index/show/whothehellarewe/id/27082617

Who The Hell Are We?

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