This week, the Water Cooler Gang pulls up around the chessboard, pops a bottle of tranquilizers, and envisions awards placement for Netflix’s The Queen’s Gambit.

Netflix recently announced that their new limited series, Scott Frank’s The Queen’s Gambit, now ranks as their biggest limited series to date. With over 62 million households tuning in and good reviews, The Queen’s Gambit must be taken very seriously in the upcoming awards season. We dive into the series and the lead performance by Anya Taylor-Joy. What works? What doesn’t work? How will awards bodies react to the series? Is this just a quarantine-influenced love fest from audiences starved for something new? We discuss all of the above on this week’s Thanksgiving podcast.

But first, we’re diving into two new Hulu films: Happiest Season and Run.

We close our podcast, as always, with the Flash Forward to the media we’re most anticipating in the upcoming week.

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Music from https://filmmusic.io

“Cheery Monday” by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com)

License: CC BY (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

This week, the Water Cooler Gang goes back to school for Hannah Fidell’s A Teacher, now streaming on FX on Hulu. Does the limited series get a passing grade?

We’re back this week with a look at FX on Hulu’s A Teacher, starring Kate Mara and Nick Robinson. Based on Hannah Fidell’s independent film of the same name, A Teacher explores the relationship and repercussions of a sexual affair between a high school English teacher and one of her students. Does the film receive a passing grade? Or does it need some remedial instruction?

WARNING: MASSIVE SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

Like, we accidentally spoil nearly the whole thing. Sorry. Much love!

We close our podcast, as always, with the Flash Forward to the media we’re most anticipating in the upcoming week.

Thanks for listening and thank you, in advance, for subscribing and rating us on Apple Podcasts!

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Music from https://filmmusic.io

“Cheery Monday” by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com)

License: CC BY (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

This week, we return to focus on the biggest awards contenders of the Fall TV season: HBO’s The Undoing and Netflix’s The Crown.

We’re back after a brief mental break leading up to and following the 2020 Presidential Election. Fortunately, it did not rob Megan of her religion. So, as we (and the country) look forward, we look at the two highest-profile television series of the 2020 Fall TV season. HBO’s The Undoing reunites Nicole Kidman with Big Little Lies writer David E. Kelley. Based on the dramatically different novel You Should Have Known by Jean Hanff Korelitz, The Undoing stars Kidman as a woman whose husband (Hugh Grant) may or may not have killed a young mother. Given their previous working relationship with Big Little Lies, Kidman and Kelley set the bar very high. Does their new series meet our expectations? And, given the pandemic-impacted TV season, what are the awards chances for the limited series?

Joey and Clarence also take a look at the fourth season of Netflix’s The Crown. It gives us the drama between Prince Charles (Josh O’Connor) and Princess Diana (Emma Corrin) that we’ve either been dreading or dying for, depending on your perspective. Plus, we’re finally getting the Margaret Thatcher we all truly deserve, courtesy of Gillian Anderson. Oh yes, and Olivia Colman putters around in the background. What did Joey and Clarence think of this new season, and how is it primed to compete at the Golden Globes and SAG Awards in 2021?
We close our podcast, as always, with the Flash Forward to the media we’re most anticipating in the upcoming week.

Thanks for listening and thank you, in advance, for subscribing and rating us on Apple Podcasts!

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Music from https://filmmusic.io

“Cheery Monday” by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com)

License: CC BY (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

It’s Halloween week, and the Water Cooler Podcast offers some tricks and treats for your Halloween pleasure, including Netflix’s Hubie Halloween.

Darkness falls across the land… The midnight hour is close at hand… And the Water Cooler Podcast gang offers up a few new Halloween tricks and treats for your viewing pleasure. We’ll talk about Netflix’s Hubie Halloween and discuss whether or not there’s a little something special in this Adam Sandler vehicle. Then, we chat about Robert Zemeckis’s The Witches, which due to COVID-19 bypassed theaters for HBO Max. We also offer up a handful of upcoming more straightforward horror films in case kiddie fare isn’t your thing. So, Happy Halloween from all of us at the Water Cooler Podcast!

But first, we dive into Borat Subsequent Moviefilm and the upcoming Amazon film Sound of Metal.

We close our podcast, as always, with the Flash Forward to the media we’re most anticipating in the upcoming week.

Thanks for listening and thank you, in advance, for subscribing and rating us on Apple Podcasts!

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Music from https://filmmusic.io

“Cheery Monday” by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com)

License: CC BY (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

Like most audiences, we here at the Water Cooler became quite obsessed with the events of the NXIVM cult discovery. HBO’s 9-part series, The Vow, casts a wide net when exposing the dark side to the self-help group. With perspectives from high-ranking officers and participants, The Vow paints a terrifying portrait of how a man hoodwinked hundreds of people by using their minds and emotions against them.

Some have expressed their frustration with The Vow‘s large number of episodes and meandering pace. Would the series have benefitted from tightening up its story? Are we just scratching the surface when it comes to revealing stories about this shocking institution?

In addition to talking about our thoughts about a second season of The Vow, we do a little fantasy casting. Inspired by Joe Reid’s exercise in trying to cast the inevitable NXIVM film, we offer our own suggestions.

All episodes of The Vow are streaming now on HBO’s platforms.

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Music from https://filmmusic.io

“Cheery Monday” by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com)

License: CC BY (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

This week, Megan and Joey face off in Clarence’s 2020 Halloween pop culture quiz!

In case you didn’t know, Megan and Joey – two great friends who have known each other since high school – are also incredibly competitive people. Every so often, Clarence likes to pit them against each other in a pop culture trivia contest. This week, we return to the battlefront with Megan and Joey facing off in a Halloween-themed quiz. Who will emerge the winner? Can you beat them at home?

We close our podcast, as always, with the Flash Forward to the media we’re most anticipating in the upcoming week.

Thanks for listening and thank you, in advance, for subscribing and rating us on Apple Podcasts!

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Music from https://filmmusic.io

“Cheery Monday” by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com)

License: CC BY (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

Kevin Dillon joins Joey and Clarence to discuss the 2020 Tony Nominations, or the One Where Aaron Tveit Was the Only Nominee in Best Actor in a Musical… And May Not Win.

 

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Music from https://filmmusic.io

“Cheery Monday” by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com)

License: CC BY (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

 

The Water Cooler Gang revisits last year’s debacle Cats thanks to a recent event Megan attended. Plus, we discuss the VP debate and Bly Manor.

This week, we’re playing catch up with one of the most infamous films of 2019 – Universal’s Cats. Directed by Oscar-winner Tom Hooper, Cats is the notorious film adaptation of Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber’s long-running musical. So, why do we revisit it this week? Tune in to find out!

But first, Joey and Clarence discuss the newest entry in The Haunting anthology series from Mike Flanagan – The Haunting of Bly Manor. So, how does it compare to the great The Haunting of Hill House? Are comparisons even warranted?

And, yes, we’re talking about this week’s Vice Presidential debate between current VP Mike Pence and VP candidate Kamala Harris. Was this a better example of a debate? How did the moderator do? Is a debate format even warranted in the modern era of politics? Join us and be a fly on our heads as we discuss the latest political turn of events.

We close our podcast, as always, with the Flash Forward to the media we’re most anticipating in the upcoming week.

Thanks for listening and thank you, in advance, for subscribing and rating us on Apple Podcasts!

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Music from https://filmmusic.io

“Cheery Monday” by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com)

License: CC BY (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

Andy Rydzewski is the director of photography for Hulu’s Pen15. Here, he sat down with AD TV staff member Kevin Dillon to discuss his work on season two of the acclaimed series. One of the most fascinating parts about the conversation centers around giving the characters more texture as they continue to grow up and explore their development. Rydzewski worked hand in hand with director Sam Zvibleman, who directed every episode of season two, and leads Maya Erskine and Anna Konkle to expand the photography for season two, including specific color blocking in different chapters of the season. Rydzewski also cites references to Kubrick’s The Shining (with Maura) and the way Bong Joon-Ho shapes intimacy in his films. Have a listen to our fascinating conversation and watch Hulu’s Pen15!

Thanks for listening and thank you, in advance, for subscribing and rating us on Apple Podcasts!

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Music from https://filmmusic.io

“Cheery Monday” by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com)

License: CC BY (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

This week on our 300th episode, the Water Cooler Gang catches up on films and television they’ve seen since the early September focus on the Emmys.

We’re playing catch up for our 300th episode. What did we think of Mulan, I’m Thinking of Ending Things, the South Park COVID special, and much more! Plus, was the first 2020 Presidential Debate actually any of those things? Well, we can honestly say it was first. Now, whether it was Presidential or a Debate is up to interpretation.

We close our podcast, as always, with the Flash Forward to the media we’re most anticipating in the upcoming week.

Thanks for listening and thank you, in advance, for subscribing and rating us on Apple Podcasts!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

 

Music from https://filmmusic.io

“Cheery Monday” by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com)

License: CC BY (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)