The Film That Blew My Mind
Film That Blew My Mind
Filmmakers, actors, and creators of all kinds answer one simple question: What is a film that blew your mind?!
No film is off limits as each episode centers around one guest and one film that has had a profound impact on their life, work, and art. Co-hosts John Cooper and Tabitha Jackson, former directors of the Sundance Film Festival, call upon decades at the forefront of independent film to bring their insider knowledge, lived experiences, and signature chemistry to conversations that dive straight into the heart and soul of cinema.
From Molly Shannon on The Wizard of Oz, and Jon Hamm on Cinema Paradiso, to Ryan Coogler on Un Prophete, and Jinks Monsoon on the Hollywood classic All About Eve, each episode explores a film that has shaped one of the most dynamic artists working today.
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Top 10 The Film That Blew My Mind Episodes
Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best The Film That Blew My Mind episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to The Film That Blew My Mind for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite The Film That Blew My Mind episode by adding your comments to the episode page.
Ethan Hawke on Reds
The Film That Blew My Mind
02/12/24 • 51 min
As an 18-year-old on the verge of breakout success, Ethan Hawke encountered Reds for the first time. The epic love story and historical drama brings us writer/activist Jack Reed and journalist Louise Bryant in the midst of World War I, the Russian Revolution, and the birth of the socialist party in the U.S. Directed by, co-written by, and starring Warren Beatty, Reds is famous for extraordinary performances from Beatty, Diane Keaton, Jack Nicholson, Maureen Stapleton, and Edward Hermann. The film earned Beatty Oscars for Best Original Screenplay and Best Director.
Ethan, Tabitha, and Cooper get into film craft, authenticity, feminism, collaboration, creativity, and Ethan's outgoing message on his answering machine circa 1990. Plus, what makes Reds one of Ethan's all time favorites.
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Jinkx Monsoon on All About Eve
The Film That Blew My Mind
01/29/24 • 66 min
Cabaret icon, RuPaul’s Drag Race Superstar, acclaimed actress and vocalist, the “internationally tolerated” Jinkx Monsoon joins Cooper and Tabitha to explore the many layers of Joseph Mankiewicz’s 1950 backstage theater drama All About Eve. Starring Bette Davis in the role that came to define her career, and Ann Baxter, the multiple Oscars-winning film is iconic for its witty dialogue and its scathing take on the ruthless nature of show business.
Jinkx shares how Davis’s performance inspires her own work, what the movie has to say about the experience of female performers in a youth-obsessed industry, and the love story playing out off screen between Davis and co-star Gary Merrill. We learn all about Jinkx's Portland, Oregon childhood, the innate roots of her fabulosity, and what keeps her spinning the golden threads of performing on stages around the world.
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Joseph Gordon-Levitt on Encanto
The Film That Blew My Mind
11/27/23 • 45 min
Time traveling hitman, love-struck greeting card writer, notorious whistleblower, and an alien passing as a human boy are just a few of the characters Joseph Gordon-Levitt has brought to life. His extraordinary range as an actor is matched by his taste in films, as evidenced by his choice of Disney’s Encanto as the film that blew his mind. From the way it subverts storytelling traditions to its layered and lyrical songs, Joe shares all the reasons why Encanto is a favorite with his young family and what it has to say about honesty as the greatest superpower of all.
Plus, zip-lining as an antidote to grief, Kurt Vonnegut’s dystopian “Harrison Bergeron”, and the role that Sundance has played in Joe’s own life.
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Jared Hess on Rad
The Film That Blew My Mind
01/22/24 • 42 min
Twenty years ago, one of the most indelible movie characters of recent decades was born when Napoleon Dynamite premiered at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival. From Vote for Pedro T-shirts to the pet llama Tina (aka: “Fat Lard”) and a seriously iconic dance number, Napoleon Dynamite has earned a top slot in the pop culture canon of the 21st century. This week, Cooper and Tabitha speak with Jared Hess who, together with his co-writer and wife Jerusha Hess, is the force behind Napoleon Dynamite, Nacho Libre (co-written with Mike White), Masterminds, and more.
Jared shares his deep love for Hal Needham’s Rad (1988), a classic ‘80’s teen flick about competitive BMX racing and a bike battle between local kids and the professional riders who come to town. We learn a bit about director Hal Needham, the highest paid stunt double of his time who directed action-packed classics like Smokey and the Bandit (1977) and The Cannonball Run (1981). Plus, how Rad’s soundtrack featuring The Sparks, opening sequence cinematography by Robert Schwartzman, and a curious activity dubbed “ass-sliding” make this a feel-good sports movie for kids of any generation.
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Jon Hamm on Cinema Paradiso
The Film That Blew My Mind
10/30/23 • 45 min
A guest who needs no introduction, Jon Hamm, dives into the 1988 Italian film, Cinema Paradiso, directed by Guiseppe Tornatore. The film begins when Salvatore di Vita, a superstar filmmaker in Rome, recalls his childhood in a small Sicilian village during the aftermath of World War II. With his father lost at war, young Salvatore forms a deep friendship with Alberto, the projectionist at the local cinema, and falls in love with film.
As a teenager growing up in St. Louis, Jon’s moviegoing was primarily driven by his burning desire to escape the house. Nevertheless, Cinema Paradiso captured his imagination and has continued to resonate with him throughout his life. We also learn how Silence of the Lambs left a bloody impression, and the Cub Scout lesson that fuels his stratospheric career.
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Molly Shannon on The Wizard of Oz
The Film That Blew My Mind
10/23/23 • 35 min
Everyone’s favorite “Superstar”, Molly Shannon, shares why and how Victor Fleming’s 1939 film, The Wizard of Oz has blown her mind. From her first viewing at age four, to her star turn as Dorothy in Cleveland’s Heights Youth Theater production, The Wizard of Oz is a metaphorical reflection of many of Molly’s life experiences. We hear from her about the iconic performances by Judy Garland as Dorothy and Margaret Hamilton as the Wicked Witch of the West, an only-in-Hollywood moment at an L.A. grocery store, and art as a conduit to healing.
The Wizard of Oz aired on network television every December from 1959-1991, becoming a holiday tradition for generations of Americans. Millions of us know this film by heart, but Molly’s story is unique in her deeply personal connections to the movie’s themes of home and belonging, friendship, self-determination, and what we hope to find over the rainbow.
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John Cameron Mitchell on Nashville
The Film That Blew My Mind
04/08/24 • 61 min
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For our final episode of season one, we took our show on the road to record an episode before a live audience at the Sonoma International Film Festival. John Cameron Mitchell, the ultimate multi-hyphenate and creator of Hedwig and the Angry Inch, joined Cooper and Tabitha on stage for a conversation about Robert Altman’s legendary Nashville. With a cast composed of Karen Black, Keith Carradine, Ronee Blakely, Lily Tomlin, Shelly Duvall, Geraldine Chaplin, Jeff Goldblum, and more, the film knits together the stories of twenty four characters as they navigate their time and place in their own, idiosyncratic ways.
John shares his own experience seeing the film, a halfway-fruitful exchange with Nashville screenwriter Joan Tewksbury, and personal encounters with Samuel Beckett and Robert Altman himself. Plus, how the scene with Keith Carradine singing the Oscar-winning song “I’m Easy” inspired parts of John’s own film Shortbus (2006), what he learned from the Sundance labs with Michelle Satter, and why bedwetters are his kind of people.
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Chaz Ebert on Life Itself
The Film That Blew My Mind
04/01/24 • 40 min
It is hard to pinpoint when Chaz Ebert first experienced Life Itself, Steve James ’s documentary about her late husband and legendary film critic, Roger Ebert. Initially conceived as a multi-year project to capture Roger’s vibrant life and career, the film also documented what would become the final weeks of Roger’s life. Film icons like Werner Herzog, Ava Duvernay, and Martin Scorsese illustrate the ways in which Roger’s work inspired them individually and impacted culture on a broad scale. Tracing Roger’s journey from cub reporter to cultural icon and devoted family man, the film is a testament to his ardently populist sensibility, larger-than-life personality, fierce love of movies, and the vigor with which he met every day even as he endured life with cancer and its effects.
In conversation with Cooper and Tabitha, Chaz reveals the one movie review Roger acknowledged he got wrong, her reluctance to continue filming as Roger’s health deteriorated, what it meant to experience the film’s premiere with an audience at Sundance, and how their shared concern for humanity continues to inspire her work today.
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Bridget Everett on The Sound of Music
The Film That Blew My Mind
11/13/23 • 49 min
Comedienne, chanteuse, star, co-writer, and executive producer of HBO’s Somebody Somewhere, and our favorite Manhattan, Kansas native, Bridget Everett shares the beloved classic, The Sound of Music. From watching the story of the von Trapps as the youngest of six kids, to how she sees it through the lens of her life and work today, Bridget dives deep into the timeless resonance of the movie and its music. We learn of her admiration for the naturalistic musicality of the film, and why Dame Julie Andrews is one of her favorite voices of all time.
Plus, her love of Barry Manilow, why co-host John Cooper marched down Santa Monica Boulevard in heels, and what Reverend Mother and Ad-Rock have in common.
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Chai Vasarhelyi on In This World
The Film That Blew My Mind
02/19/24 • 43 min
From El Capitan in Yosemite to Tham Luang Nang Non cave in northern Thailand and Meru Peak in the Indian Himalayas, Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin (her partner in filmmaking and in life) have captured the imagination of audiences worldwide with intimate, non-fiction portrayals of outdoor athletes pushing themselves to extremes. Free Solo, their 2018 film, won the Academy Award for Best Documentary. Their first scripted project, Nyad, boasts Oscar-nominated performances from Annette Benning and Jodie Foster. The film that blew Chai’s mind? Michael Winterbottom’s 2002 In This World, which blurs the lines of fiction and documentary to convey the story of an Afghani boy’s journey from a Pakistani refugee camp to London. She joins Cooper and Tabitha to explore the finer points of Winterbottom’s film and dives into questions of truth vs fiction, the nuances of working with real-life characters, and how the relationships she cultivates with her participants are essential to her filmmaking craft.
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FAQ
How many episodes does The Film That Blew My Mind have?
The Film That Blew My Mind currently has 22 episodes available.
What topics does The Film That Blew My Mind cover?
The podcast is about Film, Film Interviews, Celebrities, Indie, Podcasts, Movies and Tv & Film.
What is the most popular episode on The Film That Blew My Mind?
The episode title 'John Cameron Mitchell on Nashville' is the most popular.
What is the average episode length on The Film That Blew My Mind?
The average episode length on The Film That Blew My Mind is 50 minutes.
How often are episodes of The Film That Blew My Mind released?
Episodes of The Film That Blew My Mind are typically released every 7 days.
When was the first episode of The Film That Blew My Mind?
The first episode of The Film That Blew My Mind was released on Oct 10, 2023.
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