Episode #117 - Justin Chang (Flowers of Shanghai)

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"I very much believe in having a very Catholic sensibility of writing about everything."

Being the metropolitan area newspaper's film critic has its set of burdens and responsibilities to a number of diverse audiences, but for Justin Chang, those challenges are multiplied by the the odd nature of Los Angeles as the movie capital of the  world. In this final episode from the City  of Angels as Peter says adios to the city he's called home for the last five years, he sits down with the former Variety and current Los Angeles Times critic to explore how to look and consider the industry and the various entanglements that expand out from it. Justin explains his growth from intern to critic within the city's oldest trade publication to the issues of representation and politics within Hollywood today. The two cap off their conversation by looking at Hou Hsiao-Hsien's strange and hypnotic Flowers of Shanghai, looking at how the director lays clues throughout to explore a 19th century brothel wrapped into a romantic mystery.

0:00–3:11 Opening
3:51–11:39 Establishing Shots — Celebrating Seven Years of The Cinephiliacs
12:24–1:04:31 Deep Focus — Justin Chang
1:05:28–1:09:15 Sponsorship Section
1:10:27–1:28:49 Double Exposure — Flowers of Shanghai (Hou Hsiao-Hsien)
1:29:02–1:31:29 Close / Outtake

Episode #116 - Elena Gorfinkel (The Color of Love)

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"What is it about sexuality in cinema that is a marker of the present?"

As this podcast has aimed to define, those who watch cinema can often be more revealing of culture than cinema itself. In her book, Lewd Looks, Elena Gorfinkel explores the sexploitation era of the 1960s. However, she looks past the texts to consider some of the more aspects of spectators and the public who shaped this unique era. The result is a fascinating text that considers cinephilia's history in ways that imagines both a more dynamic and complex past alongside a new way of formulating our current moment. Peter and Elena go on to discuss the issues surrounding cinephilia today and Elena's own work outside of the academic halls. Finally, Elena brings in the fascinating experimental work The Color of Love from filmmaker Peggy Ahwesh, considering how this work literally found in a dumpster becomes a cinephilie love letter to another forgotten filmmaker.

0:00–3:16 Opening
4:01–1:03:33 Deep Focus — Elena Gorfinkel
1:04:30–1:03:33 Sponsorship Section
1:08:24–1:25:14 Double Exposure — The Color of Love (Peggy Ahwesh)
1:25:19–1:26:52 Close