As we resume Chapter 4 of The Hobbit, Bilbo and friends are captured by goblins. Thorin Oakenshield’s name and reputation are known in these parts, and the Great Goblin does not take kindly to his arrival. Gandalf comes to the rescue with his shining Elven-sword, allowing our heroes a chance to escape… maybe. We get word-nerdy to explain Tolkien’s use of the ... Show More
Sep 2025
What the right gets wrong about Tolkien
Many far-right conservatives think The Lord of the Rings is about them. They may love Tolkien, but it's very possible Tolkien would not have loved them back. This episode was produced by Peter Balonon-Rosen with help from Ariana Aspuru, edited by Jolie Myers, fact-checked by Laur ... Show More
25m 57s
Dec 2024
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers - Caravan Of Garbage
<p>A mere year after the first entry in The Lord of the Rings Trilogy came The Two Towers, not simply a rehash of what came before but a vastly different continuation of the story. With the fellowship split up, Frodo and Sam making for Mordor with the one ring, Merry and Pippin ... Show More
27m 50s
Oct 2019
Howl's Moving Castle with David Ehrlich
David Ehrlich (IndieWire) returns for our mini-series' namesake episode on 2014's walking castle fantasy, Howl's Moving Castle! Together they examine analog versus digital animation effects, a talking fire, being a bird warrior and more!
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2h 15m
Dec 2020
Beowulf with Jordan Hoffman
This is Beowulf! Yes, in 2007, Bobby Z took the Old English epic poem and, once again using cutting edge mo-cap technology, delivered a 3-D movie that this week's guest, Jordan Hoffman, aptly describes as "resembling a PlayStation 3 cut scene". Also discussed is Crispin Glover's ... Show More
2h 2m