Two Reel Cinema Club

Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret vs Welcome to the Dollhouse: Growing Pains

It’s back to the first year of Junior High this episode, with two preteen dramas that both perform well in their midterms. Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret is a heart warming family story that’s witty, fresh, sweet and more moving than we expected, while 1995s Welcome to the Dollhouse is its antimatter equivalent, jarring, grimy and nihilistic. But the two have so much in common that it’s like looking in a greasy, fire-damaged mirror. Which film has the more modern view of adolescence? Which film has the best chunky phones? And how does each film use food to explore character?
Plus we discuss the banning of books from public libraries, watch a greatest-of-all-time TV climax, recount a podcast-inspired nightmare, listen to an extremely well-recorded word from our sponsors, and ask: does corn have sides? 
If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media:
Twitter: @tworeelcineclub
Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub
Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: https://tworeelcinemaclub.com/

Popcorn Counter: Adèle Haenel

French actor Adèle Haenel, best known for Portrait of a Woman on Fire, published an incredible letter about her retirement from the film industry a couple of weeks ago. This episode at the Popcorn Counter we read the letter and talk about some of the issues she raises. What are our responsibilities as writers and as consumers of cinema? What is the right way to respond to news of sexual assaults and the abuse of power? And what can we do to effect progress? Some heavy subject matter this time round, and neither of us feels like we have the answers, but it’s good to talk.
If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media:
Twitter: @tworeelcineclub
Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub
Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: tworeelcinemaclub.com

Beau is Afraid vs Forrest Gump: Life is Like a Box of Terror

We’re still trying to recover from the trauma of watching Beau Is Afraid for this episode. Ari Aster’s new Freudian ‘comedy’ horror movie feels like a three hour nightmare that left us begging to wake up. Happily, we’re comparing it to Tom Hanks’ 1994 Oscar winner Forrest Gump, which is just the right film to cleanse our tainted, rancid, bloody palates. These two have so much in common that one is like a ‘dark dimension’ mirror image of the other. But which movie features the most running? Which movie says more about the state of America? And which movie draws from the David Lynch playbook?
We also hail the invention of ‘elastic thinking’, visit Iñárritu’s new homage to Fellini, rewatch a low budget time travel romp, and give a lesson on how to fit a burro in a station wagon. Plus Tom Hanks. Did we mention Tom Hanks? Tom Hanks' name comes up in this podcast. Many times.
If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media:
Twitter: @tworeelcineclub
Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub
Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: tworeelcinemaclub.com

Popcorn Counter: Inner City Blues

Welcome to the ‘urban planning’ section of the podcast, as we meet at the popcorn counter this week and talk about why the inner city gets such a bad rep in cinema. Who is London’s most famous inner city resident? What does ‘NF’ stand for in the world of Shane Meadow’s ‘This is England’? And why should ‘Boyz N The Hood’ be remade as ‘Boyz N The Garden’?
If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media:
Twitter: @tworeelcineclub
Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub
Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: tworeelcinemaclub.com

The Substitute vs La Classe: A Tale of Two Teachers

We return to school again this episode, spending a semester with new Argentine Netflix feature The Substitute, before graduating to a course with 2008 Palme d’Or-winning French drama La Classe. Both films examine the challenges of inner city schooling, but while The Substitute makes teaching look like a Sicario spin off, La Classe is more realistic and subtle. Which film sees two teachers sneak off at lunchtime for a little afternoon delight? Which film shows that there isn’t much of a difference between the staff and the pupils? And which film features a kid rapping? Yes, rapping. Is that what lessons are like these days? Must be some kind of inner city school thing.
Plus a strange James Corden film that might have been a fever dream, a revisit of the greatest action adventure movie of all time, a revelation about the difference between American and British schools, and a merger announcement from this episode’s sponsors. Plus we enjoy some novel mathematical nomenclature and a Venn diagram. Every day is a school day, isn’t it?
If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media:
Twitter: @tworeelcineclub
Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub
Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: tworeelcinemaclub.com

Popcorn Counter: Young, Queer and in Love

Listen to us get completely out of our depth in tonight’s episode, discussing our encounters with LGBTQ cinema over the years, and its role in advancing social change. Which is our favourite date movie? Who is the Countess von Bismark? Where does Al Pacino fit in? And what happens when you write the words ‘there is a song and dance number’ in a script?
If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media:
Twitter: @tworeelcineclub
Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub
Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: tworeelcinemaclub.com

Close vs Boys Don’t Cry: Close Boys

(Let’s start with a content warning, as this episode’s films contain scenes of extreme violence, self harm and suicide.) If you’re happy to continue, join us as we watch two films about the many forms of love this time: new Belgian drama Close and 1999’s classic Boys Don’t Cry. They form a great double bill, outstanding, beautiful, moving, absorbing, tragic and transformative. But which film reminds us vividly of our ‘happy place’? And which film feels so contemporary it’s a shock when one of the characters uses a landline phone?
You can also hear us fail to remember the name of Nic Cage’s best film, try to figure out what ‘Benelux’ means, and discuss the difference between ‘hot potatoes’ and ‘living in each other’s pockets’. Plus a quick look at a classical music movie, a thumbs down for the Spielberg biopic, a laugh with a robotic doll assassin, and a brief word from our sponsor - although we’re not sure if what they’re saying is an ad or a warning….
If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media:
Twitter: @tworeelcineclub
Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub
Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: tworeelcinemaclub.com

Popcorn Counter: VHS

Join us as we hide in a little bubble of nostalgia at the popcorn counter this week. Before AI and chatbots, before Netflix and YouTube, before dvd, there was VHS. We explain why we think those chunky cassettes might possibly have been the most important thing to happen to cinema ever, both for film viewers and for film makers. So what if you spent half your evening adjusting the tracking and then had to watch the movie through a fog of static that would get even blurrier just before the good bit? It was ANALOG. You can’t beat that. ANALOG. Do you hear? ANALOG!
If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media:
Twitter: @tworeelcineclub
Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub
Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: tworeelcinemaclub.com