We dive into two major 2025 Oscar contenders: A24’s Anora and Searchlight’s A Real Pain. We review each title and break down key moments of the films. Fair warning: our Anora conversation has a few spoilers, but we give you fair warning before ruining a few key moments of the film. Then, our A Real Pain conversation leads us to a discussion of the fifth Best Actor slot and whether or not Jesse Eisneberg has a shot for his great performance. We close our podcast, as always, with the Flash...

Jason Reitman’s Saturday Night is a love letter to the counterculture minds that formed one of the longest running television series in history, Saturday Night Live. Reitman creates a deliberately, lovingly chaotic atmosphere packed with visual gags, nostalgic references, sounds, and iconic music that all collaborates to orient the audience in a very specific place and time. That’s Saturday, October 11, 1975. But where exactly does music fit in all of that audio chaos? That’s where music...

With film festival season behind us, we wanted to sit back and catch up to some notable titles we’ve loved over the past few weeks. Case in point, Anna Kendrick’s directorial debut, Woman Of the Hour, is an astoundingly accomplished breakthrough from the actress. She frames the story of the serial killer who appeared on The Dating Game with empathy and intelligence. To dive into the film, we’ve asked Josh Axelrod to join us. A friend of the podcast, Josh is a former Pittsburgh Post-Gazette...

Megan returns from the SCAD Savannah Film Festival fresh with new takes on film, actors, and everything in between. One of the titles she loved at the festival was Jacques Audiard’s Emilia Pérez, so the team discusses that film in a spoiler-free conversation and assess its Oscar chances as well as the Oscar chances of other films at play in the festival. We close our podcast, as always, with the Flash Forward to the media we’re most anticipating in the upcoming week. We’re deeply...

Marching ever forward ‘neath the wooded shrine I stray not from the path. I hold death’s hand in mine. Disney+’s Marvel Television series Agatha All Along wrapped this week with a 2-episode series finale that brought the series to an emotionally satisfying climax. While initially uneven tonally, Agatha eventually settled into an entertaining and compelling narrative. The series evolved into something memorable thanks to fantastic performances from its cast, including Kathryn Hahn, Joe...

Megan is off to cover the SCAD Savannah Film Festival, leaving Joey and Clarence to share their favorite “get in the spooky spirit” Halloween media. Then, Joey breaks down the X / Twitter meme culture around (largely) gay Halloween costumes — “What Do You Mean You’re…” Finally, Joey makes a special announcement about a December podcast special for Contending at the Water Cooler. Start preparing now! We close our podcast, as always, with the Flash Forward to the media we’re most anticipating...

Mark Johnson returns to wrap our coverage of the Middleburg Film Festival and to talk about changes to our Oscar predictions following festival screenings. Then, Megan previews her coverage of the SCAD Savannah Film Festival. We close our podcast, as always, with the Flash Forward to the media we’re most anticipating in the upcoming week. We’re deeply appreciative for your shares, likes, and positive ratings on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Or click here!   Podcast Music: Royalty Free...

Mark Johnson makes his Contending at the Water Cooler podcast debut in a conversation with Joey and Clarence about the first two days of the Middleburg Film Festival. In conversation are Blitz, The Brutalist, The Piano Lesson, Memoir of a Snail, September 5, and Emilia Pérez. It’s always a great time at Middleburg! Join us next year! Check back early next week for our festival wrap-up! We’re expanding the reach of our podcast, so we’re deeply appreciative for your shares, likes, and...

This week, Megan takes a break to prepare for her coverage of the upcoming SCAD Savannah Film Festival, leaving Joey and Clarence to preview their coverage of this weekend’s Middleburg Film Festival. Check back at The Contending over the weekend for the latest in our coverage. We close our podcast, as always, with the Flash Forward to the media we’re most anticipating in the upcoming week. We’re expanding the reach of our podcast, so we’re deeply appreciative for your shares, likes, and...

Writer-director Sean Baker broke onto the filmmaking scene in 2000 with his debut feature Four Letter Words, but it was his one-two punch of universally acclaimed films Tangerine and The Florida Project that caused critics and audiences to stand at attention. When Oscar called for Willem Dafoe’s Supporting Actor nomination for The Florida Project, it opened the Academy’s eyes to Baker’s films and their authentic, lived-in worlds. If The Florida Project opened the door to awards attention,...

Are you a fan of romantic comedies? Do we need more of them on television? For this week’s episode, Megan and Joey (where’d you go, Clarence?!) sit down at the Water Cooler to gab about the majesty and the delight of Erin Foster’s hit comedy series, Nobody Wants This. Megan swoons over Adam Brody and Joey makes a Mrs. Maisel connection (who is shocked by that?). Before they talk about the Netflix hit, Megan makes the mistake in asking Joey what he thought about Joker: Folie à Deux. They also...

This week, we’re breaking down our complicated reactions to two wildly different films and a television show. All three of us have seen Demi Moore in The Substance, so it’s finally time to break down those wild plot twists and turns. And that ending… Then, Joey and Clarence bring Megan up to speed on the horror… the horror… of Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis. Finally, Megan shares her reaction to the first episode of Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story. We close our podcast, as...

Joey recently dove into the 2025 Oscars Best Actress race, which he called “Another Best Actress Bloodbath.” He brings that analysis to Contending at the Water Cooler along with a first time guest to the podcast: The Contending staff writer Frank J. Avella. We all dive into the bloodbath, figure out who are the nomination locks, and who lives on the periphery as the playing field becomes a little more clear. We close our podcast, as always, with the Flash Forward to the media we’re most...

As is the tradition at the Water Cooler, Team Contending gathers in full (minus Frank J. Avella) to break down the winners, the losers, and the overall production of last night’s 76th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards. Instead of the media we’re most anticipating, we put series and performances in our Emmy Time Capsule to open this time next year! We’re expanding the reach of our podcast, so we’re deeply appreciative for your shares, likes, and positive ratings on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Or...

This weekend’s Creative Arts Emmy Awards saw FX’s Shōgun receive a record number of wins for a series in a single year. So does that mean the series will dominate the Drama categories on Sunday night’s Primetime Emmy ceremony? Does Hacks‘ shut-out this past weekend mean it will receive similar treatment at the hands of The Bear? We talk about all of this as we prepare for Sunday’s 76th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards. But first, Joey talks about his experience at the Toronto International Film...

It’s only Joey and Clarence at the Water Cooler this week as Megan’s taking the weekend off. Clarence reviews his experience at this year’s fantastic Telluride Film Festival. Joey launches from there to preview his upcoming travel to the Toronto International Film Festival. What movies overlap? What new movies will Joey cover for The Contending at the Toronto International Film Festival? Have a listen and find out? As always, we list the media we’re most anticipated in the upcoming...

Welcome to The Contending’s Contending at the Water Cooler podcast! Hopefully, if everything goes well, you’re able to subscribe, download, and listen to our latest podcast. If not, then no worries! We will figure it all out. This week, Clarence, Megan, and Joey bring their annual tradition of the Fantasy Oscar pool to The Contending. They each select five actors, five actresses, and three films to track throughout the year. Each selection earns points for awards at festival, critics groups,...

Joey, Megan, and Clarence break down the top races in the 2024 Emmy race just as voting members of the Television Academy cast their ballots. But first, we catch up on a few housekeeping items and revisit a few things we’ve been watching in our downtime. As always we close 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!     Music from...

Clarence Moye sits down with Emmy-winning composer Jeff Russo who returns to the Emmy conversation this year with Fargo Year 5. Thanks for listening and thank you, in advance, for subscribing and rating us on Apple Podcasts!     Music from https://filmmusic.io “Cheery Monday” by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com) License: CC BY (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

Clarence brings the Cooler up to speed on Disney’s upcoming film slate fresh from his attendance at D23’s Disney Entertainment Expo. On the way, he caught Anne Hathaway and Jessica Chastain’s Mothers’ Instinct on the place as did Megan on another flight. They talk about that film and wonder why it didn’t receive a broader cinematic release. But first, they chat briefly about their upcoming venture: The Contenders. As always we close with the flash forward to the media we’re most...

On another podcast favorite, Megan, Joey, and Clarence break down two additional music Emmy categories — Main Title Theme and Music and Lyrics — with small snippets of each nominated entry so you too can follow along at home! As always we close 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!     Music from https://filmmusic.io “Cheery Monday” by Kevin...

We return after a brief hiatus to review the 2024 Emmy nominees for one of our favorite categories: Main Title Design. This year’s nominated crop includes 3 Body Problem, Fallout, Lessons in Chemistry, Palm Royale, Shōgun, and Silo. As always we close 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!     Music from https://filmmusic.io “Cheery Monday” by Kevin...

It’s our annual podcast where Team ADTV gathers to hash out the 76th Emmy Awards! As always we close 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!     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 our final podcast before the 2024 Emmy nominations! We gather around the Water Cooler to hash out our foolproof predictions in the major Drama, Comedy, and Limited Series categories. As always we close 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!     Music from https://filmmusic.io “Cheery Monday” by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com) License:...