Surprise Podcast! Nick & Nathaniel reunite to talk Campion, Zola, and *much* more
Sunday, January 2, 2022 at 12:19PM 
Since several of you have asked over the past couple of years, Nick Davis, who was once a weekly regular on both our podcast and his own site (haha) is fine! We spontaneously jumped on the phone to talk last month and recorded it. Apologies for waiting so long to share but you know how December is. So "Happy New Year!"
94 minutes
00:01 Reunited and it feels so good
01:40 Jane Campion's return with The Power of the Dog
13:35 The brilliance of Rebecca Hall's Passing which Nick has taught in book form for years
23:00 C'mon C'mon
29:30 Quick feelings on King Richard, Dune, and Licorice Pizza
40:12 Titane's anger and the atmosphere of The Humans
53:15 We split on The Worst Person in the World
1:08:00 Quick feelings on tick tick BOOM!, Belfast, Prayers for the Stolen, and The Velvet Underground
1:14:00 Hating on Spencer together. We really dislike it, okay?
1:24:45 Loving on Zola together. Get into it, bitch!
1:31:30 "Deleted Scene" House of Gucci
You can listen to the podcast on iTunes, Stitcher or Spotify or right here, attached...
Reader Comments (27)
Perfect! Thanks for the great 2022 gift. As one who was asking for a return of Nick I appreciate this surprise podcast which is dropping just in time for my first commute of the new year.
Thanks NnN!!
This was a wonderful New Years surprise!
so nice to see how much other people love ZOLA. Really hoping for at least a screenplay Oscar nomination.
What a wonderful listen! Such rich conversation on movies I've mostly heard discussed in terms of Oscar prognostication. Already craving more, especially since Nick seems to have since seen THE LOST DAUGHTER, RESPECT, WEST SIDE STORY and BEING THE RICARDOS. You two have excellent rapport, and the SPENCER section cracked me up.
Since Nick was absent online throughout most of 2020, I'd also love to know where he stood on the supporting actress race. I imagine he was a Colman voter?
Yesssss Nick is back baby ♥️
OMG! Professor Davis is one of my favorite gay professors
Is Zola streaming anywhere?
You are all so nice to be so excited. I was so glad to fall back in with everyone's favorite filmbiiiiiiitch. (Zola fans know!)
@Grace: I thought that Oscar went home with the right lady!
Nick's shock at the NYFCC Best Actress result is hilarious. Thanks for upping my anticipation on Worst Person. :)
What a delightful surprise! I was thinking recently I was missing hearing you muse on this season via the podcast and this was a perfect salve.
I. YAY!!!!!!
2. Interesting comments on the cinematography of Passing. The one comment I thought, to be honest, was that the biggest driver in using black and white was that we (as a modern audience) wouldn't be able to see either actress as able to pass.
3. I enjoyed The Worst Person in the World, but I have to admit, because Danielson Lie reads very young to me and Reinseve reads as her age I never really accepted them as different generations (the performers are only 8 years apart), which I think is supposed to be a key driver of their differences. But it wasn't debilitating.
4. What you guys state about Belfast is what I felt. It's so dispassionate and trite to me.
I feel like the JLo snub presages the Gaga snub this year.
Isn’t the human temptation to leave her *off* your ballot more powerful than the temptation to put her on your ballot? It’s an on obnoxious performance and a kind of insulting campaign she’s running to support it…not sure what serious actors have to gain from dignifying this effort. And I can see why they’d resent it.
JLo actually deserved the nomination, though!
Maybe a cruel question, but who do you think would've been better in Dunst's part? Michelle Williams?
@Arkaan: Fwiw, i didn't really feel or read the generational difference, either, even though it kept being asserted.
@Savannah: Williams seems so completely perfect! So much so that I can almost already imagine what she would do? I was curious what Dunst would and do kind of like how she's both expected and not for that part. I'm glad it wasn't Elisabeth Moss, who was initially cast. They're the exact same age, and if we were sifting through that exact bracket, I'm going to say one name who might seem right up the alley of the part (Ruth Wilson), one perpetually under the radar (Lily Rabe), and one further outside the box, but who I think might have nailed it (Lizzy Caplan). Rebecca Hall and Ruth Negga are both that age, too, but were off being geniuses elsewhere. :)
I had a big problem with Spencer too, in particular Stewart's performance coming off as very one-note. It's like the premise is supposed to be that for these few days she's in such a high state of anxiety and so bothered and perturbed that she can only be one way: acerbic and morose. Right in Stewart's wheelhouse, of course, but I think an opportunity was missed to show how good Diana was at hiding her emotions and putting on the happy public face at times. It just felt like an angry ride, and not a particularly accurate portrayal.
oh, how i've missed the good professor
what a great catch-up - i felt like i was eavesdropping on the two smart guys at the next table
Awwww, par, you're just the greatest. Best to you!
Listening to Nick Davis on the train like Diane Lane in Unfaithful.
Thank you so much for this. Much needed during these times, it is always a pleasure to hear you both talk.
A weekly podcast from you both would be a dream.
You are a brave man Nathaniel. Glowed up Nick Davis would make anybody look like the hunchback of Notre Dame.
As someone who loved her performance, I too feel Gaga is going to be snubbed. I expect her to get SAG next week but miss BAFTA and Oscar.
Xavier are you Catalan? Catalans are hot
Love the chemistry you guys have! So great to have Nick back.
I remember the year La La Land was released Nathaniel was very defensive against the vocal detractors. Often saying things like, " just let people enjoy things!" and "let people like what they like!" and now Nathaniel is doing that same thing with Spencer. Weird to have such glee in tearing down a movie that means a lot to some people.
john -- it's not like i'm dogpiling (which was anti lala land people were doing)... nick and i are the only ones who seem to hate it and I'm not talking about it all the time. But that said, i hear your point. It can be hard not to be defensive about things you love and vice versa.
xavier -- weekly is not in the cards for Nick, alas, but we hope to do a "sequel" soon.
arkaan - that was nick only on Belfast. I like it! (though i wouldn't be nominating it for many things outside of *maybe* Jamie Dornan.
mike -- zola is on showtime (if you have that) and something called "Fubo" otherwise it's rentable.
Ok, so this got me to finally watch Zola, which I liked and which reminded me of Hustlers, Spring Breakers and Tangerine. But my biggest takeaway (besides “You look like Whoopi Goldberg”) was that the same woman shot this and The Power of the Dog?!?!
YES! It's what we all wanted and needed.