Free Solo 2018
Sean's pick to win; Amanda calls it essentially ‘First Man, but good.’
The Big Picture · Discussion · Interview
The Most Unpredictable Oscar Race, Plus the Directors of ‘Free Solo’ | Interview (Ep. 124)
February 7, 2019/ 45 min/ Sean Fennessey · Amanda Dobbins
Amanda breaks down a wide-open Best Documentary race, then Jimmy Chin and Chai Vasarhelyi talk about the risk and trust behind filming Alex Honnold on El Capitan.
14 films across 2 segments.
AI-generated This episode was transcribed and analyzed with AI models. The matches aren't perfect — expect the occasional misheard title or a link to the wrong film.
Best Documentary at the Oscarsthe nominees and snubs, then the pick to win
Hale County This Morning, This Evening 2018
The surprise nominee: impressionistic, non-linear, no talking-head interviews.
Minding the Gap 2018
Amanda's favorite movie of last year; director Bing Liu was on the show.
Of Fathers and Sons 2018
Talal Derki spent two years embedded with a Syrian militant's family and his two teenage sons.
RBG 2018
Sean's least favorite of the five: he calls it pop hokiness that undersells the historical figure.
Won't You Be My Neighbor? 2018
Snubbed, partly because director Morgan Neville already won an Oscar for 20 Feet From Stardom.
Three Identical Strangers 2018
Snubbed despite director Tim Wardle winning the DGA award for the film.
First Man 2018
Amanda's reference point for Free Solo: similar themes, less charisma at the center.
Jimmy Chin and Chai Vasarhelyi on Free Solo
Jimmy Chin and Chai Vasarhelyi
Free Solo 2018
Alex Honnold's unroped climb of El Capitan; two years of filming built on the ethics of the risk itself.
Jimmy Chin and Chai Vasarhelyi
Meru 2015
Chin and Vasarhelyi's previous film together, about a Himalayan climbing attempt.
Jimmy Chin and Chai Vasarhelyi
The Act of Killing 2012
Chai's pick for the last great thing she's seen: she calls it a genre-bending revelation.
Jimmy Chin and Chai Vasarhelyi
Honeyland 2019
Chai's other pick, just seen at Sundance: Macedonian beekeepers, shot verite.
Jimmy Chin and Chai Vasarhelyi
Whiplash 2014
Jimmy's pick: a film about someone pushing themselves to their limit.
Also mentioned raised along the way
Past Best Documentary winners discussed Inside JobUndefeatedSearching for Sugar ManHow to Survive a Plague20 Feet from StardomCitizenfourAmyO.J.: Made in AmericaIcarus
In passing Cartel LandHoop Dreams