The Big Picture · Review · Interview
March 2, 2021/ 91 min/ Sean Fennessey · Amanda Dobbins
Sean and Amanda finally tackle Promising Young Woman: the tone, the ending, and the Variety review controversy. Then Sean talks to Delroy Lindo about Da 5 Bloods, Spike Lee, and Crooklyn.
5 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.
The Promising Young Woman Conversationspoilers throughout
Amanda saw it at Sundance over a year earlier and told Sean to skip it; a rewatch changed her mind on plenty, but not the ending. They spend most of the segment on the tonal whiplash between the film's candy-colored revenge fantasy and its grim subject matter, plus the Variety review that Carey Mulligan publicly objected to and that got the critic, Dennis Harvey, cut loose.
In conversation
His fourth film with Spike Lee and their first in 25 years. Lindo pushed back on his character Paul being written as an explicit Trump supporter; Lee thought it over and told him no, Paul needed to stay Trumpian.
The audition that started the collaboration: Lindo flew to L.A. to read for West Indian Archie and Lee wasn't even in the room, so he had a second audition arranged in New York.
Took a beating on release for not looking like a typical Spike Lee film; Lindo says it's since become a mainstay.
His answer to the show's closing question about the last great thing he's seen. He called Danny Glover, one of the film's producers, just to ask how the director got that performance out of a toddler.
Also mentioned raised along the way
The rape-revenge lineage Sean traces the film against I Spit on Your GraveMs .45Lady SnowbloodKill Bill: Vol. 1IrreversibleRevengeThe NightingaleThe Babadook
Needle drops and callbacks The Night of the HunterThe King and IThelma & Louise
Spike Lee's prep materials for Da 5 Bloods The Treasure of the Sierra MadreApocalypse Now
In passing Trolls World TourTenetThe Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Not films filtered out: TV, games, ads
TV Law & Order
Podcasts Higher Learning
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