No One Will Save You is ultimately a journey of self-forgiveness. The overall structure is familiar in that the character begins in a place where they’re safe in a world they’ve built, then someone or something disrupts that world, that causes the character to confront whatever they’ve been running/hiding from, ultimately leading to a new world.

In this week's episode of the Film Colossus podcast, we’re geeking over the cult classic that still feels relevant 20 years after its release: Donnie Darko. We discuss how our interpretations of its cryptic story have changed over the years and debate the original cut vs. the director’s cut.

Blade Runner is a meditation on what it means to be alive. Deckard’s character journey shows him transform from someone who doesn’t see the humanity in replicants, bioengineered humanoids, to someone who doesn’t care if there’s a difference. While the circumstances are science fiction in nature, the story is a familiar one about tolerance and understanding of the “other”. American History X, Crash, Magnolia, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, I, Robot, all have similar stories where a “Deckard” starts off intolerant only to realize their prejudice…

The Menu is a critique of classism within cultures. In the film, it’s directly applied to the culinary world, pitting a $1250 multi-course dining experience against a $9.95 burger. What does the consumer prefer? What does the chef prefer? But the message extends to other arenas. The movie industry comes to mind. The fashion industry. A Danielle Steel book vs. a Virginia Woolf novel. Does more intellectual always equal better? Does more expensive always equal better? 

This week on the Film Colossus podcast, we’re talking about a coming-of-age movie that’s destined to become a classic: Bottoms. We discuss the history of high school movies and why this absurd take on growing up stands out.

In this week's episode of the Film Colossus podcast, we gush over Celine Song’s debut film, Past Lives.

What is Past Lives about?

There's something important to understand about Eyes Wide Shut: it’s all a dream. Well, maybe not literally a dream. But in the symbolic movie sense, Bill’s entire adventure is laden with outrageous, otherworldly moments that force him to pretend to be someone he isn’t. This journey is crucial for rehabilitating his marriage.

As many of you know, Letterboxd recently updated its Official Top 250 Narrative Feature Films list. And since Film Colossus is committed to providing the best movie analysis on the internet, we decided to challenge ourselves: let's dissect every single film on that list.