THE SCREEN WATCHING INTERVIEW: ERIC BOGOSIAN

ERIC BOGOSIAN is an iconic figure in the American live theatre scene. His skills as a monologuist are legendary; his solo stage shows have earned him three Obie Awards and the Drama Desk Award.

His incendiary ensemble drama Talk Radio would be nominated for a Pulitzer Prize for Drama, and adapted by Oliver Stone into the cult classic film.

In 2022, Eric Bogosian stepped into the role of journalist Daniel Molloy in producer Rolin Jones' reworking of Anne Rice's INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE for AMC+, opposite Jacob Anderson as Louis de Pointe du Lac and, in flashback, Sam Reid as Lestat de Lioncourt.

In Sydney with his Australian wife of 42 years, theatre director Jo Bonney, Eric Bogosian spoke with Screen Watching's Simon Foster about the resilient allure of vampirism in storytelling, the contemporisation of Rice's classic prose, the state of his beloved NYC theatre scene, and the ties that bind him to the struggles of his ancestral homeland, Armenia...

THE SCREEN WATCHING INTERVIEW: WOODY ALLEN

He is one of the great American filmmaking masters; a writer-director with four Academy awards from a career spanning nearly 60 years. In 2023, Woody Allen directed and will release his 50th film, the romantic thriller COUP DE CHANCE - shot on the streets and in the language of France, where adoration for his talent and filmmaking legacy is immense.

Starring Lou de Laâge as the young wife whose indiscretions set in motion a series of fateful, tragic and wildly entertaining developments, COUP DE CHANCE premiered at the 80th Venice Film Festival and is earning some of the best reviews of Allen's long career.

From his home in New York City, Woody Allen spoke with Screen Watching's Simon Foster about the trust he puts in pure luck to dictate the course of our lives; working with the great cinematographers of the modern era; shooting in the historic European cities once home to the giants of international cinema; and, the current state of film criticism.

THE SCREEN WATCHING INTERVIEW: RENATE REINSVE

Norwegian director Joachim Trier knew from her one line reading in his 2011 film Oslo, August 31 that Renate Reinsve was leading lady material, a star n the waiting. But ten years later, the star had yet to rise, so Trier wrote a film for her.

THE WORST PERSON IN THE WORLD is the story of 'Julie', a young woman dealing with the expectations of life - romance, parenthood, work, peace of mind - and what happens if they take a bit of time to figure out.

Renate Reinsve embodies Julie in a performance that is so naturally warm and winning, it won her the Best Actress Award at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival. She is now the star that Trier envisioned she would be, with Oscar buzz generating and the international film world at her feet.

From her home in Norway, Screen Watching's Simon Foster spoke with Renate Reinsve about the decade it took for her to be an overnight success, why 'Julie' is connecting with audiences all over the world and her vision for a Norwegian film industry renaissance...

IN AUSTRALIAN CINEMAS FROM DECEMBER 26

SCREEN WATCHING EPISODE 41

THAT PHOTO ASIDE, IT'S 'HAPPY WEEK' HERE AT SCREEN WATCHING! 

EPISODE 41 IS HERE

Between bottle warming and nappy changes, new dad Dan and ‘Unky Sime’ produce a podcast classic. We review a fresh spin on the Star Wars universe; an Air B’n’B horror story; a prestige sci-fi offering from AppleTV; and, new pics from Mark Wahlberg and Nicholas Cage. Plus we remember those great screen moments when man and animal were as one (a step down for animals, let’s face it…) Like/share/follow...Enjoy!

REVIEWS (03.41)
STAR WARS: VISIONS (Disney+); JOE BELL (in cinemas); DAN BROWN’S THE LOST SYMBOL (Paramount+); SUPERHOST (via Shudder); FOUNDATION (Apple TV+); PIG (in cinemas now)

The SCREEN WATCHING MIDDLE BIT (39.40)
THE BEST HUMAN/ANIMAL CO-STARS: Not for the first time, we’ve been inspired by Nicholas Cage. He does his best work in years opposite a pig in PIG, which got us thinking...who are the best human/animal on-screen co-stars in film/TV history? 

The WEEK AHEAD (54.43)
The return of Jon Stewart; NCIS goes to Hawaii; where to watch a ‘90s sports comedy classic; we remember the passing of a Hollywood icon; and, which LA power couple share the same birthday...25 years apart!?!

PLUS LOTS MORE!

SCREEN WATCHING EPISODE 40

IN EPISODE 40, WE REMAKE INGMAR BERGMAN’S 1973 PODCAST, SCREEN WATCHING.

LISTEN HERE

From their rock-solid relationship base, Dan & Simon cast a judgey eye over this week’s water-cooler TV content, Scenes From a Marriage; check out the new issues-based anthology series, The Premise; and go deep into the South American jungle, with Ainbo. Simon speaks with actress/director Mélanie Laurent about her new Amazon Prime feature, The Mad Women’s Ball. And the lads are overcome with ambivalence while guessing this week’s Emmy honorees. Enjoy!

REVIEWS (01:55)
Scenes From a Marriage (US: HBO | AUS: Foxtel/Binge); The Premise (US: FX | AUS: Foxtel/Binge); AINBO: Spirit of The Amazon (in cinemas now).

THE SCREEN WATCHING MIDDLE BIT (21:32)  
MELANIE LAURENT (Dir: The Mad Women's Ball)
Mélanie Laurent has been a superstar actress, acclaimed theatre director and filmmaking force for two decades in Europe, with occasional Hollywood forays for directors Quentin Tarantino (Inglourious Basterds, 2009), Denis Villeneuve (Enemy, 2013) and Michael Bay (6 Underground, 2019). Her latest project is as writer, director and co-star of Amazon Prime's adaptation of the Victoria Mas bestseller, THE MAD WOMEN'S BALL. On the eve of her film's World Premiere at the Toronto Film Festival, Mélanie Laurent spoke with Simon about the relevance of her historical narrative in today's world, the bond she shares with her star Lou de Laâge and embracing the spiritual in a place of madness...

THE WEEK AHEAD (31:19)
Amazon Prime’s fresh take on an Australian TV favourite; AppleTV+ launches Season 2 of star-heavy flagship, The Morning Show; and, we dance ‘The Batusi’ in celebration of this week’s birthday boys…

PLUS LOTS MORE!