George Miller's post-apocalyptic epic Mad Max Fury Road hit theaters and audiences in 2015 with gale forces of hyperkinetic action and never looked back. The film was an overnight sensation, luring audiences into theaters while managing to impress the critics along the way, being named the Best Picture of the Year by the L.A. Times and picking up 10 Academy Award nominations; no small feat for arguably the weirdest blockbuster to ever come out of a major studio. But honoring Miller's unique vision is exactly why the film works. There is an authenticity on display that is perhaps unparalleled in the modern action film, and the creative freedom Miller allowed and even insisted on his crew employing to every piece of material accumulates into one of the all time great works of cinema and an absolutely genre-defining film. In this episode, Jason & Ryan break down all the many ways the film succeeds, both technically and creatively, while sharing numerous insights that they learned throughout their research and cinematic observations. Come join the conversation as we look at Mad Max: Fury Road right here on Esoterica Cinema.

Gangubai Kathiawadi from director Sanjay Leela Bhansali sees Alia Bhatt play the notoriously infamous Madame to various effects. On the one hand, the film is a dark and serious look at admittedly difficult parts of her legacy, while at the same time glossing over events to make them seem less sordid and violent than they in fact were. As Jason & Ryan review the film, you'll get both sides of the equation, as Jason took issue with the manner in which Gangubai Kathiawadi was represented, while Ryan felt the film did an estimable job telling the story of this flawed yet unique character that did much to advance the normalization of sex work in India and abroad. Either way, get ready for five musical sequences in a row (j/k) as we review Gangubai Kathiawadi right here on Esoterica Cinema.

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ABOUT OUR CHANNEL Esoterica Cinema is the result of a great friendship between Jason Peters and Ryan Seybold. Having met in film school, both have since gone on to pursue their craft in various ways. Ryan actively works as a sound recording engineer, having been involved in numerous projects for nationally prominent companies such as ESPN and PBS, while Jason is a published author, screenwriter, and filmmaker responsible for a variety of works available online and elsewhere. The program focuses not just on surface level observations, but gets down to the heart and soul of what makes a given film tick. Direction, Acting, Cinematography, Score, Sound Design, Narrative Structure, and Character Arcs are some of the many high-level and granular analysis provided on every episode. At Esoterica Cinema, we don't just tell you whether or not a movie is good; we go into detail on what makes it good or bad, educating and informing our audience along the way. Come join the fun and enjoy the movies!

Jason & Ryan get philosophical and ask, "what is art?" while analyzing Ruben Ostlund's 2017 arthouse satire The Square