MUBI Podcast

Few films have garnered the rabid, cult following over the years is a sight to behold. Giant cats. Talking houses. Heads coming out of wells. The images might be familiar, but the story behind the film is less so. The debut feature from experimental filmmaker Nobuhiko Obayashi was done in collaboration with his 10-year-old daughter. Season 6, titled Haunted Homes, explores how haunted house movies have mirrored our relationship with our homes. Each episode visits a horror movie that changed t...

The most famous haunted house in America is a large Dutch Colonial family home that became a bestseller, super-successful horror movie and a franchise that has spawned over 60 movies (and counting). And it’s all based…on a con. Together with horror critic Jenn Addams, FANGORIA editor-in-chief Phil Nobile Jr. and Bloody Disgusting critic Joe Lipsett, who is possibly the only person in the world to have watched all the Amityville films, guest host Anna tracks how one haunted house movie became ...

After a bad experience in Hollywood, Guillermo del Toro had lost his spark. He got it back with a story of a haunted orphanage during the Spanish Civil War, a script he wrote when he was still a student. Together with the film’s producer Rosa Bosch, BFI’s Creative Director and author of THE FABER BOOK OF MEXICAN CINEMA Jason Wood and co-host of the Filmspotting podcast Josh Larsen, guest host Anna Bogutskaya finds out how THE DEVIL’S BACKBONE gave Guillermo his horror groove back. S...

Before POLTERGEIST, haunted house movies took place in old, creepy mansions. Regular host Rico Gagliano visits the original suburban house in California to check for ghosts and hands over to guest host Anna Bogutskaya to explore how POLTERGEIST transformed horror movies forever with the help of the movie’s star JoBeth Williams, original publicist Mick Garris and horror filmmaker Vincenzo Natali. Season 6, titled Haunted Homes, explores how haunted house movies have mirrored our relations...

Writer/Director Coralie Fargeat's Cannes-winning body-horror blitz THE SUBSTANCE features Demi Moore as an aging star who turns to a mystery drug in hopes of becoming a better, younger version of herself. Fargeat tells host Rico Gagliano about casting Moore, why blood and guts are great metaphors, and the pain of makeup removal.THE SUBSTANCE comes to theaters in the US, UK, Latin America, Germany, Canada and Netherlands on September 19 & 20. Visit trythesubstance.com for showtimes and tic...

Oscar-winning actor/producer Riz Ahmed (SOUND OF METAL) and acclaimed UK director Yann Mounir Demange (’71, TOP BOY) tell host Rico Gagliano about treading the line between truth and fiction in DAMMI—Demange’s semi-autobiographical short about an angry young man trying to come to terms with his identity, his dad, and his birthplace: Paris.DAMMI is now streaming exclusively on MUBI worldwide. More films from Riz Ahmed are also available to stream in many countries.God is A DJ - you can listen...

With Cannes 2024 underway, host Rico Gagliano takes a tour of the less-known corners of the legendary film festival—avoiding red-carpet glamour to bring you tales of spiritual seekers, aspiring filmmakers on the street, and the ongoing drama of the fest’s favorite dive bar. Featuring on-location conversations with Wim Wenders, UK critic Anna Bogutskaya, ecumenical jury member Jane Stranz, and a bunch of random passersby.Wim Wenders' PERFECT DAYS is now streaming exclusively on MUBI in the UK,...

Legendary filmmaker Wim Wenders returns to the show to tell host Rico Gagliano about his Cannes-winning, Oscar-nominated PERFECT DAYS—the story of a Tokyo toilet cleaner who finds joy in routine. They also get into a few of Wenders’s favorite things: Japan, travel, Nina Simone, and having time on his hands.PERFECT DAYS will stream exclusively on MUBI in the UK, India, Turkey, and Latin America starting April 12, and the film continues to show in cinemas in the UK & Ireland.To stream more ...

Superstar fashion designer John Galliano wrecked his career when he was caught on video in a drunken, antisemitic rant circa 2011. Now, in a new documentary, Oscar-winning documentarian Kevin Macdonald (WHITNEY, ONE DAY IN SEPTEMBER) asks audiences to gaze into Galliano’s eyes and decide for themselves if he deserves a second act.On this special episode, Macdonald tells host Rico Gagliano about coming to terms with fashion, ambiguity, and the human mind.HIGH AND LOW - JOHN GALLIANO comes to U...

In a wide-ranging interview, Sofia Coppola tells host Rico Gagliano all about the making of her new Priscilla Presley biopic—from the Kubrick flick that inspired her opening sequence...to picking the soundtrack full of pop tunes by just about everyone except Elvis.It's a follow-up to last week's career-spanning look at the themes threaded through Coppola's films and fashions—and a fitting end to our season.Season 5, titled Tailor Made, dives deep into the worlds of film and fashion. Each epis...

There’s maybe no working filmmaker more associated with film fashion than Sofia Coppola. But in this brief history of her super-stylish body of work, we figure out the thematic stitching inside those perfect fits.Host Rico Gagliano talks with Coppola, her brother (and collaborator) Roman, and her award-winning costume designers past and present, to learn how the director depicts her characters’ search for identity in beautiful, difficult worlds.Season 5, titled Tailor Made, dives deep into th...

Spike Lee’s masterwork DO THE RIGHT THING is an incendiary look at racial tension, an empathetic portrait of a community...and one of the flyest-ever distillations of street style as the ’80s gave way to the ’90s.Host Rico Gagliano learns how double Oscar-winner Ruth E. Carter (BLACK PANTHER) used bright color, afro-consciousness, and a whole lot of Nike sneakers to build a look as complex and political as the story. Guests include Carter, Spike Lee’s longtime cinematographer Ernest Dickerson...

In 1979, at the tail end of the punk era, Franc Roddam’s QUADROPHENIA helped convince a certain crew of UK kids to favor sharp suits over bondage gear. Host Rico Gagliano tells the twisty story of the movie, the ‘60s mod subculture it celebrates, and the mod revival it fueled. Guests include Roddam himself, superstar fashion designer Anna Sui, mod historians Paolo Hewitt and Eddie Piller…and a cameo from Sid Vicious’s shirt.Season 5, titled Tailor Made, dives deep into the worlds of fil...

In 1959, a brash critic-turned-filmmaker named Jean-Luc Godard cast movie star Jean Seberg in his first film, BREATHLESS. You probably know it revolutionized movies, but it also had a big impact on fashion, onscreen and off—by seeming like it wasn’t even trying. With the help of historians and critics, host Rico Gagliano decodes Seberg’s “French Girl” style…and also gives you a peek into his ’70s disco wardrobe. Seriously.Season 5, titled Tailor Made, dives deep into the worlds of film ...

The Cannes-winning HOW TO HAVE SEX tracks a trio of UK women on a non-stop clubbing holiday...that goes disturbingly off the rails. In this special episode, writer/director Molly Manning Walker tells host Rico Gagliano about the highs and lows of party culture, why consent should be more than a word, and how she prefers her roller coasters.HOW TO HAVE SEX will stream exclusively on MUBI in the UK, Turkey, and Latin America starting December 29, and the film comes to US theaters on February 2....

As the “Hot Labor Summer” of union strikes rolls into autumn, legendary British director Ken Loach sits down with host Rico Gagliano to look back on a long career spent telling the stories of working people…and why it might end with THE OLD OAK: a call for solidarity in a northern industrial town.THE OLD OAK releases in cinemas in the UK and Ireland on September 29 and will come to US theaters in January 2024.MUBI is a global streaming service, production company and film distributor dedicate...

Sundance favorite Sebastián Silva tells host Rico Gagliano about his self-described "misanthropic comedy" ROTTING IN THE SUN—the satirical story of a happy hedonist and a not-so-happy filmmaker who end up in the middle of a Hitchcockian mystery.Silva dishes on how he teamed up with superstar Instagrammer Jordan Firstman, the importance of self-mockery, and the film's already-infamous sex sequences featuring "all the d***s."ROTTING IN THE SUN is showing in select US theaters and releases exclu...

"Let's just say I wanted to make a liberated film. I felt like...am I allowed to say 'f*** it?' Like, 'f*** it.'" So says legendary indie filmmaker Ira Sachs about PASSAGES, his seriously sexy Sundance hit about an insatiable artist in a messy modern love triangle.In this special episode, Sachs tells host Rico Gagliano how his all-star cast (Ben Whishaw, Franz Rogowski, and Adele Exarchopoulos) liberated their characters, and why he and Hollywood are on the outs.PASSAGES opens in theaters on ...

Oscar-nominated Hungarian filmmaker Ildiko Enyedi is celebrated for her bold, unclassifiable features (like the Cannes-winning sci-fi MY 20TH CENTURY). But at this year’s Cannes she trained her eye on smaller-scale visions: She helmed the jury picking the festival’s best short films.Enyedi tells host Rico Gagliano about her own whimsical shorts, her optimism for the future of the form, and fangirls out on fellow master Ruben Östlund’s first, one-shot foray into cinema.Every May, the pop...

At Cannes, celebrated Portuguese directing duo Filipa Reis and Joao Miller Guerra debuted LEGUA — a movie about a housekeeper tending to an empty country estate… and the sacrifices she’s willing to make for work and friendship.Reis tells host Rico Gagliano about turning the camera on her own privilege, the joys and challenges of tag-team directing, and an ’80s Portuguese pop track that’s one of the keys to her main character.Every May, the population of sleepy Cannes, France triples — as film...

Filmmaker Joanna Arnow’s shorts and docs are funny, fearless looks at people at their most excruciatingly vulnerable — especially herself. In her debut feature THE FEELING THAT THE TIME FOR DOING SOMETHING HAS PASSED, she ratchets up the deadpan humor to tell the story of a woman navigating the alternately mundane and surreal worlds of work, family…and BDSM relationships.Arnow sits down with host Rico Gagliano to talk about her characters’ crossed wires, why pouring soup is funny, and w...

Belgian rapper-turned-auteur Baloji was born in the Democratic Republic of Congo — where for some, his name literally means “demon.” So it’s no surprise that his mind-bending first feature OMEN is all about characters society considers cursed. Baloji tells host Rico Gagliano about this kaleidoscopic debut, the pressures of competition at Cannes, and the scene in PULP FICTION that broke his brain.Every May, the population of sleepy Cannes, France triples — as film pros and cinephil...

In their sophomore feature BLACKBIRD BLACKBIRD BLACKBERRY, Georgian-born filmmaker Elene Naveriani tells the story of a middle-aged virgin in a small Georgian town who dares to start living the life she feels like leading — gossips and the patriarchy be damned. Naveriani tells host Rico Gagliano about the movie’s big little moments, its “instinctive feminist” hero, and what powdered soap says about Georgian society.Every May, the population of sleepy Cannes, France triples — as film pros and ...

L.A. filmmaker Weston Razooli’s debut feature RIDDLE OF FIRE is like if THE GOONIES were directed by Francois Truffaut — a tale of three modern kids on an old-fashioned adventure in the woods, facing down a family of witches. Razooli tells host Rico Gagliano about his D&D-soaked childhood in Utah, how he cast the kids… and the afterparty following the film’s Cannes premiere, which sounds as magical — and kinda dangerous — as his movie.Every May, the population of sleepy Cannes, France tri...

Quebecois actor and director Monia Chokri is a Cannes regular — who in her films, regularly returns to her favorite themes: Very smart women having a very hard time figuring out relationships. Host Rico Gagliano stole a few minutes with her at this year’s Cannes to try and figure out why — and to learn about her charmer of a dramedy THE NATURE OF LOVE, one of the hits of the festival.MUBI Podcast Season 4 — Conversations At Cannes: Every May, the population of sleepy Cannes, France triples — ...

In 2019, Brazil's Kleber Mendonça Filho won the Jury Prize at Cannes with his co-directed movie BACURAU. This year he returned to the fest to premiere a documentary about movies. Or more specifically, about the places we watch them.In the second installment of our mini-season of conversations taped on location at Cannes '23, Filho tells host Rico Gagliano about PICTURES OF GHOSTS. It's his look back at the movie palaces in his home town of Recife, and how he's come to terms ...

To kick off our mini-season of conversations taped on location at the 2023 Cannes film festival, host Rico Gagliano meets up with legendary director Wim Wenders (Buena Vista Social Club; Paris, Texas). The subject of their conversation: Wenders' new 3D documentary Anselm, which plunges the audience into the work of German fine artist Anselm Kiefer. Wenders explains why he loves making art about artists, and how Kiefer’s dark, often confrontational pieces...are actually childlike.Every M...

We wrap up our season on great needle drops with an interview mixtape. Host Rico Gagliano talks to three legendary music supervisors about their iconic pairings of music and image...a bunch of which likely provided the soundtrack to some part of your life.Featuring Randall Poster (KIDS, THE WOLF OF WALL STREET, SUMMER OF SOUL), Margaret Yen (JUNO), and the late John Hughes's go-to music guy Tarquin Gotch—who helped FERRIS BUELLER twist and shout on his infamous day off.The third season of the...

In his gritty ’55 flick BLACKBOARD JUNGLE, director Richard Brooks introduced a wide audience to Sidney Poitier, the harsh world of inner-city schools...and a genre of music called "rock ‘n’ roll."Host Rico Gagliano tells the story of Bill Haley's "Rock Around the Clock"—cinema's first rock needle drop—with the help of music detective and author Jim Dawson, film writer Anna Ariadne Knight, and actor Peter Ford...the Hollywood kid who may have accidentally started the rock-n-roll era.The third...

Shot on a shoestring in six wild weeks, CHUNGKING EXPRESS is the movie that put legendary Hong Kong filmmaker Wong Kar Wai on the international map—along with his star, pop diva Faye Wong...and her Cantonese cover of The Cranberries's hit "Dreams."Host Rico Gagliano learns how the song, the director, and the singer all came together to capture Hong Kong at a moment of anxiety and hope—and how the tune still unites people in karaoke bars across Asia. Featuring Cranberries guitarist Noel Hogan,...

In his Oscar-nominated CLOSE, filmmaker Lukas Dhont uses the sparest dialogue, the gentlest music, and the most pastoral of images...to tell a shattering story about the brutal ways society turns boys into men.We're taking a mid-season break from our series on movie music to bring you this candid interview with Dhont—in which he tells host Rico Gagliano how he writes like a dancer, why this quiet film is intended as a loud political statement, and what it has in common with James Cameron's TI...

In 1972, director Perry Henzell set a gritty crime thriller in Jamaica's exploding, politically charged music scene, and came up with THE HARDER THEY COME—the cult-movie spark that started reggae music's slow burn around the world.Host Rico Gagliano tells the story of a film and a soundtrack that inspired rebels and rockers from the Clash to Willie Nelson. Guests include Henzell's daughter Justine, UK music writer Lloyd Bradley, and Paul Douglas—drummer and bandleader of reggae legends ...

In 2001, writer/director Richard Kelly's genre-busting rookie feature DONNIE DARKO crashed and burned at the box office. But it almost immediately rose from the ashes to become one of the first cult hits of the 21st century...and it took the music of '80s band Tears for Fears along for the ride.Host Rico Gagliano tells this twisty tale with the help of Kelly, star Jena Malone (THE HUNGER GAMES), and the film's composer Michael Andrews—whose stripped-down cover of Tears's "Mad World" became ma...

In 1968, Stanley Kubrick’s sci-fi epic 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY pushed movies light years into the future. It pioneered the use of special effects, makeup, sound design…and needle drops.For the season debut of our audio documentary series, host Rico Gagliano tells the story of the now-legendary classical tracks Kubrick dropped into his space movie—something the director did against the advice of just about everybody, and to the detriment of at least two composers’ mental and physical health. It’...

The multiple-Oscar-nominated psychodrama TÁR is the story of a compulsive, privileged leader who abuses her power. In this special episode of the MUBI Podcast, writer/director Todd Field tells host Rico Gagliano why he set that story in a concert hall instead of the halls of politics.Also up for discussion: Cate Blanchett’s small miracles, why Field prefers marathons to sprints, and his mentor Stanley Kubrick’s biggest fear.TÁR is now showing in theaters in many countries and is available to ...

Charlotte Wells's wildly acclaimed feature-length debut AFTERSUN follows a father and daughter on a vacation where much is implied but little is said...unless you listen close to the soundtrack.In this special bonus episode, Wells tells host Rico Gagliano about the '80s and '90s-era needle drops that pepper the film, from Bran Van 3000 to the accidental discovery of a Queen track that suddenly spoke volumes. They also dive into the movie’s subtle performances, and try to unpack why this intim...

In 1972, a lush pop ballad called "The Mist" swirled out of radios all over South Korea. Fifty years later, master auteur Park Chan-wook has taken it as the main inspiration for his celebrated new thriller-romance DECISION TO LEAVE.In this special episode of the award-winning MUBI Podcast, Park tells host Rico Gagliano about the song's influence on the film, unveils the musical inspiration for a possible future project...and explains why his action sequences always seem to leave his character...

"Only in Theaters" concludes with the cautionary tale of the Majestic. Africa's island region of Zanzibar used to be movie crazy — but today just one cinema remains: The Majestic, a 1950s-era building with roots that go back even further.Host Rico Gagliano speaks to folks around the world about the wild glory days of Zanzibar's cinema culture, why it's now on the brink of extinction...and then takes hope from an itinerant film programmer 6000 miles away in Amsterdam. Featuring celebrated docu...

This week, we have a special bonus episode courtesy of our Latin American podcast MUBI Podcast: Encuentros. To celebrate the exclusive release of MEMORIA on MUBI in many countries, we're excited to share this discussion between Tilda Swinton and Apichatpong Weerasethakul.Swinton and Weerasethakul reunited in Colombia for MEMORIA's release and talked about the importance of understanding that you’re not in control and how cinema is an attempt to put what’s inside one’s head on screen, somethin...

For the first half-century of cinema, most movies were made and printed on nitrate film. Problem: it easily decomposes, it's easily combustible, and once it's on fire, you can't put it out. Only a few theaters on Earth can safely screen nitrate prints...and only one has an annual festival dedicated to the format: The George Eastman Museum's Dryden Theatre in Rochester, New York with its Nitrate Picture Show.To understand why it's important to screen these original treasures in an age of...

In the grey Thatcher-era England of the '80s, a romantically dilapidated London movie palace called The Scala beckoned to England's subcultures — and influenced filmmakers from Christopher Nolan to Steve McQueen.Host Rico Gagliano learns the wild, seedy, and ultimately poignant history of what John Waters called, "A country club for lunatics." Special guests include directors Mary Harron (AMERICAN PSYCHO), Peter Strickland (BERBERIAN SOUND STUDIO) and Prano Bailey-Bond (CENSOR), plus film pro...

Hal Ashby's HAROLD AND MAUDE debuted to generally poor reviews, and worse box office. But in suburban Minneapolis, a humble second-run neighborhood theater called The Westgate found the film an audience...and helped turn it into one of the biggest cult hits of all time.Host Rico Gagliano gets the story from HAROLD AND MAUDE producer Charles Mulvehill — one of the few living members of the film's creative team — and an endearing cast of local characters who, back in 1972, found themselve...

In 1970, a scruffy repertory theater — led by the visionary Ben Barenholtz — quietly placed a print ad in the Village Voice, advertising midnight screenings of a Spanish-language western they claimed was "too heavy to be shown any other way." The movie was Alejandro Jodorowsky's EL TOPO, and it'd kick off the "Midnite Movie" craze that changed moviegoing.Hear the history of the Elgin Theater and its legendary, weed-soaked screenings of EL TOPO, featuring commentary from ex-Voice c...

In 1940s France, a little 50-seat cinema opened that would launch one revolution on international movie screens...and arguably a second one in the streets of Paris. Host Rico Gagliano delves into the wild history of the Cinémathèque Française and its legendary founder, Henri Langlois.Featuring interviews with directors Barbet Schroeder (BARFLY, REVERSAL OF FORTUNE) and Luc Moullet (BRIGITTE ET BRIGITTE), plus New Yorker writer Louis Menand, Amy Nicholson of the podcast "Unspooled" and many mo...

On this special episode, host Rico Gagliano talks to Cannes-winning filmmaker Mahamat-Saleh Haroun about his latest film LINGUI, THE SACRED BONDS — the story of a mother trying to secure an abortion for her daughter...in Chad, a country where abortion is illegal. Haroun opens up about the movie's real-life inspirations, the collective power of women, and about his homeland's last remaining movie theater — the palace where he learned to tell stories.LINGUI, THE SACRED BONDS is now streaming ex...

In this special episode, acclaimed filmmaker Joachim Trier tells host Rico Gagliano about how and why he made his tender look at messy modern romance, THE WORST PERSON IN THE WORLD—from constructing its Oscar-nominated screenplay to casting his star Renate Reinsve (who went on to win Best Actress at Cannes for the role). He also reflects on the dangers of nostalgia and then indulges in some of his own, looking back on the movies—and movie theaters—that shaped him.THE WORST PERSON IN THE WORLD...

The MUBI Podcast returns this week with a special episode. Host Rico Gagliano speaks with Oscar-winning filmmaker Andrea Arnold (AMERICAN HONEY, FISH TANK) about COW — her gripping debut documentary chronicling the life of a single dairy cow.In the interview, Arnold opens up about the deeply personal interpretations audiences have brought to the nearly dialogue-free film, and how making it has affected her own interactions with creatures great and small.Fresh off receiving a BAFTA nomination ...

China’s Lunar New Year movie season is like America’s summer blockbuster season… on steroids. And it got that way thanks to THE DREAM FACTORY — a wry 1997 comedy directed by Feng Xiaogang, who’d come to be known as “the Chinese Spielberg.” Host Rico Gagliano gets a crash course on the movie from experts on Chinese cinema, including City University of New York’s Ying Zhu and UCLA’s Michael Berry. Our first season, titled “Lost in Translation,” spotlights movies that were massive cu...

The biggest box office hit in the history of the Soviet Union was an early 1970s Mexican romance so obscure in its home country that even many experts on the era haven’t heard of it. Host Rico Gagliano talks with several who have, including esteemed cinema historian Ian Christie, Concordia University’s Masha Salazkina, and actress Emoé de la Parra, the daughter of the hugely successful author Yolanda Vargas Dulché behind the comic book and telenovela on which the film was based.Our firs...

One of the world’s most prolific film industries was founded on the success of a direct-to-video film distributed on VHS cassettes. Host Rico Gagliano learns the history of LIVING IN BONDAGE — the indie project that launched Nigeria’s “Nollywood.” Featuring interviews with the movie’s writer/producer Okey Ogunjiofor and director Chris Obi-Rapu.Our first season, titled “Lost in Translation,” spotlights movies that were massive cultural phenomena in their home countries, but nowhere...

In the mid-70s, in the midst of a military dictatorship, a Brazilian filmmaker barely out of his teens brought a beloved magical realist story about food, sex and happy compromises to the screen... and nearly blew JAWS out of Brazil’s box office waters. Featuring interviews with the film’s director Bruno Barreto and Kleber Mendonça Filho, co-director of the Cannes-winning BACURAU.Our first season, titled “Lost in Translation,” spotlights movies that were massive cultural phenomena in th...

The longest-running film in Bollywood history, 1995's DILWALE DULHANIA LE JAYENGE (aka DDLJ) caught the imagination of a country in transition and practically created a new Bollywood subgenre. Rico gets the inside story of its creation and legacy from DDLJ co-star Anupam Kher, costume designer Manish Malhotra, and critic Anupama Chopra — who literally wrote the book on this classic rom-com.Our first season, titled “Lost in Translation,” spotlights movies that were massive cultural phenomena i...

To get a deeper idea of what makes his favorite country tick, Rico dives into Paul Verhoeven’s wild sophomore feature TURKISH DELIGHT — the biggest home-grown box office hit in the history of the Netherlands. Featuring interviews with Verhoeven himself, cinematographer Jan de Bont, and star Monique Van De Ven.Our first season, titled “Lost in Translation,” spotlights movies that were massive cultural phenomena in their home countries, but nowhere else. With episodes spanning nearly ever...

Coming soon. The MUBI Podcast. Subscribe now and tune in June 3.Hosted by Rico Gagliano, the first season of the MUBI Podcast focuses on movies that have great importance in their home country, but are lesser known by international audiences and critics.We begin with the unlikely tale of Paul Verhoeven’s infamous second feature TURKISH DELIGHT and its unique significance during the counterculture movement in 1970s Holland. Featuring exclusive interviews with Paul Verhoeven, Monique van ...