Contra Zoom Pod

On this show we talk about all the films we watched during the 2021 iteration of Hot Docs, the worlds premiere documentary film festival. Joining the show is Rachel Ho. In exciting news Rachel now joins the show as a regular contributor. She won't be on every episode, but she will be on very frequently and will help shape the show going forward...

In lieu of a full episode this week, we bring you the second in our series of bonus episodes, Better Know a Contributor, where we ask frequent guests of the show 10 Contra Zoom Pod movie questions so you can learn more about your favourite voices. We talk favourite movies (Arrival, both Blade Runners), favourite guest appearances (81: Video Game Films - Past, Present and Future), last movie turned off (Wonder Woman 1984) and more!

For all for CZP needs visit us at contrazoompod.com...

Who doesn't love a good cultural exchange program? On this episode we share sports films from different cultures. Me being a good Canadian hockey fan, brought the movie Goon to the table. It is about a dim witted bouncer who gets brought in to be a fighter for his local hockey team and ends up becoming a sensation. Joining the show is Hugh Dempsey and Sam Blakeley, hosts of Please Watch This, who are two football loving Brits as they share the movie The Damned United...

Normally Make/Remake examines how two films that share the same story. Not to say what film was better or worse, but how they are similar and different while following the same arcs. This time we are looking at the 1961 Akira Kurosawa film Yojimbo and the 1964 Sergio Leone remake A Fistful of Dollars.

Stay tuned for more great Japanese cinema coverage, as we will be doing a show on the Toronto Japanese Film Festival later this month...

It's been over a year since the world was ravaged by Covid-19, almost everything was shut down including film sets. Slowly productions started to be granted approval to restart, with the condition that they follow strict medical protocols. It was only time before movies used the pandemic as a plot device or narrative structure. 

Rachel and Dakota look at five films in particular that are set against our current Covid times...

On this episode, Dakota and Rachel review the films they saw during the 10th annual Toronto Japanese Film Festival. Joining them is Naomi Wada Platt, a YouTuber who often covers Japanese culture and politics in both English and Japanese language videos...

We are starting a new series here at Contra Zoom. A24 is putting out some of our favourite films and we want to revisit them and fill in the gaps for movies we have missed. We plan on going through every A24 episode, in order (except for some select new releases along the way)...

Last year for my birthday, I made an episode picking my favourite movie from every year that I have been alive for (114: 30 Films in 30 Years). This year Bil Antoniou joins, host of the podcast Bad Gay Movies, as we pick our favourite movie (and runner up) for every decade from the 1920's through the 2010's. 

Dakota's picks are first then Bil's.

1920's - The Cabinet of Dr...

We are continuing a new series here at Contra Zoom. A24 is putting out some of our favourite films and we want to revisit them and fill in the gaps for movies we have missed. We plan on going through every A24 episode, in order (except for some select new releases along the way). On this second episode, we look at the 2012 Sally Potter film Ginger & Rosa. The film stars Elle Fanning, Alice Englert, Christina Hendricks, Alessandro Nivola, Oliver Platt, Timothy Spall and Anette Bening...

In lieu of a full episode this week, we bring you the third in our series of bonus episodes, Better Know a Contributor, where we ask frequent guests of the show 10 Contra Zoom Pod movie questions so you can learn more about your favourite voices...