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In this episode, I talk about Sidney Lumet's 1982 film, "The Verdict." Paul Newman plays Frank Galvin, a once-promising lawyer whose life has been consumed by alcoholism, failure, and regret. When he's handed a medical malpractice case involving a young woman left permanently incapacitated after a catastrophic mistake during childbirth, what first appears to be an opportunity to revive his career becomes something far more profound. I talk about the film as a story of salvation, redemption, human frailty, justice, and moral responsibility. I also explore what it means to truly see another person's suffering, how caring about someone else can transform our own lives, and why "The Verdict" remains one of the most emotionally powerful and deeply humane films I've ever seen. There are spoilers in this episode. If you’d like to support my work and get access to bonus episodes and exclusive posts, you can join me on Patreon: patreon.com/herheadinfilmspodcast. You can follow me on Letterboxd. My email is [email protected]. My Sources: AFI entry about The Verdict New Yorker profile of David Mamet AFI Movie Club post about The Verdict Excerpt from Sidney Lumet's Making Movies Sidney Lumet on The Verdict (via American Film Institute) Sidney Lumet interview about The Verdict (via Bobbie Wygant Archive) Paul Newman interview about The Verdict (via Bobbie Wygant Archive)

In this episode, I talk about Victor Erice's 1983 film, "El Sur." Set in northern Spain during the 1940s and 1950s, the film follows Estrella, a woman looking back on two distinct periods of her life: her childhood and adolescence. At the center of her memories is her enigmatic father, Agustín, a man she deeply loved but can never fully understand. As Estrella gradually uncovers fragments of his past and becomes fascinated by the distant South he left behind, she begins to realize that the father she knew as a child carried a hidden history and a private sorrow that will forever remain beyond her reach. I talk about the shadow my father’s death has cast over my life, how our parents can continue to haunt us long after they're gone, and how certain films can become an encounter with our own lives. I also discuss the novella the film is based on. There are spoilers in this episode. This episode is dedicated to my parents. If you’d like to support my work and get access to bonus episodes and exclusive posts, you can join me on Patreon: patreon.com/herheadinfilmspodcast. You can follow me on Letterboxd. My email is [email protected]. My Sources: Adelaida Garcia Morales's The South and Bene at OpenLibrary "El Sur: An Incomplete Complete Film"  by Elvira Lindo for Criterion Collection "My Father the Hero: Victor Erice's El Sur" by Mar Diestro-Dopido for BFI Senses of Cinema profile about Victor Erice Senses of Cinema review of El Sur Little White Lies interview with Victor Erice

In this episode, I talk about William Wyler’s 1949 film, "The Heiress." Olivia de Havilland plays Catherine Sloper, a shy and sheltered woman living with her cold father in Washington Square, New York in the mid-1800s. When she meets an attractive and alluring man played by Montgomery Clift, she falls passionately in love for the first time, but their relationship will force her to confront painful truths about love and desire. I talk about how the film explores heartbreak and transformation, and how it charts a woman’s devastating but powerful journey from innocence to experience, from illusion to reality, and toward a deeper understanding of herself.  If you’d like to support my work and get access to bonus episodes and exclusive posts, you can join me on Patreon: patreon.com/herheadinfilmspodcast. You can follow me on Letterboxd. My email is [email protected]. My Sources: Article about the film, written by Frank Miller for Turner Classic Movies "The Heiress:" A Cruel Inheritance by Pamela Hutchinson for Criterion Collection Toni Morrison quote is from a 2015 documentary, "The Life of Toni Morrison"

In this episode, I talk about Gabriel Axel's 1987 film, "Babette's Feast." The film follows Martine and Filippa—two sisters devoted to a small religious community in Denmark—and Babette, a French refugee and former chef who comes to live with them. When Babette prepares a feast to honor the centenary of their father’s birth, the meal becomes an act of artistic and emotional offering. I talk about what it means to offer something from the heart, how the film portrays art as a form of generosity, and how the experience of the meal brings the community back to life and to each other. If you’d like to support my work and get access to bonus episodes and exclusive posts, you can join me on Patreon: patreon.com/herheadinfilmspodcast. You can follow me on Letterboxd. My email is [email protected]. My Sources: Babette's Feast: "Mercy and Truth Have Met Together" by Mark Le Fanu Babette's Feast: A Fable for Culinary France by Priscilla Parkhurst Ferguson

In this episode, I talk about Douglas Sirk’s 1955 film, "All That Heaven Allows," starring Jane Wyman and Rock Hudson. The film follows Cary Scott, a widow in a conservative suburban community who falls in love with a younger, working-class man, and must decide whether she will conform to social expectations or defend a love that transforms her life. "All That Heaven Allows" is a luminous and deeply emotional film about fear, conformity, and the courage it takes to live in a way that is true to yourself. It asks what a woman is allowed to want, what she is allowed to desire, and whether love is worth fighting for in a world that would rather see her diminish herself. In this episode, I reflect on love as an act of bravery and what it means to watch this film as a woman near Cary’s age. I also consider how Sirk’s melodrama speaks to the female spectator by taking female desire seriously. If you’d like to support my work and get access to bonus episodes and exclusive posts, you can join me on Patreon: patreon.com/herheadinfilmspodcast. You can follow me on Letterboxd. My email is [email protected]. My Sources: AFI entry about All That Heaven Allows All That Heaven Allows: An Articulate Screen Jane Wyman and All That Heaven Allows Rock Hudson: All That Heaven Allowed Behind the Mirror: A Profile of Douglas Sirk Encyclopedia Britannica article about Douglas Sirk

In this episode, I talk about Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger’s 1948 film, "The Red Shoes." It centers on Vicky Page, a young ballet dancer whose extraordinary talent brings her into a world where art demands total devotion and where love and ambition collide. I discuss "The Red Shoes" as a meditation on artistic calling, female ambition, and the desire for greatness. I’m interested in how the film portrays a woman who refuses to live a small life, and what happens when her boundless creative drive cannot be contained by the world around her. If you’d like to support my work and get access to bonus episodes and exclusive posts, you can join me on Patreon: patreon.com/herheadinfilmspodcast. You can follow me on Letterboxd. My email is [email protected]. My Sources: The Red Shoes (BFI Classics) by Pamela HutchinsonOriginal fairy tale by Hans Christian AndersonIan Christie on The Red ShoesThe Red Shoes: Dancing for Your Life by David EhrensteinLetters to a Young Poet by Rainer Maria Rilke

In this episode, I talk about Dianne Jackson's beloved 1982 animated film, "The Snowman." Adapted from Raymond Briggs’s wordless book, the film follows a young boy who builds a snowman that comes to life, and together they share a brief night of wonder and connection.   I reflect on how the film holds both joy and tenderness, and how its playful scenes have brought me comfort during my first Christmas without my mother. She was my last remaining parent, and watching this film has helped me think about memory, grief, and the impermanence of life. I hope this episode offers solace to anyone who is grieving during the holidays. If you’d like to support my work and get access to bonus episodes and exclusive posts, you can join me on Patreon: patreon.com/herheadinfilmspodcast. You can follow me on Letterboxd. My email is [email protected]. My Sources: https://www.bfi.org.uk/features/raymond-briggs-the-snowman-christmashttps://animationobsessive.substack.com/p/the-specialness-of-the-snowmanhttps://www.sundaypost.com/fp/snowman-who-has-spent-40-years-warming-our-heartshttps://www.thesnowman.com/about/https://www.theguardian.com/music/2016/dec/22/how-the-snowman-melted-david-bowies-heart-raymond-briggsThe making of The Snowman: https://youtu.be/hIrbQ_9LSLUOriginal story boards: https://youtu.be/FWOM-hIimjIThe Snowman in HD: https://youtu.be/5A3THighARU?si=L4faPi0UIkOdawZbRaymond Briggs: Snowmen, Bogeymen, and Milkmen: https://youtu.be/fR3GO6uI2TQ?si=W_qaDXoyXXu9-UTa

In this episode, I talk about Francis Ford Coppola’s 1974 film, "The Conversation." The film follows Harry Caul, a wiretapper in San Francisco who becomes obsessed with a recording he’s made of a young couple in a crowded park. As Harry pieces together fragments of their conversation, he’s drawn into a spiral of paranoia, guilt, and loneliness. I explore what makes "The Conversation" a masterpiece—not just as a film about surveillance and paranoia, but as an intimate character study. I talk about Harry’s profound loneliness, his complicity in his own alienation, and the psychic toll of a life spent surveilling others from a distance.  If you’d like to support my work and get access to bonus episodes and exclusive posts, you can join me on Patreon: patreon.com/herheadinfilmspodcast. You can follow me on Letterboxd. My email is [email protected]. My Sources: Interview between Brian De Palma and Francis Ford Coppola'The Conversation:' Francis Ford Coppola's Paranoia-Ridden Tale of Surveillance, Guilt, and Isolation

In this special episode, I talk about why I’ve launched a new Patreon for Her Head in Films. This isn’t just about supporting a podcast—it’s about helping me stay afloat in a very difficult and uncertain time in my life. After losing my mom and becoming the sole provider for my household, I’m trying to rebuild from nothing. I work multiple jobs, and I’m doing everything I can to survive while continuing to create something meaningful. This podcast is my soul work. It’s how I stay alive. It’s the archive of my emotional life, my grief, and my love for cinema. If you’ve ever felt connected to what I do here—if my voice has meant something to you—I invite you to join me on Patreon. Your support helps me keep going. Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/herheadinfilmspodcast You can follow me on Instagram, Letterboxd, and Tumblr. My email is [email protected].

In this episode, I talk about Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s 1972 film, "The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant." The film tells the story of Petra, a successful fashion designer in a complicated and obsessive relationship with a younger woman named Karin. Set almost entirely in Petra’s apartment, the film unravels the entanglements of power, desire, and emotional dependency. This episode is one of my most personal. I reflect on the ways the film mirrors an experience I had with unrequited love—an experience that consumed me for over two years. I talk about the madness and chaos of desire, the pain of not being chosen, and the way obsession can distort how we see ourselves and others. Note: This episode was recorded before my mother's death. That is why I talk about her in the present tense. You can follow me on Instagram, Letterboxd, and Tumblr. My email is [email protected]. My Sources: Mise en Scène as Power Struggle by Jonathan RosenbaumMelodrama and the Remake: The Cinematic Influence of Douglas Sirk on FassbinderHanna Schygulla on working with FassbinderWhat is New German Cinema?New German Cinema

In this episode, I talk about Hayao Miyazaki’s 1989 film, 'Kiki’s Delivery Service.' It’s about a 13-year-old witch who must spend a year away from home, learning to live independently and share her gifts. As Kiki opens a delivery service and begins to grow weary and uncertain, she meets women who offer her refuge, wisdom, and friendship. I talk about how this film explores what it means to lose your magic and to slowly find it again. I recorded this at a time when I’m learning to believe in myself again after great loss. All My Sources: Deborah Levy's The Cost of LivingDiscoverGhibli on YoutubeLetters to a Young Poet by Rainer Maria RilkeMore about the fictional town of KorikoYou can follow me on Instagram, Letterboxd, and Tumblr. My email is [email protected].

In this episode, I talk about Hayao Miyazaki’s 1988 film, "My Neighbor Totoro." It’s about two young girls who discover magical forest spirits after moving to a rural home with their father to be closer to their hospitalized mother. I recorded this episode in the wake of my own mother’s death, and I speak about how grief has shaped my experience of the film. I talk about watching the entire Studio Ghibli catalog and reflect on childhood, absence, and how nature and cinema offer solace when nothing else can. All My Sources: Hayao Miyazaki, The Auteur of Anime9 Facts About My Neighbor TotoroDefining the World of My Neighbor TotoroEverything You Need to Know About Japan's Iconic Studio GhibliStudio Ghibli: The Japanese Animation Powerhouse That Conquered The WorldHayao Miyazaki: The Life and Lasting Influence of the Studio Ghibli Auteur-AnimatorWhat is Hildegard's Viriditas?You can follow me on Instagram, Letterboxd, and Tumblr. My email is [email protected].

In this episode, I talk about Ingmar Bergman’s 1972 film, "Cries and Whispers," a haunting and intimate portrait of a woman dying and the people around her. I begin by sharing about my own mother’s death, how I was with her to the very end, and how this film has taken on a deeper resonance for me now. Though the episode was recorded before her cancer diagnosis and passing, I was already in the role of caregiver. I reflect on how "Cries and Whispers" captures the loneliness of illness, the coldness we sometimes encounter in the world, and the deep human need for tenderness, love, and presence, especially in the face of pain, death, and the deterioration of the body. Sources: Images by Ingmar BergmanIngmar Bergman websiteYou can follow me on Instagram, Letterboxd, and Tumblr. My email is [email protected].

In this episode, I talk about Frédéric Back's 1987 Academy Award-winning animated short film, "The Man Who Planted Trees." Adapted from a book by Jean Giono, it tells the story of a French shepherd who plants trees for decades and revitalizes an entire region. It's a film about how to live, how to care for the earth, and how to make the world a better place through small but meaningful acts.  This has become one of my favorite films of all time because of the way it inspires me to think about what I want to contribute and the kind of person I want to be. I can honestly say that this film changed something inside me. This episode is an attempt to describe how this one little film has made such a profound impact on my life. You can follow me on Instagram, Letterboxd, and Tumblr. My email is [email protected].

In this episode, I talk about Delbert Mann's precious 1955 film, "Marty." It tells the story of Marty, a 34-year-old butcher who has struggled all his life to find love. One night, he meets Clara, a woman who can relate to his loneliness. This is a film about the pain of invisibility and the power of connection. It's about what it means to finally feel seen after a lifetime of rejection. This is a deeply personal episode for me, but it's one that I hope reaches anyone who might need to hear it and to be reminded that they are not alone. The audio quality is the best I could provide right now. Apologies if it is not up-to-par for some. I did my best. You can follow me on Instagram, Letterboxd, and Tumblr. My email is [email protected].