Podstruck: A Rom-Com Rewind

CATEGORY: THOU HADST ME AT GOOD MORROWWe continue our Shakespeare collection of rom-coms with Much Ado About Nothing, the 1993 movie starring Emma Thompson, Kenneth Branagh, Robert Sean Leonard, Denzel Washington, Michael Keaton, Keanu Reeves, and Kate Beckinsale! Chelsea and Elena are joined by Broadway star Nik Walker (Hamilton, Spamalot, Masquerade) to discuss what this movie gets right and wrong about performing Shakespeare, the real life drama when Branagh cheated with Helena Bonham Carter, the film's who's who lineup of 90s stars are not acting in the same movie, who we wish would've been cast as Benedick, and why we think Shakespeare miiiight have needed an editor. Plus we argue over Keaton as Dogberry - a delightful big swing or just another Beetlejuice?This episode was edited by Nick Duke: https://www.instagram.com/n_dukie/Follow Nik Walker on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nikkywalks/ Follow Podstruck on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/podstruckpod/Get bonus episodes on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/Podstruckpod

CATEGORY: THOU HADST ME AT GOOD MORROWThis week we are kicking off our new Shakespeare bucket of rom-coms with the 1999 teen classic, 10 Things I Hate About You starring Heath Ledger, Julia Stiles, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Larisa Oleynik, David Krumholtz, Allison Janney, Gabrielle Union and Andrew Keegan! This movie is a modern reimagining of the classic Shakespeare play The Taming of The Shrew and the writers were inspired to modernize a classic after they saw Clueless and its immense success. We'll discuss how at times this movie feels a bit TOO similar to Clueless, but mostly we rave about the fashion and the immense influence it had on us, the brilliant cast, and how the paddleboat date was perhaps a mis-step. Plus Elena gets sad about the late great Heath Ledger and realizes she's been avoiding this pain for far too long. Enjoy!

This week, Podstruck ventures into virgin territory by going to the movie theater in person and tackling the brand new Emerald Fennell movie Wuthering Heights, the Emily Brontë adaptation starring Margot Robbie, Jacob Elordi, and Hong Chau. We discuss how this movie manages to be equal parts putrid and sexy, the opening that made us think of Jon Hamm, why Wuthering Heights makes way more sense with teens, the importance of smell to choosing a partner, whether Nelly loves Cathy or Heathcliff, and Elena teaches Chelsea some new sex slang. It's a jam-packed episode ripped straight from the box office! This episode was edited by Nick Duke: https://www.instagram.com/n_dukie/ Follow Podstruck on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/podstruckpod/Get bonus episodes on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/Podstruckpod

SUBCATEGORY: CULTURE CLASHTo close up our Culture Clash category we are covering the 2018 summer blockbuster Crazy Rich Asians starring an all star cast including Michelle Yeoh, Constance Wu, Awkwafina, Lisa Lu, Henry Golding, Jimmy O.Yang, Nico Santos, Gemma Chan, Ken Jeong, Sonoya Mizuno, Remy Hii, Fiona Xie, Ronny Chieng, Chris Pang and more! We discuss how Jon M. Chu brought this book series to life on screen by using his signature colorful directorial style, why the food scenes made us drool, and some of the behind the scenes drama and hot goss surrounding the sequel that has yet to see the light of day! We also unpack the film’s biggest themes of extreme wealth, cultural identity, family expectations, and the tension between tradition and modern love all while swooning over leading man, Henry Golding. And a discussion of this movie would not be complete without an analysis of the opulent wedding that left Chelsea ooohing and awwing and Elena sneezing! So buckle up, cause this week we are going to Singapore! This episode was edited by Nick Duke: https://www.instagram.com/n_dukie/ Follow Podstruck on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/podstruckpod/Get bonus episodes on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/Podstruckpod

SUBSCRIBER EXCLUSIVE BONUS EPISODEAs an exclusive bonus episode for our Podstruck Patreon subscribers AKA our Meet Cuties, we are talking through rom-com hot takes as submitted by our listeners, the Internet, and sharing a few of our own along the way. It's a debate-filled episode about beautiful dweeby men, Nancy Meyers' kitchens, Rizzo's divorcée vibes, kid side kicks, horny old people, the new podcast Elena wants to start, what incels think about rom-coms, and which actor can actually pull off being an asshole? Check out the first 15 minutes here and get the full episode on our Patreon.To listen to the FULL bonus episode, sign up for our Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/c/Podstruckpod

This week Podstruck celebrates Valentine's Day with another rom-com in our Culture Clash category, this time the 1997 Salma Hayek Matthew Perry movie Fools Rush In. Joining us is Chelsea Devantez (Glamorous Trash, Basic, The Problem with Jon Stewart) who defends this movie with her life, from the Southwest setting to the fact that it's ballsy and progressive for when it was made. She also sheds light on why reading Matthew Perry's memoir will ruin him for you and how this movie was almost derailed by him insisting on doing his own stunt. Plus, Elena tells the story of how following signs changed her life, Chelsea Davison questions whether the WASPy busybody deserved a happy ending too, and we debate whether the Hoover Dam is romantic or a place of death. And it's almost Elena's birthday so go leave us a review to celebrate!This episode was edited by Nick Duke: https://www.instagram.com/n_dukie/ Follow Chelsea Devantez on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chelseadevantez/Listen to Glamorous Trash's episode on Matthew Perry's Memoir: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/matthew-perrys-memoir-friends-lovers-and-the-big/id1533722524?i=1000586679944Listen to Chelsea's previous episode on Podstruck covering Love & Basketball: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/love-basketball-courting-on-the-court-with/id1770187159?i=1000684995161 Follow Podstruck on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/podstruckpod/ Follow Podstruck on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podstruckpodcast Join our Patreon and get Meet Cutie Perks: https://www.patreon.com/c/Podstruckpod 

Today on the pod we launch a new collection of romantic comedies that involve people falling in love despite a culture clash with a box office banger, My Big Fat Greek Wedding! Starring Nia Vardalos, John Corbett, Michael Constantine, Lainie Kazan, Gia Carides, Andrea Martin and even *NSYNC star, Joey Fatone! We discuss why despite this movie lacking conflict and a typical movie structure, it still works and is just a delight! Plus stories about forcing Nia Vardalos to hang out with you at a WGA event, grandmas showing their butts and mom showing off their nudes! Whew! It's a doozy. So get out your Windex, and Moussaka and get ready to fall in love with a Big Fat Greek Family, cause we sure did!Follow Podstruck on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/podstruckpod/Get bonus episodes on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/Podstruckpod

We're popping our TV show cherry this week with the HBO hockey sensation Heated Rivalry. Elena and Chelsea talk about why this gay sports love story has taken the world by storm, including Connor Storrie's ability to learn Russian, Hudson Williams' ability to communicate the book's inner monologue on his face, and all of the incredibly hot butts. Plus we discuss the parallels between this show and The Cutting Edge, the classic rom-com enemies to lovers trope and how it's used here, the music drops we loved and hated, which actor in the series might have been miscast, and finally how a pair of socks made Chelsea cry.Follow Podstruck on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/podstruckpod/Get bonus episodes on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/Podstruckpod

It's our final episode of the subcategory "Rom-Com Icons" and we're covering the Frank Capra movie that swept at The Oscars, It Happened One Night, starring Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert. And we are joined by our editor Nick Duke (Cinestory Writing Fellow, Second round at the Austin Film Festival, and a Screencraft Fellow) to break down what parts of this pre-Code Hollywood rom-com still work and what parts don't. Hint: it has to do with smacking the leading lady! We also discuss if Steve Buscemi is Clark Gable's doppelgänger, why It Happened One Night only happened because of a series of happy accidents, and why rom-coms don't sweep at the Oscars anymore!This episode was edited by Nick Duke who was also our guest!: https://www.instagram.com/n_dukie/ Follow Podstruck on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/podstruckpod/Follow Podstruck on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podstruckpodcastCheck out our Patreon and get Meet Cutie Perks: https://www.patreon.com/c/Podstruckpod