Listen to Culture Gabfest No. 486 with Stephen Metcalf, Laura Miller, and Dana Stevens with the audio player below.
And join the lively conversation on the Culturefest Facebook page.
On this week’s Slate Plus, Stephen, Laura, and Dana talk about the new Metropolitan Museum admissions policy.
Go to Slate.com/cultureplus to learn more about Slate Plus and join today.
This week, the critics discuss Guillermo del Toro’s The Shape of Water, a Cold War thriller/monster movie starring Sally Hawkins as a woman who falls in love with a fishlike creature. How does the unique film stack up against other del Toro masterpieces, like Pan’s Labyrinth and The Devil’s Backbone? Next, the gabbers talk about the Golden Globe Awards, how the #MeToo and Time’s Up movements dominated the night, and the presidential speculation that followed Oprah’s acceptance speech. Finally, the critics chat about sleep, including what we understand about it and whether it’s the job of philosophers, psychologists, or scientists to explore it.
Links to some of the things we discussed this week:
- The Shape of Water trailer
- Dana’s review of The Shape of Water
- Crimson Peak
- Stephanie Zacharek’s review of The Shape of Water
- A.O. Scott’s review of The Shape of Water
- Oprah’s Golden Globes speech
- “Somehow Golden Globes Fashion Was Interesting Even Despite the All-Black Mandate” by Christina Cauterucci in Slate
- “Why Do We Need to Sleep?” by Veronique Greenwood in the Atlantic
- “Why Do We Sleep? To Clean Our Brains, Says US Scientists” by Ian Sample in the Guardian
- “In Search of the Perfect Podcast to Help You Fall Asleep” by Laura Miller in Slate
Endorsements:
Dana: Unrest
Laura: Gamelife by Michael Clune
Steve: The works of Anne Enright, and the band Hello Saferide
Outro: “Hey Ho” by Hello Saferide
You can email us at culturefest@slate.com.
This podcast was produced by Benjamin Frisch. Our production assistant is Daniel Schroeder.
Follow us on Twitter. And please like the Culture Gabfest on Facebook.