S2 Ep63: Pop Screen: The Dead Don't Die (with Rob Simpson)

Can you believe this is our first Jim Jarmusch episode? The white-haired director's habit of casting musicians means pretty much all of his films qualify for this show, with regular collaborators including Tom Waits, Iggy Pop and RZA. All of them turn up in this, his ensemble zombie comedy from 2019, along with the rather less expected name of Selena Gomez. (Gomez's presence does at least mean this is the second show in a row where we mention Harmony Korine's Spring Breakers, and no, we weren't expecting that either)

Joining us this week is Rob, from The Geek Show's other movie podcast Directors Uncut. Both he and Graham are paid-up fans of both Jarmusch and this movie, and they discuss the film's puzzlingly negative reception, its skilful use of the screen personae of stars as different as Tilda Swinton, Caleb Landry Jones and Iggy Pop, and the remarkable voice of Adam Driver. We also discuss how Rob's fondness for Iggy and Tom has survived problematic early encounters with their music, the changing fortunes of zombie movies and Caleb Landry Jones's great early screen credit.

If you'd like to help us stock up to survive the zombie apocalypse, you can donate to our Patreon, where you'll get a monthly bonus episode of Pop Screen - the next one comes out tomorrow, and it's a corker! - Graham's Doctor Who reviews and more. Follow our Twitter, Instagram and Facebook pages for more information.

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