Culture Gabfest: Scorsese’s Killer Epic

This week, the panel begins by reviewing Killers of the Flower Moon, Martin Scorsese’s film based on David Grann’s 2017 non-fiction book about the plot of white Americans to steal the Osage Nation’s headrights in the 1920s, starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Lily Gladstone. Then, the three are joined by Dan Kois, writer and editor at Slate and author of Vintage Contemporaries, to puzzle over Slayers: A Buffyverse Story, a scripted audio series based on Buffy: The Vampire Slayer that’s written and performed by many of the original cast, with one glaring omission: creator and showrunner Joss Whedon. Finally, the trio asks: Why is the internet no longer fun? The once utopian dream of democracy has turned into a hellscape, according to Kyle Chayka’s essay in The New Yorker, “Why the Internet Isn’t Fun Anymore.” 

In the exclusive Slate Plus segment, the panel shares their relationships (or lack thereof) with audiobooks, inspired by Paul Grimstad’s essay “Confessions of an Audiobook Addict for The New Yorker.” 

Email us at culturefest@slate.com. 

Endorsements:

Dana: The Genius Behind Hollywood’s Most Indelible Sets, a profile of Jack Fisk, the master production designer behind Killers of the Flower Moon and many other films. 

Julia: While watching Sleepless in Seattle with her husband, Julia discovered her new favorite sound clip: When Meg Ryan dishes with Rosie O’Donnell about her budding romance with Tom Hanks, O’Donnell responds comically while chomping a bite of egg salad into her mouth, in a way that deserves to become a meme.

Stephen: The little-known, up-and-coming writer Shakespeare (according to Stephen, he’s “very good” if not “a little antique-y”), specifically in the context of Killers of the Flower Moon. The film’s final scenes recall The Tempest in many ways. 

Outro music: “Back to Silence” by OTE.

Podcast production by Cameron Drews. Production assistance by Kat Hong. 

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