Price Projection Room

Ava DuVernay's film A Wrinkle in Time has met with mixed reviews. The book the film adapts is both classic and beloved and also one of the most banned books in American schools and libraries due to Madeline L’Engle’s deeply Christian views on how faith and science can exist together. Not only does the film re-imagine those views from a lens of humanism, but in a first for Disney, the casting is color conscious. Our panel asks what is the importance of inclusion, self-awareness, and gender on audiences and critics? Our panel also discusses how the film portrays the nature of evil and asks - does the film has something to say about how to do good in the world given the polarization dominate in the current climate? Find out what our panelists think, featuring host Jonathan Schwartz and guests Ange-Marie Hancock Alfaro, Anita Dashiell-Sparks, and Eshan Zaffar. Let us know what you think of the film and our conversation at Facebook or Twitter. To listen to the Price Projection Room discussion of A Wrinkle in Time 

Steven Spielberg's most recent film - The Post - has been wildly anticipated by audiences - especially considering the current challenges in our media and news landscape. Chronicling The Washington Post’s publishing of The Pentagon Papers during the tail end of the Vietnam War and starring Tom Hanks and Meryl Streep - does the film accurately portray this important time in American History where the very nature of the First Amendment and National Security were in direct contrast? What takeaways or parallels can we draw to today? Find out what our panelists think, featuring host Erroll Southers and guests Ange-Marie Hancock Alfaro,  Jonathan Schwartz and Aubrey Hicks.   Let us know what you think of the film and our conversation at Facebook or Twitter. To listen to the Price Projection Room discussion of The Post click the arrow in the player at the top of this post. Or download and subscribe through Apple Podcasts, Soundcloud, or Google Play.   Follow us on Twitter!   @BedrosianCenter, @esouthersHVE, @AngeMar

Our nerd quotient is rising with the discussion of Star Wars: The Last Jedi. The latest installment of the Star Wars series brings with it controversy. How well does The Last Jedi fit into the Star Wars franchise? How does this new film show how culture has changed since the first film (A New Hope, 1977)? Our talented panel discuss these questions and more in their nerdy discussion of the continuing saga of Luke, Leia, Kylo, Rey, Poe, Finn, and new characters we meet along the way. How might our own biases distort the way we view the storytelling?  Find out the journey our panelists took, featuring host Erroll Southers and guests Alessandro Ago, Carla Della Gatta, and Lt. Col. Olivia Nelson. Let us know what you think of the film and our conversation at Facebook or Twitter. To listen to the Price Projection Room discussion of Star Wars: The Last Jedi click the arrow in the player at the top of this post. Or download and subscribe through Apple Podcasts, Soundcloud, or Google Play. Follow us on Twitter!   @Be

Gary Oldman is Winston Churchill in the new WWII film, Darkest Hour. The first month of Churchill's historic time as Prime Minister, he faced a great decision; one that would lead either to war or to a negotiated peace with Hitler. The compressed timeline of the film drops the viewer in the midst of the "darkest hour" of British history. The decisions made during these days could have changed the course of history. Find out what our panelists think, featuring host Erroll Southers and guests Lt. Col. Olivia Nelson, Jonathan Schwartz, and David Warshofsky.

Director Dee Rees' new film, Mudbound, follows two southern families before, during, and after World War II. One family is white, one black. Centering on the complex relationships between the two families, the film explores how different generations dealt with societal changes which inevitably followed the war. The multiple narrators bring a sense of both internal and external character development as the events unfold. Of the novel, Barbara Kingsolver said, "Her characters walked straight out of 1940s Mississippi and into the part of my brain where sympathy and anger and love reside, leaving my heart racing. They are with me still."  Strong female characters ground the story as it tells of the challenges returning soldiers with different world views as they return to family and a small Mississippi community that hasn't weathered the storms and triumphs they have seen half a world away. Listen to this conversation on this ensemble film about war at home and abroad. Warning: *spoilers!* Find out what our panel

Is Blade Runner 2049 the sequel we didn't know we needed? Set in a dystopian future Los Angeles, Ryan Gosling's K is a replicant who hunts down dis-loyal replicants: a Blade Runner. When a secret is uncovered, he sets out on a quest. The journey becomes one to not only find the secret but to answer some of the fundamental questions. What does it mean to be alive, to be human? Did the film live up to its hype? Find out what our panel thinks, featuring host Erroll Southers and guests Leo Braudy, René Bruckner, and Aubrey Hicks. Let us know what you think of the film and our conversation at Facebook or Twitter. For more, check out the showpage.

Director Michael Cuesta brings the fictional hero of Vince Flynn's Mitch Rapp novels to the big screen in the new film,American Assassin. The all-star cast includes Dylan O'Brien, Michael Keaton, and Taylor Kitsch as a threesome tied together through the specter of betrayal and revenge, set upon a backdrop of international espionage and nuclear threat.  We discuss the level of violence in the film, its portrayal of U.S. black-ops and anti-terrorism efforts, the film's space within the spy thriller genre, the motivations of the studio, the acting, the gender themes, how millennials may be viewing it, and so much more. Host Erroll Southers is joined by spectacular guests Alessandro Ago, Lt. Col. Olivia Nelson, and veteran actor David Warshofsky. Let us know what you think of the film and our conversation at Facebook or Twitter.

Hulu has adapted The Handmaid's Tale,  the classic novel by Margaret Atwood, into a 10 episode saga of life in the dystopia of Gilead. Gilead is a totalitarian society in what was formerly the United States, ruled by a twisted Protestant fundamentalism in its ‘return to traditional values'. As one of the few remaining fertile women, Offred (played to much acclaim by Elisabeth Moss) is forced into sexual servitude as part of a caste of women called Handmaids. In this terrifying society, Offred must navigate between the men who rule with iron fists, the Commanders, as well as the deeply divided casts of women wealthy but bored Wives, domestic Marthas, and her fellow Handmaids. Her goal is to survive, and one day find the daughter that was taken from her. Warning: *spoilers!* Host Jonathan Schwartz is joined by three fierce women of USC to discuss the series' timeliness, its narrative of motherhood, the fear of religious fundamentalism, and the absence of a discussion on race. Featuring host Jonathan Schwartz an

Peter Berg’s The Kingdom is an action procedural which tries to also be a lesson in cross-cultural tolerance. Released in 2007, we wonder if this film makes the same amount of sense ten years later. The film follows an FBI team which travels to infiltrate and find a terrorist cell in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia following an attack killing many American citizens (as well as fellow FBI agent). If art is an imitation of life, have we moved on in the last ten years, or does this remain salient? Join us for a conversation on East/West cultural understanding, terrorism, FBI interaction with local law enforcement across the world, representation, and what remains universal in this film and how audiences have changed in the last 10 years. Warning: *spoilers!* Featuring Deirdre Fike (FBI), Ehsan Zaffar (DHS), Jeremiah O’Brian (USC School of Dramatic Arts), Alex Ago (USC School Cinematic Arts), and Erroll Southers (USC Price)

Wonder Woman is finally on the big screen! Raised on an island secluded from the world, Diana trained harder than any Amazon before her. Taught that the world of man was corrupted by Ares, the God of War, Diana sees an opportunity to kill Ares and set the world right after a pilot crashes on the island. She journeys into the world of man, accompanying Steve Trevor into the "war to end all wars." Soon, Diana learns that humankind is more complicated than the myths she knew. After dozens of superhero films, has director Patty Jenkins revitalized the DC universe with this superheroine? Amid all the "rep-sweats," did the film do justice to this classic comic heroine? Why is this film so important? What do we think of the women-only showings at Alamo Drafthouse? Did we enjoy this film? Warning: *spoilers!* Featuring Lt. Colonel Olivia Nelson, Carla Della Gatta, Tara McPherson, and Erroll Southers Special thanks to Dean Jack Knott, USC Price; Dean David Bridel, USC School of Dramatic Arts; and Dean Elizabeth Daley,

This crowd pleasing film centers on the overlooked stories of women of color whose mathematical work contributed to NASA's first successful launch of a human being into orbit during the space race of the 1960s. We discuss how the film both illustrated the racial divide in America while showcasing the work & struggle of African American women. Though we all have some criticism of the work, in the end it may be the telling of a story we never knew and it's representation of strong, smart black women that matters most. Hidden Figures is directed byTheodore Melfi and stars the dream team of Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer, and Janelle Monáe among many others - including Kevin Costner, Kirsten Dunst, Jim Parsons, and Mahershala Ali. Warning: *spoilers!* Featuring Alessandro Ago, Lt. Colonel Olivia Nelson, Anita Dashiell-Sparks, and Erroll Southers Special thanks to Dean Jack Knott, USC Price; Dean David Bridel, USC School of Dramatic Arts; and Dean Elizabeth Daley, USC Cinematic Arts for their support of thi

This film has sparked controversy on its casting choices, with many critics claiming another instance of Hollywood whitewashing due to film’s Japanese manga. We discuss the nature of remakes, the whitewashing controversy, whether the film adds to the Ghost world, and Scarlett Johansson. The futuristic sci-fi film Ghost in the Shell is directed by Rupert Sanders and based on the acclaimed Japanese Manga of the same name, written and illustrated by Masamune Shirow. It takes place in a futuristic alternate reality and follows a cyber-enhanced super soldier as she searches for a hacker as part of an anti-terrorism squad. The film stars Scarlett Johansson as Major, the first of her kind, human brain (ghost) encapsulated in an entirely cybernetic / synthetic body (shell). In a world where terrorism has reached new levels, the film offers an interesting view of a potential evolutionary path for humans – where the lines between technology and biology are blurred almost beyond recognition, with the very question of wh

Our second episode of the Price Projection Room features a discussion of the poignant horror film Get Out, written and directed by Jordan Peele (MADTV, Key and Peele, and Keanu). Get Out follows a young African-American photographer on a visit to his white girlfriend's parents' home. The tag line sums up the deep horror of the film, "Just because you're invited, doesn't mean you're welcome." In modifying the horror genre to service social commentary on race, but still staying within the conventions of the horror genre, the film is simultaneously funny, relevant, and scary. The film has sparked conversations (and even a viral challenge) throughout the country. Warning: *spoilers!* Featuring Alessandro Ago, Carla Della Gatta, Aubrey Hicks, and Erroll Southers Special thanks to Dean Jack Knott, USC Price; Dean David Bridel, USC School of Dramatic Arts; and Dean Elizabeth Daley, USC Cinematic Arts for their support of this interdisciplinary conversation. The Price Projection Room (PPR) features engaging conversat

Our inaugural episode of the Price Projection Room podcast features a lively discussion of the film adaptation of August Wilson's Fences, directed by Denzel Washington. Fences is part of Wilson's series of ten plays, all set in Pittsburgh depicting different decades of African American life in the city, The Pittsburgh Cycle. Fences is set in the 1950’s, and its universal themes of generational, working class, and familial struggle make its setting in time seem unimportant. The film is directed by and stars Denzel Washington, along with Viola Davis, Stephen Henderson, Jovan Adepo, Russell Hornsby, Mykelti Williamson and Saniyya Sidney. Washington plays Troy Maxson, a former baseball player whose career in sports was cut short with a stint in prison for murder. Years later, bitter for a career lost, he stands to oppose his youngest son's desire to play football. While Tory struggles to find himself amidst the duties of family and work, the audience begins to see that each character faces the same grapples with