So here’s the thing: Someone Else’s Movie has already done an episode on Jeanne Dielman, 23 Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles. Wayne Wang picked the film in October of 2020, and it made for a good episode. But then Chantal Akerman’s revolutionary drama was named the greatest film of all time in Sight & Sound’s decennial poll, and director Lukas Dhont was so excited that a Belgian work had topped that most auspicious list that I couldn’t very well say no.

So we recorded the episode a while back — before Lukas’ exquisite drama Close found itself nominated for this year’s Best International Feature Oscar — and that was a pretty good conversation, too. It turns out Close has some of Akerman’s spirit rattling around in its  imagery and construction, and if you catch it when it opens at the Lightbox this Friday, you’ll definitely pick up on the resonance.

Until then, though, you can enjoy the podcast! Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher and/or Spotify,  or download the episode directly from the web. And then you can go catch up on your Shiny Things, which rolled out a little later than usual thanks to my involvement with TIFF’s Canada’s Top Ten screenings over the weekend (and a couple of hangouts with Finn Wolfhard and Billy Bryk to launch When You Finish Saving the World).

This week I wrote about the Oscars — sorry — and unpacked Arrow Films’ impressive Lukas Moodysson boxed set, which showcases all seven of his features, from Fucking Amal to We Are the Best!, at a level of context and detail that ranks with the Criterion Collection’s best efforts.

(Seriously, Arrow is doing some amazing work these days; I’m just annoyed that their 4K editions of Videodrome, Naked Lunch and Crash are still only available as UK imports. At least they’re region-free.)

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