Sundays With Cate

Cate Blanchett and Julianne Moore, two actresses linked in our minds as the muses of Todd Haynes, have only shared scenes on screen in 1999’s An Ideal Husband. For this episode Murtada welcomes back Chris Feil, host of This Had Oscar Buzz podcast, to discuss the film, whether it retains the wit of its author Oscar Wilde and the performances of Cate, Julianne, Minnie Driver, Rupert Everett and Jeremy Northam.

Hosted, Produced and Edited by Murtada Elfadl.

We go way back for this episode, to Cate Blanchett’s early screen performance in the Australian film Thank God He Met Lizzie. We discuss the film, the perfomance and its link to Katharine Hepburn’s screen persona as well as Blanchett’s long professional partnership with the film’s other star, Richard Roxburgh.

Produced, Hosted and Edited by Murtada Elfadl.

This week a double Cate Balnchett. In one of eleven vignettes included in Jim Jarmusch's anthology film Coffee and Cigarettes (2003), Blanchett plays a version of herself as well as her ne'er do well "cousin," Shelly. We discuss the film and performance and why it stands out in her filmography. For this conversation podcast host Murtada Elfadl welcomes writer and critic Ela Bittencourt of the film site Lyssaria.

Produced and Edited by Murtada Elfadl.

To celebrate this year's Oscar nominations which were announced this week we have a special episode about one of the nominees for best actress; Carey Mulligan. We discuss her filmography, her screen persona and dig deeper into three films; Shame (2011), Wildlife (2018) and her latest Promising Young Woman for which she recieved her second Oscar nomination. For this conversation podcast host Murtada Elfadl welcomes producer and writer, Jordan Crucchiola host of Disaster Girls and Aughtsterio‪n podcasts.


Produced and Edited by Murtada Elfadl.

A retread of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid? A homage to the pop music of 1980s Welsh singing sensation Bonnie Tyler? The rare American studio film that celebrates polyamory? It's all of these things; Barry Levinson's Bandits (2001). It also has Cate Blanchett lip-synching, dancing and kissing both Bruce Willis and Billy Bob Thornton. We also discuss our favorites in this year's Oscar race for best actress as the nominations are announced. For this conversation Murtada Elfadl welcomes back Kevin Jacobsen host of And The Runner-Up Is podcast, who previously guested on our episode about Truth.

Produced and Edited by Murtada Elfadl.

We have a special episode this week, a companion to our discussion last week of Notes on a Scandal. We visit with the Dame, Judi Dench.  We discuss her film career, with deep dives into an early entry A Room With a View (1986) and the film that launched her film stardom Mrs. Brown (1997). Returning for this conversation with our host Murtada Elfadl is writer and critic Teo Bugbee.

Produced and Edited by Murtada Elfadl.

A scandalous affair with an underage boy is the entry into this melodrama about the friendship between two teachers in North London. Murtada Elfadl welcomes back Teo Bugbee to discuss the juicy and delicious Notes on a Scandal, its lineage to hagsploitation flicks like Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?, the trope of the predatory lesbian, and why this film remains highly rewatchable.

Produced and Edited by Murtada Elfadl.

In lieu of a regular episode, this week we are discussing the many films we screened at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival. Murtada Elfadl welcomes back writer and critic Valerie Complex to discuss a few films including Rebecca Hall's Passing, Shaka King's Judas and the Black Messiah and Jonas Poher Rasmussen's Flee, among many others. We also give out our awards for best perfromances and choose the one film you can't miss at the festival.

Produced and Edited by Murtada Elfadl.

Cate Blanchett: Medicine Woman. She's a healer in 1880s New Mexico in Ron Howard's Western The Missing (2003). We discuss the film, the performances of Blanchett, Tommy Lee Jones and Evan Rachel Wood. Plus we look into Howard's filmography including his latest Hillbilly Elegy (2020), while admitting that we can't find clues there to what he's obsessed with as a filmmaker. For this conversation Murtada Elfadl welcomes back writer and critic Andrew Kendall, some of Andrew’s film writing can be found here.

Produced and Edited by Murtada Elfadl.

AUDIO HAS BEEN FIXED. REFRESH. APOLOGIES.

Well the time has come. This week we have a hurricane in us and we are going to command the wind. It's Elizabeth: The Golden Age (2007), the movie that contains that most famous monologue in Cate Blanchett's filmography. We discuss the film, that iconic scene and delve into that year's best actress Oscar competition. Plus we nominate younger actors whose screen work remind us of Blanchett. For this conversation, Murtada Elfadl welcomes back Izzy from Be Kind Rewind.

Produced and Edited by Murtada Elfadl.

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Glamour! Big Acting ! An Accent! A few hallmarks of Cate Blanchett's performances that we love are present in Sally Potter's The Man Who Cried (2001). It's a commanding star turn that shows Blanchett at her best, and for that the movie is a must-see for every Blanchett fan. We discuss the film and performance. Plus revisit Mrs. America and the show's chances at the winter TV awards (Golden Globes and SAG). 

Hosted and produced by Murtada Elfadl with guest Nathaniel Rogers of The Film Experience.

Thanks to Podcorn for sponsoring this episode. Explore sponsorship opportunities and start monetizing your podcast by signing up here: https://podcorn.com/podcasters/

This week we discuss Galadriel, Cate Blanchett's most iconic role. We delve into the enduring populariy of The Lord of the Rings trilogy and what diffrentiates them as excellent action adventure films, what makes Galadriel so special within Blanchett's filmography and even ask Peter Jackson for a Boromir / Aragon rom-com. For this conversation Murtada Elfadl welcomes filmmaker Conrado Falco, co-creator of the show Wormholes and host of The Criterion Project podcast.

Produced and Edited by Murtada Elfadl.

It's time for another delicious villian from Cate Blanchett. The Wicked Stepmother in 'Cinderella,' the 2015 live action Disney remake, directed by Kenneth Branagh. For this conversation Murtada Elfadl welcomes writer and podcaster Manish Mathur, host of It Pod To You and Queer and Now podcasts.

Produced and Edited by Murtada Elfadl.

This week we are take a brief detour from the films of Cate Blanchett. Instead we are discussing a current film, out on release now, Ammonite. Plus the career of Kate Winslet  and in the latter part of the podcast we discuss a few other queer films out this season. Hosted by Murtada Elfadl with guest queer writer-performer, producer and filmmaker Ren Jender, whose work has appeared in The New York Times, NPR, Slate, Bandcamp and The Village Voice.

Produced and Edited by Murtada Elfadl.

We kickoff the 3rd season of the podcast with the last film we saw in theaters for Cate Blanchett. Richard Linklater's Where'd You Go, Bernadette. For this conversation Murtada Elfadl welcomes Dan Mecca and Connor O' Donnell, hosts of the The B Side podcast.

Produced and Edited by Murtada Elfadl.

The podcast will be coming back from hiatus soon.  Season 3 arriving wherever you listen to podcasts. Hosted by Murtada Elfadl.

For the 2nd season finale of the podcast, we return to 1998. Elizabeth was Cate Blanchett's international breakout and the first time many people saw her on screen. Hence it deserves a revisit. To discuss the film again, along with Blanchett's first Academy Award nomination and the 1998 best actress Oscar race, Murtada Elfadl welcomes Izzy from Be Kind Rewind.

Produced and Edited by Murtada Elfadl.

It's not Maid Marian but rather Marion Loxely, a more modern take on Robin Hood's paramour, played by Cate Blanchett in Ridley Scott's 2010 version of the folklore tale of the legendary outlaw and his merry men. For this discussion Murtada Elfadl welcomes back Teo Bugbee.

To review the last two episodes of Mrs. America  Murtada Elfadl welcomes back writer and filmmaker Tayler Montague. The TV miniseries about the fight to ratify the equal rights amendment in the 1970s is created by Dahvi Waller and stars Cate Blanchett as Phyllis Schlafly, the right wing polarizing organizer.

Produced and Edited by Murtada Elfadl.

The costumes are green, the hair is red and Cate Blanchett is the Wicked Witch in Hanna (2011). Ostensibly a thriller about a teenage assassin, it reveals itself to be a fairytale with a modern twist. For this disscussion, Murtada welcomes back Gavin Mevius, co-host of The Mixed Reviews Podcast .