It wasn’t like the last time I’d visited the British Film Institute. The buildings were all the same, massive cubes of concrete sitting along the bank of the Thames. Their façades were aglow with pink and blue lights, as I remembered them last time, glinting off of the river as we crossed Waterloo Bridge. But […]
Stark Contrast: Episode 32 “The Bells” with Josh Lewis
In Game of Thrones’ “The Bells,” Miguel Sapochnik once again uses every visual trick he can find to try reanimate a show long past its prime. Esther, Søren and guest host Josh Lewis discuss.
Stark Contrast: Episode 31 “The Last of the Starks” with AJ Ajetunmobi
“The Last of the Starks” struggles to justify its own existence as Game of Thrones meanders in the wake of its climactic battle with Death itself.
Stark Contrast: Episode 30 “The Long Night” with Diego Crespo
Release the confetti, folks: Miguel Sapochnik is back for “The Long Night.” This week we’re treated to 80-ish minutes of Game of Thrones‘ best remaining director choreographing the largest and most complex battle sequence in the show’s history. The results are immediately evident as a striking opening shot of Sam Tarly’s (John Bradley) shaking hands […]
Stark Contrast: Episode 29 “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms”
After a rough season premiere, Game of Thrones veteran Bryan Cogman turns the show in a positive direction with “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms.” Cogman is responsible for writing some of the show’s best episodes (including Season 1’s “Cripples, Bastards and Broken Things” and Season 4’s “Oathkeeper”). His dialogue and character work shows a […]
Stark Contrast: Episode 28 “Winterfell”
Welcome back to Stark Contrast! We’re happy to return to our perennial podcast show where we discuss Game of Thrones. This week, we’re kicking off with the Season 8 premiere, “Winterfell.” It’s a slow burn re-introduction to the denizens of Westeros and Essos that never managed to get J and me excited about the series […]
Stark Contrast: Episode 27 “The Dragon and the Wolf”
Game of Thrones caps off a landmark season with “The Dragon and the Wolf.” Jeremy Podeswa’s feature-length conclusion certainly exceeds the episode that came before, although it never quite matches the import of its reveals and final moments with the level of filmmaking we know the show can achieve. “The Dragon and the Wolf” finally […]
Stark Contrast: Episode 25 “Eastwatch”
Every episode this season of Game of Thrones has in some way involved a battle sequence, the biggest among them arriving last week. In “Eastwatch,” the show slows down and instead focuses on the fallout of last week’s conflict. In some ways this is to Game of Thrones‘ benefit: we see Davos (Liam Cunningham) demonstrate his smuggling […]
Stark Contrast: Episode 24 “The Spoils of War”
Game of Thrones throws some kindling on the fire this week with “The Spoils of War.” Unlike “The Queen’s Justice,” Josh and I found myriad plots and emotional arcs to interrogate this time around. We pay particular attention to family reunions and how context and time have shaped characters we’ve known since Season 1. We […]
Stark Contrast: Episode 23 “The Queen’s Justice”
J and I enjoyed last week’s “Stormborn” as it both drove the plot forward at an explosive pace while offering something more for us to chew on as viewers. This week, the pace hasn’t let up — but “The Queen’s Justice,” alas, never digs deeper than the surface. In fact, the episode undercuts the enormity […]
Stark Contrast: Episode 21 “Dragonstone”
“Stark Contrast” is back! Following an unusually long delay, J and I are once again discussing Game of Thrones. The Season 7 premiere immediately strikes a positive note as Arya (Maisie Williams) executes the family that killed her own. We discuss the bizarre magic of the Faceless Men and how the show missed a chance […]
Stark Contrast: Episode 20 “The Winds of Winter”
Game of Thrones comes to a satisfying conclusion with “The Winds of Winter” from director Miguel Sapochnik. Once again he puts focus on framing and makes stylistic choices we rarely if ever see in this show including locked-down shots and montages. This helps elevate an already quality set of narrative moments as Thrones moves into its final stretch. […]
Stark Contrast: Episode 18 “No One”
“No One” continues an unfortunate lull in Game of Thrones, a character episode that has as many brilliant moments as it does head-scratching. The plot inches forward for characters like The Hound (Rory McCann) while going almost nowhere for the likes of Brienne (Gwendoline Christie), Jaime (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) and the Blackfish (Clive Russell). Despite this, we […]
Stark Contrast: Episode 15 “The Door”
“The Door” gets Game of Thrones back on track after last week’s slower, odder diversion. This week we saw stronger editing on action scenes and compelling reveals about the world of the show. But perhaps most importantly, “The Door” affirmed important character development that J and I have worried about for two or three seasons. This comes […]
Stark Contrast: Episode 14 “Book of the Stranger”
After the high of last week’s excellent Game of Thrones episode, we were bound for some disappointment. Fortunately it took the form of “Book of the Stranger,” a mediocre but hardly terrible episode that felt like treading (and retreading) water more than anything else. J and I delve into what makes this such a strange and […]
Stark Contrast: Episode 13 “Oathbreaker”
One of the biggest problems with Game of Thrones has always been its shackled approach to its source material. While the series has diverged from the books at points, it was never quite ready to shift around the narrative for the sake of better television. This was especially clear in earlier seasons which stuck to about one […]
Stark Contrast: Episode 12 “Home”
Game of Thrones has never been shy about its twists, but this week was particularly eventful. The second episode of Season Six continues the momentum of the premiere as it veers back and forth between leftover over plots about the Iron Islands to uncharted territory with Bran, Arya and the Night’s Watch. The good news is that […]
Stark Contrast: Episode 11 “The Red Woman”
Game of Thrones is back, which means so is our annual podcast, “Stark Contrast.” Remember the gimmick here: J has read the books, and I haven’t. This usually translates into him mocking me for not anticipating major deaths and events, but I savor the victories when the show goes in a wildly different direction that […]
Stark Contrast: Episode 3 “High Sparrow”
“High Sparrow” picks up where “The House of Black and White” left off, giving us a much better look at The Faceless Men. This episode indicates we’re nearing the second-half spike that we usually see in Game of Thrones as Jon, Tyrion and Sansa’s storylines all leap forward at a healthy pace. J and I comment on the irony […]
Stark Contrast: Episode 2 “The House of Black and White”
Game of Thrones follows up its promising Season 5 debut with the faster-paced “The House of Black and White.” The episode finally picks up with Arya (Maisie Williams) following her voyage to Essos last season as she seeks out The Faceless Men. At The Wall, Jon Snow (Kit Harington) finds success for the first time in life. Meanwhile, […]
Game of Thrones Season 4: “The Lion and the Rose”
Please note that you can find all episodes of “Stark Contrast,” our Game of Thrones podcast, both at Movie Fail and on iTunes, Google Play and Spotify. Game of Thrones Season 4 picks up steam with its second episode, “The Lion and the Rose.” As Joffrey Baratheon and Margery Tyrell prepare to marry and unite two incredibly powerful houses, […]
Game of Thrones Seasons 1-3 Recap
Please note that you can find all episodes of “Stark Contrast,” our Game of Thrones podcast, both at Movie Fail and on iTunes, Google Play and Spotify. In adapting George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire series to television, HBO created a cultural phenomenon. Game of Thrones has become a franchise spanning books, video games, […]
