Best Smartless Podcast Episodes of 2023
Sharing laughter and fascinating guests, from directors Steven Spielberg and Alejandro Iñárritu to actor Joaquin Phoenix and band Depeche Mode.
They be famous actors but I'd never given any attention to Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes, and Will Arnett until I encountered their Smartless podcast during lockdown. I'm now aware of Bateman's contributions as a director to the mumblecore movie genre.
Having so many presenters makes their podcast unique, and a lot of fun. I'm sharing the laughter and their fascinating guests with you, the best of 2023.
DIRECTORS
Steven Spielberg is the master of the blockbuster. Last month, I rewatched 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind'. He's so good that it holds up 50 years later, and I enjoyed it more than when I watched it as a kid in the Eighties.
Steven Soderbergh was a gift to indie cinema's popularity. His ‘Sex, Lies and Videotape’ remains a highlight, and he occasionally revisits the genre with clever quirkiness. However, most will know him for blockbusters such as ‘Traffic’, ‘Erin Brockovich’ and ‘Logan Lucky’.
But the director I'm most excited to have them host is Alejandro Iñárritu. He may be famous for ‘Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)’ and ‘The Revenant’ (with Leonardo DiCrapio) but I consider his best masterpiece to be the Spanish ‘Biutiful’. ‘Bardo: False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths’ confused viewers and critics but it was my favourite last year.
ACTORS
Great directors need great actors. Enjoy these interviews with some of the finest.
Joaquin Phoenix (‘Her’ & ‘You Were Never Really Here’)
Paul Giamatti (‘The Holdovers’ & ‘Sideways’)
Edward Norton (‘Fight Club’ & ‘25th Hour’)
Sigourney Weaver (‘Alien’ & ‘The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart’)
Willem Dafoe (‘Lighthouse’ & ‘AntiChrist’)
Carey Mulligan (‘The Dig‘ & ‘Shame‘)
MUSOS
True musicians never stop making music. They never die!
BONUS
Although Smartless mostly aims at the entertainment industry, they sometimes grab people from outside. Of those, Kara Swisher invigorated me the most. She's the Tech Queen not because she's an inventor but because she has her own podcasts and articles wherewith she interviews the giants of tech. You cannot listen to Kara without becoming more informed.