Director Watch Podcast Ep. 169: 'In the Cut' (Jane Campion, 2003)

On episode 169 of the Director Watch Podcast, co-hosts Ryan McQuade and Jay Ledbetter are joined by AwardsWatch contributor Cody Dericks discuss the next film in their Jane Campion series, In the Cut (2003).

Welcome back to Director Watch! On this AwardsWatch podcast, the boys attempt to breakdown, analyze, and ultimately, get inside the mind of some of cinema's greatest auteurs. In doing so, they will look at their filmographies, explore what drives them artistically and what makes their decision making process so fascinating. Add in a few silly tangents and a fun game at the end of the episode and you've got yourself a podcast we truly hope you love.

After making a couple of period pieces, Jane Campion took a massive left turn, and went to make the riskiest film of her career, a modern, psychological, sexual thriller about a English teacher that gets involved in a personal entanglement with a shady police detective who is solving the grisly murders of young women. The film was a departure for not only the director, but the film's star, and a signature "America's sweetheart" Meg Ryan, and given its mixed reception and under performance at the box office, was deemed a flop. But time also shines brightest on the bold, as In the Cut has become a cut classic, as well as a vital look at the city of New York post September 11th; it's visually also unlike anything Campions ever done with two maximalist, brilliant performances from Meg Ryan and Mark Ruffalo. Ryan, Jay, and Cody break down their thoughts on the film, Meg Ryan's persona as an actress, the differences in the two cuts of the film, how wild this movie was for the time, how sex is weaponized throughout the plot, and why this works now but didn't in 2003.

You can listen to the Director Watch Podcast wherever you stream podcasts, from iTunes, iHeartRadio, Soundcloud, Stitcher, Spotify, Audible, Amazon Music and more. You can also listen on the AW YouTube page.

This podcast runs 1h43m. The guys will be back next week to continue their series on the films of Jane Campion with a review of her next film, Bright Star. You can rent it via iTunes and Amazon Prime rental in preparation for the next episode of Director Watch. Till then, let's get into it.

Music: MUSICALIFE, from Pond5 (intro) and "B-3" from BoxCat Games Nameless: The Hackers RPG Soundtrack (outro).