Podcast Portal: The Canon

Welcome to Podcast Portal: a spontaneous column that will highlight podcasts of all genres that are lesser known or new shows that are worth giving a listen. With the medium continuing to grow, it is hard to acknowledge all of them. However, I am going to try and find as many noteworthy titles as possible to share and hopefully expand your mind to the greatest growing medium out there. If you have any podcast that you feel is worth adding to the Podcast Portal, please make sure to inform me whether through the comments or through an e-mail (information in sidebar). 

SHOW: The Canon
HOSTS: Devin Faraci, Amy Nicholson
NETWORK: Wolfpop Network
EPISODE BEING DISCUSSED: "Goodfellas"

*Note: For the next week (or until completion), I will be covering every single NEW podcast on the Wolfpop Network. I will not be covering older shows such as U Talkin' U2 to Me or How Did This Get Made. 

It seems like there are almost too many movie shows on Wolfpop. The truth is that the entire outfit of new shows skewers more towards film because there's many ways to interpret it. I wouldn't mind getting to a few music or TV shows at some point. However, there's a reason that these shows can be released in masses. For better or worse, they don't overlap and in the case of The Canon, discussion of classic films can lead to some very interesting opinions, especially from some of the most established voices out there.

For starters, it seems like Devin Faraci has become a minor celebrity in the past year with an appearance in the great Jodorowsky's Dune and having appeared on a lot of podcasts, including The X-Files Files. In a way, he is a brutish force to the film world with a stubborn opinion that works rather well for this type of medium. Along with Amy Nicholson, the point of the show is to take down the classic films that we have held for granted and discuss the pros and cons. From there, the audience votes on whether or not it should stay in the canon. Seeing as it's still the first week, there's not a lot to comment on in terms of how this would work, but it is an interesting way to connect with listeners.

Like most people, I tend to like Goodfellas, even if there's numerous Martin Scorsese films that I like ahead of it. It has a lot of merit and I can appreciate its place in pop culture's lexicon. However, this episode may be the hardest hitting evidence for why this film is secretly divisive and maybe even sexist, though is it in a good way? Taking the pro side if Faraci, whose Italian roots make him overly sympathetic to mob stories. On the con is Nicholson, who as a woman can point out the sexism and flaws. What follows is both a fascinating dissection of Goodfellas, but also a look into how these hosts will play off of each other.

For the most part, Faraci comes away the most passionate. He loves the film and has dissected it to death. Any complaint that Nicholson has, he can refute as it being a piece of the narrative structure. In fact, he goes as far as to claim that she doesn't know how films work. It is an exciting first episode because it allows both to unassumingly attack each other into a submission. The only thing is that maybe Faraci comes across a little bullish by the end and makes some of his facts feel a little counterproductive. Still, Nicholson has a scholarly quality that makes her points jump off the page and make you reconsider everything you loved. This is film discussion at its most fluid. 

By the end, what works for The Canon is that it manages to discuss film in a way that evokes passion and knowledge. Yes, Faraci is a little bullish, but there is a constant understanding that they are discussing film. While it looks a little disheartening that the next entry is Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, it does make me excited to see how both sides will play out. Both came strong with passion out of the gate and are charismatic speakers to boot. I really want to believe that by episode 20, the chemistry will be there and this will be a unique take on the retrospective concept that is really old and familiar.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5

WORTH A SECOND GO?: Definitely. If you're a film fan, this quickly feels like an essential by how it approaches film criticism from a knowledgeable place while also being very casual. I actually felt like I reconsidered the film multiple times while listening. While it may be one that I fall back to only listening to based on topic due to an overload of shows, it does make its importance known and I'm glad that this show exists. Hopefully it continues to get better.