The Sting (1973)

Continuing our series on the films of Sidney Lumet, we turn to The Verdict (1982). Starring Paul Newman as a down-on-his-luck attorney, the film follows a medical malpractice case that offers him one last chance at redemption. Written by David Mamet, The Verdict strips away the glamour of the courtroom drama, focusing instead on conscience, persistence, and the difficulty of doing the right thing when the odds are stacked against you. Join us as we discuss one of Lumet’s most acclaimed films and one of Newman’s finest performances.   Cinema Spectator is a movie podcast hosted by Isaac Ransom, Juzo Greenwood, and Cameron Tuttle. The show is executive-produced by Darrin O’Neill and recorded and produced in the San Francisco Bay Area, CA. You can support the show at patreon.com/ecfsproductions. Follow us on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter @cinemaspectatorpodcast. Isaac and Cameron began recording podcasts with their first project, Everything Comes from Something (2018), and are now focusing on new weekly content for Cinema Spectator. Cameron Tuttle is a full-time professional cinematographer who majored in film at SFSU and collaborates on corporate, private, and creative productions. Cameron is the expert. Isaac Ransom works full-time as a marketing leader with creative experience in brand, advertising, product, music, and film. Isaac is the casual. Juzo is a producer, director, and avid film enthusiast who knows everything about cinema. The podcast is a passion project by three longtime friends; we hope you enjoy it! Thank you for your time, generosity, and support.

Juzo and Isaac dig into The Sting (1973), directed by George Roy Hill and starring Paul Newman, Robert Redford, and Robert Shaw, unpacking a timeless classic surrounding an elaborate scam against a mob boss. Can this award-winning heist-lite keep the modern view engaged? We also discuss documentaries, the original Spider-Man trilogy, the new Tom Holland Spider-Man films, Project Hail Mary, and more! The Sting Review begins at 53:15 Cinema Spectator is a movie podcast hosted by Isaac Ransom, Juzo Greenwood, and Cameron Tuttle. The show is executive-produced by Darrin O’Neill and recorded and produced in the San Francisco Bay Area, CA. You can support the show at patreon.com/ecfsproductions. Follow us on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter @cinemaspectatorpodcast. Isaac and Cameron began recording podcasts with their first project, Everything Comes from Something (2018), and are now focusing on new weekly content for Cinema Spectator. Cameron Tuttle is a full-time professional cinematographer who majored in film at SFSU and collaborates on corporate, private, and creative productions. Cameron is the expert. Isaac Ransom works full-time as a marketing leader with creative experience in brand, advertising, product, music, and film. Isaac is the casual. Juzo is a producer, director, and avid film enthusiast who knows everything about cinema. The podcast is a passion project by three longtime friends; we hope you enjoy it! Thank you for your time, generosity, and support.

This week, we take a look at Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969). Starring Paul Newman and Robert Redford, the film follows two outlaws on the run as they try to stay one step ahead of the law. With sharp dialogue and strong chemistry between its leads, it’s a Western that balances humor with a more grounded, reflective edge as their situation tightens. Join us as we revisit one of the most well-known Westerns of its era.   Cinema Spectator is a movie podcast hosted by Isaac Ransom, Juzo Greenwood, and Cameron Tuttle. The show is executive-produced by Darrin O’Neill and recorded and produced in the San Francisco Bay Area, CA. You can support the show at patreon.com/ecfsproductions. Follow us on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter @cinemaspectatorpodcast. Isaac and Cameron began recording podcasts with their first project, Everything Comes from Something (2018), and are now focusing on new weekly content for Cinema Spectator. Cameron Tuttle is a full-time professional cinematographer who majored in film at SFSU and collaborates on corporate, private, and creative productions. Cameron is the expert. Isaac Ransom works full-time as a marketing leader with creative experience in brand, advertising, product, music, and film. Isaac is the casual. Juzo is a producer, director, and avid film enthusiast who knows everything about cinema. The podcast is a passion project by three longtime friends; we hope you enjoy it! Thank you for your time, generosity, and support.

Juzo and Isaac dig into director Alan J. Pakula’s All the President’s Men (1976), unpacking a classic investigative reporting romp through 1970s DC. Starring Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman as Washington Post reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, the film chronicles the unraveling of the Watergate scandal, focusing on process over spectacle. We also discuss All the King’s Men (2006), an infamous film that Isaac watched when previously assigned this film.    Cinema Spectator is a movie podcast hosted by Isaac Ransom, Juzo Greenwood, and Cameron Tuttle. The show is executive-produced by Darrin O’Neill and recorded and produced in the San Francisco Bay Area, CA. You can support the show at patreon.com/ecfsproductions. Follow us on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter @cinemaspectatorpodcast. Isaac and Cameron began recording podcasts with their first project, Everything Comes from Something (2018), and are now focusing on new weekly content for Cinema Spectator. Cameron Tuttle is a full-time professional cinematographer who majored in film at SFSU and collaborates on corporate, private, and creative productions. Cameron is the expert. Isaac Ransom works full-time as a marketing leader with creative experience in brand, advertising, product, music, and film. Isaac is the casual. Juzo is a producer, director, and avid film enthusiast who knows everything about cinema. The podcast is a passion project by three longtime friends; we hope you enjoy it! Thank you for your time, generosity, and support.

*Bonus Episode!* Cameron and Juzo sit down to talk about the latest Robert Pattinson and Zendaya romantic comedy The Drama (2026), directed by Kristoffer Borgli. Spoilers about our thoughts: we loved it! But we do talk about spoilers a bit in this review and we highly recommend you go into this film blind. Don't look up too much and just give it a watch, then come back and finish this review!   Cinema Spectator is a movie podcast hosted by Isaac Ransom, Juzo Greenwood, and Cameron Tuttle. The show is executive-produced by Darrin O’Neill and recorded and produced in the San Francisco Bay Area, CA. You can support the show at patreon.com/ecfsproductions. Follow us on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter @cinemaspectatorpodcast. Isaac and Cameron began recording podcasts with their first project, Everything Comes from Something (2018), and are now focusing on new weekly content for Cinema Spectator. Cameron Tuttle is a full-time professional cinematographer who majored in film at SFSU and collaborates on corporate, private, and creative productions. Cameron is the expert. Isaac Ransom works full-time as a marketing leader with creative experience in brand, advertising, product, music, and film. Isaac is the casual. Juzo is a producer, director, and avid film enthusiast who knows everything about cinema. The podcast is a passion project by three longtime friends; we hope you enjoy it! Thank you for your time, generosity, and support.

Continuing our series on the films of Sidney Lumet, we take a look at Serpico (1973). Starring Al Pacino in one of his most defining early roles, the film tells the true story of an NYPD officer who refuses to play along with the department’s deep-rooted corruption. Gritty, grounded, and intensely personal, Serpico trades spectacle for character, charting one man’s slow isolation as he chooses integrity over loyalty. Enjoy!   Cinema Spectator is a movie podcast hosted by Isaac Ransom, Juzo Greenwood, and Cameron Tuttle. The show is executive-produced by Darrin O’Neill and recorded and produced in the San Francisco Bay Area, CA. You can support the show at patreon.com/ecfsproductions. Follow us on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter @cinemaspectatorpodcast. Isaac and Cameron began recording podcasts with their first project, Everything Comes from Something (2018), and are now focusing on new weekly content for Cinema Spectator. Cameron Tuttle is a full-time professional cinematographer who majored in film at SFSU and collaborates on corporate, private, and creative productions. Cameron is the expert. Isaac Ransom works full-time as a marketing leader with creative experience in brand, advertising, product, music, and film. Isaac is the casual. Juzo is a producer, director, and avid film enthusiast who knows everything about cinema. The podcast is a passion project by three longtime friends; we hope you enjoy it! Thank you for your time, generosity, and support.

Kicking off our latest series on the films of Sidney Lumet, we begin with the incendiary classic Network (1976). Written by Paddy Chayefsky, the film is as sharp and biting as ever, taking aim at television, corporate power, and the blurred line between news and entertainment. Anchored by unforgettable performances and iconic monologues, Network feels just as relevant today as it did on release. Join us as we dive into one of Lumet’s most enduring films.   Cinema Spectator is a movie podcast hosted by Isaac Ransom, Juzo Greenwood, and Cameron Tuttle. The show is executive-produced by Darrin O’Neill and recorded and produced in the San Francisco Bay Area, CA. You can support the show at patreon.com/ecfsproductions. Follow us on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter @cinemaspectatorpodcast. Isaac and Cameron began recording podcasts with their first project, Everything Comes from Something (2018), and are now focusing on new weekly content for Cinema Spectator. Cameron Tuttle is a full-time professional cinematographer who majored in film at SFSU and collaborates on corporate, private, and creative productions. Cameron is the expert. Isaac Ransom works full-time as a marketing leader with creative experience in brand, advertising, product, music, and film. Isaac is the casual. Juzo is a producer, director, and avid film enthusiast who knows everything about cinema. The podcast is a passion project by three longtime friends; we hope you enjoy it! Thank you for your time, generosity, and support.

Sorry for being a bit late this week! Cameron and Juzo discuss some of the more recent films we watched in theaters including the smash hit Project Hail Mary (2026) directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller. This lighthearted space odyssey is certainly a crowd-pleasing success and we discuss some of its positives and negatives. We also talk about a movie that is much less crowd-pleasing: Alpha (2025) directed by Julia Ducournau. While it certainly has some interesting ideas, this film has largely fallen flat with audiences since it was panned at the Cannes Film Festival. Does it hold up? Not really but it sure is an interesting one to talk about.   Timestamps: Project Hail Mary - starting at 31 minutes Alpha - starting at 1 hour and 10 mintues   Cinema Spectator is a movie podcast hosted by Isaac Ransom, Juzo Greenwood, and Cameron Tuttle. The show is executive-produced by Darrin O’Neill and recorded and produced in the San Francisco Bay Area, CA. You can support the show at patreon.com/ecfsproductions. Follow us on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter @cinemaspectatorpodcast. Isaac and Cameron began recording podcasts with their first project, Everything Comes from Something (2018), and are now focusing on new weekly content for Cinema Spectator. Cameron Tuttle is a full-time professional cinematographer who majored in film at SFSU and collaborates on corporate, private, and creative productions. Cameron is the expert. Isaac Ransom works full-time as a marketing leader with creative experience in brand, advertising, product, music, and film. Isaac is the casual. Juzo is a producer, director, and avid film enthusiast who knows everything about cinema. The podcast is a passion project by three longtime friends; we hope you enjoy it! Thank you for your time, generosity, and support.

Wrapping up our short exploration of Aaron Sorkin, we turn to his 2015 film Steve Jobs. Loosely based on Walter Isaacson’s biography, the film unfolds across three vignettes leading up to major product launches. Sorkin uses these moments to dig into Jobs’ personal conflicts, as well as his aggressive, domineering approach to work. Enjoy our review of Steve Jobs (2015).   Cinema Spectator is a movie podcast hosted by Isaac Ransom, Juzo Greenwood, and Cameron Tuttle. The show is executive-produced by Darrin O’Neill and recorded and produced in the San Francisco Bay Area, CA. You can support the show at patreon.com/ecfsproductions. Follow us on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter @cinemaspectatorpodcast. Isaac and Cameron began recording podcasts with their first project, Everything Comes from Something (2018), and are now focusing on new weekly content for Cinema Spectator. Cameron Tuttle is a full-time professional cinematographer who majored in film at SFSU and collaborates on corporate, private, and creative productions. Cameron is the expert. Isaac Ransom works full-time as a marketing leader with creative experience in brand, advertising, product, music, and film. Isaac is the casual. Juzo is a producer, director, and avid film enthusiast who knows everything about cinema. The podcast is a passion project by three longtime friends; we hope you enjoy it! Thank you for your time, generosity, and support.

Finishing our examination of Rob Reiner, we close out the series with the classic legal drama A Few Good Men (1992). Written by Aaron Sorkin, the film carries the sincerity and passion for America you’d expect, along with some of the trademark cheesiness he's known for—but by the end, it’s impossible not to love. Jack Nicholson steals the show with a villainous performance, and it all builds to an unforgettable final scene. We hope you’ve enjoyed our series exploring the films of Rob Reiner!   Cinema Spectator is a movie podcast hosted by Isaac Ransom, Juzo Greenwood, and Cameron Tuttle. The show is executive-produced by Darrin O’Neill and recorded and produced in the San Francisco Bay Area, CA. You can support the show at patreon.com/ecfsproductions. Follow us on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter @cinemaspectatorpodcast. Isaac and Cameron began recording podcasts with their first project, Everything Comes from Something (2018), and are now focusing on new weekly content for Cinema Spectator. Cameron Tuttle is a full-time professional cinematographer who majored in film at SFSU and collaborates on corporate, private, and creative productions. Cameron is the expert. Isaac Ransom works full-time as a marketing leader with creative experience in brand, advertising, product, music, and film. Isaac is the casual. Juzo is a producer, director, and avid film enthusiast who knows everything about cinema. The podcast is a passion project by three longtime friends; we hope you enjoy it! Thank you for your time, generosity, and support.