Lights, Camera, Analysis
One Harvard Grad/Middle School English teacher and one movie-loving guest take a deep dive into the world of a Blockbuster. We ask big questions like, what does Moonlight teach us about the school-to-prison pipeline? Does J. K. Rowling think we should fight bigots with our fists? What does Soul teach us about life’s purpose? This and more on Lights, Camera, Analysis
Episodes
The children's book The Lorax was first published by Dr. Suess in 1971. The Lorax film was released in 2012. Still, in 2025, the warning remains as relevant today as it ever was. Who are the Once-lers of today? Why does the selfishness of Mayor Aloysius O'Hare continue to exist today? Who is our generation's lorax? And what can we do to keep our environment safe, beautiful, and plentiful?
Written by Research Intern C...
Why do we still read Animal Farm today? Where did the idea for Animal Farm even come from? What can Animal Farm teach us about the hopes and harms of socialism and communism?
Written and recorded by Troy Ashkinos and Audrey Thorne.
If you want to help me with a future episode, you can email me at athorne@alumni.harvard.edu and cc a family member if you’re under 18. With their permission, we may even record one together!
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What if your life is really a tv show and everyone you know are paid actors? Amazon's new hit show Jury Duty puts the question to the test.
Written and recorded by Troy Ashkinos and Audrey Thorne
If you want to help me with a future episode, you can email me at athorne@alumni.harvard.edu and cc a family member if you’re under 18. With their permission, we may even record one together!
What makes Barbie so controversial? Is Barbie a feminist film? What do most people miss on the first watch? All this and more!
Episode written and recorded by Nathan Lu and Audrey Thorne.
If you want to help me with a future episode, you can email me at athorne@alumni.harvard.edu and cc a family member if you’re under 18. With their permission, we may even record one together!
College is expensive, financial aid is limited, and student loans are burdensome, as Nina from In The Heights plainly shows us. How can you afford the college experience you so deserve and the credentials for your dream career? Quinton Lampkin can help!
Written and recorded by Quinton Lampkin and Audrey Thorne.
If you want to help me with a future episode, you can email me at athorne@alumni.harvard.edu and cc a family mem...
What is government surveillance? Why is 1984 still so relevant today? Written and recorded by Troy Ashkinos and Audrey Thorne If you want to help me with a future episode, you can email me at athorne@alumni.harvard.edu and cc a family member if you’re under 18. With their permission, we may even record one together!
What does Shawshank Redemption warn about prisons? How true are these concerns about our prison system in the United States? Should we look to Scandinavian countries as a model for prison reform? Written by Troy Ashkinos and Audrey Thorne
Sources from this episode can be found here.
If you want to help me with a future episode, you can email me at athorne@alumni.harvard.edu and cc a family member if you’re under 18. Wit...
What do the lead characters in To Kill a Mockingbird represent? What can they teach us about how we should act in our own lives?
Written by Troy Ashkinos and Audrey Thorne
Sources from this episode can be found here.
If you want to help me with a future episode, you can email me at athorne@alumni.harvard.edu and cc a family member if you’re under 18. With their permission, we may even record one together!
What does the classic novel and film, Lord of the Flies, teach us about morality? Are people naturally good or bad? What is the role of government in our lives? How can we make the world a better, less chaotic and harmful place?
Written by Troy Ashkinos and Audrey Thorne
Sources from this episode can be found here.
If you want to help me with a future episode, you can email me at athorne@alumni.harvard.edu and cc ...
What can Fairly Oddparents teach us about our own reality? How can Timmy teach us to have a better quality life?
Written by Troy Ashkinos and Audrey Thorne
Sources from this episode can be found here.
If you want to help me with a future episode, you can email me at athorne@alumni.harvard.edu and cc a family member if you’re under 18. With their permission, we may even record one together!
Promising Young Woman discusses a familiar struggle through a new lens. Why use a horror style to make a film about calling out assault? Why cast lovable actors across the board? And what makes Promising Young Woman truly horrifying?
Written and recorded by Taiye Martin and Audrey Thorne.
Sources from this episode can be found here.
If you want to help me with a future episode, you can email me at athorne@alumn...
What makes “good” queer representation? What makes a “good” queer film? What makes Crush so special?
Written and recorded by Audrey Thorne.
Sources from this episode can be found here.
If you want to help me with a future episode, you can email me at athorne@alumni.harvard.edu and cc a family member if you’re under 18. With their permission, we may even record one together!
Can accurate satire can do more harm than good? Why is it so hard to tell the difference between earnest work and satire? Why use satire at all? And what can we use this knowledge to keep from falling into the trap of perpetuating harmful ideas?
Written by Audrey Thorne
If you want to help me with a future episode, you can email me at ms.a.thorne@gmail.com and cc a family member if you’re under 18. With their permission,...
What is with all the God allegories? And why is the main character a plot device?
If you want to help me with a future episode, you can email me at ms.a.thorne@gmail.com and cc a family member if you’re under 18. With their permission, we may even record one together!
What is the school-to-prison pipeline? How does it happen? How can we fix it?
Works Cited and further reading resources can be found here.
If you want to help me with a future episode, you can email me at ms.a.thorne@gmail.com and cc a family member if you’re under 18. With their permission, we may even record one together!
What rom com tropes does To All the Boys I've Loved Before use? Do these tropes make the film cliche or even more enjoyable? What does this do for Asian representation in the media?
If you want to help me with a future episode, you can email me at ms.a.thorne@gmail.com and cc a family member if you’re under 18. With their permission, we may even record one together!
What message does Gone Girl send about women? Is Amy a feminist? Is Amy likeable? Does it matter? How does the film fit into larger conversations about sexual assault and violence against women?
Works Cited and further reading can be found here.
If you want to help me with a future episode, you can email me at ms.a.thorne@gmail.com and cc a family member if you’re under 18. With their permission, we may even record one together!
We love a villain. Right? And if we don't, then why? And why does it even matter?
If you want to help me with a future episode, you can email me at ms.a.thorne@gmail.com and cc a family member if you’re under 18. With their permission, we may even record one together!
What is the purpose of life? What actually makes people happy?
If you want to help me with a future episode, you can email me at ms.a.thorne@gmail.com and cc a family member if you’re under 18. With their permission, we may even record one together!
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