The Minimum Commitment: Film Theory in Small Doses

NOTE: This episode contains MAJOR spoilers. If you haven’t seen the film yet, you might want to hit pause and come back when you’re ready.

Hal Ashby’s Harold and Maude is a dark romantic comedy wrapped in bright absurdity—a film where death is performance, institutions are theater, and love becomes an act of rebellion. In this episode of The Minimum Commitment, we explore how the film uses existentialism and counterculture theor...

NOTE: This episode contains MAJOR spoilers. If you haven’t seen the film yet, you might want to hit pause and come back when you’re ready.

Paul Thomas Anderson’s Punch-Drunk Love is a romantic comedy only in structure, not in tone. Strange, quiet, and emotionally volatile, the film subverts the genre by filtering love through anxiety, shame, and bursts of unexplained violence. In this episode of The Minimum Commitment, we explore ho...

NOTE: This episode contains MAJOR spoilers. If you haven’t seen the film yet, you might want to hit pause and come back when you’re ready.

In this episode, we explore how David O. Russell’s unconventional romantic comedy redefines mental health, portraying it not as a crisis but as a form of genuine connection. Using rapid editing, authentic performances, and a lively, unpredictable rhythm, the film illustrates how two damaged indiv...

As Season 1 draws to an end, I want to express my heartfelt gratitude to everyone who has tuned in over the past year. Throughout this journey, I have gained valuable insights and truly enjoy witnessing how the show has transformed—from simple, templated ideas for upcoming episodes to rich, multi-platform media experiences. I look forward to welcoming you back next year when Season 2 premieres on February 5, 2026.

Until then, THANK...

NOTE: This episode contains MAJOR spoilers. If you haven’t seen the film yet, you might want to hit pause and come back when you’re ready.

John Milius’s Conan the Barbarian is more than just a sword-swinging adventure; it is a myth told through the power of muscle, blood, and silence. In this episode of The Minimum Commitment, we examine Conan’s epic journey through the lens of Joseph Campbell’s monomyth, then dive deeper into semio...

NOTE: This episode contains MAJOR spoilers. If you haven’t seen the film yet, you might want to hit pause and come back when you’re ready.

Matthew Robbins’ Dragonslayer is more than a monster movie. It’s an elegy. A tale of collapsing systems, vanishing gods, and the quiet transition from wonder to order. In this episode of The Minimum Commitment, we explore how the film reflects the dying breath of magic in a world slowly overtaken...

NOTE: This episode contains MAJOR spoilers. If you haven’t seen the film yet, you might want to hit pause and come back when you’re ready.

David Lowery’s The Green Knight offers a fresh and intricate retelling of a classic myth, weaving unfamiliar consequences into the narrative fabric. This episode explores the story through the lens of post-structuralist theory, presenting Gawain’s journey not merely as a straightforward trium...

NOTE: This episode contains MAJOR spoilers. If you haven’t seen the film yet, you might want to hit pause and come back when you’re ready. 

John Boorman’s Excalibur transforms the Arthurian legend into a mythic opera—grand, poetic, and soaked in metaphor. In this episode of The Minimum Commitment, we explore how the film uses visual spectacle and semiotic design to breathe new life into the monomyth, while also forecasting its colla...

NOTE: This episode contains spoilers. If you haven’t seen the film yet, you might want to hit pause and come back when you’re ready.

Robert Zemeckis’s 2007 animated film Beowulf offers a modern reimagining of the ancient epic, blending cutting-edge digital animation with a reinterpretation of traditional myth. The film presents a world where formidable digital bodies collide with fractured mythologies, revealing a story that challen...

NOTE: This episode contains MAJOR spoilers. If you haven’t seen the film yet, you might want to hit pause and come back when you’re ready. 

Jordan Peele’s film Us intricately deconstructs the American dream, portraying it as a distorted hall of mirrors that reflects the complex interplay of class, privilege, and identity. Through the meticulous use of symmetry, deliberate sound design, and compelling performances, Peele reveals ...

NOTE: This episode contains MAJOR spoilers. If you haven’t seen the film yet, you might want to hit pause and come back when you’re ready.

Ari Aster’s Hereditary is less a story about grief than it is about inevitability. Evil doesn’t stalk from outside; it festers within the walls of family, passed down like memory or blood. In this episode, we explore how the film dissects generational trauma, control, and the illusion of choice, ...

NOTE: This episode contains MAJOR spoilers. If you haven’t seen the film yet, you might want to hit pause and come back when you’re ready.

William Friedkin’s The Exorcist isn’t just a story of demonic possession; it’s a powerful and haunting collision of faith and reason set against a backdrop where the world seems to have forgotten how to accept and understand true mystery. This episode explores how the film forces both science and...

NOTE: This episode contains MAJOR spoilers. If you haven’t seen the film yet, you might want to hit pause and come back when you’re ready.

Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining isn’t merely a straightforward haunted house story; it’s a richly layered, postmodern exploration into a chaotic universe where traditional notions of meaning and perception continually dissolve and escape understanding. Through innovative cinematic techniques such a...

NOTE: This episode contains MAJOR spoilers. If you haven’t seen the film yet, you might want to hit pause and come back when you’re ready.

Beneath the surface of shark attacks and summer screams lies a profound and thought-provoking film that explores the complex themes of institutional collapse, mounting disillusionment, and a society that has gradually lost its ability to understand and interpret the world around it. Spielberg did...

NOTE: This episode contains MAJOR spoilers. If you haven’t seen the film yet, you might want to hit pause and come back when you’re ready.

John Carpenter’s Halloween revolutionized the horror genre not through an abundance of gore and shocking violence, but through its masterful use of quiet, subtlety, and atmosphere. This episode explores how minimalist techniques, extended long takes, and meticulous sound design work together to e...

In Denis Villeneuve’s Arrival, the most profound discovery isn’t merely the revelation of extraterrestrial life, but the profound transformative power of language to fundamentally reshape our understanding of time, perception, and reality itself. This episode examines the captivating Sapir–Whorf hypothesis, highlighting how language shapes thought and perspective. It also highlights Amy Adams’ luminous and emotionally resonant port...

NOTE: This episode contains spoilers. If you haven’t seen the film yet, you might want to hit pause and come back when you’re ready.

In Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey, the director masterfully transforms the narrative of human existence into a profound visual language that encapsulates themes of evolution, advancing technology, and the mysterious unknown. This film episode meticulously employs pure imagery and sound...

NOTE: This episode contains spoilers. If you haven’t seen the film yet, you might want to hit pause and come back when you’re ready.

This episode explores Interstellar, examining it through the complex scientific principles of Einstein’s relativity as well as the profound emotional humanism that underpins its narrative. Nolan’s expansive space epic masterfully bends the fabric of time and space, creating a mind-bending voyage across...