Saving cinema, Trump villains & the future of AI filmmaking (with Dario Llinares)

This week on That Final Scene, I chat with Dr. Dario Llinares (educator, researcher, writer, podcaster and fellow Substacker) about whether we're witnessing cinema's final act—or just its most dramatic plot twist yet.

We dive into our recent watches (Ben's frankly had it with Trump-coded villains in Mickey 17 and Daredevil), debate what makes a cinema experience worth leaving your couch for, and explore Dario's fascinating AI video essay project that uses the technology to critique... well, the technology itself.

The burning question at the heart of our conversation: why are theaters emptying out faster than a cinema playing Morbius, and what would actually bring audiences back? From "event" screenings to repertory programming to Simon's wild idea for "live cinema," we workshop solutions that might just save our beloved movie palaces.

Plus: Soderbergh's slick spy thriller Black Bag, Pierce Brosnan's mysteriously vanishing Irish accent, and why open-air screenings of The Greatest Showman keep selling out while multiplexes gather dust.

Listen in for a conversation that's equal parts film-nerd deep cut and urgent state-of-the-industry diagnosis.

Find Dario's work at his Substack ContraWise and through the Cinematologist podcast. His new interview series Cinema Body, Cinema Mind explores our physical relationship with moviegoing.

https://dariollinares.substack.com/

https://dariollinares.substack.com/s/the-cinematologists-newsletter-archive

https://dariollinares.substack.com/s/cinema-body

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