The B-Side Ep. 193 – Jacques Tourneur (with Gavin Mevius)

Welcome to The B-Side! Here we talk about movie directors! Not the movies that made them famous or kept them famous, but the ones that they made in between. And sometimes scary movie directors! Happy Halloween! As is tradition, our dear friend Gavin Mevius (of The Mixed Reviews and The Q Division podcasts) joins us to discuss a Halloween-themed director. This year it’s the great—and very underrated—Jacques Tourneur! Our B-Sides include The Leopard Man, Anne of the Indies, Stranger on Horseback, Nightfall, and Night of the Demon. We discuss Tourneur’s early, legendary collaborations with producer Val Lewton, as well as his diverse filmography and tackling of most every genre. He’s also “a short king,” as Conor mentions, which is to say he always made films with a short runtime. There are many lovely diversions and plenty of discussion about many of Tourneur’s films. We mention some of the few interviews he gave and highlight his honest commentary about his own work. We also talk about Steven Soderbergh’s The Good German, a film that will one day be good!