It's very difficult to keep the line between the past and the present.

Do you believe that someone out of the past can enter and take possession of a living being?

We may be true with the past, but the past is not through with us.

Welcome to the next picture show, a movie of the week podcast devoted to a classic film and how it shaped our thoughts in a recent release.

I'm Scott Tobias here with...

Tosha Robinson. Keithups.

And Genevieve Gatsky.

Here on the next picture show, we believe that no film exists in a vacuum and that all culture is more interesting in context.

So every other week, we get together to talk over a classic film and consider how it relates to a current movie. This week, we're in the trenches of World War I. The Germans are picking off cinnophiles one by one. And if we want to bring an end of the war, we're going to have to try something audacious. Genevieve, what are our options? Option A. We can storm a German Antil. If we succeed, which we almost certainly won't, we'll lose more than half our men trying, but a French general will get a big promotion. If we fail, three of our men will be singled out arbitrarily for cowardice and shot by a firing squad to boost troop morale. I got to say, Genevieve, option A sounds awful. What's option B? Option B is that we recruit an Amazon warrior and demi-goddess who was sculpted from clay and given life by the gods. Then we forced the Germans to surrender by destroying their chemical weapons cash and setting our demigodess against Ares, the god of war, in a battle royal. Yeah, I'm feeling a lot better about option B, but this week, on the next picture show, we're going to fully explore our options. On today's episode, we'll look at Paz of Glory, Stanley Kubrick's anti-war classic about French troops forced to do a suicide mission by their superiors. Then later in the week, we'll bring in Wonder Woman, which sends Princess Diana into the same conflict against the Germans of World War I and discovers the best and worst of humanity in the process.

We'll dive into the aesthetic trenches after the break.

Hello there, soldier.

Ready to kill more Germans?

Yes, sir.

What's your name, soldier?

Private Farrow, Cochoply, eh?

Uh-huh. You married, Private?

No, sir.

Well, I'll bet your mother's proud of you.

Yes, sir.

Well, carry on, private, and good luck to you.

Yes, sir, thank you, sir.

Good morning, sir, thank you, sir.

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