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I'm Stephen Metcalf, and this is the Slate Culture Gap Fest Over the River and Through the Woods edition.

It's Wednesday, November 27, 2013.

On today's show, Nebraska, it's the new movie from director Alexander Payne.

And then we talk about social media shopping and a site called The Prowl that has enchanted our own Dana Stevens.

And finally, Dan Pashman of the Sporkful Podcast and, of course, our erstwhile producer, joins us to talk about the ins and outs of the Thanksgiving meal. Joining me today is Slate's deputy editor, Julia Turner. Hello, Julia. Hi, Steve. And, of course, Slate's film critic, Dana Stevens. Hey, Dana. Hey, Dana, do I always say your name in this kind of extra perky way? What's what's about? I'm no more or less glad to see you than Julia. You think you've been saying Dana's name with extra perk all these years? It's like a slight I haven't even noticed. Hey, Dana. You know what I haven't heard in a while is Dana? We'll throw in a few of those. And, you know, the good excuse to do it is our first topic is, of course, a movie film by the director, Alexander Payne.

And I have a little intro for people who haven't seen it. So it's the new movie from Alexander Payne. It's called Nebraska. Payne is the director best known for election sideways, the descendants. Great director, really interesting director. The movie this one stars Bruce Dern as an elderly and possibly senile man

who believes thanks to a direct male marketing pitch that he has won a million dollars. And we follow

Dern's character on the road trip he takes with his adult son named David, who's played by

Will Forte to Lincoln, Nebraska to claim these phantom winnings. The film is a study in

controlled absences, implied past,

it's austere landscapes. It's in black and white. And like all of Payne's other movies, it takes place in that sort of uncertain border zone between funny ha ha and dark melancholy. Would you agree with all that? I would. Indeed. I like that bit about absences. I don't know what that was, but it sounded very right or right. Yeah, I have no idea what it means either. But anyway, for those of you who don't know what a controlled absence is or I haven't seen the movie, why don't we listen to a clip from Alexander Payne's new movie, Nebraska.

Dad.

Dad. Leave me alone.

Oh, Dad. Dad. Leave me alone. Come on.

I'm going to Lincoln. It's the last thing I do. I don't me take you home.

I'm going to Lincoln. It's the last thing I do. I don't care what your people think.

Listen to me, you didn't win anything. It's a complete scam. So you've got to stop this, okay?

I'm running out of time.

...