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The Big Picture

‘Highest 2 Lowest’ Is a N.Y. Movie State of Mind, With Spike Lee!

The Big Picture

The Ringer

Tv & Film

4.35.2K Ratings

🗓️ 5 September 2025

⏱️ 100 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Sean and Amanda start the show by reacting to a handful of recent movie trailers, including Emerald Fennell’s ‘Wuthering Heights’—starring Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi—and Nia DaCosta’s ‘28 Years Later: The Bone Temple’ (3:33). Then, they unpack Spike Lee’s newest film ‘Highest 2 Lowest,’ starring Denzel Washington and A$AP Rocky. They explore its very high highs and occasional low lows, Washington’s fascinating performance style, and what makes this film so different compared to the rest of Lee’s filmography (17:09). Next, they cover Darren Aronofsky’s ‘Caught Stealing,’ starring Austin Butler and Zoë Kravitz; they both found it quite disappointing, to the point that they even discussed whether or not Austin Butler is a “leading man” (39:54). Finally, Sean is joined by the legendary filmmaker Spike Lee to talk about his new movie. Lee reflects on the first time he visited Akira Kurosawa’s work and touches on what Kurosawa means to both himself and cinema at large, talks through Denzel Washington's brilliant improvisations in this film and explains why he is—in Lee's opinion—the greatest actor of all time, and explores what is missing from Hollywood and the filmmaking industry right now (1:07:01). Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins Guest: Spike Lee Producer: Jack Sanders This episode is sponsored by State Farm®️. A State Farm agent can help you choose the coverage you need. Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there.®️ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0

This episode is presented by State Farm. Life's full of decisions, big and small, and sometimes

0:04.3

you make movie ones you can really stand behind. For example, I was wise enough to stick

0:09.3

around through the mid credits during Ryan Cougler's sinners. And unlike my co-host, Amanda,

0:15.3

I got to see a very special sequence with the great buddy guy, among other things. State Farm gets it.

0:21.0

Making confident choices can make all the difference. That's why with the State Farm

0:24.7

Personal Price Plan, you can choose the right amount of coverage to help create an affordable

0:28.4

price for you. Talk to a State Farm agent today to learn how you can choose to bundle and save

0:32.8

with the personal price plan. Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there. Prices are based on

0:37.3

rating plans

0:37.8

that vary by state. Coverage options are selected by the customer, availability, amount of

0:42.5

discounts and savings, and eligibility vary by state.

0:57.8

I'm Sean Fennessey.

0:58.5

I'm Amanda Dobbins. And this is the big picture, a conversation show about New York.

1:01.4

We're not in New York.

1:02.3

We're in Los Angeles together.

1:04.2

Hello.

1:04.6

Hello.

1:05.3

We made it.

1:06.2

Big show.

1:06.5

We made it.

1:06.9

We made it back from Telluride.

1:08.0

Back from Venice.

...

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