Tag Archives: Fiona Cox

José Arroyo In Conversation With Fiona Cox On Wicked (Jon M. Chu, 2024)

Fiona Cox, PhD in Film Studies by day, and, under the name of Kitty Mazinksy, chanteuse extraordinaire by night, is the ideal person to talk to about WICKED (Jon M. Chu, 2024). She’s read the book, seen the musical four times and has even performed in it. She now talks to me about musicals, the politics of the film, the dancing, the singing, the numbers, the length. Are critics right about tonal problems in the film? About finding fault with the way it looks? What about the casting and the songs? What does the film convey about race, queerness, female solidarity? How does it speak to the current moment? We compare it to the stage version, find it an improvement, and look forward to part II. Like Fiona herself, this is an ebullient, enthusiastic conversation, full of smarts and laughter.

 

The podcast may be listened to here:

 

The duet with Miley Cyrus can be seen here:

 

Fiona performs as Kitty Mazinksy

José Arroyo in Conversation with Dr. Fiona Cox on Ammonite (Francis Lee, UK, 2001)

I’m joined by Dr. Fiona Cox also known as Kitty Mazinsky, celebrated songbird of international renown, for a wide-ranging discussion of Francis Lee’s fascinating follow-up to God’s Own Country. We talk about landscape, the film’s focus on hands and work, the love scene, the beautiful shot where Kate Winslet as Mary Anning is framed as a painting, the film’s dramatisation of class and patriarchal relations, the place of the museum, and the significance of the ending. The podcast can be listened to here:

 

José Arroyo

José Arroyo in Conversation with Fiona Cox on ‘It’s a Sin’

 

The podcast can also be listened to on Spotify here: https://open.spotify.com/show/2zWZ7Egdy6xPCwHPHlOOaT

and on itunes here: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/first-impressions-thinking-aloud-about-film/id1548559546

 

A discussion between friends, informed but informal, eager for exchange and hoping to contribute to a discussion, practically unedited. We probably missed many reference points but as soon as we stopped talking I realised the most obvious one is 120 BPM. You can nonetheless follow up discussions on that truly great film here:

A Conversation with Adam Carver on 120 BPM

and here:

Eavesdropping at the Movies 62 – 120 BPM

 

José Arroyo