Paul and Corey Cross the Streams is a bi-monthly podcast in which hosts Paul Pakler and Corey Pepper watch and review streaming content. It’s the Great American Podcast where two friends learn about life as they float down the river of streaming services.

Having amassed more than 100 episodes in its run, PACCTS’ sixth season will focus its sights on “the greatest films of all time” (both in the US and internationally), as assembled by the British Film Institute’s 2022 Sight and Sound Poll of industry critics. Corey will be choosing American films from the list, and Paul will be choosing international ones. 

Our goal is to examine the films that are considered great, and why that may be the case.  

Ranked 54, Sergei Eisentstein’s Battleship Potemkin (1925) is one of the rare films on the list to have appeared on every Sight and Sound Poll since its creation in 1952. Eisenstein was one of a collection of Soviet filmmakers who studied and theorized over this new artistic medium of cinema in order to unlock its singular potential for communication. Eisenstein himself was a proponent of montage, which Paul and Corey discuss in terms of its impact on the film and on all films that followed. They also dive deep into the historical events that surrounded the Russian Revolution of 1905 (the subject of the film), which Vladimir Lenin famously referred to as the October Revolution of 1917’s “Great Dress Rehearsal.”

Lots to discuss!

This Episode’s Focus: Battleship Potemkin (1925)
Host’s Choice: Paul Pakler
Stream on Criterion Channel, Tubi, Max, Hulu, Amazon Prime, Roku, YouTube, Sling TV; Rent on Fandango, Apple TV
Corey’s Recipe Recommendations for This Episode: Traditional Russian Borscht and Russian Rye Bread

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Special thanks to Tobin for our incredible theme song and Dave Droxler for our podcast’s logo and artwork.