This power-cut interrupted episode picks up where last week's episode left off - with no clothes on! Dara wraps up his thoughts on nudity by addressing some omissions from last time. He briefly looks at a couple of male movie nudes before talking about his life modelling experience while in acting school in England in the mid-nineties. An article on a new photo exhibition that replaces Helmut Newton's chilly women with male models raises questions of conditioning, objectification, and the dominance of the male gaze.
Latest Episodes
In this episode, Dara realises he omitted to mention three things in relation to the theme of nudity: shame, Viggo Mortensen's willingness to bare all, and a ridiculous story from his acting school days that featured nudity, singing, and money! Things he may have to return to next week...
In this episode, Dara is perplexed by the moral ending of Jennifer Lawrence's new comedy, No Hard Feelings. What is the purpose of such moralising? Does the audience benefit from the character's personal edification? Should we care about a dissolute character's redemptive arc? He compares the sexual politics of that movie to Billy Wilder's Some Like It Hot.
In this episode, Dara shares his thoughts on the late William Friedkin, of whose films he has long been an admirer, particularly The Exorcist and the lesser-loved Sorcerer, his 1977 remake of 1953's La Salaire de la Peur. Those movies are discussed along with a general appraisal of Friedkin's voice and greater artistic significance. Dara considers the changing astronomy of the world as more and more creative giants of that generation appear to be coming to the end of their time.
In this episode, Dara takes his time to say goodbye to Sinead O'Connor and speaks of her relevance to him from the early days of her career right up to more recent times when life presented her with a terrible burden to bear. He includes a clip from Ep 34 of the show when he spoke about the death by suicide of her son in January 2022.
In this episode Dara reviews some recently watched movies, including William Friedkin's To Live and Die in LA (1985), and Sidney Lumet's Prince of the City (1981), two much-lauded cop thrillers that each have their strengths and weaknesses and are very much products of their time.
In this episode, Dara's aged cat has gone to the toilet in the wrong place, and the cause is not feline terrorism but dementia and disorientation. The loss of bearings is a very difficult thing to negotiate because it can result in dislocation. Dara argues that as fundamentally relational beings, we need landmarks and touchstones to position ourselves in the world.
In this episode, Dara wrestles with the conundrum that is Richard Gere. Self-satisfied narcissus or instinctive, id-driven sex animal? Is he a good actor? Is he just a fantasy figure beloved of Generation X moviegoers? Is he forever the man who rescued Julia Roberts from the streets? Dara examines Gere's legacy through some of his most memorable performances and discusses in detail Breathless, the bizarre 1983 Hollywood remake of Godard's A Bout de Souffle with an uncontainable turn from Gere at his most overtly sexual.
In this week's episode Dara is bothered by the current controversy in Ireland's national broadcaster, RTE. He is bothered, but not surprised by it, because it is simply another example of institutional corruption and moral complacency. He looks at why people continually fail to rein in their greed and dishonesty.
In this week's episode, Dara is trying to work out who he should trust. After watching the current Arnold Schwarzenegger documentary on Netflix, he finds himself unsatisfied with the Austrian bodybuilder's account of past indiscretions, but what would satisfy him? A little more honesty and insight would be a good place to start.
About the Podcast
Welcome to the turbulence!
Join Dara Clear, a domesticated Irishman who is trying to work out the best ways to cope with what life throws at him.
Husband, father, actor, writer, teacher, karate instructor, and sea swimmer, Dara wants to take the wuss out of wellness.
Mixing storytelling, philosophy, humor, psychology, and emotional honesty as a recipe for increased wellness, positivity, and resilience.
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