Podcast Summary: Dear Movies, I Love You

Episode: "Best of 2025! Plus, Cartoonist Mimi Pond!"

Hosts: Millie De Chirico & Casey O'Brien

Guest: Mimi Pond

Release Date: December 9, 2025

Episode Overview

This end-of-year episode of Dear Movies, I Love You is both a celebration and a reflection: the hosts look back on their first year of podcasting, recap their personal and cinematic journeys through 2025, and share their favorite (and not-so-favorite) films of the year. The discussion is candid, deeply enthusiastic, and, as always, rooted in genuine affection for cinema as a formative relationship. The episode also features an in-depth interview with cartoonist and graphic novelist Mimi Pond, focusing on her new book about the Mitford sisters and her admiration for British cinema between the World Wars.

Key Sections & Highlights

1. Reflections on a Year of Podcasting and Personal Growth

• Podcast Evolution & Context

  • The hosts reflect on launching the podcast in 2025 amid political anxiety and personal upheaval.
  • Millie: "We had to settle in, get our bearings. But I feel like over the course of the past 12 months, we've done that, and I feel like we're in a good spot." [03:06]
  • Both hosts share personal milestones: new jobs, finishing grad school, buying a house (Millie), starting and nearly completing a film project (Casey).

• The Reality of 'Best Of' Lists

  • Both hosts discuss the daunting number of films released annually, and the impossibility of seeing everything.
  • Millie: "These days, your mailbox gets flooded with screeners, and there is simply too much to watch." [07:44]
  • Casey: "I don't think I can be the kind of person who sees every new movie and also the kind of person who's, you know, trying to watch quality movies from the past as well." [09:19]

2. Film Gripe: The Meaninglessness of 5-Star Reviews on Letterboxd

[14:40–24:52]

• Letterboxd Etiquette Debate
  • Casey is annoyed by Letterboxd users who give every film 5 stars, ruining the calibration of the app for meaningful discovery.
  • Casey: "It pisses me off. It kind of ruins that aspect... I don't know actually how he thought about or how it's all men, I will say..." [16:07–17:00]
  • Millie prefers not to rate everything, out of reluctance to stake a public opinion and partly out of self-protection, as she works in the film world.
  • Millie: “Sometimes you have friends in movies that you don’t like, and you’re like, fuck, I ain't rating that.” [17:52]
  • They share their “funny” reviews as a way of engaging with movies and resisting taking it all too seriously.
  • Casey’s Eyes Wide Shut review: “I watched this movie for the first time before I'd had sex and I thought it was okay, but now I've had a bunch of sex and I'm married and I have to say, this is a perfect film.” [22:30]

3. Recent Film Watches: Personal Diaries

[25:00–38:35]

• Millie’s Recent Watches:

  1. The Smashing Machine (2025)
     • Directed by Benny Safdie.
     • Millie: “I really wanted The Rock to pull off that sensitivo, gentle giant, but he couldn’t quite get there.” [28:30]
     • Both discuss whether Dave Bautista might have made the role more convincing.
  2. Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean (1982)
     • A Robert Altman film with an ensemble female cast—"feels like a play in one big room."
  3. All That Heaven Allows (1955)
     • Admired for its seasonal vibe and for Rock Hudson’s “interdimensionally hot” presence.
     • Casey’s review: “His sexiness could bend time.” [34:04]

• Casey’s Recent Watches:

  1. The Last Seduction (1994)
     • Noir comedy, "more of a black comedy" than straight noir.
  2. Decalogue II (1989)
     • Short Kieślowski film about moral dilemma and relationships.
     • "It’s so easy though. The movies are an hour." [38:32]

4. Best of 2025 – Favorite First-Time Watches

[41:13–47:09]

Millie’s Favorites:

• Bona (1980, Lino Brocka): A Filipino melodrama.
• EIS (2024): "The movie that haunted us… we stalked you for an entire calendar year.” [43:00]
• Night of the Juggler (1980): "The most pleasurable movie in theater experience I had this year." [43:37]

Casey’s Favorites:

• Truly Madly Deeply (1990): “Such a beautiful, funny, spooky movie.”
• Thelma (2024): “June Squibb, Richard Roundtree... just a treat, highly recommend it.” [45:21]
• You Hurt My Feelings (2023):
  • Casey: “It just sort of scratched something in my brain about creative life and how people in your life perceive your work.” [45:56]
  • Both hosts explore the deep sensitivity artists feel to criticism from loved ones.

5. Top Three Films of 2025

[49:26–61:28]

Shared Picks:

• Pee Wee as Himself (Dir. Matt Wolf, HBO Max)
  • Casey: “I think about Paul Reubens constantly, and I think about how I want to be viewed as an artist.” [50:33]
  • Millie: “It’s about the sacrifices people make—sometimes, to hide themselves for success. You’re lucky if you can be completely who you are and also be appreciated.” [52:13]
• One Battle After Another (Dir. Paul Thomas Anderson)
  • Casey: “This has a lot of weight to it. Unmatched filmgoing experience in 2025 for me.” [55:06]
  • Millie: “It was triggering as shit… really hit hard for me considering everything that's happened this year.” [55:29]

Casey's Unique Pick:

• 28 Years Later: “A delightful, different, weird, and scary sequel… had such a blast seeing it in the theater.” [58:31]

Millie’s Unique Pick:

• Friendship: “Talk about a horror movie. Damn, this movie. It really tapped into this secret world of straight guys who need friends.” [59:29]
• Discussion about societal pressure on male friendships and the impact of patriarchy.

6. Honorable Mentions

[61:34–65:58]

• Weapons & Black Bag (Dir. Soderbergh) – tightly written, exciting spy film with Michael Fassbender.
• K-Pop Demon Hunters: Not necessarily a masterpiece, but a cultural juggernaut: "It was probably the hugest movie that came out this year." [62:45]
• Millie discusses her evolving relationship to pop culture trends, including K-pop fandom.

7. 2025: Personal Highs and Lows

[66:12–74:51]

• Both hosts candidly share personal triumphs and struggles.
  • Millie: Completing grad school, buying a house as a single woman, surviving the chaos of homeownership and work stress.
  • Casey: Shooting his first feature (“Bathroom Humor”), launching the podcast, learning piano, and raising his baby daughter Patience.
• Honest admissions about stress, mental health, exercise, reading habits, and letting go of perfectionism.

8. The "Goon Squad" Conversation

[72:25–75:16]

• Both are both shocked and fascinated by the Harper’s article on "gooning."
• Millie: "I was rocked in a way that I didn't think was possible. Like, I was like, certainly I've... seen a lot of fucked up shit... No, I was... This is like, impossible. No, I was, it felt like I was reading like gonzo journalism from the 80s..." [72:57]

9. Predictions for 2026

[75:16–81:47]

• Casey: Predicts the decline of "elevated horror" and A24-style movies; calls for a return to “rough around the edges” filmmaking.
• Millie: Predicts Hollywood will cast a bland star in a biopic of a countercultural figure (jokes: “Sydney Sweeney as Frida Kahlo”); expects further politicization and more actors on Ozempic.
• Both lament the “sameness” brought on by AI and cultural smoothing, and discuss Gen Z's return to analog/DIY culture as a rebellion.

10. My Area of Expertise with Mimi Pond

[84:05–108:10]

Mimi Pond’s Background

• Millie introduces Mimi as a “cartoonist, comic book artist, illustrator, writer, humorist… worked on everything you’ve ever loved,” including The Simpsons and Pee Wee’s Playhouse.

Mimi’s New Book: "Do Admit: The Mitford Sisters and Me"

• Focus: Six British sisters who influenced everything from "Hitler to the Black Panthers."
• Intriguing family biography; “well researched... a fantastic historical biography.” [90:35]

Mimi’s Area of Film Expertise: British Films (WWI – Post WWII)

• Admits to being more of an enthusiast than an academic expert: “I just know what I like.” [91:45]
• Favorite films/directors:
  • The Third Man (1949, dir. Carol Reed): “It’s fabulously noir… about how you grow up, have friends you admire, then realize they’re actually horrible people.” [92:09]
  • Shadow of a Doubt (Hitchcock): “Uncle Charlie comes to visit... his niece is not quite convinced. God, what a great movie.” [95:41]
  • Powell & Pressburger / The Archers:
    • Standouts: I Know Where I'm Going ("career gal of the 1940s gets stuck on her way to a Scottish island and changes her outlook on life") [97:33], Black Narcissus (“the original horny nun movie”), The Red Shoes, and A Matter of Life and Death.
• Also praises Billy Wilder’s The Apartment for its visual, economic storytelling: “Tells you everything you need to know without hardly any dialogue.” [104:29]
• On Visual Storytelling in Graphic Novels: “Filmmaking is the ultimate visual storytelling. Duh... I think more cartoonists should take note of filmmaking and visual storytelling, because it’s everything.” [104:21]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Movies are your boyfriend?”
  – Casey [11:06]
  “Yeah, I do cozy up to movies in between human boyfriends.”
  – Millie [12:10]
• “I think about Paul Reubens constantly, and I think about how I want to be viewed as an artist.”
  – Casey, on ‘Pee Wee as Himself’ [50:33]
• “You're lucky if you're able to be completely who you are and be successful and be appreciated and loved. That's a very hard thing to do.”
  – Millie, on Matt Wolf's documentary [52:13]
• “I want to be seen a certain way. And... that's a very basic human thing that I think is explored in this movie.”
  – Casey, on identity in ‘Pee Wee as Himself’ [51:42]
• “Rock Hudson is interdimensionally hot in this movie. His sexiness could bend time.”
  – Casey, Letterboxd review for ‘All That Heaven Allows’ [34:04]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [03:06] Reflecting on the podcast's origins and the year's difficulties
• [09:19] The impossibility of seeing all new and old quality movies
• [14:40–24:52] Letterboxd rant: 5-star culture and review philosophy
• [25:00–38:35] Recent watches and film diary
• [41:13–47:09] Best First-Time Watches of the Year
• [49:26–61:28] Top Three Films of 2025 discussion
• [62:45] Honorable mentions and K-pop pop culture shifts
• [66:12–74:51] Personal successes and failures of 2025
• [75:16–81:47] Film predictions for 2026 and the analog revival
• [84:05–108:10] Interview with Mimi Pond (Mitford sisters, British post-war film, visual storytelling)

Conclusion

The episode closes with gratitude between the hosts, a warm sense of accomplishment for having made it through a turbulent year, and a preview of next week’s Christmas-themed episode with Alonzo Duralde. The blend of personal candor and film love makes the episode rewarding for both the hardcore and the casual film fan alike.

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