Episode 95: May December & Notes on a Scandal (featuring Doug Dillaman)

Cinema in Context

Scandalous love affairs. Sarah Watt, Jeremy Downing and Doug Dillaman discuss May December (2023) and Notes on a Scandal (2006). We begin by hearing each person's reaction to watching or rewatching Notes on a Scandal. We touch on the real case that both films are based on, focused on the relationship between Matu Kay Letouneau and Vili Fualaau. We talk about the performances of Dame Judi Dench, Cate Blanchett, Bill Nighy, Juno Temple, Natalie Portman, Julianne Moore, Charles Melton and Corey Michael Smith. We discuss our reactions, criticisms and praise for Todd Haynes' May December. We begin to explore the ways both stories deal with a fraught subject and whose perspective we focus on. Sarah and Jeremy present their own perspectives from teaching and how they navigate creating and maintaining safe spaces for teenagers. We finish by considering how this story might be told again in the future and whose perspectives need to be highlighted.