Uploaded July 2021 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
100% PURE ADRENALINE. We’re back and we’re finally tackling a topic we’ve been wanting to talk about for a long time: Point Break, which is having its 30th anniversary this year. It’s peak 90s action cinema and with it, director Kathryn Bigelow not only created a uniquely soulful entry into the action canon, but she may have defined many of the decade’s best cinematic sensibilities as well. Is it ironic or sincere? Is Keanu great or terrible in it? How does Lori Petty’s Tyler both fulfill and subvert the standard role of the superfluous love interest in a film that’s really all about its male characters? Is Carolyn left-reading too much or does Reeves’ Johnny Utah actually discover that the FBI is a soul-crushing machine of which he wants no part? We discuss all this and much more, so gather round the bonfire, catch some waves and join us as we talk about Point Break.
Time Stamps:
08:15 Point Break
41:35 - What’s Your FREQ-Out: Ebony on Summer of Soul, Carolyn on the problems with Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s recent viral essay.
Links Mentioned:
April Wolfe on Point Break for Rolling Stone: rollingstone.com/movies/movie-features/stream-this-movie-point-break-717570
Oluwatayo Adewole on the important context of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s recent viral essay: gal-dem.com/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie-viral-essay-shows-transphobia
100% PURE ADRENALINE. We’re back and we’re finally tackling a topic we’ve been wanting to talk about for a long time: Point Break, which is having its 30th anniversary this year. It’s peak 90s action cinema and with it, director Kathryn Bigelow not only created a uniquely soulful entry into the action canon, but she may have defined many of the decade’s best cinematic sensibilities as well. Is it ironic or sincere? Is Keanu great or terrible in it? How does Lori Petty’s Tyler both fulfill and subvert the standard role of the superfluous love interest in a film that’s really all about its male characters? Is Carolyn left-reading too much or does Reeves’ Johnny Utah actually discover that the FBI is a soul-crushing machine of which he wants no part? We discuss all this and much more, so gather round the bonfire, catch some waves and join us as we talk about Point Break.
Time Stamps:
08:15 Point Break
41:35 - What’s Your FREQ-Out: Ebony on Summer of Soul, Carolyn on the problems with Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s recent viral essay.
Links Mentioned:
April Wolfe on Point Break for Rolling Stone: rollingstone.com/movies/movie-features/stream-this-movie-point-break-717570
Oluwatayo Adewole on the important context of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s recent viral essay: gal-dem.com/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie-viral-essay-shows-transphobia
