Director Watch Podcast Ep. 144 – ‘A Matter of Life and Death (Powell and Pressburger, 1946) with Special Guest Jesse Nussman
On episode 144 of the Director Watch Podcast, co-hosts Ryan McQuade and Jay Ledbetter are joined by film critic Jesse Nussman to discuss the latest film in their Powell and Pressburger series, A Matter of Life and Death (1946).
Welcome back to Director Watch! On this AwardsWatch podcast, the boys attempt to break down, analyze, and ultimately, get inside the mind of some of cinema’s greatest auteurs. In doing so, they will look at their filmographies, explore what drives them artistically and what makes their decision making process so fascinating. Add in a few silly tangents and a fun game at the end of the episode and you’ve got yourself a podcast we truly hope you love.
In the start of a run of episodes that will feature the guys talking about Powell and Pressburger’s signature masterpieces, the Archers take a look at the power of love in the face of death and how having love can mean more than anything on this planet or in the afterlife. In a beautiful blend of black and white photography and technicolor, Powell and Pressburger delivered a cinematic statement that as long as a you have true love, nothing else matters and it’s stronger than logic, reason, or whatever else you want to throw at someone when they are under the spell of love; matters of the heart mean more than matters of the brain, thus is a necessity of life. Ryan, Jay, and Jesse break down their thoughts on the film, the power of love, various iconic shots within the film, map painting, and a special Nussman surprise at the end of the episode.
You can listen to the Director Watch Podcast wherever you stream podcasts, from iTunes, iHeartRadio, Soundcloud, Stitcher, Spotify, Audible, Amazon Music and more. You can also listen on the AW YouTube page.
This podcast runs 2h02m. The guys will be back next week to continue their series on the films of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger with a review of their next film, Black Narcissus. You can rent it via iTunes and Amazon Prime rental in preparation for the next episode of Director Watch. Till then, let’s get into it.
Music: MUSICALIFE, from Pond5 (intro) and “B-3” from BoxCat Games Nameless: The Hackers RPG Soundtrack (outro).
Engrossed with all things Oscars, he hosts the AwardsWatch Podcast, alongside members of the AwardsWatch Team. He is also the co-host of the Director Watch podcast with Jay Ledbetter, covering director movie series of cinemas’ greatest auteurs.
Ryan covers multiple film festivals a year including Sundance, SXSW, Telluride, Toronto, New York, Middleburg, and AFI where he reviews films and interviews top talent.
When he’s not watching movies, he’s rooting on all his favorite sports teams, including his beloved Texas Longhorns. He is also a member of the Critics Choice Association (CCA), The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics (GALECA), the Latino Entertainment Journalists Association (LEJA) and the Houston Film Critics Society (HFCS).
Jay Ledbetter is a finance manager by day, film critic by night living in Atlanta, Georgia. He began writing about film in 2013 and is not afraid to confront people of all ages if they are too loud in the theater.
As well as his reviews, Jay is the co-host of the Director Watch podcast with Ryan McQuade, our director movie series covering cinemas’ greatest auteurs. In addition to his work at AwardsWatch, Jay has written and hosted podcasts for Film Inquiry and InSession Film. He is an auteur obsessive, regularly diving deep into the filmographies of celebrated filmmakers.
Jay is a proud member of the Atlanta Film Critics Circle and the Georgia Film Critics Association.
- Director Watch Podcast Ep. 144 – ‘A Matter of Life and Death (Powell and Pressburger, 1946) with Special Guest Jesse Nussman - March 20, 2026
- Director Watch Podcast Ep. 143 – ‘I Know Where I’m Going’ (Powell and Pressburger, 1945) - March 15, 2026
- Director Watch Ep. 142 ‘The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp’ (Powell and Pressburger, 1943) with Special Guest Bilge Ebiri - March 5, 2026
Director Watch Podcast Ep. 144 – ‘A Matter of Life and Death (Powell and Pressburger, 1946) with Special Guest Jesse Nussman 
Association of Motion Picture Sound (AMPS) Television and Nonfiction Nominations Announced: ‘Adolescence,’ ‘Black Mirror,’ ‘Slow Horses’ and More 
Trailer Watch: ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day,’ ‘Dune: Part Three,’ Disclosure Day,’ ‘Wild Horse Nine’ 
‘Anima’ Review: Sydney Chandler and Takehiro Hira Ground Brian Tetsuro Ivie’s Low-Fi Sci-Fi Road Movie [B+] SXSW