{"podcast":{"title":"The Desert of the Reel: A Movie Podcast","slug":"the-desert-of-the-reel-a-movie-podcast-6745471","podcast_index_feed_id":6745471,"rss_url":"https://anchor.fm/s/ef374714/podcast/rss","website_url":"https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/desert-of-the-reel","image_url":"https://d3t3ozftmdmh3i.cloudfront.net/staging/podcast_uploaded_nologo/40033773/40033773-1702701906834-241e47ae9797b.jpg","author":"Desert of the Reel","episode_count":136,"summary":"Welcome to the Desert of the Reel, a movie podcast where host Ryan Hudson forces co-host Jason Dietz to watch the big blockbuster movies he’s refused to watch because he didn’t think they were worth his time. As two passionate high school English/film/philosophy/creativity teachers with graduate degrees, we're dedicated to using our academic training to argue about and dig deeply into movies. We explore the creativity and philosophy in our films and push our listeners to think critically about their entertainment.","last_synced_at":"2026-07-26T20:19:57.206759+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-desert-of-the-reel-a-movie-podcast-6745471"},"episode":{"title":"Vengeance Won’t Save You: The Ethics of The Batman (2022) - Desert of the Reel #120","slug":"vengeance-won-t-save-you-the-ethics-of-the-batman-2022-desert-of-the-reel-120","published_at":"2026-05-02T13:59:30+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-desert-of-the-reel-a-movie-podcast-6745471/vengeance-won-t-save-you-the-ethics-of-the-batman-2022-desert-of-the-reel-120","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-desert-of-the-reel-a-movie-podcast-6745471","url":"https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/desert-of-the-reel/episodes/Vengeance-Wont-Save-You-The-Ethics-of-The-Batman-2022---Desert-of-the-Reel-120-e3ipk8a","audio_url":"https://anchor.fm/s/ef374714/podcast/play/119377610/https%3A%2F%2Fd3ctxlq1ktw2nl.cloudfront.net%2Fstaging%2F2026-4-2%2F423322771-44100-2-5ea5ef09a4af5.m4a","summary":"In our last episdo of Batman movies, we are showing Jason The Batman (2022). He probably would not have watched it without the podcast. He claims it is a good movie that would have been a lot better if it wasn't a Batman movie. Is it more than just a superhero film? Or would it have worked even better as a stripped-down noir detective story? We explore how the film reimagines Batman as a man driven by vengeance who must confront the limits of that identity. Along the way, we break down what defines noir, how the film’s use of POV shots makes it more personal, and how modern filmmaking tools like the Volume reshape visual storytelling. We wrestle with the film’s biggest ethical questions: Are people inherently good or corrupt? Is The Riddler a villain or a distorted product of a broken system? And if crime thrives under Penguin’s watch, where does responsibility actually lie? What do you think about this movie? About Batman as a whole? Is he a superhero? And what franchises should we cover in the future? Email us at desertofthereelpod@gmail.com","meta_description":"In our last episdo of Batman movies, we are showing Jason The Batman (2022). He probably would not have watched it without the podcast. He claims it is a…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":4950,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-desert-of-the-reel-a-movie-podcast-6745471/episodes/vengeance-won-t-save-you-the-ethics-of-the-batman-2022-desert-of-the-reel-120/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-desert-of-the-reel-a-movie-podcast-6745471/vengeance-won-t-save-you-the-ethics-of-the-batman-2022-desert-of-the-reel-120.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}