Wilder Inspires: Network

Wilder Inspires: Network

From The Filmographers by The Filmographers Podcast

March 2, 2026 · 12 min · Season 2

About this episode

This episode connects the themes of sensationalism in Billy Wilder's 'Ace in the Hole' and Sidney Lumet's 'Network'.

In Billy Wilder's "Ace in the Hole," audiences were given a look at what happens when news becomes more focused on sensation than truth, more allegiant to entertainment than dignity. Twenty-five years later, Sidney Lumet took those themes even deeper in "Network," a movie that predicted anger-driven "infotainment" years before it became a thing. In this episode, we connect the dots between these two seminal films. Enjoy this preview of our Patreon exclusive. And we've said it before, but once again: We're upping our Patreon in a major way for Season 2, so be sure to join today! Patreon.com/TheFilmographersPodcast Social mediaInstagram @thefilmographersBluesky @thefilmographers.bsky.socialLetterboxd @filmographersYouTube @TheFilmographersPodcast Websitehttps://filmographerspodcast.com/ CreditsKeir Graff & Michael Moreci, hostsKevin Lau, producerGompson, theme musicCosmo Graff, graphic design

People in this episode

Hosts: Keir Graff, Michael Moreci

Topics covered

  • film analysis
  • media criticism
  • infotainment
  • Billy Wilder
  • Sidney Lumet
  • cinema history

Keywords

  • Ace in the Hole
  • Network
  • Billy Wilder
  • Sidney Lumet
  • infotainment
  • media
  • film analysis

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Patreon, The Filmographers Podcast

Books & works: Ace in the Hole, Network

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