On this episode of Acting Out, we discuss Jonathan Demme’s 1993 drama Philadelphia, starring Tom Hanks as a lawyer with AIDS fighting discrimination and Denzel Washington as the bigot who defends him. We talk about Hanks’ first Oscar winning performance, whether Washington is secretly better (and the lead), the absolute barnstorming success of the film critically and commercially, and the unique perspective Demme brings as a director that allows Philadelphia to be far more interesting cinematically than the boring Oscar bait it appears to be on paper.

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