Movie Madness
Episode 401: Barbie & Oppenheimer: A Weekend Of Celebration
Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy share in a weekend of greatness, even if some movies are not as great. They review seven this week including a look back at a deep dive doc from Sundance (The Deepest Breath) and another from the fest involving an expectant mother and her post-birth choices (Earth Mama). Neil LaBute puts Maggie Q up against some psychos (Fear the Night) while Lizzy Caplan’s son hears noises in the walls (Cobweb) and John Boyega comes to learn some disturbing things about his neighborhood (They Cloned Tyrone). But the weekend belongs to Greta Gerwig and Christopher Nolan whose films have been two of the most hyped releases of the year and they delivered a weekend for the ages. For all ages and everyone else.
Episode 400: To Live and Die Breathlessly
Peter Sobczynski joins Erik Childress on this week’s physical media roundup. They include 4K releases from Godard, Scorsese and Boetticher. Are any of the stories from Four Rooms worth revisiting? Peter unveils an appreciation for one of the great endings in film while Erik discusses HBO’s acclaimed video game adaptation. You also get Gena Rowlands in an Oscar-nominated performance, Roy Scheider fighting off sleazy blackmailers, a bizarre pre-Lethal Weapon partnering and one of the great William Friedkin movies getting the upgrade it deserves.
Episode 399: We Choose To Accept Some Of These Movies
There’s one big movie hitting theaters this week but Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy still have eight other titles to talk about. They include a look back at their biggest disagreement of the year from Sundance (Theater Camp) while Steve checks out a great cast goes looking for healing elsewhere (The Miracle Club). Then they look at a trio of documentaries from the treatment of the American Indian (Lakota Nation vs. United States) to black players and baseball (The League) and Alex Winter’s examination of the first of two deadly algorithms this week (The YouTube Effect). Next it is on to fictional horror from an estranged couple stuck together (Quicksand) to the blind leading the blind without Sandra Bullock (Bird Box Barcelona) and a low-budget film crew plagued by zombies (Final Cut). Of course they would not let you go without discussing the latest in a franchise that has somehow managed to exceed expectations over and over. Does the latest live up to the name? (Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning, Part One). Then one last thing as the duo serve up their mock ballots for the best performances and movies of the year at the mid-way point.
Episode 398: Are You There God? I Know It’s After Hours
Erik Childress and Peter Sobczynski have a jam-packed week for you in physical media. It includes the long-awaited upgrade for an often overlooked Martin Scorsese classic. Emily Blunt debuts in a lovely coming-of-age film while two Oscar winners and a should-have-won-all-the-Emmys actor make their debut in an early ‘80s slasher film. There is some hatred for the latest Scream and some for a John Hughes character but some surprising love for an early ‘90s Rambo knockoff. There is also one of the essential film noirs with John Garfield, a little Ari Aster discourse and nothing but love for one of the best films of the year that you should absolutely add to your collection.
Episode 397: Seeking A Friendship For Wham!, K-Pop! And The Apocalypse
Friendships are resplendent in this week’s new movies and two friends in Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy are here to tell you which ones to see. Friends try to avoid wearing a parasitic mask (Bad Girl Boogey) while a woman tries to emancipate herself over two decades (Scarlet). A young writer is hired to tutor the son of his idol (The Lesson) while Patrick Wilson’s son is again tortured by an evil entity (Insidious: The Red Door). An ‘80s pop duo gets the documentary treatment (Wham!) while Adam Devine meets his criminal in-laws (The Out-Laws). Finally Mark Duplass and Sterling K. Brown are the last two men on Earth (Biosphere) and a foursome of women take a trip to China in search of identity and pleasure (Joy Ride).
Episode 396: Staycay with 4K
More and more titles are pulled off social media which means its time to bulk up on physical media more and more. Peter Sobczynski joins Erik Childress to get you caught up. There are disturbing works from Gaspar Noe and Claire Denis along with other horror films ranging from the Deadites to a white shark and buffalo to Stephen King stories and a really bad motel. You can certainly lighten up the mood with a wonderful comic action caper film from Sundance involving sisters, hang out at the mall or take a vacay with the Griswolds. Or you can just stay in one place like Truman and enjoy a box office punchline better than its reputation or re-live your days checking out Empire Films in the video store.
Episode 395: J-Law, Wes & Indy: In This Economy?
Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy look at seven new movies this week. They include a documentary on an artist from the 1980s (Make Me Famous) and Ike Barinholtz takes on political muckrucking in a faux documentary (Maximum Truth). The director of The Notebook takes to cults, revenge and extreme violence (God is a Bullet) while Shudder offers a film that can best be described as Straw Goblins (Unwelcome). Wes Anderson adds a little science-fiction into his pastels (Asteroid City). Jennifer Lawrence signs up to “date” the hell out of a college-bound kid (No Hard Feelings) and Steve gets to way in with his thoughts on the end of an era in adventure (Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny).
Episode 394: Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
Indiana Jones is going on his final adventure and both Erik Childress and Erik Laws are going as well. They give you their full thoughts on the fifth film but first revisit the entire franchise including the first time they saw Raiders, Indy-as-superhero, and weighing in on the discourse over Temple of Doom and Crystal Skull. Then it is on to discussing Indy’s new partner, de-aging and how the template may have shifted slightly from the Spielberg era with director James Mangold. While this is a film about growing older and regret, do the Eriks have any when it comes to the new one or the series in general?
Episode 393: The Way of Frankenheimer, Jenkins and Cameron
Peter Sobczynski joins Erik Childress again for this week’s Blu-ray haul. They include the first film by Barry Jenkins along with titles from Peter Greenaway and Guy Maddin. The list is filled with films that may not be everyone’s cup of tea including some outdated racial casting, a little horror sensation from this year, a Cameron Crowe remake and in our case, Avatar. But that’s why you also get some Rin Tin Tin and two of the best films in the career of John Frankenheimer including a film that went into hiding for 25 years and one of the best action films of the past 25.
Episode 392: Elemental, Dear Hamm
Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy take a light batch of movies into this weekend; a half-dozen titles of both high profile and varying quality. Disney Plus has a new documentary about the co-founder of Marvel (Stan Lee). Jon Hamm tries to solve a Fargo-like murder spree while wooing Tina Fey (Maggie Moore(s)). Chris Hemsworth is back to see if he can top the previous film’s “one-take” action extravaganza (Extraction 2). Tim Story tries to parody horror films (The Blackening) and Pixar gets its first movie into theaters since the pandemic (Elemental). Finally, Steve gets in his thoughts on the latest from DC Comics (The Flash).