OVERHATED

Erik Childress Erik Childress

Episode #121: Ready to Rumble (2000)

I know more about ancient Roman dating customs than I do about professional wrestling, so it's a good thing I have not one but two guests who seem to know their stuff, especially when it comes to this widely derided novelty comedy. Big thanks to patron and pal Paul Andolina (@scoochslam) for suggesting and discussing this one, and also to regular visitor Brian Salisbury of Junkfood Cinema, who offers a few random thoughts as well.

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Erik Childress Erik Childress

Episode #120: The Man with the Golden Gun (1974)

Ask a Bond fanatic to name the worst of all the movies and you're bound to get at least ten answers. OK maybe six. But for most of young life, Golden Gun was generally considered to be among the biggest snoozers in the whole franchise. So I talked to Junkfood Cinema's Brian Salisbury about it. He loves these flicks.

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Erik Childress Erik Childress

Episode #119: 1941 (1979)

I've spent a good deal of my time on this planet defending three very specific movies: Popeye, Flash Gordon, and 1941. I'm pleased to have Erik Childress (@erikthemovieman) join me for this super-sized episode of Overhated, because I still love this bizarre Spielberg comedy more than I probably should.

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Erik Childress Erik Childress

Episode #118: The Day After Tomorrow (2004)

I could easily devote an entire month of Overhated to the movies of Mr. Roland Emmerich, and I'd be smart to re-invite my guest, film critic Rachel West (@rachel_is_here), because she seems to get the appeal of these crazy disaster movies -- even when they're supremely goofy.

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Erik Childress Erik Childress

Episode #117: Apollo 18 (2011)

Found footage plus space horror sounds like a perfect equation for someone like me, but I remember walking away from this flick feeling disappointed, confused, and slightly annoyed. But you know who absolutely adores this movie? Prolific author, horror expert, and movie nut Daniel Kraus (@DanielDKraus), that's who(m)! Daniel's next novel is about a man who has to escape from inside a whale, and I cannot wait to read that.

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Erik Childress Erik Childress

Episode #116: Battle for the Planet of the Apes (1973)

The fourth sequel in the initial Planet of the Apes cycle seems to be a fairly divisive chapter among Ape nuts, and it's pretty easy to see why. Fortunately, I have returning guest Richard Jensen (@theragingcelt) on hand, who can explain what he likes about Apes Part 5, and why.  And yes I'll get to the other Apes sequels eventually.

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Erik Childress Erik Childress

EPISODE #115: My Super Ex-Girlfriend (2006)

The box office returns weren't awful, and critics were mostly on the fence about the movie, but how does Ivan Reitman's My Super Ex-Girlfriend hold up today? I have a some personal bias when it comes to this movie, but my guest and loyal patron Shawn Cain (@sdcain) is a big fan.

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Erik Childress Erik Childress

Episode #114: Dungeons & Dragons (2000)

With a new Dungeons & Dragons movie (finally) hitting the screens, I thought it'd be a good time to look back at a widely ridiculed stinker that virtually everyone seems to dislike -- except for my guest Will Walker, who is a patron, youtuber, and general movie nerd. And somehow... he actually makes a few good points.

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Erik Childress Erik Childress

Episode #113: The Matrix Reloaded (2003)

Bring up The Matrix and it won't take long for someone to interject with "too bad about those sequels, eh?" -- which is weird because Matrix Part 2 is pretty damn fantastic across the board. My old friend and great writer Scott Beggs is on hand to rattle off numerous reasons that The Matrix Reloaded might be considered overhated, despite being a massive hit.

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Erik Childress Erik Childress

Episode #112: Soldier (1998)

Director Paul W.S. Anderson was coming off a box office disappointment called Event Horizon when Soldier hit the screens... and this Kurt Russell action flick fared even worse at the box office. Critics trashed it as well. So how does it hold up now? I'm joined by patron and pal Jeremy Wickett, who happens to be a pretty big fan of this film.

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Erik Childress Erik Childress

Episode #111: Speed 2: Cruise Control (1997)

It's one of the most reviled sequels ever made... but is it really that bad? That's the question we always ask here on Overhated, and you may be surprised to hear what film critic / returning guest Fred Topel and I have to say about it. Or not. Either way it's a fun episode.

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Erik Childress Erik Childress

Episode #110: Club Dread (2004)

The Broken Lizard comedy troupe hit the big time with their cult classic Super Troopers, but their next movie wasn't received quite as warmly. My friend Peter Hall would like to officially kick-start the cult classic status for this insane horror comedy. Plus we spend some time honoring the great Bill Paxton, praising some of this year's best horror movies, and promoting Pete's new horror novel, The Dead Friends Society!

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Erik Childress Erik Childress

Episode #109: Toys (1992)

Every highly successful director seems to have one, and hopefully just one: a "vanity" project that goes over-budget and flops at the box office while critics scratch their collective head and moviegoers simply go see something else. Barry Levinson's Toys qualifies here; in this episode I'm joined by returning guest Laurel Vail, who loves this weird flick a whole lot. 

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Erik Childress Erik Childress

Episode #108: Home Alone 3 (1997)

What happens when you remove the few moments of Christmas-themed sweetness from a franchise otherwise known for wildly over-the-top comedic violence? You get Home Alone 3, which Roger Ebert liked more than the first two. It's true. Big thanks to my guest, film critic Courtney Howard.

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Erik Childress Erik Childress

EPISODE #107: The Phantom (1996)

The success of Dick Tracy led to a few strange movies: there's The Rocketeer, which is awesome, and The Shadow, which is not, and The Phantom, which is what Junkfood Cinema's Brian J. Salisbury is here to discuss today.

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Erik Childress Erik Childress

Episode #106: Cherry Falls (2000)

Astute horror fans know this one, but beyond that I'd say Cherry Falls is a virtually unknown horror film. Suffice to say it might also be the most 2000 movie ever made, just based on the cast alone. But this movie had a wildly difficult journey from script to (TV) screen. It's a very long story, but for this episode we have a fascinating guest indeed. Randy Ostrow (@Mad_Randolph) is a producer in his own right, but back in 2000 he was the VP of production for the now-extinct October Films -- and wow does he have some crazy stories.

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Erik Childress Erik Childress

Episode #105: The Terminal (2004)

Can a Spielberg film even be Overhated? Certainly, with all things being relative and all that. The topic comes up on social media all the time, partially because the man is such a consistently impressive filmmaker. So I've tapped Spielberg scholar Erik Childress (@erikthemovieman) to discuss one of the director's less widely adored movies.

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Erik Childress Erik Childress

Episode #104: Crossroads (1986)

Two underappreciated Walter Hill films in a row? Yep. And we have author Walter Chaw (@mangiotto) back as well. And we may just do more Hill films down the road. We're unpredictable. But for now we focus on this oddly satisfying musical melodrama starring Ralph Macchio. We also spend some time on Brewster's Millions (1985) because why the hell not.

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Erik Childress Erik Childress

Episode #103: Streets of Fire (1984)

Already I can hear your cries of "who could hate this movie?!?" and while I agree with the sentiment, the sad truth is that this movie bombed and the box office, and critics trashed it. It took about a decade of heavy HBO rotation for it to morph into one of the decade's most beloved cult films. And I've got Walter Hill expert Walter Chaw (@mangiotto) on hand to talk about it.

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Erik Childress Erik Childress

EPISODE #102: Firestarter (1984)

Our goofy Stephen King adaptation double feature concludes with a 1984 movie that recently got its own remake that may be eligible for Overhated in a few years. (or maybe not.) Big thanks to Erik Childress (@erikthemovieman) for closing Halloween 2022 out in style.

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