Movie Madness
Episode 524: It’s The End Of Our Worlds As We Know It
Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy have nine films to talk about this week. They include Kyle Mooney’s take on the computer glitch of 1999 (Y2K) and what happens when a supermoon infects the world (Werewolves). Ralph Fiennes completes Homer’s odyssey (The Return) while Nick Frost just wants to take his family on vacation to see a scary Swedish tradition (Get Away). There is the true story of one-legged wrestler Anthony Robles (Unstoppable) and the drug-fueled scribblings of William Burroughs through the eyes of Daniel Craig (Queer). Jude Law gruffly goes after white supremacists in the 1980s (The Order).The potential end of the world is told without words and through animated animals (Flow) while Amy Adams may be turning into an animal in a film that tries to use all the words to define motherhood (Nightbitch).
Episode 523: Ed Wood, Goodbar, Wim, Werner & A Murder Of Kinskis
Black Friday and Cyber Monday may be gone but the physical media buying season is in full effect for the movie lovers in your life. Erik Childress and Peter Sobczynski go through the week’s offerings. Sure they include the infamous later films of Ed Wood have been unearthed along with a “Reefer Madness for the Sexual Revolution” plus a goofy Michael Crichton adaptation. But there are also masterpieces from Wim Wenders and Werner Herzog plus a pair of beloved horror and sci-fi comedies. Not to mention an overlooked film from Sam Raimi and the great pre-South Park musical from Trey Parker and Matt Stone.
Episode 522: Sail Away Without Moana, Santa or Nutcrackers
It’s Thanksgiving week and the pickings are slim on the movie front. But Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy may have something for you to watch with the family. Hint that it involves a pair of music documentaries focusing on the arrival of Liverpool’s finest to the States (Beatles ’64) to the soothing sounds of the ‘70s and ‘80s (Yacht Rock: A Dockumentary). You can also hear about the latest from David Gordon Green as Ben Stiller attends to his ill-behaved nephews (Nutcrackers) and the new film from the Farrelly Bros. involving Jack Black answering a young boy’s Christmas call as Satan (Dear Santa). Finally, Disney turns one of their beloved films into a series and then back into a theatrical sequel (Moana 2).
Episode 521: Hit The Road
Just in time for Black Friday, Erik Childress and Peter Sobczynski takes you through a swath of new physical media and collections. They include two of the best films in the careers of Peter Bogdanovich and Guillermo Del Toro (and yes the best from Rob Cohen too.) There’s a pair of underrated films from the great William Friedkin and martial arts collections from Stephen Chow and the Shaw Brothers. Go on the road with Hope and Crosby and take a journey with an underseen adventure story. Not to mention dancing, the Thin Man, a whole bunch of Looney Tunes and one of the most infamous box office tales ever.
Episode 520: Who Wants To Get Glicked?
It’s the week before Thanksgiving and there are some heavy-hitters in theaters and trio of new Netflix titles for those stay-at-home viewers. Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy cover eight movies for you this week including a fascinating documentary on a woman who may have crafted the soundtrack to your life (The World According to Allee Willis) and another about a unique love affair involving music and mascots (Adrianne and the Castle). Sylvester Stallone tries to take Jason Patric’s armored car (Armor) while Thomasin McKenzie and Bill Nighy show you who the true mother and father of IVF were (Joy). Denzel Washington’s family adapts August Wilson (The Piano Lesson) and Alan Menken returns to score an all-star cast in a nifty Netflix animated film (Spellbound). Finally, it may not be Barbenheimer but Ridley Scott returns to Rome with a new vengeance (Gladiator II) and the first act of a Broadway sensation finally makes it to the big screen (Wicked: Part One).
Episode 519: Would That It Were So Simple
Christmas stockings should be filled with what is on the physical media slate this week. Erik Childress is joined by Peter Sobczynski to take you through everything including Barbra Streisand’s big Oscar win and one of the great adaptations of Louisa May Alcott’s classic novel. Great things come in threes including Clint Eastwood and the works of Zucker/Abrahams/Zucker. They also come in twos with Buster Keaton and the works of Jim Henson. Though speaking of three, Warner Bros. has one of the 4K trifectas of the year with a Mel Brooks classic, one of Hitchcock’s most purely entertaining and James Cameron’s legendary breakthrough. Finally not to dampen the holiday mood but the film that may just be Sam Raimi’s finest achievement with the great Bill Paxton gets a new 4K upgrade as well.
Episode 518: Rock, You’re Getting A Lump Of Coal
Mid-November and kind of a mid-week for releases, but Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy do have five reviews for you including a pair of documentaries on two icons in the film and music world (Bogart: Life Comes in Flashes, Return of the King: The Fall and Rise of Elvis Presley). They look at the latest from Andrea Arnold (Bird) and try to look at the new musical from Jacques Audiard apart from its controversies (Emilia Perez). Finally, Dwayne Johnson and Chris Evans team up to rescue Santa Claus from the Christmas Witch. Yes, really (Red One).
Episode 517: The Beginnings And The Ends
A lot of good stuff on the physical media beat for those starting to make their Christmas lists. Peter Sobczynski joins Erik Childress to guide you through the lot which includes gangster and samurai classics from Criterion. There’s also a trio of 1980s puberty-starters and a reevaluation of the fourth Body Snatchers adaptation. You can also get new 4K releases of Steven Spielberg’s debut theatrical feature and one of Oliver Stone’s finest achievements.
Episode 516: If I Ever Lose My Faith In Hugh
It’s a nine-movie week on the show with Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy looking at a historical atrocity (Stockholm Bloodbath), WWII through the eyes of a boy (Blitz) and Pierce Brosnan as a 92 year-old veteran trying to atone for D-Day (The Last Rifleman). A 70+ year old is sent undercover in a money laundering scam – or is he? – in a documentary chosen for last year’s Chicago Critics Film Festival (Starring Jerry As Himself). Get into the spirit of the holiday season with one film based on a beloved book (The Best Christmas Pageant Ever) and another trying to give you a mood (Christmas Eve In Miller’s Point). Cillian Murphy sees bad nuns in Ireland (Small Things Like These) and Anthony Mackie teams up with Morena Baccarin to battle creatures who don’t like heights (Elevation). Finally, one of year’s best movies pits two Mormon female missionaries against Hugh Grant’s religion buster (Heretic).
Episode 515: Santa? NO, It’s Godzilla And WAR!
Halloween is over, which means Christmas is creepin’ upon us so who better to start making your shopping lists with than Erik Childress and Peter Sobczynski on this week’s physical media show. They include a pair of Christmas films including a perennial classic and a more modern one with a Wham twist. The king of the monsters has its origin upgraded to 4K by Criterion. Samuel L. Jackson goes to Yemen and Mel Gibson goes to Vietnam in a pair of military films just before Veterans Day. One of the original babysitter horror films gets a 4K upgrade and you can also see the first French adaptation remade as a particularly awful Ashley Judd film. Finally, there are a trio of film documentaries ranging from Powell and Pressburger to The Monster Squad to the year 1982 plus one of the all-time classic sitcoms gets the Blu-ray treatment.