For years on the Movie Madness Podcast, comic book expert Erik Laws has joined Erik Childress to discuss in-depth the various superhero and graphic novel adaptation to the big screen from Marvel to DC and the heights to the very lows. In this episode they discuss how James Gunn’s long-awaited takeover and reboot of the DC Universe is not just a massive disappointment but may represent a new low. They break it all down from David Corenswet’s portrayal of Superman and Clark, the lack of genuine stakes, the reliance on an overly jokey tone and the way Krypto is utilized throughout. No stone is left unturned from Superman tropes to a screamy Lex Luthor, idiotic plot turns and right back to Gunn’s own statements about the movie that does not exist on the screen. This is not hyperbole. This is not for clicks or yuks. This is how it is from two honest takes.

There’s a lot to talk about this week in the world of physical media. Peter Sobczynski joins Erik Childress to talk about a Stanley Kubrick epic finally getting the release it deserves. Oliver Stone revisits a final cut for his own epic and there is also some epic destruction from the ‘70s. Denzel Washington looks for a serial killer, though not the one traipsing through the woods like he was Terrence Malick. They’ve got film noir with Glenn Ford, horror meeting blaxploitation and Peter offering his thoughts on Ryan Coogler’s huge 2025 success. Finally the pair discuss Mike Nichols’ now quaint adaptation of politics leading up to the Clinton years and Amy Heckerling’s teen film from the ‘90s still entertaining generations decades later.

As we head into our mid-summer holiday, Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy have seven movies for you to consider. They revisit their praise of Eva Victor’s Sundance wonder (Sorry, Baby) chosen for their Chicago Critics Film Festival along with Danielle Deadwyler trying to protect her family and farm during another cinematic apocalypse (40 Acres). Alicia Silverstone chooses the wrong sugar daddy (Pretty Thing) while Alex Ross Perry takes us through decades of video stores in movies in a three-hour cinematic essay (Videoheaven). John Cena and Idris Elba are their country’s leaders caught in an assassination plot (Heads of State) and Charlize Theron is back with her band of immortals only without her powers (The Old Guard 2). Finally, Gareth Edwards tries to do what he was called to do for Godzilla and Star Wars for the seventh film in the franchise (Jurassic World: Rebirth).

Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy wade through nine reviews this week to get you to the few standouts. A couple is presented with the possibility their daughter was switched at birth (A Stranger in My Home) while a team of nitwits try to steal a 35mm print from Quentin Tarantino (Stealing Pulp Fiction). Emma Mackey tries to use Vicky Krieps as a distraction from her invalid mother (Hot Milk) while a drug deal goes south for a sex worker (Ponyboi) and Bryan Cranston tries to keep his family and regional theater afloat (Everything Going To Be Great). Mariska Hargitay remembers her mother Jayne Mansfield (My Mom Jayne) while a woman tries not to forget the life she lived as she slides into dementia (Familiar Touch). Finally the killer A.I. robot goes T2 on us (M3GAN 2.0) and Brad Pitt goes fast in a car with other cars (F1: The Movie).

Physical Media weeks don’t get much more packed this week and there is a lot to get to with Erik Childress and Peter Sobczynski. Titles include a trio of youth tales involving the film that took back cheerleading, a slasher film getting a new updating soon and the infamous creation of the Brat Pack. There’s a Hammer mystery, sci-fi and Peter Cushing as Doctor Who. Peter talks about a somewhat forgotten film noir with Robert Mitchum as well as a musical version of The Philadelphia Story. They look back with a bit of fondness for an innocuous spoof of singing cowboy movies plus the inaugural releases of Dreamworks. All of this is wrapped in a pair of upgrades for two films that played their Chicago Critics Film Festival including the Alex Proyas sci-fi film Roger Ebert called the best film of 1998 and the William Friedkin masterpiece lost for many years but is now immortalized in the Criterion Collection.

Seven new movies are reviewed by Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy this week and most of them are documentaries. Steve takes a look at Disney’s stage version of one of their biggest films (Frozen: The Hit Broadway Musical) and a tale of more than two kitties (American Cats: The Good, The Bad and the Cuddly). Erik checks out the story of sexual assault within the sports programs of a major university (Surviving Ohio State) plus a daughter trying to learn more about her photographer mother (A Photographic Memory). As for the narrative features, they warn you of one of the very worst films of the year (Bride Hard). They also go back to Disney and Pixar for their latest sci-fi comedy (Elio) and then go back to the world of the rage virus even if it might not be the world you are expecting (28 Years Later).

Erik Childress & Peter Sobczynski take you through this week in physical media. The talk includes a less-talked-about film of the screwball era as well as one of the classic rom-coms of the ‘50s. There’s another Tombstone story and a documentary about Thelonious Monk. A two decade old Charles Burnett film finally comes to light and a beloved Steve Martin comedy finally gets a Blu-ray release. There are Looney Tunes, bicyclists, underwater monsters, a whole lot of Jessica Fletcher and Christopher McQuarrie’s directorial debut all there for your libraries.

Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy have eight movie reviews for you this week. They include a pair of documentaries on a Scottish rock band who were more than their soundtrack contribution (Simple Minds: Everything Is Possible) and about New Zealand’s Jacinda Ardern (Prime Minister). A woman finds some disturbing secrets about her grandparents and society (Best Wishes To All) while Pierce Brosnan and Samuel L. Jackson look for some hidden gold (The Unholy Trinity). A trio of improv performers go undercover for the cops (Deep Cover) while Julianne Moore covers up for daughter Sydney Sweeney (Echo Valley). Finally, Dakota Johnson has to choose between rich Pedro Pascal and poor Chris Evans (Materialists) while the latest in tracer cinema redoes a modern animated classic (How To Train Your Dragon).

It’s a light week for physical media but a good week for one of the longest running franchises ever. Erik Childress and Peter Sobczynski go over the history of Sidney Lumet’s version of The Wiz. They look over the failed attempt to tell the story of Air America and the ridiculous entry into the cyber-thriller canon known for anything but the hacking. Then they go through a new set upgrading the original Sean Connery James Bond films and how they compare to the other versions throughout the years.

Six movies last week. Seven movies this week. Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy go from the comically violent travails of adoptive parents Nick Kroll and Andrew Rannells (I Don’t Understand You) to yet another exorcism film with Al Pacino and Dan Stevens (The Ritual). The creature that once stalked Schwarzenegger now gets animated (Predator: Killer of Killers) and a shark-loving serial killer leads to a cat-and-mouse battle on a boat (Dangerous Animals). Wes Anderson delivers his latest (The Phoenician Scheme), Mike Flanagan adapts another Stephen King novella (The Life of Chuck) and the World of John Wick gets a little bigger (Ballerina). Find out what is worth your time.