Across the Movie Aisle

On this week’s episode, Sonny Bunch (The Bulwark), Alyssa Rosenberg (The Washington Post), and Peter Suderman (Reason) ask if the Jake Paul/Mike Tyson “fight” that was “watched” (when they could get the stream to work) by “60 million people” (okay I’ll stop with the scare quotes) represents the future of streaming. Then they reviewed A Real Pain, Jesse Eisenberg’s new film about a pair of very different cousins on a tour of their family’s heritage sites. Make sure to swing by Bulwark+ on Friday for a bonus episode on the enduring legacy of The Wizard of Oz. And if you enjoyed this episode, share it with a friend!

On this week’s episode, Sonny Bunch (The Bulwark), Alyssa Rosenberg (The Washington Post), and Peter Suderman (Reason) asked if wall-to-wall celebrity endorsements might have backfired on Kamala Harris. Then they reviewed Anora, a movie fascinating in both its sympathies and its judgments. Make sure to swing by Bulwark+ for Friday’s bonus episode on the best movies of the decade (so far!). And if you enjoyed this episode, please share it with a friend!

On this Election Day’s episode, Sonny Bunch (The Bulwark), Alyssa Rosenberg (The Washington Post), and Peter Suderman (Reason) discuss Warner Bros. baffling decision to bury Clint Eastwood’s Juror No. 2. Why deprive young fogeys like this trio of a primo legal procedural from an aging master? Then they reviewed Conclave, another movie holding well at the box office designed to appeal to precisely the same market that Eastwood’s movie would have been aimed at. Is this Vatican-set thriller worth your time? Will the ending make you laugh out loud? All that and more on this week’s episode! If you enjoyed it (or know someone who could use an Election Day distraction), please share it with a friend!

On this week’s episode, Sonny Bunch (The Bulwark), Alyssa Rosenberg (The Washington Post), and Peter Suderman (Reason) ask if comic book legend Alan Moore is right to blame toxic fandom and arrested development for the rise of Trump. Then they review Venom: The Last Dance, a movie that’s bad … but watchably so? Make sure to swing by Bulwark+ for some election even distraction suggestions. And if you enjoyed this episode, please share it with a friend!

On this week’s episode, Sonny Bunch (The Bulwark), Alyssa Rosenberg (The Washington Post), and Peter Suderman (Reason) discuss both AI witchhunts and Blumhouse’s decision to partner Meta with filmmakers in an effort to bring AI into the filmmaking fold. (You can watch the video/ad by Aneesh Chaganty we discussed here.) Then, in a slight departure for the podcast, we discuss a book: Neal Stephenson’s Polostan, the first entry in his forthcoming Bomb Light Cycle. Historical fiction examining the cultural and scientific revolutions of the first half of the 20th century by one of our greatest novelists? We were very much into it. Make sure to stick around for Friday’s bonus episode, in which we discuss scary books just in time for Halloween. And if you enjoyed this episode, please share it with a friend!

On this week’s episode, Sonny Bunch (The Bulwark), Alyssa Rosenberg (The Washington Post), and Peter Suderman (Reason) ask if social media influencers are the new Hollywood A-Listers. (Spoiler: they’re not. They’re something older and potentially much lamer but also maybe more interesting.) Then they review Saturday Night, a movie that revels in the excitement of The New. Make sure to swing by Bulwark+ for a bonus episode on SNL movies! And if you enjoyed this episode, share it with a friend.

On this week’s episode, Sonny Bunch (The Bulwark), Alyssa Rosenberg (The Washington Post), and Peter Suderman (Reason) discuss the dread toxic fandom, every executive’s favorite scapegoat for why their product failed to find an audience. Then they review Joker: Folie à Deux, one of the most disastrous sequels ever made. Make sure to swing by Bulwark+ on Friday for a discussion of sequels that have no reason to exist. And if you enjoyed this episode, share it with a friend!

On this week’s episode, Sonny Bunch (The Bulwark), Alyssa Rosenberg (The Washington Post), and Peter Suderman (Reason) ask why so few watch Netflix’s prestige pictures, and if it really matters. Then they discuss Francis Ford Coppola’s long-in-gestation epic fable, Megalopolis. Yes, it’s a mess, but is it a brilliant one? Make sure to swing by Bulwark+ for our bonus episode on the mobile Criterion closet. And if you enjoyed this episode, share it with a friend!

On this week’s episode, Sonny Bunch (The Bulwark), Alyssa Rosenberg (The Washington Post), and Peter Suderman (Reason) discuss the $2.2 billion in improvements to movie theaters, which are looking to add more premium screens and more … ziplines and pickleball courts? What could go wrong! Then they review Wolfs, which hits AppleTV+ on Friday and had a limited run in theaters last weekend. We mostly avoided spoiler talk in this episode since the movie isn’t widely accessible yet, and Sonny ranted for a bit about why it’s not widely accessible yet. Make sure to swing by Friday for our bonus episode on Brad Pitt and George Clooney, the stars of Wolfs. And if you enjoyed this episode, make sure to share it with a friend!

On this week’s episode, Sonny Bunch (The Bulwark), Alyssa Rosenberg (The Washington Post), and Peter Suderman (Reason) discuss Francis Ford Coppola’s libel suit against Variety, as well as a whacky idea for the theatrical presentation of Megalopolis. Then they review Rebel Ridge, a movie with a message. Were Sonny and Peter suckered in by the film’s message? Make sure to swing by for our bonus episode on Friday about thrillers with a conscience. And if you enjoyed this episode, share it with a friend!