On Episode 239 of the Always the Critic Podcast, we’re back in Philly for our review of Shazam: Fury of the Gods, starring Zachary Levi, Djimon Hounsou, Rachel Zegler, Lucy Liu, Helen Mirren, and more. 

Rico and Jess discuss the most recent DC release, talking through how it stacks up to the first movie, the character arcs that impressed and the ones that didn’t, the new additions of Zegler, Liu, and Mirren, third act qualms, THAT demigod’s appearance, both the mid-credits and post-credits scene, the state of DC movies, and more in spoilers.

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Superhero

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On Episode 238 of the Always the Critic Podcast, we recap and comment on the 95th Academy Awards.

Rico and Jess talk through the telecast, going over some of their predictions and their experience watching the broadcast at an Oscars party. They recap the historic Everything Everywhere All at Once sweep, delight in Ke Huy Quan (who effectively won the whole evening), the emotional speeches, the unique musical performances (including Lady Gaga’s stripped back “Hold My Hand” and the energetic “Naatu Naatu”), Jimmy Kimmel as host again, Will Smith slap references, Jenny the donkey, Cocaine Bear, and so much more.

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Variety

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On Episode 237 of the Always the Critic Podcast, it’s a double feature as we review Creed III, starring Michael B. Jordan, Jonathan Majors, and Tessa Thompson, and R-rated comedy Cocaine Bear, starring Keri Russell, Alden Ehrenreich, O’Shea Jackson Jr., and Ray Liotta.

Rico and Jess first turn toward the ring, talking about Michael B. Jordan’s directorial debut, the creative and stylistic choices he made, the tangible absence of Sylvester Stallone’s Rocky and the reasons behind it, comparisons to the previous two movies in the Creed trilogy, favorite moments in the film, and more. Later in the show, Rico and Jess discuss the wild Cocaine Bear, (1:04:55) including how entertaining and campy they found the movie, hysterical performances from the cast, how this is Ray Liotta’s final performance, and more.

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Comedy

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On Episode 236 of the Always the Critic Podcast, we visit the quantum realm on our review of Ant-Man & the Wasp: Quantumania, starring Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly, Michelle Pfeiffer, Jonathan Majors, and more.

Rico and Jess discuss the most recent Marvel Cinematic Universe release, talking through the dizzying CGI bonanza, the underwhelming utilization of Lilly’s Wasp and Bill Murray, the impressive performance from Majors, the pure lunacy of MODOK, the general disappointment of the entire film, both the mid-credits and post-credits scene, and more in spoilers.

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Superhero

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On the latest episode of Always the Critic podcast, we get together with special guest Tasha Jones to induct a second class into the romantic comedy hall of fame!

We are joined by our friend Tasha Jones, aka the official hype girl for John Williams, to nominate eight actors/actresses who we would induct into our Nora Ephron Romantic Comedy Hall of Fame. We thought there would be some no-brainers but we were wrong. Check out the final list by listening, and tell us your picks!

Check out our initial induction episode here!

GUEST: Tasha Jones

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On Episode 233 of the Always the Critic Podcast, we catch a few grasshoppers and contend with the apocalypse on our review of Knock at the Cabin, starring Dave Bautista, Jonathan Groff, and Ben Aldridge.

Rico and Jess discuss this M. Night Shymalan thriller, talking through Dave Bautista’s amazing performance, the shooting style that created a sense of unease, the biblical references, the common theme we’ve seen in other Shymalan projects, the movie’s different ending from the source material, and more in spoilers.

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Thriller

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On Episode 233 of the Always the Critic Podcast, we hit up the Philippines for a destination wedding on our review of Shotgun Wedding, starring Jennifer Lopez and Josh Duhamel.

Rico and Jess discuss this direct-to-Amazon Prime 2023 action rom-com, talking through J.Lo’s place in the annals of rom-com royalty, the pass-the-baton casting that landed Josh Duhamel the role, the wildly entertaining Jennifer Coolidge, nitpicks with the storytelling, the funniest scenes, and more in spoilers.

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Action Adventure

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On Episode 232 of the Always the Critic Podcast, we queue up our list of most anticipated 2023 movies!

After talking through their 2023 movie resolutions, Rico and Jess take turns listing 2023 release movies they’re excited to see, citing movies like Barbie, Oppenheimer, Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part 1, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, and more!

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On Episode 231 of the Always the Critic Podcast, we’re back from our holiday break to look back at the year 2022 and rank our top 10 movies of the year.

Rico and Jess take turns naming their top 10 movies of the year. Although they share a few in common, the co-hosts surprise each other with their picks. They also talk about the year 2022 in movies, biggest disappointment, biggest surprise, most memorable scenes/moments in film, the best performances of the year, and the movies that just missed the list.

For our original Most Anticipated Movies of 2022 episode, listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and more.

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On Episode 230 of the Always the Critic Podcast, we return to the world of Pandora on our review of Avatar: The Way of Water, starring Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, and Sigourney Weaver.

It’s the last episode of 2022, and Rico and Jess discuss this James Cameron sequel 13 years in the making, talking through their theater experiences, the ridiculously stunning cinematography, major themes in the movie, disappointing plot gymnastics, best moments, a little Titanic déjà vu, and more in spoilers.

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Action Adventure

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