School's out and detention is in! This week we're kicking off a mini marathon of old school classics that we have never seen before with The Breakfast Club (1985). Five students with completely different backgrounds, personalities, and motivations all wind up in detention for equally different reasons. While total opposites on the surface, each of them soon learn that perhaps they have far more in common than anyone expected. This is a story about the teenage experience, from overwhelming angst to the strange bonds that form the middle of growing-up pains. Considered an 80s classic by many, somehow we've never seen it before! So how does this film hold up to our first-time watch? Are we impressed with its cultural impact or do we feel that it doesn't actually hold up to a modern lens? Let’s find out together!

We're the gift that keeps on giving! As a triumphant finale to the holiday season, we're ringing in the new year with National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989). Clark Griswold is the ultimate family man who dreams of putting on the sort of extravagant and heartfelt Christmas celebration that his parents gave to him as a child. The only problem? He's up against bickering (and unexpected) family members, one stingy boss, and a zoo of animals that sabotage the festivities. In the chaos of his planning, Clark must learn that just because Christmas isn't perfect doesn't mean it can't be wonderful. This is a film we've watched and quoted since childhood, but how does it hold up against an impartial review? Have we been blinded by our nostalgia until now? Let’s find out together!

All aboard! We can't let the holidays go just yet so we're taking a ride on The Polar Express (2004). Based on the children's book of the same name, this story follows Hero Boy in his quest to determine whether he believes in Santa Claus and the Christmas spirit. Approached by a mysterious train in the middle of the night, our unnamed protagonist climbs aboard and is met with several zany characters (most of whom are voiced by Tom Hanks), each working to help him along during his harrowing journey. Of course we have to ask: does the classic Polar Express plot line still warm our hearts after all this time? Or are we completely traumatized by the "realistic" animation in this adaptation? Let’s find out together!

Happy Holidays, childhood chasers! We're rounding out this year's Christmas countdown with a beloved favorite from our childhood, The Santa Clause (1994). Scott Calvin is a selfish and arrogant toy salesman who consistently lets down his young son Charlie. While spending Christmas Eve together, the pair wind up in a hectic adventure that involves Santa falling off their roof, an impromptu visit to the North Pole, and Scott unwittingly agreeing to a contract that makes him the new Santa Claus! This is a heartwarming story about a father and son reconnecting over their shared belief in one another, but does the plot line still present that same message 28 years later? Or do we have some serious questions about this new Santa's morality? Let’s find out together!

We love smiling, smiling's our favorite! This week we're putting on our bright yellow tights and hopping through crosswalks to review a modern Christmas classic: Elf (2003). After being accidentally transported to the North Pole as a baby, Buddy is raised by Santa's elves without ever knowing that he is actually a human man. Once he learns about his previous life in New York City and that his biological father is on the Naughty List (gasp!), he sets off on a quest to understand the human world, reunite with his family, and save the spirit of Christmas. It's a wacky tale only made far more outlandish by Will Ferrell's physical comedy, but we have to ask if that's enough to solidify this film as a "modern classic" 19 years after its release? Or would it be better for everyone if Buddy stayed home with Papa Elf? Let’s find out together!

This week we're telling ghost stories on the pod... Sort of. We're actually comparing two versions of the same tale: Mickey's Christmas Carol (1983) and The Muppets Christmas Carol (1992). Both tell a timeless Charles Dickens story that has been recreated at least a thousand times over: a heartless rich guy named Scrooge screws over everyone in his life and hates all forms of joy. On Christmas Eve, he's visited by the ghost of his former business partner who informs him that the afterlife is terrible and Scrooge will suffer a similar fate unless he changes his greedy ways. The only way to do it? Enduring haunts from the spirits of  Christmases past, present, and future. These are two beloved movie versions of the iconic story, but we have to ask: do either of them actually hold up to modern standards? Or are there other versions that we prefer instead? Let’s find out together!

Careful! You'll shoot your eye out with this episode! We're kicking off our holiday season with the tried and true classic, A Christmas Story (1983). In 1940s Indiana, young Ralphie Parker is determined to get a Red Ryder bb gun for Christmas by any means necessary, even if that means begging his parents, recruiting his teacher, and making a last ditch effort to plead his case before Santa. This heartwarming tale follows the highs and lows of the holiday season through a child's perspective and asks its viewers to relive the magic of their youth. As we step back in time to review this movie, we have to ask if it's still the classic story that's become a staple of households everywhere? Or are we writing strongly worded letters to TBS for the lasting effects of its annual 24 hour loop? Let’s find out together!

Is Jack Frost nippin' at your nose? It's the final week of our November watchlist and we're sliding into the holiday season with a new flick called Rise of the Guardians (2012). Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, Sandman, and the Tooth Fairy are each guardians of children all over the world, but their efforts are threatened by the fear loving boogeyman known as Pitch Black. Desperate to find a way to defeat Pitch before he can return children to the terrifying dark ages, the Man in the Moon offers them an unexpected new member to aide their cause: Jack Frost. Despite the fact that the other guardians don't trust him and no kids believe he exists, Jack might just be the unlikely hero they all need. As we review this movie, we wonder: is this an underrated piece of DreamWorks gold? Or are we not adding it to our holiday rotation any time soon? Let’s find out together!

This week we're drinking some high quality H2O and rewatching an Adam Sandler classic better known as The Waterboy (1998). Naïve yet kind Bobby Boucher was sheltered from the world by his overprotective mother and now at thirty-one years old he has never left home, still believes that alligators use toothbrushes, and is a heavily abused waterboy for the local college football teams. Everything changes during football practice when Bobby unlocks his inner rage and tackles one of the players, earning himself a spot on the team and shaking up their small town forever. We used to run out the VHS on this comedy as kids, but we have to ask: do the jokes still land as adults? Or does the plot (and punch) line fall flat 24 years later?? Let’s find out together!

Left Side! Strong Side! It's football season everybody and this week we're literally kicking off with one of the most beloved football films of all time: Remember The Titans (2000). Based on a true story from 1971 about Herman Boone, a newly instated African American football coach who leads his recently integrated high school team to history making glory. This movie is highly praised for its powerhouse ensemble cast, elite storytelling, and indomitable heart, all of which come together to depict how the players overcame their preconceptions about each other and found brotherhood. But does the plot hold up through a modern day lens and remain just as impactful twenty-two years later? Or were we expecting more from this long time classic? Let’s find out together!