Cinema File Podcast

Quentin Tarantino claims he will retire after 10 movies, but his 9th has an air of finality and is something of a wistful goodbye to the period of cinema history from which he has drawn inspiration throughout his career. These are my immediate notes after seeing "Once Upon A Time In Hollywood."

With a cast that included TV comedy stars Katrina Bowden ("30 Rock") and Niecy Nash ("Claws"), Hollywood vets Judd Nelson and Kathleen Turner, explicit gore and nudity and lead by a go-for-broke performance by Paz de la Huerta ("Boardwalk Empire"), "Nurse 3D" had all the makings of a camp classic. So why aren't we talking about it?

(This episode contains an audio sample of "I Eat Boys Like You For Breakfast" by Ida Maria. No copyright is claimed and no infringement is intended).

Former video store co-workers Andrew and Sam don't have a counter to stand behind any more, but they're still here to tell you about all the new movies and shows they've seen. This episode contains reviews of "Spider-Man: Far From Home," "Midsommar," "Stranger Things 3," "Annabelle Comes Home," "Chernobyl," "Sabrina," "The Last Black Man in San Francisco," "MIB: International" and more.

The year's strongest contender for Best Picture, Best Screenplay and Best Actor arrives in Athens, Georgia on Friday, July 12th at Ciné. "The Last Black Man in San Francisco" is deep, funny, insightful, beautifully photographed and masterfully performed, and this recording contains Andrew's notes immediately after seeing it. Follow on IG and Twitter @cinemandrew

"Hereditary" filmmaker Ari Aster returns with the most brightly-lit horror movie of all time, mixing a twenty-something break-up plot with shocking gore, dark humor and Scandinavian folk freak-outs in "Midsommar." Listen to Andrew and Xtina's reaction in the car right after seeing it in the theatre.

The latest incarnation of the killer doll franchise "Child's Play" is a fun time at the movies if nothing else, but is there more to it than what's on the surface? In this episode, Andrew is joined by horror filmmaker and lifelong Chucky fan Henrique Couto ("The Devil's Trail") for a look back on each film in the series, including the new remake.

You can take the clerks out of the video store, but you can't take the video store out of the clerks. Former Blockbuster co-workers Andrew and Sam review a whole bunch of new movies including DARK PHOENIX, WHEN THEY SEE US, JOHN WICK 3, GODZILLA KING OF THE MONSTERS, HOT ZONE, ALADDIN, MAPPLETHORPE, THE PERFECTION and more!

5 years ago, Henrique Couto quit his job and devoted himself 24/7 to making his own movies. And he did it by staying in Ohio, adopting two dogs, and working every waking moment of his life. In this interview he talks about how he did it, how he's been able to crank out film after film, and why an insane love of movies is crucial.

Part sports movie, part sex comedy and part anti-authoritarian statement, Jack Hill's 1974 drive-in smash "The Swinging Cheerleaders" is currently available on Prime Video and Arrow blu-ray and is guaranteed to surprise anyone going in expecting a cheesy old T&A flick. Andrew and Xtina discuss its complexities and where it fits in Hill's cinematic canon.

Olivia Wilde's directorial debut "Booksmart" is an R-rated high school flick that could easily have been "Bad Moms" for teenagers if not for its incredible casting, sincere performances and intelligent view of the audience. In short? Wilde seems to think more highly of her audience than the average big screen comedy, and the results are fantastic.