Monica is angry. Very angry. In this episode, she and Andrew have a passionate debate about the extent to which good intentions can save a movie that in certain respects, yeah, is pretty racist. How does The Lone Ranger attempt to package a non-mainstream message in a mainstream movie? Is Johnny Depp's Tonto really a racist and damaging depiction of Native Americans? Why is cannibalism a dominant motif? And can Hollywood please give Armie Hammer another chance? Plus, Reboot This!

SHOW NOTES:

0:22 - Intro and clip

3:49 - Johnny Depp and whether this Tonto is racist

11:38 - Native Americans as "ghosts"--is that offensive?

14:18 - Putting a non-mainstream message in a mainstream movie; whose movie is it?

23:29 - Conflicting philosophies of violence

27:48 - Poor craft

31:11 - Whether scenes were cut

34:51 - Helena Bonham Carter and cannibalism

39:11 - What if it had worked?

44:27 - Armie Hammer and the lack of a modern-day go-to blockbuster hero

50:47 - Ruth Wilson and Barry Pepper

53:44 - Reboot This!

11:39 - Show close

DON'T FORGET: You can contact the show by emailing [email protected]. Thanks for listening!

Hi-Ho Silver, Away! In this episode, Andrew and Monica give their general thoughts on The Lone Ranger. Armie Hammer and Johnny Depp star as the iconic masked hero and his Native American sidekick, respectively. Has director Gore Versinski made another great popcorn movie in the vein of Pirates of the Caribbean? Tune in to find out.

SHOW NOTES:

0:22 - Intro and clip

3:49 - General thoughts

11:39 - Show close

DON'T FORGET: You can contact the show by emailing [email protected]. Thanks for listening!

In this episode, Andrew and Monica get their degree in the Scare Program at Monsters University! Is Pixar's latest sequel an improvement from their last few offerings? Does it change how one might view Monsters Inc.? And how is it a radical departure from the vast majority of family entertainment? Tune in to find out. Plus, Reboot This!

SHOW NOTES:

0:22 - Intro and clip

4:37 - General thoughts

12:12 - Spoilers: The ending

18:30 - Thematically different than most family entertainment

23:57 - College campus bubble

27:32 - Disney and future sequels

33:54 - Reboot This!

39:21 - Show close

DON'T FORGET: You can contact the show by emailing [email protected]. Thanks for listening!

In this episode, Rod Morrow from The Black Guy Who Tips joins Andrew and Monica to debate the merits of Man of Steel. How important is it to have character development along with action? What's up with Clark's dad? Is Zack Snyder improving or getting worse? And is this the worst Lois Lane we've ever seen on the big screen? Plus, a tangential conversation about the nature of film criticism, and you won't believe what everyone pitches in this week's edition of Reboot This!

SHOW NOTES:

0:22 - Intro and clip

6:28 - Impossible White Man movies

9:08 - Rod's thoughts on the film

13:52 - Lots of punching, the climactic moment

18:23 - Clark's development

21:25 - Assuming we know stuff

30:24 - Action "stuff" vs. character

36:37 - 9/11 imagery

40:19 - The problem with invincibility

47:07 - Kevin Costner does dumb stuff

52:00 - Lois Lane and the Daily Planet

58:28 - Michael Shannon as Zod

59:47 - Lots of supporting people

1:04:25 - A conversation on criticism and internet culture

1:14:11 - Reboot This!

1:23:13 - Show close

DON'T FORGET: You can contact the show by emailing [email protected]. Thanks for listening!

It's a bird, it's a plane... but is it a good movie? In this episode, Andrew and Monica give some quick spoiler-free thoughts on Zack Snyder's reboot of the Superman film series, Man of Steel. Is this a refreshing new take on the DC superhero? Tune in to find out.

SHOW NOTES:

0:22 - Intro and clip

3:16 - General thoughts

12:46 - Show close

DON'T FORGET: You can contact the show by emailing [email protected]. Thanks for listening!

In this segment, Andrew and Monica figure out where This Is The End goes right and wrong. Does the religious stuff work? When is rape humor not offensive? Could they be declaring an end to this type of comedy? Tune in to find out. Plus, as always, Reboot This!

SHOW NOTES:

0:22 - Intro and clip

3:04 - General thoughts

12:32 - Rape humor, and when/whether it works

19:56 - On penises and how funny they are

23:00 - References to their previous films

28:02 - Craig Robinson and urine

31:28 - Cameos

33:57 - The ending

34:58 - The stuff about friendship

37:47 - Reboot This!

42:43 - Show close

DON'T FORGET: You can contact the show by emailing [email protected]. Thanks for listening!

Seth Rogen, Jay Baruchel, James Franco, Jonah Hill, Craig Robinson and Danny McBride are not exactly who you might want to hang out with during the Apocalypse. But that's the set-up for This Is The End, a new comedy directed by writing team Evan Goldberg and Seth Rogen. Is this movie rapturously good or 100 minutes of hell? Tune in to hear Andrew and Monica give their spoiler-free thoughts.

SHOW NOTES:

0:22 - Intro and clip

4:30 - General thoughts

13:53 - Show close

DON'T FORGET: You can contact the show by emailing [email protected]. Thanks for listening!

In this episode, Andrew and Monica discuss the ways in which After Earth is both Shyamalawful and Shyamalawesome. How bad are the first 20 minutes? Does Jaden Smith have the potential to surpass his father as an actor? How does the film handle its central theme about fear? Tune in to find out. Plus, as always, they figure out how to make a franchise work in Reboot This!

SHOW NOTES:

0:22 - Intro and clip

2:39 - The opening 20 minutes

4:46 - The passage of time

6:54 - Holes in the world-building

12:09 - Weird science

16:21 - Fun with animals!

20:17 - Two-dimensional characters

23:35 - The theme of fear

26:54 - Comparisons to another film about one generation guiding another through disaster

28:40 - Jaden's acting, institutional racism

32:40 - The lack of Shyamalan twists

36:10 - Reboot This! and a brief conversation about title cards (or lack thereof)

45:23 - Show close

DON'T FORGET: You can contact the show by emailing [email protected]. Thanks for listening!

Director M. Night Shyamalan had a string of hits in the late 90s and early part of the millennium, but his last few offerings have been critically reviled. His latest film is After Earth, which stars Will Smith and Jaden Smith as a father and son in the future who crash land on Earth, which is now inhospitable to humans. It's a tale of survival, but were Monica and Andrew able to survive the 100 minutes it took to sit through it? Tune in to hear their spoiler-free thoughts.

SHOW NOTES:

0:22 - Intro and clip

3:36 - General thoughts

17:14 - Show close

DON'T FORGET: You can contact the show by emailing [email protected]. Thanks for listening!

Vroom vroom! In this episode, Andrew and Monica are joined by EDGE Boston's Jake Mulligan to discuss Fast & Furious 6. Jake claims to be a "connoisseur" of the franchise, so does he think this installment lives up to the ridiculous action insanity of Fast Five? Tune in to find out.

SHOW NOTES:

0:06 - An explanation

3:09 - Intro and clip

6:47 - General thoughts

8:53 - Sexism, or appropriate?

13:18 - Plot and action

24:15 - Show close

DON'T FORGET: You can contact the show by emailing [email protected]. Thanks for listening!