Once more, our hosts decide to tackle a beloved Studio Ghibli classic, this time 1997's Princess Mononoke. Unsure of the challenge that lies before them, they decide to bring in a Studio Ghibli connoisseur to tackle the beast - Paul Yoder from the Author's Dozen podcast. What will the three find deep in the Mononoke forest? You'll just have to tune in to find out!

Notes

You can stream Princess Mononoke on HBO Max!

Once more, our cohosts look to Studio Ghibli as they break down one of the most iconic animated movies worldwide - Spirited Away. Critically acclaimed and beloved by Japanese and non-Japanese audiences alike, will our hosts add to the praise, or diverge?

Our hosts decide to tackle one of the most respected animation studios ever - Studio Ghibli - for this month's blend. And in doing so, they find themselves in over their hands trying to comprehend the sadness present in Isao Takahata's Grave of the Fireflies. Intensity and, for some reason, laughter, ensue. Will they find common ground as they make sense of the movie?

Grave of the Fireflies can be currently found on Hulu.

In a rollercoaster year full of staggered movie releases, a pandemic, and a new Taylor Swift album, our cohosts decide to take them all at once - by running down four streaming recommendations of 2020 released films. The task is a daunting one, but that's why Scott enlists the help of one Maddie Lentz to make sure it gets done.

Notes

Miss Americana - Netflix

Extraction - Netflix

The Vast of Night - Amazon Prime

Palm Springs - Hulu

Our co-hosts conclude their "based on a play" blend by tackling the David Lindsay-Abaire penned Rabbit Hole. Grief, loss, and comic books tumble from the sky as our hosts look for common ground in a film that they *spoiler alert* differ on. Is there common ground to be found as the marathon comes to an end?

This week, our co-hosts decide to tackle the 2002 Best Picture winner, Chicago, as part of their "Based on a Play" marathon. Full of musical numbers, bombastic premises, and quite a bit of murder, is this one of the rare occasions where our co-hosts can agree on a film? Or will one of them not succumb to the razzle and dazzle of 1920s Chicago?

In their effort to start classy and end nasty, our cohosts tackle the 1951 Hollywood classic, A Streetcar Named Desire. Directed by Elia Kazan and based on Tennessee Williams' landmark play, our hosts take a deep-dive into the world of debutantes, war veterans, and the scandalous and downright uncomfortable. Much more polished than their usual affairs, how will our hosts' dive go?*

*Trigger warning for sexual assault.

How many films have grossed over a billion dollars at the box office? As of the filming of this episode, only 46 films have crossed the threshold. In this streaming recommendation episode, our hosts find themselves selecting and recommending only films that have done so and only Disney films for that matter. Are they up to the billion-dollar challenge? It's a daunting task, which is why they enlist the help of some friends from the Hollywood Week podcast, Kasen and Keenan Culler, to take on the beast.

Rounding out the Spike Lee marathon, our co-hosts decide to tackle a 2020 film for the first time - the Netflix original, Da 5 Bloods. Repeat with adventure, ensemble performances, and twists and turns our co-hosts don't see coming, will they see eye-to-eye on this last film?

On September 15, 1963, a bomb went off at 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, resulting in the deaths of Addie May Collins, Carol Denise McNair, Cynthia Wesley, and Carole Rosamond Robertson. In 1997, Spike Lee decided to cover this event. In 2020, our cohosts revisit the documentary, 60 years removed from the time the incident occurred, and yet somehow as timely as ever.