Cinematic Doctrine: A Movie Review Podcast Hosted by Christians

PARTY PLEASER:

Shirleon joins Melvin in summarizing Chris Columbus' return to the YA genre, Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief! From an ill-defined protagonist to it's swiftly resolved mile-a-minute narrative hurdles, this late-stage entry into the world of YA-movie adaptions tries its darndest to make it out alive. Will Shirleon and Melvin find something to appreciate in the end? Tune in to find out!

Topics:

• (PATREON EXCLUSIVE) 31-minutes discussing a new frustrating trend in publish: "Fast Fashion" Books. These books are written poorly, unedited, printed, and sold on book shelves everywhere, and Shirleon has a thing or two to say about them! (PATREON EXCLUSIVE)
• Do Shirleon and Melvin like Greek Mythology? What do they know about the Pantheon?
• Whenever a problem arises in the film it is solved almost instantaneously.
• Comparisons to Harry Potter are necessary when discussing the YA genre. It has to happen. So it does.
• As each mythological creature is unveiled, Melvin has difficulty figuring out the reason why these creatures and demi-gods have to be hidden in the first place.
• Melvin believes that ten years after Chris Columbus successfully jumpstarted the Harry Potter film series, 20th Century Fox wanted him to do it again with Percy Jackson. He remarks on the difficulty to catch lightning in a bottle twice and ponders some current industry woes that seem similar to this issue.
• The language-laden post-chorus of Lady Gaga's "Poker Face" is prominently heard during a casino montage and Melvin is positive it is not the censored version.
• The lack of caution present in Percy, Grover, and Anna Beth really frustrated Shirleon.
• Even the movie is ready to be over by the time the last half hour hits.

Recommendations:

• Cuckool Microwavable Heating Pad
• The Unknown (1927) (Movie)

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Support on Patreon for Unique Perks! 

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MOVIE DISCUSSION:

Kathryn joins Melvin in discussing one of Wes Anderson's most celebrated films, The Royal Tenenbaums. The two enjoy discussing it's silly-yet-serious family drama, the effects of negligent parenting, and the absurdity of that scene involving a pop-song and a bathroom mirror. But most of all, the two enjoy discussing the idea that it's never too late to do the right thing.

Topics:

• (PATREON EXCLUSIVE) 20-minutes discussing Asteroid City, Wes Anderson's latest film. Melvin asks Kathryn about Wes Anderson's ever-meticulous and quirky style, whether he's getting better with each movie or too hands-on, how the actors feel about playing such understated characters, and so much more. (PATREON EXCLUSIVE)
• In their married couple, Kathryn is the spouse that watches Wes Anderson flicks. So, Melvin asks Kathryn about Anderson's portrait-like style, dead-pan humor, and favorite tropes.
• Melvin, "Everything's extravagant, but the family problems are 100% relatable."
• Watching Royal's maturation throughout the film is truly satisfying, and it's a delight to see him go from selfish leech to curiously caring father/grandfather.
• Discussing a few characters from the film, their dynamics, and what makes them different.
• As Henry Sherman shows kindness and respect to each of the Tenenbaums, each character has a moment of reflection wherein they see something better than they had as children.
• Eli Cash: To Be Pitied.
• Because Margot Tenenbaum has constantly been introduced as "adopted", it's no wonder she spent her life carelessly searching for where she belongs.
• Chas spends his time chasing safety and security likely in response to the lack of safety and security he felt with Royal while growing up.
• Discussing that scene with Richie.
• The symbolism of Richie's bird and learning to safely coexist.

Recommendations:

• Purchase an External 4K Blu-ray Player for your PC so you can watch region-free films via VLC player, digitally store materials, and so much more!
• Pursue self-care with good, old hobbies and other simple enjoyments.

Support the show

Support on Patreon for Unique Perks! 

• Early access to uncut episodes 
• Vote on a movie/show we review 
• One-time reward of two Cinematic Doctrine Stickers & Pins

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• Threads
• Website
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• Letterboxd
• Facebook Group 

PATREON MOVIE DISCUSSION:

This movie was selected by our Patreon Supporters over at the Cinematic Doctrine Patreon. Support as little as $3 a month and have your voice heard!

Shirleon joins Melvin in discussing this month's Patron-Pick, On Golden Pond! This Oscar-winning feature stars Katherine Hepburn, Henry Fonda, and Jane Fonda in a complex-yet-comedic tale of old-age, generational trauma, and the endurance of love. Tune in to hear the two discuss all manner of topics from this deceptively deep story!

Topics:

• (PATREON EXCLUSIVE) 28-minutes discussing the importance, or lack thereof, of award shows, both with film and literature, and how it's all a glorified expression of curation. (PATREON EXCLUSIVE)
• On Golden Pond is very much about the inevitability of change alongside the hardship of relational stagnation. It's a simple story with rich, complex dynamics.
• Norman is undoubtedly a curmudgeon, but he's also a ventilator; someone who releases tension through biting comments.
• Ethel stands as a titan of female strength against a cavalcade of frustrated and emotional characters.
• On Golden Pond explores the dichotomy between fear and love, and how the two struggle to endure with one another.
• Norman's character showcases a comforting depiction of the difficulty in self-identification. Even at 80 years old he is still struggling to find out who he is, and it's through the kindness of those around him that he is able to persevere in this identity crisis. Both Melvin and Shirleon find this comforting as individuals who struggle with their identity.
• Discussing various iconography throughout the film, including the loons and the deadfall.
• Melvin appreciates that the leads of On Golden Pond are older folk, finding that they're more relatable and more interesting than if they were just a buncha youngin's.

Recommendations:

• God of War (PS4) (Video Game)
• Was it Good? - God of War (2005) (Josh Strife Plays) (YouTube Video)
• Possum (2018) (Movie)

Support the show

Support on Patreon for Unique Perks! 

• Early access to uncut episodes 
• Vote on a movie/show we review 
• One-time reward of two Cinematic Doctrine Stickers & Pins

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PATREON PARTY PLEASER:

This movie was selected by our Patreon Supporters over at the Cinematic Doctrine Patreon. Support as little as $3 a month and have your voice heard!

Shirleon joins Melvin in summarizing one of the single most hated western adaptions of an anime to date: Death Note from Adam Wingard! From sporadic over-the-top violence to an extremely emotional protagonist, Death Note was a Hollywood picture a long-time coming, and while it's soured as a classic example of Netflix' early foibles, we're ready to find out what it is that really separates Death Note from it's anime counterpart.

Topics:

• (PATREON EXCLUSIVE) 33-minutes of Melvin asking Shirleon what 15-different fictional and non-fictional characters would do if they received the death note, from Dr. Who to John Snow, and how they would be stopped from killing more people. (PATREON EXCLUSIVE)
• A Hollywood adaption of the Death Note story has been shopped around for nearly a decade by the time Netflix got its hands on the project.
• It doesn't take long before Shirleon and Melvin start to notice a series of issues with Death Note (2017).
• Discussing the characteristic disparity between Light Turner and Light Yagami.
• As The Ring is to Ringu, so to is Death Note (2017) to Death Note (2006). Everything is overly Americanized, including the tone.
• The very second L is introduced is when the movie begins to go completely downhill. It gets embarrassing.
• Discussing how the third act makes literally no sense if you spend even a second thinking about it.

Recommendations:

• reMarkable: The Paper Tablet (Technology)
• A Bundle Full of Cats (Video Game Collection)
• Subnautica (2018) (Video Game)

Support the show

Support on Patreon for Unique Perks! 

• Early access to uncut episodes 
• Vote on a movie/show we review 
• One-time reward of two Cinematic Doctrine Stickers & Pins

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• Facebook Group 

MOVIE DISCUSSION:

Kathryn joins Melvin in discussing an early English adaption of George Orwell's ground-breaking, genre-defining, and highly-influential novel Nineteen Eighty-Four. In this semi-live BBC rendition, one whose controversy is as historic as it is ironic, Kathryn and Melvin discuss not only the impact of this adaption but also the debilitating hopelessness and powerful insight that only Nineteen Eighty-Four can offer.

Topics:

• (PATREON EXCLUSIVE) 16-minutes of Kathryn playing "Would You Rather" except, in the theme of 1984, whatever option Kathryn chooses for herself means the opposite happens to Melvin! Hilarity ensures! (PATREON EXCLUSIVE)
• This version of Nineteen Eighty-Four is a combination of pre-recorded and live-stage performances streamed to its original audience, and thus includes some interesting quirks that Melvin finds endearing and fascinating.
• Kathryn begins by explaining the complicated history behind this particular adaption of Nineteen Eighty-Four, including the controversy surrounding its initial screening.
• For insight (and giggles!), Kathryn reads a collection of quotes from reviews criticizing the content and tone of this adaption of Nineteen Eighty-Four upon its release.
• Melvin briefly compares this adaption of Nineteen Eighty-Four with the later released Michael Radford version, stating his preferences, and what works so well in this adaption.
• People were so disgusted with the tone and content of Nineteen Eighty-Four that cast and crew members had even received bomb threats.
• Pondering the myth of the Mickey Snow-Globe. Or, as it's known; Snow-Globe Gate.
• Discussing the iconography of the Snow-Globe.
• Discussing the monologue on language destruction and thought control delivered by Syme in the film (which is an extra fictional essay in the book).
• Discussing the oppression of power and Big Brother.

Recommendations:

• Slapstick, or Lonesome No More! by Kurt Vonnegut (1999) (Book)
• Papers, Please (2013) (Video Game)

Support the show

Support on Patreon for Unique Perks! 

• Early access to uncut episodes 
• Vote on a movie/show we review 
• One-time reward of two Cinematic Doctrine Stickers & Pins

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• Threads
• Website
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• Letterboxd
• Facebook Group 

MOVIE DISCUSSION:

Melvin's wife Kathryn joins him for an episode discussing Eraserhead, David Lynch's off-beat absurdist film featuring cinema's favorite lil' baby! From encroaching industrialization to a wealth of understated humor, Eraserhead includes an extreme degree of themes and metaphors, and the two  explore it all in this engaging and educational episode!

Topics:

• (PATREON EXCLUSIVE) 28-minutes of Kathryn quizzing her husband Melvin on early childhood development and safety! Their findings will decide the fate of their future child! Hooray! (PATREON EXCLUSIVE)
• Eraserhead isn't really about the plot (although it does have a plot!). It's much more a movie about the vibe.
• Eraserhead is likely not only very easy to understand but incredibly related to people who already feel weird, awkward, or ostracized from whatever is considered "normal" in a social environment.
• Discussing the "Woman in the Radiator".
• There's a very clear sexual theme playing throughout Eraserhead but the film itself is by no means sexual, nor is it inherently about sexuality.
• Kathryn, "Say what you will about, like, the weird imagery, but [Eraserhead] is not a movie that divorces sex from life."
• Describing and interpreting the Eraserhead Baby.
• Wondering if the world of the film is literal, metaphorical, but also realizing that ultimately it doesn't matter.
• Discussing the climax and the eraser factory.

Recommendations:

• Cade: The Tortured Crossing (2023) (Movie)
• Iron Lung (2022) (Video Game)

Support the show

Support on Patreon for Unique Perks! 

• Early access to uncut episodes 
• Vote on a movie/show we review 
• One-time reward of two Cinematic Doctrine Stickers & Pins

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PARTY PLEASER:

thereformedgamers.com

Logan Sharp of The Reformed Gamers Podcast joins Melvin in summarizing the biggest horror hit of the year, Five Nights at Freddy's! Despite failing to reach critics, Five Nights at Freddy's has decimated various box-office records, and the two talk about the video game franchise, it's oddly melancholic tone, and the extreme charisma of the Core Four themselves.

Topics:

• (FREE PATREON EXCLUSIVE) 38-minutes talking to Logan Sharp from The Reformed Gamers about their podcast, their YouTube, and playing 5 rounds of "2 Truths, 1 Lie: The Christian Video Game Edition" where-in Melvin names and describes three games to see if Logan can spot the lie! And yes, you'll wish some of these games were fake! (FREE PATREON EXCLUSIVE)
• Logan gives us an update on The Reformed Gamers and how things have changed since he was last on!
• Melvin & Logan get into their history with the FNAF games and what it is about them that makes them so gripping.
• Melvin points out the use of an often-annoying and routinely distracting sound effect used during the beginning of the movie... because that's the sort of thing he does.
• Mike as a depression-coded character is far more expressive in his dream-state than his awake-state, further asserting his unwieldy and unrealistic determination to find his brother.
• For a series of games built around the unique stress of resource management, it's surprising that the movie seldom uses dramatic irony to increase tension almost ever.
• Discussing the bite of 2000.
• The FNAF games share lore through dream-like cutscenes. It only made sense that dreams would be utilized as a story mechanic in the film.
• Fort-building: Slay or Nay?
• Oddly enough, the dialogue in the third-act is noticeably worse than previous scenes. It's... weird.

Recommendations:

• The Reformed Gamers (Podcast)
• RoboCop (1987) (Movie)
• Devour (2021) (Video Game)

--> Popcorn Theology's "Five Nights at Freddy's" Episode (w/ Melvin!) <--

Support the show

Support on Patreon for Unique Perks! 

• Early access to uncut episodes 
• Vote on a movie/show we review 
• One-time reward of two Cinematic Doctrine Stickers & Pins

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PATREON PARTY PLEASER:

This movie was selected by our Patreon Supporters over at the Cinematic Doctrine Patreon. Support as little as $3 a month and have your voice heard!

Shirleon joins Melvin in summarizing the late-90s Kenan & Kel hit, Good Burger! From it's absurd burger-flippin' hijinks to Ed's silly antics, the two discuss the positives from the 90s aesthetic, the loss of entertainment complexes, and borger!

Topics: 

• (PATREON EXCLUSIVE) 37-minutes discussing what goes into professionally archiving material, why it's important, how it's influential, and how the loss of various Quibi media is ultimately a very sad thing. (PATREON EXCLUSIVE)
• Good Burger starts with a lot of chaotic silliness. Even so, Shirleon realized there wasn't a whole lot about the film she remembered.
• Ed can be frustrating and annoying to some, but Melvin and Shirleon feel he balances well into the "lovable doofus" category.
• Melvin talks about how he misses multi-entertainment complexes that serve food, games, arcades, etc.. Good Burger made him nostalgia for that kind of thing again.
• Figuring out, based upon what we hear and see from the movie, makes up Ed's "Special Sauce".
• Celebrating dance numbers in movies that otherwise seem like they would not have dance numbers.

Recommendations:

• Loki (2021-2023) (TV-Series)
• Malum (2023) (Movie)

Support the show

Support on Patreon for Unique Perks! 

• Early access to uncut episodes 
• Vote on a movie/show we review 
• One-time reward of two Cinematic Doctrine Stickers & Pins

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LET'S TALK:

Melvin watched 10 shows on Quibi before its eventual (and predictable) collapse. First things first, Melvin asks Daniel what he thinks a show is about based on its marketing. Then, Melvin describes what it actually is. Afterward, Daniel curiously wonders, "How does this show being on Quibi improve the watching experience?". Throughout all of this, Melvin & Dan try to understand Quibi's failure to solidify its target demographic, and further complain about how Quibi never utilizes it's flip-screen feature for any interesting or creative reasons... until it does?

By the end, Melvin & Daniel movie through a post-mortem of Quibi and discuss shows Melvin missed, what it's like to see media lost in real time, and whether or not Daniel feels the FOMO.

Shows mentioned in this episode:

• Home Movie: The Princess Bride
• The Fugitive (2020)
• Most Dangerous Game
• The Stranger (2020)
• Wireless

Support the show

Support on Patreon for Unique Perks! 

• Early access to uncut episodes 
• Vote on a movie/show we review 
• One-time reward of two Cinematic Doctrine Stickers & Pins

Social Links: 

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LET'S TALK:

Melvin watched 10 shows on Quibi before its eventual (and predictable) collapse. First things first, Melvin asks Daniel what he thinks a show is about based on its marketing. Then, Melvin describes what it actually is. Afterward, Daniel curiously wonders, "How does this show being on Quibi improve the watching experience?". Throughout all of this, Melvin & Dan explore the grand what-ifs of Quibi like interactive shows, a social media for film a la Letterboxd, and so much more. As such, the Quibi-venture continues!

Shows mentioned in this episode: 

• 50 States of Fright (The Golden Arm, Ball of Twine, Scared Stiff) 
• #FreeRayshawn 
• Agua Donkeys 
• Flipped 
• Run This City 

Support the show

Support on Patreon for Unique Perks! 

• Early access to uncut episodes 
• Vote on a movie/show we review 
• One-time reward of two Cinematic Doctrine Stickers & Pins

Social Links: 

• Threads
• Website
• Instagram
• Letterboxd
• Facebook Group