DCOMmentaries

Al & Val joined loved ones on a Naval cruise that gets...complicated due to world events
CW: September 11, 2001

Tiger Cruise (August 6, 2004)

IMDB Wikipedia

Directed by Duwayne Dunham (Little Giants, Halloweentown, The Thirteenth Year, Ready to Run, Double Teamed, Right on Track, Now You See It, Clone Wars + Edited Return of the Jedi)

Written by Anna Sandor (TV biopics & American Girl Doll movies), Bruce Graham (Ring of Endless Light, Right on Track, Anastasia, Dunston Checks In) 

Starring: 

Hayden Panettiere as Madeline "Maddie" Dolan (Remember the Titans, Heroes, Nashville) 

Bill Pullman as Commander Gary Dolan (Spaceballs, A League of Their Own, While You Were Sleeping, Independence Day, The Sinner)

Bianca Collins as Tina (Unfabulous, Gigantic)

Nathaniel Lee, Jr. as Anthony (stopped in 2015)

Mercedes Colon as Grace (Character Actor)

Mehcad Brooks as Kenny (Glory Road, Desperate Housewives, Necessary Roughness, Supergirl, Law & Order)

Jansen Panettiere as Joey (some voice acting)

Lisa Dean Ryan as Diane (Doogie Howser, character actor)

Troy Evans as Chuck Horner (China Beach, ER, Bosch)

Ty O'Neal as Danny Horner (Mighty Ducks, stopped in 2005)

Chris Ellis as Captain Anderson (My Cousin Vinny, Apollo 13, Armageddon, October Sky, Catch Me If You Can, McFarland USA)

Gary Weeks as Lieutenant Tom Hillman (character actor)

Barbara Niven as Kate Dolan (character actor)

Jennette McCurdy as Kiley Dolan (iCarly, 

Mark Christopher Lawrence as Pop (character actor)

Brian Tee as MA2 Chen (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Wolverine, Jurassic World, Chicago Med)

Synopsis: Cmdr. Gary Dolan (Bill Pullman) is in charge of a naval carrier that is on a "tiger cruise," which involves family members joining their seafaring relatives out on the ocean. Dolan's precocious young daughter, Maddie (Hayden Panettiere), is along on the cruise, partially to convince her father to take a position that involves less travel. However, family dynamics suddenly take a backseat when word reaches the ship that the September 11 attacks have occurred.

Fun Facts: 

TV PG rating

Filmed on an actual Naval vessel

Next Movie: Halloweentown High

Creators & Guests

Al & Val are joined by Val's Pal, Mad, an expert on being Stuck in the Suburbs and on the filming location, New Orleans. 

Stuck in the Suburbs (July 16, 2004)

IMDB Wikipedia

Directed by Savage Steve Holland (Better of Dead, One Crazy Summer, TV/TV Movie Director - Lizzy McGuire, Even Stevens, etc.)

Written by Wendy & Amy Engelberg (TV Writers - Clueless, Lizzy McGuire, Drop Dead Diva, Fuller House), & Dan Berendson (Up Up and Away, Scream Team, Eddie’s Million Dollar Cookoff, Halloweentown High, Twitches, Twitches Two, Cheetah Girls: One World, Hannah Montana movie, Wizards of Waverly Place the movie, Camp Rock 2, Sabrina the Teenage Witch)

Starring: 

Danielle Panabaker as Brittany Aarons (Sky High, Shark, a couple Hallmark movies, The Flash)

Brenda Song as Natasha Kwon-Schwartz (Ultimate Christmas Present, Get a Clue, Phil of the Future, Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior, Suite Life, The Social Network, Station 19)

Taran Killam as Jordan Cahill (Big Fat Liar, The Amanda Show, Just Married, SNL, 12 Years a Slave, The Awesomes, Single Parents, Nature Cat, American Crime Story, The NFL Pile On)

Ryan Belleville as Eddie (Life on a Stick, Murdoch Mysteries, Winston Steinburger and Sir Dudley Ding Dong, Workin’ Moms)

Amanda Shaw as Kaylee Holland (Now You See It)

Cici Hedgpeth as Ashley Simon (Stopped in 2008)

Jennie Garland as Olivia Hooper (Stopped in 2010)

Todd Stashwick as Len (character actor, The Riches, Heroes, 12 Monkeys, Kim Possible Movie, The Way Back) 

Kirsten Nelson as Susan Aarons (The Fugitive, Psych, character actor)

Corri English as Jessie Aarons (mostly does voice work on video games, Skyrim, Star Wars: Old Republic, Final Fantasy, Mass Effect)

Patrick Stogner as Cooper Aarons (stopped in 2012 and now has a credit in 2021)

Synopsis: Fourteen-year-old Brittany Aarons and her friends are bored with their suburban lives until America's National Icon Jordan Cahill, a new pop singing/dancing sensation, arrives in town and his Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) falls into their hands.

Fun Facts: 

Songs performed by Taran Killam were credited to his character, Jordan Cahill, both in the movie and on the soundtrack.

First DCOM with an official soundtrack

Filmed at Madeleine’s HS

Next Movie: Tiger Cruise

Creators & Guests

Al & Val close out the Zenon trilogy with a lazer zap! 

Zenon Z3 (June 11, 2004)

IMDB Wikipedia

Directed by Steve Rash (Can’t Buy Me Love, Eddie, a bunch of made for TV Sequels)

Written by Stu Krieger (Zenon (1999), Smart House (1999), Phantom of the Megaplex (2000), Rip Girls (2000), Zenon: The Zequel (2001), The Poof Point (2001), Tru Confessions (2002), Gotta Kick it Up (2002), 

Going to the Mat (2004), Zenon Z3 (2004), Now You See It… (2005), Cow Belles (2006) )

Starring: 

Kirsten Storms as Zenon Kar (Zenon, Zequel, Johnny Tsunami, General Hospital)

Lauren Maltby as Margie Hammond (Zenon, Zequel, Stepsister from Planet Weird)

Raven-Symoné as Nebula Wade (Zenon, Cheetah Girls 1&2, That’s So Raven, Raven’s Home, Tinkerbell series)

Alyson Morgan as Dasha Plank (hasn’t done much else, stopped in 2015)

Stuart Pankin as Commander Edward Plank (Zenon, Zequel, The voice of the dad on Dinosaurs)

Holly Fulger as Aunt Judy Cling-Plank (Zenon, Ellen, stopped in 2013)

Glenn McMillan as Bronley Hale (Yellow Wind Ranger in a bunch of Power Ranger shows)

Ben Easter as Sage Borealis (in a couple Mary Kate and Ashley things, stopped in 2015)

Nathan Anderson as Proto Zoa (character actor)

Synopsis: High achiever Zenon Kar is competing to win the Galactic Teen Supreme contest and celebrate at the Moonstock Festival in the year 2054. When Zenon wants to beat handsome competitor Bronley Hale, she runs headlong into moon activist Sage Borealis.

Fun Facts: 

Stu wrote it as a feature film, but then they decided to keep it on a tv budget

Filmed in South Africa

When this movie premiered on Disney Channel, there was a contest when viewers had to count all the Z's hidden throughout the film.

Next Movie: Stuck in the Suburbs

Al & Val are joined by wrestling expert and DCOMmentaries superfan Trent Dozier to break down Andy Lawrence's hottest movie

I Love Improv! with Trent Dozier
The Tournament Podcast
Cam & Trent's Family Reunion (Live in LA on 1/25/23)

Going to the Mat (March 9, 2004)

IMDB Wikipedia

Directed by Stuart Gillard (Scream Team, Full Court Miracle, Twitches, Twitches Two, Charmed, 90210)

Written by Chris & Laurie Nolan (I Kissed a Vampire, Adapt or Die), Steve Bloom (James & the Giant Peach, Jack Frost - 15 year gap in his credits)

Starring: 

Andrew Lawrence as Jason "Jace" Newfield (Horse Sense, Jumping Ship, The Other Me, Brotherly Love, Recess, Hawaii 5-0)

Alessandra Torresani as Mary Beth Rice (Character actor)

Khleo Thomas as Vincent "Fly" Shu (Holes, character actor)

Wayne Brady as Mason Wyatt (Whose Line, Let’s Make a Deal, Bold & Beautiful, voice acting)

D. B. Sweeney as Coach Rice (character actor)

Billy Aaron Brown as John Lambrix (8 Simple Rules, character actor)

Brenda Strong as Patty Newfield (Desperate Housewives, Starship Troopers, Deep End of the Ocean, Sports Night, Dallas, 13 Reasons Why, Supergirl)

Brian Wimmer as Tom Newfield (China Beach, Flipper, stopped in 2013)

Synopsis: Jake is a talented musician and also blind. When his family moves from New York to Utah he must find another hobby which will help him make friends. He discovers wrestling is one of the few sports where blind people compete on the same level as sighted ones, so becomes a wrestler. As his team improves he learns valuable lessons about himself.

Next Movie: Zt3

It's a (slightly late) Chanukah miracle! Al & Val put a full court press on this holiday classic.

Full Court Miracle (November 21, 2003)

IMDB Wikipedia

Directed by Stuart Gillard (Scream Team, Going to the Mat, Twitches, Twitches Two, Charmed, 90210)

Written by Joel Silverman (5 total credits), Joel Kauffmann (Miracle in Lane 2), Donald C. Yost (Miracle in Lane 2)

Starring: 

Alex D. Linz as Alex "Schlots" Schlotsky (Home Alone 3, Young Tarzan, Max Keebles Big Move - Retired in 2007)

Richard T. Jones as Lamont Carr (Judging Amy, The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Super 8, Narcos, The Rookie)

R. H. Thomson as Rabbi Lewis (Avonlea, Anne with an E)

Sean Marquette as Ben "Big Ben" Swartz (13 Going on 30, Rocket Power, Kingdom Hearts II, Fosters Home for Imaginary Friends, The Goldbergs)

Erik Knudsen as T. J. Murphy (Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, Character Actor in Toronto)

Sheila McCarthy as Mrs. Klein (Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen, Cow Belles, Z-O-M-B-I-E-S 3, The Busy World of Richard Scary, The Day After Tomorrow, Little Mosque on the Prairie, Women Talking)

Linda Kash as Cynthia Schlotsky (Second City Toronto person, The Ernest Movies, Christopher Guest Movies, Cadet Kelly, Cinderella Man)

Jason Blicker as Marshall Schlotsky (Superstar, State of Grace, The Day After Tomorrow, Murdoch Mysteries)

Cassie Steele as Julie (Degrassi: The Next Generation, Rick & Morty)

Jerome Williams as Himself

Synopsis: Lamont Carr, an African American basketball star is forced out of the game after a serious knee injury. By chance he meets Alex, a young Jewish boy who plays for his academy's team. Alex loves basketball, but the team are pretty hopeless and have never won a game. He manages to persuade Lamont to coach them, despite the reservations of the academy's teachers and administrators, and suddenly the team's fortunes start to look up.

Fun Facts: 

Schlotz is based on a real person

Next Movie: Going to the Mat

In a VERY special episode, Al & Val are joined by none other than Stu Krieger! Hear all about how Stu got the job writing Zenon, his collabs with Steven Spielberg (including The Land Before Time) and what advice he has for aspiring writers.

Stu's DCOMs:
Zenon (1999)

Smart House (1999)

Phantom of the Megaplex (2000)

Rip Girls (2000 - Uncredited)

Zenon: The Zequel (2001) 

The Poof Point (2001)

Tru Confessions (2002)

Gotta Kick it Up (2002)

Going to the Mat (2004)

Zenon Z3 (2004)

Now You See It… (2005 - Uncredited)

Cow Belles (2006)

Stu's Ted Talk - Choose Joy

Stu's Novel - That One Cigarette (Upcoming Novel - RAFT)

STU SHOUTOUT Merch

Al & Val sing and dance all the way through Cheetah Girls. Will they win the talent show? Will the musical number box get them a BINGO? Listen to find out!

Cheetah Girls (August 15, 2003)

IMDB Wikipedia

Directed by Oz Scott (TV Director - The Jeffersons, The District, CSI NY, Black Lightning, SWAT)

Written by Deborah Gregory (Books - wrote all the Cheetah Girls), Alison Taylor (Cheetah Girls 2, Just Jordan) 

Starring: 

Raven-Symoné as Galleria "Bubbles" Garibaldi (Zenon, Cheetah Girls 2, That’s So Raven, Raven’s Home, Tinkerbell series, 

Adrienne Bailon as Chanel "Chuchie" Simmons (Cheetah Girls 1-3, Buffalo Dreams, Coach Carter, 3LW Music Videos, mostly music videos)

Kiely Williams as Aquanette "Aqua" Walker (Cheetah Girls 1-3, 3LW Music Videos, The House Bunny, Stomp the Yard 2)

Sabrina Bryan as Dorinda "Do" Thomas (Cheetah Girls 1-3, random things)

Lynn Whitfield as Dorothea Garibaldi, Galleria's Mother (Cheetah Girls 2, Heartbeat, The Cosby Mysteries, Stepmom, A Time for Dancing, Greenleaf)

Juan Chioran as Francobollo Garibaldi, Galleria's Father (Time Squad, Jane and the Dragon, voice in kids cartoons)

Lori Anne Alter as Juanita Simmons, Chanel's Mother (Cheetah Girls 2, Power Play, Family Biz, 

Vince Corazza as Jackal Johnson, Record Producer (Quints, character actor)

Sandra Caldwell as Drinka Champane, the music teacher (Little Men, Serendipity, Shall We Dance, 

Kyle Schmid as Derek, Galleria's love interest (Alley Cats Strike, Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, Blood Ties, Copper, Six, Big Sky)

Kim Roberts as Mrs. Bosco, Dorinda's foster mom (Get a Clue, Jump In, Z-O-M-B-I-E-S, Charlie Bartlet, character actor, voice actor)

Ennis Esmer as Rick, a comedian (Red Oaks, Blindspot, Schitt’s Creek, Murdoch Mysteries)

Synopsis: Four teens hold on to their dream of musical fame while navigating the twists and turns of their normal lives.

Fun Facts: 

Naya Rivera auditioned for the movie but did not land a part.

Next Movie: SURPRISE BONUS EPISODE!

Al & Val are joined by pal Justin Swinson to break down this flavorful concoction of baseball, cooking, and early 2000s misogyny

Eddie’s Million Dollar Cookoff (July 18, 2003)

IMDB Wikipedia

Directed by Paul Hoen (Luck of the Irish, Tru Confessions, You Wish!, Jump In, Cheetah Girls, Dadnapped, Camp Rock 2, How to Build a Better Boy, ZOMBIES 1-3)

Written by Jack Jason (ASL Interpreter), Rick Bitzelberger (TV Movies), Dan Berendsen (Up Up and Away, Scream Team, Stuck in the Suburbs, Halloweentown High, Twitches, Twitches Two, Cheetah Girls: One World, Hannah Montana movie, Wizards of Waverly Place the movie, Camp Rock 2, Sabrina the Teenage Witch)

Starring: 

Taylor Ball as Eddie Ogden (Still Standing)

Orlando Brown as Frankie (Major Payne, Family Matters, Proud Family, That’s So Raven) 

Reiley McClendon as D.B. (Buffalo Dreams, The Kid, Pearl Harbor, The Fosters, 

Mark L. Taylor as Hank Ogden (Homeward Bound, High School Musical 2, Character Actor)

Rose McIver as Hannah (Masters of Sex, A Christmas Prince, iZombie, Ghosts)

Nancy Lenehan as Mrs. Hadley (Character Actor - Hill Street Blues to A League of Their Own)

James Gaylyn (You Wish, Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior, Power Rangers, Xena, Bridge to Terabithia, Avatar)

Nick Miller as Alex Odgen (The Tribe, Shortland Street)

Johnny Barker as Andy Ogden (Shortland Street, Power Rangers)

Susan Brady as Sarah Ogden (Zenon the Zequel, Xena, Power Rangers)

Bobby Flay as Himself

Synopsis: A junior high school student, Eddie Ogden (Taylor Ball) is an aspiring baseball player, but what he truly loves is cooking. Although he receives plenty of athletic encouragement from his father, Hank (Mark L. Taylor), who also serves as his team's coach, Eddie can't resist pursuing his culinary skills, and this decision ends up interfering with baseball. Despite the disappointment expressed by his dad and friends, Eddie presses on with his cooking and enters a high-profile competition.

Fun Facts:  Apparently Nancy Lenehan is uncredited in this movie for some reason

Next Movie: Cheetah Girls

Al and Val drag raced through this true story about the Enders sisters and their fight to be the only girls in their sport

Right on Track (March 21, 2003)

IMDB Wikipedia

Directed by Duwayne Dunham (Little Giants, Halloweentown, The Thirteenth Year, Ready to Run, Double Teamed, Tiger Cruise, Now You See It, Clone Wars + Edited Return of the Jedi)

Written by Sally Nemeth (Law & Order) & Bruce Graham (Ring of Endless Light, Tiger Cruise, Dunston Checks In, Anastasia)

Starring: 

Beverley Mitchell as Erica Enders (7th Heaven, Secret Life of the American Teenager, Horror movies, hallmark)

Brie Larson as Courtney Enders (Scott Pilgrim, United States of Tara, 21 Jump Street, Short Term 12, Trainwreck, Room, Kong: Skull Island, Unicorn Store, Captain Marvel)

Jon Lindstrom as Gregg Enders (Port Charles, As the World Turns, True Detective, General Hospital)

Jodi Russell as Janet Lee Enders (Go Figure)

Marcus Toji as Randy Jones (Little Giants, Hey Arnold, Legend of Korra, Patriot, Hanazuki: Full of Treasures)

Synopsis: When the National Hot Rod Association begins a new children's league, eight-year-old Erica is first in line to sign up - only to be flatly informed that hot rodding is a `man's' sport, and that little girls should stay home with their dollies. Undaunted, and urged on by her supportive father Gregg, Erica persists in her dream to become a champion racer.

Fun Facts: 

Based on a True Story

The real Erica and Courtney Enders were stunt doubles for Beverly Mitchell and Brie Larson.

Next Movie: Eddie’s Million Dollar Cookoff

Al and Val find themselves perfectly perplexed by this problematic production
**CW Eating Disorders**

Pixel Perfect (January 16th, 2004)

IMDB Wikipedia

Directed by Mark A.Z. Dippé (Halloweentown High - mostly VFX credits)

Written by Alan Sacks (Welcome Back Kotter) & Neal Shusterman (Goosebumps & Animorphs)

Starring: 

Ricky/Raviv Ullman as Roscoe (Phil of the Future, Kim Possible: So the Drama)

Leah Pipes as Samantha (Charmed)

Spencer Redford as Loretta Modern (Stopped acting in 2007)

Chris Williams as Daryl Fibbs (Dodgeball, Californication, The Great Indoors, The Black Lady Sketch Show, Silicon Valley, a lot of voice acting)

Porscha Coleman as Rachel (character actor)

Tania Gunadi as Cindy (Go Figure, Enlisted, a lot of voice acting)

Brett Cullen as Xander (Apollo 13, The Replacements, On Golden Pond, The West Wing, Friday Night Lights, Lost, 42, Person of Interest, Narcos, True Detective, The Blacklist, 

Nate Stevens as Max McAllister (only in one other movie ever)

Joyce Cohen as Dr. McAllister (Independence Day, Touched by an Angel, High School Musical)

Anthony DiMaria as Weldon Giles 

Max Robinson as Moxley (last movie)

Synopsis: When Samantha's band isn't gaining any recognition, her friend Roscoe uses his father's technology to create a sensational lead singer who's really a hologram. They call her Loretta Modern, and she's a huge success even when people find out she's not real. However, Samantha starts to get jealous, and eventually Loretta has to leave, although Sam's not as good at fronting the band. What will happen to the group?

NOTE: We’re recording this out of order - we had the wrong release date assigned to this film

Next Movie: Right on Track