This week, we kick off a March-long salute to the dearly departed king of American screen acting as Hackmonth begins with a classic of the inspirational sports genre, the story of a man who moves to Hicktown, Indiana and whips a bunch of farm boys into state champions. It's 1986's Hoosiers, directed by David Anspaugh and starring Gene Hackman, Barbara Hershey and Dennis Hopper. While the circumstances surrounding this theme month are unquestionably sad, it's still a treat to watch one of the all-time great screen presences cook in some of his most acclaimed roles, and there's no question he's outstanding in this one. The three adult leads are all terrific in fact, lifting the movie above its genre-trappings. Is the movie enormously overrated by sports-inclined boomers? Yes, definitely, but that doesn't mean it's not a cozy comfort watch at the same time. Plus: Neither Hayl or J Mo actually watched this year's Oscars, but that doesn't stop us from having opinions on them! And Justin's back with another theatrical field report, this time having made it out to the cinema to see Osgood Perkins' Vancouver-shot Stephen King adaptation The Monkey.

If you'd like to watch the movie before listening along to our conversation, Hoosiers is available on MGM+ at the moment north of the border, but... I dunno, check it out from the library, that's what I did.

Other works discussed in this episode include Conclave, Nickel Boys, Megalopolis, Emilia Perez, A Real Pain, Challengers, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, Behind Enemy Lines, Hustle, Blue Chips, Coach Carter, Friday Night Lights, Glory Road, Rudy and The Way Back.

We'll be back next week as Hackmonth continues with a 1995 naval thriller starring king Gene alongside Denzel Washington in Tony Scott's Crimson Tide, which is available to stream on Disney+. The week after that it's Francis Ford Coppola's The Conversation, and we close out the month with Wes Anderson's The Royal Tenenbaums heading in to the pod-canon. Until then, we'll see you at the movies!!