Movie Madness

Themes develop within this week’s movie reviews. Funny how that happens without even trying sometimes but Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy wade through seven movies this week. It all begins with an emotionally unsettling film they have been championing since Sundance featuring another knockout performance by Rebecca Hall and a never creepier Tim Roth (Resurrection). Steve checks out Juliette Binoche as a trucker who gets involved in child trafficking (Paradise Highway) while Erik covers Angourie Rice as an overachieving high schooler trying to sabotage her competition (Honor Society). Zoey Deutsch is an underachieving photo editor who tries to manipulate a fresh grief hashtag in a new satire (Not Okay) and Katie Holmes and Jim Sturgess are forced to white-people-problem their way through the start of the Covid pandemic (Alone Together). Steve also looks at the new animated effort from the other comic book studio (DC League of Super Pets). Finally, the pair heap praise upon the writing/directing effort from B.J. Novak that is certainly one of the strongest surprises of the year.

0:00 - Intro

2:35 - Resurrection

15:23 – Paradise Highway

23:55 - Honor Society

33:04 - Alone Together

44:16 – Not Okay

1:00:47 - DC League of Super Pets

1:09:42 - Vengeance

1:29:10 - Outro

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy have the weekly movie reviews for you. A light week of just five movies, but the streamers should be happy. Mostly. Whether or not you head out to theaters for the big one is up to you. But they check on a couple films from Shudder including some horror from the Netherlands (Moloch) and a documentary on cult performance metal artists (This is Gwar). Erik weighs in on Ethan Hawke’s six-part docuseries on the careers and marriage of Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward on HBO MAX (The Last Movie Stars). The duo review the latest algorithmic concoction from Netflix and the Russo Brothers (The Gray Man). Then, finally, they tell you whether Jordan Peele has gone 3-for-3 with his horror films or if his latest is an overstuffed, undersold bag of ideas (Nope).

0:00 - Intro

2:44 - Moloch

8:40 – The Last Movie Stars

18:50 - This Is Gwar

29:58 - The Gray Man

43:28 - Nope

1:05:56 – Outro

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Sergio Mims returns to the show to look at what is new out there in Blu-ray land. Along with Erik Childress they discuss some tremendous new 4K titles from Sony and Criterion. Erik makes the case for two other great crime tales on 4K that Sergio has just been so-so on. Sergio goes to bat for a new restoration of a film that was featured on Mystery Science Theater 3000 and clearly believes was unfair. They also talk a new release of an early Richard Donner film and run through a cadre of new-to-Blu-ray titles from the ever expanding Imprint that they believe is becoming one of the great companies delivering special edition physical media.

1:40 - Deaf Crocodile (The Sword and the Dragon)

10:49 - IFC (We Need To Do Something)

15:14 - Arrow (True Romance)

22:25 - Criterion (Raging Bull, Devil in a Blue Dress)

36:59 - Sony (Lawrence of Arabia, The Bridge on the River Kwai)

56:38 - Kino (Salt & Pepper, The Killing, Out of Sight, Native Son)

1:27:49 - Imprint (The President’s Analyst, Man on a Swing, Barabbas, The Long Ships, The Contender, Bloody Sunday, The Warriors, After Dark Neo-Noir Cinema: Collection One)

2:12:08 - Outro

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Real life trumps fiction this week on the movie review edition of the podcast. Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy discuss seven new movies including revisiting two of the best documentaries from the festival circuit this year. One involves the continued struggles of gun control after another tragedy (Gabby Giffords Won’t Back Down) and another chronicles the relationship of two volcano researchers up close and personal (Fire of Love). Steve looks at the horrors of healing with Alice Krige (She Will) and Erik finds another kind of horror in concealing a life-threatening diagnosis (Don’t Make Me Go). Lesley Manville goes off in search of a Dior dress she desperately wants (Mrs. Harris Goes To Paris) and Dakota Johnson goes to Jane Austen land hoping to reclaim the love of her life while talking to us (Persuasion). Finally, the duo looks to find an answer to Where The Crawdads Sing and discover that they could not care less.

0:00 - Intro

1:45 - Gabby Giffords Won’t Back Down

17:01 – Fire of Love

28:08 – She Will

35:25 - Don’t Make Me Go

53:38 – Mrs. Harris Goes To Paris

1:03:40 - Persuasion

1:16:59 – Where The Crawdads Sing

1:32:35 - Outro

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

This year’s Tribeca Film Festival contained a number of noteworthy documentaries and some new features by rising filmmakers. Erik Childress is joined by Peter Sobczynski to discuss 16 of these films. They include real-life tales about embattled journalists, the effect of COVID on family businesses, historical heroes and modern-day athletes. There are also the latest films from filmmakers such as Travis Stevens (Jakob’s Wife), Alex Thompson (Saint Frances), Alexandre O. Philippe (Memory: The Origins of Alien) and Robert Machoian (The Killing of Two Lovers) as well as upcoming talents like Daniel Antebi, Sophie Gilbert and Alexandria Trewhitt. Erik also sets up a little preview of the upcoming month-long Fantasia Film Festival in Montreal taking place in July and into August.

0:00 - Intro

1:38 – Turn Any Page

4:08 – Liquor Store Dreams

6:27 – Cherry

10:34 – Lynch/Oz

14:57 – The Wild One

17:26 - Rounding

22:02 - Battleground

23:48 - Endangered

24:33 – American Pain

27:20 – Official Competition

33:06 – The Rebellious Life of Rosa Parks

34:34 – Unfinished Business

38:48 – My Love Affair With Marriage

40:05 – A Wounded Fawn

44:15 – God’s Time

47:56 – The Integrity of Joseph Chambers

54:41 – A Preview of the 2022 Fantasia Film Festival

59:05 - Outro

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy bring you the weekly movie reviews. Seven new films including a pair of music documentaries focused on a pair of Nick Cave albums (This Much I Know To Be True) and one of the most singular songs ever recorded – in many different ways (Hallelujah: Leonard Cohen, a Journey, a Song). A couple goes off on a self-help retreat in the woods in a new horror film (The Summoned) and Claire Denis put another couple played by Juliette Binoche and Vincent Lindon through the ringer when a lusty ex is thrown into the equation (Both Sides of the Blade). Abducted In Plain Sight director Skye Borgman documents another tale of an evil predator and the people who were destroyed by him (Girl in the Picture). The co-director of Moana and Big Hero 6 delivers a Moby Dick-like tale that helps restores one of our duo’s faith in recent animated films (The Sea Beast). Finally all faith is destroyed in the latest Marvel entry as Erik and Steve agree it to be one of the worst, if not THE worst, in their Cinematic Universe (Thor: Love and Thunder).

0:00 - Intro

1:41 - This Much I Know To Be True

10:27 - Hallelujah

22:20 – The Summoned

28:33 – Both Sides of the Blade

39:31 – Girl in the Picture

52:05 – The Sea Beast

1:06:11 – Thor: Love and Thunder

1:23:55 – Outro

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Erik Laws of the AintThisTheFun podcast on YouTube returns to talk the latest in the Marvel Cinematic Universe with Erik Childress and, boy, are neither of them happy. Taika Waititi’s Thor: Love and Thunder gets the full business from the Eriks talking about the waste of two of the best actors working today and a most embarrassing turn by a third. Where does Gor, the God Butcher fit in with MCU villainy – or where should he have fit in. Can any of the deadly serious plotlines find room to breathe in a screenplay that is too busy bee-bop and scattin’ around to warrant any genuine conflict? Childress and Laws go scorched earth for over two hours and ask if this is an inflection point for Marvel fans. Is their loyalty endless or will what may be the worst film in their Universe give them pause the next time they are asked to defend it.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Eight new movie reviews this episode, at least from Steve Prokopy who saw all of them. Erik Childress saw half of them. Half of those even great. But which ones? There are two Antonio Banderas films this week with him in action mode (Code Name Banshee) and another as an egotistical actor being directed by Penelope Cruz (Official Competition). Scout Taylor-Compton tries to survive an evening in a house again (The Long Night) and Ralph Fiennes tries to survive in the Moroccan desert away from Jessica Chastain after they accidentally kill a local boy in the latest from John Michael McDonaugh (The Forgiven). Love is afoot in 19th century England (Mr. Malcolm’s List) and Joey King literally fights back against marriage in some time period (The Princess). Finally two films vie for family attention (Minions: The Rise of Gru, Marcel the Shell With Shoes On). Which one are you a bad parent for not taking your kids to? Also for an added bonus, Erik & Steve make their choices for the Best of the First Half of 2022, films and performances.

0:00 - Intro

1:18 - Code Name Banshee

8:40 - Official Competition

21:22 - The Long Night

27:14 - The Forgiven

41:17 - Mr. Malcolm's List

47:40 - The Princess

55:35 - Minions: The Rise of Gru

1:04:29 - Marcel the Shell With Shoes On 

1:17:15 – Erik & Steve’s First Half of 2022 Ballots

1:23:36 - Outro

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Six new movies get six new reviews from Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy this week. They include one about a group of friends playing adult Jumanji (Gatlopp) and a documentary about the government playing games after a disaster (Chernobyl: The Lost Tapes). Kevin Hart gets mistaken for hitman Woody Harrelson (The Man From Toronto) while two old friends return to bring out the best in stupid (Beavis and Butt-Head Do The Universe). A boy has to escape the clutches of a kidnapper played by Ethan Hawke (The Black House) and Baz Luhrmann tries to tell the story of the King of Rock ‘N’ Roll. Badly! (Elvis)

0:00 - Intro

0:43 - Gatlopp

5:41 - Chernobyl: The Lost Tapes

16:09 – The Man from Toronto

25:48 - Beavis and Butthead Do The Universe

37:20 – The Black Phone

53:13 – Elvis

1:17:13 - Outro

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The two big sellers at this year’s Sundance film festival come home for everyone this week. Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy revisit both Good Luck To You, Leo Grande and Cha Cha Real Smooth along with six other fresh reviews this week. They include another Sundance film about a man and his robot (Brian and Charles) as well as Phil Tippett’s thirty-year journey to bring his stop-motion feature to life (Mad God). Jennifer Lopez has a film about her and some Super Bowl thing she did while chasing an Oscar (Halftime) while Bryan Cranston and Annette Bening are retirees in search of a shared jackpot (Jerry and Marge Go Large). Chris Hemsworth is testing a new drug on Miles Teller in one future (Spiderhead) and in another – set in the past – we discover the story of where Buzz the toy came from (Lightyear).

0:00 - Intro

2:17 - Good Luck To You, Leo Grande

10:55 - Cha Cha Real Smooth

24:18 - Brian and Charles

31:33 - Halftime

43:25 - Mad God

49:37 - Jerry and Marge Go Large

1:05:59 - Spiderhead

1:17:43 - Lightyear

1:35:24 - Outro

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.