Movie Madness

One last look at the films of 2021 is the focus of this episode with Erik Childress, Steve Prokopy and Collin Souter unveiling their lists of the best 15 films of the year. There may not have been a lot of “fun” movies, they each manage to agree on one that makes their lists. There are also foreign films, documentaries and musicals of all kinds. Films of grief and mortality and the one that Erik thinks is just “fine.” Do not let the subject matter of the films throw you though, this is a lively discussion filled with universal agreement on a few, one big disagreement and a direct match on two of their lists. Take one final trip through an interesting year and put these films on your own lists to watch.

0:00 - Intro

4:27 - #15

9:26 - #14

15:05 - #13

19:17 - #12

23:56 - #11

28:47 - #10

37:03 - #9

42:42 - #8

51:04 - #7

56:26 - #6

1:03:24 - #5

1:09:42 - #4

1:17:00 - #3

1:25:02 - #2

1:35:31 - #1

1:49:00 - Outro

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Movie Madness begins 2022 with its weekly review show and a few holdovers from 2021 that are only beginning to open wider. Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy catch up on the latest collaboration from Pedro Almodovar and Penelope Cruz (Parallel Mothers), George Clooney directs Ben Affleck in a coming-of-age memoir (The Tender Bar) and Asghar Farhadi pushes everyone into another moral conundrum (A Hero). There is also a cat-and-mouse game between a blind girl and a group of thieves not called Wait Until Dark (See For Me). But as it is January there are also movies that belong in January such as Michael Jai White not playing John Matrix (The Commando) and another team of female special agents that may want to consider removing the word special (The 355).

0:00 - Intro

2:03 - The Commando

9:16 – See For Me

21:32 – Parallel Mothers

28:34 – The Tender Bar

45:26 – A Hero

58:09 – The 355

1:16:39 - Outro

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The bi-annual series with Erik Childress and Sergio Mims closes out 2021 with a giant three-plus hour show dedicated to 20 films that have yet to find their way beyond DVD and, at least in one case, out of VHS if you can even find that. Ten choices each spanning a variety of eras include film noirs, comedies, television adaptations and even a television series. Blaxploitation and musicals, a satire of one era and a whole other era that many would rather forget but Sergio is here to remind you (and others) about. The hinting is only part of the fun as you discover not only their choices but perhaps even the films themselves. And at least one studio could not wait to announce one of these just days after the taping.

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The last movie review edition of the podcast for 2021 is an epic one. Over two-and-a-half hours discussing 11 films including three that were chosen to be a part of this year’s Chicago Critics Film Festival. They include Isabelle Fuhrmann trying to do for rowing what Whiplash did from drumming (The Novice), Olivia Colman having an introspective vacation in Maggie Gyllenhaal’s directorial debut (The Lost Daughter) and the latest from the director of The Florida Project (Red Rocket). Science-fiction is very present this week with Chloe Grace Moretz as a pregnant woman on the run from a robot uprising (Mother/Android) and Mahershala Ali trying to ease his family’s suffering by cloning himself (Swan Song). Not to mention a return in the green coding with Keanu Reeves and Lana Wachowski (The Matrix Resurrections). And if you thought we were done with major directors we have the latest from Paolo Sorrentino (The Hand of God), Joel Coen (The Tragedy of Macbeth, Guillermo Del Toro (Nightmare Alley) and Paul Thomas Anderson (Licorice Pizza). Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy have a lot to say to close out the year.

0:00 - Intro

2:09 - The Hand of God

8:51 – The Novice

19:35 - Mother/Android

30:02 - Swan Song

44:21 – The Lost Daughter

57:36 – The Tragedy of Macbeth

1:07:41 – Licorice Pizza

1:30:17 – Red Rocket

1:43:20 – Nightmare Alley

1:59:41 – The Matrix Resurrections

2:19:01 – Spider-Man: No Way Home

2:35:50 - Outro

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The final Marvel film of 2021 is about to become the biggest movie of the year. Erik Childress is joined by comic book expert, Erik Laws, to share their thoughts on the film. Spoilers are abound so be sure to listen after you have seen it. But when you do you will find out if they are as stoked as everyone else. They get into the previous Spider-Man films and discuss if this one hits the emotional beats it is clearly chasing. Are we allowed to be surprised anymore as so much has already been revealed even before the first teaser? And are the “fan service” detractors going to give a pass to this one after their nostalgia rantings last month? The Eriks talk about all of it in this jam-packed episode.

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Erik Childress and Sergio Mims deliver one last Blu-ray show for 2021 with an impressive group of titles just in time to make your film lovers merry for Christmas. From Criterion they talk about one of the greatest films of all-time and one of their choices for the best film of 2020. Paramount delivers on a couple of Warren Beatty classics while also fulfilling another from the hosts’ Not-On-Blu-Ray lists. As does Warner Archive with a timely delivered mystery given the passing of one of its screenwriters as well as the awesomeness of the Mad Max Anthology. Sergio hypes up a nearly long lost film from Flicker Alley along with his absolute love of The Guns of Navarone. Then there is nearly an hour dedicated to some great titles from Kino including the original version of Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, a bunch of Charles Bronson & W.C. Fields for your dads, one of Steven Spielberg’s earliest efforts and a pair of classic horror titles now available on 4K. Get those lists ready because they are going to fill them up here.

0:00 – Intro

3:10 - Criterion (Citizen Kane, One Night in Miami)

16:54 - Flicker Alley (The Bitter Stems)

23:26 – Sony (The Guns of Navarone 4k)

33:25 – Paramount (What Lies Beneath, Heaven Can Wait, Reds

51:06 – Warner Bros. (Mad Max Anthology)

59:24 – Warner Archive (Party Girl, Fury, Ivanhoe, The Last of Sheila)

1:28:30 – Kino  (Bedtime Story, Mr.Majestyk, Chato’s Land, Breakheart Pass, It’s a Gift, The Bank Dick, Kolchak: The Night Stalker, Night Gallery, The Silence of the Lambs 4K, Invasion of the Body Snatchers 4K)

2:25:01 - Outro

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Six new movies are covered on the weekly movie review edition of the show with Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy looking at a new documentary about a film legend (The Real Charlie Chaplin) and the week from hell of a TV legend (Being the Ricardos). A film dramatizes the debate over compensating student athletes (National Champions) but who will compensate us for the latest from Sandra Bullock (The Unforgivable) and Adam McKay (Don’t Look Up). Then if you missed the full show with Sergio Mims, Steve gets his chance to talk about Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story.

0:00 - Intro

1:22 – National Champions

21:02 – The Real Charlie Chaplin

31:38 – The Unforgivable

45:27 – Being the Ricardos

1:03:49 - Don’t Look Up

1:27:50 - West Side Story

1:48:10 - Outro

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The title of the episode almost says it all but it turns out both Erik Childress and Sergio Mims have a lot to say about Steven Spielberg’s remake of the Oscar-winning 1961 musical. Sergio, who also hosts a classical music show on WHPK Radio in Chicago, takes us through the choreographers, Leonard Bernstein and his thoughts both positive and negative on the original. Erik also shares his thoughts on how the 1961 film shaped his perspective on musicals at an early age and how the new film has managed to surpass it at every level. Both marvel at one particular performance in the remake which also manages to honor another with some key changes made to the original text. While they may have some quibbles and disagree here and there one thing they agree on is this is one of the best films of 2021.

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Movie theaters tend to slow down the week after Thanksgiving but Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy still have seven movies you can see there or at home. They catch up on the latest from Mike Mills with Joaquin Phoenix (C’mon C’mon). Sci-fi takes some questionable turns in an apocalyptic “comedy” (Silent Night) and a kidnapping drama that is questionably referred to as “science fiction” (Encounter). Surprisingly there is no such label on the story of people who believe they are animals (Wolf). Erik reminds you of a Toronto fest documentary that is now available on HBO (Listening to Kenny G) which may be just the come down you need after another HBO premiere about the life and loss of Adrienne Shelly (Adrienne). Then finally when Paul Verhoeven has lesbian nuns challenge the status quo of 17th century Catholism, you say “YES!” (Benedetta).

0:00 - Intro

1:56 - Listening to Kenny G

11:29 – Encounter

22:15 – Silent Night

33:19 – Adrienne

50:47 – C’mon C’mon

1:03:35 – Wolf

1:16:39 – Benedetta

1:35:41 - Outro

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The weekly movie review edition of the podcast adds seven titles from the Thanksgiving holiday. Erik Childress checks out the 1980s hi-jinks of trying to obtain a Nintendo (8-Bit Christmas) while Steve Prokopy delves into the new Ryusuke Hamaguchi (Drive My Car) and the stylings of classic songwriters of old (The Beatles: Get Back) and new (Encanto). The pair debate whether the directorial debut of Halle Berry is worth your time (Bruised) and try to decipher just what anybody sees in Stephen Karam’s adaptation of his own play (The Humans). Finally, they look into the second Ridley Scott film in as many months and, whether or not, that’s a good thing (House of Gucci).

1:51 – 8-Bit Christmas

12:11 – Drive My Car

20:41 - Bruised

34:43 – The Beatles: Get Back

51:00 – The Humans

1:08:15 – Encanto

1:16:24 – House of Gucci

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