Nerds Against Normality

Big Trouble in Little China (1986) — John Carpenter, Kurt Russell, ancient sorcery, underground monsters and one truck driver who somehow thinks he’s the hero of the story.

This week on Nerds Against Normality, we’re heading into San Francisco’s Chinatown to revisit one of the strangest cult movies of the ’80s.

But does Big Trouble in Little China still deserve its cult-classic reputation, or is Jack Burton’s greatest trick convincing everyone this film makes any sense whatsoever?

We get into Kurt Russell’s brilliantly useless action hero, David Lo Pan, the Three Storms, John Carpenter’s completely unhinged mix of martial arts, fantasy, comedy and action — and all the wonderfully ridiculous moments that could only have come from the 1980s.

Plus, we put the film to the usual Nerds Against Normality treatment, go wildly off topic and find out whether all three of us actually agree on this one.

It’s all in the reflexes.

🎬 Big Trouble in Little China

🎙️ Nerds Against Normality — a film podcast where three nerdy friends with very different tastes take turns choosing what the others have to watch.

What are the five greatest Super Mario games of all time?

Harry is flying solo for a special bonus episode of Nerds Against Normality, celebrating the anniversary of Nintendo's GameCube classic Super Mario Sunshine by ranking his five favourite Super Mario games ever.

From 2D classics to Mario's biggest 3D adventures, Harry counts down his personal Top 5, explains why each game deserves its place and reveals which Mario game takes the number-one spot.

Expect nostalgia, controversial choices and at least a few Nintendo favourites that didn't make the cut. And yes, Super Mario Galaxy fans may want to prepare themselves.

What's your Top 5? Let us know which Super Mario game you'd put at number one.

🎬 YOUR NAME (2016) REVIEW — Is it really one of the greatest anime films ever made?

This week, it’s Harry’s pick as we dive into Makoto Shinkai’s acclaimed anime Your Name — and it’s Vic’s very first anime. We get into the body-swapping, romance, twists and stunning animation, and find out whether Your Name can live up to the hype for a complete anime newcomer.

Plus, Harry’s finally finished Apple TV’s Slow Horses and gives his thoughts on the hit spy series.

So, does Your Name deserve its reputation — and more importantly, have we finally converted Vic to anime?

Tokyo Game Show 2026 – Biggest Games & Announcements 🎮

Tokyo Game Show 2026 is here! Harry jumps into the biggest reveals and announcements in this quick-fire bonus episode, including Final Fantasy VII Revelation, Hideo Kojima’s PHYSINT, Persona 4 Revival and Monster Hunter Wilds: Ascendance.

What looks worth getting excited about, which announcements caught our attention, and what should be firmly on your gaming radar?

A quick 10-minute hit of Tokyo Game Show from Nerds Against Normality.

The House Bunny (2008) Review 🎬

It’s Vic’s pick this week as we head back to 2008 for The House Bunny, starring Anna Faris, Emma Stone and Kat Dennings!

Does this late-2000s comedy still hold up? Is Shelley Darlingson one of Anna Faris’ best roles? And just how badly have some parts of the film aged? Harry, Ben and Vic get into the comedy, characters, favourite moments and whether The House Bunny deserves to be remembered as a genuinely great comedy or simply a guilty pleasure.

Before all that, Vic has finally finished the latest season of FROM — so naturally, we need to find out what she thought of it.

Plus, as always, expect plenty of completely unnecessary tangents along the way.

🎙️ Nerds Against Normality — three friends, three very different tastes.

This week, we’re reviewing The Blues Brothers (1980) — the cult musical comedy starring John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd.

Does Jake and Elwood’s mission from God still hold up more than 45 years later? We’re talking legendary music, incredible cameos, ridiculous car chases and some truly spectacular destruction.

Plus, we put our musical knowledge to the test as Harry, Ben and Vic attempt to identify famous songs from some questionable descriptions.

Three friends. Three very different tastes. Plenty of opinions.

🎙️ Rob Bailey joins Nerds Against Normality!

This week, journalist Rob Bailey joins us for a special guest episode to talk movies, books, video games and the pop culture that shaped him.

We chat about Rob’s career in journalism, the films and books that inspired him, his relationship with gaming, and the one video game he’d recommend to somebody who has never picked up a controller.

Along the way, we discuss everything from All the President’s Men and Nick Hornby’s High Fidelity to the brilliant What Remains of Edith Finch, plus plenty of tangents, questionable opinions and the usual Nerds Against Normality nonsense.

🎧 Nerds Against Normality — a movies, TV, gaming and pop culture podcast.

New episodes every Wednesday.

Obsession (2026) Review – This week on Nerds Against Normality, we’re diving into one of the biggest horror surprises of the year: Curry Barker’s Obsession.

Written and directed by Curry Barker and starring Michael Johnston, Inde Navarrette, Cooper Tomlinson, Megan Lawless and Andy Richter, Obsession takes a simple question – what if you could make the person you love fall in love with you? – and turns it into a seriously twisted nightmare.

We break down Obsession, its story, performances, horror, comedy, practical effects and standout moments, including Inde Navarrette’s brilliantly unhinged performance as Nikki. Does Curry Barker’s breakout horror movie deserve the hype? And where does Obsession rank among the best horror films of 2026?

Plus, in Harry’s One Thing, Harry talks about Widow’s Bay, the new Apple TV comedy-horror series starring Matthew Rhys. Is Apple TV’s creepy cursed-island mystery worth adding to your watchlist?

All that, plus the usual arguments, tangents and nonsense from Nerds Against Normality.

Link to FlickPicker:

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/flickpicker-movie-night/id6775147318

How good is your general knowledge when getting the answer right isn't actually the goal?

This week, we're putting our questionable knowledge to the test in a game of numbers. Each round starts with a target, and we've got just three guesses to whittle it down as close to zero as possible — without going bust.

Movie box office totals, the heights of famous buildings, distances around the world, video game sales, word counts and more all come into play as we desperately try to work out what we actually know... and when it's safer to stop guessing.

Can anyone land perfectly on zero? Who'll play it safe? And who'll completely destroy their score with one catastrophically confident answer?

Play along at home and see if you can beat us.

It's Nerds Against Normality: Zero or Bust!

This week on Nerds Against Normality, we're heading into deep space for our Project Hail Mary (2026) review – the big-screen adaptation of Andy Weir's bestselling sci-fi novel, starring Ryan Gosling as Ryland Grace.

Humanity is facing extinction, Grace has woken up millions of miles from Earth with no memory of how he got there, and his only hope might just be a certain extremely lovable alien...

We get into everything Project Hail Mary: Ryan Gosling's performance, Rocky, the science, the humour, the incredible first-contact story and whether the film manages to capture what made Andy Weir's novel so special. We also talk about the changes from book to screen, the practical effects and CGI, and whether Project Hail Mary deserves its place among the best modern sci-fi movies.

Plus, as always, there's plenty of completely unnecessary arguing, tangents and general nonsense along the way.

Is Project Hail Mary one of the best films of 2026? And more importantly... did they do Rocky justice?

Join Harry, Ben and Vic for the latest episode of Nerds Against Normality, available now on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and wherever you get your podcasts.