Off The Shelf With Phil and Dave- A Movie Review Podcast

Re Released for the Christmas season. Phil still likes it. Dave still doesn't but they both agree Bob Newhart was great!

"Podcast is all around us, it's everywhere we go" - It's the ultimate romantic comedy as Phil takes 2003's "Love, Actually" off the shelf. Dave has only seen clips over the years and was under the impression this was romantic, comedy and a Christmas classic, he is very underwhelmed and questions if it manages to be any of those three. Phil enjoys it a little more than Dave and finds that some of the storylines are beautiful, funny and sweet though he too has to admit that a few storylines should be excised and remembers loving it when it was first released but has had diminishing returns since. 

This is a Re-Release of a pretty terrible movie and not a great episode actually. Why Re-release? just to show you how far we've come. Come back next week and enjoy a brand new episode where Phil and Dave butt heads on a movie some have deemed a classic. Happy Holidays!

"You keep podcasting on the Devil's door long enough, sooner or later someone is going to answer you" - We visit the mean streets of Detroit as Dave takes 2005's Four Brothers off the shelf this week. Phil has never seen this movie before and can not find many redeeming things to comment on. The cast is full of people on the rise but the movie fails to do anything interesting with them. Dave remembers this being a go-to movie for years and years and is happy to revisit it. Mark Wahlberg's energy is a little much to take but a fun plot and good banter between the brothers take it up a notch. 

"Sometimes people just need to podcast." -  We celebrate Wordfest as Phil takes 2000's Wonder Boys off the shelf this week. Dave confirms that he has never seen it before and finds it lands in his 6-7. Phil recalls seeing this movie a few times in 2000, being so enamoured of it that he immediately bought the book and couldn't wait to see it again. It's been a while but he finds it still holds up and is a light breeze of a movie.

"All this podcast crap, just fries your brain like an egg..." - We travel through time as Dave takes 2012's Looper off the shelf. Phil struggles to get beyond JGL's look and Bruce Willis' face but in the end find the movie to be better than he expected. Rian Johnson creates another layered and sometimes perplexing plotted film that is made more interesting by the supporting cast. Dave remembers that this was a movie that he tried to watch a number of times over the years but never got more than a few minutes in. He is glad to finally have an excuse to watch it and feels the movie is a little lacking in the overall presentation despite generally enjoying it. Phil thinks the movie is probably better than he gives it credit for being in the end. 

"I am Catwoman. Hear me Podcast" - We return to Gotham as Phil takes 1992's Batman Returns off the shelf this week. Dave is resistant to watch another Batman movie but is happy to discuss the style and design of a Tim Burton movie for at least the fifth time. We're reminded that he may be the most talked about director in the history of the show. Phil loves that this is a Christmas movie and, once again, thinks that Michael Keaton fits the role well. However, this movie belongs to the villains, Catwoman and Penguin are on the poster but maybe it's Max Shreck who is the real bad guy. Just kidding, it's the Penguin who steals children and eats noses. 

"There is only one rule: Don't Podcast" - This week, Dave is breaking the one rule as he takes 2008's Passchendaele off the shelf. Adding a Canadian story to the mix this November as we continue to honour those fallen soldiers, even though Dave doesn't really feel the movie connects and doesn't quite compete with other movies of the genre. On the other hand, Phil found himself enjoying the movie and performances generally while acknowledging that some of the dialogue is a little weak. A rare instance of Phil enjoying a Dave pick, even more than Dave does. 

"The world isn't run by weapons anymore, it's run by little bits of data. It's all just podcasts" - Phil decides to sneak in a Robert Redford movie in honour of his passing by taking 1992's Sneakers off the shelf this week. Dave had not seen the movie before and found the performances to be enjoyable in a movie that keeps the audience engaged throughout. Phil recalls many watches on his own black box and finds that this is a great background movie to have on since at any point you jump in, you're bound to find something you like. We both wonder if the marketing of this movie led to it being underrated, underseen and under appreciated.

"Thank God its not a podcast detector or none of us would get in" - The stakes are high as Dave takes 1987's No Way Out off the shelf. Phil is shocked that he had never seen this movie before and is impressed by the twists and turns throughout. He also shares his Sean Young search history.. Dave was surprised to find this gem on a streaming service instead of his classic Gene section of his shelf. Both agree the film is underrated and you should tell your friends to watch it...I'm sure they will.