Steffan and Gavia share their praise for The Bone Temple, Nia DaCosta's deceptively hilarious sequel to 28 Years Later. With Ralph Fiennes and Alfie Williams reprising their roles, Jack O'Connell joins the cast as the sadistic cult leader Jimmy Crystal, offering a new angle on the franchise's dystopian setting. Among other topics, this episode covers the film's distinctive lead performances, its exploration of post-apocalyptic parenting, and its wild final-act musical sequence.

Claire and Gavia reveal their respective top ten lists for the best new movies released in 2025, including some major Oscar contenders (Sinners; One Battle After Another), several cool indie releases (The Shrouds; On Becoming A Guinea Fowl), plenty of queer cinema... and a record number of unexpected wildcard choices.

Claire and Gavia share their thoughts on the hottest show of the moment, breaking down Heated Rivalry's pitch-perfect romantic structure, its subtly insightful depiction of hockey culture, the sizzling chemistry between lead actors Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie, and much more.

Claire and Gavia dig into Stanley Kubrick's iconic Stephen King adaptation The Shining, one of the most influential horror movies ever made. Starring Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall and child actor Danny Lloyd, this film blends toxic family dynamics with supernatural horror, focusing on a young family who decide to spend the winter alone at a secluded mountain hotel. An ideal choice for midwinter viewing!

Steffan and Gavia share their enthusiastic review of Predator: Badlands, a standalone adventure story that casts a young Predator as the protagonist, teaming up with a perky android (Elle Fanning) to explore an alien planet. Among other topics, this episode covers the excellent casting of breakout star Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi, the film's imaginative sci-fi worldbuilding, and director Dan Trachtenberg's genre-savvy approach to action.

Sticking closer to Mary Shelley's novel than most other adaptations, Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein is the culmination of a lifelong dream. His vision echoes the gothic maximalism of Francis Ford Coppola's Dracula, starring Jacob Elordi as a sympathetic interpretation of Frankenstein's Creature. But does this movie measure up to GDT's past hits? Steffan and Gavia have mixed feelings, delving into the film's characterization choices, production values, and relationship with the novel.

Claire and Gavia review some highlights from the 2025 London Film Festival, ranging from big upcoming releases (the new Knives Out movie Wake Up Dead Man) to awards contenders (Chloé Zhao's Hamnet) and exciting indie titles like Kelly Reichart's heist drama The Mastermind, and the queer BDSM romcom Pillion, starring Alexander Skarsgard.

Steffan and Gavia review One Battle After Another, widely hailed as the best film of 2025. Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, this comedic thriller displays startlingly bold politics for a Hollywood studio release, telling a gripping story about leftist revolutionaries, racism, and the violence of American border control. Leonardo DiCaprio and Chase Infiniti star as the central father/daughter duo, opposite Sean Penn as the villain.

Claire and Gavia share clashing opinions on Spike Lee's new crime thriller Highest 2 Lowest, starring Denzel Washington as a music mogul who faces financial ruin after his son is kidnapped and held to ransom. Remaking Akira Kurosawa's 1960s classic High and Low, it's a divisive new addition to Lee's filmography.

Claire and Gavia delve into David Cronenberg's fascinating erotic thriller Crash, starring James Spader as a man who develops a fetish for car crashes. Divisive and controversial when it first came out in 1996, it's now regarded as one of Cronenberg's greatest films, celebrated for its peculiar characters and unique brand of sexuality.