Popcorn Culture

Noah Baumbach directs Jay Kelly (2025), which stars Adam Sandler and George Clooney, and follows a famed but disillusioned actor and his loyal manager as they travel across Europe, confronting past mistakes and estranged relationships. We discuss whether this star-studded movie lives up to its promise, before turning our attention to the question of whether adult dramas, sans action or bombast, have any room in audiences' hearts anymore.

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In this episode, it's all about the follow-up to 2016's wildly successful Zootopia, which sees the return of earnest bunny cop Judy Hopps and wily con artist fox Nick Wilde, and the continuation of their unlikely partnership as they go undercover to pursue a new and mysterious reptilian resident Gary De'Snake. And since so much of Zootopia's delights rest in its animal-centred world and setting, we then extend the discussion to ask: What (or who) are your favourite on-screen animal characters?

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In this episode of our podcast, we dive into the first four episodes of Vince Gilligan’s Pluribus, the much-hyped Apple TV+ sci-fi thriller that marks a major return for the Breaking Bad creator. With a near-perfect score on Rotten Tomatoes and buzz everywhere, the show follows Carol Sturka (played by Rhea Seehorn), one of the few immune to a mysterious contagion that has transformed humanity into a shared, euphoric hive mind. We explore whether Pluribus lives up to its break-out promise, and ask you what are some movies or shows that really invite conversation and discussion (whether it's out of love or hate).

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It’s been a year since Cynthia Erivo’s Elphaba and Ariana Grande’s Glinda were last on the big screen, finding themselves on opposite sides of a political and ethical divide in Oz. This year, we finally get to see director Jon M. Chu tackle the famously difficult and darker second act of Wicked - we discuss if it lives up to the hype and love that the first movie garnered. Then, as we did with Wicked a year ago, we open up the phone lines and ask: What's your favourite musical?

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It's another double bill this week. First up, we review Edgar Wright's latest film, The Running Man, which is an adaptation of Stephen King's 1982 dystopian novel of the same name. It stars Glenn Powell, Katy O'Brian and Josh Brolin and is about a man forced to participate in a deadly state-sanctioned game show where contestants are hunted for entertainment. Following that, we discuss if Guillermo del Toro's gothic monster drama, Frankenstein, is a faithful yet fresh reimagining of Mary Shelley’s classic tale. On Take Two, we talk about how adaptations and remakes often get a bad rap - but which ones have actually updated their source material or offered something new? 

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The latest in the Predator universe, Predator: Badlands sees the return of Dan Trachtenberg to the helm, following his two previous installments (Prey, and Predator: Killer of Killers). Promising to be a standalone film that’s a look at the Predator species and their culture, it also departs from previous movies by having the titular Predator as the protagonist rather than the antagonist. We talk if this release lives up to the high standards of Trachtenberg’s previous efforts. Then, inspired by this being the ninth film in the franchise overall, we ask: What are some of the best and worst movies/shows from long-running franchises?

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In this episode, we review two new releases by some of the best filmmakers in the world. Kathryn Bigelow is back with another political thriller, A House of Dynamite. It stars Idris Elba and Rebecca Ferguson, and is about the aftermath of an unidentified missile launch that sends global powers scrambling to uncover who’s behind it before catastrophe strikes. Meanwhile, South Korean filmmaker Park Chan Wook’s No Other Choice is a dark comedy that centres around themes of unemployment and desperation. Then on Take Two, we talk about some of the best auteur directors who continue to shape our love for cinema.

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Keanu Reeves and Sandra Oh as angels, Seth Rogen and Aziz Ansari in a bodyswap, bonus Keke Palmer - random disparate elements, or winning combo? We review Good Fortune (which is also Aziz Ansari’s directorial debut) and find out for ourselves, before turning our attention to the four-decade long career of the iconic Keanu Reeves, and discussing its highs, lows, and of course, whoas.

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It’s the week of Deepavali! This year, we revisit the 2018 film Vada Chennai by acclaimed director Vetrimaaran, which underperformed at the box office when it was first released but has since gained a cult following. It stars Dhanush and follows a skilled carrom player from North Chennai who becomes entangled in the city’s underworld and power struggles over several decades. We review the film, and then on Take Two, we discuss your favourite movies and series about revenge.

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We review One Battle After Another, Leonardo DiCaprio’s first collaboration with Paul Thomas Anderson, which draws on the paranoid humour and tangled conspiracies of Thomas Pynchon's Vineland. On Take 2, we revisit your favourite DiCaprio performances, and on B-Side, we dive into Jonny Greenwood’s soundtrack of tense rhythms that mirrors the film’s spiralling paranoia.

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