This week - we’re falling through holes in the universe and landing in Time Bandits, Terry Gilliam’s visually cacophonous 1981 adventure about a small boy careening through time with a band of thieves pursued by God and evil itself. There’s… a lot going on.

It's possible that Time Bandits features the best backstory to a heist ever conceived (a band of God's minor manufacturers are sent to the repairs department for creating a very unusual tree, and use the map of all the holes in the universe ("it was a rush job, seven days...") to steal things instead of fixing the fabric of... everything. It's for absolute certain that it's another slightly-too-scary-for-kids-but-actually-great-as-an-adult adventure, and another glimpse into what Sean Connery was up to after that whole Bond deal.

Did we like it? Join us to find out…

Let us know what you think of this episode by emailing us at [email protected] and support us on Patreon at patreon.com/redshirtcinemaclub for access to two bonus episodes per month as well as our newsletter, The Civilian Observer.

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A curious phenomenon emerges this week as we watch 1984's The Neverending Story.

It's a favourite from Dave's childhood which Nath and Rob were convinced they'd never seen. The evidence in fact points to them both having watched the film previously and entirely forgotten what happens, which is unfortunately also true of this latest rewatch (something to do with a sad horse and a flying dog, the details are lost to us).

Which is all to say that The Neverending Story has a strange energy - a tinge of Euro-weirdness, the half-logic of children elected heroes in the face of magical annihilation, and an episodic structure full of grotesque puppets and special effects. We love it! We've forgotten it. It makes us sad.

Let us know what you think of this episode by emailing us at [email protected] and support us on Patreon at patreon.com/redshirtcinemaclub for access to two bonus episodes per month as well as our newsletter, The Civilian Observer.

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This week we’re losing ourselves again in the delightful maze of 80s fantasy, with Jim Henson’s extraordinary Labyrinth (which, like our very own Rob, turns 40 this year...)

Think of it less like a museum of childhood traumas, and more like a fun adventure with cool puppets and a brilliant - nay, magical - dance number. Now if we only figure out how to get inside…

Let us know what you think of this episode by emailing us at [email protected] and support us on Patreon at patreon.com/redshirtcinemaclub for access to two bonus episodes per month as well as our newsletter, The Civilian Observer.

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We're back! Sort of.

After a week's hiatus we're crawling out from the darkness of our plague cave with this impromptu mailbag episode - which we've decided is a good thing as there were LOTS of wonderful emails to get through. Thanks for your continuing correspondence - please keep the messages coming.

Thanks for bearing with us while we've been ill - normal service will be resumed next week once we're back to full strength. Updated schedule for our 80s fantasy series below if you fancy watching along!

- Labyrinth (1986) - 30th March

- Highlander (1986) - 1st April (Captain and Commander bonus episode)

- The NeverEnding Story (1985) - 6th April

- Time Bandits (1981) - 13th April

- Captain's Choice Bonus Episode - 15th April

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A new season begins, and we transition from our favourite genre (sci-fi) into our other favourite genre (fantasy) quicker than turning the corner in Waterstones' basement.

Moving from Star Wars into 1988's Willow felt like the most natural step - it's directed by Ron Howard (of Solo fame), stars Warwick Davies (Wicket the ewok) and has a story dreamed up by George Lucas himself.

There are other parallels, most notably the roguishly handsome Han Solo-esque swordsman Madmartigan (Val Kilmer) and wonderfully crafted stop-motion monsters, but really who needs an excuse to sit through a bunch of classic 80s fantasy movies for the next few weeks?

If you fancy watching along with us, here is our schedule for the next month. Consider joining our brand new 'Captain' tier on Patreon if you want to vote for what we watch on 1st April.

- Willow (1988) - 9th March

- Labyrinth (1986) - 16th March

- Highlander (1986) - 18th March (Captain and Commander bonus episode)

- The NeverEnding Story (1985) - 23rd March

- Time Bandits (1981) - 30th March

- Captains Choice Bonus Episode - 1st April

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...of course it did.

We've completed Star Wars (shut up, Ewok movies) and that can only mean one thing - an episode dedicated to listener thoughts about the series, the discussions we've had about it, and tangents that have their own root system of subtangents.

Also ALSO the three of us give our personal rankings of all 11 Star Wars movies watched on the pod. Are there some surprises in there? Rob has made sure that there are.

Join us!

Become a member of Redshirt Cinema Club! Support us at patreon.com/redshirtcinemaclub to receive two bonus episodes every month as well as our newsletter, The Civilian Observer.

You can also follow us at x.com/redshirtcinema, and get in touch at [email protected].

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We conclude our Star Wars season with 2019's The Rise of Skywalker, J.J. Abrams' second stab at the franchise having kicked off the sequel trilogy with The Force Awakens 4 years prior.

Where the latter was an exercise in replaying familiar hits, Episode IX was all about course correction after the split fan reaction to The Last Jedi. Kylo Ren has his mask back, force ghost Luke likes his light sabre again and Palpatine is back. Somehow.

But is the magic back? Contrary to Luke's declaration in The Last Jedi, I'm afraid this one is going to go the way you think.

Join the Redshirt Cinema Club! Support us at patreon.com/redshirtcinemaclub to receive two bonus episodes every month as well as our newsletter, The Civilian Observer.

You can also follow us at x.com/redshirtcinema, and get in touch at [email protected].

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The Last Jedi is almost certainly the most divisive Star Wars movie ever made. A brave attempt by writer/director Rian Johnson to subvert audience expectations and take the franchise in a new direction, it's a film that impressed critics with its brave narrative choices but alienated huge sections of the fan base at the same time.

The three of us watched this together at the cinema - Rob enjoyed it, Dave and Nath not so much. Will the subsequent 9 years have softened or sharpened those initial opinions? How do we all feel about that Princess Leia in space scene? And why does Kylo Ren need to take his top off? Enjoy the episode as we discuss all this and more, and please share your own hot takes over in our Patreon chat.

Join the Redshirt Cinema Club! Support us at patreon.com/redshirtcinemaclub to receive two bonus episodes every month as well as our newsletter, The Civilian Observer.

You can also follow us at x.com/redshirtcinema, and get in touch at [email protected].

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"This will begin to make things right."

As first lines go, this is powerful stuff. An acknowledgement that what came before wasn't up to scratch. A promise that what you're about to see will bring back the old magic. But does The Force Awakens deliver where it counts?

J. J. Abrams is the man with the seemingly impossible task, fresh from reviving (and then killing?) the Star Trek movie franchise, his first film in the new trilogy introduces new characters, revisits old ones, and has an evil base the size of 10 Death Stars. What more could a Star Wars fan want?

Admittedly it's tough to watch this film over 10 years later without the following two movies constantly invading your mind like some kind of insidious Force Power, but that's what we've tried to do; watch The Force Awakens with fresh eyes, before conjuring equally fresh opinions. Ready to take the plunge alongside us?

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The second episode of our mid-season Star Wars break sees Dave finally get his wish of making Rob watch The Green Knight - a dark fantasy retelling of a 14th-century chivalric romance directed by David Lowery and starring Dev Patel.

This is unlike any Arthurian legend you've seen before - a twisted, unsettling exploration of honour and the slow, inevitable, irresistible power of nature. It features a bunch of brilliant performances from some of our favourite British actors, from Sean Harris and Ralph Ineson to Kate Dickie and the aforementioned Dev Patel.

A weird, dark British fantasy - should be everything Rob likes, right? Let's find out!

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