Spoilerpiece Theatre

We have Michael McDonald on the brain before Evan briefly reviews EUROVISION SONG CONTEST: THE STORY OF FIRE SAGA (3:10), a bloated comedy with fun music, but terrible jokes. Then Megan covers MUCHO MUCHO AMOR (10:13), a moving documentary about the genderbending astrologer Walter Mercado. Next, she and Evan tackle THE TRUTH (21:15), Hirokazu Koreeda's layered French drama with Catherine Deneuve. Lastly, everyone reviews HOMEWRECKER (34:32), a horror flick with good ideas that fails to capitalize on them.

This week we stop briefly in Vegantown before Megan offers two quick reviews. First, MY SPY (2:32), a mediocre, but charming movie, and then IRRESISTIBLE (7:17), a disappointing Jon Stewart film. Next, Megan and Dave cover YOU SHOULD HAVE LEFT (13:20), a terrible Kevin Bacon/Amanda Seyfried horror flick. Then, everyone applauds MISS JUNETEENTH (23:06), a heartwarming drama about a Black beauty pageant. Lastly, they praise DISCLOSURE (37:40), an incredible documentary on transgender representation in media.

This week we discuss Lance Reddick on THE WIRE before we review movies. We start with 7500 (3:01), a tense plane hijacking film with Joseph Gordon-Levitt that sadly runs out of steam partway through. Then we discuss BABYTEETH (11:11), a divisive drama about a family grappling with a teenager's terminal illness. Next, we delve deep into Spike Lee's film DA 5 BLOODS (30:00), an ambitious and haunting story about Black Vietnam War veterans with A LOT to unpack. On our Patreon bonus episode, we discuss Dee Rees' PARIAH.

This week it's a Bohemian Rootbeersity before the movies. To continue amplifying Black voices in film, we start by discussing PREMATURE (3:01), a recent compelling Harlem-set coming-of-age picture. Then we talk about THE SURROGATE (24:45), a challenging movie about a surrogate for her gay best friends who faces some thorny decisions. Lastly, we review THE KING OF STATEN ISLAND (49:30), Judd Apatow's latest comedy, starring Pete Davidson in a very autobiographical story. On our Patreon bonus episode, we discuss Horace Jenkins' CANE RIVER.

Because we support Black Lives Matter, and we believe in amplifying Black voices, we open our show this week by discussing Coolidge Corner Theatre's anti-racist film list (5:44) and offering our own racial justice film recommendations. Then we talk about the brutally violent, wildly entertaining movie, BECKY (20:06), where Lulu Wilson fights a neo-Nazi played by Kevin James. Next, we cover the beautiful, psychological film SHIRLEY (39:33), where Elisabeth Moss plays a fictionalized version of writer Shirley Jackson. In our Patreon bonus audio, we review Takashi Miike's DEAD OR ALIVE, which caused one of us to turn it off after just 15 minutes.

This week we discuss obnoxious drink orders before we delve into our three movies. First, is the disappointing Netflix romcom/murder mystery THE LOVEBIRDS (2:31), which squanders Issa Rae and Kumail Nanjiani's chemistry. Next is the entertaining dark comedy LUCKY GRANDMA (16:49), about a hilarious chain-smoking Chinese grandma (Tsai Chin). Then, we cover the sprawling Dakota Johnson/Tracee Ellis Ross music industry drama, THE HIGH NOTE (33:56), which divides our co-hosts. Over on our Patreon exclusive audio we review Justin Lin's BETTER LUCK TOMORROW in honor of Asian and Pacific Islander American Heritage Month. Both our main episode and Patreon segment were edited by Otto Klammer.

This week is Cerealpiece Theatre before we talk about movies! First up is MILITARY WIVES (5:15), a cozy, yet predictable film about sparring military spouses (Kristin Scott Thomas and Sharon Horgan) trying to manage a choir when their husbands are deployed. Next is THE PAINTER AND THE THIEF (18:47), a moving documentary about a painter and a thief's fascinating relationship. Then, it's THE TRIP TO GREECE (38:40), the funny, but somber final film in The TRIP series with Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon. On our Patreon bonus episode we discuss the winner of our tearjerker poll: DEAD POETS SOCIETY.

Stay-at-home-piece Theatre opens this week with Megan and Evan discussing the Indigenous zombie flick BLOOD QUANTUM (2:42), which has satisfying, gore-filled action scenes. Next, everyone covers CIRCUS OF BOOKS (17:44), a slightly scattered, yet compelling documentary about a nice Jewish couple that ran a gay porn store. Lastly, they dissect THE VAST OF NIGHT (39:39), a sci-fi film that pays homage to THE TWILIGHT ZONE with very different degrees of success depending on which co-host you ask.

Another week housebound, another week streaming! First up it's HOW TO BUILD A GIRL (3:05), the Beanie Feldstein-starring coming-of-age tale about a young woman who's trying to find herself amid shady parents, asshole colleagues, and her own bad decisions. Then it's SPACESHIP EARTH (23:20) a documentary that is NOT about EPCOT Center or Buckminster Fuller (or Steve Bannon, though he makes an appearance), but about the are-they-wackos who designed and lived in Biosphere 2. Finally, it's more coming-of-age with Alice Wu's THE HALF OF IT (41:34)! This movie stands out for its Cyrano-de-Bergerac-with-a-queer-twist plot that met with three different opinions from Evan, Megan, and Dave. Over on Patreon, we talk about REC, the 2007 horror movie that feels waaaaaaay too timely.

Megan leads off this week's show with the beautifully made, but bleak post-war film BEANPOLE (3:50). Then she and Evan review the intriguing yet problematic Hugh Jackman/Allison Janney-led HBO picture BAD EDUCATION (17:15). Next, everyone covers DEERSKIN (34:35), a crazy French film with subtext that may or may not be intentional. Finally, they all discuss The WRETCHED (48:00), a horror movie that's strongest when it focuses on its creature and mythology.