Talkin' TV

Alright people, the penultimate podcast installment of October, Chris & Dom sit down to review the next film from Denis Villeneuve and the long awaited second adaptation of Frank Herbert's iconic 1965 novel, Dune! a 2021 American epic science fiction film directed by Denis Villeneuve with a screenplay by Jon Spaihts, Villeneuve, and Eric Roth. It is the first of a planned two-part adaptation of the 1965 novel of the same name by Frank Herbert, primarily covering the first half of the book. Set in the far future, it follows Paul Atreides, as he and his family, the noble House Atreides, are thrust into a war for the dangerous desert planet Arrakis, between the native Fremen people and the enemy invaders, and former rulers of Arrakis, the House Harkonnen. The film stars an ensemble cast including Timothée Chalamet as the titular Paul, Rebecca Ferguson as Lady Jessica, Oscar Isaac as Duke Leto Atreides, Josh Brolin as Gurney Halleck, Stellan Skarsgård as Baron Vladimir Harkonnen, Dave Bautista as Glossu "Beast" Rabban, Stephen McKinley Henderson as Thufir Hawat, Zendayan as Chaney, David Dastmalchian as Piter de Vries, Chang Chen as Dr. Wellington Yueh, Sharon Duncan-Brewster as Liet-Kynes, Charlotte Rampling as Rev. Mother Gaius Helen Mohiam, Jason Momoa as Duncan Idaho and Javier Bardem as Stilgar. Following a failed attempt by Paramount Pictures to produce a new adaptation of Herbert's novel, Legendary Entertainment acquired film and TV rights to the science fiction novel Dune in 2017. Development began shortly after, with Villeneuve expressing interest in the project and officially signing on as director in January 2017. He worked with Roth and Spaihts to write the screenplay, breaking it into two parts and incorporating an updated 21st century adaptation of the 1965 novel. Filming took place from March to July 2019 at various locations including areas in Budapest, Jordan, Norway, and Abu Dhabi. Dom & Chris break down what works about this adaptation and what doesn't, how it compares to the original 1984 adaptation, and whether this film only comprising of the first half of the novel was a good idea. Keep tuning in for more awesome episodes of the #talkintvpodcast #dune #dune2021 #dunemovie #duneadaptation #dunedenisvilleneuve #dunehbomax #hbomax #frankherbert #dunemoviereview

On the next episode of Talkin' Thrones, Professor Pat & Dom "The Movie Nerd" examine the fourth episode of Season 3 of this hit show, entitled "And Now His Watch is Ended." Directed by Alex Graves and written by David Benioff & DB Weiss, this episode is a peculiar beast, because it has some very iconic and amazingly well done sequences, in contrast to the vast majority of the plot being very minimalistic and slow paced. The phrase itself is in reference to whenever a brother of the Night's Watch dies. North of the Wall, the tension finally reaches the breaking point with the starving brothers murdering Craster and Lord Commander Mormont, forcing Sam & Gilly to go on the run. Arya meets Beric Dondarrion, the leader of the Brotherhood without banners, who challenges the Hound to trial by combat. Theon finds himself right back where he started, while Bran continues to dream. Jaime ruminates about what life is like without his greatest assett. Daenerys achieves her first true victory as a conqueror by murdering the slavemasters and gaining the ultimate alliance of the Unsullied. In King's Landing, more meddling is afoot as Varys makes his move against Littlefinger, while Margaery proposes marriage ideas to Sansa. It's an interesting episode, but another memorable one. Be sure to keep tuning in every Sunday for new episodes of #talkinthrones #gameofthrones #gameofthronesseason3 #season3 #andnowhiswatchisended #season3episode4 #season3recap #gameofthronesrecap #georgerrmartin #davidbenioff #dbweiss #gameofthronesseason3recap

We kick off the countdown to Halloween with the latest installment in the Halloween franchise as well as our SHOCK-tober event, "Halloween Kills." a 2021 American slasher film directed by David Gordon Green and written by Green, Danny McBride, and Scott Teems. The film is a sequel to 2018's Halloween and the twelfth installment in the Halloween franchise. The film stars Jamie Lee Curtis and James Jude Courtney, who reprise their roles as Laurie Strode and Michael Myers. Judy Greer, Andi Matichak, and Will Patton also reprise their roles from the previous film, with Anthony Michael Hall and Thomas Mann joining the cast. The film, which begins precisely where the previous film ended, sees Strode and her family continuing to fend off Myers, this time, with the help of the Haddonfield community. Jason Blum serves as a producer on the film through his Blumhouse Productions banner, alongside Malek Akkad and Bill Block. Before the release of the 2018 film, McBride in June 2018 confirmed that he and Green were originally intending to pitch two films that would be shot back-to-back, and then decided against it, waiting to see the reaction to the first film. Following the critical and commercial success of the 2018 film, development on the sequel promptly began as early as October 2018. By February 2019, Teems was hired to co-write the script. The film's title was officially announced in July 2019, along with its sequel. Principal photography commenced in September 2019 in Wilmington, North Carolina. A third film, entitled "Halloween Ends" is set to be released next year. Chris & Dom discuss and breakdown this next installment, what place it holds in the franchise, and whether it holds a spot in the recent string of memorable recent horror movies. Be sure to keep coming back to more episodes of the #talkintvpodcast #halloweenkills #michaelmyers #tommydoyle #anthonymichaelhall #lauriestrode #jamieleecurtis #judygreer #andymaticheck #davidgordongreen #dannymcbride #halloweenfranchise #halloweenreboots

On tonight's episode of Talkin' Thrones, it's the continuation of Season 3 with the next part of the set up of the season with Season 3, Episode 3, Walk of Punishment! One of only three episodes directed by the series creators, this one by David Benioff, this episode starts to see all the storylines established in the first half of this season coalesce. First there's Robb, who's moved his forces to Riverrun for the funeral of his grandfather, Hoster Tully's funeral, where we're introduced to his badass great uncle Brynden "Blackfish" Tully & his incompetant uncle, Edmure Tully, both characters that seemed poised to have a big role in the show, and then promptly disappeared post the Red Wedding until they needed to wrap the storyline up in Season 6. Elsewhere in the Riverlands, Arya says goodbye to Hot Pie as her, Gendry & the Hound are now all prisoners of the Brotherhood without Banners, while Jaime attempts to barter for Brienne's innocence, but learns what over-reliance on his father's name will get him as his journey truly begins with the loss of his hand. In the North, Theon is led on a cat and mouse goose chase by his captors, all apart of Ramsay Bolton's larger game. On Dragonstone, Melisandre departs for parts unknown. North of the Wall, Mance learns of the attack on the Night's Watch, and orders Jon to attack his former brothers, while Sam and company arrive back at Craster's, with things looking grim all around. In King's Landing, Tyrion is made Master of Coin in Littlefinger's place, while Podrick Payne gets some much deserved R&R with the ladies. Across the Narrow Sea, Daenerys makes a dangerous deal with the slavers for the Unsullied by offering up one of her dragons. It's all happening here, only on the #talkintvpodcast #gameofthrones #kingslanding #northofthewall #gameofthronesrecapshow #tyrionlannister #jonsnow #margaerytyrell #tywinlannister #sansastark #littlefinger #astapor #slaversbay #unsullied #walkofpunishment #masterofcoin #podrickpayne #hotpie #astapor

On tonight's episode of the Talkin' TV podcast, we return, LIVE, for a true cinematic event. People, that's right, we're discussing the return of James Bond, 007 himself, in Daniel Craig's swan song "No Time to Die." The 25th in the James Bond series produced by Eon Productions. It stars Daniel Craig in his fifth and final outing as the fictional British MI6 agent James Bond. It is directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga from a screenplay by Neal Purvis, Robert Wade, Fukunaga and Phoebe Waller-Bridge. Léa Seydoux, Ben Whishaw, Naomie Harris, Jeffrey Wright, Christoph Waltz, Rory Kinnear and Ralph Fiennes reprise their roles from previous films, with Rami Malek, Lashana Lynch, Billy Magnussen, Ana de Armas, David Dencik and Dali Benssalah also starring. In this film, Bond, who has left active service with MI6, is recruited by the CIA to rescue a kidnapped scientist, which leads to a showdown with a powerful adversary. Development began in 2016. It is the first Bond film distributed by Universal Pictures, which acquired the international distribution rights following the expiration of Sony Pictures' contract after the release of Spectre in 2015. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer subsidiary United Artists Releasing holds the rights for North America, as well as worldwide digital and television rights; Universal also holds the worldwide rights for physical home media. Danny Boyle was originally attached to direct and co-write the screenplay with John Hodge. Both left due to creative differences in August 2018, and Fukunaga was announced as Boyle's replacement a month later. Most of the cast had signed on by April 2019. Principal photography was from April to October 2019 under the working title Bond 25. The final title was announced in August 2019. Dom & Chris discuss the history of the franchise, what they each thought of it, whether Chris thinks it's a stand out in the action pantheon, and how it stands out amongst the meriad of mediocrity we've dealt with so far in 2021. It all happens here, on the #talkintvpodcast #jamesbond #jamesbondmovie #jamesbondfranchise #jamesbond25 #bond25 #notimetodie #ramimalek #christophwaltz #leaseydoux #felixleiter #ernststavroblofeld #carijojifukunaga #cars #gadgets #m #q

On tonight's episode of Talkin' Thrones, it's the continuation of Season 3 with the next part of the set up of the season with Season 3, Episode 2, entitled Dark Wings, Dark Words. It serves as Part 2 of the opening really, as it covers a majority of the storylines that there wasn't enough time to get to last week. We're spending a lot more time in the Riverlands now, as we have not just one, but three storylines happening there. Robb Stark marches for Riverrun to attend his grandfather's funeral, much to the protest of his men, while also learning about the sack of Winterfell. Jaime Lannister & Brienne of Tarth continue towards King's Landing, but keep running into problems along the way. We also catch up with Arya, who after being criticized by Gendry for not, you know, using her personal assassin to kill Tywin Lannister and end the war last season, is apprehended by the Brotherhood without Banners, who are some pretty cool people, at least until they bring in the Hound who reveals her identity. North of the Wall, Jon learns of the attack on the Fist of the First Men, while Sam and the Night's Watch survivors continue their march to the Wall. In the North, Bran's dreams are back, and they meet a couple of guides who share history with Bran and claim that they can bring him to the Three Eyed Raven. Meanwhile, Theon finds himself captured and being relentlessly tortured, but his captors won't reveal why. Finally, in King's Landing, we're introduced to the Tyrell matriarch, Lady Olenna Tyrell, who shows her incredible mix of cunning and flattery by managing to coax information out of Sansa about Joffrey. It's all happening here, only on the #talkintvpodcast #gameofthrones #gameofthronesseason3 #season3 #darkwingsdarkwords #season3episode2 #season3recap #gameofthronesrecap #georgerrmartin #davidbenioff #dbweiss #gameofthronesseason3recap

On tonight's kick-off episode of SHOCK-tober, Dom is joined once again by old friend and fellow movie critic Dustin "the Duster" Mason to discuss the two releases we got this past weekend: HBO Max's Sopranos prequel "The Many Saints of Newark" and the aptly anticipated "Venom: Let There be Carnage." The Many Saints of Newark is directed by Alan Taylor and written by David Chase and Lawrence Konner. A prequel to Chase's HBO crime drama series The Sopranos, it takes place during the 1960s and 1970s in Newark, New Jersey. The film follows a violent gang war from the perspectives of mobster Dickie Moltisanti, Christopher Moltisanti's father, and his teenage nephew, a young Tony Soprano, in the midst of the city's 1967 riots. It stars Alessandro Nivola as Dickie and Michael Gandolfini as Tony, the character originated by his father in the series, with Leslie Odom Jr., Jon Bernthal, Corey Stoll, Billy Magnussen, Michela De Rossi, John Magaro, Ray Liotta, and Vera Farmiga in supporting roles. The film is populated by Sopranos legacy characters, but does the film hold up the legacy of Chase's game changing series? They also cover Venom: Let There be Carnage, the sequel to the surprisingly successful 2018 Venom film, directed by Ruben Fleischer and starring Tom Hardy. This time, Andy Serkis hops in the directing chair with a screenplay by Kelly Marcel, based on a story she wrote with Hardy who returns as Eddie Brock / Venom alongside Michelle Williams, Naomie Harris, Reid Scott, Stephen Graham, and Woody Harrelson. In the film, Brock tries to reignite his career in journalism by interviewing serial killer Cletus Kasady (Harrelson), who becomes the host of the alien symbiote spawn of Venom, named Carnage. Venom was intended to be the start of a new shared universe, and plans for a sequel began during production on the first film. Harrelson was cast to make a brief appearance as Kasady at the end of Venom with the intention of him becoming the villain Carnage in the sequel. Official work on the sequel began in January 2019, with Hardy and Harrelson confirmed to return along with Marcel as writer. Serkis was hired as director that August, partly due to his experience working with CGI and motion-capture technology which was an important part of portraying Venom and Carnage in the film. Filming took place at Leavesden Studios in England from November 2019 to February 2020, with additional filming in San Francisco in February. The title was announced in April 2020. The film was primarily inspired by the comic book story arc "Maximum Carnage" (1993) and animated series story arc The Venom Saga (1996). The film has been delayed several times due to Covid and whether it would actually make money in theaters, and considering the film's made $91 million at the box office, it's safe to say it's made its money back, but is the film actually worth watching? Keep tuning in for more episodes of the #talkintvpodcast, every Monday! 

On tonight's episode of Talkin' Thrones, it's the Season 3 debut!!! You guys know what that means, Red Wedding time! Well not quite, we've still got the first 8 episodes to get through. But we're breaking down the premiere of Season 3 of Thrones tonight, entitled "Valar Dohaeris," as the second part of the pair of phrases we were introduced to with last season's finale, Valar Morghulis! Premiering on March 13, 2013, 8 years ago, Benioff, Weiss & director Daniel Minahan picked up right from where they left off last season and showed how all the characters were going to pick up the pieces from the fallout from the end of Season 2. The characters are all in vastly different spots than they were last seaosn, some on the rise, and others on the decline. For Jon & Daenerys, it's on the upswing. Jon is now enmeshed with the wildlings, meets Mance Rayder and gains his trust, while Daenerys finds herself in Astapor to buy an army of slaves to retake Westeros. Meanwhile, things are not looking so good for Tyrion & Davos, as Davos finds himself crawling back to Stannis after the battle of Blackwater to find him completely at the whim of Melisandre and is locked away for attempting to kill her. Tyrion finds himself at a massively disadvantaged position now that Tywin is back in control of King's Landing, and exerts his control by refusing Tyrion's request to rule over Casterly Rock. Meanwhile, the Lannisters are already envious of their new allies with the Tyrells, as Margaery is making moves to endear the people to her. It's all happening here, only on the #talkintvpodcast #gameofthrones #kingslanding #northofthewall #gameofthronesrecapshow #tyrionlannister #jonsnow #margaerytyrell #tywinlannister #sansastark #littlefinger #astapor #slaversbay #unsullied

On tonight's episode of the show, we wrap up September by taking a break from the hustle and bustle of mainstream cinema and doing a rare entry: a Nicolas Cage film. Specifically, a Nicolas Cage film that went to SUNDANCE film festival. That film is Sion Sono's Prisoners of the Ghostland. A 2021 American neo-noir Western action film directed by Sion Sono, from a script by Aaron Hendry and Reza Sixo Safai. The film stars Nicolas Cage, Sofia Boutella, and Bill Moseley. Its plot revolves around a notorious criminal, Hero (Nicolas Cage), who is sent to rescue the governor's adopted granddaughter, who has disappeared into a dark region called Ghostland. The film had its world premiere at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival on January 31, 2021. The film was released in theaters and on video on demand on September 17, 2021, by RLJE Films. Critics gave the film generally mixed to positive reviews. For us, it was just such a blast getting to take a break from the disappointing blockbuster faire of the summer and get to talk about an actor who, while has not been in some good movies, has had a long, varied but interesting career. He's worked with some incredible directors, and has such a distinct style of acting, and with his recent turn towards more cultish faire that really sees him in some outlandish settings. He's stated that he will never retire from acting. Be sure to keep tuning in for more episodes of the #talkintvpodcast

On tonight's episode of Talkin' Thrones, we cover the Season 2 finale, entitled "Valar Morghulis," the ancient Valyrian phrase that translates to "All Men must Die." It's a jam packed finale for a jam packed season, and it pulls off the rare ability of having a ton of stuff happening, wrapping up all the current storylines in a satisfying way, and setting us up for what's to come in the following seasons. Season 1 may have introduced us to this world and these characters, but Season 2 sets the stakes for what's to come, because as Melisandre so eloquently puts it, this war is just beginning. First, we catch up with the aftermath of the battle of Blackwater. The Lannisters have won the day, with Tywin assuming his rightful place as hand of the king, and Joffrey solidifying his alliance by agreeing to marry Margaery Tyrell, but it's the beginning of the end for Tyrion, who finds himself scarred, alone and without allies. Varys is also making moves as Littlefinger is getting a little too much power for his liking, while Littlefinger makes a promise to Sansa. Then we briefly catch up with all the other ancillary storylines, as Brienne shows Jaime just who she is and what she's capable of, Arya receives a cryptic invitation to Braavos from Jaquen, Stannis begins to understand just what he's gotten himself involved in, while Robb solidifies his path to the Red Wedding by marrying Talisa. Theon finally suffers the consequences of his actions, while Bran & Rickon are forced to go on the run. Daenerys FINALLY leaves Quarth, even if it results in the dumbest Deus ex Machina imaginable, and Jon makes his move by infiltrating the Wildlings to sabotage them before they reach the Wall, finally comprehending just what the Night's Watch is up against. Speaking of which, back at their encampment, Sam is in for a surprise when a horde of White Walkers marches on the Fist of the First Men. It was a jam packed season, that's setting up for 6 more seasons worth of material. While not all of it works, it's always Thrones, which is why we're here for it. It's all happening here, only on the #talkintvpodcast