The Smoking Screen Podcast

SPOILER-FREE! This is a tough one to describe. A somber meditation on the process of grieving? Not quite. A moody and atmospheric piece on the quest for self-identity? No. That’s not it either. A post-modern critique of the industrialization of romantic relationships? Ok, I’ll stop. However you describe Jean-Marc Vallée’s Demolition, there is one thing that is certain. Jake Gyllenhaal loves playing dark and brooding characters. Is that creepy? How quirky and strange is this film? What genre is it? Was the always solid Naomi Watts sufficiently solid? We answer these questions and the meaning of life in episode 67 of The Smoking Screen Podcast. Come join the circle!

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SPOILER-FREE! There is little doubt we have become a high surveillance society. Hi NSA! However, in this Orwellian-nightmare, what is often overlooked (pun intended) are the moral and ethical questions about how we should act upon the information we gather. When should we intervene and at what cost? This is the fundamental question at the heart of Eye in the Sky. Sporting an strong ensemble cast including Helen Mirren, Aaron Paul, and Alan Rickman (in his final dramatic role), does the film find a palatable way to delve into these complex and troubling issues? We answer all of theses questions and more in episode 66 of The Smoking Screen Podcast.

SPOILER-FREE! They don’t get much bigger than this. The long-awaited and much discussed, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, exploded (rather loudly) onto screens this weekend. In the process it scored a huge box office windfall. Why did the majority of critics dislike the film? Was Ben Affleck able to successfully step into one of cinemas biggest roles? Or, did we get Pearl Harbor Affleck? Does the film take itself too seriously? And what about Wonder Woman? No really. What about Wonder Woman? We answer these questions and more in episode 65 of The Smoking Screen Podcast. Come join the circle!

SPOILER-FREE! There are few things as relaxing as a cute animated film about a group animals that can talk, wear clothes and have zany adventures. Disney’s Zootopia is not that film. What is it then? Perhaps the first entry in the animated zombie/social consciousness allegory genre? Does this unlikely combination of cuteness, comedy, horror and morality somehow manage to work? Are the voice talents of Ginnifer Goodwin, Jason Bateman, Idris Elba, J.K. Simmons, Tommy Chong, Octavia Spencer, Jenny Slate, and Shakira, put to good use? We answer all of these questions and more in episode 64 of The Smoking Screen Podcast. Come join the circle.

SPOILER-FREE! End of the world or not, can you ever really trust a guy who builds a bunker under his farmhouse? That is the question that 10 Cloverfield Lane poses as it draws us into its suffocatingly dramatic web. Why is John Goodman getting early Oscar chatter about his performance? Why does producer J.J. Abrams mean when he says that the film is a “blood relative” of the original Cloverfield? We answer all of these questions and more in episode 63 of The Smoking Screen Podcast. Come join the circle!

Did Olympus Has Fallen really need a sequel? Regardless, the creativity titled London Has Fallen has exploded on to screens. Explosions? Yes. Plot? America!! Could this possibly be the most distasteful film ever made? Did the always enjoyable Morgan Freeman find a place in the mayhem? Why was Jay so excited to this movie? We answers all of these questions (and don the earpiece with Gerard Butler one more time) as we review London Has Fallen in episode 62 of The Smoking Screen. Come join the circle!

SPOILER-FREE! If you go into the woods today, you’re in for a big surprise (hint: it might be a witch). Good thing we like surprises. Cue creepy music. We set aside our fear and travel to 1630’s New England shortly after the arrival of the Mayflower to review The Witch: A New England Folktale! Why did this film win at Sundance, but has only had a lukewarm reception from the general public? Does David Egger’s directorial debut stake a claim for him being considered as part of the next generation of great filmmakers? Are Puritans really this creepy? We answer all of these question and reveal the winners of The Smoking Screen’s 2016 Oscar Pool in episode 61! Come and join the circle!

SPOILER-FREE! Rounding out our reviews of the Best Picture nominees, we take a melodramatic journey into the heart of Brooklyn. How delightful is the performance of Best Actress nominee, Saoirse Ronan? Was that Domhnall Gleeson? (Damn, he was good in Ex-Machina. And he was in Star Wars too. So hot right now). Do we actually care about these characters? Was it an overly romanticized version of immigrant life in 1950’s New York? We answer all of these questions and more in Episode 60 of The Smoking Screen.

Have YOU entered our FREE Oscar Pool?  Awesome prizes up for grabs from our friends at BC Smoke Shop and Retro Active: The Alternative Smoke Shop!

SPOILER-FREE! Its been 15 years since Derek Zoolander first walked down the cinematic catwalk into our lives. The original Zoolander, was panned and left for dead by most critics. It became an unexpected cult hit after a mediocre theatrical run thanks to its off-beat humor, celebrity cameos and repeated catchphrases. Despite all odds, Ben Stiller (Derek), Owen Wilson (Hansel) and Will Ferrell (Mugatu) reprise their infamous roles 15 years later in Zoolander 2. Does the sequel depend on the same jokes from when George W. Bush first took office? Do we still find intellectually challenged male models funny? Are the cameos a great addition or a distraction? Is it better (hotter?) or worse than the original? We discuss all this and more in Episode 59 of The Smoking Screen Podcast. Come join the circle!

Have YOU entered our FREE Oscar Pool?  Awesome prizes up for grabs from our friends at BC Smoke Shop and Retro Active: The Alternative Smoke Shop!

SPOILER-FREE! Who doesn’t love a smart ass in a shiny red suit? Fresh off its record-breaking weekend, we take good hard look at Ryan Reynolds in Deadpool. Was it the R-rated comic adventure that superhero fans had been eagerly waiting for? Will it pave the way for more R-rated blockbusters in the future? Does it redeem Ryan Reynolds after the notoriously awful, The Green Hornet? Is a sequel inevitable? We discuss all this and more in episode 58 of The Smoking Screen. Come join the circle!

Have YOU entered our FREE Oscar Pool?  Awesome prizes up for grabs from our friends at BC Smoke Shop and Retro Active: The Alternative Smoke Shop!