This week on the Wages of Cinema, we have a looser format (no 2 Minute Movie Mile, but we do get to some new movies that we've seen), and some talk on some things that have happened recently in the world of movies, and to us with movies. To start off with it's a talk about the 2016 Oscar nominations (#Oscarssowhite); the new trailer that was sprung completely by surprise (certainly on Andrew) for 10 CLOVERFIELD LANE; Jack and Andrew talk about one of the worst films ever made, DOUBLE DOWN by Neil Breen; new movies include some new releases (MACBETH, QUEEN OF EARTH, THE REVENANT on a 2nd viewing), and some not so new films (BEST IN SHOW, SEARCHING FOR SUGARMAN and JAMAICA INN).

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1) 01:27 Oscar Talk

2) 16;07 10 CLOVERFIELD LANE trailer

3) 26:00 DOUBLE DOWN/NEIL BREEN

4) 41:01 Movie reviews

Now we come to the end of an experiment in filling up some big gaps in our movie-viewing, and Jack and Andrew reflect on the best, worst and 'meh' of the films they watched in 2015 as part of this adventure in cinema.

Song is by Syd Vallentine

We come to the end, and what better way to finish off this 2015 year LIST series with two movies for children... sort of. But at any rate, it's Dr. Seuss and Studio Ghibli, so hopefully it'll get some ears perked up, with a cult classic and an actual modern classic.

1) Dr. Seuss' THE 5,000 FINGERS OF DR. T (1953)

2) Hayao Miazaki's PRINCESS MONONOKE (1997)

A new year, and some new (and old) films! But first, we can't get away from it (and we saw it again), so THE FORCE AWAKENS is talked about. Then at 13 minutes in we get into the Two Minute Movie Mile, with films by great French directors (Melville, Bresson, Malle), some superb but depressing tales about real-world issues (the economy, abortion, romance in the closet), and of course Capra.

1) KRAMPUS (2015)

2) IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE (1946) (again)

3) THE BIG SHORT (2015)

4) MURMUR OF THE HEART (1971)

5) LE SILENCE DE LA MER (1949)

6) CAROL (2015)

7) THE PRIZEFIGHTER AND THE LADY (1933)

8) VERA DRAKE (2004)

9) CONCUSSION (2015)

10) THE DEVIL, PROBABLY (1977)

11) PICNIC AT HANGING ROCK (1975) (also again)

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Music by John Williams

HAPPY NEW YEAR! New logo, new review podcast!

For such an event as the 8TH FILM BY QUENTIN TARANTINO (and not unlike Fellini he makes sure to have the number of films in the title gosh darnit), the Wages of Cinema makes sure to give you some extra podcast bang for your (free for now) buck with our longest talk about a single film yet. We talk about the movie, 70mm, westerns, Ennio Morricone - there IS a spoiler section about halfway through, and it's marked off for your safety - and just how Quentin Tarantino can get away with what he does (and why no one else has thought to do what he does with films like Inglourious Basterds why Django Unchained).

Be sure to stay tuned for a new regular episode next week when we finish our LIST segment of 2015, and look forward to 2016.

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Music by Ennio Morricone and Roy Orbison (fair use)

Well, what else did you expect? We look at the first Star Wars film in ten years and the first to not have George Lucas involved in the principle production. Oh and SPOILERS OF COURSE DON'T LISTEN UNTIL YOU WATCH THE MOVIE PLEASE FOR THE OF YODA!

Oh, and Jack's wife Korey (who you may have heard before on the Avengers: Age of Ultron review) gives her thoughts on Chewbacca and wookies in general about 40 minutes in. You've been warned. Seriously, it's not pretty.

If you agree or disagree with our take on the movie or just want to say hello or any thoughts, please email us at [email protected] and/or message us directly at https://www.facebook.com/wagesofcinema not to mention Twitter @wagesofcinema

(Opening song is Meco's Star Wars theme)

Welcome back to the 90's, when you could go to a place like AUSTIN, TEXAS or GROSSE POINTE, MICHIGAN and have an interesting sense of, uh, community you could say. In the two films this week we look at one landmark American independent film and one very good middle-budget American comedy (with some action) and see what they may or may not have in common, and if they still work today.

Oh, and before the talk Jack tells of the fun and excitement of a Jewish wedding. For... reasons.

1) SLACKER (1991)

2) GROSSE POINTE BLANK (1997)

This is a shorter Two Minute Movie Mile than usual as, simply, Jack and Andrew didn't see much in the past week since we last recorded (to catch up with a previous week missed).

1) THE REVENANT (2015)

2) I MARRIED A WITCH (1942)

3) JOY (2015)

4) ANOMALISA (2015)

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Songs: Duke Ellington's 'Jubilee Stomp' and Louis Armstrong's 'St Louis Blues'

Where our hosts look back in total appreciation for being here for a full ONE YEAR! It's our anniversary! So what have learned? ....

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Sometimes when you go for making something BIG and BOLD it works, and sometimes it just doesn't. Like, at all. And no matter how much money you throw at it it won't turn out good. Or, no matter how much money you have to keep sinking into your passion, the core of what makes it work will always work. Thus we come to the first (and only) documentary on 'THE LIST', and that other time right after Die Hard that Bruce Willis took a massive doody at the box office.

1) Michael Lehmann's HUDSON HAWK (1991)

2) George Hickenlooper & Fax Bahr's HEARTS OF DARKNESS: A FILMMAKER'S APOCALYPSE (1991)