Tom Hanks Defence Force

It’s almost Halloween - the fourth scariest time of the year after April Fool’s Day, Black Friday, and the day when everyone forgets it’s their mum’s birthday next week. And, surprise surprise, it’s the time when a surge of new horror films hit the big screen. With the likes of Doctor Sleep, The Lighthouse, Last Christmas, and Eli all due for release in the next few weeks, 2019 looks set to honour that terrifying tradition. But are there any more horrors yet to be announced, and ones we could still see before Halloween? Any horrors set in medieval England? Or with werewolves in the blitz? Could Sir Paul McCartney be making his horror movie debut? Listen in, as Alex and Jack bring their devilish mystery pitch ideas to Spooky Season.

In 2017, Pennywise – a name synonymous with fear, clowns, and fiscal responsibility – returned to the big screen for the first time since 1990. Earning over $700 million at the box office, it quickly became the highest-grossing horror film of all time. In 2019, the terror returns, as director Andy Muschietti brings us back for Chapter Two. But compared to the novel, how do these films bring Stephen King’s terrifying vision to life? Why has It become such an international sensation? Where does Pennywise sit in the canon of monstrous icons? Who was the better Pennywise? What does this mean for the future of horror? Join Jack and Alex as they float across the Atlantic to the town of Derry, spotting turtles and sewage, and discuss the raw boundlessness of It and the human imagination. Warning: As always, this episode contains spoilers.

Newspaper headlines are designed to make your eyeballs bulge. Their one and only goal - suck you in and make you want to read more. So in this episode of mystery pitch, Alex and Jack decided to task each other with pitching films based entirely on two of the craziest headlines out there. How will Batman and Buzz Lightyear break up that chip shop brawl? How successful will the quest to hunt Big Foot be? Find out as Tom Hanks Defence Force attempt to save print media in another exciting edition of mystery pitch.

Before the announcement that Amazon's Lord of the Rings series will be set in the 2nd Age, Jack and Alex sat down to chat about the history of the show’s development, the franchise itself and what they want from the series, as well as what time period they'd like it to be set in, which characters they'd like to see featured, and (perhaps most importantly) which creatures we want back. Gather your Fellowship, your sword, your bow and your axe, and listen to Tom Hanks Defence Force.

20 years ago, a ground-breaking sci-fi movie starring Keanu Reeves came out that changed cinema forever. That film was The Matrix. But that's not the film we're talking about today. That;s right, also celebrating its 20th anniversary is Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace. To celebrate the 20th anniversary of its UK release, on 16th July 1999, Jack and Alex freestyle the episode. No plan, no structure, no guest appearance from Nute Gunray. Just pure opinions of what they got right, and what they got terribly wrong. The Force is with the boys as they chat George Lucas' controversial, fan-splitting film.

The most important part of the film is the beginning (arguably). If the opening doesn’t make your audience sound like the aliens from Toy Story, they’ll immediately lose interest and switch over to something delicious, like The Office. In this episode of Mystery Pitch, Jack and Alex ask the question: How would you start the most epic film ever made? Will four babies robbing a bank turn out to be a hit? Will someone jumping through a window after ordering food end up being a tasty film? Listen to find out if the boys can do it again, in another sweat-inducing episode of Tom Hanks Defence Force.

When you think of horror films, a masked knife-wielding serial killer is probably one of the first images that comes to mind. But despite being one of the most iconic sub-genres in the horror pantheon, the slasher has experienced success as high as the kill count in John Wick, and failures as low as that time Middlesbrough beat Man City 8-1. But now, with the success of films like Happy Death Day and the new Halloween film, the slasher has stuck its machete into the map once again. But as the genre constantly evolves, what does its future hold? Featuring an in-depth review of the new Halloween, Jack and Alex carefully dissect the Slasher genre. Rated M for Michael Myers.

To make a film memorable, filmmakers must go all out for their endings. That's why in this episode of mystery pitch, Alex and Jack give each other endings - endings which they then have to build the rest of their film around. Jack gives Alex a film that results in US Vice President Mike Pence sword fighting England football manager Gareth Southgate at the party of Leicester City striker Jamie Vardy. And Alex gives Jack a film where everyone eventually realises the Bird Box challenge was a terrible idea all along. What are these films about, and how do they get to these endings? Listen and find out.

Game of Thrones is arguably the biggest and most important TV show of our time. Since its humble beginnings, it has grown to become the most anticipated show on the planet. But what does the future hold once the final episode airs? What will happen to the cast and crew? What will be the next greatest franchise and fill the void that Game of Thrones has left? Alex and Jack sign up for the Nights Watch to try and tackle the big questions surrounding the final season of Game of Thrones.

Freestyle is a new show from Tom Hanks Defence Force. We take one topic and let the conversation lead us anywhere. In our debut, we discuss the Lord of the Rings trilogy with special guests Euan Brook and Freddie Brown. The boys start with Gothmog and finish with The Invisible Man. Together, their unchained analysis of The Lord of the Rings and everything in between takes them deeper than the Mines of Moria and further than that place Frodo sails to at the end of The Return of the King. How did we get from one to the other? Listen here to find out.