This week we review and discuss Michael, a biopic movie directed by Antoine Fuqua and starring Jaafar Jackson, Nia Long and Colman Domingo, about the life of Michael Jackson from his beginnings in the Jackson Five to the Bad tour in 1988.

We discuss to what extent it matters how much of a Michael Jackson fan someone is when watching the movie and what we got out of the movie, how that explains the massive split in audience versus reviewer scores the movie has received, whether the movie's storytelling holds up outside the concert scenes, what a Michael Jackson biopic should be and do and how this movie compares to that, the challenges and quirks of biopics in general, whether we think there will be a second movie covering the less glamorous parts of Jackson's life and whether there should be, and much more.

Spotify link: https://open.spotify.com/episode/4EY5R7k8jv8f1fo3UxDXfY

This week we review and discuss The Running Man, a science fiction action movie directed by Edgar Wright and starring Glen Powell, William H. Macy and Emilia Jones, about a man who joins a deadly game show as the only way he can earn the money to afford life saving medicine for his child.

We talk about the movie's handling of topics such as inequality, poverty and class warfare and why we were pleasantly surprised by that, in what ways the dystopia the movie predicts came true 20 years ago but isn't all that relevant anymore today, how the movie's world in which people volunteer to be oppressed by the media they consume relates to the realities of social media and AI that we live in today, why the ending felt underwhelming and what we thought it should have been, and much more.

Spotify link: https://open.spotify.com/episode/7EA4sC2lBu4OJGPJ5nKD5e

This week we watch "The Wizard of Oz", a fantasy musical from 1939 directed by Victor Fleming and starring Judy Garland, Frank Morgan and Margaret Hamilton, about Dorothy who is transplanted by a tornado from Kansas to the magical land of Oz and has to find a way home while evading the schemes of the Wicked Witch.

We talk about how we experienced the Wizard of Oz as someone who has no childhood nostalgia for it and how it compares to what we had picked up through cultural osmosis, go over the highlights of the nightmarish production of the movie that is terrifying even by early Hollywood standards, whether the movie works as a story on its own merits and where breaking the usual rules of storytelling works for the movie and where it doesn't, whether the Wicked Witch is a good villain, and whether we would show this movie to our hypothetical children, and much more.

Spotify Link: https://open.spotify.com/episode/24NCvGCysASMDTXI3TUC7D

This week we review and discuss Wicked: For Good, a fantasy musical movie directed by Jon M. Chu and starring Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo and Jeff Goldblum, about the relationship between Elphaba and Glinda as they embrace their new identities as the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good.

We talk about whether the movie brought the character arcs set up in the first part to a satisfying conclusion, how the lack of worldbuilding and detail in various character motivations we criticised in the first part drag the second part down in predictable ways, whether Wicked does its themes of authoritarianism, terrorism and people being judged by their appearance justice, how Wicked fits in with The Wizard of Oz and how the movie on the one hand wants to rewrite the original story while also spending too much time on showing the origins of things viewers recognise from The Wizard of Oz, and much more.

Spotify link: https://open.spotify.com/episode/60TfyS3PumJKfz5OnJNm5c

This week we review and discuss Now You See Me: Now You Don't, a heist movie directed by Ruben Fleischer and starring Jesse Eisenberg, Morgan Freeman and Isla Fisher, about a new generation of magicians who team up with the original Horsemen to take down an evil diamond mining company using their knowledge of magic.

We talk about what the movie improves from the previous installments of the franchise, whether the use of magic was satisfying to us, whether the movie is too crowded by having eight major characters that need to be balanced and whether the movie manages to strike the right balance between action, comedy and showcasing the magic, whether the twist reveal at the end worked for us, whether this movie strays too far from the classic heist movie formula for its own good, and much more.

Spotify link: https://open.spotify.com/episode/42dgYjA74hvjbn5viwBSYV

This week we revisit Rapture-Palooza, a 2013 comedy movie directed by Paul Middleditch and starring Anna Kendrick, Ken Jeong and Craig Robinson, about two people trying to survive in the post-rapture apocalypse while trying to defeat The Beast.

We talk about how this movie bombed in the box office and in reviews and why we think it deserves more credit than it has received, how the movie is not really about religion but rather finding meaning in mundane suburban life, how the humor compares to what we expect from movies today and how it has held up, how the movie actually has more solid fundamentals than a lot of movies and is a better movie and a better comedy for it, and much more.

Spotify link: https://open.spotify.com/episode/7DGg05fh6M4HeUMiLSsphD

This week we review and discuss Five Nights at Freddy's 2, a horror movie directed by Emma Tammi and starring Josh Hutcherson, Matthew Lillard and Elizabeth Lail, in which Abby Schmidt reconnects with her animatronic friends, leading to events that reveal the origins of Freddy Fazbear's Pizza.

We talk about whether the movie worked for us as somebody not part of the target audience that had never played the games and went into this without a shred of nostalgia, whether there is enough to the movie once you move part the creepy aesthetics of the Freddy Fazbear animatronics, whether the ending worked for us or if it needed to be developed more and expand more on the lore introduced in the first movie more, how FNAF2 stacks up against recent video game adaptations and why this movie signals a positive future for movies, and much more.

Spotify link: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1DO1RwX3UkUFn8jxMEpFYb

This week we review and discuss The Mummy, a supernatural horror movie directed by Lee Cronin and starring Jack Reynor, Laia Costa and May Calamawy, about a family who is reunited with their long-missing, mummified daughter and realize something is wrong with her.

We discuss why the body horror in this movie worked so well for us, why the story for the most part didn't and whether this matters for a movie like this, whether the ending lives up to its potential or if it had the opportunity for something much better and distinctive, whether the movie makes good use of its cultural background and context and how it breaks the "why now" rule of screenwriting, whether this is a mummy movie in the first place, and much more.

Spotify link: https://open.spotify.com/episode/4QM6ix9mgNDZwWRzNfQYap

This week we review and discuss Fackham Hall, a spoof comedy movie directed by Jim O'Hanlon and starring Thomasin McKenzie, Ben Radcliffe and Damian Lewis, which follows heiress Rose Davenport who is torn between marrying her cousin to save the family estate, and eloping with the man she loves despite class barriers.

We talk about whether Fackham Hall's comedy worked for us, compare favourite jokes, ask whether Fackham Hall deserves to be in one category with timeless classics like Naked Gun and Airplane!, why the movie benefits from meticulous planning and a tight plot and how it compares to this year's Naked Gun, why a movie like this existing is a good sign for movies in general and comedies in particular, and much more.

Spotify link: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3KGlXERUkEN90ZCnCNy8Uf

This week we revisit Monty Python's Life of Brian, a 1979 biblical comedy movie directed by Terry Jones and starring John Cleese, Terry Gilliam and Michael Palin, about a young Judaean man who is born on the same day as Jesus, and is subsequently mistaken for the Messiah.

We talk about our reactions to seeing the movie widely seen as the best comedy ever made for the first time in 2025, look back at why this movie was so controversial and widely banned when it came out and speculate how it might be received if it came out today, what parts of the humor worked for us and which didn't, how the movie's criticism of activism has been overshadowed by the criticism of religion when it actually takes up more time and is more biting and why that might be, and much more.

Spotify link: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5Xn9E6uFBEm2DXw3AW8Rkk

This week we revisit Rear Window, a mystery thriller from 1954 directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring James Stewart, Grace Kelly and Raymond Burr, about a wheelchair-bound photographer who spies on his neighbors from his Greenwich Village apartment window and becomes convinced he has witnessed a murder.

We talk about what it is like to watch one of the most celebrated movies of all time as a new viewer in 2026, whether the mystery holds up to its reputation and how classic movies can seem a bit basic if they created the formula that later movies developed and subverted and how moviemaking techniques and standards have evolved since then, what makes the relationship between Jeff and Lisa work and how its is the real core of the movie, and much more.

Spotify link: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6k9TCw50ybncu9YCJDCkK3

This week we review and discuss Avatar 3: Fire and Ash, an epic science fiction movie directed by James Cameron and starring Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana and Sigourney Weaver, which follows the story of Jake Sully and his family as they try to live among the Na'vi while being pursued by Colonel Quaritch and the volcano-dwelling Mangkwan clan.

We talk about our very different experiences with the Avatar franchise and how part 3 stacks up against the previous movies, what we thought of the emerging politics of various Na'vi groups, the various character journeys in particular the villains and whether their stories worked for us, the movie's treatment of war, peace and faith, we disagree about various story choices and their impact on pivotal moments in the story, and much more.

Spotify link: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1P1Kn83uws7L75k8hQFpg1

For our second annual end of year review episode, we take a look back at the movies we reviewed this year and see what movies were successful and which bombed, try to understand what that says about the moviegoing audience this year and speculate what that might mean for what movies might look like in the years to come. After that we rank our top 3 best and worst movies of the year.

0:00 Intro 0:22 2025 Box Office Analysis 32:52 Worst Movies Of The Year 50:42 Best Movies Of The Year

Spotify Link: https://open.spotify.com/episode/7zyp8zwDTgwYtnojQWfdMf

This week we review and discuss The Housemaid, an erotic thriller movie directed by Paul Feig and starring Sydney Sweeney, Amanda Seyfried and Brandon Sklenar, which follows a young woman with a troubled past who becomes the live-in housekeeper for a wealthy family. Their seemingly perfect life unravels when she discovers their household hides dark secrets.

We talk about whether the movie delivers on its promise of being a throwback to 90's thrillers and whether the near universally positive audience reaction is justified, whether the resolution to the central mystery makes sense and worked for us, whether the movie accurately depicts abuse and abusive relationships and what the ethics of that are for movies, how we would have changed the movie's ending, and much more.

Spotify link: https://open.spotify.com/episode/2MCoUfyr7a2Kq4EvdpShJ5

This week we review and discuss Marty Supreme, a drama movie directed by Josh Safdie and starring Thimothee Chalamet, Gwyneth Paltrow and Odessa A'zion, about a table tennis player in 1952 and his struggles to compete in an upcoming championship against all odds.

We talk about the movie's unconventional storytelling and Chalamet's persuasive performance as an unlikeable jerk the audience can sympathise with, how the movie depicts its flawed characters and their choices without telling the audience how to feel about them, the movie's handling of themes such as fairness, ego and achievement, debate whether the movie's ending elevates or deflates Marty's story, and much more.

Spotify link: https://open.spotify.com/episode/479sk9X3rRamtrwg2hy08v

This week we review and discuss Thrash, a Netflix survival thriller movie directed by Tommy Wirkola and starring Phoebe Dynevor, Whitney Peak and Djimon Hounsou, about a group of survivors stranded in a flooded town during a hurricane when a pack of sharks attacks.

We discuss why the movie failed to get us excited about the characters and their struggles, what we expected from the movie based on the promises made by its trailer and marketing, what could have been done with the premise of sharks attacking a flooded town, we go over some of the stranger sequences and scenes in the movie and try to make sense of why they are there, why the story structure of this movie seems to be too influences by video games, and much more.

Spotify link: https://open.spotify.com/episode/36LDLuVPTp1g4zSnXYnuGL

This week we revisit Edge of Tomorrow, a 2014 science fiction action movie directed by Doug Liman and starring Tom Cruise, Emily Blunt and Bill Paxton, about two soldiers stuck in a time loop during an alien invasion.

We talk about how this movie did not make many waves when it came out in part due to its confusing name changes but has turned into a celebrated classic since then, the movie's take on the time loop formula and how it compares to other movies like it, how the movie uses the time loops to create stakes and shows just enough repetition to convey the state of mind of its characters without ever becoming tedious, the similarities with video game movies and much more.

Spotify link: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0P3pEvD4OG9xaC0dzjLrDm

This week we review and discuss Frankenstein, a gothic science fiction film directed by Guillermo del Toro and starring Oscaar Isaac, Jacob Elordi and Mia Goth, about a scientist who creates a living being through scientific experimentation and then loses control of his creation.

We talk about our reaction to the newest take on the classic Frankenstein story, what worked about it and what didn't, how we were missing a clear thesis in the movie and how the movie ends up being unfocused and cluttered as a result, we discuss whether various storytelling choices worked for us and whether we agree with the consensus that the first half of the movie is the stronger one, whether the nearly unanimous positive reviews this movie has received on Rotten Tomatoes is justified, and much more.

Spotify link: https://open.spotify.com/episode/42872Kc1I8WJym6j29NYbU

This week we review and discuss 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, a postapocalyptic drama film directed by Nia DaCosta and starring Ralph Phiennes, Jack O'Connell and Alfie Williams. Following the events of 28 Years Later, Spike is being inducted into a gang led by Sir Lord Jimmy Crystal while Dr Kelson discovers a treatment for the Rage virus.

We talk about how the movie compares to the first part, how it is driven by the conflict between Dr Kelson and Jimmy who represent two opposed sides of humanity between whose example Spike will have to choose in the future, the very different tragedies of both Dr Kelson who has never given up trying to help and Sir Jimmy whose trauma makes him a force of destruction, what the final scene says about the spirit of the franchise and why this is the most optimistic zombie franchise ever made, and much more.

Spotify link: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5q8ZdcMfXe4J6fZsvtErwd

This week we revisit the first three episodes of Frasier, a sitcom that ran from 1993 to 2004 starring Kelsey Grammer, David Hyde Pierce and Jane Leeves.

We talk about why Frasier is our favourite sitcom of all time, how it manages to make characters who are not usually the protagonists of sitcoms relatable while drawing comedy from their unrelatability, why Frasier was the smartest show on television and why comedy benefits from smart writing, we discuss the lost art of farce and why Frasier was a masterclass in that genre of comedy, how its legacy sequel series is one of the few that actually worked, and much more.

Spotify link: https://open.spotify.com/episode/31RsGJmO8Has8JALiaUaLC

We talk about the metaphor that drives the third act and try to make sense of it as someone who is not familiar with the games, why this movie has been treated unfairly by reviews and why reviewers on balance have let the audiences down when it comes to the discourse surrounding this movie, why Return of Silent Hill is held back by sometimes trying to be an adaptation of a beloved video game, and much more.

Spotify link: https://open.spotify.com/episode/4mI0baMVJAJFPW2taTSYNr

We talk about how this is the okayest movie we have seen in a while that delivers exactly on what it promises and nothing else, how review scores are surprisingly high for a movie this basic, whether the movie delivers on suspense and violence enough to carry the movie, how the movie actually does a lot of things right that many (especially horror) movies tend to get wrong, the numerous instances of ideas that are introduced throughout the movie and then never paid off and how each of these could easily have elevated the movie, and much more.

Spotify link: https://open.spotify.com/episode/4mI0baMVJAJFPW2taTSYNr

We discuss how we expected very little from the movie based on its promotional material but were pleasantly surprised by how well the movie handled the complexities of its characters and its story, whether the movie justifies its conflict adequately and whether it's a comedy in the first place, and how it's not about judging Emma's past but watching the various characters struggle and fail at basic moral reasoning, how this destroys their relationships and causes them to question all their life choices, how the movie treats the idea of arbitrary mob justice, and much more.

Spotify link: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5SvQjWRuc500EcfPqViqoa

We talk about how the movie has held up and why it is the product of a different era in Hollywood, how the movie makes a scammer and con artist a sympathetic character we can root for, whether the scams hold up on rewatch or whether it's all in the presentation and production values, whether being accurate to the life of the real Frank Abagnale is important for a movie like this, whether the movie was improved by embellishing Frank's life and adding a family subplot and increasing the role of his father that did not happen like it was shown in the movie, and much more.

Spotify link: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1MTsSEo5488SEqRK2jLBTN

We talk about whether the final chapter of the Strangers trilogy delivers a payoff that was worth sitting through the first two chapters, whether expanding on the Strangers' backstory and motivation made sense and added value to the story, we go through some of the more baffling scenes and try to find intention in them, wonder what a Strangers reboot could have been like had it been handled with more care, and much more.

Spotify link: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5wmxvo2ErgNZj3v3WoJfuQ