#684 – From the World of John Wick: Ballerina, Top 10 Spinoff Movies
The guys criticize Ballerina, the newest entry in the world of John Wick, then rank their favorite movies spun off from a successful franchise series.
#683 – Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, Ranking MI Franchise, Impossible Trivia
The guys gather to discuss the recent and last (?) Mission Impossible film The Final Reckoning, then quick rank all 8 films in the action series, and end the episode with a quick round of MI-themed trivia.
#682 – The Studio, Fountain of Youth, Top 10 Adventure Films in Search of History
Zach and James discuss the clever meta-hilarity of The Studio, then adventure through history while criticizing Fountain of Youth, and finally rundown their favorite history-tinged adventure movies.
#681 – Love Hurts (2025), Big Night (1996), Blue Ruin (2013)
Kyle and James consider whether Ke Huy Quan found a film worthy of his abilities in the new to streaming action-comedy Love Hurts, then challenge each other to blind watch a film off their watchlists: Big Night (a foodie-centric dramedy from the 90s) and Blue Ruin (an oddball revenge thriller from the 2010s).
#680 – Another Simple Favor, Top 10 Sequels Nobody Asked For
The guys discuss the pointlessness of the direct-to-streaming black-comedy sequel Another Simple Favor, then run down their (least) favorite films that nobody was really looking for, but we all got anyways.
#679 – Thunderbolts*, Movie Trivia Games
The guys criticize Thunderbolts*, the latest attempt at righting the trajectory of the MCU – then play a handful of new movie trivia games they’ve never played on the podcast before.
#678 – Sinners, Havoc, Top 10 Movies in Which an Actor Plays Multiple Roles
The guys double up on recent bloody releases while criticizing Ryan Coogler’s genre mashup Sinners and Gareth Evans’ Havoc, then rank and discuss their favorite movies in which multiple roles are played by the same actor.
#676 – Warfare, Top 10 War Films Set While We’ve Been Alive
The guys criticize the new Iraq war set film Warfare, co-directed by Alex Garland and Ray Mendoza – then run down their favorite war films set during times when they’ve been alive.
#674 – Presence, Listener Email
The guys criticize the low-fi ghost thriller Presence (aka the other Steven Soderbergh film currently in theaters), then answer some long-gestating listener email.
#673 – Black Bag, Top 10 Films of Steven Soderbergh
The guys criticize the spy thriller Black Bag, then rundown their 10 favorite films from director Steven Soderbergh.
#671 – Mickey 17, AI Movie Song Game
Zach and James are joined by special-guest (and professional nap taker) Ariah as they criticize the new Bong Jun Ho sci-fi dark comedy Mickey 17, then the guys compete in a round of AI movie song game.
#670 – The Brutalist, Oscars Recap
The guys reconvene to discuss the recent Oscars (who won and who lost and who wore a bright banana yellow suit and is dating Kylie Jenner etc etc) and then criticize the a24 epic immigrant story The Brutalist.
#669 – Emilia Pérez, Captain America: Brave New World, Oscar Picks
Join the Cinereelists Oscar pool, win a sweet mug: https://oscarpicks.app/join-group/cinereelists/2568fb16/ The guys declare their picks for the 2024 Oscars, then criticize Emilia Pérez (aka the most nominated film this year) and lament the decline of the MCU whilst discussing Captain America: Brave New World.
#668 – The Gorge, Top 10 Trash Sci-fi Movies
Kyle and James criticize the new romantic sci-fi thriller The Gorge (now streaming on AppleTV+, then run down their favorite mid-tier sci-fi films you could waste a Saturday afternoon watching, were that to be something you’d want to do.
#667 – The Count of Monte Cristo (2024), Oscar Nomination Talk
The guys discuss the recently announced Oscar nominations, then criticize the new 3 hour French-language adaptation of the classic novel The Count of Monte Cristo.
#663 – Nosferatu (2024), Anora
Kyle and James criticize two acclaimed recent film releases, the latest from auteur directors Robert Eggers (Nosferatu) and Sean Baker (Anora).
#662 – Sonic the Hedgehog 3, Flow (2024) (w/ New Zach)
James is joined by Sonic the Hedgehog expert (New) Zach to criticize the third entry in the Jim Carrey-led movie franchise, then discuss the Oscar-buzzy animated adventure film Flow.
#661 – Trapped in Paradise (1994), Nativity! (2009), Mary (2024)
It’s that time of the year again! Time for the guys to round up three Christmas-themed films none of them have seen before, watch them, and review them based on overall quality as well as how “Christmassy” they are.
#660 – Conclave, Juror #2
Zach and James dive into the juicy Papal Politics of Conclave, then adjudicate whether or not Clint Eastwood is guilty of making one film too many with his recent directorial effort Juror #2. Stick around for spoilers, if you dare.
#659 – Gladiator 2, Top 10 Epic Movies
The guys criticize the historical action legasequel Gladiator 2, then run down their favorite “epic” films.
#658 – Blitz (2024), Top 10 Films of Saoirse Ronan
James and Kyle discuss the WW2-set drama Blitz from director Steve McQueen, then rank and discuss their favorite films featuring Saoirse Ronan.
#657 – Rebecca (1940), The Proposition (2005)
James and Kyle assign films from each others Top 100 of All Time lists for each other to watch and discuss, including the 1940 Hitchcock thriller classic Rebecca and the 2005 gritty Australian western The Proposition.
#656 – The Substance, Game: Clueless
The guys submit their spoiler-free and spoiler-filled thoughts on the much-requested new sci-fi black comedy The Substance from French filmmaker Coralie Fargeat, starring Demi Moore, Margaret Qualley, and Dennis Quaid.
#655 – Woman of the Hour, Top 10 Game Show movies
The guys criticize Netflix’s Woman of the Hour, the directorial debut of Anna Kendrick, a crime thriller based on the true story of a serial killer who dared to show his face on a tv game show – then run down their favorite films featuring a game show.
#654 – Brothers (2024), Game: My Kid Could Paint That
The guys criticize the new Amazon Prime ‘comedy’ Brothers, starring Josh Brolin, Peter Dinklage, and Brendan Fraser – from the director of the excellent Palm Springs.