253. Splitsville, Highest 2 Lowest, Am I OK?, Daredevil: Born Again, and Emma & Bruce
Release Date: 09/10/2025
All Pop, No Culture
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This episode of All Pop, No Culture is packed with movies, TV finales, Broadway shows, comedy specials, and heartfelt moments. The crew begins with reactions to the new Avatar film before moving into a full breakdown of the Welcome to Derry season finale—covering its emotional storytelling, character development, and how it expands the IT universe. Lauren reviews Is This Thing On, reflecting on its themes of divorce, self-rediscovery, and stand-up comedy. The discussion includes a tribute to the late Rob Reiner, whose impact on film and television shaped generations of storytelling. Andrew...
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This week on All Pop, No Culture, we dig into a wide spread of movies, musicals, podcasts, and horror TV—basically everything lighting up your feed (or should be). Kevin kicks things off with a review of One Battle After Another, a character-driven drama with sharp performances and a slow-burn emotional core. Andrew throws in director deep cuts, trivia, and a few wild personal stories to round out the discussion. We shift gears into true-crime meets Hollywood with a breakdown of Allison Mack’s vulnerable, complicated interview on Michael Rosenbaum’s podcast. The group looks at her time...
info_outlineIt's just Kevin and Lauren again this week and they are discussing Splitsville, Highest 2 Lowest, Am I OK?, Daredevil: Born Again, and Emma & Bruce
That's right, Andrew has shunned all of us again. It hurts, but we'll move on. He'll be back and we all know it. After getting over our searing sting of rejection, Lauren kicks off the show by talking about the new film, Splitsville, starring Dakota Johnson, Adria Arjona, and some other people. That sounds a little dismissive, but the overall review is that the film isn't anything too special. It's a comedy-ish, but it opens in a very dark place. Our primary couple decides to enter into an open relationship to save their marriage, and, as you might imagine, it's less than successful. It sounds like this movie leans more into the odd humor than the straightforward and might be worth a viewing, but many reviews label it as somehow both chaotic and boring at the same time, so watch at your own risk.
After that, Kevin joins his field guide, Spike Lee, on a tour of New York in Highest 2 Lowest, starring Denzel Washington. It's a remake of the Akira Kurosawa classic, High and Low. While the review is solid, it really does feel like an advertisement for New York about 40% of the time, and the first half of the film feels a little slow, while the second half flies by. It does end strong, but leaves a few questions in Kevin's mind that make it a little off from some of Lee and Washington's better works, but it's definitely worth a watch.
Next up, Lauren continues to feed her Dakota Johnson addiction with a film from 2022, Am I OK? Directed by the great comedian Tig Notaro, this is the story of a woman who discovers a little late in life that she is gay. The film documents how that affects her, her relationships with friends, and what it means for her relationships going forward. It's certainly more heartfelt than the previous Johnson film Lauren watched and is one of her better films, so check it out if you have the chance.
Coming off that high of a couple of really solid films, Kevin veers off the road into what might be a hot take. He and his family recently finished the Netflix Daredevil series and began Daredevil: Born Again on Disney+. While the show has fared well critically, Kevin is of the opinion that the original Netflix series is the better of the two. And it's not close. The new series leans too much into the special effects and loses a lot of the grit and grime that made the original such a success. That said, it is in no way a bad series, so if you like the MCU, definitely give it a go!
Lauren closes out the show on top with a review of the Diane Sawyer interview with Emma Heming Willis about her relationship with Bruce Willis and the complexities they face with his dementia diagnosis. It's not the happiest of topics, but it's a very good interview and leads to some interesting discussion between Kevin and Lauren. Even if you skip this part of the podcast, the interview itself is definitely worth spending your time on.
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