Episode 512: "The Fall Guy," "New Life," and "Unfrosted"
Spoilerpiece Theatre
This week Megan fills Dave and Evan in on the Ryan Gosling/Emily Blunt-starring (2:03), which is an update of the TV series "The Fall Guy" (bet you didn't see that one coming). Is it good? Bad? Somewhere in between? Then Megan and Dave talk about the genre hyphenate (12:56), which seems to be one thing (suspense thriller) and then becomes quite another (sci-fi/horror!). And Evan joins Dave and Megan to talk about Jerry Seinfeld's , the almost entirely untrue story of the creation of Pop Tarts. we talk about one of Dave's favorites, , a first-time watch for both Megan and Evan.
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Episode 511: "Boy Kills World," "Butterfly in the Sky," and "Humane"
Spoilerpiece Theatre
This week on the show, we got some wires crossed (which is to say *Dave* got some wires crossed). So he mistakenly watched (2:24), the new Bill-Skarsgård-kills-the-shit-out-of-everyone movie, instead of (12:33), a new documentary about “Reading Rainbow.” But fear not! Megan and Evan watched BUTTERFLY IN THE SKY, and to suggest they completely Stan out isn’t far-fetched (though it’s refreshing to hear two of us on the podcast love a moviegoing experience so much). Finally, Megan and Dave watched (32:25), Caitlin Cronenberg’s feature directing debut, in which a wealthy family...
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Episode 510: "The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare" and "We Grown Now"
Spoilerpiece Theatre
This week Megan took one for the team and checked in on Guy Ritchie’s latest, (2:38). Does this based-on-a-true-story movie take Ritchie down some less traveled paths? Or is it standard Guy Ritchie fare? Megan has the answers! Evan and Dave join Megan to talk about (17:52), writer/director Minhal Baig’s coming-of-age story of two boys growing up in Chicago’s Cabrini-Green complex in the early 1990s. Over on Patreon, in honor of its 50th anniversary, we talk about Francis Ford Coppola’s THE CONVERSATION.
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Episode 509: "Civil War" and "The Greatest Hits"
Spoilerpiece Theatre
Perhaps you’ve heard the brouhaha surrounding writer-director Alex Garland’s Kirsten Dunst-starring (2:18) and wondered what it’s all about (um...a civil war...in the United States...in the near future). Wonder no more! Megan and Dave saw it, and they have things to say: unkind, complimentary, and all points in between. One of them hated it. One did not, acknowledging its strengths as well as its flaws. Then Evan joined Megan and Dave to watch (32:15), starring Lucy Boynton and Justin H. Min, and written and directed by Ned Benson. And guess what? NOT A ROM-COM, which Evan and Dave...
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Episode 508: "The People's Joker" and "Girls State"
Spoilerpiece Theatre
This week on the show we Megan and Dave tackled the controversial (to Warner Bros.) (1:53), director/co-writer/editor/star Vera Drew's queer coming-of-age superhero parody. Good sound design, good visuals. What else is good about it? Then Evan, Megan, and Dave talk about the documentary (24:27), directors Jesse Moss and Amanda McBaine’s companion piece to their 2020 doc . Following a group of teenage girls from Missouri as they navigate a week-long immersive democratic experiment, the Spoilerpieces have a range of views. , in honor of its 90th anniversary, we talk about the classic...
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Episode #507: “Femme” and “Ennio"
Spoilerpiece Theatre
Dave can't join us, so it’s just Megan and Evan this week! First, Megan reviews Giuseppe Tornatore’s lengthy, yet fascinating documentary (2:35) about the life and work of Italian film composer Ennio Morricone. Then we both discuss Sam H. Freeman and Ng Choon Ping’s gritty queer thriller (16:18), which captivated us, but left us with some complicated feelings. And in this week’s , we chat about the winner of our poll on women-directed films, Lynne Ramsay’s psychological drama !
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Episode 506: "Late Night with the Devil" and "Road House"
Spoilerpiece Theatre
On this week’s show, Megan and Dave kick things off with (2:18), Cameron and Colin Cairnes's nasty found-footage horror thriller starring David Dastmalchian and featuring demonic possession, heads on fire, garroting by necklace, all wrapped up in a nifty 1970s production design. Bonus: Michael Ironsides does the opening voiceover! Then Evan, Megan, and Dave watched director Doug Liman’s update of (21:03). Jake Gyllenhaal picks up Patrick Swayze’s reins and beats the snot out of (checks notes) countless people. And there’s a man-eating crocodile thrown in for good measure. But is it...
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Episode 505: "Love Lies Bleeding," "Stopmotion," and "Frida"
Spoilerpiece Theatre
Megan kicks things off this week with talk of (2:16), Rose Glass's intense queer thriller starring Kristen Stewart and Katy O'Brian. Verdict? LISTEN (ha). Next Dave and Megan review (6:11), Robert Morgan's horror movie starring Aisling Franciosi and featuring lots of compelling stop-motion animation. Megan likes it but wishes it delved deeper, and Dave thinks they should have stopped this motion picture from being a thing. Lastly, Evan, Megan, and Dave all discuss (17:37), Carla Gutierrez's dynamic Frida Kahlo documentary that everyone liked. , we talk about the 2024 Oscars. If you’re a...
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Episode 504: "American Dreamer" and "Damsel"
Spoilerpiece Theatre
This week Megan and Dave tackle (2:07), and it ain’t pretty. Sure, Peter Dinklage and Shirley MacLaine are fine. And sure, Dave laughed at a few things. But that’s about all the positives we have for it (hoo boy, do we get amped up during this talk!). Then Evan, Megan, and Dave watched (22:40), the new dragon’s-gonna-eat-ya-but-not-if-I-can-help-it flick starring Millie Bobby Brown as a princess who meets said dragon after a bit of marital subterfuge orchestrated by Robin Wright as her nefarious would-be mother-in-law. Following an uneven opening, we thought it pulled together (even if...
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Episode 503: "Dune: Part Two" and "Spaceman"
Spoilerpiece Theatre
This week, Megan and Dave discuss , Denis Villeneuve's sci-fi epic starring Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, and Rebecca Ferguson. Dave found the fatalism inherent in its story rendered it dramatically inert, even if he dug its look (despite the on-the-nose Nuremberg rally-inspired sequence) and some of the performances. Megan loved the spectacular film: Dazzling visuals, immersive sound, excellent performances, riveting narrative, and a perceptive critique of colonialism and power dynamics. Everyone watched , Johan Renck's existential sci-fi drama starring Adam Sandler (well, Dave listened...
info_outlineMegan is on vacation, so Evan and Dave are joined by friend of the show Kristen Halbert! Together the three of them discuss whether SALTBURN (4:10) is the kind of film you'd recommend to your friends or enemies. Then it's AMERICAN FICTION (28:37), starring Jeffrey Wright and familial angst (among roughly a dozen other plots). And don't forget to listen to our bonus episode on Patreon, in which we discuss the 1974 heist film THE TAKING OF PELHAM ONE TWO THREE.