Movie Madness
Movie Madness is a weekly podcast hosted by Chicago film critic Erik Childress presenting movie reviews, interviews, film festival coverage, DVDs, awards, box office and much more!
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Episode 563: Accept It One Last Time
05/23/2025
Episode 563: Accept It One Last Time
Memorial Day weekend offers a variety of options, some of them even good both in theaters and at home. Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy are here to talk you through nine of them. They include Cate Blanchett as a nun who may have discovered the second coming (The New Boy) and another film about resurrecting the dead (The Surrender). A musician you may have missed gets the documentary treatment (Swamp Dogg Gets His Pool Painted), Netflix returns to the world of R.L. Stine (Fear Street: Prom Queen) and a writer may or may not find romance on a retreat (Jane Austen Wrecked My Life). Guy Ritchie takes an all-star cast in pursuit of life’s treasure (Fountain of Youth) while Paul Reubens tells the story of his life (Pee-Wee As Himself). Disney tries another live-action remake (Lilo & Stitch) and Tom Cruise puts the last chapter on one of the great action franchises of all-time (Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning) 1:16 - The New Boy 10:02 - The Surrender 19:07 - Swamp Dogg Gets His Pool Painted 25:09 - Fear Street: Prom Queen 37:45 - Jane Austen Wrecked My Life 46:08 - 56:02 - 1:08:42 - Lilo & Stitch 1:22:12 - CLICK ON THE FILMS TO RENT OR PURCHASE AND HELP OUT THE MOVIE MADNESS PODCAST
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Episode 562: Get Out Of Your Sleeping Bags!
05/19/2025
Episode 562: Get Out Of Your Sleeping Bags!
This week in physical media may be appealing to the cults out there. Whichever you belong to, Erik Childress and Peter Sobczynski are here to guide you towards your particular following. Perhaps you are in the Richard E. Grant & Bruce Robinson cult. Or stay on that side of the pond with an Oscar-winning musical and a film that was the Bridgerton of its time in the way it uses music. Maybe you’re in the late Friday the 13th cult and enjoy its post-Paramount days. Or you have a taste for a marathon of Blaxploitation. Whether you love movie doggies or mutated bears, its best to just avoid the sleeping bags this week. 1:38 - Criterion (, 4K) 14:36 - Sony (, ) 26:29 - Arrow (, ) 47:09 - Shout () 1:02:43 - Kino (, , ) 1:23:01 – New Theatrical Titles On Blu-ray (, ) 1:24:15 - New Blu-ray Announcements
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Episode 561: Death, Dogs And Tim Robinson Come For Us All
05/17/2025
Episode 561: Death, Dogs And Tim Robinson Come For Us All
Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy return to the review beat after a couple weeks off at the Chicago Critics Film Festival. Erik looks at a bunch of influencers terrorized by feral dogs (A Breed Apart) and the story that inspired a cult body horror film (The Darkside of Society). Steve looks at an influential moment for the hearing impaired (Deaf President Now) and The Weeknd’s self-indulgent vanity project (Hurry Up Tomorrow). They also offer thoughts on a pair of films chosen for their festival including the strange transformation of a woman in an arranged marriage (Sister Midnight) and Tim Robinson trying to get a little too close to Paul Rudd (Friendship). Finally its been 14 years since Death has come-a-callin’. Could Final Destination: Bloodlines be the best of the franchise? 1:32 – 9:28 - 15:23 – 22:58 - 33:37 - Sister Midnight 41:11 - Friendship 54:59 - 1:07:03 - Outro
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Episode 560: There’s A Crack In The Planet (And The Doll Case)
05/12/2025
Episode 560: There’s A Crack In The Planet (And The Doll Case)
After a week off for The Chicago Critics Film Festival, Erik Childress and Peter Sobczynski return to get you up to date on the latest in physical media world. They include one of the great musicals and a landmark in 60s cinema. Disney upgrades one of their animated hits before its live-action counterpart hits theater. See the film Robert Zemeckis made in-between shooting Cast Away. There is plenty of sleaze thanks to Pete Walker and Wings Hauser and a reunion of Robert DeNiro and Meryl Streep. There is disaster sci-fi and upgrades for two of the all-time great horror films, one of them you may still have never gotten around to seeing. 1:53 - Criterion (, , ) 16:25 - Disney () 19:49 - Fun City () 24:09 - Shout Factory () 30:36 - MVD () 36:52 - Kino (, , ) 58:18 - Arrow () 1:06:39 - Lionsgate () 1:16:22 - Ignite () 1:33:02 - New TV & Theatrical Titles On Blu-ray (, , , , , , , , ) 1:35:38 - New Blu-ray Announcements CLICK ON THE FILMS TO RENT OR PURCHASE AND HELP OUT THE MOVIE MADNESS PODCAST. CHECK OUT THE LATEST FROM CRITERION BELOW
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Episode 559: Thunderbolts*
05/02/2025
Episode 559: Thunderbolts*
Marvel is hoping for both a critical and financial reboot with their latest summer opener and Erik Childress is joined once again by comic book expert, Erik Laws, to discuss. Laws delves into the history of the Thunderbolts and various incarnations in the comics. They talk about what they enjoyed about the film as well as elements that fell flat. A lot of credit goes to a pair of key performances in the film as Marvel banks on audiences responding to themes of alienation and depression in place of just the usual comic book action. Is that enough to make the film a cut above the post-Endgame era?
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Episode 558: It’s Rider’s Name Was Death
04/28/2025
Episode 558: It’s Rider’s Name Was Death
After weeks of light lineups in the physical media world, the end of April explores with a variety of titles that Erik Childress and Peter Sobczynski are here to guide you through. They include Sean Baker bookends from Criterion, blaxploitation and films from Russ Meyer. You got journeys to the Bermuda triangle and the gates of hell not to mention bullets and betrayal. Bill Murray enters the army and Michael Keaton goes to rehab. Plus Clint Eastwood has a trio of his films get the 4K upgrade. 1:52 - Criterion (, , ) 18:09 – Warner Archive (, , ) 33:23 - Arrow () 36:53 - Grindhouse () 45:10 - Severin (, , ) 1:07:32 - Kino (, ) 1:21:47 - Shout () 1:27:44 - Sony (, ) 1:39:44 - Warner (, , ) 2:02:36 – New TV on Blu-ray (, , ) 2:04:07 – New Theatrical Titles On Blu-ray (, , , ) 2:06:09 – New Blu-Ray Announcements CLICK ON THE FILMS TO RENT OR PURCHASE AND HELP OUT THE MOVIE MADNESS PODCAST
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Episode 557: More Than One Foot In The Grave
04/26/2025
Episode 557: More Than One Foot In The Grave
Before taking off for the upcoming Chicago Critics Film Festival (May 2-8) which they program, Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy review nine movies this week. They include the latest from Francois Ozon (When Fall Is Coming) and a Jim Henson-like fantasy from A24 (The Legend of Ochi). Jack Quaid and Jeffrey Dean Morgan make for unique investigators of a kidnapping (Neighborhood Watch) and a new video game adaptation is decidedly less unique (Until Dawn). Daisy Edgar-Jones and Jacob Elordi have secrets in the 1950s (On Swift Horses) and we take a trip through the careers of one of the most famous comedy teams of all-time (Cheech & Chong’s Last Movie). David Cronenberg takes us on a conspiratorial meditation on grief and death (The Shrouds) while Gareth Evans has Tom Hardy deliver so much death (Havoc) and, nine years later, Ben Affleck’s lethal autistic numbers cruncher returns with bro Jon Bernthal (The Accountant 2). 2:56 - When Fall Is Coming 9:44 - 15:08 – 19:42 - Havoc 33:46 - 41:19 - On Swift Horses 52:58 - Cheech & Chong's Last Movie 1:06:30 - The Shrouds 1:19:35 - The Accountant 2
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Episode 556: Sneaking Around Target And The Old West
04/21/2025
Episode 556: Sneaking Around Target And The Old West
Another light week for physical media but a fun one – especially for those nostalgic for the early ‘90s. Peter Sobczynski joins Erik Childress to talk about Criterion’s upgrade of a multi-part French masterpiece from the ‘80s. They share thoughts on The Most Dangerous Game riff that got snakebit by real-world tragedies and Covid. Goldie Hawn and Chevy Chase try to prevent the assassination of the pope. No, not that one. One of the late Val Kilmer’s most iconic performances gets the 4K upgrade. The duo also share their fondness for one of the most entertaining comic thriller team-ups of the era and discuss the history of the movie John Hughes tried to take his name off while Erik lent his name to the commentary track on the Blu-ray. 1:55 - Criterion () 8:41 - Shout () 13:54 - Kino (, , ) 53:08 - Disney () 1:06:03 - New TV On Blu-ray (, , ) 1:09:15 - New Blu-ray Announcements CLICK ON THE FILMS TO RENT OR PURCHASE AND HELP OUT THE MOVIE MADNESS PODCAST
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Episode 555: I Want Your Blood And I Want Your Souls
04/19/2025
Episode 555: I Want Your Blood And I Want Your Souls
Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy have eight movie reviews this week including revisiting one of their favorites from Sundance, a twisted alternate version of Cinderella (The Ugly Stepsister). Steve looks at another cabin-in-the-woods-horror (Call of the Void), a documentary about drummers (Count Me In) and Catherine Deneuve as Beradette Chirac (The President’s Wife). Erik looks at Severance’s Britt Lower as a lonely librarian (Darkest Miriam) and Steve checks out the four-year art project of a group of squatters (Secret Mall Apartment). Ang Lee’s landmark LBGTQ film gets a 21st century remake (The Wedding Banquet) and Ryan Coogler blends the Jim Crow south with vampires (Sinners). 0:00 - Intro 2:22 - 12:11 - 18:16 - 24:07 - 30:22 - The President's Wife 36:11 - 47:05 - Secret Mall Apartment 57:24 - 1:20:36 - Outro
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Episode 554: Instincts, Informants & Iwo Jima
04/14/2025
Episode 554: Instincts, Informants & Iwo Jima
It’s been a little light out there for titles in physical media world but this week has no shortage of interesting ones and Peter Sobczynski joins Erik Childress to talk you through them. They include one of Wong-Kar Wai’s most remembered films and John Sayles’ foray into studio filmmaking in the ‘80s. John Wayne goes to war and then later goofs off with John Ford. There are new 4K editions of two of Steven Soderbergh’s films plus one of Abel Ferrara’s more treasured crime dramas. Then the pair wade into the controversies and legacy of Paul Verhoeven’s Basic Instinct. 1:49 - Criterion () 7:57 - Kino (, ) 18:33 - Fun City () 27:21 – Lions Gate (, ) 56:04 – Warner Bros. (, ) 1:14:19 – New Theatrical Titles On Blu-ray (, ) 1:16:53 - New Blu-ray Announcements CLICK ON THE FILMS TO RENT OR PURCHASE AND HELP OUT THE MOVIE MADNESS PODCAST
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Episode 553: All’s Fair In Love And War
04/11/2025
Episode 553: All’s Fair In Love And War
Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy have seven movies to talk about this week. They range from a documentary about one of the music world’s most talked about relationships (One to One: John & Yoko) and an animated story of Jesus told through the mouth of Dickens (The King of Kings). The Michaels – Cera & Angarano – go on a road trip (Sacramento) and Stephen Dorff tries to go legit in the Old West (Gunslingers). The director of Happy Death Day presents the world’s worst first date (Drop) and CIA analyst Rami Malek tries to avenge his wife (The Amateur). Finally, Alex Garland takes us back into war in real time along with Ray Mendoza who lived it (Warfare). 0:00 - Intro 3:27 - 12:25 – The King of Kings 25:59 - Sacramento 36:14 - 46:11 - 56:39 – The Amateur 1:09:07 – 1:20:19 - Outro
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Episode 552: Some Sweat When The Heat Is On
04/07/2025
Episode 552: Some Sweat When The Heat Is On
Another light week for physical media but Erik Childress and Peter Sobczynski have you covered with one of the greatest comedies of all time and one of Peter Sellers’ overlooked gems. There is film noir, a sorority massacre and a pair of films covered on The Friendship Dilemma podcast. They include Ryan Reynolds in the friend zone with Amy Smart and Shane Black getting paid to make Geena Davis and Samuel L. Jackson his mismatched mystery partners. 0:00 - Intro 3:59 - Criterion () 15:06 - Kino ( / ) 33:01 - Shout () 39:50 - Warner Archive () 48:04 - Arrow () 1:03:44 – New Blu-ray Announcements
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Episode 551: With Friends Like These Who Needs A Ballad?
04/04/2025
Episode 551: With Friends Like These Who Needs A Ballad?
Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy have reviews of eight new movies this week. They revisit one of the best films they saw at Sundance this year (The Ballad of Wallis Island) while Erik handles this week’s latest video game adaptation (A Minecraft Movie). Public domain puts Steamboat Willie into horror (Screamboat) and how do they like dem apple on dat head (William Tell). Michael Shannon directs the aftermath of a school shooting (Eric Larue) and Paul Walter Hauser plays the infamous Press Your Luck champion (The Luckiest Man In America). The directors of Half Nelson and Captain Marvel make an ‘80s anthology (Freaky Tales) and, finally, Naomi Watts and a Great Dane grieve over the loss of Bill Murray (The Friend). 0:00 - Intro 1:37 - The Ballad of Wallis Island 10:44 - 21:11 - Screamboat 32:11 - William Tell 39:53 - Eric Larue 53:40 - 1:10:14 - 1:18:29 - 1:30:30 - Outro
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Episode 550: Ugetsu Everybody
03/31/2025
Episode 550: Ugetsu Everybody
If you missed a number of recent films in theaters then this is really the Blu-ray week for you. Beyond those, Erik Childress and Peter Sobczynski still have some titles for you to consider if you can’t get enough of Nicholas Hoult in vampire films or you really like those new digital shorts on SNL. There’s also the tale of graverobbers that took their work a little too far, an obscure relationship melodrama from the 1940s and an influential ghost story set against the backdrop of the Japanese Civil Wars. 0:00 - Intro 1:50 - Criterion () 8:22 - Film Masters () 16:38 - Kino () 22:07 - Shout (, ) 33:54 - TV () 34:26 - NEW (, , , , , , , , ,) 49:36 – New Blu-ray Announcements CLICK ON THE FILMS TO RENT OR PURCHASE AND HELP OUT THE MOVIE MADNESS PODCAST
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Episode 549: Hackman And The Deadly Wonder Women
03/24/2025
Episode 549: Hackman And The Deadly Wonder Women
Blu-rays, 4Ks, physical media galore this week as Erik Childress and Peter Sobczynski guide you through another week. They include upgrades of a great Gene Hackman film and another from Alan Rudolph by Criterion. There’s early work from Rudolph Valentino and the late George Armitage. Horror goes from brain-inhabiting slugs to a black mamba, child murders, cannibalism and eating the rich. There’s also a pair of Chris Farley/David Spade films and a trio of deadly women including Ursula Andress, Kathleen Hughes and the immortal Lynda Carter. 0:00 - Intro 1:54 - Criterion (, ) 21:23 - Warner Archive (, ) 32:05 - Shout Factory (, ) 41:19 - Blue Underground () 50:56 - Arrow () 58:36 - Severin (, ) 1:09:48 - Paramount () 1:15:42 - Kino (, , , ) 1:33:55 – New TV on Blu-ray (, ) 1:35:18 – New Theatrical Titles On Blu-ray (, , ) 1:37:38 – New Blu-ray Announcements
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Episode 548: Hi Ho! Alto! It’s Off To Eephus We Go!!
03/21/2025
Episode 548: Hi Ho! Alto! It’s Off To Eephus We Go!!
Erik Childress & Steve Prokopy have nine movies for you this week. It all starts by hitting the way back machine for their 2023 review of a Sundance film delayed by the controversy over its star (Magazine Dreams). There is also an apocalyptic musical fantasy (O’Dessa) and Bill Skarsgard is trapped in Anthony Hopkins’ fancy car (Locked). Sci-fi goes two ways with the bloody aftermath of an astronaut colony (Ash) and the process future couples go through to have a baby (The Assessment). Barbie Ferreira and John Leguizamo form a surrogate parental friendship (Bob Trevino Likes It). One of the great baseball movies is out there just in time for the season (Eephus). Robert DeNiro plays dual roles as real-life mobsters for Barry Levinson (The Alto Knights) and the Disney live-action remake machine churns out its latest (Snow White). 0:00 - Intro 1:46 - 18:06 - O'Dessa 26:09 - Locked 36:49 - Eephus 48:56 - Bob Trevino Likes It 59:18 - 1:09:06 - The Assessment 1:22:00 - 1:32:26 - Snow White 1:51:28 - Outro CLICK ON THE FILMS TO RENT OR PURCHASE AND HELP OUT THE MOVIE MADNESS PODCAST
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Episode 547: The 2025 SXSW Film Festival
03/19/2025
Episode 547: The 2025 SXSW Film Festival
Erik Childress has been traveling to Austin for over 20 years for the annual South by Southwest Film Festival. He is back to tell you all about 19 films that he saw this year. Among the films you can see soon are the return of Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively to the world of simple favor. Paul Rudd and Jenna Ortega trying to survive the revenge of a unicorn and Nicolas Cage battles some territorial Australians. Hopefully audiences won’t have to wait too long to see the solo directorial debut of Jay Duplass or the latest from Matt Johnson that pays homage to the world of Robert Zemeckis and Rosamund Pike & Matthew Rhys desperately try to get to the scene of their daughter’s accident, Daisy Ridley has to dodge zombies and a pair of brothers take a leisurely stroll through San Francisco with their guitars in a single take. There are documentaries about Curtis Mayfield, Marc Maron, the horrors and fascism in the wake of the Uvalde school shooting and what to do when an A.I. Pioneer won’t answer your questions. Erik reviews all that plus Michael Bay’s parkour documentary in this recap of one of his favorite festivals. 0:00 – Intro 2:02 – Another Simple Favor 5:08 – Hallow Road 8:27 – Brother Verses Brother 11:19 – The Dutchman 14:03 – Death of a Unicorn 18:51 – American Sweatshop 22:18 – Uvalde Mom 25:22 – Forge 28:10 – We Bury the Dead 31:25 – Nirvanna the Band the Show – The Movie 35:59 – Deepfaking Sam Altman 39:40 – The Baltimorons 45:02 – For Worse 49:21 – The Surfer 53:14 – The Makings of Curtis Mayfield 54:27 – Make It Look Real 57:07 – Caper 59:50 – We Are Storror 1:03:59 – Are We Good? 1:07:02 - Outro
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Episode 546: Light A Candle And You Will See Baked Beans
03/17/2025
Episode 546: Light A Candle And You Will See Baked Beans
Peter Sobczynski joins Erik Childress again to get you caught up on a couple weeks of new physical media. They include drama from Charlie Chaplin and Michael Mann’s feature debut. Godzilla returns as does the creepy Roger Corman sci-fi of the early ‘80s. Renny Harlin brings the sharks, Skippy from Family Ties battles a heavy metal killer and Peter reminds us of another piece of ‘80s horror that some parents would like to forget. There is also more weirdness including Steve Allen studying sex, John Travolta investigating sex and Eddie Murphy brought in to save a comedy. All that might be nothing compared to the visualization of The Who’s rock opera brought to life by Ken Russell. 0:00 - Intro 2:11 - Criterion (, , ) 18:53 - Arrow () 27:08 - Kino (, , , , , ) 58:46 - Sony () 1:03:57 - Synapse () 1:13:01 - Shout (, ) 1:40:27 – New TV on Blu-ray (, , ) 1:45:38 – New Theatrical Titles on Blu-ray (, , ) 1:48:00 – New Blu-ray Announcements
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Episode 545: No Pain, Yes Black Bag
03/14/2025
Episode 545: No Pain, Yes Black Bag
Movie reviews continue on the show with seven new releases this week. Steve Prokopy looks at the chaos of a young woman and her Zambian family (On Becoming a Guinea Fowl) while Samara Weaving plays a pop star dealing with a stalker (Borderline). John Malkovich is another pop star whom Ayo Edebiri discovers may be part of a cult (Opus). Daffy Duck and Porky Pig try to save the world from zombies and aliens (The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie) while Chris Pratt and Millie Bobbie Brown live in a world of robots (The Electric State). Jack Quaid can feel no pain while trying to rescue his girlfriend (Novocaine) and Steven Soderbergh gives us Cate Blanchett and Michael Fassbender as married spies (Black Bag). 0:00 - Intro 1:17 - On Becoming a Guinea Fowl 9:04 - Borderline 16:14 – The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie 23:41 – The Electric State 36:24 - Opus 50:17 - Novocaine 1:03:08 - Black Bag 1:14:59 - Outro
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Episode 544: From Las Piedras To Nearly Peru
03/03/2025
Episode 544: From Las Piedras To Nearly Peru
Physical media never takes a week off but sometimes they sleep in a little. Such as this light week that has Peter Sobczynski and Erik Childress starting off with a stone-cold classic thriller from Criterion upgraded to 4K. Kino has more film noir, a double feature with Agatha Christie AND Bert I. Gordon plus the terrifying presence of Klaus Kinski as a Nazi. There’s an animated cat who gives massages and everyone’s favorite bear in a rain slicker. 0:00 - Intro 6:53 - Criterion () 13:32 - Kino (, , ) 34:56 - Shout () 39:21 - Warner () 43:41 - New Theatrical Titles On Blu-ray (, , , , ) 52:36 – New Blu-ray Announcements CLICK ON THE FILMS TO RENT OR PURCHASE AND HELP OUT THE MOVIE MADNESS PODCAST
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Episode 543: Don’t Hold Your Breath
02/28/2025
Episode 543: Don’t Hold Your Breath
Another light week of releases, but are any of them good? Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy talk you through five of them including a documentary on a better person in charge of the Washington Post (Becoming Katharine Graham). Ed Harris factors into two releases this week including a woman manifestsing her PTSD through her fellow soldier (My Dead Friend Zoe) and a crime comedy with an all-star cast (Riff Raff). There is also a bitcoin hostage thriller (Cold Wallet) and an underwater true story that the filmmaker has re-made from their own documentary (Last Breath). 0:00 - Intro 1:56 - 7:24 - 16:28 - 22:37 - 32:17 - 46:52 - Outro
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Episode 542: Why Is Everything Controversial?
02/24/2025
Episode 542: Why Is Everything Controversial?
Erik Childress and Peter Sobczynski run down titles you can get on physical media this week and, not gonna lie, there’s a lot of baggage. There’s the Mick Jagger film that say on the shelf for two years along with Lindsay Lohan’s collaboration with Paul Schrader and William Friedkin’s infamous Al Pacino murder mystery set within the gay community. Not to mention John Wayne playing Genghis Khan and the poor timing for an Eric Red horror film. But even controversy can be put aside for cinema sunshine. You can now get Milos Forman’s Mozart film in its original theatrical incarnation. Maybe you don’t even remember the issue parents had with one of the loveliest coming-of-age films of the ‘90s. And why would you say anything controversial about Carol Reed’s masterpiece? All that plus Guillermo Del Toro’s debut and the genius of poking fun at documentaries on this week’s Blu-ray show. 0:00 – Intro 3:13 - Criterion (, ) 22:43 - Vinegar Syndrome (, , ) 48:18 - Arrow () 1:05:54 - Kino (, , ) 1:24:14 - Sony () 1:37:39 - LionsGate () 1:44:22 - Warner () 1:55:51 – New Television on Blu-ray (, ) 2:01:01 - New Theatrical Titles On Blu-ray () 2:05:13 – New Blu-ray Announcements
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Episode 541: Not Shocked By The Monkey
02/21/2025
Episode 541: Not Shocked By The Monkey
It’s a light week for movies so Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy work with what they have with four titles that you may or may not want to work with. They include a new Chicago horror film from director Mickey Keating (Invader). Daisy Ridley is a window washer who goes from pane to McClane when eco-terrorists take over her building (Cleaner). Christoph Waltz is an aging hitman with a protégé (Old Guy). Finally, Osgood Perkins is back with a Stephen King adaptation where things do not go well for anybody. (The Monkey) 0:00 - Intro 2:22 - Invader 9:26 - Cleaner 22:19 - 31:00 - The Monkey 45:19 - Outro
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Episode 540: Lighten Up, Frances & Zuckerberg
02/17/2025
Episode 540: Lighten Up, Frances & Zuckerberg
It’s physical media time with Erik Childress and Peter Sobczynski guiding you through this week’s releases which includes a pair of late indie staples from the ‘80s now in 4K. There’s a pair of John Candy comedies from the same decade, Burt Reynolds directing a comedy about suicide and one about the life of Frances Farmer. Pick your poison in Richard Dreyfuss directing porn (within the movie) and the unspeakable horrors of Roger Corman mutant rapists. Keanu Reeves is a demon hunter and David Fincher gets upgrades for his underrated B-movie thriller and the origin story of another demon. 0:00 - Intro 2:37 - Criterion (, ) 19:24 - Kino (, , ) 41:13 - MGM (, , ) 1:01:51 - Shout () 1:13:16 - Warner () 1:21:52 - Sony (, ) 1:41:21 – New Theatrical Titles On Blu-ray (, , , , , ) 1:46:15 – New Blu-ray Announcements
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Episode 539: Mad About The Boy And The Bear
02/14/2025
Episode 539: Mad About The Boy And The Bear
Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy return to regular reviewing duties this week and they put a nine-spot on the board. There are a pair of documentaries involving Sly Stone (Sly Lives) and the Zep (Becoming Led Zeppelin). The director of Saint Frances & Ghostlight shows the horror of being a doctor (Rounding) while a young woman involved in one night stands may have been literally ghosted (The Dead Thing). Paolo Sorrentino has another tale of beauty (Parthenope) while Miles Teller & Anya Taylor-Joy snipe themselves into each other’s hearts fighting monsters (The Gorge). Then it’s a week of sequels including a continuation of Renee Zellweger’s beloved character (Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy), everyone’s favorite marmalade-loving bear (Paddington In Peru) and the tale of a new Captain and a new President (Captain America: Brave New World). 0:00 – Intro 1:13 - Becoming Led Zeppelin 7:54 - 17:02 - Sly Lives! 23:00 - 32:25 - Parthenope 39:22 - Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy 55:43 - 1:06:50 - 1:15:46 - Captain America: Brave New World 1:31:08 - Outro
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Episode 538: Captain America: Brave New World
02/13/2025
Episode 538: Captain America: Brave New World
The next phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is here and so is comic book expert Erik Laws to talk with Erik Childress on how it plays out. Does it follow through on some of the ideas raised by The Falcon and the Winter Soldier or is it merely just continuing a story most many have forgotten about? Laws fills in the blanks left by the treatment of Shira Haas’ Widow and the remnants of the Serpent Society. Is this a genuine new beginning for the Universe or does it continue the rut that has befallen the MCU since Endgame.
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Episode 537: Nobody Wants To See Your Lear, Dude!
02/11/2025
Episode 537: Nobody Wants To See Your Lear, Dude!
Erik Childress & Peter Sobczynski bring you this week’s physical media roundup which includes a great upgrade for the family involving a cat and a mouse. Horror fans get some 4K upgrades from four different decades. Film Noir gets several different takes including through the mind of Woody Allen. A legendary black filmmaker championed over the years by Sergio Mims gets his whole collection. There are early appearances by Sam Elliott, Sean Penn and John Cusack along with a reappraisal of a current Oscar contender. A more positive reappraisal has been happening for years with a Shane Black film now in 4K and Peter takes us down the rabbit hole of the time Jean-Luc Godard made a Shakespeare adaptation for Cannon Films. 0:00 – Intro 3:09 - Criterion () 17:26 - Warner Archive () 21:31 – Warner Bros. () 30:18 - Kino (, , , ) 57:11 - Fun City (, ) 1:08:50 - Universal () 1:13:42 - Arrow () 1:22:52 - Shout Factory (, , ) 1:35:21 – New Blu-ray Announcements
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Episode 536: The 2025 Sundance Film Festival
02/09/2025
Episode 536: The 2025 Sundance Film Festival
Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy return after more than a week in Park City plus virtual screenings for this year’s Sundance Film Festival and they are here to talk about 15 of their favorite films. They include a pair of body horror films about the terror of living happily ever after. There is also the horror of being a parent especially if you live next to the worst kind of Karen. Music plays a role in a lovely story about a washed-up folk singer and a lottery winner plus the heartbreaking tale of an artist taken away from us too quickly. There are more documentaries about the first deaf Oscar winner, teenagers who took on the environmental concerns of their community, the troubling legacy of To Catch a Predator and the consequences of delaying that colonoscopy. Audiences were treated to standout performances from Dylan O’Brien and the genuine discovery of the debut by a name to remember, Eva Victor. All that plus generational tales of Palestine and the building and rebuilding of America. 0:00 - Intro 5:44 – The Ugly Stepsister 11:03 – The Ballad of Wallis Island 16:16 – It’s Never Over, Jeff Buckley 20:04 – Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore 26:26 – The Perfect Neighbor 35:25 – Predators 43:04 – Twinless 48:33 – If I Had Legs, I’d Kick You 54:01 – Andre is an Idiot 57:48 – All That’s Left Of You 1:01:08 – Rebuilding 1:05:33 – Together 1:11:03 – Middletown 1:15:33 – Sorry, Baby 1:23:10 – Train Dreams 1:31:47 – More Sundance Mentions 1:34:29 - Outro
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Episode 535: My Eyes Are Up Here, Orca!
02/04/2025
Episode 535: My Eyes Are Up Here, Orca!
After some time off for Sundance, Movie Madness returns to get you caught up on the latest and greatest in Blu-rays. Erik Childress talks to Peter Sobczynski about a couple 4K upgrades from Criterion for Paul Thomas Anderson and Anthony Mann. There are rom-coms with Cary Grant and Clark Gable while Al Pacino tries to find love with possibly a serial killer. They’ve got a possessed authoritarian in the White House (from 1933) and a killer whale on the loose. Music documentaries for Joan Jett and Joan Baez and one of Dario Argento’s best. But it all comes down to a remastered version of a butchered Michael Mann film and a trio of upgrades for one of the kings of sexploitation, Russ Meyer. 0:00 - Intro 2:48 - Criterion (, ) 19:34 - Warner Archive () 26:40 - Kino (, , , , , ) 1:09:47 - Magnolia (, ) 1:15:25 - Severin (, , , ) 1:56:33 - Vinegar Syndrome () 2:10:53 – New TV on Blu-ray: (, , , , ) 2:15:52 - New Theatrical Titles On Blu-ray (, , , , , ) 2:16:37 – New Blu-ray Announcements
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Episode 534: Mom, Can I Get The New Delfonics Tape?
01/20/2025
Episode 534: Mom, Can I Get The New Delfonics Tape?
Some great titles in physical media this week and Erik Childress is joined by Peter Sobczynski to convince you to pick them up. They include a great modern con artist noir from Criterion and a lost film from Paul Bartel. The ‘70s bring us some sexploitation horror and Sherlock Holmes hunts Jack the Ripper while the ’80s gave us one of the most unique and divisive slasher films. Peter goes to bat for a pair of 4K upgrades from John Carpenter and Tarsem. Finally, there is a trio of new 4Ks from Quentin Tarantino that includes one of Peter’s favorite films and one of Erik’s favorite music cues. 0:00 - Intro 2:16 – Criterion () 15:30 - Liberation Hall () 26:29 - Kino (, , , ) 58:57 - Shout Factory () 1:06:57 - Arrow () 1:19:45 - Lionsgate (, , ) 1:39:44 - New Theatrical Titles On Blu-ray (, , , , , ) 1:44:00 – New Blu-ray Announcements
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