Across the Movie Aisle

On this week’s episode, Sonny Bunch (The Bulwark), Alyssa Rosenberg (The Washington Post), and Peter Suderman (Reason) discussed the most controversial moment at the Oscars, and no, I’m not referring to Zack Snyder’s sweep of the fan favorite categories. We break down Will Smith’s attack on Chris Rock, using Smith’s recent memoir and his efforts to be less people-pleasing and more true to himself...

On this week’s episode, Sonny Bunch (The Bulwark), Alyssa Rosenberg (The Washington Post), and Peter Suderman (Reason) try to make sense of the latest controversy (or possibly nontroversy!) roiling the waters of YA Twitter. Meanwhile, Peter and Alyssa try to convince Sonny that Drive My Car is better than he thinks it is. Will they succeed? Listen now to find out. And make sure to come back to Bul...

On this week’s episode, Sonny Bunch (The Bulwark), Alyssa Rosenberg (The Washington Post), and Peter Suderman (Reason) discuss the rock and a hard place Disney CEO Bob Chapek found himself in when he was pressured by employees to respond to Florida’s so-called “Don’t Say Gay” bill. Then the gang reviewed Turning Red , the new Pixar picture sent straight to Disney+. Make sure to head to Bulwark+ on...

On this week’s episode, Sonny Bunch (The Bulwark), Alyssa Rosenberg (The Washington Post), and Peter Suderman (Reason) argue the merits and demerits of AMC charging folks more to see The Batman . Then they talk about whether or not you should see The Batman ! Is it any good? Is it too long? Is it weirdly empty, politically and aesthetically? They’ll let you know! If you enjoyed this episode, pleas...

This week, Sonny Bunch (The Bulwark), Alyssa Rosenberg (The Washington Post) and Peter Suderman (Reason) discussed the efforts of cultural institutions and their response to Russia’s war on Ukraine and reviewed the best picture-nominated Coda , which just won the best ensemble category at the SAG Awards. Full disclosure: We taped this week’s episode Monday afternoon and by Monday evening the groun...

On this week’s episode, Sonny Bunch (The Bulwark), Alyssa Rosenberg (The Washington Post), and Peter Suderman (Reason) ask if the Oscars made a big mistake by allowing a potential Boaty McBoatfacing situation by opening up voting to the Twitter-based masses. And the gang reviewed Uncharted . Is Tom Holland the new Leonardo DiCaprio? Is the video game movie curse dead and buried? Is the movie any g...

On this week’s episode, Sonny Bunch (The Bulwark), Alyssa Rosenberg (The Washington Post), and Peter Suderman (Reason Magazine) discuss the Oscars nominees, whether or not multiple hosts can save flagging interest, and whether or not a Twitter poll can interest audiences who feel as though the awards show snubs popular pictures. And then the gang reviews Death on the Nile , Kenneth Branagh’s follo...

On this week’s episode, Sonny Bunch (The Bulwark), Alyssa Rosenberg (The Washington Post), and Peter Suderman (Reason) discuss the myriad reasons no one cares about the Olympics and the shameful acquiescence to Chinese human rights abuses by so many in the sports media. Then the gang reviews Nightmare Alley , which just received four Oscar nominations, including a surprise best picture nod ! And m...

On this week’s episode, Sonny Bunch (The Bulwark), Alyssa Rosenberg (The Washington Post), and Peter Suderman (Reason) discuss the raging controversy over Neil Young’s decision to remove his music from Spotify as a result of their partnership with Joe Rogan. From disinformation to audio quality to the sprawling nature of the internet to the limitless nature of boycotting people you disagree with,...

On this week’s episode, Sonny Bunch (The Bulwark), Alyssa Rosenberg (The Washington Post), and Peter Suderman (Reason Magazine) discuss a rather terrible “breaking news” item about West Side Story ’s Rachel Zegler in the Daily Beast and the broader trend of using random nobodies on Twitter as a hook for stories designed to gin up hate toward celebrities. Then they review The Lost Daughter , Maggie...

On this week’s episode, Sonny Bunch (The Bulwark), Alyssa Rosenberg (The Washington Post), and Peter Suderman (Reason), try to figure out just how bad this profile is for its subject, Joss Whedon. Then they review The Tragedy of Macbeth , Joel Coen’s adaptation of The Bard’s play starring Denzel Washington as the titular tragic figure. And in the bonus episode , Sonny and Peter try to convince the...

This week, Sonny Bunch (The Bulwark), Alyssa Rosenberg (The Washington Post), and Peter Suderman (Reason) discuss the complete absence of buzz about The Golden Globes and what that means for the state of moviegoing in general. Then the gang reviews Paul Thomas Anderson’s new film, Licorice Pizza . And on a sad bonus episode , they pay tribute to a quartet of major talents who have recently passed:...

On this week’s episode, Sonny Bunch (The Bulwark), Alyssa Rosenberg (The Washington Post), and Peter Suderman (Reason) discuss consolidation in the book industry and whether that contributed to the potential cancellation of a book celebrating Norman Mailer’s centennial. Then the gang reviews Don’t Look Up , Netflix and Adam McKay’s messy satire. And on the bonus episode , our three hosts pick thei...

This week Sonny Bunch (The Bulwark), Alyssa Rosenberg (The Washington Post), and Peter Suderman (Reason) unveil their five favorite movies of the year. A surprising amount of unanimity in this year’s lists! The gang reviews The Matrix Resurrections , Warner Bros. and Lana Wachowski’s super-meta reboot of the beloved franchise. And on the bonus episode , our hosts pick their favorite non- Matrix Wa...

On this week’s episode, Sonny, Alyssa, and Peter talk about the biggest movie of the year: Spider-Man: No Way Home . Before that, in cons and nons, they ask why Disney released three pickups from Fox— West Side Story , Nightmare Alley , and The King’s Man —in such close proximity not only to each other but also what was likely to be, again, the biggest movie of the year. And on the special bonus e...

On this week’s episode, Alyssa Rosenberg of the Washington Post returns from maternity leave to join Peter Suderman ( Reason ) and Sonny Bunch ( The Bulwark ) to discuss whether or not the New Yorker was too mean to Succession star Jeremy Strong in their profile of the actor . And the gang reviews Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story remake: even the notoriously musical-averse Sonny is wowed by it....

On this week’s episode, Sonny Bunch, Peter Suderman, and Chris Orr tackle Jane Campion’s western (or maybe not quite western?) The Power of the Dog . Is this a basic attack on toxic masculinity, or something a little more interesting? On cons and nons, the guys bid a not-so-fond farewell to Chris Cuomo, who has finally been fired from CNN. And the show ends on a slightly sad note, as Sonny pays tr...

On this week’s episode, Sonny Bunch, Peter Suderman, and Chris Orr look at the transition of power at Twitter and muse over how to fix the service that has an outsized—and potentially ill—effect on society. And the gang reviews House of Gucci , Ridley Scott and Lady Gaga’s overlong and over-accented look at one absurd Italian family. And on the bonus episode , the guys fete the career of Adam Driv...

On this week’s episode, Sonny Bunch, Peter Suderman, and Chris Orr highlight the first genuine, nominations-guaranteed piece of Oscar bait of the season: Will Smith’s King Richard , a look at the man behind the women who would go on to become the greatest female tennis players of all time. And in controversies and nontroversies, the guys debate whether or not Sean Baker, director of Tangerine and...

On this week’s episode Sonny Bunch, Peter Suderman, and Chris Orr talk about non-fungible tokens, and the scarcity and value of art. They also review Belfast , Kenneth Branagh’s semi-autobiographical look at growing up in Northern Ireland during The Troubles. And on the bonus episode they consider the most disposable—and, possibly, most-watched—movie of the year, Red Notice . If you enjoyed the ep...

On this week’s episode, Sonny Bunch, Peter Suderman, and Chris Orr ask whether it’s a controversy or a nontroversy that Big Bird is reassuring kids that getting shots won’t hurt them. And they review Eternals : Is it Marvel’s first DC movie? And on the bonus episode and in honor of Eternals earning the MCU its first splat on Rotten Tomatoes, the gang discusses their favorite rotten movies from bel...

This week, Sonny Bunch, Peter Suderman, and Chris Orr review The French Dispatch , Wes Anderson’s love letter to the New Yorker and art of all kinds. And we discuss the disastrous state of affairs in world cinema, where rising authoritarianism threatens the cinematic arts from Hong Kong to Kabul. What can the U.S. do to help? And on a special members-only episode , Sonny, Peter, and Chris discuss...

On this week’s episode of Across the Movie Aisle, Sonny is joined by Peter Suderman and Chris Orr, who will be filling in for Alyssa while she’s on maternity leave. We discussed the tragedy on the set of Rust , a film that was in production until Alec Baldwin accidentally shot and killed the director of photography, Halyna Hutchins, and wounded director Joel Souza. What are some of the things that...

On this episode, Sonny Bunch (The Bulwark), Alyssa Rosenberg (The Washington Post), and Peter Suderman (Reason) ask whether Dave Chappelle, his new special, and the way Netflix has handled internal and external fallout from its airing, are controversies, or nontroversies. Then the gang reviews The Last Duel , a/k/a Medieval Me Too. (For more on The Last Duel , you can read Sonny here , Alyssa here...

On this week’s episode, Sonny Bunch (The Bulwark), Alyssa Rosenberg (The Washington Post), and Peter Suderman (Reason) highlight the IATSE union work stoppage that seems pretty inevitable at this point. What do Hollywood’s trade unions want, in terms of money and work-life balance? Then the gang sets their sights on Bond, James Bond. Did they enjoy Daniel Craig’s final turn as 007? And, in the bon...