Ben Talks Film

From Apple comes The Lost Bus, a 2025 American survival drama film directed by Paul Greengrass, who co-wrote the screenplay with Brad Ingelsby. It is based on a section of the non-fiction 2021 book Paradise: One Town's Struggle to Survive an American Wildfire by Lizzie Johnson about a rescue during the 2018 Camp Fire. It stars Matthew McConaughey, America Ferrera, Yul Vazquez and Ashlie Atkins...

With the fall movie season arriving it is time to talk the best actor Oscar race for 2026, which at this moment is wide open and it is anyone's for the taking. There are no clear frontrunners, so who will get nominated is the question on everyone's mind, especially with Leonardo DiCaprio and Dwayne the Rock Johnson's performances having just debuted for audiences to see! Will this be t...

​  @WarnerBros  capped off an amazing 2025 by releasing what may be the best movie of 2025 and now the frontrunner to win Best Picture at the Oscars in One Battle After Another! Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson and starring Leonardo DiCaprio, One Battle After Another tells the story of a washed up American revolutionary who is brought back into the battle when a military man threatens his daughter...

From  @A24  comes Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson's first serious film in well over a decade... The Smashing Machine! Directed by Benny Safdie (Uncut Gems, Good Times) The Smashing Machine tells the story of Mark Kerr, one of the first UFC fighters, who is struggling to overcome an addiction to opioids, as well as navigate his turbulent relationship. The Smashing Machine is based on a true s...

From  @LionsgateMovies  comes The Long Walk directed by Francis Lawrence. Starring Cooper Hoffman and David Jonsson The Long Walk follows a group of men in a dystopian American who are drafted to participate in a totalitarian military event where they must walk at a speed of 3 miles an hour or else face execution, until there is only one left standing. The Long Walk is based on a Stephen King nove...

From A24 and Apple comes Spike Lee's newest movie and 5th collaboration with Denzel Washington: Highest 2 Lowest which is a remake/reimagining of Kurosawa's masterpiece High and Low. Highest 2 Lowest follows Paul King, a music mogul about to make the biggest deal of his career, only to find out his son has been kidnapped, or so he thinks. Highest 2 Lowest stars Denzel Washington, ASAP Rocky, and J...

Today: full podcast festival breakdown. I start with the biggest premieres at Venice and Telluride — winners, surprises, and which films actually left me excited. Then I roll into my Oscar power rankings (who’s rising, who’s slipping), followed by my 25 most anticipated films for the next 12 months — the ones I’m betting will matter. After that I do a short Physical Media Corner where I show recen...

From Columbia Studios and Sony Pictures comes Darren Aronofsky's latest film Caught Stealing starring Austin Butler... and unlike most of Aronofsky's other films, I did not hate this movie. Caught Stealing follows a former baseball player finds himself immersed in the criminal underworld of 1990s Giuliani's New York. Caught Stealing is based off the book of the same name written by Charlie Huston....

In honor of the release of  ⁨@A24⁩  Highest 2 Lowest, it is time to talk about the 10 best Spike Lee Joints! So join film critic, Ben Friedman, as we explore the films of Spike Lee: From Do the Right Thing to Highest 2 Lowest and everything in between.

The 2026 Oscars rapidly approach! With the Venice Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival, and Telluride Film Festival all around the corner ititss time to blindly preview the films in contention for the 98th Academy Awards! Who will win best picture? What @A24 sports film will be up for Oscar consideration? Will Adam Sandler win an Oscar for  @Netflix  Jay Kelly? Should Spike Lee be no...

From  @WarnerBros  comes one of the craziest films of the decade in Weapons directed by Zach Cregger. The film follows a Pennsylvania suburban town that is shaken when 17 school kids run out at night at 2:17am and are never seen again. Weapons stars Josh Brolin and Julia Garner and is one of the most bizarre, upsetting, creepy, and ambitious horror films we've seen in years.#Weapons #WeaponsMo...

Two weeks after setting the comedy world on fire for their vicious satire on President Trump South Park is back with a new episode where they go nuclear on JD Vance, ICE, and the dog killer Kristi Noem who is now director of Homeland Security. Oh, and they also imply Trump's mansion is just Epstein Island, in an episode that has the MAGA Sphere triggered with some accusing South Park of having...

From  @neonrated  comes the latest body horror film Together, which stars Allison Brie (Community and Glow) and Dave Franco. Together follows a codependent couple that stumble upon a mysterious cavern that begins to morph the two bodies into one - in this wildly gross, comedic, insane film of a couple in crisis. Together is directed and written by Michael Shanks and stars real life couple Allison...

From  ⁨@Netflix⁩  and Happy Madison comes the sequel 30 years in the making... Happy Gilmore 2 starring Adam Sandler! Happy Gilmore 2 follows Happy Gilmore who isn't done with golf — not by a long shot. Since his retirement after his first Tour Championship win, Gilmore returns to finance his daughter's ballet classes. Happy Gilmore 2 stars Adam Sandler reprising his beloved role, along wi...

From  @marvel  and  @Disney  comes the 37th film within the MCU, Fantastic Four First Steps directed by Matt Shakman and starring Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards. Fantastic Four First Steps (2025) follows the Fantastic Four on Earth-828, in 1960 who must protect their retro-futuristic world from the planet-devouring cosmic being Galactus. Fantastic Four First Steps is the introduction of these chara...

​  @paramountpictures  reached a deal with the creators of South Park for 1.5 billion dollars, and 48 hours later, they turned around said F U to Paramount and blasted the President of the United States calling him a pedophile wannabe dictator with a small manhood. South Park is back and better then ever with its season 27 opener which tackles Trump taking bribes and making a mockery out of Paramo...

Released by  @A24  Eddington is the 4th film from filmmaker Ari Aster and stars Joaquin Phoenix as Sheriff Joe Cross. Eddington follows a small town in New Mexico in the summer of 2020 as the residents are confronted with COVID, mask mandates, and Black Lives Matter protests, along with a heated mayoral campaign between Conservative candidate Sheriff Joe Cross, and democratic incumbent Ted Garcia....

 @WarnerBrosPictures  and  @paramountpictures  and  @dcoff   @dcofficial  brings you Watchmen Chapter II (2024). In 1985, the murder of a government sponsored superhero draws his outlawed colleagues out of retirement and into a mystery that threatens to upend their personal lives and the world itself. This a direct retelling of Alan Moore's hugely influential comic book Watchmen, which was turned...

Distributed by  @disneyanimation  and  @Disney  Moana 2 is a sequel to the beloved 2016 film Moana starring Dwayne The Rock Johnson. Moana 2 follows Moana, who after receiving an unexpected call from her wayfinding ancestors, must journey to the far seas of Oceania and into dangerous, long-lost waters for an adventure unlike anything she's ever faced. Developed as a tv show, Moana 2 is directed by...

With Wicked just debuting and becoming a phenomenon it seems like an apt time to discuss the Best Supporting Actress race which Ariana Grande has now officially joined for Wicked! The award contenders and nominations are wide open with no clear frontrunner formulating. Now, film critic Ben Friedman decided to look back at the past 11 months and prognosticate early contenders for next years Oscars...

Distributed by  @paramountpictures  and the sequel to the Oscar winning film Gladiator... Ridley Scott once agains enters back into the colosseum with Gladiator II starring Paul Mescal. Gladiator II follows Years after witnessing the death of Maximus at the hands of his uncle, Lucius must enter the Colosseum after the powerful emperors of Rome conquer his home. With rage in his heart and the futur...

Distributed by  @UniversalPictures  Wicked is directed by John M. Chu and stars Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West. Wicked follows green-skinned Elphaba, a young misunderstood woman, who has yet to discover her true power and crosses paths with Glinda, a young privileged and ambitious woman, and the two forge an unlikely friendship that is tested when they come fact to face wit...

Distributed by @netflix and the winner of the Cannes Film Festival Emilia Perez is directed by French filmmaker Jacques Audiard and stars Zoe Saldaña. Emilia Perez follows a cartel leader who undergoes surgery to become a woman with the help of his lawyer. Emilia Perez is a musical crime comedy directed by Jacques Audiard and stars Zoe Saldaña, Karla Sofía Gascón, and Selena Gomez. Emilia Perez ha...

With 2024 nearing its end the 97th Academy Awards hosted by Conan O'Brien rapidly approaches. The award contenders and nominations are wide open with no clear frontrunners formulating. Now, film critic Ben Friedman decided to look back at the first 11 months and prognosticate early contenders for next years Oscars ceremony, focusing on Best Actress today. Is Mikey Madison in ANORA the frontrunner...

For today's episode, we delve into the mournful crime masterpiece that is Martin Scorsese's "The Irishman.” Join critics Keith Phipps and Ben Friedman as we explore the genius of Scorsese's direction, Robert De Niro's chilling portrayal of Frank Sheeran, the soulfuss of Al Pacino as Jimmy Hoffa, and the return of Joe Pesci to the big screens, in this fascinating deconstruction...