CinemArcade

It's been 25 years since we've seen a sports superstar team up with Bugs Bunny, but surely things haven't changed that much... have they? This week we're talking about the long-belated sequel SPACE JAM: A NEW LEGACY! LeBron James is subbing in for Michael Jordan, and the film is overloaded with branded characters from every corner of Warner Bros.' IP server-verse... but is this a story that would...

Welcome to the Jam! We're kicking off an ersatz Looney Tunes miniseries this week, starting with the movie that reintroduced Bugs Bunny and company to the zeitgeist for an entire generation: SPACE JAM! This goofy 75-minute advertisement fused two of the most heavily marketed pop culture figures in history: the Looney Tunes, and NBA legend Michael Jordan. We dig into Jordan's illustrious career, th...

Hang on! This week we're revisiting the oeuvre of one Sylvester Stallone for maybe his last unambiguous hit, the larger-than-life, dumber-than-rocks thriller CLIFFHANGER! This classic "Die Hard on a mountain" action flick features some of the most incredible stunts ever put to film, but is that enough to overlook the goofy script? We'll find out before checking out the game adaptations for NES, SN...

Steve and Ailish are getting married this week! And to celebrate the occassion, Ailish is joining the gang for a conversation about her very favorite thing: BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER! We're bending the rules a bit here, since the 1992 movie is the least impactful part of the BUFFY experience; we're mostly going to be talking about the iconic 90's action series starring Sarah Michelle Gellar, as wel...

Rev up your mowers and get ready to step into a virtual world beyond your dreams as we cover the bizarre, weirdly off-putting Stephen King "adaptation" THE LAWNMOWER MAN! This 1992 thriller starring Pierce Brosnan and Jeff Fahey portended a terrifying future of VR mind control that... didn't totally happen. We'll talk all about this bizarre little oddity before talking about a series of games for...

We're finally paying the balance and revisiting our long-lost episode from early in in CinemArcade history: the 1988 fantasy adventure WILLOW! Ron Howard and George Lucas' high-fantasy epic has been a slow-growing cult favorite, and whether the franchise has a future or not, it's still an exceptionally crafted and entertaining romp. Even more exciting, we were able to coax Thirty Twenty Ten podcas...

We're gazing into the future this week for the heady sci-fi blockbuster MINORITY REPORT! Based on the novella by Phillip K. Dick, this film brought megastars Tom Cruise and Steven Spielberg together for the first time, and tackles a cool idea in a kinetic and entertaining fashion. We're talking about the film before checking out the AAA game adaptation from the makers of SPIDER-MAN 2!  Hosted by S...

Groovy, baby! This week is all about AUSTIN POWERS, the swinging 60's spy comedy that became a pop culture juggernaut. We're talking about the first film, INTERNATIONAL MAN OF MYSTERY, but touching upon the entire AUSTIN POWERS phenomenon, including some of the downright strangest video game tie-ins we've ever played.  Hosted by Steve Guntli, Jennifer "JBan" Bannister, and Justin Wilhelm  Logo by...

We're blasting off this week with the secret Marvel adaptation BIG HERO 6! Disney's smash hit superhero saga has heart, humor, and some gorgeous animation... but does it play it too safe for it's own good? We dig into it before discussing the weird dearth of BH6 games, aside from the 3DS adaptation BATTLE FOR THE BAY!  Hosted by Steve Guntli, Jennifer "JBan" Bannister, and Justin Wilhelm  Logo by...

The grandaddy of the modern action picture, Clint Eastwood's iconic crooked cop DIRTY HARRY was a huge, controversial hit in 1971. The movie has a huge legacy and a number of infinitely quotable lines, but how does a movie about a ruthlessly brutal cop who takes the law into his own hands play in 2026? We find out before checking out the 1990 NES game adaptation, and discussing the open-world Harr...

Everyone's favorite fearless feline hero gets to take center stage in the 2011 spin-off PUSS IN BOOTS! We're joined this week by Austin comedian and podcaster Aaron Salinas, who takes us through his history with Antonio Banderas' loveable swashbuckler, before booting up the Wii game that makes expected use of the console's swordfighting capabilities.  Hosted by Steve Guntli, Jennifer "JBan" Bannis...

Our SHREK-sploration comes to a close this week as we say goodbye to the big green ogre with SHREK FOREVER AFTER! This most recent entry (to date) sports much more sophisticated animation and a cleaner, more plot-focused structure, but has the series lost it's grimy soul? We'll get into it before busting out the PS3 multiplayer action game, which is already showing diminishing returns over the pre...

Is THE THIRD time the charm for the big green ogre? We're breaking it down this week as we cover SHREK THE THIRD as our shreksploration of Dreamworks' flagship franchise continues apace! Ailish Collins is back once again, stepping in for an absent Justin, as we struggle to remember the details of this air-light follow-up. Then, we're playing the PS2 action game that weirdly recalls beat-em-ups lik...

The big green ogre changed the game when SHREK debuted in 2001, and it's 2004 sequel showed that its success was not just a fluke. This week we're covering the monumentally successful SHREK 2, perhaps the financial and creative pinacle of the entire franchise. We're chatting this week with return guest Ailish Collins, who shares her special connection to the movie and also to the Gamecube game ada...

It's time to kick off one of our most-requested series to date: a five-episode deep dive into the swampy, fairy tale world of America's favorite ogre, SHREK! Hannah Neuhauser returns to the show to discuss the 2001 original, a fun summer comedy that wound up changing the way animated films were made and warping the collective brains of an entire generation. Then, we're checking out the Xbox game a...

Tough-talking guys, gorgeous gals, and lots of cars that go vroom; that's right, it's time for another Justin's Choice! This time, our resident gearhead has us in the pit for 1990's DAYS OF THUNDER, which reuinites the star and director of TOP GUN for a very TOP GUN-esque melodrama. Featuring Tom Cruise at his sexiest and Robert Duvall at his most lovably cantakerous, the movie doesn't have a lot...

It's our 150th episode! We thought we'd mark this milestone by digging up one of the least-likely movies to ever have a game adaptation: the 1982 raunchy teen sex comedy PORKY'S! This tiny little gross-out comedy from director Bob Clark became an unlikely sensation, making more than $200 million on a $4 million budget and creating an entire subgenre of horny high school knockoffs, but understandab...

Are ya ready kids? Because this week we're tackling the tiny yellow sponge who became a media juggernaut: SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS! We're covering the charming invertibrate's debut feature film from 2004, and exploring the generation-defining phenomenon that lives in a pineapple under the sea. Then, we're checking out the game adaptation for Xbox and discussing how SpongeBob is quietly one of the mos...

Sam Raimi, the enfant terrible of the indie horror scene, made his major studio debut in 1990 with DARKMAN! An original superhero story not-so-loosely inspired by "The Shadow," DARKMAN provides an early lead role for Liam Neeson, and a sort of prototype for what would become the Raimi house style. But is this an excercise in style over substance or is there something substantial lurking in the dar...

No other movie star has loomed quite as large as GODZILLA! This week we're checking out the icon of Japanese cinema in his very first appearance from 1954, and covering the long, complex, and fascinating history of filmdom's greatest kaiju. Then, we're digging in to a couple of classic games based on the character and his universe, including two oddball NES games and the SNES title SUPER GODZILLA!...

I am, I am... going to talk about NACHO LIBRE! This 2006 luchadore comedy offers an early starring role for Jack Black and a feature film follow-up for the director of NAPOLEON DYNAMITE. But is this the right team to be telling this story? Or does this quirky family comedy offer enough charms to overcome that? We'll find out before popping in the DS-exclusive game adaptation, a hybrid of touch-scr...

Step through the giant ancient portal with us as we travel to a distant planet that looks strongly like ancient Egypt; if any of that made sense to you then you must be a fan of STARGATE! Roland Emmerich's splashy sci-fi spectacle has had a long and impactful tail in nerd culture, but is this movie the least essential part of it's legacy? We'll get into it, before playing the Sega Genesis game whi...

We're going from zero to hero this week as we cover Disney's 1997 interpretation of HERCULES! Coming right smack in the middle of the studio's major renaissance, the film was dinged at the time for being too lightweight, but it's that very breeziness that makes it a delight. We're covering the film before booting up the 2.5-D action platformer for the PS1 and PC! Hosted by Steve Guntli, Jennifer "...

Get ready to head to the hyperkinetic world of the future, where hands are used for feet and even the grass can kill you, as we cover the 2005 bomb AEON FLUX! Adapted from the cult MTV animated series, this movie gave Charlize Theron her start as an action heroine, but heavy studio meddling left moviegoers more baffled than enthralled. We go into exactly what went wrong before checking out the act...

This week we're closing the sarcophagus on the MUMMY franchise by looking at the oft-overlooked third entry, THE MUMMY: TOMB OF THE DRAGON EMPEROR. This movie mixes up the formula by adding a new villain, a new setting, and a new Evie, but do all these changes work for the better or is the series being resurrected for no good purpose? We'll find out before checking out the last of our MUMMY games,...