It Was a Movie | Weekly Movie Reviews and Film Analysis

🎬 The Astronaut's Wife (1999) – Random Movie #14649 This week, we review The Astronaut's Wife (1999), Rand Ravich’s eerie blend of sci-fi and psychological thriller. Johnny Depp stars as Spencer Armacost, a NASA astronaut who returns from a mysterious space mission… different. Charlize Theron plays his increasingly unsettled wife, Jillian, who begins to suspect that whatever came back to Earth is...

🎬 Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In (2024) – Random Movie #2690 This week, we review Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In (2024), directed by Soi Cheang. This Hong Kong martial arts action film delves into themes of survival and community within the infamous Kowloon Walled City. Raymond Lam stars as Chan Lok-kwun, a refugee who, after a desperate act, seeks refuge in the lawless enclave. There,...

Nobody thought we could do it but we made it through our next 9 random movies! In this episode we look back at what sticks out in our withered memories of the movies we have put ourselves through: Robocop, Paths of Glory, The Lost Weekend, Them!, Face/Off, The Parallax View, AVPR: Aliens v Predator: Requiem, My Left Foot, and The Wrong Man . How did we feel about them in retrospect and with hindsi...

🎬 The Wrong Man (1957) – Random Movie #1106 This week, we review The Wrong Man (1957), Alfred Hitchcock’s stark and haunting true-crime drama that trades suspenseful thrills for chilling realism. Henry Fonda stars as Manny Balestrero, a real-life musician wrongly accused of robbery, whose life spirals into a nightmare of mistaken identity and bureaucratic indifference. With its documentary-like a...

🎬 My Left Foot (1989) – Random Movie #39 This week, we review My Left Foot (1989), Jim Sheridan’s deeply moving biographical drama about triumph against the odds. Daniel Day-Lewis delivers a powerhouse, Oscar-winning performance as Christy Brown, an Irish writer and painter born with cerebral palsy, who learns to express himself using only his left foot. With Brenda Fricker in an equally stirring...

🎬 AVPR: Aliens vs. Predator – Requiem (2007) – Random Movie #15802 This week, we review AVPR: Aliens vs. Predator – Requiem (2007), the dark (literally) and brutal sequel that pits two of cinema’s most iconic extraterrestrial killers against each other in a small Colorado town. Directed by the Strause brothers, this entry in the AVP franchise turns up the gore but dials down the visibility, as th...

🎬 The Parallax View (1974) – Random Movie #7057 This week, we review The Parallax View (1974), Alan J. Pakula’s chilling conspiracy thriller that taps into the paranoia of the 1970s. Warren Beatty stars as a determined journalist investigating a shadowy organization linked to a string of political assassinations. As he digs deeper, reality blurs, trust erodes, and the film descends into a nightma...

🎬 Face/Off (1997) – Random Movie #1404 This week, we review Face/Off (1997), John Woo’s gloriously over-the-top action thriller where identity, vengeance, and slow-motion gunfights collide. Nicolas Cage and John Travolta go full-throttle as a terrorist and an FBI agent who literally swap faces in a mind-bending battle of wits, bullets, and doves. Packed with insane stunts, melodramatic showdowns,...

🎬 Them! (1954) – Random Movie # 3684 This week, we review Them! (1954), Gordon Douglas’s sci-fi horror classic that helped define the “big bug” subgenre of the Atomic Age. James Whitmore, Edmund Gwenn, and James Arness star in this thrilling tale of radiation-mutated giant ants wreaking havoc in the American Southwest. As the military scrambles to contain the growing menace, the film explores Col...

This week, we review The Lost Weekend (1945), Billy Wilder’s groundbreaking psychological drama that dives deep into the harrowing struggle of alcoholism. Ray Milland delivers a career-defining performance as Don Birnam, a writer battling addiction over a destructive four-day binge in New York City. With its raw portrayal of dependency, self-destruction, and despair, this film was ahead of its tim...

🎬 Paths of Glory (1957) – Random Movie # 7 on listener Rob’s all time movie list. This week, we review Paths of Glory (1957), Stanley Kubrick’s searing anti-war drama that stands as one of the greatest indictments of military corruption and the futility of war. Kirk Douglas stars as Colonel Dax, a principled officer caught between duty and morality when he’s ordered to lead his men on a suicidal...

Random movie number 1 on listener Andrew’s all time movie list, Robocop. Directed by Paul Verhoeven, RoboCop is a sci-fi action classic set in a crime-ridden Detroit of the near future. After a brutal ambush, police officer Alex Murphy (Peter Weller) is transformed into a cybernetic law enforcer by the powerful Omni Consumer Products. But as his memories resurface, he begins to question his progra...

Nobody thought we could do it but we made it to episode 100! We are the most surprised, believe us! In this episode we look back at our journey from episode 1 to episode 99 and play our favorite clips - good and bad!. How did we feel about them in retrospect and with hindsight in our rear view mirror? Listen on and find out! Want to contact us? 15krandommoviereviews@gmail.com Follow, rate, and rev...

Random movie number 1411 on Metacritic’s all time movie list, Repo Man (1984) is a cult-classic sci-fi punk film directed by Alex Cox, starring Emilio Estevez as Otto, a disillusioned young man who stumbles into the bizarre world of car repossession. Paired with a seasoned repo agent played by Harry Dean Stanton, Otto soon discovers that one particular car holds a mysterious—and potentially extrat...

Random movie number 43 on Metacritic’s all time movie list, The Third Man (1949), directed by Carol Reed, is a classic film noir set in post-World War II Vienna. Starring Joseph Cotten, Alida Valli, and Orson Welles, it follows an American writer unraveling the mystery of his friend’s suspicious death amid the shadowy ruins of the city. What secrets lurk in the cobblestone alleys and beneath the h...

Random movie number 15821 on Metacritic’s all time movie list, Catwoman (2004), directed by Pitof, stars Halle Berry as Patience Phillips, a shy woman who gains feline-inspired powers after a mysterious transformation. Navigating her new identity, she becomes an anti-heroine battling corporate corruption and her own moral dilemmas. Is this tale of claws and redemption a purr-fect fit for the big s...

Random movie number 849 on Metacritic’s all time movie list, Easy Rider (1969), directed by Dennis Hopper, is a landmark film of the counterculture movement. Starring Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper, and Jack Nicholson, it follows two bikers on a cross-country journey through the American Southwest in search of freedom and meaning. What does their ride reveal about the spirit—and struggles—of 1960s Ame...

Random movie number 7080 on Metacritic’s all time movie list, Sunshine (2007), directed by Danny Boyle, is a gripping sci-fi thriller featuring Cillian Murphy, Rose Byrne, and Chris Evans. The story follows a crew of astronauts on a mission to reignite the dying Sun and save humanity, but unforeseen challenges put their mission—and their sanity—to the ultimate test. Can they overcome the odds to s...

Random movie number 993 on Metacritic’s all time movie list, Withnail and I (1987) is a dark comedy written and directed by Bruce Robinson, starring Richard E. Grant and Paul McGann. Set in 1969, the film follows two out-of-work actors navigating squalor, desperation, and a disastrous countryside holiday. Will they survive their chaotic antics and questionable decisions? Listen on and find out! Wa...

Random movie number 4503 on Metacritic’s all time movie list, "Seconds" (1966) is a psychological thriller directed by John Frankenheimer, featuring a haunting performance by Rock Hudson. The film delves into the unsettling world of identity and reinvention as a disillusioned man is given the chance to start a new life, courtesy of a mysterious organization. But what happens when the dream of a fr...

Random movie 21 picked from a list of movies with some kinda tie to New Year’s Eve, "Trading Places" (1983) is a sharp comedy directed by John Landis, starring Eddie Murphy and Dan Aykroyd. The film follows a wealthy investor and a street hustler who unknowingly become part of a social experiment when their lives are swapped by two scheming millionaires. Can these two opposites adapt to their new...

Random movie 14 picked from a list of Christmas movies, "A Christmas Story" (1983) is a beloved holiday classic directed by Bob Clark, featuring Peter Billingsley as Ralphie, a young boy who dreams of getting a Red Ryder BB gun for Christmas. Set in the 1940s, the film humorously follows Ralphie's attempts to convince everyone—from his parents to Santa—that his gift is the perfect choice. Will his...

Nobody thought we could do it but we made it through our next 9 random movies! In this episode we look back at what sticks out in our withered memories of the movies we have put ourselves through: Spirited Away, Shaun of the Dead, The Thing, Rollerball, The Color Purple, Big Fish, Along Came a Spider, Con Air, and True Romance. How did we feel about them in retrospect and with hindsight in our rea...

Random movie number 7973 on Metacritic’s all time movie list, "True Romance" (1993) is a crime-filled love story directed by Tony Scott, with a screenplay by Quentin Tarantino. Starring Christian Slater and Patricia Arquette, the film follows a couple on the run after stealing a suitcase full of drugs, attracting the attention of both gangsters and the law. Will their whirlwind romance survive the...

Random movie number 10178 on Metacritic’s all time movie list, "Con Air" (1997) is an action-packed thriller directed by Simon West, starring Nicolas Cage, John Malkovich, and John Cusack. The film follows a group of dangerous convicts who hijack a prison transport plane, with Cage's character, a former soldier, caught in the middle. Will he manage to save the day and make it home to his family? L...