Not a Bomb

Welcome back to Not A Bomb, the podcast where we resurrect cinema’s most infamous box office disasters and ask the burning question: is it a bomb? This week, Troy and Brad set sail into the explosive, alien‑filled chaos of the 2012 blockbuster Battleship. And yes, the guys know this one wasn’t just an underperformer. It was one of the biggest cinematic wipeouts of the year. In fact, Battleship is...

Welcome back to Not A Bomb, the podcast where we resurrect cinema’s most infamous box office disasters and ask the burning question: is it a bomb? This week, Troy and Brad dive into the world of espionage, revenge, and shark tanks with the 1989 James Bond entry License to Kill . And yes, the guys are fully aware this one wasn’t a full‑blown bomb, but it definitely underperformed and remains one of...

This week’s experiment: Visitors from the Arkana Galaxy , an Eastern European sci‑fi fever dream that asks, “What if humanity’s first contact looked like a disco‑soaked existential crisis?” and then answers with one of the most gloriously unhinged films ever committed to celluloid. Strange creatures, stranger humans, and a plot that feels beamed in from another dimension collide into something so...

Welcome back to Not A Bomb! — the podcast where we resurrect cinema's most infamous box office disasters and ask the burning question: is it a bomb? This week, the guys march into the chaos of Steven Spielberg's 1979 war comedy 1941 . Fresh off the unprecedented successes of Jaws and Close Encounters of the Third Kind , Spielberg was handed the ultimate Hollywood blank check to make whatev...

Welcome back to Not A Bomb! — the podcast where we resurrect cinema’s most infamous box office disasters and ask the burning question: is it a bomb? This week, the guys set sail for one of the most ambitious and accomplished films of the 21st century with Peter Weir's Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World. Released in 2003, this sprawling naval epic follows Captain Jack Aubrey and th...

Welcome back to Not A Bomb! — the podcast where we resurrect cinema’s most infamous box office disasters and ask the burning question: wis it a bomb? This week is extra special as Troy and Brad celebrate six years of cinematic redemption, deep dives, financial flops, and the occasional chocolate-covered pretzel. To mark the anniversary, the guys are heading back to the mid‑’90s to revisit Kevin Sm...

This week’s experiment: the shimmering, logic‑defying pop‑music fever dream known as Glitter . A film that dares to ask, “What if Mariah Carey starred in her own A Star Is Born ?” and then immediately forgets to answer because it got distracted by a sparkly butterfly. Set in a version of 1980s New York that appears to have been reconstructed entirely from perfume commercials and vague memories, Gl...

This week, Not A Bomb slows things down for a very different kind of Ani‑MAY‑e pick. The hosts dive into Angel’s Egg , Mamoru Oshii’s 1985 avant‑gothic meditation on faith, memory, and meaning. If last week was all speed and neon, this film is pure atmosphere, built from quiet moments, stark imagery, and a story that refuses to explain itself. The episode sets the stage by exploring the film’s unu...

For this installment of Not A Bomb’s Ani‑MAY‑e celebration, the hosts floor it into Redline — the 2009 hand‑drawn fever dream that treats racing like ritual and animation like pure adrenaline. What reads like a simple, neon‑soaked contest on the surface quickly reveals itself as an all‑out sensory sprint: outrageous vehicle designs, frame‑heavy animation that refuses to idle, and a world where eve...

For this installment of Not A Bomb’s “Ani-MAY-e” celebration, the hosts dive into Jujutsu Kaisen 0 , the explosive prequel to the massively popular Jujutsu Kaisen. Centered on the tragic story of Yuta Okkotsu, the film introduces audiences to a world where cursed spirits, powerful sorcerers, and overwhelming grief collide in spectacular fashion. What begins as a supernatural tale about loss and is...

For this installment of Not A Bomb’s “Ani-MAY-e” celebration, the hosts step into the surreal dreamscape of Paprika , Satoshi Kon’s mind-bending animated thriller that continues to blur the line between fantasy and reality nearly two decades after its release. What begins as a psychological mystery quickly spirals into a dazzling exploration of identity, technology, and the fragile barrier between...

This week’s experiment: the baffling, bargain-bin martial arts spectacle known as King Kong Fu . A film that dares to ask, “What if a kung fu master… was also a gorilla?” and then refuses to answer that question in any coherent way. Shot in Wichita, the very place Troy grew up, this cinematic fever dream brings things uncomfortably close to home. Local landmarks, questionable fight choreography, a...

For the month of April, Not A Bomb shines a spotlight on Hong Kong cinema. This week, Troy and Brad take a sharp turn into horror-comedy with Vampire vs. Vampire , a wildly inventive entry in the jiangshi (hopping vampire) subgenre that blends folklore, slapstick, and supernatural mayhem. Joining Troy and Brad this week is Sophia from the Moviestruck Podcast , who brings a deep well of knowledge t...

For the month of April, Not A Bomb is shining a spotlight on Hong Kong films. This week, Troy and Brad shift from contemporary action to a raw, visceral reimagining of wuxia as they explore Tsui Hark’s 1995 film The Blade — a brutal, expressionistic take on revenge and identity that strips the genre down to its bone structure. Set in a bleak, rain‑slick world where honor and survival collide, The...

For the month of April, Not A Bomb is shining a spotlight on Hong Kong films. This week, Troy and Brad shift from modern action thrillers to one of John Woo’s most personal and harrowing works: Bullet in the Head . Directed, written, produced, edited, and shaped by John Woo, the film pushes his trademark balletic action into darker, tragic territory. The film opens in 1967 Hong Kong and moves into...

For the month of April, Not A Bomb is shining a spotlight on Hong Kong films. This week, Troy and Brad shift gears from modern action thrillers to a film that feels like a love letter to classic Hong Kong stunt cinema as they explore Jackie Chan’s 2025 return to the kind of handcrafted, physical filmmaking that made him a legend — The Shadow’s Edge . With jaw‑dropping practical stunts, a surprisin...

For the entire month of March, the guys at Not A Bomb are throwing it back to their old Movie Matchup format, pitting notorious box office bombs against each other in a battle for redemption. Two flops enter… only one survives. There can only be one! This week, Troy and Brad are strapping on their headbands, polishing their katana, and diving into a matchup that blends ‘80s martial‑arts mayhem wit...

There’s something special about early ‘90s boxing movies. They live in that sweet spot between grit and charm—before everything became overly polished, but after the genre had already gone a few rounds with audiences. For Episode 301 of Not A Bomb , we step into the ring with two films that don’t always get a title shot: Gladiator (1992) and Diggstown (1992) . Here is the tale of the tape: Gladiat...

This week’s experiment: the pint-sized action sequel The Impossible Kid , starring the endlessly charming Weng Weng. After the crew unexpectedly fell in love with the chaotic brilliance of For Your Height Only , they’re diving back in… and happily so. And somehow, the magic is still there. What could have easily felt like a retread instead leans into everything that made the first film so special,...

For our 300th episode, Not A Bomb takes a moment to look back on nearly six years of exploring overlooked and misunderstood films. Brad and Troy reflect on the evolution of the show, the community that has grown around it, and the conversations that have shaped its identity. To mark the milestone, the episode revisits Michael Mann’s Heat (1995) — a film that has long been part of the podcast’s int...

For the entire month of March, the guys at Not A Bomb are throwing it back to their old Movie Matchup format, pitting notorious box office bombs against each other in a battle for redemption. Two flops enter… only one survives. There can only be one! This week, Troy and Brad aren’t just stepping into the ring, they’re calling the fight of the century. It’s a bruising, bare‑knuckle, cinematic heavy...

For the entire month of March, the guys at Not A Bomb are throwing it back to their old Movie Matchup format—pitting notorious box office bombs against each other in a battle for redemption. Two flops enter… only one survives. There can only be one! Crank up the amps, listeners, because this week we’re going full volume with a double feature of rock‑and‑roll misfits: Airheads and The Rocker . That...

For the month of February, Not A Bomb is shining a spotlight on some of the greatest Black directors in cinematic history. This week, Troy and Brad dive into their first film from legendary music‑video visionary Hype Williams with his 1998 crime drama Belly , a film that’s as visually bold as it is culturally influential. Anchored by performances from DMX and Nas, the film brings Willams’ unmistak...

Love is in the air… which means it’s time for a group of so-called friends to emotionally waterboard their buddy with terrible cinema. This week’s experiment: the glitter-soaked fever dream starring Paris Hilton — The Hottie and the Nottie . A romantic comedy that bravely asks, “Can true love conquer all?” …and then immediately tests that theory against a script that absolutely cannot. We would br...

For the month of February, Not A Bomb is shining a spotlight on some of the greatest Black directors in cinematic history. This week, Troy and Brad shift gears from grounded crime dramas to full‑throttle grindhouse fantasy as they explore their first film from RZA — the Wu‑Tang Clan legend turned filmmaker — with his 2012 martial‑arts epic The Man with the Iron Fists . Set in the chaotic, neon‑spl...