Now Playing - The Movie Review Podcast

It is rare for a romance film to get a sequel, but Richard Linklater's Before Sunrise actually got two! Released in 1995, the movie tells of two strangers, Jesse and Céline, and their one night together in Vienna. But nine years later the couple returned in Before Sunset, and then in 2013 their story continued in Before Midnight. What is it about this saga that keeps the actors, director, and audi...

After the box office success of Carrie and The Shining move movies based on Stephen King's writings were a guarantee. And following in the footsteps of Brian DePalma and Stanley Kubrick came other stylistic directors, including John Carpenter, Rob Reiner, and David Cronenberg--director of The Dead Zone. Starring Christopher Walken as a psychic trying to stop nuclear war, the film continued King's...

"You think we need one more? You think we need one more. All right, we'll get one more." That quote, from 2001's Ocean's Eleven, seems like it could be the attitude going into Steven Soderberg's star studded third and final installment in the Ocean's series. The gang has now teamed up with former enemy Terry Benedict to rob a different Vegas casino. As an attempt to end the series on a high note,...

Director Steven Soderbergh won big with his Vegas film Ocean's 11. So three years later he decided to double down, getting back the whole cast from the first film, including Clooney, Pitt, Damon, and Cheadle, and adding to it Catherine Zeta-Jones, Bruce Willis, and several more for a sequel Ocean's 12. No longer based in Vegas, the crew globe-hops in an attempt to steal a Fabergé egg. Did Soderber...

In 2001 it's doubtful anyone was begging for a remake of the 60's Rat Pack film Ocean's 11. It was the cast that grabbed moviegoers' attention, filled with leading men George Clooney, Matt Damon, and Brad Pitt, plus a strong supporting cast and Julia Roberts as the female lead. But such star-studded films can often be debacles where the fun is had on the set, but not translated on the screen. Can...

​A young farmer must learn magic and join with a rouge warrior to travel to far away lands and save the world. No, this isn't a review of Star Wars, but Willow--the 1988 action-fantasy film based on a story by George Lucas. Though this film closely follows the Star Wars formula can it recreate that saga's excitement? Join Stuart, Arnie, and Jakob to find out in their review of this tale of Leprech...

Before there was Clooney, Pitt, and Damon there was Sinatra, Martin, and Davis starring in Ocean's 11. This 1960 crime caper was the first film to feature The Rat Pack, with Ol' Blue Eyes himself playing Danny Ocean. In this original vision Ocean was a former World War II commander once again gathering his troops for one final mission--to rob five Vegas casinos in one night. The film has an impres...

Horror film remakes have been non-stop for a decade. Of course the big films were redone, including Halloween, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Friday the 13th, and A Nightmare on Elm Street. Yet even smaller horror films, such as Black Christmas, I Spit on Your Grave, and Willard have seen updates for the 21st century. In 2012 another cult splatter film was added to that roster--Maniac. Closely based...

​​1980 saw the release of several memorable slasher films, including Friday the 13th, Silent Scream, New Year's Evil, and Prom Night. Yet of all the 1980s slashers none may be more controversial than Maniac--a low budget splatter film with its unrated violence and Tom Savini's gore effects. The film has grown a cult following through home video but maniacal murderer Frank still lacks the name reco...

​​It's considered by many to be Stephen King's best novel of all time -- The Stand. King's fourth novel told of a superflu that wipes out humanity and sets the stage for an epic battle of good versus evil. In 1994 ABC aired a mammoth, four night mini-series that took the top three spots in the Nielsen ratings. Now it's time for Arnie, Jakob, and Stuart to take their Stand and review this miniserie...

Ever since Disney purchased Marvel Comics a family-friendly superhero cartoon was all but guaranteed. But it's not the Avengers, the Fantastic Four, or the X-Men who star in Disney's first Marvel animated feature, it's the little-known Asian team Big Hero 6. Many changes have happened adapting the team from the page to the screen, but is the result super? Join the Podcast Hero 3 of Arnie, Stuart,...

George Lucas' 1977 space fantasy Star Wars changed the way American audiences consumed films. More, though, it also changed the landscape for movie merchandising, with more money being made on toys, games, and collectibles than on the movies themselves. Now the documentary Plastic Galaxy looks back at the first generation of Star Wars toys, released between 1977 and 1985 from Kenner. Does this fil...

​Christopher Nolan's film Interstellar tells of an Earth that is dying; those who don't starve to death will suffocate in an atmosphere turning toxic. Our only hope comes in the form of Cooper (Matthew McConaughey), a farmer who crashes NASA's secret base thanks to mysterious messages from beyond. It's an ambitious film filled with hard science and lots of discussions of love. Is it a film that ha...

​After bringing respectability back to the Dark Knight with the 2005 film Batman Begins Nolan reteamed with two of that film's leading actors, Christian Bale and Michael Caine, for The Prestige--an 1899 period piece about two competing illusionists. Does Nolan's non-chronological storytelling and slight of hand produce a prestigious film? Join Arnie, Stuart, and Jakob to find out!

​After directing the indie hit Memento director Christopher Nolan was chosen by producer Steven Soderbergh to direct Insomnia--a ​crime thriller based on the 1997 Norwegian film of the same name. The result was Nolan's first mainstream studio film starring Al Pacino and Robin Williams. Does a film about a man who can't sleep live up to a film about a man with no memory? Don't lose any sleep thinki...

​In 2001 Christopher Nolan broke into mainstream filmmaking with Memento--a noir murder mystery about a man who had no short-term memory trying to find his wife's killer. With a quirky concept and an editing style specifically used to play with the audience's own memories the result was an indie hit that launched the director into the public eye. Is this Tarantino-styled film remembered fondly by...

​In 2001 Christopher Nolan broke into mainstream filmmaking with Memento--a noir murder mystery about a man who had no short-term memory trying to find his wife's killer. With a quirky concept and an editing style specifically used to play with the audience's own memories the result was an indie hit that launched the director into the public eye. Is this Tarantino-styled film remembered fondly by...

Christopher Nolan is one of the most acclaimed directors currently working in American cinema. His films bend the mind and break the box office--his Batman film The Dark Knight is the fourth highest grossing film in the US. Now Arnie, Jakob, and Stuart flash back to the director's first film--the micro-budgeted Following. With almost no money did Nolan's talent shine through, or is this a glorifie...

Last summer's supernatural horror film The Conjuring scared up big profits for Warner Bros. Pictures. While ghostly Bathsheba terrorized the house, it was possessed doll Annabelle that stole the show. Now the porcelain poltergeist is back in her own spin-off film! The film scored much green in its opening weekend, but will it get green arrows from the Now Playing hosts? Listen to find out!

When Tim and Allie's car breaks down on the desert streets of California the only help they can find is from nearby farmer Preacher and his Ukrainian wife Oksana. But one night in that house may lead to Tim and Allie's doom as strange occurrences terrorize the young couple. What is going on, and how in the world is this a Children of the Corn film? Join Arnie, Stuart, and Jakob's review of Childre...

​​Last summer a low budget horror film surprised box office pundits and horror fans alike. The weekend the big-budget films RED 2 and R.I.P.D. opened, the box office champion was The Conjuring. Directed by Saw co-creator James Wan, Conjuring seemed like a retread of the horror he showcased in 2010's Insidious, but with a based-on-real-life twist and the film became the top grossing horror film of...

Stephen King's short story "Children of the Corn" ties Carrie for being adapted for screens three times. The first was the "Dollar Baby" Disciples of the Crow, then in 1984 came the well-known film starring Linda Hamilton. Finally in 2009 came a new Children of the Corn, premiering initially on the SciFi channel before getting an unrated home video release. Is the third time the charm for He Who W...

This week listeners get two servings of Corn as Jakob, Arnie, and Stuart return to review the seventh Children of the Corn film, Revelation. Set not in Gatlin, Nebraska but rather in Omaha, featuring a cult of undead children, and with Michael Ironside getting top billing, can this serving go down easier than some of the earlier direct-to-video installments? Listen to this review to find out!

The Children of the Corn are all grown up, but original cult leader Isaac is back to lead them! The role of the original corn killer was reprised by John Franklin who not only starred but co-wrote the film with his cousin Tim Sulka. Does this return the franchise to its horror roots? Join Jakob, Arnie, and Stuart to find out!

Allison knows her brother has joined a cult of young people who worship He Who Walks Behind the Rows, but she doesn't know that he's slated to be sacrificed on the eve of his eighteenth birthday. Can she save her sibling from a corny fate? The answer lies in Children of the Corn V: Fields of Terror. With stars Eva Mendes, Alexis Arquette, and David Carradine, plus Fred Williamson, Kane hodder, and...