Our Hero De Niro

This week on All Mike'd Up , the Mikes are joined by friend of the pod Philip (a.k.a. "Lips") for a chaotic new segment—Pizza Takes. What started as a throwaway bit about controversial pizza opinions spirals into an all-out debate over whether "all pizza is the same," the ethics of pink sauce, and the fine art of choosing the right size pie. We break down Philip's notorious take, argue about toppi...

This week, the Mikes are joined by their friend (and real-life therapist) Philip, aka "Lips," for a spirited dive into  Analyze This , Harold Ramis's oddball 1999 mob comedy. We break down De Niro's sendup of his tough-guy persona, Billy Crystal's exasperated straight man, and why this mafia-meets-therapy premise feels both inspired and a little uneven. Plus: the real-life therapist verdict on cin...

This week, the Mikes dive into  City by the Sea , a somber crime drama that finds De Niro playing a haunted detective wrestling with the sins of both his past and his present. We unpack the film's gritty Long Beach setting, its exploration of fractured father-son relationships, and De Niro's layered performance as a man caught between duty and regret. Along the way, we debate the film's true-crime...

In this special episode, we take a look back at the films that shaped our 2025 movie year—not just the new releases, but everything we watched, discovered, and debated over the past twelve months. From first-time viewings of classics like Chinatown and Back to the Future to rewatches, hidden gems, and the movies that had us completely divided, we walk through our personal superlatives: Best Ending...

In this episode of  All Mike'd Up , the Mikes share their mostly spoiler-free thoughts on  Avatar: Fire and Ash  and  Marty Supreme . The first half is a therapy session about the Avatar franchise's endless spectacle—commiserating over 3D glasses, video game visuals, and the unique fatigue that comes with three-hour blockbusters. The guys discuss whether any of these films offer more than three-an...

This week, the Mikes tackle New Year's Eve , the star-studded holiday ensemble that crams a dizzying number of plotlines into one glitzy Times Square countdown. We break down De Niro's limited but heartfelt role, compare the chaos of intertwining stories, and debate the film's place among other holiday rom-coms. Plus: reflections on overstuffed casts, manufactured sentiment, and the strange appeal...

This week, the Mikes dig into  Falling In Love , a restrained romantic drama about two married New Yorkers whose chance encounter sparks a slow-burn affair. We break down De Niro's everyman turn, Streep's reserved vulnerability, and how the movie's winter-in-the-city melancholy is both its biggest strength and its most frustrating weakness. Plus: Christmas nostalgia, department store meet-cutes, a...

This week, the Mikes roll out the red carpet for The Roberts, our first annual award show dedicated to the highs, lows, and wildest moments of De Niro's filmography. We reflect on a year of weekly deep dives, debating our favorite films, biggest disappointments, and the performance that left us in awe. The ceremony is packed with categories like Best Co-Star Chemistry, Weirdest Plot Twist, and Mos...

This week, the Mikes dig into  One Hundred and One Nights , Agnès Varda's kaleidoscopic tribute to cinema history, where film references, cameos, and absurdist humor collide in a French countryside mansion. We break down the movie's campy love letter approach, the visual pleasures of its dreamy vignettes, and De Niro's blink-and-you-miss-him French cameo. Plus: grappling with foreign film blind sp...

This week, the Mikes take on  What Just Happened , Barry Levinson's sharp-edged Hollywood satire about a producer (De Niro) whose life is unraveling faster than his latest movie. We break down De Niro's world-weary performance, the movie's real-life cameos, and the absurdities of test screenings, bad scripts, and on-set meltdowns.   We also introduce "Car Talk," our brand-new segment on the cars o...

This week, the Mikes trudge through  Born to Win , a 1971 New York "crime thriller" that can't decide if it's a gritty character study, a screwball comedy, or just a parade of bad decisions. We break down George Segal's wandering antihero, Karen Black's chaotic love interest, and a very young Robert De Niro as a cop with great hair and about three scenes.   We debate whether the movie's jumbled to...

We're joined by special guest Caroline to unpack Alfonso Cuarón's visually lush, wildly stylized take on Dickens. Ethan Hawke broods, Gwyneth Paltrow floats, and De Niro lurks in the shadows of 90s Florida—while we debate whether any of it actually works as a story.   We break down the film's hypnotic direction, discuss why the character motivations are so confusing, and argue over whether this is...

We dive under the sea for Mikethefab's birthday with Hayao Miyazaki's  Ponyo —an enchanting, aquatic fairy tale about childhood wonder, magical chaos, and the world's bravest little goldfish.   We explore what makes  Ponyo  such a singular Studio Ghibli experience, debate whether its dream logic delights or frustrates, and revisit the question of how children's animation speaks to grown-ups. Along...

Robert De Niro trades mobsters for punchlines in Taylor Hackford's  The Comedian —a movie about an aging insult comic who just can't stop burning every bridge in his life, no matter how many second chances he gets.   We break down De Niro's passionate but polarizing performance, debate whether the film's crass, mean-spirited tone is intentional or just misguided, and try to figure out if there's a...

We lock in for  Stone , a bleak, small-budget crime thriller starring Robert De Niro, Edward Norton (in cornrows), and Milla Jovovich. This week, we try to make sense of a film that aims for brooding ambiguity but mostly delivers muddled themes, flat visuals, and characters that are more confusing than compelling. We break down the strange tonal mix and wrestle with the movie's attempts at "big id...

This week, the Mikes dig into  Stanley & Iris ,   a quietly compassionate drama about two ordinary people navigating hardship, loneliness, and unexpected friendship. We break down De Niro's understated performance, Fonda's grounded presence, and how the movie's gentle approach to big themes both charms and frustrates. Plus: early-90s nostalgia, the perils of teenage pregnancy, and developing the n...

In this episode, we take on Martin Scorsese's  Killers of the Flower Moon , dissecting its epic scope, staggering performances, and the haunting true story behind the Osage murders. We unpack Leonardo DiCaprio's unsettling turn, Lily Gladstone's standout presence, and Robert De Niro's chilling performance as William Hale. Plus: Digging into Scorsese's historical approach, the film's themes of comp...

In this episode of All Mike'd Up , the Mikes double-feature The Smashing Machine and Tron: Ares , trading immediate post-movie reactions and Letterboxd scores. They spar over whether Safdie's wrestling biopic is a slow-burn character study or just another sports movie cliché, debating The Rock's prosthetics, the film's subdued drama, and how well the documentary-style visuals actually work. Switch...

We flip the switch on Christopher Nolan's  Tenet , a time-bending thriller that's as audacious as it is divisive. For our 40th episode spectacular, we step away from De Niro to tackle one of our favorite modern blockbusters—a film we've defended since day one.   We dig into  Tenet's  ambitious sci-fi mechanics, its dense but economical storytelling, and how Nolan builds meaning through spectacle....

On this episode, the Mikes break down Grudge Match , a sports comedy pitting Robert De Niro and Sylvester Stallone against each other as retired boxers dragged into a publicity-fueled rematch. They analyze the movie's attempts to balance heartfelt moments with slapstick, touching on whether the film earns its sentimentality or leans too heavily on its leads' legendary status. Plus: the Mikes' hypo...

This week on  Our Hero De Niro , the Mikes break down  Killer Elite , the globe-trotting action thriller where Jason Statham, Clive Owen, and Robert De Niro get tangled in a messy web of assassins, vendettas, and questionable politics. They discuss the film's convoluted plot, De Niro's limited but welcome screen time, and whether the action set pieces justify the runtime. Plus: chair fights, the l...

In this episode of  Our Hero De Niro , the Mikes take on  New York, New York , Martin Scorsese's bold attempt to blend gritty postwar realism with old-Hollywood musical style. They dig into De Niro's performance as the charming but infuriating saxophonist Jimmy Doyle, the film's uneasy tone, and whether the visual grandeur justifies the runtime. Plus: Liza Minelli discourse, Scorsese's attitude du...

In the second episode of  All Mike'd Up , the Mikes dedicate the show to listener mail—reading and responding to letters from several friends of the pod. The discussion covers everything from movie rating philosophy and steak portion sizes to toxic masculinity and the challenges of translating Japanese film genres to the West. Along the way, they debate anonymity on the internet, nerd out over Pau...

For mikebackatyou's birthday, the Mikes break their randomizer rule and revisit The Matrix —the 1999 sci-fi revolution that changed how we watch movies. They unpack the film's iconic action sequences, bullet time effects, and the Wachowskis' fusion of philosophy and pop spectacle. Plus: The film's influence on action cinema, the iconic soundtrack, and what makes The Matrix endlessly rewatchable.  ...

This week on Our Hero De Niro , the Mikes take on Raging Bull —Martin Scorsese's brutal, black-and-white character study of boxer Jake LaMotta, played by Robert De Niro in one of his most iconic performances. They dig into the film's punishing tone, disorienting boxing cinematography, and the way it portrays violence as both performance and punishment. Plus: Paul Schrader appreciation, libertarian...