PopaHALLics

PopaHALLics #67 "Hooray for ... Hollywood?" We discuss the Best Picture nominations, one of the Best Picture nominees ("The Power of the Dog"), and why high schoolers who have seen zombie movies should know how to kill zombies, for crying out loud! Also: Mel Brooks' new autobiography and why that guy on Tinder may be too good to be true. Streaming "The Power of the Do...

PopaHALLics #66 "C'mon C'mon" .... ... we have a lot of pop culture to talk about! ! In this episode, we discuss the Joaquin Phoenix movie of that name, of course, as well as streaming options "Munich: The Edge of War," "Strike," and "Hot Fuzz" and the fantasy classic "The Mists of Avalon." Also: "sad girl music" and why J.K. Ro...

PopaHALLics #65 "Let's Put On a Show!" Novelist Peter Ferry (our guest way back in Ep. #6) returns with exciting news: A stage adaptation of his award-wining "Old Heart" is set to premiere at Detroit's Redford Theater later this year. Pete talks about how the play came about because of independent filmmaker Roger Rapoport ("Coming Up for Air") and the way ca...

PopaHALLics #64 That Time We Put on Our Own Film Festival After reading a profile of Japanese animation master Hayao Miyazaki, Steve and his wife have a mini-Miyazaki film festival in their living room. Hear about the films they watched and why Steve wants to do this with other directors.  We discuss: Miyazaki Films "My Neighbor Totoro." Two young spunky girls are befriended by a giant f...

PopaHALLics #63  "Transformers (Not the Robots)" The streaming options and books in this episode have one thing in common: The characters or real people face challenges or experiences that transform their lives, from a comet threatening life on Earth to an obsessive classics professor to a headless knight who vows to kill his attacker in a year. (You read that right.) Strap in as Steve a...

"Highly Recommended" In a first, Steve and Kate mostly rave about what we have seen and read. While we have reservations about a few things—sorry, Boba Fett and Sandra Bullock—you'll hear about plenty of worthwhile pop culture. We discuss: Streaming "Picnic at Hanging Rock" , Amazon Prime. In this Australian gothic miniseries based on the 1967 novel, a group of schoolgirls...

PopaHALLic #61 "Not So Home Alone" Gathered for a holiday outing, Steve, Kate and the Resident Kid Expert (RKE) discuss seasonal offerings, including the fifth "Home Alone" movie, "Home Sweet Home Alone," on Disney +. Wait, you say, isn't Macauley Culkin like in his 40s now?! Yes —41, actually—but it's a different kid.  The RKE gives his review. We also talk...

"Get Back" All you need is ... 8 hours to tell the story of the Beatles' recording sessions for the album "Let It Be" and their famous rooftop concert, the last time they played in public together. Steve says Peter Jackson's documentary on Disney + is a shade too long but it's thrilling to see the Beatles create songs that are now part of our pop DNA. Dad and dau...

I'm Putting You on (Red) Notice Dad and daughter beg to differ on "Red Notice," Netflix's most expensive production to date ($200 million). Kate thinks the action comedy starring Dwayne Johnson, Gail Gadot, and Ryan Reynolds is a waste of time. Steve thinks it's an entertaining action movie with memorable one-liners from Reynolds. Who's right? Listen in!  We also disc...

On Books, on "Dune, " on Uncle Buck and Marcella!  After a few weeks apart, the Halls reunite to talk books, TV series, and the new movie "Dune." And being us, we manage to squeeze in all sorts of intriguing tidbits, from the inspiration for the movie "Home Alone" to the fact we're "famous by proxy." We discuss: Books: "Ghosts of New York, " b...

Emma, Billy Bob, and "Night Teeth" In another free-wheeling feisty episode , Steve and Kate share their thoughts on: Streaming "Emma," an enjoyable 2020 Jane Austen adaptation starring Anya Taylor-Joy ("The Queen's Gambit")  "Destination Wedding" (2018), a love-or-hate-it rom-com with Winona Ryder and Keanu Reeves as two misanthropes thrown together at...

PopaHALLics #56 Straight from the Heart-Land Steve reports on offerings from the Heartland International Film Festival, which invites filmmakers and audiences to experience the transformative power of film. The festival turned 30 this year, showcasing films and documentaries that will be coming to streaming services and theaters near you. Steve reviews: "American-ish," a dramedy about th...

Women Rock! What's the unofficial theme running through this show? Strong women, from the female assassins of "Gunpowder Milkshake" to real-life punk rock designer Vivienne Westwood to the rocking sisters of Larkin Poe.  We discuss: Streaming: "Gunpowder Milkshake," with Karen Gillan, Lena Headey, Carla Gugino and more as women you don't want to make mad "Officia...

Pop Catch-Up! We play catch-up on the pop culture we consumed while apart, including: Streaming "The Chair," a university drama with Sandra Oh as a department's beleaguered chair "Kate," an action thriller with assassin Mary Elizabeth Winstead searching for the people who poisoned her "The Lovebirds," a rom-com with Issa Rae and Kumail Nanjiani as a couple trying...

Dressed to Win! Who looked great at the Emmys and Met Gala , such as Michaela Coel ("I May Destroy You")—and who should have stayed at home? We have lively opinions—Kate's informed by fashion sense, Steve's not so much.  We also have fun talking about: "Only Murders in the Building," a Hulu comedy/drama with Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez trying to solve...

"Stump the Halls!" To celebrate a year's worth of shows, we play "Stump the Halls!" Listeners quiz us about some of their favorite pop culture offerings. (Sample: What is John Wayne's last line as Rooster Cogburn in the original "True Grit"?) We find the trivia questions sometimes easy, sometimes tough ... can YOU answer them? Play along with "Stump the...

"A Lotta Pop!" Steve and Kate hit the pop culture supermarket and emerge with several carts crammed to the top with offerings and opinions. We discuss everything from a Netflix documentary about a woman raised by wolves (!) to what made Rolling Stones drummer Charlie Watts so great to whether the Baroness in "The Sound of Music" was a Nazi. Streaming "Modern Love," an...

"Streaming & Novels" Kate and Steve offer their opinions of these pop culture offerings: Streaming "The Pursuit of Love," a period miniseries starring Lily James and Emily Beecham as two cousins seeking love. Written and directed by Emily Mortimer. "Solos, " a new drama anthology "about what it means to be human."  "Schmigadoon!", a comedy that...

"Podcast Pioneer!" Chaz Rough got in on the ground floor of podcasting in 2005, and today his "YOGAmazing" podcast has over 20 million downloads globally.  In an interview recorded at the Podcast Movement convention in Nashville, Chaz shares an insider's take on the early days of podcasting. ( For instance: Dannie Gregorie of Louisville was one of the first to use the term...

"Woodstock 1969: I Was There" Stan Worth of Indianapolis attended the Woodstock music festival in August of 1969—an event that epitomized the 1960s counter-culture at its best. At least 400,000 young people came together at Max Yasgur's dairy farm to celebrate peace, love and great music. During an interview with Steve and Kate, Stan shares his first-person stories of being there: C...

"Documenting Meaning" ("Robert, Pt. 2) In the conclusion of our 2-part interview, "Robert" of 10,000 Films talks about the search for meaning that underlies the documentaries he makes. His subjects have included the search for the baptism site of Jesus ,  the similarities between Christianity and Islam , and a tree miraculously surviving in a barren desert—perhaps because...

"Making Movies about Meaning" ("Robert," Pt. 1) What's pop culture like in Germany? What if your dad was so deeply tied into the 1960s counterculture movement that he knew Timothy Leary? And what the heck does ancient philosopher Aristotle have to do with moviemaking ? You'll learn the intriguing answers to these questions, and much, much more, during Steve's two...

"Make It Pop" We're back together again (remotely), for a wide-ranging discussion from cringe-worthy moments in favorite movies to Jason Momoa's hair. Streaming Discomfort We talk about aspects of the Goldie Hawn/Kurt Russell screwball comedy "Overboard," the Audrey Hepburn/Fred Astaire flick "Funny Face,"   and Bo Burnham's new comedy special that make...

"Talking Art with Etta" On this installment, Kate goes solo, conducting her very first interview. She talks to her friend, artist Etta "Miss Love Bomb" Martin, about her art, family, how race affects her work, even how to get through artist's block. Despite technical issues that forced a re-recording of the entire interview, this thoughtful, sometimes surprising conversati...

"Talking Music with Mike" You might be surprised to learn that the man behind the music on our show only came back to the piano a few years ago after quitting playing for decades. Mike Bode reflects on his musical journey, from learning to play in college to the experience that drove him away to what eventually brought him back to the keys. Today in addition to a dedicated piano player,...