Springfield Googolplex: The Movie Podcast for Fans of The Simpsons

The year 1999 was a big one for film. Star Wars returned to the big screen, The Matrix changed action movies forever, and notorious producer Jon Peters finally got his giant spider in a movie. In our first episode of 2025, Nate and Adam revisit Peters’ and Barry Sonnenfeld’s notorious flop Wild Wild West (1999) and its eight-legged parody in “ The Sweetest Apu ” (S13E19). Is this movie as bad as y...

For our annual Non-Denominational Holiday Fun Fest this year, we unwrap “ Grift of the Magi ” (S11E9)—the Simpsons episode that gave us the name of this special—and its climactic spoof of James Cameron’s The Terminator (1984). Podcaster and prolific Letterboxd reviewer Matt Lynch joins us to break down the greatest movie ever made about a son sending his father back in time to have sex with his mo...

Remember that time when Homer became Mr. Burns’ prank monkey? Adam and Nate watch The Magic Christian (1969), an adaptation of Terry Southern’s satirical novel that inspired The Simpsons episode “ Homer vs. Dignity ” (S12E5). Peter Sellers and Ringo Starr punking rich Brits to prove that everyone has their price—how could you go wrong? Well, let us tell you. Also in this episode: • Terry Southern’...

On our election day special in America, Nate and Adam invited filmmaker and podcaster Devan Scott ( How Would Lubitsch Do It? ) to dissect the painfully relevant political thriller All the President’s Men (1976) and its Simpsons send-up in “ Sideshow Bob Roberts ” (S6E5). Join us as we try to laugh through the nausea and exorcize the ghosts of elections past! Also in this episode: • The Simpsons’...

Film critic and horror aficionado Dede Crimmins ( That Shelf , Rue Morgue ) is back to help Adam introduce Nate to Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992) and its Simpsons parody in “Treehouse of Horror IV” (S5E5). Will they gush over Francis Ford Coppola’s bloody visual feast, or will his overly loyal adaptation leave them cold? Also in this episode: • The origin story of this film from Coppola’s time as a...

Submitted for your approval, that twilighty movie about that zone. Film critic and podcaster Matthew Simpson joins Nate and Adam to unpack Twilight Zone: The Movie (1983), a cursed compilation of episode remakes from Rod Serling’s pioneering TV series directed by Stephen Spielberg, Joe Dante, George Miller, and Simpsons shudder John Landis. We also revisit The Simpsons ’ own adaptations of two of...

Adam and Nate dig into the backstory of The Simpsons character Gil Gunderson and his debut in “ Realty Bites ” (S9E9) by watching Glengarry Glen Ross (1992) for the first time. Does this real estate-based whodunnit live up to its reputation as one of the best movies of the 1990s?  Also in this episode: • A superhero team-up of a cast led by the incomparable Jack Lemmon, one-time Simpsons gues...

Bust out your telephoto lens, because this week we take a hard look at “ Bart of Darkness ” (S6E1) and Rear Window (1954) on its 70th anniversary. Nate and Adam are joined by That Shelf Managing Editor and Jeopardy champ Emma Badame to reminisce about baby’s first Alfred Hitchcock movie and the episode of The Simpsons that convinced us to do this podcast. Also in this episode: • The mystery refere...

Former Simpsons writer and showrunner Bill Oakley (now founder of the Steamed Hams Society ) joins Adam and Nate as they continue their double feature inspired by “ 22 Short Films About Springfield ” (S7E21) with a rewatch of Pulp Fiction (1994) on its 30th anniversary. Also in this episode: • Bill discusses his Brett Kavanaugh-like taste in movies, including Pulp Fiction and Cold Turkey (1971), t...

This episode, Adam and Nate will definitely hit their CanCon quota as they review Thirty Two Short Films About Glenn Gould (1993), the namesake of perhaps their favorite Simpsons episode, “ 22 Short Films about Springfield ” (S7E21). This unconventional biopic about eccentric pianist Glenn Gould achieved escape velocity to find its way beyond the Canadian film world and into American media, from S...

Adam and Nate are joined once again by current Simpsons writer and producer Michael Price to share one of his favorite movies of all time, Peter Bogdanovich’s What's Up, Doc? (1972). We unpack his top moments from the movie, its parody in “ Grampa vs. Sexual Inadequacy ” (S6E10), and how its timeless slapstick and farce has influenced The Simpsons at large. Also in this episode: • Mike Price talks...

In part two of a Batman double feature, special guest Shahbaz Siddiqui (The Movie Podcast) joins Adam and Nate to watch a contentious superhero reboot, Tim Burton's Batman (1989). They also dig into multiple Batman parodies in “ Last Exit to Springfield ” (S4E17), a unionization story that’s considered by many to be the best episode ever of The Simpsons .  Also in this episode: • Two glorious...

Holy Dutch angles, Batman! Inspired by the Simpsons episode, “Radioactive Man” (S7E2), Adam and Nate are taking on their first double feature focused on two versions of Batman. In the first installment, they’re teaming up with special guest Daniel Grant ( Spoiled Rotten , Uncolonized Podcast ) to revisit Batman: The Movie (1966), its TV origins, and its Simpsons parody in the campy sixties version...

Few movies have been as shaped by their pop culture legacy as Godzilla (1954), and hey, that’s the premise of this podcast! Adam and Nate watch this influential monster movie for the first time on its 70th anniversary alongside “ Thirty Minutes Over Tokyo ” (S10E23), the Simpson family’s controversial vacation to Japan. Also in this episode: • Godzilla vs. Kong (or is it Godzilla x Kong?): We comp...

Ah, The Natural (1984), a classic American tale about… an underdog baseball team, a serial killer, a love triangle, a match fixing scandal, a freak accident in the outfield, and a magic baseball bat? We’ll get into it, along with “ Homer at the Bat ” (S317), a star-studded Simpsons episode that stretched the reality of the show. Also in this episode: • Randy Newman (yes, of “You’ve Got a Friend in...

With the 96th annual Academy Awards complete, Adam and Nate review the night’s festivities and finally get a chance to talk about recent movies for a change.  Also in this episode: • Highlights from the show, from its “perfectly cromulent” host* to Al Pacino’s big moment—hoo-ah! • Adam and Nate’s (very different) lists of top 10 movies of 2023 • A trivia game about Best Picture Winners parodi...

On its 40th anniversary, Adam and Nate endured Police Academy (1984) so you don’t have to! They also give a rundown of the many times The Simpsons has slammed this movie, with a deep dive into the episode, “ Marge Be Not Proud ” (S7E11), a hilarious and heartbreaking classic that Adam can barely watch. Also in this episode: • Trying to empathize with the fans who give this 10/10 on IMDb • What mak...

Film and music writer Marko Djurdjic joins Adam and Nate to revisit Rob Reiner’s groundbreaking rockumentary This Is Spinal Tap (1984), alongside the band’s Simpsons cameo in “ The Otto Show ” (S3E22). Also in this episode: • How mockumentaries became the baseline in contemporary comedy • The attention to detail that make this the best faux documentary around • Marko’s guide to the sublime and the...

Adam and Nate take a trip to Westworld (1973), Michael Crichton’s somewhat forgotten directorial debut with a long shadow that reaches into sci-fi and slashers movies, theme parks, and open-world video games. Along the way, they dig into The Simpsons’ full-length parody, “ Itchy & Scratchy Land ” (S6E4). Also in this episode: • The incomparable influence of Michael Crichton on 1990s culture •...

“Unwittingly, he trained a dolphin to kill the president of the United States.” What a tagline. This episode, Adam and Nate dive into The Day of the Dolphin (1973), a forgotten entry from director Mike Nichols ( The Graduate, The Birdcage ) that’s celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. Does this forgotten movie deserve a second look, or is its parody in The Simpsons ’ “ Treehouse of Horror XI...

Gonna fly now! Adam and Nate step into the ring with Rocky (1976), a classic that not only changed the boxing genre, but may surprise some with its human drama. They compare and contrast with to The Simpsons episode “ The Homer They Fall ” (S8E3), a mashup of boxing movie parodies. Also in this episode: • Parodies of convenience: When a movie reference is just a means to an end • Is every memorabl...

It has sword fights. It has romance. It has Anthony Hopkins questionably cast as a Mexican noble. It’s The Mask of Zorro (1998), perhaps the height of the nineties blockbuster. Adam and Nate revisit this action adventure gem alongside “ E-I-E-I-(Annoyed Grunt) ” (S11E5), our first Simpsons episode to showcase the titular Springfield Googolplex cinema. Also in this episode: • Nineties Zorro = Batma...

Adam and Nate welcome film critic and horror expert Dede Crimmins to wrestle with King Kong (1933), a precursor to the modern blockbuster with a legacy as unbreakable as chrome steel . We talk about the full-length Simpsons parody “ King Homer ” from “ Treehouse of Horror III ” (S4E5), many other references to the movie throughout the series, and whether this special effects-driven love story betw...

Adam and Nate discuss the Vietnam War classic Full Metal Jacket (1987) and its parody in “ Bart the General ” (S1E5), one of the earliest episodes of The Simpsons to go hard on movie parody mashups. Also in this episode: • Does Stanley Kubrick really wait to make the last, best movie in every genre? • Revisiting Nate’s claim that this is Kubrick’s most “accessible” movie… • How Full Metal Jacket i...

Adam and Nate watch Thelma & Louise (1991), a groundbreaking road movie about two women escaping the patriarchy, as well as The Simpsons full spoof episode “ Marge on the Lam ” (S5E6). This movie brings together a breakout screenplay, career performances by Susan Sarandon and Gina Davis, and the high style of Ridley Scott. Also in this episode: • Does Marge also have her arms stuck in her own...