The Cory Baker Show

For the seventh time we have a minions movie, but for the first time I brought a kid. I was really glad I did, for one particular reason that might resonate with fellow movie lovers. Minions and Monsters is a really cute, funny love letter to old Hollywood. In this filmmaker perspective I go through what works and what didn't in the latest from Illumination. Intro - 0:00Some of the good 1:00So...

For the first time as a parent, I got to bring my daughter to see Toy Story just like my dad did for me. With Toy Story 5 in theaters, I look back at what has made this franchise a hit and what I thought of it as a parent of a toy playing aged child. In particular how this movie is more girl coded than previous installments, and how that played with Jessie more center stage. Don't worry if you...

The legendary Steven Spielberg is back on the big screen with another movie about Aliens in his latest film Disclosure Day. In this Filmmaker Perspective, I talk about why Spielberg is the ultimate high ceiling, high floor director. We also get into why movies don't work even when you have the best crew, access to actors like Emily Blunt, and the budget to do the movie the way you want. Intro...

For the second week in a row, a young horror director has made breaking box office records, and this time it is 20 year old Kane Parsons. His film Backrooms just became A24's biggest premiere ever, and the youngest person to have a number one film in the box office. I talk about what makes this film so fascinating, why we will see younger and younger directors, and if this is a sea change in H...

A movie with a $750,000 budget is going to pass $100 million in box office, how is that even possible? The new horror film Obsession is breaking all kinds of records, and putting up numbers we haven't seen since Paranormal Activity. What is the secret? Why does this movie succeed when massive blockbusters fail to make their money back? In this filmmaker perspective I break it down for you. Int...

In this week's episode, I get to combine my two great loves: filmmaking and politics. Specifically I take a filmmakers perspective on the Los Angeles Mayor's race and the California Governor's race. I try to keep things just to the platforms, but run through all the candidates including Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt, Nithya Raman, Xavier Becerra, Steve Hilton, Tom Steyer, Chad Bianco, Katie Porter and...

20 years ago The Devil Wears Prada came out and it was a cultural moment. Now we finally have the sequel in The Devil Wears Prada 2 as Andy (Anne Hathaway) comes back to Runway magazine to help turn things around with Miranda and Nigel (Meryl Streep, Stanley Tucci) potentially losing control from former assistant Emily (Emily Blunt). Does the sequel have the same heat as the original, or is it bou...

The King of Pop Michael Jackson finally gets the music biopic treatment, and it has everyone feeling something. While critics and fans might be divided, I share a filmmaker's perspective on why the movie is what it is. There are good things with Jaafar Jackson, Colman Domingo, Juliano Valdi, and an incredible soundtrack of Michael's biggest hits, but just as many negative things that drag...

It's time to enter the Mushroom kingdom once again with The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, but who should you listen to the critics or the audience? In one of the widest spreads in recent memory, critics and audiences are split on Super Mario Galaxy but with its huge opening over the weekend I look to take my filmmaker's perspective to explain why even though it's not a great movie, this is...

Markiplier has taken his talents to a new screen, the big screen! His debut feature is Iron Lung, a video game adaptation that he self financed and I discuss the movie itself, but more interesting than that is the fact that this indie movie was so successful in the box office it may change the game for film distribution. Is this the opening salvo to a radical shift in the business of movies or an...

Marty Supreme received 9 Oscar Nominations, is that enough to win Best Picture? The star vehicle for Timothee Chalamet is the first solo effort from Josh Safdie. It tells the story of Marty Mauser who is the number one ranked ping pong player in America in 1952. We follow him as he hustles his way to the top, or out of some very sticky situations on his journey to be the best player in the world....

As soon as I saw it was a movie about Shakespeare I was in. Hamnet tells the story of Agnes, the wife of William Shakespeare and the mother of his 3 children. It's a story of grief and parenting and art, and is a return to the contained pictures that made Chloe Zhao an Oscar winner. I'm Cory and I'm a Writer, Director, and On Set Sound Mixer in Los Angeles, CA with more than a decade o...

It's been a while since I saw an audience leave a screening this confused about a movie. Die My Love is the latest from Lynn Ramsay, and it is creating a lot of polarizing takes online. For every person who says they hate it there is another who says that Jennifer Lawrence should win an Oscar. In this video I try to cut through and tell you why it's working and why it's not and give yo...

Critics and the Letterboxd-erati are going crazy about One Battle After Another, so much so that all the conversations are about how excellent it is, and how many Oscar nominations it's going to get. This movie is really good, but its not for everyone. So I take a look at it from the angle of the filmmaker and what can be learned from it, but also get real about the people who should probably...

If you had a chance to not only be a quarterback in professional football, but to be trained by the Greatest of all Time, what wouldn't you sacrifice? In Him we follow Cameron Cade as he trains with Isaiah White for a shot to be signed by the San Antonio Saviors. An attack on Cade has made him un-draftable and this opportunity could be his only opportunity. Will he follow in the footsteps of a...

The wait was 41 years, the sequel to Cult Classic "This is Spinal Tap," has finally arrived in theaters. Is it as ground breaking as the original or is this a revival that we didn't need?"Spinal Tap II: The End Continues," finds the boys from Spinal Tap reuniting for one last contractually obligated gig with documentary filmmaker Marty DiBergi along for the ride. Though the...

In this episode of the podcast, Cory breaks down his favorite film podcasts. Split between news, reviews, and insight; this list provides resources for everyone from beginners to industry vets. The Cory Baker Show is an audio podcast available on all major platforms. Cory talks about Filmmaking and the things that touch the filmmaking world from Los Angeles.facebook - CoryBakerFilminstagram - Lege...

Honey Don't is the second solo film from Ethan Coen and maybe it's because I'm about to meet my Nephew for the first time I'm thinking about brotherhood. In the second movie of the Lesbian B-Movie Trilogy, Margaret Qualley is private investigator Honey O'Donahue searching for clues as to why a prospective client suddenly dies before their first meeting. Between an inept police...

Weapons has been the Cinderella hit of the summer box office, closing it's second week at number one. A movie that has launched so much online discourse so since I'm a little bit late to seeing this I decided to do a SPOILER review and talk about my thoughts and what I think this movie is about. I'm Cory and I'm a Writer, Director, and On Set Sound Mixer in Los Angeles, CA with mor...

After five years on the shelf, War of the Worlds debuted to a 0 percent on Rotten Tomatoes. There are some people who are calling this one of the worst movies ever made, and I examine that, but also point out how certain decisions doomed the production from the start, and how sometimes even the best intentions can end up in disaster. Especially when you doom yourself to the expectation game. I&#39...

The Naked Gun was one of my favorite comedies, will the new remake bring the laughs like the original? The Akiva Schaffer movie stars Liam Neeson as Frank Drebin Jr, the son of Leslie Nielsen's character from the original film, who has followed in his father's footsteps as a Lieutenant for Police Squad. After being transferred to traffic accidents following a daring fiasco, his new case br...

For the first time we have a Fantastic Four movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Join me on a spoiler free conversation as I break down Fantastic Four: First Steps. I talk about the history of Fantastic Four films, the cast, the special effects and where we go from here as we barrel toward the end of another chapter in the MCU. Will this movie be the First Steps for a big comeback for Marvel, o...

The DC extended universe was beyond rescue, the only way to bring it back is back to the start. In the first movie in a new DC Extended Universe is the first from Director and DC Film co-head James Gunn brings us to Metropolis for Superman. Will it be strong enough to change the fortunes of DC and Warner Brothers? Or will this release be kryptonite to every story coming forward. I'm Cory and I'm a...

For the inaugural episode of Script Breakdown I am going through the script for the movie Chinatown. Considered by many the greatest movie script in cinema history, I have a near final draft that has plenty of interesting changes from the final film. In each episode of Script Breakdown I watch a movie and mark up the script and as we go along and provide you with insights from my life as a profess...

Apple has had uneven success at the box office, but can F1 find them celebrating in the winner's circle? F1 is an original story set in the world of Formula 1. Helmed by Joseph Kosinski who gave us Top Gun Maverick, we follow Sonny Hayes as he returns to Formula 1 to try and save the team of his former partner. With performances from Damson Idris, Javier Bardem, and Kerry Condon; we follow the unp...