The Desert of the Reel: A Movie Podcast

In the fifth Harry Potter movie, Harry is placed into a teacher role, and Voldemort is on the rise. Jason, who refuses to see big-blockbuster movies, is pleasantly surprised. He actually likes this one. He hated the fourth movie, but thinks this might be the pinnacle of what Harry Potter movies have to offer. Does this movie have bigger ideas than the other HP films? Is Professor Umbridge the wors...

In this episode about Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005), both Jason and Ryan recognize that this probably isn't the best of the Harry Potter movies. Aside from the logical flaws that Jason is obsessed with, the plot-heavy, character-light approach the film takes leaves us without a deepening attachment to most of the characters. Interestingly, it also leaves out a lot of the plot of the n...

In this episode about War for the Planet of the Apes (2017), Jason complains about the logical flaws in the sewer system. Ryan completely changes Jason's mind about the arc of Caesar and the main meaning of the film. We discuss the essential nature of both logos and pathos components in our quest to de-other, and we examine the ethics of the Colonel's choice to kill his son. What are your thoughts...

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014) should swap names with Rise. But this is seriously one of the best sequels of all time. This movie is the follow-up to Caesar and all the escaped apes, 10 years after the events of the first film. The apes are met with humans, and both groups are just trying to survive and do what is best for their groups. The result? ETHICAL PROBLEMS! Perfect for this podcast...

Jason's rebellion against the tyranny of Harry Potter has been successful! Welcome to the DOTR Planet of the Apes episodes. In this episode, we discuss possible reasons why this trilogy doesn't show up in the discussion of the best trilogies of all time. Ryan introduces the critical animal studies lens and we explore how it help us more effectively interact with the concept of the Other. Jason exp...

A very special thank you and shout-out to Toon My Heart Podcast for their lovely gift! Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban 2004) is the third Potter film where we find dementors, Sirius Black, and patronus spells! Is Jason says that this movie doesn't bring anything new from the previous Harry Potter films. Is he right? Ryan jumps right in and talks about Alfonso Cuaron's directing style and...

Back to Hogwarts, and this time into the Chamber of Secrets. For the second Harry Potter film, we are welcomed back with another mystery. However, Jason argues that this is just a retread of the first film, and Ryan argues that the lore and story is expanding and deepening. What do you think? We go over pros and cons. According to Jason, some of this film's major flaws are several logical flaw...

Despite Jason not wanting to watch the Harry Potter movies because "they are all the same," he can't deny that there is something special about this movie. Harry Potter is clearly a huge and successful franchise, and we attempt to understand why it is so. We go over our positives and favorite lines, talk about negatives, and find a lot of deep ideas to talk about. We go over the them...

Thank you for listening to us for 100 episodes! For our 100th episode special, we watch and analyze three episodes of the children's show Bluey : "Flat Pack," "Bin Night," and "Sleepytime." We explore what these episodes (and the show as a whole) are doing in their short 7-minute segments. From encouraging imagination to teaching parents how the creators feel pare...

Avatar: The Way of Water (2022)! We have one of our most heated debates about this movie. Ryan and Jason have not argued like this since the days of Tony Stark. We spend a little bit of time talking about the technical aspects of this film, but we spend a very long time arguing back and forth if this is a good movie, or a remake and awful movie. Who do you agree with? Is this an example of a great...

This week, DOTR gives you a film that both Ryan and Jason love: Avatar (2009). In addition to exploring the sheer technological ingenuity of this film, we take a look at the various film lenses this offers us, the history and background of the film itself, the several tropes that surface and how Avatar pushes against them, and various philosophical musings. In fact, Avatar is one of Jason's favori...

Nefarious (2023) Dietz wanted us to explore the big philosophical ideas in this little-known movie. The summary is: "On the day of his scheduled execution, a convicted serial killer tells a psychiatrist that he's a demon who can possess his body. As the evaluation ends, he also tells the doctor that he will soon commit three murders of his own." There are a lot of big ideas found in...

In this episode, we explore our favorite moments and quotes from Dune 2 , sprinkled with a few criticism from Jason (unsurprisingly). Ryan introduces the phenomenological lens, which allows us to think about how the situation in which we receive a movie shapes the movie itself. Mark brings in and we discuss the shaping power of the Messiah concept. We also spend a lot of time discussing how and wh...

Jason said he would never watch the new Dune movies because he loves the book so much. He's read it many times and thinks it is one of the best novels ever written. However, when it came to watching Dune or Harry Potter, he decided it was finally time to check out Denis Villeneuve's 2021 film. We spend a long time praising the many aspects we like from the sensory details, mise-en-scène, t...

Welcome to our discussion of what Jason claims is the most perfect zombie movie ever made: Train to Busan (2016). In this episode, we talk about zombies and zombie movies and explore just what makes this film so effective. For the first time (at least in a while), we focus mainly on the powerfully written and acted characters, rather than the plot. Jason also explains the Constant Escalation of Ho...

This movie might have broken Jason's brain (or at the very least his patience). He begs not to be forced to watch any movies as bad as this again. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales (2017) is the last Pirates movie made. Do you agree that it is the worst one? Or at least, definitely in the running as the worst? We have two new young actors taking the stage and Jack doesn't feel like...

Join us as we review and discuss Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides )! In this episode, we finally see the bitter side of Ryan, as he rips into the film. We discuss how, with minor changes to script and casting, this could have been a really good movie. Ryan introduces a new film studies lens called Star Theory, and Jason offers a new philosophical concept regarding free will and happines...

Buried (2010) stars Ryan Reynolds, buried in a box! We are making a shift from big blockbuster movies to one of the smallest and confined movies. Jason says this is one of only TWO good Ryan Reynolds performances. We are both fans of this chamber piece film! We talk about how it is a commentary on war in the Middle East, a criticism of bureaucracy, how we need to serve everyone around us, even mor...

Join us as we review and discuss Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (2007)! In this episode, most excitingly, Jason admits he was wrong in his prejudice against all sequels, and gushes like a little kid about the emotional power of this film. Ryan introduces a new lens for looking at film, the cognitive lens. Both Ryan and Jason share personal experiences about making it through very difficu...

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006) is directed by Gore Verbinski and is the sequel to Disney's surprise megahit from a few years earlier. Jason believes it is the same story as the first; Will and Elizabeth are separated from one another to achieve their goals, and Jack is along to add a mix of unpredictability. Is Jason right? There are a lot of pros to praise this movie fo...

Welcome to season 5 of The Desert of the Reel! This season we're looking at the five films in the Pirates of the Caribbean series, starting with The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003), a film which both Ryan and Jason agree is a 5-star movie. In this episode, we explore what makes this film what Ryan calls a "perfect with a capital P" film. Additionally, Jason introduces and explores two new philosop...

Predestination is a 2014 science fiction thriller. "A temporal agent (Ethan Hawke) embarks on a final time-traveling assignment to prevent an elusive criminal from launching an attack that kills thousands of people." We will very quickly go into spoiler territory, and we highly recommend seeing this movie first. This movie feels like it has gone somewhat under the radar in the past decade, but Jas...

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (2023) is one of the few films we've reviewed for this podcast that Jason likes more than Ryan does! Our discuss centers around the differences we note in the action and the character of a much older Indiana Jones. We discuss the time travel (of course), but also the historical analytical lens, question the reality of choice, and revisit the ways in which we c...

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008) is a legacy sequel that has elicited strong opinions throughout the years. Does it deserve the hate? Is it overhated? Ryan and Jason debate over some parts that may or may not make it a worse move. But are Jason's nitpicks justified? For example, we all can agree the refrigerator part is ridiculous, but does it ruin the movie? Is this t...

The Others (2001) is a mysterious, spooky thriller where Nicole Kidman plays a woman left alone in a mansion after her husband goes off to fight in WWII. This is one of Jason's personal favorite movies. He says he can't even come up with a single con. What movies do you wish you could watch for the first time? This movie works beautifully if you do not know what is coming, and we talk abou...