The Long Take Review

The new Mission: Impossible movie is exclusively in theaters, and Tom Cruise wouldn’t want it any other way. After shining a light on the actor’s strike that began this week and discussing some of the contentious issues in the context of Dead Reckoning Part One , P.T., Greg, and I unpack (and clarify) the dense spy thriller plot, rejoice over our favorite action set pieces, and compare our notes o...

In anticipation of the new Mission: Impossible film, which skydives into theaters this week, P.T. McNiff, who’s been a fan from the beginning, and I, who only just watched five out of six films for the first time, examine the franchise to date. We provide context about Tom Cruise, the origins or the making of the films, the different directors who have chosen to accept these missions, the spy thri...

Buckle up your prop plane seat for our wide-ranging discussion of Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny . First-time guest, as well as dear friend and colleague, Jim Clements Jim Clements joins P.T., Greg, and me to compare this fifth film to its predecessors, contemplate whether or not anyone under the age of 40 cares about this genre, nerd out about what we liked, pinpoint what didn’t work for u...

We are on the precipice of a new Indiana Jones film in theaters, so P.T., Greg, and I *had* to have an episode dedicated to the four preceding films. We share what we love about the character and the franchise, try to figure out what makes Harrison Ford so singular, rank all the films, and parse our expectations for Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny . Grab your fedora and join us on Substack,...

It’s a Wes Anderson jubilee! Greg, P.T., and I share our thoughts on the beloved yet polarizing director’s newest film, Asteroid City . We attempt to unpack its dense layers, pulling out themes and connections between the various frame narratives. After a robust discussion, we speculate about the film’s Oscars chances and share our top five Wes Anderson films of all time. I felt privileged to be a...

Celine Song’s directorial debut, Past Lives , garnered an immense amount of critical praise, with strong (and very early!) Oscar buzz coming out of the Sundance Film Festival in January. Antonio Elefano and I discuss whether the film lives up to the hype, dissect the the themes, and explain how the screenplay redefines romance. The film will play in theaters everywhere starting June 23rd. Movie Ne...

With dazzling animation and a superb screenplay, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse , the follow-up to Oscar-winner Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse , has performed heroically at the box office . Greg Cass Greg and I try to pinpoint the source of the film’s success, dissect how the creators have seeded themes into the story so effectively, share our favorite scenes and Easter eggs, and much more...

The Cannes Film Festival just wrapped up last weekend, which means we now have the first wave of reactions for several of our most anticipated films of the year. P.T. and I discuss the big award-winners, and then speculate as to which films unofficially won the festival. Get ready for a lot of chatter about Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon , Wes Anderson’s Asteroid City , and, of cours...

The Guardians of the Galaxy’s final ride with writer, director, and now co-CEO of DC James Gunn hit theaters this weekend, and to break it all down, P.T. and I recruit host of The Colbycast and MCU expert, Colby Mead. We discuss the impact the ongoing writer’s strike might have on future Marvel productions, what GotG Vol. 3 could mean for the future of Marvel and DC, and how we feel about all the...

We are movie lovers and Oscar prognosticators, but we are also dedicated Star Wars fans. In honor of Star Wars Day (May 4th) 2023, P.T., Greg, and I share our memories of Return of the Jedi as well as our experiences seeing the 1983 film on the big screen during its recent 40th anniversary re-release. We then transition to a discussion of the Star Wars franchise as a whole, especially from a film...

Is this a sequel, Part Two, or, dare I say, a reboot of our Most Anticipated Movies of 2023 episode? CinemaCon, an industry event that previews upcoming films for the year, revealed new information about many films P.T. and I discussed last week, as well as ones that didn’t make our lists. Which ones are we even more excited for? Which ones have we cooled on? Which ones suddenly have our attention...

Is it too early to predict next year’s Oscars? Probably. Nonetheless, P.T. and I speculate about what upcoming films might become Oscar contenders later in the year. We then draft our top five most anticipated films of 2023. The results may surprise you; they certainly surprised us in a few instances! Movie News Check-In 1:49 Potential Oscar Contenders 13:37 Movie Draft: Top 5 Most Anticipated 202...

Ben Affleck and Matt Damon are together again, this time to tell the story of how Nike signed Michael Jordan and revolutionized sports marketing and fashion with his own shoe line. Greg and I share our thoughts about some big Star Wars film news before we share our overall reactions to “Air,” highlight some of our favorite performances, and try to figure out if this film has enough of a point of v...

The latest installment of the franchise based on everyone’s favorite dog lover, John Wick, is out now in theaters. In this episode, P.T. and I catch up on some movie news before we give our spoiler-free reactions to and recommendations for John Wick: Chapter 4 . We finish with a more detailed, spoiler-filled breakdown of the film’s themes and highlights, as well as a discussion of its potential Os...

The Oscars aired this past Sunday; it went as expected in some categories, with a few surprises in others. P.T. McNiff and Antonio Elefano join me to share their reactions to the winners, how their predictions panned out, and what the results might mean for the Oscars in the future. Image Credit: CBS Intro and outro music is “Divers,” by Hara Noda, licensed through Epidemic Sound. Logo art: Illust...

The final countdown to Oscars Sunday has begun. To discuss all the “below the line” or crafts categories, I invited my colleague, friend, and fellow film history nerd, P.T. McNiff. He really brought his A-game with research, stats, and Oscars history. If you’ve ever wanted to know who songwriter Diane Warren is, he has a comprehensive and definitive answer for you! I also appreciated his supportiv...

We’re back with another Oscars breakdown. This time, I’m joined by my former grad school officemate, longtime friend, fellow movie nerd, and author of Eye On Canon , Greg Cass. He miraculously watches every single Oscar-nominated film (in all categories!) every year, so I really needed his help to parse these categories. Image Credit: CNN I will publish a couple posts to have a shorter text only v...

Enjoy The Long Take’s first…audio edition? Proto-podcast? Fellow Oscars enthusiast and writing professor Antonio Elefano joins me to debate who will win Oscars in the Academy’s eight biggest categories, as well as share who we think should win. (And, in some cases, who we think should have been nominated.) Image Credit: The Hollywood Reporter I plan to post our written thoughts as well, complete w...