The Magnificently Huge Podcast

Ever watch a TV show and simply think, WTF? Oh, sure, there are plenty of new programs out there that make you go hmmmmm…. But we’re focusing more on the ones from further back in the historical record that have managed to become part of the zeitgeist despite (or because of?) their best and weirdest efforts not to. These are the shows that may not have aged well, may not make any sense using a mod...

This week, we dissect Death of a Unicorn, the 2025 indie-horror-fantasy-corporate-satire you didn't know you needed. Follow the bizarre journey of a father-daughter duo who hit a unicorn—yes, an actual one—and are promptly dragged into a corporate scramble over who gets to exploit the thing’s magical healing powers first. Because what better metaphor for late-stage capitalism than weaponizing puri...

Episode 343 - Sinners We finally take a look at Ryan Coogler’s dynamic, thematically-dense social critique of how the Jim Crow South refuses to die, and the skepticism towards big tent progressivism on certain cultural groups in America. Or maybe Sinners is just a basic vampire tale? We’ll be the judge of that! Just don’t invite any strangers in, or you’ll be sorry. Unless it is us. In which case,...

Do the Muppets even carry the same cultural heft now as in their 70s heyday? Who cares? Because there is no movie as pure and joyful and fun as The Muppet Movie, so say us. Jim Henson and Co. took what was best about their TV show and turned it into a road-comedy with heart, an erstwhile origin story of how the Muppets became THE MUPPETS. With lots of classic, catchy bangers by Paul Williams throw...

This week, when they go low… we go Solo! I hate myself for writing that. I truly do. I think this is why people try to avoid me in public. When I try to make small talk in an elevator I just get so many eye rolls and heads shaking…. I should be taken out back and shot for that. “Solo?” Ugh. Puns. WhatEVER. Oh, and we also dissect “Solo: A Star Wars Story,” along with a slew of superhero crap we’ve...

1988’s “I'm Gonna Git You Sucka,” directed by Keenen Ivory Wayans, was a sleeper hit at a time when there weren’t a lot of sleeper hits yet. This had a cast of greats from the 70s blaxploitation era, as well as future comedy legends only just getting their first job on a movie. In our ongoing search for comedies from decades ago to see if they’re still funny, we pick this movie apart in painstakin...

Michael Mann helped create the 80’s neon-noir & pastel music video aesthetic in TV and films with Miami Vice,Thief and Manhunter. Obviously this would lead to his 1992 movie adaptation of The Last of the Mohicans, a very dull and nigh-unreadable 19th Century adventure romance novel by James Fenimore Cooper. It’s a costume drama set during the French and Indian War starring Daniel Day-Lewis as Hawk...

So how does a band like Eagles have such a bad reputation for sucking… and sell THIS MANY ALBUMS!?! The mind boggles. The Beatles sold a lot of records, and people still love those guys. Michael Jackson sold a lot of records, and people forgave him for some really awful stuff I won’t mention lest I get some kind of “flag” from Apple. I’ll just say, “Jesus juice.” Google it. Anyway, Eagles (not “Th...

Let’s quiet things down a bit and hit some introspective vibes with 2003’s indie comedy-drama, The Station Agent. It is the breakout role for Peter “Don’t Call Me Tyrion” Dinklage, as a loner who just wants to remain alone but doesn’t because other humans are around who eventually become his friends… or something. Not a lot happens in this movie, to be honest, but so what? It is supposed to be qui...

So there’s this movie about a woman who’s a spy and kicks a lot of ass and kills people. No, not “Atomic Blonde.” No, not “Ballerina.” And not “Alias” or “Red Sparrow” or “Black Widow” or… okay, maybe not the most original concept. But before all of these things there was “The Long Kiss Goodnight” - the Geena Davis/Renny Harlin attempt to keep working despite one of Hollywood’s most disastrous bom...

It may not be the day-in-the-life movie we wanted, but it was the one we deserved. A 90s-era nostalgia trip to the early 80s, “200 Cigarettes” is notable mostly for its cast of future stars. We also talk about dead parents, nuclear war, James Bond and shooting people to Lionel Ritchie. Because we’re just that freakin’ good. 4:40 - Gen Alpha linguistics professor 7:00 - McCurdy, Jennette - I’m Glad...

Ruthless People is a hilarious gem from the 80s that gets the bizness this round! The last comedy directed jointly by the Airplane! guys, from a script by the guy who wrote Dirty Rotten Scoundrels and My Cousin Vinny, with one of the strongest casts you will ever have the pleasure of seeing perform, it should have become an instant classic. So why did this one get so unceremoniously memory-holed?...

Back in the year 2000, before Vin Diesel exploded into worldwide superstardom with all those car movies, he did a mid-budget B-movie sci-fi oddity called Pitch Black. It’s sort of like if someone remade Aliens with Snake Plissken as the main character, but definitely not as cool as a movie with that description. Oh don’t get us wrong… it has moments of pure fun, to be sure,and it is made well. Fai...

This week, we turn our attention to one of the most gloriously idiotic masterpieces ever committed to film: Steve Martin’s The Jerk (1979). It's a story of rags to riches to rags to a thermos, starring a man who was born a poor Black child and somehow got even more confused from there. We revisit this iconic comedy that launched Martin from stand-up absurdist to full-blown movie star, and unpack w...

In this episode, we take a lighthearted stroll through the charming, not-at-all-horrifying political farce that is The Death of Stalin (2017). We explore how the film hilariously—and totally hypothetically—shows the chaos, sycophancy, and moral collapse that can follow when absolute power meets absolute fear. Good thing nothing like that could ever happen in a modern democracy, right? Right. Join...

The Pink Panther movies are part of an enduring cinema comedy franchise, an ever-sillier slapstick human cartoon brought to you by the genius of Blake Edwards and Peters Sellers. 11 films total. 6 starring Sellers. 7 directed by Edwards. Only 5 are any good. They can re-cast James Bond every few years and no one really cares, but try to recast Inspector Clouseau and it spells disaster. Oh, they’ve...

In this episode, we bravely tackle the 1967 British sci-fi horror film Quatermass and the Pit—a movie Boomers swear is a classic, and who are we to argue with the generation that gave us powdered soup and lawn darts? We explore the film’s ambitious plot involving Martians, mind control, and human evolution—all rendered with the finest special effects 1967 had to offer (which is to say, not very fi...

A classic of Australian cinema, 1980’s “Breaker Morant” is the best Australian war film that isn’t “Gallipoli” ever. Part biograph, part history, part courtroom drama, pitch black in its view of humanity and some of the greatest film performances ever. Edward Woodward, (the original “Equalizer,”) Brian Brown, (who may be contractually obligated to be in any film shot in Australia,) and the legenda...

It’s the greatest 40’s-noir-mystery-fantasy-magic mashup ever released in 1991! That’s right, Cast a Deadly Spell is the made-for-tv movie you didn’t know you needed about gumshoe H.P. Lovecraft on a case through 1948 L.A. to find a stolen Necronomicon and avoid the second coming of Cthulu. With a cast that includes Fred Ward, Clancy Brown, David Warner and Julianne Moore… from the director of Gol...

The Academy Awards are coming up this week, so we decided to look back at the twisted logic that decided “Shakespeare in Love” was a better movie than “Saving Private Ryan.” There’s some other stuff in this episode as well, but that’s just the shining example of WTF in Oscar history, isn’t it? 0:00 - Intros 5:30 - The 90’s Cruise 21:00 - Better Man (2025) 24:30 - Some Like It Hot! (touring) 28:30...

Remember cable TV? If you do, then you might also remember The Cable Guy, the 1996 Jim Carrey cult movie directed by Ben Stiller. Where to start with this uneven mix of screwball-meets-satire-meets-dark-comedy? It has some good bits peppered throughout, but keeps stalling before other moments arrive… sort of like Jim Carrey’s whole filmography, really. Mostly it is of interest to us as a fulcrum p...

If you’ve ever wondered what movies were coming out in 2025, you probably had that thought in like just the last week or two, right? Who thinks of the movies coming soon any further back than that? If this was January 1997, the movies coming out in 1997 should be what you’re worried about, not the movies dropping in 2025… Wait, what were we talking about again? Oh yeah, movies coming soon or somet...

Episode 323 - David Lynch’s Blue Velvet David Lynch - the great visionary of modern cinema - has died and we are all the poorer for it. RIP Mr. Lynch. And while film fans slather your entire career with praise and hosannas, we instead salute the single film that is most important to our show, Blue Velvet. It is where all the Lynchian tropes got defined, a mash-up of 50’s melodrama and noir, blende...

New year, same old podcast… We’re back from our December holiday hiatus and doing a full show of the usual segment we like to call The Fresh Sh*t. Because we’re lazy and didn’t get around to picking a real topic. So enjoy our normal crazy talk about all the movies, TV, music and books we have been enjoying before we ultimately get cranky and start yelling at clouds or whatever. Happy 2025, gang! 0...

Episode 321 - The Magnificently Huge Podcast 2024 Xmas Music Mix We can’t keep recycling the years-old Christmas music episode forever. Time for some new Holly Jolly! Here’s a link to this year’s playlist on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5rPQMNPtxhxRLG0U3TLzcu?si=dlWJENXlQayXOZ079HOwiw Intro - 0:00 Power Music Workout - Do You Hear What I Hear? Classic Block - 3:23 Bing Crosby, The An...