The Weekly Movie Throwdown

This week on the show, Mike and Steven returning to their Rewatch & Reconsider series with a title Steven thinks could stand the test of time. From 1985, it's Moving Violations , a forgotten comedy that found a second life on HBO, but eventually went back into obscurity. Co-written and directed by Neal Israel of Police Academy fame, this story of a wacky anti-authoritarian and his band of bad-...

On this week's episode Mike and Steven discuss The Strange Love of Martha Ivers , an impeccable noir film that touches on many of the genre's hallmark tropes: nihilism, murder, the past, deception, and blackmail. Barbara Stanwyck stars as the titular Martha Ivers, who carries a secret from childhood into her adult life. Alongside her are Oscar winner Van Heflin and, in his first on-screen role, Ki...

On this week's episode Mike and Steven return to Veronica Lake during November Noir Month, and examine her second big film with Alan Ladd, The Blue Dahlia . This noir classic is a great look at post-war trauma, urbanization, and . . . murder. And in the news segment this week: Showgirls John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein to helm Star Trek ____________________ On Letterboxd? Follow along wit...

Noir November rolls on with one that's a bit controversial. Clash By Night , Fritz Lang's 1952 tale of dissatisfaction and adultery starring Barbara Stanwyck, Robert Ryan, and Marilyn Monroe, is often questioned for its noirness. There are hallmark elements of the genre (despair, deception, violence), but it lacks one of the big ones: murder. So while some people think it could be classified as no...

It's November, which means Mike and Steven are talking noir on the show. This time around they're focusing on two leading ladies of the genre: Veronica Lake and Barbara Stanwyck. Things kick off with This Gun for Hire , one of the very first noir films, and the first credited role for Alan Ladd, who'd work with Veronica Lake several more times. This film is a lot of fun, and the discussion is grea...

This week on the show, Mike and Steven wrap up Not-So-Scary Horror Month with 1987's The Monster Squad . This horror-comedy is Goonies meets the Universal Monsters, co-written by Shane Black! And in the news segment this week: Animal Oscars Podcasts on Netflix ____________________ On Letterboxd? Follow along with this month’s movie list  here . ____________________ WE’D LOVE TO CONNECT! Pleas...

On this week's episode, Mike and Steven break down the 1978 sci-fi classic, Invasion of the Body Snatchers . This film of conformity and the struggle against it is a feast for the senses, and lends itself to some great conversation. And in the news segment this week: Jim Carrey's Jetsons Box Office Woes Drew Struzan ____________________ On Letterboxd? Follow along with this month’s movie list&nbsp...

Do you believe in ghosts? If so, you're going to love this week's episode. And if you don't, well, it's still a good time. Mike and Steven discuss the late, great William Castle's 13 Ghosts as part of Not-So-Scary Horror Month. This schlocky classic from 1960 is a fun romp that's as entertaining as the director himself! And in the news segment this week: Jumanji Diane Keaton ____________________ O...

It's October, which means spooky season. So Mike and Steven are kicking off a month of horror discussions with a caveat: the frights in these films are few and far between. Call them horror lite . Things get kicked off with Freaky , a body-swapping horror-comedy from director Christopher Landon. It stars Kathryn Newton and Vince Vaughn, who knock it out of the park in this fun, stylish slasher sto...

Stories From the Gridiron Month finally wraps up this week with a spoiler-heavy discussion about HIM, the new football horror film from director Justin Tipping, starring Tyriq Withers and Marlon Wayans. This story of sacrifice and determination examines just how far its stars are willing to go to become the greatest of all time. Its reviews are like a hit from a 250-pound lineman, but did Mike and...

Stories From the Gridiron Month rolls on this week with a real doozy of a film. Oliver Stone's Any Given Sunday from 1999 is a highly stylized story of a pro football team struggling to come together. Told in the director's everything-is-combat tone, it's an assault on the senses that is a lot of fun to discuss. In the news segment: Is a Rambo prequel coming? Robert Redford ____________________ ST...

This week on the show, it's a Rewatch & Reconsider episode, where Mike and Steven revisit a film that is generally considered a clunker, and re-evaluate it to see if it's still bad or if it got better with time. This time around the guys are watching Wildcats , the Goldie Hawn-starring high school football film from 1986. With the first on-screen appearance of Wesley Snipes and Woody Harrelson...

Stories From the Gridiron Month 🏈 continues this week with 2000's The Replacements , directed by Howard Deutch. Mike and Steven called an audible this week, replacing John Frankenheimer's terror-at-the-Super-Bowl thriller Black Sunday with this bit of lighter fare. It's a familiar story of a rag-tag group of talented players, assembled from different walks of life, to come together and grow as a...

This week Mike and Steven kick off Stories of the Gridiron Month (see what we did there?) with 1993's The Program . This film, directed by David S. Ward, is one of only a few that turns its lens to college football instead of the pros, and shines a light on the pressure the student-players and coaches feel to succeed. The guys discuss the crazy actions these young men take, James Caan's acting, th...

This week on the podcast, Mike and Steven close out Physical Media Appreciation Month with a deep dive into John Landis’s horror classic An American Werewolf in London (1981). They're joined by horror aficionado and friend of the show, Andy Remondino, for a fun and detailed discussion on the film’s legacy and practical effects mastery. Points of discussion: John Landis’s long journey to bring An A...

This week, we continue Physical Media Appreciation Month with a real mind-bender of a film. Christopher Nolan's Memento from 2000 is an exercise in manipulation, identity, and the reliability of memory. Told both forward and backward, it's a head-scratcher that you'll want to watch again and again. Mike and Steven each watched it on their own DVD and Blu-ray editions, which provided for two very i...

Physical Media Appreciation Month kicks off this week with Sorcerer from 1977. This forgotten masterpiece from Exorcist director William Friedkin is newly available as an excellent 4K release through The Criterion Collection, filled with killer special features. In this episode Mike and Steven look at the film's storied production, its poor theatrical reception, and the newfound appreciation film...

This week on the podcast, Mike and Steven wrap up Stories of Summer month with a deep dive into Spike Lee’s 1994 coming-of-age classic, Crooklyn . Set in 1970s Brooklyn and co-written by Spike Lee, his sister Joie, and brother Cinqué, this heartfelt film offers an intimate, stylized portrait of a Black family navigating life, love, and loss during one unforgettable summer. The guys have a lot to s...

This week on the show, Stories of Summer Month continues, as Mike and Steven explore the 2023 comedy Theater Camp , directed by Nick Lieberman and Molly Gordon. Tune in as they break down the film’s hilarious improvised dialogue, its clever mockumentary style, and the emotional depth that gives Theater Camp its big heart. Plus, they discuss what they watched over the past week, including One Crazy...

On this week's episode, Mike and Steven continue Stories of Summer Month with The Way Way Back from 2013. They discuss how the film's humor and heart make it stand out among other coming-of age stories, what a narcissistic jerk Trent (Steve Carell) is, how writers/directors Jim Rash and Nat Faxon made this right after winning an Oscar for The Descendants , and much more. And in the news segment th...

Crank up the AC! This week Mike and Steven kick off Summer Stories Month with a classic eighties comedy that has a heart of gold: Summer School from 1987. They discuss the film's place amongst its teens-gone-wild contemporaries like Fast Times at Ridgemont High , what this film led to for the cast, and the importance of its director, Carl Reiner. And in the news segment this week: Blumhouse's swin...

This week on the podcast, we wrap up One Crazy Night Month with a deep dive into Michael Mann’s gripping 2004 crime thriller, Collateral . Starring Tom Cruise as a chilling hitman and Jamie Foxx as the unsuspecting cab driver caught in his path, Collateral delivers a unique blend of suspense, action, and moody L.A. nightlife. We had a blast breaking it all down! And in our news segment: A new Jame...

Critically panned and sitting at a lowly 51% on Rotten Tomatoes, James Mangold’s Knight and Day has long been dismissed as a box office misfire. Even with A-listers Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz, the action-comedy-romance couldn’t escape harsh reviews. But in this episode of our Rewatch & Reconsider series, we ask the big question: does Knight and Day deserve the hate? Join us as we dive deep in...

This week on the podcast, we continue One Crazy Night Month with a deep dive into the hit 2018 comedy Game Night , directed by John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein. This dark comedy-mystery blends sharp humor, clever plot twists, and stylish cinematography. Starring Jason Bateman and Rachel McAdams , Game Night delivers one of the most entertaining comedy films of the 2010s. _________________...

This week on the podcast, One Crazy Night Month rolls on with a deep dive into Martin Scorsese’s 1985 cult classic After Hours —the film he credits with rekindling his love for directing. Mike and Steven are joined by special guest Ben Tanzer , author of the new book After Hours: Scorsese, Grief and the Language of Cinema , to discuss the film’s surreal storytelling, its place in Scorsese’s filmog...