Movie Madness

Comic book expert and host of the AintThisTheFun show on YouTube, Erik Laws, joins Erik Childress to go through Matt Reeves’ The Batman. There is a lot to unpack from the casting to how it distinguishes itself from the other versions of the character. They look at all the casting decisions, is anyone having any fun during this one and, of course, that score from Michael Giacchino. Do Robert Pattinson and Zoe Kravitz bring something new to the Batman/Catwoman dynamic or are they treading over old ideas? Does the film have more in common with the Burtons, the Nolans or even something by Steven Spielberg? They aren’t here to rank, they are here to discuss and Reeves’ three-hour film certainly invites a lot of that. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit erikthemovieman.substack.com

Sergio Mims joins Erik Childress for another round in the latest and greatest in Blu-rays. Criterion has got the Coens and the Beatles. Paramount has Beavis & Butt-Head and Wayne & Garth. Universal has James Bond and Paul Schrader. Kino has another commentary with Sergio, they agree on a Burt Reynolds gem and whether a certain Billy Wilder classic now available in 4K is even amongst his strongest works. They are also particularly happy to see three of their choices from their Why Is This Not On Blu-ray shows finally get the format they deserve including a mystery from Stephen Sondheim, a 1930s musical and one of the great post-Jaws creature features from Shout Factory.   0:00 - Intro 5:26 – Criterion (A Hard Day’s Night, Miller’s Crossing, Written on the Wind) 27:41 – Shout Factory (Alligator) 38:10 – Paramount (Beavis & Butt-Head Do America, Wayne’s World, La Dolce Vita) 1:00:37 – Universal (The Card Counter, No Time To Die) 1:07:31 – Kino (Breaking In, Gambit, Where There’s Life, Monsieur Beauca

Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy are back to their old ways, reviewing ten new movies on this week’s show including a little early preview. The rest include a tale of obesity and bullying (Butter) and a family hooks up on Zoom to grieve grandma (Family Squares). More pandemic cinema takes Naomi Watts on a jog of social terror (The Desperate Hour) and Havana Rose Liu ends up at the worst rest stop (No Exit). There is also the story about record label head Alan McGee (Creation Stories) and Andy Garcia looking for someone to write his biography (Big Gold Brick). A family of filmmakers write, direct and star in a tale of witchcraft (Hellbender) and the Foo Fighters try to dabble in horror by creating their own movie (Studio 666). Finally released is a film that was on Erik’s top ten list in 2021 (Cyrano) and the guys have an early review of Matt Reeves’ new film which may end up on a few lists in 2022 (The Batman).   1:52 – Butter 10:31 – Family Squares 18:30 – No Exit 25:49 – Creation Stories 33:39 - The Despera

Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy are back with seven new movie reviews and if you thought murder was on the table last week, wait until you hear this. Boeing killed a bunch and you can learn all about it in a new Netflix documentary (Downfall: The Case Against Boeing.) The Unabomber killed a few and there is a new movie with Sharlto Copley as that lunatic (Ted K). When rich landowners kill off a group of gypsies they fight back with werewolves (The Cursed). Leatherface is back in a new film that wants to be a direct sequel to Tobe Hooper’s 1974 original (Texas Chainsaw Massacre). But its not all death this week. There is a cooking documentary (Breaking Bread), Channing Tatum on a road trip with a companion (Dog) and another video game adaptation where, yes, some people die but not as fast as good treasure hunting movies (Uncharted). 0:00 – Intro 1:07 - Breaking Bread 7:45 – Downfall: The Case Against Boeing 14:45 – Ted K 26:58 – The Cursed 35:42 – Dog 43:24 – Texas Chainsaw Massacre 1:04:18 – Uncharted 1:21:2

Movie reviews. Nine of them. We do it every week here on the show with Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy. It all starts with a little psychological horror (Alone With You) and emotional revenge (Catch the Fair One). Then it’s a whirlwind of grief from director Josephine Decker (The Sky is Everywhere) and the search for love from Joachim Trier (The Worst Person in the World). Liam Neeson plays another guy with special skills but does the movie have any (Blacklight)? Charlie Day and Jenny Slate are grieving exes with a plan (I Want You Back) and Steven Soderbergh’s IS back again for a crackerjack thriller with Zoe Kravitz (KIMI). Unfortunately, Jennifer Lopez is also back is romcom mode (Marry Me) and Kenneth Branagh puts on the mustache again as Hercule Poirot to solve the final murder from this show (Death On The Nile).   1:18 – Alone With You 7:19 – Catch the Fair One 17:25 – The Sky Is Everywhere 26:24 – Blacklight 42:50 – The Worst Person in the World 52:15 – Kimi 1:09:06 – I Want You Back 1:21:24 – Marry M

The Movie Madness Podcast goes back to Sundance (virtually) with Erik Childress, Steve Prokopy and Sergio Mims going through what they saw on their weeklong trip through the at-home app for a second straight year. More than 20 titles are discussed including new films from Kogonada, Justin Benson & Aaron Moorehead and Cooper Raiff. There are debuts from Jesse Eisenberg and Tig Notaro, and even a remake of Ikiru will Bill Nighy. Not to mention a group of incredible performances from Emma Thompson, Rebecca Hall, Thandiwe Newton, Aubrey Plaza and Dakota Johnson. The trio goes through most of the good and even some of the bad on a festival that is likely to be giving us something to look forward to the whole year.   0:00 - Intro 3:00 - When You Finish Saving the World 8:08 - Emergency 18:53 - Fresh 24:30 - After Yang 33:12 - The Janes 40:02 - Resurrection 48:15 - Fire of Love 52:25 - 892 59:48 - Something in the Dirt 1:04:24 - Living 1:11:23 - Honk For Jesus. Save Your Soul 1:21:03 - Good Luck To You Leo Grand

The weekly movie reviews return to the podcast with Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy talking about eight new movies and the 4K restoration of Dennis Hopper’s 1980 film, Out of the Blue. Flash-forward to 1984 for the new documentary about David Lynch’s sci-fi adaptation (The Sleeper Must Awaken: Making Dune) or back to post-Civil War for a little western horror (Ghosts of the Ozarks). Steve tells you where you can see baby animals (The Wolf and the Lion) or take a train for one of this year’s Best Foreign Language Film contenders (Compartment No. 6). Tim Roth takes an extended vacation from his family (Sundown) and Charlie Hunnam plays detective to try to clear Mel Gibson’s name. From murder (Last Looks). Then we have the latest film from jackass – Roland Emmerich – where he tries to kill the planet with the moon (Moonfall). Finally, of course, we have an actual Jackass movie and the title could not be more apropos (Jackass Forever).   0:00 - Intro 1:51 - Out of the Blue 7:49 - Ghost of the Ozarks 13:50 – The

Sergio Mims joins Erik Childress to take a look back on the careers of two men who became legends in their own time. Director Peter Bogdanovich came out of the gate with three films that established a legacy, but whose ego and crave of the spotlight began to take a toll. Though he continued working up until nearly his passing, his films never achieved the level of acclaim he did in the early ‘70s. Sidney Poitier, on the other hand, is one of the few to claim the title of trailblazer and it not be just another word. Erik & Sergio look at a number of films through their careers to hopefully shine a spotlight on a rather tragic beginning to 2022. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit erikthemovieman.substack.com

On this special episode of the podcast, Erik Childress is joined by Morgan Gire to delve into season four of Netflix’s popular continuation of The Karate Kid saga. After a new high achieved by the third season, does the latest represent a turning point forward, backward or sideways for its characters? Erik & Morgan delve into the constant switching sides and whether this season does justice for its teenage characters? Did the creators write themselves into a corner when its protagonists finally appeared to team up? Is the appearance of Karate Kid 3’s villain Terry Silver a chance for redemption or a reminder of the film series’ regression? Erik & Morgan are both fans of the show, but have a lot of thoughts on where its headed during and after this season. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit erikthemovieman.substack.com

One last look at the films of 2021 is the focus of this episode with Erik Childress, Steve Prokopy and Collin Souter unveiling their lists of the best 15 films of the year. There may not have been a lot of “fun” movies, they each manage to agree on one that makes their lists. There are also foreign films, documentaries and musicals of all kinds. Films of grief and mortality and the one that Erik thinks is just “fine.” Do not let the subject matter of the films throw you though, this is a lively discussion filled with universal agreement on a few, one big disagreement and a direct match on two of their lists. Take one final trip through an interesting year and put these films on your own lists to watch. 0:00 - Intro 4:27 - #15 9:26 - #14 15:05 - #13 19:17 - #12 23:56 - #11 28:47 - #10 37:03 - #9 42:42 - #8 51:04 - #7 56:26 - #6 1:03:24 - #5 1:09:42 - #4 1:17:00 - #3 1:25:02 - #2 1:35:31 - #1 1:49:00 - Outro This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonu

Movie Madness begins 2022 with its weekly review show and a few holdovers from 2021 that are only beginning to open wider. Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy catch up on the latest collaboration from Pedro Almodovar and Penelope Cruz (Parallel Mothers), George Clooney directs Ben Affleck in a coming-of-age memoir (The Tender Bar) and Asghar Farhadi pushes everyone into another moral conundrum (A Hero). There is also a cat-and-mouse game between a blind girl and a group of thieves not called Wait Until Dark (See For Me). But as it is January there are also movies that belong in January such as Michael Jai White not playing John Matrix (The Commando) and another team of female special agents that may want to consider removing the word special (The 355). 0:00 - Intro 2:03 - The Commando 9:16 – See For Me 21:32 – Parallel Mothers 28:34 – The Tender Bar 45:26 – A Hero 58:09 – The 355 1:16:39 - Outro This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, vi

The bi-annual series with Erik Childress and Sergio Mims closes out 2021 with a giant three-plus hour show dedicated to 20 films that have yet to find their way beyond DVD and, at least in one case, out of VHS if you can even find that. Ten choices each spanning a variety of eras include film noirs, comedies, television adaptations and even a television series. Blaxploitation and musicals, a satire of one era and a whole other era that many would rather forget but Sergio is here to remind you (and others) about. The hinting is only part of the fun as you discover not only their choices but perhaps even the films themselves. And at least one studio could not wait to announce one of these just days after the taping. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit erikthemovieman.substack.com

The last movie review edition of the podcast for 2021 is an epic one. Over two-and-a-half hours discussing 11 films including three that were chosen to be a part of this year’s Chicago Critics Film Festival. They include Isabelle Fuhrmann trying to do for rowing what Whiplash did from drumming (The Novice), Olivia Colman having an introspective vacation in Maggie Gyllenhaal’s directorial debut (The Lost Daughter) and the latest from the director of The Florida Project (Red Rocket). Science-fiction is very present this week with Chloe Grace Moretz as a pregnant woman on the run from a robot uprising (Mother/Android) and Mahershala Ali trying to ease his family’s suffering by cloning himself (Swan Song). Not to mention a return in the green coding with Keanu Reeves and Lana Wachowski (The Matrix Resurrections). And if you thought we were done with major directors we have the latest from Paolo Sorrentino (The Hand of God), Joel Coen (The Tragedy of Macbeth, Guillermo Del Toro (Nightmare Alley) and Paul Thomas An

  The final Marvel film of 2021 is about to become the biggest movie of the year. Erik Childress is joined by comic book expert, Erik Laws, to share their thoughts on the film. Spoilers are abound so be sure to listen after you have seen it. But when you do you will find out if they are as stoked as everyone else. They get into the previous Spider-Man films and discuss if this one hits the emotional beats it is clearly chasing. Are we allowed to be surprised anymore as so much has already been revealed even before the first teaser? And are the “fan service” detractors going to give a pass to this one after their nostalgia rantings last month? The Eriks talk about all of it in this jam-packed episode. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit erikthemovieman.substack.com

Erik Childress and Sergio Mims deliver one last Blu-ray show for 2021 with an impressive group of titles just in time to make your film lovers merry for Christmas. From Criterion they talk about one of the greatest films of all-time and one of their choices for the best film of 2020. Paramount delivers on a couple of Warren Beatty classics while also fulfilling another from the hosts’ Not-On-Blu-Ray lists. As does Warner Archive with a timely delivered mystery given the passing of one of its screenwriters as well as the awesomeness of the Mad Max Anthology. Sergio hypes up a nearly long lost film from Flicker Alley along with his absolute love of The Guns of Navarone. Then there is nearly an hour dedicated to some great titles from Kino including the original version of Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, a bunch of Charles Bronson & W.C. Fields for your dads, one of Steven Spielberg’s earliest efforts and a pair of classic horror titles now available on 4K. Get those lists ready because they are going to fill them

Six new movies are covered on the weekly movie review edition of the show with Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy looking at a new documentary about a film legend (The Real Charlie Chaplin) and the week from hell of a TV legend (Being the Ricardos). A film dramatizes the debate over compensating student athletes (National Champions) but who will compensate us for the latest from Sandra Bullock (The Unforgivable) and Adam McKay (Don’t Look Up). Then if you missed the full show with Sergio Mims, Steve gets his chance to talk about Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story. 0:00 - Intro 1:22 – National Champions 21:02 – The Real Charlie Chaplin 31:38 – The Unforgivable 45:27 – Being the Ricardos 1:03:49 - Don’t Look Up 1:27:50 - West Side Story 1:48:10 - Outro This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit erikthemovieman.substack.com

The title of the episode almost says it all but it turns out both Erik Childress and Sergio Mims have a lot to say about Steven Spielberg’s remake of the Oscar-winning 1961 musical. Sergio, who also hosts a classical music show on WHPK Radio in Chicago, takes us through the choreographers, Leonard Bernstein and his thoughts both positive and negative on the original. Erik also shares his thoughts on how the 1961 film shaped his perspective on musicals at an early age and how the new film has managed to surpass it at every level. Both marvel at one particular performance in the remake which also manages to honor another with some key changes made to the original text. While they may have some quibbles and disagree here and there one thing they agree on is this is one of the best films of 2021. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit erikthemovieman.substack.com

Movie theaters tend to slow down the week after Thanksgiving but Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy still have seven movies you can see there or at home. They catch up on the latest from Mike Mills with Joaquin Phoenix (C’mon C’mon). Sci-fi takes some questionable turns in an apocalyptic “comedy” (Silent Night) and a kidnapping drama that is questionably referred to as “science fiction” (Encounter). Surprisingly there is no such label on the story of people who believe they are animals (Wolf). Erik reminds you of a Toronto fest documentary that is now available on HBO (Listening to Kenny G) which may be just the come down you need after another HBO premiere about the life and loss of Adrienne Shelly (Adrienne). Then finally when Paul Verhoeven has lesbian nuns challenge the status quo of 17th century Catholism, you say “YES!” (Benedetta). 0:00 - Intro 1:56 - Listening to Kenny G 11:29 – Encounter 22:15 – Silent Night 33:19 – Adrienne 50:47 – C’mon C’mon 1:03:35 – Wolf 1:16:39 – Benedetta 1:35:41 - Outro This is

The weekly movie review edition of the podcast adds seven titles from the Thanksgiving holiday. Erik Childress checks out the 1980s hi-jinks of trying to obtain a Nintendo (8-Bit Christmas) while Steve Prokopy delves into the new Ryusuke Hamaguchi (Drive My Car) and the stylings of classic songwriters of old (The Beatles: Get Back) and new (Encanto). The pair debate whether the directorial debut of Halle Berry is worth your time (Bruised) and try to decipher just what anybody sees in Stephen Karam’s adaptation of his own play (The Humans). Finally, they look into the second Ridley Scott film in as many months and, whether or not, that’s a good thing (House of Gucci). 1:51 – 8-Bit Christmas 12:11 – Drive My Car 20:41 - Bruised 34:43 – The Beatles: Get Back 51:00 – The Humans 1:08:15 – Encanto 1:16:24 – House of Gucci This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit erikthemovieman.substack.com

Black Friday and Christmas are coming up, so what better time to talk up some Blu-rays you may want to add to your wish lists. Erik Childress and Sergio Mims discuss a great documentary that should be on everyone’s shelves about one of the greatest television shows ever produced. For the kids Shout Factory has a whole lineup of new Laika packages and the pair also get into who is a Labyrinth guy and who is a Dark Crystal guy. Paramount has some great 4K titles including two-thirds of the original Star Trek movies and one of the most successful horror films to be released during the holidays. Sergio also pushes back on the criticism of the new 4K of Quentin Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds and runs down a bunch of new stuff from Warner Archive including the long-awaited debut of one of the great comic debuts ever. 0:00 - Intro 2:42 – Street Gang: How We Got To Sesame Street 9:21 – Shout Factory (Coraline, Paranorman, Kubo and the Two Strings, The Boxtrolls) 14:25 – Sony (Labyrinth) 22:02 – Paramount (Star Trek