Mousterpiece Cinema

We're closing out the month of October here at Mousterpiece Cinema with a truly terrifying cinematic experience, a film that could chill your bones and send your teeth shivering with fear. What film could it be? Why, it's the 2004 fairy tale Ella Enchanted, starring Anne Hathaway, Hugh Dancy, Eric Idle, Cary Elwes, Minnie Driver, and more! While it may not sound like a scary movie for you, two of the folks on this episode would disagree. Josh and Gabe are joined by longtime friend of the show Kate Kulzick of Sound on Sight and The AV Club to debate this riff on the story of a girl named Cinderella and her evil stepsisters and stepmother. So, which one of these three didn't hate Ella Enchanted? And which one sings during the show? (Hint: it's the same person who swears a few times, and by the way...earmuffs.) Only one way to find out: check out the new show!

Who's ready for some vine-swinging action, friends? (Not the six-second videos, please note.) Josh and Gabe are ready for some high-flying fun this week as they talk about the 1999 animated film Tarzan, the so-called end of the Disney Renaissance. Some may say that, but at least one person on today's podcast would disagree! Is it Josh or Gabe, or their guest Anthony Strand of ToughPigs.com? One of these three would place Tarzan as among Disney's best animated films, but the others...would take issue with that. Plenty of debate this week, as well as a tangent or four, and a couple different renditions of the infamous Tarzan yell. So prepare yourselves and your precious ears. Seriously. Now get to listening to the new episode!

We said hey, hey, hey, hey, hey...what's going on? What IS going on, friends? And what the hell does a 4 Non-Blondes song have to do with today's episode of Mousterpiece Cinema? Turns out more than you might think, as Josh and Gabe prepare to discuss Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, the new Disney live-action family film co-starring Steve Carell, Jennifer Garner, Megan Mullaly, Donald Glover, and...Dick Van Dyke. Yes. Really. There's a lot for Josh and Gabe to scratch their heads over, and they're joined in befuddlement by longtime friend of the show, Entertainment Weekly senior writer, and author of the new novel Brutal Youth Anthony Breznican. Would this film have been better if it was more mature? Did it need more penis talk? Are penises really that funny? (Please, don't be shy.) Somehow, all of this really will be resolved on this week's show, so check it out!

IMPORTANT UPDATE: A loyal listener of the show informed me (Josh) that a handful of old episodes--from when it was just me recording on my own, sans website or co-host--were missing from iTunes, so here's one of those, coming out of...let's say the Disney vault. Enjoy!    Has it really been 30 years since Disney introduced us to Tod and Copper, a fox and hound who become unlikely pals? You bet, and Disney just released The Fox and the Hound to commemorate the anniversary. This week on Mousterpiece Cinema, Josh takes a look back at this unusual friendship. Was he charmed by Tod and Copper, as voiced by Mickey Rooney and Kurt Russell? (Really.) You may be surprised! Check out the show, and make sure to rate and review it on iTunes!

IMPORTANT UPDATE: A loyal listener of the show informed me (Josh) that a handful of old episodes--from when it was just me recording on my own, sans website or co-host--were missing from iTunes, so here's one of those, coming out of...let's say the Disney vault. Enjoy!    Greetings, programs! It's time to get sucked into the world of computers and video games as, for this week's episode of Mousterpiece Cinema, Josh looks back at the 1982 action-adventure Tron. This was Josh's first time seeing the movie, so you may be surprised at what he thinks. Those 80s-era special effects may not be the biggest problem with the world of Tron, but you'll have to listen to this week's show to find out what Josh thought!

IMPORTANT UPDATE: A loyal listener of the show informed me (Josh) that a handful of old episodes--from when it was just me recording on my own, sans website or co-host--were missing from iTunes, so here's one of those, coming out of...let's say the Disney vault. Enjoy!    It's been 20 years since Walt Disney Pictures released The Rocketeer ("The Rocke-Who?"), and Josh rediscovers it on this week's Mousterpiece Cinema! You'll have to listen to the show to find out his full opinion, of course, but it's a lovefest all around! Watching Cliff Secord don a rocket suit in the Los Angeles of 1938 was so much fun, Josh couldn't help but gush. Check out this week's show for more!

IMPORTANT UPDATE: A loyal listener of the show informed me (Josh) that a handful of old episodes--from when it was just me recording on my own, sans website or co-host--were missing from iTunes, so here's one of those, coming out of...let's say the Disney vault. Enjoy!    This week, Josh takes a look at a whole new world of animation, from Japanese auteur Hayao Miyazaki from Studio Ghibli. Pixar honcho John Lasseter introduced Americans to Spirited Away in 2002; nearly ten years later, can Josh share Lasseter's enthusiasm? Does admiring something equal liking it? Is Miyazaki a modern successor to Walt Disney? Can river spirits be dragons? Find out on this week's Mousterpiece Cinema!

IMPORTANT UPDATE: A loyal listener of the show informed me (Josh) that a handful of old episodes--from when it was just me recording on my own, sans website or co-host--were missing from iTunes, so here's one of those, coming out of...let's say the Disney vault. Enjoy!   This week, Josh takes his first look at one of the fabled Disney princess movies, 1950's Cinderella. Is he charmed by Cinderella's mice friends, Jaq and Gus? Did he tremble and quake at the villainous Lady Tremaine? Will his love for cats make him love Lucifer the big, black cat? You'll have to listen to this week's show to find out!

We hope you're carefully bundled up for this new episode of Mousterpiece Cinema, because we wouldn't want any creepy-crawlies to make their way across your arm or foot or hand, skittering up your body before it's too late OH NO. Whew, false alarm. Anyway, eight-legged creepy-crawlies are the matter of the day on this week's show, as Gabe and Josh talk about the first film from Hollywood Pictures, 1990's Arachnophobia, starring Jeff Daniels, John Goodman, and a whole lot of spiders. There's plenty to talk about this week, though of course, your two hosts found their way into a discussion of all things Ernest P. Worrell and Ron Howard. (Not at the same time.) Is Arachnophobia a fittingly spooktacular film for the month of October? Is Jeff Daniels' laugh scarifying? The only way to find out is to face your fears and listen to the show!

Friends, it's that time of year again: time for some scarifying movie talk on Mousterpiece Cinema! Yes, it's Shock-tober, so you better boo-lieve that Josh and Gabe are back at it with some Halloween-appropriate movies. First up, it's M. Night Shyamalan's follow-up to his iconic ghost story The Sixth Sense, the 2000 thriller Unbreakable. (It's Bill Cosby's favorite film! Kind of! Not really! Josh will explain what that means.) And who else could talk about this film than our old friend Alexander Huls? He's back, and so's Gabe, who was willing to talk Shyamalan this time. It's another wide-ranging discussion, as everything from the Dardennes brothers to Werckmeister Harmonies to a delightfully profane Audible recommendation comes up this week. That's right: earmuffs, kids. Now, wrap yourself up tight so your bones don't break, and check out the new show!

Autumn may be upon us, but at Mousterpiece Cinema HQ, Gabe and Josh are still a bit hot under the collar. If you were satisfied with last week's heated debate of the career of cinematographer-turned-director Dean Cundey, then you are in for a treat with the new episode of the show. Your dynamic duo enter the world of direct-to-DVD sequels once again, but back in animation with The Return of Jafar, the Patient Zero of the Disney direct-to-DVD sequel. Is this return to the world of Aladdin not as bad as people presume it is? Is it worse? Does Gilbert Gottfried sing in this movie? And how heated must the discussion be if Josh wonders if it's time for a new co-host? (Don't worry, Gabe's job is safe. FOR NOW.) Get ready for a thrilla in...Agrabah, folks. Check out the new show now!

The summer's just about over, and one of our unintentional summer mini-series is about to come to close. This week on Mousterpiece Cinema, Josh and Gabe wade into the world of direct-to-video sequels once more, but with a twist: this one's a live-action DTV sequel. Yes, they're closing out the Rick Moranis-led trilogy of wacky sci-fi comedies about shrinking and enlargening people, with a discussion of Honey, We Shrunk Ourselves. (Don't you just hate it when that happens?) But seeing as the film was directed by the prolific cinematographer Dean Cundey, Josh and Gabe go on quite the tangent about his career with Steven Spielberg, Robert Zemeckis, and John Carpenter, among others. If you've wanted to hear a good old-fashioned argument between your hosts, then, friend, this one's the episode for you!

We're going back in time once again on Mousterpiece Cinema, so get set. This week, Josh and Gabe take on one of the most dynamic duos in Disney history: Frank and Ollie. That's Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston, two of the venerated Nine Old Men, to all of you who might be unfamiliar. They're the focus of this 1995 documentary about their four-plus decades at the Walt Disney Company, covering films as diverse as Bambi and Robin Hood, and everything in between. Does this documentary rise above the simple, in spite of being directed by Frank's son? What kind of detail might be missing from the final product? And how does Ken Burns ("Kenny baby" to his friends, of course) figure into all of this? Find out on the new show!

It's time for a new episode of Mousterpiece Cinema; this week, Josh and Gabe are getting their Zen thing back on track and gearing up to groove on some biodigital jazz, man! That's right, they're talking about the 2010 holiday blockbuster Tron Legacy this week. It's a fascinating journey into the recent past, as your hosts answer questions like: Is Jeff Bridges' Lebowski-as-Obi-Wan take on a hero worthwhile? What's with James Frain's American accent? And what the hell IS biodigital jazz? (Man.) Plenty of fun within, so get ready to hook in, program, or else it's the end of line. Or, in non techie-speak, check out the new show! (Man.)

Well, friends, it's that time again. You've brought the podcast to another threshold on Facebook, and so it's up to Josh and Gabe to deliver another bonus episode. As promised, once the show passed 400 Likes, your heroic co-hosts would tackle three more films from the now-Disney-owned Lucasfilm empire: Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, and Radioland Murders. ...OK, fine, the last one is really Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. And so, in this extra-special, extra-long podcast, Josh and Gabe debate the big questions: is Willie Scott the most obnoxious character in film history? Are the sequels too heavy on fan service? Will Josh reveal more painful vocal impressions? (Of course.) And finally: what's on the slate for the next bonus show? Well, you'll have to listen to find out!

Don't you just hate it when one of your experiments at the high-tech laboratory near Las Vegas goes horribly wrong and your 2-year old son grows to a hundred feet tall? Right? It's the worst! OK, so maybe not all of us can share Wayne Szalinski's pain, but it's there to see in the 1992 sequel Honey, I Blew Up The Kid starring Rick Moranis, Lloyd Bridges, and Keri Russell. Yes, really, the pre-Felicity Russell plays the romantic interest of Wayne's son, which is why he ends up tying her up at one point in this movie, bound and gagged. (Maybe that's not exactly why. But still.) Gabe and Josh are taking on this big baby for the new episode of Mousterpiece Cinema, and as you might expect, there's a bit of disagreement about what kind of sequel this is: not bad or all bad. Plus, another round of Gabe's Celebrity Crushes, which is distressingly becoming a thing on the show. Check it out now!

Get ready for a real ruff episode of Mousterpiece Cinema, friends. This week, Josh and Gabe are dog-paddling back into the waters of the direct-to-video sequels from the Walt Disney Company. What's on the dog-cket? Lady and the Tramp II: Scamp's Adventure, featuring the dulcet tones of Scott Wolf, Alyssa Milano, Chazz Palminteri, Bronson Pinchot, Cathy Moriarty, and Mickey Rooney. (Because of course.) Is this the rare direct-to-video sequel to warm Josh and Gabe's hearts, or is it barking up the wrong tree? How squicky is it that an adult dog is alluding to hooking up with what amounts to a pre-adolescent pooch? And how quickly can Gabe gross Josh out when talking about that iconic moment from the 1955 original romance? (Very.) Get out of the junkyard and download the new show to find out!

Are you hungry for a serious discussion of the new Helen Mirren film? Have you been starving for a debate about the merits of how excitable Oprah Winfrey gets? Have you cleared your plate of big-budget superhero movies in the hopes of something lighter and easier to digest? Are you overstuffed with food puns in this post? Well, loosen your belt a bit, because there may be at least one more before it's over. This week on Mousterpiece Cinema, Josh and Gabe travel to the villages of France to talk about Lasse Hallstrom's new film The Hundred-Foot Journey, all about an extra-talented young man from India who gets a chance to prove himself to a stuffy French restaurateur played by Dame Mirren herself. Joining the duo is Kate Erbland of Film School Rejects, who made a hundred-foot journey of her own to accept this film, even if its romantic storyline is somewhat curdled. But no more spoilers here! Dive right into this new episode (but don't talk while your mouth is full)!

We hope you've got an awesome mix tape at hand, and your weapon of choice at the ready, because it's time for an action-packed new episode of Mousterpiece Cinema. This week, Josh and Gabe go guest-free to get ready...for a dance-off, bro! Once more, they dive into the Marvel fray to talk about Rise of the Guardians of the Galaxy Quest: The Owls of Ga'Hoole. (Or just Guardians of the Galaxy.) Were your dynamic duo wowed by this space opera starring Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Bradley Cooper the Raccoon, Vin Diesel the Tree, Glenn Close's hairdo, and Benicio Del Toro's fright wig? Could it be that one of your hosts found nits to pick? Could it be that...Josh is NOT the nitpicky one this week? Lots of fun to be had this week as Josh and Gabe debate the important topics like mythology, character development, and, of course, John Stamos. Don't wait any longer--check it out!

This week on Mousterpiece Cinema, we're getting straight down to the bare necessities. Yep, that's right, Josh and Gabe are headed to the jungle to talk about The Jungle Book, the 1967 animated classic with a jazz-loving bear, a stuffy panther, and a proper English tig--what's that? We did an episode on The Jungle Book 2 years ago? Then what is...oh, right, this episode's about the 1994 live-action adaptation directed by Stephen Sommers and starring Jason Scott Lee, Cary Elwes, a young Lena Headey, and John Cleese! You remember that, don't you? Well, it turns out you should. There's notalking animals, no cheap CGI, and a good old-fashioned sense of adventure, as Josh and Gabe find out. Of course, since they're guest-less this week, there are tangents aplenty, including one in which Gabe reveals his true passion for the films of James Cameron. (Yes, really.) So get ready for another wild episode! Check it out now.