Best Worst Movies

This week I'm joined by Pedro Lima to discuss one of his favorite films: Speed Racer. This movie was the first one from the Wachowski sisters following The Matrix trilogy. This 2008 movie, starring Emile Hirsch, Matthew Fox, John Goodman, and Christina Ricci is currently at 42% on Rotten Tomatoes. Listen and find out why this movie holds a special place in Pedro's heart. Follow Pedro on Twitter and Letterboxd. And read more at his website, Shortstick.

In this episode, Alise and Sebastian discuss A Knight's Tale. This 2001 film stars the late Heath Ledger, Rufus Sewell, Paul Bettany, Shannyn Sossamon, Alan Tudyk, and Mark Addy. We discuss the music, the nostalgia, and the earnestness of the film. Find more about Sebastian here.

Before Lin-Manuel Miranda brought us rapping founding fathers, Alan Menken brought us a musical about child labor and the unionization of America in "Newsies." Debuting in 1992 and starring Christian Bale, this film has only a 39% on Rotten Tomatoes. I'm joined this week by my sister Megan Wright, a writer, teacher, spiritual director, and musician to talk about the movie that she consumed weekly during middle school. We talk about how timely this film is both from a labor and a news perspective, why Bill Pullman should stick to being the president in Independence Day, and how we saw most movies the first time when we were growing up. Links: CGP Grey's This Video Will Make You Angry

Are you needing some feminist content that doesn't bum you out, but rather makes you laugh? Then look no further than this week's episode! In it, Tanya Marlow and I discuss "The Spy Who Dumped Me," a 2018 dark comedy starring Kate McKinnon and Mila Kunis that has a 49% on Rotten Tomatoes. I'm joined this week by Tanya Marlow, an author and disability rights activist. We discuss some of the double standards between movies centering women and men, how a dark comedy can still be really effective, and how feminism doesn't always have to take itself so seriously. It's a really fascinating discussion and you don't want to miss it! Links: Tanya Marlow

Most people volunteer to come onto the podcast to defend a favorite movie, but this time, I recruited my friend Ash Orr to join me when they sent me a voice memo informing me that their hot take was that "Jurassic World: Dominion" was good, actually. The film is still in its early days, but as of recording, it has a 29% on Rotten Tomatoes. Ash is a political organizer working to make Appalachia a better place for everyone who lives here. In this episode, we talk about memories of watching the original Jurassic Park movie, about the place of childhood existential dread in a dinosaur movie, and about whether dinosaurs as guns are better than talking dinosaurs.

Grab a bottle of wine, a box of Kleenex, and your best girlfriends, because we're talking about the classic tear-jerker "Beaches"! This fully 80's chick flick starring Bette Midler and Barbara Hershey has a 42% on Rotten Tomatoes, but a 100% in my heart. I'm joined this week by Jen Cretu, an artist out of California. The critics may be technically correct about this movie, but we love it anyway, and we talk about why. We have a fun discussion about the significance of the names of the characters in the movie, about CeCe's over the top apartment, and about how you can't really trust Trivial Pursuit. Links: Jen's Etsy Shop

The Bard has had lots of his work retold, but today we're looking at the 2006 retelling of Twelfth Night in the comedy "She's the Man." This teen comedy has a 43% Rotten Tomatoes score, but is that deserved? I'm joined by Dianna E. Anderson, an author and activist with a new book, "In Transit," releasing July 12. They pointed me to this movie as a fascinating look at gender politics and the discussion around trans athletes. We talk about Channing Tatum's excellent comedic chops, how I cried at a kind of cheesy moment in the movie, and discover the actor who will always be my choice for Best/Worst actor if he's in a film. Links: Pre-order In Transit by Dianna E. Anderson

Steven Spielberg. Robin Williams. Dustin Hoffman. Julia Roberts. The 1990's. All of the pieces for a great movie, and somehow still a devastating 29% on Rotten Tomatoes. This week, my guest is my friend Eric Small, a nurse here in West Virginia. We discuss his deep abiding love for this "not-as-bad-as-it-seems" movie and where we could shave 20 minutes off to make it more manageable. Was Spielberg too ambitious? Did the critics bring too much baggage with them about the cast? Is this actually a bad movie? Is this movie the spiritual predecessor to Our Flag Means Death? Eric and I discuss all of this and more.

Siskel and Ebert may be two of the all-time greatest film critics, but they got it completely wrong when they reviewed the 1986 comedy classic, "Three Amigos!" A film starring Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Chevy Chase at the height of their popularity, this movie has a mere 45% on Rotten Tomatoes and a one star review from both Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert. My guest this week is Rob Stennett, an author, screenwriter, and co-host of the fantastic podcast, The Meaning of the Movie. Together, we seek to defeat the GOAT duo of Siskel and Ebert by defending one of our favorite 80's comedies, figuring out who our favorite Amigo is, and also finding some genuine meaning in a silly film about three American actors in Mexico. Links: Siskel and Ebert At the Movies review Rent Three Amigos!

What happens when you gather four Oscar winning/nominated actors and a successful blockbuster director? Wild Wild West, a movie with a mere 16% score on Rotten Tomatoes. A film so bad that it won 5 Razzies, including Worst Picture of 1999. I'm joined this week by Shane Assadzandi, a political organizer and movie fiend from West Virginia to discuss one of Will Smith's most notable flops, prior to the 2022 Oscars. Listen as we discuss favorite scenes, uncomfortable laughs, and which of the characters would be the most electable.

Introduction to the Best Worst Movies podcast!