Mandatory Movies

Cry Macho has us talking about characters with alliterative names, from Eli Roth’s dreadful Donny Donowitz in Inglorious Basterds to Michael Rooker granting Grant Grant unexpected pathos in Slither.

Those Who Wish Me Dead has us talking crime witnesses pursued by the mob, from the miscasting of Jack Nicholson in The Departed to the miscasting of Tom Hanks in Road to Perdition.

Kajillionaire has us talking movies with money referenced in the title, from the stretched thin plot of Casino to the nonsensical plot of Money Train.

Promising Young Woman has us talking memorable wigs with special guest Carolyn Rennie, from Jim Carrey’s wild hair and wacky characters in Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events to Laura Harring’s blonde starlet disguise as she opens a Pandora’s Box in Mulholland Dr.

Nomadland has us talking road trips, from donuts and dirtbags in Breakdown to cancer and green screens in The Bucket List.

Minari has us talking about sick kids, from the over-the-top cartoon psychopath in We Need to Talk About Kevin to the unbearably precocious genius in The Book of Henry.

The Little Things has us talking about cereal and movies, from Jeremy Renner staring at the most bizarre grocery aisle ever stocked to the arrow shaped cereal based on the apparent archery skills of Kevin Costner in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves.

Mank has us talking alcoholic protagonists, from Sam Jackson’s luck in Changing Lanes to Will Smith’s allergies in Hancock.

Kevin and Brad keep talking video game movies in this bonus episode, specifically about the inconsistencies in the premise of Wreck-It Ralph, the lack of intellectual property rights in Rampage, the leafblower shooting money at the cast of Assassin’s Creed, and the trance music of the clubbing tail… https://ia801409.us.archive.org/30/items/morevideogames2/Video%20Game%20Remastered%20Bonus%20%28final%20edit%29.mp3

Sonic the Hedgehog has us racing to its defense, before moving on to discuss how quickly Scott Pilgrim can put on a hat, how many egregious name-checks Ready Player One has per second, and how to literally and figuratively turn on the gaming system in eXistenZ. Does Scott Pilgrim vs. the World get too clever […]

Uncut Gems has us doubling down on the Safdie brothers, before moving on to discuss Ryan Reynolds’ liquor of choice, Nicolas Cage’s crooked gait, and Jessica Chastain’s ski injury. Should Ben Mendelsohn be in every movie after Mississippi Grind? Is Port of Call New Orleans the last great bonkers Nic Cage movie? And does Aaron […]

To discuss the films of August 2005, hosts Brad and Kevin have forced each other to rewatch The 40 Year-Old Virgin, The Constant Gardener, Broken Flowers, and 2046. Is The 40 Year-Old Virgin even better today than it was 13 years ago? Did Rachel Weisz deserve the Oscar for The Constant Gardener? Does Broken Flowers […]

Kevin and Brad preview their picks for the next episode, on which they’ll discuss Uncut Gems, and other movies prominently featuring gambling. https://ia601405.us.archive.org/22/items/uncutgemspreview/Uncut%20Gems%20-%20Preview%20%28final%20edit%29.mp3

Brad and Kevin keep talking frequent collaborators in this bonus episode, specifically about the pitfalls of Silver Linings Playbook’s happy ending, the inadvertent product placement in Little Nicky, the bafflingly unnecessary Dark Shadows, and our need to go to bed earlier… https://ia601508.us.archive.org/9/items/collaborationsbonus/Collaborations%20Bonus%20%28final%20edit%29.mp3

The Irishman has us hitting on the finer points of Scorsese crime sagas, before moving on to discuss Julianne Moore and Tom Cruise breaking down, Michael Shannon melting down, and Viggo Mortensen stepping up. Can the de-aging be taken seriously for 3.5 hours in The Irishman? Can we list fewer than ten scenes we could […]

Kevin and Brad preview their picks for the next episode, on which they’ll discuss The Irishman, and other films featuring directors and actors who work together frequently. https://ia801406.us.archive.org/13/items/irishmanpreview/Irishman%20Preview%20%28final%20edit%29.mp3

Brad and Kevin keep talking isolation movies in this bonus episode, specifically about the late-night cable cache of Cube, the limitations of the conceit of Exam, the naked fist-fighting chops of Tom Hardy in Bronson, and our hatred for the phrase “tour de force performance”… https://ia801405.us.archive.org/34/items/isolationbonus/Isolation%20Bonus%20%28final%20edit%29.mp3

(We had some technical difficulties on this episode, so portions of the audio are a lower quality than we normally produce. So our apologies for that.) The Lighthouse has us rambling on about on about art movies before moving on to discuss The Hack’s big, fat recording, The Hank’s volleyball pal, and Ryan Reynolds’ cell […]

Here’s the thing… We weren’t able to record on time in November due to conflicting holiday schedules, so we’re opening up the Mandatory Movies Vault, and releasing the first episode we ever recorded, when the format was a little different, focusing on revisiting the films of a particular month/year rather than a theme. To discuss […]

Brad and Kevin preview their picks for the next episode, on which they’ll discuss The Lighthouse, and other movies featuring characters who are isolated. https://ia801503.us.archive.org/7/items/lighthousepreview/Lighthouse%20Preview%20%28full%20edit%29.mp3

Brad and Kevin keep talking dual roles in this bonus episode, specifically about narrative convenience in Dead Again, predictions of the future in The 6th Day, the development of a bridge in Double Impact, and the need to drink less during these episodes… https://ia801403.us.archive.org/13/items/DualRolesBonus/Gemini%20Bonus%20%28full%20edit%29.mp3

Gemini has us reeling over creepy CGI before moving on to discuss a spoofed spy, a spoofed restaurant, and a spoofed marriage. Is Austin Powers unfairly maligned? Is Eddie Murphy The Godfather of dual roles? And is Enemy a brilliant enigma or a pretentious copout? All this and more on Gemini Man, Dual Roles, and […]

Brad and Kevin preview their picks for the next episode, on which they’ll discuss Gemini Man, and other movies featuring an actor playing more than one role… https://ia601509.us.archive.org/13/items/geminimanpreview/Gemini%20Man%20Preview%20%28full%20edit%29.mp3

Brad and Kevin keep talking rappers on this bonus episode, specifically about the neo-realism in Torque, the vast cast of character actors in Surviving the Game, the speech patterns in 16 Blocks, and the research that goes into biker villain roles… https://ia601405.us.archive.org/23/items/hustlersbonus/Hustlers%20Bonus.mp3

Hustlers has us sympathizing with criminals before moving on to discuss the absurdity of war, the enigma of Oliver Stone, and the confusion over what 50 Cent’s actual name is. Did David O. Russell peak early with Three Kings? Did Any Given Sunday leave any aspect of football unexplored? And does Get Rich or Die […]

Kevin and Brad preview their picks for the next episode, in which they’ll discuss Hustlers, and other movies starring rappers… https://ia801403.us.archive.org/34/items/hustlerspreview/Hustlers%20Preview%20%28full%20edit%29.mp3

Brad and Kevin keep talking Treasure Hunt movies in this bonus episode, specifically about the nuanced acting in National Treasure, the recycled sets in King Solomon’s Mines, the low-brow humor of City Slickers II: The Legend of Curly’s Gold, and Billy Crystal cinematic sex life… https://ia601409.us.archive.org/17/items/treasurehuntbonus/Treasure%20Hunt%20Bonus%20%28full%20edit%29.mp3

Dora and the Lost City of Gold has us chuckling over its goofy supporting cast before moving on to a discussion of a boy and his dog, a boys’ club, and a boy we want to throw through a wall. Does The Adventures of Tintin successfully avoid the Uncanny Valley? Does The Lost City of […]

Kevin and Brad preview their picks for the next episode, on which they’ll discuss Dora and the Lost City of Gold, as well as other movies about treasure hunting/explorers… https://ia601502.us.archive.org/4/items/dorapreview/Dora%20Preview%20%28full%20edit%29.mp3

Brad and Kevin keep talking Hollywood Movies in this bonus episode, specifically about comedians who are dull in Looney Tunes: Back in Action, stunt men who are boring in The Stunt Man, villains who are friendly in Wes Craven’s New Nightmare, and just How bad Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back still is, and how […]

Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood has us in full over-analysis mode as we nit-pick Tarantino’s latest before moving on to discuss meta writer’s block, fictional writer’s block, and a writer who should have been blocked. Is Adaptation easy to describe while drunk? Is Barton Fink a Coen Brothers b-side? And is Jay and Silent […]

Kevin and Brad preview their picks for the next episode, in which they’ll discuss Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, and other movies about making movies… https://ia801409.us.archive.org/32/items/PreviewHollywood/Hollywood%20Preview%20%28full%20edit%29.mp3

Brad and Kevin keep talking franchise fourths in this bonus episode, specifically about rubber asses and ice puns in Batman & Robin, Matthew McConaughey’s baffling hydraulic leg in Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation, the unnecessary stand-in protagonists in Bride of Chucky, and about some great movie farts… https://ia601402.us.archive.org/19/items/morefranchisefourths/Franchise%20Fourths%20Bonus%20%28full%20edit%29.mp3

Men in Black: International has us both forgetting everything that happened in it and proud of ourselves for not once saying we were Neuralyzed by it as we use it as a catalyst for a discussion of two 50 year-old action heroes, another 50 year-old action hero, and another 50 year-old action hero. Yes… Another […]

Kevin and Brad preview their picks for the next episode, in which they’ll discuss Men in Black: International and other movies that are the fourth in their franchise… https://ia801408.us.archive.org/6/items/MeninBlackPreview/MIBI%20Preview%20%28edited%20with%20music%29.mp3

Brad and Kevin keep talking Video Game Movies in this bonus episode, specifically about parentless kids with awesome gadgets in Brainscan, lost opportunities for bad puns in Double Dragon, incessant comic relief in Surf Ninjas, whether you want it or not, and about how bad this topic is… https://ia801506.us.archive.org/1/items/VideoGameBonus/Video%20Game%20Bonus%20%28complete%20edit%29.mp3

Detective Pikachu has us regretting our choice to watch movies about video games as we discuss co-opted 80s culture, a non-sensical dystopian future, and a 90 minute commercial. Are the first 20 minutes of Pixels actually funny? Are the games actually games in Gamer? And does anybody actually know how to hook up a Nintendo […]

Kevin and Brad preview their picks for the next episode, in which they’ll discuss Detective Pikachu and Video Game Movies… https://ia801507.us.archive.org/17/items/PreviewPikachu/Pikachu%20Preview%20%28with%20music%29.mp3

Brad and Kevin keep talking Feline Films on this bonus episode, specifically about why nobody should root for Garfield in Garfield, about how the song “Sleepwalk” might relate to the title of the film in which it appears (Sleepwalkers), why we should still respect Fritz the Cat despite its dated, juvenile attempt to be hip […]

The Pet Sematary remake has us ruminating on some notorious cinematic kitties as we discuss overbearing fathers, creepy “hairy men,” and the generically named cat of an unbearable socialite. Does Pet Sematary need to exist? Is Meet the the Parents one of the ten best comedies of this century? Is The Cat in the Hat […]

Brad and Kevin keep talking Obsession movies on this bonus episode, specifically about why The Cable Guy doesn’t get more respect, why the characters in Fear are so nonchalant about domestic violence, and why Rosario Dawson actually turned in a real performance in the theatrical Lifetime movie, Unforgettable… https://ia601508.us.archive.org/9/items/ObsessionBonuseditWithMusic/Obsession%20Bonus%20%28edit%20with%20music%29.mp3

Neil Jordan’s Greta sets up a discussion of spurned lovers, terrible fans, and dangerous cops as we discuss Obsession Movies, focusing on the genre defining Fatal Attraction, the DeNiro phone-in, The Fan, and the underrated gem, Unlawful Entry. Is Isabelle Huppert’s performance wasted in Greta? Is The Fan one of Robert DeNiro’s worst performances? Is […]

Alita: Battle Angel sets up a discussion of AI movies, which includes the Chris Columbus classic, Bicentennial Man, the novelist-directed Westworld, and the highly bizarrely beloved Ghost in the Shell. Is Alita good for anything other than shoddy Christolph Waltz impressions? Are Oliver Platt’s contributions to robot humanity under appreciated in Bicentennial Man? Is Westworld […]