Every episode, hosts Spro and Lee pick an award given to a recipient they feel didn't deserve it (ie. UP for Best Animated, Kramer vs. Kramer for Best Picture.) Analyzing that specific year in movies, they argue their cases for what films/artists would be a better picks. Righting wrongs is the name of the game as Spro and Lee Take on the Academy.
Spro and Lee plan their perfect Oscar show, and Lee takes his final bow.
The finale of "Lee Benches Gump": A three-part series where Spro & Lee go back thirty years to relitigate the merit of Forrest Gump, Robert Zemeckis, and Tom Hanks. In this episode, the Best Picture Oscar of 1995 is on the block. Kyle Bruehl from "I Know Movies and You Don't" guests.
The Streep Effect rolls on. In this episode, Claire from Why the Flick? joins Spro and Lee to discuss something about some bridges, a rural county in Iowa, and a love that could not be.
Part II of "Lee Benches Gump": A three-part series where Spro & Lee go back thirty years to relitigate the merit of Forrest Gump, Robert Zemeckis, and Tom Hanks. In this episode, Laurence joins the conversation about director Robert Zemeckis and his ill-gotten Oscar of 1995.
Spro's quest to eradicate "greatness" from Lee's filmic vocab comes to crisis when he demands a second vote for Best Director of 2007, the only year an Academy Award ever went home in the hands of the gre- ahem... the legendary American director Martin Scorsese. Andy B from the Chonky Boys guest hosts.
Spro and [Rudy] Take on the Academy for this Episode. They discuss the 2025 Oscars, their thoughts on the actual show itself, and their personal highlights (and lowlights) of the night.
Part I of "Lee Benches Gump": A three-part series where Spro & Lee go back thirty years to relitigate the merit of Forrest Gump, Robert Zemeckis, and Tom Hanks. In this episode, Lee sets his sights on Tom Hanks' Best Actor Oscar.
A lot of people were pretty pissed when Greta Gerwig and Margot Robbie didn't receive nominations for Best Director and Best Actress, respectively, so Spro & Lee ask the question, "Were they snubbed?"
In this episode, Spro and Mike discuss recent and upcoming films, focusing on Academy Award nominations and predictions across various categories. They share their thoughts on specific movies, performances, and technical aspects like visual effects and cinematography while reflecting on their experiences in the film industry. The conversation touched on broader topics such as the state of movie theaters, the importance of the Oscars, and the impact of wildfires in Southern California on the film community. Links discussed in the episode-- https://lacity.gov/LAstrong https://pointofnoreturnshop.com/products/make-movies-shorter-hat https://www.instagram.com/endmike/ https://www.instagram.com/watchchallengepodcast/ https://www.instagram.com/clevelandfilm/ https://www.clevelandfilm.com/ https://www.instagram.com/takeontheacademy/
To open their fifth season, Spro & Lee present their second honorary Oscar, this time to Miss Penny Marshall.
Ring out the old year, ring in the new...ring-a-ding-ding.
Five elements in Chinese philosophy. Five rings in the Olympic logo. Five Great Lakes. And now FIVE seasons of Spro and Lee Take on the Academy. Coincidence? Or the sinister mechanisms of a malevolent universe? You be the judge.
Kimmel cracked wise. Emma Stone cried. No one was surprised. This was the 96th Academy Awards ceremony.
Just in time for Oscar weekend, Spro & Lee bring you their takes on the 96th Academy Awards.
Spro & Lee finally dish on Barbenheimer, adrenechroming, and all manner of scuttlebutt from the year of our lord, 2023.
The boys welcome Robert Ruggeri, Spro's longtime friend and a producer on Jeff Nichols' Take Shelter. The three talk about the cocksure confidence of youth, making movies in the great state of Ohio, and minimum quotes.
Spro & Lee land the plane that is season five with their second discussion on scripts - reading, writing, and evaluating them - and in the process, a Hollywood institution is relieved of one of his four Oscars. It's season finale time.
Spro & Lee caught up with their old friend, Emily, who spent a good portion of 2023 on strike.
The Oscars have always favored socially important dramas, bloated biopics, and history under glass, but Spro & Lee say "What about comedies?"
Spro & Lee step in to mediate the legal termination of Laura Dern's best supporting actress Oscar from 2020. They tried their best to get her some visitation rights, but no dice.
Spro & Lee travel eighty years into the past to pose one burning question to the Academy of yesteryear: exactly how green WAS your valley? Mercifully, they're joined by the Worthy Boys (Jon & Ben from The Worthy Podcast) and Kyle Bruehl (from I Know Movies and You Don't) who help measure the viridescence of said valley.
Spro & Lee's old friend, MC (Second Chance Cinema & The Mount Rushmore Podcast), returns to join their discussion on the best and worst Oscar winning songs of all time.
Spro & Lee bring you part III of "The Streep Effect", an examination and evaluation of each and every Oscar nomination Meryl Streep has ever received.
Claire (from Why the Flick?) joins Spro and Lee to help take the Best Picture Oscar away from yet another bonehead pick by The Academy. It's time to go to the Piggly Wiggly...and nowhere else.
Spro and Lee are back and wasting no time getting controversial. Will some of you see this episode as a cheap shot? An overreaction? Or a slap in the face? Maybe. Nevertheless, the boys are ready to put themselves between a Rock and a nut case.
It's not the years, honey...........okay, it's the years.
Lee welcomes director Randall Miller, producer Jody Savin, and writer David Rollins to chat about their new film, Coffee Wars (available now on Prime Video, Google Play, and iTunes).
Spro & Lee share their opinions on the 95th Oscars. Featuring MC from Second Chance Cinema & The Mount Rushmore Podcast. YouTube Clips Used-- Jimmy Kimmel Opening Monologue Hugh Grant Awkward Interview Hugh Grant / Andie MacDowell Lady Gaga Sings Rihanna Sings Best Supporting Actress Intro Top Gun Sound Best Picture to Everything Everywhere All At Once
You didn't think Spro & Lee were sitting this one out, did you?
The boys welcome Aliya Kanani: comedian, actor, writer, self-described vagabond, and a cast member from SALTOTA's Best Picture in the World (2021), Scarborough.
The boys welcome Conor M. Casey: actor, writer, artist, former OSU Buckeye, and a cast member from SALTOTA's Best Picture in the World (2021), Scarborough.
To cap off Season Three of SALTOTA, Spro and Lee go 'round the world in twelve movies - all of which won their country's ostensible "Best Picture" award - and in the end, the boys choose what they believe to be...THE BEST PICTURE IN THE WORLD, two-thousand and twenty-two!
Spro & Lee bring you part II of "The Streep Effect", an examination and evaluation of each and every Oscar nomination Meryl Streep has ever received. Also in this episode, the boys stumble upon an Oscar winner in serious need of dethroning.
Spro & Lee finally welcome back their old chum and fan favorite, Emily. By SALTOTA reckoning, Kevin Spacey only has one Oscar left - his best supporting actor win of 1996 for playing Verbal Kint in The Usual Suspects - and it's time to wipe the slate clean...
Spro & Lee welcome a pumpkin patch of guests, each one armed with a horror movie they believe was overlooked by the basic witches over at the academy. So grab a pillowcase and enjoy Spro & Lee's Horror Show.
Spro & Lee welcome author, educator, world traveler, and old friend, Joe Lewis, who joins the boys on a trip twenty-one years into the past where they discuss college, the films of 2001 and Ron Howard's ill-gotten best director Oscar for A Beautiful Mind.
Spro & Lee turn back the clock thirty-five years to talk about the best original screenplays of 1987; Spro shares his strategies for writing a first-draft of a screenplay; and finally, the boys welcome back MC (2nd Chance Cinema; The Mount Rushmore Podcast) to sell everyone on his favorite script of the year, which wasn't even nominated.
Spro & Lee present part I of their ongoing series, "The Streep Effect", in which they look at each and every Oscar nomination Meryl Streep has ever received and decide if the Queen of Hollywood deserved them all.
Season three begins with the boys strong-arming their old friend and the founder of Odd Dog Coffee, Mike Hancock, into discussing perhaps the most egregious best picture winner of all time - Crash. This one's been a long time coming...
It's time to cut the carbs, find the dress, shine the diamonds, and get ready for Season Three of Spro and Lee Take on the Academy...beginning Monday, August 29th.
Spro & Lee welcome actor/writer Morgana O'Reilly. She tells the boys all about life in show business, being a mom, and her 2014 horror/comedy "Housebound".
Spro & Lee recap some of the events from the 2022 Oscars ceremony, and MC (Spro's cohost of Second Chance Cinema) joins the boys for an in depth conversation about why the Oscars aren't for him.
Spro and Lee try to get excited about the 94th Academy Awards.
Spro and Lee reflect on 2021 with their special brand of "hateful nostalgia". They talk season 2 mistakes, Spielberg, streaming, Chinese propaganda, and the Golden Globes scandal.
Spro and Lee welcome director Randall Miller and writer Jody Savin, two independent filmmakers who made three films (Bottle Shock, CBGB, and Nobel Son) with Alan Rickman. They share their memories of the man with the voice thereby giving a glimpse of the remarkable human being Rickman was when the cameras weren't rolling. In their own words, "He was everybody's best friend."
Spro and Lee cordially invite you to the first half of their season two finale - a celebration of the late, great Alan Rickman. Friends of the show, Emily and Rudy, join the boys for a lengthy lovefest to cover the lore, the laughs, and the legacy of the man with the voice.
The final link in the Poli-Academy chain is here!!! Last time, Denzel got the gold for Malcolm X. This time, he gets the gold snatched away for his comic-book antagonist, Alonzo Harris, in Training Day. Yeah...we're expecting to get some crap for this one...bring it on.
Spro and Lee welcome Lee's big brother, Lawrence, back to the show. Together, the three de-Oscar Sir Richard Attenborough whose 1982 film, Gandhi, won a host of Academy Awards, the most unconscionable being the best director statuette.
Just as way leads on to way, Oscar mistakes beget Oscar mistakes. Last time, Pacino was the recipient; this time, he's the target. Join Spro and Lee for Part II of the "Poly-Academy" series where the boys go back almost 30 years to the spring of 1993 to take away Big Al's Best Actor statue for Scent of a Woman. Hoo-Ahh indeed...
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