The Number One Movie in America

Back in a previous decade, we did the first part — so why not finish the series? "Mockingjay — Part 2" wraps up the epic tale of Katniss being reluctantly near pivotal events in Panem history. But can it be more satisfying than its predecessor despite not having nearly enough Donald Sutherland? Strong recommendations this week for SINNERS, THUNDERBOLTS, ANOTHER SIMPLE FAVOR and more!

We do an eclectic celebration of the dance — and we do NOT keep it all inside! There's plenty of love in the studio for THE BIRDCAGE, both one of the funniest comedies of the '90s and one of the most successful. We expected the laughs; we didn't expect so many feelings! (We don't really have any recommendations this week; we talk about movies, but no one was particularly crazy about any of them. All of our love is for The Birdcage.)

Are you ready to go back to Titanic? We're finally talking about one of the biggest movies of our lifetimes in this supersized episode. Plus, Kahmeela and Robin both enjoyed FREAKY TALES, and Sean very much did not enjoy SNOW WHITE nor THE ALTO KNIGHTS (Snowalto Whights?) 

This was a movie! It came out in theaters and everything! In spite of the fact that there hadn't been any MR. PEABODY & SHERMAN content in more than 50 years! The results are ... well, listen to the show. This week's recommendations: Robin is passionate about GHOSTLIGHT and PETITE MAMAN. Sean is perfectly fine with LAST BREATH and gobsmacked by DARK CITY. Kahmeela thinks you should get around to watching JACK REACHER, if you haven't.

We're boldly going where this particular podcast hasn't gone before! Despite there being a shocking 12 different Star Trek films on our list, this is the first time we've run into the Enterprise. Will Robin feel like a real Trekkie? Will Kahmeela or Sean be converted? Will Shatner finish a line reading in a timely fashion? This week's recommendations: Sean and Kahmeela both liked THE MONKEY. Robin and Sean both liked BLACK BAG. Kahmeela and Robin tried to like some Netflix series but can't recommend it.

We've been waiting for this one since the beginning! Your co-hosts are all obsessive about the Scream franchise (the original trilogy, at least), and Scream 2 is the earliest chapter in Sidney's saga we can cover, since the original never went to number one. Will our obsessions propel Scream 2 to the very top of our all-time rankings? This week's recommendations: Kahmeela likes PIECE BY PIECE, Sean likes the 1946 BEAUTY AND THE BEST and Robin recommends watching the Oscar shorts, but not at all at the same time.

Your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man goes straight emo in this sequel with more villains than ideas! Sam Raimi's final adventure with the webslinger (so far) was a global smash hit, even as it became an internet punchline; will our crew find something to redeem it, or is it just a series of memes? Elsewhere, Sean and Robin give a heavily qualified endorsement to COMPANION, Kahmeela raves about STRANGE DARLING, Robin loves PRESENCE and Sean recommends ... spy-based tourism?

Let's reflect on the days when the internet was an outwardly charming place that could rot your soul! (As opposed to what it is now, an outwardly hostile place that will rot your soul.) Ralph is an influencer and Vanellope makes some royal friends in RALPH BREAKS THE INTERNET! Plus, Kahmeela likes JOKER 2 just fine, Robin begs you to avoid THE GIRL WITH THE NEEDLE and Sean is charmed by THE LAST SHOWGIRL. Also: Reflections on the passing of David Lynch.

We're counting down our favorite new films of 2024 — and recapping a (deeply underwhelming) year of NOMIAs from the podcast! Plus movies we'd like to punch, anticipated 2025 releases and more bad music takes!

Hitch a ride on a passing wagon and slide right into the uncanny valley with Disney's A CHRISTMAS CAROL! Scrooge is back, and this time he's a bizarre digital creation that sounds (but does not look) like Jim Carrey. Bizarre Zemeckian oddity or ... wait, one of us liked this??? Recommendations abound in this season of prestige pics, including DAY OF THE FIGHT, QUEER, SING SING, NIGHTBITCH and A DIFFERENT MAN.

Our backward stroll through Bond history continues! We've covered Brosnan and Moore; now we get to the classic version, as Sean Connery tangles with an over-the-top, entirely dubbed madman in GOLDFINGER! That song, though! Plenty of recommendations to be found in this one, including Gladiator II, Nickel Boys, Nosferatu and Heretic!

One of only two Coen Brothers movies to win a weekend at the box office, BURN AFTER READING is the comedic counterpoint to their Oscar dominating No Country For Old Men. It's got a good cast, a wacky premise and some laughs! Does it have depression political reality? Kinda! This week's recommendations include a joint endorsement of JUROR NO. 2, light praise for A REAL PAIN and THE APPRENTICE and a rave for THELMA.

Sweet cozy sweater of a movie or deeply weird death party? Why not both? PRACTICAL MAGIC has movie stars, '90s fashion and a deeply satisfying soundtrack — but what's with all the death and violence in this alleged romcom? This week's bevy of recommendations include HERE, ANORA, NIGHTBITCH, SUPER/MAN, HUNDREDS OF BEAVERS ... we talk about a lot of movies, folks.

So this one is supposed to be about the fourth chapter in the demons-on-camera franchise ... but we all watched somewhere between three and seven of the movies, so it quickly turns into a recap of the whole PARANORMAL ACTIVITY saga. (If we draw the second movie next time, we're really not gonna have anything to talk about.) Grab your Kinect, let's get spooky! An abbreviated recommendations section this week, but Sean does endorse WE LIVE IN TIME despite Robin's valid point about the Florence Pugh / Andrew Garfield age gap.

We're going back to the Conjuring Universe (kinda), and that can mean only one thing: A sinister, slightly damp lady screaming at children! THE CURSE OF LA LLORONA is ... not the best remembered in this franchise; will it make us weep by the river? Plus, Robin is team I SAW THE TV GLOW, Kahmeela is team SMILE 2 and Sean, in open defiance of logic and reason, is team JOKER: FOLIE A DEUX.

Spooky season is here! And we're kicking off with a visit with Hannibal Lecter (who is neither late nor great). We've already talked about Silence of the Lambs, so let's skip ahead to RED DRAGON, the one with the tiger and the fire and the loaded cast! Plus, Kahmeela recommends REBEL RIDGE, Robin goes Dad mode with HORIZON, Sean and Kahmeela like SPEAK NO EVIL to varying degrees and a certain Megaflopolis is discussed and dismissed.

You're welcome and/or we're sorry, parents: We're talking about "PAW Patrol" this time! Commiserate with us as we try to untangle the complicated civic structure of this alarmingly pup-controlled society. Elsewhere, we all saw "Blink Twice" and have plenty of thoughts, a brief discourse on the perils of fame and someone makes their podcast debut! Someone in the target audience, yet!

Oh ... oh no. Oh no. Oh, no no no. No. Just ... no. This week's recommendations: Sean really likes SING SING and is just fine with ALIEN: ROMULUS. Kahmeela is here for the series DOMINO DAY. And Robin is fascinated by, but feels a bit icky about, ELIZABETH TAYLOR: THE LOST TAPES.

A movie about a woman who survived the Titanic ... that will not mention the Titanic for nearly two hours! A biography of one of the most fascinating people of the 20th century ... that will ignore everything that actually happened in her life! But hey, how about those six or seven songs? THE UNSINKABLE MOLLY BROWN was a big hit, and we don't know why. This week's recommendations: Kahmeela is firmly on board with A QUIET PLACE DAY ONE, Sean likes DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE and Robin is spending time with Rock Hudson.

The chamber of secrets has been opened! Oh, no — it contains J.K. Rowling's bad opinions! We finally have a real chance (Fantastic Beasts doesn't count) to delve into the Harry Potter series, covering everything from the strong and deep bench of performers to Sean's complicated history with the fandom. Quidditch: Still a bad sport! This week's recommendations: Sean is surprised to find his favorite horror movie of the summer is A QUIET PLACE: DAY ONE. Kahmeela decides to show up for ROAD HOUSE. And Robin is here to defend the honor of GODZILLA X KONG: THE NEW EMPIRE.

Stomp stomp clap, everybody! Queen biopic BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY was a massive global hit and quite nearly won Best Picture. Two of us go to bat for this shaggy-dog musical, while one gives it a toothy shrug. Who's ready for Freddy? Listen and find out! This week's recommendations: Robin's happy about HIT MAN, Sean gives a lukewarm recommendation to THE BIKERIDERS and Kahmeela gives a pointed "fine" to THE STRANGERS: CHAPTER ONE.

Generic title aside, THE POSSESSION has a solid cast, spooky atmosphere and is based on a (probably not) true story (that was made up). Is this a lost horror gem, or yet another dimly lit jump-scare buffet? Elsewhere, Robin wants you to watch ANATOMY OF A MURDER, Sean gives an endorsement to IN A VIOLENT NATURE and Kahmeela is mixed on MASTER GARDENER — and FURIOSA is broken down in some detail.

There are more wacky Jim Carrey comedies than you remember! There's a reason for that: Not all of them are in any way memorable. Like YES MAN, a movie so just kinda there that Sean confused it with an entirely different Jim Carrey movie and Robin had to put her phone in detention to focus on it. Is this an underrated face-pulling gem, or a best-forgotten footnote? This week's recommendations: Kahmeela loves ABIGAIL, Sean loves FALL GUY, Robin watched all of TWIN PEAKS: THE RETURN and somehow hid it from Sean.

Avast and parlay! Still the only adaptation of a theme-park ride to totally work, the first PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN film was an unlikely megahit that rose from "should we just have this be a direct to video thing" to "should we make ten more movies because we're very rich now." But how's it looking with 20 years on the long side of the periscope? Or telescope? Periscopes are submarine things, aren't they? Who cares! This movie has a skeleton monkey! Recommendations: Sean raves about THE PEOPLE'S JOKER, Robin has joined the CHALLENGERS brigade and Kahmeela has gone Dutch for SPEAK NO EVIL.

Hope you enjoy cloaks, pauses and meaningful glances! The movie-within-a-movie THE FRENCH LIEUTENANT'S WOMAN is a classic movie for grown ups who read books and have complicated feelings and stuff. Does that make it interesting in our age of nostalgia and robots? This week's recommendations: Sean loves CHALLENGERS. Robin gives a solid endorsement to nearly forgotten Syfy series DUNE and CHILDREN OF DUNE. And Kahmeela has a warning about BABY REINDEER.

Save the whales! Staying with our odd recent focus on the year 1981, we take a look at the third Cheech & Chong caper, NICE DREAMS, which has silent-movie homages, Pee-Wee, a surprising number of sturdy bits, an even more surprising number of helicopter shots and one to two good songs! Oh, and it has weed. Recommendations: Robin gives a cautionary endorsement to A THOUSAND AND ONE. Sean likes STEVE!, the Steve Martin documentary. And multiple members of Kahmeela's household are into TANGLED.

Ah yes, a comedy classic that ... wait, hmm, we haven't thought much about this movie in the past 25 years. What happens, again? The plot is about what? They make fun of who? Oh. Oh no. Oh boy, not at all. Oh, THERE'S SOMETHING ABOUT MARY should really have stayed as a memory. In better news: Sean discovers the joys of EVENT HORIZON and Kahmeela catches up to HELL OR HIGH WATER, while Robin has many thoughts on ROAD HOUSE. (Both versions.)

Sean finally won a movie draft, even if he was decidedly unclear on what the movie he selected was! MOMMIE DEAREST is a biopic turned into a horror movie, as Joan Crawford gets obliterated by the industry she helped build. It's sort of weird that this movie exists! Plus, Robin grapples with her growing love of DUNE, Sean has some qualified praise for IMAGINARY and Kahmeela at least sort of watched MARCEL THE SHELL.

Kevin Hart and Tiffany Haddish team up in a movie that would've been better served as a sitcom ... or maybe a Super Bowl commercial. NIGHT SCHOOL has heart but a script that needed a bit longer in the oven; will we find anything to like (outside of Fat Joe, who is obviously a treasure)? Plus, in this week's recommendations, a long discourse on whether or not MADAME WEB is worth looking at.

The poster told us that "No One is Safe," so I'm not sure the titular SAFE HOUSE is doing its job! CIA vanilla pudding cup Ryan Reynolds and spy with a bad name Denzel Washington tear through Cape Town in a tense, if not exactly fascinating, game of spycraft! At least Robin can give us valuable South Africa travel tips! Plus, in this week's recommendations, we all love THE GREATEST NIGHT IN POP!

It's the movie that made Shirley MacLaine and Nic Cage co-adopt a zebra! (Listen, it'll make ... slightly more sense.) GUARDING TESS took the box-office crown in the midst of a year full of comedy; 30 years later, is watching two icons yelling at each other still funny? We've got recommendations, sure, but we've also got OSCAR NOMINATION MADNESS!

As Dwayne Johnson looked to leave The Rock behind, he tried his hand at the first of several big-guy-little-kid family comedies, THE GAME PLAN. Does this logistically distinct from the NFL football romp add up to much of anything? Can anyone, in fact, smell what The Dwayne is cookin'? Plus, everyone reveals their favorite film of 2023! What are our picks? We're not giving them away! Listen to the episode!

Get ready for kickin' dudes, makin' boasts and ... surprisingly little information about the life of Bruce Lee! It's DRAGON: THE BRUCE LEE STORY, the ill-timed but decidedly fun pseudo-biopic about the Hollywood legend. You picked it as part of our latest movie draft; how did we like it? Plus, a loaded week of recommendations and awards-bait discussions, including endorsements of MAESTRO, ANATOMY OF A FALL, LEAVE THE WORLD BEHIND, THE COLOR PURPLE and many more!

Merry Christmas! Merry Russian punching robot Christmas! Okay, this is probably the least holiday-ish holiday special we've ever done, but it takes place on Christmas Day! And there's a ton of snow! It counts, right? Eh, who cares, it's Rocky IV, we just wanted to watch it. If he dies, he dies! This week's recommendations are basically infinite, but Sean goes all-in on POOR THINGS, Robin is just as enthused about MAY DECEMBER and Kahmeela likes THRILLER 40.

In space, no one can hear you breathe frantically for an hour and a half. In movie theaters, though, they absolutely can. We're divided on GRAVITY, one of the biggest Oscar darlings of all time that asks the question: Why do we bother with space? Plenty of recommendations this week, including NYAD, MAESTRO, BARBIE and more!

What is this movie? What is it about? Who came running, and where did they go? We don't know, the movie doesn't know, we're not even sure Frank Sinatra knows! But SOME CAME RUNNING was a decent hit in the '50s, when people just wanted to see famous people drink on a large screen! This week's recommendations: Sean wants you to shut up and see THE MARVELS already, Robin is surprisingly all-in on HELLO MARY LOU: PROM NIGHT 2, and Kahmeela's back with more cult stuff!

We assure you this is a real movie! Before Twilight, Kristen Stewart moved to ... a sunflower farm? With ... Dylan McDermott? And ran into ... gray ghosts? It's like a Mad Lib. Anyway, find out what the heck THE MESSENGERS is! Recommendations: Robin and Sean both want you to see THE KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON, while Kahmeela recommends THE DEVIL ON TRIAL and wants the kids from FRIDAY THE 13TH to put some damn pants on.

Spooky season rolls on, and you should be afraid! Very afraid, in fact! David Cronenberg's THE FLY is both gross and thirsty, yet it's a stone-cold classic thanks to its (very handsome) leading couple! Sean and Kahmeela unite to praise SAW X and pan PET SEMETARY: BLOODLINES, while Robin lightly endorses the classic INVISIBLE MAN.

They're all gonna laugh at you! CARRIE is one of the few horror movies to get multiple Oscar nominations — and it was the first-ever adaptation of a Stephen King movie. Nearly 50(!) years on, though, does it still pack a punch? (Yes, obviously.) This week's recommendations: Sean gives the softest possible recommendation to EXPEND4BLES, Kahmeela rather enjoyed THE EQUALIZER 3 and Robin can tell you HOW TO BLOW UP A PIPELINE. 

Bond is back, and now he's cinema's horniest Han Solo! Star Wars crated a space craze (this was out at the SAME TIME as Alien), and even James Bond got swept into the stars! But will a very tacky entry in the Bond franchise hold up? More importantly, will Jaws find love? Kahmeela does NOT recommend that Depp/Heard nonsense on Netflix, Sean hangs out with old friends like THE BABADOOK, E.T. and FRANKENSTEIN, and Robin watched three Kings Kong!

We hit an unprecedented triple Bingo and declared it was time for a little treat — in the form of each of us picking a movie we love (NOT a box-office champ!) to share with the group. Robin offers BETWEEN THE LINES, Sean presents CARNIVAL OF SOULS and Kahmeela brings THE FIVE HEARTBEATS in a weird but satisfying triple-feature!

The hair! The open shirts! The suspicious lack of kissing! INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE rode a wave of blood-lust, emphasis on the -lust, to became a massive hit back in '94. Can it still stir our ... interest? Poor, dumb Louis ... This week's recommendations are BARBIE and OPPENHEIMER, obviously. Plus THEY CLONED TYRONE.

Listen up, lead farmers! TROPIC THUNDER was not only the Number One Movie in America, it dethroned one of the biggest box-office heavyweights of the '00s and remains one of the most successful R-rated comedies of the 21st century. 15 years later, how's it holding up? Dance to "Low," then find out! This week's recommendations: Robin has seen MISSION IMPOSSIBLE DEAD RECKONING and so forth twice! Kahmeela likes INSIDIOUS: THE RED DOOR and RENFIELD! Sean loves JOY RIDE!

Hello darkness, my old friend! THE GRADUATE is one of the most successful films of all time and a generational touchstone. After 55 (!) years, though, is it still effective? Is it still funny? Is it ... you know, a little skeevy? Deet deet deet dee, everyone! This week's recommendations: Everyone has raves! Very solid recommendations for THE BLACKENING, INDIANA JONES AND THE DIAL OF DESTINY, ASTEROID CITY, NIMONA and more!

It's a classic achievement in Animation that is arguably more acclaimed than any other Pixar film. On the other hand: All the scenes with humans in them. WALL-E is an icon, but how does its clunky back half hold up 15 years later? This week's recommendations: Kahmeela caught up with SOUND OF METAL, Robin points out that ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE is half a movie and Sean still hates TRANSFORMERS (but recommends SILENT RUNNING).

THE GREEN HORNET is a real movie that exists! You could watch it right now! Seriously, with famous people! This is not a thing that was retroactively inserted into our collective timeline to mess with us! I mean, it might as well have been, there's not really any cultural import to it, but we insist that if you listen to this episode, you will find us discussing a real, genuine movie! This episode's recommendations: Kahmeela really loves STILL: A MICHAEL J. FOX STORY and is just fine with A MAN CALLED OTTO. Robin recommends watching 80 FOR BRADY with your Mom. And Sean acknowledges that HYPNOTIC isn't exactly great, but boy is it fun to watch.

We have few reactions, but a lot of questions. Such as: What is the MADAGASCAR series even about? Did the Penguins murder a human child? Why are all zebras the same guy? And how did four of these movies make money? You may not have much stake in the saga of Alex the Lion (was that his name?), but listen anyway. This week's recommendations: Kahmeela is on board with the FATAL ATTRACTION series, Sean is here to defend THE MOTHER and Robin loves RACHEL RACHEL. (No, not Rochelle Rochelle.)

Fast edits, alternative hits and more Shakespeare references than you can throw a petard at! It's ROMEO + JULIET, the breakthrough for Baz Luhrmann that gave high schoolers a far more interesting adaptation to watch in English class. You picked it; will we like it? This week's recommendations: Sean is perfectly pleased with EVIL DEAD RISE and RENFIELD. Robin raves for Kubrick's THE KILLING. And Kahmeela gives a "why not" to I WANNA DANCE WITH SOMEBODY.

First off, yes, we're all very upset about the dog. Beyond that, though, there is contention in the room about I AM LEGEND, the 2007 Will Smith vehicle that inadvertently feels really corona-ish these days. But we can agree that working our way through the video store would be fun! This week's recommendations: Sean and Robin are lukewarm on AIR, Robin is nicer than Sean about SUPER MARIO BROS., Kahmeela rewatched THE TRUMAN SHOW.

Your fast, furious family is back for international intrigue, Cuban confrontations and ... a bad wig. (We hope.) FATE OF THE FURIOUS, the eighth installment in the eternal vroom-vroom, is the one that asked Vin Diesel to act really hard; how did that work out? This week's recommendations: Sean throughly approves of DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, Kahmeela is just fine with SCREAM VI and Robin went way back to JUDGMENT AT NUREMBERG.

HELLO, in an enthusiastic falsetto! It's the family comedy with plenty of jokes we didn't get at the time, MRS. DOUBTFIRE! Is it still as funny and heartwarming after 30 years? This week's recommendations: Kahmeela and Sean unite to give a ringing endorsement to CREED III, while Robin gets misty about AFTERSUN and ALL THE BEAUTY AND THE BLOODSHED. As for SCREAM VI, sure, why not.