There Will Be Pod

With a megastar like Tom Cruise bringing back his 8th Mission Impossible movie, we call upon a major guest in ⁠Zach⁠ of the ⁠Movie Ladder Podcast⁠ (+ Allix!) to unpack the summer blockbuster + recent releases like the comedies Mountainhead and Friendship and very different takes on "action" with MCU's Thunderbolts* and the Iraq War portrayal Warfare.Mild SPOILERS for Mission Impossible Final Reckoning.Outro is Aquarela do Brasil, also called Brazil, composed 1939 by Ary Barroso, recorded 1985 by Michael Kamen with Kate Bush

Sammy's three siblings join him to highlight their favorites from the "40 at 40" list he prepared for his 40th birthday: choosing one movie that was released in each of the past 40 years that most resonates with him today. For the full list of 40 movies over 40 years, see: https://letterboxd.com/gosnowso/list/40-at-40/Outre: 40 Years Old, 2018, Casey Lowry ft. Rothwell

A24 superfan Aaron of ⁠⁠Why We Love Horror⁠⁠⁠ returns to figure out once and for all which of the two arthouse movie studios has produced the best of the bunch. We run through a bracket -- see here for the bracket visual! -- featuring 16 movies, 8 from both A24 and Neon. As the kids say these days, Who Will Win?ALSO, we highlight a few April movies: Sinners, Freaky Tales, The Assessment, Bring Her Back and Borderline.Outre: With Plenty of Money and You, With Plenty of Money and You” composed in 1937 by Harry Warren for the movie Gold Diggers of 1937 , covered in 1959 by Tony Bennett.

2025 has begun with a BONG and so back is Kyle King - cohost of the gaming and movie podcast ⁠Board Game Box Office⁠ - to unpack the modestly mid and mildly mid movies from the first 3 months of the year, and 24m into this ~30m episode, a deep dive into the followup to Parasite, Mickey 17.Movies discussed: Captain America Brave New World, Death of a Unicorn, Holland, Grand Theft Hamlet, Last Breath, September 5, Bring Them Down, Black Bag, MICKEY 17Classics Corner: Hoosiers, AgemoniaNO spoilers in this episode.Outre: "Rejoice in the Lord" (2025), Mickey 17 OST - EXCERPT AS PART OF A CULTURAL REVIEW SO DONT SUE SPOTIFY

Every year we host a bracket to determine the best movie of the year -- this year we released 4 separate episodes for each 'corner' of the bracket. These episodes reduced the bracket to 8 movies, an Elite 8, and in this episode we roll to the end and name the bracket champion! At the end, all the listener clips are included naming their favorite 2024 movie.The bracket was also released as a complete episode complete with listener submitted clips, available here.To discuss and decide the Elite 8, ⁠Grace Leeder ⁠and ⁠Aaron Brooks. returned, joined by another earlier 'judge,' Allix.Grace ⁠writes about movies and pop culture for Parade⁠ and cohosts the podcast ⁠The Tastemakers⁠. Aaron cohosts ⁠Why We Love Horror⁠, a youtube channel for horror movies and tv, which in 2025 is running a ⁠weekly horror movie challenge⁠.The 8 movies in the Elite 8 are [SPOILERS for the prior rounds of the bracket]...The Brutalist, Dune Part 2, The Promised Land, The Animal Kingdom, Robot Dreams, Flow, A Real Pain, AnoraNo spoilers in this episode!The Bracket can be found ⁠⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠.

The bracket to determine the best movie of 2024 is here - after releasing the bracket in separate episodes, here you can tackle the ENTIRE (3 hour!) bracket!Joined by guests including Allix, Zvi, Grace Leeder of Parade⁠⁠ and the Brooks Brothers, Zach of The Movie Ladder Podcast and Aaron of ⁠Why We Love Horror⁠⁠, as well as many clips from listeners naming their favorite of the year.SPOILERS only for these movies: The Brutalist and Dune 2.The 32 movie Bracket can be found ⁠⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠.Outro is You Are My Destiny, 2022, sung by Mina, composed by Paul Anka (1957)

Every year we host a bracket to determine the best movie of the year -- this year we are releasing 4 separate episodes for each 'corner' of the bracket, culminating with a final episode compromising the entire bracket! The 4th and FINAL bracket corner welcomes Grace Leeder and Aaron Brooks. Grace writes about movies and pop culture for Parade and cohosts the podcast The Tastemakers. Aaron cohosts Why We Love Horror, a youtube channel for horror movies and tv, which in 2025 is running a weekly horror movie challenge.The 8 movies featured include ALL WE IMAGINE AS LIGHT, EMILIA PEREZ, BIRD, DO NOT EXPECT TOO MUCH FROM THE END OF THE WORLD and more!No spoilers in this episode!The Bracket can be found ⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠.Outro is Una Goccia Nel Mare, 2024, Valentino Santagati, soundtrack of La Chimera.

Every year we host a bracket to determine the best movie of the year -- this year we are releasing 4 separate episodes for each 'corner' of the bracket, culminating with a final episode compromising the entire bracket! The third bracket corner - joined by Zach of the Movie Ladder Podcast and Zvi who went to see Dune 2 in theaters 2x in one week - has no shortage of contenders: The Brutalist, Dune Part 2, Nickel Boys, A Different Man, The Substance, Love Lies Bleeding, Furiosa (Fury Road 2) and The Apprentice.Mild SPOILERS for The Brutalist from minute 32:00!The Bracket can be found ⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠.Outro is Pump it Up!, 2019 remix by Endor, composed by Danzel in 2004, soundtrack of The Substance

Every year we host a bracket to determine the best movie of the year -- this year we are releasing 4 separate episodes for each 'corner' of the bracket, culminating with a final episode compromising the entire bracket! The second bracket corner - joined by Aussie Adam - is chock full of 'adult' animations like Robot Dreams, The Wild Robot, Inside Out 2, Flow and pseudo animations like The People's Joker and the Tollywood extravaganza Kalki 2898. Also: Hit Man and The Order.No spoilers in this episode!The Bracket can be found ⁠⁠here⁠⁠.Outro is My Walking Stick, 1974, sung by Leon Redbone, composed by Irving Berlin, soundtrack of Hit Man

Every year we host a bracket to determine the best movie of the year -- this year we are releasing 4 separate episodes for each 'corner' of the bracket, culminating with a final episode compromising the entire bracket! The first bracket corner - joined by movie pros Allix and Zvi - includes movies like Anora, A Real Pain, Challengers, A Complete Unknown, Babygirl, Hundreds of Beavers, The Last Stop in Yuma County, Sing Sing and the movie that earned the top seed based on critics scoring, Ghostlight.No spoilers, save for minor comments on Anora.The Bracket can be found ⁠here⁠.Outro is I Don't Regret Anything (Ne Zhaleyu ni o Chyom)2024 Anora Soundtrack, sung by AnDy Darling, Composed by Anastasia Dunaeva

TWBP comes back from hiatus to run down the most disappointing movies of 2024, those that we had such high hopes for... and failed us ;-(No Spoilers in this episode.This episode was recorded on Dec 30 and due to complications, uploaded only in Feb 2025.

32 movies from 2023 face off head to head to determine the (second) best movie of the year, as this year we gave Oppenheimer the title to enable a competitive bracket. The irregularities do not end there as this off-the-cuff bracket breakdown was open-mic with several guests joining the host to determine the (second) best movie of the year. The episode is (pretty much) spoiler free. The Bracket can be found here. Outro is from the soundtrack of the number one movie of the year ;-)

Physics prof Jim Crumley and OG guest ⁠Zach Brooks⁠ join for the biggest movie month....ever? Oppenheimer (4:15) is the main dish, plus Barbie (19:45), Biosphere (25:50), They Cloned Tyrone (27:25). And then quick thoughts on I Like Movies (30:15), Asteroid City (31:00), Chile '76 (32:30), Falcon Lake (33:10), The Night of the 12th (33:45), Disco Baby (33:55), Talk to Me (34:10), Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One (36:10), The Flash (37:37), Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (38:20). Thanks to Allix and others for joining discussion - always welcome! Oppenheimer is such a classic we skip Classics Corner. Outre: Can You Hear the Music, Oppenheimer OST, Ludwig Göransson, 2023.

Is this the first podcast ever recorded between man and AI? And is it even possible to notice who is Sam and who is the AI movie expert that has been trained on movie Reddit?  Mr. M the AI movie guru steps in for this podcast's ever declining co-hosts to discuss some of the best and worst movies released over the last three months, including, Spiderman: Across the Spider-Verse (3:35), Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3 (3:40), Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (5:00),  Asteroid City (5:40), Sisu (6:30), Extraction 2 (9:15), How to Blow Up a Pipeline (13:00), The Artifice Girl (15:30), Reality (17:20), Blackberry (18:45), Air (19:40), The Eight Mountains (22:00), Sanctuary (22:45), Super Mario Brothers (23:50), Beau is Afraid (24:20) and Are You There God Its Me Margaret (25:40). Plus two movies we hated – Renfield (27:20) and You Hurt My Feelings (27:45). NO Spoilers this episode. Outre: Goodbye Stranger, Supertramp, 1979 Curious how we recorded this episode? Basic idea was written up here, https://hackaday.com/2023/04/22/ai-powered-speaker-is-a-chatbot-you-can-actually-chat-with/

Gaming is the story of 2023 movies so far so board-game expert Kyle King - cohost of the gaming and movie podcast Board Game Box Office - joins us to debate the best IP, erm, movies of 2023 so far -- and those you can skip. Movies discussed include: Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, Tetris, Pacifiction, Godland, Saint Omer, Kill Boksoon, Close, Rye Lane, Knock at the Cabin, Boston Strangler, Missing, When You Finish Saving the World, Sharper, Creed 3, John Wick: Chapter 4. Classics Corner: Beyond Sunrise/Sunset (1995, 2004) & Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009) NO spoilers in this episode. Outre: "Hold On Tight," (2023), AESPA

32 movies from 2022 face off head to head to determine the best movie of the year. John and Sammy are joined by Aaron Brooks, Grace Leeder, Av Sinensky, Alex Orvitz and Mark Geneson, plus audio picks from friends and fans worldwide. The episode is spoiler free. The Bracket can be found here. See here for John, Sammy and the critics 32 favorite 2022 movies. Outro is from the soundtrack of the number one movie of the year ;-)

December gets a bonus episode as John and Sammy make sense of the Avatar sequel, The Way of Water, call out the most disappointing movies of 2022 and hash out which bubble movies qualify for the 4th annual best movie of the year bracket, coming next episode! We also catch up and give a passing mention to EO, Thirteen Lives, Women Talking, The Woman King and To Leslie. Our next episode will be a 32-movie bracket to decide the best film of 2022. To participate in this bracket, please send us a short audio clip where YOU (1) identify yourself and (2) name and (3) explain your favorite movie of 2022. Please send your audio clip directly to any of the hosts by email, whatsapp or courier pigeon. Intro: We Remade Avatar 2 for $20, Cracked, dir. Chandler Perry, 2022 Outro: The Songcord, Zoe Saldana, "Avatar: The Way of Water - The Soundtrack, 2022

2022 was a bottom-heavy year for movies so between watching the new and catching up on past eleven months, John and Sammy have a busy episode, hitting favorites like The Banshees of Inisherin and Glass Onion as well as The Menu, Bodies Bodies Bodies, Armageddon Time, Del Toro's Pinocchio, Funny Pages, This Place Rules, the WW1 duo of All Quiet on the Western Front + Benediction, Good Luck to You Leo Grande and Baby Assassins. We also urge avoiding White Noise and the Italian flick, The Hole. Classics Corner: Terms of Endearment (1983), Story of Your Life (1998) For the Pandora obsessed, we aim to add a bonus episode soon on Avatar 2, Babylon, The Whale, Women Talking and a few more late-year worthies. Our Feb episode will be a 32-movie bracket to decide the best film of 2022. To participate in this bracket, please send us a short audio clip where YOU (1) identify yourself and (2) name and (3) explain your favorite movie of 2022. You can send this audio clip directly to any of the hosts (find us on Twitter, email, whatsapp). Outro: We Were a King Once, Christoph Waltz, Pinocchio (Soundtrack from the Netflix Film), 2022

After a few dry months, November brought quality and John and Sammy are here for Todd Field's Tar (7:30) and Steven Spielberg's The Fabelmans (29:00), as well as a few other hits and misses like Paris 13th District (3:30), Fresh (43:30), She Said (46:33) and Causeway (50:30), plus documentaries like Fire of Love (39:50) and Riotsville USA (41:30) + Classics Corner (53:00). Outre: Monster Hunter World OST (2018)

We moan about uninspiring movies and then get into the good - Athena, the Weird Al Yankovic biopic and Confess Fletch - and the bad: Wendell & Wild, AfterSun, Triangle of Sadness, Blonde, and Medieval. Outre: 'The Biggest Ball of Twine in Minnesota,' Weird AL Yankovic, 1989

Nolan's next big bomb (Oppenheimer) may be delayed to next year but that does not stop us from naming the best movies to prepare you for 'the destroyer of worlds.' John and Sammy also tackle recent flicks 3,000 Years of Longing (13:50), Emily the Criminal (27:40), Samaritan (33:00) and Alienoid (46:30). Plus we catch up on Marcel the Shell with Shoes On (39:30) and Nope (43:00) and Kubrick it up on Classic Corner. No SPOILERS this episode. Outre: 'Genie in a Bottle' Christina Aguilera - 2019 cover by Oshri Cohen

Another Sandler bball movie means the return of Uncut Gems expert Justin Partridge (@j_partridgeIII), who also graces us with his movie bio (44:20), the films that tell the story of his life - or at least, how horror movies weaned and matured him. Plus: two special guests join for Cha Cha and Spiderhead! June movies covered include Hustle (3:00), Elvis (6:20), Mad God (17:00), Cha Cha Real Smooth (26:50), Spiderhead (35:30), Lost Illusions (41:30), Brian and Charles (43:35). Plus some Classics Corner (1:02:00). Cooper Raiff's interview in Town and Country about bar mitzvahs and Cha Cha Real Smooth, Outre: "If I Can Dream" (1968), Elvis Presley

John and Sammy go head to head with the various July movies they saw - Nope and Decision to Leave are the highlights - but the main dish is we run down the 14 movies in history that over time held the title of most domestic box-office ever, from 1913 to the present day. Intro: The Invention of Cinema - 1888 to 1914 (100 Years of Cinema Youtube Channel) Outre: This is the Lost Generation, The Lost Generation, 1972

We went in search of a Maverick and Prospero “Paco” Uybarreta (@ProsperoUybarr1 and his incredible test flight videos here) - USAF vet and ace experimental test pilot - answers the call, joining us to unpack the tactics, technique and geopolitics of a movie that took 30+ years to go airborne. Movies discussed include: Top Gun Maverick (Light SPOILERS), Dr Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (31:30), On the Count of Three (35:50), Dinner in America (36:20), plus the return of Classics Corner (39:20). Outre: "Great Balls of Fire (Live)" (2022), Miles Teller, based on the 1957 recording by Jerry Lee Lewis

With the help of Aaron Brooks (@AaronJayBrooks), we debate the 5 best movies of 2022 so far (aka, all the movies with titles that are very long or start with "The") -- and the movies you can skip. Plus Sammy shares his list of the best 90s comedies you (or at least, he) never saw. Movies discussed include: The Batman, The Northman, Everything Everywhere All At Once, The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent (aka, the "Nic Cage Movie"), Vortex, Turning Red, Kimi, After Yang, Ambulance, RRR, Great Freedom, Compartment No. 6, Doctor Strange 2. NO spoilers in this episode. Outre: "This is a Life" (2022), Son Lux

32 movies from 2021 face off head to head to determine the best movie of the year. Av, John and Sammy are your guides, with friends and fans of the podcast contributing their picks. This episode is spoiler free. The Bracket can be found here. See here for Av, John, Sammy and the critics 32 favorite 2021 movies. Outro is from the soundtrack of the number one movie of the year ;-)

With our notorious 32-movie bracket to decide the best movie of the year on deck, Av, John and Sammy cut a swathe through December's many new releases, starting with Spiderman: No Way Home (11:20) and The Worst Person in the World (18:00). The only movie we spoil in this episode is Spiderman. Then we let loose with Matrix 4 (27:40), Flee (35:40), The Power of the Dog (39:25), Nightmare Alley (41:30), Mass (41:40), The Lost Daughter (45:30), Drive My Car (47:20), Being the Ricardos (49:45), Red Rocket (52:45), The Novice (55:50), Quo Vadis Aida (56:00), C'mon C'mon (56:40), The Beta Test (57:15), Benedetta (58:35), Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn (59:00). And a few we advise skipping: Petit Maman, What Do We See When We Look at the Sky (1:00:25), Don't Look Up (1:00:35). Classics Corner (1:00:50): Nightmare Alley (1947) and It's a Wonderful Life (1946). Our next episode will be a 32-movie bracket to decide the best film of 2021. To participate in this bracket, please send us a short audio clip where YOU (1) identify yourself and (2) name and (3) explain your favorite movie of 2021. You can send this audio clip directly to any of the hosts OR upload the clip to a Google Drive folder, HERE. Outro: Worst Person in the World, Amanda Marie's Tiny Little Prisons

Family and royalty are some of our favorite themes in November movies. Av, John and Sammy highlight the movie they are most excited to see before 2021 ends and then unpack King Richard (5:50), Belfast (15:55) and Passing (23:05). We also touch on recent releases like Spencer (31:45), The Last Duel (39:30), Licorice Pizza *briefly* (44:40), Jagged (45:50), Last Night in Soho (49:15), Violet (51:30), Language Lessons (53:30), Boiling Point (55:10), 7 Prisoners (56:55) and The Power of the Dog (58:10). Outro: Be Alive (Beyoncé from the King Richard soundtrack)

Dune enthusiast Justin Partridge (@j_partridgeIII) joins us to discuss all things spice, stillsuits and sandworms (sigh, and camels) as we embrace Denis Villeneuve's new epic Dune (35:20). Justin also brings the best of the witching month of October, sharing recent horror flicks like King Car (5:35), Hellbender (7:45), We're All Going to the World's Fair (8:40), Wonderful Paradise (9:45), and George A. Romero's The Amusement Park (10:25). Other recent movies we recommend include the terrific Nine Days (12:15), The Truffle Hunters (22:40), I'm Your Man (23:15), Test Pattern (24:35), The Grand Duke of Corsica (26:55) **MALTA MOVIE ALERT**, Copshop (29:00), Raging Fire (30:25) and The Spine of Night (32:30). Classics Corner (1:03:00) hits Force Majeure (2014), Batman (1989) and Lake of the Dead (1958). Outro: Crystal Gayle Killed Frank Herbert (Tom Smith, Who Let Him in Here?)

Sammy, John and Av talk about some of the movies of September 2021, including Worth (7:10), Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (14:00), Free Guy (22:30), Slalom (26:45), Wild Indian (28:40), Prisoners of the Ghostland (31:10), Come From Away (33:50), The Guilty (46:25), and The Card Counter (45:48). Then, Av completes our TWBP Movie Bio series (55:50). Finally, we end as always with Classic Corner (1:23:50). Outro: "Hero" (Family of the Year)

How do we defuse the movies of August? By naming the best bombs in cinematic history [1:45]. With Sammy back we dig into Green Knight [18:40], Pig [21:30] and Sublet [14:20], and then Av and John bring the goods on Annette [24:30], The Suicide Squad [29:15], CODA [35:30], Ema [37:05], plus Sammy urges everyone to see Together [38:33]. NO spoilers this episode. Outre: 'Bombs Away,' The Police (1980)

With Sammy travelling for work, John and Av hold down the fort for the first normal feeling movie month since the start of the pandemic. talking at length about Black Widow, No Sudden Move (18:20), Space Jam: A New Legacy (27:18) and Woodstock 99: Peace, Love and Rage (33:00). Then, they add some quick see or skip recommendations for Summer of Soul, Sublet, Werewolves Within, Gunpowder Milkshake, The Green Knight and Old (44:05) before closing out with Classic Corner (56:35). Outre: "Smells Like Teen Spirit" (Malia J Cover, 2021, Black Widow soundtrack)

Sammy, Av, and John all found June 2021 fairly underwhelming on the whole despite the presence of some seemingly promising titles, including In the Heights [4:20], Undine [22:22], from a TWBP favorite director, Christian Petzold, Pixar's Luca [29:25], and F9: The Fast Saga [47:05]. They also touch on Netflix's animated "comedy" America: The Movie [36:15], HBO's Oslo [37:50], the Ilana Glazer horror film False Positive [42:05], and Sammy's foray into possibly becoming a reality TV character? [53:15] Outre: "Part of Your World" (Jodi Benson, 1989, from The Little Mermaid)

In a month of terrifying movie titles, Will from America returns to make sense of all the monsters (A Quiet Place Part II, 6:17), serial killers (Spiral, 15:49) and zombies (Army of the Dead, 23:35), before gracing us with his own movie bio [25:48]. We also tackle one of the best of the year so far, There is No Evil [45:23], and show love to Georgetown [38:00], The Killing of Two Lovers [41:25] and Riders of Justice [44:00] while dismissing the real horror of May, Those Who Wish Me Dead [20:10]. No spoilers except for a mild reveal for There is No Evil at 48:58-49:28. For the complete list of movie bio selections to date, see here. Outre: "Bella Ciao" (1965, Canti Della Libertà), Milva from There is No Evil

April showcases John's geographical chops, Av's forays to Fast & Furious franchiseDom and Sammy sharing the movies that chart the story of his life (part two of our movie biography series). Favorite new releases this month include Shiva Baby [9:22] (including this great visual) and the MCU Phase Four Trailer [20:05], with mixed response to The Mitchells vs. the Machines [15:30] and This is Not a Funeral It's a Resurrection [21:08]. A also stands for April and Action movies but the ones we saw all failed to impress: Nobody [16:45], Mortal Kombat [18:10] and Tom Clancy's Without Remorse. For the classicists out there, check out our old-timey recommendations [55:55]: Ishtar, Sorcerer and 2 Fast 2 Furious. This episode has NO Spoilers. For the movies selected by John and Sammy for their movie biography, see here. Outre: "Hang On Little Tomato" (2004), Pink Martini

After our annual early year hiatus, we are back with gusto and a new co-host: John Gilpatrick of John Likes Movies and It's The Pictures Podcast returns to the pod to make his hosting debut. Movies discussed on this episode: The Father Godzilla vs. Kong Judas and the Black Messiah I Care a Lot Barb & Star Go to Vista Del Mar In & Of Itself Little Fish Rose Plays Julie Shadow in the Cloud Check out John's review of A Serious Man: http://www.johnlikesmovies.com/tag/a-serious-man/ Follow us on Twitter: @gosnowso @asinensky @johnlgilpatrick @32fansmovies Give us a 5 Star Rating and Review: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/there-will-be-pod/id1472941014

A very special bonus episode as Av's 7-year old daughter Annie stops by to talk about her recent viewing of Avengers: Endgame and rank the first 22 films of the MCU. The intro comes from live footage of Annie watching the climactic scene from the final battle.

32 movies from 2020 face off head to head to determine the best movie of the year. Av and Sammy are your guides, with friends and fans of the podcast contributing their picks and helping us break the tie-breakers that result with our podcast reduced to two hosts. Moving forward, There Will Be Pod is seeking a third co-host to join us once a month and discuss new releases. If you or a friend are interested, please contact us at 32fansmovies@gmail.com or direct message. This episode is spoiler free. The Bracket can be found here. See here for Av and Sammy's personal 32 ranked 2020 movies, plus the science to the seeding of this bracket -- the ranking that the critics (IMDB. RT, Metacritic, Letterboxd) gave to these 32 movies. Outré is from the soundtrack of the number one movie of the year ;-)

The busiest -- and best -- movie month of 2020 brought us no shortage of TWIN new releases, about African-American aspiring musicians (Soul 3:50 and Ma Rainey's Black Bottom 8:10), about movies with an excellent lead actress (Promising Young Woman 20:18 - SPOILERS from 29:40-33:55 and Black Bear 38:42), about Riz Ahmed's excellent acting as a musician with a health crisis (Sound of Metal 34:00 and Mogul Mowgli 37:00), about man-eating wolves (The Wolf of Snow Hollow 39:00 and Wolfwalkers 39:45), about adult friendships (Fourteen 41:00 and The Climb 41:20), about movies that remind Sammy of In The Name of The Father (Mangrove 14:20 and End of Sentence 41:30), three movies that don't fit into this framework (Another Round 19:50, Happiest Season, and The 24th 40:40) plus a few that at least one of us suggest are NOT worth your time: The Nest (42:20), Wonder Woman 1984 (42:35), Yellow Rose (44:40), Bloody Nose Empty Pockets (45:09), Let Him Go (46:20), Let Them All Talk (46:30), I'm Your Woman (47:20). Oh, and the Small Axe movie Love Rocks (15:30) is really great so go watch that instead of listening to this podcast. We also prep for next month's best-of-2020 32 movies bracket episode by hosting a mini-bracket for 16 movies competing to make the finale (48:20). Only SPOILERS in the episode is for Promising Young Woman from 29:40 to 33:55. Outre: "Silly Games" (1979), Janet Kay, composed by Dennis Bovell.

There is a direct line from David Fincher's new movie Mank, about how Upton Sinclair's run for political office inspired the writing of Citizen Kane, and our podcast, as Sinclair wrote Oil! which led PTA to write There Will Be Blood, which led your fave movie podcast hosts to 'write' There Will Be Pod. To unpack the Citizen Kane of 2020 movies, John Gilpatrick (@johnlgilpatrick) joins Av & Sam to tackle director David Fincher's cinematic take on the writing of Citizen Kane, Mank (16:50). Having caught up on Nolan's Tenet (6:30), we also run down the best and worst of celebrated directors' passion projects (40:20). John's film commentary can also be found on his movie podcast Its The Pictures (@Itsthepicpod) and his website, http://www.johnlikesmovies.com/. Outre: “Charlie Kane,” adapted for Citizen Kane (1941) by Bernard Hermann, lyrics by Herman Ruby, sung by Harry Bailey and a bevy of chorus girls in Citizen Kane (1941). Based on the Mexican folk song 'A Poco No,' by Pepe Guizar.

Aaron Brooks joins Av and Sam for On The Rocks (29:20), the third cinematic marriage of Bill Murray and Sofia Coppola. We also dive into a bevy of recent watches about fathers and daughters, discussing Dick Johnson is Dead, Shithouse, The Kid Detective, Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, The Trial of the Chicago Seven, Rebecca, Spontaneous, The 40 Year Old Version, A Call to Spy and Save Yourselves! Plus: A Classic Corner (39:00) devoted to a certain 007. Outre: “Happy Street” ft. Bill Murray, Paul Shaffer and The World's Most Dangerous Band

Av and Sammy reveal their preference on that most cinematic of dilemmas: popcorn or the picture - but first they tackle the far more forbidding lineup of movies released this September, culminating in a featured review (37:00) of Charlie Kaufman's I'm Thinking of Ending Things -- spoiler free until the 40:30 mark. New movies discussed include recommendations: Boys State (8:00); The Devil All The Time (16:00); The Social Dilemma (24:45); Get Duked! (29:15); House of Hummingbird (32:10). And a few we urge you to avoid - Unpregnant, Mulan, I Used to Go Here, She Dies Tomorrow, Misbehaviour, Extra Ordinary (... yup, it was that kind of month). Plus, two genuine classics before the bow. Outré: Lonely Room, sung by Jesse Plemons, written by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II for Oklahoma (1943)

We are celebrating brothers at the movies as Aaron Brooks and Dr. Shai Chester join Sammy, Av and Will to discuss all things July movies. Before the big feature - Palm Springs (57:00 w/spoilers), we cover a gaggle of recent releases, including standouts like Archive, Hamilton, First Cow, as well as Yes God Yes, The Old Guard, Mr Jones, The King of Staten Island, Tommaso, Mucho Mucho Amor and, well, more! Also: a ground-breaking Classics Corner awaits at the episode's end.

Spike Lee's Da 5 Bloods is the movie of June 2020, and sets the table (25:30) for Av and Sam to consider the most impactful movies ever made about racist police brutality – starting with 1971's Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song all the way through the half-dozen movies released in the last few years. See here for the complete list of 21 movies. Also see here the minute-and-a-half short film that Spike Lee released on Twitter called 3 Brothers — Radio Raheem, Eric Garner, and George Floyd. Outré: What's Going On, Marvin Gaye | Da 5 Bloods OST (1971 and 2020) - For why Spike chose this song, see here.

With Av and Will on summer break, we recruited the celebrated pulp sci-fi horror sleuth Justin Partridge (@j_partridgeIII) and revealed the unabashed romantic that is everyone's favorite silver screen sibling Aaron Brooks (@aaronjaybrooks). Justin, Aaron and Sam unpack The Vast of Night (43:37) and a galaxy of unheralded new releases, plus in celebration of the hindsight that is 20/20, we decide the best movies ever made about hindsight (55:30) and close with Classics Corner (1:10:00). This episode contains NO Spoilers, save for 90 seconds of spoilers at minute 53:00 on The Vast of Night. For more on Aaron, check out his Letterboxd (@incubrooks) and his new podcast, Digesting Dark: An Unofficial Dark on Netflix Companion. Justin's writing on pop-culture can be found on Newsarama, DIS/MEMBER, and Rouges Portal. New movies discussed: The Vast of Night, Porno, The Half of It, Premature, Valley Girl, Possessor, The Gentleman, Underwater, The Trip to Greece, Driveways, La Belle Époque, The Traitor, Capone, Arkansas, Spaceship Earth. Classic Corner: A Cock and Bull Story (2005); Maniac (1980); Fallen Angels (1995). Outré: 20/20 Hindsight, Barenaked Ladies (2017)

If there is a silver lining to losing so many new releases in April, it may be the chance to shine some love on the genre of movies the streaming gods delivered: good old fashioned adult dramas. Bad Education is our obvious feature, as Av brings his Long Island expertise to help Will and Sam unpack the new Hugh Jackman vehicle. For a deeper dive into the true story of Bad Education, check out the New York Magazine source article. The other new releases we discuss in this episode: The Assistant, Extraction, Tigertail, Sergio, Blow the Man Down, Beastie Boys Story and True History of the Kelly Gang. Outre: Blow The Man Down, traditional English shanty, sung and instrumentals by David Coffin, Jacek Sulanowski, Daniel Lanier, THomas J. Goux

Sammy, Will and Av are back for the first regular episode of 2020. We break down our favorites (and least favorites) of the year so far, ruminate on the state of movies in the age of Coronavirus and much more. Movies discussed on the episode: The Invisible Man, The Banker, Bacarau, The Platform, Birds of Prey, Onward, Downhill, The Hunt, The Whistlers, Beanpole, Fantasy Island, Call of the Wild, The Wild Goose Lake, Never Rarely Sometimes Always

The Sports Movies Tournament of Champions finale is here – after watching and bracketing ~300 sports movies over the past ten months, it all comes down to the remaining 16 movies as they contend for the crown of best sports movie of all time. Here is the tourney bracket updated through Sweet 16. Here is the clean bracket from the start of the 64-movie tourney. Our guest judges for the finale are two baseball savants and movie experts, Will Leitch (@williamfleitch) and Cliff Corcoran (@CliffCorcoran). Cliff was the overwhelming choice of listeners to return after joining us for the Balboa Region. Make sure to check out his baseball writing at The Athletics, Baseball Prospectus for his upcoming series on baseball movies, as well as his collaboration on the baseball podcast, The Infinite Inning. The founder of Deadspin, Will's comments on sports, movies and culture at large can be found at New York Magazine, MLB.com, the Grierson & Leitch Movie Podcast, as well as his personal website. Don't miss Will and Tim Grierson's write-up in Vulture of the 50 best sports movies. Check out our podcast for episodes covering the earlier rounds in this tourney, as well as the episodes devoted to movies for each sport – baseball, basketball, Olympics, boxing and so much more. To nerd out, you can see the full movie list here, including the results, rankings and critics grades for all the sports movies we watched over the last year. Outré: "Dear Basketball" (2017) Kobe Bryant, Glen Keane, John Williams

Bull Durham, Any Given Sunday and the movie that may be your only chance at enjoying the Olympics in Tokyo are three of the sixteen movies of the Miyagi Region facing off in this episode, Part 4 of the Sports Movies Tournament of Champions. Joining us is a true sports movie connoisseur, Kyle Bandujo (@kylebandujo), host of Big Screen Sports (@Big_ScreenSport), a podcast dedicated to sports movies Check out the complete 64 movie bracket here. And make sure you do not miss the previous episodes covering the Bombay, Bambino and Balboa regions. We will be back soon to complete the entire tourney with a Sweet 16 finale episode. To see how these 64 movies were selected and seeded, see here. And check out our podcast for the previous episodes devoted to movies in specific sports, from Boxing and Baseball to Olympics, Hockey and many more. Outre: "Anthem of Oh Sadaharu" (1985 Tokyo Giants)

Part 3 of the Sports Movies Tournament of Champions arrives, and to tackle the 16 movies in a region named after a sports movie legend like Rocky Balboa – home to movies like Miracle, Remember the Titans, Cool Runnings and Major League - we are joined by baseball writer and movie buff Cliff Corcoran (@CliffCorcoran). For more from Cliff, go read his baseball writing at The Athletics and his appearances on the baseball podcast, The Infinite Inning. Check out the complete 64 movie bracket here. And make sure you do not miss the Part 1 (Bombay Region) and Part 2 (Bambino Region). Up next is Part 4, the MISTER Miyagi Region, before we wrap it up with a Sweet 16 finale. To see how these 64 movies were selected and seeded, see here. And check out our podcast for the previous episodes devoted to movies in specific sports, from Boxing and Baseball to Olympics, Hockey and many more. Outré: "Eye of the Tiger" Survivor (1982, aka Rocky III)

The Sports Movies Tournament of Champions continues with Part 2, running down the 16 movies in the Bambino Region, including favorites such as Raging Bull, Enter the Dragon, Caddyshack, Field of Dreams, White Men Can't Jump ... and even Hoosiers. Joining us to select the 4 movies that will advance to the Sweet 16 is movie critic and sportsman Daniel Goodman (@DanRossGoodman). Check out the complete 64 movie bracket here. If you missed Part 1 on the Bombay Region, check it out here. Up next are episodes covering the Miyagi and Balboa Regions, before we wrap it up with a Sweet 16 finale. To see how these 64 movies were selected and seeded, see here. And check out our podcast for the previous episodes devoted to movies in specific sports, from Boxing and Baseball to Olympics, Hockey and many more. Outré: "Sports" Viagra Boys (2018)