Tinseltown Thunderdome

Sex, yelling, drugs, violence, and... tenderness; all qualities we love of Sean Baker movies, and all epitomized in his newest outing, Anora. On today's episode, we discuss the Academy Awards Best Picture winner.

The man, the myth, the legend...Clint Eastwood is not only still making movies in his 90s, but with Juror #2 he has proved that he's still got it! On today's episode we break down the sneaky good 2024 courtroom drama.

Is Marvel back? In today's episode, we discuss the successes and failures of Deadpool v Wolverine and whether Marvel has rediscovered their mojo.

In today's episode, we discuss 2022's horror hit Barbarian!

Age is just a number and no one personifies that more than Ridley Scott who, at 85, directed the new biopic Napoleon starring Joaquin Phoenix.

Aaron and Cameron break down 'The Killer,' David Fincher's new thriller starring Michael Fassbender.

In today's episode, we discuss Alex Garland's Civil War, the new A24 movie starring Kristen Dunst and Wagner Moura. Like the country it's depicting, is it a dumpster fire, a complicated and nuanced representation of modern dynamics, a polarizing piece of propaganda, or something else?

Dune Part 2 has arrived and so has our review of it!

On today's episode, we tackle Yorgos Lanthimos' newest movie Poor Things. It's a fun reimagining of the classic Frankenstein tale starring Emma Stone, Mark Ruffalo, and Willem Dafoe.

Perfect is in the eyes of the beholder and in today's episode we are the beholders. We each selected 3 movies that we deem to be perfect, then narrowed it down to the top 8 using our aggregated ranking system. Today's Showdown we determine which one is the most perfect!

Introducing a new game we call Movie Roulette. The game works like so - it's centered around a year, in this case 1994. We spin a roulette wheel which instead of number has five categories - Drama, Thriller/Horror, Comedy, Blockbuster and Wildcard. Whichever category we land on is the one from which we have to select a movie. We will go until each of us has selected from every category. After listening, we invite you to vote on who you think made the five best selections. The voting will be held on X (Twitter).

In today's episode, we discuss Christopher Nolan's critical and box office hit Oppenheimer!

Better late than never, in this episode we review the phenomenon that is Barbie.

In another edition of the Thunderdome Showdown we try to figure out who the best film director is of the 21st Century. We're focusing on directors whose feature debut released in the year 2000 or later. We each brought 4 directors to the table and hashed it out to see which was best. The directors are: Greta Gerwig, Taika Waititi, Damien Chazelle, Rian Johnson, Alejandro Inarritu, Bong Joon Jo, Ryan Coogler, and Asghar Farhadi.

At some point, we've probably all fantasized about our favorite actors and filmmakers collaborating on the perfect project. In this episode, we craft our dream team of actors, directors, and stories.

Cameron, Aaron, and Matt review and analyze Spiderman: Across the Spiderverse.

Part 2 of our favorite TV shows of 2022.

In this part 1 or 2 series, Cameron, Aaron, and Matt rank their top 3 shows of 2022. As well as, look back on the year of shows as a whole.

In this episode, Cameron, Matt, and Aaron rank their top 3 movies of 2022. As well as, look back on the year of movies as a whole.

Superheroes run this Tinseltown, and at this point we take it for granted.  In 2008, when the first Iron Man kicked off the long interconnected Infinity Saga with a post-credits teaser alluding to the Avengers Initiative, it was impossible for audiences to imagine the 22-film patchwork of nested stories that would emerge to form the Marvel Cinematic Universe and solidify the superhero genre as the most dominant storytelling device used today.  But here we are nearly 14 years later – with Thanos now in ashes – and it's hard to imagine our world without these Marvel heroes on the big screen.  Disney and Marvel have conquered Thanos and popular culture, but which MCU film will run the Infinity gauntlet of the Thunderdome to emerge victorious?

Musicals can be easy to understand and enjoy, but so much harder to define. What makes a musical? It's not so simple. Is it musical numbers that drive the plot or spontaneous song and dance? Is it lyrics that capture an essence of the story? Regardless of how you define them, musicals are lightning rods for debate. Expect no less from this mix of modern musicals that touch on topics as diverse as the plight of a scorned East German trans rocker to an aging green felt-skinned frog trying to get the band back together. It's anyone's guess which of this incredible group will come out on top. Get ready for the Thunderdome!   

You asked for this bloodbath. Raiden, lord of the Thunderdome, granted permission for a special episode. Like the 2021 Mortal Kombat film, we set aside our tournament format for this installment to discuss the film that inspired the Video Game Thunderdome melee.

Virtual worlds that define video games are nearly limitless, unless an evil AI is harnessing your lifeblood in a vast human farm, while keeping you docile in a sim-like reality. Whether you are the chosen one or the nerdy one, if you were born sometime after 1972, video games likely have played at least some role in your life. When Atari was born in Sunnyvale, California, it was all but inevitable that their explosive popularity would lead to movies about video games and movies based on video games, and movies where video games transpose real life and… you get the picture. We debated where to draw the lines and you are about to see the high scores. Fire up your console, charge up your controllers, and strap on your haptic suits. Get ready for the Thunderdome!     

From Mickey Mouse and Pinocchio to Simba and Aladdin, it really doesn’t matter what generation you’re a part of, if you’re alive, you’re pretty likely to have experienced Disney’s storied animated films at some point or another. From casual viewers to die-hards, Disney, the wholesome, fun-loving studio, can be counted on to tell both classic and innovative stories. But darkness lurks, like a classic villain, ready to strike right at the heart of Disney, and to raise uncomfortable questions about the legacy of its most hailed classics. Get ready for the Thunderdome!   

The longest-running film series of all time offers fertile ground for a vicious series of death matches. Ian Fleming’s spy creation is anachronistic, frequently sexist, rarely serious, very British, and always white and male… at least so far. He never fails to serve Her Majesty well, through superheroic spy skills and zany gadgets, with plenty of one-liners and one-night stands along the way.