Podcasts about MacGruber

You've seen her is projects like Dexter, Better Call Saul, 1923: A Yellow Stone Story, MacGruber, and many more. You can also see her in the Emmy nominated HBO film Mountainhead, now streaming on HBO Max! We welcome actress and writer Amie MacKenzie to the show to discuss her starts in acting, some of the amazing people she's got to work with, her role in Mountainhead, what it takes to be an actor, and much more. Don't miss this one! Instagram: @MackAmie CannedAirPodcast.com  TikTok: @CannedAirPodcast  Instagram: @Canned_Air  If you'd like to show your support, you can either visit our Patreon page at Patreon.com/CannedAirPod or you can leave us a comment, like, and subscribe! Thanks for watching! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this week's episode, I take a look back at the movies and streaming shows I watched in Summer 2025. This coupon code will get you 50% off the audiobook of Ghost in the Serpent, Book #1 in the Ghost Armor series, (as excellently narrated by Hollis McCarthy) at my Payhip store: FALLSERPENT50 The coupon code is valid through September 15, 2025 (please note the shorter expiration date). So if you need a new audiobook this fall, we've got you covered! TRANSCRIPT 00:00:00 Introduction and Writing Updates Hello, everyone. Welcome to Episode 267 of The Pulp Writer Show. My name is Jonathan Moeller. Today is September 5, 2025 and today I'm doing a review roundup of the movies and streaming shows I saw in Summer 2025. Before we do that, we will have Coupon of the Week and a progress update on my current writing and audiobook projects. First up, this week's coupon code will get you 50% off the audiobook of Ghost in the Serpent, Book One in the Ghost Armor series (as excellently narrated by Hollis McCarthy) at my Payhip store. That is FALLSERPENT50. This coupon code will be valid through September 15th, 2025 (exactly one week). So if you need a new audiobook to listen to as we head into fall, we have got you covered. Now for an update on my current writing and audiobook projects. I am pleased to report that the rough draft of Blade of Flames, which will be the first book in my new Blades of Ruin epic fantasy series is finished. The rough draft came at about 90,000 words long, which was what I was aiming for. Next up, I will be writing a short story set as sort of a bonus in that plot line called Thunder Hammer and that will be the backstory of one of the characters in Blade of Flames. And when Blade of Flames comes out (which will hopefully be later this September), newsletter subscribers will get a free ebook copy of Thunder Hammer. So this is an excellent time to subscribe to my newsletter. I am also 8,000 words into Cloak of Worlds. At long last, I am coming back to the Cloak Mage series after nearly a year's absence. Longtime listeners will know the reason was that I had five unfinished series and I wanted to spend the summer of 2025 finishing the unfinished ones and focusing up so I will only have three ongoing series at any given time. I'm hoping Blade of Flames will come out before the end of September and Cloak of Worlds before the end of October, and after that I will be able to return to the Rivah series at long last. In audiobook news, recording is finished on Shield of Power. That will be excellently narrated by Brad Wills and hopefully once it gets through processing and quality assurance and everything, it should be showing up on the various audiobook stores before too much longer. Hollis McCarthy is about halfway through the recording of Ghost in the Siege, which was, as you know, the last book in the Ghost Armor series that just came out. And if all goes well, the audiobook should be coming out probably in October once everything is done with recording and quality assurance and all that. So that is where I'm at with my current writing and audiobook projects. 00:02:34 Main Topic: Summer 2025 Movie/TV Roundup So without further ado, let's head into our main topic. The end of summer is nigh, which means this time for my summer movie review roundup. As is usual for the summer, I saw a lot of movies, so this will be one of the longer episodes. For some reason I ended up watching a bunch of westerns. As always, the movies are ranked from least favorite to most favorite. The grades of course are totally subjective and based on nothing more than my own opinions, impressions, and interpretations. Now on to the movies. First up is the Austin Powers trilogy, the three movies of which came out in 1997, 1999, and 2002. The Austin Powers movies came out just as the Internet really got going in terms of mass adoption, which is likewise why so many Austin Powers and Dr. Evil memes are embedded in online culture. Despite that, I had never really seen any of them all the way through. They've been on in the background on TBS or whatever quite a bit when I visited people, but I've never seen them all. But I happened upon a DVD of the trilogy for $0.25 (USD), so I decided for 25 cents I would give it a go. I would say the movies were funny, albeit not particularly good. Obviously the Austin Powers movies are a parody of the James Bond movies. The movies kind of watch like an extended series of Saturday Night Live skits, only loosely connected, like the skit is what if Dr. Evil had a son named Scott who wasn't impressed with him or another skit was what if a British agent from the ‘60s arrives in the ‘90s and experiences culture clash? What if Dr. Evil didn't understand the concept of inflation and demanded only a million dollars from the United Nations? What if Dr. Evil was actually Austin's brother and they went to school together at Spy Academy? Michael Caine was pretty great as Austin's father. Overall, funny but fairly incoherent. Overall grade: C- Next up is Horrible Bosses, a very dark and very raunchy comedy from about 14 years ago. It came out in 2011. Interestingly, this movie reflects what I think is one of the major crises of the contemporary era, frequent failures of leadership at all levels of society. In the movie Nick, Dale, and Kurt are lifelong friends living in LA and all three of them have truly horrible bosses in their place of employment, ranging from a sociopathic finance director, the company founder's cokehead son, and a boorish dentist with a tendency to sexual harassment. At the bar, they fantasize about killing their horrible bosses and then mutually decide to do something about it. Obviously, they'd all be prime suspects in the murder of their own bosses, but if they killed each other's bosses, that would allow them to establish airtight alibis. However, since Nick, Dale and Kurt are not as bright as they think they are, it all goes hilariously wrong very quickly. Bob Hope has a hilarious cameo. If the best “crude comedies” I've seen are Anchorman, Zoolander, Tropic Thunder, and Dodgeball, and the worst one was MacGruber, I'd say Horrible Bosses lands about in the middle. Overall grade: C Next up is Cowboys and Aliens, which came out in 2011. Now I almost saw this in 2011 when it came out, but I was too busy to go to the theater in July of 2011, so I finally saw it here in 2025 and I would say this was almost a great movie, like the performances were great, the concept was great, the scenery was great, the special effects were great, and the story was packed full of really interesting ideas, but somehow they just didn't coalesce. I'm not entirely sure why. I think upon reflection, it was that the movie is just too overcrowded with too many characters and too many subplots. Anyway, Daniel Craig portrays a man who wakes up with no memory in the Old West, with a mysterious bracelet locked around his wrist. He makes his way to the town of Atonement, and promptly gets arrested because he is apparently a notorious outlaw (which he doesn't remember). While he is locked in jail, space aliens attack the town. The aliens, for unknown reasons, abduct many of the townspeople, and Daniel Craig's character, who is named Jake even if he doesn't remember it, must lead the town's effort to recover their abducted citizens. Harrison's Ford has an excellent performance as this awful cattle baron who nonetheless has virtues of courage and fortitude that you can't help but admire. An excellent performance. That said, the movie was just too packed, and I thought it would work better as a novel. After I watched the movie, it turned out that it was indeed based off a graphic novel. Novels and graphic novels allow for a far more complex story than a movie, and I don't think this movie quite managed to handle the transition from a graphic novel to a film. Overall grade: C Next up is Heads of State, which came out in 2025. This was kind of a stupid movie. However, the fundamental question of any movie, shouted to the audience by Russell Crow in Gladiator is, “are you not entertained?!?” I was thoroughly entertained watching this, so entertained I actually watched it twice. Not everything has to be Shakespeare or a profound meditation on the unresolvable conflicts inherent within human nature. Anyway, John Cena plays Will Derringer, newly elected President of the United States. Idris Elba plays Sam Clark, who has now been the UK Prime Minister for the last six years. Derringer was an action star who parleyed his celebrity into elected office (in the same way Arnold Schwarzenegger did), while Clarke is an army veteran who worked his way up through the UK's political system. Needless to say, the cheerful Derringer and the grim Clarke take an immediate dislike to each other. However, they'll have to team up when Air Force One is shot down, stranding them in eastern Europe. They'll have to make their way home while evading their enemies to unravel the conspiracy that threatens world peace. So half action thriller, half buddy road trip comedy. The premise really doesn't work if you think about it too much for more than thirty seconds, but the movie was funny and I enjoyed it. Jack Quaid really stole his scenes as a crazy but hyper-competent CIA officer. Overall grade: C+ Next up, Captain America: Brave New World, which came out in 2025 and I think this movie ended up on the good side of middling. You can definitely tell it went through a lot of reshoots and retooling, and I suspect the various film industry strikes hit it like a freight train. But we ended up with a reasonably solid superhero thriller. Sam Wilson is now Captain America. He's not superhuman the way Steve Rogers was and doesn't have magic powers or anything, so he kind of fights like the Mandalorian – a very capable fighter who relies on excellent armor. Meanwhile, in the grand American political tradition of failing upward, Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross, who spent years persecuting The Hulk and whose meddling caused the Avengers to disband right before Thanos attacked, has now been elected President. To Wilson's surprise, Ross reaches out and wants him to restart the Avengers. But Ross (as we know) did a lot of shady black ops stuff for years, and one of his projects is coming back to haunt him. Wilson finds himself in the middle of a shadowy conspiracy, and it's up to him to figure out what's going on before it's too late. I was amused that lifelong government apparatchik Ross wanted to restart the Avengers, because when the Avengers had their biggest victory in Avengers: Endgame, they were essentially unsanctioned vigilantes bankrolled by a rogue tech billionaire. Overall grade: B- Next up is Ironheart, which came out in 2025. I'd say Ironheart was about 40% very weird and 60% quite good. It's sort of like the modern version of Dr. Faustus. The show got some flak on the Internet from the crossfire between the usual culture war people, but the key to understanding it is to realize that Riri Williams AKA Ironheart is in fact an antihero who's tottering on the edge of becoming a full-blown supervillain. Like Tony Stark, she's a once-in-a-generation scientific talent, but while she doesn't have Stark's alcohol problems, she's emotionally unstable, immature, ruthless, indifferent to collateral damage and consequences, and suffering from severe PTSD after her best friend and stepfather were killed in a drive-by shooting. This volatile mix gets her thrown out of MIT after her experiments cause too much destruction, and she has to go home to Chicago. To get the funds to keep working on her Iron Man armor, she turns to crime, and falls in with a gang of high-end thieves led by a mysterious figure named Hood. It turns out that Hood has actual magic powers, which both disturbs and fascinates Riri. However, Hood got his magic in a pact with a mysterious dark force. When a job goes bad, Riri gains the enmity of Hood and has to go on the run. It also turns out Hood's dark master has become very interested in Riri, which might be a lot more dangerous for everyone in the long run. Overall, I'd say this is about in the same vein as Agatha All Along, an interesting show constructed around a very morally questionable protagonist. Overall grade: B Next up is A Minecraft movie, which came out in 2024. I have to admit, I've never actually played Minecraft, so I know very little about the game and its ecosystem, only what I've generally absorbed by glancing at the news. That said, I think the movie held together quite well, and wasn't deserving of the general disdain it got in the press. (No doubt the $950 million box office compensated for any hurt feelings.) One of the many downsides of rapid technological change in the last fifty years is that the Boomers and Gen X and the Millennials and Gen Z and Gen Alpha have had such radically different formative experiences in childhood that it's harder to relate to each other. Growing up in the 1980s was a wildly different experience than growing up in the 2010s, and growing up in the 2010s was an even more wildly different experience than growing up in the 1960s. Smartphones and social media were dominant in 2020, barely starting in 2010, and implausible science fiction in 2000 and earlier, and so it was like the different generations grew up on different planets, because in some sense they actually did. (A five-year-old relative of mine just started school, and the descriptions of his school compared to what I remember of school really do sound like different planets entirely.) The Minecraft game and A Minecraft Movie might be one of those generation-locked experiences. Anyway, this has gotten very deep digression for what was essentially a portal-based LitRPG movie. A group of people experiencing various life difficulties in a rural Idaho town get sucked into the Minecraft world through a magic portal. There they must combine forces and learn to work together to master the Minecraft world to save it from an evil sorceress. As always, the fundamental question of any movie is the one that Russell Crowe's character shouted to the audience in Gladiator back in 2000. “Are you not entertained?” I admit I was entertained when watching A Minecraft Movie since it was funny and I recognized a lot of the video game mechanics, even though I've never actually played Minecraft. Like, Castlevania II had a night/day cycle the way Minecraft does, and Castlevania II was forty years ago. But that was another digression! I did enjoy A Minecraft Movie. It was kind of crazy, but it committed to the craziness and maintained a consistent creative vision, and I was entertained. Though I did think it was impressive how Jack Black's agent managed to insist that he sing several different times. Overall grade: B Next up is Back to School, which came out in 1986 and this is one of the better ‘80s comedies I've seen. Rodney Dangerfield plays Thornton Melon, who never went to college and is the wealthy owner of a chain of plus-sized clothing stores. His son Jason is attending Great Lakes University, and after Thornton's unfaithful gold-digging wife leaves him (Thornton is mostly relieved by this development), he decides to go visit his son. He quickly discovers that Jason is flailing at college, and decides to enroll to help out his son. Wacky adventures ensue! I quite enjoyed this. The fictional “Great Lakes University” was largely shot at UW-Madison in Wisconsin, which I found amusing because I spent a lot of time at UW-Madison several decades ago as a temporary IT employee. I liked seeing the characters walk past a place where I'd eat lunch outside when the day was nice, that kind of thing. Also, I'm very familiar with how the sausage gets made in higher ed. There's a scene where the dean is asking why Thornton is qualified to enter college, and then it cuts to the dean cheerfully overseeing the groundbreaking of the new Thornton Melon Hall which Thornton just donated, and I laughed so hard I almost hurt myself, because that is exactly how higher ed works. The movie had some pointless nudity, but it was only a few seconds and no doubt gets cut in network broadcasts. Overall grade: B Next up is Whiskey Galore, which came out in 1949 and this is a comedy set in Scotland during World War II. The villagers living on an isolated island have no whiskey due to wartime rationing. However, when a government ship carrying 50,000 cases of whiskey runs aground near the island, wacky hijinks ensue. I have to admit the first half of the movie was very slow and deliberate, gradually setting up all the pieces for later. Then, once the shipwreck happens, things pick up and the movie gets much funnier. Definitely worth watching both as a good comedy movie and an artifact of its time. A modicum of historical knowledge is required – if you don't know what the Home Guard is, you might have to do some Googling to understand the context of some of the scenes. Regrettably, the version I watched did not have captioning, so I had to pay really close attention to understand what the characters were saying, because some of the accents were very strong. Overall grade: B Next up is Happy Gilmore 2, which came out in 2025. This was dumb and overstuffed with celebrity cameos but thoroughly hilarious and I say this even though it uses one of my least favorite story tropes, namely “hero of previous movie is now a middle age loser.” However, the movie leads into it for comedy. When Happy Gilmore accidentally kills his wife with a line drive, he spirals into alcoholism and despair. But his five children still love him, and when his talented daughter needs tuition for school, Happy attempts to shake off his despair and go back to golf to win the money. But Happy soon stumbles onto a sinister conspiracy led by an evil CEO to transform the game of golf into his own personal profit center. Happy must team up with his old nemesis Shooter McGavin to save golf itself from the evil CEO. Amusingly, as I've said before, the best Adam Sandler movies are almost medieval. In medieval fables, it was common for a clever peasant to outwit pompous lords, corrupt priests, and greedy merchants. The best Adam Sandler protagonist remains an everyman who outwits the modern equivalent of pompous lords and corrupt priests, in this case an evil CEO. Overall grade: B+ Next up is Superman, which came out in 2025 and I thought this was pretty good and very funny at times. I think it caught the essential nature of Superman. Like, Superman should be a Lawful Good character. If he was a Dungeons and Dragons character, he would be a paladin. People on the Internet tend to take the characterization of superheroes seriously to perhaps an unhealthy degree, but it seems the best characterization of Superman is as an earnest, slightly dorky Boy Scout who goes around doing good deeds. The contrast of that good-hearted earnestness with his godlike abilities that would allow him to easily conquer and rule the world is what makes for an interesting character. I also appreciated how the movie dispensed with the overused trope of the Origin Story and just got down to business. In this movie, Lex Luthor is obsessed with destroying Superman and is willing to use both super-advanced technology and engineered geopolitical conflict to do it. Superman, because he's essentially a decent person, doesn't comprehend just how depraved Luthor is, and how far Luthor is willing to go out of petty spite. (Ironically, a billionaire willing to destroy the world out of petty spite is alas, quite realistic). Guy Gardener (“Jerkish Green Lantern”) and the extremely competent and the extremely exasperated Mr. Terrific definitely stole all their scenes. The director of the movie, James Gunn, was quite famously fired from Disney in 2018 for offensive jokes he had made on Twitter back when he was an edgy young filmmaker with an alcohol problem. I suppose Mr. Gunn can rest content knowing that Superman made more money than any Marvel movie released this year. Overall grade: A-   Next up is Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, which came out in 1988. This was a very strange movie, but nonetheless, one with an ambitious premise, strong performances, and a strong artistic vision. It's set in post WWII Los Angeles, and “toons” (basically cartoon characters) live and work alongside humans. Private eye Eddie Valiant hates toons since one of them killed his brother five years ago. However, he's hired by the head of a studio who's having trouble with one of his toon actors, Roger Rabbit. Roger's worried his wife Jessica is having an affair, and Valiant obtains pictures of Jessica playing patty cake (not a euphemism, they actually were playing patty cake) with another man. Roger has an emotional breakdown, and soon the other man winds up dead, and Roger insists he's innocent. Valiant and Roger find themselves sucked into a dangerous conspiracy overseen by a ruthless mastermind. This movie was such an interesting cultural artifact. It perfectly follows the structure of a ‘40s film noir movie, but with cartoons, and the dissonance between film noir and the cheerfulness of the toons was embraced and used as a frequently source of comedy. In fact, when the grim and dour Valiant uses the toons' comedy techniques as a tactical improvisation in a moment of mortal peril, it's both hilarious and awesome. Christopher Lloyd's performance as the villainous Judge Doom was amazing. (I don't think it's a spoiler to say that he's villainous, because his character is named Judge Doom and he's literally wearing a black hat.) Like, his performance perfectly captures something monstrous that is trying very hard to pretend to be human and not quite getting it right. And the amount of work it must have taken to make this movie staggers the mind. Nowadays, having live actors interact with cartoon characters is expensive, but not unduly so. It's a frequent technique. You see it all the time in commercials when a housewife is smiling at an animated roll of paper towels or something, and Marvel's essentially been doing it for years. But this was 1988! Computer animation was still a ways off. They had to shoot the movie on analog film, and then hand-draw all the animation and successfully match it to the live film. It wouldn't have worked without the performance of Bob Hoskins as Eddie Valiant, who plays everything perfectly straight in the same way Michael Caine did in A Muppet Christmas Carol. So kind of a strange movie, but definitely worth watching. And it has both Disney and Warner Brothers animated characters in the same movie, which is something we will never, ever see again. Overall grade: A Next up is K-Pop Demon Hunters, which came out in 2025. Like Who framed Roger Rabbit?, this is a very strange movie, but nonetheless with a clear and focused artistic vision. It is a cultural artifact that provides a fascinating look into a world of which I have no knowledge or interest, namely K-pop bands and their dueling fandoms. Anyway, the plot is that for millennia, female Korean musicians have used the magic of their voices to keep the demons locked away in a demon world. The current incarnation is a three-woman K-Pop group called Huntrix, and they are on the verge of sealing away the demons forever. Naturally, the Demon King doesn't like this, so one of his cleverer minions comes up with a plan. They'll start a Demon K-Pop Boy Band! Disguised as humans, the demon K-Pop group will win away Huntrix's fans, allowing them to breach the barrier and devour the world. However, one of the Huntrix musicians is half-demon, and she starts falling for the lead demon in the boy band, who is handsome and of course has a dark and troubled past. Essentially a musical K-drama follows. I have to admit I know practically nothing about K-Pop groups and their dueling fandoms, other than the fact that they exist. However, this was an interesting movie to watch. The animation was excellent, it did have a focused vision, and there were some funny bits. Overall grade: A Next up is Clarkson's Farm Season Four, which came out in 2025. A long time ago in the ‘90s, I watched the episode of Frasier where Frasier and Niles attempt to open a restaurant and it all goes horribly (yet hilariously) wrong. At the time, I had no money, but I promised myself that I would never invest in a restaurant. Nothing I have seen or learned in the subsequent thirty years has ever changed that decision. Season 4 of Clarkson's Farm is basically Jeremy Clarkson, like Frasier and Niles, attempting to open a restaurant, specifically a British pub. On paper it's a good idea, since Clarkson can provide the pub with food produced from his own farm and other local farmers. However, it's an enormous logistical nightmare, and Clarkson must deal with miles of red tape, contractors, and a ballooning budget, all while trying to keep his farm from going under. An excellent and entertaining documentary into the difficulties of both the farming life and food service. I still don't want to own a restaurant! Overall grade: A Next up is Tombstone, which came out in 1993. The Western genre of fiction is interesting because it's limited to such a very specific period of time and geographical region. Like the “Wild West” period that characterizes the Western genre really only lasted as a historical period from about 1865 to roughly 1890. The Western genre was at its most popular in movies from the 1940s and the 1960s, and I wonder if it declined because cultural and demographic changes made it unpopular to romanticize the Old West the way someone like Walt Disney did at Disneyland with “Frontierland.” Of course, the genre lives on in different forms in grittier Western movies, neo-Westerns like Yellowstone and Longmire, and a lot of the genre's conventions apply really well to science fiction. Everyone talks about Firefly being the first Space Western, but The Mandalorian was much more successful and was basically a Western in space (albeit with occasional visits from Space Wizards). Anyway! After that long-winded introduction, let's talk about Tombstone. When Val Kilmer died earlier this year, the news articles mentioned Tombstone as among his best work, so I decided to give it a watch. The plot centers around Wyatt Earp, played by Kurt Russell, who has decided to give up his career in law enforcement and move to Tombstone, Arizona, a silver mining boomtown, in hopes of making his fortune. However, Tombstone is mostly controlled by the Cowboys outlaw gang, and Earp is inevitably drawn into conflict with them. With the help of his brothers and Doc Holliday (Val Kilmer's character), Earp sets out to bring some law and order to Tombstone, whether the Cowboys like it or not. Holliday is in the process of dying from tuberculosis, which makes him a formidable fighter since he knows getting shot will be a less painful and protracted death than the one his illness will bring him. Kilmer plays him as a dissolute, scheming warrior-poet who nonetheless is a very loyal friend. Definitely a classic of the Western genre, and so worth watching. Overall grade: A Next up is Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning, the eighth Mission Impossible movie. Of the eight movies, I think the sixth one was the best one, but this one comes in at a close second. It continues on from Dead Reckoning. Ethan Hunt now possesses the key that will unlock the source code of the Entity, the malicious AI (think ChatGPT, but even more obviously evil) that is actively maneuvering the world's nuclear powers into destroying each other so the Entity can rule the remnants of humanity. Unfortunately, the Entity's source code is sitting in a wrecked Russian nuclear sub at the bottom of the Bering Sea. Even more unfortunately, the Entity knows that Hunt has the key and is trying to stop him, even as the Entity's former minion and Hunt's bitter enemy Gabriel seeks to seize control of the Entity for himself. A sense of apocalyptic doom hangs over the movie, which works well to build tension. Once again, the world is doomed, unless Ethan Hunt and his allies can save the day. The tension works extremely well during the movie's underwater sequence, and the final airborne duel between Hunt and Gabriel. I don't know if they're going to make any more Mission Impossible movies after this (they are insanely expensive), but if this is the end, it is a satisfying conclusion for the character of Ethan Hunt and the Impossible Mission Force. Overall grade: A Next up is Deep Cover, which came out in 2025. This is described as a comedy thriller, and I didn't know what to expect when I watched it, but I really enjoyed it. Bryce Dallas Howard plays Kat, a struggling comedy improv teacher living in London. Her best students are Marlon (played by Orlando Bloom), a dedicated character actor who wants to portray gritty realism but keeps getting cast in tacky commercials, and Hugh (played by Nick Mohammed), an awkward IT worker with no social skills whatsoever. One day, the three of them are recruited by Detective Sergeant Billings (played by Sean Bean) of the Metropolitan Police. The Met wants to use improv comedians to do undercover work for minor busts with drug dealers. Since it plays 200 pounds a pop, the trio agrees. Of course, things rapidly spiral out of control, because Kat, Marlon, and Hugh are actually a lot better at improv than they think, and soon they find themselves negotiating with the chief criminals of the London underworld. What follows is a movie that is both very tense and very funny. Kat, Marlon, and Hugh are in way over their heads, and will have to do the best improv of their lives to escape a very grisly fate. Whether Sean Bean dies or not (as is tradition), you will just have to watch the movie and find out. Overall grade: A Next up is Puss in Boots: The Final Wish, which came out in 2022. I don't personally know much about the history of Disney as a corporation, and I don't much care, but I do have several relatives who are very interested in the history of the Disney corporation, and therefore I have picked up some by osmosis. Apparently Disney CEO Michael Eisner forcing out Jeffrey Katzenberg in the 1990s was a very serious mistake, because Katzenberg went on to co-found DreamWorks, which has been Disney's consistent rival for animation for the last thirty years. That's like “CIA Regime Change Blowback” levels of creating your own enemy. Anyway, historical ironies aside, Puss in Boots: The Final Wish was a funny and surprisingly thoughtful animated movie. Puss in Boots is a legendary outlaw and folk hero, but he has used up eight of his nine lives. An ominous bounty hunter who looks like a humanoid wolf begins pursuing him, and the Wolf is able to shrug off the best of Puss In Boots' attacks. Panicked, Puss hides in a retirement home for elderly cats, but then hears rumors of the magical Last Wish. Hoping to use it to get his lives back, Puss In Boots sets off on the quest. It was amusing how Little Jack Horner and Goldilocks and the Three Bears were rival criminal gangs seeking the Last Wish. Overall grade: A Next up is Chicken People, which came out in 2016. A good documentary film gives you a glimpse into an alien world that you would otherwise never visit. In this example, I have absolutely no interest in competitive chicken breeding and will only raise chickens in my backyard if society ever collapses to the level that it becomes necessary for survival. That said, this was a very interesting look into the work of competitive chicken breeding. Apparently, there is an official “American Standard of Perfection” for individual chicken breeds, and the winner of the yearly chicken competition gets the title “Super Grand Champion.” Not Grand Champion, Super Grand Champion! That looks impressive on a resume. It is interesting how chicken breeding is in some sense an elaborate Skinner Box – like you can deliberately set out to breed chickens with the desirable traits on the American Standard of Perfection, but until the chickens are hatched and grow up, you don't know how they're going to turn out, so you need to try again and again and again… Overall grade: A Next up is The Mask of Zoro, which came out in 1998. I saw this in the theatre when it came out 27 years ago, but that was 27 years ago, and I don't have much of a memory of it, save that I liked it. So when I had the chance to watch it again, I did! Anthony Hopkins plays Diego de la Vega, who has the secret identity of Zorro in the final days before Mexico breaks away from the Spanish Empire. With Mexico on the verge of getting its independence, Diego decides to hang up his sword and mask and focus on his beloved wife and daughter. Unfortunately, the military governor Don Montero realizes Diego is Zorro, so has him arrested, kills his wife, and steals his baby daughter to raise as his own. Twenty years later, a bandit named Alejandro loses his brother and best friends to a brutal cavalry commander. It turns out that Montero is returning to California from Spain, and plans to seize control of California as an independent republic (which, of course, will be ruled by him). In the chaos, Diego escapes from prison and encounters a drunken Alejandro, and stops him from a futile attack upon the cavalry commander. He then proposes a pact – Diego will train Alejandro as the next Zorro, and together they can take vengeance upon the men who wronged them. This was a good movie. It was good to see that my taste in movies 27 years ago wasn't terrible. It manages to cram an entire epic plot into only 2 hours and 20 minutes. In some ways it was like a throwback to a ‘40s movie but with modern (for the ‘90s) production values, and some very good swordfights. Overall grade: A Next up is Wick is Pain, which came out in 2025. I've seen all four John Wick movies and enjoyed them thoroughly, though I've never gotten around to any of the spinoffs. Wick is Pain is a documentary about how John Wick went from a doomed indie movie with a $6.5 million hole in its budget to one of the most popular action series of the last few decades. Apparently Keanu Reeves made an offhand joke about how “Wick is pain” and that became the mantra of the cast and crew, because making an action movie that intense really was a painful experience. Definitely worth watching if you enjoyed the John Wick movies or moviemaking in general. Overall grade: A The last movie I saw this summer was Game Night, which came out in 2016. It was a hilarious, if occasionally dark comedy action thriller. Jason Bateman and Rachel McAdams play Max and Annie Davis, a married couple who are very competitive and enjoy playing games of all kinds. Jason has an unresolved conflict with his brother Brooks, and one night Brooks invites them over for game night, which Max resents. Halfway through the evening, Brooks is kidnapped, with Max and Annie assume is part of the game. However, Brooks really is involved in something shady. Hilarity ensues, and it's up to Max and Annie to rescue Brooks and stay alive in the process. This was really funny, though a bit dark in places. That said, Max and Annie have a loving and supportive marriage, so it was nice to see something like that portrayed on the screen. Though this also leads to some hilarity, like when Annie accidentally shoots Max in the arm. No spoilers, but the punchline to that particular sequence was one of the funniest things I've ever seen. Overall grade: A So no A+ movie this time around, but I still saw a bunch of solid movies I enjoyed. One final note, I have to admit, I've really come to respect Adam Sandler as an entertainer, even if his movies and comedy are not always to my taste. He makes what he wants, makes a lot of money, ensures that his friends get paid, and then occasionally takes on a serious role in someone else's movie when he wants to flex some acting muscles. I am not surprised that nearly everyone who's in the original Happy Gilmore who was still alive wanted to come back for Happy Gilmore 2. So that is it for this week. Thank you for listening to The Pulp Writer Show. I hope you found the show enjoyable and perhaps a guide to some good movies to watch. A reminder that you can listen to all the back episodes at https://thepulpwritershow.com. If you enjoyed the podcast, please leave a review on your podcasting platform of choice. Stay safe and stay healthy and see you all next week.  

HOPE YOU'RE HUNGRY FOR LEFTOVERS!!! Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 Full Movie Reaction Watch Along:   / thereelrejects   Visit https://huel.com/rejects to get 15% off your order Become A Righteous Reject By Grabbing Our RR Apparell! https://www.rejectnationshop.com/ Roxy Striar & Coy Jandreau dive into the colorful, wacky, and deliciously inventive animated sequel Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 (2013), directed by Cody Cameron & Kris Pearn! Picking up after the events of the original, inventor Flint Lockwood (voiced by Bill Hader – SNL, Inside Out) discovers that his infamous FLDSMDFR machine is still running, creating living “foodimals” like the Shrimpanzee, Tacodile Supreme, and the adorable Berry. Alongside his girlfriend Sam Sparks (Anna Faris – Scary Movie, Mom), his dad Tim (James Caan – The Godfather, Elf), and best friends Brent (Andy Samberg – Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Palm Springs) and Manny (Benjamin Bratt – Miss Congeniality, Coco), Flint must face off against corporate villain Chester V (Will Forte – The Last Man on Earth, MacGruber), who has his own plans for the machine. The film blends hilarious gags, vibrant visuals, and heartfelt moments, with the standout sequence being the discovery of the foodimals—fan favorites like the Cheespiders, Watermelophants, and the brave Pickles! Packed with laughs, heart, and creativity, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 remains one of the most memorable animated sequels of the 2010s. Follow Coy Jandreau:  Tik Tok: https://www.tiktok.com/@coyjandreau?l... Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coyjandreau/?hl=en Twitter:  https://twitter.com/CoyJandreau YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwYH2szDTuU9ImFZ9gBRH8w Follow Roxy Striar YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/@TheWhirlGirls Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/roxystriar/?hl=en Twitter:  https://twitter.com/roxystriar Intense Suspense by Audionautix is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/... Support The Channel By Getting Some REEL REJECTS Apparel! https://www.rejectnationshop.com/ Follow Us On Socials:  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/reelrejects/  Tik-Tok: https://www.tiktok.com/@reelrejects?lang=en Twitter: https://x.com/reelrejects Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheReelRejects/ Music Used In Ad:  Hat the Jazz by Twin Musicom is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Happy Alley by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/... POWERED BY @GFUEL Visit https://gfuel.ly/3wD5Ygo and use code REJECTNATION for 20% off select tubs!! Head Editor: https://www.instagram.com/praperhq/?hl=en Co-Editor: Greg Alba Co-Editor: John Humphrey Music In Video: Airport Lounge - Disco Ultralounge by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Ask Us A QUESTION On CAMEO: https://www.cameo.com/thereelrejects Follow TheReelRejects On FACEBOOK, TWITTER, & INSTAGRAM:  FB:  https://www.facebook.com/TheReelRejects/ INSTAGRAM:  https://www.instagram.com/reelrejects/ TWITTER:  https://twitter.com/thereelrejects Follow GREG ON INSTAGRAM & TWITTER: INSTAGRAM:  https://www.instagram.com/thegregalba/ TWITTER:  https://twitter.com/thegregalba Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today we're joined by Allison Eide, an indie artist that's exploding right now. We talk about her viral hit, "IDK," how mental health has shaped her faith journey and a lot more. Plus, we have RELEVANT Buzz, covering SNL star Ego Nwodim opening up about how she labels her faith now, news that Americans are historically sober, and Jets QB Justin Fields' surprising addiction. The cast discusses travel weariness, "MacGruber" and Nate Bargatze's new tour, and at the end of the show we have One Has to Go, including Jesse's Tom Cruise observation that will forever change how you see his movies. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

This week, we're back and we brought a friend, as we head back to the cinema for another In Theaters Now edition of the podcast, and bring returning favourite Matt Pollock (@mattysmovies4ever) along with us for the relaunch of a movie that was a childhood fave of both Justin and Matty, but is all new to Hayley, our resident Lonely Island obsessive... It's 2025's The Naked Gun, directed by Akiva Schaffer, written by Akiva Schaffer, Dan Gregor and Doug Mand, and starring Liam Neeson, Pamela Anderson, Paul Walter Hauser, Danny Huston, CCH Pounder, and pod favourite Kevin Durand, with a slew of cameos along the way as well. While it would be foolish to doubt that the man who made Popstar or Hot Rod would be ill equipped to handle a Naked Gun relaunch, it seems just as foolish to believe a legacy remake of a classic 80s comedy property could possibly be good, or a good idea. As it turns out, this one is great, skewering north of two decades' worth of action films that have gone largely unspoofed, while (fingers crossed) reviving the concept of the Big Summer Comedy altogether. Like a 100-layer lasagna of laughter, there is an unprecedented joke density to this script, and they nearly all land right in the ribs. An incredibly funny film from start to finish, the convergence of two of the pod's great loves, we simply had to discuss it. And of course, while this whole episode is covering a movie currently in theaters, we've also got Theatrical Field Reports on Superman, Fantastic Four: First Steps, Weapons, and Eddington! If you'd like to watch the movie before listening along to our discussion, it's currently showing at your local multiplex but will likely find its way to Paramount+ roughly five weeks from now. Other works discussed on this episode include Airplane!, MacGruber, Happy GIlmore 2, Bad Trip, Anchorman, Wedding Crashers, Kingsman: The Secret Service, the original Naked Gun trilogy, Snack Shack, the Ed Helms Vacation lega-sequel, Funny People, Tropic Thunder, Pineapple Express and more, I don't know, I can't list them all off, I'm on my own Vacation currently (sans Ed Helms). We'll be back next month doing who knows what, but it will definitely be a more regular release schedule than what we've had of late. Thanks for bearing with us, we appreciate and love you all. Until then, we'll see you at the movies!!

Welcome to another episode of Death Don't Do Fiction, the AIPT Movies podcast! The podcast about the enduring legacy of our favorite movies! It's July, so that means it's time for our “Julygantic” series! Where we cover monster movies! In our season four finale, Alex, Tim, and returning guest Matt Naughton discuss Russell Mulcahy's visually-stunning 1984 Ozploitation creature feature, Razorback!Creepy music! A runaway TV! A limited-yet-effective animatronic boar! A furry locomotive! Outback Madness! A mid-movie acid trip! A solid, yet mostly unrecognizable cast! Two awful, but fashionable human beings! A shockingly fast grieving process! Unintelligible Australian accents! Checkov's turbine blade! A Rocky Horror Picture Show apron! A giant, fake red moon! One of the few great Jaws ripoffs, beautifully shot by Oscar-winning cinematographer Dean Semler! Dark and hopeless never looked so good!In addition, Matt Naughton talks about Will Forte's MacGruber, while Alex does the same for Superman, Tim Robinson's Friendship, and the Brian De Palma documentary, De Palma! As a special treat for the finale, our resident Superman expert, Tony Sedani, shares his spoiler-free thoughts on James Gunn's version of the man of steel!You can find Death Don't Do Fiction on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. As always, if you enjoy the podcast, be sure to leave us a positive rating, subscribe to the show, and tell your friends!The Death Don't Do Fiction podcast brings you the latest in movie news, reviews, and more! Hosted by supposed “industry vets,” Alex Harris and Tim Gardiner, the show gives you a peek behind the scenes from two filmmakers with oddly nonexistent filmographies. You can find Alex on Twitter, Bluesky, or Letterboxd @actionharris. This episode's guests, Matt Naughton, can be found on Instagram @mnaughty85, and Tony Sedani can be on Instagram @tsedani. Tim can't be found on social media because he doesn't exist. If you have any questions or suggestions for the Death Don't Do Fiction crew, they can be reached at aiptmoviespod@gmail.com, or you can find them on Twitter or Instagram @aiptmoviespod.Theme song is “We Got it Goin On” by Cobra Man.

Rip some throats and lube up the celery, because on this very special episode of Remainders we watch the 2010 cult classic MacGruber. We dive deep into the very last, and possibly best, SNL movie. Insanely confident as a comedy playing it straight as an 80s action movie, we check out why this absurdist masterpiece works so well. Crude, chaotic, and classic MacGruber.Other topics include the careers of Will Forte, Val Kilmer and Powers Boothe, Christopher Nolan's love for MacGruber, Jon Hamm and comedy, the 90s Batman movies and the reappraisal of the campy spirit of those movies, studio marketing and The Studio television show, the Coen Brothers, new physical media pickups, the Avatar 3 trailer, favorite comedies of all time, A History of Violence on Criterion, and whether Marlon Wayans was a Robin action figure.Songs of the WeekJealous Heart by Connie FrancisI Just Want You by Ozzy OsbourneRemainders Jukebox PlaylistWebsiteFacebookInstagramYouTubeTwitter

Will Forte talks about almost being a financial advisor, his checkered writing career, SNL MacGruber, Nebraska, The Groundlings, Last Man on Earth, having kids late, seeing shrinks, frats, & Val Kilmner being the weirdest roommate of all time.Bio: Will Forte is a comedian, actor, writer, and improviser best known for his work on Saturday Night Live and his starring role in The Last Man on Earth. Born in Alameda County, California, Forte studied History at UCLA before briefly working as a financial broker. He shifted to comedy in the late '90s, joining the Groundlings and writing for shows like The Jenny McCarthy Show and That '70s Show. His pilot about two clueless brothers led to The Brothers Solomon (2007), which he wrote and starred in. Forte joined Saturday Night Live in 2002, quickly earning a reputation for absurd and surreal comedy. He co-wrote and starred in the cult film MacGruber (2010) before leaving SNL to pursue broader roles. He appeared in comedies like 30 Rock, Tim and Eric's Billion Dollar Movie, and That's My Boy, while also branching into drama with Run and Jump and Alexander Payne's Nebraska (2013), earning critical praise. From 2015 to 2018, he created and starred in the acclaimed sitcom The Last Man on Earth. He later portrayed Douglas Kenney in A Futile and Stupid Gesture (2018) and appeared in hit films like Booksmart and Good Boys (2019). More recently, he has starred in Netflix's Bodkin, Four Seasons, and the upcoming Coyote vs. Acme.

2:21 - The News 9:25 - Jerks of the Week 17:30 - Tampopo 20:06 - The Color Purple 23:25 - Pretty in Pink 27:56 - Clue 29:42 - Salvador 30:30 - Crossroads (1986) 30:32 - Top Gun 30:35 - Hey, Stop Stabbing Me! 30:38 - Too Funny to Fail: The Life and Death of the Dana Carvey Show 30:41 - M3GAN 2.0 39:11 - Sideways 42:15 - Labyrinth 54:09 - Macgruber 1:00:16 - Rob Ford Netflix documentary 1:07:50 - Best in Show 1:16:31 - Burn After Reading 1:24:42 - Challengers somewhere in there - Sleepaway Camp 2 & 3 1:30:19 - F1 1:44:25 - Macgruber (again) 1:46:14 - Love Island 1:50:18 - Tires (season 2) 2:13:08 - Ocean's 11 2:19:18 - Stephen Sodabread 2:24:41 - Sci-Fighter

You've gotten to know Sam and Ian over the last six seasons of Time Sensitive, and by now, it should be clear what we do and don't like. Well, now we are forcing each other to embrace those things that we don't like, as we continue a series called “Forced to Watch.” This week, Ian is forced to watch Jorma Taccone's MacGruber. Check us out on...Twitter @TSMoviePodFacebook: Time SensitiveInstagram: @timesensitivepodcastGrab some Merch at TeePublicBig Heads Media  

Get FAME then get WRECKED because this week we're discussing season 4, episode 2 of Lucha Underground entitled "Darkness and the Monster". Come along as we watch along and chat about the episode, plus EDITOR'S NOTE: The Mentalist is a dude so I'm not sure why Sean said she, small town candy stores, sui pacts, "Lifeforce", Jack Swagger promos, mutant powers, MacGruber, dream trios, & more!Want to hear more from your favorite Marsh Land Media hosts? Hear exclusive shows, podcasts, and content by heading to Patreon.com/MLMpod!Buy some Shuffling the Deck / MLMpod MERCH, including our "Natty With Otters" shirt, over at redbubble.com/shop/msspod!Follow James @MarshLandMedia on Twitter, @MLMpod on Instagram, and listen to his music under "Marsh Land Monster" wherever music is found! Follow Sean on Twitter @SeanMarciniak and on Twitch @GooseVK! Join ourDiscord!Have fan mail, fan art, projects you want us to review, or whatever you want to send us? You can ship directly to us using "James McCollum, PO Box 180036, 2011 W Montrose Ave, Chicago, IL 60618"! Send us a voice mail to be played on the show at (224) 900-7644!Find out more about James' other podcasts "Mostly Speakin' Sentai", "Hit It & Crit It", and "This Movie's Gay" on our website,www.MLMPod.com!!! Plus, download all Marsh Land Monster albums there, too!

In the final week of “No, no, no for the last f*cking time we can't sing Prince on the show!”: A Horror Musical Revue, we take it all the way back to the beginning of the careers of some film and TV titans – only problem is… is it a horror movie? Who's to say… but along the way we discuss all the films we've watched during a recording hiatus (don't worry, Curtis didn't spite watch 70 films) and get a little bit into Bring Her Back, Final Destination, Mission Impossible, and 28 Years Later.   Go to patreon.com/SHUDcast where you can sign up for all kinds of extra goodies!   00:00-7:30ish - Intros - We took a small break – what we've been doing in the meantime.   7:30ish - 59:00ish - The other stuff we watched this time!   Austin - Under Paris, Orphan: First Kill, Interstellar, Heart Eyes, Bring Her Back, Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning, Titan: The Oceangate Disaster, Predator: Killer of Killers,    Curtis - Bring Her Back, Mission: Impossible - Final Reckoning, Mission: Impossible 1-6, Predator: Killer of Killers, Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai, The Loveless, Grave Torture, Final Destination: Bloodlines, The Last Breath, Anaconda, No Way Up, Pride & Prejudice, Fear Street: Prom Queen, Dangerous Animals, Josie and the Pussycats, Picnic at Hanging Rock, Sinners (again), Drop Dead Gorgeous, 28 Weeks Later, 28 Years Later, MacGruber, The Wedding Banquet (2025), How to Train Your Dragon (2025), The Life of Chuck, Jaws   Lucas - Bring Her Back, The Hobbit 1-3, Justice League, American Manhunt: Osama bin Laden, Ballerina, The Accountant, Nacho Libre   Cody - Bring Her Back, Mission: Impossible - Final Reckoning, 28 Years Later, Ballerina, The Mummy (1999), Mission: Impossible 5-8, Novocaine, Ratatouille (twice), Kingdom of Heaven Director's Cut, Jurassic Park, Wreck-It Ralph, Hell of a Summer, Clown in a Cornfield, Onyx the Fortuitous and the Talisman of Souls, Buffy the Vampire Slayer   59:00ish - 1:27:00ish - CANNIBAL! THE MUSICAL - SHUDdown and discussion!   1:27:00ish - 1:32:00ish - “No, no, no for the last f*cking time we can't sing Prince on the show!” awards!   1:32:00ish - End - The reveal of our next theme and movie!

Do you think you could make a life saving invention out of household materials? Neither could we. But neither could MacGruber.In this episode, we discuss the 2010 movie, MacGruber. Directed by Jorma Taccone. Starring Will Forte, Ryan Phillippe, Kristen Wiig, and Val Kilmer (RIP). It is available on Netflix.You can request movies by emailing us at specrapular@gmail.comGo follow our Youtube channel where ALL of our episodes are posted now: ⁠⁠Specrapular⁠ ⁠(https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0ppqS8Japy4yT4cVfcGEKw)The next movie we are going to discuss is, Dumb and Dumber, from 1994. Directed by Peter Farrelly. Starring Jim Carrey, Jeff Daniels, and Lauren Holly. It is not available on any of the streaming platforms we watch for free.Intro music by: Luis Find more music from Luis at: instagram.com/breatheinstereSeason 8 Episode 8

If there was a zombie apocalypse and they acted like the zombies in this movie, Mike and Brandon would be dead pretty quick. Likely, Mike would be dead first. But only after Brandon bravely sacrificed Mike in the sake of his own safety. Only to die moments later after his crackity ankle gives out on him.In this episode, we discuss the 2016 movie, Train to Busan. Directed by Yeon Sang-ho. Starring Gong Yoo, Ma Dong-seok, Yeon Sang-ho, and Jung Yu-mi. It is available on Netflix.You can request movies by emailing us at specrapular@gmail.comGo follow our Youtube channel where ALL of our episodes are posted now: ⁠⁠Specrapular⁠ ⁠(https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0ppqS8Japy4yT4cVfcGEKw)The next movie we are going to discuss is, Macgruber, from 2010. Directed by Jorma Taccone. Starring Will Forte, Ryan Phillippe, Kristen Wiig, and Val Kilmer (RIP). It is available on Netflix.Intro music by: Luis Find more music from Luis at: instagram.com/breatheinstereSeason 8 Episode 7

In this bittersweet countdown to the final episodes of Watchin It, Robert and Donnell kick things off with one of their very first guests: Erik from the Hard Mark Podcast. The trio dives deep into the journey of podcasting, the grind behind the mic, and the quiet moments that made it all worth it.Later in the episode the trio go over their top 3 movie picks like Ready to Rumble, MacGruber and more. Tune in for some of the last episodes of the Watchin It Podcast and if you're a fan of wrestling you will want to check out Erik's podcast right after this episode!Check out Erik's ‘Hard Mark Podcast': https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hard-mark-podcast/id1502773448 Connect with us:

In this week's episode, I take a look at the movies and streaming shows I watched in Winter and Spring 2025. This week's coupon code will get you 25% off the ebook versions of my anthologies at my Payhip store: JUNE25 The coupon code is valid through June 17, 2025. So if you need a new ebook this summer, we've got you covered! TRANSCRIPT 00:00:00 Introduction and Writing Updates   Hello, everyone. Welcome to Episode 252 of The Pulp Writer Show. My name is Jonathan Moeller. Today is May 23rd, 2025, and today we are looking at the movies and streaming shows I watched in Winter and Spring 2025. We missed doing an episode last week for the simple reason that the day before I wanted to record, we had a bad thunderstorm that knocked down large portions of my fence, so my recording time was instead spent on emergency fence repair. However, the situation is under control, so hopefully we'll be back to weekly episodes for the immediate future. And now before we get to our main topics, let's have Coupon of the Week and then a progress update on my current writing projects.   So first up, Coupon of the Week. This week's coupon code will get you 25% off the ebook version of all my short story anthologies at my Payhip store and that is JUNE25. As always, the coupon code and links will be available in the show notes. This coupon code is valid through June the 17th, 2025, so if you need a new ebook for this summer, we have got you covered.   And now an update on my current writing projects. Ghost in the Corruption is finished. It is publishing right now. In fact, I paused the publishing process to record this and so by the time this episode goes live, hopefully Ghost in the Corruption should be available at all ebook stores. My next main project now that Ghost in the Corruption is done will be Shield of Power and as of this recording I am 15,000 words into it. My secondary projects will be Stealth and Spells Online: Final Quest and I'm 97,000 words into that, so hopefully that will come out very shortly after Shield of Power and I'll also be starting Ghost in the Siege, the final book in the Ghost Armor series as another secondary project and I'm currently zero words into that. So that is where I'm at with my current writing projects.   In audiobook news, Ghost in the Assembly (as excellently narrated by Hollis McCarthy) is now out and should be available at all the usual audiobook stores so you can listen to that if you are traveling for the summer. Recording of Shield of Battle (as excellently narrated by Brad Wills) is underway soon. I believe he's starting it this week, so hopefully we will have another audiobook in the Shield War series for you before too much longer. So that's where I'm at with my current writing projects.   00:02:17 Main Topic: Winter/Spring 2025 Movie Roundup   And now let's move on, without any further ado, to our main topic. Summer is almost upon us, which means it's time for my Winter/Spring 2025 Movie Roundup. As usual, the movies and streaming shows are listed in order for my least favorite to my most favorite. The grades are based upon my own thoughts and opinions and are therefore wholly subjective. With all of that said, let's get to the movies and our first entry is MacGruber, which came out in 2010 and in all honesty, this might be objectively the worst movie I have ever seen. The Saturday Night Live MacGruber sketches are a parody of the old MacGyver action show from the ‘80s. And so the movie is essentially the sketch stretched out to make a parody of an ‘80s action movie. It is aggressively dumb and crude. Its only redeeming feature is that the movie knows it's quite stupid and so leans into the stupidity hard. I'll say this in its favor, MacGruber has no pretensions that is a good movie and does not take itself seriously and then runs away hard with that fact. For that he gets a plus, but nothing else. Overall grade: F+   Next up is Down Periscope, which came out in 1996. Now the fundamental question of any movie is the one Russell Crowe shouted at the audience in Gladiator: “Are you not entertained?” Sadly, I was not entertained with Down Periscope. This wanted to be a parody of Cold War era submarine thrillers like The Hunt for Red October, I say wanted because it didn't really succeed. Kelsey Grammer plays Lieutenant Commander Thomas Dodge, an unorthodox US Navy officer who wants command of his own nuclear sub, but he's alienated a few admirals, which is not traditionally a path to career advancement in the military. Dodge gets his chance in a Navy wargame where he has to command a diesel sub against nuclear subs. Sometimes parodies are so good that they become an example of the thing they are parodying (Hot Fuzz and Star Trek: Lower Decks are excellent examples of this phenomenon). The trouble is that the movie takes itself too seriously and just isn't all that funny. A few funny bits, true, but not enough of them. In the end, this was dumb funny but didn't resonate with me the way other dumb funny movies like Dodgeball and Tropic Thunder did. Overall grade: D   Next up is Deadpool and Wolverine, which came out in 2024. Unlike Down Periscope, I was entertained with this movie, though both movies reside on the dumb funny spectrum. Deadpool and Wolverine is basically one long meta in-joke/love letter for the last 30 years of superhero movies. If you've seen enough of those movies, you'll find those movies funny, if occasionally rather tasteless. If you haven't seen enough of those movies, Deadpool and Wolverine will just be incomprehensible. The plot is that Wade Wilson AKA Deadpool gets pulled into some Marvel style multiverse nonsense. To save his universe from destruction, he needs to recruit a Wolverine since in his universe, Wolverine died heroically.   In the process, Deadpool stumbles across the worst Wolverine in the multiverse. Together they have to overcome their mutual dislike and attempt to save Deadpool's universe from destruction at the hands of a rogue branch of the Time Variance Authority. This means the movie can bring in a lot of cameos from past Marvel films. Hugh Jackman's performance really carries the movie on its back. Like I said, this movie is essentially one very long Marvel in-joke. I thought it was funny. I definitely think it can't stand on its own without having seen a sufficient number of the other Marvel movies. Overall grade: C   Our next movie is the Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare, which came out in 2024. This is very loosely (with an emphasis on “very”) based on Operation Postmaster during World War II, when British Special Forces seized some Italian ships that had been supplying parts for German U-boats. It was entertaining to watch but it couldn't quite make up its mind tonally if it was a war thriller or a heist movie about Western desperados recruited into a crew. It kind of tried to do both at the same time, which killed the momentum. Like, the first parts of the movie where the protagonists take out a Nazi patrol boat and then free a prisoner from a base were good thriller stuff, but then the plot fused with the heist stuff and really slowed down through the middle forty percent or so. It was also oddly stylized with a lot of spaghetti western-style music that seemed out of place and some stuff just didn't make sense, like at the end after pulling off the mission, the protagonists were all arrested. That just seems bizarre since if anything, Winston Churchill and a lot of the British wartime leadership were enthusiastic about special operations and probably had too much confidence in the effectiveness of covert operations. So I did enjoy watching this, but I can see why it didn't make a lot of money at the box office. Overall Grade: C   Next up is The Gorge, which came out in 2025. This was a peculiar mix of science fiction, romance, and horror. For the romance part, perhaps shooting zombies together is a good idea for a first date. Before I dig into the movie, a brief rant. In one scene, a character is using a chainsaw with no protective gear whatsoever and she's not fighting zombies or anything in a situation where she has to pick up a chainsaw without preparing first. She's trimming branches to pass time. If you're using a chainsaw, at a minimum you want protective eyewear and headphones. Ideally you'd want chainsaw pants as well to reduce the chance of serious injury if you slip and swing the saw into your leg. Since I became a homeowner, I've used a chainsaw a number of times and believe me, you definitely want good eye and ear protection. This has been your public safety announcement for this movie review.   Anyway, loner former sniper Levi is approached by a high ranking intelligence officer giving him a mysterious job. He needs to guard a tower overlooking a mysterious mist-filled gorge for one year. On the other side of the gorge is another tower, guarded by an elite Lithuanian sniper named Drasa. Like Levi, Drasa has a fair bit of emotional damage and they're officially forbidden to communicate. However, they're both lonely and they soon start communicating over the gorge using telescopes and whiteboard messages. Eventually Levi gets emotionally close enough to Drasa to rig a zipline to cross the gorge and speak with her in person.   Unfortunately, it turns out the gorge is full of twisted creatures that storm out and attack and the job of the two snipers is to keep them contained. If Levi and Drasa want to save their lives, they'll need to unravel the dark secret within the gorge. This movie was interesting and I enjoyed watching it, but it falls apart if you think about it too much (or at all). Like the chainsaw thing I ranted about above. The entire movie runs on that sort of logic. That said, I appreciate how the filmmakers were trying something new instead of something like Deadpool and Wolverine. Additionally, this was an Apple+ movie and it's interesting how Apple's approach to streaming is to just make a whole bunch of random stuff that's totally distinct, from Ted Lasso to Mythic Quest to Severance to The Gorge. It's like, “we have more money than most countries, so we're going to make Ted Lasso because we feel like it.” Then again, Apple+ is apparently losing a billion dollars every year, so maybe they'll eventually change their minds about that approach. Overall Grade: B-   Next up is Click, which came out in 2006. Cross It's a Wonderful Life with A Christmas Carol and the comedic style of Adam Sandler and you end up with Click. Basically Sandler plays Michael Newman, a workaholic architect with a demanding boss and increasingly strained relationship with his wife and children due to his workload. In a fit of exasperation with his situation, he goes to Bed Bath and Beyond, where he encounters an eccentric employee named Morty (played entertainingly by Christopher Walken). Morty gives him a remote control that lets him fast forward through time, which Michael then uses to skip the boring and tedious parts of his life, but he overuses the remote and goes too far into the future and sees the disastrous results of his current life choices. Definitely a story used in A Christmas Carol and It's a Wonderful Life but effectively told and I was entertained (rather on the crude side, though). Overall Grade: B- Next up is Mr. Deeds, which came out in 2002. This was actually one of Adam Sandler's better movies, in my opinion. It was a remake of the ‘30s movie Mr. Deeds Goes To Town. In this new version, Sandler plays Longfellow Deeds, a popular pizzeria owner in a small New Hampshire town. Unbeknownst to Deeds, his uncle is the owner of a major media mega corporation and when he dies, Deeds is his legal heir. When the company's CEO and chief lawyer arrive at the pizzeria to inform him of this fact, Deeds goes to New York and soon finds himself involved in the CEO's sinister machinations. Yet he happens to rescue an attractive woman from a mugger, but there is more to her than meets the eye. The movie was funny and not as crude, well, not quite as crude as some of Sandler's other stuff. It had good story structure and several great lines, my favorite of which was “he was weak and cowardly and wore far too much cologne.”   Sandler's movies, in a strange way, are often very medieval. Like various medieval fables had a savvy peasant outwitting pompous lords, greedy merchants, and corrupt clergymen. The best Adam Sandler protagonist tends to be a good natured everyman who defeats the modern equivalent of medieval authority figures- evil CEOs, arrogant star athletes, sinister bureaucrats and so forth. Overall Grade: B     Next up is House of David, which came out in 2025 and this is basically the story of King David from the Bible told in the format of an epic fantasy TV series. Like if someone wanted to do an epic fantasy series about Conan the Barbarian, it could follow the same stylistic format as this show. And of course Conan and David followed a similar path from adventurer to king. Anyway, if one were to pick a part of the Bible from which to make a movie or TV series, the story of David would be an excellent choice because David's life was so dramatic that it would hardly require any embellishments in the adaptation. The story is in the Books of First and Second Samuel. King Saul is ruling over the Israelites around 1000 BC or so, but has grown arrogant. Consequently, God instructs the prophet Samuel to inform Saul that the kingdom will be taken away from him and given to another. God then dispatches Samuel to anoint David as the new king of Israel. David is a humble shepherd but then enters Saul's service and undertakes feats of daring, starting with defeating the giant Goliath and leading Saul's troops to victory and battle against Israel's numerous enemies. (The Iron Age Middle East was even less peaceful than it is now.) Eventually, Saul's paranoia and madness gets the best of him and he turns on David, who flees into exile. After Saul and his sons are killed in battle with the Philistines. David returns and becomes the acknowledged king after a short civil war with Saul's surviving sons and followers.   If Saul's fatal flaw was his arrogance of pride, David's seems to have been women. While the story of David and Bathsheba is well known, David nonetheless had eight wives (most of them at the same time) and an unknown but undoubtedly large number of concubines. Naturally David's children from his various wives and concubines did not get along and David was almost deposed due to the conflicts between his children. Unlike Saul and later David's son Solomon, David was willing to repent when a prophet of God informed him of wrongdoing and to be fair to David, monogamy was generally not practiced among Early Iron Age Middle Eastern monarchies and dynastic struggles between brothers from different mothers to seize their father's kingdoms were quite common, but enough historical digression.   Back to the show, which covered David's life up to the death of Goliath. I thought it was quite well done. Good performances, good cinematography, excellent battles, good set design and costuming, and a strong soundtrack. All the actors were good, but I really think the standout performances were Stephen Lang as Samuel, Ali Sulaman is King Saul, Ayelet Zurer as Saul's wife Queen Ahinoam, and Davood Ghadami as David's jerkish (but exasperated and well-intentioned) eldest brother Eliab. Martyn Ford just looks extremely formidable as Goliath. You definitely believe no one in their right mind want to fight this guy.   Making fiction of any kind based on sacred religious texts is often tricky because no matter what you do, someone's going to get mad at you. The show has an extensive disclaimer at the beginning of each episode saying that it is fiction inspired by the Bible. That said, House of David doesn't really alter or deviate from the Biblical account, though it expands upon some things for the sake of storytelling. Queen Ahinoam is only mentioned once in the Bible as the wife of Saul, but she has an expanded role in the show and is shown as the one who essentially introduces Saul to the Witch of Endor. Goliath also gets backstory as one of the “Anakim,” a race of giants that lived in Canaan in ancient times, which is something that is only mentioned in passing in the Old Testament. Overall, I enjoyed the show and I hope it gets a second season.   What's interesting, from a larger perspective, is to see how the wheel of history keeps turning. In the 1950s and the 1960s, Biblical epics were a major film genre. The 10 Commandments and Ben Hur with Charlton Heston are probably the ones best remembered today. Eventually, the genre just sort of ran out of gas, much the way superhero movies were in vogue for about 20 years and began running out of steam around 2023 or so. Like, I enjoyed Thunderbolts (which we're going to talk about in a little bit), but it's not going to make a billion dollars the way Marvel stuff often did in the 2010s. The wheel just keeps turning and perhaps has come back around to the popularity of Biblical epics once more. Overall Grade: A   Next up is Chef, which came out in 2014. I actually saw this back in 2021, but I watched it again recently to refresh my memory and here are my thoughts. I quite liked it. It's about a chef named Carl Casper, who's increasingly unhappy with his work after he gets fired over a Twitter war with a writer who criticized his cooking. Carl is out of options and so he starts a food truck and has to both rediscover his love of cooking and reconnect with his ex-wife and 10-year-old son. In Storytelling: How to Write a Novel (my book about writing), I talked about different kinds of conflict. Carl's conflict is an excellent example of an entirely internal conflict. The critic is an external enemy, but he's basically the inciting incident.   Carl's real enemy is his own internal conflict about art versus commerce and a strained relationship with his son. I recommend the movie. It was rated R for bad language, but there's no nudity or explicit sexual content and honestly, if you've ever worked in a restaurant kitchen or a warehouse, you've heard much worse in terms of language. The movie also has an extremely valuable lesson: stay off social media when you're angry. Overall Grade: A     Next up is Thunderbolts, which came out in 2025 and I thought this was pretty good, both very dark and yet with quite a lot of humor to balance the darkness. Former assassin Yelena Belova has been working as a mercenary for the sinister director of the CIA, Valentina de Fontaine (now there's a villain name if there ever was one). Yelena has grown disillusioned with her life and career and is suffering from increasing depression since she never really dealt with the death of her sister. Valentina promises her one last job, only for Yelena to realize that Valentina decided to dispose of all her freelance contractors at once, which includes US Agent and Ghost (previously seen in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier and Antman and the Wasp). In the process of escaping Valentina's trap, Yelena stumbles across a mysterious man who identifies himself as Bob, who has no memory of how he got there, but shows increasingly unusual abilities. Yelena wants to deal with Valentina's betrayal, but it turns out one of Valentina's science projects has gotten out of control and is threatening the world. The movie was well constructed enough that it didn't rely too heavily on previous Marvel continuity. It was there, but you probably wouldn't be lost without it. It almost feels like Marvel looked at the stuff they did the last couple of years and said, okay, a lot of this didn't work, but makes great raw material for new things. It helped that the central conflict was in the end, very human and about the characters, not stopping a generic villain from getting a generic doomsday device. Overall Grade: A   Next up is The Hound of the Baskervilles, which came out in 1988. This is a movie length episode of The Return of Sherlock Holmes television series, which had Jeremy Brett as Sherlock Holmes and Edward Hardwicke as Dr. Watson. The plot deals with Sir Henry Baskerville, the American heir to an English manor set in the Windswept moors of Dartmoor. Apparently there's an ancestral curse laid over the Baskerville estate that manifests in the form of a spectral hound. Local rumors hold that the previous holder of the manor, Sir Charles Baskerville, was killed by the ghostly hound and many of the local people fear it. The local physician, Dr. Mortimer, is so worried about the hound that he comes to Sherlock Holmes for help. Holmes, of course, is skeptical of any supernatural explanation and soon becomes worried that an extremely subtle and sinister murderer is stalking Sir Henry.   Jeremy Brett's version of Holmes is, in my opinion, the best portrayal of the character and Edward Hardwicke's version of Watson is a calm, reliable man of action who sensibly takes a very large revolver with him when going into danger. Definitely worth watching, Overall grade: A   Next up is Sonic the Hedgehog 3, which came out in 2024. The 2020s have been a downer of a decade in many ways, but on the plus side, between Super Mario Brothers and Sonic the Hedgehog, people have finally figured out how to make good video game movies, so we've got that going for us. Sonic 3 was an excellent kids movie, as were the first two in the trilogy. In this one Sonic is living with Knuckles and Tails under the care of their human friends Tom and Maddy, but then a dark secret emerges. The government has been keeping a Superpowered hedgehog named Shadow in stasis and Shadow has broken out. It's up to Sonic, Knuckles, and Tails to save the day.   Meanwhile, Dr. Robotnik is in a funk after his defeat at Sonic's hands in the last movie, but then his long lost grandfather, Gerald Robotnik returns seeking the younger Dr. Robotnik's help in his own sinister plans. Keanu Reeves was great as Shadow (think John Wick if he was a superpowered space hedgehog in a kid's movie). Jim Carrey famously said he would retire from acting unless a golden script came along and apparently that golden script was playing Dr. Ivo Robotnik and his evil grandfather Gerald. To be fair, both the Robotniks were hilarious.   It is amusing that Sonic only exists because in the 1990s, Sega wanted a flagship video game character that won't get them sued by either Nintendo or Disney. It is also amusing that the overall message of the Sonic movies seems to be not to trust the government. Overall Grade: A   Next up is Paddington in Peru, which came out in 2024. This is also an excellent kids' movie. In this installment, Paddington has settled into London with the Brown family and officially become a UK citizen. However, he receives a letter from Peru that his Aunt Lucy has mysteriously disappeared into the jungle. Distraught, Paddington and the Browns set off for Peru at once. Adventures ensue involving mysterious lost treasure, a crazy boat captain, and an order of singing nuns who might not quite be what they appear. Anyway, it's a good kids' movie. I think Paddington 2 was only slightly better because Hugh Grant as the chief villain, crazy actor Phoenix Buchanan, was one of those lightning in the bottle things like Heath Ledger as the Joker in the Dark Knight. Overall Grade: A   Now for the two best things I saw in Winter/Spring 2025. The first of them is Andor Season Two, which came out in 2025. Star Wars kind of has an age range the way Marvel stuff does now. What do I mean by that? In the Marvel comics and some of the TV series like Jessica Jones, they get into some really dark and heavy stuff, very mature themes. The MCU movies can have some darkness to them, but not as much because they're aiming at sort of escapist adventures for the general audience. Then there are kid shows like Spidey and Friends that a relative of mine just loved when he was three. You wouldn't at all feel comfortable showing a 3-year-old Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, but Spidey and Friends is just fine.   Star Wars now kind of has that age range to its stuff and there's nothing wrong with that. Sometimes you want to see a dark meditation upon human nature. Sometimes you need something kid friendly to occupy the kids you're babysitting and sometimes you just want to relax and watch Mando and Baby Yoda mow down some space pirates or something. All that said, Andor Season Two is some of the darkest and the best stuff that Star Wars has ever done. It successfully shifts genres from Escapist Pulp Space Fantasy to a gritty Political/Espionage Thriller. We in the audience know that the emperor is a Sith Lord who can use Evil Space Magic and wants to make himself immortal, but that fact is totally irrelevant to the characters. Even though some of the characters are high ranking in their respective organizations, this is essentially a “ground's eye” view of the Rebellion and life under the Empire.   In some ways, this is like Star Wars' version of Wolf Hall (which we're going to talk about shortly), in that we know how it ends already, but the dramatic tension comes from the harrowing emotional journey the characters undertake on the way to their inevitable destinations. Cassian Andor is now working for the nascent Rebellion under the direction of ruthless spymaster Luthen Rael. Mon Mothma is in the Imperial Senate, covertly funneling money to the Rebellion and realizing just how much the Rebellion will require of her before the end. Syril Karn, the ineffective corporate cop from Season One, has fallen in love with the ruthless secret police supervisor Dedra Meero, but he's unaware that Director Krennic has ordered Meero to manufacture a false flag incident on the planet Gorman so the planet can be strip-mined for resources to build the Death Star and Dedra has decided to use Syril to help accomplish it. All the actors do amazing jobs with their roles. Seriously, this series as actors really should get at least one Emmy. Speaking of Director Krennic, Ben Mendelson returns as Orson Krennic, who is one of my favorite least favorite characters, if you get my drift. Krennic is the oily, treacherous middle manager we've all had to deal with or work for at some point in our lives, and Mendelson plays him excellently. He's a great villain, the sort who is ruthless to his underlings and thinks he can manipulate his superiors right up until Darth Vader starts telekinetically choking him. By contrast, the villain Major Partagaz (played by Anton Lesser) is the middle manager we wish we all had - stern but entirely fair, reasonable, and prizes efficiency and good work while despising office drama. Unfortunately, he works for the Empire's secret police, so all those good qualities are in the service of evil and therefore come to naught. Finally, Episode Eight is one of the most astonishing episodes of TV I've ever seen. It successfully captures the horror of an episode of mass violence and simultaneously has several character arcs reach their tumultuous climax and manages to be shockingly graphic without showing in a lot of actual blood. Andor was originally supposed to be five seasons, but then Peak Streaming collapsed, and so the remaining four seasons were compressed down to one. I think that was actually to the show's benefit because it generates some amazing tension and there's not a wasted moment. Overall Grade: A+   Now for the second of my two favorite things I saw, and that would be Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light, which came out in 2024, but I actually saw it in 2025. This is a dramatization of Hilary Mantel's Wolf Hall novels about the rise and fall of Thomas Cromwell, who is King Henry VIII's chief lieutenant during the key years of the English Reformation. The first series came out in 2015, but the nine year gap between this and between the second series and the first series actually works quite well since Thomas Cromwell looks like he ages nine years in a single year (which may be what actually happened given how stressful working for someone like Henry VIII must have been). Anyway, in The Mirror and the Light, Cromwell has successfully arranged the downfall and execution of Anne Boleyn, Henry's previous queen. Though Cromwell is haunted by his actions, Henry still needs a queen to give him a male heir, so he marries Jane Seymour. Cromwell must navigate the deadly politics of the Tudor Court while trying to push his Protestant views of religion, serve his capricious master Henry, fend off rivals for the King's favor, and keep his own head attached to his shoulders in the process. Since Cromwell's mental state is deteriorating due to guilt over Anne's death and the downfall of his former master Cardinal Wolsey and Henry's a fickle and dangerous master at the best of times, this is an enterprise that is doomed to fail. Of course, if you're at all familiar with the history of Henry's reign and the English reformation, you know that Cromwell's story does not have a happy ending. Rather, Wolf Hall is a tragedy about a talented man who didn't walk away from his power until it was too late and he was trapped. Anyway, in my opinion, Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light was just excellent. All the performances were superb. Mark Rylance is great as Cromwell and has some excellent “WTF/I'm SO screwed” expressions as Cromwell's situation grows worse and worse. Bernard Hill played the Duke of Norfolk in the first series, but sadly died before Series Two, so Timothy Spall steps in and he does an excellent job of channeling Hill's portrayal of the Duke as an ambitious, crude-humored thug.   Damien Lewis is amazing as Henry VIII and his performance captures Henry's mixture of charisma, extreme vindictiveness, and astonishing self-absorption. The real Henry was known for being extremely charming even to the end of his life, but the charm was mixed with a volcanic temper that worsened as Henry aged and may have been exacerbated by a severe head injury. Lewis's performance can shift from that charm to the deadly fury in a heartbeat. The show rather cleverly portrays Henry's growing obesity and deteriorating health by having Lewis wear a lot of big puffy coats and limp with an impressively regal walking stick.   Overall, I would say this and Andor were the best thing I saw in Winter/Spring 2025. I wouldn't say that Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light is an accurate historical reputation. In real life, Cromwell was rather more thuggish and grasping (though far more competent than his rivals and his master) and of necessity the plot simplifies historical events, but it's just a superb historical drama. Overall Grade: A+ As a final note, I should say that of all the 2024 and 2025 movies mentioned here, the only one that actually saw in the theater was Thunderbolts, and I hadn't actually planned to see it in theaters, but a family member unexpectedly bought tickets for it, so I went along. Which I suppose is the movie industry's biggest problem right now. The home viewing experience is often vastly superior to going to the theater. The theater has the big screen and snacks, but at home you can have a pretty nice setup and you can pause whatever you want, go to the bathroom, and you can get snacks for much more cheaply. That's just much more comfortable than the movie theater.   Additionally, going to the theater has the same serious problem as booking a flight in that you're an enclosed space with complete strangers for several hours, which means you're potentially in a trust fall with idiots. All it takes is one person behaving badly or trying to bring their fake service dog to ruin or even cancel a flight, and the theater experience has much of the same problem, especially since the standards for acceptable public behavior have dropped so much from a combination of widespread smartphone adoption and COVID. The difference between the movie industry and the airline industry is that if you absolutely have to get from New York to Los Angeles in a single day, you have no choice but to book a flight and hope for the best. But if you want to see a movie and are willing to exercise some patience, you just have to wait a few months for it to turn up on streaming. I'm not sure how the movie industry can battle that, but sadly, it is much easier to identify problems than to solve them.   So that is it for this week. Thank you for listening to The Pulp Writer Show. I hope you found the show useful. A reminder that you can listen to all the back episodes at https://thepulpwritershow.com. If you enjoyed the podcast, please leave a review on your podcasting platform of choice. Stay safe, stay healthy, and see you all next week.

Our Val Kilmer deep dive continues this month on We Drink & We Watch Things, and this week we're tackling the gloriously silly action-comedy, MacGruber. Apparently, opinions are split in the studio, so grab your drink and prepare for a potentially spirited discussion about this SNL spin-off.This week, we'll be looking at Kilmer's role in this over-the-top parody, alongside Will Forte's hilariously inept hero. We'll be dissecting the film's unique brand of humor, the surprisingly committed performances, and trying to figure out just why Lemar finds it so darn entertaining while Mackenzie...well, didn't. Expect a lively debate, some memorable (or maybe not-so-memorable for some of us) lines, and a whole lot of "what the heck did we just watch?"Whether you're a MacGruber mega-fan, someone who found it baffling, or just curious to hear Mackenzie and Lemar duke it out over its merits, tune in! We're blending our contrasting opinions with our usual casual banter, making this a potentially chaotic but definitely entertaining installment in our Val Kilmer celebration. Prepare for some serious "chick-chicka-yah!" (whether Mackenzie likes it or not).This episode VIDEO is live on YouTube AND Spotify!Follow us on Instagram and TikTok to get ep sneak peaks and find out what's coming next. DM us what you want to hear about next or email us at wedrinkandwewatchthingspod@gmail.com.

​​Welcome to You Haven't Blanked That! It's Val Kilmer month and we watched MacGruber. We talk about the SNL skit, TV show, Will Forte, ghost fucking, the Lonely Island Podcast, Van Cunth's death. What We Are Blanking: Resident Alien, Companion, Kotaro Lives Alone, Buffalo Hunter Hunter, My Strange Arrest, Kitchen Nightmares, Lorne, Hellboy: The Crooked Man, ​​Opening theme by the Assassins ​​Closing theme by Lucas Perea ​​ For more info, click the link bio or below. https://linktr.ee/yhblankthat Email: Yhblankthat@gmail.com

Will Forte is responsible for some of the most idiosyncratically bizarre characters in comedy history — and the funniest movie Pablo has ever seen. But to understand Forte's legend, you must peer behind the scenes of "MacGruber" and "SNL" (his mythical audition, included). With a little help from their mutual friends, Pablo goes inside the making of a cult classic... and that time Val Kilmer moved in. • Watch "The Four Seasons" on Netflix https://www.netflix.com/title/81750702 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Will Forte is responsible for some of the most idiosyncratically bizarre characters in comedy history — and the funniest movie Pablo has ever seen. But to understand Forte's legend, you must peer behind the scenes of "MacGruber" and "SNL" (his mythical audition, included). With a little help from their mutual friends, Pablo goes inside the making of a cult classic... and that time Val Kilmer moved in.• Watch "The Four Seasons" on Netflixhttps://www.netflix.com/title/81750702 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Will Forte is responsible for some of the most idiosyncratically bizarre characters in comedy history — and the funniest movie Pablo has ever seen. But to understand Forte's legend, you must peer behind the scenes of "MacGruber" and "SNL" (his mythical audition, included). With a little help from their mutual friends, Pablo goes inside the making of a cult classic... and that time Val Kilmer moved in. • Watch "The Four Seasons" on Netflix https://www.netflix.com/title/81750702 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today, Asif and Ali discuss the career of the late actor Val Kilmer (1:05). The guys start off by discussing the 2023 documentary about Kilmer entitled ‘Val'. They discuss Val's early life and the tragic death of his younger brother from epilepsy. They discuss Kilmer's early successes and how he was the youngest person admitted to Julliard in the drama department. They then go over their favourite Kilmer movies including ‘Top Secret', ‘Top Gun' (which Asif still hasn't seen), ‘Willow','The Doors', ‘True Romance'.  ‘Tombstone', ‘Batman Forever',  ‘Heat', ‘The Island of Dr. Moreau', ‘The Saint', ‘Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang', and ‘MacGruber'.    They then discuss his battle with throat cancer  27:06) and how Kilmer's Christian Science beliefs influenced his treatment decisions. Ali then asks Asif about throat cancer. Asif describes what it is, how commonly it is seen. He then discusses the common symptoms and risk factors. Asif goes over how it is diagnosed, the treatment and the prognosis.    The opinions expressed are those of the hosts, and do not reflect those of any other organizations. This podcast and website represents the opinions of the hosts. The content here should not be taken as medical advice. The content here is for entertainment and informational purposes only, and because each person is so unique, please consult your healthcare professional for any medical questions.    Music courtesy of Wataboi and 8er41 from Pixabay   Contact us at doctorvcomedian@gmail.com   Follow us on Social media: Twitter: @doctorvcomedian Instagram:  doctorvcomedian   Show Notes: Val: https://a24films.com/docs/val WTF with Marc Maron: https://www.wtfpod.com/podcast/episode-901-sean-penn-lynn-shelton Val Kilmer, star of Top Gun and Batman Forever, dead at 65: https://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainment/val-kilmer-obituary-1.7499709 Laryngeal Cancer: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK526076/ Laryngeal Cancer: https://cancer.ca/en/cancer-information/cancer-types/laryngeal

Check out this super-sized preview of our W❤️M episode on Mission: Impossible - Fallout! To hear the whole show, click through to our Patreon and sign up now. Instantly unlock this show, along with hours, upon hours of exclusive shows! “It was like a MacGruber wedding!” - Eric on Ethan's nightmares On this month's death-defying We ❤️ Movies episode, we're chatting about one of the best Hunt & Co. adventure to date, Mission: Impossible - Fallout! How outrageous is that helicopter chase scene toward the end? Is there a better bathroom fight in cinema? How many times is Ving seen standing in this film? And don't forget, this movie is the cause of Mustachegate! PLUS: Andrew recalls why this movie was an awful choice to see in 4DX! Mission: Impossible - Fallout stars Tom Cruise, Henry Cavill, Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg, Rebecca Ferguson, Sean Harris, Angela Bassett, Michelle Monaghan, Wes Bentley, Frederick Schmidt, Alec Baldwin, Liang Yang, and Vanessa Kirby as The White Widow; directed by Christopher McQuarrie.

Today we jump back 15 years to two back-to-back episodes of the PWTorch Livecast from Apr. 21 and 22, 2010.On the Apr. 21, 2010 episode, PWTorch editor Wade Keller and PWTorch columnist Pat McNeill, they take live calls on various subjects including R-Truth being blown up, the MacGruber cast being in-character on Raw, TNA's plans to institute a contenders ranking system, Jim Ross's prospects of going to TNA or staying in WWE, Triple H's win on Raw on Monday, the WWE Draft, and more. In the VIP Aftershow, they answer email questions on Eric Bischoff's stint in WCW, Nitro's success, and more draft talk.Then on the Apr. 22, 2010 episode, PWTorch's James Caldwell and Greg Parks took phone calls, emails, and chat room questions on the WWE Draft, with a special WWE Draft special marching through the entire WWE Roster, plus breaking news analysis and calls on the six WWE releases, who might end up in TNA, Mickie James's future, Shelton Benjamin and Charlie Haas?, and more. The VIP Aftershow includes the completion of the WWE roster run-down looking at Draft prospects on staying/moving to Raw and Smackdown.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/wade-keller-pro-wrestling-podcast--3076978/support.

We're back for another resounding episode of everyone's favorite podcast. We have a lot of fun on this one, Ryan, Mike, and Shane (and of course Ziggy) are buying houses, going to concerts, and watching their friends puke (not necessarily in that order). We talk about the upcoming #fearstreet movie, #toxicavenger remake, #scarymovie6 and we forget the name of the film #sinners and we discuss celebrity deaths #genehackman and our main topic #valkilmer .We cover a ton of Val Kilmer's classics and some non-classics including The Saint, Tombstone, Ghost and the Darkness, Top Secret!, Batman Forever, Real Genius, Macgruber, TWIXT, The Thaw and more. #thefudgeboys Facebook: www.facebook.com/groups/allyouneedisblood Instagram: www.instagram.com/allyouneedisbloodpodcast Website: www.upcominghorrormovies.com/ Message board: www.upcominghorrormovies.com/uhm/forum.php Intro score : Mistake the Getaway Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

The boys celebrate Easter by hiding eggs within Andrew's body.

Two special guests, Will Forte and John Solomon, join the pod this week to share their fond memories of making MacGruber, including their favorite moments with the legendary Val Kilmer. We dedicate this episode to Val, who passed away on April 1, 2025, and celebrate the joy, humor, and heart he brought to the screen and to those who knew him. MacGuber trailer - https://youtu.be/xQHHHBkigDY?si=n4kXjLy7daCn6NUu Werner Herzog on Chickens - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QhMo4WlBmGM MacGruber: Sensitivity Training - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPNZv8J94uA Behind the Music: Rock & Roll Heaven - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fqPB1NlM4ew (Not all the clips we mention are available online; some never even aired.) If you want to see more photos and clips follow us on Instagram @lonelymeyerspod. Send us an email! thelonelyislandpod@gmail.com Support our sponsors: Maker's Mark This episode of The Lonely Island Podcast is brought to you by our friends at Maker's Mark. You too can celebrate the spirited women in your life with a free personalized label to go with a bottle of Maker's Mark! Head to makersmarkpersonalize.com and fill in the details in order to create and mail your custom label. MAKER'S MARK MAKES THEIR BOURBON CAREFULLY. PLEASE ENJOY IT THAT WAY. Maker's Mark® Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whisky, 45% Alc./Vol. ©2025 Maker's Mark Distillery, Inc., Loretto, KY. Vuori 20% off your first purchase, but enjoy free shipping on any U.S. orders over $75 and free returns. Go to vuori.com/island and discover the versatility of Vuori Clothing. Exclusions apply. Visit the website for full terms and conditions. Rocket Money Cancel your unwanted subscriptions and reach your financial goals faster with Rocket Money. Go to RocketMoney.com/island today. ExpressVPN Secure your online data TODAY by visiting ExpressVPN.com/ISLAND to find out how you can get up to four extra months FREE.

Ryan, Tim, and Target employee Garrett get together to discuss the best SNL movie ever made.

The Gents travel to Neo Tokyo to ride bikes, fight corruption and watch the 1988 anime classic Akira! :26 - Movies We've Seen (Surf 2, Flight of the Navigator, The Wild Robot, The Beekeeper, Macgruber) 13:16 - TV Shows We've Seen (The White Lotus, Skeleton Crew, Severance, Last One Laughing, Win or Lose) 32:04 - Akira (1988) Get bonus episodes on our Patreon! Next episode: Date Night (2010)

Part 2 of Juliet's chat with Susanna Puisto, costume designer extraordinaire. Susanna has brought her style to commercials, editorial shoots, music videos, TV shows, and movies as diverse as Dumb & Dumber: When Harry met Llyod, How I Met Your Mother, MacGruber, Eli Roth's Hostel, and so many more. She has dressed stars such as Michael Douglas, Brendan Fraser, Kristen Wiig, Ed Harris, Dana Delaney, Samuel L. Jackson, Colm Meany, Michael Rooker, Rebecca de Mornay, among others. Susanna shares additional, never-heard-before, details about the inspiration for Xander and Cordelia and her time costume-designing season 1. This will continue to knock your socks off…Susanna's Bonus Extras coming soon on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/ReVampedwithJulietLandauEditor: Patrick Sheffield Composer: Tim Steemson or as Dru calls him, “Little Lamb Timmy.” Artwork: GirlpireSend us a textYouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@revampedpod Twitter/X - @julietlandauInstagram - https://www.instagram.com/juliet_landau Facebook - Juliet Landau Official (Page) https://www.facebook.com/julietlandauofficialFacebook - Fans of Juliet Landau (Group) https://www.facebook.com/groups/julietlandau/Email: revampedpod@gmail.com Juliet Landau's directorial feature debut, A Place Among The Dead Trailer: https://vimeo.com/791299045/5b5d98726a A Place Among The Dead Blu-Ray with nearly 5 hours of bonus extras: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0CJJY4MB9/ref=ox_sc_saved_image_4?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1

Thankful for Val Kilmer and all the wonderful work he did, especially 2010's MacGruber which helped me get through some dark times during 2020's COVID lockdown.-Val Kilmer, so much range, such a phenomenal artist. https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000174/-MacGruber (2010)https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1470023/ https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2020/05/an-oral-history-of-macgruber https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vaCPCekIL3s Top Secret! (1984)https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0088286/ Real Genius (1985)https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0089886/ Top Gun (1986)https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0092099/ https://www.imdb.com/title/tt20215968/The Saint (1997)https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120053/https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Saint_(TV_series) The Nice Guys (2016)https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3799694/ Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005)https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0373469/Val (2021)https://www.imdb.com/title/tt14731254/

You came for Matrankings. You stayed for Murder She Ranked. Now, keep staying even longer for the stunning finale of the 80s Things That Start With M Trilogy: Macgruber!

Val Kilmer dead at 65 , Tommy Chong (alive at 86) joins us before Hash Bash, Detroit Tigers broadcaster Andy Dirks preps us for Opening Day, Cory Booker's vanity record, Elon Musk leaving Doge, and Blake Lively still can't win. Joe DePugh, the high school pitcher who threw "speedballs" and inspired Bruce Springsteen's ‘Glory Days,' dies at 75. RIP Val Kilmer. Gone too soon at 65.  We remember some of his classic roles in The Doors, Tombstone, Real Genius, Batman, Willow, At First Sight, Top Gun, and MacGruber.  The documentary Val is available on Amazon Prime and well worth your time. Val Kilmer had quite the team photo of woman. Corey Booker's new record is stupid and pointless. Virginia Guiffrey Roberts is down to one day left to live. She was in court 10 days ago for breaching a restraining order. Do most citizens in Canada own a firearm? Drew has a lot of Canadian gun questions. Netflix has a new documentary on the Gilgo Beach killer called "Gone Girls: The Long Island Serial Killer. Some people are saying it focuses too much on the victim's families. The murders might have been solved faster if it wasn't for the ex-Suffolk County DA and the ex-police chief. Are there any non-criminal reasons someone would need a burner phone or military style body armor? Tommy Chong joins us as he prepares to come to town for Astronomicon. Tommy tells us stories of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, his erratic podcasting schedule, surviving the soCal wildfires, the passing of Val Kilmer, Cheech & Chong's Last Movie, the Ann Arbor Hash Bash and more. Detroit Tigers TV color commentator Andy Dirks joins us before the Tigers home opener this Friday. Elon Musk might be stepping down from Doge. Morgan Wallen was very grumpy behind the scenes at Saturday Night Live. He's now capitalizing on the moment by selling merch. Blake Lively seemingly pulled a Justin Baldoni on an earlier film. She also had a PR stunt at her friend's donut shop that hilariously backfired. If you'd like to help support the show… consider subscribing to our YouTube Channel, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter (The Drew Lane Show, Marc Fellhauer, Trudi Daniels, Jim Bentley and BranDon).

Part 1 of Juliet's chat with Susanna Puisto, costume designer extraordinaire. Susanna has brought her style to commercials, editorial shoots, music videos, TV shows, and movies as diverse as Dumb & Dumber: When Harry met Llyod, How I Met Your Mother, MacGruber, Eli Roth's Hostel, and so many more. She has dressed stars such as Michael Douglas, Brendan Fraser, Kristen Wiig, Ed Harris, Dana Delaney, Samuel L. Jackson, Colm Meany, Michael Rooker, Rebecca de Mornay, among others. Susanna shares what it was like growing up in Finland, what it was like nailing the style for Buffy season 1 and exclusive, never-before-heard details about the origin of Buffy that will knock your socks off…Editor: Patrick Sheffield Composer: Tim Steemson or as Dru calls him, “Little Lamb Timmy.” Artwork: GirlpirePatreon: https://www.patreon.com/ReVampedwithJulietLandau Send us a textYouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@revampedpod Twitter/X - @julietlandauInstagram - https://www.instagram.com/juliet_landau Facebook - Juliet Landau Official (Page) https://www.facebook.com/julietlandauofficialFacebook - Fans of Juliet Landau (Group) https://www.facebook.com/groups/julietlandau/Email: revampedpod@gmail.com Juliet Landau's directorial feature debut, A Place Among The Dead Trailer: https://vimeo.com/791299045/5b5d98726a A Place Among The Dead Blu-Ray with nearly 5 hours of bonus extras: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0CJJY4MB9/ref=ox_sc_saved_image_4?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1

On episode 281 of The AwardsWatch Podcast, Executive Editor Ryan McQuade is joined by AwardsWatch Josh Parham to review Death of a Unicorn from A24, as well as talk about their favorite comedies of the 2020s as well as their favorite comedies of the last 25 years, the first quarter of the century.  Before getting into their thoughts on the latest release, Ryan and Josh discuss the big trailer that dropped last week for Paul Thomas Anderson's film One Battle After Another, starting Leonardo DiCaprio. In the first glimpse of the biggest film of the director's career, there was plenty to love as well as be cautious about in anticipation of the film's release this coming September. After their brief thoughts on the trailer, they transition to Death of a Unicorn, which premiered earlier in the month at the 2025 SXSW Film Festival. Ryan, who reviewed the film at the festival, was mixed on it, and Josh joined him for a mixed reaction of a fascinating concept that never amounted to much in the final product. A disappointing comedy featuring a mostly wasted all-star cast.  The conversation moves to talking about their favorite comedies of the 2020s so far, as the website and podcast will start to look at the best films of the decade so far. Films like Hundreds of Beavers, Bottoms, Anora, Benedetta, Barbie, Anora, and more. After discussing those films, they opened up the conversation to the best comedies of the last 25 years, as the team will also be taking a look at the best films of first quarter of the century. Films included in the conversation was Anchorman, A Serious Man, MacGruber, Bridesmaids, Spy, Mean Girls, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Walk Hard, Superbad, Hot Fuzz, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, and plenty ore.   You can listen to The AwardsWatch Podcast wherever you stream podcasts, from iTunes, iHeartRadio, Soundcloud, Stitcher, Spotify, Audible, Amazon Music and more. This podcast runs 1h39m. We will be back in next week for a Oscar retrospective over the 88th Academy Awards, covering the films of 2015. Till then, let's get into it.  Music: “Modern Fashion” from AShamaleuvmusic (intro), “B-3” from BoxCat Games Nameless: The Hackers RPG Soundtrack (outro).

It's a topsy-turvy world, and maybe the podcast of three people don't amount to a hill of beans. But this is our hill. And these are our beans! Therefore, on this episode of Baconsale, we're ranking parody movies. What are those? They're films that spoof previous works, but that's not important right now. What's really groovy, baby, is that we have 24 comedies that Joel, Kent, and Zack are going to be tiering, including funny flicks like Hot Shots!, Spaceballs, MacGruber, Tropic Thunder, Scary Movie, Robin Hood: Men in Tights, and Waiting for Guffman. Some of them may not rank as high as you'd like, but that's a sacrifice we are willing to make. And beware of exclamation points(!), my wife references, and the Joel genre, as we decide IF we're going to make a sequel.   Put... the candle... back! Then press play.

Hunter Biden has no money, Eli Zaret joins us after MSU dominates Michigan, Gene Hackman death update, R. Kelly does a podcast, Corey Feldman turning into Stuttering John, Elon Musk v. Lil Marco, and Love is Blind demands opinions. The Gene Hackman death details are gruesome and sad. Eli Zaret drops by to recap Michigan getting beat down by MSU, NFL free agency, Za'Darius Smith cut by the Detroit Lions, Cleveland Browns' Myles Garrett's massive contract, the Xavier Worthy choking saga, LeBron James vs Stephen A. Smith, Dan Wetzel to ESPN, the Detroit Tigers in Spring Training, debating Javier Baez, Angel Reese is threatening to sit out games because of her $75k salary and more. Thanks to the Bonerline and Twitter for reminding Drew to call his friend at 12pm on Saturday. Pamela Bach's suicide is confusing. MacGruber once perfectly re-enacted David Hasselhoff v. his hamburger. We check out an old Norm MacDonald and Artie Lange bit. Meghan Markle's stupid Netflix cooking show is getting a 2nd season. Some whore sold her virginity for a ton of money to have “autonomy” over her body. Love is Blind featured a major dodged bullet. A chick in Texas is busted for revenge porn after she showed a bar a video of herself getting nailed. Bhad Bhabie's bhoyfriend was recently shot. Then gunmen tried breaking into her house. Drew binged Suge Knight's podcast. He outed Dr. Dre as gay. He also tells all about Dre beating multiple women. R. Kelly gets praised on a podcast for his singing. His crimes never seemed to get mentioned. Ione Skye is spilling in a new book about Anthony Kiedis, Ad Rock, John Cusack, Matthew Perry, and more. Ben Affleck is SO happy to be away from JLo. Corey Feldman is being attacked by ‘Jim and Them' and he is worried for his son, Zen. Elon Musk vs Marco Rubio. Tesla is under fire. SpaceX had a boo boo. Elon had his 14th child. Columbia University is losing grants. David Schwimmer wants more support for Jews. Kanye West is back to doing Kanye West things. Hunter Biden is broke and no one is coming to save him this time. Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez set a wedding date. If you'd like to help support the show… consider subscribing to our YouTube Channel, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter (The Drew Lane Show, Marc Fellhauer, Trudi Daniels, Jim Bentley and BranDon).

I attempted to be MacGyver, but might be closer to MacGruber. A woman stole an eatery's fancy bathroom sink. Truck hauling a load of curly fries catches fire on Maine highway. Humans only make up 38.5% of the internet. Who'd be the best celebrity to hangout with? Adam Sandler, Dwayne Johnson, Jack Black, or Shaq. The NFL is starting to move on from their old ways, and will be phasing out the chain gang. Travis Kelce told Pat McAfee that he's not going to retire this offseason. Hiker lost in China's frigid mountains for 10 days survives by eating toothpaste. But did they?

In this episode of the 3 Geeks Podcast, we sit down with the incredibly talented Amie Mackenzie, an American bi-coastal actor making major moves in 2024. With eight exciting projects this year, Amie is proving to be a rising force in television and film. She kicked off the year with a role in Elsbeth (Season 1), followed by a standout appearance in Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story, where she shares the screen with Nathan Lane in a stunning dinner party scene. Later this year, audiences can catch her in a Netflix series alongside Nestor Carbonell, and she has also landed a role in Taylor Sheridan's highly anticipated new show, The Madison, playing an entitled frenemy of Michelle Pfeiffer's character. We also dive into Amie's role in Dexter: Original Sin, the upcoming prequel to the hit Showtime series. She shares insights into working on the project, what fans can expect from this fresh take on Dexter's early years, and how it was stepping into the world of one of TV's most iconic crime dramas. With her ability to seamlessly navigate between thrilling crime series and prestige dramas, Amie's versatility is undeniable. Beyond television, Amie's film career is also taking off. She recently worked on a project with Alicia Vikander and Wagner Moura, expected to make the festival rounds in late 2025 or early 2026. Her involvement in the Sundance Director's Lab led to another feature film opportunity, which is also set for festival releases next year. Before this breakout year, Amie had already built an impressive resume with roles in Better Call Saul, AJ and the Queen (alongside RuPaul), MacGruber, Deputy, Messiah, and Taylor Sheridan's 1923. In this interview, she shares her experiences working on these incredible projects, what it's like collaborating with some of Hollywood's biggest names, and what the future holds for her rapidly growing career. Don't miss this exciting conversation with Amie Mackenzie! Be sure to like, comment, and subscribe to the 3 Geeks Podcast for more amazing interviews. Hit the notification bell so you never miss an update!

This week the gang talks about ChiefsAholic: A Wolf in Chiefs Clothing, Jury Duty, MacGruber, Skyrim, Chained Echos, Skate Story, and more!Follow us on Instagram Leave us a voicemail at (804) 286-0626 and consider supporting us through our Patreon Check out the Discord! News Links: GTA 6 might be $100 New Joy-Cons might not drift Silksong is definitely coming out Bluepoint game canceled 

On this week's show, the hosts chew over Nightbitch, Marielle Heller's (Queen's Gambit, Can You Ever Forgive Me, The Diary of a Teenage Girl, MacGruber), fourth feature film. Amy Adam stars as “Mother,” a former artist who has given up her creative pursuits to care for her infant son full-time — a transition so taxing, that she begins dissociating and transforming into a dog at night. And while there's a lot to like here (it's an adaptation of Rachel Yonder's magical realism novel of the same name, for example), does the film ever achieve lift-off?  Then, the three rip Black Doves to shreds, Netflix's latest espionage show starring Keira Knightly, Sarah Lancashire, and Ben Whishaw that has far too many plot holes to name (although, Stephen does try to.) Finally, the panel digs into the strange case of Luigi Mangione, the suspected shooter in the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson — and the internet's sardonic, if not jubilant, reaction to the fatal shooting. In the exclusive Slate Plus segment, the panel explores the celebrity look-alike contest: a puzzling and mildly delightful phenomenon that's been sweeping the nation. (Read Nadira Goffe's excellent reporting on the Timothée Chalamet tournament that started it all, here.) FINAL CALL: We are down to the final week! To submit your question for our annual call-in show (for inspiration, check out last year's episode), please call (260) 337-8260 to leave us a voicemail, or record a voice note and email it to us at culturefest@slate.com.  Or, email us at culturefest@slate.com if you just want to gab.  Endorsements: Dana: The Year of Lear audiobook, written by James Shapiro and narrated by Robert Fass.  Julia: Tree.fm — a project by Sounds of the Forest and aporee, where you can tune into forest soundscapes from around the world.  Stephen: A cover of Richard and Linda Thompson's “Down Where the Drunkards Roll,” performed by Loudon Wainwright III and Rufus Wainwright.  Podcast production by Jared Downing. Production assistance by Kat Hong. Disclosure in Podcast Description: A Bond Account is a self-directed brokerage account with Public Investing, member FINRA/SIPC. Deposits into this account are used to purchase 10 investment-grade and high-yield bonds. As of 9/26/24, the average, annualized yield to worst (YTW) across the Bond Account is greater than 6%. A bond's yield is a function of its market price, which can fluctuate; therefore, a bond's YTW is not “locked in” until the bond is purchased, and your yield at time of purchase may be different from the yield shown here. The “locked in” YTW is not guaranteed; you may receive less than the YTW of the bonds in the Bond Account if you sell any of the bonds before maturity or if the issuer defaults on the bond. Public Investing charges a markup on each bond trade. See our Fee Schedule. Bond Accounts are not recommendations of individual bonds or default allocations. The bonds in the Bond Account have not been selected based on your needs or risk profile. See https://public.com/disclosures/bond-account to learn more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week's show, the hosts chew over Nightbitch, Marielle Heller's (Queen's Gambit, Can You Ever Forgive Me, The Diary of a Teenage Girl, MacGruber), fourth feature film. Amy Adam stars as “Mother,” a former artist who has given up her creative pursuits to care for her infant son full-time — a transition so taxing, that she begins dissociating and transforming into a dog at night. And while there's a lot to like here (it's an adaptation of Rachel Yonder's magical realism novel of the same name, for example), does the film ever achieve lift-off?  Then, the three rip Black Doves to shreds, Netflix's latest espionage show starring Keira Knightly, Sarah Lancashire, and Ben Whishaw that has far too many plot holes to name (although, Stephen does try to.) Finally, the panel digs into the strange case of Luigi Mangione, the suspected shooter in the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson — and the internet's sardonic, if not jubilant, reaction to the fatal shooting. In the exclusive Slate Plus segment, the panel explores the celebrity look-alike contest: a puzzling and mildly delightful phenomenon that's been sweeping the nation. (Read Nadira Goffe's excellent reporting on the Timothée Chalamet tournament that started it all, here.) FINAL CALL: We are down to the final week! To submit your question for our annual call-in show (for inspiration, check out last year's episode), please call (260) 337-8260 to leave us a voicemail, or record a voice note and email it to us at culturefest@slate.com.  Or, email us at culturefest@slate.com if you just want to gab.  Endorsements: Dana: The Year of Lear audiobook, written by James Shapiro and narrated by Robert Fass.  Julia: Tree.fm — a project by Sounds of the Forest and aporee, where you can tune into forest soundscapes from around the world.  Stephen: A cover of Richard and Linda Thompson's “Down Where the Drunkards Roll,” performed by Loudon Wainwright III and Rufus Wainwright.  Podcast production by Jared Downing. Production assistance by Kat Hong. Disclosure in Podcast Description: A Bond Account is a self-directed brokerage account with Public Investing, member FINRA/SIPC. Deposits into this account are used to purchase 10 investment-grade and high-yield bonds. As of 9/26/24, the average, annualized yield to worst (YTW) across the Bond Account is greater than 6%. A bond's yield is a function of its market price, which can fluctuate; therefore, a bond's YTW is not “locked in” until the bond is purchased, and your yield at time of purchase may be different from the yield shown here. The “locked in” YTW is not guaranteed; you may receive less than the YTW of the bonds in the Bond Account if you sell any of the bonds before maturity or if the issuer defaults on the bond. Public Investing charges a markup on each bond trade. See our Fee Schedule. Bond Accounts are not recommendations of individual bonds or default allocations. The bonds in the Bond Account have not been selected based on your needs or risk profile. See https://public.com/disclosures/bond-account to learn more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jasper Cole talks his upcoming film "Final Recovery", finding balance, aging into his niche, and shares a couple fun audition stories! About Jasper: With a career spanning four decades, Cole has made a name for himself with over 120 film and television credits to date. He will next be seen with his first lead role as Rodney Garrett in the upcoming Christmas horror thriller Final Recovery, which he also produced. From the team behind the award-winning series Kombucha Cure, the film tells the story of a desolate rehab center in Michigan where things are not as they appear, and patient's recovery efforts are hindered by a ruthless administrator. The cast also includes TV icon Charlene Tilton, Richard Tyson, Michael Emery, and Cherish Lee just to name a few. The movie is set to premiere on-demand soon. See the Variety exclusive here. His diverse resume is a testament to his talent. Best known for his memorable role as Zeke in the cult classic MacGruber opposite Val Kilmer, Will Forte, Val Kilmer, Kristen Wiig, and Ryan Phillippe. Cole also showcased his range in the critically acclaimed thriller Fall alongside Jeffrey Dean Morgan and will also appear in its upcoming sequels. In addition, he can currently be seen with a cameo as Rusty in the film Don't Turn Out The Lights, which is streaming now on Prime Video and will be available onHulu October 25th. A fixture on the small screen, Cole co-starred with Emmy-winner Tamara Braun in the popular Amazon Prime Series Kombucha Cure, which he executive produced. Other television credits include American Horror Story, CBS' Training Day, The Rookie, and Brooklyn Nine-Nine among many others.  Follow the show on social media!          Instagram: https://instagram.com/thanksforcominginpodcast/          Twitter: https://twitter.com/tfci_podcast          Facebook: http://facebook.com/thanksforcominginpodcast/           Patreon: patreon.com/thanksforcomingin YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXj8Rb1bEmhufSBFSCyp4JQ Theme Music by Andrew Skrabutenas Producers: Jillian Clare & Susan Bernhardt Channel: Realm For more information, go to thanksforcominginpodcast.com  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

John welcomes back Marielle Heller (Can You Ever Forgive Me?, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood) to look at three stories of real people with too much money and ask, How Would This Be a Movie? Stories include strategies for dating Leonardo DiCaprio, the rise-fall-rise of inventor Palmer Luckey, and a council built to give away a fortune. We also go feral over Marielle's new movie Nightbitch, as she shares the joys of adapting something that feels personal and her tricks to directing dogs and children. But first, we take a look at a new study on which movies studios are developing, and share exciting news for those joining us at the Austin Film Festival. In our bonus segment for premium members, Marielle and John remember the terror, nerves and euphoria of premiering your movie at film festivals. Links: Nightbitch | Official Trailer Marielle Heller Highland Pro Austin launch party – sign up here! MacGruber on Peacock Hollywood's 10 Percent Problem by Matt Belloni at Puck Dating a Celebrity – Thread by bo.predko American Vulcan by Jeremy Stern for Tablet How to Give Away a Fortune by Joshua Yaffa for The New Yorker You Get to Be Fulfilled Now by Teresa Jusino Bird Milk & Mosquito Bones by Priyanka Mattoo Get a Scriptnotes T-shirt! Check out the Inneresting Newsletter Gift a Scriptnotes Subscription or treat yourself to a premium subscription! Craig Mazin on Threads and Instagram John August on Threads, Instagram, Twitter and Mastodon Outro by Spencer Lackey (send us yours!) Scriptnotes is produced by Drew Marquardt and edited by Matthew Chilelli. Email us at ask@johnaugust.com You can download the episode here.

This week, Will Forte and John Solomon take over the podcast! Joined by Seth and Jorma, the guys talk about how MacGruber was originally created, Will and John's writing partnership, and the MacGruber sketches with Molly Shannon, Seth Rogen, and more!MacGruber (every episode)The FalconerPotato ChipJennjamin Franklin: Second Chance TheaterThe Date(Not all the clips we mention are available online; some never even aired.)If you want to see more photos and clips follow us on Instagram @thelonelyislandpod.Take the guesswork out of buying concert tickets with Gametime. Download the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LONELY for $20 off your first purchase. Terms apply. Download Gametime today. Last minute tickets. Lowest Price. Guaranteed.Here's a special limited time deal for our listeners.Get up to 60% off at Babbel.com/LONELY Produced by Rabbit Grin ProductionsExecutive Producers Jeph Porter and Rob HolyszLead Producer Kevin MillerCreative Producer Samantha SkeltonCoordinating Producer Derek JohnsonCover Art by Olney AtwellMusic by Greg Chun and Brent AsburyEdit by Cheyenne JonesMix and Master by Jason Richards

Hey guys Mike's gout took a turn for the worse     Join us at Patreon.com/dadmeatpodcast for part 2 of this episode and for details on the group trip to Medieval Times in Baltimore. Check out "Durag and the Deertag" here: https://www.youtube.com/@duragandthedeertag9693 See Tim do stand up live: https://linktr.ee/timbutterly See Mike do stand up live: https://linktr.ee/MikeRainey82 Check out Tim's YouTube channel at    / @timbutterly   for live streams and his killer new project, Field Trippin', which you can also support at Patreon.com/TimButterly Pre-order Mike's new book, Delco Dirtball, a wigger crime novel, at OnPercs.com/store Everyone who pre-orders gets an invite to Mike's movie theatre screening of MacGruber and his Rain Train BBQ on Labor Day Weekend Go to Patreon.com/lilstinkers for the best murder/Impractical Jokers-themed podcast out there Support the show and get 10% off the best hummer ever. Head to https://www.autoblow.com and use code DADMEAT

Shaner joins us to discuss formulating a streamer apology, whisper chats, and the spicy texts that Tim has been receiving from a friend. Join us at Patreon.com/dadmeatpodcast for part 2 of this episode and for details on the group trip to Medieval Times in Baltimore. Check out "The End with Ryan Shaner" here: https://www.youtube.com/@TheEndPod See Tim do stand up live: https://linktr.ee/timbutterly See Mike do stand up live: https://linktr.ee/MikeRainey82 Check out Tim's YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/@TimButterly for live streams and his killer new project, Field Trippin', which you can also support at Patreon.com/TimButterly Pre-order Mike's new book, Delco Dirtball, a wigger crime novel, at OnPercs.com/store Everyone who pre-orders gets an invite to Mike's movie theatre screening of MacGruber and his Rain Train BBQ on Labor Day Weekend Go to Patreon.com/lilstinkers for the best murder/Impractical Jokers-themed podcast out there Support the show and get 10% off the best hummer ever. Head to https://www.autoblow.com and use code DADMEAT

Shane and Sarah join us to discuss losing your crankin' virginity, performing for The Pope, and John Taffer screaming at your wife. Join us at Patreon.com/dadmeatpodcast for part 2 of this episode and for details on the group trip to Medieval Times in Baltimore. See Shane & Sarah film their special on June 23 in Philly: https://bit.ly/3RxHDDf See Tim do stand up live: https://linktr.ee/timbutterly See Mike do stand up live: https://linktr.ee/MikeRainey82 Check out Tim's YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/@TimButterly for live streams and his killer new project, Field Trippin', which you can also support at Patreon.com/TimButterly Pre-order Mike's new book, Delco Dirtball, a wigger crime novel, at OnPercs.com/store Everyone who pre-orders gets an invite to Mike's movie theatre screening of MacGruber and his Rain Train BBQ on Labor Day Weekend Go to Patreon.com/lilstinkers for the best murder/Impractical Jokers-themed podcast out there

Tubs and Foster join us to discuss chocolate waterfalls, shotgun baby deliveries, and cauliflower butt. Join us at Patreon.com/dadmeatpodcast for part 2 of this episode and for details on the group trip to Medieval Times in Baltimore. See Tim do stand up live: https://linktr.ee/timbutterly See Mike do stand up live: https://linktr.ee/MikeRainey82 Check out Tim's YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/@TimButterly for live streams and his killer new project, Field Trippin', which you can also support at Patreon.com/TimButterly Pre-order Mike's new book, Delco Dirtball, a wigger crime novel, at OnPercs.com/store Everyone who pre-orders gets an invite to Mike's movie theatre screening of MacGruber and his Rain Train BBQ on Labor Day Weekend Go to Patreon.com/lilstinkers for the best murder/Impractical Jokers-themed podcast out there

Seth takes a closer look at Matt Gaetz and Lauren Boebert getting heckled outside the Manhattan criminal courthouse where they appeared along with several other MAGA weirdos in support of Trump. Then, Will Forte talks about some of the problematic names he has in his family, his wife pushing for a MacGruber musical and working on his Irish accent while filming projects like Bodkin in Ireland.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.