Bonus! - The Master

As the years have gone by, irresistible boy-wonder Paul Thomas Anderson has gone from being the cool guy who directed an ode to the porn industry to being the boring old man behind a period dramedy where Daniel Day Lewis put us all to sleep. Somewhere in between Boogie Nights and Phantom Thread lies THE MASTER, a pretentious, bloated, so-called “exposé” on Scientology that fooled critics into thinking it was great - even though nobody could really agree on what the movie was saying. Listen to Alex & Julio break down the mutually parasitic relationship between Phillip Seymour Hoffman and Joaquin Phoenix in PTA’s most overrated film!

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140 - Pain & Gain

It’s so easy to make fun of Michael Bay, Filmmaking Bro Extraordinaire. On the other hand, it’s not so easy to fully engage with a truly challenging film in his oeuvre. Is PAIN & GAIN a misguided celebration of American stupidity, or a surprising cautionary tale about the dangerous allure of the American Dream? The Tomatometer can’t make up its mind, so it’s up to Alex & Julio to figure it out in yet another Gray Area battle!

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139 - In the Cut

Sometimes actors take a left turn in their careers and it pays off wonderfully, with award nominations and a creative renaissance. Sometimes, IN THE CUT happens. Meg Ryan’s attempt to pivot from romantic comedies into erotic thrillers bombed hard, despite being helmed by acclaimed filmmaker Jane Campion, and despite co-starring a young, virile, mustached Mark Ruffalo. Listen to Alex and Julio as they praise this indie deep-dive into the perils of being a woman with a healthy sexual appetite in New York City!

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Bonus! - Hancock

Simply put: 2008 is the year humanity failed cinema. Audiences & critics embraced vanilla superhero fare like IRON MAN and THE DARK KNIGHT, and then turned their nose up at a much more challenging take on the genre. Peter Berg’s HANCOCK gave us a hero we hadn’t seen before, played by a Will Smith we hadn’t seen before, and it was clearly too much for the world to process. Listen to Alex & Julio as they discuss the untapped potential of this maligned masterpiece - a work of art that could’ve saved us from the current MCU and DCEU nightmares we’re living through.

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138 - The Sixth Sense

Our Shyamalanthology comes to a close by going back to where it all truly began. But does THE SIXTH SENSE hold up? Or is it just an early example of M. Night Shyamalan’s bad habits? Did he trick us into believing constant whispering equals good acting? What does Bruce Willis do in between scenes? And why hasn’t Toni Collette called an actual professional to help her son? Listen to Alex & Julio take on the movie that bought Shyamalan a lifelong “get out of film jail free” card!

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137 - After Earth (2013)

You think we are cowards? We are not cowards! We will defend M. Night Shyamalan’s stripped-down sci-fi masterpiece AFTER EARTH even if most people don’t even remember it was an M. Night movie! Listen to Alex & Julio as they rave about this momentous passing of the torch between Will and Jaden Smith, and commend Shyamalan’s ability to fade into the background, letting his stars and their story shine. It’s part three of the Shyamalanthology!

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Bonus! - Extinction (2018)

As we stare at the potential end to the era of multimillion-dollar blockbusters, we take a break from The Shyamalanthology to celebrate a medium-budget sci-fi adventure like EXTINCTION. Listen to Alex and Julio delve into the latest Patron Pick (thanks, Dan Brenic!) and ask tough questions such as: Why don’t we see Michael Peña in more leading roles? Why would a studio refuse to release this interracial mind-bender in theaters? And why must all roads lead to humanity repeating the same mistakes time and again?

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136 - Signs

When SIGNS originally premiered back in 2002, we were all under the spell of M. Night Shyamalan. The last true Mel Gibson blockbuster coasted on lots of good will earned by The Sixth Sense & Unbreakable, despite making very little sense. But what does Shyamalan’s third movie look like in the year 2021? Listen to Alex & Julio try to answer that question as they wonder if M. Night truly believes everything happens for a reason, puzzle over a bizarre Michael Showalter cameo, and discuss their frustrations with Shyamalan’s increasing on-camera participation! It’s part two of the Shyamalanthology!

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135 - The Last Airbender

The Shyamalanthology begins! And we’re starting at the bottom, guys. The Tomatometer has THE LAST AIRBENDER at 5%, but did it really deserve all that hate, or was it simply review-bombed by anime fanboys? Listen to Alex & Julio as they try to figure out what all the negativity is about when it comes to this perfectly fine fantasy adventure that features a delightfully evil Dev Patel and one of the most brutal deaths ever covered on the show!

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Bonus! - Gettin' Square

A beloved Aussie indie starring Sam Worthington? Whatreyaonabout, mate? Grab a coldie, put some shrimp on the barbie, invite a couple of Sheilas over, and listen to Alex and Julio try to make sense of GETTIN’ SQUARE - a Guy Ritchie rip-off from down under. Does this movie confirm Sam Worthington’s appeal is an Australian fetish? Did director Jonathan Teplitzky not realize Timothy Spall is only meant to play supporting roles? And which clown school did David Wenham graduate from - and do they offer refunds? All this and more in our latest Patron Demand episode!

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