Filmspotting: Streaming Video Unit (SVU)

It's been six (mostly) wonderful years of Filmspotting: Streaming Video Unit, but on this episode, Matt and Alison say goodbye. First, in honor of JUSTIN BIEBER: NEVER SAY NEVER, which they talked about in their first episode (yup) back in 2012, they take a look at a movie that owes a lot to that documentary — Lonely Island's POPSTAR: NEVER STOP NEVER STOPPING. Then they devote the rest of the podcast to answering listener questions about everything from the future of the film industry to THE ADVENTURES OF FORD FAIRLANE. Thanks for listening, everyone!Hosts' Choice Review: "Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping"Useful Links: Older Filmspotting: SVU EpisodesRemnants of the IFC News Podcast

Remember how when we were kids we battled a nightmare clown terrorizing our small town and devouring children? No? Maybe it was just us then. On this episode of Filmspotting: Streaming Video Unit, Matt and Alison take a look at the 1990 TV miniseries version of Stephen King's IT, now available on Hulu, and then recommend some other clown movies, scary and otherwise, available to rent or stream right now. They also share some important (and sad) news about the future of the podcast. Listener's Choice Review: "It" (1990)Queue Shots: Clown MoviesBehind the 8-Ball: 3 New Streaming ReleasesAlison: The Young Karl Marx / A Star Is Born / Welcome Home, Roxy CarmichaelMatt: Lady Bird / Yellow Submarine / Paramount2 Listener Recommendations1 Random Film From Our Netflix "My Lists"

Get your skates straight and put out that cigarette, because on this week's show, Matt and Alison are talking 2017's Tonya Harding biopic I, TONYA, which was recently added to Hulu. Then, inspired by the sport that made Harding famous (before The Incident made her infamous), they recommend some other movies (and one television series) that feature ice skating, all available to rent or stream.Listener's Choice Review: "I, Tonya"Queue Shots: Movies (And One TV Show) Involving Ice SkatingBehind the 8-Ball: 3 New Streaming ReleasesAlison: The Chinese Exclusion Act / Bad Genius / Boarding GateMatt: The Disaster Artist / The Quick and the Dead / The Debt Collector2 Listener Recommendations1 Random Film From Our Netflix "My Lists"

Is John Woo's latest movie a return to form for the director, or something closer to self-parody? On this episode of Filmspotting: Streaming Video Unit, Matt and Alison debate the merits of MANHUNT, Woo's 2017 thriller, which was recently released as a Netflix original. Then, despite MANHUNT taking place in Japan, they use Woo's place as an influential force in Hong Kong film to recommend some other Hong Kong action movies, all available to rent or stream.Listener's Choice Review: "Manunt"Queue Shots: Hong Kong Action MoviesBehind the 8-Ball: 3 New Streaming ReleasesAlison: Beatriz at Dinner / The Student / Shanghai JoeMatt: Evil Genius / Ace in the Hole / The Toys That Made Us2 Listener Recommendations1 Random Film From Our Netflix "My Lists"

There comes a time when a young girl blossoms into a woman, and sometimes that woman turns out to possess terrifying powers that are some kind of allegory for the female sexuality. On this episode, Matt and Alison take a wander through the genre of the supernatural coming of age story, recommending some titles to rent or stream right now. It's all the better to accompany their main review of Joachim Trier's 2017 THELMA, about a teenager from a strict, repressed background who discovers a lot about herself — a lot more than fits into the expected definition of reality — when she goes off to college.Listener's Choice Review: "Thelma"Queue Shots: Supernatural Coming of Age MoviesBehind the 8-Ball: 3 New Streaming ReleasesAlison: BPM (Beats per Minute) / Psychokinesis / Murder on the Orient ExpressMatt: Last Flag Flying / Planet of the Apes / Manhunt2 Listener Recommendations1 Random Film From Our Netflix "My Lists"

"People come to the Oasis for all the things they can do, but they stay for all the things they can be." Presuming, that is, those things are licensable bits of IP. On this episode, Matt and Alison use Steven Spielberg's latest, READY PLAYER ONE, as an excuse to talk about all sorts of movies that turn up in the reference-heavy dystopian adventure, including their main review of Brad Bird's beloved 1999 THE IRON GIANT. And as always, the titles they talk about are all available for rental or streaming right now.Listener's Choice Review: "The Iron Giant"Queue Shots: Movies Referenced in Ready Player OneBehind the 8-Ball: 3 New Streaming ReleasesAlison:  24 Hour Party People / Saturday Church / Lost in SpaceMatt: Kodachrome / Lust for Life / The Unauthorized Saved by the Bell Story2 Listener Recommendations1 Random Film From Our Netflix "My Lists"

On this episode, Matt and Alison talk cults versus communes, xenophobia, sexual liberation, immigration fraud, religious freedom, and also putting beavers into blenders in order to use the resulting goo to taint the water supply. Yes, they're going deep into WILD WILD COUNTRY, Netflix's stranger-than-fiction docuseries about the 1980s clash between the followers of the Indian guru Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh and the locals in Oregon area where they attempted to build a utopian community. Then, as a nod to the series' sibling filmmaking team, Chapman and MacLain Way, they recommend some other brother-director titles available to rent or stream.Listener's Choice Review: "Wild Wild Country"Queue Shots: Movies Made By BrothersBehind the 8-Ball: 3 New Streaming ReleasesAlison: AMO / The Killing of a Sacred Deer / The Florida ProjectMatt: Reservoir Dogs / You Don't Mess With the Zohan / Nailed It2 Listener Recommendations1 Random Film From Our Netflix "My Lists"

Pour a row of martinis and ready your finest 1930s repartee, because on this episode of Filmspotting: Streaming Video Unit, Matt and Alison sample THE THIN MAN, available via TCM's new partnership with FilmStruck. And, in honor of Nick and Nora Charles making constant alcohol consumption look so good, they spend the second half of the episode recommending some other movies about drinking that are available to rent or stream right now.Listener's Choice Review: "The Thin Man"Queue Shots: Movies About DrinkingBehind the 8-Ball: 3 New Streaming Releases2 Listener Recommendations1 Random Film From Our Netflix "My Lists"

Willkommen, bienvenue, welcome — in this episode of Filmspotting: Streaming Video Unit, Matt and Alison pay a visit to Weimar-era Berlin by way of the German period drama BABYLON BERLIN, co-created by Tom Tykwer and streaming on Netflix. Then they talk about how the city tends to be portrayed on screen, recommending some other Berlin-set titles that are available to rent or stream.Listener's Choice Review: "Babylon Berlin"Queue Shots: Berlin MoviesBehind the 8-Ball: 3 New Streaming Releases2 Listener Recommendations1 Random Film From Our Netflix "My Lists"

It's no sleep 'til Rego Park, Queens, in this episode of Filmspotting: Streaming Video Unit, in which Matt and Alison consider the uneasy charms of the Safdie brothers' New York set-thriller GOOD TIME, starring Robert Pattinson and currently streaming on Amazon. Then they recommend some other staying-up-all-night movies that are available to rent or stream, from the romantic to the nostalgic to the dystopian. Listener's Choice Review: "Good Time"Queue Shots: Movies That Take Place In One NightBehind the 8-Ball: 3 New Streaming Releases2 Listener Recommendations1 Random Film From Our Netflix "My Lists"

What is the future for original movies on the world's largest streaming service? In this episode of Filmspotting: Streaming Video Unit, Matt and Alison wonder where Netflix is headed as they take longer looks at two recent acquisitions — the Hungarian Best Foreign Language Film nominee ON BODY AND SOUL and the studio-discard-turned-Super-Bowl-stunt movie THE CLOVERFIELD PARADOX.Listener's Choice Review: "On Body and Soul"A Special Occasion Second Longer Review: "The Cloverfield Paradox"Behind the 8-Ball: 3 New Streaming Releases2 Listener Recommendations1 Random Film From Our Netflix "My Lists" 

Sometimes you've got to talk your pain and frustration out — and sometimes you've got to punch a car. In this episode of Filmspotting: Streaming Video Unit, Matt and Alison consider a film that tries to do both — S. Craig Zahler's brawny, wry, brutal Vince Vaughn-goes-to-prison drama BRAWL IN CELL BLOCK 99. Then they offer some recommendations of other movies that could also be considered neo-exploitation, all available to rent or stream right now.Listener's Choice Review: "Brawl in Cell Block 99"Queue Shots: Neo-Exploitation MoviesBehind the 8-Ball: 3 New Streaming Releases2 Listener Recommendations1 Random Film From Our Netflix "My Lists"

Ghosts — not just good for scares! In this episode of Filmspotting: Streaming Video Unit, Matt and Alison take a look at A GHOST STORY, David Lowery's exploration of grief, time, and the afterlife as represented by a sheet with two eye holes cut in it. Then they run with the theme to recommend some other good ghost stories, spooky and otherwise, that are currently available to rent or stream right now.Listener's Choice Review: "A Ghost Story"Queue Shots: Ghostly MoviesBehind the 8-Ball: 3 New Streaming Releases2 Listener Recommendations1 Random Film From Our Netflix "My Lists"

Orcs, elves, fairies, and racial allegories — on this episode of Filmspotting: Streaming Video Unit, Matt and Alison delve into the deceptively muddled waters of BRIGHT, Netflix's first homegrown attempt at a blockbuster. Then, in honor of the film's (human) lead, they look at the hit-laden career of BRIGHT star Will Smith, highlighting titles you can rent or stream right now, from early obscurities to the big successes that may or may not hold up.Listener's Choice Review: "Bright"Queue Shots: Will Smith MoviesBehind the 8-Ball: 3 New Streaming Releases2 Listener Recommendations1 Random Film From Our Netflix "My Lists"

2017. It was... quite a year. But at least there were some good films? On this episode of Filmspotting: Streaming Video Unit, Matt and Alison look back at the past 12 months of movies by way of their annual, unconventional, and highly personal year-end awards. Yes, it's the SVUvies, in which the cinematic year gets broken down by way of categories like "We Didn't Get It," "Best Music Moment," and, of course, "Best Film of 2017." Then Matt and Alison offer up some recommendations of titles that are new to streaming, and a few from SVU listeners.Behind the 8-Ball: 3 New ReleasesAlison: Free In Deed / Dawson City: Frozen Time / Better Watch OutMatt: Ash vs Evil Dead / Step / Total Recall2 Listener RecommendationsAlison: Bad Lucky Goat / Rat FilmMatt: Star Treks Deep Space Nine and Voyager / Taxi1 Random Film From Our Netflix "My Lists"Alison: LagaanMatt: The Twilight ZoneThis episode of Filmspotting: SVU is brought to you by Dropbox and Showstopper.