Cinemaholics

This week on Extra Milestone, I'm joined by returning guest and fellow cinephile Andrew McMahon to break down an enticing double feature spanning numerous decades and genres. First up is a cinematic and musical appetizer in the form of Gimme Shelter, the iconic Rolling Stones documentary directed by Charlotte Zwerin and the Maysles Brothers, chronicling the doomed Altamont Speedway concert outside of San Francisco in December of 1969, a tragic failure that swiftly signaled the downfall of the Counterculture Movement. After that, we jump forward to Michael Mann's Heat, a stylish and captivating crime drama featuring the first onscreen collaboration between Al Pacino and Robert De Niro, and which has maintained its legacy as one of the best films of its kind.

Cinemaholics is what you Mank of it. Which is why we’re reviewing David Fincher’s latest film, Mank, now streaming on Netflix and starring Gary Oldman, Amanda Seyfried, and Charles Dance. Manks in advance for listening. We also review Sound of Metal starring Riz Ahmed and Olivia Cooke, Black Bear starring Aubrey Plaza and Christopher Abbot, and Godmothered starring Jillian Bell, Isla Fisher, and June Squibb.

This week on Extra Milestone, I'm joined once more by my good friend Guy Simons Jr. to dissect a pair of (relatively) recent classics that have garnered acclaim over the years, and which have almost nothing whatsoever to do with each other! First up is Pixar's groundbreaking debut feature Toy Story, the first-ever wholly computer animated movie that has gained a reputation as an indispensable landmark in special effects and storytelling. After that, we jump ahead to M. Night Shyamalan's unconventional superhero story Unbreakable, a grounded deconstruction of the genre that arrived before cinema as a whole had become swept up in comic book storytelling, and which has amassed a sizable (and well-earned) cult following.

Not all of us are in love with Clea DuVall’s latest film, Happiest Season, which is a Christmas romantic comedy on Hulu starring Kristen Stewart, Mackenzie Davis, Aubrey Plaza, and many more. Will and Abby take some time to review the latest “Small Axe” film from Steve McQueen on Amazon Prime Video: Lovers Rock. The whole gang joins the fun of The Twentieth Century, Matthew Rankin’s absurdist festival indie that might’ve stolen all our hearts. We also cover our mixed feelings on Alan Ball’s latest film since 2007, Uncle Frank, which boasts strong performances from Paul Bettany, Peter Macdissi, and Sophia Lillis. And last, Jon discusses Zappa, Alex Winter’s eclectic new documentary about the life of the infamous guitarist Frank Zappa.

Even in the midst of a year as hectic and unconventional as this one, Oscar season is still in full swing when it comes to this week’s selection of heavy hitters. Joining me once again for the first time in nearly three years is Maria Garcia, my former partner in crime from such shows as Now Conspiring and Part-Time Characters, and we’re discussing two films often hailed as being among the greatest of all time! We begin with Raging Bull, the morally complex sports biopic that saved Martin Scorsese’s life and has developed a widely varied legacy, and which one of us isn’t especially fond of! From there, we rewind the clock to visit Miloš Forman’s award season darling One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, a wholly unique classic within film history that holds up wonderfully to this day! What is the nature of tragedy? How far can sympathy and empathy take us? Has Sam become completely unrecognizable in the past three years? Which actor’s appearance in Cuckoo’s Nest has traumatized Maria on more than one occasion, and who emerges as the unexpected MVP of the film? Tune in to this week’s Extra Milestone for all of those answers and more.

It’s just Will and Abby on the show this week, so you know what that means. No rules! No Jon to tell us, “No, you can’t review Aneesh Chaganty’s new film Run, his follow-up to Searching.” It doesn’t matter that it stars Sarah Paulson and Kiera Allen in her breakout role, or that the film is now streaming on Hulu. That’s right, Will and Abby are going all out. They’re talking about the best and worst Ron Howard movies. They’re discussing some under-the-radar films you might want to look into, plus a holiday special they break down brick by brick. So until Jon gets back, it’s a momentous — nay classic — Will and Abby shenanicast.

To close out the month of October, we're reviewing two of the best films of the 1950s, and also trying out a new format for the show! First up is my conversation with Rob Wilkinson on Joseph L. Mankiewicz's All About Eve, an all-star drama with a record-breaking number of Oscar nominations, and which happens to be a fantastic exploration of the unforgiving theater world. After that, I chat with my Anyway, That's All I Got cohost Anthony Battaglia about Nicholas Ray's Rebel Without A Cause, a landmark teen drama featuring an indelible posthumous performance by James Dean, and which is also fantastic!

The Cinemaholics are having an out of body experience covering the latest films this week, which include a new comedy horror starring Vince Vaughan and Kathryn Newton, from Happy Death Day director Christopher Landon. In addition to our main reviews, we briefly discuss some new shows we’ve been catching up on and ask the listeners what their favorite (and least favorite) Ron Howard movies are.

Adonis Gonzalez, my cohost on A Nice Place to Visit and Game Over, Man!, is back on the show to discuss a trio of movies that have nothing to do with each other…or do they? Tune in to hear our conversation on Kevin Costner’s Oscar-Winning epic Dances With Wolves, John Sturges’ iconic western remake The Magnificent Seven, and Charles Burnett’s engrossing family drama To Sleep With Anger!

Election week is over, but that doesn’t mean we took a break from catching up on new movies. Our reviews this week include The Dark and the Wicked, a new horror film from Bryan Bertino that is now streaming on demand. We also discuss the new Netflix miniseries The Queen’s Gambit, which stars Anya Taylor-Joy and Marielle Heller. Plus, we cover Let Him Go starring Kevin Costner and Diane Lane, Kindred starring Tamara Lawrance and Fiona Shaw, Come Playstarring Gillian Jacobs and Azhy Robertson, and finally Time, Garrett Bradley’s new Amazon Studios documentary that premiered at Sundance 2020.

Will Ashton returns to Extra Milestone yet again to chart an unusual cinematic path across the 1980s and 1990s! We begin with an examination of David Lynch’s The Elephant Man, including our thoughts on the story’s emotional core, trivia on why the film is significant to the history of the academy, our impressions of David Lynch, and more! From there, we return to the films of Martin Scorsese with After Hours, an unusual and underseen comedic outing from the acclaimed director, and we close out the show by bringing the films of Abbas Kiarostami into focus with Close-Up, a hybrid documentary exploring the very nature and function of cinema.

In this house, we review the new Netflix horror film His House, the feature debut of writer/director Remi Weekes starring Wunmi Mosaku, Sope Dirisu, and Matt Smith. We also discuss the soft reboot/sequel The Craft: Legacy, which is now on VOD. There's Holidate, an unexpectedly R-rated rom-com on Netflix that might win some hearts. And last, Glen Keane's feature directorial debut, Over the Moon, an animated family film from the same studio that made last year's Abominable.

Guy Simons Jr. (of Anyway, That's All I Got fame) joins me for the first time on Extra Milestone for a special Halloween episode devoted to two of the greatest serial killer movies of all time! Kicking off our conversation is Alfred Hitchcock's game-changing masterpiece Psycho, including the unique and revolutionary distribution of the film, the ways in which it insidiously sets itself apart from every other movie, whether or not it should be considered a 'slasher,' and more! After that, we jump forward to David Fincher's haunting detective thriller Se7en, a movie which one of us had somehow never seen until now! We also discuss the film's somewhat troubled legacy, the ways in which it has infiltrated the internet consciousness, and even some valuable insight on whether or not it should be viewed as an optimistic film!

It time for very nice episode of Cinemaholics. First American movie is Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, great success. Rashida Jones and Bill Murray have weird marriage problem in On the Rocks, not nice. New streaming service HBO Max ruin day with The Witches, my wife Anne Hathaway make big impression. Rebecca on Netflix make no sense, but Lily James in it, high five. Bad Hair on Hulu scare all children, not appropriate for babies under 3, now official favorite movie of Cinemaholics Halloween.

Cinemaholics host Jon Negroni returns to Extra Milestone for a double feature of two of the greatest films of all time! We start by discussing Sidney Lumet's 1975 crime thriller Dog Day Afternoon, a revolutionary and dynamic film that remains just as relevant 45 years later, if not even more so. From there, we move on to Martin Scorsese's career-defining classic Goodfellas, which we believe may potentially hold the title as the greatest gangster film of them all, in addition to being expertly crafted in every way.