The Movie Breakdown

Anne Hathaway is an acclaimed actor now, but in the mid 2000s, she was known better for princess movies aimed at pre-teen girls. Along with Brokeback Mountain, it was The Devil Wears Prada where she started to move into more adult roles and prove herself as a diverse actor. Speaking of acting, Meryl Streep had been a beloved actor for decades, but her role here ended up being one of her most recognizable. For what many may have assumed would be a silly romantic comedy about the fashion industry, it has become a movie that has endured and still discussed fondly today. It may be one of the most popular comedies of the 2000s. And I've never seen it.  Until now. You get my first thought on the picture as I deep-dive into it along with Scott as we discuss all aspects about it along with its legacy and impact. We also talk about how it really isn't a romantic comedy despite what some claim.  As always, we had a great time recording this show and we really hope you love it. If you do, please help us out by spreading the word on social media, so other movie fans can find us. Reminder that you can subscribe either to The Movie Breakdown feed (a subscription link is at the top right hand of this site), or subscribe on sites like Spotify, Stitcher, Apple Podcast, Google Podcasts, CastBox, and Amazon Music.

As a writer and podcaster on movies, I admit that I can sometimes fall into hyperbole when discussing movies that were major influences or reshaped a genre. It is very hard to argue against Danny Boyle's 28 Days Later being the most important and influential zombie picture since the game-changing Night of the Living Dead. The 2002 indy horror brought zombies back to the mainstream and played a huge part in making them one of the most popular monsters. A popularity that still stands today and has seen the creatures show up in all kinds of mediums and even in different types of genres. We discuss why it was major influence and how it turned out to be such a surprise hit. As well, we look at how it holds up today, how it stands out among other horror movies, what is the lasting legacy and look at the major careers that it launched. As always, we had a great time recording this show and we really hope you love it. If you do, please helps us out by spreading the word on social media, so other movie fans can find us. Reminder that you can subscribe either to The Movie Breakdown feed (a subscription link is at the top right hand of this site), or subscribe on sites like Spotify, Stitcher, Apple Podcast, Google Podcasts, CastBox, and Amazon Music.

Hey look! It is a bonus episode of The Movie Breakdown. We don't have a specific topic but rather just talk about a few different movie related things. We talk about movie endings, how we've never been team Fast and Furious, movie studios hesitancy to kill major characters and whatever else pops in our heads. It is a freeform discussion to tie you over until our big Monday show. As always, we had a great time recording this show and we really hope you love it. If you do, please helps us out by spreading the word on social media, so other movie fans can find us. Reminder that you can subscribe either to The Movie Breakdown feed (a subscription link is at the top right hand of this site), or subscribe on sites like Spotify, Stitcher, Apple Podcast, Google Podcasts, CastBox, and Amazon Music.

The muscled up one-man army action hero dominated the box-office thanks to stars like Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone. A shift happened in the 1990s where audiences started wanting something a bit different in their action movies. There was a rise of smaller but smarter and maybe a bit kinder action heroes that used their wits and intellect to overcome a series of different challenges orchestrated by a charismatic mastermind villain. While not the first of these type of action movies but definitely one of the most successful and popular in the 1990s, the Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock starring Speed is a perfect encapsulation of the new wave of action movie that arrived that decade. Scott and I dig deep into the movie that really solidified Reeves as an action star and made Bullock one of America's most beloved movie stars. Does it hold up all these years later? What makes it stand out from other action movies? What is the movies legacy? We answer all those questions and really explore the movie for over 90 minutes in our latest episode.As always, we had a great time recording this show and we really hope you love it. If you do, please helps us out by spreading the word on social media, so other movie fans can find us. Reminder that you can subscribe either to The Movie Breakdown feed (a subscription link is at the top right hand of this site), or subscribe on sites like Spotify, Stitcher, Apple Podcast, Google Podcasts, CastBox, and Amazon Music.

  Unforeseen circumstance came smashing up against The Movie Breakdown this week and we couldn't record a new episode. Instead, we dug deep into the vault and pulled out an episode from way back in March of 2013. We review Quentin Tarantino's 1997 crime caper picture, Jackie Brown. Anyone who has listened for a few years now will know that I love this movie, but that wasn't always the cases. Both Scott and I believed it to be lesser Tarantino when it turned out to be very different than Pulp Fiction when we watched it in 1997. This episode was our revisit and re-evaluation of what is likely one of his least talked about pictures.  Speaking of little known. it is very likely that very few of our listeners have ever heard this episode. It has never been on Apple Podcast or Spotify or Stitcher, and it came out very early in the podcast's run where we would have recorded around 10 episodes by this point. I'll be honest, we've come a far way since this episode, and I like to believe we've improved quite a bit. It could be fun for some long-time listeners to get a taste of what we were like back then and see how we've changed since. Plus, there wouldn't be any episode if we couldn't post this one, so hopefully, it will satisfy until we come back with a new one next Monday.Reminder that you can subscribe either to The Movie Breakdown feed (a subscription link is at the top right hand of this site), or subscribe on sites like Spotify, Stitcher, Apple Podcast, Google Podcasts, CastBox, and Amazon Music.

  For the second straight week, The Movie Breakdown is going to be hanging out in the 1980s and reviewing what many hold up as a classic. This time it was a giant box office hit that was geared towards adults rather than kids, and it was billed as a romantic comedy. We are going to dig deep into the Dustin Hoffman starring comedy about s male actor who poses as a woman in order to land work, Tootsie. It is not only a comedy that many hold up as one of the all-time great movies, but it was also very influential on future comedies and even dramas. We explore what made it such a hit, but also what makes it a bit different than the movies that followed it. It is all about the 'Tootsie this week.As always, we had a great time recording this show and we really hope you love it. If you do, please helps us out by spreading the word on social media, so other movie fans can find us. Reminder that you can subscribe either to The Movie Breakdown feed (a subscription link is at the top right hand of this site), or subscribe on sites like Spotify, Stitcher, Apple Podcast, Google Podcasts, CastBox, and Amazon Music.

  The Movie Breakdown has surpassed 400 episodes and so, it seemed time to do something drastic. Long-time listeners may remember that for the first several months of the show, we would do an entire episode devoted to a single movie and dive deep into all aspects of it. For various reasons after doing the multi-review format for 7 years, we've decided to take a huge gamble and return to that style. We've also heard from quite a few listeners that they really enjoyed the Midweek Breakdown style, and so the more freeform discussion and format is going to be a major part of this new version of the show. This is a huge change for those that have been with us for years. We get that. So, we really want your feedback on if this new style works for you and get some critique on what works and what doesn't work. We have some real reasons for this shift and so, it likely is going to stick, but we also want it to be something that you love. What is the first movie that has been chosen for this new format? We decided to take an adventure all the way back to 1985, and it just happens this movie was released on June 7th to coincide with this episode. We are talking about the kids going on a rich stuff adventure movie that is a beloved picture for many from our generation, The Goonies. We are going to discuss what this movie meant to us as kids, some of the marketing surrounding it, how we feel it holds up now and lots of other fun trivia bits. It is a real exploration of this beloved kids adventure. As always, we had a great time recording this show and we really hope you love it. If you do, please helps us out by spreading the word on social media, so other movie fans can find us. Reminder that you can subscribe either to The Movie Breakdown feed (a subscription link is at the top right hand of this site), or subscribe on sites like Spotify, Stitcher, Apple Podcast, Google Podcasts, CastBox, and Amazon Music.

One of the major goals of The Movie Breakdown is to show love to film history and analyze major movies from the past. While we have discussed a few Silent Era movies, we haven't reviewed a picture starring who may be the biggest movie star during the Silent Era and was the first true box office powerhouse, Charlie Chaplin. We finally review one of his significant movies and the one that has the final appearance of his iconic Tramp character in Modern Times. We also have two new releases coming from Netflix. We have the Joe Wright directed and Amy Adams starring psychological thriller in The Woman in the Window. Then it is Zack Snyder's return to the zombie picture in the action-thriller Army of the Dead. After the reviews, we discuss the long-term implications of Amazon Prime buying MGM. We also pay tribute to the great comedic actor Charles Grodin and the iconic voice of Sebastian the crab, Samuel E. Wright.As always, we had a great time recording this show and we really hope you love it. If you do, please helps us out by spreading the word on social media, so other movie fans can find us. Reminder that you can subscribe either to The Movie Breakdown feed (a subscription link is at the top right hand of this site), or subscribe on sites like Spotify, Stitcher, Apple Podcast, Google Podcasts, CastBox, and Amazon Music. The Movies' Four-Star RatingThe Woman in the Window ** (CS) & * (SM)Army of the Dead ** (CS & SM)Modern Times ***½ (CS & SM) 

Wow! The Movie Breakdown has hit its 400th episode. Thank you so much for all those who have listened and supported us all the way back in 2013 when we started this little project. I don't think that I'd ever imagined back then that we would be going strong and continuing to grow an audience so many years later with 400 episodes to our name. I want to really let you know how much we appreciate everyone who has even just listened to one episode, and especially those that have been with us for 400 of them. To celebrate this milestone, we are doing a special episode this week. Scott and I will each be listing 10 movies that we feel that if you watch them then you get a better idea of who we are as movie watchers and even people. These are movies that are deeply personal to us and have had a profound impact on us. These are movies that have influenced, inspired us and shaped us. These are movies that represent some major part of us and also reflect our unique movies tastes. Simply put, these are the movies that define us. It is a show that is a mix of movie discussion and personal reflection. We show a bit of who we are and share some personal experiences we have with these movies. It is a huge episode that spans over three hours, so strap yourself in.As always, we had a great time recording this show and we really hope you love it. If you do, please help us out by spreading the word on social media, so other movie fans can find us. Reminder that you can subscribe either to The Movie Breakdown feed (a subscription link is at the top right hand of this site), or subscribe on sites like Spotify, Stitcher, Apple Podcast, Google Podcasts, CastBox, and Amazon Music. Ten Movies That Define Us (No Particular Order) Christopher: 1. The Wizard of Oz2. Star Wars3. Back to the Future4. Raiders of the Lost Ark5. Fargo6. Jackie Brown7. Toy Story 38. The Thing9. Taxi Driver10. Under the Skin Scott: 1. Wizard of Oz2. Batman: The Movie (1966)3. Suspiria4. Rambo: First Blood Part 25. Aliens6. The Big Lebowski7. The Hunt for Red October8. Unforgiven9. The Room10. Mad Max: Fury Road 

  This week we've got some scary things for you like a haunted house, giant monsters and Robert De Niro in another family comedy. Amanda Seyfried stars in a 1980s set haunted house thriller called Things Heard & Seen. Then we have a big budget action comedy with giant creatures in the Dylan O'Brien starring Love & Monsters. We wrap up the movie reviews with the family comedy about a kid trying to get grandpa out of his room in The War with Grandpa. After the reviews we have a few topics, we talk about the controversy surrounding the Golden Globes and if we think the awards show can recover. Or more importantly, should we really care if it recovers? After that, we pay tribute to a screen legend who was in movies with some of the all-time biggest stars in Norman Lloyd. As always, we had a great time recording this show and we really hope you love it. If you do, please helps us out by spreading the word on social media, so other movie fans can find us. Reminder that you can subscribe either to The Movie Breakdown feed (a subscription link is at the top right hand of this site), or subscribe on sites like Spotify, Stitcher, Apple Podcast, Google Podcasts, CastBox, and Amazon Music. The Movies' Four-Star RatingThings Heard & Seen ** (CS) & *½ (SM)Love & Monsters *** (CS & SM)The War with Grandpa * (CS & SM) 

It is a diverse episode of The Movie Breakdown as we look at movies from very different genres aiming for a variety of audiences. We have two big 2021 releases that both where originally scheduled for theatrical runs in 2020, but a little thing called a pandemic got in the way. We have a big Michael B. Jordan starring action thriller in Without Remorse, which has been in some form of development since 1993, Was it worth the wait?  As well, we review a big, animated adventure about an odd-ball family being the only chance against a robot uprising in The Mitchells vs. the Machines. There is high pedigree in this one as the producers Phil Lord and Chris Miller also gave us animated features like The Lego Movie, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and Spider-man Into the Spider-Verse. We then jump in the Way-Back Machine for two older pictures. We have a comedy that was a cultural phenomenon in 1997 with the spy parody flick, Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery. Then we review something totally different in the 1989 Al Pacino starring sexual neo-noir thriller, Sea of Love. As always, we had a great time recording this show and we really hope you love it. If you do, please helps us out by spreading the word on social media, so other movie fans can find us. Reminder that you can subscribe either to The Movie Breakdown feed (a subscription link is at the top right hand of this site), or subscribe on sites like Spotify, Stitcher, Apple Podcast, Google Podcasts, CastBox, and Amazon Music. The Movies' Four-Star RatingWithout Remorse ** (CS & SM)The Mitchells vs. the Machines **** (CS & SM)Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery *** (CS) & **½ SM) Sea of Love *** (CS & SM)

Many times on The Movie Breakdown, we have complained about movie tropes and cliches. We prefer movies that are original, creative and fresh. But sometimes there is some charm and pure enjoyments you can get from a trope that is used effectively There is the belief that there are no new ideas but rather just reworkings and alterations of the good ones. This week we are looking at trope that were once very popular in movies but now are rarely used. We've realized we missed them.  We will explore four different movie tropes, explain why we miss them and look at movies that used them effectively. It is a fun stroll down the lane of nostalgia. We have loads of fun movies to talk about. As always it was a great time recording this episode for you, and if you really love it, please help us out by spreading the word on social media, so other movie fans can find us. Reminder that you can subscribe either to The Movie Breakdown feed (a subscription link is at the top right hand of this site), or subscribe on sites like Spotify, Stitcher, Apple Podcast, Google Podcasts, CastBox, and Amazon Music.

Special effects and creature design master Carlo Rambaldi and friend It is a special episode this week as we spotlight some of the vital jobs in crafting a movie. We admit we are often guilty of mentioning the director and actors but leaving out most of the other crucial contributors to a picture. This week we take the time to discuss and celebrate some of the most talented people in Hollywood that may not get recognized as much as they should. We choose many of the major names in the area of cinematography, editing, special effects, screenwriting and musical composition. It is a unique episode for those that want to dig a little deeper in their film knowledge. As always it was a great time recording this episode for you, and if you really love it, please help us out by spreading the word on social media, so other movie fans can find us. Reminder that you can subscribe either to The Movie Breakdown feed (a subscription link is at the top right hand of this site), or subscribe on sites like Spotify, Stitcher, Apple Podcast, Google Podcasts, CastBox, and Amazon Music.

It is a huge episode of The Movie Breakdown with four reviews for a very diverse array of pictures. Two of the movies are huge career breakouts that turned the lead actors into global movie superstars. We dance all the way to 1977 with the disco era drama that made the career of John Travolta in Saturday Night Fever. Travolta has proven to be an actor that commits 100% and we discuss how this movie really showcases his gifts and talents. Jim Carrey was one of the biggest stars in Hollywood and a blockbuster giant in the 1990s, and this all started with Ace Ventura: Pet Detective, which we will review. Does the movie that I dug in high school hold up now that I'm in my 40s? Then it is two Netflix original movies. We have a superhero comedy starring Melissa McCarthy and Octavia Spencer in Thunder Force. We also have a drama that explores modern urban cowboys in the teen drama, Concrete Cowboys. As always, we had a great time recording this show and we really hope you love it. If you do, please helps us out by spreading the word on social media, so other movie fans can find us. Reminder that you can subscribe either to The Movie Breakdown feed (a subscription link is at the top right hand of this site), or subscribe on sites like Spotify, Stitcher, Apple Podcast, Google Podcasts, CastBox, and Amazon Music. The Movies' Four-Star RatingThunder Force *** (CS) & ** (SM)Concrete Cowboy **½ (CS) & *** (SM)Saturday Night Fever **** (CS & SM) Ace Ventura Pet Detective * (CS & SM)

Being stuck at home for most of the year hasn't been very thrilling but we've got some captivating movie talk on The Movie Breakdown this week. Aneesh Chaganty had a huge break-out with his first feature, Searching, and we review his highly anticipated follow-up thriller, Run. We also have two very different documentaries with one looking at the life and career of one of the biggest rappers from the 1990s in Biggie: I Got a Story to Tell, and then we have a documentary that plays out as a tense thriller in Last Breath. After the movie reviews, we are doing something a little different. We often complain about studios' obsessions with making remakes or basing pictures on something that was once popular, but that doesn't mean we are against adaptations. This week we both reveal five movie adaptations that we would love to see get made. As always, it was a great time recording this show, and we really hope you love listening to it. If you do, please help us out by spreading the word on social media, so more movie fans can discover us. Reminder that you can subscribe either to The Movie Breakdown feed (a subscription link is at the top right hand of this site), or subscribe on sites like Spotify, Stitcher, Apple Podcast, Google Podcasts, CastBox, and Amazon Music. The Movies' Four-Star RatingRun *** (CS) & ***½ (SM)Biggie: I Got a Story to Tell **½ (CS & SM)Last Breath ***½ (CS & SM)