Now Playing - The Movie Review Podcast

This show description is guest written by Deadpool. You know who's big? I am! Not in that way, get your mind out of the gutter! (Okay, I'm big in that way too.) But my first movie was more popular than Jesus! So take that John Lennon! But even with my healing factor I'm not immune to...performance anxiety. The dreaded sophomore slump can happen to anyone. I've got a second movie out and I pulled out the big guns. (Literally. Cable has a ginormous rifle. How does he hold that with those tiny hands?) But even with Cable and X-Force I'm worried-- will Arnie, Jakob, and Stuart think it's as good as the first one? I'm scared...why don't you listen now and let me know?

Game developer Chris Roberts was on course to deliver the first major science fiction film of 1999 when he personally piloted his massively popular flight simulator Wing CommanderPhantom Menace and The Matrix. Do fighter pilots Freddie Prinze Jr. and Matthew Lillard offer a new hope for genre fans as they clean the cat box of feline space invaders The Kilrathi? Or should Arnie, Justin, and Stuart quickly eject from this next entry in the Now Playing Arcade? Listen and find out!

20 years after computer programmer Jordan Mechner released Prince of Persia for the Apple IIe, the Disney Company paid the kingly sum of $200 million to launch his video game swashbuckler Dastan on the big screen. A Middle Eastern Jake Gyllenhaal looks for a way to turn back time after he’s framed for the murder of his adoptive royal father. Does the Now Playing Arcade take a gravity-defying leap forward with the acrobatic hero? Or would Stuart, Arnie, and Justin be more entertained by an ostrich race? Place your bets and Listen Now!

Ten years ago Marvel Comics gambled their entire existence, using all their remaining IP as collateral, on the idea that they could make superhero films better than anyone else. 18 movies later, Marvel Studios makes their biggest bet yet - a billion dollars that audiences will love “the most ambitious crossover event in history” and one gaudy gold glove! Is more the merrier when it comes to superheroes on screen, or are Earth’s Mightiest Heroes set up for an epic fail? Join Arnie, Stuart, and Jakob now as they review Avengers: Infinity War! {Marvel Series} {Avengers Series} {Comic Book Movies Series}

No one was better suited to convert the role playing mechanics of the best-selling Final Fantasy series into stirring cinema than game creator Hironobu Sakaguchi. But dreams of writing and directing the world’s most photorealistic animated movie crashed to earth like a meteor when The Spirits Within landed in theaters in summer 2001. Gaia only knows what podcasters Justin, Arnie, and Stuart will find inside the wreckage of this poetic tale of parasitic alien invasion! So let down your defense shields and listen now.

32 years after making its debut as a city-leveling coin-op video game, Rampage bursts onto the big screen as a brand new movie. So why are Dwayne Johnson, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, and Joe Manganiello so eager to shut down the Chicago block party being thrown by giant gorilla George, mutant crocodile Lizzie, and massive wolf Ralph? Join podcasters Arnie, Justin, and Stuart as they try to figure out why New Line Pictures plunked so many quarters into this arcade classic.

Long before he took on a Rampage of giant gorillas, wolves and lizards, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson led a squadron of Doom-ed Marines to Mars for another blowout with video game baddies. The 1993 first-person shooter Doom changed the way millions looked at their PCs. So why wasn’t the 2005 movie adaptation a similar success? Join Justin, Arnie, and Stuart as they analyze the DNA of this box office bomb to determine if its the handiwork of angels or demons.

Get ready to “clan up” with Arnie, Justin, and Stuart for a podcast review of Ready Player One. Steven Spielberg’s latest sci-fi adventure imagines the future of entertainment to be pop culture icons of the past populating a massive cyber playground. Should viewers cough up the coins it takes to slip on a pair of 3D glasses and join gamer Wade Watts (Ty Sheridan) - along with Freddy Krueger, Hello Kitty, Iron Giant, and countless other superstars of the 1980s and 90s - for a virtual reality scavenger hunt? Listen and find out.

These days

It’s been 15 years since Lara Croft last raided movie theaters, but now a new Oscar-winning actress is picking up the controls and racing into action. Tomb Raider 2018 - an origin story for the scrappy video game heroine - finds Danish Girl Alicia Vikander tracking her missing father Lord Richard Croft (Dominic West) to a mythical Japanese island crawling with mercenaries and booby traps. Listen now to find out if survivors Stuart, Arnie, and Justin have reached higher ground in the Now Playing Arcade.

Angelina Jolie reprised her role as England’s most scantily clad excavator for her second and final Tomb Raider adventure. Cradle of Life finds Lady Croft diving into sunken ruins with Greek sailors, motorcycling across the Great Wall of China with Gerard Butler, and ascending African peaks with Djimon Hounsou. All in the hopes of beating blackhearted bio-engineer Ciaran Hinds to Pandora’s Box. Listen and find out if this 2003 sequel is plagued by the same problems that made Arnie, Justin, and Stuart deathly ill watching previous video game adaptations.

Movies with action heroes from the 1980s die pretty hard at the box office these days, but Bruce Willis aims to change all that with a 2018 reboot of Death Wish. The aging tough guy stars as a Chicago surgeon who goes from saving lives in the ER to taking lives on crime-ridden streets, after burglars violate his home and family. Can Bruno take out the bad hombres and make America great again one bullet at a time? Or do hosts Arnie, Jakob and Stuart wish this vigilante died with Bronson? Listen and find out...

Five years after busty British archaeologist Lara Croft stole the hearts of PlayStation owners, the planets aligned to bring the video game vixen to the big screen in the skin of Oscar-winning bad girl Angelina Jolie. The 2001 Tomb Raider movie finds Lara racing against the clock to reach an ancient time machine before its claimed by future James Bond Daniel Craig and The Illuminati. But will she avoid the pitfalls of other arcade-to-movie flops and flip the arrows green for fellow treasure hunters Justin, Arnie, and Stuart? Listen and find out!

Chadwick Boseman bounds to the screen as Black Panther - the latest Marvel superhero to leap from comic pages into his own blockbuster movie. Will the newly crowned African Avenger continue to hide his technologically-advanced kingdom from the exploitative Western world? Or will Oakland militant Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan) usurp the vibranium throne and use Wakandan firepower to finally Kill Whitey? The revolution will not be televised… but colonizers Arnie, Jakob, and Stuart will certainly podcast about it all on this epic show. Listen now!

It took 15 years for filmmakers to hit the reset button on Street Fighter, with a second movie ditching JCVD’s paramilitary squad in favor of an origin story for kung fu pianist Chun-Li. Does Smallville star Kristin Kreuk prove legendary in the title role? Is Oscar-nominated giant Michael Clarke Duncan slumming for work by teaming up with unconscionable real estate developer Bison (Neal McDonough)? Is embarrassment the reason Black Eyed Peas rapper Taboo won’t remove that mask? I gotta feeling confused video game players will have a good good night when they listen now.

Podcasters Justin, Stuart, and Arnie have been taken hostage by Street Fighter, the infamous 1994 movie adaptation of the popular arcade fighting game. How much Van Damme-age can the boys withstand when the "Muscles From Brussels" goes American in a blue beret to beat down villainous megalomaniac Bison (the last movie role for terminal song-and dance man Raul Julia). And does this Shadaloo showdown improve when con artists Ryu and Ken, yellow-skinned mutant Blanka, fake news crew Chun-Li, Honda, and Balrog, and even Aussie pop star Kylie Minogue join the fray? Listen now and find out.

The fly-kicking Lee Brothers were quick to mimic Mario’s leap from coin-ops and cartoons to a live-action feature film… and just as quick to fail. The 1994 action flick Double Dragon finds video game heroes Billy Lee (Party of Five heartthrob Scott Wolf) and Jimmy Lee (martial artist Mark Dacascos) scouring post-apocalyptic LA for the second half of a magic medallion. Will Justin, Arnie, and Stuart find their battle with Robert "T-1000" Patrick less tortuous than a repeated knee to the face? Listen now and find out.

Pixelated plumbers Mario and Luigi spent a decade warping through various video games, cartoons, and comic books before finally arriving on the big screen as Bob Hoskins and John Leguizamo in the 1993 live action adventure Super Mario Bros. Hosts Justin, Stuart, and Arnie dredge up this moldy oldie to assess whether Hollywood’s first attempt at adapting an arcade hit deserved to Bob-omb so badly. Devolve your lizard brain and listen to this super show now.

The Now Playing Arcade is now open! Justin, Stuart, and Arnie are reviewing every movie based on a video game in a new retrospective that kicks off with The King Of Kong. Is this 2006 documentary about the heyday of coin-op machines (and the geeks who never stopped playing them) worth your quarters? Listen now and find out!

Before elderly psychic Elise Rainier (Lin Shaye) faced her mortality battling "Veilhead" in Insidious, she had to confront literal and figurative skeletons in her family closet. New prequel The Last Key shows the Spectral Sightings team going back to Elise’s childhood home and taking on "Keyface", a demon who locks up your vocal cords and preys on your most violent thoughts. But can he silence criticisms that Arnie, Marjorie, and Stuart previously voiced about this franchise, and deliver an electrifying fourth chapter? Listen now and find out!

Cult audiences love midnight movie The Room for being crazy melodrama, but the story of how it got made might be even more nuts. Does James Franco show his talent, or just his ass, stepping into the skin of wannabe writer/director/actor Tommy Wiseau? And will Arnie, Jakob, and Stuart find a new appreciation for this Disaster Artist when the truth behind his bad plots is dramatized? Listen now and find out!

Audiences have been tearing delusional actor/writer/director Tommy Wiseau apart for the last 14 years over his self-funded melodrama The Room. Can you ever really trust anyone who would recommend a movie this preposterous? Oh hi Jakob! Three’s a crowd when the die hard Room-mate, his best friend Arnie, and manipulative bitch Stuart come together to explore this midnight movie phenomenon.

Episode VIII finds General Leia (Carrie Fisher), Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac), Finn (John Boyega), and a dwindling number of Resistance fighters beating a hasty retreat from the rising armies of Supreme Leader Snoke (Andy Serkis). Their only hope lies with recently located Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) - The Last Jedi in the universe. But can Master Luke trust feisty apprentice Rey (Daisy Ridley) to learn the ways of The Force without succumbing to the Dark Side like his previous pupil, the murderous tyrant Kylo Ren (Adam Driver)? Join Arnie, Jakob, and Stuart for a deep dive into the biggest movie of 2017.

In 12 Monkeys Bruce Willis plays James Cole - a man from the future who’s come to witness the start of an extinction-level pandemic. Or he’s insane, filled with a Cassandra complex. He encounters Brad Pitt’s Jeffrey Goines, who is insane, but also may know more than he’s letting on. Yet perhaps the real time traveler is nonconformist, eclectic director Terry Gilliam whose underrated 1995 film foreshadows both stars’ roles in more popular films. Now, join Arnie, Stuart, and guest host Matt as they travel back to 1995 and examine this dystopian sci-fi film.

Saw director James Wan wished to leave the horror genre behind when he signed on to adapt Death Sentence - author Brian Garfield's previously unmade sequel novel to Death Wish. A buttoned-down Kevin Bacon cuts loose, kicks off his Sunday shoes, and follows in the footsteps of Charles Bronson's pistol packin' Paul Kersey once a street gang targets his perfect family. Listen now and find out if Arnie, Jakob, and Stuart give this failed reboot a stay of execution.

It was Charles Bronson's wish to never reprise the role of vigilante Paul Kersey after Death Wish IV. So movie producers found $5 million reasons for the 72 year old actor to star as their Face of Death one last time. This fifth chapter sends Kersey into the underbelly of New York City's garment district, where the tough guy hunts the cannoli-loving transvestite mobsters who disfigured his clothing designer fiancee and stole away his surrogate daughter. Do Jakob, Stuart and Arnie find this fashion forward finale a bad turn on the catwalk, or a fitting end to the Bronson era? Listen and find out.

How does a DC Comics super-team come together when the Man of Steel is dead, Batman is suicidal, Wonder Woman won't lead, and the most promising recruits are an aloof Merman, a renegade robot, and a neurotic runner who'd rather eat than fight? It will take the Classic Rock threat of Steppenwolf, reuniting with the Mother Boxes of Invention, to unify this Justice League. But is there any hope for Recommendations from Stuart, Jakob, and Arnie when the clashing visions of director Zack Snyder and last minute replacement Joss Whedon create such a chaotic production? Find out who wins and loses when you listen now! Thirsting for even more JUSTICE? Become a Now Playing Patron to hear an extended version of this review--over 30 minutes longer! Details are on the Now Playing Patron site!

Paul Kersey gets topical with his fourth killing spree in Death Wish 4: The Crackdown! This time he's going to whack the crack dealers in Los Angeles. It's the type of film only Cannon Films could make. But is it any good? Join Arnie, Stuart, and Jakob to find out!

The God of Thunder was ready to change his image after Now Playing and so many others hammered his solo films as the silliest of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Third effort Ragnarok not only puts Thor in the arena with longtime frenemies Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) and Loki (Tom Hiddleston), but pits him against powerful new characters Hela (Cate Blanchett), Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson), and Grandmaster (Jeff Goldblum). Should the studly superhero have been so quick to chop off his golden hair, or would those shears have been better served cutting out some jokes in this 130 minute epic? Find out if hosts Arnie, Jakob and Stuart rain on Marvel's latest parade by listening now! {Marvel Series} {Avengers Series} {Comic Book Movies Series} {Thor Series}

Seven Year's Later...it's again Halloween; it's again Now Playing reviewing Saw! The "torture porn" genre had fallen out of vogue, and Saw's grosses fell to match. Now, not quite a decade later, is the world ready for more traps and (plot) twists? Does the Saw cut as deep in its eighth iteration? Strap on your bucket and join Arnie, Jakob, and Marjorie to find out!

Texas Chainsaw 3D was a success in 2013, but the fast-tracked sequel got mired in studio bureaucracy and changes in creative teams. Finally, nearly five years later, comes Leatherface--a prequel to Tobe Hooper's original The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. It has been available to DirecTV customers for the past month, but now it's streaming through all major platforms. Can this new prequel give a better origin story for Leatherface than Platinum Dunes' attempt? Join Arnie, Stuart, and Brock to find out!

Paul Kersey has returned to New York (or London). He didn't come intending to fight a gang war, but he finds his war buddy gunned down. It's a fight Kersey didn't start, but he intends to finish it in Death Wish 3. It's the first Death Wish that is officially a Cannon film. Does their Over the Top aesthetic help Charles Bronson's franchise? Join the Now Playing Podcast hosts to find out!

In the early '80s, the dawn of home video, it would be easy to think movies had a lifespan of only four years. But Ridley Scott's creation Blade Runner escaped box-office failure to find its own life. Its imagery still influences artists 35 years after being released, and it's spawned novels, video games, and more. But now this dystopian vision returns to big screens with a sequel: Blade Runner 2049. Harrison Ford returns as Deckard, a man with secrets sought after by a new Blade Runner played by Ryan Gosling. Can director Denis Villeneuve craft a vision that we'll still be discussing in 2052? Listen to this review to find out!

Paul Kersey has lived a peaceful life for years in Los Angeles with his girlfriend, his daughter, and his housekeeper. Yet his tranquil existence will once more be shattered by a group of criminals who will assault his family. Now Paul is back on the streets, stalking the streets of Skid Row, looking for revenge. Does this Death Wish hit as hard as the original? Listen to this episode of Now Playing to find out!

Three children were all born during the solar eclipse. Does that mean these little sociopaths have no soul? Their birthday wish...is for you to die! That's the plot of Bloody Birthday, a 1981 film "so shocking" it couldn't see wide release until 1986! How does this Birthday surprise stack up against similar-themed slashers? Wish co-host Stuart a happy birthday as we cut into this Patron-selected film!

Fledgling spy Eggsy Unwin (Taron Egerton) barely had time to assume his place as Galahad before chirpy drug czar Poppy Adams (Julianne Moore) reduced the whole Kingsman Round Table to rubble. Now the English gentleman must dust off his suit and accept assistance from newfound American allies Jeff Bridges, Halle Berry, Channing Tatum, and Pedro Pascal. How many shots of whiskey will it take to ply recommends from Yank hosts Stuart, Arnie, and Jakob? Their review of this highly anticipated sequel is finally available to listeners who missed the September live-stream podcast!

In 1974 Charles Bronson made his entry in the self-defense/revenge genre with Death Wish. The film is a gritty look at a New Yorker who is pushed to the breaking point by the city's rampant crime. Based on a novel, is this just another grim exploitation flick, or does it Wish to be something more? Load up with Stuart, Arnie, and Jakob as they begin their series reviewing all the Death Wish films--ending with the Eli Roth/Bruce Willis reboot this November!

First came Halloween. Then Friday the 13th. Soon after, no holiday was safe! New Year's Evil, Mother's Day, Graduation Day. Prom Night...all became occasions for slasher fests. Then in 1981 it was time to blow out the candles with Happy Birthday to Me, a murder-mystery slasher starring Little House on the Prairie's Melissa Sue Anderson, and Superman's dad Glenn Ford. It's Now Playing co-host Arnie's birthday today, and listener Matt has chosen this to be his gift! Is it all he wished for? Join him, Stuart, and Jakob to find out!

Marvel's Inhumans are the result of combining alien DNA with humans. In that way they're neither human nor alien, they're inhuman. Likewise Marvel's Inhumans is a halfbreed--it's neither television nor film. It is the TV series pilot premiering this weekend on IMAX screens. Is it worth the IMAX ticket price to see a shorter version of network television four weeks early? Join Arnie, Stuart, and Jakob in this hair-raising review to find out!

Philip K. Dick's novel Radio Free Albemuth was published in 1985, three years after the author's death and nine years after the book was written. Yet with the author's name as propellant, this discarded novel was optioned for a low-budget movie. After lengthy post-production the film Radio Free Albemuth was released direct-to-VOD in 2014. Can the acting (and singing) of Alanis Morissette help audiences swallow this film's extra-terrestrial premise? Listen to find out!

Do you remember Arnold Schwarzenegger's 1990 movie Total Recall? If not, Columbia Pictures will remind you with their wholesale retelling of that film. Featuring Colin Farrell in the lead this movie was quickly forgotten in theaters. But now, after much listener demand, the Now Playing hosts give Len Wiseman his props! So join Stuart, Brock, and Jakob for this return to our Philip K Dick Retrospective Series!

Annabelle was a prequel to The Conjuring. Now we go even further back in time with Annabelle: Creation--the story of the doll's manufacture and first possession. These films hit big at the box office, but can this demonic doll break the curse of getting no recommends from the Now Playing hosts? Listen to find out!

Over the span of 34 years Stephen King wrote his Dark Tower saga of books, amassing more than 4,000 pages of lore. The story features the last legendary Gunslinger on a quest to ward off evil forces and reach The Dark Tower. The story has often been called "unfilmable" but, after nearly two decades of trying, the story has come to the screen. Is it an epic fit for King, or another dark tale that didn't survive the leap from page to screen? Join Stuart, Jakob, and Arnie on their quest to unravel the mystery and find out!

Christopher Nolan's latest film tells of the English army's rescue from German assault at Dunkirk. The director is relying on visual spectacle over star power, choosing mostly unknown actors for many of the lead roles. But what can Nolan's unique film-making and storytelling style add to distinguish Dunkirk from other World War II films? Jump on the boat with Arnie, Jakob, and Stuart to find out!

Trainspotting was a breakthrough film, gaining acclaim for both director Danny Boyle and star Ewan McGregor. Now, twenty years after their original tale of Scottish heroin addicts, the stars and director come together to catch up on the lives of Rent Boy, Spud, Sick Boy, and Franco. Who kicked the habit, and who hasn't? And what consequences are due for Renton stealing the £16,000? Choose life! Choose to listen to Now Playing and find out!

In 1996 director Danny Boyle exploded on the indie film scene with his octane-fueled heroin comedy-drama Trainspotting. Based on the eponymous novel by Irvine Welsh, the film has a unique vibe, a killer soundtrack, and turned Ewan McGregor into a star. Can the 20-year-old film give the Now Playing hosts the same high it once did? Choose life. Choose Now Playing. Inject this into your ears now!

Spider-Man has finally come home! While Marvel Studios started without its most popular characters, an agreement between studios (aided by some North Korean hackers) has now made it so Marvel's most super of heroes, Spider-Man, can stand alongside the other cinematic Avengers. But this is this third big-screen incarnation of the wall crawler in 10 years. Does this one swing higher than Raimi's and Webb's movies? Listen to find out!

No, Baby Driver is not about an infant taking his parents' car for a spin. Baby Driver is the latest film from Scott Pilgrim vs the World and Shaun of the Dead auteur Edgar Wright. For his fifth studio film Wright brings his unique take to the car chase genre. Or is it the musical? No matter. Load up your iPod Classic, pop in your ear buds, and join the hosts of Now Playing for this revved up movie review!

This year marks the 10th anniversary of Michael Bay's Transformers franchise. To commemorate, Paramount and Bay have released the fifth movie in the series: The Last Knight. And this seems to be Bay's last go-round with these Autobots and Decepticons. The box office is soft, but could Bay have possibly saved the best for last? And where does the franchise go from here? ROLL OUT with the hosts of Now Playing to hear their thoughts!

Bad Boys exploded in 1995. The career surge it caused for both stars Smith and Lawrence, as well as for director Bay, meant an eight-year wait for the sequel. In 2003 the Boys were back and it was bigger, badder, and much longer. But was it better? Join the bad boys of Now Playing Podcast for their review to find out!