Now Playing - The Movie Review Podcast

Leonardo. Donatello. Michelangelo. Raphael. To an art student these names may conjure the image of the Renaissance masters but to generations of children these name mean only one thing--Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles! With the new film in theaters soon the Now Playing Podcast hosts Arnie, Stuart, and Jakob don their masks, grab their weapons, and review all the Turtles' theatrical features! The first film to star these adolescent anthropomorphised amphibians came out in 1990 with Jim Henson's creature shop giving the Turtles life, but is it full of Turtle Power? Listen to find out!

Podcastbots, prepare to roll out! The Transformers are back in Age of Extinction, the fourth live-action robot fight-fest from high-octane director Michael Bay. With the biggest movie opening in 2014 audiences obviously turned out in droves for the carnage, but did Now Playing hosts Jerry, Stuart, and Arnie go along for the ride? Listen to find out!

In the trailer for Maximum Overdrive writer/director ​Stephen King said​ "I just wanted someone to do Stephen King right." Critics, audiences, and even King himself have since said that King's directorial debut failed in that mission statement. But if King could not properly adapt his short story "Trucks" to a motion picture, can anyone? Find out this week on Now Playing Podcast as Jakob, Stuart, and Arnie review the 1997 USA Network TV movie Trucks and decide which adaptation fuels their engines!

In 1986 Stephen King promised to scare the hell out of us, while Marvel's Green Goblin glowed behind him. The film was Maximum Overdrive--an adaptation of the author's short story "Trucks" from the Night Shift collection. It didn't scare up much money at the box office with the prolific horror author behind the camera and Brat Packer Emilio Estevez starring is this film a lost gem? Truck on to NowPlayingPodcast.com to find out!

By 1984 Kubrick's 2001 was considered a film classic and the forefather of the modern science fiction film. But while Arthur C. Clarke continued the Odyssey on the page it wasn't until 1984 that moviegoers got to find out what happened to Dave Bowman, the star child, and the mysterious monolith. With Kubrick uninterested in making another space film, could any other director fill those shoes, and were they foolish to try? Make contact with Stuart, Jakob, and Arnie on this podcast to find out!

Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey changed film forever. Its effects created a visual language that would later be built on in George Lucas' Star Wars, Ridley Scott's Alien, Steven Spielberg's Close Encounters of the Third Kind, and countless other movies. Yet upon its release it was widely panned, and to this day the film has divided audiences. Some call it a bona fide cinema classic, others call it incomprehensible. Which side is right? Maybe both? Now join Stuart, Arnie, and Jakob on this podcast odyssey and find out!

Marvel's Avengers film upped audience expectations by bringing four solo cinematic superheroes together for one explosive adventure. Now Fox tries to go one better by bringing two entire superteams together! The catch: they're both the X-Men. In X-Men: Days of Future Past the original X-Men and the First Class cast share the screen with a dozen new mutants to try and save their species from annihilation at the hands of giant robot sentinels. Does this giant cast lead to X-treme confusion or, in the hands of returning director Bryan Singer is this X-ceptional entertainment? Listen to Now Playing's review to find out!

The King of the Monsters was King of the Box Office last weekend. This hotly anticipated reboot of the sixty-year-old monster movie grossed nearly $200 million worldwide, proving audiences still yearn to see skyscrapers felled by the giant lizard with the atomic breath. Now, because you, the Now Playing listeners, demanded it, Stuart, Jakob, and Arnie review the new 2014 version of Godzilla. Will the green lizard get green arrows from the hosts? Listen to find out!

​Stephen King sued to get his name removed from New Line Cinema's film The Lawnmower Man. Then stars Jeff Fahey and Pierce Brosnan moved on to other projects as well. Even director Brett Leonard had other films to make. So why did New Line insist on making a follow-up to the cyber-sexy horror film? And could there be more on-the-nose casting than Matt Frewer, TV's Max Headroom, to play virtual reality computer god Jobe Smith? Jack in, and listen to Arnie, Jakob, and Stuart's review to find out!

​There have been a lot of bad Stephen King films, and a lot of films based on the author's works that are virtually unrecognisable from their source material. But of all the films bearing Stephen King's name on the poster only one drew the horror writer's ire to the point of filing a lawsuit to expunge any connection between him and the movie, and that film is The Lawnmower Man. A tale of a mentally challenged landscaper who, through use of virtual reality, becomes a digital god, The Lawnmower Man combined live action and computer generated images to give the audience something they couldn't see on their home PC. Is this a film worth booting up, or should the Now Playing hosts have followed the author's example and disavowed this film from their Stephen King Retrospective Series? Listen to cyber-gods Arnie, Jakob, and Stuart to find out!

Rhino. Electro. Green Goblin. In 2012's The Amazing Spider-Man the web head had a hard time defeating one bad guy, but now he is up against three. With The Amazing Spider-Man 2 director Mark Webb has an even harder challenge than rebooting the film series--he has to up the stakes while setting the stage for Sony to launch an entire Spider-Man cinematic universe of films. With all the movie moguls planning annual films and three bad guys on screen, can Andrew Garfield's Peter Parker still get a story of his own? And after a polarizing first film, does The Amazing Spider-Man 2 show a hero on an upswing, or a downward fall? Listen to Arnie, Jakob, and Stuart's review to find out!

​At a secret military base in Antarctica an evil force has arrived. Now the survivors of Ice Station Erebus don't know who's human, who's a demon, and who's come back for more...from the dead! Is this the best adaptation of King's original "Sometimes They Come Back" short story or should it be left buried in the ice? Listen to Stuart, Jakob, and Arnie's review to find out!

​You can't keep a good greaser down! In the 1950s Tony Reno and his gang died while trying to perform a human sacrifice, but now they're back from the dead to complete their quest for immortality. But...if they're back from the grave aren't they already immortal? And what is two time Oscar winner Hillary Swank doing here? Listen to Arnie, Stuart, and Jakob, the hosts who ALWAYS come back, to find out!

​Sometimes the dead stay buried. Sometimes they come back. Based on the Stephen King short story from his Night Shift collection, this CBS TV movie introduces us to Jim Norman, a teacher with a troubled history starting a new job at a new school. Jim's few good students start to die and their seats in class are taken by the greasers who killed Jim's brother almost 30 years before. Is Jim losing his mind or are these pesky poltergeists back from the grave? And is this a Stephen King adaptation worth watching? Listen to Stuart, Jakob, and Arnie, the hosts who always come back, to find out!

The First Avenger is back in the latest film from the unstoppable Marvel Cinematic Universe. With a mysterious new assassin out to kill Captain America and S.H.I.E.L.D. turning on him, it's up to the Star Spangled man along with his friends Black Widow and new hero The Falcon to save the day. Is this a good installment in Marvel's Avengers series or just a stalling tactic until we get The Avengers: Age of Ultron in 2015? Listen to Arnie, Stuart, and Jakob's review to find out! {Marvel Series} {Avengers Series} {Comic Book Movies Series} {Captain America Series}

​You can't keep a good laundry machine down! We may not have Robert Englund or Ted Levine but the titular, demonically possessed, homicidal clothes press is back for blood in The Mangler Reborn. When two thieves break into a house to rob the owner what they find inside is carnage and chaos. Does this film have any resemblance whatsoever to King's original crisply-folded vision? Listen to Arnie, Jakob, and Stuart's review where it all comes out in the wash!

The first rule of Fight Club is the one that's most broken. Especially in 1999 when this film was new, fans had to share their thoughts and feelings about this anti-consumer culture, revolutionary, subversive, and thought-provoking story. Director David Fincher and screenwriter Jim Uhls took the story from Chuck Palahniuk's novel and, with stars Brad Pitt and Ed Norton, captured the spirit of a decade. Now, as thanks to everyone who supported Marjorie's participation in the American Lung Association "Fight for Air Climb" the hosts of Now Playing once again break Fight Club's cardinal, redundant rule and break this film down in depth. Step in the ring with Arnie, Stuart, and Marjorie now to listen!

In the last film The Mangler was a killer laundry press. But that film was made in the 20th Century so now, with The Mangler 2, we get a Mangler for a new generation: a killer computer virus downloaded into the security system at a prestigious prep school. Listen to Arnie, Stuart, and Jakob's review to see if this diabolical digital demon is worth watching! And we promise, the Mangler virus is not embedded in the podcast MP3.

Workers keep dying at the Blue Ribbon Laundry Service, chewed up by The Mangler--a giant industrial laundry press. Is the machine broken, or is it possessed by a demon? Directed by Tobe Hooper and starring Robert Englund and Ted Levine, the film has horror icons on screen and behind the scenes. Can their combined talent make the Mangler loads of fun, or have King's Night Shift adaptations pressed their luck too far? Listen to Arnie, Stuart, and Jakob's review to find out!

It’s hard to decide what's worst about working at the Bachman Textile Plant. It could be the lack of air conditioning. It could be the boss who coerces female employees for sex. Actually the worst thing about the mill is probably the giant rat-bat creature that lives in the basement and feeds on the workers. Such is the plot of Graveyard Shift, the 1990 film based on Stephen King's 1970 short story. Can a mischief of rats, a giant puppet beast, and Brad Dourif scare Arnie, Jakob, and Stuart to death? Listen to find out!

What do a man trying to quit smoking, a man running away with his lover, and a troll have in common? They're all stories told in Cat's Eye, the 1985 anthology film starring Drew Barrymore. The film has adaptations of two stories from Stephen King's Night Shift collection, and a third newly written for the screen. Are the original tales scarier than the new one? Are these stories even intended to frighten the audience? Listen to Stuart, Jakob, and Arnie's review to find out! Arnie is also reviewing all the original King Night Shift short stories at the Books & Nachos podcast! Head there now to hear reviews of the short stories "Quitters Inc." and "The Ledge" which were adapted in Cat's Eye!

Stephen King has over 50 feature films based on his writings. But beyond the feature films are hundreds of student-made short films based on King's short stories, completely authorized by the author. In an attempt to help student filmmakers King sells non-exclusive rights for one dollar; he calls these films his "Dollar Babies." As part of the contract these films can not be distributed or sold; however, in the 1980s three Dollar Babies were renegotiated and saw professional release. On a direct-to-VHS series called The Night Shift Collection student adaptations of King's short stories "Children of the Corn" (title changed to Disciples of the Crow for film), "The Boogeyman", and "The Woman in the Room" were distributed--the last title directed by Frank Darabont, who would go on to direct professional King adaptations The Shawshank Redemption, The Green Mile, and The Mist! So join Arnie, Jakob, and Stuart as they go back to school and review The Night Shift Collection!

Robocop is back! After two theatrical sequels that quickly declined in quality, a syndicated TV series, and a series of TV movies, the cyborg cop is back in theaters with a totally new take on the tale of Alex Murphy. Gone is Verhoeven's ultra-violence and satrical take on 80's business, and instead Robocop is now a state of the art tactical killing machine, dressed in black. Does this new angle on the robot cop work, or should Murphy have stayed dead? Listen to Arnie, Jakob, and Stuart's review to find out!

It's been a long road but we have reached the climax of the Robocop: Prime Directives series. Kaydick and Robocable have infiltrated OCP, planning to use their SAINT computer system to spread the human and machine killing Legion virus throughout Delta City. Only Robocop, his son James, and Kaydick's former lover Anne can stop him. After three cheaply made films, is there anything in this final movie to redeem the series, or does it Crash and Burn? Listen to find out!

There is a new threat to Delta City, and his name is Kaydick. Having invented Legion, a virus that will destroy both technology and people, Kaydick is ready to annihilate all of humanity, and with RoboCable as his slave bodyguard it may just happen. Can Robocop avoid OCP's Systems Support team, and his own son, long enough to save the city? And can this film give Prime Directives a much-needed Resurrection? Listen to our review of the third Robocop: Prime Directives films to find out!

Robocop has been feeling obsolete after a decade of patrolling Delta City, but he's not ready to be shut down yet! When he is framed for a series of destructive acts, actually done by his former police partner, who has also been turned into a cyborg, Robocop must go on the run and hide from OCP and their lethal Systems Support Team. Does the addition of RoboCable double the pleasure of the second Robocop: Prime Directives films, or will the Now playing hosts have a Meltdown? Listen to find out!

Robocop, the franchise, was considered obsolete, broken down, and forgotten in the early 21st century. So what better than to make four films in which Robocop, the character, is considered obsolete, broken down, and forgotten? Such is the premise of the Robocop - Prime Directives. Taking place 10 years after the death of Alex Murphy Robocop still patrols the streets of Delta City hunting the mass murderer Bone Machine. Does this R-rated made-for-TV movie bring back the sprit of the original Robocop? Listen to our review of the first Prime Directives film Dark Justice, to find out! Then join us this Friday for the next Prime Directives review, Meltdown!

Clarence Boddicker couldn't kill Officer Alex Murphy--the policeman rose again as the unstoppable Robocop. But what Boddicker started director Fred Dekker finished with Robocop 3. With a new man in the robosuit, a robot ninja, and a jetpack, the third Robocop film was both a critical and box office failure that would end the original franchise, save for some television projects, and doom Murphy to 21 years of obsolescence. But can the film, written by comic cult icon Frank Miller, be as bad as its reputation? Listen to Arnie, Stuart, and Jakob's review to find out!

When Alex Murphy was killed in the line of duty OCP brought in their best scientists to rebuild him as the bigger, stronger Robocop. When Paul Verhoeven chose to make Total Recall instead of Robocop 2 Orion Pictures also turned to icons of the genre--the Irvin Kershner, director of The Empire Strikes Back, and Frank Miller, writer of the hit Batman comic The Dark Knight Returns. With these big names behind the camera, Peter Weller back in the Robosuit, and a much bigger budget, does Robocop 2 make the original obsolete? Listen to Arnie, Stuart, and Jakob to find out!

Robocop has been the star of numerous comic books, TV series, cartoons, video games, and more. His legacy is even worthy of a cinematic remake, hitting theaters in February, 2014. It's quite the achievement for a character that no director wanted to touch until Dutch filmmaker Paul Verhoeven brought his ultra-violent, satirical aesthetic to the character. The film was originally given an X-rating for violence and decried for its gratuitous gore, but it was a box office success and became a cult hit. Now, in preparation for the new Robocop film, Arnie, Stuart, and Jakob look back at the original. Do the film's sci-fi elements and cynical view of corporate America hold up today? Listen to find out!

While the frequency of their collaborations has slowed, Leonardo DiCaprio and Martin Scorsese are together again in 2013's Oscar-bating docu-comedy The Wolf of Wall Street. DiCaprio plays real-life Wall Street criminal Jordan Belfort, who lived a sex, drug, and money fueled lifestyle before his short stint in prison. Does Scorsese's style work when showcasing white-collar crime families? Listen to Arnie, Stuart, and Jakob's review to find out!

It may only take a drop of water to make a new gremlin, but it took six years and a slew of writers, directors, and concepts to make a new Gremlins film. Finally original director Joe Dante returned in 1990 to give us Gremlins 2: The New Batch. With a gang of genetically modified gremlins taking a bite out of the Big Apple this film opted for more comedy than horror. Did that work for our hosts? Listen to this final Now Playing of 2013 to find out!

In the mid 1980s there was no bigger name in film than Steven Spielberg. As a director he had a string of major hits, including E.T. which became the top grossing film of all time. Even films he didn't direct but only produced, such as Poltergeist and The Goonies, benefited from having his name high on the title. Also in this category was Gremlins, the 1984 film about a small town overrun by small, evil creatures. Directed by The Howling's Joe Dante, this film provided a combination of horror, comedy, and Christmas. Now join Stuart, Arnie, and Jakob as they review this film, from the cuddly Mogwai to the creepy Gremlins to that lingering smell that makes Kate hate Christmas.

Stanley Kubrick's The Shining is considered a horror classic, but original Shining author Stephen King never felt it lived up to his original vision. So in 1997, for the novel's 20th anniversary, King and longtime collaborator Mick Garris reunited to bring The Shining to audiences as an ABC mini-series. While time has not granted this series the iconic status of Kubrick's film, is King's vision one worth seeing? Listen to Arnie, Jakob, and Stuart's review to find out!

​Stephen King is a best selling, award winning horror author. Stanley Kubrick ​is regarded as one of the greatest filmmakers of all time. When these two came together a horror classic was born -- The Shining. It has scared audiences for over thirty years, and now Stuart, Arnie, and Jakob are reviewing it as the next film in the Stephen King Movie Retrospective Series. But King famously dislikes the movie. Will any of our hosts agree? Listen to find out!

When the first TV miniseries based on 'Salems Lot came out in 1979 Stephen King was an up-and-coming author. His novels had become bestsellers based of popularity of Brian DePalma's film Carrie, but he was not the brand name that he would become. As such the TV version of Salem's Lot ended with middling ratings. But by 2004 the author had not only been crowned the King of horror, he was also the monarch of miniseries, with The Stand, It, and others giving big ratings to networks. As such, as the 30th anniversary of 'Salem's Lot's publication approached, another miniseries was made. Starring The Stand's Rob Lowe, as well as Donald Sutherland and Rutger Hauer, does this adaptation provide more frights than the original? Listen to Arnie, Stuart, and Jakob's review to find out!

A Return to Salem's Lot has a town called Salem's Lot and vampires. Beyond that, this direct-to-video release has no ties to Tobe Hooper's 1979 TV mini-series or Stephen King's original novel. But helmed by the director of The Stuff and It's Alive, is this 80s film a fun time? Listen to Arnie, Jakob, and Stuart's review to find out!

When Carrie came out in 1976 Stephen King was an unknown author, but after the success of Brian DePalma's film the author was put in the spotlight. His older books became paperback bestsellers, and his new books topped the charts in hardcover. So expectations were high in 1979 when 'Salem's Lot, the second adaptation of King's work, hit screens. But rather than being in movie theaters, King's 1976 vampire novel was produced as a television mini-series. With horror master Tobe Hooper directing could this small-screen film live up to the quality of big-screen King horror? Listen to find out!

It will be 2015 before the Avengers assemble on the big screen again, but Disney and Marvel will fill that time with films focusing on individual Avengers and their disassembled heroics. Earlier this year we had Iron Man 3, and now Disney hopes to catch lightning in a bottle again with the help of a thunder god in Thor: The Dark World. The mighty Avenger must once again fighting an ancient enemy of Asgard, continue arguing with Odin over how best to rule the kingdom, and all the while try to romance his human love interest Jane Foster. Are the Now Playing hosts excited for Thor's return, or just glad to have Loki back on screen? Listen to our review to find out! {Marvel Series} {Avengers Series} {Comic Book Movies Series} {Thor Series}

In 1982 DC's Swamp Thing seemed ready for the big time with a major motion picture. But with that original film failing to grow on audiences, it would actually be in 1983 that Swamp Thing blossomed--as new writer Alan Moore took over and revamped the character. With the newfound popularity for the man-plant hybrid a new, low budget film was commissioned and released in 1989. Does The Return of Swamp Thing bear fruit, or is it another rotten comic adaptation? Listen to the Now Playing review to find out!

Charlie Brewster is a teenager with nothing on his mind but his girlfriend Amy. But one night out his bedroom window Charlie sees a woman bitten by a vampire. No one believes Charlie's story, not even his friend Ed, but perhaps monster expert Peter Vincent can be the one to save the day! Have you seen this plot before? In addition to being the story for the original Fright Night film and the 2011 remake, it's told yet again now in the Direct-to-Home-Video release Fright Night 2: New Blood. It's the same basic story...but this time in Romania! Does this third retelling of Tom Holland's vampire tale have fangs, or does it just bite? Listen to this special bonus Halloween review from Now Playing Podcast to find out!

By 1980 Superman had proven audiences of all ages could watch in wonder as comic books came to life on the big screen. But the next DC hero on the big screen wasn't Batman, Green Lantern, or even Aquaman, it was Swamp Thing. The film was directed by Wes Craven and starred James Bond baddie Louis Jordan and scream queen Adrienne Barbeau. It did not find box office success but did lead to a sequel, a TV series, and a cult following. Did the film just need time to bloom, or did it wither on the vine? Listen to Now Playing's latest DC Comic movie review to find out!

The posters declare "You Will Know Her Name" but for fans of horror, Brian DePalma, or Stephen King you already know her name--Carrie, the outcast girl whose telekinetic powers will be both her salvation and her damnation. When it was announced this film was being adapted to screen for a third time even original author King said "Why, when the original was so good?". But now the new adaptation is in theaters to tell a younger generation of movie lovers why they should know her name. Was King right and this film unnecessary, or can this film still shine in the shadow of the 1976 original? Listen to Arnie, Jakob, and Stuart's review to find out!​

​Everyone is anxiously awaiting Carrie, the 2013 adaptation of Stephen King's story starring Chloë Grace Moretz--in theaters this Friday! But Carrie has already been retold in the 21st century--in 2002's made-for-television movie Carrie. Starring Agnela Bettis (May), written by Bryan Fuller (Dead Like Me, Pushing Daisies, and TV's Hannibal), and directed by David Carsons (Star Trek: Generations) the film has strong genre talent, but has been mostly forgotten. Does this remake deserve a second look? And can any insight into Friday's release be gleaned by this 11-year-old version? Listen to Arnie, Jakob, and Stuart's third Carrie review to find out!​

​The Rage: Carrie 2 is not about Carrie White, the star character in Brian DePalma's 1976 film. Nor is it about another girl named Carrie. No, this movie tells the story of Rachel, Carrie White's telekinetic half-sister. With more than a few plot beats taken from Stephen King's original novel, The Rage adds 1990s style, dialect, and production values. There's little hope that this sequel could match the then 23-year-old original film, but the question is can The Rage: Carrie 2 be any good at all? Listen to Jakob, Arnie, and Stuart's next review in the Stephen King Movie Retrospective Series to find out!​

It's hard to imagine a time when Stephen King wasn't the king of horror fiction. It's hard to imagine a world without such influential stories including The Shining, The Stand, Christine, and King's first novel, Carrie. Yet before November, 1976 King was just another author with two modest-selling novels. But when Brian De Palma decides to adapt Carrie for the big screen he created an iconic horror movie staple, and from that King's book sold millions of copies and his career was minted. Now, in anticipation of the upcoming third adaptation of Carrie starring Chloë Grace Moretz the Now Playing hosts go back to watch and review De Palma's original. It's the start of Now Playing's massive Stephen King retrospective series, looking at all the movies based on King's writings, starting with Carrie. Does De Palma's blood soaked tale of a teen outcast still hold up over 35 years later? Listen to find out! Then join Arnie at booksandnachos.com for his review of the original novel!

The Lords of Salem -- are they an up and coming rock band? Or are they a coven of reincarnated witches who plan to bring the son of Satan to Earth? In Rob Zombie's latest feature film it's both. With Zombie's muse and wife Sheri Moon-Zombie starring as Heidi, a radio DJ who also may be mother to the Antichrist, does this film cement Zombie as the new Lord of horror? Listen to this BONUS REVIEW to find out!

Insidious Chapter 2 scared more than audiences, it scared up a huge box office return showing that audiences are still hungry for spooky scares and ghost movies! Picking up mere seconds after the first film ended, director James Wan and writer Leigh Whannell answered all the lingering questions and finally revealed the fate of the Lambert family. Were the reveals satisfying, and what may be in store for Insidious Part 3? Listen to Stuart, Marjorie, and Arnie's review to find out!

James Wan's first film, Saw, redefined horror for the 2000s. By 2011 the Saw films had run their course, and audiences turned their attention to more ghostly horror in the form of the Paranormal Activity series. So is it any wonder that when the writer and director behind Saw teamed up with the Paranormal Activity studio a new horror franchise? With Insidious 2 taking top spot at the US box office last weekend, the Now Playing crew go back to watch and review the original. Does this film scare the hosts? Listen to find out!

Riddick is a hard man to kill, but Universal Studios and the poor reception of Chronicles of Riddick almost did the job. Through the tenacity of writer/director David Twohy and star/producer Vin Diesel the antihero was able to again overcome the odds and return to the big screen. With a story that comes off more as Pitch Black: Part 2 than a follow-up to Chronicles of Riddick, does the back-to-basics approach work? Listen to Arnie, Jakob, and Brock's review to find out!