We’re back to finish up (?) our coverage of HBO’s Sharp Objects, and discuss our thoughts on Hulu’s Castle Rock through S01E08 (00:26:04). Next week we’ll be back to start our coverage of the second season of HBO’s The Deuce. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Jim and I had high hopes for The Little Stranger, thinking it would be an ultra atmospheric mash up of The Witch with Downton Abbey. Instead, we got a commentary on upper class angst during the 1940’s as their fortunes crumbled alongside their estates masquerading as a dull, drab little ghost story. At no point does the film ever manage to generate anything but mild disquiet and malaise. Which is a shame, because all the pieces were there for genuine horror. This podcast is an abridged version o...
We thoroughly enjoyed the experience of watching Sharp Objects these past few months. We found the finale to be of a piece with the whole. Maybe there weren’t satisfying answers to every single element or question raised by the series, but isn’t that the way life goes? We feel we got enough through Camille’s point of view to understand what motivated Adora and Amma, and liked that the show left some things ambiguous and open to interpretation. But what did everyone else think? Learn more about y...
Today we discuss the penultimate episode of HBO’s Sharp Objects, “Falling”, as well as our thoughts on the first six episodes of Hulu’s Castle Rock. Sharp was an especially wild hour, chock full of stomach churning child abuse and problematic sex scenes between damaged and self-destructive people, before promising a truly epic conclusion from the setup of a five way collision between Camille, Amma, Adora, Alan, and Chief Vickers. Will Detective Willis find his way into the middle of this perfect...
Brian Strader is back to, as he says, “play ‘TV Show Dumpster Fire’ roulette.” Unfortunately we think he may have lost by betting on Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex. We were suitably impressed with the detail of the animations, certain aspects of world building, and the themes here and there. Unfortunately, other aspects of the world building struck us as silly, the translations on the version we watched were universally bad, and themes that were engaging have been made more engaging by ...
Jim and A.Ron talk about another hard to watch but impossible to turn away from episode of HBO’s Sharp Objects, “Closer”. The town of Wind Gap celebrates what could charitably be called a a dark and regrettable moment from their past history, while Adora tortures her daughter Camille in ways that would make Ramsay Bolton blush. Not much is advanced in terms of the central murder mystery, but we get the sense that this show is about to take a big step off a deep, dark cliff that is this toxic tow...
Jim and A.Ron continue to focus on HBO’s Sharp Objects, with a deep dive on the fourth episode, “Ripe”. Of course, Adora is just The Worst, but we see hints that the crazy awfulness of her family didn’t start with her. Who knows how many generations of Wind Gap women have been caught in this cycle of rage and shame? Also, Camille and Willis get handsy, suspicion swirls around John Keane and Bob Nash, and Amma gets (probably) fake murdered by the end of the episode. Learn more about your ad choic...
The plot around the bonkers stunt work is a bit thin, but the stunts themselves fully justify the movie. You can see ever dollar spent and bone broken literally up there on the screen, but it also must be said that these stunts are clinging desperately to the line from believable to unbelievable. And half the time they careen over that line and land in Fast & Furious territory. Unless they find an emotional core to build future episodes, this might be as good as a retro-futuristic spy thrill...
This week’s episode of Sharp Objects, “Fix”, is rough to watch. Filled with painful encounters with family, self-harm, and suicide, it is bleak and yet remains engaging and thoughtful as the camera captures the horrific events without artifice or judgment. Amma appears far more at risk and overtly dangerous than we first anticipated, Adora is an absolute monster, and Camille is clearly in over her head with this situation that she isn’t emotionally prepared for. Learn more about your ad choices....
We’re back for more discussion of HBO’s miniseries, Sharp Objects, discussing the second episode, “Dirt”. But it turns out we can’t resist the siren call of discussing “all of television” as we do a deeper dive than is truly necessary on the 2018 Emmy nominations, as well as talk about the Stranger Things season 3 teaser that just dropped. We just can’t help ourselves! 00:00:00 – 2018 Emmy nominations 00:21:18 – Stranger Things season 3 00:24:53 – Sharp Objects episode Learn more about your ad c...
Jim and A.Ron are back with another first run Bald Move, this time taking in The Rock’s latest family friendly action flick, “Skyscraper”. Die Hard + Towering Inferno = a pretty damn engaging and entertaining action film, smarter than most, and with plenty of heart courtesy Dwayne Johnson’s charisma and chemistry with co-star (and fellow badass) Neve Campbell. You’re going to be able to predict most beats of the film from the first 10 minutes, but it’s still a pleasure to watch Mr. Johnson do hi...
Based on the novel by Gillian Flynn, Sharp Objects features Amy Addams as a journalist who returns to the small town she grew up in to investigate a series of killings. Giving us strong True Detective vibes, the mystery is intriguing and the characters are vivid and well developed just one episode in. We’ll be back with weekly coverage of Sharp Objects, if you’d like to join the conversation, use the links below! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices...
Cecily and A.Ron are back to discuss Incredibles 2. Brad Bird returns to direct the original cast and some fun new cameos. If you liked Incredibles, this is more of it in every way. More supers, bigger action scenes, more Mr. Incredible angst, super teenage dating, and the best animal control scene in movie history. The script is literally the same script from the first, but the plot is really secondary to the pleasure of watching the characters metaphorically and literally bounce off each other...
Jim and A.Ron have seen AMC’s The Terror, the epic horror/historical drama set in the mid-nineteenth century that tries to answer the question of what went wrong during the doomed Franklin expedition to the arctic circle. These intrepid men were looking for a path through the sea ice that would open up speedier (and more profitable) trade to the new world and eastern markets, but instead they find themselves trapped in a frozen hell for years. Which will run out first? Their supplies or their sa...
We’ve seen Solo: A Star Wars Story and… really liked it! Maybe it was low expectations, maybe it’s just impossible to hate on Han, Chewie, and Lando dashing around the galaxy doing derring-do (although…), all we know is that we found ourselves grinning like idiots throughout huge chunks of this movie. Maybe you will too? It’s hard to tell, I feel like I used to know what a Star Wars fan would like, but after the prequels and The Last Jedi, I just don’t know. The big takeaway is that we’re both b...
Bald Move TV is back! Jim and A.Ron discuss the fifth season of HBO’s Silicon Valley before considering the brilliant first season of Barry, starring Bill Hader as a hitman trying to turn actor. It probably goes without saying, but massive spoilers for both shows in this episode. If you’d like to skip around, here are timecodes for the discussion… Silicon Valley – 00:00:33 Barry – 00:19:10 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices...
We have seen Deadpool 2! If you saw Deadpool, and liked it, well, here is more of it. It is arguably even better, or at any rate, just as good. We loved Deadpool, and had an even better time with 2. There are more jokes, more over the top action, better cameos, and truly shocking and original things put on screen that you’re just not going to see in other franchises, all done in a very brisk, slick, and above all else, entertaining fashion. The trailer does not ruin this film, there are plenty o...
It took ten years of careful buildup to make the massive undertaking that is Avengers: Infinity War possible, but was all the effort worth it? Hell, yes. This is hands down the most epic comic book film ever made, and it is full to bursting with Marvel Studios hallmarks; funny interactions within the heroes, inventive and imaginative fight scenes, jaw-dropping, awesome world and universe building, and genuine character beats. The final act contains some effective gut punches that Jim and I are b...
Max commissioned one of his beloved films from high school (shout out to the Class of ’95!), Hackers. Directed by Iain Softley and starring Jonny Lee Miller and Angelina Jolie, Hackers is a mostly ridiculous look into mid-90s hacker culture that’s core plot is a rehash of Office Space, which is to say it’s a rehash of Superman III. We discuss the film as contemporary computer nerds and as grown men looking back at the naivety of early hacker culture and the weird prescience the move shows. Join ...
We saw Steven Spielberg’s 80’s nostalgic fun fest, Ready Player One, and we were surprised that it managed to be a good film. We’d heard nothing but shaky things leading up to it, but with our appropriately set expectations, we had a lot of fun with it. It’s not perfect, the ending in particular is a bit of a mess, but it works if you want it to work, and if you’re in this movie’s target demo, you’re going to want it to work. Since we’re both pretty much at ground zero of that target, we can’t s...
Today’s commission is courtesy the kind support of Sean Ray, a five time commissioner! He selected It Follows, an extremely clever and inventive horror flick written and directed by David Robert Mitchell. It has big ideas, and while it struggles to live up to them in places, the concept and performance of the plucky cast of likable yet relatively obscure young actors really makes the film shine. It’s fun to watch, it’s fun to think about, and it’s fun to talk about. How would you survive being h...
Jim and I saw a movie about giant robots punching even bigger monsters, and it was even dumber than we thought it would be. Jim and I have no small amount of affection for the first Pacific Rim. But hoo-boy, Pacific Rim: Uprising might up the robot on monster punching action slightly, but removes all of the spunk and charm of the original to give us a loud, boring, and thoroughly by the numbers action movie. My 11 year old loved it, though, so if you have one of those around, or are one of those...
We’re back to talk HBO’s Sharp Objects and a preliminary spoiler-free discussion of Hulu’s spooky Castle Rock! Here are some time stamps to help you navigate the podcast… 00:00:52 – Castle Rock 00:12:18 – Sharp Objects Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Special thanks to our buddy Jason Shankel hailing from the Nattercast for commissioning this podcast for the 1986 sci-fi action fantasy film Highlander, directed by Russell Mulcahy and starring Sean Connery and Christopher Lambert. Jason and his friends also did a deep dive on Highlander, so please check that out if you’re looking for a very affectionate and informed take from life-long fans of the franchise. As for us, we thought Highlander was cheesy fun. The film boasts an excellent soundtrac...
We spin up Netflix’s Altered Carbon after we’ve decanted it for a few weeks, to see what we make of it in our final analysis. Cool concepts, excellent design, and decent sci-fi action are slightly undercut by sometimes silly and hammy execution, and a failure to take ideas to their logical conclusion. Still, we’re always down to ponder futurism and human singularities, so we dig it. It will be interesting to see if and how they decide to proceed with future seasons! Learn more about your ad choi...
Ryan Coogler’s Black Panther is a great super hero film, and an even better launching point into interesting discussions about the politics of colonialism and liberation. Starring Chadwick Boseman as the Panther himself, and Michael B. Jordan as the best Marvel villain since Magneto, the movie is a constant challenge to one’s complacency and sense of justice. Wakanda looks amazing, the cast is fantastic, the world they are building is both visually and philosophically amazing, to the point that ...
Today’s commissioned podcast is Looper, the 2012 sci-fi action thriller directed by Rian Johnson and starring, Bruce Willis, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and Emily Blunt. We have David Babulak to thank for this, as he’s the one who pulled the trigger and made the commission. This movie is really, really great, thought provoking, well made, and entertaining. It’s one of those podcasts where we sit back and think about time and space and what it’s like to meet yourself from the future, which is always fu...
Jim and A.Ron have seen the first two episodes of Netflix’s new sci-fi film noir series Altered Carbon. Hundreds of years into the future, the wealthy elite change bodies like we change clothes, and a fallen rebel from a long ago civil war is brought back to life by a rich immortal who wants him to investigate his own “murder”. Intriguing premise, looks amazing, with fantastic action sequences, but we’re a bit worried that some of the lofty ideas and world building are half baked, though not fat...
Welcome to the 2017 Baldies Awards, where we honor the outstanding achievements in film, television, and Bald Move podcasting for the year! This is the main event, the 2017 Baldies Awards Ceremony proper. Once again we don our most formal t-shirts to hand out the Baldie gold to those deserving. Who takes home the top prize for Drama and Actor? There is sure to be fun and controversy along the way! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices...
This 2017 Baldies Awards deliberation is on “Best Drama”! Perhaps the most prestigious of the Baldies, this award recognizes the best television show we saw in 2017, and this deliberation explains why we scored dramas the way we did. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
