In 1991, Daniel Petrie, the director of Beverly Hills Cop and Turner & Hooch, brought a script he'd co-written with David Koepp, based on the novel by William P. Kennedy, to the big screen. Starring Sean Astin a year before he had everyone chanting his name in Rudy and Wil Wheaton a year after he’d beamed off the Enterprise in Star Trek: The Next Generation, this film had its finger on the pulse of moviemaking trends. When the red dawn sees an elite boarding school under siege by Colombian t...
Jul 16, 2025•1 hr•Ep. 736
Director Ryan Coogler and actor Michael B. Jordan have cashed in on teaming up over the past decade, from Coogler’s debut Fruitvale Station, to Black Panther, to Creed. This 2025 film, their fifth collaboration, sees Coogler double down on Michael B. Jordan - quite literally. Set in the 1932 Mississippi Delta, this genre-defying film sees Jordan play twin brothers who seek to open their own juke joint, only to be threatened by a clan of vampires. The film co-stars Hailee Steinfeld, Wunmi Mosaku,...
Jul 09, 2025•1 hr 17 min•Ep. 735
***UPDATED AUDIO TRACKING*** in beef's hurry to leave town and add a cold open he messed up tracking.... it is fixed now! enjoy this cast on your way to the beach maybe??? Fifty years ago, the summer blockbuster was born. Director Steven Spielberg, in his second official turn at the helm, adapted Peter Benchley’s best-selling novel about a New England resort town plagued by a great white shark. Despite production delays and budget overruns, this $9 million “high-concept” thriller starring Roy Sc...
Jul 02, 2025•1 hr 13 min•Ep. 734
Ten years ago, 2015 was the year of the epic Western. Two films, Alejandro Iñárritu’s The Revenant and Quentin Tarantino’s The Hateful Eight, clocked in at an average length of 170 minutes and scored a combined 15 Academy Award nominations, winning 4 between them. As a pair, the two films brought in nearly $700 million at the box office. Along with John Maclean’s Sundance darling Slow West, the year marked a return to prominence of the western genre, foreshadowing the next decade’s breakout hits...
Jun 25, 2025•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 733
Director Joe Johnston, who worked in design and VFX for George Lucas and Steven Spielberg, is best known for effects-heavy family pics like Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, The Rocketeer, and Jumanji. But in 1999, he tried his hand at the “based on a true story” inspirational biopic genre, based on the early life of NASA engineer Homer Hickam, as told in Hickam’s memoir Rocket Boys. Starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Chris Cooper, Chris Owen, and Laura Dern, the film tells the story of a coal miner’s son who wa...
Jun 18, 2025•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 732
Wait, do that again. No that wasn’t quite right… In 2024, writer-director-editor Bernardo Britto — best known for his sharp, thought-provoking animated shorts like Yearbook, Hudson Geese, and Glove — takes a bold leap into live action with his very first feature film.Set in Miami and Starring Mary-Louise Parker as a woman facing a haunting deadline: she has only one week left to live. But when she uses mysterious pills from her youth that send her back five days in time, she’s plunged into an in...
Jun 10, 2025•51 min•Ep. 731
One of last year’s most puzzling releases came in the form of a musical biopic chronicling the rise to fame of British pop star Robbie Williams. While following all the usual biopic tropes, this film made one rather noticeable swerve by portraying its star and subject as an anthropomorphic CGI chimpanzee. With Williams providing the narration and singing and Jonno Davies providing the voice and motion capture, the film, directed by The Greatest Showman’s Michael Gracey, never acknowledges this s...
Jun 05, 2025•1 hr 14 min•Ep. 730
We’re returning to The Suck Zone to kick off the summer movie season with a legacy sequel to the 1996 film Twister! Director Lee Isaac Chung updates the storm chasing disaster flick for 2024, with a new cast including Daisy Edgar-Jones, Glen Powell, and Anthony Ramos. When a tornado outbreak threatens Oklahoma, a traumatized scientist and a social media influencer join forces to literally change the weather. Coming to the big screen more than twenty years after the original, is this formula enou...
May 29, 2025•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 729
We’re off to see the 2024 movie adaptation of Act One of the 2003 hit Broadway musical based on the 1995 bestselling book by Gregory Maguire, based on the 1939 film, based on the 1900 novel by L. Frank Baum. Telling the origin story of the witches of Oz, this Jon M. Chu-directed film saw Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande step into the roles made famous on stage by Idina Menzel and Kristen Chenoweth. Jonathan Bailey, Michelle Yeoh, Peter Dinklage, and Jeff Goldblum round out the cast of one of the ...
May 21, 2025•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 728
We’re heading back to high school for a Legend of ‘99 - that’s 25 years ago! When a prank goes wrong leaving the most popular girl in school dead in the trunk of a car, her clique will stop at nothing to cover up their crime. Starring Rose McGowan, Rebecca Gayheart, Julie Benz, and Judy Greer, this film written and directed by Darren Stein didn’t take a huge bite out of the box office, with many critics souring it at the time of release. However, as time passed, audiences have come to see it as ...
May 14, 2025•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 727
Director Francis Ford Coppola is widely regarded as one of the greatest directors of the twentieth century, the visionary force behind The Godfather, Apocalypse Now, and dozens of other films. For decades, Coppola had sought to make a film drawing parallels between the fall of the Roman Republic and the future of the United States by retelling the Catilinarian conspiracy in modern New York, but was unable to secure studio funding. After three decades of fits and starts, Coppola ultimately spent ...
May 07, 2025•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 726
We’re continuing our journey on the open road this month with a classic Disney movie released three decades ago. In this film, a father and son come to terms with the circle of life while realizing the importance of being prepared to face the challenges of a road trip. Far from meaning “no worries” for the son (who wants to feel the love tonight with his crush), the efforts of the father (who just can’t wait to be king of the road) to reconnect with his son lead to a veritable stampede of sight ...
Apr 30, 2025•57 min•Ep. 725
We’re heading out for a road trip with two ladies who are doing it for themselves! Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon star as the titular leads in this 1991 road trip crime drama from director Ridley Scott. When a girls’ weekend getaway goes awry, a waitress and housewife must dodge the law and would-be lovers to make a true getaway. But when their luck runs out, they must take a leap of faith. Co-starring Harvey Keitel, Michael Madsen, Christopher McDonald, Stephen Tobolowsky, and Brad Pitt, the fi...
Apr 23, 2025•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 724
It’s Tax Day, and we’re celebrating the fiscal cycle with a movie that gets physical. A film that puts the “internal” from “internal injuries” in the Internal Revenue Service. The flick that proves pocket protectors can be cool and no one will make fun of you for wearing them if you also carry a really big gun. Ben Affleck stars, the same year he donned the Bat-Mantle in Batman V Superman, alongside Jon Bernthal, Anna Kendrick, J.K. Simmons, Cynthia Addai-Robinson, John Lithgow, Jean Smart, and ...
Apr 16, 2025•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 723
We’re back from ITHACON, but we mustn’t dwell, no, not today! We can’t! Not on Rex Manning Day! We’re rewinding to 1995 at the height of the record store boom. Directed by Allan Moyle and written by Carol Heikkinen, with an ensemble cast including Anthony LaPaglia, Maxwell Caulfield, Debi Mazar, Rory Cochrane, Johnny Whitworth, Robin Tunney, Renée Zellweger, and Liv Tyler, this comedy follows a group of record store employees through a wild twenty-four hours on that particular April 8th. Unfortu...
Apr 09, 2025•53 min•Ep. 722
Legends Podcast is proud to present a special exclusive look at ITHACON 48. Held this past weekend (April 5-6, 2025) at Ithaca College, ITHACON 48 is the latest installment of the second-longest-running comic book convention in the nation. Hosted by the Comic Book Club of Ithaca and students in MGMT 29800: Promoting and Managing Conventions at Ithaca College School of Business, ITHACON harkens back to the early days of comic book conventions with its creator-centric approach and intimate setting...
Apr 08, 2025•1 hr 22 min•Ep. 65535
We’re indulging our sweet tooths (or sweet teeth?) with the origin story of everyone’s favorite candy man! Join Timothée Chalamet as young Willy Wonka for the tale of chocolate, conspiracy, and creepy little orange men, along with a cast of assorted oddballs and character actors. Directed by Paddington and Paddington 2 helmer Paul King and produced by David Heyman, who just took over co-producing the Bond franchise, this film was sweetly received by audiences, who treated it to over half a billi...
Apr 02, 2025•1 hr 16 min•Ep. 721
Beaver Fever continues to hold sway over Legends Podcast as we visit the wintry woods of Northern Wisconsin for an ultra-indie throwback movie about an applejack brewer turned trapper who contends with the forces of nature. Directed by Mike Cheslik and starring Ryland Tews, the film draws inspiration from a myriad of sources, including the works of Abbott and Costello, Buster Keaton, Charlie Chaplin, Looney Tunes, and the Three Stooges, as well as wilderness movies like The Revenant and survival...
Mar 26, 2025•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 720
We’re all back on the ‘cast for an indie horror comedy about a bunch of horny college kids who do battle with an undead colony of beavers that have been altered by toxic waste. And while that premise may sound stupid, the film is also stupid. But that doesn’t mean it can’t also be fun! Or does it? We’re dam sure going to find out in this episode! And we’re all just as eager to hear Lobster’s full report from SXSW. So sit back, relax, and chew on some wood while finding out how we felt about Zomb...
Mar 19, 2025•45 min•Ep. 719
In 2024, just last year, several animated films from all over the world found their way to Oscar nominations. Tonight we wonder if robots would survive better in the wild than we would. We’re talking about the animated adaptation of Peter Brown’s beloved novel. Directed and Co-Written by Chris Sanders The writer/Director behind The Croods, How to Train Your Dragon, and everything Lilo & Stitch, and featuring Lupita Nyong’o as Roz the Robot, Kit Conner as Brightbill, Pedro Pascal as Fink, as ...
Mar 13, 2025•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 718
(UPDATED AUDIO) sorry for the last file, the tracking was off.. beef made a mistake. here is the updated file, we hope you enjoy! We’re venturing to Garfagnana, Italy, in the Year of Our Lord 1347, for a raunchy comedy based on The Decameron by Giovanni Boccaccio. In the film, three medieval nuns lead a simple life in their convent until a virile young servant who's been forced into hiding by his angry lord appears, and the repressed nunnery erupts in a whirlwind of pansexual horniness, substanc...
Mar 05, 2025•55 min•Ep. 717
In 2002, Robin Williams was in his era of playing against type with roles in the Christopher Nolan thriller Insomnia, and in this film about a lonely photo minilab employee who becomes obsessed with a young family. Co-starring Connie Nielsen, Michael Vartan, and Gary Cole, this pic written and directed by Mark Romanek succeeded critically and commercially, and it was also the only film that Robin Williams ever recorded a DVD commentary for. Now we’re seeing what develops when we take a closer lo...
Feb 26, 2025•1 hr 12 min•Ep. 716
And this is Studio Ghibli’s 2001 classic from famed writer-director Hayao Miyazaki. When 10-year-old Chihiro moves with her family to a new neighborhood, a wrong turn sees her trapped in the world of kami, the spirits of Japanese Shinto folklore. Raking in almost $400 million in coin, the film stood as the highest-grossing film in Japan for almost 20 years. Widely regarded as one of the best films ever made, animated or otherwise, it became the first hand-drawn, Japanese anime and non-English-la...
Feb 19, 2025•1 hr 15 min•Ep. 715
In space, no one can hear you scream. In sequels that are also prequels that tell standalone stories while respecting the original and tying together diverse material from comics to video games, no one can hear you scream about continuity. Return to the Alien franchise in this 2024 installment directed by Fede Álvarez (who helmed Don’t Breathe) and set in-between the first two films. While the outing succeeded at the box office, audiences were divided over the third-act twist and the decision to...
Feb 12, 2025•59 min•Ep. 714
We’re journeying from the jungles of Darkest Peru to Jolly Ol’ London Town in this adaptation of the beloved children’s stories by Michael Bond. The Bond is strong with Q actor Ben Whishaw who voices the precocious titular bear. The cast is stacked with talent, including Hugh Bonneville, Sally Hawkins, Julie Walters, Jim Broadbent, Peter Capaldi, and Nicole Kidman in key roles, with Michael Gambon and Imelda Stauton lending their voice talents. The director is Paul King (he of The Mighty Boosh),...
Feb 05, 2025•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 713
In the mid-aughts, America became obsessed with high fashion for some reason. Maybe it was Project Runway’s silver-haired imp Tim Gunn whispering in our ears to “make it work.” Maybe we were all bewitched by the well-dressed ladies of Sex and the City. But Manolo Blahnik and Jimmy Choo were suddenly household names. Enter Meryl Streep as the boss from Hell: Miranda Priestly, the editor-in-chief of Runway magazine. She’s bringing the fire and brimstone of haute couture to torture her new assistan...
Jan 29, 2025•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 712
In March 2019, The Walt Disney Company officially completed its $71.3 billion purchase of 21st Century Fox and gained the film rights to several Marvel Comics characters for Marvel Studios, including Deadpool and the X-Men. After a long development period, Marvel Studios finally announced plans to incorporate the R-rated Deadpool franchise into the relatively family-friendly Marvel Cinematic Universe. In an unexpected twist, Hugh Jackman joined the cast to reprise his role as Wolverine, last see...
Jan 23, 2025•1 hr 12 min•Ep. 711
Here we go, back to reviewing movies! It’s been a month since we’ve done this, hopefully we still remember where to put things. We’re jumping into 2025 with a review of a classic romantic comedy written by Nora Ephron and directed by Rob Reiner from 1989. Starring Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan as two opposites-attracts acquaintances who become friends who become lovers, this rom-com was named the G.O.A.T. by Vanity Fair in 2018. But will we have what their having? When Harry Met Sally… all bets are...
Jan 15, 2025•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 710
Welcome to 2025! We’re excited to bring you an all-new slate of movies to review this year, including recent releases and classic films - but we’re going to shake things up a bit by holding our first-ever Movie Draft. That’s right, we’re taking turns picking the movies we want to review this year. What will make the cut? And what’s up with theme months like Aug-Heist and Chronovember? Don’t worry - all will be revealed. Now get out your Big Board and follow along at home! It’s the Legends 2025 M...
Jan 08, 2025•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 709
It’s almost New Year’s, so we’re looking back over the past year and counting down our Top Ten Anything of 2024! We also take some listener messages, catch up on news and trailers, share what we’ve been into over our holidays, and preview what’s ahead in 2025. It's a great time to be a Legend! For more geeky podcasts visit GonnaGeek.com You can find us on iTunes under ''Legends Podcast''. Please subscribe and give us a positive review. You can also follow us on Twitter @LegendsPodcast or even be...
Dec 31, 2024•1 hr 15 min•Ep. 708
