The Film Board gathers! The gang of thugs is here to take on a movie currently in theaters and this month... let’s call it counter programming. The crew is going to try and prove that we, too, are Kenough as we talk about Greta Gerwig’s MUCH pinker sequel to Little Women: Barbie.It’s a film dense with jokes and ideology, and of course the baggage of opening Oppenheimer-adjacent. It’s certainly the biggest thing on big screens right now and we take it as our solemn duty to determine if it plays f...
Jul 26, 2023•57 min•Season 11Ep. 7
The Film Board Gathers! The gang of thugs is here to take on a movie currently in theaters and this month, we’re swinging into the unknown with Miles and Gwen in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. This month, Steve Sarmento, Justin 'JJ' Jaeger, Tommy Metz III, and Pete Wright relish in the follow-up to the 2018 film that rocked us all. This film levels up almost everything we loved about the first in art, style, character, and straight-up panache. Spoiler: We liked it quite a bit.Film Sundries...
Jun 13, 2023•58 min•Season 11Ep. 6
We’ve only talked about one other Fast Saga film here at The Film Board and given our experience with Fast X, we’re starting to figure out why. But whether the film is good or bad isn’t really the question. The question is why? It’s big, bombastic, and bonkers-expensive, reportedly coming in at over $340 million and the 8th most expensive production ever. Numbers change, dollars move, but according to this, family is all that really matters. Family, and ridiculous amounts of money. Money is fami...
May 23, 2023•1 hr 7 min•Season 11Ep. 5
The Film Board Gathers! The gang of thugs is here to take on a movie currently in theaters, and this month we’re following Joaquin Phoenix on a journey of sexual awakening and the longest punchline to every Your Mom joke ever made — Beau Is Afraid — with your hosts Tommy Metz III, Justin 'JJ' Jaeger, and Pete Wright. Film Sundries Watch this film: JustWatch Theatrical trailer Flickchart Letterboxd Support The Next Reel Family of Film Podcasts: Become a member for just $5/month or $55/year Join o...
May 01, 2023•1 hr•Season 11Ep. 4
The Film Board Gathers! The gang of thugs is here to take on a movie currently in theaters and this month, we’re headed to the big, bad city where everyone is dressed in robes... and masks age like fine marble. It’s Scream VI, where Ghostface follows the waterfront all the way to New York City. There’s never been one like this... or has there? It’s franchise rules with Justin 'JJ' Jaeger, Steve Sarmento, Tommy Metz III, and Pete Wright.Film Sundries Watch this film: JustWatch Theatrical trailer ...
Mar 14, 2023•1 hr 1 min•Season 11Ep. 3
The Film Board Gathers! The gang of thugs is here to take on a movie currently in theaters and spoil it rotten, and this month we’re taking the stage with the Tatum behind his third run as his spiritual alter-ego Mike Lane in Steven Soderbergh’s latest return from retirement, Magic Mike's Last Dance.How does Taterbergh handle round three now that we've reached such a departure from Channing's real-life experience? Does this film maintain the charm of the last two and move Mike's story forward? W...
Feb 14, 2023•1 hr 6 min•Season 11Ep. 2
The Film Board Gathers! This month it's all about everybody's favorite murderbot who just can't stop with the hand-washing: M3GAN! Just what is it that attracts (most) of us to this James Wan-Blumhouse mash-up of mechanical malignancy? Is it the incredible performance of humans behind the machine? Is it Allison Williams playing less racist, but still pretty oblivious? Or is it the reclamation of scares from horror-satire and rejiggering them for jumps today?Pete Wright hosts Andy Nelson, Steve S...
Jan 24, 2023•1 hr 11 min•Season 11Ep. 1
Ocean Murff and Krissy Lenz have been to infinity and beyond in Pixar’s latest in the Toy Story Cinematic Multiverse, Lightyear. Chris Evans dons the dome as our titular space ranger. How well does his take on non-toy-Tim-Taylor fit as a parallel-prequel to the beloved Toy Story films? The film has hit the box office with mixed reception in spite of its pedigree and voice cast, including Keke Palmer, Peter Sohn, James Brolin, Bill Hader, and Taika Waititi. Film Sundries Watch this film: Apple • ...
Jun 21, 2022•58 min•Season 10Ep. 15
Ocean Murff, Pete Wright, and Krissy Lenz strap in and fly the canyon run to attack the station — which is now fully-operational — in Top Gun: Maverick. So let’s get ready to bull’s eye some womp rats with the new crew of bests of the best!The gang is all here! Mav, his romantic flirty foil, several cantankerous military authority figures to disrespect, a constant friend on the tarmac, a dozen better-than-you pilots, and the notorious black-clad fifth gen enemy! What do we love? And do we love i...
Jun 07, 2022•1 hr 39 min•Season 10Ep. 14
Doctor Strange gets all magicky with Wanda in this multiversal leveling up to the MCU. There’s a lot going on here, and Ocean Murff, Krissy Lenz, and Tommy Metz III do their best to unravel the timey-wimey spaghetti of Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness – this Raimi entry to the universe.Speaking of Raimi, just how Raimi is it? Too much? Too little? Hands tied by fancy MCU Earth-838 handcuffs? Maybe, but he still got a zombie in here, and Bruce Campbell, and don’t forget all the jokes! So ...
May 10, 2022•1 hr 18 min•Season 10Ep. 13
The team had twenty extra months to muscle Morbius into full release shape thanks to pandemic delays. What did they do with all that time? Well, judging by what we just witnessed, they cut it. A lot. The question that remains: is what’s left much of a movie?Welcome to the Sony Spider-Man Universe! We’re setting sail on the Sinister Sea with Dr. Morbius and friends. Ocean Murff is at the con with Krissy Lenz and Pete Wright as they embark on a journey of discovery in this new, wild world of (Sony...
Apr 05, 2022•1 hr 23 min•Season 10Ep. 12
Fans of Nolan’s Bat-entries will probably understand our reticence walking into Matt Reeves's latest film, The Batman. Christian Bale already did a turn as a Darker Knight, right? Why on earth would we need another one? Another universe, another actor, another take on principle villains? And so it is that Ocean Murff, Pete Wright, and Tommy Metz III walked into the 3-hour epic, hopeful, cynical, nervous, and maybe a little judgmental. Let us start with this: The Batman is more than we expected. ...
Mar 08, 2022•1 hr 25 min•Season 10Ep. 11
A bombastic treasure hunt with Spider-Man and Marky Mark? Sure! We’ll watch that!The Naughty Dog game that started it all, Uncharted: Drake's Fortune released in 2007, was the first in a four-part smash Playstation franchise that has spawned a number of spin-offs and legitimately fun fan creations. Judging by the length of the new PlayStation Studios logo reel in front of this movie, we can likely expect Drake to kick off more big-budget interpretations of the gamer's titles. So how does Unchart...
Feb 22, 2022•1 hr 24 min•Season 10Ep. 10
One week in the world of Lucy and Desi leading to a live taping of I Love Lucy in 1953, Being the Ricardos covers their rocky relationship as husband and wife, the accusations of Ball’s participation in the communist party, all wrapped up with a bow that leads to a commitment to have a baby on national television. All in a week’s work, sure.But it comes with baggage. From casting to family to J. Edgar Hoover, Sorkin weaves fact and fantasy in Being the Ricardos and, because it’s Sorkin, we shoul...
Feb 08, 2022•45 min•Season 10Ep. 9
It’s time to Scream again!Ocean Murff is joined by our very own Tommy Metz III to discuss the fifth film in the Scream franchise, Scream. But why isn’t it called Scream 5? Is that part of the meta-nature of the film? What do Tommy and Ocean think about the return of Dewey, Gale, and Sidney in their inevitable return? What about that first kill, something that’s been such a key part of the franchise? Or the final reveal of the actual killer? Or killers? This is the Scream franchise after all.The ...
Jan 18, 2022•1 hr 27 min•Season 10Ep. 8
They stuffed a lot of movie into two and a half hours with Spider-Man: No Way Home. Villains and Spider-Men from multiple movies across the franchise hit the screen and while most of the rumors predicted such, there’s little room to deny that what the team pulled off here is truly epic.So, it’s the movie we got. But is it the movie we wanted? Is it the story we needed? To hash it all out this week, Ocean Murff is joined by Marvel Movie Minute hosts of present and past: Matthew Fox, Kyle Olson, a...
Dec 21, 2021•1 hr 25 min•Season 10Ep. 7
Eternals introduces us to a whole new era in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. New heroes, new villains, new locations and technologies. It’s hard to say the company faces any true risks anymore given their Celestial girth in the entertainment space, but this is a big movie with a lot of moving parts helmed by a director demonstrably adept at intimacy. How well does Chloé Zhao translate her brand of storytelling to the big budget, big hero screen? Ocean Murff is joined by Pete Wright and Justin 'JJ...
Nov 09, 2021•1 hr 7 min•Season 10Ep. 6
We’re off-world this week as we head into Denis Villeneuve’s Dune with Ocean Murff, Matthew Fox, Steve Sarmento, and Pete Wright.This is a property with some baggage and we come carrying a lot of it. Loved the book? Loved the Lynch film? Loved the SyFy remake? We’re a mixed bag on the show this week and one of us hasn’t seen a single dune-y thing until this very film.This, of course, gives us the opportunity to talk about how well the movie sets up the universe of Dune without the knowledge of t...
Oct 26, 2021•1 hr 32 min•Season 10Ep. 5
James Bond is a brand - that's Ocean's opening take as The Film Board discusses the 25th 007 outing, No Time to Die. And with such an iconic brand comes responsibility. How has Daniel Craig's tenure as Bond evolved the franchise, and is this change permanent? Join Ocean Murff and Kyle Olson for an emotional yet nuanced conversation on Craig's final mission as 007. This isn't the reaction you might expect. While there's appreciation for the spectacle, our hosts find the story lacking and have com...
Oct 19, 2021•1 hr 34 min•Season 10Ep. 4
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings proves people don't tire of superhero origin stories when the storytelling is this good. Under director Destin Daniel Cretton, the narrative takes center stage in Marvel's 25th MCU film.Ocean Murff convenes The Film Board to discuss Cretton's knockout, joined by Justin Jaeger. They cover the family-focused story, standout performances like Simu Liu's complex title role, and stunning fight choreography from cinematographer Bill Pope. Shang-Chi meets his f...
Sep 07, 2021•1 hr 12 min•Season 10Ep. 2
The Film Board convenes in the Red Room to discuss Cate Shortland’s new MCU entry, Black Widow. It’s a packed house as Andy is joined by Kyle Olson from Marvel Movie Minute, Matthew Fox from the Superhero Ethics podcast, Craig Price from Matinee Heroes, as well as CJ Lindsey and Jordan Petersen for a spoiler-filled conversation.How popular was blue hair in the 90s? How great is our makeshift family of Natasha, Yelena, Alexei and Melina played by Scarlett Johansson, Florence Pugh, David Harbour a...
Jul 13, 2021•1 hr 13 min•Season 10Ep. 1
Justin Lin returns to direct the latest entry in the Fast Saga, F9. But despite Lin being back behind the wheel, reviews have been mixed for this installment. For this episode of The Film Board Podcast, Andy is joined by Film Board regular and Fast franchise fan Ocean Murff to discuss F9 and where it lands in the high-octane series. Do our thoughts align with the mixed reviews? How do we feel about the big action set pieces? And is the constant emphasis on "family" getting old? Tune in to hear o...
Jun 29, 2021•1 hr 15 min•Season 9Ep. 27
Fatherhood is a fairly loose adaptation of Matthew Logelin’s memoir, but unfortunately it feels loose in all the wrong ways. There seems to be an interesting story there, but it never quite clicks. Andy Nelson is joined by Ocean Murff and Steve Sarmento to discuss this latest Netflix release for Father's Day, but they're left frustrated with a film that never lives up to its potential. Kevin Hart and DeWanda Wise make a great couple, but the crew agrees they'd rather see them lead a stronger rom...
Jun 22, 2021•1 hr 6 min•Season 9Ep. 26
Is the magic in the new film In the Heights from Jon M. Chu’s direction or from Lin-Manuel Miranda’s original Broadway show? We think it’s Chu working wonders here to bring Miranda's show to vibrant cinematic life.Andy Nelson is joined by Mandy Kaplan, Justin Jaeger, and special guest Brian Rowe from the Film at Fifty Podcast to form our artistic opinions. While the story doesn’t wow us as much as we hoped, Chu creates a film oozing personality and authenticity through his cast – Anthony Ramos, ...
Jun 15, 2021•1 hr 4 min•Season 9Ep. 25
Ed and Lorraine Warren are back battling ghosts in The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It, the third Conjuring film and eighth entry in The Conjuring Universe.Andy Nelson discusses the movie with Pete Wright, Tommy Metz III, and special guest Justin Harlan from Cinapse and The Farsighted podcast. Does this latest chapter fit well into the franchise? Why did James Wan hand over directing duties to Michael Chaves? And how do we feel about the story leaving the haunted house setting for a possessed...
Jun 08, 2021•1 hr 7 min•Season 9Ep. 24
The Film Board convenes! We're back on the Zack Snyder train with the first entry in what promises to be a big, nasty zombie universe - the Netflix film Army of the Dead.Board the container with Pete Wright, Jordan Petersen, and Ocean Murff as we head to Vegas. Coming on the heels of Zack Snyder's Justice League re-cut, and with his zombie credibility locked thanks to 2004's Dawn of the Dead, we came into this with high hopes.It's a blockbuster, with every Netflix dollar up on screen in hordes o...
May 25, 2021•1 hr 14 min•Season 9Ep. 22
Guy Ritchie steps outside his usual stylized crime films with the gritty, dark new action thriller Wrath of Man. Though it features his trademark flair and his longtime collaborator Jason Statham, does this brooding revenge story play to Ritchie's strengths as a filmmaker?Andy is joined by Charlie Juhl and Hannah Buchdahl from The Cinema Clash Podcast and Jordan Petersen to analyze what works and what doesn’t in this latest Statham-Ritchie team-up, currently in theaters. It delivers big action s...
May 11, 2021•1 hr 10 min•Season 9Ep. 20
An animated film about one family trying to stop a robot invasion from taking over the world doesn’t seem like the sort of movie that’s going to elicit tears, but that’s what The Mitchells vs the Machines did here. In this episode, Andy Nelson is joined in the board room by Mandy Kaplan from the MandCave podcast, Pete Wright from The Next Reel Film Podcast, and Steve Sarmento from Trailer Rewind to talk about Michael Rianda’s new animated film produced by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller (The Le...
May 04, 2021•1 hr 4 min•Season 9Ep. 19
Science fiction is often used as a way to explore aspects of social mores, painting pictures of what’s working and what’s not in our societies. These stories often are thrilling, horrifying, or full of action as part of the nature of sci-fi. It’s not too common we end up in a science fiction story that’s a dramatic morality tale. Joe Penna’s second film Stowaway explores the complex and painful decisions a trio of astronauts has to make when a stowaway on their ship throws the life support syste...
Apr 27, 2021•1 hr 7 min•Season 9Ep. 18
"Sometimes, you just have to take the first step.” The Film Board convenes in the land of Kumandra to discuss Disney’s new animated feature Raya and the Last Dragon. The voice cast is amazing – Kelly Marie Tran, Awkwafina, Gemma Chan, Daniel Dae Kim, Sandra Oh, Benedict Wong, and more – but how well does the story work? How much more impressive is the animation? And has Disney hit a point yet where any of their directors really gets to let their style shine through?Andy Nelson, Rob Kubasko, and ...
Mar 09, 2021•1 hr 6 min•Season 9Ep. 15
