198: A "Prestige" Pod featuring THE HANDMAIDEN, NOCTURNAL ANIMALS, MOONLIGHT, and MANCHESTER BY THE SEA

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There's an embarrassment of riches out there at the multiplexes these days (God bless the holiday/award season!). But "limited release" schedules often get in the way of our ability to stay current with everything that's generating "buzz" (curse you, Seattle and your big city/small market conundrum). That being said, we're endeavoring to catch up this week with in-depth dissections of 4 "prestige"
films that are currently in theaters and vying for your holiday movie-going buck:

00:15:04 - THE HANDMAIDEN
00:24:45 - NOCTURNAL ANIMALS
00:42:01 - MOONLIGHT
00:56:01 - MANCHESTER BY THE SEA

We're confident in our reactions and we're proud of this pod. Hope you enjoy listening as much as we enjoyed chattin'.

196: FANTASTIC BEASTS brings the wizarding world stateside and ARRIVAL proves to be an unexpected sci-fi tearjerker

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We've waited long enough for the "prestige season" to save us from a criminally underwhelming 2016 cinematic slate. The arrival of ARRIVAL signals that good things are to [finally] come. We gush over that instant classic science fiction game-changer, wax affectionate (if briefly) about the charming Marvel slam-dunk DOCTOR STRANGE, and perform a deliberate, simultaneous shrug in response to the newest film in the extended "Potterverse"- FANTASTIC BEASTS AND WHERE TO FIND THEM. It's good to be back. Let's settle in for this holiday season rollercoaster that is sure to give us much to discuss.

195: Discussing INFERNO and the cinematic legacy of Dan Brown

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After an extended foray into AFI territory during the dregs of the early fall movie season we return to you now with a real, honest to goodness review of something that's actually, legitimately currently in movie theaters!
The bad news is that we chose to hitch our wagon to a supremely mediocre star. The good news is that our reaction to the movie INFERNO and our reflection on Dan Brown's cinematic trilogy as a whole lays the groundwork for a rousing discussion and dissection. We even find the time to talk Halloween, holidays, and the complicated politics of "facebook birthday wishes". Good stuff. Good pod.

191: Bemoaning THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN and stroking Netflix (again)

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Westerns are back en vogue but unfortunately the new remake of the THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN doesn't look primed to achieve the classic status of its predecessor. On this week's episode we do our best to try and break down what went wrong with this clunky oater and also spend at least 15 minutes counting the ways we adore Netflix.
Because we do. So hard.

190: Catching up with CASSIDY RED delivery news, Telluride, Venice, and TIFF responses, plus a preview of potential awards season contenders

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We're catching up on everything!

-Matt's feature debut- CASSIDY RED is delivering this week...
-The Telluride, Venice, and Toronto film festivals have anointed movies like ARRIVAL and LA LA LAND and NOCTURNAL ANIMALS and MOONLIGHT as award season heavyweights, so there's a lot to discuss there...
-SULLY and SNOWDEN give us a reason to discuss "recent", ripped-from-the-headline, titular character-monikered "biopics" that curiously both start with the letter "S"... 
-Non movie related BS and small talk...

We're so happy to be back. Hope you've missed us as much as we've missed you....

189: Closing out the dog days with some STRANGER THINGS chat, TIFF previews, and a HELL OR HIGH WATER review

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We're gettin' a lot off our chests this week as a spirited discussion veers wildly from James Bond geekery to our belated reactions to Netflix's summer hit STRANGER THINGS. We dance through a rundown of the most high profile films recently announced to unspool at the Toronto International Film Festival, can hardly summon the energy to champion the low-hanging comedic fruit of SAUSAGE PARTY, and finally land on a HELL OR HIGH WATER gush-o-thon (Why bother playing the cards close? We absolutely loved it.) that begins at 00:41:25 and runs until the end of the podcast. We've got a lot to say and we're looking to say it to YOU.
Editor's note: Please excuse the sporadically ugly audio on this episode. We were experiencing a bad Skype connection and the pops and drops come and go. It's a little rough at times but we hope you tough it out because we're extremely proud of this conversation.

188: Reminiscing on the Summer of 1996 and Bemoaning SUICIDE SQUAD

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After some technical hiccups and unexpected disagreements over a couple of polarizing films during the last few episodes, we're back in lockstep and firmly on the same side of the aisle regarding the last "big" tentpole of the summer of 2016- the already infamous SUICIDE SQUAD. That conversation kicks in at about 00:24:40 but before that, we amuse ourselves with further GHOSTBUSTERS dissection as well as a brief, nostalgic look back at the summer movies of 1996. We're amped, we're opinionated, we're ready for primetime. Listen in and we'll love you for it.

186: Comic Con Trailer roundup and STAR TREK BEYOND disagreement

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As the mercury rises and the pages fall off the calendar, the We Like Movies podcast keeps fighting the good fight and trekking (get it?), ever vigilantly, back to the multiplex to screen product and proffer opinion. On this week's episode we talk San Diego Comic Con, break down all of the new trailers, muse about the recent, encouraging onslaught of  western genre exercises (who knew? It's coming back!), and even carve out 25 minutes to disagree about the newest installment of the rebooted STAR TREk series. We've been disagreeing more and more these days... This might be the beginning of an exciting trend....

185: The Contentious GHOSTBUSTERS Dissection

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After an extended, mid-summer hiatus we return to you now with one of the most terse, impassioned, argumentative conversations we've ever recorded. The pod starts off with a lot of good-natured catch-up before descending into a full-on rift regarding Paul Feig's GHOSTBUSTERS reboot.
We back, we're heated, we're answering your call for a podcast with teeth.

182: The 2016 Fantasy Film Draft and the attempted defense of X-MEN: APOCALYPSE

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There have been high peaks and deep artistic valleys over the 9 films in 16 years covered by the X-MEN franchise. The newest entry "APOCALYPSE" sits smack dab at sea level which makes it a fertile topic for dissection and disagreement. Listen in as we break it all the way down to the brassiest of tacks.
We also discuss the none too subtle schadenfreude stance taken by certain tabloid click-baters in the way they report the "news" of successful film franchises and we even find time to reflect on the the most recent draft of the "Fantasy Film League".
We might just be getting the hang of this "coming in around an hour" thing, 175 episodes in. 

181: NEIGHBORS 2, THE NICE GUYS, and The Shane Black Sensation

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We're getting back to basics with a thrift, semi-contentious conversation about the two films that opened last weekend but failed to top THE ANGRY BIRDS MOVIE at the box office: The little-loved sequel NEIGHBORS 2: SORORITY RISING and Shane Black's winking, period, neo-noir THE NICE GUYS.
We manage to wrap it up in under an hour- spoiler alert.

179: CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR and the unstoppable Marvel freight train

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The summer of 2016 threatens to peak early as the 13th installment into the Marvel Cinematic Universe comes roaring into multiplexes on a wave of critical acclaim and financial expectation. 
Join us for a gush-fest tempered by moments of constructive nit-pickery .

***Spoilers abound!

167: Top 10 of 2015 Lists (plus THE REVENANT, ANOMALISA, and the Golden Globes)

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It's official. Oscar and I have finalized our Top 10 of 2015 lists and we defend them to one another over the course of a two and a half hour conversation that represents the longest sustained podcast we've ever recorded.

Fasten your seatbelts. It's gonna be a bumpy night...

No, but seriously... it's a great episode and we sound off about THE REVENANT and ANOMALISA as well... Strap in and get comfortable. This is what it's all about.

166: THE HATEFUL EIGHT[ful] Podcast

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It's a new year.
That means new challenges, new opportunities, and new podcasts.
In this case we present a new podcast about a new Tarantino film.

Not all Tarantino films are created equal. But the one thing they all have in common is they inspire conversation. THE HATEFUL EIGHT is no exception. But before we discuss Tarantino's new western epic we get caught up on THE FORCE AWAKENS backlash talk and Oscar's reactions to CAROL and THE BIG SHORT.

2016 is gonna be a good one for WLM. We're so happy to have you with us.

165: Our 5 Year Anniversary and THE FORCE AWAKENS Celebration

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It's here. It's time. It's happening.

What wonderfully serendipitous timing that our discussion about the newest entry in the Star Wars saga coincides with the 5 year anniversary of this blog.

Join us for a spoiler-heavy celebration of THE FORCE AWAKENS and marvel with us at how quickly 5 years and 165 episodes can fly by.

Here's to many hundreds more.

164: STAR WARS Antiquity

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As we all brace for the end of a decade-long Star Wars fast and properly fortify our emotions (lest we be blindsided they way we all were during the infamous Summer Of '99) it's important that we take stock of the 6 episodes that have led us, for better or for worse, to THE FORCE AWAKENS.

On this week's episode we basically get all of our collective Star Wars baggage out on the table, purge our respective resentments, and look forward to a potential salvation in the form of J.J.'s upcoming opus.

"That boy way our last hope" Kenobi once said (presumably referencing George Lucas).

"No, there is another" Yoda demurred (obviously referring to a certain bespectacled franchise savior).

In less than 48 hours we'll know how this all shakes out...

163: Post Thanksgiving Holiday Catchup

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We're back.

The Bond hangover has subsided and now it's time to get on to more pressing holiday movie season matters. In this 90 minute episode we play serious catchup, pull a proverbial "speed date" and discuss 8 films back to back, culminating with a review of CREED. It's a robust episode, to be sure, but a pacey one, nonetheless. We discuss:

-CAROL
-BROOKLYN
-THE GOOD DINOSAUR
-THE HUNGER GAMES: MOCKINGJAY PART 2
-ROOM
-SPOTLIGHT
-TRUMBO
-CREED

Awards season is upon us. Act like you've been here before.

162: The Long-Awaited SPECTRE Pod

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The "Autumn of Bond" comes to an end ends and so begins the " Winter of Our Bond Discontent". 

Join us for a terse conversation about the cruel realities that too often pair with expectation and somberly speculate with us about "what might have been".

We spent 10 episodes discussing 007 and his exploits. Now it's time to put a moratorium on the subject matter for a while and let the man rest, reassess his legacy, and what we can all learn from his SPECTRE misfire.

This should have been a victory lap. Instead it's a wake up call. Let's get into it...

160: The 19th, 20th, and 21st Films of The 007 Countdown (with special guest Dan Kelly!)

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This is a big one, folks.
With only 5 films to discuss before our SPECTRE review we decided to invite friend of the podcast, Bond aficionado, and all around raconteur Daniel Kelly to join us for this week's epic, 100 minute episode. Dan was particularly eloquent during our 45 minute dissection of the series' "quintessential installment". Our reactions might surprise you.
All good things must end. And, unfortunately this amazing journey will, in less than a week. Let's make the most of the time we have left, fellow Bondees.

5. ON HER MAJESTY'S SECRET SERVICE
4. THE SPY WHO LOVED ME
3. GOLDFINGER