Episodes
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On the final show of 2024, Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy check out eight new movies that include a Danish serial killer from 1919 (The Girl with the Needle) and Nicole Kidman as a CEO who enters into an affair with an intern (Babygirl). Tyler Perry tells the story of undelivered mail during wartime (The Six Triple Eight) and the Sega Genesis hero returns to battle Jim Carrey (Sonic the Hedgehog 3). Robert Eggers offers his take on the Dracula legend (Nosferatu) and James Mangold tells another story of a musical artist (A Complete Unknown). Finally, Barry Jenkins helps tell a pair of wildly different tales. He writes Rachel Morrison’s directorial debut of an Olympic female boxer (The Fire Inside) and then he takes the reins himself of Disney’s prequel to one of their biggest stories (Mufasa: The Lion King).
0:00 - Intro
1:34 - The Girl with the Needle
7:30 - Babygirl
18:12 – The Six Triple Eight
26:55 - Nosferatu
38:58 - Sonic the Hedgehog 3
46:01 – The Fire Inside
57:27 – A Complete Unknown,
1:15:00 - Mufasa: The Lion King
1:32:25 - Outro
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There will not be a lot of movement in the rankings through the end of the year. Not until we get into January when many of the major guilds and BAFTA add to the chorus of voices this awards season. So on this episode we look at why its unfortunate we have to consider the Critics Choice Association as one of those voices. For better or worse the numbers do factor in as many of the major races begin to take some shape. We will not be without surprises but Erik Childress offers some hope over worries that Marianne Jean-Baptiste might still be passed over for a nomination and he looks at the Oscar shortlists that were announced.
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Missing episodes?
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One last physical media show for 2024 and still time to get those last-minute Christmas gifts. Erik Childress and Peter Sobczynski take you through a bundle that includes two of the all-time masterpieces by John Ford and Francis Ford Coppola. Land is very much in the conversation from films by Ron Howard and Michael Winterbottom. There are aliens in the water, in the womb and something else aboard a submarine from WWII. We’ve got conspiracies, punks and missing thumbs plus the films of Steve De Jarnatt. John Wayne and Cary Grant in 4K plus a couple of solid Sylvester Stallone films including one from 50 years ago and another set in the future. Finally, one of the greatest TV shows of all-time gets the 4K upgrade it deserves as the duo recount some of their favorite episodes and moments from Seinfeld.
0:55 - Criterion (Evil Does Not Exist)
5:08 – Studio Canal (The Conversation 4K)
11:33 - Warner Archive (The Tall Target, Black Eye, Heavy Traffic)
20:33 - Sandpiper (The Lords of Flatbush, The Pope of Greenwich Village)
31:10 - Sony (The Talk of the Town 4K)
34:50 - Warner Bros. (The Searchers 4K)
43:33 - Kino (Hatari 4K, Cherry 2000, Miracle Mile, Internal Affairs 4K, Snake Eyes 4K, The Claim, The Beast Within, Below 4K)
1:38:42 - Shout Factory (Far and Away 4K, The Faculty 4K)
1:56:02 - Arrow (Demolition Man 4K)
2:09:46 – Seinfeld 4K
2:16:40 – New Theatrical Titles On Blu-ray/DVD (Transformers One, Joker: Folie A Deux, Terrifier 3, Apartment 7A, Absolution, Piece by Piece, Sleep)
2:19:30 – New Blu-ray Announcements
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Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy continue to wade into December’s offerings with nine new films on the slate. They include the directorial debut of Jack Huston (Day of the Fight) and Eva Green leading a team of female operatives against ISIS (Dirty Angels). The director of The Act of Killing does an apocalyptic musical (The End) while the daughter of a synthesizer inventor takes a joyous and complicated journey learning about her deceased father (Resynator). Paul Schrader takes his own trip through the life of a dying Richard Gere (Oh, Canada) while Angelina Jolie takes us through that of opera’s Callas (Maria). 46 years after Ralph Bakshi, Tolkien gets animated again (The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim) or you can stay home and watch TSA agent Taron Egerton face off against terrorist Jason Bateman in an airport (Carry On). Finally, Sony’s Spider-Man spinoff anti-hero line of Marvel movies supposedly comes to an end (Kraven the Hunter).
0:00 - Intro
1:31 - Day of the Fight
9:40 - Dirty Angels
16:40 - The End
24:31 - Resynator
32:35 - Oh, Canada
41:26 - Maria
53:09 - The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim
59:47 - Carry On
1:12:01 - Kraven the Hunter
1:26:51 - Outro
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We continue our march through awards season madness as we look at a fresh batch of nominations and announcements that have started to part the clouds a little on how its all playing out. Thanks to LA, Chicago and even lesser on-the-level groups like the Golden Globes and the National Board of Review (whose statistics can nevertheless not be entirely denied) Erik Childress runs you down the current depth charts on the Big 8 categories which can certainly change week-to-week.
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The Movie Madness Podcast presents this bonus extension of the show with a dive into the 2024-25 awards season. A breakdown of the various groups with their victories and nominations in an effort to present an ongoing State-of-the-Race up until the final Oscar nominations on Jan. 17, 2025. Statistics, commentary and a running scoreboard are in store for you starting with announcements from the Gothams and the New York Film Critics. Strap in cause its going to be a ride.
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Erik Childress and Peter Sobczynski continue to add to your Christmas carts with a variety of great gift ideas for the movie lovers in your life. They talk about the Coen Bros. big Oscar winner and Fellini’s most beloved film now both in 4K. Peter goes to bat for Abel Ferrara’s vampire tale and a Henry James adaptation from this year. Erik talks the 10th Anniversary of a Christopher Nolan film and offers some defense of Ron Howard’s collaboration with Geoge Lucas and Seth MacFarlane’s debut. A Martha Coolidge film that was part of the Why-Is-This-Not-On-Blu-Ray series finally gets its due and a controversial 1980s horror film gets an upgrade. Finally Peter shows love to a rockin’ high school movie as well the Cracking Collection of Wallace & Gromit.
0:00 - Intro
1:25 - Criterion (No Country for Old Men 4K, 8 1/2 4K, The Beast)
24:30 - Arrow (The Addiction 4K)
35:28 - Disney (Willow 4K)
46:39 - Paramount (Interstellar 4K)
1:00:11 - Kino (Rambling Rose, Daytime Revolution)
1:16:55 - Shout (Rock n Roll High School 4K, Ted 4K, Riddick 4K, Wallace and Gromit The Complete Cracking Collection 4K, Silent Night Deadly Night 4K)
2:11:25 – New Blu-ray Announcements
2:14:05 - Outro
MOVIE MADNESS BONUS EPISODES NOW AVAILABLE ON PATREON
https://www.patreon.com/c/moviemadnesschicago
For just $1 a month (with the current first episode available for free) The Movie Madness Podcast presents this bonus extension of the show with a dive into the 2024-25 awards season. A breakdown of the various groups with their victories and nominations in an effort to present an ongoing State-of-the-Race up until the final Oscar nominations on Jan. 17, 2025. Statistics, commentary and a running scoreboard are in store for you starting with announcements from the Gothams and the New York Film Critics. Strap in cause its going to be a ride.
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Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy have nine films to talk about this week. They include Kyle Mooney’s take on the computer glitch of 1999 (Y2K) and what happens when a supermoon infects the world (Werewolves). Ralph Fiennes completes Homer’s odyssey (The Return) while Nick Frost just wants to take his family on vacation to see a scary Swedish tradition (Get Away). There is the true story of one-legged wrestler Anthony Robles (Unstoppable) and the drug-fueled scribblings of William Burroughs through the eyes of Daniel Craig (Queer). Jude Law gruffly goes after white supremacists in the 1980s (The Order).The potential end of the world is told without words and through animated animals (Flow) while Amy Adams may be turning into an animal in a film that tries to use all the words to define motherhood (Nightbitch).
0:00 - Intro
1:12 - Y2K
8:24 - Werewolves
18:22 – The Return
23:54 - Get Away
30:55 - Flow
38:32 - Unstoppable
50:48 - Queer
1:00:50 – The Order
1:12:19 - Nightbitch
1:23:02 – Next Week’s Movie
1:25:32 – Outro & Special Announcement
MOVIE MADNESS BONUS EPISODES NOW AVAILABLE ON PATREON
https://www.patreon.com/c/moviemadnesschicago
For just $1 a month (with the current first episode available for free) The Movie Madness Podcast presents this bonus extension of the show with a dive into the 2024-25 awards season. A breakdown of the various groups with their victories and nominations in an effort to present an ongoing State-of-the-Race up until the final Oscar nominations on Jan. 17, 2025. Statistics, commentary and a running scoreboard are in store for you starting with announcements from the Gothams and the New York Film Critics. Strap in cause its going to be a ride.
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Black Friday and Cyber Monday may be gone but the physical media buying season is in full effect for the movie lovers in your life. Erik Childress and Peter Sobczynski go through the week’s offerings. Sure they include the infamous later films of Ed Wood have been unearthed along with a “Reefer Madness for the Sexual Revolution” plus a goofy Michael Crichton adaptation. But there are also masterpieces from Wim Wenders and Werner Herzog plus a pair of beloved horror and sci-fi comedies. Not to mention an overlooked film from Sam Raimi and the great pre-South Park musical from Trey Parker and Matt Stone.
0:00 - Intro
1:00 - Criterion (Paris, Texas 4K)
10:28 - Shout Factory (Aguirre: The Wrath of God 4K, The Gift 4K)
22:04 - Kino (The Visit 4K)
30:05 - Sony (Legends of the Fall 4K)
34:43 - Paramount (Galaxy Quest 4K)
45:05 - Universal (Shaun of the Dead 4K Steelbook)
56:04 - Severin (Hard Wood, Scala)
1:07:38 - Vinegar Syndrome (Looking for Mr Goodbar 4K, Cannibal: The Musical 4K, Congo 4K)
1:29:38 – New TV & Theatrical On Blu-ray
1:33:16 – New Blu-ray Announcements
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It’s Thanksgiving week and the pickings are slim on the movie front. But Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy may have something for you to watch with the family. Hint that it involves a pair of music documentaries focusing on the arrival of Liverpool’s finest to the States (Beatles ’64) to the soothing sounds of the ‘70s and ‘80s (Yacht Rock: A Dockumentary). You can also hear about the latest from David Gordon Green as Ben Stiller attends to his ill-behaved nephews (Nutcrackers) and the new film from the Farrelly Bros. involving Jack Black answering a young boy’s Christmas call as Satan (Dear Santa). Finally, Disney turns one of their beloved films into a series and then back into a theatrical sequel (Moana 2).
0:00 - Intro
1:20 - Beatles '64
8:25 - Yacht Rock: A Dockumentary
17:32 - Nutcrackers
29:20 - Dear Santa
38:07 - Moana 2
45:53 - Outro
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Just in time for Black Friday, Erik Childress and Peter Sobczynski takes you through a swath of new physical media and collections. They include two of the best films in the careers of Peter Bogdanovich and Guillermo Del Toro (and yes the best from Rob Cohen too.) There’s a pair of underrated films from the great William Friedkin and martial arts collections from Stephen Chow and the Shaw Brothers. Go on the road with Hope and Crosby and take a journey with an underseen adventure story. Not to mention dancing, the Thin Man, a whole bunch of Looney Tunes and one of the most infamous box office tales ever.
0:00 - Intro
1:08 - Criterion (Paper Moon 4K, The Shape of Water 4K)
16:33 - Vinegar Syndrome (The Tenant 4K, Fear Dot Com)
27:48 - MVD (Zyzzyx Road 4K)
39:43 - Arrow (Shawscope V. 3)
44:52 - Shout (Stephen Chow Collection, Dragon 4K, Bones and All 4K)
59:04 - Kino (Revenge of the Zombies, The Martian Chronicles, Mountains of the Moon, The Hunted 4K, Bug 4K, On the Road with Hope and Crosby)
1:33:51 - Warner Archive (The Complete Thin Man, Looney Tunes Collectors Choice Vol 1-4, That’s Entertainment)
1:50:57 – New Blu-ray Announcements
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It’s the week before Thanksgiving and there are some heavy-hitters in theaters and trio of new Netflix titles for those stay-at-home viewers. Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy cover eight movies for you this week including a fascinating documentary on a woman who may have crafted the soundtrack to your life (The World According to Allee Willis) and another about a unique love affair involving music and mascots (Adrianne and the Castle). Sylvester Stallone tries to take Jason Patric’s armored car (Armor) while Thomasin McKenzie and Bill Nighy show you who the true mother and father of IVF were (Joy). Denzel Washington’s family adapts August Wilson (The Piano Lesson) and Alan Menken returns to score an all-star cast in a nifty Netflix animated film (Spellbound). Finally, it may not be Barbenheimer but Ridley Scott returns to Rome with a new vengeance (Gladiator II) and the first act of a Broadway sensation finally makes it to the big screen (Wicked: Part One).
0:00 - Intro
1:40 - The World According to Allee Willis
15:49 - Armor
23:03 - Adrianne and the Castle
32:40 - Joy
46:50 - The Piano Lesson
55:44 - Spellbound
1:03:04 - Gladiator II
1:19:04 – Wicked: Part One
1:41:31 - Outro
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Christmas stockings should be filled with what is on the physical media slate this week. Erik Childress is joined by Peter Sobczynski to take you through everything including Barbra Streisand’s big Oscar win and one of the great adaptations of Louisa May Alcott’s classic novel. Great things come in threes including Clint Eastwood and the works of Zucker/Abrahams/Zucker. They also come in twos with Buster Keaton and the works of Jim Henson. Though speaking of three, Warner Bros. has one of the 4K trifectas of the year with a Mel Brooks classic, one of Hitchcock’s most purely entertaining and James Cameron’s legendary breakthrough. Finally not to dampen the holiday mood but the film that may just be Sam Raimi’s finest achievement with the great Bill Paxton gets a new 4K upgrade as well.
0:00 - Intro
1:24 – Criterion (Funny Girl 4K, Riyuichi Sakamoto: Opus)
10:46 – Sony (Little Women 4K)
15:55 – Kino (Seven Chances & Sherlock Jr, The Visitors, Two Mules for Sister Sara 4K, Play Misty for Me 4K, The Eiger Sanction 4K)
41:26 – Shout (Rush 4K, The Dark Crystal 4K, Labyrinth 4K)
1:04:16 – Paramount (ZAZ Collection 4K)
1:16:41 – Warner Bros. (Blazing Saddles 4K, North by Northwest 4K, The Terminator 4K)
1:48:27 – Arrow (A Simple Plan 4K)
2:03:28 – New TV & Theatrical Titles On Blu-ray
2:10:56 – New Blu-ray Announcements!
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Mid-November and kind of a mid-week for releases, but Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy do have five reviews for you including a pair of documentaries on two icons in the film and music world (Bogart: Life Comes in Flashes, Return of the King: The Fall and Rise of Elvis Presley). They look at the latest from Andrea Arnold (Bird) and try to look at the new musical from Jacques Audiard apart from its controversies (Emilia Perez). Finally, Dwayne Johnson and Chris Evans team up to rescue Santa Claus from the Christmas Witch. Yes, really (Red One).
0:00 - Intro
1:38 - Bogart: Life Comes in Flashes
8:43 - Return of the King: The Fall and Rise of Elvis Presley
21:37 - Bird
29:54 - Emilia Perez
42:28 - Red One
55:27 – Next Week’s Titles & Outro
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A lot of good stuff on the physical media beat for those starting to make their Christmas lists. Peter Sobczynski joins Erik Childress to guide you through the lot which includes gangster and samurai classics from Criterion. There’s also a trio of 1980s puberty-starters and a reevaluation of the fourth Body Snatchers adaptation. You can also get new 4K releases of Steven Spielberg’s debut theatrical feature and one of Oliver Stone’s finest achievements.
0:00 - Intro
1:09 - Criterion (Scarface 4K, Seven Samurai 4K)
17:25 - Universal (The Sugarland Express 4K)
29:44 - Fun City (Paradise, Heavenly Bodies)
44:28 - Arrow (Elvira 4K, The Invasion 4K)
1:04:25 - Shout (Born on the Fourth of July)
1:15:16 - Kino (Maniac, Circus of Horrors, One Two Three, Arabesque 4K, Merchant Ivory, Roseland)
1:43:00 – New Blu-Ray Announcements
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It’s a nine-movie week on the show with Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy looking at a historical atrocity (Stockholm Bloodbath), WWII through the eyes of a boy (Blitz) and Pierce Brosnan as a 92 year-old veteran trying to atone for D-Day (The Last Rifleman). A 70+ year old is sent undercover in a money laundering scam – or is he? – in a documentary chosen for last year’s Chicago Critics Film Festival (Starring Jerry As Himself). Get into the spirit of the holiday season with one film based on a beloved book (The Best Christmas Pageant Ever) and another trying to give you a mood (Christmas Eve In Miller’s Point). Cillian Murphy sees bad nuns in Ireland (Small Things Like These) and Anthony Mackie teams up with Morena Baccarin to battle creatures who don’t like heights (Elevation). Finally, one of year’s best movies pits two Mormon female missionaries against Hugh Grant’s religion buster (Heretic).
0:00 - Intro
1:21 - Stockholm Bloodbath
6:53 – The Last Rifleman
12:14 – The Best Christmas Pageant Ever
21:35 - Christmas Eve In Miller's Point
28:37 - Blitz
33:57 - Starring Jerry As Himself
41:14 - Small Things Like These
51:05 - Elevation
1:02:37 – Heretic
1:17:28 - Outro
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Halloween is over, which means Christmas is creepin’ upon us so who better to start making your shopping lists with than Erik Childress and Peter Sobczynski on this week’s physical media show. They include a pair of Christmas films including a perennial classic and a more modern one with a Wham twist. The king of the monsters has its origin upgraded to 4K by Criterion. Samuel L. Jackson goes to Yemen and Mel Gibson goes to Vietnam in a pair of military films just before Veterans Day. One of the original babysitter horror films gets a 4K upgrade and you can also see the first French adaptation remade as a particularly awful Ashley Judd film. Finally, there are a trio of film documentaries ranging from Powell and Pressburger to The Monster Squad to the year 1982 plus one of the all-time classic sitcoms gets the Blu-ray treatment.
0:00 - Intro
0:58 – Criterion (Godzilla 4K)
6:29 – Universal (Last Christmas 4K)
13:23 – Paramount (White Christmas 4K, We Were Soldiers 4K)
26:08 – Kino (Rules of Engagement 4K, Fright 4K, Deadly Circuit, Made in England, Wolfman’s Got Nards)
52:17 - MVD (1982: Greatest Geek Year Ever)
59:22 – Television on Blu-ray
1:06:42 – New Theatrical & Streaming Titles On Blu-ray
1:14:20 – New Blu-ray Announcements
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Erik Childress and Steve Prokopy return for a little crossover show including new titles this week and a recap of films from this year’s Chicago International Film Festival; some of which you can see right now. Reviews this week include a documentary on a legendary composer (Music By John Williams), one of the best animated films of the year (Memoir of a Snail) and the immigrant experience told through a heated kitchen (La Cocina). There is also the latest film from Clint Eastwood that Warner Bros. is burying (Juror #2) and a Forrest Gump reunion from Robert Zemeckis (Here). Then they look at ten more festival entries ranging from politics to coups and terrorists. Erik sees one of the best baseball films in years and Steve checks out a documentary about one of the great bands of the ‘90s. It’s a great mix of movies giving you something to look forward to both soon and later.
0:00 – Intro
1:50 – Juror #2
12:10 – Music By John Williams
27:10 – Memoir of a Snail
35:34 - La Cocina
46:58 – Here
1:02:13 – Separated
1:11:45 – Apocalypse in the Tropics
1:15:26 – Transplant
1:17:59 – Hard Truths
1:25:01 – Eephus
1:28:52 – September 5
1:37:10 – Vulcanizadora
1:42:58 – Pavements
1:48:48 – The Last Republican
1:56:55 – Armand
2:00:22 - Outro
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The horror month of physical media closes out Halloween with a couple choice titles, though the horror-adjacent ones may be even better. Peter Sobczynski joins Erik Childress to talk a trio of film noir and a giallo film with Audrey Hepburn and James Mason. One of the great heist movies is here along with an all-timer true crime film from David Fincher. Wes Craven and Sam Raimi get the 4K upgrade as does a cult anthology that almost didn’t see the light of day. But the real joy may be in reminding everyone of a sequel too often left off the discussion of films vastly superior to the original. And that’s altogether ooky.
0:00 - Intro
1:13 – Kino (Dark Side of Cinema XXII, Topkapi)
15:30 - Vinegar Syndrome (Bloodline 4K)
27:05 – Paramount (Addams Family Values 4K, Zodiac 4K)
44:57 - Shout Factory (Shocker 4K, Drag Me to Hell 4K)
1:00:44 – Arrow (Trick or Treat 4K)
1:17:13 – New Blu-ray Announcements
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We are still in the month of horror and Peter Sobczynski joins Erik Childress to talk about all the horrific and supernatural offerings getting upgrades this month. Not to mention Harmony Korine and Rob Lowe as a hockey player. But moving on from that the pair discuss the Hellraiser series and their lack of enthusiasm for even M. Night Shyamalan’s better films. They talk about the surprise hit of the summer of 1990, one of the films that established the horror genre and another that took it to such uncomfortable lengths Erik has to dare himself to watch it. There’s also Robert Zemeckis, Joe “3-star” Johnston and even some ‘80s teen shenanigans not involving death and murder.
0:00 - Intro
1:25 – Criterion (Gummo)
6:43 – Kino (Up the Creek, Youngblood, The Cabinet of Dr Caligari)
29:50 – Disney (The Sixth Sense 4K, Signs 4K)
47:29 – Paramount (Ghost 4K)
59:13 - Warner Archive (The Hitcher 4K)
1:12:46 – Arrow (Hellraiser Quartet of Torment 4K )
1:32:44 - Shout: Death Becomes Her 4K/The Wolfman 4K
1:56:33 – New Theatrical and TV Titles On Blu-ray
2:02:43 – New Blu-ray Announcements
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