Now Playing -- The Movie Review Podcast

Arnold Schwarzenegger’s movie star reputation took a big hit when Collateral Damage was released in the shadow of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Can today’s audiences better appreciate his tough guy approach to a South American cartel leader (Cliff Curtis) who inadvertently killed Ahnold’s wife and child in a Los Angeles consulate bombing? Or is the whole film really just propaganda for the Governator’s entry into California politics? Join Brock, Stuart, and Arnie as they say “hasta la vista” to the last action hero of the 20th Century. Listen Now!

Gael Garcia Bernal (Coco) might look like a typical Marvel superhero in the daylight, but he becomes a Werewolf By Night in order to protect the other monsters of the MCU.  Can he outsmart six skilled hunters as they descend upon a labyrinth to slay a mythical beast and collect the powerful Bloodstone?  And can Stuart, Jakob, and Arnie really root for anyone willing to rescue Man-Thing from movie jail? Get the details on Disney’s 2022 Halloween Special in black and white when you download the latest Now Playing podcast. Listen Now!

The S stands for Hurt Dwayne Johnson cooks up a different kind of Shazam for the DC Cinematic Universe as the homicidal metahuman Black Adam explodes onto the big screen. Is he the hero that an ancient Middle Eastern country needs after a tyrant seizes their crown and threatens Hell on Earth?  Or is Amanda Waller (Viola Davis), Hawkman (Aldis Hodge) and the Justice Society right to try and capture lightning in a bottle before someone gets killed?  Don’t wait an Eternium for the answers. Arnie, Stuart, and Jakob are ready to take you into the darkness. Listen Now!

Jamie Lee Curtis tried to move on from the curse of Michael Myers, but another Haddonfield Halloween Ends in blood and screams after granddaughter Allyson goes trick-or-treating with  psycho babysitter Corey.  Can the franchise’s original boogeyman teach this wannabe anything about being an old school slasher icon, or is Michael wise to keep his face out of this latest installment?  Find out if director David Gordon Green has given Carpenter’s legacy a new beginning when you download the latest podcast from Brock, Stuart, and Arnie.  Listen now!

Hulu tries to rescue the Hellraiser franchise from a purgatory of underwhelming sequels by re-configuring the original 1987 Clive Barker gorefest into an elevated 2022 reboot. Will a recovering drug addict become the pin-up girl for a Just Say No campaign against soul-tearing Cenobites after she gets high and accidentally opens their infamous puzzle box? Find out if Arnie, Stuart, and Jakob are ready to tear apart the vision of new director David Bruckner (The Night House) when you Donate at the Such Sights To Show You Level this October. 

Arnold Schwarzenegger sees double after corrupt CEO Tony Goldwyn (Scandal) and geneticist Robert Duvall (The Godfather) duplicate his DNA in The 6th Day. Can the aging action star stop a clone from co-opting his career and family? Or will goons Michael Rooker (Guardians of the Galaxy) and Terry Crews (Expendables) terminate the Twins star before he can get to the choppah and expose their illegal practices?  Find out how original this sci-fi thriller from the year 2000 really is when you listen to your Sim-Pals Stuart, Brock, and Arnie.  

It’s the End of Days for Schwarzenegger’s movie career unless he can update his 80s action hero image for the gritty new millennium. Will it take a miracle for the Now Playing hosts to accept the Austrian bodybuilder as faithless Jericho Cane, a mercenary who must put down the bottle and embrace the rocket launcher of God in order to stop Satan (Gabriel Byrne) from impregnating Robin Tunney? Does the movie fall to pieces the second a leering albino pops up to propose the booty call? Cut out our tongues and we’ll still speak the Gospel truth. Listen Now!         

Arnold Schwarzenegger refuses to remove “action hero” from his identity as he suits up for summer 1996 blockbuster Eraser. Can he, James Caan, and the US Marshals help a comely whistleblower escape into Witness Protection before she’s hunted down by a cabal of high powered politicians?  And is the aging Terminator equipped to fight off a kamikaze airplane, a tank full of gators, and an experimental rifle that can pinpoint targets even through walls?  Pencil in time with Brock, Stuart, and Arnie as they look deeper into this film icon’s career. Listen Now!       

Jamie Lee Curtis hides an affair from husband Arnold Schwarzenegger, oblivious that he too conceals a double life as a spy capable of terminating her boyfriend Bill Paxton in the deceptively comedic 1994 blockbuster True Lies. Is it possible to translate a modest French farce into a pumped up James Cameron spectacle?  And who the hell is Tom Arnold (aka Mr Roseanne Barr) to give marital advice to anyone?  Brock, Arnie, and Stuart are ready to share their honest impressions about this next entry on Ahnold’s action star resume. Listen now!     

Arnold Schwarzenegger might’ve been a kindergarten cop, but he has no authority over the 10-year-old boy jawing in his ear throughout his 1993 box office bomb The Last Action Hero. Was it a Big Mistake for the movie icon to partner with a know-it-all fan eager to point out every cliche of his cinematic character? Or did Die Hard director John McTiernan and Lethal Weapon scribe Shane Black elevate the action genre with clever self-awareness that wouldn’t be hip for another decade? Brock, Arnie, and Stuart provide the magic ticket when you Listen Now!       

As the Fall season begins, so comes time for ooky, spooky fun with Now Playing! Our Fall/Winter 2022 Donation Drive is underway, kicking off with our Silver Level: The Addams Family! We're reviewing six Addams films, from the original TV cast to last year's animated road-trip adventure. Plus we have our Gold 100 Years of Dystopia series, our Platinum Wicker Man series, and new installments in Jeepers Creepers, M. Night Shymalan, and even Hellraiser! Listen to this podcast preview for a sample of our Addams Family Values and information on how to get all the season's bonus podcast treats!

Arnold Schwarzenegger peels back the Iron Curtain, steps naked from a Russian sauna, and  brings some Red Heat to the mean streets of Chicago in this 1988 buddy-cop action flick.  Can the Soviet strongman learn the American way of implementing justice from wiseass detective James Belushi (K-9), and bring down the international drug dealer that killed his partner? And does 48 HRS director Walter Hill make their screen chemistry crackle like he did with Nick Nolte and Eddie Murphy? Find out when you get on the bus with Arnie, Brock and Stuart. Listen now!

Arnold Schwarzenegger made a Raw Deal with producer Dino DeLaurentiis when he opted to star in this 1986 flop instead of a third Conan film. Can the muscle bound lawman get back in the good graces of the FBI (and his nagging wife) by infiltrating the Chicago mob, and avenging the death of Darren McGavin’s son?  And does this unhappy onscreen marriage resemble any real life fireworks going on between Ahnold and new bride Maria Shriver?  Find out if Brock, Stuart, and Now Playing’s Arnie terminate this unsung entry on the Austrian he-man’s resume.

Twenty years before he was California’s governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger went Commando to assassinate the deposed President of a fake Latin American country in this 1985 shoot-’em-up. Did the Austrian bodybuilder pump up his Terminator image with superhuman tree lifts and gratuitous shopping mall showdowns? Or are the corny catch phrases and play dates with daughter Alyssa Milano dead tired in 2022?  Let off some steam with Brock, Stuart, and Arnie as they explore why Ahnold was the last action hero of the 20th Century. Listen Now!

  Centuries before targeting Arnold Schwarzenegger in the South American jungle, the Predator was making Native Americans their Prey in this prequel set in the year 1719. Can Comanche medicine woman Amber Midthunder silence the sexist naysayers by bringing down the cloaked alien that’s been picking off her tribe in the wilderness of the Great Plains?  And do grizzly bears and mountain lions pose just as much danger to the novice hunter as her outer space foe? Track the latest moves of this 36-year-old franchise when you listen to Brock, Stuart, and Arnie.

Superman and Batman have been taken prisoner, so it’s up to their dogs Krypto (Dwayne Johnson) and Ace (Kevin Hart) to lead the rescue team in the first big screen adventure for the DC League of Superpets.  Did deranged guinea pig Lulu (Kate McKinnon) learn enough about being a supervillain from Lex Luther (Marc Maron) to successfully engineer an orange kryptonite plot that expels the Justice League from the planet?  And will the Man of Steel have to pick Lois Lane over Man’s Best Friend in the end?  Listen Now as Jakob, Arnie, and Stuart sniff it out!           

Before there was a League of DC Superpets, there was Underdog… the clumsy police beagle turned into a flying canine crime fighter by mad scientist Peter Dinklage (Game of Thrones). But can Walt Disney turn a 1960s Saturday morning cartoon created by cereal makers into something that satisfies the tastes of a new generation of superhero fans weaned on Richard Donner’s Superman?  And what can K-9 star Jim Belushi teach his four-legged partner about making a funny family film?  Never fear, Now Playing is all you need to hear!  Listen Now!

Midnight Sun puts a new light on Stephanie Meyer’s first novel by retelling Twilight through the silver eyes of Edward the vampire.  Will fans still swoon over his love affair with Bella Swan knowing he was really fantasizing about committing violence against her body and soul?  And what do the rest of the Cullen clan think about a mortal girl from Arizona taking up so much space in their sibling’s head?  Join Stuart and Jakob as they put this book series to bed.

After five years living in the shadows, Kate Beckinsale returns to the Underworld universe ready to kick Lycan ass and win the Blood Wars for the vampires. But can the single mother prevent enemies on both sides of the conflict from hunting down and drinking the hybrid blood of her runaway daughter Eve?  And will Selene find true friends or just new hairdos when she follows the Northern Lights to a frozen palace full of blonde bloodsuckers? Join Jakob, Stuart, and Arnie as they wrap up this franchise and send it off to the Sacred World of podcasting.  Listen Now!        

Bella Swan grows up fast in Breaking Dawn - dealing with marriage, motherhood, and rigor mortis all in one giant Twilight conclusion. Will author Stephanie Meyer give her undead Heathcliff and Cathy the happy ending that’s so far eluded their teenage courtship? And are things better or worse between Edward and Jacob now that the werewolf has given up on Bella and imprinted on her baby girl instead? Jakob and Stuart are ready to break it all down now!