Molly Movie Club (@cmuratori and @aerettberg discuss movies, past and present, terrific and terrible.)

Today’s movie is Scott Pilgrim vs. The World directed by Edgar Wright.

This movie is probably one of the most polished turds we’ve ever seen. Edgar Wright’s creative visual style and clever editing can’t save this mess of a screenplay. The result is a movie that is so hollow that it feels like a chore to watch.

Our movie next week is The Lobster. We’ll see you then!

Today’s movie is The Lobster directed by Yorgos Lanthimos.

In what has become a Movie Club tradition, Anna likes this movie and Casey doesn’t. We both enjoy this movie conceptually - it’s filled with good ideas. Lanthimos is clearly a director with a strong creative vision, and that gives The Lobster a truly unique feeling. But for Casey, the screenplay just doesn’t quite work.

We’ll see you next week for The Philadelphia Story!

Today’s movie is The Philadelphia Story directed by George Cukor.

Despite featuring three of the most famous actors of classic Hollywood, we really didn’t care for this film. It sets up some promising scenarios for comedy, and then immediately shuts them down. There also seems to be a disconnect between the performances and the way characters are described in the story (Tracy is berated continuously for being a cold, distant Goddess, but she never appears that way to the viewer). It was just… not great.

Thanks for joining us for Romantic Comedies month! We hope to see you back here next week for the start of a new month: TBD, picked by Casey!

Today’s movie is Lightyear directed by Angus MacLane.

We decided to watch Lightyear for the podcast after seeing this recent quote from Pete Docter on why the movie failed to win over audiences:

“We’ve done a lot of soul-searching about that because we all love the movie. We love the characters and the premise. I think probably what we’ve ended on in terms of what went wrong is that we asked too much of the audience. When they hear Buzz, they’re like, great, where’s Mr. Potato Head and Woody and Rex?““And then we drop them into this science fiction film that they’re like, What? Even if they’ve read the material in press, it was just a little too distant, both in concept, and I think in the way that characters were drawn, that they were portrayed. It was much more of a science fiction.“

This is obviously not why Lightyear failed. So we decided to dive into what is actually wrong with the movie, and the answer is… basically everything.

Thanks for joining us for the first episode of Casey Picks month! If you enjoyed this free episode, please consider subscribing for access to all of our episodes!

Our schedule for the rest of March is:

March 10th - I Heart Huckabees

March 17th - What’s Eating Gilbert Grape

March 24th - Bullets Over Broadway

March 31th - Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse

Today’s movie is I Heart Huckabees directed by David O. Russell.

Casey sums up this movie best during our conversation: I Heart Huckabees is about ideas, not people. Characters serve as representations of different types of philosophies, and interact with each other in strange and often hilarious ways. This is definitely not a movie for everyone, but you have to admire David O. Russell’s commitment to the concept. No attempt has been made to make this movie appeal to a broad audience, and for that we’re glad.

We’ll see you next week for What’s Eating Gilbert Grape.

Today’s movie is What’s Eating Gilbert Grape directed by Lasse Hallström.

We both think this is a wonderful film. The movie is so honest in the way it portrays family. Gilbert is such an interesting main character; he is extremely passive, and has no agency in his own life. Neither of us have anything negative to say about it!

We’ll see you next week for Bullets Over Broadway.

Today’s movie is Bullets Over Broadway directed by Woody Allen.

Bullets Over Broadway is about what it means to be an artist. To quote Ratatouille, this movie perfect sums up the idea that “not everyone can be a great artist, but a great artist can come from anywhere”. Every scene is entertaining thanks to fantastic performances and hilarious characters.

Next week is going to be another movie with which Casey has some major nits to pick. We’ll see you Friday for Spider-man: Into the Spiderverse.

Next week we will be posting a poll to pick next month’s movie theme, so keep an eye out for that!

Today’s movie is Spider-man: Into the Spider-Verse directed by Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, and Rodney Rothman.

A lot has been said about the impressive visual style of this movie, so in today’s podcast we don’t talk too much about that. We dive into the screenplay, and why we feel its problems are representative of the story problems that plague so many modern movies.

Next month’s theme is currently being decided. If you haven’t voted in our April poll, you still have a couple days to cast your vote!

We’ll announce our schedule on Monday!

Today’s movie is Nightcrawler written and directed by Dan Gilroy.

We’ve ended up watching another of Casey’s favorite movies! Nightcrawler is a fantastic film. Jake Gyllenhaal’s performance as Lou is chilling. Both the script and the score come together to tell the story from Lou’s perspective, and the end result is pretty brilliant.

We hope you’ve enjoyed this free episode! Please consider subscribing for access to all of our episodes!

Our schedule for the rest of April is:

April 14th - Taxi Driver

April 21st - There Will Be Blood

April 28th - Heathers

Today’s movie is Taxi Driver directed by Martin Scorsese.

Taxi Driver is the quintessential “unlikable main character” movie, and it’s probably Scorsese’s best film. Robert De Niro plays Travis, a lonely misanthrope who eventually descends into a frightening delusion. We both think this movie is absolutely fantastic, with one major exception - Casey can’t stand the music.

We hope you enjoyed this week’s episode!

We’ll be back next week for There Will Be Blood.

Today’s movie is There Will Be Blood directed by Paul Thomas Anderson.

This movie is another classic case where Anna likes it and Casey doesn’t. Anna gets totally lost in the experience of watching this movie. Casey agrees that the filmmaking is fantastic, but he finds the tone a bit confused and dissonant.

Next week is the final week of “Unlikable Main Characters” Month, and we finish with Heathers. We’ll see you then!

Today’s movie is Heathers directed by written by Daniel Waters and directed by Michael Lehmann.

We both really like this movie, although we end up spending most of the podcast debating about two slightly different interpretations of the movie. You’ll have to let us know what you thought about Heathers!

Thanks for joining us for another month of movies! Next week we start our month of Time Travel movies. Our May schedule is:

May 5th (free episode) - Back to the Future

May 12th - Looper

May 19th - Primer

May 26th - Edge of Tomorrow

We hope to see you there!

Today’s episode is Back to the Future directed by Robert Zemeckis.

We’re starting off Time Travel month with what might be the most famous time travel movie ever made: Back to the Future. We talk about why this film works so well, and the things that make it such a classic.

Thanks for joining us for this free episode! Please consider subscribing for access to the rest of our episodes.

Our schedule for the rest of May is:

May 12th - Looper

May 19th - Primer

May 26th - Edge of Tomorrow

We hope to see you there!

Today’s movie is Looper written and directed by Rian Johnson.

For us, Looper has some really creative ideas that never manage to come together in a way that works. Most of the time travel elements make very little sense. The second half of the movie, which focuses on the young telekinetic boy and his mother, works much better.

Thanks for joining us for another episode! Next week’s movie is Primer. We hope to see you there!

Today’s movie is Primer written, produced and directed by Shane Carruth.

Primer is one of the most impressive independent small-budget films ever made. There’s a lot to admire about this movie. At the same time, it has some shortcomings that ultimately leave it feeling a bit hollow, which we discuss in this episode.

Thanks for joining us for another episode! We finish up Time Travel month next week with Edge of Tomorrow.

We’ll post a poll on Monday for you to decide our June movie theme!

Today’s movie is Edge of Tomorrow directed by Doug Liman.

We both think this movie is pretty stupid. The Groundhog-Day-style time loop has the potential to tell a compelling story of character growth, but Edge of Tomorrow really falls flat and completely sputters out by the end. You get the feeling that the source material might be an interesting story, but this movie isn’t.

Thanks for joining us for another month of movies! Look out for a post on Monday with our schedule for June.

Today’s movie is Air directed by Ben Affleck.

Air is an enjoyable movie, thanks in large part to strong performances and good directing. Our overall impression of this movie is that it’s okay, but it could’ve been better with a more well-written script. Casey also wasn’t a fan of the choice to make Michael Jordan a non-character whose face we never see.

We’ll see you back here next week for Avatar: The Way of Water!

Today’s movie is Blade Runner (The Final Cut) directed by Ridley Scott.

Blade Runner is one of the greatest movies of all time. The production design is unmatched; the sets, the vehicles, the costumes, the props, and the cinematography come together to create a totally immersive experience. It’s one of the rare movies that feels like it was truly shot in a different world, and we’re lucky enough to get a glimpse into it.

Thanks for joining us for another movie! If you enjoyed this episode, please consider subscribing for access to all of our episodes.

We’ll be back next week with Ex Machina.

Today’s movie is Puss in Boots: The Last Wish by Dreamworks Animation.

We haven’t laughed this hard at a movie in a long time. Puss in Boots: The Last Wish is bursting with creative ideas and playful takes on classic fairytales. It’s also really well written, which feels refreshing for an animated movie these days. Casey didn’t like some of the Spiderverse-esque visual style choices, and we felt that the pacing was a bit rushed, but otherwise we really enjoyed Puss in Boots!

Thanks for joining us for another movie!

We’ll be back next week with The Fabelmans.

Today’s episode is Ex Machina written and directed by Alex Garland.

Casey strongly dislikes this movie. Anna mostly agrees with Casey’s criticisms, but she likes the movie’s sense of foreboding, especially in the early parts. And we both think Oscar Isaac delivers a good performance.

We’ll be back next week with Ghost in the Shell (1995). See you then!

Today’s episode is Ghost in the Shell, directed by Mamoru Oshii and based on the manga by Masamune Shirow.

Ghost in the Shell is a really interesting and intelligent film, but it suffers from the same problems that many book/manga adaptations have. The movie doesn’t have enough time to tell the broad story of the source material, and ends up resorting to long monologues to communicate its ideas. We both enjoyed this film and found it intellectually engaging, we just wish it had been able to flesh out its ideas more fully.

Thanks for joining us for another episode! We’ll see you next week for The Terminator.

Today’s movie is The Terminator directed by James Cameron.

We both love this movie. The strongest part of The Terminator is probably Sarah Conner’s development from an average person into a hero. James Cameron’s ability to create an epic film with limited resources is also extremely impressive. It just goes to show how far good storytelling and creative filmmaking can take you.

This was the final movie of our AI/Cyborg/Artificial Life themed month. Next week we start watching some New Releases! Our schedule is:

June 30th - Air

July 7th (free episode) - Avatar: The Way of Water

July 14th - Puss in Boots: The Last Wish

July 21st - The Fabelmans

July 28th - Oppenheimer

We hope to see you there!

Today’s movie is Avatar: The Way of Water directed by James Cameron.

There is a baffling lack of self-awareness in the Avatar films. Ultimately, Avatar: The Way of Water is a movie about the comforting lies James Cameron tells himself. The story is deeply anti-technology, while Cameron himself used the most modern and advanced technology to make this film. He seems unable or unwilling to tell this story with any nuance, and as a result the movie feels insultingly simplistic.

If you manage to put all that aside, Avatar: The Way of Water is an immersive experience. The facial motion capture and lighting, in particular, are very impressive.

Thanks for joining us for this free episode of Molly Movie Club! If you enjoyed this episode, please consider subscribing for access to all of our episodes.

Our schedule for the rest of July is:

July 14th - Puss in Boots: The Last Wish

July 21st - The Fabelmans

July 28th - Oppenheimer

Today’s movie is The Fabelmans directed by Steven Spielberg.

There’s a lot to like about The Fabelmans, even though it feels like the screenplay is trying to bring the movie down. Spielberg’s reflections on his life as a filmmaker and artist are filled with remarkable self-awareness and a lot of wisdom, and if you can manage to ignore about half of the dialogue this is a pretty great movie.

We’ll be back next week for the final movie of the month, Oppenheimer!

Today’s movie is Pulp Fiction directed by Quentin Tarantino.

Pulp Fiction is such a bold, creative film. We both think it is a standout in Quentin Tarantino’s filmography. The tone is so unique and has been imitated so many times since that it’s easy to forget just how original Pulp Fiction is.

Thanks for listening to this month’s free episode! If you enjoyed this episode, please consider subscribing for access to all of our episodes.

Our schedule for the rest of August is:

August 11th - 12 Angry Men

August 18th - Magnolia

August 25th - Spotlight

Today’s movie is Oppenheimer directed by Christopher Nolan.

We’ve talked about Christopher Nolan quite a few times now in the Movie Club. One of the things we often say is that we think that Nolan is capable of making a truly great film, but there are a few things holding him back - most notably, his scripts and his action editing. So when we saw the trailer for Oppenheimer, we wondered if this might finally be Christopher Nolan’s Great Film. And the answer… is no.

We’ll be back next week for the start of a new month: Movies with an Ensemble Cast. Our schedule is:

August 4th (free episode) - Pulp Fiction

August 11th - 12 Angry Men

August 18th - Magnolia

August 25th - Spotlight

As always, thanks for listening!

Today’s episode is 12 Angry Men directed by Sidney Lumet.

12 Angry Men is the antithesis of so many modern films - there is no spectacle, but none of that matters due to its rich and engrossing script. That’s not to say the filmmaking is bland or uninteresting; in fact, all of the detail and movement in the scenes is part of what makes this movie so watchable. That’s why 12 Angry Men is one of our favorites, and a movie that we come back to again and again.

Thanks for joining us for another episode!

Our next movie is Magnolia.

Today’s movie is Magnolia directed by Paul Thomas Anderson.

Magnolia has a tendency to wander into the kind of melodrama that can feel like it’s trying a bit too hard. Compared to PTA’s later work, the movie feels messy and unfocused, and there’s a confidence that he finds in his later films that feels like it’s missing from Magnolia. The other big problem with this film is that many of the scenes are just not interesting, which is especially noticeable after watching Pulp Fiction.

Thanks for joining us for another episode! Next week is the final week in our Ensemble Cast movie month, and we’ll be watching Spotlight.

Today’s episode is Spotlight directed by Tom McCarthy.

Spotlight is one of those rare films where everything comes together so flawlessly that there’s basically nothing that could have been done better. This is the fourth time we’ve seen Spotlight, and it’s just as riveting as it was on the first viewing. It’s the perfect movie to close out our month of ensemble casts.

We’ll be back next month with… TBD! The poll is closing soon and our schedule will be posted Monday. If you haven’t voted yet, you still have a few more days to pick next month’s movie theme!

Today’s episode is Mad Max: Fury Road directed by George Miller.

When this movie came out nearly ten years ago it was a creative breath of fresh air in a world saturated with derivative Marvel movies. Miller created a lush, strange world that feels truly original. On top of that, Fury Road features some of the best action filmmaking in recent years.

Thanks for listening to this free episode of Molly Movie Club! If you enjoyed the podcast, please consider subscribing for access to all of our episodes.

Our schedule for the rest of September is:

September 8th - Akira

September 15th - Metropolis

September 22nd - Children of Men

September 29th - Casey & Anna pick, TBD

Today’s movie is Akira directed by Katsuhiro Otomo.

Akira is one of the most visually impressive films ever made. The sheer effort required to complete this movie is hard to overstate. Every scene contains so much detail, and the shot framing and cinematography are also consistently excellent. Even though Akira features an interesting story that unfortunately falls short towards the end, the film is absolutely a masterpiece.

Thanks for listening! We’ll see you back here next week for Metropolis.

Today’s episode is Metropolis directed by Fritz Lang.

Neither of us had ever seen this film before, and we went in a little bit nervous. A two and a half hour silent film from 1927? We assumed it would be significant in the context of its time, but pretty unwatchable by today’s standards. Oh boy, were we wrong. Metropolis is a work of genius that was far ahead of its time. The film doesn’t just hold up - it stands out as one of the most visually imaginative movies ever made.

Next week we watch Children of Men. We hope to see you there!

Today’s movie is Children of Men directed by Alfonso Cuarón.

Children of Men is probably the most chilling of all the Bleak Future movies this month because it feels the closest to our reality. Incredible production design and an immersive filmmaking style make this world feel frighteningly believable. Cuarón uses long oners and a hand-held camera to make the viewer feel as though they are physically in the world of the film. (Casey recommends not watching Children of Men on a big screen if you get motion sickness…)

We’ll be back next week for the final movie in Bleak Future month, and it is a Casey and Anna pick! We’ve chosen Escape from New York directed by John Carpenter.

We hope to see you then!

Today’s movie is John Carpenter’s Escape from New York.

The set up for Escape from New York is fantastic. The premise is over the top and exciting, and the character of Snake is so great that he was copied for the Metal Gear Solid games. The problem with this movie is that the premise is all it has. Once we drop into New York, things get boring. John Carpenter shows us that he is great at creating a believable-feeling world with a small budget, but when it comes to telling an interesting story in that world, Escape from New York falls short.

Thanks for joining us for Bleak Future month! Next month we switch gears to Horror Comedies! Our schedule is:

October 6th (free episode) - Gremlins

October 13th - Cabin in the Woods

October 20th - What We Do in the Shadows

October 27th - Shaun of the Dead

Today’s movie is Gremlins directed by Joe Dante.

Gremlins is a mess. Nothing that gets introduced in the early part of the movie ever amounts to anything, and many plot elements and characters get completely dropped as though scenes were cut (maybe they were?). The only reason anyone remembers this movie at all is because of the gremlins themselves; the puppets and animatronics are incredibly well done.

Thanks for listening to this free episode of Molly Movie Club!

Our schedule for the rest of October is:

October 13th - Cabin in the Woods

October 20th - What We Do in the Shadows

October 27th - Shaun of the Dead

Today’s movie is The Cabin in the Woods directed by Drew Goddard.

There’s a lot to like about The Cabin in the Woods. The Whedon style of writing usually works really well for individual scenes, and the conversations between characters are enjoyable to listen to. But as Casey says in the podcast, this movie has good tactical writing, but bad strategic writing. It feels as though this movie is pulling in two different directions, and it can never manage to pull together into a plot that works. As a result, the ending feels as thought it doesn’t quite work (even though parts of it are really fun to watch).

Thanks for joining us for another episode!

We’ll be back next week with What We Do in the Shadows.

Today’s movie is What We Do in the Shadows directed by Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi.

What We Do in the Shadows is really funny, and the premise is pretty brilliant. We have a few minor quibbles, but the movie is excellent and well worth a watch - especially if you’re a fan of Flight of the Conchords style humor and mockumentaries.

Thanks for joining us for another episode!

We’ll be back next week with Shaun of the Dead.

Today’s movie is Shaun of the Dead directed by Edgar Wright.

While this movie has a few memorable moments, it just isn’t that fun to watch. Edgar Wright’s signature directorial style is very distinctive and there are a few really well shot scenes, but for the most part his flashy style doesn’t really serve any purpose. The story feels aimless and frankly, it’s boring. For us, Shaun of the Dead ends up feeling pretty dull.

Thanks for joining us for another episode of Molly Movie Club!

Hello everyone! We have an update to share about Molly Movie Club, and how it will change going forward.

We’re heading into a really busy time here at Molly Rocket. It has gotten harder for us to make time to record and edit a new episode of the Movie Club every week. We’ve decided that we’re no longer going to post weekly podcasts. We will still post episodes, but they’ll be on a more random and inconsistent schedule. Because of this, we will be turning off paid subscriptions. Those with monthly subscriptions will no longer be charged, and those who paid for a yearly subscription will receive a refund from Substack.

To those who have been members of Molly Movie Club, we really appreciate your support! We will open up comments to everyone, so continue posting your thoughts on the movies we watch in the future! And also feel free to keep suggesting movies! We won’t be doing themed months anymore, but we still want to hear your movie recommendations.

Thanks for listening to Molly Movie Club!

-Casey & Anna

Today’s movie is Big Trouble in Little China directed by John Carpenter.

This movie is so delightful. Carpenter’s creativity is on full display. Kurt Russell is also fantastic, and he pulls off his character’s ineptitude so well. Carpenter takes a character who is really just the sidekick, but treats him as if he is the main character. The result is a movie that is extremely funny, and constantly surprising and imaginative. It’s not a perfect movie, but it is so fun to watch that its problems just don’t feel like a very big deal.

Thanks for joining us for another episode of Molly Movie Club!

Today’s movie is The Thing directed by John Carpenter.

Once again, John Carpenter proves himself to be a skilled and versatile director, cursed with being too far ahead of his time. The Thing, like Halloween, feels genre-defining. As with Carpenter’s other films, The Thing isn’t perfect - like we’ve mentioned in previous podcasts, we feel like his films lack an emotional connection to the characters. But overall, The Thing is an immersive, creative film that is a whole lot of fun to watch.

Thanks for joining us for another episode of Molly Movie Club!

Today’s movie is John Wick directed by Chad Stahelski.

We both enjoyed John Wick well enough, although it’s not really our type of movie. It’s a well made film that has a distinct style and strong action directing, but at the end of the day we just get pretty bored of it all after the first hour or so. We’ll probably end up checking out the sequels at some point, though - we hear people like them even more than the first film.

Thanks for joining us for another episode of Molly Movie Club!

Today’s movie is Eraserhead by David Lynch.

We were not ready for Eraserhead. This film feels like a surreal nightmare plucked straight out of David Lynch’s mind. Deeply disturbing and completely original, Eraserhead is an unforgettable experience (in a sort of traumatizing way).

Thanks for joining us for another episode of Molly Movie Club!

Today’s movie is Furiosa directed by George Miller.

Furiosa is another great action movie from George Miller. It’s fun to revisit the world of Mad Max and this movie certainly delivers on the worldbuilding, but Furiosa just isn’t able to recapture the storytelling magic of Fury Road.

Thanks for joining us for another episode of Molly Movie Club!

Today’s movie is Beetlejuice directed by Tim Burton.

Neither of us have any nostalgia for Beetlejuice, which is maybe why we both felt like the film is a huge mess. Nothing that is introduced ever seems to matter, and every attempt to explain anything makes the movie worse. There are probably two reasons this movie had any cultural staying power: Michael Keaton’s performance as Betelgeuse, and Tim Burton’s imaginative visual style.

For our next episode, we’re watching the sequel Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.

Thanks for joining us for another episode of Molly Movie Club!

Today’s movie is Beetlejuice Beetlejuice directed by Tim Burton.

This movie made Casey mad. Very, very mad. Anna didn’t think it was that bad, but agrees that the things that were not working about the first movie were turned up to 11 in this one.

Thanks for joining us for another episode of Molly Movie Club!

Today’s movie is Joker: Folie à Deux directed by Todd Phillips.

I mean… you know what we’re gonna say about this one.

Thanks for joining us for another episode of Molly Movie Club!

Hello all!

One of our ideas for the Molly Movie Club was that members would pick the movies. Since we’re new to Substack, we’re not sure exactly how to implement that here, but I’m sure we’ll figure out the right thing over time :)

As a first attempt, let’s see what happens if you all leave a comment below with your movie suggestion. Then, we can do a follow-up post with a poll so everyone can vote.

Also, since we’re just getting started, we’d love comments on the audio mix. It’s a very subjective thing, and the experience can vary a lot depending on your listening setup. We’d like to get feedback to make sure we’re recording and mixing to a standard that works well with a reasonable cross-section of our subscribers’ headphones and speakers.

That’s it for now. Thanks everyone for checking out the movie club, and we look forward to hearing your movie suggestions!

Welcome, everyone, to the inaugural episode of Molly Movie Club! Our first movie is Interstellar, directed by Christopher Nolan.

We hope you enjoy the episode! And we’re excited to hear your thoughts on the movie, and on our discussion. See you in the comments!

We had a feeling there’d be a lot to say about 2001: A Space Odyssey, and we weren’t wrong. In this second episode of Molly Movie Club, we dive into the details of Stanley Kubrick’s remarkable depiction of a spacefaring future, and reach a surprising conclusion about the differing visions vs. our first Movie Club movie, Interstellar.

As per the club format, this is one of the three monthly episodes that are for members only. Next up will be Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan on May 20th, and after that, Moon on May 27th.

For free subscribers, the next free episode will be June 3rd, and we’ll be posting a thread soon for picking the four June movies, so stay tuned for the complete schedule!

We hope you enjoy the episode! There’s so much to say about 2001: A Space Odyssey, we certainly weren’t able to cover all of it, and we’re very curious to hear your thoughts. See you in the comments below!

In Episode Three of Molly Movie Club, we get to watch one of Casey’s all time favorite movies! We both have a lot affection for Nicholas Meyer’s 1982 film Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. In this episode we discuss why we think this movie exemplifies Star Trek at its very best, and how the screenwriting is some of the most clever we’ve ever seen.

As per the club format, this is one of the three monthly episodes that are for members only. The fourth and final movie in our Space Month series will be Moon on May 27th.

For free subscribers, the next free episode will The Purple Rose of Cairo on June 3rd. Members are currently making suggestions for the other movies in our June series. Stay tuned for the complete schedule!

We hope you enjoy the episode! We both really love Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, and we’re very curious to hear your thoughts. See you in the comments below!

In Episode Four of Molly Movie Club we watch Moon directed by Duncan Jones. It’s the final movie of Space Month, and we’ve had such a great time watching four very different science fiction movies. We consider Moon to be the weakest of the bunch, and in this episode we discuss why we feel a lack of vision in both direction and writing let Moon down. We also get into a heated debate about an antique armchair.

Our next episode will be The Purple Rose of Cairo on June 3rd. This free episode will be available to all subscribers! The theme of June will be “Story Within a Story”. We’re currently taking votes for the three other movies in the series, and we will post the official schedule very soon!

We hope you enjoy the discussion, and we’ll see you in the comments!

Well, we’re officially starting our SECOND month of Molly Movie Club! Thanks to everyone who has subscribed. We’re having a great time watching a new movie each week, and we hope you are too!

As we’ve mentioned, the theme for June is “Story Within a Story”. The first movie we’re watching is The Purple Rose of Cairo directed by Woody Allen. Neither of us had seen it before, and this movie took us by surprise! Some of the themes were very familiar to us - we’ve been talking about similar ideas for the last few years working on our comic. That made the experience of watching this movie a bit more emotional than it might’ve been otherwise (at least for Anna).

We discuss why we don’t see The Purple Rose of Cairo as a perfect film, but feel it’s impossible to ignore the brilliant ideas behind the story. Also, we both think that this movie features one of the most magical moments we’ve ever seen on the screen.

Thanks for listening, and we hope you enjoy the episode! We’ll see you in the comments.

This week’s episode is Adaptation, directed by Spike Jonze and written by Charlie (and Donald) Kaufman.

We both really enjoy Adaptation. It’s not the easiest movie to digest, especially on a first viewing, but it works with clockwork precision and is totally committed to its premise.

Thanks for listening, and we hope you enjoy the episode! As always, we’d love to hear your thoughts on Adaptation.

Next week’s movie is Ed Wood. Until then, we’ll see you in the comments!

This week’s movie is Ed Wood directed by Tim Burton.

As you’ll hear in the episode, we are divided on this movie! This is the first time so far on the podcast that we have fairly different opinions, and we’re really eager to hear your thoughts!

Next Friday is the final movie in our “Story within a story” movie series, Birdman (or the Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance). In the coming week we’ll also post an update on our July theme! Until then, see you in the comments!

It’s the last week of June, and it’s time for the final movie in our “Story within a story” series. This week’s episode is Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) directed by Alejandro Iñárritu.

We both really enjoy watching this movie. It’s impressive shooting style and original music give Birdman a truly unique feel. Iñárritu and Lubezki are both brilliant, and their talents turn an ambitious, somewhat flawed script into an unforgettable experience.

Next week we start a new month and a new theme: Nautical movies! Our free episode is next week, and it will be Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World.

Thank you all for the great movie suggestions. We’ve had such a good time watching all of these films, and we hope you have too!

See you in the comments!

Happy July! We’re excited to start our new series of nautical-themed movies. We begin with Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World directed by Peter Weir.

Anna LOVES this movie. Casey thinks it’s pretty good. One thing no one can argue with is that the attention to historical detail in this film is impressive. A love for the time period radiates from Master and Commander, and the commitment to accuracy gives the film a level of immersiveness that’s rarely achieved.

We hope you enjoy this free episode! The schedule for the rest of July is:

July 8 - Das Boot

July 15 - The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou

July 22 - The Big Blue

July 29 - The Hunt for Red October

This week we have Das Boot directed by Wolfgang Petersen, a German film from 1982 about a U-boat crew during WWII. We watched the remastered Director’s Cut.

We both agree that Das Boot is the best war movie we have ever seen. Everything about this film — the cinematography, the directing, the script, the acting, the incredible U-boat set — is astoundingly good. If you haven’t seen Das Boot, do yourself a favor and watch it.

We’ll be back here again next week with a very different film… The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou!

This week is Molly Movie Club’s first Wes Anderson movie: The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou.

We both felt similarly about this movie - it just doesn’t quite work. Anderson is a talented, quirky director with a fantastic visual style, but The Life Aquatic doesn’t seem to live up to the high standards set by some of his other films. In the podcast, we talk about why that might be.

As always, we’d love to hear your thoughts. We’ll see you in the comments!

Next week’s movie is The Big Blue directed by Luc Besson.

This week’s movie is The Big Blue directed by Luc Besson.

This movie is weird. It’s also kind of a mess. For a movie from a film movement that is supposedly about “style over substance”, there’s remarkably little style, and quite a bit of substance! And at nearly three hours, this film is a slog to get through. But The Big Blue certainly gives us plenty to talk about!

Next week is the final movie of Nautical Month: The Hunt for Red October.

Until then, see you in the comments!

We’ve come to the final film of Nautical Month: The Hunt for Red October directed by John McTiernan.

This submarine spy thriller from the early 90s is a solid, enjoyable movie. It’s always clear exactly what is happening, which is not an easy feat for a plot this complex. There are also some really good performances, especially from Sean Connery and James Earl Jones. Our biggest complaint is with the handling of the main character, Jack Ryan - played by a rather hammy Alec Baldwin.

As always, thanks for joining us for another month of Molly Movie Club! Next week we start a month of new releases. We will see you then!

Hello everyone, and welcome to a new month! This week we watched Dune directed by Denis Villeneuve.

This is probably going to be one of the more contentious weeks of Molly Movie Club, because Casey and Anna both dislike this movie. We know this is probably not the mainstream opinion, but hopefully in this podcast we do a good enough job of explaining why we feel that way. In fact, Casey goes into so much excruciating detail about why he dislikes this movie that we ended up making an “extended cut” subscribers-only version of this episode.

We will see you back here again next week for Everything Everywhere All At Once. Until then, we are very curious to hear your thoughts on Dune!

If you’d like to become a paid member of Molly Movie Club with full access to all of our episodes, you can subscribe here:

Hey there Movie Club,

This is Casey. In a few hours, the regular “Episode 14” of Molly Movie Club will go up. Before it does, I wanted to post this “extended cut” version, and explain what it contains so members can decide which one they want to listen to!

After the regular podcast discussion of Dune, I went on for thirty minutes about how bad the screenwriting was in this movie. It was not really “podcast material” per se, it was just a straight-up rant because the screenwriting in this film epitomizes everything I hate about writing in modern “big budget” movies:

* Lines that only the writer, not the character, would be thinking at that time - especially when it is very unlikely (or even impossible) for the character to have known the information contained in the line

* Lines that mechanically state what is happening, rather than being dialogue someone might plausibly say

* Stating things as if they exist in the world of the movie, but those things never actually seem to exist in the world of the movie

* Stating things as if they are true in the movie, but then demonstrating that in fact those things were either not true or very unlikely to be true

* Having people be preternaturally good at something in one scene, then completely terrible at it in another

* Allocating lots of screen time to things that don’t matter or that we already know, while allocating little or no screen time to things that would’ve made a big difference

* Lines that are supposed to be profound or clever, but which actually make no sense or feel completely out of place

* Mechanical scene construction where each scene just happens because that is the next thing that happens in the movie, but never because it actually makes sense why it is in that order (or sometimes in the movie at all)

Etc., etc.

We didn’t think the extra thirty minutes of rant was necessary for the main episode, because Anna and I’s dislike for the screenwriting in Dune should have been abundantly clear from the main hour-long episode. We’re pretty sure everyone will get that point.

But, we do know that there are some people out there who like a good rant, so we included the full version here in this bonus episode for our members.

Since this rant was off-the-cuff, I would point out that it’s actually a very small subset of the complaints I have about the screenplay for this film, and is less well-constructed than if I were writing it up. If I actually went through the screenplay scene-by-scene, I would have something negative to say about basically every single line of this movie.

NOTE: If you’d like to hear the rant, but already listened to the normal episode, you can skip the first hour - it’s exactly the same. The only difference between this version and the episode is that we cut the rant from the end.

Today’s movie is Everything Everywhere All At Once directed by Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert.

This movie is joyfully absurd, and it’s one of the most creative movies we’ve seen in a long time. Unsurprisingly, Casey takes issue with a few plot mechanics, but we both agree that this movie is truly unique and really well directed.

As always, let us know what you think!

We will see you back here again next week with The Batman.

Today’s movie is The Batman directed by Matt Reeves.

We both think this is probably one of the best looking superhero movies we’ve seen in a long time. The visuals of this movie are definitely its strength - everything from the cinematography to the production design works really well. Where this movie falls flat is with its story. Ultimately, it’s just… boring.

Let us know what you think!

Next week is the final week of our month of new releases. We’re watching Drive My Car.

This week’s episode is Drive My Car directed by Ryusuke Hamaguchi.

We both felt pretty lukewarm on this movie. There are a lot of things in it that just don’t work very well, which we dive into in this episode. Where Drive My Car does succeed is in the scenes between Kafuku and the driver.

As always, we’d love to hear what you think!

Next week is the start of a month of movies set during World War I. Our first (and free!) episode will be Lawrence of Arabia.

Until then, see you in the comments!

This week’s episode is Lawrence of Arabia directed by David Lean.

Lawrence of Arabia is a masterpiece. It’s also Anna’s favorite movie. Not only is it one of the most gorgeous films ever shot, it also happens to feature one of the most interesting characters in cinema. It’s this combination that makes the movie truly remarkable. Although, it wouldn’t be an episode of Molly Movie Club without Casey having some nitpicks :)

Next week’s episode is 1917 directed by Sam Mendes.

Until then, we’ll see you in the comments!

Today’s movie is 1917 directed by Sam Mendes.

We were split on this movie - Anna liked it, and Casey didn’t. To regular Movie Club listeners, this is probably completely unsurprising. 1917 is an immersive visual experience, without much character development or plot. It also has a singing scene, and we all know how Casey feels about that.

Let us know what you think!

We’ll see you next week for Stanley Kubrick’s Paths of Glory.

This week is Stanley Kubrick’s 1957 film Paths of Glory.

We both enjoyed Paths of Glory, but neither of us had a really strong reaction to it - positive or negative. In this episode we discuss we discuss the things we felt worked, and Casey dives into some things that confused him.

We’re curious to hear what you thought of Paths of Glory! We look forward to reading your comments.

Next week’s film is Gallipoli directed by Peter Weir.

Today’s movie is Gallipoli directed by Peter Weir.

In classic Movie Club fashion, Anna liked this movie and Casey didn’t. Even though Gallipoli does manage to capture the mundane everyday experience of soldiers and the brutality of war, it often undercuts its own emotional impact with odd music choices and direction that sometimes misses the mark.

Next week we will be hosting a Movie Club LIVESTREAM Watch Party on Twitch! We’ll make a new post soon with more details.

Until then, we’d love to hear your thoughts on Gallipoli!

Welcome to a new month, and a new movie theme! We’re starting our Spooky Movie Month with Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining.

We both think this movie is amazing. Kubrick brings together brilliantly shot scenes, disturbing music and sound design, and a great story. There’s a reason this movie is a classic. We spend most of the podcast gushing over how good this movie is, but we also discovered that we both have the same minor criticism.

Thanks for listening to this free episode! The schedule for the rest of the month is:

October 14th - Psycho

October 21 - The Witch

October 28 - Halloween

Until then, we’ll see you in the comments!

Todays’s movie is an Alfred Hitchcock classic: Psycho.

At this point, it seems like we’re settling into a fairly routine dynamic: Anna likes a movie, and Casey doesn’t. The lack of subtlety in Psycho rubbed Casey the wrong way. But we both agree on a few highlights - the iconic Bates house, and a fantastically creepy performance by Anthony Perkins.

Our movie next week will be The Witch. We hope to see you there!

Today’s movie is The Witch, a 2015 folk-horror film directed by Robert Eggers.

For both of us, this movie was… meh. There were some things we liked - it’s well shot and acted. But otherwise, The Witch is a bit of a letdown. There’s very little mystery in the story, which undercuts the film’s ability to be frightening and leaves it feeling bland.

As always, we’re curious to hear what you think!

We’ll see you next week for the final film in October: Halloween.

The final movie in Spooky Month is John Carpenter’s Halloween.

It was the first viewing of this movie for both of us, and we really enjoyed it! John Carpenter is a skilled filmmaker, and he thrives within the constraints of a low budget. There’s such an ambitious creativity behind Halloween, it’s easy to see why it’s considered a classic.

We’ll see you back here next week for the first week of our new month!

This week’s episode is Fight Club directed by David Fincher.

Fight Club is an extremely clever, intelligent film. Usually we’re pretty critical of the use of voice over narration in film, but Fight Club is proof that it can be done well. The movie also tackles some of humanity’s darker instincts with remarkable insight. The main disappointment for us was the ending, which we feel lets the movie down.

We’d love to hear what you think!

If you enjoyed this free episode, consider subscribing for access to the rest of “Fractured Identity” month! Our schedule is:

November 11th - Vertigo

November 18th - Mulholland Drive

November 25 - American Psycho

If you’d like to join us for these members-only podcasts, and get access to the entire back catalog of Molly Movie Club, you can sign up here:

Today’s episode is Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo.

To be honest, we are both a bit baffled as to why this film is so highly regarded. In fact, we feel like it’s a muddled mess that continuously misses the mark. Hitchcock also seems determined to make sure there is no ambiguity, which makes it hard to interpret the film in a way that might save it.

We obviously really want to hear what you think about this one!

We’ll see you back here again next week for Mulholland Drive.

Today’s episode is David Lynch’s Mulholland Drive.

We both really like this movie. Lynch plays with the audience’s perception so skillfully we almost don’t realize we’re being played - even when the film explicitly tells us we are. It’s pretty brilliant. In fact, neither of us can think of anything negative to say about the film.

Let us know what you think about Mulholland Drive!

We’ll see you back here next week for the final movie in Fractured Identity month, American Psycho.

Today’s movie is American Psycho directed by Mary Harron.

This was the first time either of us had seen American Psycho, and our initial impressions were pretty similar. The movie is made up of great moments, but the pieces never manage to come together in a satisfying way.

As always, let us know what you think!

Our movie schedule for December will be:

December 2nd (free episode) - Die Hard

December 9th - Batman Returns

December 16th - Klaus

December 23rd - Home Alone

December 30th - Livestream Watch Party on Twitch! Movie TBD

Thanks for listening! We’ll see you next Friday.

Today’s movie is Die Hard directed by John McTiernan.

We’re excited to kick off our month of Christmas movies with one of our favorites. Die Hard is undoubtedly one of the best action movies ever made. It has everything: an excellent script, creative action set-pieces, thrilling practical effects, and memorable performances.

As always, let us know what you think!

If you enjoyed this free episode, please consider subscribing for access to the rest of our episodes!

Our schedule for the rest of December is:

December 9th - Batman Returns

December 16th - Klaus

December 23rd - Home Alone

December 30th - Livestream Watch Party on Twitch! Movie TBD

Today’s episode is Tim Burton’s Batman Returns.

While the script for Batman Returns is pretty bad, there’s still a lot of fun to be had in this movie. Catwoman and The Penguin are two of the most memorable villains in the superhero film genre, thanks to the perfect combination of performance and costume/makeup design. In fact, this movie is probably one of the best examples of Tim Burton at his creative peak, in terms of visuals.

Let us know what you think!

We’ll be back next week with the first animated film to be featured in the movie club, Klaus.

Today’s movie is Klaus directed by Sergio Pablos (in his directorial debut).

We love Klaus! This film combines a unique visual style with an emotionally affecting story. We can’t even get through the recording without our eyes tearing up! The only criticism we have is the same one we had of Fight Club, which is that the ending doesn’t quite live up to the rest of the movie.

Let us know what you thought of Klaus!

We’ll see you next week for the final movie of Christmas month, Home Alone!

Today’s episode is Home Alone directed by Chris Columbus.

Casey always uses Home Alone as his example when talking about how even mediocre movies in the 70s, 80s, and early 90s often had a pretty solid script. John Hughes’ script for Home Alone is surprisingly good. That’s not to say we think Home Alone is a great film, but there’s so much creativity in the movie that it’s no surprise it’s remained a holiday staple since its release.

Next Friday at 7pm PST we will be hosting our second watch party on Twitch! If you have any suggestions for a movie to watch, please comment below and let us know! The only requirement is that it has to be available to stream for free on Amazon Prime.

Until then, we’d love to hear your thoughts on Home Alone.

And to all those who celebrate, Merry Christmas!

Today’s film is Blue Velvet directed by David Lynch.

It's a little hard to watch Blue Velvet right after Mulholland Drive, because in Blue Velvet it feels like David Lynch is holding himself back. The movie feels uncommitted to its darker aspects, and falls a bit flat despite some great scenes.

As always, let us know what you think!

If you enjoyed this free episode, consider subscribing for access to all of our episodes! Our schedule for the rest of January is:

January 13th - In the Mood For Love

January 20th - The Thin Red Line

January 27th - Tampopo

Today’s movie is In the Mood For Love directed by Wong Kar-wai.

We both agree on the visuals of this movie - it’s stunning. It’s certainly one of the best looking movies ever made. Where we disagree is on the rest of the film - Anna’s first instinct was to interpret it more loosely, while Casey insists that the movie is too literal to be interpreted in any other way. Both of us could probably use another viewing of the film to really decide what we think about it.

We are curious to hear your thoughts!

Our film next week is The Thin Red Line. We hope to see you then!

Today’s movie is The Thin Red Line directed by Terrance Malick.

It should be unsurprising to longtime listeners of Molly Movie Club that Anna likes this movie and Casey doesn’t. For Anna, the filmmaking was immersive and the contrast between natural beauty and the horrors of war was very effective. Casey hated the philosophical voiceovers and thought the story didn’t make much of an effort to support its own premise. We both agree that there’s a bit of confusion in some of the action directing (in a way that is very Nolan-esque).

Thanks for joining us for another episode! We’ll be back next week with the final movie of the month, Tampopo!

Today’s movie is Tampopo directed by Itami Jūzō.

We both love Tampopo! The movie is overflowing with creativity and inventive ideas, and its playful, optimistic tone is so appealing. It also remarkable in the way it manages to explore so many different ways that people relate to food.

Let us know what you think of Tampopo!

We’ll see you next week for the start of a new month! We’ll post our official schedule soon, but it looks like it’s going to be Romantic Comedies.

Today’s episode is When Harry Met Sally directed by Rob Reiner.

Undoubtedly Nora Ephron’s best work, When Harry Met Sally is a fantastic movie. The script is genuinely hilarious, and it also manages to capture the messiness of human relationships in such an authentic way.

Thanks for joining us for the first episode of Romantic Comedies month! If you enjoyed this free episode, please consider subscribing for access to all of our episodes!

Our schedule for the rest of February is:

February 10th - Scott Pilgrim vs. The World

February 17th - The Lobster

February 24th - The Philadelphia Story