Prehistoric Pop: Brick (Aug. 27, 2006)
From the archives. Jen’s appearance on Episode 43 of “HawaiiUP” from Aug. 27, 2006. “Talladega Nights” (2006) with Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly; “Little Miss Sunshine” (2006) with Abigail Breslin,...
View ArticlePrehistoric Pop: Sin City (Sept. 24, 2006)
From the archives. Jen’s appearance on Episode 46 of “HawaiiUP” for Sept. 24, 2006. We discuss “Kiss Kiss Bang Bang” (2005) with Robert Downey Jr., Val Kilmer, and Michelle Monaghan; “Midnight Run”...
View ArticlePrehistoric Pop: Stranger Than Fiction (Nov. 19, 2006)
From the archives. Jen’s appearance on Episode 50 of “HawaiiUP” for Nov. 19, 2006. We discuss “X-Men III: The Last Stand” (2006) with Hugh Jackman, Halle Berry, Ian McKellen, and Patrick Stewart;...
View ArticlePrehistoric Pop: Firefly (Feb. 3, 2007)
From the archives. Jen’s appearance on Episode 51 of “HawaiiUP” for Feb. 3, 2007. We discuss “Happy Feet” (2006) with Hugh Jackman, Elijah Wood, Brittany Murphy, and Nicole Kidman; “Children of Men”...
View ArticlePrehistoric Pop: The Illusionist (Feb. 18, 2007)
From the archives. Jen’s appearance on Episode 52 of “HawaiiUP” for Feb. 18, 2007. We discuss “This Film is Not Yet Rated” (2006) with Kimberly Peirce, Jon Lewis, and David Ansen; “Thank You For...
View ArticlePrehistoric Pop: Donnie Darko (June 17, 2007)
From the archives. Jen’s appearance on Episode 54 of “HawaiiUP” for June 17, 2006. We discuss “Grindhouse” (2007) with Eli Roth, Danny Trejo, Cheech Marin, and Rose McGowan; “Knocked Up” (2007) with...
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Popspotting Preview: “Composing for Sci-Fi TV & Movies” at Comic-Con (Aug....
From the 2010 San Diego Comic-Con, audio from the “Behind the Music with CW3PR: Composing for Sci-Fi, Horror, and Fantasy Film & TV” panel, featuring Michael Giacchino, Wendy & Lisa Coleman,...
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Popspotting #53: “Pirates of the Carribean: On Stranger Tides” (May 23, 2011)
The latest installment of Disney’s most lucrative franchise, “Pirates of the Carribean: On Stranger Tides,” is a bit of a mess. Frankly, so are we. After nine months off, we’re a bit rusty, a bit...
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Popspotting #58: “Kung Fu Panda 2″&“Fast Five” (May 30, 2011)
It seems every summer is the summer of sequels, but both of today’s featured pair of films were a pleasant surprise. “Kung Fu Panda 2″ from Dreamworks delivers a surprisingly solid plot on top of...
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Popspotting #63: X-Men: First Class (June 6, 2011)
Against all odds, we make it out to another new release: “X-Men: First Class,” a prequel to the previous four “X-Men” films. For a superhero movie, this movie doesn’t forget that character counts, and...
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Popspotting #68: “Super 8″ (June 13, 2011)
As “slobbering fanboys” of J.J. Abrams, we’ve been looking forward to “Super 8″ since the moment we first heard about it last year. Written and directed by Abrams, and with Steven Spielberg aboard as...
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Popspotting #73: Ray Nicolette Double Feature (June 20, 2011)
This week, we take a break from the multiplex and dig into our movie collection to share our love for two great films: “Jackie Brown” and “Out Of Sight.” Both films feature a slimy ATF agent named Ray...
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Popspotting #78: Cars 2 (June 27, 2011)
It’s been five years since we’ve heard from Lightning McQueen and his friends from Radiator Springs. The original “Cars” wasn’t the strongest Pixar film, but still a favorite of our family. “Cars 2″...
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Popspotting #83: “Highlander” and “Gladiator” (July 4, 2011)
On this 4th of July holiday, we celebrate two films in which veteran warriors battle for their own kind of independence. (Okay, we tried.) Jen dubs this the “Ancient Warriors with Sketchy Accents”...
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Popspotting #88: Horrible Bosses (July 11, 2011)
As our last week before Comic-Con begins, we check out “Horrible Bosses,” a raunchy, dark comedy starring Jason Bateman, Charlie Day, and Jason Sudeikis. They have horrible bosses played by Kevin...
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Popspotting #101: “Captain America: The First Avenger” (Aug. 8, 2011)
Having finally shaken the inevitable and late-onset case of the ubiquitous and inevitable “nerd flu” (the trademark illness of Comic-Con), we’re back with another Movie Monday podcast. Today we tackle...
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Popspotting #106: “Crazy Stupid Love” (Aug. 15, 2011)
When we saw Steve Carrell was cast in a comedy with both “Crazy” and “Stupid” in the title, we figured we’d be getting yet another take on “The 40-Year-Old Virgin.” But it turns out that this movie,...
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Popspotting #111: “The Big Lebowski” &“Brick” (Aug. 22, 2011)
For Movie Monday, a “Neo Pseudo Noir” double feature pairing “The Big Lebowski” and “Brick.” Both bring unique, contemporary takes on the classic noir genre, whether it’s following “The Dude” through...
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Popspotting #116: “Super-Size DeNiro” (Aug. 29, 2011)
It’s another movie double feature for Movie Monday, as Jen lines up a couple of three-hour films that star Robert DeNiro. First up is “Heat,” written and directed by Michael Mann, which also stars Al...
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Popspotting #121: “The Debt” (Sept. 5, 2011)
“The Debt” was a film festival hit last year, and was scheduled for a December 2010 release. But studio shenanigans delayed its debut until last week. But even though it hit theaters in the doldrums...
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Popspotting #126: “Fun at the Amusement Park” (Sept. 12, 2011)
We might not be able to send you home with a Giant Ass Panda, but we hope today’s double feature helps grow your appreciation for a couple of great films set in or near classic amusement parks. First...
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Popspotting #128: “Needledrop Soundtracks” (Sept. 14, 2011)
We love movies. We love music. Why not combine the two? For Wildcard Wednesday, we start with your suggestion for a “favorite soundtracks” show, but with a slight twist. Instead of film scores (which...
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Popspotting #131: “Drive” (Sept. 19, 2011)
For Movie Monday, we take in an unusual, unforgettable, riveting and sometimes shocking new film from director Nicolas Winding Refn. An unabashed throwback to an earlier time, “Drive” takes you on a...
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Popspotting #136: “Moneyball” (Sept. 26, 2011)
We kick off the week with another new release. “Moneyball,” starring Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill, and Philip Seymour Hoffman, is based on a true story and a book of the same name by Michael Lewis. Billy...
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Popspotting #141: “Dumping Lloyd Dobler” (Oct. 3, 2011)
This “Movie Monday” brings another double feature, this week highlighting two of Jen’s favorite John Cusack films. Although he’s plays a teenager in one and a directionless twenty-something in the...
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Popspotting #146: “Ides of March” (Oct. 17, 2011)
After a much-needed week off, we return to “Movie Monday” with “Ides of March.” With a spectacular leading cast and a setup made for the big screen, do we endorse and pledge our delegates to the...
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Popspotting #151: “Real Steel” (Oct. 24, 2011)
In the not-too-distant future, the sport of boxing swaps robots in for humans. And a young boy’s junkyard find sees an unlikely rise to stardom, as he reconnects with the father he never had. We...
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Popspotting #156: “The Descendants” (Oct. 31, 2011)
“The Descendants” is the latest film from director Alex Payne (who last brought us “Sideways” in 2004, as well as “About Schmidt” and “Election”), and stars George Clooney (who has already garnered...
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Popspotting #161: “J. Edgar” (Nov. 14, 2011)
Leonardo DiCaprio takes on yet another larger-than-life historical figure in Clint Eastwood’s new biopic, “J. Edgar.” The film follows the career of the FBI’s first and most infamous director, J....
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Popspotting #166: “The Muppets” (Nov. 21, 2011)
For Movie Monday, we preview a Thanksgiving release we’re not ashamed to admit that we were really looking forward to, movie critic cred be damned. After a 12 year break, “The Muppets” return to the...
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Popspotting #171: “Bowie Family Duo” (Nov. 28, 2011)
Today for Movie Monday, we explore an unusual family tie. We start with “Moon,” the feature directorial debut of Duncan Jones. Then, we revisit “The Prestige,” a magical film that features the acting...
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Popspotting #176: “The 2009 Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” (Dec. 12, 2011)
As excited as we are to see David Fincher’s adaptation of “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo,” we know the Swedes did it first. Before seeing what Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara do with Stieg Larsson’s...
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Popspotting #178: “Flickchart Face-Off” (Dec. 14, 2011)
About a month ago, we counted down our favorite ways to waste time online. One of Jen’s picks was Flickchart, a virtual battleground for movie lovers. The concept is simple: pit two movies against...
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Popspotting #181: “Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows” (Dec. 19, 2011)
Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law reprise their big-screen turns as Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson in this second Guy Ritchie-helmed outing, “Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows.” Once again, this...
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Popspotting #186: “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” (Jan. 2, 2012)
Our first podcast of the New Year takes us back to Stieg Larsson’s tale of murder and intrigue with American director David Fincher’s remake of “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.” The story was already...
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Popspotting #188: “Best of 2011” (Jan. 4, 2012)
Before charging into the new year, we take a look back at the year that was. A “year in review” show is, perhaps, cliche, but 2011 was a good year for pop culture, and most certainly a special year...
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Popspotting #191: “Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol” (Jan. 9, 2012)
We weren’t quite sure what to tackle for Movie Monday this week, but we picked up a strong signal from our listeners that the latest “Mission: Impossible” film was worth a look (including thumbs up...
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Popspotting #196: “Midnight In Paris” (Jan. 16, 2012)
It’s not a new film, but it’s one we missed and really wanted to see. “Midnight In Paris” is Woody Allen’s 41st film, and by some accounts, one of his best. Even Quentin Tarantino picked it as his...
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Popspotting #201: “Attack the Block” (Jan. 30, 2012)
This British sci-fi flick charmed nearly everyone who saw it. Alas, too few people saw it. “Attack the Block” came out last May, but apart from making a small splash at SXSW in Austin and getting a...
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Popspotting #206: “Chronicle” (Feb. 6, 2012)
We go back to the multiplex to check out a recent release for Movie Monday. Jen wanted to see the new Daniel Radcliffe film, but Ryan’s a big chicken, so we went to see “Chronicle” instead. We didn’t...
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Popspotting #208: “Coming Attractions 2012″ (Feb. 8, 2012)
For Wildcard Wednesday, we survey the year ahead, and share our most-anticipated movies of 2012. Ryan and Jen both share their top five picks, plus a few runners up. They include “The Dark Knight...
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Popspotting #211: “Meek’s Copy” (Feb. 13, 2012)
We shift gears and go a little art house this week as we check out a pair of films that took the film festival circuit by storm. First, “Meek’s Cutoff,” a sparse exploration of trust and survival off...
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Popspotting #213: “Flickchart 2: Electric Boogaloo” (Feb. 15, 2012)
For every good movie, a sequel is soon to follow. (For every bad movie, too, it seems.) So we revisit one of our favorite “Wildcard Wednesday” topics from last year. It’s another “Flickchart Faceoff,”...
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Popspotting #216: “John Carter” (March 5, 2012)
We’re back after an extra week off with a look at Disney’s “John Carter,” which opens March 9. It was one of the movies we said we were looking forward to in 2012… but one we were also a little...
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Popspotting Post: Looper
“Looper” is so heavy; so violent; but still, so surprising and unique that a day after we saw it, I’m still not sure how I feel about it. It stars Bruce Willis and Joseph Gordon-Levitt as an older and...
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Popspotting Post: Cloud Atlas
Jen’s preview of”Cloud Atlas,” starring Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Huge Grant, directed by Tom Tykwer, Andy Wachowski, Lana Wachowski, in theaters Oct. 26, 2012. I read the 2004 novel “Cloud Atlas” by...
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Popspotting Post: Star Trek Into Darkness
My husband was a big ol’ Trekkie. Sitting right now in a cabinet in our home is a collection of commemorative Star Trek plates. He had a Starfleet uniform and drew schematics of his very own...
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Popspotting Post: “Man of Steel”
“Superman Returns” (2006) was awful. Brandon Routh as Clark Kent was pretty but bland, Kate Bosworth was boring, and Kevin Spacey chewed more scenery than Al Pacino has in his entire career. The...
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Popspotting Post: Before Midnight
Jesse (Ethan Hawke) and Celine (Julie Delpy), the heroes and protagonists of Richard Linklater’s “Before” trilogy, are roughly the same ages as Ryan and I. We’ve grown up with them, and that may color...
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Popspotting Post: Pacific Rim
Pacific Rim may be the only true summer blockbuster of 2013. Man of Steel was stylish but disappointing; Star Trek: Into Darkness was better than the 2009 entry in the franchise, but had a weak third...
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