Send us a text THE LONGEST YARD This week, the TGTPTU boys return to prison for more fun and games, this time stopping this 4x4 season’s first round drafted director Robert Aldrich’s run with inches to go. For the final film of the first four and to cap the Aldrich coverage, Ken drafted THE LONGEST YARD (1974). Following Ryan’s fumbling the intro a…

Send us a text THE DIRTY DOZEN Season 13’s 4x4 marches on with the most ill-mannered, ill-disciplined hosts that it’s ever been you’re your displeasure to meet, sergeant. That’s right, the dirtiest voices in the TGTPTU’s army are getting filthier covering Robert Aldrich’s THE DIRTY DOZEN (1967). It’s a story of twelve convicted army men, who don’t …

Send us a text What Ever Happened To Baby Jane? TGTPTU Season 13’s 4x4 continues with the second half of its first Robert Aldrich pairing, WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE? (1962). Like last week’s entry, WEH2BJ is another black-and-white film adaptation of a novel, this one truer to the source material, at least to cohost Thomas who read Henry Farr…

Send us a text Kiss Me Deadly Welcome back to TGTPTU, and welcome back in Season 13 to both former cohost Jack and to the 4x4, the latter making its third season appearance! For TGTPTU stans reading this, able to recite the following explanation by heart, go ahead and save yourself half-a-minute and skip the rest of this paragraph. But for you sad …

Send us a text PAPRIKA For the final episode of Season 12 Nolan Void, the TGTPTU gents get timey-wimy as they repeat last season finale with another film from anime director Satoshi Kon also allegedly plagiarized by the season’s director, this time Kon’s final flick PAPRIKA (2006) and Nolan’s Inception rather than Black Swan stealing from Perfect B…

Send us a text The One With The Dream Stuff Inside Oppenheimer INCEPTION This week TGTPTU reaches the timey-wimey center of Season 12 as the Nolan Void temporal pincer pairing movement ends with INCEPTION (2010), Sir Chris’s studio-backed super-successful non-supes cinema experience and his first Oscar nom for Best Picture--and finally winning pod-…

Send us a text TGTPTU reaches the beginning of the end of Season 12 as the team covers THE DARK KNIGHT (2008), the penultimate NOLAN VOID film in our temporal pincer pairing movement. Rebounding from the only moderate success of The Prestige, Sir Chris creates a mega-blockbuster with The Dark Knight, his follow-up to Batman Begins and a film that c…

Send us a text This week, the TGTPTU’s untrademarked “temporal pincer movement” catches up with the boys as THE DARK KNIGHT RISES (2012), Sir Christopher Nolan’s conclusion to his Batman trilogy, gets covered before his penultimate The Dark Knight. Sir Chris has been quoted as saying, “There are no good third sequels, basically—Rocky III maybe,” an…

Send us a text TGTPTU Book Club returns this week with Sir Christopher Nolan’s first and only adaption, i.e., THE PRESTIGE (2006), with bookworm and repeat guest Shannon joining from The Bunker. Post-Batman Begins, Sir Nolan returned to his love of puzzle-box stories to bring to life the work of another Chris (Christopher Priest) while casting a th…

Send us a text INTERSTELLAR In this week’s episode of TGTPTU, director-writer-producer Sir Christopher Nolan adds space to his repertoire of time-bending narratives as we venture deeper into The Nolan Void with INTERSTELLAR (2014). The Nolan brothers return with cowriting credits, Nathan Crowley on production design, and Lee Smith as editor on this…

Send us a text BATMAN BEGINS Cast aside your Batnipples! As a certain Patrick Bateman lookalike once said, “Well, a guy who dresses up like a bat clearly has issues,” and this week, TGTPTU tackles these issues in Sir Christopher Nolan’s entry into the franchise that would define his middle career with BATMAN BEGINS (2005). Former cohost Jack return…

Send us a text NOLAN VOID 3.5: WET 'N WILD WWII Join TGTPTU for an hour, a day, a week—the approximate runtime of, how long it feels listening to us talk for, and the delay in releasing the episode due to internet issues, respectively—as we respectfully cover Sir Christopher Nolan’s DUNKIRK (2017) as part two of our third pairing in our NOLAN VOID …

Send us a text NOLANVOID FIVE! For the first in our third set of NOLAN VOID pairings this week, TGTPTU hosts Ken and Thomas take on the surprisingly linear INSOMNIA (2002) with newly appointed co-host Ryan to introduce a new drinking game guaranteed to kill any participant: take a dose of an alcohol every time Kenneth says something about not wanti…

Send us a text This week TGTPTU goes deeper into Season 12’s NOLAN VOID with TENET (2020), a title spelled the same forward and backward, and the progenitor of TGTPTU’s “temporal pincer movement” description of our podcast’s episode pairing methodology. Instead of spoiling the episode with notes, here’s a transcript spoiling cohost Thomas’ plot sum…

Send us a text MEMENTO Our Nolan Void Season continues with the first of our second pairing MEMENTO (2000). Many of you might suspect we would try writing these show notes in reverse, but, as that’d be too meta for us, we’ll leave that to some other aspiring writer with memory problems we know. Speaking of self-referential memory problems, Memento …

Send us a text Season 12, Episode 2 continues TGTPTU’s paired exploration of the films of Sir Christopher Nolan with his most recent film OPPENHEIMER (2023). Running the risk of being considered by critics a “bomb,” Sir Nolan boldly moves away from genre pictures for his first biopic of a man who’ll/’d (pardon the time-wimey-ness) get mention in Si…

Send us a text CHRISTOPHER NOLAN SZN! FOLLOWING *SEASON PREMIERE* For Season 12 *Nolan Void*, TGTPTU continues its iconic practice of pairing bookended movies from a director’s filmography, first and last until we pair the middlemost. This season we cover the twelve movies of the granddaddy/infant son of the temporal pincer movement himself Christo…

Send us a text Our Darren Ssarfinale! Season 11 of The Good, The Pod, and The Ugly concludes on an odd note, both mathematically and colloquially, as the boys wrap up their Darren Aronofsky season with Episode 9 covering PERFECT BLUE (1997), joined by frequent guest Ryan. The debut film of famed anime and short-lived director Satoshi Kon released o…

Send us a text DARREN ARONOFSKY CH. 4 E2: THERE'S A LITTLE BLACK SWAN ON THE SUN TODAY Season 11’s temporal pincer movement by The Good, The Pod, and The Ugly draws to a close with tricky reflections on BLACK SWAN (2010). Listen to our opinions double, pirouette, and morph during Chapter 4, Episode 2, covering our final Darren Aronofsky movie but n…

Send us a text SCARF SEASON: ARONOFSKY 7 Alright, brother. It’s the smackdown, drag-out matchup you’ve been waiting for all season long as THE WRESTLER (2008) jumps into the ring with The Good, The Pod, and the Ugly for Chapter 4, Episode 1. In this final chapter, we watch with teeth and sphincters clenched tight on the edge of our folding chair se…

Send us a text ARONOFSKY SEASON! NOAH Chapter 3, Episode 2: So the Voice of Kenneth spake unto The Good, The Pod, and the Ugly, and it sayeth: Let there be NOAH (2014); and all the peoples then of the world rejoiced for Darren Aronofsky for his blockbuster that bringeth forth He of the Scarf his firsteth and onlyeth picture to be No. 1 opening week…

Send us a text THE FOUNTAIN No one expects the Spanish Inquisition, and no one expected Darren Aronofsky to follow up the success of Requiem for a Dream with a genre-breaking, scyfy-romantic-period-spiritual-medical drama (kinda? maybe?) entitled THE FOUNTAIN (2006). Join your hosts Ken and Thomas along with returning guest Ryan for Season 11, Chap…

Send us a text SCARF SEASON #4: GARDEN OF EDITS: mother! Rejoin Ken and Thomas along with guest Shannon in the rebirth of Season 11, Chapter II as they tackle (figuratively) Darren Aronofsky’s MOTHER! (the 2017 film, not the parent of Darren!). After the big budget success of NOAH, and having not made a movie with a female lead with whom he was rom…

Send us a text DARREN ARONOFSKY CHAPTER TWO, PART ONE: Deuce by you! Deuce by you! Whoa #2! REQUIEM FOR A DREAM (2000), Darren Aronofsky’s second film, follows these three simple rules for success: #1 Adapt a novel you love. – As a college student, Aronofsky fell in love with Hubert Selby, Jr.’s LAST EXIT TO BROOKLYN (1964). He’d owned a copy of Re…

Send us a text SCARF SEASON CONTINUES WITH THE WHALE! Thar she blows, Part II of our initial Darren Aronofsky pairing for Season 11 of TGTPTU: THE WHALE (2023). Special guest Ryan returns to continue cohosts Ken and Thomas’ temporal pincer movement of working our way from first and last films sequentially inward and he provides a dissident and diss…

Send us a text Aronofsky Chapter One Pt. One: Pi TGTPU SEASON 11 returns to form with our classic (or outdated) temporal pincer movement to cover the entirety of (yes, all eight) wide release films of director Darren Aronofsky. Hosts Ken and Thomas with guest Ryan - pause, pop pills, make a note - kick off the inaugural episode of the new season wi…

Send us a text SEASON FINALE! SIDE HUSTLE 15: WARREN BEATTY! SHAMPOO and DICK TRACY! Our epic tenth season comes to a close in a flurry of bug hair, blow dryers, primary colors and the horror of Madonna acting with Hollywood legend Warren Beatty. Most legendary actor/directors we might talk about from his era (Beatty was born in 1937) need a separa…

Send us a text THE COLOR OF MONEY and SEA OF LOVE Directors with a day job for season 10? What about the most important person behind the scenes NOT the director? The writer. RICHARD PRICE was a renowned author before trying his hand at screenwriting, which resulted in a "calling card" script that everyone loved but no one wanted to make into a mov…

Send us a text CHRISTMAS ADJACENT 4: QUADRUPLING DOWN ON OUR LEAST POPULAR SPECIALS! Happy Holidays from all of us at The Good, The Pod, and The Ugly! We bring you three films that reference Christmas a few times but are in no way "Christmas Movies" filled with the spirit of the season and all that shot. Nope. It's "Christmas Adjacent" and, given o…

Send us a text SIDE HUSTLE 13. Norman Mailer: TOUGH GUYS DON’T DANCE and CREMASTER 2 Every ranking must have its worst, and this week’s episode aims to shoot to the bottom of the Season X bucket with Norman Mailer as our chosen actor-director. TGTPTU welcomes back its junior cohost Jack after a long hiatus to join us on this atrocity to good sense …

Send us a text SIDE HUSTLE 12: RICHARD ATTENBOROUGH AIN'T NO DUMMY Only four episodes left in our epic season ten, talking side hustles. While we mostly have discussed directors better known as actors, this week we talk Richard Attenborough, who, if not for Jurassic Park, would probably be better known as a director today. But he was a great actor!…

Send us a text SIDE HUSTLE XI: Tom Savini, Dawn of the Dead (1978) and Night of the Living Dead (1990). Spooky season episode! We are joined once again by screenwriter and horror expert Erik to talk some Tom Savini, an icon to generations of horror fans for his legendary makeup work along with his larger-than-life persona that has made him and his …

Send us a text SEASON X EPISODE X: SIDE HUSTLE: UNDER THE CHERRY MOON and TRUE STORIES. Kierkegaard said: "Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards." Such is the tale of Prince, hot off the heels of starring in Purple Rain (1984), taking directorial duties on UNDER THE CHERRY MOON (1986) a black and white historical musi…

Send us a text SIDE HUSTLE 9: FARMER HOGGETT’S VOYAGE HOME Travel across the cosmos and back in time this week with TGTPTU and the crews of two starships Enterprise. Special guest Martin Harries from the Film vs Film podcast joins Capt. Ken and his number one Thomas this week to boldly go where numerous podcasting Trekkies have gone before as they …

Send us a text SALMA HAYEK: ONCE UPON A TIME IN MEXICO & THE MALDONADO MIRACLE Salma Hayek is a justifiably iconic actress, personality, celebrity and turned it all into getting hitched to a soulless billionaire. Good for her! But there was a time where she was an up and coming hyphenate pursuing passion projects like Frieda and balancing those wit…

Send us a text SIDE HUSTLE 7: LEE GRANT. FROM INGENUE STAR TO BLACKLISTED RED TO A SECOND LIFE WHERE SHE WON AN ACTING OSCAR AND THEN A THIRD LIFE AS AN OSCAR-WINNING DOCUMENTARIAN. Who is Lee Grant? Read the all-caps above! One of the most remarkable people we've covered this, or any season. We are joined by Charlie to discuss Grant's work as acto…

Send us a text SIDE HUSTLE 6: JAMES FRANCO: WE KNOW HE IS CANCELLED, STOP TEXTING US ABOUT IT We live in an era where men are being held accountable for being awful (not nearly enough of them but it's a start). This is a good thing. Most of these men are older, however, and in the creative sphere most are past their Best By date. So it is unusual t…

Send us a text SIDE HUSTLE V: Charlie's Brother, Martin's Sane Son - REPO MAN and MEN AT WORK Nepo-babies are not new! Tell your crazy uncle, who thinks they are ruining Hollywood, that they have been around since he wore crop-tops and had a mullet. And so we put the spotlight on 1980s Short King, Emilio Estevez. First we talk about one of the all …

Send us a text SIDE HUSTLE IV: DeGOOD, DeBAD & DeVITO Danny Devito is a beloved actor and, in 2023, a justifiably beloved American institution. Mostly known as a comedic actor from Taxi onward, DeVito turned success as a pinch-hitting comedic character actor into a brief, but stellar, time as an A-list film director. Speaking of director's, Ivan Re…

Send us a text SIDE HUSTLE III: C IS FOR COSTNER, GOOD ENOUGH FOR ME: UNTOUCHABLES AND THE POSTMAN Kevin Costner had a special run of films in the 80s and 90s. If you weren't there, trust us! He did. He turned small roles into leading roles and used all of the cachet to make Dances With Wolves, which grew so out of hand that trades referred to it a…

Send us a text SIDE HUSTLE II: BANKS SHOT Celebrities! They are just like us! Except when they get the urge to try something new, they get studios or shady global investors to give them millions to make movies! That's their side hustle. This week we talk the lovely, hilarious and brilliant Elizabeth Banks. Her main gig as an actor starts us off wit…

Send us a text *SEASON X PREMIERE* SIDE HUSTLES AND HYPHENAUTS #1: BEN AFFLECK Celebrities! They are just like us! Except when they get the urge to try something new, it isn't the new taco truck up the street, it's getting studios and money-men to invest millions of dollars in a movie they feel the urge to direct. This has resulted in many an actor…

Send us a text 4X4: SERGIO MARTINO II: TORSO AND THE SUSPICIOUS DEATH OF A MINOR W/ERIK VANDERWOLF In part two of two on Italian filmmaker Sergio Martino, we are joined once again by Screenwriter Erik Vanderwolf as he picks two 1970s classics (?) that show a little of Martino's range. TRIGGER WARNING: BOTH FILMS CONTAIN SCENES OF SEXUAL ASSAULT AND…

Send us a text 4X4 II: SERGIO MARTINO 2: THE STRANGE VICE OF MRS. WARDH & YOUR VICE IS A LOCKED ROOM AND ONLY I HAVE THE KEY W/ERIK VANDERWOLF! In part one of two on Italian filmmaker Sergio Martino, we are joined once again by Screenwriter Erik Vanderwolf, an avowed Giallo superfan and he picks two classics in the genre starring all-time great Edw…

Send us a text PAUL WS PART DEUX: THE THREE EVILS/FAREWELL TO JACK In part one of our Paul WS Anderson two parter, we discussed two early classics that offered two very different paths young WS could take: The silly and bombastic effects-laden video game adaptation Mortal Kombat or the grim space-horror classic Event Horizon. Kombat was successful …

Send us a text 4X4 2: PAUL WS ANDERSON PT. 1: MORTAL KOMBAT & EVENT HORIZON It's the OTHER Paul Anderson in the spotlight for our third 4X4 this season. This is the guy that's married to, and works with, Milla Jovovich, not the guy who has kids in some kind of common law deal with Maya Rudolph and made a few of the best movies of the last two decad…

Send us a text 4x4 JOHN FORD PART TWO: THE SEARCHERS & THE MAN WHO SHOT LIBERTY VALANCE W/RICK PATT Last week we talked about a few seminal Ford films that weren’t westerns (The Informer and Grapes of Wrath). This week, get them saddles secure and oil them there spurs (??) because we have two of Ford’s most famous collabs with John Wayne (the actor…

Send us a text JOHN FORD: THE INFORMER & GRAPES OF WRATH W/RICK PATT! Our two-part John Ford series begins with Ford fan and podcast pal Rick Patt joining us and curating the films! For part one we watched two Oscar winning award-winning Ford films made before he and John Wayne became entwined in their classic western collaborations (that's next we…

Send us a text OSAMA BIN WAITIN' FOR NEW YEARS: STRANGE DAYS and ZERO DARK THIRTY W/ BIGELOW CURATOR RYAN! We conclude our four film sweep through the filmography of Kathryn Bigelow with one of her notorious failures and one of her triumphs. 1995's STRANGE DAYS was a big budget summer movie that took place in the far-flung future of (checks notes) …

Send us a text LEATHER & WAX: BIGELOW'S THE LOVELESS and POINT BREAK with Kathryn Bigelow Scholar Ryan. FOUR FILMS BY FOUR DIRECTORS PICKED BY FOUR GUESTS 4X4 II IT'S THE EPISODE THAT ALMOST DIDN'T HAPPEN! DOUBLE THEME SONG! Due to losing an audio file (thanks, zencastr!) ace host and engineer Jack was able to, uh, re-do his part on half the episod…