Episode 196 - SPIDER-MAN 2

Spider-Man 2 brought a special blend of boldface emotion, action, and humor straight from the comics to the cinemas - and superhero films have never been the same. Newly-minted Ten Timers Club member Sam Stovold will turn you into a true believer as we try to discover the hero in all of us.

Spider-Man 2
Directed by Sam Raimi
Written by Alvin Sargent
Story by Alfred Gough & Miles Millar and Michael Chabon
Starring Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, James Franco, Rosemary Harris, J.K. Simmons, and Alfred Molina

Episode 191 - NAPOLEON DYNAMITE

In 2004, Napoleon Dynamite was something rarer than a liger and more precious than a working time machine: a nationwide word-of-mouth hit. Its deadpan humor, quirky characters, and tacky aesthetics add up to an infinitely quotable 95-minute mixtape of wholesome Americana and nostalgic ephemera. And along the way, it becomes an emotionally rewarding journey of surviving teenage exasperation, embarrassment, and slack-jawed boredom. Lucky!

We listen to our hearts as Jack Stovold helps make all our wildest podcast dreams come true. It's probably the best episode we've ever done.

Napoleon Dynamite (2004)
Directed by Jared Hess
Written by Jared and Jerusha Hess
Starring Jon Heder, Jon Gries, Aaron Ruell, Efren Ramirez, Tina Majorino, Haylie Duff, Shondrella Avery, and Diedrich Bader

Episode 170 - TEAM AMERICA: WORLD POLICE

Marionette might makes right in the raunchy puppet satire Team America: World Police, which takes aim at big-budget action clichés, Hollywood pomposity, and post-9/11 geopolitics. It's an indiscriminately edgy film that packs all the subtlety of a sledgehammer, yet also stands as a showcase of painstaking production design and visual effects. For this movie, commitment is clearly not a problem.

Andrew McNally has the I.N.T.E.L.L.I.G.E.N.C.E. to guide us through some complex feelings about America, South Park, and cinematic provocations in this special 4th of July blowout. Fuck Yeah!

Team America: World Police (2004)
Directed by Trey Parker
Produced by Scott Rudin, Trey Parker and Matt Stone
Written by Trey Parker, Matt Stone, and Pam Brady
Starring the voices of Trey Parker, Matt Stone, Kristen Miller, Masasa Moyo, Daran Norris, Phil Hendrie, and Maurice LaMarche

Episode 142 - THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST

The Passion of the Christ was a massive gamble in every sense: a movie in a dead genre, performed in a dead language, portraying a feature-length death march. It only made a truckload of money and launched a new wave of faith-based films aimed at the audience that turned an adaptation of Christian gospels and devotional writings into a global phenomenon.

Our favorite disciple, Jake Beal, arrives just in time for Easter and takes us to (Sunday) school as we examine The Passion's complex legacy as religious theater, epic cinema, and cultural touchstone.  It is accomplished!

The Passion of the Christ (2004)
Directed by Mel Gibson
Produced by Bruce Davey, Mel Gibson, and Stephen McEveety
Written by Mel Gibson and Benedict Fitzgerald
Starring Jim Caviezel, Maia Morgenstern, Francesco De Vito, Luca Lionello, Christo Jivkov, Rosalinda Celentano, Mattia Sbragia, Hristo Shopov, and Monica Bellucci