Ari Aster’s ‘Eddington’ Is a Mirror. Like What You See?
Sean and Amanda are joined by “Mean Pod Guy” Adam Nayman to unpack Ari Aster’s divisive new film, ‘Eddington’—starring Joaquin Phoenix and Pedro Pascal. They discuss why they all thoroughly enjoyed the film, how Aster successfully captures our present world with a cinematic use of phones, screens, and social media, and wonder how it will perform commercially and critically (7:53). Then, they briefly cover Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s twenty-seventh feature film, ‘Cloud,’ and explain why Kurosawa matters to cinema at large (1:03:57). Finally, Sean is joined by Aster to talk through what makes this movie different from his previous work, why he wanted to make this now, where he sees his career moving forward, and what projects he wants to make next (1:16:03).
Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins
Guests: Ari Aster and Adam Nayman
Producer: Jack Sanders
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2:01:50
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2:01:50
The 25 Best Movies of the Century: No. 15 - ‘Inside Llewyn Davis’
Sean and Amanda return to continue their yearlong project of listing the 25 best movies of the 21st century so far. Today they discuss Joel and Ethan Coen’s ‘Inside Llewyn Davis,’ starring Oscar Issac, one of the greatest depictions of a struggling artist of all time. They explain why this was their Coen brothers selection over ‘No Country for Old Men,’ celebrate its incredible balance between devastating dramatic moments and hilarious comedy, and highlight Issac’s fascinating career following this project.
Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins
Producer: Jack Sanders
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43:06
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43:06
The Superman Movie Rankings
Sean is joined by Van Lathan and Rob Mahoney to recap the opening weekend reaction to James Gunn’s ‘Superman.’ They share their final thoughts on the film, analyze the first weekend box office numbers, highlight why it performed significantly worse internationally than domestically, and hypothesize what the DCU could look like going forward (1:30). Then, they talk through every Superman movie ever made and rank them (32:40).
Host: Sean Fennessey
Guests: Van Lathan and Rob Mahoney
Producer: Jack Sanders
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2:01:25
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2:01:25
‘Superman’ Is Here to Save the Day. Are We Saved?
It’s a bird … it’s a plane … it's the 'Superman' episode! Sean and Amanda dive deep into James Gunn’s highly anticipated ‘Superman,’ starring David Corenswet and Rachel Brosnahan (3:11). They discuss why they were pleasantly surprised and why they think the film works, explain why Corenswet was an excellent casting decision for a modernized version of the Superman character, and share the things they felt were ultimately not successful, like landing some of the story’s bigger themes.
Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins
Producer: Jack Sanders
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1:39:09
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1:39:09
The 2025 Movie Auction Returns!
Sean and Amanda are joined by Chris Ryan to conduct Part 2 of their 2025 Movie Auction, where they draft, in auction format, some of the movies they're most excited for this year. Before diving in, they remember the wonderful career of Michael Madsen, who tragically passed away this weekend at 67 years old (2:38). Then, they review the results from their earlier selections this year and revisit the rules and scoring system going forward, before launching into this year's slate, including some mega-blockbusters like 'Superman' and ‘Avatar: Fire and Ash’, as well as some smaller but still exciting indies like 'The Ballad of a Small Player' and ‘It Was Just an Accident’ (7:40).
Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins
Guest: Chris Ryan
Producer: Jack Sanders
THIS EPISODE IS SPONSORED BY THE STARBUCKS COFFEE COMPANY. ORDER NOW | STARBUCKS.COM/MENU
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Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins review the movies you need to see. Plus: Top 5s, Movie Drafts, Oscars analysis, and more, featuring a rotating cast of Ringer colleagues like Chris Ryan, Van Lathan, and Bill Simmons.