After weeks of teasing you with a drop, Garrett and MovieFreak are here to hit you with their look at the Star Trek film saga. Listen as this frankenstein of a podcast is formed from the pieces of two recordings. The boys start at Star Trek: The Motion Picture and work their way all the way through the Next Generation films before diving all-in on JJ Abrams entries into the franchise. Which film will Garrett give a 4-on-10, how weird is young-bald Tom Hardy and is Wrath of Khan the definitive Trek film? Find out and more when you download the Binge Movie Aftertaste – The Star Trek Film Saga, and be sure to check in next week when the boys give their SPOILER FILLED REVIEW of Justin Lin’s Star Trek Beyond.
This column will introduce you to the most popular movies that are coming out in theaters this weekend and why you should go see them. Which one will you see?
Ice Age: Collision Course
Reasons to see this:
Ice Age Part 5. Need I say more? Ok, I’ll say a little more. Romano, Latifah, Leary, and Leguizamo are back as Manny, Ellie, Diego, and Sid. Additional voices include, Adam Devine, Jennifer Lopez, Simon Pegg, Nick Offerman, and many more. Directing this animation comedy is Mike Thurmeier, who has directed 2 Ice Age films as well as some Ice Age shorts. If you are a fan of this franchise, set a course for the theater this weekend.
Lights Out
Reasons to see this:
Yay, it’s another summer horror release. There better be something scary coming out in October. Anyway, this movie is about a woman who is being hunted by a creature, but only when the….you guessed it, lights go out. Lights Out stars Teresa Palmer(Warm Bodies – Laws favorite movie & Point Break 2015 – Ammons favorite movie), Billy Burke, and Maria Bello. Directing this movie is, David F. Sandberg. His filmography consists of multiple shorts as well as directing Annabelle 2 for 2017. So, go to the theater, grab some popcorn, wait for the lights to go out, and enjoy the creature….I mean feature.
Star Trek Beyond
Reasons to see this:
This is the 3rd installment of the newly rebooted Star Trek franchise. However, part 3 loses JJ Abrams as director and beams up Justin Lin(Tokyo Drift, Fast and Furious, Fast Five & 6). The crew of the enterprise remains the same, adding Sofia Boutella(Kingsman) and Idris Elba to the cast. There are a few writers on board this script, but one name that does stand out is Simon Pegg. Pegg has been on the Enterprise since the first film as well as being a huge sci-fi fan. I trust this man to pen some Trek stories. Now go to the Theater: the film frontier.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know that the Binge Sports Movie Commentary series was supposed to debut today, but to be completely honest with you, it would have absolutely sucked had I attempted to record anything last night. Seriously, trust me on that one. But I suppose you deserve something today for your patience. So what I’ve done this morning is go ahead and set myself a schedule to keep on track, much like I’ve done with our series of Breaking Bad commentaries. I set the dates and we get after it. I’ve just never been one to plan too far ahead on things, so this actually drives me up the wall, so I hope you appreciate what I’m doing for you here.
Seriously though, you guys have been waiting very patiently for me to get this thing rolling and I just haven’t delivered and I do plan on sticking to this schedule that I’ve laid out for the rest of 2016. There were 11 slots to fill for the remainder of the year and I’ve tried to get a little bit of everything in here to get this thing started the right way. There will be a full slate in 2017 and perhaps I can work a fan vote in here sometime soon, but for now, take a look at what’s coming over the next few months and let me know what you think.
Also coming later this week is an all-new wrestling episode of the Binge SportsCast as I’m joined by Batch and Marcey to break down the WWE Draft and give our preview for this weekend’s Battleground pay-per-view. But without further delay, here’s the list of flicks I’ll be covering. Enjoy.
Things get nasty right off the hop between Garrett, Falvey, and Law as they jump into discussions of Batman and sad New England Patriot fans. Things get worse a little later when we bring up the new ROUGE ONE clip.
Between all the fighting the boys find time to keep things pleasant enough to answer some Google Voice, play some old sounders, review some TV (Stranger Things, The Night Manager, The Night Of, Mr. Robot, Ray Donovan, Tyrant), some movies (GHOSTBUSTERS, EVERYBODY WANTS SOME, WIENER DOG, GHOSTHEADS, BEVERLY HILLS COP, BATMAN VS SUPERMAN, WHERE TO INVADE NEXT, SWISS ARMY MAN, SING STREET, CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE, THE NICE GUYS), and even talk about a few books (Kick: The Jenkins Cycle – Book 1, Batman: The Court of Owls).
Enjoy and prepare yourselves for next week when our worlds collide one more time for Lawlapalooza ’16.
0:01:50-Episode 4 and Garrett Collins fill in for Ammon and Moreno. What the fuck has Garret been up to? Batman talk, courtesy of Law and Jack (of course) Law finally gets asked what he’s been doing lately, but he’s been making dildos, you know this already. Falvey gets bulled about his love for a certain sports team.
0:18:40-GOOGLE VOICE.
0:47:36-Rogue One discussion/debate/argument/yelling. You may get mad at Four Outta 10 during this segment. Just to fucking warn you.
1:05:33-A BET IS MADE ABOUT SOMETHING SPECIFIC HAPPENING IN THE HAN SOLO ORIGIN MOVIE (WHICH IS 2-3 YEARS AWAY). 20 BUCKS IS ON THE LINE! I GOT IT, JACK, IT’S TIME STAMPED! Sorry for shouting.
1:10:25 Matt Wilson sent in an email with a review of Green Street Hooligans.
1:12:28-TV ROUND UP. Collins fifes over Winona Ryder so much but is meh on Stranger Thing. Valley caught up with The Night Manager and watched The Night Of. Law gives his two cents on Ray Donovan and Mr. Robot. Collins gets advice on Tyrant from Law. Roadies discussion. Collins needs to watch GoT Season 6 and Jack is going to begin Star Trek: The Next Generation very soon.
1:50:05-Law cranks out some old sounders.
1:59:10-WHAT DID YOU WATCH? Garrett rewatched Midnight Special, and gave Everybody Wants Some a second chance. He moves onto Wiener-Dog, followed by Ghostheads, a documentary showcasing hardcore fans of Ghostbusters (currently on Netflix). Episode IV revisited Beverly Hills Cop, tried Batman v. Superman again. Oof. He then talks about Where to Invade Next, the new doc by Michael Moore. He continues on with Swiss Army Man, Sing Street, and The Nice Guys (the latter in which Law gives his thoughts as well). The boys all meet in the middle to dissect Ghostbusters ’16, detailing the negative buzz leading in and the possible aftermath in the sequels, including another possible bet (GODDAMNIT JACK) that doesn’t hold any real weight so calm the fuck down. Who you gonna call? Cocksuckers!! I don’t know. Shut up.
Since CS Jim Law was calling out us staffers for not writing anything on the site in a while, and also PERSONALLY calling me out for writing reviews elsewhere that weren’t actually reviews (check Facebook for deets) I decided to write him a CS’ing review, so here it is.
For those of us who are starting to get fatigued with the constant bombardment of sequels/prequels/reboots/remakes, it seems that movies, at the theater at least, are starting to get stale. Yeah, I love me some good Marvel movies, and Mad Max Fury Road, a sequel, was my favorite movie from last year, so I don’t hate all of it, but there’s no denying that the unending stream of previously-made IP extensions is getting tired. Thankfully, it seems that TV has really picked up the slack on that end with filmmakers and writers taking some serious chances with the format. It has been happening for years, with shows like Breaking Bad, Game of Thrones and Making a Murderer getting the public invested in continuing stories that break storytelling conventions (it goes back further than these selections but you get my point). It is always great to see a new story told well, and with that sentiment I am happy to report that The Night Manager is well worth your time.
The Night Manager is the story of Jonathan Pine, played by Tom Hiddleston, a proverbial night hotel manager at one of Cairo’s most elite hotels. As the night concierge, Pine lives a structured but diligent life, taking care of every guest with the same attentiveness as any VIP. One day, a woman enters the picture and changes Freddie’s outlook on the world around him. Eventually, he crosses paths with Freddie Hamid, a wealthy son of Cairo whose family owns most of the city. Through some events I will not spoil here, Pine becomes embroiled in a situation dealing with notorious arms dealer and public philanthropist Richard Roeper, played by Hugh Laurie. Eventually these characters interact, with Hiddleston playing the inside man and Roeper the “big cheese”, so to speak. The story becomes a sort of pseudo-Bond story, with Hiddleston playing the everyman’s version of a 007. In fact, if the rumors have any truth to them, Hiddleston would probably make for a great Bond based off of his work here.
While the story is based off the John Le’Carre novel of the same name, that book was written at a time when the Cold War was still fresh in the minds of the public, so many of the situations and circumstances were adapted to a modern setting with the author’s blessing (he even appears in a small cameo). The best way to think about this series is as a 6-hour movie rather than a mini-series as the episodes have a natural propensity and progression that requires a binge watch. I found the writing to be particularly refreshing due to the fact that a lot is done to humanize the characters and build some natural conflict into the story. Granted, some of the familiar tropes of the spy genre are exploited here, such as the irresistible and attractive female character and some bait-and-switch scenarios, but for the most part this is quality storytelling at its finest.
While a lot of the story had me intrigued, there were a few elements that seemed convenient. For starters, Pine’s integration into this espionage plot was a bit too quick for my liking. Granted, he had a military background to justify his actions, but I did not think the inciting action for the story was enough emotional/moral justification for his character. Also, oddly enough, I wanted to spend a little more time in this world. I really loved the exotic locales and the acting pretty much across the board, but I just felt like this story could have used another hour or two to really savor the details.
At the end of the day anyone looking for more quality television should give this a watch. The Brits definitely have a handle on quality espionage and I hope this paves the way for more great miniseries like it.
This column will introduce you to the most popular movies that are coming out in theaters this weekend and why you should go see them. Which one will you see?
Café Society
Reasons to see this:
This moving picture is set in the 1930’s. Jesse Eisenberg plays Bobby, a young lad from the Bronx who moves to Hollywood where he falls in love with Vonnie(Kristen Stewart) and the nightclub business. This will be the 3rd movie Eisenberg and Stewart worked on together(like you care). Café Society also stars, Steve Carell, Blake Lively, Parker Posey, Corey Stoll, and more. Directing this period piece is Woody Allen. If you’re not hitting the nightclubs tonight, then go check out Café Society.
Ghostbusters
Reasons to see this:
Knock knock. Who’s there? Nostalgia. Nostalgia who? Nostalgia, who you gonna call? Ghostbusters!!! Welcome back to NYC ghosts. Melissa McCarthy, Kate McKinnon, Leslie Jones, and Kristen Wiig are the new Ghostbusters. It appears, Bill Murray, Sigourney Weaver, Dan Ackroyd, and Ernie Hudson show up on the cast list as well. The director of Ghostbusters is Paul Feig, who has worked with Melissa McCarthy on 3 other movies: Bridesmaids, The Heat, and Spy. Go bust some ghosts this weekend.
As if all our regular nonsense wasn’t enough, we’ve decided to throw in a commentary for BEVERLY HILLS COP throughout this week’s BingeCast because beer is tasty.
Google Voice is up first where Nate P. makes an unprecedented comeback, Bob A. Dick yells at people, Floyd is drunk as hell, and we all giggle too much.
The Beverly Hills Cop commentary kicks off and continues for the rest of the show as we lose our shit when we find out Mike, from Breaking Bad, is younger than Law in this movie, gaze in awe at how un-hot the leading lady is, and try to figure out what the entire cast is doing nowadays – other than being dead.
TV Round-Up has tales of The Night Of, Preacher, Veep, Silicon Valley, Ray Donovan, and Orange is the New Black.
What Did You Watch boasts of THE BFG, ZOOTOPIA, POPSTAR, and BATMAN VS. SUPERMAN.
The night comes to an end with THE KINGS OF SUMMER Movie Homework. Is that enough? What more do you want? Stop yelling.
This column will introduce you to the most popular movies that are coming out in theaters this weekend and why you should go see them. Which one will you see?
Captain Fantastic
Reasons to see this:
Viggo Mortensen stars as Ben, a father of six who raises his kids in the woods of the Pacific Northwest. When he and his family involuntarily have to abandon their unorthodox living situation, they soon realize how challenging real life situations can be. Also starring is: George MacKay(11/22/63), Steve Zahn, and Frank Langella. Captain Fantastic is written and directed by Matt Ross. Ross has not directed much, but is a well versed actor. You can see him star as Gavin Belson in HBO’s Silicon Valley. Does this sound fantastic to you? Then go check this out.
The Infiltrator (July 13th release)
Reasons to see this:
Sorry, this movie is not about Walter White using his filtration system to cook Meth. This is a biographical crime drama, starring Bryan Cranston who plays Robert Mazur, a U.S. Customs special agent who uses his alias, Bob Musella to bust Pablo Escobars money laundering organization. The cast includes: John Leguizamo, Diane Kruger, Amy Ryan, and Benjamin Bratt. Brad Furman, who is familiar with directing the crime/drama genre, has directed The Lincoln Lawyer and Runner Runner. Getting tired of watching Cranston in Breaking Bad on Netflix on your TV? Yeah, I didn’t think so. But if you are, head out to the theater to check out The Infiltrator.
Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates
Reasons to see this:
Zac Efron and Adam Devine(Workaholics) are brothers who post an online ad, looking for dates for their sisters wedding. However, the ad goes viral and the dates they get are not who they appear to be. Also starring in this comedy are, Anna Kendrick, Aubrey Plaza, and Stephen Root. Jake Szymanski is the director of this comedy. Szymanksi directed HBO’s 7 Days in Hell, as well as several Funny or Die shorts. In the mood for a comedy this weekend but don’t want to go alone, then post an online ad, “I Need a Movie Date”
The Secret Life of Pets
Reasons to see this:
Max, the family dog, gets his life disrupted when his owner brings home Duke, the new dog. However, Max and Duke have to join forces to take down Snowball, a bunny. Snowball and his gang of discarded pets are trying to take down all of the family owned pets. Max is voiced by Louis C.K., Duke is voiced by Eric Stonestreet(Modern Family), and Snowball is voiced by Kevin Hart. Other voice actors are, Ellie Kemper, Albert Brooks, Dana Carvey, Steve Coogan, and many more. Chris Renaud and Yarrow Cheney direct this animated flick. Chris Renaud has directed animation before, such as The Lorax and Despicable Me 1 & 2. So, if you have pet, hit the theater this weekend and let them party at home.
This column will introduce you to the most popular movies that are coming out in theaters this weekend and why you should go see them. Which one will you see?
The BFG
Reasons to see this:
No, BFG does not stand for Big F**kin Giant. Well, I guess it could. It stands for Big Friendly Giant. BFG is based on the book by, Roald Dahl. For those of you who do not know who he is; he has written Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Fantastic Mr. Fox, Matilda, and James and the Giant Peach to name a few. BFG is about a young girl who befriends a big friendly giant. Mark Rylance lends his voice and motion capture for the BFG. Also starring is, Rebecca Hall, Bill Hader, and Jermaine Clement. Steven Spielberg returns to the fantasy genre to direct. Go see a big f***kin giant this weekend.
The Legend of Tarzan
Reasons to see this:
Didn’t get your jungle fix with the Jungle Book, well come on back to the forest this weekend to see The Legend of Tarzan. Apparently Tarzan and Jane are married and have been living in London. This is news to me. Tarzan and his wife return to the forest, due to some shenanigans going on at the mining camp. Alexander Skarsgård plays Tarzan and Margot Robbie plays Jane. Other cast members include: Samuel Jackson, Christoph Waltz, and Djimon Hounsou. The director is David Yates who has directed Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Half-Blood Prince, Deathly Hallows: Part 1 & 2, and the upcoming Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. Double BMFML director points for Yates. Swing into theaters to see Tarzan.
Our Kind of Traitor
Reasons to see this:
Where’s Jim Law when I need him? Ok, everyone imagine that he says “Ewan McGregor.” Perfect. McGregor and Naomi Harris(Spectre, 28 Days Later) are an ordinary couple who cross paths with a man named Dima. Dima is a member of the Russian mafia, who is played by Stellan Skarsgård. Dima asks them for their help or else Dimas family will be killed, which then tangles the couple in a web of espionage. Damian Lewis(Homeland) also stars in this thriller. The director is Susanna White, who has directed only 1 episode for Boardwalk Empire, Masters of Sex, Billions, and more. Is this your kind of movie? Then go see Our Kind of Traitor.
The Purge: Election Year
Reasons to see this:
The Purge: Part 3. Frank Grillo returns as Sergeant, who is now head of security for Charlene Roan. Roan, played by Elizabeth Mitchell(LOST) is running for President, and wants to eradicate the Purge. James DeMonaco, who has directed the prior Purge flicks, takes the wheel as director again. So, if you are in the mood for some action, suspense, and a 12 hour period in which all crime is legal, then vote for Purge. Peeeerrrrggggeee