Fighting In The War Room: A Movies And Pop Culture Podcast

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The Film and Pop-Culture Podcast

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Recent Reviews
  • jiggsy546
    Love You Guys! Keep Doing What You Do
    Hey! This is Justin, from Ithaca, NY. Longtime listener, first time reviewer (Sorry it took so long). In addition to being a movie obsessive, I am a professional radio DJ, so I am also a music obsessive. I was hoping that whatever assortment of hosts appear on this episode could list their favorite bands/artists of all time. Thanks for all that you do, your show is a highlight of my week. PS. David - Ignore the haters! You’re always entertaining, even when I vehemently disagree with your takes. Never change!!
  • Manali B.
    Love the show and banter
    I’ve been listening for a long time and have always loved the vibe and relationship between all 4 hosts. I have wanted to write a review several times but Matt Patches’ broadcast TV review corner pushed me over the edge! Please keep covering all the random stuff you all do :) -MB
  • aliceinpower
    Watched Onibaba and Im scared
    Hi there! Im Alice and I listen to this show a lot, you’re all the best! Never written in before to any show because it’s intimidating. But I just finished Onibaba at 2:30am in a dark room as it was deemed “The best horror movie of all time” by David in the last episode. It really got under my skin and now I can’t sleep, so now Im writing this and blaming David for my insomnia. Dont have that much to say about the movie at this moment having just watched it, really loved the sound design. I think its a masterpiece. Its really inspired me to dig a big hole. Thank you for the nice podcasts and good writing, Alice
  • mapleviolet
    this review mostly to forestall any marvel snap talk
    would just like to request that david put my pledge and no turning around in the best of the year video
  • dondeblah
    One of the best… IMO
    This review has been a long time coming, but due to life (kids, work, laziness, forgetfulness, etc.) I have been unable to write it. But now I will. What can I say about a podcast that I stumbled across and no longer even remember how I discovered it? For me, this podcast has gone from an unknown to one of my top 5 eagerly awaited weekly podcasts. The camaraderie between everyone is great and gives a listener a relaxed sense of comfort while listening. The intellect shown by all is also wonderful and gives me a bit of pleasure since I happen to actually get headaches whenever I hear people say stupid things (this is not a lie). Now onto each member of the team: Katey is the glue for this podcast. Whenever she is not on, it’s like a cloudy day. While the show is not necessarily diminished by her absence (which speaks volumes of the overall talent of all involved), it is like a warm/beautiful, sunny day when she’s there. Please don’t ever leave, and if anything, stop letting the guys (*cough* Patches / David *cough*) speak over you. Matt (Patches) brings intellect and humor to the podcast. His anecdotes tying his personal life in with whatever he’s discussing do amuse me greatly. His recent subtle annoyance at David’s disregard of his opinions also amuse me. I know it’s all love in the end so please carry on doing what you do. Da7e is awesome. He’s hooked me up on Twitter (I’m dondeblah btw) and he’s definitely the most relaxed of the group. He’s just as knowledgable as the others and the man’s a true geek which is great. I believe he’s the one that got me into the other podcasts (Thought Bubble / Storm of Spoilers / Cast of Kings). Above all, it makes me quite proud to hear a Latino doing well and representing. Once again, Da7e is awesome. Finally, David. David is Jon Lovitz’s The Critic in real life. David appears to hate every movie that doesn’t revolve around a doily or Channing Tatum dancing around. To each his own I guess. While his dismissal of everyone else’s opinion on most every topic, he is still fascinating to listen to due to his incredible film knowledge. Give the man puppy, or kitten, because the bitterness seeps through my headphones. Ok, that’s more than enough to make up for not reviewing earlier. The podcast’s great and I’m very happy to have found. I highly recommend it to everyone. You will learn some stuff and be entertained.
  • Ritonnnnnn
    The BEST
    Hi! A couple things for the best podcast in the universe: 1 - as a 40 something year old ex-Brooklyn resident with small children, (who recently went on a vacation with kids and family in a country with a 6-hr time difference) it’s always fun and freeing to hear about y’alls personal struggles (including those with breath of the wild bosses!) 2 - My kids love Totoro to pieces, but it feels like there’s no other kid movie that comes close to it (even other Ghibli movies) - any recs? 3 - For the end of the year top ten lists, I always feel like it would be really informative if everyone had seen most movies on the other host’s lists: how else wouldlda listener assess whether that Patches pick is an unwatchable disaster (*cough* Confess, Fletch *cough*) or if that Ehrlich pick that sounds inaccessible would in fact be palatable to my significant other? 4 - More foreign movies please! It feels like the US press in general has a tiny pipeline of foreign movies that make it into the indie spotlight, while vast swaths of truly amazing (and fun) foreign cinema goes completely unnoticed! Just looking at the “Cahiers du Cinema”’s top 10 lists of the past years gives some concrete examples of overlooked movies in the US, but on the more accessible side of the spectrum, funny and original movies like Quentin Dupieux’s would IMO be right in the wheelhouse of the FITWR crew! That said, you all are still the best! To celebrating your 50s in a few years :)
  • Mike from Torrance
    What’s the music
    I'm curious about the source of the snippet of music from episode #459 at 14:24 right after the intro. The words sound ike “Unicool in manusenua, freezin cool in nights in my tuzo”. You used the same music throughout 2022 if I recall correctly. By the way, love the show.
  • Herre124
    Forget it FITWR, it’s Chinatown
    Hi FITWR, I am once again updating my review of the podcast in response to something Dave was talking about during last week’s review segment. Regarding the competition with your partner to see who can watch the most movies you’ve never seen before, like Dave’s partner I also watched Chinatown for the first time this year as a part of a self-imposed double feature of that and the Fincher Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (not a 1st time watch) which happened to occur on the night Trump got shot at. The vibes were weird even without that real life event so I’m not sure I would recommend this double feature but since he mentioned Chinatown I felt compelled to write in. Thanks for all the work you do to put this podcast out even with all your busy lives/work schedules! It is greatly appreciated!
  • samp80007
    Came for Daves chaotic Letterboxd and stayed for the vibes
    I found this pod after following Dave on Letterboxd and being totally mystified by all the random movies he watches. Can now say I look forward to every episode and just love the vibes of the pod. The hosts have a great blend of enthusiasm and snark. Thanks for a great pod!
  • Kdmdjdjdjd
    Agreeeedd
    This last episode was a delight with just two people chatting about stuff without elrich thinking he’s more important than everybody else every 4 seconds.
  • DerekDock
    Review Update: Marvel Snap FITWR alliance?
    I think it has been nearly 7 years since my last review so time to update it. My first review requested more Joanna which the universe answered in that there is a whole other podcast network were I get my fill of the Joannaverse. But back to FITWR and what makes this group special. Not only is this a top tier podcast for the individuals talent levels and letterbox recommendations, but as a listener since the very beginning it feels like the appeal has even grown in me as the podcast advances. Now discussing things like parenthood (my kids are similar ages) and whatever it took to keep ourselves sane during the pandemic, the hosts friendship and history is apparent from the first listen. The older I’ve gotten the more I look forward to David’s takes and reading his reviews on indiewire even if I generally lean more toward Dave’s opinion when it comes to movie taste. I always find that I can connect to a different persons view on pop culture each episode and especially on connecting to your kids through gaming like Katey (except for us it’s Pokémon not Zelda) or after school activities like Patches (for me it’s coaching my daughters soccer and being involved in her plays). So five stars would highly recommend to anyone in the 30-45 demo interested in great takes and a good hang. But don’t let this review stop the podcast from talking about Marvel Snap and the rise of Areshem and donating bubs for Nova. What I really want to know is can there be a Snap FITWR alliance so I can feel like I’m playing with everyone? 🤪
  • dont @szatme
    Good and better
    I look forward to listening every week, glad the twisters gotcha same as gotch-me. Since you record on Wednesdays, big request for this five-star review: my son who loves weather is turning 7… “Wednesday, July 31: on this day in 2017, Isaac S. was born, and his mom listened to the FITWR crew post-delivery walking him around the halls.” <3
  • Viatremont
    5 Stars
    Now that David has a microphone, can the next crowdsourcing goal be to get Patches a leash of some kind that keeps his mouth near the dangass mic?
  • Good740155
    David. You’ve got to stop typing during the pod.
    Love you guys! Always 5 stars but this latest episode was crazy with how much typing sounds were coming from presumably David. Why does he hate our ears and listening experience so much!? 😭
  • Patrick in Omaha.
    Pretty good podcast
    This is a pretty good podcast.
  • Plano, outlaws (alliance)
    David ehlrich is the worst
    Dave with a 7, Katie Rich, and Matt Patches rule. David Ehrlich is the film critic version of comic book store guy from the Simpsons. And no he’s not the critic from “the critic.” Any episode he’s not in is 5 stars.
  • honknwave
    A great show, but one note…
    Its been about six months since I checked in on FITW, a great podcast that ebbs and flows in my listening rotation, and returning with some distance made something stand out to my ears. How does Ehrlich still sound like he’s recording from inside an empty aquarium tank? It’s 2024, can we finally upgrade your audio situation? Thank you all for your hours of entertainment and insightful discussions :)
  • BRObertbHoskins
    Such great heights! And the lows aren’t even that low!
    I’ve been listening to the “Elder Millennial” ep for about an hour but haven’t made it past the first minute and a half yet. Incredible cover Patches, bravo! The cover was so good it got me to write my first review in 7 years of listening to the pod. My sister recommended FITWR to me way back. Thank you Morgan for your great taste / recommendations and thanks to the hosts for putting out a great show every week (give or take). Go Celtics!
  • jmart0072007
    David's My Favorite?
    Look what you made me write. But what other opinion am I supposed to have after hockey talk? Hockey boring? Falser words have never been spoken. THEY HAVE KNIVES ON THEIR SHOES!!! Hockey, and especially playoff hockey, is the most exciting sport on the planet. Nothing else comes close. Segment idea: Instead of talking about Marvel Snap if there are no reviews, how about David talks about hockey? How badly do you guys want reviews? In all sincerity I love the podcast (I've been listening since the beginning) and despite awful hockey takes, all of the hosts are great. Vanity Fair can go screw. Edit: RIP Rangers. Sorry David (sincerely...the Panthers might as well be Vanity Fair). Go Bruins! And more urgently, go Celtics!
  • bbeeeff
    What’s happening to me
    I have either been bitten by a radioactive David Ehrlich or I have fallen into a vat of glowing green toxic Film Discourse for I am agreeing with David with increasing frequency. I fear the transformation is almost complete[Brundlefly moving the shotgun barrel to his head .gif]
  • MD in TX
    “Matt, I don’t think we trust your taste enough to watch it”
    Truer words never spoken. Come for the comraderie. Embrace the strongly held, reasoned opinions. Suffer through the hot-take-o-rama. Mostly appreciate how fifteen plus years, 6 children, and geographic and professional upheaval don’t stop friends from getting together and ragging one another. Feel better soon, Da7e! “Matt, now you’re just listing things.”
  • Pamalama S
    Entertaining and Informative
    I’m a new listener- I followed Katey Rich over here since I could no longer listen to her on that other podcast that will not be named. So far I am really enjoying myself and I can’t believe it took me so long to discover these folks. A great balance of reviews and Hollywood industry talk.
  • iamtheeleventh
    Justice For Ehrlich!
    Dear FITWR crew! I am writing this review for the show in the middle of cleaning my home. I actually interrupted myself mid-vacuuming to compose this. Prior to starting my daily chores I queued up the most recent episode of the show as I usually do. As I was about ready to clean up all the crumbs up from between couch cushions, David began to read a review in which someone docked this lovely show two stars because of his insightful and nuanced demeanor (I think they replaced the traits I bestow on him with “pretentious and condescending”). I just had to write in and counter this - there seems to be this more and more prevalent attitude people have towards Ehrlich that he is a grump or someone who hates everything. It’s obvious they don’t actually follow David on letterboxd or read his criticism on Indie Wire or even watch the videos which have become a favorite of the online film community in which he lists his FAVORITE films from a given year. They also seemingly look over the fact that David is a critic and is paid to critique. Furthermore and broadly speaking, it seems strange to me that people so often will write off someone’s entire body of work or call them a hack if they don’t agree with them on everything. I, for one, can not think of a single person that I agree with 100% of the time - especially when it comes to film. I hardly always agree with David on every opinion whether it be a take on this show, Blank Check, or one of his reviews. I know David hardly needs me to come to his defense (one of the things I appreciate so much about him is the nonchalantness in which he approaches these opinions on him and his work). And maybe this is overkill but I would say that his opinion, just like every co-host (all of whom I adore), is vital to why anyone listens to this show. All the hosts’ positions are valid and what make the dynamics so much fun to listen to. I love it when he’s on and when he’s not. I came to FITWR because of David and Katey’s appearances on Blank Check and have come to love it just as much as I adore that gang of friends. My main point is - if David or any element where different it wouldn’t be this show. Also, this fear of or distaste for diverging opinions is simply silly and just would not make for good dialogue surround cinema - or any kind of art at that. The last thing I’ll add is this: just because a critic has a different opinion than you or expresses things in a way you necessarily wouldn’t does not mean you should negate them whole-cloth. If you do, you’re possibly missing out on an interesting perspective and an opportunity to broaden your own worldview and appreciation for cinema. That is just what David and the entire FITWR do for me every time I read their writing and once a week when I listen to them all together. Love you all and love this show! David is the best! Bye now, Ian.
  • Bora Hunja
    Great Podcast
    Hey all! I’ve only been listening for a few months but this has quickly become one of five podcasts I listen to regularly. I actually like how often all four hosts don’t agree on a given topic, it keeps the discussions lively. Keep up the good work! (PS: Congrats to Katey and The Ankler!) (PPS: To those of us with no interest in Marvel Snap, you’re welcome lol)
  • jackmove69
    Amazing pod
    Love these folks and look forward to every episode. I’ve followed Dave around through many different shows and can’t get enough of him. Glad to hear Dave is healing up. Bummed to hear Katy’s VF news - but VF has been falling off for a while Ave I’m sure you will move in to better things.
  • Jeff of the Colorado Jeffs
    Five star podcast, very entertaining with awesome hosts
    Real quick on the colonoscopy thread - I waited until 45 to get mine done and it was oddly very pleasant. I’ve had surgery with anesthesia before and I woke up confused, strapped to a gurney and in a lot of pain. Totally different with the colonoscopy! I was out for a very short period of time and woke up refreshed, pain free and in a great mood. It was like I took a really good nap and woke up after being asleep the perfect amount of time. Ok, the night before isn’t so awesome as you basically chug stool softeners to clear everything away, but it’s really not that bad. The important thing is I got the screening done and they removed two polyps. Not all polyps are cancerous but all colon cancer starts in polyps so I’d prefer to have none. I’ll have it done again in ten years. Totally covered by insurance, no claims of rectal bleeding necessary as I was at the recommended age. Love the show!
  • s.a. 16
    Going to [the] War [Room] for Katey
    Hello, FITWR hosts! I have been fans of all of your work separately for a long time, but I’ve never listened to this podcast because I felt I already had too many pop culture podcast listens. However, I have been listening to Little Gold Men for almost its entire run, and I am INCENSED on Katey’s behalf by VF’s stupid and short-sighted decision to let her go. I don’t want to be in a world where I don’t get to heat Katey’s takes, so I’m here, reporting for duty 🫡
  • Listener Jeffrey
    It’s a podcast!
    Hey there! Love the show! I’ve been listening for about a year or so now, I guess. My b on taking so long to do this. Initially found my way here for more Katey content - been a Little Goldie since the verrrry beginning, woulda done better in the Oscar pool if I’d remembered my dang login to change things at the last minute…and devastated to hear the news of your forced departure…thank god I’ll still have this one! Also found my way here shortly after discovering Trial By Content, and happy to have double Da7e doses too! I knew Ehrlich from Blank Check, and Patches was mostly new to me, but this show has quickly become one of my favorite hangout pods. No goals, just chat. You’re all excellent bus companions. So glad Da7e is recovering well, hope it stays that way with your gnarly open wound! Be well, all! —JK (that’s my name, not kidding about everything I said!)
  • kevinnb48
    Katey Rich Forever
    Was always waiting to write a review for the right time and today seemed like the time to do so. In the world of online film criticism that can be so pompous, overly defensive and gratingly self-righteous, Katey brings a sense of joy and passion that can make it worth wading through all that other muck. I’m so sad to hear about the news at Vanity Fair but I’m so glad this podcast exists if for nothing else but to be able to hear one of my favorite voices on film. Corporations crumble and fade away, Katey Rich is forever!
  • Purposelygentle
    Oh no, Da7e!
    Feel better, bud. We love you. (Erhlich: if you read this out loud on the podcast, don’t say that sarcastically, please)
  • Matt___
    Drop Davy Downer, then 5 stars
    David Ehrlich is too much of a depressive bloviator—in both his words and his tone—even when I agree with him. The other hosts are great, but David too often causes me to stop listening. Drop David and it’d be 5 stars. Sorry, Dave.
  • ctlbpinegrove
    It's good
    Team David
  • shazarra
    "I'm very susceptible segs dares this week."
    I've been listening for years and just needed the right review title to actually get me to write this. Thanks, Da7e! I know this will probably encourage the wrong behavior, but I kind of like all the background noise that various mics (David's?) pick up. It's immersive! Anyways, ya'll rule. Never change.
  • FuryRoad2015
    A fun podcast with quasi-learning
    I heard about you folks through Katey’s annual Thanksgiving appearances on THOB, plus them using part of your URL. So far, it’s been a fun listen of film criticism and pop culture ephemera. Where else would you hear Ehrlich’s contrarian preference for the auteur driven films to Patches takes on broad appealers. I’m also glad that Da7e is able to breakdown the convoluted cash cow known as the MCU. Aside from current media, your references ranging from Titanic to obscurities (e.g. Home Fries, Drop Dead Fred, etc.) remind me of exposures that were carried down to me after the fact from my older sibling. Even being a decade younger, her opinions being similar to your takes is coincidental. Also I’m laughing at the shout outs to Plymouth Meeting, PA since I live near that area. But overall, I’m enjoying my time of having my tastes be broaden. So keep up the entertainment. - Peter
  • Darbyact
    Amazing, Great Film Podcast
    For my 10th anniversary review of the podcast. (A wonderful show you should all listen too). I present the idea of the FitWR Hall of Fame! These are movies which have had a significant impact on the show as a whole. Define that as you will. For this inaugural hall of fame class I present these “10” films: Aquaman Carol Forgetting Sarah Marshall Foxcatcher The Lion King (2019) Lyle Lyle Crocodile The Mummy (2017) The Road to Welleville Soul Surfer And Every Marvel Movie Prior to Avengers Endgame, but only if you watch them back to back in the same theatre or if you write a book about them after you are finished. To the amazing hosts, please add or remove any films to the hall that you feel is correct. Also, thank you for decade (plus) of this amazing show. You all (and your many shows) make my week much, much better! Thanks for being you and sharing that with us.
  • Mac J
    Bluesky is doooooomed
    I came to this podcast like many others, through some combination of Blank Check and finding Ehrlich’s year end movies on kottke.org. I love the hosts old friend group vibe combined with the knowledge and and insight you get from a getting a bunch of people who do media commentary for a living together. In a different era I would have loved to follow everybody on Twitter but I’ve abandoned that husk of a site, and at the end of every episode I sure wish I’d hear at least one host call out a Mastodon handle. Yes I did write a whole dang review just to plug non-corporate social media, but podcasts are such a great example of decentralized media I don’t understand why people don’t consider that other forms of media can work that way too 😭
  • EJM122191
    Fun and insightful
    Updating my previous five star review to a five star review. I just didn’t realize how much this show would come to mean to me after going through a series of life challenges last year. Always interesting conversations that can be sometimes contentious, but always respectful. Some of the best laughs I’ve had recently haven’t been from movies, but from the FITWR group bantering. I’m going to selfishly use this space to hopefully have a question answered on the pod. I just watched Scorsese’s The Last Waltz. It rules. I’m a huge fan of Stop Making Sense as well. I trust y’all’s taste, so any additional music doc recs that are in that vein. I feel like modern music docs are so aggressive in their presentation. As much as I like it, The Eras Tour sort of comes to mind. There’s a calmness and frankly craft that is far more apparent in the Scorsese and Demme films. Truly, thank you all. I have a huge backlog of podcasts unfortunately, but this is one that I always stay up to date on.
  • Richard Rulz
    A time capsule
    I started listening as research for a comic book that’s set in 2015. I just heard them talk about Age of Ultron and immediately felt seen when David suggested the game ‘every time you hear the words Infinity Stones shoot yourself in the face.’ I doubt that by the time I catch up to the present they’ll still be reading reviews at the top of the episodes, but just in case, I am leaving this as a time capsule. A time capsule within a time capsule, because that’s the incredible value of this type of show, it gives a window into what people were actually saying in the moment. Trying to explain to a current fan of anything that people didn’t always think the way the online discourse would have them believe is tough and often met with anger, as if knowing that Keanu Reeves was used as a punchline stand-in for bad and dumb for years. or that Mark Hamill was so secondary to Harrison Ford that he could play David Spade’s stalker (as himself) on Just Shoot Me will rob them of some more pure truth cemented by marketing spin. Listening to this show feels like an anathema to all that and I am delighted.
  • Milwaukee Ryan
    Ornithologist, philanthropist, philatelist
    Foxcatcher, especially post Trump, is one of the young century’s great films
  • Los Angelacat
    David Being Egregiously Wrong
    I’ve been listening since the OpKino days, love the show, and have an important correction to the latest episode, where David said he was sure Sam Esmail was a “very nice man.” Anyone who has heard his podcasts appearances, including notably his appearances on The Watch, knows that is maybe the wrongest anyone has ever been on the show.
  • Chris Diggins
    My Cry for Help 😩💔😧
    Hello friends, family, and colleagues. My name is David Ehrlich and, no matter what I might say verbally on pod to convince you otherwise, I HATE the Rangers. Even thought they have the best jersey in hockey, the NY Rangers - the team I have pretended to root for over the past couple of years - is actually my least favorite team in the NHL. So, Da7e, Patches, and Katey, please hold my sad, sweaty, cold little hands while I tell you that my real favorite hockey team is the Seattle Kraken. From Vince Dunn to Oliver Bjorkstrand, all I want in life is to give those brave, beautiful little boys in navy blue a sweet little kiss on the forehead and watch them win in the most Kraken fashion possible - complete, unrelenting domination. And, before I finish reading this review that I wrote for my own podcast (sad I know) to admit a truth I’ve been hiding deep down for a long time, I just want to go on the record and say that no matter how much I might try to deny it verbally, what I wrote on the iTunes app is how I really, actually feel. Thank you for listening. Love, David (the Kraken fan)
  • micromarathe
    Sorry I forgot to give you a shoutout Patches
    But a perfect excuse to follow up with a 5 star review (this is Shruti from the email btw)
  • Dani (not of house Targaryen)
    Sex and the City
    Da7e: Samantha Patches: Charlotte Katie: Carrie David: Miranda before And Just Like That ruined her This is without a doubt the only correct answer. Thanks for all the hours of great entertainment and all you do!
  • meingreece
    I’d throw myself into traffic for Katie Rich
    I look forward to this show every week. Listening to it just always serves as a reminder that I like movies, and I should make more time to go see them. The hosts’ sensibilities are pretty millennial and hetero, but in the same weirdly comforting way that, like, a greta gerwig movie is. Omg speaking of millennial and hetero… has it been discussed on the show yet, which host correlates to which sex and the city girlie? Dare I say that FITWR is the more iconic foursome? Writing this at 2am btw.
  • Alex (I'm a Mr.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)
    Fallen Leaves for BP
    LTL, FTR. I come bearing a confession. I’ve been a listener since at least David’s wedding episode pretty much never missing an episode, and I’ve always thought it was funny that Dave LeSeven (FITWR podcaster), had such a similar voice to Dave Gonzalez, (author and TBC podcaster) (which I also listen to religiously). Of course, despite vocal, nominal, and professional similarities, Dave LeSeven and Dave Gonzalez were just two different podcasters. Until last week. At the end of last week’s episode, Dave hit us with a change from his usual sign off. Instead of “I’m Dave LeSeven”, we got “I’m D - A - 7 - E”. “Da7e”, I think; “what a clever way to spell one’s first name when a number is found in one’s last name”. But something isn’t sitting right. I repeat it again in my head. Da7e? Da7e… Dave WITH A SEVEN. DAVE GONZALEZ. How could I have been so blind!? I write this sitting at my desk, where MCU: The Reign of Marvel Studios sits beside me, sneering. Dave - I apologize and would like you to know Dave LeSeven and Dave G were always tied as my two fave podders (sorry to the rest of the gang) Much love.
  • @SMTemps
    Anime recommendation!
    Hello!I’ve been wanting to recommend a show to you all ever since I heard about its anime adaptation back in 2020. With our recent discussions, from the incredible “Blue-Eyed Samurai” to the latest Miyazaki Studio Ghibli review, I couldn’t help but think of it. The frequent mentions of the name “Mahito” reminded me of my favorite yet most despised villain with the same name in the absolutely fantastic “Jujutsu Kaisen” by Gege Akutami. This series really stands out by how it blends the best of classic Shonen stories and unique power systems,(It echoes shows like “Bleach” and “Hunter x Hunter”), but skips the lengthy training arcs and filler episodes that tend to drag other series down. (Yes, I’m looking at you, One Piece!) The cast of well-developed, endearing characters, mixed with the series’ dark tone set against the backdrop of real-world Tokyo (and Shibuya in season 2), deliver an emotional gut punch that few other series can match. The real-world implications extend beyond the anime/manga itself. The anime’s production studio, MAPPA, has recently been in the spotlight for its demanding work conditions. Their schedule is as tight as South Park’s, with just one week per episode. Despite this, MAPPA has been churning out significant anime shows and movies using a similar timeline over the past few years. There’s been concern over whether episodes would stay on schedule. While they did come out on time, they were rushed and Ultimately aired unfinished. With Season 2 is wrapping up on the 28th, bringing the total to 47 episodes and a movie that made more then Space Jam and The Matrix in 2021. I would say now is the perfect time to jump in on a series that I am unable to look away from, despite the emotional rollercoaster it puts me through
  • nucuplmnjuyh
    Women talking
    “It looks like butt” the two male hosts kept insisting. How intelligent, how intellectual, height of sophistication! The woman host tried to get a word in edgewise. Indescribably bad.
  • Bisickle
    A fantastic show despite...
    To whom it may concern, FITWR is the white whale of podcasts I've been obsessively seeking out since my first episode of Filmspotting back in the halcyonic, heady days of the early Obama administration. Hearing the erudite Katy Rich on Little Gold Men, the curmudgeon with a heart of gold David Ehrlich on places like Film Comment, the always peppy and bubbly Dave Gonzalez on Screen Drafts and Trial By Combat, and Matt Patches from the Internet, I thought "What if we could bring together this group of remarkable individuals. To see if they could become something more. See if they could work together when we need them to review the movies we never could." It's called The Fighting In The War Room Initiative. The only crack in the otherwise flawless Vibranium shield that is this podcast is is that David Ehrlich has made the baffling decision to not only record in Werner Herzogs Cave Of Forgotten Dreams, but also his lip smacking and addictive compulsive to pop Ricola lozenges mid-recording makes this listeners skin crawl. Otherwise, no notes. Keep up the great work. Damian S, Pittsfield, Ma Host of The Midnight Film Society Podcast
  • Andrew J. Eisenman
    Great show about movies, a thought on Ehrlich’s take on “No One Will Save You”
    Hey y’all, Fairly new listener, long-time fan of Erlich’s writing and Katy Rich’s Twitter who can’t remember if he learned about the podcast from Little Gold Men or Blank Check, but it was probably one of those. Patches and Dave, y’all seem cool. The show’s great and its been accompanying me on my (hopefully) temporary stint working a night shift job, so thank you. People should listen to this, but I’m really writing in to revisit Ehrlich’s comment about Body Snatching in No One Will Save You in episode 446. Your take seems to involve them not “body snatching” proper because they create a new version of their victims. If you remember back to the two most iconic Body Snatchers films (56, 78) that is how they work, the pods infect you while you sleep and they grow a new you. I’m not bringing this up to nitpick but to say that this distinction is what makes No One Will Save You such a moving piece of genre fiction in my eyes. The reason the Body Snatcher pods replace the body is so that the films can debate the worth of a soul (or whatever you want to call the essential elements that make us human beyond memory and intelligence.) By retaining this element of the Body Snatching including an alien-ified human clone versus infecting a person like many modern entries in the genre do, Duffield uses the intertextuality of genre to drive the very power of the ending. Of course like you said, this story-telling mechanism allows her to defeat the version of herself that she wishes she was. But more importantly, by allowing Dever to live, the film states that her soul has not been ruined by her past and is worthy of preservation, while the townsfolk’s rejection of her, even when she tried to warn them, has cost them theirs. More than simply inverting the genre, Duffield sharpens it. My two cents.
  • tstepz
    Great Show! 5 Stars!
    I love this Podcast because it features great banter & insightful discussion on all the new releases. I love all the hosts but I was first introduced to this show because I am a massive fan of David Erhlichs annual end of year video countdowns. I look forward to them every year & think David does a fantastic job editing them all. My question to David is What are the chances that we get a needle drop for Mariah Carey’s “always be my baby” layered over top of 2023 releases such as Anatomy of a Fall?? Anyways Thank You for the great podcast & keep up the good work! - Max
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