Staff Picks

Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band

Podcaster and fellow Beatlemaniac Jessica Liese joins me to discuss one of the most notorious musical disasters of all time, the 1978 disco epic Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. Featuring a special section at the end where we talk about the all time best and worst Beatles cover songs.

About Schmidt

Fellow Alexander Payne fan Sean Malloy joins me to discuss maybe my all-time favorite Payne movie, and one of the rare movies that legitimately changed my life, the 2002 masterpiece About Schmidt.

Single White Female

Artist and former New Yorker Robin Punsalan joins me to discuss one of the creepiest psychological thrillers ever made, 1992's Single White Female

Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace

My son, 22-year old podrace enthusiast Nick Lanza, joins me to discuss a movie that has been overly hated for years, 1999's Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace. This is the first part of our three-part deep dive into the Star Wars prequels.

Southern Comfort

Movie fan and non-Cajun Johnny Pomatto joins me to discuss a creepy little movie from 1981 you've probably never seen before- the Cajun version of Deliverance, Southern Comfort

The Last Supper

Movie fan Curt Clark joins me to discuss a little-known gem I'd never even heard of until a few weeks ago, 1995's super dark comedy, The Last Supper

Congo

Movie fan and sesame cake expert Sarah Casa joins me to discuss the greatest movie ever made about talking gorillas, power gloves, and space lasers. It's 1995's so-bad-it's-actually-incredible Congo.

Cellular

TV host and entertainment reporter Steve Helling joins me to discuss one of those goofy little movies that's completely implausible, yet so much fun, 2004's super-underrated action thriller, Cellular.

Jaws 2

Movie fan and fellow Jaws enthusiast Ryan Weiss joins me to discuss one of the rare sequels I really do love, not to mention one of the very first slasher movies, 1978's Jaws 2. Yeah, it's not quite as good as the original. But then again, what movie is? Jaws 2 is, and always has been, still pretty awesome.

Private Parts

Podcaster and stand-up comedian Darin Patterson joins me to talk about one of the funniest movies of the 90s, a movie that never should have fallen off the face of the Earth the way that it did- the 1997 Howard Stern biopic, Private Parts.

Train to Busan

Horror movie fan and Staff Picks favorite Jessi Bentley joins me to discuss what I think is the best horror movie of the past twenty years. 2016's Korean zombie movie, Train to Busan.

Rollercoaster

Writer and film analyst Darren DeBari joins me to discuss one of my favorite suspense movies of all time, and one that is very special to me, personally, because my dad used to watch it with me. It's 1977's mad bomber movie, Rollercoaster.

Police Academy

Fellow child of the 80s Michael Allbright joins me to salvage the reputation of a movie that was never as bad as its legacy. It's time to talk about one of my all-time favorite comedies, 1984's Police Academy.

The Black Hole

Fellow child of the late 70s Pete Butler joins me to discuss a movie that was HUGE for any kid who grew up with it, but is sadly pretty much forgotten today, the 1979 Disney movie The Black Hole

The Way Way Back

Therapist Leann Lindsley joins me to discuss a cute little summer movie you might not have ever seen before. It's the spiritual successor to Meatballs, 2013's The Way Way Back.

The Pit

Scott Drebit, author of "A Cut Below: A Celebration of B Horror Movies", joins me to discuss one of the craziest B horror movies of them all, 1981's The Pit

Election

Young movie fan Owen Donne joins me to discuss one of my very favorite movies of all time, Alexander Payne's wonderfully sharp and cynical 1999 masterpiece, Election.

One Cut of the Dead

Horror author Fiona Carter joins me to discuss the cutest, most feel good, most adorable zombie comedy you are ever going to see, 2017's One Cut of the Dead

Xanadu

Podcaster and fellow fanadu Jessica Liese joins me in one of my funniest episodes of all time, as we discuss the legacy of the flop that really shouldn't have been a flop, 1980's musical disaster Xanadu

The Deliberate Stranger

Archivist and Ted Bundy researcher Tiffany Jean joins me to discuss one of the greatest TV movies of all time: Mark Harmon (as Ted Bundy) in the 1986 movie The Deliberate Stranger

Dead & Buried

Horror movie fan and cinephile Christopher Chardi joins me to discuss maybe the most underrated horror movie ever made. It's 1981's supreme creepfest Dead & Buried.

Gran Torino

Movie fan Jack Mourouzis joins me to discuss what I'd consider one of the best movies of the past twenty years, which surprisingly rarely ever gets talked about anymore. It's Clint Eastwood's 2008 masterpiece Gran Torino.

Max Dugan Returns

Fellow 80s child Celia Curran joins me to discuss a movie that was beloved in its time, but somehow fell right off the face of the earth soon after that. It's time to give more love to the charming 1983 fairytale Max Dugan Returns.

Jojo Rabbit

Pop culture podcaster and movie fan Quintin Philipson joins me to discuss what I think was the best movie of the past five years, 2019's instant classic Jojo Rabbit

Moneyball

Sportswriter and podcaster Jack Vita joins me to discuss a movie that shouldn't have worked at all, yet somehow turned out to be amazing. It's 2011's baseball masterpiece, Moneyball.

Dawn of the Dead (1978)

Screenwriter and George Romero fan Brian Scully joins me to discuss one of the greatest horror films of all time, the original 1978 classic, Dawn of the Dead

Vacancy

People Magazine writer and TV host Steve Helling joins me to discuss one of my favorite suspense/horror movies of the 2000s, 2007's Vacancy

Tales from the Darkside: The Movie

Donnie McHenry, from Psychotronica: A Podcast for Forgotten Film, joins me to discuss an unfairly forgotten horror film. We're talking about the 1990 anthology Tales from the Darkside: The Movie.

Sinister

My daughter, fellow horror fan Vanessa Lanza, joins me to discuss the movie that has been scientifically proven to be the scariest film of all time, 2012's Sinister

Someone’s Watching Me!

Horror fan and John Carpenter expert Christopher Chardi joins me to discuss "the lost Carpenter film," 1978's made-for-TV-suspense-fest Someone's Watching Me!

Demonwarp

The creator of Bonkers Ass Cinema, Matt Rotman, joins me to discuss a movie that is indeed, uh, very bonkers ass. It's 1988's all-over-the-place kinda-sorta-a-Bigfoot-movie Demonwarp.

Creep

Horror author Matt Carter joins me to discuss one of the creepiest low budget movies you are ever going to see, 2014's very fittingly titled Creep

The Blair Witch Project

Horror fan and podcaster Kacie Rahm joins me to discuss one of the biggest and most important horror movies that has ever been made, 1999's amazing (yes, it's still amazing) The Blair Witch Project

Trilogy of Terror

Horror Month 2022 begins as artist and fellow 70's child Robin Punsalan joins me to discuss one of the most infamous TV movies of all time, 1975's Trilogy of Terror.

Toy Soldiers

Podcaster and pop culture fan Jeremy Zehr joins me to discuss the greatest Astin/Wheaton action film of them all, 1991's Toy Soldiers

Frequency

Baseball fan and father-having George Hanns joins me to discuss one of the greatest father/son baseball movies of all time, 2000's Frequency

Spider-Man

Superhero fan Joe Jennings joins me to discuss the movie that started the modern superhero wave, and helped bring America out of 9/11, and really should be talked about more than it is, Sam Raimi's original 2002 Spider-Man

Perfect Blue

Anime fan and creepy movie fan Andrew Koerner joins me to discuss the king of all creepy anime movies, 1997's Perfect Blue. Because who ARE you, deep down, really?

Very Bad Things

Writer and fellow dark comedy fan Jericho McCune joins me to discuss maybe the darkest dark comedy that has ever been made, 1998's incredibly polarizing Very Bad Things

Used Cars

Movie expert and historian Johnny Pomatto joins to me to discuss why one of the funniest movies of all time never became a big hit. We're talking about Kurt Russell's 1980 masterpiece, Used Cars.

Exam (2009)

Staff Picks regular/invigilator David Holdsworth joins me to discuss one of my favorite psychological suspense movies of all time, 2009's highly underrated Exam

Major League

Former baseball great Albert Destrade joins me to discuss the greatest baseball movie of all time, 1989's Major League

Pumping Iron

Bodybuilding fan Lizzie Swanson joins me to discuss one of the greatest documentaries of all time, 1977's Pumping Iron

Dreamscape

Teacher and movie fan Jason Rasmussen joins me to discuss one of those great little 80s movies that nobody seems to talk about anymore, which also happened to be one of the first PG-13 films of all time, 1984's Dreamscape

Blue Chips

Sportswriter and college professor Paul Oren joins me to discuss a great time capsule of 90s college basketball, not to mention an interesting tale of morality and ethics, 1994's Blue Chips

Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade

History teacher Steve Williams joins me to discuss one of the greatest theater movies of all time, one of the funniest non-comedies of all time, and I'd argue clearly the best of the Indiana Jones movies, 1989's Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade

Burn After Reading

Podcaster and Coen Brothers fan Jonathan Haueter ("Jon Ha") joins me to discuss "the lesser Coen Brothers Movie" that we think is just as funny as any of the bigger ones, 2008's hilariously pointless Burn After Reading

Who Framed Roger Rabbit?

Pop culture fan Christine Giver joins me to discuss a movie that was easily one of the top twenty event movies of my lifetime, yet hardly anyone ever talks about today. We delve into the legacy of 1988's Who Framed Roger Rabbit?

Ed TV

Fellow reality TV historian Jessica Liese joins me to discuss the great early reality TV movie that no one ever talks about, 1999's EdTV

Jingle All The Way

Jake Lloyd fangirl Katie Banks joins me to discuss one of my favorite Christmas movies of all time, 1996's woefully underappreciated Jingle All The Way

Cube (1997)

Canadian film fan Mark Kalzer joins me to discuss a fun little sci-fi/math/dystopian independent horror movie, 1997's Cube

Shakespeare in Love

Theater kid Will Olsen joins me to discuss the Best Picture Winner that has always unfairly been crapped on, the charming 1998 comedy Shakespeare in Love

Just Friends

Younger version of me Michael Feeney joins me to discuss one of the funniest movies of the 2000s. It's the tale of friend zones, and fat suits, and slap fights - 2005's Just Friends

Session 9

Attorney and horror fan Sean McAllister joins me to discuss one of the creepiest movies ever made, the story of the evil inside all of us, 2001's Session 9

The Other

I'm joined by my evil twin as we discuss the greatest evil twin movie of them all, 1972's unforgettable creepfest, The Other

Phantasm

Horror fan Christopher Chardi joins me as we lovingly tribute/roast the classic 1979 horror movie, Phantasm

Dark Night of the Scarecrow

Horror fan and lover of obscure movies David Markowski joins me to discuss one of the greatest made-for-TV horror movies ever made, the infamous 1981 Dark Night of the Scarecrow

Who Can Kill a Child? (aka Island of the Damned)

Teacher and horror fan Lizzie Swanson joins me to discuss a great Spanish horror movie you have probably never seen before, 1976's Who Can Kill a Child? (aka Island of the Damned)

As Above, So Below

My daughter, Vanessa Lanza, joins me to discuss a masterpiece of a horror movie that really, really needs a better PR team, 2014's As Above, So Below

Carnival of Souls

I asked young horror fan Brian Farrell to watch the 1962 cult classic Carnival of Souls for the first time, and then come onto Staff Picks and talk about it with me. This is our discussion of one of the eeriest horror movies ever made.

The Cabin in the Woods

Horror fan Jessi Bentley joins me to talk about one of the craziest horror movies ever made, 2011's The Cabin in the Woods

The Kentucky Fried Movie

My childhood friend Jeff Parker joins me to discuss one of the funniest movies ever made, and a movie that was legendary to any young comedy fan growing up in the eighties, 1977's The Kentucky Fried Movie

Rocky 2

Actor and voiceover artist Brett Bower joins me to discuss the number one movie I wish I could have seen in a theater, 1979's ultimate movie theater experience, Rocky 2

Citizen Ruth

Fellow podcaster and non-Nebraskan Dom Harvey joins me to talk about one of the ballsiest movies ever made, 1996's abortion comedy, Citizen Ruth

The Muppet Movie

Muppet historian and puppetry student Joni Newman joins me to discuss the one and only 1979 Muppet Movie

The 100th Episode

To celebrate my 100th episode, I sit down for an interview, where we talk about the history of Staff Picks as well as a bunch of fun insider trivia

Rosemary's Baby

Feminist author and horror fan Fiona Carter joins me to discuss one of the greatest horror movies of all time, as well as an argument why women should be allowed to read books, 1968's Rosemary's Baby

Crimson Tide

Former Naval Officer David Holdsworth joins me to discuss one of my favorite movies of the 90s, the big actors' showdown between Denzel Washington, Gene Hackman, and Ricky Schroder, Crimson Tide

A Fish Called Wanda

Movie and pop culture fan P.J. Gaughan joins me to discuss what I consider the greatest comedy movie of all time, 1988's masterpiece A Fish Called Wanda

The King of Kong

Journalist and video game fan Bailey Vogt joins me as we discuss maybe the greatest documentary ever made, 2007's The King of Kong. Warning: Donkey Kong kill screen coming up.

WarGames

Video game historian Brett Weiss joins me to discuss one of the best movies of the 80's, and all things 80's in general, as we delve into the 1983 cold war paranoia thriller, WarGames

South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut

Australian podcaster Ben Waterworth joins me as we delve into one of the funniest (and dirtiest) movies of all time, 1999's ode to profanity and censorship and ass spelunking, South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut

Ernest Goes to Camp

Podcaster and pop culture fan Jeremy Zehr joins me to discuss his favorite family movie of all time, 1987's long-forgotten Ernest Goes to Camp

The Poseidon Adventure

Young movie expert and chooser-of-life Ryan Weiss joins me to discuss his favorite movie of all time, 1972's disaster epic The Poseidon Adventure

Once Bitten

Reality TV journalist Gordon Holmes joins me to discuss one of my favorite comedies of the 80's, Jim Carrey's first big movie, Once Bitten

Grizzly Man

Former therapist and bear enthusiast Leann Lindsley joins me to discuss one of the craziest documentaries you are ever going to see, Werner Herzog's 2005 masterpiece, Grizzly Man

Last Night

Screenwriter Brian Scully joins me to talk about a haunting little masterpiece from Canada that you have probably never seen before, 1998's Last Night

Harold and Maude

Playwright Stephen Garvey joins me to discuss the greatest love story of our time, 1971's surprisingly deep comedy Harold and Maude

Easy A

Teen movie fan Stephanie Katz joins me to discuss one of the greatest teen movies of all time, Emma Stone in 2010's Easy A

The Vanishing (aka Spoorloos)

Horror movie fan and cinephile Christopher Chardi joins me to discuss the movie that Stanley Kubrick once called the most terrifying movie he had ever seen, 1988's The Vanishing (aka Spoorloos)

Clue

High school drama teacher Jimmy Gardner joins me to talk about the one-time flop that later turned into a beloved comedy classic, 1985's Clue 

Popstar

SNL podcaster and stand-up comedian Darin Patterson joins me to talk about one of the funniest movies ever made, 2016's hilarious comedy that never should have flopped, Popstar

American History X

L.A.-based filmmaker Austin Herring joins me to discuss a great (and important) movie from 1998 that hardly anyone ever talks about anymore, Edward Norton's magnum opus American History X 

True Lies

Pop culture fan and burlesque dancer Christine Giver joins me to discuss what I would argue is the greatest Arnold Schwarzenegger (and also James Bond) movie of all time, 1994's True Lies

The Bad News Bears in Breaking Training

Baseball fan and pop culture expert Dan Fields joins me to discuss the movie that I have probably seen more times than any other movie in my life, 1977's The Bad News Bears in Breaking Training

A Christmas Horror Story

Fellow podcaster and pop culture fan Brian Meagher joins me to discuss one of the craziest horror anthologies you are ever going to see, 2015's goofy future holiday classic A Christmas Horror Story

Honeymoon in Vegas

Actor, writer, and all around movie guy Johnny Pomatto joins me as we recap one of our favorite comedies of the 90's, 1992's Nicolas Cage quirk-fest Honeymoon in Vegas 

The Founder

Australian journalist and milkshake lover Rowan Evans joins me to discuss the fascinating hit piece about the history of McDonald's, 2016's The Founder

History of the World, Part I

Lawyer and fellow Mel Brooks fan Brad Culpepper joins me to discuss one of my favorites comedies of all time, 1981's celebration of bad taste, History of the World, Part I

Halloween

Horror author and Haddonfield resident Matt Carter joins me to discuss the greatest horror movie of them all, and the template for just about every other scary movie that came after it, John Carpenter's surprisingly bloodless 1978 original, Halloween. P.S. Laurie is not Michael's sister.

The Mist

Horror movie fan Jessi Bentley joins me to discuss what I would argue is the greatest and most hardcore Stephen King horror movie of them all, 2007's The Mist

Frailty

Teacher and non-demon Jason Rasmussen joins me to discuss Bill Paxton and axes and religion and the creepy 2001 horror movie, Frailty

The Wicker Man

My own daughter, Vanessa Lanza, joins me to discuss her favorite horror movie of all time, the 1973 gut punch masterpiece, The Wicker Man

Copycat

Actor and screenwriter Mike Harlow joins me to discuss my favorite serial killer movie of all time, the 1995 psychological thriller, Copycat

The Skeleton Key

Movie theater projectionist Will Holston returns to discuss one of the most underrated horror movies of all time, Kate Hudson and the 2005 twist ending creepfest, The Skeleton Key

Open Water

Australian movie fan Cable Brandon joins me to discuss one of the creepiest movies ever made, the 2003 shark/snuff film, Open Water

The Illusionist

Professional DJ Amy Twieg joins me to discuss the better of the two magic movies from 2006, the masterpiece of art and misdirection and showmanship know as The Illusionist

The Prestige

Magic fan and Christopher Nolan expert Bruce Ragas joins me to discuss the better of the two magic movies from 2006, the twist ending masterpiece known as The Prestige

The Crow

Rock music journalist Aaron Conn joins me to discuss the tragedy and the triumph of the infamous 1994 Brandon Lee movie, The Crow

The Karate Kid Part 2

Former video store clerk Michael Allbright joins me to discuss a movie that I have always thought was quite beautiful. It's Tamlyn Tomita and a couple of other people in 1986's The Karate Kid Part 2.