Movie Memory Machine

The Machine isn’t done sprinting yet. For this 5-For transmission, Truman and Landen are handed five studio comedies that orbit Tag (2018)—movies where grown adults, respectable jobs be damned, are dragged into escalating games, schemes, and misadventures that test friendship, masculinity, and the limits of insurance coverage.

The Machine’s Five Selected Films

According to the Machine, these films share a common DNA: high-concept...

Truman and Landen sweep up the leftover chaos from Tag (2018)—a movie that asked, “What if your friends never emotionally matured past recess, but in a kind of inspiring way?” They revisit dangling threads from the Main episode, dig into the real-life tag squad behind the film, and, as always, play The Trailer Game, trying to guess which slow-motion tackles and Jeremy Renner smirks the marketing department used before watching the ...

The Machine hurls Truman and Landen back to 2018, where a perfectly normal adult world briefly stopped to witness a group of grown men sprinting, tackling, and emotionally spiraling through the most intense game of tag ever put to film. As the Machine reminds them, this bromantic stunt-comedy immortalized a real-life tradition—and maybe also proved that your thirties are just gym class with taxes.

Synopsis

Tag is a high-energy bu...

The Machine, perhaps inspired by War Horse (2011) and its belief that a single determined horse can survive anything short of a tank, has assembled five thematically linked films. Truman and Landen ride through a lineup that mixes equine legends, childhood-codex classics, and one devastating antiwar drama that reminds us what happens when there aren’t any noble steeds around to carry the emotional weight.

The Machine’s Five Selec...

Truman and Landen wrap up the loose ends from War Horse (2011) — a movie where Spielberg unleashes maximum sincerity, maximum sunsets, and a horse so noble it could probably negotiate peace treaties. They revisit the film’s stray thoughts, historical oddities, and emotional haymakers… and as always, they play The Trailer Game, trying to guess what images the marketing team deemed “horse-forward” enough to sell the film before watch...

The Machine drops Truman and Landen squarely into 2011, a year when Spielberg decided the world desperately needed a World War I epic starring a horse with better instincts than most generals. Saddled with sentimentality and prestige energy, this film gives the hosts plenty to chew on as they gallop through its earnest battlefield odyssey.

Synopsis

War Horse is a sweeping historical drama starring Albert Narracott (Jeremy Irvine,...

The Machine, still crackling with residual meteor energy, whisks Truman and Landen into a curated crash course on five films that reflect the DNA, ambitions, and cosmic oddities of The Meteor Man (1993). From DIY superheroes to VHS-era legends to comic-book icons perfected, this lineup shows every weird, heartfelt, and boundary-pushing direction the genre could have taken.

The Machine’s Five Selected Films

The Machine has chosen ...

Truman and Landen wrap up stray thoughts, unanswered questions, and meteor-induced tangents from The Meteor Man (1993)—including the film’s galaxy of cameos, its hyper-earnest worldbuilding, and how it fits into the ’90s’ strange, pre-MCU superhero landscape. And as always, they play The Trailer Game, trying to guess which moments the marketing department thought were powerful enough to sell a community-focused superhero comedy to ...

The Machine rockets Truman and Landen straight into 1993, drops a glowing meteor at their feet, and tells them to figure out how one of the decade’s most ambitious superhero comedies vanished from cultural memory. Along the way, they wade through neon-lit street gangs, sky-high optimism, and the strangely earnest worldbuilding of a film that tried to save the world with community organizing and superpowers.

The Meteor Man is a fami...

The Machine, clearly still amused by the cultural fallout of Marci X (2003), has curated five movies that embody the strange intersections of satire, identity, and early-2000s “what were they thinking?” energy. Truman and Landen dive into comedies that pushed boundaries, tripped over them, or sprinted through them in platform shoes.

The Machine’s Five Selected Films

The Machine has chosen five films that echo the wild tonal swing...

In this week’s mini-episode, we dive into the cringefest "Marci X." Through a lively discussion, we dissect its cultural commentary, character dynamics, and the cringe-worthy humor that permeates its narrative. Join us as we explore the layers of this film and its unexpected connections to modern pop culture.

One of the podcast’s standout moments is the discussion about how "Marci X" caricatures hip-hop culture while simultaneously...

In the latest episode of Movie Memory Machine, hosts Landen Celano and Truman Capps explore the quirky and often cringe-worthy early 2000s film "Marci X." This forgotten gem, featuring a clash of cultures and a peculiar romance, offers a nostalgic look back at a time when the film industry was experimenting with edgy humor and social commentary. Join us as we unpack the film's premise, cast, and the hosts' hilarious commentary that...

The Machine, still shaking off the glitter and contractual awkwardness of Surviving Christmas, has decided Truman and Landen need a deeper look at the cinematic lineage surrounding holiday chaos, consumerism fantasies, and dysfunctional families. This week it spits out five thematically tangled films—some cozy, some chaotic, all spiritually connected to Affleck’s attempt to purchase a perfect Christmas.

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Fresh off their reluctantly festive detour into 2004, Truman and Landen return to tie up loose ends from Surviving Christmas—a film so aggressively seasonal that the Machine still smells faintly of plastic tinsel. They revisit the leftover questions, stray observations, and mid-2000s oddities that didn’t quite fit into the Main episode. And as always, they play The Trailer Game, trying to guess which c...

Truman and Landen are once again thrust into the time-machine, this time careening into October 22 2004 — the release date of Surviving Christmas. What happens when a lonely millionaire decides he’s so desperate for a family Christmas that he cash-offers a stranger household to play his relatives for a week? Strap in for awkward holiday hijinks, celebrity cameos, and a studio that seemingly forgot how to sell a Christ...

A tour through five films that share the cons, capers, twists, and tonal oddities that surfaced while discussing The Brothers Bloom. Truman and Landen follow where the Machine leads, comparing the quirks and energies these movies share with the main film’s con-artist DNA.

What You'll Hear

• How all five films connect through cons, capers, farce, or twist-driven character...

A joy-drunk Cat Stevens montage sends Truman and Landen spiraling into a conversation about silent-movie acting, fruit-stand catastrophes, and which posters for The Brothers Bloom actually make sense. This Mini-Transmission also brings the full Trailer Game breakdown—complete with explosions, vents, visors, and a surprisingly accurate set of guesses.

What You'll Hear

• A...

The Brothers Bloom (2008) sends Truman and Landen into a con-artist story that turns out to be far stranger, warmer, and twistier than they remembered. This week, the Machine drops them into a film that blends sincerity, trickery, and sibling chaos in ways that still surprise them.

Rian Johnson’s The Brothers Bloom follows two lifelong con-man brothers whose latest scheme leads them into a globe-spanning...

Step right up for five tales of trickery, karma, and carnival deceit.

From silent-era psychics to freak-show morality plays and a little Japanese horror for good measure, the Machine pulls five films that echo Nightmare Alley’s twisted sense of fate.

• Why The Prestige feels like the supernatural version of Nightmare Alley

• The morality pl...