Reading Between the Reels: Film analysis with snark and heart

Star Wars 101 is back! Join us for the first installment is our annual summer series in which middle school English students do their best to break down the themes and character arcs of the Star Wars saga. In this episode, we are joined by educator, podcaster, and cosplayer extraordinaire Jay Krebs!

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For this installment in our Steven Spielberg series, we unpack A.I. — the feel-good family story about replacing your dead child with an upgraded model. We’re talking abandoned robot children, existential loneliness, uncanny smiles, fairy tale symbolism, and why this movie somehow feels like both a warm hug and a psychological evaluation. Also: the tonal whiplash of watching a sweet robot boy wander through a world that...

In Minority Report, people are judged before they act—which hits a little close to home, because we definitely formed strong opinions early and spent the rest of the episode trying to justify them. Join us for the latest installment in our Steven Spielberg series as we wrestle with pre-crime, free will, and a movie that’s clearly operating on a higher level than we are. The system isn’t broken… we just keep...

In War of the Worlds, global annihilation isn’t stopped by genius alien tech or tactical brilliance—it’s ultimately halted by Earth’s smallest, least cinematic residents: germs. Join us for the latest entry in our ongoing series on Steven Spielberg films—and the third in a miniseries exploring alien invasions—as we deconstruct the film’s cinematic craft alongside its panic-fueled chaos and ...

The third episode of our Spielberg series covers E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial and explores how one glowing finger traumatized a generation, turned bikes into pedal-powered UFOs, and made Reese’s Pieces an emotional bribe. We break down suburban chaos, DIY alien tech, government creeps, and the subtle art of guilt-tripping kids via extraterrestrial manipulation. Snark, nostalgia, and your tear ducts are officially invited—...

For the second stop in our Spielberg deep dive, we’re landing straight in Close Encounters of the Third Kind. From the five-note tune that ruins lives to mashed potato mountains, we dissect all the weird, wonderful, and downright confusing choices that make this sci-fi classic unforgettable.

Expect snark, speculation, and some obsessive breakdowns of our own. Whether you’re a casual viewer, a die-hard Steven Spielberg ...

We’re kicking off our Steven Spielberg series with Jaws, the movie that made beaches terrifying and mechanical sharks famous. Spielberg turns a busted shark into pure panic, proving he’s the master of suspense and blockbuster terror. Dive in as we break down every scream, every shadow, and why this 1975 classic still bites decades later—just don’t go near the water afterward.

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If you could snap your fingers and assemble the ultimate movie dream team, who’s on your list? The director who actually gets it, the writer who really writes, the composer who makes you feel things, and the actors who could carry it all. In this episode, your three regular podcast hosts—joined by guests Dan Zehr and Jeff McGee—draft their own fantasy crews to build the “perfect” movie. Along the way, ...

Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer isn’t just about explosions—it’s a visual and emotional symphony. In “Oppenheimer - Part Two: Faces, Places, and Consequences,” the final episode in our series on Nolan’s films, we unpack the costumes, makeup, set design, and how every character choice builds tension and guilt. All served up with the surgical snark you’ve come to expect.

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Oppenheimer, directed by Christopher Nolan, hits like a ticking bomb. In “Oppenheimer - Part One: Light, Sound, and Panic,” the penultimate entry in our series on Nolan’s films, we break down why. From cinematography that could start wars to sound design that rattles your soul and dialogue sharper than a physicist’s temper, this episode dives deep into the film’s craft. Snark, insight, and existential ...

For this year’s “Star Wars Podcast Day," we go back into the archives for one of our first deconstructions and revisit an early episode of “Coruscant Community College” in which we break down Solo: A Star Wars Story.

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Thank you so much for listening! Please help us spread the word by leaving us a 5-star review! 

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• Craig Dickinson: x.com/CraigMDickinson
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In the conclusion of our two-part Tenet breakdown, we examine the film’s performances, set design, and characters—all in hopes of unpacking one of the movie’s most brain-melting ideas: when cause becomes effect and effect becomes… something else entirely. We dig into the film’s warped logic, inverted motivations, and why the time rules in Tenet feel like they were written on a whiteboard during a caff...

Strap in, reverse your entropy, and whisper “pincer movement” like you actually know what it means. In this episode, we launch Part I of our two-episode deep dive into Christopher Nolan’s mind-melting blockbuster Tenet. We’ll unravel (or re-ravel?) the film’s bold structure, its signature Nolan time shenanigans, and why every character sounds like they’re delivering plot exposition into a blender...

A quick end-of-year episode to settle the debate one last time.

Die Hard is a Christmas movie. So are Lethal Weapon, The Long Kiss Goodnight, and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. If it’s set at Christmas and ends with emotional closure and gunfire, it counts.

Happy New Year!

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Thank you so much for listening! Please help us spread the word by leaving us a 5-star review! 

Hosts:

• Craig Dic...

Brace yourself for a holly-jolly hostage situation! This special Christmas bonus re-release of Reading Between the Reels is decking the halls… and the villains. From John McClane’s barefoot antics to explosive corporate holiday parties, we reveal why Die Hard is the ultimate Christmas movie you secretly love (or pretend to hate).

Originally released in 1988, Die Hard defied low expectations to become a critical and fi...

In this episode, we dive into Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk—the movie that weaponizes sound design, disorientation, and narrative chaos to make you feel like you’re drowning in tension even when the characters aren’t in the water (yet).

We break down the film’s infamous three timelines, why Nolan thinks clocks are a personality trait, and how the movie somehow maintains zero chill for 106 minutes straigh...

We’re back on the other side of the black hole — emotionally and maybe spiritually. In Part Two of our deep dive into Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar, we unpack Cooper’s bookshelf breakdown, the emotional math of Murph’s ghost, and whether “love” was actually the answer or just Nolan trolling us all. Expect equal parts awe, analysis, and exasperation. Bring tissues… and maybe a phys...

Strap in and don’t forget your helmet — we’re launching into Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar, where science meets sentimentality and somehow both cry. In this episode, we begin to tackle wormholes, relativity, and why Nolan seems to hate linear storytelling. Expect theories, sarcasm, and just enough pseudo-physics to make Neil deGrasse Tyson sigh audibly.

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Part 2 of our The Dark Knight Rises analysis dives into the details that make (or break) Nolan’s finale: body language, costuming, set design, and character arcs. Anne Hathaway slinks her way through as Catwoman, Joseph Gordon-Levitt maybe-becomes Batman, and Batman trades his cape for a cappuccino in Florence. We’ll pull apart the visual storytelling, the prison pit metaphors, and the way Gotham itself becomes a charac...