The Screen Companion
The streaming age makes every movie and show only a click away, but filling that screen can be hard. Let The Screen Companion protect your valuable viewing time with our recommendations.
Episodes
How well does the third Doctor Who (2005) episode carry the momentum of the previous installments? And is the subsequent two-parter a sophomore slump? Possibly even the lowest point of the Ninth Doctor's onscreen stories?! Makes one say, "Doctor, who thought this was a good idea?" Co-Host: Jon.
Before we jump into Christopher Eccleston's single season as the Doctor, let's examine the very first episode from 1963. How much DNA does the Revival's Ninth Doctor introduction—more than forty years later—share with the First Doctor's? And how well do the initial episodes of Eccleston's run re-establish the Doctor Who (2005) franchise? Co-Host: Jon.
We'll help newcomers to the James Bond films pick an entry point that's right for them. Looking for a middle-of-the-road example? Tomorrow Never Dies. A solid espionage story? From Russia With Love. Want a Bond that's likable and less sexist? Go with The Living Daylights. We got you covered, new 007 viewer! Guests: Max & Andrew.
This special remastered cut of the very first episode of TSC includes added movie clips and improved...
Sitcoms hit their zenith in the '90s. It was peak comedy with many of the biggest network shows providing weekly yucks. Reigning supreme was NBC with a laundry list of memorable offerings. We look back on the Peacock Decade through Frasier, Wings, and NewsRadio, shows that made us laugh--and occasionally--made us feel. Guests: Andrew & Jon.
“Politically correct” has had different standards throughout the decades, and plenty of movies made in previous years wouldn't be considered today for wide release. But what do you do when modern politics has seeped too far into entertainment, or you simply want another perspective? Try Soul Man and PCU on for size, featuring two post-secondary education institutions grappling with student politics in the '80s and '...
He's possibly the last movie star and has produced / starred in one of the greatest action film series of the last three decades: Tom Cruise! But go back far enough, those action roles are replaced by dramatic turns. Let's delve into the Last Movie Star's oeuvre by comparing an earlier role to a later offering, Born on the Fourth of July to Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning, Part One. Is Cruise a real thespian that just went whe...
A special guest returns to discuss his time in the U.S. Army, part of which was spent in South Korea. That experience will come into play as we get knee-deep into gochujang--or kimchi, if you need to insert a more identifiable food item--with Microhabitat (2017), our serving of a Korean cinema recommendation. Guest: The Dad.
Relationships can be messy, dysfunctional, and far more complicated than lovey-dovey Hollywood romance flicks will show. What better way can we get out of that often times disingenuous portrayal than to go across the oceans on either side of the U.S.? Through French, Hong Kong, and Italian lenses—I Love You, I Don't, In The Mood for Love, and The Night Porter—we'll catch some real talk on the subject of relationships. Guest: Jon.
Feel like some urban decay? Crime? Plop down with us and travel back in time to New York City in the '70s. Sleazy? Depressing? Or just incredibly atmospheric? With Saturday Night Fever and Cruising representing two totally different genres, we'll see how much of a boost the disco era Big Apple setting provided. Guest: Andrew.
Mind screw movies keep viewers off guard and constantly wondering. Fake reality plots involving protagonists searching for what's “real” are particularly effective at this. Let's scrutinize the hidden seams in Dark City, The Matrix, and The Thirteenth Floor—who knows what broader existential questions we'll find! Guest: Jon.
Spotlighting Jean-Claude Van Damme! Is the Muscles From Brussels a second-rate Austrian Oak? Is he not as sly as Stallone? Or is JCVD an underappreciated action star that was stuck between those other guys as they sucked all the air out of the room? Via Double Impact, Hard Target, and Sudden Death, we poke fun at the splits, dissect the career, and compliment a guy that embodies the American Dream. Guests: Rob, Pat ...
The Atomic Age was ushered in with an unfortunate bang in World War II and continued into the Cold War with Soviet Russia and the United States at the forefront. Using Five, Godzilla (1954), and On the Beach as time capsules, let us delve into the anxiety of the postwar era when nuclear weapons presented a new threat to the world. Guest: Jon.
Another foreign film dive: West German cinema! The insightful guest—an Army veteran who was actually stationed in the Federal Republic of Germany at the same time the film, Lola (1981), was being made—recounts his time overseas and his impressions of the people and politics of the region. Guest: The Dad!
How well do '90s animated kid's shows hold up? Were they much smarter than comedy cartoons aimed at kids today? We'll try to keep one eye free of the nostalgia glasses and see what—if anything—has changed in over two decades as we revisit Recess, Hey Arnold!, The Ren & Stimpy Show, and Johnny Bravo. How subversive were these shows really? Today's guest provides the dual perspective of a parent and child educator. Guest: Laura.
More Westerns! We had an okay time watching '90s Westerns, so how about a couple even older examples of the genre to help us decide if it's for us or not? Between The Kentuckian and Shoot the Sun Down, we're bound to figure out what's behind this enduring genre. Guest: Max.
A bunch of snot-nosed brats at a summer camp? The horror! Add a killer into the mix and you got something special. And it takes place in the '80s? Then we must be talking about Sleepaway Camp and The Burning! Will the Host—who notoriously is not a horror fanatic—have a good time watching slasher flicks? Maybe... Guests: Sarah & Stacey.
Action flicks can be measured by the speed of bullets, fists, and feet. But how about cars? Spectacular, supersonic car chases on busy metro streets may be unreasonable, but not when they're on a track. Racecars are meant to zoom and increase the adrenaline with every gear shift. Between Le Mans and Rush, we celebrate the cars and the drivers. Guests: Max & Jon.
To usher in Season Four, the Host waxes commentary on obsolete home media: LaserDisc! Does he have some good points, or is he full of crap? If talking about a dead format isn't appealing, there are also short reviews on Nell and Philadelphia—both '90s dramas and, coincidentally, feature courtroom scenes (though Nell spends very little time before a judge).
A review within a few weeks of a film coming out?! Yup, that's how much the Host loves the Mission: Impossible franchise. In this episode, we do a minor spoiler discussion of Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning, Part One. Hopefully, if you were on the fence, this'll convince you to see it before it leaves theaters. Keep an eye out for a spoiler filled recommendation for when (if) Part Two comes out. Guests: Andrew & Jon.
Possibly the last word on the subject of musicals on TSC, let's make Stacey—an everyman who shrugs at musicals—go through a song and dance number filled aneurysm with Singin' in the Rain and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. One's old. One's new. Which movie did he like more? (The answer may surprise you!) Guests: Andrea, Jon & Stacey.
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