Best F2fpod Podcasts (2025)

"Double-Shafted September" concludes with our look at Shaft, the second reboot of Shaft, following Shaft. Yeah, ok, this is pretty confusing without the years, isn't it? Just to be clear, this is the 2019 version, another attempt to kick-start a version of the franchise with Samuel L. Jackson as John Shaft, Jr. But this time, he's not alone, as the…

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Episode 129 - Shaft (2000) 1:39:52

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1M ago1:39:52

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Are you ready to be shafted? No? Well, how about...double-shafted?? Cause we're kicking off "Double-Shafted September," a two-episode series dedicated to both attempts to relaunch the iconic Blaxploitation franchise that started with 1971's Shaft. First up, we're looking at 2000's Shaft (yep, same name), directed by John Singleton, and starring Hol…

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Episode 128 - The Garbage Pail Kids Movie (1987) 1:19:56

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Here it is! It's all been building to this! The epic conclusion of "Summer Surprise," and one of our most anticipated....err, or should we say dreaded episodes yet! That's right, it's 1987's The Garbage Pail Kids, based on the controversial, extremely popular, '80s Topps trading card set parodying the mega-successful Cabbage Patch Kids dolls. How d…

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Episode 127 - The House with a Clock in its Walls (2018) 1:32:40

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"Summer Surprise" continues with...what's this? Another witch movie?? That's right, but this one has a hell of a pedigree. A family dark-fantasy romp from Steven Spielberg's Amblin Entertainment, starring Jack Black and Cate Blanchett, and directed by...Eli Roth?? Huh. So how did the infamous filmmaker behind such extreme horror hits as Cabin Fever…

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Episode 126 - I Spy (2002) 1:22:13

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The "Summer Surprise" randomizer brings us yet another classic TV show turned big-budget movie, this time with a look at 2002's I Spy, a groundbreaking dramatic spy series from the '60s starring Robert Culp and Bill Cosby, now re-imagined as an action-comedy big-screen adventure starring Owen Wilson and Eddie Murphy. The cinematic I Spy clearly fai…

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Episode 125 - Beautiful Creatures (2013) 1:29:07

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"Summer Surprise" rolls along, and this time around our online randomizer has chosen a film from perhaps our most dreaded cinematic genre - a "supernatural romance" YA adaptation! That's right, 2013's Beautiful Creatures was another studio attempt to cash-in on and replicate the success of Twilight, and upon its release it was roundly dismissed as …

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Episode 124 - Elvira: Mistress of the Dark (1988) 1:41:54

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"Summer Surprise," our annual event where an online randomizer picks our slate of summer movies, kicks off with 1988's attempt to turn the iconic TV horror hostess Elvira into an iconic big screen star...which, obviously, didn't quite work out. But why? With Elvira-mania in full swing in the 80s, what kept the spooky and goofy comedy of Elvira: Mis…

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Episode 123 - Tekken (2009/2010/2011???) 1:25:16

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"Fighting VideoLAMES" concludes, with a look at the adaptation at one of the most popular, financially successful fighting game franchises in the world. But even that pedigree wasn't enough to save the movie from a lengthy struggle to even get released. Disregarded by many fans upset over changes to the source material, and equally disavowed by the…

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Episode 122 - DOA: Dead or Alive (2006) w/ Special Guest: Jackie Charniga 2:06:06

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"Fighting VideoLAMES" continues with a look at the adaptation of Tecmo's Dead or Alive video game franchise. The games, about an international martial arts tournament put on by a mysterious, potentially sinister corporation, are known not only for their fast-paced hand-to-hand combat and colorful roster of characters, but also for their focus on be…

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Episode 121 - Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li (2009) 1:31:12

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For the latest installment of "Fighting VideoLAMES," we're looking at Capcom's second attempt to bring their beloved Street Fighter II to the big screen. Far from the silly, colorful spectacle of the JCVD/Raul Julia version, this time around Capcom opted for a more grounded, dramatic take, focusing primarily one single Street Fighter character in h…

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Episode 120 - Street Fighter (1994) 1:41:16

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We're kicking off "Fighting VideoLAMES," a four-episode series covering cinematic adaptions of fighting video-games, with the first of two movies based on one of the most iconic, popular fighting games of all time: 1994's Street Fighter. With an all-star cast including Jean Claude Van Damme and Raul Julia (in his final onscreen appearance), produce…

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Episode 119 - Spenser Confidential (2020) 1:25:53

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"Mark WahlTURD & the Yucky Bunch" concludes, as the singer-turned-actor-turned-business-mogul and his frequent collaborator, director Peter Berg, leave behind the growing unpredictability of theatrical box office for the apparent comfort and safety (and big paydays) of the streaming world. But even there, you're not entirely safe from the perils of…

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Episode 118 - Mile 22 (2018) 1:21:54

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The third installment of "Mark WahlTURD & the Yucky Bunch" jumps ahead 15 years to 2018, where Mark Wahlberg, now very much a movie star, is looking to team up with director Peter Berg, his recent favorite collaborator, for a new espionage action thriller. But it's a rocky road to get there, as the movie in question was originally developed as a po…

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Episode 117 - The Italian Job (2003) 1:42:17

7M ago1:42:17

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"Mark WahlTURD & the Yucky Bunch" rolls along into 2003, when a much-in-need-of-a-comeback Mark Wahlberg decided to hop on the then popular trend of remaking classic '60s heist movies, with a modern update of the beloved Michael Caine crime caper The Italian Job. Here, Wahlberg and a crew of fellow eccentric thieves (a "funky bunch," if you will) s…

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Episode 116 - Planet of the Apes (2001) 1:59:59

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Here at Failure to Franchise, we don’t like making fun of actors. So trust us when we say our new theme, “Mark WalhTURD and the Yucky Bunch,” dedicated to four failed franchise starters from Boston rapper-turned-actor Mark Wahlberg, is, uh, a tribute. First up, 2001’s Planet of the Apes remake, which was meant to be Wahlberg’s first foray into mega…

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Episode 115 - Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit (2014) 1:37:36

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"FebruaRYAN" concludes with a look at 2014's Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit. Twelve years after The Sum of All Fears failed to reignite the Jack Ryan franchise, Paramount tried once again to tell a new Ryan origin story, with a new "hot young star of the moment" leading man in the role. But this particular Ryan movie arrived in a post-MCU world, when th…

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Episode 114 - The Sum of All Fears (2002) 1:42:34

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It's out with January, and in with "FebruaRYAN." That's right, this month we're taking a look at Tom Clancy's beloved CIA analyst turned reluctant hero, Jack Ryan. After the successes of The Hunt for Red October, with Alec Baldwin as Ryan, and Patriot Games and Clear and Present Danger, which saw Harrison Ford take over the role, Paramount Pictures…

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Episode 113 - Mutant Chronicles (2008) 1:31:08

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"The Mutant GENEuary" wraps up with a movie that is very much not a YA adaptation. In fact, Mutant Chronicles is the long-awaited cinematic adaptation of a popular table-top RPG and video game franchise. After several abandoned attempts to make a big budget studio version of the property, starting in the 90s, fans were finally delivered an independ…

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Episode 112 - The New Mutants (2020) w/ Days of Future Podcast: Examining the X-Men 1:46:37

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It's a new year, and a new theme! We're transforming - or should we say "mutating" - the month of January into "The Mutant Gene-uary!" That's right, a month dedicated to mutants, and we're kicking it off with 2020's The New Mutants, the last film released from the original regime of the 20th Century Fox X-Men franchise. Based on a popular X-Men spi…

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Episode 111 - Power Rangers (2017) 1:49:26

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"It's Poddin' Time! We're closing out "Failure to Franchise presents Trev & Chris-tmas" with Trev's gift to Chris - a chance to revisit 2017's big-screen blockbuster reboot of Power Rangers. With a team of up-and-coming young actors as the titular heroes, and a couple Hollywood heavy hitters backing them up in supporting roles - including one with …

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Episode 110 - Monster Trucks (2017) 1:33:23

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It's once again the most holly, jolly time of the year - "Failure to Franchise presents Trev and Chris-tmas," when we gift each other movies off our long F2F list that we might otherwise not be getting to anytime soon. First up, Chris gifts Trev a notorious box-office and critical flop that Trev has nonetheless always wanted to see ever since it fi…

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Success to Series #5 - The 'Final Destination' Franchise 1:29:51

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In the return of our "Success to Series" spin-off show, we're taking a look at one of the most popular and unique horror franchises of the 2000s, Final Destination. What is it about the series' pitch-black humor and overly-elaborate death scenes that we find so amusing? We try to get to the bottom of this question, while also exploring the original…

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Episode 109 - The Bone Collector (1999) 1:48:31

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"Noyce-vember," our month-long tribute to journeyman director Phillip Noyce, concludes! So how did Noyce follow up the disappointment of 1997's The Saint (which we looked at last time), you ask? Simple - by recruiting one of Hollywood's biggest stars, Denzel Washington, teaming him with a young starlet on the brink of mega-stardom named Angelina Jo…

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Episode 108 - The Saint (1997) 1:31:35

11M ago1:31:35

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Here at Failure to Franchise, we love a dependable journeyman. And that's why we're kicking off "Noyce-vember," a one month tribute to one of Hollywood's (well, technically, Australia's) most unsung journeymen directors, Phillip Noyce. First up, his 1997 adaptation of The Saint, a popular vigilante character who had already graced the world of lite…

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Episode 107 - The Adventures of Tintin (2011) 1:31:06

12M ago1:31:06

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An iconic character, beloved around the world. A fairly successful box-office haul. And a creative team including Steven Moffat, Edgar Wright, Joe Cornish, Kathleen Kennedy, Peter Jackson, and Steven freakin' Spielberg!! What the hell is this movie doing on our show?! That's what we're here to figure out, as "Animation (3D)evastation" concludes wit…

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Episode 106 - Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within (2001) 1:26:27

1y ago1:26:27

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It's a long held belief in Hollywood that, with only a few exceptions, cinematic adaptations of video games just don't work. So perhaps it's not surprising that the makers of the first big-screen Final Fantasy movie in 2001 thought it would be more beneficial to concentrate on at least creating a groundbreaking technological achievement, rather tha…

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Episode 105 - The Road to El Dorado (2000) 1:12:08

1y ago1:12:08

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Our "Animation (2D)evastation" month concludes with The Road to El Dorado, Dreamworks Animation's 2000 attempt not only to pay tribute to the classic Bob Hope & Bing Crosby Road To... movies of the past, but also - more importantly - try to beat Disney at their own game with a rollicking, animated musical adventure. And they even went the distance …

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Episode 104 - Doug's 1st Movie (1999) 1:18:45

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"Animation (2D)evastation," a month dedicated to two 2D animated failed franchise starters, kicks off with a look at 1999's Doug's 1st Movie. Based on Doug, the hit series that started as one of the original "Nicktoons" on Nickelodeon, before being bought by Disney and moving to Disney for its later seasons, Doug's 1st Movie was an attempt to see i…

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Episode 103 - Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (2016) 1:19:16

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We're wrapping up our "Summer Surprise" series with an unexpectedly timely episode. With Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice coming soon, we're taking a look at one of director Tim Burton's lesser remembered films, one that certainly didn't get a sequel (duh). This YA lit adaptation (shudder) is essentially Burton's riff on the X-Men, as Eva Green does her be…

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Episode 102 - Child's Play (2019) 1:28:02

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"Summer Surprise" continues, with our look at the 2019 reboot of the popular, long-running Child's Play/Chucky franchise. But unlike most reboots, this one had an interesting wrinkle; it was done at a time when the filmmakers behind the original Chucky franchise still had every intention of keeping their series going, as well. So how did this attem…

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Episode 101 - Leon: The Professional (1994) 1:32:47

1y ago1:32:47

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Our annual "Summer Surprise" series, in which our movies are chosen by an online randomizer, kicks off, with F2F's second Luc Besson. We both loved The Fifth Element, but what do we think of Besson's more grounded, earthbound, 1994 hitman action-thriller, Leon: The Professional? Remembered as the cinematic debut of a young Natalie Portman, and for …

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Episode ONE HUNDRED - A Look Back (2020 to Now) 1:29:55

1y ago1:29:55

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Just because the movies we watch might be considered "failures," doesn't mean the same can be said for our podcast! That's right, it's our 100th episode, a special look back at four year's worth of covering Hollywood mistakes, missteps, and misfires. To celebrate the occasion, we've each picked our favorite movies and performances from the 99 films…

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Episode Ninety-Nine - Land of the Lost (2009) 1:34:25

1+ y ago1:34:25

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"Summer Sweeps" concludes, with a look at Universal's 2009 attempt to launch another series of big-budget dinosaur adventure movies. This time, they turned to a cult-classic 70s television series from famed producers and puppeteers, Sid & Marty Krofft. But by giving the movie a comedic bent the show never had, and by trading in the practical FX of …

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Episode Ninety-Eight - Get Smart (2008) 1:23:12

1+ y ago1:23:12

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"Summer Sweeps" rolls right along, as we turn our attention to the cinematic adaptation of Get Smart, the popular 60s television spy-spoof from comic legends Mel Brooks and Buck Henry. For the movie version, Hollywood recruited heavy-hitters such as Steve Carrell, Anne Hathaway, Alan Arkin, and even Dwayne "Franchise Viagra" Johnson, and were rewar…

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Episode Ninety-Seven - Miami Vice (2006) 1:38:51

1+ y ago1:38:51

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"Summer Sweeps" rolls on, with our look at Michael Mann's 2006 adaptation of his classic '80s detective series, Miami Vice. Coming back to the property that played a big part in making his Hollywood career, and doing so with a recently minted movie star in Colin Farrell and recent Academy Award winner Jamie Foxx, probably seemed like a can't-lose s…

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Episode Ninety-Six - The Mod Squad (1999) 1:25:26

1+ y ago1:25:26

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Our "Summers Sweep" look at failed movie adaptations of classic TV series continues, with one of the more "movies that time forgot" entries we've ever covered: the 1999 update of the late 60s/early 70s, "youth-delinquents-turned-undercover-cops" detective series, The Mod Squad. Despite an impressive cast - including Claire Danes, Omar Epps, Giovann…

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Episode Ninety-Five - The Avengers (1998) 1:26:34

1+ y ago1:26:34

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May is here, and that means it's time for "Summer Sweeps," a five-episode look at failed cinematic adaptations of classic television series. First up, The Avengers. No, not those Avengers! We're talking about the 1998 attempted-blockbuster, starring Ralph Fiennes, Uma Thurman, and Sean Connery, based on the cult-classic British spy action-comedy se…

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Episode Ninety-Four - Evil Dead (2013) 1:35:12

1+ y ago1:35:12

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"Evil Easter" concludes, with a look at 2013's Evil Dead...uhhh, remake? Reboot? Re-imagining? Look, whatever you want to call it, it's another movie where a bunch of kids in a cabin get murdered by demonic forces, okay? The question is, without the franchise's beloved, iconic leading man, Bruce Campbell, and with series director Sam Raimi now just…

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Episode Ninety-Three - Evilspeak (1981) 1:19:16

1+ y ago1:19:16

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Our "Evil Easter" month kicks off with Evilspeak, from 1981...or, uh, 1982. Look, we'll explain. All you need to know is this a Satanic Panic-fueled story of a bullied young cadet at a military academy who uses an Apple II computer to translate the Latin passages in a mysterious old book he finds, in the process allowing demonic forces to take over…

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Episode Ninety-Two - Dragon Wars: D-War (2007) 1:16:12

1+ y ago1:16:12

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"Monster March Madness" concludes with our look at 2007's totally-normal-named Dragon Wars: D-War, the first South Korean film to receive a wide theatrical release in North America! Wow, with a fact like that, it must be something special, right? Well, yeah, sorta...just not in the way you might think. Join us as we discuss the film's, uh, interest…

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Episode Ninety-One - Godzilla (1998) w/ The Kaiju Transmissions Podcast 1:57:17

1+ y ago1:57:17

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We're kicking off "Monster March Madness," a month dedicated to giant monster movies, with one of the biggest movies (literally) we've looked at yet, the first American attempt at adapting Godzilla as a Hollywood blockbuster. The Japanese Godzilla series is one of the longest-running, most successful film franchises in cinema history. So what could…

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Episode Ninety - A.X.L. (2018) 1:20:17

1+ y ago1:20:17

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"FRIENDruary" concludes, with our look at the 2018 robotic-dog movie that we swear actually exists! No, really! Based on a Kickstarter-funded short film, A.X.L. is yet another movie that combines robo-dogs with the gritty world of off-road motorbike racing. But even if you're sick of that old chestnut, maybe you'll like it more with a little helpin…

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Episode Eighty-Nine - Mac and Me (1988) 1:17:53

1+ y ago1:17:53

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We're kicking off "FRIENDruary" with a look at Paul Rudd's "favorite" movie, 1988's Mac & Me. Both a shameless rip-off of Steven Spielberg's E.T. AND a shameless fast-food commercial disguised as a movie, Mac & Me is that special sort of crazy that only Hollywood in the 80s could give us. Over the years, it's developed quite the cult following, but…

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Episode Eighty-Eight - Punisher: War Zone (2008) 1:50:57

1+ y ago1:50:57

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The "New Year's Punishment Party" concludes, with our look at 2008's Punisher: War Zone, Frank Castle's final big-screen adventure (to date). In the wake of 2004's Punisher film, attempts were made to create a sequel starring Thomas Jane, but over time the project evolved into a brand-new reboot with a different (and controversial) director, differ…

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Episode Eighty-Seven - The Punisher (2004) 1:46:22

1+ y ago1:46:22

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The "New Year's Punishment Party" continues, as we take a look at the second big-screen Punisher adaptation, from 2004, starring Thomas Jane and John Travolta. Made as the character was enjoying a second-wave of popularity in the comics world, and produced right on the cusp of the incoming box-office and cultural dominance of comic-book movies, The…

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Episode Eighty-Six - The Punisher (1989) 1:16:25

2y ago1:16:25

1:16:25

Failure to Franchise is kicking off 2024 with our "New Year's Punishment Party!" No, it's not a weird S&M thing, ya freaks! Instead, we're spending January looking at not one, not two, but three failed attempts to start a movie franchise based on one of Marvel Comics most popular (and problematic) characters, Frank Castle, AKA the violent vigilante…

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Episode Eighty-Five - The Thomas Crown Affair (1999) 1:36:20

2y ago1:36:20

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The third annual "Failure to Franchise Presents Trev and Chris-Mas" wraps up (see what I did there?) with a look at 1999's The Thomas Crown Affair, a remake of the 1968 classic heist movie starring Steve McQueen and Faye Dunaway. This time around, the titular main character is played by Pierce Brosnan, taking a break from his then current role as J…

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Episode Eighty-Four - The Nice Guys (2016) 1:20:29

2y ago1:20:29

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The Third Annual "Failure to Franchise Presents: Trev & Chris-Tmas" kicks off with Trev's present for Chris - a critically acclaimed but audience-ignored neo-noir comic crime-thriller from a celebrated screenwriter and starring two beloved movie stars. So why the heck did The Nice Guys sink like a fish at the box office in 2016? We're here to try t…

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Episode Eighty-Three - The Flash (2023) 1:44:08

2y ago1:44:08

1:44:08

Our "DCPU" series concludes, with the most recent movie we have ever covered! That's right, we're going all the way back to, uh, earlier this year, for an in-depth look at the looong-in-the-works superhero epic, The Flash. Why are we already so confident this one will be a non-starter? Well, between the change in DC cinema leadership since its rele…