243 episodes
Unspooled Earwolf
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- TV & Film
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4.5 • 146 Ratings
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Listen up, film fans! Actor & comedian Paul Scheer and film critic Amy Nicholson want your advice as they make the ultimate list of the greatest movies of all time. In Season 1, they watched every one of the AFI’s Top 100 films...and decided they could kick off half. Now, they're filling in the gaps by investigating wildly diverse areas of film through miniseries on topics like horror movies, documentaries and romantic comedies, with help from listeners' picks. Along the way, they’ll dissect iconic scenes, spotlight their favorite characters, and talk to some of the actors and directors who worked on these classics. And when Unspooled has built their own list of the best movies on earth, they'll blast them into space to be immortalized for eternity. Seriously.
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Fatal Attraction
Paul & Amy can’t be ignored when discussing 1987’s hair-raising erotic thriller Fatal Attraction! They praise how casting an age-appropriate partner for Michael Douglas changed the power dynamic of their relationship, wonder if the different ‘stages’ of Glenn Close’s Alex ever truly cohere, and ask how director Adrian Lyne intended audiences to react to these characters. Plus: Was the attack in Starship Troopers a false flag all along?
Next week, our Villains series continues with Night Of The Hunter! You can join the conversation for this series on the Unspooled Facebook Group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/unspooledpodcast, and on Paul’s Discord at https://discord.gg/ZwtygZGTa6. Learn more about the show at unspooledpod.com, follow us on Twitter @unspooled and Instagram @unspooledpod, and don’t forget to rate, review & subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher and Spotify. You can also listen to our Stitcher Premium game show Screen Test right now at https://www.stitcher.com/show/unspooled-screen-test and apply to be a contestant at unspooledpod@gmail.com! -
Grease
Paul & Amy know 1978’s retro musical sensation Grease is the word! They praise Stockard Channing’s fiercely independent performance as Rizzo, compare the film to contemporary period piece American Graffiti, and explore the early career of “Plastic Bubble”-boy John Travolta. Plus: revisiting an infamous awards disaster masterminded by Grease producer Allan Carr.
Next week Unspooled continues our series on musicals with Chicago! You can join the conversation for this series on the Unspooled Facebook Group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/unspooledpodcast, and on Paul’s Discord at https://discord.gg/ZwtygZGTa6. Learn more about the show at unspooledpod.com, follow us on Twitter @unspooled and Instagram @unspooledpod, and don’t forget to rate, review & subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher and Spotify. You can also listen to our Stitcher Premium game show Screen Test right now at https://www.stitcher.com/show/unspooled-screen-test, and apply to be a contestant at unspooledpod@gmail.com! -
The Three Musketeers & The Four Musketeers (with Quentin Tarantino and Roger Avary)
Quentin Tarantino and Roger Avary (from The Video Archives Podcast) join Paul & Amy for an unprecedented Unspooled crossover episode! The quartet cross swords with 1973's swashbuckling Alexandre Dumas adaptation The Three Musketeers, and its 1974 sequel, The Four Musketeers. They praise the star-studded cast (especially Oliver Reed and Faye Dunaway), admire director Richard Lester's comic approach that nonetheless sticks faithfully to the novel's plot, and break down what makes a great cinematic sword fight. Plus: Is 3 Musketeers a good candy bar?
Next week, our Heroes & Villains series definitively transitions to Villains with Fatal Attraction! You can join the conversation for this series on the Unspooled Facebook Group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/unspooledpodcast, and on Paul’s Discord at https://discord.gg/ZwtygZGTa6. Learn more about the show at unspooledpod.com, follow us on Twitter @unspooled and Instagram @unspooledpod, and don’t forget to rate, review & subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher and Spotify. You can also listen to our Stitcher Premium game show Screen Test right now at https://www.stitcher.com/show/unspooled-screen-test and apply to be a contestant at unspooledpod@gmail.com! -
Starship Troopers
Paul & Amy fight a new kind of war with 1997’s science fiction action film, Starship Troopers. They dissect the movie’s initially negative reception, show some love for Jake Busey, and consider the underappreciated high-wire act of cinematic satire. Plus: how close did Matt Damon really come to starring in Verhoeven’s film?
Next week, our Heroes series continues with two very special guests and a double feature to match! You can join the conversation for this series on the Unspooled Facebook Group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/unspooledpodcast, and on Paul’s Discord at https://discord.gg/ZwtygZGTa6. Learn more about the show at unspooledpod.com, follow us on Twitter @unspooled and Instagram @unspooledpod, and don’t forget to rate, review & subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher and Spotify. You can also listen to our Stitcher Premium game show Screen Test right now at https://www.stitcher.com/show/unspooled-screen-test and apply to be a contestant at unspooledpod@gmail.com! -
Top 3: Patton Oswalt & Meredith Salenger
Patton Oswalt and Meredith Salenger (hosts of the "Did You Get My Text?" podcast) each tell Paul & Amy three of their favorite romantic films, including a masterful French musical, a high-octane action comedy, and a star-studded showbiz satire.
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RoboCop
Amy & Paul get the future under control with 1987’s Paul Verhoeven dystopian action film RoboCop! They discover how Verhoeven satirized corporate America despite being completely new to American culture, analyze his technique of making violence comical by exaggerating it, and praise Peter Weller for finding the humanity inside the robot suit. Plus: a look back at James Caan’s career.
Next week, we've got a special treat for you as we take a break between our Heroes and Villains series! You can join the conversation for this series on the Unspooled Facebook Group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/unspooledpodcast, and on Paul’s Discord at https://discord.gg/ZwtygZGTa6. Learn more about the show at unspooledpod.com, follow us on Twitter @unspooled and Instagram @unspooledpod, and don’t forget to rate, review & subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher and Spotify. You can also listen to our Stitcher Premium game show Screen Test right now at https://www.stitcher.com/show/unspooled-screen-test, and apply to be a contestant at unspooledpod@gmail.com!
Customer Reviews
So great to enjoy films with extra context
I’ve spent the COVID-19 lockdown living with my parents and we have been watching the AFI top 100 films list. I love this podcast it’s so good to be able to have some context after watching
, especially some of the older films i’m not familiar with. I also love regurgitating all the facts I Learn here from Paul and Amy to my parents the day after listening to the podcast they also really enjoy it secondhand thanks guys.
The woke knowledge of history
Listened to an “analysis” of Lawrence of Arabia, David Lean’s film. I was struck by two things. The knowledge of the real history at the time of T E Lawrence was simply abysmal and the knowledge of the man was similarly appalling. Secondly, the analysis of reality through the psychological lens was distortingly shallow. Could the bells under the cart have had a deeper symbolic meaning than the usual, go to sexual explanation. You lose such a lot of understanding of deeper humanity when you rely on psychobabble and think in base concepts.
Scheer torture
It would probably be ok if not for Scheer who obviously doesn’t like films that much but does love the sound of his own droning, fatuous voice.
The other presenter is a model of patience, always correcting Scheer on facts, interpretation and staying relevant and vaguely interesting.
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