FilmWeek

LAist 89.3 | Southern California Public Radio

4.3 (307)
TV & FILM
UPDATED WEEKLY

FilmWeek on AirTalk, hosted by Larry Mantle, is a one-hour weekly segment devoted to films. It offers reviews of the week's new movies, interviews with filmmakers, and discussions on various aspects of the industry.

12/24/2025

FilmWeek: ‘Marty Supreme,’ ‘Song Sung Blue,’ ‘No Other Choice,’ and more!

Larry Mantle and LAist film critics Amy Nicholson and Manuel Betancourt review this weekend’s latest movie releases in theaters and on streaming platforms. Films: Marty Supreme Wide Release Song Sung Blue Wide Release No Other Choice In Select Theaters|Expands January The Testament of Ann Lee In Select Theaters|Expands January Anaconda Wide Release The Plague At Select Laemmle Theater locations|Expands Wide Jan 2 Goodbye June Streaming on Netflix Father Mother Sister Brother Landmark Nuart Theater [West LA]|Expands Jan. 9 The Choral AMC Burbank & Laemmle Royal [West LA]|Expands to select theaters Jan. 15

50 min
12/19/2025

Feature: Director Hikari and star Brendan Fraser on their film Rental Family

Rental Family explores the unique phenomena of Japanese rental family agencies through an underemployed American actor living in Tokyo. Anchored by Brendan Fraser’s empathetic performance, Rental Family explores the lyricism of loneliness and the solace we can find in connection. Joining Larry to talk about Rental Family are director and co-writer of the film HIKARI and lead actor Brendan Fraser. Visit www.preppi.com/LAist to receive a FREE Preppi Emergency Kit (with any purchase over $100) and be prepared for the next wildfire, earthquake or emergency .

22 min
12/19/2025

FilmWeek: ‘Avatar: Fire and Ash,’ ‘The Housemaid,’ and more!

Larry Mantle and LAist film critics Tim Cogshell, Peter Rainer, and Charles Solomon review this weekend’s latest movie releases in theaters and on streaming platforms. Films: Avatar: Fire and Ash, Wide Release The Housemaid, Wide Release The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants, Wide Release Is This Thing On?, In Select Theaters The Voice of Hind Rajab, Laemmle Royal [West LA] David, Wide Release Franz, Laemmle Monica [Santa Monica] All Operators are Currently Unavailable, Laemmle NoHo Breakdown: 1975, Streaming on Netflix Counting Crows: Have You Seen Me Lately?, Streaming on HBO Max Visit www.preppi.com/LAist to receive a FREE Preppi Emergency Kit (with any purchase over $100) and be prepared for the next wildfire, earthquake or emergency. .

28 min
12/12/2025

FilmWeek: ‘Ella McCay,’ ‘Dust Bunny,’ ‘Rosemead,’ and more!

Larry Mantle and LAist film critics Christy Lemire and Beandrea July review this weekend’s latest movie releases in theaters and on streaming platforms.

35 min
12/12/2025

Feature: The King of Color Documentary

Pantone as a company is synonymous with our ideas around ‘color.’ They set the standard for what we expect “olive green” or “electric blue” to look like. But what about the man behind the iconic Pantone color square, each with a unique I.D. number? In the new documentary The King of Color, director Patrick Creadon focuses on the man who created Pantone’s Matching System, Lawrence Herbert. Creadon joins FilmWeek host Larry Mantle to discuss the legacy of Herbert and how a documentary about a niche subject like color matching gets off the ground. The King of Color is playing at the Regal Paseo theater in Pasadena. Visit www.preppi.com/LAist to receive a FREE Preppi Emergency Kit (with any purchase over $100) and be prepared for the next wildfire, earthquake or emergency .

15 min
12/05/2025

FilmWeek: ‘Five Nights at Freddy's 2,’ ‘The Secret Agent,’ ‘100 Nights of Hero,’ and more!

Larry Mantle and LAist film critics Claudia Puig and Tim Cogshell review this weekend’s latest movie releases in theaters and on streaming platforms. Films: Five Nights at Freddy's 2, Wide Release The Secret Agent, AMC Century City 100 Nights of Hero, Wide Release Fackham Hall, Wide Release The Chronology of Water, Laemmle Royal [West LA] Cutting Through Rocks, Laemmle Royal [West LA]; Laemmle Town Center [Encino] Zodiac Killer Project, Alamo Drafthouse [DTLA]; Laemmle Glendale The Tale of Silyan, Laemmle Monica Jujutsu Kaisen: Execution, Wide Release Man Finds Tape, Alamo Drafthouse [DTLA]; Available on VOD The New Yorker at 100, Streaming on Netflix Visit www.preppi.com/LAist to receive a FREE Preppi Emergency Kit (with any purchase over $100) and be prepared for the next wildfire, earthquake or emergency

36 min
12/05/2025

Feature: Blumhouse and how horror became a box office guarantee

Horror films have been a consistent draw for movie theaters, even in a post-pandemic, streaming world. And one of the most well-known production studios in horror is Blumhouse. The production house came on the scene in 2009 with Paranormal Activity, a low-budget found-footage film that became a smash hit spawning a franchise. Blumhouse would repeat this formula with The Purge and Insidious franchise. Now, Blumhouse is known for its more crowd pleasing scary movies like M3GAN and Five Nights at Freddy’s (with the highly anticipated sequel releasing this week), but the studio has also taken risks on up and coming directors like Jordan Peele and Damien Chazelle. So, how does a horror production house continue to survive and turn a profit in today’s film industry? And why does horror seem to be a safe bet for box office returns. Joining us to discuss the current horror movie landscape is Abhijay Prakash, president of Blumhouse. You can read all about Blumhouse’s rise in their new book Horror’s New Wave: 15 Years of Blumhouse. Visit www.preppi.com/LAist to receive a FREE Preppi Emergency Kit (with any purchase over $100) and be prepared for the next wildfire, earthquake or emergency

14 min
11/26/2025

Feature: The enduring legacy of ‘The Big Lebowski’

For our most recent FilmWeek screening event, where we show quintessential L.A. films across the city, we went to the family-owned Garden Cinema to present the Coen Brothers’ classic The Big Lebowski. The 1998 noir-comedy opened to mixed reviews during its initial release, but has since gained cult status and even mainstream praise. In 2014, it was designated a "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant” film and added to the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress. After the screening, Larry Mantle spoke with LAist FilmWeek critics Christy Lemire and Wade Major about the impact of the film and their personal love for ‘The Dude.’ Visit www.preppi.com/LAist to receive a FREE Preppi Emergency Kit (with any purchase over $100) and be prepared for the next wildfire, earthquake or emergency

15 min

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Larry Mantle

Host

4.3

out of 5

307 Ratings

Love the show but

08/01/2025

AK0008

Can we get the point of view from ONE straight guy? It would balance the reviews out a bit.
Pretty lame

11/08/2025

WhittyWhitty123

The reviewers give overly favorable reviews in an effort to promote Hollywood movies and movie going. The women who’ve been on for years are the worst. I enjoy Tim Cogshell and the animation reviewer — he’s the toughest and the only one on the show deserving the title “critic”— as well as the skilled host Larry Mantel. Otherwise, it’s a wash.
Frustrating show

12/30/2024

AndJusticeForAnimals

I hate to say it, but I cannot listen to it when Tim Cogshell is on. If I see that it’s going to be an all female reviewer show then I will listen, but so often Tim and another reviewer, can’t remember his name, give way too much away and it’s just uncomfortable for me to listen to. I’m an AFI grad, love film, but there are months I won’t listen to this one.
Bro movie talk

06/25/2025

MissionManSF

Sampled the 28 Years Later episode, tuned out after the film was blithely described as Danny Boyle’s first sequel (see Trainspotter 2), and the island of Great Britain as “England”. Dude.

FilmWeek on AirTalk, hosted by Larry Mantle, is a one-hour weekly segment devoted to films. It offers reviews of the week's new movies, interviews with filmmakers, and discussions on various aspects of the industry.