Bad Dads Film Review

Bad Dads
  • 5.0 (16)
  • FILM REVIEWS
  • UPDATED SEMIWEEKLY

Several years ago 4 self confessed movie fanatics ruined their favourite pastime by having children. Now we are telling the world about the movies we missed and the frequently awful kids tv we are now subjected to. We like to think we're funny. Come and argue with us on the social medias. Twitter: @dads_film Facebook: BadDadsFilmReview Instagram: instagram.com/baddadsjsy www.baddadsfilm.com

  1. Midweek Mention... God's Pocket

    22H AGO

    Midweek Mention... God's Pocket

    The crew kicks off Pocket Week with *God's Pocket* and explores whether the film's rough-edged, hyper-local setting works as character drama or just stays grim for grim's sake. What We Covered - Whether this was truly one of Philip Seymour Hoffman's final performances/releases - John Slattery directing, plus the Mad Men crossover cast links - The opening funeral framing and backfill structure - Mickey's terrible decision-making spiral (including spending funeral money on a horse) - The film's violence, cynicism, and lack of clear "good" characters - Tone issues: bleak drama mixed with moments that feel unintentionally funny - Community themes: loyalty, outsider distrust, and "closed" neighborhood culture - Final verdict: moderate recommend Final Verdict Moderate recommend — worth watching for Hoffman and atmosphere, but patchy overall. You can now text us anonymously to leave feedback, suggest future content or simply hurl abuse at us. We'll read out any texts we receive on the show. Click here to try it out! We love to hear from our listeners! By which I mean we tolerate it. If it hasn't been completely destroyed yet you can usually find us on twitter @dads_film, on Facebook Bad Dads Film Review, on email at baddadsjsy@gmail.com or on our website baddadsfilm.com.   Until next time, we remain...   Bad Dads

    25 min
  2. Walkabout

    5D AGO

    Walkabout

    This week, the Dads head into the Australian Outback to review Nicolas Roeg's mesmerizing and dreamlike 1971 survival drama, Walkabout. Dan kicks things off by admitting he completely confused this movie with A Far Off Place, spending the first hour waiting for a dog that was never going to appear. Once the confusion settles, Sidey, Dan, Reegs, and Cris dive deep into this visual masterpiece starring Jenny Agutter, Luc Roeg, and the legendary David Gulpilil. In this episode: - Dan's Kalahari Desert mix-up - The culture clash: modern society vs. indigenous life - Have humans evolved too fast for the modern world? (Cris predicts our WALL-E slug future) - The indestructible nature of 1970s school uniform tights - Why you shouldn't go hiking in formal leather school shoes - The brilliant, almost entirely improvised performances from the young cast - Comparisons to last week's film (Sovereign) on the topic of rejecting modern society Verdict: Strong recommend across the board. A weird, beautiful, and thought-provoking classic. Films/shows mentioned: Walkabout (1971), Sovereign (2025), A Far Off Place (1993), Don't Look Now (1973), The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976), WALL-E (2008), Crocodile Dundee (1986). You can now text us anonymously to leave feedback, suggest future content or simply hurl abuse at us. We'll read out any texts we receive on the show. Click here to try it out! We love to hear from our listeners! By which I mean we tolerate it. If it hasn't been completely destroyed yet you can usually find us on twitter @dads_film, on Facebook Bad Dads Film Review, on email at baddadsjsy@gmail.com or on our website baddadsfilm.com.   Until next time, we remain...   Bad Dads

    34 min
  3. Midweek Mention... The Conspiracy

    APR 8

    Midweek Mention... The Conspiracy

    This week, the Dads pull out the red string and the newspaper clippings to review The Conspiracy (2012), a Canadian found-footage indie thriller written and directed by Christopher MacBride. With Pete away skiing (and tracking his WOD PRs), Sidey, Dan, Reegs, and Cris dive into a mockumentary that blurs the lines between actual historical psy-ops and deep web paranoia. In this episode: - Arsenal injury conspiracies and the truth about international breaks - Terrence, the ultimate tinfoil-hat kook, and his magnificent "murder wall" of newspaper clippings - The psychology of conspiracy theories: why believing a shadowy cabal controls the world is more comforting than accepting chaos - How the film effectively weaves real-world events (9/11, Gulf of Tonkin) into its fictional narrative - The dreaded Tarsus Club and the logistics of crashing an elite secret society dinner (surely they counted the masks?) - The inevitable pivot into Blair Witch meets Eyes Wide Shut in the third act - Tie-clip cameras, blurry faces, and aggressive stabbing sound effects - That deeply unsettling final interview scene Verdict: Strong recommend. A tight, breezy indie thriller that executes its premise well, even if the final act goes a bit off the rails. Films/shows mentioned: The Conspiracy (2012), The Blair Witch Project (1999), Eyes Wide Shut (1999). You can now text us anonymously to leave feedback, suggest future content or simply hurl abuse at us. We'll read out any texts we receive on the show. Click here to try it out! We love to hear from our listeners! By which I mean we tolerate it. If it hasn't been completely destroyed yet you can usually find us on twitter @dads_film, on Facebook Bad Dads Film Review, on email at baddadsjsy@gmail.com or on our website baddadsfilm.com.   Until next time, we remain...   Bad Dads

    22 min
  4. Conspiracies & Sovereign

    APR 3

    Conspiracies & Sovereign

    It's conspiracies week at Bad Dads. All four dads — Sidey, Dan, Reegs and Cris — count down the Top Five Conspiracies before getting to Sovereign (2025), a devastating drama about a father and son in the Sovereign Citizen movement that made $63,000 at the box office and absolutely deserved better. In the Top Five: JFK — Oliver Stone's four-hour masterpiece of the grassy knoll, covered in fullAll the President's Men — Woodward, Bernstein, the paper that's now owned by BezosMichael Clayton — Clooney, Tilda Swinton, Tom Wilkinson going off his medsV for Vendetta — the graphic novel Alan Moore hated adapted by people he also hatedThe Matrix/Moon Landing — Kubrick and the simulation, one or two topicsZoolander — the fashion industry behind every political assassination for 200 yearsBubba Ho-Tep — Elvis, Black JFK, Egyptian mummy. Cris's nom. Correct.Elvis vs Nixon — the real meeting, the badges, the conspiracy of what they said to each otherCOINTELPRO — the real FBI programme that makes the conspiracy theories look tameSidey's friend's COVID/QAnon texts — read in full, genuinely extraordinaryReegs' Conspiracy Quiz: Real or made up? Finland, Denver Airport, Victorian tax avoidance, Tuskegee, government surveillance birds, and Wetherspoons underground tunnels. On Sovereign: Nick Offerman in an unexpected dramatic turn — really big and violentJacob Tremblay as Joe, the son, in what both Reegs and Dan consider career-best workThe Sovereign Citizen movement explained, and the real incident it's based onDennis Quaid as the sheriff whose son is killedMartha Plimpton's brief appearance as a seminar devoteeWhy Joe shoots the police: not madness, but inevitabilityThe baby at the end. You'll understand when you get there.Verdict: Strong recommend all round. Heavy. Almost nobody saw it. One of those films. You can now text us anonymously to leave feedback, suggest future content or simply hurl abuse at us. We'll read out any texts we receive on the show. Click here to try it out! We love to hear from our listeners! By which I mean we tolerate it. If it hasn't been completely destroyed yet you can usually find us on twitter @dads_film, on Facebook Bad Dads Film Review, on email at baddadsjsy@gmail.com or on our website baddadsfilm.com.   Until next time, we remain...   Bad Dads

    1h 3m
  5. Midweek Mention... I Swear

    APR 1

    Midweek Mention... I Swear

    This week Dan and Reegs review I, Swear — the 2025 BAFTA-winning film about John Davidson, the Scotsman with Tourette's syndrome who became an MBE, an advocate, and one of the most compelling biographical subjects in recent cinema. It's just the two of them this episode. There was also a hornet. In this episode: The BAFTA ceremony controversy — what actually happened, why the internet got it wrong, and why the BBC's edit decision was indefensibleJohn Davidson's story from 1983 Galashiels to an MBE at the Palace, in a film that is simultaneously hilarious and devastatingScott Ellis Watson's extraordinary debut performance as young JohnWhy this film works when so many "inspirational" biopics don'tTommy — the elderly caretaker who becomes the father figure John never hadDottie — the woman who simply decided to accept him, no apologies requiredThe drug mule scene ("half price heroin for sale")The library scene — why a man walking quietly through a library might be the best cinematic climax of the yearThe median nerve stimulation device and what it means for people living with Tourette'sThe real John Davidson footage over the credits — including his dog, who may be the most emotionally intelligent character in the whole filmVerdict: Strong recommend. Both dads in tears. Multiple times. Not ashamed. Notes: Adult language throughout. This is a film about Tourette's. That should tell you everything you need to know going in. Films/shows mentioned: I, Swear (2025), Sinners (2025 — Michael B. Jordan's Oscar win referenced) You can now text us anonymously to leave feedback, suggest future content or simply hurl abuse at us. We'll read out any texts we receive on the show. Click here to try it out! We love to hear from our listeners! By which I mean we tolerate it. If it hasn't been completely destroyed yet you can usually find us on twitter @dads_film, on Facebook Bad Dads Film Review, on email at baddadsjsy@gmail.com or on our website baddadsfilm.com.   Until next time, we remain...   Bad Dads

    40 min
  6. Secretaries & Secretary

    MAR 27

    Secretaries & Secretary

    This week the dads work late for Steven Shainberg's Secretary (2002) — one of the more unusual love stories in American independent cinema, and almost certainly the most interesting thing James Spader has ever worn a tie for. But first: a very thorough Top Five Secretaries list. Dolly Parton, Mad Men, Ghostbusters, Batman Returns, The Simpsons, Beetlejuice, Moneypenny through all her iterations, and the West Wing. It's a good one. Top Five highlights: Doralee Rhodes (Dolly Parton) from 9 to 5Joan Holloway and Peggy Olson from Mad Men — a deliberate twoferSelina Kyle — Michelle Pfeiffer, one take with the whip, iconicMoneypenny through every era — Lois Maxwell to Naomi HarrisSmithers from The Simpsons — unsalaried, devoted, above and beyondMiss Argentina, the green receptionist in the afterlife from BeetlejuiceDawn/Pam from the UK and US Office — both great, discussed togetherMrs Landingham from The West WingMiss Teschmacher from SupermanOn the main feature: Dan tried to watch it with his family. The first scene resolved that very quickly.A surprisingly thoughtful and sensitive portrayal of BDSM — and why it works where 50 Shades doesn'tMaggie Gyllenhaal and James Spader both doing career-best workAngelo Badalamenti's score — unusual, rhythmically strange, perfectWhether trading one form of self-harm for another is complex, or just complicated, or bothThe three-day chair scene — and why it's the emotional heart of the filmAlso in this episode: a recent Wu-Tang Clan gig (GZA didn't show, QR codes were aggressively promoted), Barcelona, and Sidey's assessment of the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Verdict: Strong recommend. Surprisingly tender. Genuinely unlike anything else. Note: Adult content. Not suitable for family viewing. The dads learned this the hard way. Cast & crew discussed: Maggie Gyllenhaal, James Spader, Angelo Badalamenti, Steven Shainberg You can now text us anonymously to leave feedback, suggest future content or simply hurl abuse at us. We'll read out any texts we receive on the show. Click here to try it out! We love to hear from our listeners! By which I mean we tolerate it. If it hasn't been completely destroyed yet you can usually find us on twitter @dads_film, on Facebook Bad Dads Film Review, on email at baddadsjsy@gmail.com or on our website baddadsfilm.com.   Until next time, we remain...   Bad Dads

    1h 11m
  7. Midweek Mention... Basic Instinct

    MAR 25

    Midweek Mention... Basic Instinct

    This week the dads tackle Paul Verhoeven's infamous erotic thriller — the fourth highest-grossing film of 1992 and quite possibly the most rewound VHS tape in rental shop history. Basic Instinct turns 33 this year, and it's still just as wild as you remember. In this episode: The legendary interrogation scene and the great Wayne Knight sweating debateWhether Sharon Stone knew — and whether Paul Verhoeven is telling the truthNick Curran: the "anti-Columbo" and arguably cinema's least heroic heroWhy Michael Douglas was paid $14 million and Sharon Stone got half a millionVerhoeven's Hitchcock obsession and the Vertigo parallels hiding in plain sightThe ambiguous ending, the ice pick under the bed, and whether the sequel tells us anythingLGBTQ+ representation and the bisexual villain problemThe 2001 collector's edition DVD that came with a replica ice pickSharon Stone's Barbie film pitch, and why it never happenedVerdict: Strong recommend. Ludicrous, overwrought, problematic in places — and still absolutely compelling. Films mentioned: Basic Instinct (1992), Basic Instinct 2 (2006), Vertigo (1958) Cast & crew discussed: Sharon Stone, Michael Douglas, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Wayne Knight, Paul Verhoeven, Jerry Goldsmith You can now text us anonymously to leave feedback, suggest future content or simply hurl abuse at us. We'll read out any texts we receive on the show. Click here to try it out! We love to hear from our listeners! By which I mean we tolerate it. If it hasn't been completely destroyed yet you can usually find us on twitter @dads_film, on Facebook Bad Dads Film Review, on email at baddadsjsy@gmail.com or on our website baddadsfilm.com.   Until next time, we remain...   Bad Dads

    26 min
  8. Ballad of a Small Player & Gardens

    MAR 13

    Ballad of a Small Player & Gardens

    This week Sidey, Dan, and Cris fly solo — Simon's been called to Southampton on urgent business (he was spotted in a pub surrounded by tea cups, so make of that what you will).  The dads are reviewing Ballad of a Small Player (2024), the new Netflix film from Edward Berger — the director behind All Quiet on the Western Front and Conclave — starring a very much on-form Colin Farrell.  The Film: Colin Farrell plays Lord Doyle, a dissolute British gambler drowning in debt in the casinos of Macau — and if you thought Vegas was the gambling capital of the world, think again. Doyle owes 352,000 Hong Kong dollars to the house, is blagging his way past the front desk in a crumpled cravat, and somehow still looks magnificent.  He falls in with a mysterious young woman at the Baccarat tables, and from there the film slides into gorgeous, ambiguous territory — is she real? Is any of this? And does it even matter when the rush of the bet is the only thing that feels true? Themes of addiction, redemption, obsession, and the question of whether you can ever really stop — all wrapped in the stylised, sun-drenched visual language of Macau's casino underworld.  The lads give it two words each: "All in" (Dan), "Bizarre but funny" (Cris), and "Strong recommend" (Sidey). Consensus: go watch it.  Top Five: Gardens The boys dig into their favourite cinematic, televisual, musical, and gaming gardens. From the gnome in Amélie and David Lynch's suburban lawn horror in Blue Velvet, to the brutal communal fields of Midsommar, Spirited Away's otherworldly beauty, and the garden in Saltburn that had certain members of the pod seeing quite a lot of a particular actor. Wonka's chocolate garden gets a nod, as does Miss Peregrine's hedge-portal to another time.  Sidey & Reegs are also going to see Wu-Tang Clan at the O2. Protect ya neck.  You can now text us anonymously to leave feedback, suggest future content or simply hurl abuse at us. We'll read out any texts we receive on the show. Click here to try it out! We love to hear from our listeners! By which I mean we tolerate it. If it hasn't been completely destroyed yet you can usually find us on twitter @dads_film, on Facebook Bad Dads Film Review, on email at baddadsjsy@gmail.com or on our website baddadsfilm.com.   Until next time, we remain...   Bad Dads

    54 min
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5
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About

Several years ago 4 self confessed movie fanatics ruined their favourite pastime by having children. Now we are telling the world about the movies we missed and the frequently awful kids tv we are now subjected to. We like to think we're funny. Come and argue with us on the social medias. Twitter: @dads_film Facebook: BadDadsFilmReview Instagram: instagram.com/baddadsjsy www.baddadsfilm.com

Information

  • Creator
    Bad Dads
  • Years Active
    2019 - 2026
  • Episodes
    602
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Bad Dads Film Review
  • Show Website
    Bad Dads Film Review

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