Contending at the Water Cooler

Clarence Moye, Megan McLachlan, Joey Moser
  • 4.3 (6)
  • Film Reviews
  • Updated Weekly

A weekly look at the entertainment landscape from The Contending.

  1. 5d ago

    Is It ‘Disclosure Day’ Already? We Can’t Handle the Truth!

    It’s a hot (and spoiler-filled) one at the Water Cooler this week: Megan, Joey, and Clarence face off on Steven Spielberg’s Disclosure Day.  Steven Spielberg remains one of history’s greatest and most influential directors. Audiences tend to pay attention when he tackles the question of whether or not we’re alone. In the grand scheme of “alone.” Aliens, we’re talking about aliens. War of the Worlds. ET. Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Spielberg has aliens on the brain, and he returns to the territory in Disclosure Day, starring Josh O’Connor, Emily Blunt, Colin Firth, and Colman Domingo. Yet, Disclosure Day isn’t really a film about aliens, which may have contributed to this weekend’s rampant pile-on on the merits of a Spielberg film. In this week’s SPOILER-FILLED podcast, we review Disclosure Day and discuss what works, what doesn’t work, and what the film is really about. We close our podcast, as always, with the Flash Forward to the media we’re most anticipating in the upcoming week. We’re deeply appreciative for your shares, likes, and positive ratings on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Click here to listen to our audio podcast. Our video podcast follows below!     Royalty Free Music from Tunetank.com Track: Here We Go! by cinematic alex https://tunetank.com/track/802-here-we-go/ The post Is It ‘Disclosure Day’ Already? We Can’t Handle the Truth! appeared first on The Contending.

    1h 1m

  2. 5d ago

    Marisa Abela on Yasmin’s Devastating Journey Through Four Seasons of ‘Industry’

    David Phillips meets with Industry’s Marisa Abela to discuss the series’ development and her personal growth as an actor. HBO’s Industry started out as a sharply written, crisply shot, and boldly performed cult show that may not have had a huge audience, but those who tuned in were ardent followers. While the show seemed destined to maintain its cult following, viewership took off during season three and reached even higher ratings during season four. As industry has become a more high-profile show, so have its stars. On this special edition of the Watercooler podcast, The Contending’s David Phillips speaks with one of the show’s leads, Marisa Abela, who plays Yasmin, a young woman who started out as a financial trader at the London investment bank Pierpoint. Born into privilege, Yasmin suffers from imposter syndrome, and her sense of desperation leads to choices that harm others and herself. In season four, Yasmin’s fear and insecurity come to a head, and as the season finale plays out, she is found in a far darker place than where she began in season one. Marisa Abela, an Emmy contender for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama, gives one of the most persuasive performances of the year. The depth and complexity of her character have challenged Abela, and she has met the standard at every turn. Abela joins the Watercooler to discuss her growth as an actor and how much playing Yasmin has asked of her. Click here to listen to our full audio podcast with Industry star Marisa Abela. A video clip from our interview follows below! The post Marisa Abela on Yasmin’s Devastating Journey Through Four Seasons of ‘Industry’ appeared first on The Contending.

  3. Jun 2

    Do We Have An ‘Obsession’ with Elle Fanning’s ‘Money Troubles’? [VIDEO]

    Joey and Megan finally weigh in with their Obsession reaction and dip their toes into Margot’s Got Money Troubles. There’s no doubt about it: everyone is talking about Curry Barker’s Obsession. The $750,000 film has made boatloads of cash since it debuted last week, and horror on a budget has had quite the run these last few weeks. Megan and Joey dissect who is the film’s true villain, and Megan relates Barker’s vision to “nice guy tropes” in the current dating world. Can we enjoy this kind of horror on face value, or is it better to obsessively dive in as deep as possible? Find out all this and more in our Obsession reaction podcast! We then shift gears to Apple TV’s Margot’s Got Money Troubles and debate whether we think the David E. Kelley series leans more comedy or drama. How will this adaptation fare in this season’s Emmy race? Where is the tip button? Can we bundle 3 seasons for a discounted monthly rate, or… We close our podcast, as always, with the Flash Forward to the media we’re most anticipating in the upcoming week. We’re deeply appreciative for your shares, likes, and positive ratings on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Click here to listen to our audio podcast. Our video podcast follows below!     Royalty Free Music from Tunetank.com Track: Here We Go! by cinematic alex https://tunetank.com/track/802-here-we-go/  The post Do We Have An ‘Obsession’ with Elle Fanning’s ‘Money Troubles’? [VIDEO] appeared first on The Contending.

    49 min

  4. May 27

    Emmys 2026: ‘Marty, Life Is Short,’ ‘Crash’ Bring the Docu Drama

    The Emmy 2026 documentary landscape includes two buzzy Netflix documentaries: the touching Marty, Life is Short and the viral The Crash. The 2026 Emmy documentary landscape includes the typically wide array of potential contenders. Netflix added to the pile with two buzzy titles that recently debuted. Marty, Life is Short lovingly explores the career and personal life of Martin Short, one of our most beloved comic figures. It faces stiff competition to fill that “classic Hollywood celeb” slot from docs focused on Mel Brooks, Jayne Mansfield, and the legendary comic duo of Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara. On the true crime front, the more straightforward The Crash became a viral sensation. That’s partially due its main subject (Mackenzie Shirilla) and her influencer-focused social media presence. We chat about both documentaries and the broader Emmy documentary landscape. We close our podcast, as always, with the Flash Forward to the media we’re most anticipating in the upcoming week. We’re deeply appreciative for your shares, likes, and positive ratings on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Click here to listen to our audio podcast. Our video podcast follows below!     Royalty Free Music from Tunetank.com Track: Here We Go! by cinematic alex https://tunetank.com/track/802-here-we-go/ The post Emmys 2026: ‘Marty, Life Is Short,’ ‘Crash’ Bring the Docu Drama appeared first on The Contending.

    1h 2m

  5. May 19

    Summer 2026: 15 Things We’re Hot For In Entertainment [VIDEO]

    Memorial Day marks the beginning of Summer 2026. We offer up the 15 entertainment milestones we’re hottest for this year. Summer 2026 is here. It’s hot out, and movies are already burning up the box office. But there’s more to summer than just good movies. This week at the Water Cooler, Clarence, Joey, and Megan each list the five events, films, music releases, television shows, and more they’re most excited for this summer. We actually have a pretty eclectic mixture of titles. Hopefully, we’re giving you some inspiration of new things to seek out this summer season. What are some of your eagerly anticipated Summer 2026 events? Sound off in the comments! We close our podcast, as always, with the Flash Forward to the media we’re most anticipating in the upcoming week. We’re deeply appreciative for your shares, likes, and positive ratings on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Click here to listen to our audio podcast. Our video podcast follows below!       Royalty Free Music from Tunetank.com Track: Here We Go! by cinematic alex https://tunetank.com/track/802-here-we-go/ The post Summer 2026: 15 Things We’re Hot For In Entertainment [VIDEO] appeared first on The Contending.

    46 min

  6. May 12

    ‘Lord’… Time ‘Flies’ When You’re Getting Bullied on an Island [VIDEO]

    This week at the Water Cooler, Megan & Joey dive into Jack Thorne’s Netflix adaptation of the classic novel Lord of the Flies. If you can wade through all the chatter Megan and Joey do about high school and the politics of Lincoln High, you might be able to survive the unexpected brutality of Netflix’s limited series, Lord of the Flies. William Golding’s 1954 novel has been adapted time and time again (shout out to The Simpsons‘ “Das Bus”), so what do we think of Jack Thorne’s new adaptation? Will a new generation be as horrified as we were when we read it in high school? Netflix has a lot of contenders on their hands for the Limited Series category–how many series can they land in the top category? Can this new iteration make it in alongside Beef? Something for the kids with its exploration of bullying and the deterioration of two different marriages for the older crowd? David McKenna, as the beloved Piggy, landed a nomination at the Gotham TV Awards…can he follow in Owen Cooper’s footsteps? We close our podcast, as always, with the Flash Forward to the media we’re most anticipating in the upcoming week. We’re deeply appreciative for your shares, likes, and positive ratings on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Click here to listen to our audio podcast. Our video podcast follows below!       Royalty Free Music from Tunetank.com Track: Here We Go! by cinematic alex https://tunetank.com/track/802-here-we-go/  The post ‘Lord’… Time ‘Flies’ When You’re Getting Bullied on an Island [VIDEO] appeared first on The Contending.

    47 min

  7. May 11

    ‘What’s Up, F*ggots?’: Celebrating Complexities of ‘Blue Film,’ ‘My Brother’s Killer,’ & ‘No Dogs Allowed’

    ‘What’s up, faggots?’ is the first line of Elliot Tuttle’s buzzed about new flick, Blue Film. The two-hander, starring Kieron Moore and Reed Birney, has courted some controversy before its release this weekend, but the reviews have been really solid so far. Frank and I are always talking about the queer films that don’t get as much attention as the ones that enter the realm of the awards conversation, and it got us thinking about how some films don’t get the attention they deserve. For our first foray into analyzing new queer filmmaking, Frank and I talk about Tuttle’s film in addition to Rachel Mason’s My Brother’s Killer and Steve Bache’s No Dogs Allowed. All three films have brought on some chatter about their subject matter. Blue was rejected from several film festivals, because of implications involving Birney’s character. Mason’s film, which debuted at this year’s South By Southwest Film Festival, centers on the decades-old murder of adult film actor Billy London in West Hollywood, and Bache’s film skipped a theatrical release in the States since it focuses on a controversial bond between an adult and a confused teen. Not only do we talk about what we admire about all of these films, but we ponder why audiences have such a knee-jerk reaction to the subject matter when each offers something insightful and intelligent to dig into. Mason’s crime documentary allows us to consider how a community can untangle an insidious web of uncertainty while the films by Tuttle and Bache ask us to stretch the limits of our own empathy. Each one of these films is worth seeking out. Don’t sleep on them! Blue Film is now playing in limited release. My Brother’s Killer is seeking distribution. No Dogs Allowed is available to watch on Prime Video and Tubi.  We’re deeply appreciative for your shares, likes, and positive ratings on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Click here to listen to our audio podcast. Our video podcast follows below.     Royalty Free Music from Tunetank.com Track: Here We Go! by cinematic alex https://tunetank.com/track/802-here-we-go/  The post ‘What’s Up, F*ggots?’: Celebrating Complexities of ‘Blue Film,’ ‘My Brother’s Killer,’ & ‘No Dogs Allowed’ appeared first on The Contending.

  8. May 7

    Reviewing ‘Devil Wears Prada 2’ & Revisiting ‘War of the Roses’ [VIDEO]

    First up, we review The Devil Wears Prada 2. Then, we continue in our “Megan’s Never Seen This Michael Douglas Movie” journey with The War of the Roses. This week, we chat about Meryl Streep’s return as Miranda Priestly in The Devil Wears Prada 2. The sequel to Oscar-nominated film revisits the publishing industry in a modern, digital era. How does this film justify itself as a 20-year-old sequel? What does it get right about modern journalism and sequels in general? Plus, have people been sleeping on Anne Hathaway? Then, we continue with the latest in our “Megan’s Never Seen This Michael Douglas Movie” series — The War of the Roses. Starring Kathleen Turner, Danny DeVito, and Douglas, Roses famously pits a married couple going through a painful separation. Since neither party is willing to give up their beloved home, they reluctantly live together until the stress becomes far too much to bear. We look at the film through a modern lens, ask if it takes sides in the feud, and consider DeVito’s direction of the tricky material. The film received three Golden Globe nominations and zero Oscar noms. Did The Academy get it right? Next up is another Douglas / Turner / DeVito special: Romancing the Stone. Catch up with us in June for this romantic comedy classic. We close our podcast, as always, with the Flash Forward to the media we’re most anticipating in the upcoming week. We’re deeply appreciative for your shares, likes, and positive ratings on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Click here to listen to our audio podcast. Our video podcast follows below!         Royalty Free Music from Tunetank.com Track: Here We Go! by cinematic alex https://tunetank.com/track/802-here-we-go/  The post Reviewing ‘Devil Wears Prada 2’ & Revisiting ‘War of the Roses’ [VIDEO] appeared first on The Contending.

    1h 10m
See All (20)

Ratings & Reviews

4.3
out of 5
6 Ratings

About

A weekly look at the entertainment landscape from The Contending.

Information

  • Creator
    Clarence Moye, Megan McLachlan, Joey Moser
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    20
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © The Contending, Megan McLachlan, Joey Moser, Clarence Moye
  • Show Website
    Contending at the Water Cooler

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