The Cult Popcast

Episode 252 ”Beau Is Afraid”

| Review | Holy Moses, Ari. You’ve really outdone yourself this time. Beau is Afraid is the third feature film from Ari Aster, the acclaimed A24 auteur who gave us Hereditary and Midsommar. This film is not like either of those, though. This is a batsh*t insane surrealist odyssey into the deeply troubled mind and memory of Beau Wassermann, played by Joaquin Phoenix. Strap in boys and girls. And please, be sure to take this podcast with water.

Episode 251 ”The Bad Batch” Season Two

| Review | The bad batch is back, and it’s looking like a much needed win for Disney+. We pick up with Omega and the squad as they’re running dangerous odd jobs just to make a living out in this new Imperial controlled galaxy. Meanwhile, illusive new threats are rising in dark corners of the Empire. I’m just going to say it: The Bad Batch Season 2 is some good Star Wars.

Episode 250 ”Hogwarts Legacy”

| Review | You’re a wizard, Steven! We’ve got another video game cast today to talk Hogwarts Legacy, the Wizarding World action RPG from Avalanche Software and Warner Bros Games released earlier this year. Set a hundred years before the events of Harry Potter, this carefully crafted open world experience has arrived amidst some controversy. But is it good? Special guest Matt Amick is here to help us sort it out.

Episode 249 ”Shrinking” Season One

| Review | AppleTV+ continues to build up their growing catalog of uplifting dramadies with Shrinking, where Jason Segel plays a grieving therapist who throws caution to the wind and starts telling his clients what he really thinks. Hijinks ensue. Amd they got Harrison Ford in there too!

Episode 248 ”Air”

| Review | How do you like them Jordans? Benjamin Affleck and Matthew Damon are reunited once again in Air, the new historical bi-epic that chronicles the signing of young basketball prodigy Michael Jordan to a flailing running shoe company called Nike. Man the 80's were cool...

Episode 247 ”Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves”

| Review | Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves is a movie that nobody expected to be as good as it was. It was hilarious, clever, and full of heart, all while wrapped in this vividly depicted fantasy world. Clearly John Francis Daley and Jon Goldstein love the source material. Hey, you guys wanna play DnD sometime?

Episode 246 ”The Super Mario Bros. Movie”

| Review | Dread it, run from it, Nintendo arrives all the same. And now it's here: The Super Mario Bros. Movie has smashed records to become the second highest grossing animated film of all time. That's over a billion bucks, courtesy of Brooklyn's little red plumber turned multidimensional hero.

Episode 245 ”John Wick: Chapter 4”

| Review | All this, for a dog? Almost a decade after Keanu's titular once-retired hitman took the world by storm, he's back to end his desperate crusade, once and for all. With the stunts and world-building as wonderfully ambitious as ever, John Wick: Chapter 4 shows this franchise still has gas in the tank.

Rest in peace Lance <3

Episode 244 ”Mad God”

| Review | After over thirty years in the making, VFX legend Phil Tippet has finally completed his twisted stop motion passion project, Mad God. If you enjoy darkly macabre and generally insane art, then this one-way descent into dystopian hellscape is the fever dream for you.

Episode 243 ”Memoria”

| Review | Accomplished Thai director Apichatpong Weerasethakul is a master of the slow, meditative cinema. His latest film, Memoria, is no exception; it's a fascinating sensory experience that asks big questions and answers very little. Don't worry though, Tilda Swinton is here to hold your hand.