Mama Needs a Movie – Details, episodes & analysis

Just in time for election season, we're kicking off our Political Thriller series with IN THE LINE OF FIRE starring Clint Eastwood, John Malkovich and Rene Russo. Wolfgang Petersen directed this 1993 suspense actioner about a Secret Service agent trying to thwart a would-be assassin targeting the U.S. President. Upon release, IN THE LINE OF FIRE was a critical and commercial hit, garnering Oscar nominations for Malkovich, screenwriter Jeff Maguire and editor Anne V. Coates. From now until Election Day, Mama Needs a Movie will delve into paranoia-driven political thrillers, starting with this pulse-pounding episode on IN THE LINE OF FIRE which contains the premiere of a new segment, Poetry Corner, the return of Let's Talk Physical, and diversions into Law & Order, the Olympics, Dermot Mulroney, incels, the 2024 election cycle and much, much more!

IN THE LINE OF FIRE is available from most streaming rental platforms and can also be streamed with a subscription to MGM+.

Anne and Ryan delve into the drama of the newly released IT ENDS WITH US starring Blake Lively, Justin Baldoni, Jenny Slate, Hasan Minhaj and Brandon Sklenar. Based on the bestselling novel by Colleen Hoover, the movie follows Lily Bloom (Lively), a florist reconciling her father's death, beginning a relationship with a surgeon and reuniting with an old flame. As the story unfolds, darker themes of domestic violence reveal themselves, forcing Lily to make tough decisions about her life moving forward. With the off-camera drama between director Baldoni and the cast threatening to overshadow the film itself, we try to fairly examine the form and function of this modern day melodrama, along with some diversions into Nick Jonas, Douglas Sirk, Parachute, Gena Rowlands and much, much more!

IT ENDS WITH US is currently available to stream with subscription to Netflix.

Anne and Ryan volley points back and forth on Luca Guadagnino's tennis romance, CHALLENGERS starring Zendaya, Mike Faist and Josh O'Connor. CHALLENGERS is the chronologically jumbled story of two young tennis players, Patrick (O'Connor) and Art (Faist) who meet another pro, Tashi (Zendaya) and are immediately drawn to her. Years later, Tashi has coached one player to numerous titles, while the other fumbles through a career low point, the fate of all three realigning at a Challenger event. Praised for its sexy, kinetic style and score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, CHALLENGERS is shaping up to be one of 2024's most discussed movies. We serve up an aggressive CHALLENGERS discussion along with some out-of-bounds diversions into Shampoo, Out of Sight, The Social Network, West Side Story, body hair, Universal CityWalk, the Americana, and much, much more!

CHALLENGERS is currently available to stream with subscription to Prime Video.

Anne and Ryan welcome producer, writer and film fanatic Andrew Grissom, to take a bite out of Mike Nichols' WOLF starring Jack Nicholson, Michelle Pfeiffer, and James Spader. Released in the summer of 1994, WOLF's mix of horror, romance, and satire opened to middling reviews, but has since garnered fascination due to its odd mix of sophisticated humor, Rick Baker creature makeup, and hypotonic Ennio Morricone score. Grissom brings his research A-game to the discussion (he's seen Wolf three times within the last year), as we delve into the film's writing (which went through an uncredited punch-up from Elaine May), locations (including Downtown LA's Bradbury Building), and fortuitous release date (which happened on one of the most memorable days of 1990s). It's a howlingly good conversation you don't want to miss!

Guest Jill Donnelly joins for a big-hearted discussion of 2017's PADDINGTON 2, starring Ben Whishaw, Hugh Grant, Sally Hawkins, and Hugh Bonneville. The Paul King-directed family comedy is a rare modern classic to receive almost universal acclaim, but that won't stop Mama Needs a Movie from complicating it. In addition to everyone's favorite marmalade loving bear, Jill talks with great humor and compassion about her life as an improviser, actor, health policy consultant, New York style pizza-prefering Chicagoan, and mother.

Director and writer, Eric Appel (Son of Zorn, Weird: The Al Yankovic Story) joins to discuss on the acclaimed new sci-fi comedy action parental drama, Everything Everywhere All at Once starring Michelle Yeoh, Stephanie Hsu, and Ke Huy Quan. Helmed by the directing duo, Daniels, the film is a fast-paced sensory cornucopia about family dynamics stretching through multiple universes. In this thrilling conversation, Mama Needs a Movie discusses childhood moviegoing, focus groups, Tim Burton, VHS retail prices, anime, TikTok, Danny DeVito, Being John Malkovich, the Oculus Quest, Letterboxd, parking at The Grove, and much much more. One might even say this conversation is... Everything.... Everywhere (podcast platforms only).... All At Once (1hr and 48min required to listen.)

Special guest Becky Feldman (host of Too Stupid to Live) brings her romance novel expertise to a discussion of the The Lost City starring Sandra Bullock, Channing Tatum, and Daniel Radcliffe. This new big budget adventure/comedy/romance directed by Aaron and Adam Nee features Bullock as a romance novelist, Radcliffe as her eccentric billionaire kidnapper, and Tatum as a fumbling cover model who is her only hope for rescue. Becky stacks the plot against her very high stack of romance novels in a wild conversation that covers everything from the Daniel Radcliffe's beard to the Hollywood and Highland parking structure. Will this episode end with a Happily Ever After? There's only one way to find out! 

THE LOST CITY is currently streaming on Amazon Prime and Paramount Plus.

Comedian and actor Josh Fadem (Twin Peaks: The Return, Better Call Saul) joins to discuss Douglas Sirk's 1956 melodrama, WRITTEN ON THE WIND starring Rock Hudson, Lauren Bacall, Robert Stack, and Dorothy Malone. Sirk's deeply layered themes of American capitalism and sexual inadequacy are explored in this wild and far-ranging discussion that folds in Freddy Krueger, nymphomania, Unsolved Mysteries, Glenn Ford, Regarding Henry, Gene Roddenberry, and much much more. It's conversation no film fan should let blow past.

Writer and performer Kimberly Truong (Crush Fictionally) joins Anne and Ryan in a discussion of Spider-man: No Way Home starring Tom Holland, Zendaya, Benedict Cumberbatch, and directed by Jon Watts. An unparalleled box office phenomenon of the pandemic era, No Way Home is no run-of-the-mill Marvel outing, but a cameo-packed superhero juggernaut that now ranks as the third highest grossing movie of all time. In the wake of the film's global dominance, only Mama Needs a Movie dares to sling shocking questions like: Is Andrew Garfield the most underrated Spidey? Is the the multiverse just secular heaven? Is Happy Hogan datable? Which one of the Spider-Mans wore a fake butt?... and much, much more.

San Fernando Valley native Scott Gairdner (Podcast: The Ride, Saturday Morning All Star Hits!) joins Anne and Ryan to discuss Martha Coolidge's teen classic, VALLEY GIRL (1983) starring Nicolas Cage, Deborah Foreman, and Elizabeth Daily. Does Gairdner bring his tubular expertise on Valley mall culture to the discussion? Fer sure! You, like, totally won't want to miss this episode.

VALLEY GIRL is currently available to stream for free on Kanopy, Pluto TV or Tubi.