Mixed Bag

It's spooooooky season so it's time for the Foe of the Podcast, Mike Bryant, to arise from his crypt once again and bless the pod with another scary feature that is mixed in quality. This time around, we're travelling just a decade ago to Goosebumps (2015) starring Jack Black, based on R. L. Stine's children's horror novel series of the same name. After moving to a small town, Zach Cooper finds a silver lining when he meets next door neighbor Hannah, the daughter of bestselling Goosebumps series author R.L. Stine. When Zach unintentionally unleashes real monsters from their manuscripts and they begin to terrorize the town, it’s suddenly up to Stine, Zach and Hannah to get all of them back in the books where they belong. (Sourced from Letterboxd) Will this Jumanji imitator be more Jumanji (1995) than Jumanji (2017)? Will Zach, Hannah and Champ ever find meaningful character development and most important of all, what is YOUR favourite Goosebumps book? All this and more with the terrific Mike and a bumper Pop Corner as we haven't caught up in ages. Happy Halloween Baghags and may your treats be well mixed with all sorts of sweets!

VRRRRRRRMMMMMPHHH! Do you hear that?! It's another JetBag: Emergency Landing! And this time, we're shifting from the plane to the plain because 90% of this film is set in an airport! Carry-On (2024) was a surprise hit at the end of last year by our Mixed Bag king, Jaume Collet-Serra (Non-Stop, Jungle Cruise) and starring Taron Egerton and Jason Bateman. But now that the hype has died down, is the movie any good? An airport security officer races to outsmart a mysterious traveler forcing him to let a dangerous item slip onto a Christmas Eve flight. (Sourced from Letterboxd)  When will Juno 2/Jupiter happen? Is Jason ever going to take off that dirty cap? And what was UP with that one car sequence with Danielle Deadwyler?! All this and more in our latest plane movie episode ✈️

It's the birth of Brangelina, today we're covering Doug Liman's Mr. and Mrs. Smith (2005) starring Angelina Jolie and some man. After five (or six) years of vanilla-wedded bliss, ordinary suburbanites John and Jane Smith are stuck in a huge rut. Unbeknownst to each other, they are both coolly lethal, highly-paid assassins working for rival organisations. When they discover they’re each other’s next target, their secret lives collide in a spicy, explosive mix of wicked comedy, pent-up passion, nonstop action and high-tech weaponry. (Sourced from Letterboxd) Will Jolie cement her movie star status as Jane Smith? How does one join her all-female spy agency? Who wants to hang out with Vince Vaughn (especially now he's come out as a Trump supporter) and why are there so many threads completely abandoned in this movie?! Join the sultry, action-packed world of the Smiths. 

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ A STAR IS BORN, HONEY! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ A major event in Joliewood's history, it's time to crown her. No, it's not her Oscar, it's more important, it's 2001's Lara Croft: Tomb Raider! Orphaned heiress, English aristocrat and intrepid archaeologist, Lara Croft, embarks on a dangerous quest to retrieve the two halves of an ancient artifact which controls time before it falls into the wrong hands. As an extremely rare planetary alignment is about to occur for the first time in 5,000 years, the fearless tomb raider will have to team up with rival adventurers and sworn enemies to collect the pieces, while time is running out. But, in the end, who can harness the archaic talisman’s unlimited power? (Sourced from Letterboxd) First things first, WHERE IS THE MIDRIFF? Surely the iconic Tomb Raider looks features a lil bit of belly as we all know! Well, all will be revealed in this episode. Our hosts have learned many things. Other things we've learned include, Angelina and daddy can do a halfway decent English accent but Daniel Craig can NOT do a serious American accent (Knives Out ham only). Popcorner chats include Tinā, Mickey 17, The Silver Fox Office, Sporcle, Severance, Sturgill Simpson's Sound and Fury, Adolescence, The Giver (Chappell Roan) and Relationships (HAIM).

The Age of Ange is going from gay coded with Hackers to full on lesbian as our bisexual queen Angelina Jolie had her breakout role in Gia (1998) the first TV Film covered on Mixed Bag, based on real life supermodel Gia Carangi. Gia Carangi meteorically rises to modeling fame in the late 1970s but becomes overconsumed by persistent loneliness and drug addiction. (Sourced from Letterboxd) Will this erotic romance be as steamy as it sounds? Who knew Juliet from Lost was her love interest, Linda? Will somebody please explain what a supermodel is to Jamie and when will Faye Dunaway kiss Angelina?! These and a full recap of the Oscars and Lady Gaga's Mayhem, we're fit to bursting with pop culture this ep. So it's time to serve face and get listening Baghags because Joliewood is just getting started.

The Age of Ange returns by going back to the early days of Joliewood, Hackers (1995) where Angelina Jolie broke through with a bob cut and those piercing eyes. Along with his new friends, a teenager who was arrested by the US Secret Service and banned from using a computer for writing a computer virus discovers a plot by a nefarious hacker, but they must use their computer skills to find the evidence while being pursued by the Secret Service and the evil computer genius behind the virus. (Sourced from Letterboxd). Will we see the sparks that caused the marriage between Jonny Lee Miller and Ange in the film where they met? How much did they let the costumier have free reign? Is this the most ridiculous hacking has ever looked and does everyone know that this movie is EXTREMELY QUEER?? All this and more with this barn-burner of an episode of Mixed Bag.

Welcome to the hallowed land of Joliewood! That's right, it's the Age of Ange for the next few weeks as we profile bisexual queen and one of the biggest movie stars of her day, Angelina Jolie! Kicking us off is Jolie's high profile and bid for an Oscar, Maria! Directed by Pablo Larraín and third in the tragic white woman trilogy after Jackie and Spencer. Maria Callas, the world’s greatest opera singer, lives the last days of her life in 1970s Paris, as she confronts her identity and life. Will Jolie be able to live up to the Maria Callas gays (of which she has many stans) expectations? How will Pablo tie the trilogy together? And just how thick are those humongous glasses Ange has got on? Walk the streets of Paris with Jolie, Kodi Smit-McPhee and we as dive into Joliewood and uncover the woman behind the star.

Welcome to the New Year, Baghags! To start the year with a new tradition, we've split our 2024 Top Ten Films into a completely seperate episode! Last year, we tacked this onto our Wonka episode but because this year was bursting to the brim with episodes (and we didn't want to do a three hour episode) you can hear Matt, Cass and Jamie count down their favourites of 2024. Catch us next time as we tackle our very first Ko-Fi challenge!

OooOOOoooooOO! It's that time of year ghouls and gals! It's spooky season and it's time to bring on our foe of the podcast, Mike, to select his next horrific mix, this year it's Tim Burton's Sleepy Hollow (1999) Skeptical young detective Ichabod Crane gets transferred to the hamlet of Sleepy Hollow, New York, where he is tasked with investigating the decapitations of three people – murders the townsfolk attribute to a legendary specter, The Headless Horseman. (Sourced from Letterboxd) Will this second time dipping into the Burton/Depp be as fruitful as the surprisingly OK Charlie and the Chocolate Factory? How many British thespians can you count in the sleepy town of Sleepy Hollow? And Tim Burton sure does love to cast his girlfriend/partners in like every single movie, huh? All this and more as well as plenty of juicy pop corner chats in our Halloween ep of Mixed Bag! 🎃 👻 

It's time to take another romp down the yellow brick road! As part of our miniseries building up to Glicked, we're now headed to the wonderful land of Oz. Renowned editor and one-time director Walter Murch made the fateful decision to make a sequel to one of the most beloved films of all time, The Wizard of Oz with Return to Oz (1985) which had a decidedly mixed reaction.  Dorothy, saved from a psychiatric experiment by a mysterious girl, finds herself back in the land of her dreams, and makes delightful new friends, and dangerous new enemies. (Sourced from Letterboxd) What do Cass, Matt and Jamie think of this 80s dark fantasy spin on the L. Frank Baum books? Who are the Wheelers? Which is Mombi's original head and WHY DOES THE SCARECROW LOOK LIKE THAT?? Shout out to the Nome King with his hot lil ruby slippers. Keep on eye out next time for our Halloweeeeen ep!

Are you not entertained?!  Well, the audiences of 2000 certainly were, with a box office smash hit and winner of 5 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, I think ole Russel come be comforted he won't be eating Crowe with this film by one Sir Ridley Scott. But, 24 years later and with an upcoming sequel on the horizon, the Mixed Bag crew thought they should dust off the dirt like Maximus loves to do and see if we are glad to set our eyes upon Gladiator (2000). In the year 180, the death of emperor Marcus Aurelius throws the Roman Empire into chaos. Maximus is one of the Roman army’s most capable and trusted generals and a key advisor to the emperor. As Marcus’ devious son Commodus ascends to the throne, Maximus is set to be executed. He escapes, but is captured by slave traders. Renamed Spaniard and forced to become a gladiator, Maximus must battle to the death with other men for the amusement of paying audiences. (Sourced from Letterboxd) Is the young Richard Harris a hottie? Is Oliver Reed playing a POC or just suuuuper tan? And will Maximus Decimus Meridius have his vengeance, in this life or the next? All this and more as well in this two-part miniseries in our gear up for Glicked!

Brace for impact because it's another JETBAG: Emergency Landing episode! And it's our biggest metal bird in the sky yet, Flightplan (2005), starring Jodie Foster has her climbing all around the Elgin E-474 which, while made up, is styled on these massively huge jumbojets with spiral staircases, lush first class and all sorts of hidden compartments! Flying at 40,000 feet in a state-of-the art aircraft that she helped design, Kyle Pratt’s 6-year-old daughter Julia vanishes without a trace. Or did she? No one on the plane believes Julia was ever onboard. And now Kyle, desperate and alone, can only count on her own wits to unravel the mystery and save her daughter. (Sourced from Letterboxd) Will Jodie and Peter Sarsgaard (NOT from the Skarsgård as James learned this episode) have crackling chemistry? Will Kyle find her daughter Julia? Will Sean Bean die or turn out to be bad? Why didn't we do our research and reference Hitchcock's The Lady Vanishes in this episode which this takes inspiration from? All this and more in another rip roaring Jetbag ep. And be sure to listen to Silver Fox Office with L.C. and Mike here or wherever podcasts are found!     

Get in, loser. When we're in-between seasons and don't have time for a full personal picks, we turn to our old favourite, the musical! And what better musical from one this year, Mean Girls (2024) which they tried to desperately to hide its musical nature! New student Cady Heron is welcomed into the top of the social food chain by the elite group of popular girls called ‘The Plastics,’ ruled by the conniving queen bee Regina George and her minions Gretchen and Karen. However, when Cady makes the major misstep of falling for Regina’s ex-boyfriend Aaron Samuels, she finds herself prey in Regina’s crosshairs. As Cady sets to take down the group’s apex predator with the help of her outcast friends Janis and Damian, she must learn how to stay true to herself while navigating the most cutthroat jungle of all: high school. (Sourced from Letterboxd) With the original film being a seminal film of all of their upbringing, will this remake be top of the plastics or written in the burn book? Does this film even go here? Another reference from the film? All this and more and a thorough discussion of Whānau Marama: New Zealand International Film Festival, shout out to the team that made it happen!

We've reached the end of our Period Princess miniseries and we're ending with an entry from the Disney renaissance, 1995's Pocahontas. Pocahontas, daughter of a Native American tribe chief, falls in love with an English soldier as colonists invade 17th century Virginia. (Sourced from Letterboxd) Will the Colours of the Wind blow away the historical inaccuracy and problematic romance? Is Just Around the River Bend rapids or smooth waters? And will we Mine, Mine, Mine gold from this or is there none to be found?

Our Period Princess continues with Rob Marshall's Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) A sweeping romantic epic set in Japan in the years before World War II, a penniless Japanese child is torn from her family to work as a maid in a geisha house. Directed by Rob and produced by a whole bunch of the white guys, Memoirs of a Geisha started out as a smash hit bestseller, also written by a white guy, Arthur Golden. This adaptation was criticized for casting non-Japanese actors in lead roles but was nominated for six Academy Awards and won three,  Best Cinematography, Best Art Direction and Best Costume Design. So is this memoir something worth opening or was it a story "that should never be told" as the opening narration states?

It's the start of a new miniseries, it's time for Period Princess! 👸 It's a new era and what better way to kick it off with the ultimate page turner of 2001, The Other Boleyn Girl adapted into this feature film in 2008. Starring Natalie Portman, Scarlett Johansson and Eric Bana. A sumptuous and sensual tale of intrigue, romance and betrayal set against the backdrop of a defining moment in European history: two beautiful sisters, Anne and Mary Boleyn, driven by their family’s blind ambition, compete for the love of the handsome and passionate King Henry VIII. (Sourced from Letterboxd) Will this sexy version of the Tutor times work its charms?  Other texts discussed are Scavengers Reign, Ukyio, Pain and Glory, Inside Out 2, The Mole, The Getaway and Joe Biden and world politics.

It's the year 2000. It's the first 3D animated film from Walt Disney. It's Dinosaur. And it's a very unhinged episode, we had a blast with this one. Plus, we had a special guest drop in briefly, Cass' brother, Nathan! An orphaned dinosaur raised by lemurs joins an arduous trek to a sancturary after a meteorite shower destroys his family home. (Sourced from Letterboxd) It's the final of our personal childhood picks and we're rounding it out with Disney's Dinosaur. Who could forget the epic tale of Aladar, his lemurs and his two elderly friends Eema and Baylene? Everyone, it turns out! Well, it's available now on Disney Plus. Why not listen in to hear how Matt, Cass and Jimmy found this journey back, way waaaay back in time?

We're back for a mini quick mix this week! Discussions include Grey's Anatony, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, A Highland Song, Animal Well and Telling Lies. See you next week for a return to our Childhood Movies!

We're continuing our childhood picks with 1995's Now and Then, starring an absolutely stacked cast including Christina Ricci, Rosie O'Donnell, Demi Moore, Gaby Hoffmann, Thora Birch, Melanie Griffiths, Rita Wilson and Ashleigh Aston Moore. But what is this film? Does it even exist? Waxing nostalgic about the bittersweet passage from childhood to puberty in this tender coming-of-age tale, four childhood girlfriends – Teeny, Chrissy, Samantha and Roberta – recall the magical summer of 1970. During their walk down memory lane, they reconcile experiences with boys, secrets, bullies and more. (Sourced from Letterboxd) Will this girls version of Stand By Me stand up? How much Now and how much Then are we talking? And when is the return of Ashleigh Aston Moore? All this and more in our latest Mixed Bag! 

It's time for more personal picks from your hosts and James has landed on one fairly lost to time Mouse Hunt (1997). Before Gore Verbinski was documenting pirates in the Caribbean, he was making his debut feature with Nathan Lane and Lee Evans about a pesky mouse that won't go away. Down-on-their luck brothers, Lars and Ernie Smuntz, aren’t happy with the crumbling old mansion they inherit… until they discover the estate is worth millions. Before they can cash in, they have to rid the house of its single, stubborn occupant—a tiny and tenacious mouse. (Sourced from Letterboxd). Will this film that distressed young James still have the same effect today? Will Cass and Matt enjoy the slapstick shenanigans or is this a childhood watch that should remain forgotten? Also featuring an in-depth discussion of the new film Challengers, the song J was trying to reference was the "yeah yeah yeah" one but he forgot words.