She's been dug up, renamed, reanimated, and gaslit — and Hollywood expects her to be grateful. Maggie Gyllenhaal's The Bride! (2026) resurrects the Bride of Frankenstein for a 1930s Chicago that feels equal parts Weimar cabaret and DC fever dream, with Jessie Buckley delivering a ferocious, uncontainable performance at the center of a film that can't quite contain itself. Chris Stachiw and Mike dig into the ideas the film gets right, the heavy hand that undercuts them, and why a $90 million feminist monster movie ending on The Monster Mash is both the most logical and least earned conclusion imaginable.
Spencer Parsons and Chris Stachiw join Mike to dig into the ideological undercurrents of The Dark Knight Rises, Christopher Nolan’s contentious capstone to his Batman trilogy. Released in 2012, the film finds a broken Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) pulled back into action as Gotham—now pointedly resembling New York—falls under siege by Bane (Tom Hardy) and the League of Shadows.
The conversation moves past spectacle to examine the film’s deeply anxious view of revolution, class conflict, and populist politics. Drawing connections to Occupy Wall Street–era fears, Mike, Spencer, and Chris unpack how Bane’s rhetoric of liberation masks authoritarian control, how mass movements are portrayed as dangerous and irrational, and how order is ultimately restored through elite sacrifice rather than systemic change.
Special Guests: C. Courtney Joyner, Gregg Sutter Guest Co-Hosts: Rob St. Mary, Jedidiah Ayres
Western Month continues with a look at Delmer Daves's 3:10 to Yuma. Released in 1957, the film tells the tale of two men, outlaw Ben Wade (Glenn Ford) and innocent bystander Dan Evans (Van Heflin). Their fates are intertwined after Dan witnesses Ben and his outfit robbing a stagecoach.
Jedidiah Ayres and Rob St. Mary join Mike to discuss the 1957 film and 2007 remake which are both based on a short story by Elmore "Dutch" Leonard. Mike spoke with filmmaker and author C. Courtney Joyner and Leonard's long-time researcher Gregg Sutter about the dozens of other films based on Leonard's work.
Special Guests: Mary Harron, Guinevere Turner, Roberta Hanley Guest Co-Hosts: David RodgersPaula Guthat
Based on the controversial book by Bret Easton Ellis, American Psycho (2000) tells the tale of Wall Street's Patrick Bateman (Christian Bale), his murderous rampage, and the world of the late 1980s Manhattan.
The episode features interviews with one of the original screenwriters, Roberta Hanley, along with the film's director, Mary Harron and co-screenwriter / actress Guinevere Turner.
Music:
"Psycho Killer" - Talking Heads
"In the Air Tonight" - Phil Collins
"This Must Be the Place" - Miles Fisher
"Devil Inside" - INXS
"Psycho" - Eddie Noack
"Hip to Be Square" - Huey Lewis & The News
Guest Co-Host: Chris Stachiw
Guest Co-Hosts: 
Special Guests: 
Special Guests: