January 2021 - Reel Film Nerds

Episode #205: Tributary – The Midnight Sky

By Matt on Wednesday, January 27, 2021

Happy snow days! The white stuff really came down in northern Arizona this week and mucked things up for a few days. Speaking of muck, 2021 continues the awfulness of 2020. Feels like it has been a year already and January is not even over yet! Back to the pod, today your hosts Mike Talent and Matt discuss the new Netflix Original directed by and starring George Clooney, The Midnight Sky. Other topics include booze filled seltzers, Aliens the movie, and how your hosts are broken.

A movie directed by Clooney, starring Clooney, and it takes place in space, awesome lets do this! Not so fast, The Midnight Sky has a whole lot to say but it wants you to figure it out. The acting was great, the special effects were really good, almost too good, and the story is very deep but this movie has issues. It really drags and leaves you asking lots of questions. The film has a few characters and they are never really developed. Towards the end of the movie you really do not care what happens to them. The Midnight Sky is a well done smart film but it is not a must see. Mike Talent continues his streak of beating out Matt with 2.5 out of 5 Reels. Matt inches closer towards Mike’s leniency but not quite awarding it 2 out of 5 Reels.

Next week it is Mike’s pick and he chose the brand new police drama film The Little Things starring Denzel Washington, Rami Malek and Jared Leto. Catch it in theaters and HBO Max starting Friday January 29. Thank you for supporting our podcast and we will chat at you next week.

If you have a film you would like Matt and Mike to review, email us at nerds@reelfilmnerds.com

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The Midnight Sky

Director: George Clooney

Writers: Lily Brooks-Dalton and Mark L. Smith

Stars: George Clooney, Felicity Jones, David Oyelowo, and Caoilinn Springall

Release Date: December 23, 2020

Storyline from IMDB

This post-apocalyptic tale follows Augustine, a lonely scientist in the Arctic, as he races to stop Sully and her fellow astronauts from returning home to a mysterious global catastrophe.

Watch The Midnight Sky trailer below.

Episodes Legacy

Episode #204: Legacy – Johnny Mnemonic

By Matt on Wednesday, January 20, 2021

Happy Inauguration Day! Ok that’s as political as we are going to get, we promise. Today Mike and Matt travel to the future, actually this past Sunday, from the past in 1995’s Johnny Mnemonic starring Keanu Reeves, Dina Meyer, and Dolph Lundgren. Topics better than this movie include organized crime, data prices, and body tech implants.

Should you waste an afternoon or evening watching Johnny Mnemonic, maybe. This is a classic noteworthy mind bending film that has not aged well especially the tech talk and special effects. The acting is pretty awful too. The story is the best part of this movie. If you are a fan of Keanu Reeves or if you like dark Sci-Fi films it is definitely worth a watch. The rest of our listeners should pass. Mike Talent continues his lenient streak awarding Johnny Mnemonic 3 out of 5 Reels. Matt who thought his score was too high continues being harsh giving the Sci-Fi thriller 2.5 out of 5 Reels.

Next week it is Matt’s turn picking George Clooney’s latest film the Netflix Original The Midnight Sky. Don’t forget to send in your New Year’s resolutions to be entered into a drawing for a free copy of the brand new film Redemption Day. Thank you for supporting our podcast and we will chat at you next week.

If you have a film you would like Matt and Mike to review, email us at nerds@reelfilmnerds.com

Johnny Mnemonic

Director: Robert Longo

Writer: William Gibson

Stars: Keanu Reeves, Dolph Lundgren, Dina Meyer, Ice-T, and Takeshi Kitano

Release Date: May 26, 1995

Storyline from IMDB

A data courier, literally carrying a data package inside his head, must deliver it before he dies from the burden or is killed by the Yakuza.

Watch the Johnny Mnemonic trailer below.

Episodes

Episode #203: Sound of Metal

By Matt on Wednesday, January 13, 2021

2021 continues and so far it is living up to the standards set by 2020. Enough about that jazz, today your hosts Matt and Mike chat about a brand new film on Prime video, Sound of Metal starring Riz Ahmed and Paul Raci. Additional topics include Death to 2020, Academy Awards, and should we do a Keanu month of movies?

Sound of Metal is an incredible endearing film full of drama and perseverance. The acting by Riz Ahmed and Paul Raci is incredible especially when they play off of each other. The rest of the cast was stellar as well but what makes this film is it’s amazing story. It is unique and thought provoking especially when it goes in unexpected directions. The sound design is next level. Sound has not had this big a role in a film since 2018’s A Quiet Place. This is a must watch film at home or in a theater and definitely with a quality sound system. Mike really loved Sound of Metal awarding it a near perfect score with 4.5 out of 5 Reels. Matt also really enjoyed this one but only gave it 4 out of 5 Reels, slacker!

Next week it is Mike’s turn and he wants to return to the past’s future? I think that makes sense, by chatting about 1995’s cyberpunk thriller Johnny Mnemonic starring Dolph Lundgren and Keanu Reeves. It is currently streaming on Prime Video. Don’t forget to send in your New Year’s resolutions to be entered into a drawing for a free copy of the brand new film Redemption Day. Thank you for supporting our podcast and we will chat at you next week.

If you have a film you would like Matt and Mike to review, email us at nerds@reelfilmnerds.com

Sound of Metal

Director: Darius Marder

Writers: Darius Marder, Abraham Marder, and Derek Cianfrance

Stars: Riz Ahmed, Olivia Cooke, Paul Raci, and Lauren Ridloff

Release Date: December 4, 2020

Storyline from IMDB

A heavy-metal drummer’s life is thrown into freefall when he begins to lose his hearing.

Watch the Sound of Metal trailer below.

Episodes

Episode #202: Wonder Woman 1984

By Matt on Wednesday, January 6, 2021

Happy New Year everyone! It’s a new year so why not review a new movie? Today Mike and Matt discuss Wonder Woman 1984 starring Gal Gadot and Chris Pine. Bonus topics today include Mike still can’t read, HBO Max is killing movie theaters, and the MCU VS the DCEU.

What a let down. Matt and Mike had high hopes for this movie. They both really enjoyed the 2017 original but it’s 2020 sequel fell very short of even average. The acting is good, the sets looked great, and the action sequences were over the top and incredible. Sadly this film is awful thanks to numerous plot holes and a bad story line to name a few flaws. Mike braved the outside world and watched it in the theater, Matt did not. He watched it on HBO Max and he is glad he did. Mike and Matt both agree this movie is only worth a watch if you can see it for free at home. Mike gives WW1984 2.5 out of 5 Reels, Matt with the rare lower score awards it 2 out of 5 Reels.

Next week it is Matt’s pick. Being a metal-head and fan of Riz Ahmed’s acting, he picked the recently released Amazon Original Sound of Metal currently streaming on Prime Video. Thank you for another year supporting our podcast and we will chat at you next week.

If you have a film you would like Matt and Mike to review, email us at nerds@reelfilmnerds.com