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392. The Dark Knight – Batman Day 2024 (#3)

Posted on September 21, 2024 by Darren

Hosted by Andrew Quinn, Darren Mooney, this week with special guests Brian Lloyd and Deirdre Molumby, The 250 is a (mostly) weekly trip through some of the best (and worst) movies ever made, as voted for by Internet Movie Database Users. New episodes are released every second Saturday at 6pm GMT, with the occasional bonus episode between them.

This week, Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight.

A year after assuming the identity of Batman, Bruce Wayne has all but demolished organised crime in Gotham. Believing that he can retire and hand over the mantle of the city’s protector to District Attorney Harvey Dent, Bruce fails to understand that in the mob’s desperation they have turned to the most unlike of allies: a mysterious urban terrorist known only as the Joker.

At time of recording, it was ranked 3rd on the list of the best movies of all time on the Internet Movie Database.

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Filed under: The 250 | Tagged: america, batman, batman day, blockbuster, brian lloyd, christian bale, Christopher Nolan, deirdre molumby, film, franchise, george w. bush, gotham, heath ledger, imdb, Movie, podcast, The Dark Knight | Leave a comment »

391. Barbie – Leaving Cert 2024 (#—)

Posted on September 14, 2024 by Darren

Hosted by Andrew Quinn, Darren Mooney and Conor Murphy, this week with special guests Aoife Barry and Deirdre Molumby, The 250 is a (mostly) weekly trip through some of the best (and worst) movies ever made, as voted for by Internet Movie Database Users. New episodes are released every second Saturday at 6pm GMT, with the occasional bonus episode between them.

This September, the podcast is going back to school, covering the films on the Irish Leaving Certificate that we have yet to cover. This time, Greta Gerwig’s Barbie.

In Barbieland, every day is perfect. Just like yesterday. And just like tomorrow. However, one morning, Barbie wakes up and realises that things are not perfect at all. She finds herself contemplating mortality, tumbling through the air and walking on the soles of her feet. Thus begins an epic adventure that will take Barbie into a brave new realm: the real world.

At time of recording, it was not ranked on the list of the best movies of all time on the Internet Movie Database.

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Filed under: The 250 | Tagged: aoife barry, barbie, blockbuster, brand-o-pics, buy-o-pics, capitalism, conor murphy, deirdre molumby, feminism, Greta Gerwig, i'm just ken, imdb, leaving cert, leaving certificate, margot robbie, masculinity, oppenheimer, podcast, pop cinema, Ryan Gosling, The 250, toxic masculinity | Leave a comment »

373. Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (#225)

Posted on April 13, 2024 by Darren

Hosted by Andrew Quinn and Darren Mooney, and this week with special guests Jonathan Victory and Billie Jean Doheny, The 250 is a weekly trip through some of the best (and worst) movies ever made, as voted for by Internet Movie Database Users. New episodes are released Saturdays at 6pm GMT.

This week, Gore Verbinski’s Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl.

Will Turner is an orphan, discovered adrift at sea. Making a life as a lowly blacksmith’s apprentice, Will pines for the heart of Elizabeth Swann, the governor’s daughter. However, the tide brings strange visitors to their tranquil community. First, in the person of Jack Sparrow, failed and disorganised pirate. Then, in the crew of cursed pirate ship The Black Pearl. Will and Elizabeth are about to find themselves swept up in an epic adventure that will carry them across the seven seas and into the jaws of dangers unimaginable.

At time of recording, it was ranked 225th on the list of the best movies of all time on the Internet Movie Database.

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Filed under: The 250 | Tagged: action, billie jean doheny, blockbuster, disney, epic, Geoffrey Rush, Gore Verbinski, imdb, johnny depp, jonathan victory, pirates, pirates of the caribbean, Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, podcast, spectacle, The 250, wet movies | Leave a comment »

359. Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker (#—)

Posted on December 23, 2023 by Darren

Hosted by Andrew Quinn and Darren Mooney, this week joined by special guests Luke Dunne and Richard Drumm, The 250 is a (mostly) weekly trip through some of the best (and worst) movies ever made, as voted for by Internet Movie Database Users. New episodes are released every second Saturday at 6pm GMT, with the occasional bonus episode between them.

This time, JJ Abrams’ Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker.

A long time ago in a galaxy far away, somehow Palpatine returned.

At time of recording, it was not ranked on the list of the best movies of all time on the Internet Movie Database.

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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: blockbuster, brands, disney, fan service, film, franchise films, franchises, hollywood, imdb, intellectual property, jj abrams, luke dunne, podcast, reviews, richard drumm, star wars, The 250 | Leave a comment »

New Escapist Column! On the Unfulfilled Promise of “Into the Spider-Verse”…

Posted on June 4, 2023 by Darren

I published a new piece at The Escapist this evening. With the premiere of Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, it seemed like a good opportunity to consider the legacy of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse five years after it was originally released.

The influence of Into the Spider-Verse can be keenly felt on animated films like The Bad Guys and Puss in Boots: The Last Wish. However, it’s strange that the movie has had no real impact on comic book adaptations. Despite early adventurous comic book adaptations like Hulk, Sin City or Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, the modern comic book blockbuster has demonstrated a lack of visual experimentation that feels very much like a betrayal of the source material. What’s the point in making a comic book movie if it can’t be as visually inventive?

You can read the piece here, or click the picture below.

Filed under: Movies | Tagged: animation, blockbuster, Comics, epic, films, live action, Movies, spider man, spider-man: across the spider-verse, spider-man: into the spider-verse, spider-verse, superhero storytelling, superheroes, visual style | 1 Comment »

New Escapist Column! On Hitting “Peak Marvel”…

Posted on February 24, 2023 by Darren

I published a new In the Frame piece at The Escapist this evening. With the reports that Disney+ will only be streaming two Marvel shows this year and the decision to move The Marvels out of summer and into November, it’s interesting to contemplate whether we’re already past “Peak Marvel.”

“Peak Marvel” is a reference to “peak oil”, referring to the point at which production reaches its apotheosis, where there is so much content being produced that it is unsustainable for any number of reasons. The Marvel Cinematic Universe remains one of the most successful multimedia franchises ever, but it has been flooding the market for the better part of two years. There are signs, both in the wider industry and within the brand itself, that this model is not sustainable. The question is what comes next.

You can read the piece here, or click the picture below.

Filed under: Movies, Television | Tagged: ant-man and the wasp: quantumania, blockbuster, Content, film, in the frame, loki, marvel, Marvel Studios, mcu, peak, peak marvel, the escapist, the marvels, volume | Leave a comment »

New Escapist Column! On 2022 as the Return of Spectacle…

Posted on January 1, 2023 by Darren

I published a new piece at The Escapist this evening. With the year wrapping up, it seemed like a good opportunity to take a look back at the year in cinema. In particular, one of the big unifying trends in the year’s blockbusters, which balanced a celebration and a fear of spectacle.

This was the year that “movies were back.” Many of the year’s biggest blockbusters were celebrations of blockbuster cinema in its purest form, from the IMAX cinematography of Top Gun: Maverick to the immersive 3D of Avatar: The Way of Water to the breakout international success of RRR. However, there was also an anxiety about the power of spectacle and the toll that it takes, whether on its audience or on its subject. This played out in movies like Nope or Elvis. There was also a clear worry that this might be the end of it all, playing out in movies like Babylon or even Blonde.

You can read the piece here, or click the picture below.

Filed under: Movies | Tagged: avatar: the way of water, babylon, blockbuster, blonde, elvis, escapist, Movies, nope, rrr, spectacle, the escapist, top gun: maverick | Leave a comment »

New Escapist Column! On “Black Adam” as a Superhero Vanity Project…

Posted on October 24, 2022 by Darren

I published a new In the Frame piece at The Escapist on Friday. The big release of the week was Black Adam, the superhero blockbuster starring Dwayne Johnson as the eponymous antihero.

Part of what makes Black Adam so fascinating is the sense in which it exists between two very different styles of big budget Hollywood production. Most obviously, it’s a big and bombastic superhero blockbuster, albeit one built around a less well-known character. However, it also feels like an old style of blockbuster. It feels very much like a superhero vanity project for Dwayne Johnson, an effort to tie his star power into its own high-profile intellectual property.

You can read the piece here, or click the picture below.

Filed under: Movies | Tagged: action, blockbuster, dcu, Dwayne Johnson, hollywood, in the frame, the escapist, the rock, vanity fare, vanity project | Leave a comment »

Doctor Who: The Power of the Doctor (Review)

Posted on October 23, 2022 by Darren

“Forced regeneration. Forced degeneration.”

The Power of the Doctor is in some ways a fitting conclusion to the Chibnall era, and an illustration of the era’s lost potential.

Trained for this.

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Filed under: Television | Tagged: blockbuster, Chris Chibnall, continuity, doctor who, fan service, nonsense, the doctor, the power of the doctor, time travel | 6 Comments »

New Escapist Column! On “The Batman” as an Argument for Superheroes…

Posted on March 6, 2022 by Darren

I published a new In the Frame piece at The Escapist on Friday. With the release of The Batman this weekend, it seemed a good opportunity to take a look at the film, and what it says about the state of the superhero genre.

The superhero genre is arguably the dominant mode of American blockbuster cinema, the prism through which the populist form must be viewed in its present incarnation. Perhaps the superhero is best understood as a descendent of the classic pop archetypes like the cowboy or the gangster. However, very few superhero films actively engage with what that transition actually means, what makes the superhero a more modern American archetype than the cowboy or the gangster. The Batman is the rare superhero movie engaged with this question.

You can read the piece here, or click the picture below.