Message Dan and Mike

We saw Supergirl opening weekend and couldn't disagree more. Dan's defending it. Mike thinks it's one of the worst films he's seen in years. No fence-sitting — just a real debate about whether Craig Gillespie's DCU origin story actually works.

We break down Milly Alcock's performance as Kara Zor-El, the galactic revenge story adapted from Tom King's Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow, Jason Momoa's Lobo and what his presence actually adds (or doesn't), villain Krem (Matthias Schoenaerts) and whether he lands, the late arrival of the suit, the Krypton lore that's already dividing DC fans, and what David Corenswet's Superman cameo contributes. We also get into the box office disappointment, the mixed critical reception, and whether any of that should change how you feel walking into the theater.

Did the DCU get its Supergirl right? Let us know where you stand.

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Message Dan and Mike

Four months ago we did a first look on Project Hail Mary and walked away genuinely excited. Now that we've seen it — Dan nearly three times, Mike once — we're ready to give it a full review.

Ryan Gosling plays Ryland Grace, a molecular biologist moonlighting as a middle school teacher who wakes up alone in deep space, no memory intact, on what amounts to a suicide mission to save Earth from extinction. The film is dense and ambitious, and once it finds its footing — roughly an hour in when Grace meets the alien life form Rocky — it becomes something pretty special.

We talk about what Lord and Miller pulled off here given the scope of the production, Gosling's continued growth as one of the most versatile actors working today, and the inspired work from puppeteer James Ortiz and his team of five (the Rocketeers) in bringing Rocky to life. We also get into the book-to-film changes, the runtime debate (the first cut was reportedly three and a half hours), cinematographer Greig Fraser's contributions, Sandra Hüller's Eva Stratt, and an unexpected Meryl Streep cameo that earns its laughs.

We draw comparisons to The Martian, weigh in on the ratings discrepancy between Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic, and debate whether a sequel is even a good idea. Dan recommends it. Mike calls it a great family film. We both agree it could have been tightened.

Project Hail Mary is streaming now on MGM+/Amazon Prime Video and may still be playing in select theaters near you.

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Message Dan and Mike

We finally got Dan in front of Cool Hand Luke for the first time, and this one did not disappoint. The 1967 Stuart Rosenberg film stars Paul Newman as Lucas Jackson — a decorated, easygoing war veteran who ends up on a Florida chain gang and absolutely refuses to be broken. It's a simple premise with a whole lot going on underneath it.

We dig into what makes the film work, starting with Paul Newman's performance, which is somehow both understated and completely magnetic. George Kennedy won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for his role as Dragline — and we get into the wild behind-the-scenes story of how he paid $5,000 out of pocket to a consulting firm just to get his name in front of Oscar voters. It worked. His only Oscar, but it paid dividends for the rest of his career.

We also talk about Strother Martin as Captain and Morgan Woodward as Boss Godfrey — a character who says nothing the entire film and still manages to be one of the most menacing screen villains either of us has seen. The supporting cast is stacked with actors who weren't famous yet: Dennis Hopper, Harry Dean Stanton, and a young Rance Howard (Ron Howard's father) all make appearances.

The conversation covers the film's obvious spiritual imagery — the crucifixion pose after the egg-eating scene, the cross-shaped road in the final aerial shot, the Christ-like arc of Luke's story. We also trace the film's clear influence on what came after it: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, First Blood, The Shawshank Redemption — you can draw a straight line from Cool Hand Luke to all of them.

On the craft side, the cinematography by Conrad Hall is remarkable — this is the same DP who later won Oscars for Road to Perdition and American Beauty. And Lalo Schifrin's score, which became so ubiquitous it ended up as the theme for ABC Nightly News, gets its due as well.

100% on Rotten Tomatoes. 92 Metacritic. In the Library of Congress. If you haven't seen it, this one's a must.

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