PopaHALLics #169 "Raise Your Voice"

It's time to speak up: Ted Lasso for AFC Richmond's new female soccer team; the "Ride or Die" friends for reach other; a son of 1960s radicals for himself; even a killer robot for herself (itself?). And we talk protest songs too.

Streaming:

• "Ted Lasso," Apple TV. Once again Ted (Jason Sudeikis) returns across the pond to coach soccer in Richmond, this time for the new women's team. Returning are Hannah Waddingham (Rebecca), Juno Temple (Keeley), Brett Goldstein (Roy), and Brendan Hunt (Coach Beard), with Tanya Reynolds as the assistant coach passed over for the head job.
• "The Trouble with Jessica," YouTube. In this 2023 dark comedy, a couple (Shirley Henderson and Alan Tudyk) trying to sell their home hold a dinner party. The night turns into mayhem due to an uninvited guest (Indira Varma).
• "Ride or Die," Prime. Best friends Debbie (Octavia Spenser) and Judith (Hannah Waddingham) have secrets from each other in this action comedy series. Debbie hasn't read the book for her book club; Judith is an assassin.
• "Three," Kanopy. Kai''s bad day turns worse when a stranger (Eric Roberts) in a bar prophesies he will die in three days. Caleb Ruminer and Anna Grace Barlow star in this 2026 rom-com movie that veers from serious to whimsical.
• "Companion," HBO Max. In this 2025 sci-fi thriller, a weekend getaway at a remote cabin turns deadly thanks to the erratic behavior of a guest—who discovers she's a robot. Starring Sophie Thatcher and Jack Quaid.
• "Sneakers," streaming. In this high-tech caper, a team of renegade hackers is hired to retrieve an elusive black box. Starring Robert Redford, Sydney Poitier, Dan Aykroyd, River Phoenix, and David Strathairn.

Books:

• "Dangerous, Dirty, Violent and Young: A Fugitive Family in the Revolutionary Underground," by Zayd Ayers Dohrn. This 2026 memoir explores his childhood as the son of Weather Underground leaders, examining his parents' radical history on the run and the emotional toll of political extremism.
• "A Monster Calls," by David Ness and Siobhan Dowd. In this 2011 award-winning dark fantasy for young readers, a monster visits a boy in denial about his mother's terminal cancer. Ness wrote the book from an idea by Dowd, who died of cancer before she could start it.

Music:

Steve seeing protest singer Jesse Wells in concert inspired our PopaHALLics #169 Playlist (Protest), with protest songs old and new. We also include music by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, an old Kate favorite that she recently rediscovered.

PopaHALLics #168 "Blast(s) From the Past"

We discuss writer/director Christopher Nolan's epic take on Homer's nearly 3000-year-old poem "The Odyssey." Kate's back too, talking about old—and new—favorites she watched while recovering from surgery.

Theaters:

• "The Odyssey." Greek warrior Odyssey spends 10 hard yeasr trying to get home after the Trojan War. Plagued by the gods, or just needing GPS? Starring Matt Damon as Odysseus, Anne Hathaway as his wife Penelope, Tom Holland, Zendaya, Robert Pattinson, John Leguizamo, and Charlize Therzon.

Streaming:

• "Disclosure Day," various streamers. Director Steven Spielberg returns to one of his favorite subjects with this action-packed adventure about a cybersecurity expert (Josh O'Connor) and a TV meteorologist (Emily Blunt) trying to expose the existence of alien life. A government contractor (Colin Firth) wants to silence them.
• "The Rip," Netflix. Damon and buddy Ben Affleck star in this action thriller based on real events. When a group of Miami cops discover millions in cash during a house raid, is one or more of them actually trying to steal it? With Steven Yeun, Teyana Taylor, and Kyle Chandler.
• "Lucky," Apple TV. When a multi-million-dollar heist goes wrong, con artist Lucky (Anya Taylor-Joy) must figure out who conned her while running for her life. This miniseries also stars Annette Benning and Timothy Olyphant.
• "Rental Family," Hulu, Disney +, YouTube. In Japan, a struggling actor (Brendan Fraser) takes an unusual gig playing stand-in roles for strangers. When he's asked to pretend to be a young girl's father, the lines between performance and reality begin to blur in this film.
• "I Will Find You," Netflix. This miniseries is based on Harlan Coben's novel. A father (Sam Worthington) imprisoned for his son's murder receives evidence suggesting his child may be alive. He escapes and seeks the truth.
• "Dublin Murders," Tubi. Two detectives (Killian Scott and Sarah Greene) investigate a young girl's murder on the outskirts of Dublin. This TV series is based on Tana French's novels "In the Woods" and "The Likeness."
• "Voicemails for Isabelle," Netflix. In this rom-com, a young woman (Zoey Deutch) copes with her sister's death by leaving voicemails for her describing her chaotic life in San Francisco. A mysterious real estate agent (Nick Robinson) unwittingly begins to receive the messages.
• "Grantchester," Passport (PBS). This British series about a clergyman investigating mysterious wrongdoings in his small village with the help of an overworked detective inspector ends with its 11th season.
• "Blast from the Past," Tubi. In this 1999 romantic comedy, Adam (Brendan Fraser) has lived his entire life in a fallout shelter. When he finally comes to the surface, he finds the nuclear apocalypse didn't occur—and meets gorgeous Eve (Alicia Silverstone).

PopaHALLics #167 "Alien in Heartland"

Five people trapped in a house during what may or may not be an alien invasion begin to suspect one of them is a shape-shifting alien. That's the "Twilight Zone"-like premise of "Alien in the Heartland," an independent film made in Indiana and available to rent or buy on Prime Video. We interview writer/director Eric Pascarelli and four of the five key actors:

• James Tackett, who plays Thomas, a retired movie propmaster still grieving the death of his wife, on the anniversary of her death.
• Tori Behny, who plays Roxy, his daughter, dealing with her own emotions about losing her mom in addition to her dad's spiraling behaviors and this crisis.
• Daisy Paroczy Hickey, who plays Thomas' sister-in-law, Kim, who chooses a very bad time to visit.
• Holly Anspaugh, who plays Ellie, who gets trapped in the house with her younger sister Johanna (Chloe Lutz). The two sisters have dealt with the deaths of their parents in very different ways.

A fifth character in "Alien in the Heartland" is the Dr. Richard Davis House, also known as "Woodside," a historic Frank Lloyd Wright-designed home in Marion, Indiana. The futuristic-looking Usonian style home was constructed in 1955.

Here is the trailer for "Alien in the Heartland."

The trailer for Eric's next movie "Method to the Madness," a dramedy about a Method actor coaching basketball, just came out. It features several of these same actors.

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