The Big Picture
Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins review the movies you need to see. Plus: Top 5s, Movie Drafts, Oscars analysis, and more, featuring a rotating cast of Ringer colleagues like Chris Ryan, Van Lathan, and Bill Simmons.
Episodes
May 24, 2024 • 75 mins
Sean and Amanda dig into a spoiler-filled conversation about George Miller’s newest installment in his ‘Mad Max’ canon—the Anya Taylor-Joy– and Chris Hemsworth–starring ‘Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga.’ They discuss how it compares to 2015's ‘Mad Max: Fury Road,’ whether comparisons are fair or useful, the performances at the heart of the film, its visual prowess, its spot in the year of movies, whether it will have any chance at the Osca...
Mark as Played
May 21, 2024 • 101 mins
Sean and Amanda are joined by Midnight Boy and resident hater Charles Holmes to discuss a trio of less-than-ideal movies out right now: John Krasinski’s semi-animated ‘IF’ (1:00), the Amy Winehouse biopic ‘Back to Black’ (45:00), and Jerry Seinfeld’s nightmarish directorial debut, ‘Unfrosted’ (1:07:00).
Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins
Guest: Charles Holmes
Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner
Learn more about your ad choices. Vi...
Mark as Played
May 17, 2024 • 109 mins
We are drafting again! Sean, Amanda, and Chris Ryan reunite for a draft of the coolest scenes in action movie history.
Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins
Guest: Chris Ryan
Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mark as Played
May 14, 2024 • 94 mins
Sean and Amanda are joined by Van Lathan to discuss the new installment in the ‘Planet of the Apes’ franchise, the enduring power of the ‘Apes’ IP, and how it relates to modern IP storytelling (1:00). Finally, they rank the 10 films in the franchise (1:05:00).
Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins
Guest: Van Lathan
Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mark as Played
May 10, 2024 • 160 mins
Sean and Amanda answer your questions about the 2024 box office, roasts, YouTube movie clips, repertory theaters, and more (1:00). Then, Sean is joined by Mean Pod Guy Adam Nayman to discuss an exciting new release, Jane Schoenbrun’s ‘I Saw the TV Glow,’ and its unique blend of body horror, nostalgia, and identity (1:15:00). Finally, Sean is joined by Schoenbrun to discuss the making of the movie, growing up hooked in to television...
Mark as Played
May 7, 2024 • 96 mins
Sean and Amanda share some exciting announcements about the show (1:00), then dig into their experience at four different premium large-format movie theater experiences over the last few weeks (4:00). They later discuss the weekend’s biggest streaming film, the Anne Hathaway vehicle ‘The Idea of You’ (1:00:00). Does the movie work, should it have been in theaters, and what does this signal for Hathaway—one of their favorite stars i...
Mark as Played
May 3, 2024 • 83 mins
Sean and Amanda reflect on the reaction to the 35 Under 35 movie stars list they put together on Tuesday’s episode (1:00), before discussing the new Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt action-comedy-romance movie, ‘The Fall Guy’ (5:00). Then, they revisit the highs of Gosling’s career by each sharing their five favorite performances from his long and chaptered career (51:00).
Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins
Senior Producer: Bobb...
Mark as Played
April 30, 2024 • 134 mins
Sean and Amanda reconvene the movie star committee to rank the 35 most important movie stars under the age of 35, using their proprietary blend of what a star has done already, what they have on their slate next, and what they could turn into in the future. Zendaya, Margot Robbie, Timothée Chalamet, Tom Holland, Jacob Elordi, Florence Pugh … Who will come out on top?
Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins
Senior Producer: Bobby ...
Mark as Played
April 26, 2024 • 126 mins
Sean and Amanda gather to discuss the 2024 film perfectly situated at the center of their respective tastes: ‘Challengers.’ They discuss the thrilling trio of actors at its center, underrated director Luca Guadagnino, its pulsing score, and its thrilling ending (1:00). Then, Sean interviews Justin Kuritzkes, the writer of the movie, about writing this script on spec, the balance of power dynamics among the characters, why he chose ...
Mark as Played
April 23, 2024 • 83 mins
Sean is joined by Chris Ryan to discuss the current state of horror in theaters (1:00). They run through a list of movies that are out right now, then dive into what they did and did not like about them (10:00). Later, they’re joined by a special guest to explain the plot of ‘Imaginary’ (27:00) to Chris, who hasn’t yet seen the film. Finally, Sean and Chris discuss the directors they’d most like to see work in the horror genre (1:0...
Mark as Played
Sean and Amanda discuss the news that Quentin Tarantino has shelved what was previously reported as his 10th and final film, ‘The Movie Critic’ (1:00). Then, they react to some development news for Martin Scorsese’s and Steven Spielberg’s next projects (12:00), and discuss the most anticipated movie of this upcoming summer (29:00).
Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins
Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner
Learn more about your ad choi...
Mark as Played
April 16, 2024 • 153 mins
We are drafting again! Sean, Amanda, and Chris Ryan reunite and are joined by several special guests for a mega-draft of the best movies of 1999.
Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins
Guests: Chris Ryan, Mallory Rubin, Joanna Robinson, Van Lathan, and Rob Mahoney
Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mark as Played
April 12, 2024 • 156 mins
Sean and Amanda are joined by Chris Ryan to run through the 10 most anticipated movies from this week’s CinemaCon, which Sean attended (1:00). Then, they have a long—and, at times, combative—discussion about Alex Garland’s big-budget A24 release, ‘Civil War’ (44:00), delving into the film’s politics (or lack thereof), point of view, cinematic style, and more. Finally, Sean is joined by Garland to answer questions regarding some of ...
Mark as Played
April 9, 2024 • 103 mins
Sean and Amanda revisit Denis Villeneuve’s ‘Dune: Part Two’ and assess whether the fervor for it holds up (1:00). Then, they share their 10 favorite movies of the year so far (25:00), including ‘Immaculate,’ ‘La Chimera,’ ‘The First Omen,’ and others. Sean is then joined by the director of ‘The First Omen,’ Arkasha Stevenson, to discuss the subversive nature of a her legacy sequel, how she got it made, and the career that led her h...
Mark as Played
April 5, 2024 • 76 mins
Sean and Amanda dig into the successes and shortcomings of this week’s biggest release at the box office: Dev Patel’s directorial debut, ‘Monkey Man’ (1:00). They discuss, among other things, the unique action put to screen and the movie’s rumored behind-the-scenes studio management. Then—after casually losing their sanity for 15 minutes in the middle of the podcast—they discuss the best directorial debuts of the 21st century (42:0...
Mark as Played
April 2, 2024 • 129 mins
Sean and Amanda break down a pair of big franchise releases—‘Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire’ and ‘Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire’ (1:00). They then share their thoughts on the new Steve Martin documentary ‘Steve!’ (30:00) and build the Steve Martin Hall of Fame (49:00). Finally, Sean is joined by the director of said documentary, Morgan Neville, to discuss picking a subject, building rapport with that subject, and how he chooses proj...
Mark as Played
March 26, 2024 • 193 mins
In a hundred years, when you and I are both long gone, anytime someone listens to this podcast, you will be alive again.
Chris Ryan joins Sean and Amanda as they discuss Damien Chazelle’s 'Babylon.'
(The movie is now available on Amazon Prime Video and Paramount+, so you can stream along with 'The Big Picture.')
Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins
Guest: Chris Ryan
Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner
Learn more about your ad choi...
Mark as Played
March 22, 2024 • 103 mins
Sean is joined by Chris Ryan to briefly discuss ‘Immaculate,’ the new Sydney Sweeney nun horror movie, before digging into Jake Gyllenhaal’s ‘Road House’ remake (1:00). Then, Sean and Chris explore a new niche subgenre they’ve invented: junk fights (32:00). Finally, Sean is joined by ‘Immaculate’ director Michael Mohan to discuss working in the genre, working with Sweeney, and how he hopes to build on this film going forward (1:08:...
Mark as Played
March 19, 2024 • 106 mins
We are drafting again! Sean, Amanda, and Chris Ryan reunite for a draft of the best movies of 1977—the year of Chris’s birth and a compelling year for many of our most iconic directors.
John Cassavetes on TV sucking: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ePptcNqXRJA
Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins
Guest: Chris Ryan
Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mark as Played
March 15, 2024 • 87 mins
Sean and Amanda discuss a recent run of positive 2025 movie news (1:00) before digging into Rose Glass’s second feature, ‘Love Lies Bleeding’ (20:00). They take stock of Kristen Stewart’s unique movie star presence, discuss Glass’s genre command and audacious screenwriting, and praise Katy O’Brian’s wonderfully physical and emotional performance. Then, they run down a list of films they’re calling the 21st Century Noir Movie Canon ...
Mark as Played
Popular Podcasts
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations.
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Every week comedian and infamous roaster Nikki Glaser provides a fun, fast-paced, and brutally honest look into current pop-culture and her own personal life.
Shootings are not unusual in Belize. Shootings of cops are. When a wealthy woman – part of one of the most powerful families in Belize – is found on a pier late at night, next to a body, it becomes the country’s biggest news story in a generation. New episodes every Monday!
A straightforward look at the day's top news in 20 minutes. Powered by ABC News. Hosted by Brad Mielke.