Infestation: Annecy Animation Fest 2026 – The Obsessed

The Obsessed movie review

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THE OBSESSED MOVIE REVIEW

“Are you in love with that girl?”, “No sir, I’m just very obsessed with her!”. Giuseppe loves the things he loves. Whenever something grabs his interest, he throws everything else away and devotes his life to his new passion. From singing and collecting bugs to the oddly specific hobby of “throwing five peanuts into the air at the same time,” he puts his heart into mastering every aspect of it before moving on. Considered the oddball of the town and nicknamed “The Obsessed,” Giuseppe is still seen as a harmless and friendly individual—even if the rat he befriends and talks with might be the only one willing to vouch for him. Giuseppe’s eccentric nature is thrown into new territory when he meets Pechka, a beautiful foreign balloon seller. Interpreting love as his new obsession, Giuseppe decides to learn everything he can about Pechka. Believing it to be romantic, he begins to spy on her and gather information about her life. Not wanting the smile to ever vanish from her face, Giuseppe decides to fix every problem in Pechka’s life without her knowing about it. All of this leads to him becoming tangled in a mob war, pretending to be a miracle healer, and committing some very ethically questionable actions with the help of his rat friend and the “power” of his obsessive-compulsive tendencies. Based on the novel by Shinji Ishii, directed by Wataru Takahashi, and featuring songs by Awesome City Club, the movie takes a story that on paper could easily turn into a creepy movie about a stalker and instead tries to transform it into a charming, self-aware musical comedy. Much like its protagonist, The Obsessed tries to turn the awkward into something compelling, jumping from one thing to another, including different movie genres. But did we finally get a good anime musical? Did the cartoonish art style get in the way? And did the creators manage to find the perfect balance between heartfelt emotion and hilariously over-the-top comedy? Honest and Silly? And just how far can a story take its insane premise? Those are questions Spidermike will have to challenge Maciej Kur to answer without spoiling the second half, where the story takes a very unexpected—and genuinely chilling, yet beautiful turn.

OFFICIAL ANNECY PAGE

DIRECTED BY: Wataru Takahashi

 

YOUR REVIEWERS

 

Maciej Kur (Infestation)

Maciej Kur is a Polish comic and film script writer, director and reviewer, and decidedly the biggest fan and most loyal supporter of Oneofus.net. A graduate of the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw with a master’s degree and the Academy of Film and Television. Co-creator of the comic book series Dollicious and Emilka Sza (with Magdalena Kania ) and Lil i Put, (with Piotr Bednarczyk ) and many others. Awarded in 2014 for a comic book in the spirit of Janusz Christa and awarded for “Złoty Puchar” in 2023. He wrote scripts for new comic books in the Polish cult series “Kayko and Kokosh”, as well as episodes of an animated series based on it (available on Netflix). He wrote for many other shows including “Kicia Kocia” (Kitty Kotty), “Pompik the Bison”, “Pucio”, “Hip-Hip and Hurra” and the upcoming animated movies “The Shrew of Destiny” and “Tytus, Romek and A’tomek”. He also directed a documentary about Polish animation legend “Witold Giersz”. Big lover of the art of animation and comic books.

 

Michael Riojas (Screener Squad, Highly Suspect Reviews)

The man with the ever-changing nicknames. Born in Austin, Riojas was rocketed to Del Rio, Texas, a literal Smallville. In his youth, he was bitten by a radioactive… okay, look. Mike is not very good at this whole “talking about himself” thing. But he has been so obsessed with comics, video games, and anime since childhood- that if one has to choose between listening to Joe Quesada or Mike over any obscure Spider-Man trivia, they go to him (or, at least Martin Thomas once said so). He is also a big fan of “Ghostbusters” (he even owns his own jumpsuit and two, that’s right, TWO proton packs!), collects toys and video games, and will defend “Superman IV: The Quest for Peace” if provoked. He lives in Austin with his beloved Dachshund-Maltese and trusted sidekick, Dean. He can also be heard on RageSelect. He can be found on Twitter and Instagram.

 

You can subscribe to the Highly Suspect Reviews and Screener Squad series of podcasts on iTunes, Spotify, and more, or use our RSS feed on whatever podcast service you use: https://oneofus.net/feed/theatrical-movie-review-podcast/ and please leave us a review!

Please think about becoming a paid subscriber to Oneofus.net, support our huge network of shows, and get access to tons of bonus shows and videos in our forums! We cannot keep this site going without support from our listeners. For added information about being a subscriber, the benefits, and the forums, please go here.


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Screener Squad: Nimrods

Nimrods movie review

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NIMRODS MOVIE REVIEW

Do you have the time to listen to three teenagers whine? Inspired by stories from Green Day’s own pre-fame touring days, Nimrods follows Tommy, Fred, and Chad, three Kansas City teenagers whose garageband, The Analog Dogs, receives the opportunity of a lifetime: open for Green Day on New Year’s Eve in Los Angeles. So they steal a car and hit the road. Cue three days of punk-rock dreams, questionable substances, stolen vehicles, catastrophically bad decisions, and one desperate journey toward a gig that may or may not exist. Green Day themselves pop up along the way, making this a love letter to every young American idiot who ever cranked an amp and believed their crappy garage band could conquer the world. T.C., Mike, and our guest reviewer Jim gather in the One Of Us basement to record their kickass demo and offer for their thoughts on these three punks.

OFFICIAL WEBSITE/TRAILER

DIRECTED BY: Lee Kirk

STARRING: Mason Thames, Kylr Coffman, Ryan Foust, Jenna Fischer, Mckenna Grace, Angela Kinsey, Keen Ruffalo, Ignacio Diaz-Silverio, Fred Armisen, Bobby Lee, Sean Gunn, Jolene Blalock, Billie Joe Armstrong, Mike Dirnt, Tré Cool

 

YOUR REVIEWERS

 

T.C. De Witt (Screener Squad)

T.C. De Witt is a multi-awarded writer/director originally from Wisconsin and now based in Los Angeles. His life has been devoted to the arts since he was a child. He’s been a stage performer, playwright, stand-up comic, film and television actor, radio DJ, podcaster published author, recorded musician, and comic writer/illustrator. He is now a professional screenwriter and has been thriving for the past decade, regularly offering his talents to production studios in LA, Chicago, Milwaukee, and internationally in Sydney and Poland. He’s provided content for Amazon Prime, Netflix, and several YouTube partners. His films have screened internationally, and his stageplays have been performed across the country. In the last ten years, he has directed 57 films, 23 episodes of his series The One Minute Rewatch, 300+ episodes of podcasts, and his multi-award-winning short film Screen: Righter screened at the Festival de Cannes in 2016. He has released two feature films, The Princess Knight and A Christmas Sunset. He thrives on collaboration and the thrill of sharing stories in all forms.

 

Mike J. McAllister (Screener Squad, Staff Writer, Head Video Editor)

Mike J. McAllister is an award-winning creative jack of all trades, and is pretty competent with most of them. He is a writer, director, animator, video editor, and motion graphics artist. He has tried his hand at nearly every form of artistic expression at least once. He was born and raised in Western Pennsylvania where he fell in love with film, writing and special effects at an early age. His obsession with film would lead him to being locally known as a “human IMDb” and being on a first-name basis with every video store clerk in town. He would study film in Pittsburgh before taking his talents to Austin. Not letting something like Tourettes get in his way, he has produced a handful of animated short films that have won awards from film festivals all over the globe. He has also written several yet-to-be-produced screenplays and TV pilots, with some of them being recognized in screenwriting competitions. He has even created motion graphics and animations for several clients, from movie theaters to Twitch streamers. When not creating or watching films, he enjoys MST3K, classic video games and buying vinyl records. He loves dogs, dropping obscure pop culture trivia and watching travel videos. He currently resides in Austin Texas and can be followed on the Instamagrams at @ohheyitsmikejm. His body of work can be found at his homepage or you can take a gander at his somewhat-impressive IMDb listing here.

 

You can subscribe to the Highly Suspect Reviews and Screener Squad series of podcasts on iTunes, Spotify, and more, or use our RSS feed on whatever podcast service you use: https://oneofus.net/feed/theatrical-movie-review-podcast/ and please leave us a review!

Please think about becoming a paid subscriber to Oneofus.net, support our huge network of shows, and get access to tons of bonus shows and videos in our forums! We cannot keep this site going without support from our listeners. For added information about being a subscriber, the benefits, and the forums, please go here.


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Highly Suspect Reviews: The Rivals of Amziah King

The Rivals of Amziah King movie review

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THE RIVALS OF AMZIAH KING MOVIE REVIEW

Every generation have a few actors that become icons. Sometimes it’s sheerly because of their skill at the craft. Sometimes it’s because they’ve just got that ‘je ne sais quoi’ that makes them stand apart. Sometimes, they’re just Matthew McConaughey, and you can already just hear that voice in your head as you read the name. One could argue that Matt is a national treasure, but he’s surely a Texas one, and the Alamo Drafthouse cemented that by having a special ceremony to name of one their Austin theaters after him. Part of this event was a screening of his new film, the festival hit The Rivals of Amziah King and your One of Us bosses, Wright and Chris, were there to bear witness (and take advantage of the open bar). The story initially follows Amziah (McConaughey), about the most amiable souther fella you could ever want to know. Deeply loved by seemingly everyone who has ever met him, Amziah goes through his day of running a beekeeping/honey business with both competency and charm, but there’s a bee in his bonnet. Someone is pulling heists on honey businesses, his included, and it’s put such a dent in his profits, he’s unsure exactly what to do about it. But this film has to get a lot set up before its questionable mid-film turn. The most important element is Kateri (Angelina LookingGlass) coming back into Amziah’s life. A former child he fostered, they reconnect and he becomes firmly her mentor and friend as he shows her the bee business, the joys of playing music with friends (there’s a LOT of it in this film), buffet strategies, and more. The first half is a warm honey bath that if you are someone who succumbs to McConaughey’s drawly charms, and don’t mind a good deal of borrowed style from O Brother, Where Art Thou?, you’ll want to keep soaking in. But then the second act turn has Matt leave the film and Kateri become the center. While she gives a remarkable performance, it’s not just the lack of Matt that starts to make The Rivals of Amziah King start to fray, culminating in some pretty sizable ending issues. You may hear a lot of unabashed love for this one, and we get it. Chris and Wright still have some pretty strong thoughts about what keeps this from being as great as it almost is.

OFFICIAL WEBSITE/TRAILER

DIRECTED BY: Andrew Patterson

STARRING: Matthew McConaughey, Angelina LookingGlass, Kurt Russell, Scott Shepherd, Rob Morgan, Tony Revolori, Cole Sprouse, Owen Teague, Jake Horowitz, Catherine Dyer, Jason Davis, Sandra Ellis Lafferty, Harris Stone, Bruce Davis, Sharon Blackwood, Chip Carriere

 

YOUR REVIEWERS

 

Christopher Lawrence Cox (Founder, Da Boss, Digital Noise, Highly Suspect Reviews, Screener Squad, Deliberations of Doom)

Born in the wilds of northern Virginia, Chris managed to put all of his survival skills to use and barely escaped with his life to Austin Texas in 1992 where ever since he’s dabbled in everything from plumber’s assistant to sandwich maker, from band to bar and theater management. An opportunity to see theatrical release films for free by becoming a critic on a local public access show called “The Reel Deal” turned into a full-time job when Chris and his friends decided to take it to the internet. They built the site Spill.com, adding multiple podcasts and animated features, to no small amount of success. During this time, a fortuitous friendship sprung up between Chris and young Brian Salisbury, who was also a local film critic, and they merged their forces of will, and their laundry list of ideas for shows, to eventually build this community of critics. While Brian eventually followed his heart to a new family, Chris continues on with a cast of colorful folks from all over the country (and a few others).

 

Wright Sulek (The Other Boss, Trash in the Can, Digital Noise, Highly Suspect Reviews, One Man’s Trash, Screener Squad)

Wright hails from the northern suburbs of Dallas, Texas. His passion for filmmaking brought him to Austin to study and make movies. Since then he’s had his hand in acting, writing, and directing his own short films with numerous like-minded film geeks he’s met along his journey. His newest interest has brought him into the podcasting world. He co-hosted a few different movie related podcasts such as ‘And Now This’ and ‘The Match Cut’. He currently co-hosts with longtime friend, Eric Samaniego, where they talk shop about the grimiest, trashiest, lost gems of movies on their show, ‘Trash in the Can’. Wright also guests and hosts reviews on Screener Squad and Highly Suspect Reviews as well as co-hosts Digital Noise with Chris Cox. As of 2024, Wright has now been inducted into the Austin Film Critics Association as well as co-owns the One of Us network with Chris Cox.

 

You can subscribe to the Highly Suspect Reviews and Screener Squad series of podcasts on iTunes, Spotify, and more, or use our RSS feed on whatever podcast service you use: https://oneofus.net/feed/theatrical-movie-review-podcast/ and please leave us a review!

Please think about becoming a paid subscriber to Oneofus.net, support our huge network of shows, and get access to tons of bonus shows and videos in our forums! We cannot keep this site going without support from our listeners. For added information about being a subscriber, the benefits, and the forums, please go here.


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Screener Squad: The Devil’s Mouth

The Devil's Mouth movie review

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THE DEVIL’S MOUTH MOVIE REVIEW

A wise Pixar fish once sang, “Just keep swimming, just keep swimming.” It’s a clever mantra reminding us all that when the storm hits, you’ve gotta hold onto hope and never give up. Amazon Prime presents The Devil’s Mouth, a survival-horror shark attack film set in the beautiful country of Thailand. Sara (Kathryn Newton) is on a stunning and daring sightseeing trip featuring a dive into the deep blue. She and her four friends are right on the edge of adulthood—about to step into the big world of independent decisions and endless bills. Sara and her best friend Max (Lana Condor) are split between a big move to NYC or LA. The deciding time is nigh, as they are at the tail end of their tour, and the group embarks into a cavern system known as The Devil’s Mouth. But an uninvited guest crashes their magical wonderland, taking a massive bite out of their future plans. Now, the five friends and their two tour guides have to pull together to escape the jaws of a killer beast that came to reference animal attack movies and chew up college kids… and it’s all out of references. Bradley, Lewayne, and Chris Ayres dive in to discuss CGI sharks, the effectiveness of terrible movie decisions, and whether the film’s tension actually lands—or if Brad has just seen way too many movies. Plus, stick around for a deep-cut shoutout to Michael Crichton’s Sphere. If you know, you know!

WATCH HERE

DIRECTED BY: Jeff Wadlow

STARRING: Kathryn Newton, Lana Condor, Gavin Casalegno, Nico Hiraga, Tommi Rose, Tayme Thapthimthong

 

YOUR REVIEWERS

 

Bradly Martin (Screener Squad Boss, Eye on the Prize, Breakfast Pub)

Bradly Martin was born in the united states and grew up on a healthy diet of sports, films, and books. A rather shy lad who kept to himself, Bradly soon discovered the best way to know a person was to know what people liked. Throughout the years Bradly became a fan of many things and a fanatic of none. From Doctor Dre, to Doctor Strange and the who’s who of Whos. From Playstation to the Dreamcast and Marvel to DC. From LeBron James to James Bond and Lord of the Rings to Lord Palmerston (or Pitt the Elder if you agree with Wade Boggs) and is a huge fan of dad jokes and randomly obscure Simpsons references. Armed with a vast knowledge of comics, films, and pop culture. Bradly traveled the world making friends and sharing takes. As a young man Bradly married the love of his life young and grew older every year with each new child brought into the brood. If trends continue, Scientists predict that .2% of Canada (where Bradly and family reside) will be populated by Bradly’s children by the year 2029. You can hear him leading and listening to his favorite critics on the Screener Squad and maybe even providing some comments of his own.

 

Lewayne White (Screener Squad)

Lewayne’s earliest memories are of watching movies and reading comics, which instilled in him a sense of wonder, a vivid imagination, and unrealistic expectations. It also means he spends a lot of time watching movies, writing scripts for them, and trying to get them made. He lives in the middle of middle America after landing there as a child, and has remained there mainly because he hates packing.

 

Christopher Ayres (Screener Squad)

Born and raised in the suburbs of Hinsdale, Illinois, Chris Ayres would constantly watch movies as a child, and that obsession has only grown over time, even attending Columbia Film School in Chicago during his last couple years of college. Whenever he’s not working his exhausting day job, he’s either watching as many movies as he can squeeze into his free time (preferably movies he’s never seen before due to a never-ending desire to expand his knowledge of the art form), or trying to turn people on to movies they haven’t seen that he thinks are worth their attention. You can find him on Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram and Letterboxd (look for AyresForce or AyresForceOne)

 

You can subscribe to the Highly Suspect Reviews and Screener Squad series of podcasts on iTunes, Spotify, and more, or use our RSS feed on whatever podcast service you use: https://oneofus.net/feed/theatrical-movie-review-podcast/ and please leave us a review!

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Screener Squad: Batman: Caped Crusader Season 2

Batman: Caped Crusader Season 2 review

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BATMAN: CAPED CRUSADER SEASON 2 REVIEW

When crime haunts the night, a silent crusader carries the torch of justice. He is vengeance. He is the night. He is Batman! For the second season, executive producers J.J. Abrams with Bruce Timm (creator of the iconic and award-winning Batman: The Animated Series) take us back to the Golden Age of Gotham with Amazon’s Batman: Caped Crusader. As police corruption grows and mob violence gets more and more rampant, our titular Bat must face a new wave of costumed villains. All the while, a master criminal stalks the city streets, a criminal weaving a web of death about him leaving stricken victims behind wearing a ghastly clown’s grin. Our own Gossip Gerties, Mindy, Eoin, and Lewayne, discuss this latest retelling of the legend of the Batman – who he is and how he came to be. Does this show live up to its animated pedigree and the legacy of a character that has endured for nearly a century? Or is it, like this text copy, filled with nothing more than Easter egg-covered nostalgia? Tune in here – same Bat-time, same Bat-podcast!

WATCH HERE

CREATED BY: Bruce Timm and James Tucker

STARRING: Hamish Linklater, Santino Barnard, Eric Morgan Stuart, Krystal Joy Brown, John DiMaggio, Gary Anthony Williams, Michelle C. Bonilla, Grey DeLisle, Cedric Yarbrough, Bumper Robinson, Yuri Lowenthal, Jamie Chung, Tom Kenny, Kimberly Brooks, Corey Burton, William Salyers, Roger Craig Smith, James Arnold Taylor, Ronan Raftery, Laraine Newman, Matthew Needham, Lacey Chabert, SungWon Cho, Juliet Donenfeld, Zach Lazar Hoffman, J.P. Karliak, James Urbaniak, Wummi Mosaku, Bruce Thomas, Todd Haberkorn, Darien Sills-Evans, Blythe Melin, Darcy Yelin, Josh Brener, Fryda Wolff, Kevin Michael Richardson

 

YOUR REVIEWERS

 

Mindy Rast-Keenan (Screener Squad, Highly Suspect Reviews)

Having grown up in Nairobi, Kenya, and being very disappointed at the lack of riding elephants her cartoons had promised her, Mindy spends the majority of her time as a film, theater, and voice over actress in the Austin, Texas area. They still give her money for being on HBO that one time, with her name in the credits spelled wrong. A nerdy geek, this award-winning actress joined One of Us figuring she’d put her summa cum laude BFA acting degree to good use…by judging other people’s acting. In the few seconds she gets to herself, Mindy bakes for charity, knits eccentric plushies, plays original RPG’s with her gamemaster husband, and spends time with her soulmate, Batman.

 

Eoin Daly

Born and raised in Dublin Ireland, Eoin currently lives in London and has been an avid film lover from as far back as they can remember. Eoin enjoys going to the cinema weekly regardless of the film: new, old, or the most random title. They have no preconceived notions when taking in a new film. They tend to look for the good in any film they watch and will always love the art form. They are a major fan of actress-led cinema and will never apologize for this one film bias.

 

Lewayne White (Screener Squad)

Lewayne’s earliest memories are of watching movies and reading comics, which instilled in him a sense of wonder, a vivid imagination, and unrealistic expectations. It also means he spends a lot of time watching movies, writing scripts for them, and trying to get them made. He lives in the middle of middle America after landing there as a child, and has remained there mainly because he hates packing.

 

You can subscribe to the Highly Suspect Reviews and Screener Squad series of podcasts on iTunes, Spotify, and more, or use our RSS feed on whatever podcast service you use: https://oneofus.net/feed/theatrical-movie-review-podcast/ and please leave us a review!

Please think about becoming a paid subscriber to Oneofus.net, support our huge network of shows, and get access to tons of bonus shows and videos in our forums! We cannot keep this site going without support from our listeners. For added information about being a subscriber, the benefits, and the forums, please go here.


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Highly Suspect Reviews: The End of Oak Street

The End of Oak Street movie review

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THE END OF OAK STREET MOVIE REVIEW

Is it odd that director David Robert Mitchell, rightfully celebrated for his films The Myth of the American Sleepover (2010) and It Follows (2014) hasn’t made a film since his severely underrated 2018 film Under The Silver Lake? Yes. Is it even weirder that when you look at the stuff that he’s done before, with his new film, The End of Oak Street, he’s now made an unmistakable attempt at a Spielberg in the 80’s-style family suspense thriller? Also, yes. The Platts are a normal 1982 suburban American family. Denise (Anne Hathaway) is trying to be a writer. Greg (Ewan McGregor) is doing pizza delivery until he can find a new job but is embarrassed about it. Their kids are somewhat nondescript teens of the era. When a mysterious phenomena transports their entire neighborhood to the distant past and dinosaurs start roaming around everywhere tearing stuff, and their neighbors, to pieces, the family doesn’t see a clear way out. But the family that stays together, might not get eaten by dinosaurs together. If only they put better effort into staying together. Chris, Wright, Alan, and Mike look at this old-school style summer escapism and discuss whether its what we need to return to, or if it’s a bit too simple to be truly all that interesting.

OFFICIAL WEBSITE/TRAILER

DIRECTED BY: David Robert Mitchell

STARRING: Anne Hathaway, Ewan McGregor, Maisy Stella, Christian Convery, Jordan Alexa Davis, P.J. Byrne, Chris Coy, Anne Gee Byrd, Emily Kuroda

 

YOUR REVIEWERS

 

Christopher Lawrence Cox (Founder, Da Boss, Digital Noise, Highly Suspect Reviews, Screener Squad, Deliberations of Doom)

Born in the wilds of northern Virginia, Chris managed to put all of his survival skills to use and barely escaped with his life to Austin Texas in 1992 where ever since he’s dabbled in everything from plumber’s assistant to sandwich maker, from band to bar and theater management. An opportunity to see theatrical release films for free by becoming a critic on a local public access show called “The Reel Deal” turned into a full-time job when Chris and his friends decided to take it to the internet. They built the site Spill.com, adding multiple podcasts and animated features, to no small amount of success. During this time, a fortuitous friendship sprung up between Chris and young Brian Salisbury, who was also a local film critic, and they merged their forces of will, and their laundry list of ideas for shows, to eventually build this community of critics. While Brian eventually followed his heart to a new family, Chris continues on with a cast of colorful folks from all over the country (and a few others).

 

Wright Sulek (The Other Boss, Trash in the Can, Digital Noise, Highly Suspect Reviews, One Man’s Trash, Screener Squad)

Wright hails from the northern suburbs of Dallas, Texas. His passion for filmmaking brought him to Austin to study and make movies. Since then he’s had his hand in acting, writing, and directing his own short films with numerous like-minded film geeks he’s met along his journey. His newest interest has brought him into the podcasting world. He co-hosted a few different movie related podcasts such as ‘And Now This’ and ‘The Match Cut’. He currently co-hosts with longtime friend, Eric Samaniego, where they talk shop about the grimiest, trashiest, lost gems of movies on their show, ‘Trash in the Can’. Wright also guests and hosts reviews on Screener Squad and Highly Suspect Reviews as well as co-hosts Digital Noise with Chris Cox. As of 2024, Wright has now been inducted into the Austin Film Critics Association as well as co-owns the One of Us network with Chris Cox.

 

Alan Galinsky (Highly Suspect Reviews, Screener Squad, Deliberations of Doom)

Born and raised in Texas, Alan Galinsky is a lifetime movie fan. As a youth, he would rent multiple movies every weekend and go to the theater for the latest releases, and that pace has remained steady. When Alan isn’t watching movies, you can find him talking about movies. When he’s not talking about movies, you can find him playing music in the band Delicate Boys.

 

Mike J. McAllister (Screener Squad, Staff Writer, Head Video Editor)

Mike J. McAllister is an award-winning creative jack of all trades, and is pretty competent with most of them. He is a writer, director, animator, video editor, and motion graphics artist. He has tried his hand at nearly every form of artistic expression at least once. He was born and raised in Western Pennsylvania where he fell in love with film, writing and special effects at an early age. His obsession with film would lead him to being locally known as a “human IMDb” and being on a first-name basis with every video store clerk in town. He would study film in Pittsburgh before taking his talents to Austin. Not letting something like Tourettes get in his way, he has produced a handful of animated short films that have won awards from film festivals all over the globe. He has also written several yet-to-be-produced screenplays and TV pilots, with some of them being recognized in screenwriting competitions. He has even created motion graphics and animations for several clients, from movie theaters to Twitch streamers. When not creating or watching films, he enjoys MST3K, classic video games and buying vinyl records. He loves dogs, dropping obscure pop culture trivia and watching travel videos. He currently resides in Austin Texas and can be followed on the Instamagrams at @ohheyitsmikejm. His body of work can be found at his homepage or you can take a gander at his somewhat-impressive IMDb listing here.

 

You can subscribe to the Highly Suspect Reviews and Screener Squad series of podcasts on iTunes, Spotify, and more, or use our RSS feed on whatever podcast service you use: https://oneofus.net/feed/theatrical-movie-review-podcast/ and please leave us a review!

Please think about becoming a paid subscriber to Oneofus.net, support our huge network of shows, and get access to tons of bonus shows and videos in our forums! We cannot keep this site going without support from our listeners. For added information about being a subscriber, the benefits, and the forums, please go here.


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Highly Suspect Reviews: The Wrong Girls

The Wrong Girls movie review

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THE WRONG GIRLS MOVIE REVIEW

I definitely did not have on my scorecard for 2026, NEON releases a stoner superhero movie with Kristen Stewart and Alia Shawkat. But here we are. The Wrong Girls follows these two (Frankie and Molly respectively) who are best friends, roommates, bombed out stoners, and total losers. Rent and bills are coming due and their continued residence in their Fortress of Stonitude is questionable. When Frankie sees that her ex is dating someone new who looks exactly like her (also played by Stewart) she goes out to confront them. There’s a mistaken identity situation where a spy who was supposed to hand-off a top secret package to the lookalike girl, hands it off to the completely knackered Frankie instead. The next morning, the girls discover inside the case a bunch of vials with swirly, sparkly liquid inside that they conclude must be drugs. So…they drink one. Fortunately for them it IS drugs (sort of) with lots of very hardcore psychedelic effects but also…superpowers. Unfortunately, a group of murderous Danish spies are after the case, as is “Not Metal Head Dave” who made the accidental handoff to Frankie in the first place (LaKeith Stanfield). They will have to rely on their friendship, their cats (who they now can psychically communicate with), Not Metal Head Dave, and I guess the Lord’s love of fools for them to get through this situation. I guess I don’t have to tell you that The Wrong Girls is not gonna be for everyone. In fact, Chris, Wright, and Frank aren’t really sure it was for them. But, I suspect watching it in a different state of mind would have very different results.

OFFICIAL WEBSITE/TRAILER

DIRECTED BY: Dylan Meyer

STARRING: Kristen Stewart, Ali Shawkat, LaKeith Stanfield, Tony Hale, Zack Fox, Seth Rogen, Kumail Nanjiani, Kate McKinnon, Geena Davis, Thomas Nicholson, Thor Knai, Thomas La Barbera Christensen, Cate Blanchett, Sugar Lyn Beard

 

YOUR REVIEWERS

 

Christopher Lawrence Cox (Founder, Da Boss, Digital Noise, Highly Suspect Reviews, Screener Squad, Deliberations of Doom)

Born in the wilds of northern Virginia, Chris managed to put all of his survival skills to use and barely escaped with his life to Austin Texas in 1992 where ever since he’s dabbled in everything from plumber’s assistant to sandwich maker, from band to bar and theater management. An opportunity to see theatrical release films for free by becoming a critic on a local public access show called “The Reel Deal” turned into a full-time job when Chris and his friends decided to take it to the internet. They built the site Spill.com, adding multiple podcasts and animated features, to no small amount of success. During this time, a fortuitous friendship sprung up between Chris and young Brian Salisbury, who was also a local film critic, and they merged their forces of will, and their laundry list of ideas for shows, to eventually build this community of critics. While Brian eventually followed his heart to a new family, Chris continues on with a cast of colorful folks from all over the country (and a few others).

 

Wright Sulek (The Other Boss, Trash in the Can, Digital Noise, Highly Suspect Reviews, One Man’s Trash, Screener Squad)

Wright hails from the northern suburbs of Dallas, Texas. His passion for filmmaking brought him to Austin to study and make movies. Since then he’s had his hand in acting, writing, and directing his own short films with numerous like-minded film geeks he’s met along his journey. His newest interest has brought him into the podcasting world. He co-hosted a few different movie related podcasts such as ‘And Now This’ and ‘The Match Cut’. He currently co-hosts with longtime friend, Eric Samaniego, where they talk shop about the grimiest, trashiest, lost gems of movies on their show, ‘Trash in the Can’. Wright also guests and hosts reviews on Screener Squad and Highly Suspect Reviews as well as co-hosts Digital Noise with Chris Cox. As of 2024, Wright has now been inducted into the Austin Film Critics Association as well as co-owns the One of Us network with Chris Cox.

 

Frank Calvillo (Highly Suspect Reviews, Screener Squad, What Ever Happened to Bette & Joan?, Hollywood Royalty)

Born and raised in South Texas, Frank currently lives in Austin and has been in love with movies ever since his father showed him some Three Stooges shorts when he was five years old. Today he loves all kinds of film, regardless of era, country, budget or genre. He believes every film has an audience and is at least one person’s favorite movie. After writing for Sight & Sound and Slackerwood, he now writes for Cinapse where his increasingly random taste in all flavors of cinema (from Rashomon to Mars Attacks!) continues to thrive. His ultimate goal is to write a script for his boyhood crush, Michelle Pfeiffer.

 

You can subscribe to the Highly Suspect Reviews and Screener Squad series of podcasts on iTunes, Spotify, and more, or use our RSS feed on whatever podcast service you use: https://oneofus.net/feed/theatrical-movie-review-podcast/ and please leave us a review!

Please think about becoming a paid subscriber to Oneofus.net, support our huge network of shows, and get access to tons of bonus shows and videos in our forums! We cannot keep this site going without support from our listeners. For added information about being a subscriber, the benefits, and the forums, please go here.


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Screener Squad: King of the Hill – Season 15

King of the Hill season 15 review

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KING OF THE HILL – SEASON 15 REVIEW

Dang ol’ new King of the Hill, man. Not just talkin’ about dang ol’ Hank bein’ back talkin’ about propane and propane accessories, talkin’ about new king as in Bobby Hill, man. Talkin’ ’bout season 15 on Hulu and Disney Plus, man. Last season, Hank and Peggy returned from Saudi Arabia to enjoy their golden years back in Arlen—closer to their son Bobby and their old friends. Season 15 shows us a new side to Hank and Peggy as they realize retirement isn’t so much about settling into a routine until the clock runs out, but rather sharing what you’ve learned on your path with those still walking that old dusty trail. This season also focuses on Bobby as the co-owner and head chef of his restaurant, along with his new on-again, off-again, back-on-again romance with Connie. You’ll see Bobby try his talents on a reality TV cooking show, operate a food truck with his dad at a sci-fi convention, and maintain his manners when Kahn and Minh openly disapprove of a “dumb redneck hillbilly” dating their daughter. Their words, not mine! Bradly, Mike, and Ryan meet up in the alley, crack open some cold ones, and shoot the breeze over another successful season of Mike Judge’s best show to date. But which one of the trio didn’t love it as much as the others? The answer may surprise you, I tell ya hwat!

WATCH HERE

CREATED BY: Mike Judge and Greg Daniels

STARRING: Mike Judge, Kathy Najimy, Pamela Adlon, Tai Leclaire, Toby Huss, Ronny Chieng, Stephen Root, Ashley Gardner, Lauren Tom, Jonathan Joss

 

YOUR REVIEWERS

 

Bradly Martin (Screener Squad Boss, Eye on the Prize, Breakfast Pub)

Bradly Martin was born in the united states and grew up on a healthy diet of sports, films, and books. A rather shy lad who kept to himself, Bradly soon discovered the best way to know a person was to know what people liked. Throughout the years Bradly became a fan of many things and a fanatic of none. From Doctor Dre, to Doctor Strange and the who’s who of Whos. From Playstation to the Dreamcast and Marvel to DC. From LeBron James to James Bond and Lord of the Rings to Lord Palmerston (or Pitt the Elder if you agree with Wade Boggs) and is a huge fan of dad jokes and randomly obscure Simpsons references. Armed with a vast knowledge of comics, films, and pop culture. Bradly traveled the world making friends and sharing takes. As a young man Bradly married the love of his life young and grew older every year with each new child brought into the brood. If trends continue, Scientists predict that .2% of Canada (where Bradly and family reside) will be populated by Bradly’s children by the year 2029. You can hear him leading and listening to his favorite critics on the Screener Squad and maybe even providing some comments of his own.

 

Ryan Aleck Hill (Screener Squad, Video and Audio Editor)

Ryan is a Washington D.C. based filmmaker & video editor who loves watching and talking about movies more than just about anything. He currently works at a creative agency as a director of photography/video editor, and does freelance video editing for Anthony Fantano/TheNeedleDrop. He also has a YouTube channel (Downhill Media) where he works on a weirdo art explainer series called “Artsplained” with his partner Michelle. He was a part of the Spill.com community way back in the day, where he was cursed with an obsession for movies. In an effort to break the curse, he shows up on the Screener Squad podcast every once in a while and edits for One Of Us. Chris Cox claims that this is the only way it can be broken. You can follow him on Twitter but you’ll probably regret it.

 

Mike J. McAllister (Screener Squad, Staff Writer, Head Video Editor)

Mike J. McAllister is an award-winning creative jack of all trades, and is pretty competent with most of them. He is a writer, director, animator, video editor, and motion graphics artist. He has tried his hand at nearly every form of artistic expression at least once. He was born and raised in Western Pennsylvania where he fell in love with film, writing and special effects at an early age. His obsession with film would lead him to being locally known as a “human IMDb” and being on a first-name basis with every video store clerk in town. He would study film in Pittsburgh before taking his talents to Austin. Not letting something like Tourettes get in his way, he has produced a handful of animated short films that have won awards from film festivals all over the globe. He has also written several yet-to-be-produced screenplays and TV pilots, with some of them being recognized in screenwriting competitions. He has even created motion graphics and animations for several clients, from movie theaters to Twitch streamers. When not creating or watching films, he enjoys MST3K, classic video games and buying vinyl records. He loves dogs, dropping obscure pop culture trivia and watching travel videos. He currently resides in Austin Texas and can be followed on the Instamagrams at @ohheyitsmikejm. His body of work can be found at his homepage or you can take a gander at his somewhat-impressive IMDb listing here.

 

You can subscribe to the Highly Suspect Reviews and Screener Squad series of podcasts on iTunes, Spotify, and more, or use our RSS feed on whatever podcast service you use: https://oneofus.net/feed/theatrical-movie-review-podcast/ and please leave us a review!

Please think about becoming a paid subscriber to Oneofus.net, support our huge network of shows, and get access to tons of bonus shows and videos in our forums! We cannot keep this site going without support from our listeners. For added information about being a subscriber, the benefits, and the forums, please go here.


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Screener Squad: 72 Hours

72 Hours movie review

Podcast (theatrical-movie-review-podcast): Play in new window | Download

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72 HOURS MOVIE REVIEW

Another week, another Netflix comedy. And yes, another Netflix comedy starring Kevin Hart. In 72 Hours, Hart plays Joe, a forty-something advertising executive whose career needs a defibrillator. When he accidentally lands in a group chat for a Gen Z bachelor party, he crashes their three-day Miami blowout hoping to save his job. Naturally, things spiral into yacht parties, bad decisions, mistaken identities, drug traffickers, smugglers, cops, whale penises, explosive Pepto Bismol vomiting, cocaine, and Scarface impressions. Director Tim Story oversees the debauchery, with SNL’s Marcello Hernández, Ben Marshall, and Kam Patterson, and oh yeah, Academy Award nominee Teyana Taylor is in this too. Caroline, Eoin, and T.C. are passed out somewhere on a beach, attempting to remember enough of the weekend to determine whether 72 Hours is worth talking about and more importantly, who exactly this movie is for.

WATCH HERE

DIRECTED BY: Tim Story

STARRING: Kevin Hart, Marcello Hernández, Mason Gooding, Kam Patterson, Ben Marshall, Zach Cherry, Michael Mando, Teyana Taylor, Kevin Dunn, Anna Garcia, Elysée Sanvillé, Geena Quintos, Megan Suri, Andy Garcia, Brandon Dial, Amy Keum, Amenah, Ava Eisenson, Katt Williams, Mike Epps

 

YOUR REVIEWERS

 

T.C. De Witt (Screener Squad)

T.C. De Witt is a multi-awarded writer/director originally from Wisconsin and now based in Los Angeles. His life has been devoted to the arts since he was a child. He’s been a stage performer, playwright, stand-up comic, film and television actor, radio DJ, podcaster published author, recorded musician, and comic writer/illustrator. He is now a professional screenwriter and has been thriving for the past decade, regularly offering his talents to production studios in LA, Chicago, Milwaukee, and internationally in Sydney and Poland. He’s provided content for Amazon Prime, Netflix, and several YouTube partners. His films have screened internationally, and his stageplays have been performed across the country. In the last ten years, he has directed 57 films, 23 episodes of his series The One Minute Rewatch, 300+ episodes of podcasts, and his multi-award-winning short film Screen: Righter screened at the Festival de Cannes in 2016. He has released two feature films, The Princess Knight and A Christmas Sunset. He thrives on collaboration and the thrill of sharing stories in all forms.

 

Eoin Daly

Born and raised in Dublin Ireland, Eoin currently lives in London and has been an avid film lover from as far back as they can remember. Eoin enjoys going to the cinema weekly regardless of the film: new, old, or the most random title. They have no preconceived notions when taking in a new film. They tend to look for the good in any film they watch and will always love the art form. They are a major fan of actress-led cinema and will never apologize for this one film bias.

 

Caroline Sulek (Screener Squad, Trash in the Can)

Caroline Sulek resides in Mckinney, TX with her son Henry and two cats: Sally and Rocky. As a mom, corporate baddie, and unabashed lover of all things silly, spooky, and creative, she brings a unique perspective to the One of Us network. Her love of art and movies started long ago when she and her brother, Wright, would spend entire summer vacations in front of the TV and she would draw portraits of Wright as he sat watching for hours. Caroline has been a frequent guest and fan favorite of the Trash in the Can podcast with her brother, Wright, and his life podcast partner, Eric Samaniego. Caroline enjoys the most gruesome of horror movies and the most bingeable of reality shows and anywhere in between!

 

You can subscribe to the Highly Suspect Reviews and Screener Squad series of podcasts on iTunes, Spotify, and more, or use our RSS feed on whatever podcast service you use: https://oneofus.net/feed/theatrical-movie-review-podcast/ and please leave us a review!

Please think about becoming a paid subscriber to Oneofus.net, support our huge network of shows, and get access to tons of bonus shows and videos in our forums! We cannot keep this site going without support from our listeners. For added information about being a subscriber, the benefits, and the forums, please go here.


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Screener Squad: Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender

Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender movie review

Podcast (theatrical-movie-review-podcast): Play in new window | Download

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AVATAR AANG: THE LAST AIRBENDER MOVIE REVIEW

Water. Earth. Fire. Air. 20 years after Nickelodeon gave us one of the greatest TV series of all-time, Team Avatar is back to the beloved animated continuity, catching up with an older Aang, Katara, Sokka, Toph, and Zuko as they navigate a world still healing from the Hundred Year War. But peace doesn’t mean the Avatar gets a vacation. The discovery of another surviving Airbender sends the gang on a new adventure involving ancient powers, the future of the Air Nomads, and ample amounts of action executed in the way this series deserves and should only ever be done: animated on the highest level. Kate, Eoin, and T.C. enter the One Of Us Air Temple to look at Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender and bend some opinions, revisit a world they’ve loved for years, and determine whether this long-awaited return makes the fandom proud or deserves a one-way trip beneath Lake Laogai.

WATCH HERE

DIRECTED BY: Lauren Montgomery

STARRING: Eric Nam, Sander Argabrite, Dave Bautista, Jessica Matten, Román Zaragoza, Dionne Quan, Steven Yeun, Taika Waititi, Geraldine Viswanathan, Ronny Chieng, Ken Jeong, Dee Bradley Baker, Freida Pinto, Ke Huy Quan, Pete Sergeant, Jonathan Ohye, Vic Chao, François Chau, Tim Dang, Keone Young

 

YOUR REVIEWERS

 

T.C. De Witt (Screener Squad)

T.C. De Witt is a multi-awarded writer/director originally from Wisconsin and now based in Los Angeles. His life has been devoted to the arts since he was a child. He’s been a stage performer, playwright, stand-up comic, film and television actor, radio DJ, podcaster published author, recorded musician, and comic writer/illustrator. He is now a professional screenwriter and has been thriving for the past decade, regularly offering his talents to production studios in LA, Chicago, Milwaukee, and internationally in Sydney and Poland. He’s provided content for Amazon Prime, Netflix, and several YouTube partners. His films have screened internationally, and his stageplays have been performed across the country. In the last ten years, he has directed 57 films, 23 episodes of his series The One Minute Rewatch, 300+ episodes of podcasts, and his multi-award-winning short film Screen: Righter screened at the Festival de Cannes in 2016. He has released two feature films, The Princess Knight and A Christmas Sunset. He thrives on collaboration and the thrill of sharing stories in all forms.

 

Eoin Daly

Born and raised in Dublin Ireland, Eoin currently lives in London and has been an avid film lover from as far back as they can remember. Eoin enjoys going to the cinema weekly regardless of the film: new, old, or the most random title. They have no preconceived notions when taking in a new film. They tend to look for the good in any film they watch and will always love the art form. They are a major fan of actress-led cinema and will never apologize for this one film bias.

 

Kate Chambers (Highly Suspect Reviews, Screener Squad)

Kate is a certified horror fiend and Horse Girl™. Her name isn’t short for anything. A native Austinite, she graduated with a BFA in Film Production from the University of Colorado Boulder then returned to the Lone Star State to make her home amid the cinephiles of the Alamo Drafthouse and the Austin Film Society. In her spare time, you can find her either down at the barn with her noble steed Jazz, watching as many movies as possible (often at work), cuddling with her pair of black cats and writing horror scripts, or nursing a beer in any available body of water… or doing Duolingo, where she’s currently on a 1000+ day streak.

 

You can subscribe to the Highly Suspect Reviews and Screener Squad series of podcasts on iTunes, Spotify, and more, or use our RSS feed on whatever podcast service you use: https://oneofus.net/feed/theatrical-movie-review-podcast/ and please leave us a review!

Please think about becoming a paid subscriber to Oneofus.net, support our huge network of shows, and get access to tons of bonus shows and videos in our forums! We cannot keep this site going without support from our listeners. For added information about being a subscriber, the benefits, and the forums, please go here.


Subscription Levels



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