'Press Play With Madeleine Brand': Mario & Luigi & Zendaya & Robert Pattinson & 'Yes' & 'Kontinental '25'

Provocateurs dominate my segment of Press Play, where Shawn Edwards and I reviewed the button-pushing The Drama, Yes and Kontinental '25. As for The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, it mostly provoked me to despair for society at large. You can hear our conversation down below.

'The Super Mario Galaxy Movie' Review

Hoo boy, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie sure is terrible. I go into detail about its awfulness over at Screen International.

Phil Lord and Chris Miller > "The Fall Guy"

Underwhelmed by The Fall Guy, I tried to pinpoint my big problem with the film. And then it hit me: I would have liked it a lot more if Phil Lord and Chris Miller had made it. I explain why here.

The Grierson & Leitch Podcast: The Final Chapter of 'Guardians of the Galaxy,' My Cannes Preview, and 'Short Cuts'

Big episode! We spent a lot of time talking about Vol. 3. Then, I previewed the five films I'm most intrigued to see at Cannes. And then we went back to 1993 to discuss Robert Altman's sweeping portrait of Los Angeles. Hear it all down below.

'Press Play With Madeleine Brand': What's Opening This Weekend Other Than the New 'Guardians'?

Amy Nicholson and I have the answers for you! We were on KCRW to review One Ranger, What's Love Got to Do With It? and The Eight Mountains. (Of course, we also talked about Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.) Hear our segment down below.

Getting to the Bottom of People's Dislike of Chris Pratt

In general, I don't care about what celebrities do outside of their work, as long as it's not problematic, offensive, etc. This brings me to Chris Pratt, who's had a few (relatively minor) stumbles in his public life. But for Cracked, I wanted to write about what's there on screen, and try to explain why his controversies feed into his movie-star persona. Hope you enjoy.

'Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3' Review

This series is three for three in my book. I reviewed the latest Guardians of the Galaxy for Screen International.

The Grierson & Leitch Podcast: Air Jordans, 'Dungeons & Dragons' and Mario's Big-Screen Return

A little behind on posting this podcast episode, which was filled with big movies after taking a week off. We both liked Air, one of us liked Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, and we both loathed The Super Mario Bros. Movie. Hear the whole thing down below.

'The Super Mario Bros. Movie' Review

It's been 30 years since Super Mario Bros. stunk up movie theaters. There's a new, animated film now. It's better! But it's still not good. My review is up at Screen International.

Chris Pratt Was Perfect in 'Moneyball'

I've heard nothing but bad things about Chris Pratt's new series The Terminal List. So I'd rather spend time reminiscing about how good he was in Moneyball, which suggested he had a great career ahead of him. (I'm still waiting.) You can read my MEL piece here.

Let's Rank 'Jurassic Park' Movies

There have been six Jurassic Park films. Which one is the best? And which is the worst? (That first question is easier to answer.) Our rankings are over at Vulture.

The Grierson & Leitch Podcast: Dinosaurs, Adam Sandler and 'M'

In this week's episode, we agree that Jurassic World Dominion isn't good, but just how bad is it? Then, we differ on Hustle. Finally, in our Reboot segment, we go back to 1931, looking at Fritz Lang's M. Lots of good stuff, and you can hear it all down below.

Why Are the Characters in Legacy Sequels (Almost) Always Less Interesting Than the Original Characters?

Jurassic World Dominion underscored a problem I've noticed for a while, which is that when sequels try to combine the original cast and the new cast, the new cast often looks pretty feeble by comparison. Is that because of nostalgia or something else? Here's my latest for MEL.

'Jurassic World Dominion' Review

Good news: I actually think Jurassic World Dominion is the best of the recent trilogy. Bad news: It's still not all that good. My review is up at Screen International.

The Grierson & Leitch Podcast: 'Space Jam: A New Legacy,' 'Pig' and My Cannes Report

Lots of movies to cram in this week. We reviewed Black Widow, Space Jam: A New Legacy, No Sudden Move and Pig. Then I asked Will about The Tomorrow War. But first, I talked about my time at Cannes. Hear the whole thing down below.

The Grierson & Leitch Podcast: 'Onward,' 'The Way Back' and 'First Cow'

On this week's episode, we differ on Pixar's latest and spend a lot of time thinking about Ben Affleck. Then I go solo for First Cow. (Also, we chat briefly about the news I made this week with my Kelly Reichardt interview.) Hear the whole thing below.

Berlin 2020: 'Onward' Review

Onward isn't the worst Pixar film, but I think it's their least interesting and least distinctive. It's a movie that, say, Dreamworks Animation could have made. I reviewed this misfire for Screen International.

'Avengers: Endgame' Review

Avengers: Endgame < Avengers: Infinity War. The new film is pretty entertaining, but it's not quite the home run you might be hoping for. My review is up at Screen International.

The Grierson & Leitch Podcast: Legos, Liam Neeson, 'High Flying Bird' and 'What Men Want'

Lots to cover in this week's episode. Will and I differ on High Flying Bird but are equally disappointed about The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part. (Chris Pratt, what happened?) I talk a little about the Liam Neeson controversy (and Cold Pursuit). And then we dig into What Men Want. Hear the whole thing below.

My Chris Pratt Problem

Nobody was happier for Chris Pratt than me when I heard he was making the leap from Parks and Rec supporting player to movie star. So... what happened? I write about Pratt's regular-guy problem for MEL.