Myopia: Defend Your Childhood - A Nostalgic Movies Podcast

Welcome to another episode of Myopia Movies, where we ruin your childhood one VHS tape at a time. This week, we’re stepping into the neon-lit fever dream that is Mannequin — a movie that asks the important question: “What if a department store mannequin came to life… and immediately dated Andrew McCarthy?” That’s right. It’s the ‘80s, where unemployment was quirky, retail workers had unlimited creative freedom, and absolutely nobody thought to question whether this relationship required psychiatric intervention. Featuring window displays that apparently stop traffic, villainous retail executives who behave like cartoon burglars, and enough synth music to power a mall arcade for a decade, Mannequin is pure Reagan-era fantasy. We’ll talk about Kim Cattrall somehow making “ancient Egyptian soul trapped in a mannequin” feel completely reasonable, why every department store in movies looked like Studio 54, and whether Hollywood accidentally created the world’s most charming horror premise. Plus: Hollywood Montrose

This week, we head to the crime-ridden dystopia of Detroit where corporations rule, criminals laugh like maniacs, and the solution to urban decay is… a heavily armed cyborg cop with excellent posture. Join Nic, Matthew, Keiko, Nur, and Alex as they revisit RoboCop (1987), Paul Verhoeven’s ultraviolent, razor-sharp satire that somehow convinced an entire generation of kids that this was appropriate viewing. We’re asking the important questions: Is this actually one of the smartest sci-fi films ever made… or just an excuse for explosive squibs and corporate slimeballs? Why did we all think ED-209 was just a normal workplace hazard? Does RoboCop count as a superhero, a horror monster, or the world’s saddest HR case study? And how did this movie spawn toys, cartoons, and birthday parties? Along the way, we break down the film’s biting commentary on privatization, media culture, and late-stage capitalism—while also appreciating just how completely unhinged it gets. It’s part Blade Runner, part Die Hard, and part

This week on Myopia Movies, we learn that the only way to win is not to play. We watched War Games,  a delightful romp about the apocalypse. Ally Sheedy is, like, stooping the whole time to make Matthew Broderick look taller than her, right? 

This week on Myopia Movies, we watch Marvel's own Jarvis/Vision fight to stop AI by trying to stop Johnny Depp. It's not as fun as that sounds. We watched Transcendence (2014), wow this movie can't event decide if AI or Johnny Depp is a bad guy. You'd think people would have an opinion at this point.  Thanks for listening, subscribing, and supporting the show—see you next episode (assuming this one didn’t break us completely). Want to pick a movie we do an episode on and record a special commentary just for you? Purchase something from our wish list!  We are riffers on Cineprov! Check us out!! Host: Nic Panel: Matthew, Keiko, Alex   Directed by Wally Pfister Starring: Johnny Depp, Rebecca Hall, Morgan Freeman, Paul Bettany, Lukas Haas, Cillian Murphy, Kate Mara, Cole Hauser, Xander Berkeley, Clifton Collins Jr.

This week, Myopia Movies kicks off an AI-themed month by diving straight into the bargain bin with A.P.E.X.—a time-traveling, robot-infested mess that wants desperately to be The Terminator and somehow ends up worse than a Power Rangers outtake.   Nick, Matt, and Keiko try to untangle a plot involving killer robots, alternate timelines, a mystery virus, and a scientist who may or may not be responsible for ending humanity… repeatedly. Along the way, they wrestle with nonsensical time travel rules, questionable acting, baffling production choices, and the lingering question: why are they still sending robots?   Is there a good movie hiding somewhere inside A.P.E.X.? Could a few tweaks have made it work? Or is this just pure, uncut 90s sci-fi chaos?   Plus: Mockbusters before mockbusters were a thing The economics of bad CGI vs. hiring actual actors Nostalgia vs. reality (was this ever good?) And one of the bleakest conclusions yet: a movie so bad… it barely exists   Final verdict: Skip this and just

Welcome back to Myopia Movies, where we revisit the films of our youth and ask the important question: Were these movies actually good… or were we just children? And today—Oh boy. In honor of the release of Super Mario Galaxy, today we are revisiting Super Mario Bros. from 1993. A film that answers the question no one asked: “What if a beloved Nintendo property… was filtered through cyberpunk dystopia, industrial sludge, and Goombas that look like they escaped a low-budget episode of Doctor Who?” How will Super Mario Brothers (1993) hold up? Host: Nic Panel: Matthew, Keiko, Alex   Directed by: Rocky Morton & Annabel Jankel Starring: Bob Hoskins, John Leguizamo, Dennis Hopper, Samantha Mathis, Fisher Stevens, Richard Edson      

This week on Myopia Movies, we watch yet another Jurassic Park/World Movie! Who will attempt to act with this idiotic script? Is this the dumbest new dino yet? Was it worth it to save this family? Why do we keep doing this? Sigh...... Want to pick a movie we do an episode on and record a special commentary just for you? Purchase something from our wish list!  We are riffers on Cineprov! Check us out!! How will Jurassic World Rebirth hold up?  Host: Nic  Panel: Keiko, Matthew, Alex   Directed by Gareth Edwards Starring: Scarlett Johansson, Mahershala Ali, Jonathan Bailey, Rupert Friend, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, Ed Skrein    

This week on Myopia Movies, we plug directly into the algorithmic void with one of the most expensive “what happened here?” movies in recent memory: The Electric State (2025).   This is the kind of film that looks incredible in still images—rusted robots, abandoned highways, that eerie retro-future aesthetic—and yet somehow feels completely hollow once it starts moving. It’s all vibes, no voltage. The bones of something interesting are there, but the movie never quite figures out what it wants to be: a heartfelt road story? A dystopian warning? A quirky robot adventure? Yes. And also… not really any of them.   And look, you’ve got Millie Bobby Brown doing everything she can to ground the film, and Chris Pratt doing his usual charm-forward routine. Nobody here is phoning it in. But the script feels like it was assembled by committee, filtered through three different tones, and then sanded down until nothing sharp—or memorable—remains.   Which, in a weird way, makes it perfect for us.   Because this is exactly

“This movie feels like a ChatGPT movie if there’s ever been one.” This week on Myopia Movies, the gang continues its tour through the worst films of the previous year with 2025’s War of the Worlds—a baffling, screen-filled sci-fi mess that somehow turns an NSA analyst played by Ice Cube into humanity’s last hope. The panel digs into the movie’s strange obsession with surveillance tech, brand-name software, and product placement, while trying to figure out whether the film is pro–surveillance state, anti–surveillance state, or just deeply confused. Along the way, they riff on everything from alien data harvesting and Amazon drones to bad military logic, real-time apocalypse plotting, and a family drama that feels far more creepy than heartfelt. The result is less War of the Worlds and more War of the Windows Tabs. Want to pick a movie we do an episode on and record a special commentary just for you? Purchase something from our wish list! https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/3FN64UXVJTOEH?ref_=wl_share We are

This week on Myopia Movies, we kick off our annual dive into some of the worst movies of the previous year. And we are starting with a real doozy: the live-action 2025 remake of Snow White. This is one of those films that somehow manages to miss why the original worked in the first place. The charm, the simplicity, the fairy-tale tone—gone. In their place: baffling creative decisions, tonal confusion, and a remake that feels strangely disconnected from the magic of the classic. And honestly, you almost feel bad for Rachel Zegler, who is clearly trying and probably gives the most earnest performance in the film. Yet she ended up taking the brunt of the blame for the movie’s failure—much of it tied to the controversy surrounding her public comments on Gaza, which turned the film into a culture-war lightning rod before it even hit theaters. None of that makes the movie better. But it does make it perfect material for Myopia Movies. So grab your poisoned apple and join us as we dig into one of the strangest big-b

This month we revisit Cruel Intentions, the film that asked, “What if Dangerous Liaisons… but everyone shops at Abercrombie?” Schemes! Staircases! Smirks that could cut glass! Where impossibly wealthy teenagers treat Manhattan like a chessboard and human emotions like a hobby. It’s seduction, manipulation, and dramatic journal entries, all set to the most aggressively 1999 soundtrack imaginable.   Want to pick a movie we do an episode on and record a special commentary just for you? Purchase something from our wish list! https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/3FN64UXVJTOEH?ref_=wl_share We are riffers on Cineprov! Check us out!! How will Cruel Intentions hold up? Host: Nic Panel: Keiko, Candace, Alex Directed by: Roger Kumble Starring: Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ryan Phillippe, Reese Witherspoon, Selma Blair, Joshua Jackson, Sean Patrick Thomas

This week on Myopia Movies, we sharpen the knife and head back to Woodsboro in honor of Scream 7 slashing into theaters. That’s right — we revisited Scream 2, the sequel to a horror classic we genuinely love… and enrolled ourselves in Sequel Class to figure out what went wrong. More meta? Yes. More bodies? Absolutely. Better than the original? Well… let’s just say the killer might not be the only thing chasing diminishing returns. Was it a worthy follow-up or just another case of sequel syndrome? Want to pick a movie we do an episode on and record a special commentary just for you? Purchase something from our wish list! https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/3FN64UXVJTOEH?ref_=wl_share We are riffers on Cineprov! Check us out!! How did Scream 2 hold up? Host: Nic Panel: Keiko, Jeremy, and Alex Directed by Wes Craven Starring: Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, David Arquette, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Jamie Kennedy, Liev Schreiber, Jada Pinkett, Omar Epps, Laurie Metcalf

This week as we continue the erotic thrillers month, we get a little witchy.  We watched The Craft, the second best Neve Campbell and Skeet Ulrich of 1996, see the previous episode.    Want to pick a movie we do an episode on and record a special commentary just for you? Purchase something from our wish list! https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/3FN64UXVJTOEH?ref_=wl_share We are riffers on Cineprov! Check us out!! How will the Craft hold up? Host: Nic Panel: Keiko, Alex, Jeremy Directed by Andrew Fleming Starring: Robin Tunney, Fairuza Balk, Neve Campbell, Rachel True, Skeet Ulrich, Christine Taylor, Breckin Meyer, Nathaniel Marston, Cliff De Young

This week on Myopia Movies, we give you a peak behind the curtains as we try to explain how we do what we do on the podcast and the Cineprov live show. From a veteran, a young gun, and a newbie.  Host: Nic  Panel: Nur and Keiko.  Want to pick a movie we do an episode on and record a special commentary just for you? Purchase something from our wish list! https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/3FN64UXVJTOEH?ref_=wl_share We are riffers on Cineprov! Check us out!!

This week on Myopia Movies, we dig something out of the trash! Not the episode, of course, but the movie! Listen to episode 58 Congo remastered nine years later! Man, we have been doing this too long. Watch CGI Gorillas for no good reason!  Want to pick a movie we do an episode on and record a special commentary just for you? Purchase something from our wish list! https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/3FN64UXVJTOEH?ref_=wl_share We are riffers on Cineprov! Check us out!! How will Congo hold up? Host: Nic Defendant: Matt Directed by Frank Marshall Starring: Laura Linney, Tim Curry, Dylan Walsh, Ernie Hudson, Grant Heslov,  Joe Don Baker, Lola Noh, Mary Ellen Trainor, Jimmy Buffet, Delroy Lindo

This week on Myopia Movies, we continue our Erotic Thrillers month with the spiciest 27 year old high schoolers you have ever seen! We watched Wild Things, one of the most paused VHS tapes in history.  How did Wild Things hold up? Host: Nic Panel: Keiko, Alex, and Matthew Directed by John McNaughton Starring: Kevin Bacon, Neve Campbell, Matt Dillon, Theresa Russell, Denise Richards, Daphne Rubin-Vega, Robert Wagner, Bill Murray, Carrie Snodgress

This week we start a slew of Erotic Thrillers with the first name you think of when you think erotic and thriller, Jim Belushi. We watched Traces of Red! A trashy movie set in the swamps of Florida. How will Traces of Red hold up? Host: Nic Panel: Jeremy, Matt   Directed by Andy Wolk Starring Jim Belushi, Lorraine Bracco, Tony Goldwyn, Jim Piddock, William Russ, Faye Grant

Hey everybody, welcome back to Myopia Movies. This week we’re tackling an action-silly Nicolas Cage classic: Con Air. And honestly—if you’ve never seen it before, I almost want to tell you to stop and watch it first… but our discussion is good enough that you’ll survive either way. Fair warning: this episode got chaotic. So chaotic, in fact, that our newly married editor and panelist, Nur Chernnet, had to cut nearly 15 minutes of material. We went completely off the rails. What you’re hearing is the best of what survived. We hope you enjoy the wreckage. As always, keep listening, keep subscribing—and now for some big news. If you’re listening to this when it drops (mid-January 2026) and you’re in the Metro Atlanta area, make sure you follow CineProv on Facebook. At the end of the month—the final Wednesday—we’re launching a brand-new regular CineProv show. Even better, Keiko and Jeremy, two members of the Myopia crew, will be debuting their first show that night. Go support them. It’s going to be great. One la

This week on Myopia Movies, we learn a valuable cinematic lesson: you can be absolutely slovenly and still be the hero of a movie. We watched Mitchell. Yes, that Joe Don Baker vehicle, where our rumpled, sweat-soaked protagonist somehow gets the girl… and then has her arrested for prostitution. Chivalry is dead, folks. Our hero, ladies and gentlemen. Want to pick a movie we do an episode on and record a special commentary just for you? Purchase something from our wish list! https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/3FN64UXVJTOEH?ref_=wl_share How will Mitchell hold up? Host: Nic Panel: Jeremy We are both riffers on Cineprov! Check us out!! Directed by Andrew V. McLaglen Starring: Joe Don Baker, Martin Balsam, John Saxon, Linda Evans

This week on Myopia Movies we celebrate the New Year with a movie set in that very year, I am about as optimistic about this year as the title of the film. We watched Doom, a terrifying portent of things to come.  How will DOOM hold up? Host: Nic Panel: Keiko Directed by Andrzej Bartkowiak Starring: Karl Urban, Rosamund Pike, Dwayne The Rock Johnson, DeObia Oparei, Ben Daniels Want to pick a movie we do an episode on and record a special commentary just for you? Purchase something from our wish list! https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/3FN64UXVJTOEH?ref_=wl_share