The Top 100 Project

The 57th Next 100 Project podcast is the rare sports episode. Geena Davis and Tom Hanks are terrific, but the whole cast of kooky characters (even Madonna) delivers. Penny Marshall’s baseball flick has its faults (the bookends, the pacing of some scenes), but it’s a delightful way to wile away a few hours. Don't cry as you order some Sparkplug Coffee, then get some dirt in your feminist skirt hearing about the ladies who sure can play some ball.

Travel with us to Crusades-era Sweden for Episode #56 in the Next 100 Project. Ingmar Bergman’s iconic film about religious faith and the plague is filled with gorgeously bleak imagery. Max Von Sydow established himself in this picture, but Gunnar Bjornstrand & Bibi Andersson stand out even more. So what this one comes down to is: “are you there, God? It’s me, Ingmar.” Before you get out your chess board, hit up Sparkplug Coffee for a dose of some mighty good java.

The 55th Next 100 Project podcast (and our 200th podcast overall, yay!) takes us to ’70s Brooklyn and drops us in the disco scene. John Travolta’s star-making performance, with all its machismo and dancey talents, is easily the best thing about the flick. It’s hard to argue against the authenticity of the rape scenes or the racism, but man, that material makes this movie a rougher experience than you might expect from a disco movie. Stay alive with Sparkplug Coffee and then activate the podcast about the white suit.

The Coens & the Cage combine to give us Next 100 Project ep # 54. Joel & Ethan have always been great at crime movies and their brand of comedy tends to be a bit oddball. However, just like the filmmakers and their star, Bev & Ryan didn’t fully agree on the ‘Zona. Laugh it up whilst you guzzle some Sparkplug Coffee!

The 53rd Next 100 Project podcast finds us delving into vampire action of the silent-movie kind. Max Schreck remains one of the creepiest blood-suckers in cinema history and he, and the overall atmosphere, are clearly the best things in the flick. F.W. Murnau directed a few classics, but this is his classic-est. Stay awake with some Sparkplug Coffee as you digest our bloody thoughts!

Our 52nd Next 100 Project podcast marks the end of Oscar Month. This movie is expert at making people’s eyes rain. Death by cancer’ll do that. Shirley MacLaine, Debra Winger and ol’ Saint Nick all won acclaim, but the relationship between the leading ladies is the real story here. Pretty nice film debut for writer/director Jim Brooks too, huh? Enjoy some Sparkplug Coffee as you rocket through our chat about the Terms.

The Oscars are on February 26th, so here’s a detailed week-ahead glance at the big show. This 51st Next 100 Project podcast is packed with our thoughts about all 9 Best Picture nominees, all 20 acting noms, the 5 directors and even a little about most of the other categories. Dive in. Also, dive into Sparkplug Coffee!

Make it an even 50 in the Next 100 Project! We cheat a bit in Oscar Month by featuring a flick that didn’t win Best Picture (but we think it was hosed!). Spacey, Crowe, Pearce and so many other actors are awesome, but Basinger is the one who snagged a gold naked guy. Huge props to Curtis Hanson for directing this period piece so well. Guzzle some Sparkplug Coffee as you hear us dissect this modern noir...or is it noir?

49 episodes into the Next 100 Project and now we tackle a racy, lurid and ultra-fun Oscar-winner. T’was a controversial choice for Best Picture in 2002, but the flick has some tremendous song-and-dance numbers and some excellent performances. Zellweger & Zeta-Jones are dynamite, while Gere offsets those bad girls with loads of panache. Caffeine up your blood with some Sparkplug Coffee, then hunker down with this deliciously mean musical from 15 years ago!

Episode #48 in the Next 100 Project series takes us to a mystical fantasy world in Japan. Hayao Miyazaki’s well-loved animated opus was a Godzilla-level hit. It remains as fascinating and moving as it was 15 years ago. Go get your Sparkplug Coffee and then soak in our final January podcast!

The 47th edition of the Next 100 Project finds us heart-deep in a zany love story. This one’s got loads of one-liners with its combative characters who fight, fight, love...and sometimes even make sense. Cher and Olympia Dukakis are the main event here, but we also pay tribute to the oddball that is Nicolas Cage. We didn’t agree on Moonstruck, although our spirited debate DOES fit the movie’s tone. Anyway, shoot over to Sparkplug Coffee, then spark up Bev’s #1 beloved rom-com!

Quentin Tarantino’s two-pack is our 46th Next 100 Project podcast, a feminist movie(s) that aces the Bechdel Test. And it’s also really bloody violent, man! Come hear us defend QT’s obsession with old movies and jabber about Uma Thurman’s Five Point Exploding yadda yadda (Ryan can never get it right). This remains a terriflick. Dig up some Sparkplug Coffee ASAP, then power up our longish chat about awesome revenge!

Here comes some comedy mixed with tragedy to kick off Year #2 of the Next 100 Project. In this 45th episode (that kinda starts out as the Grand Budapest Hotel podcast, actually), we tackle the hilarious performance by Gene Hackman and Wes Anderson’s admirable determination to go his own twee way. Of course, there’s more, but why ramble on here? Order up some Sparkplug Coffee and press play!

We end the year with Charles Dickens’ bittersweet Christmas treat, one of the most adapted stories of all times. Alastair Sim is the highlight of this fever dream of a movie that ventures into outright horror. The last 10 minutes of this 44th Next 100 Project ep also has us discussing our year in podcasting, the year in movies and some of our upcoming projects (the words “tube” and “you” are involved). So buy some Sparkplug Coffee to stuff some stockings, then God bless us yadda yadda for the final time in 2016!

Hey, it’s a Jesus story just 2 weeks before Christmas! The 43rd edition of the Next 100 Project tackles themes of terrorism, rebellion, racism, despair, hope...and saviourhood. Alfonso Cuaron’s ultra-realistic flick was unappreciated when it came out, but it has grown in esteem ever since. Order up your Sparkplug Coffee, then slip on your flip flops and drag the mother of the future through a war zone. Oh, and pull my finger.

The 42nd hit of your Next 100 Project heroin injection takes us into a gritty, gross and often goofy world. Danny Boyle’s ode to the glorious highs (and dizzying lows) of the H has more energy than an atomic bomb. Bev’s boyfriend Ewan McGregor leads a nutty cast of essentially foreign-language actors. Strap in, but you oughta get another addictive substance first...Sparkplug Coffee.

Aliens attack! Or they threaten to, which gives us plenty of opportunity to crack wise and tear the the story apart. Yup, the 41st Next 100 Project podcast about Klaatu & Gort and us stupid, stupid humans is the most fun you’ll ever have with this enjoyable, but dated motion pic. Check out Sparkplug.Coffee, then put our words in your ears!

Bring on the controversial comedy in our 40th Next 100 Project podcast! Billy Bob Thornton is perfectly cast in Terry Zwigoff’s crude Christmas opus. The flick has flaws, but it remains an LOL riot 13 years later. We even quoted half the funny lines for you! Dial up Sparkplug.Coffee, then get into your Santa suit...but please don’t pee in it. Or do.

The 39th edition of the Next 100 Project takes us overseas to France, Poland and Switzerland for Krzysztof Kieslowski’s filmic swan song. The trilogy is made up of 3 distinct movies, with some fascinating and even shocking overlaps. Juliette Binoche and Irene Jacob stand out the most, but the entire cast is magnifique. Get you some Sparkplug.Coffee, then sink this foreign treat into your ears.

It’s Election Week in the U.S., so here’s an appropriate movie to review. The 38th Next 100 Project podcast takes a good look at the American horror show that finally ends on November 8th (or does it, really?), but our real focus is of course on Reese Witherspoon and Matthew Broderick. Alexander Payne’s comic direction is at its peak. Caffeine up with some Sparkplug Coffee, then zap our chit chat into your earholes!