What's the best way to make a horror movie less scary?

Know-It-All shares one of his favorite pro tips of all-time in this regard in the context of Fanboy forcing yet another horror movie on him since it's October and, y'know, "Halloween season" or some garbage like that. This time around the flick in question is a BBC film called HIS HOUSE (available on Netflix) that brings a fresh take to the haunted house segment of the horror movie genre by also tackling pressing issues of social commentary like the cultural assimilation of refugees. Who knew Halloween could provide such an opportunity for thoughtfulness and nuance?

Elsewhere, the intrepid duo of Fanboy and Know-It-All dig into their review of director Denis Villeneuve's rendition of DUNE -- a classic 1965 science fiction epic written by Frank Herbert. Sporting incredible new visuals and an ensemble cast to die for, was the new DUNE film able to succeed where the original cinematic version of DUNE (1984) directed by David Lynch could not? You know Fanboy and Know-It-All have thoughts on that and more that they are more than willing to share and overshare with you.

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What is the best propaganda film of all time and why is it not actually REEFER MADNESS?

Know-It-All and a special guest host filling in for Fanboy (friend of the show and CURRENT GEN podcast co-host Tim Nester) have the answer for you as well as their Top 10 Great Propaganda Movies of All Time ranked list in this here episode.

It's what the kids call a "dooby." Errr, "doozy."

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What is the best martial arts scene that you've ever seen?

The world of cinema is chock full of fantastic martial arts sequences. Whether martial arts scenes take place inside of martial arts films or superhero flicks, it is easy to see why the diverse fighting styles of myriad martial arts disciplines have long been so popular amongst movie goers. That is one of the reasons Fanboy and Know-It-All knew it was high time that they ranked their favorite martial arts scenes in movies.

That and the fact that Marvel's SHANG CHI AND THE LEGEND OF THE TEN RINGS is dropping in movie theaters everywhere.

Fanboy and Know-It-All, in a return to their classic "Riding in Cars with Boys" segment, bring you their very own special deep dive into the Marvel Cinematic Universe's explosive martial arts-centric movie, SHANG CHI AND THE LEGEND OF THE TEN RINGS, which stars Simu Liu and Awkwafina.

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What movie desperately needs to become a video game? If you ask one of us, you might hear the answer "A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood" come out of one of our mouths...

That's right. Movies based on video games are generally terrible. But what about video games based on movies... ? Yeah, they can be pretty terrible as well. But not always. In the hands of the right video game studio, video games based on preexisting movie IP can be pretty great (we're looking at you, Shadow of Mordor). That's why, to celebrate the release of a pretty decent movie (Free Guy) about a video game that doesn't exist (Free City), Fanboy and Know-It-All decided to do a ranking of the Top Ten Movies That Should Be Video Games.

Oh, yeah, we also break down the new Shawn Levy/Ryan Reynold's film: "Free Guy."

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What Olympic event are you drawn to in ways that make no sense?

We all know about the sports and athletic competitions that draw all the eye and earballs during the Olympic Games, but what about the ones that keep you up at night? Not because you're terrified, but because you can't stand to miss a solitary, strange moment of the action? Fanboy and Know-It-All tackle the best and most compelling Olympic Events currently in the Olympic Games in order to help you find your new obsession.

Also, is Ted Lasso the most likeable television character of all time? We sort of discuss it, but mostly just dig into the show. As one does.

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What TV show is the most perfectly cast?

That question, posed to us by friend of the show Wes Coburn (@CoburnWesley), animates a passionate debate between Fanboy and Know-It-All as they each bring their respective Top Five Most Perfectly Cast TV Shows of All Time lists to the table. You might be able to guess a few of them that cracked our collective Top 10 Best TV Show Casts Ever rankings, but we're willing to wager there will be a few that surprise -- and maybe even anger -- you as well.

Elsewhere, to do Know-It-All's buddy Chris Pratt a favor, Fanboy and Know-It-All dissect Amazon's "The Tomorrow War" and even swap roles with one another for a robust argument over whether or not this new summer sci-fi blockbuster has a message to sell.

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What if Michael Scott was a youth pastor?

Steve Carell's classic turn as an inept middle manager in NBC's "The Office" may or may not have been on the minds of Jeff Ryan, Arielle Cimino, and Christopher O'Connell when they set out to create their mockumentary feature film called "YouthMin," but no one needs to squint to see why one review of the movie quips that it feels akin to what might have happened if "The Office went to Christian summer camp."

Interestingly enough, "YouthMin" is not a "Christian movie" but it was put together as a way for its creators to laugh about the good, the bad, and the weird that they (and many, many, many others) have experienced in Christian youth ministries over the years (especially those who came of age around the turn of the 21st century). "YouthMin" manages to operate, in some respects, as a knowing send-up of Christian camp culture's quirks while also being an homage to the loads of truly good times that were to be had in those settings as well. Fanboy and Know-It-All had the privilege of sitting down with YouthMin co-director and star Jeff Ryan and the film's lead writer, Christopher O'Connell, to talk about the film, what they got into watching during 2020, their own experiences with Christian youth ministry, the surprises and lessons learned from making a mockumentary, and much more.

Elsewhere, in a return to Hurts So Good, Fanboy and Know-It-All yuk it up over a terribly good bad movie they watched together that came out in 1972 and starred Jamie Lee Curtis' mom (Janet Leigh): "The Night of the Lepus."

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Sure, Thanos said there'd be no resurrections this time. But he didn't say nothing about no prequels involving time travel and multiverses (multiversi?), so now we have Marvel's LOKI on Disney+. Fanboy and Know-It-All struggle to resist the superhero genre, but they give in to take on LOKI. (Who are we kidding? We don't resist it at all.)

Also, SLEEPER ALERT: we watched Netflix's "The Mitchells vs the Machines" and we have thoughts.

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Who are the best (read: most evil and loathsome) Disney animated villains of all-time?

We'd wager that the list of options is probably longer than you think, and we'd also wager that Cruella De Vil probably crossed your mind when you saw the question because, well, puppy slaughter and all that jazz that adults of 1960s decided to feature in animated children's movies.

It's hard to argue against the read that Cruella De Vil is one of Disney's least sympathetic villains, so it seems only fitting that Disney would attempt to make Cruella a sympathetic character. For the kids, right?

Emma Stone and Emma Thompson put on a marvelous show in Disney's CRUELLA, but Fanboy and Know-It-All have some hot takes to go along with a smattering of platitudes. As per usual.

Inspired by Cruella, Fanboy and Know-It-All decided it was high time the world had access to a definitive ranking of the best Disney animated villains ever. So, as per usual, they made their respective ranked list of the most evil Disney animated villains and argued with one another over them.

IMPORTANT: watch/download the in-show-mentioned "Super Mario Bros: The Morton Jankel Cut (VHS Extended Rough Cut 1.0)" at Archive.org: https://archive.org/details/super-mario-bros-1993-the-morton-jankel-cut-extended-vhs

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What are the top 100 greatest movies ever made? And how are they ranked?

All legitimate film critics and self-respecting know-it-all cinema aficionados have a list of their Top 100 Films of All-Time. To comemorate their 100th episode, Fanboy and Know-It-All knew it was their duty to create and rank their own definitive list of the best movies ever made. As can be expected with two strong-willed personalities, there are crossovers, surprise picks, and disagreements galore as our intrepid and dynamic duo weave their way through ranking the 100 greatest flicks to ever grace the silver screen.

Oh, yeah, and they comisserate about Chick-fil-a sauce and break down a specific NBA milestone that finds Steph Curry alone in the rareified stratosphere with none other than Michael Jordan.

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How does "The Falcon and the Winter Soldier" fare on Disney+? Does it hold a candle to "WandaVision"? Is it better or worse in any meaningful ways? Which one is deeper? How does the (presumed) first season of "The Falcon and the Winter Soldier" continue to set up the next phase(s) of the Marvel Cinematic Universe?

Fanboy and Know-It-All break down all those questions, as well as a few others, in their recap and review of Marvel's "The Falcon and the Winter Soldier" (Season One?) which is now ready to be binged on Disney+.

Sticking with the Marvel theme, the dynamic duo dives into another Hurts So Good segment by subjecting themselves to the 1990 version of "Captain America" in order to determine whether its truly a bad film or if it is just horrifically awful enough to be a hidden gem of a flick.

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Who is the worst movie supervillain of all time?

If one of us had our 'druthers, someone from Netflix's new Ben Falcone/Melissa McCarthy "superhero" film, Thunder Force, would be on the list.

Inspired by the aggressively mediocre film, Fanboy and Know-It-All realized that it was time for the world to have a definitive ranked list of the Top 10 Worst Cinematic Supervillains of All Time. And who better to make said definitive list than Fanboy and Know-It-All?

Paired with a review of the painfully poor "Thunder Force" and a pair of highlights in The Most Least Important Thing, we've got a real banger on our hands.

And, yeah... we've got Brad Pitt references.

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Who is "Aaron Rodgers"?

That would be the correct question if the answer was pre-given, Jeopardy!-style, as "This NFL quarterback hails from the Land of Cheese Curds and has filled in as a guest host on Jeopardy!"

That's right, Fanboy and Know-It-All discuss Aaron Rodgers' first appearance as a guest host on the classic TV trivia show "Jeopardy!" as the series continues its search for a replacement to the legendary Alex Trebek.

Elsewhere, our dynamic duo dives deeper into GODZILLA VS. KONG than anyone should ever dive. Maybe they take monster movies too seriously. Or, considering the fact that they then proceed to tear apart 1969's hilariously bad "Attack of the Monsters" (a.k.a. "Gamera vs. Guiron"), maybe they don't take them seriously enough...

Who knows? Maybe they take them exactly the way they should be taken. You decide. Don't let them tell you what you think.

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Some movies are begging to be recut. Was 2017's JUSTICE LEAGUE one of those movies? Or is one of the other movies we rank as being the films most in need of being recut more worthy?

The 2017 release of JUSTICE LEAGUE generated a lot of attention due to the leaks surrounding the film prior to director Zack Snyder's official departure that came in the wake of a terrible family tragedy. For years, super fans begged for Warner Bros to release the quote-unquote "Snyder Cut." Using 70 million dollars and HBO Max, Warner Bros has done just that. But was it worth all the #ReleaseTheSnyderCut hype in the end... ?

Elsewhere, using the controversial topic of recutting movies as a springboard, Fanboy and Know-It-All stir up contention as they argue over what films really do need to be recut and re-released.

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What does WandaVision mean for Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe??

The 9-episode run of WandaVision is officially in the books over on Disney+ and it was chockfull of potential implications for Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (also, do we need to start calling it the Marvel Cinematic Multiverse now?).

Fanboy and Know-It-All are chockfull with hot takes for what Marvel Studios did with Wanda and Vision in WandaVision. They are also not shy about prognosticating about what WandaVision and the upcoming slate of MCU (MCM?) movies and Disney+ shows all mean for the future of the Marvel superheroes that you know and love (or know and hate, don't let us tell you how you feel).

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Can a bad movie be a great bad movie if it was intentionally made to be a bad movie?

In their first foray back into Hurts So Good territory in 2021, Fanboy and Know-It-All get into their worst fight since nearly coming to blows over Brad Pitt and Daniel Day Lewis as they duke it out over whether or not KILLER KLOWNS FROM OUTER SPACE (currently available to stream on Netflix at time of publication) deserves to rank on the official Hurts So Good scale for Z-grade cinema.

Oh, yeah, and they talk about Chloe Zhao's indie film called NOMADLAND starring Frances McDormand (currently available to stream on Hulu) that might be really good but which will probably-most-likely-almost-definitely get forgotten by the populists when Zhao's Marvel flick (ETERNALS) comes out later in 2021.

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IN FACT, FANBOY WROTE two BOOKS!

That's right, on this very special episode of Pop Culture with Fanboy and Know-It-All, we talk about both books that our very own Paul Asay has written and -- as of February 9, 2021 -- published: one he wrote with farmer and former NFL center Jason Brown called "Centered" and one he wrote all on his own called "Beauty in the Browns."

Know-It-All grills Fanboy about both books before the intrepid duo decides to rank their Top Five Favorite Books to Re-Read. Like a bunch of nerds.

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What was the best entertainment of 2020?

Fanboy and Know-It-All dive into the notorious year that was 2020 in order to mine the best and most engaging nuggets of pop culture and entertainment that Two Thousand Twenty had to offer. Not only do your favorite heroes mine these tasty nuggets, though, they also rank them in numerical order from worst of the best to best of the best. Because, science!

Elsewhere, the intrepid podcasting duo engages in a spoiler-y discussion about what's going on in the first three episodes of Marvel's "WandaVision" as seen on Disney+.

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There's no time like 2021 to dive into one of 2020's only blockbuster superhero movies. The DCEU's "Wonder Woman 1984" has roped its way into theaters and HBO Max subscriptions across the world and Fanboy and Know-It-All knew it was high time to engage in verbal fisticuffs over it.

Elsewhere, with Season Two of The Mandalorian fully released on Disney+, Fanboy and Know-It-All dig into the twists, turns, and Easter Eggs that Jon Favreau and crew decided to pack into the ever-expanding Star Wars universe.

AND, HANG ON NOW ... DEADPOOL IS COMING TO THE MCU??

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Chadwick Boseman's last movie performance came in the role of Levee in Netflix's MA RAINEY'S BLACK BOTTOM which dropped for the viewing public in December 2020. It's a fascinating film for a variety of reasons other than the fact that it is the last film Boseman will appear in since cancer took his life in summer 2020. As Fanboy and Know-It-All continue their quest to watch all of 2020/2021's "Oscar Bait" movies, they hash out the deep and complex themes of Netflix's MA RAINEY'S BLACK BOTTOM (which is based on a stage play written by the former playwright August Wilson).

Not to be forgotten, Disney-Pixar released it's own ambitious and music-saturated film on Disney+ in December 2020 in the form of SOUL. Starring the voice talents of Jamie Foxx and Tina Fey, SOUL may just be Pixar's most ambitious film to date. Which is saying something when considering the studio has released such emotional heavyweights such as UP, INSIDE OUT, and CARS 2. (Okay, so that last one was a joke. Put down the snarky tweets.)

Also, one of us stakes out an inflammatory position on Michael Jordan's legacy in the NBA...

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