All posts by Robert Yaniz Jr.

Podcasts

Close Watch Episode 18: ‘In the Heights’ (feat. The Lady-Wan from Screen Run)

Way back in 2020, a few hardcore Hamilfans — including this episode’s guest — united for the first-ever Crooked Roundtable to talk up the Disney+ release of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Tony-winning musical Hamilton. Now, at last, loyal listeners get the long-awaited spiritual sequel to that discussion.

On this episode, Close Watch continues its year-long analysis of movie musicals as The Lady-Wan of Screen Run joins us to talk 2021’s In the Heights. Based on Miranda’s other Tony-winning musical, the film follows a group of largely Latinx characters in New York’s Washington Heights.

We’ll discuss why In the Heights underperformed at the box office, how it thematically matches up with Hamilton, and why director Jon M. Chu’s film deserved better. Plus, we’ll count down our favorite In the Heights songs in a brand-new edition of Let’s Talk About SIX!

Connect with Crooked Table Productions on social media:

Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Instagram

Podcasts

Franchise Detours Episode 45: ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows’ (feat. Clare from W-Rated)

2014’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles seemingly kicked off a whole new era of movies starring the title heroes. But after its solid box office performance, the sequel — 2016’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows — still struggled to keep that momentum going.

Clare from W-Rated joins this final installment of our Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles mega-series. We’ll discuss what is (at least, for the moment) the final TMNT movie, why its reputation is perhaps a bit too harsh, where we wanted a third film would have gone, and what we want going forward.

Connect with Crooked Table Productions on social media:

Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Instagram

Podcasts

Franchise Detours Episode 44: ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles’ (2014) (feat. Kevin the Critic)

2007’s TMNT marked the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles’ first foray into computer animation. But when a sequel never materialized, Paramount and Nickelodeon Movies decided to let producer Michael Bay work his billion-dollar Transformers magic. And the result is a movie that, well, isn’t quite sure what it’s trying to be.

Kevin the Critic joins the show to discuss 2014’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and the movie’s strange place in the franchise. We’ll discuss the decision not to focus on the turtles but Megan Fox’s April O’Neil, the dark tone and sexual innuendo throughout, and the muddled plotline that just might make this the least comprehensible TMNT film yet. And that includes the one where they time-travel to feudal Japan thanks to a magic scepter.

Connect with Crooked Table Productions on social media:

Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Instagram