Sidebar Forever

Today’s podcast is an examination of mentor movies. We discuss a plethora of films that demonstrate these tried-and-true dynamics: Wall Street, The Devil Wears Prada, Whiplash, Coach Carter, The Karate Kid, Doctor Strange, Akeelah and the Bee, Dead Poets Society, Rocky, Men in Black, and more! And we also take a few minutes at the end to recognize some special mentors in our own lives.

Today's podcast is a rowdy free-for-all of unpopular opinions. Pop culture at-large seems to love it ... and we do not!
For example: Leonardo DiCaprio is not a great actor, the 1989 Michael Keaton Batman is the best feature film Batman, KFC fell off, chitlins should be banned, Kendrick Lamar is just an okay rapper, JLo didn't get hot-hot until after she turned 40, Adam Sandler's movies are not funny, and every live-action adaptation of an animated feature has been trash.

Today, we salute the villains we love. Despite how vile and despicable they can be, we find ourselves rooting for them. 
Some of the big bads up for discussion are Darth Vader, Cruella De Vil, Thanos, Moriarty, Chong Li, Tony Soprano and more!

F9, the ninth installment in the 'Fast and Furious' franchise is in theaters now, and the question had to be asked: Is it the greatest movie franchise of all time? 
In the conversation, we discuss the status of the 'Fast' films in cinematic history, other great franchises like 'Mission Impossible', 'Star Wars' and 'Jurassic Park', as well as the difference between a franchise and a series of films.

On today's episode, it's the movie that launched a thousand other movies: 'Die Hard'. So many copycats came along after the success of the original 'Die Hard' in 1988, we thought it would be fun to chop them up: 'Toy Soldiers', 'Sudden Death', 'Passenger 57', 'Speed', 'White House Down' and more!

Originally broadcast in 2008, here is a classic interview from our 'Barchives' with renowned illustrator/concept artist Marko Djurdjević.
At the time of this interview, Marko was deep into an incredible, fan-favorite run of fantastic covers for Marvel Comics. In addition, he was renowned for his concepts and illustrations with Massive Black. 
In the conversation, Marko discusses his origins of getting into illustration, posting his work on concept.org for the first time and his love of teaching and sharing with other artists.
Today, Djurdjević continues amazing work with his wife Jelena and the team at SixMoreVodka in Berlin, Germany.
 
This episode continues our re-presentation of classic interviews and roundtables from our previous incarnation as SiDEBAR: The Pop Culture Podcast into our podcast feed. We hope that our listeners, both new and old, will enjoy these vintage back episodes and follow us here for new episodes of Sidebar Forever!

On today’s podcast, we discuss the film subgenre known as rural crime movies: revenge plots, deep family secrets, failed kidnappings, and the lure of quick and easy money — all right in the middle of Anywhere, USA. 
‘Bonnie and Clyde’, ‘The Getaway’ (1972 & 1994), ‘Blood Simple’, ‘At Close Range’, ‘A Simple Plan’, ‘Fargo’, and ‘No Country for Old Men’ are just a few of the films we explore as we try to determine what sets rural crime apart from other crime movies. Also, what do we learn about the human condition by telling these tales against the backdrop of the deep South, the Heartland, and the modern day American frontier?

Writer Alan Moore is one of the most revered and admired comic book creators of his generation. Many consider him ‘the GOAT’ (Greatest Of All Time) -- but is it true? 
On today's episode, we discuss Moore's career, his status as the greatest, and many of his most noted works: Marvelman, V for Vendetta, Swamp Thing, Watchmen, Batman: The Killing Joke, and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.

Forty years ago, ‘Raiders of the Lost Ark’ was released in theaters and pop culture was forever changed. 
Directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Harrison Ford as Indiana Jones, this classic adventure film has everything you want: thrills, chills, spills, and oh, yeah — snakes. 
On today's podcast, we celebrate this landmark anniversary by going all-in on the cast, script, the making of the film, and every single bit of trivia we could dig up. We also chat about the careers of Ford and Spielberg, pre and post ‘Raiders’, and how this film is the shared crown jewel in both of their filmographies.

On today's podcast, we play back John Carpenter's dystopian action film ‘Escape From New York’. 
Released in 1981, this year marks the 40th anniversary of this sci-fi classic and we catch up with all the crazies: Kurt Russell as Snake, Isaac Hayes as The Duke, Ernest Borgnine as Cabbie, as well as Hauk, Brain, Maggie, Romero, and President Harker. 
We also get into some trivia as far as how the film got made, alternate casting choices, and a few superstar names who worked behind the scenes.