Force Five

Netflix’s Unabomber stars Jacob Tremblay as a young Ted Kaczynski, Russell Crowe as Harvard psychologist Henry Murray and Shailene Woodley as fictional FBI agent Joanne Miller.The movie moves between Kaczynski’s years at Harvard and the investigation that eventually led authorities to his Montana cabin, taking plenty of dramatic liberties along the way.In this episode of Force Five, Jason gives you five reasons you might want to watch Unabomber:5. It’s a solid starting point for a fascinating true story4. Shailene Woodley gives the procedural half someone to root for3. The late-1950s and 1990s settings are beautifully realized2. Jacob Tremblay and Russell Crowe lead a stacked supporting cast1. The movie raises an uncomfortable question about understanding versus sympathizing with Ted KaczynskiJason also looks at what the movie changes from the real story, why Joanne Miller is a fictional character, how heavily the filmmakers dramatized Kaczynski’s relationship with Henry Murray and why the movie works better as an introduction to the case than a definitive retelling.Top 5 Radar: Government Experiments in Movies and Movies Where Words Help Catch the Killer.Watch the video version on the Force Five YouTube channel and find more movie recommendations at ForceFivePodcast.com.Life is short. Spend it with the people, and the movies, that you love.

This episode of Force Five is a little different.Normally, Jason gives you five reasons you might like a movie. But after watching Ben Affleck's Animals (2026) on Netflix, he decided this wasn't a film he wanted to recommend.The movie itself left him fairly unimpressed. What bothered him more was learning that AI technology had been used during production, and Affleck's reluctance to disclose the specific ways it was employed.Watch the video: https://youtu.be/Q6olPQoUt0YRead more from Force Five: https://www.forcefivepodcast.comLife is short. Spend it with the people, and the movies that aren't made with AI, that you love.

Practical Magic (1998) stars Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman as Sally and Gillian Owens, two sisters descended from a long line of witches who have inherited an unfortunate family curse: any man who falls in love with an Owens woman is destined to die.Directed by Griffin Dunne, the film mixes romantic comedy, supernatural horror, family drama and enough bizarre tonal shifts to make you wonder exactly what kind of movie you're watching.In this episode of Force Five, Jason gives you five reasons you might want to watch Practical Magic:5. The movie's wild tonal swings somehow become part of its charm.4. Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman have fantastic chemistry as sisters.3. Stockard Channing, Dianne Wiest, Evan Rachel Wood and Margo Martindale help create a terrific supporting cast.2. The Owens family house is one of the most memorable movie homes of the 1990s.1. It's a great Halloween movie for people who want romance and witchcraft without going all-in on horror.Jason also discusses the surprising story behind the construction and demolition of the Owens house, the role's romantic appeal and why early pressings of the film's soundtrack contain music from a completely different composer.Fun Fact: The original Michael Nyman score was replaced by Alan Silvestri so late in production that some soundtrack CDs had already been manufactured.Watch the video: https://youtu.be/1NFr72UeEY4More movie recommendations: https://www.forcefivepodcast.comLife is short. Spend it with the people, and the movies, that you love.

Before Neve Campbell and Skeet Ulrich appeared together in Scream, they were already sharing the screen in The Craft, Andrew Fleming's 1996 supernatural horror movie about four teenage outsiders who discover that witchcraft can solve some problems while creating much bigger ones.Starring Robin Tunney, Fairuza Balk, Neve Campbell and Rachel True, The Craft combines high-school drama, supernatural horror and an unmistakably mid-90s alternative aesthetic.In this episode of Force Five, Jason gives you five reasons you might want to watch The Craft:5. It takes witchcraft surprisingly seriously, thanks in part to a practicing Wiccan consultant.4. It's essentially a high-school mean-girls drama with supernatural consequences.3. The combination of practical and digital effects makes for some memorable horror sequences.2. The soundtrack, fashion and overall aesthetic perfectly capture mid-90s alternative culture.1. Fairuza Balk delivers an unforgettable performance as Nancy Downs.Jason also digs into Andrew Fleming's approach to witchcraft, the real animals used during the finale, the soundtrack's connection to Charmed and the true story of Fairuza Balk purchasing an occult shop while researching her role.Fun Fact: Fairuza Balk owned the Hollywood occult shop Panpipes before selling it in 2001.Watch the video: https://youtu.be/plDs9JqqkcsMore movie recommendations: https://www.forcefivepodcast.comLife is short. Spend it with the people, and the movies, that you love.

The V/H/S franchise is back with its ninth installment, and this time music and sound are doing most of the damage.V/H/S/Mixtape features four main horror segments directed by Renee Zhan, David Moreau, Ernest Dickerson and RZA, along with music-video interludes from Flying Lotus and Ghost’s Tobias Forge. GWAR also shows up to host the whole thing like an MTV broadcast from Hell.In this episode of Force Five, Jason gives you five reasons you might want to watch V/H/S/Mixtape:5. The V/H/S anthology formula is still perfect for big horror swings4. Dance, Dance, Dance, Dance unleashes homicidal puppets created with Jim Henson’s Creature Shop3. Heartbeat turns the absence of sound into its own nightmare2. The franchise remains wonderfully committed to disgusting gore1. It is an almost perfect movie to throw on around HalloweenJason also talks about Renee Zhan’s twisted children's television segment, David Moreau’s use of an anechoic chamber, RZA turning murder into Foley work and why horror anthologies are often more fun when everyone watching has a different favorite story.Top 5 Radar: Demented Kids Shows and Movies That Weaponize Sound.Watch the video version on the Force Five YouTube channel and find more movie recommendations at ForceFivePodcast.com.Life is short. Spend it with the people, and the movies, that you love.

Robert De Niro, Ed Harris and Kathy Baker star in Jacknife, a 1989 drama that deserves another look.This week on Force Five, I'm giving you five reasons you might want to watch this overlooked movie, including De Niro's surprisingly lovable performance, the small-scale storytelling, an awkward grown-up romance and an unforgettable emotional meltdown from Ed Harris.I also talk about two potential Top 5 lists: Movie Freakouts and Post-Vietnam American Films.Watch the full video: https://youtu.be/K6GpyjI-sEkMore movie recommendations: https://www.forcefivepodcast.comLife is short. Spend it with the people, and the movies, that you love.

Matchbox: The Movie takes a toy line with virtually no characters or mythology and turns it into a full-blown action adventure starring John Cena, Jessica Biel, Sam Richardson, Teyonah Parris and Arturo Castro.In this episode of Force Five, Jason breaks down five reasons you might want to give the movie a shot.5. It finds a clever way to make a movie out of Matchbox cars4. The cast understands exactly what kind of movie they’re making3. Sam Hargrave brings real weight to the hand-to-hand action2. The practical car chases deliver1. It’s a big, ridiculous action movie families with older kids can enjoy togetherJason also looks at how the filmmakers approached the practical stunt work, why John Cena continues to work so well in action comedies and where Matchbox: The Movie fits among movies based on toy lines.Top 5 Radar: Movies Based on Toys and Family-Friendly Car Chases.What’s your favorite movie or TV show based on a toy line?Watch the video version of this episode on the Force Five YouTube channel and find more movie recommendations at ForceFivePodcast.com.

Kat brought cupcakes.This week on Force Five, Jason gives five reasons you might want to watch Penny Lane Is Dead, Mia’Kate Russell’s vicious Australian horror film about a beach-house celebration that turns into a blood-soaked fight for survival.Topics include:• The movie’s Ozploitation roots• Sophia Wright-Mendelsohn’s chaotic performance as Kat• Why the beach-house setting works as a horror pressure cooker• Tahlee Fereday’s Toni as a vulnerable final girl• Mia’Kate Russell’s decades working in special-effects makeup• Some seriously nasty practical gore• Two future Force Five Top 5 listsWatch the video and read the full recommendation:https://www.forcefivepodcast.com/episodes/penny-lane-is-dead-review-2026Watch on YouTube:https://youtu.be/-CxGwQ5FzhsForce Five offers concise, AI-free movie recommendations covering new releases, cult favorites, overlooked films and deep cuts.Website:https://www.forcefivepodcast.com

MC Kung Fu has entered the building.This week on Force Five, Jason gives five reasons you might want to experience City Dragon, the wonderfully strange 1995 combination of martial arts, hip-hop, sex comedy and relationship drama.Topics include MC Kung Fu speaking almost entirely in rhyme, the movie's surprisingly good music, its untouched mid-'90s personality, an accidental detour into work and responsibility, and the incredible do-it-yourself filmmaking of Stan Derain and “Philthy” Phil Phillips.Watch/read the full recommendation:https://www.forcefivepodcast.com/episodes/city-dragon-review-1995Watch on YouTube:https://youtu.be/JeYBs1yD_u8

Primetime turns To Catch a Predator into something much stranger than a straightforward true-crime dramatization. Robert Pattinson stars as Chris Hansen in Lance Oppenheim's nightmarish 2026 film about the rise of one of the most controversial television phenomena of the 2000s and the increasingly blurry line between exposing wrongdoing and turning public humiliation into entertainment. In this episode of Force Five, I give you five reasons you might want to watch Primetime.