Dinotopia (2002)

The year is 2014 and the world was going through a romcom deadzone. Was this genre too much for the average audience? Was romance too good for comedy? Was love dead during the 2010's??? This movie glimpses at the cynicism that may have been plaguing the millennials psyche, because it sure feeds into it! Chris Evans plays a screenwriter tasked to write a script for a romcom but he doesn't even believe in - wait for it- love. Ruh roh! However he meets Michelle Monaghan's character that's just as sardonic as he is. Oh boy! The two have a will-they-won't-they dalliance and we had to watch it. So join Wesley, Sam, Peter and Lily as we determine whether this flick has potential or if we should leave it in that friend-zone we call Obscurity.

Ambitious young radio producer Marcia Jeffries (Patricia Neal) finds a charming rogue named Larry "Lonesome" Rhodes (Andy Griffith) in an Arkansas drunk tank and puts him on the air. Soon, Rhodes' local popularity gets him an appearance on television in Memphis, which he parlays into national network stardom that he uses to endorse a presidential candidate for personal gain. But the increasingly petulant star's ego, arrogance and womanizing threaten his rise to the top. The gang takes a crack at a classic that may have more to day about today than the creators could ever know.

Strap in folks, it's time for Peter's pick: Starring David Thewlis, Wentworth Miller, Katie Carr, and a whole bunch of CGI dinosaurs it's god damn Dinotopia! Based off the books, two boys wash up on a dinosaur filled island after the plane with their father in it goes down in a storm. Will these two be able to navigate their way through this mysterious new place and get back home, or are they cursed to forever remain in this lost world? Find out with us on this episode of Hello From Obscurity!

In a very special season 3 opener, the gang gets together all in person! We watched a film that may have traumatized Sam as a child and may traumatize us as adults. When their father goes off to war, a group of children that includes the mischievous Robert (Freddie Highmore) and Cyril (Jonathan Bailey) stay with their uncle, who has a greenhouse on his property. There, they discover "It," a creature they recognize from bedtime stories as being a sand fairy. "It" can grant wishes, but as the children and their cousin, Horace (Alexander Pownall), soon find out, the more outlandish their desire, the greater the chance for disaster to result. Welcome to season 3, we hope this is everything you WISHED for!

We've reviewed a lot of movie on this podcast, now it's time for the reviewers to be reviewed! It's our year end episode, join us as we judge ourselves for the holidays!

Hey you! Do you know about Selkies? The magical people who under the sea? No. Not mermaids. Selkies are people who transform into seals when the put on their seal coats. You don’t know about them? Well, this week’s film is centered around a supposed Selkie lady (Alicja Bachleda), dragged up from the waters in a net by local fisherman Syracuse (Colin Farrell). The film is Ondine! A small Irish indie movie which takes a look at topics of family, redemption, alcoholism and love. It features romance, small town Irish culture, the aforementioned “Selkies” and a Bourne-Identity-style action sequence??? Is this Neil Jordan directed romance worth dredging from the sea? Or does it belong within the Ocean of Obscurity?

The year is 2003, and somewhere in Nevada, 12 strangers end up trapped in a motel on a dark and stormy night. Among them: John Cusack, Ray Liotta, Amanda Peet, Clea Duvall, and John C. McGinley. Elsewhere, a convicted murderer being transported to an appeal before a judge, one day before he is to be put to death. What do all these people have in common? They're all in the thriller called Identity! Come have your mind bended through twists and turns we guarantee you will not see coming, or maybe you will and we're just not very observant. Wesley, Peter, Lily and Sam have thought's and now you're gonna hear em.

The year is 2002, a blockbuster appears in theaters featuring a future world where medieval dragons have conquered and the remaining humanity must fight back with the meager resources they possess just to survive. This blockbuster is then promptly forgotten never to be heard from again. We may just be the only remaining humanity that remembers this film. We remember it stars that guy from American Psycho (Christian Bale) as a British Pyro. And stars that other guy from Lincoln Lawyer (Matthew McConaughey) as an actual axe-wielding American Psycho. Together they must hunt down the male dragon to ebb the population of dragons and save mankind. Is this movie worth the watch? Or should it be left to rot in the far reaches of Northumberland dystopia?

It is February of 2020 and after 8 long years director Benh Zeitlin, known for Beasts of the Southern Wild, is releasing his greatly anticipated next movie. What could go wrong? Uh oh. Looks like a little GLOBAL PANDEMIC has driven people inside away from theaters and this indie film is all but forgotten. But should it be? The Hello From Obscurity gang takes a closer look at this indie movie. A modern retelling of Peter Pan, but this time from Wendy's perspective. Is this reimagined fairy tale worth remembering? Or is it doomed to stay forever in Neverland?

The year is 2011, pop icon Madonna has released her film W.E. about the "Greatest Love Story of the 20th Century," between Wallace Simpson (Andrea Riseborough) and King Edward VIII (James D'Arcy). This honor may be debatable considering he was a disgraced king and she was a nazi-sympathizer. No matter. This film has another romance set in 1998 between a despondent housewife (Abbie Cornish) and a sexy security guard (Oscar Isaac). This movie features style, auctions, historical inaccuracies, gorgeous gowns and Oscar Isaac doing a sultry Russian accent. Is this film royally misunderstood? Or should it abdicate itself back to Obscurity?