Effective & Familiar - 'Alien: Romulus' Permeates The Box Office

Ho Ho Ho! HOLLYWOOD HANGOVER! It's an EARLY Christmas here at the Hangover because Chris and Joe got an ADVANCED screening of James Cameron's latest Fantasy Sci-Fi epic from the planet Pandora, AVATAR: Fire and Ash! Will it break all of the box office records, like Cameron has done time and time before? Or has the age of the Navi come to an end? They tell ya what worked, what didn't and more! They also chat about Joe's gigantic filmmaking news - he's the co-writer of the upcoming Sam Raimi and Jordan Peele produced film 'Portrait of God'! Joe gives incredible insight into how it all came together, step by step. This is one you won't want to miss!  WE LOVE YOU ALL!

Gobble Gobble! HOLLYWOOD HANGOVER! W slap some more Hangover of the Hollywood variety on to your plate, just in time for Thanksgiving! Chris and Joe discuss how 'Wicked: For Good' will undoubtedly rock the box office but, is it as satisfying as the first one was? They also chat about 'Marty Supreme', 'Willy Wonka' at Cosm in Los Angeles, the first images of 'The Legend of Zelda' adaptation, and to top it all off, they reflect on 35 years of 'Home Alone', the undisputed KING of perennial holiday classics. 

THE HANGOVER COMETH! It's an action packed extravaganza with two absolutely bad ass new films, hot off the presses: 'Predator: Badlands' and Edgar Wright's 'The Running Man'! We dive deep into what we loved (and didn't love) about the next chapters of these beloved 80's IPs. We also get into the nitty gritty about Hollwood's disappointing box office last month, and Joe's controversial take on exactly WHY this October slump happened at all (spoiler alert: it's Marvel's fault).  WE LOVE YOU ALL!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN! Chris and Joe are back to discuss PTA's latest, and possibly greatest, directing effort: 'One Battle After Another'. They answer the question: does it REALLY deserve to be frontrunner for Best Picture? The guys also chat about the string of big budget films underperforming at the box office and what might be the common thread between them. Lastly, Joe tells his tales from Beyond Fest 2025, and Chris share details about seeing The Wizard of Oz at the Sphere in Las Vegas.  WE LOVE YOU ALL!

HOLLYWOOD HANGOVER! We celebrate our 100th episode by reflecting on over 6 years of cinema-soaked podcasting goodness. We also look back on all the big news stories from the past few weeks, from Warner Bros. looking to be bought out by Skydance or Netflix, to the cancelling of Jimmy Kimmel and what it means for free speech. THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO HAS EVER LISTENED! WE LOVE YOU! Editor's Note: Since the recording of this episode (09/21/2025), Jimmy Kimmel has been re-instated in his position at ABC.

HOLLYWOOD HANGOVER! This episode we catch up on a whirlwind of headlines and news stories, from celebrity deaths to dubious politics and late night cancellations, SO much has happened and we try to cover it all! We also focus our Hangover laser-beams on 'Fantastic Four: First Steps' - does it accomplish what Marvel hopes for? Is it better than James Gunn's Superman? There is a lot to get into, this is one you won't want to miss! http://www.CLPFILM.com https://joerussofilm.com/

HOLLYWOOD HANGOVER! This episode, we take a deep dive into James Gunn's Superman! Does it successfully "reboot" the franchise, steering away from the Snyder Bros? Will it's box office success be strong enough down the stretch, with other big budget super hero movies like Fantastic Four on the horizon? And...did we love it? or Just like it? We answer all this, AND MORE!

HOLLYWOOD HANGOVER! Brad Pitt goes vroom vroom vroom all the way to box office success in 'F1 The Movie'! But why is Hollywood still relying on old movie stars instead of trying to make new ones? The answer might surprise you! We give a war report on the battle between old Snyder-verse Superman fans and new James Gunn Superman fans.  We also do an industry "wellness check" on Hollywood: Has it ever really recovered from the Pandemic? Will AI be the final nail in the coffin for current and future filmmakers? We try to get to the bottom of all this, AND MORE! 

The HANGOVER is BACK! We blow the top off the 2025 summer blockbuster season the only way we know how: with big directors and bigger franchises. Wes Anderson's The Phoenician Scheme and Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning. Both films continue an encouraging trend of high yield movie going, with the likes of Sinners, Final Destination, Lilo & Stitch, Friendship, and more leading the way. Are movies finally "back"? (We sure hope so). We discuss all this, and much more! 

HOLLYWOOD HANGOVER! This episode we discuss 'DROP', the latest short and sweet thriller from consistently excellent director Christopher Landon. We explain why it harkens back to a relatively recent yesteryear of cinema, where we ask ourselves "Why don't they make movies like this anymore?" We also dig into how MINECRAFT smashed the box office while the Disney touted SNOW WHITE did the exact opposite. On top of all that, we have an old fashioned slobber-knocker argument over Joe's reality shattering theory regarding John Carpenter's all time classic, THE THING. This is one you don't want to miss!