A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001)

On this episode of Afterthoughts, John brings Dixon and Ryan an overlooked, under-seen period piece romance/thriller with a southern drawl and a Texas attitude --it's Carolina Caroline (2026)!

Cars: They're just like us.  They eat.  They use the bathroom.  They have sex.  They raise children.  Are these anthropomorphized monstrosities born or manufactured?  Why do they never open their doors?  What's inside them?  Why do they consume gasoline through both their gas tanks and their mouths?  Buckle your seatbelt for a hilarious discussion of one of the most unhinged franchises in the history of motion pictures.  It's gonna be a bumpy ride.

On this episode of Recommend or Refute, John honors the fallen with a tribute watch of Event Horizon for the recently departed Sam Neil, Ryan stumbles upon the filmography of Justin Benson and Aaron Moorehead with Resolution (2012), and Dixon gives the masses want they want with his review of Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey (2026).

AFTERTHOUGHTS ARE DOING THEIR PART, ARE YOU? Their part being the discussion of a film that was divisive at release, now seen as ever-prescient, action packed, and clearly tongue-in-cheek. Join the crew as they enlist to help fight the misconceptions against Paul Verhoeven's satirical adaptation of a military-strong sci-fi story. That's right, this episode we're talking about Starship Troopers (1997). Would you like to know more?

We're back with another Recommend or Refute conversation.  John finally decides to watch a good movie and is blown away by Paul Thomas Anderson's epic character piece The Master (2012), Ryan goes dumpster diving with Richard Pryor in The Toy (1982), and Dixon tackles one of cinema's all-time greats with Orson Welles' debut film Citizen Kane (1941).  Pull up a chair, grab a drink, and join us.

On the heels of our Disclosure Day (2026) episode, we're taking another slice of the Spielberg pie as we dissect his Kubrick-inspired sci-fi film A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001).  Is it an overlooked masterpiece deserving of reassessment, or is it a fractured mess that doesn't quite work?

We're down a host this week, but we threw in an extra movie to make it up to you.  John's in the mood for offbeat indie comedies with A Different Man (2024), Aaron Schimberg's dark exploration of identity and disability, and I Love Boosters (2026), Boots Riley's surreal exposé of capitalism in the fashion industry.  Dixon's skewing more mainstream with Toy Story 1-4 (1995-2019), and the Nicolas Cage Marvel television show Spider-Noir (2026).

It's not often that we bring so many new movies to the podcast for Recommend or Refute or main discussions, but here we are. The new Steven Spielberg film is loose and somehow it's getting positive reviews. Clocking in at almost 2.5 hours, Disclosure Day (2026) is Spielberg's take on what's required to get the truth out into the universe, but is it truly Spielberg's best film in 20 years (according to certain outlets)?  Dixon and John don't have much nice to say about it. Are they just being haters? With a special guest sitting in, what afterthoughts will be disclosed? You'll just to have to listen to find out.

We have quite a contemporary collection of choices to present on this episode of Recommend or Refute. Ryan decided to conjure up a snakes on a plane by watching last year's Anaconda (2025) as his in-flight feature. Dixon ventured into the directorial debut of liminal space aficionado Kane Parsons as he maps out his thoughts on Backrooms (2026), and John shares his impressions of Michael Sarnoski's meditation on myth and legacy with The Death of Robin Hood (2026).

You're under podcast arrest! The charge? You know what you did. You tried to skip this episode, that's what you did. Well, you're not getting off that easy. You're now legally obligated to listen to this episode's discussion on The Trial (1962). Upon completion of a listen you will be granted an ostensible acquittal. Upon completion of listening to our backlog of episodes, you'll be granted a definite acquittal until the next episode is published.