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Three playful movie reviewers break down a variety of film franchises by dedicating a podcast to every single sequel, reboot, and spin-off in a series. In-depth conversations cover production history, literary sources, gossip, merchandising, and personal opinion with humor and critical insight. No cinematic universe is too obscure or sacred! Over 1,200 reviews at http://nowplayingpodcast.com
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After Paranormal Activity upset Saw as the Horror King of Halloween last year, the makers of the Saw film franchise decided that the seventh installment of Saw would be the last, and to provide a new novelty they also jumped on the 3-D bandwagon. Arnie, Marjorie, and Jakob have reunited to finish their trial of reviewing the Saw films by giving more thought to Saw 3-D than the screenwriters did. Is this last piece in the Jigsaw puzzle satisfying? Listen to find out!
{Saw Series}
If it's Halloween, then it's Now Playing reviewing Saw!
After Paranormal Activity knocked Saw off its Halloween throne, the producers decided the time had come to end the game. This final chapter promises one last round of traps, twists, and moral reckoning - now in 3D! Arnie, Marjorie, and Jakob reunite to finish their own long-running trial of the Saw series, putting more thought into this finale than some might argue the screenplay received. Does this last piece of the puzzle deliver a satisfying conclusion, or does the series end with a dull blade?
Don't you wish all bikers were hot like her?
After 2003's The Texas Chainsaw Massacre carved up the box office, a follow-up was inevitable. But with Leatherface maimed and Sheriff Hoyt flattened, where could the story go next? Platinum Dunes chose to take the story back to The Beginning with a prequel cutting into the origins of the Hewitt clan. This chapter shows the birth of Leatherface, the rise of R. Lee Ermey’s sadistic Sheriff Hoyt, and the grim milestones that shaped the family’s descent into cannibalistic horror. Does this prequel add meaningful depth to the flesh-filled family, or does it simply serve up more carnage without purpose? The hosts sharpen their knives to decide whether this origin tale is a feast for horror fans or another stale helping in a franchise struggling to find its footing.
This is my chainsaw. There are others like it, but this one is mine.
After The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation limped quietly onto home video, it looked like Leatherface’s reign of terror had finally sputtered out. Then Michael Bay and his production company, Platinum Dunes, decided the franchise deserved a modern overhaul, delivering a remake of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. With a new Leatherface, a fresh batch of doomed teens, and R. Lee Ermey (Full Metal Jacket) chewing scenery as the sadistic Sheriff Hoyt, the remake leaned into grime, brutality, and high-production dread. It also kicked off Platinum Dunes’ run of horror reboots, later including new versions of Friday the 13th and A Nightmare on Elm Street. Was this gritty reset the high-water mark for Platinum Dunes’ horror "rehab" era, or just the first in a series of disappointments? Rev up this podcast to hear Arnie, Stuart, and Brock decide whether this reboot stands tallest among the studio’s remakes.
We hope you LIKE our review!
Your friends Marjorie, Arnie, and Stuart bring you an exclusive podcast just for Now Playing Podcast Facebook fans with a review of The Social Network. Directed by David Fincher (Fight Club), this sharp, fast-talking biopic traces the rise of Mark Zuckerberg and the creation of Facebook, charting how one idea built millions of online connections while burning more than a few real-world bridges. Fueled by ambition, lawsuits, and razor-edged dialogue, the film aims to turn recent tech history into gripping drama. But do our hosts "Like" The Social Network, or is it something we’d quietly hide from our wall? The hosts log in to decide whether this modern success story deserves to go viral.
You carved me at 'Hello'.
For the 20th anniversary of the original Texas Chain Saw Massacre, Kim Henkel returned to the franchise to introduce Leatherface to The Next Generation. Featuring early performances from Renée Zellweger and Matthew McConaughey, the film positioned itself as a bold new chapter for Leatherface and his deeply disturbed clan. Instead, production delays and studio uncertainty left it sitting on the shelf until a quiet home video release in 1997, after its young stars had become marquee names. The promise was a return to the raw, unsettling spirit of 1974. The result is something far stranger. Does this fourth installment reclaim the franchise’s gritty edge, or veer into off-the-rails territory? Arnie, Brock, and Stuart fire up the chainsaw to decide whether this Next Generation resurrects the saga or hacks it apart.
The Podcast is Family.
While Jason and Freddy dominated the late-’80s horror scene, Leatherface waited in the shadows. Then New Line Cinema, the studio nicknamed "The House That Freddy Built," picked up the franchise and aimed to turn him into their next marquee slasher with Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III. This third installment trades regional grit for a more polished studio approach, adding a Hollywood-leaning cast that includes a then-unknown Viggo Mortensen and genre favorite Ken Foree. Even the chainsaw gets a cosmetic upgrade. But does that slicker presentation help Leatherface carve out a place among the era’s horror heavyweights, or does it sand down what made the original so disturbing? Arnie, Brock, and Stuart rev the engine to decide whether this sequel lets Leatherface shine or just sputter.
By 1986 horror was very much in the mainstream. Freddy and Jason were exceptionally profitable franchises, and so it was put on Tobe Hooper to return to Texas and bring back Leatherface and the family for a new generation. With Poltergeist to his credit, Hooper had horror cred, and with Dennis Hopper starring along with Bill Mosely and Jim Siedow returning from the original film, Leatherface seemed poised to take his place among 80’s slasher icons Jason, Freddy, and Michael Myers. But Hooper’s horror-comedy vision added a new twist to the family dynamic, resulting in one of the most original installments in the Texas Chainsaw Massacre series. Were Now Playing hosts Brock, Stuart, and Arnie happy to see Hooper directing Leatherface to once again don the mask and do his chainsaw dance? Listen to find out!
{Texas Chainsaw Massacre Series}
Incoming Podcast!
By 1986, horror had gone mainstream. Freddy and Jason were minting money, and it was time to bring Leatherface back into the arena. Tobe Hooper returned to his own creation with The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2, aiming to revive the Sawyer clan for a decade that demanded bigger, louder sequels. With Dennis Hopper chewing scenery as a vengeance-driven lawman, Bill Moseley turning Chop-Top into a cult icon, and Jim Siedow reprising his role from the original, the film had pedigree and attitude. But Hooper didn’t just repeat 1974. He swerved hard into horror-comedy, dialing up the grotesque satire and turning the family’s madness into something louder and stranger. Did that tonal shift elevate the sequel into something daring, or undercut the raw terror that made the first film legendary? Brock, Stuart, and Arnie fire up the chainsaw to decide whether this follow-up earns its place among the 80s slasher heavyweights.
In 1974 Tobe Hooper unleashed into theaters horror unlike any seen before and started the modern slasher genre with the seminal horror film The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Audiences watched in terror as Sally and Franklin Hardesty and their three friends travel through a rural Texas town and pick up a hitchhiker, beginning their terrifying encounter with a crazed, cannibalistic family. It can easily be said that without Leatherface we would not have had Michael Myers, Jason Voorhees, or even Freddy Krueger. Join Now Playing hosts Arnie, Brock, and Stuart as they journey with Sally and Franklin deep into the heart of Texas and review all six Texas Chainsaw Massacre films, starting with the 1974 original. It is classic horror, but does it hold up in the 21st century? Listen to find out!
{Texas Chainsaw Massacre Series}
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