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A Complete Listing of where you can listen to the Awesome Friday Podcast
Game Review: Suit For Hire
Flow in game movement really is the secret sauce. From linking tricks in Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3, to chaining specials in SSW Tricky, to slo-mo diving over boxes in Stranglehold, getting movement just right can elevate a mediocre game into something special (hello, Wanted: Dead).
It can also turn a great game into an all-timer (hello, Suit For Hire).
Continue reading “Game Review: Suit For Hire”Predator: Killer of Killers Gets the Formula Right
The Predator franchise is the platonic ideal of an action horror franchise. There are highly skilled people in the world, and there’s a whole race of monsters that hunts those people for sport. The setup is simple, allowing it to serve as a framework for various kinds of stories. At their worst, films in the franchise are dumb-but-fun action movies; at their best, they’re character-focused stories that illuminate deeper truths about humanity. The latest entry in the franchise, Predator: Killer of Killers, is an animated anthology that lands somewhere in the middle of that.
Continue reading “Predator: Killer of Killers Gets the Formula Right”Home Video: The 2025 Canadian Screen Award Nominees and Where to Buy, Rent, or Stream them
The 13th Canadian Screen Award Nominees are here! This years main ceremony will take place on June 1st with comedian Lisa Gilroy hosting.
Some stand outs among the nominees include Matthew Rankin’s Universal Language which scored a towering thirteen nominations and David Cronenberg’s The Shrounds with nine. Be sure to check out the Best Motion Picture nominees at least, The Apprentice, Darkest Miriam, Gamma Rays, Village Keeper and Who Do I Belong To.
There are a ton of great Canadian films to watch this year –and reminder, this is just a small subset of the total!– and the awards are coming up soon, so without further ado, here are the 41 narrative film nominees for the 13th Canadian Screen Awards, and where you can buy, rent, or stream them.
Continue reading “Home Video: The 2025 Canadian Screen Award Nominees and Where to Buy, Rent, or Stream them”Review: Andor Season Two is Among the Best of Star Wars and the Year
Sequels and prequels are individually difficult. The former have to carry on story threads and push characters into new places in satisfying ways, the latter have to thread the needle of being their own entity while directly leading into the events that viewers have already witnessed. Andor season two then faces the difficulty of being both a sequel to its incredible first season and a prequel to the much-loved Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.
It’s no mean feat, and while there is a lot to say about this season of television and this review will be as spoiler-free as possible, here is the main thing you need to know: if you liked season one, you are going to like season two. Season two is very much the same show as season one, with some structural differences, but the same compelling characters, excellent production value, and overt political allegory to our current world.
Continue reading “Review: Andor Season Two is Among the Best of Star Wars and the Year”Podcast: Megalopolis & Saturday Night
Greetings programs! Welcome back to our two-episode extravaganza! In this episode we review and discuss Francis Ford Coppola’s biggest swing in decades, Megalopolis and Jason Reitman’s Saturday Night, a close look at the 90s minutes preceding the first-ever broadcast of Saturday Night. We have a ton to say about each so join us!
One note before you do though, that on the heels of our impromptu hiatus, we’re headed into an actual hiatus until the new year. We hope everyone has a safe and happy holiday season, and we’ll see you in the new year!
In the meantime join us for reviews and discussions of Megalopolis and Saturday Night!
Continue reading “Podcast: Megalopolis & Saturday Night”Podcast: Joker: Folie a Deux & The Substance
Greetings Programs! We’re back after an impromptu hiatus with two new episodes, of which this is one! Join us for a conversation about Joker: Folie à Deux by Todd Phillips and The Substance by Coralie Fargeat. These are both divisive, singular works of filmmaking, but do they both work? Listen to find out!
One note before you do though, that on the heels of our impromptu hiatus, we’re headed into an actual hiatus until the new year. We hope everyone has a safe and happy holiday season, and we’ll see you in the new year!
In the meantime join us for reviews and discussion of the films Joker: Folie a Deux & The Substance!
Continue reading “Podcast: Joker: Folie a Deux & The Substance”Podcast: Woman of the Hour & Don’t Move
Greetings programs! Â This week on the show we are reviewing Anna Kendrick’s directorial debut Woman of the Hour, a based-on-real-life thriller about the time a serial killer went on The Dating Game, and then a new Netflix thriller called Don’t Move. Â We have a lot to say about each and we hope you join us!
Continue reading “Podcast: Woman of the Hour & Don’t Move”Podcast: Speak No Evil & The Wild Robot
Greetings programs! This week on the show, we’re talking about two new-to-home video releases. First up, Speak No Evil is a remake of a 2022 Danish film starring James McAvoy. Then we dive into the world of The Wild Robot, a lovely new film from Dreamworks Animation starring the vocal talents of Lupita Nyong’o, Pedro Pascal, and more!
Join us!
Continue reading “Podcast: Speak No Evil & The Wild Robot”AFTech Review: Lenovo Legion Go
Big ideas shackled by gremlins galore
Lenovo’s big swing into the growing handheld PC space is exactly that: a huge, chunky multi-tool with a gorgeous screen that’s one keyboard away from being a workable laptop. The Switch-like (Switch-esque? Switch-ish?) controllers detach from the sides and reveal themselves to be a collection of programmable buttons and integrated scroll wheels. And one becomes an ergonomic mouse? You have to admire the absolute lunatic who pitched this to the top brass at Lenovo, wide-eyed in a manic haze, muttering promises of what what going to be stuffed into this handheld. 8.8 inch screen! 1600p resolution! At 144Hz?! With a full-fat Windows 11 install, 16GB RAM, and a Z1 Extreme processor that can rock up to 5GHz??!
Well, it turns out all this is true, and it’s a remarkable feat of engineering. Inside the rather functional design is an absolute beast of a system. Technically. The problems arise, though, when you actually try to use it, and the shortcomings reveal themselves all too readily.
Continue reading “AFTech Review: Lenovo Legion Go”Podcast: Rumours & The Apprentice
Greetings programs! This week on the show, we’re looking at the last of our VIFF 2024 coverage with a discussion of Guy Maddin’s surreal political satire Rumours and, following that, a look at the new Donal Trump biopic The Apprentice. Both of these films are challenging to the viewer, for entirely different reasons, and we hope you enjoy the conversation.Â
Join us!
Continue reading “Podcast: Rumours & The Apprentice”Podcast: Inedia & It’s What’s Inside (& Transformers One)
Greetings programs! On this week’s show, we’re taking on two exciting films. First up, a BC shot indie film that played as part of the 2024 Vancouver International Film Festival, Inedia. Then we turn our attention to a new Netflix release, the single-location mystery movie It’s What’s Inside. Both films are exciting for some of the same and some entirely different reasons, and we have a lot to say about each of them! Additionally, we talk about Transformers One for a few solid minutes, which means this episode covers three films we both liked! Â
Continue reading “Podcast: Inedia & It’s What’s Inside (& Transformers One)”VIFF 2024: Lucky Star & Conclave
Greetings programs! Our favourite time of year is back; the Vancouver International Film Festival is on now! The 2024 edition features a ton of great films, and we’re here to talk about two of them: Gillian McKercher’s family drama Lucky Star and Edward Berger’s All Quiet on the Western Front follow-up Conclave. It’s a good discussion about two films we liked, so join us!Â
Continue reading “VIFF 2024: Lucky Star & Conclave”Podcast: Blink Twice & Lee
Greetings programs! That’s right, it’s a double-episode day! On this episode of the show we’re taking a look at two new movies. First Zoë Kravitz directorial debut Blink Twice starring Naomi Ackie and Channing Tatum, and then the upcoming biopic of World War II war photographer Lee Miller Lee starring Kate Winslet and Andy Samberg.Â
Join us!
Continue reading “Podcast: Blink Twice & Lee”Podcast: Seeds & His Three Daughters
Greetings, programs! This week on the show, we’re talking about Seeds, Kaniehtiio Horn’s directorial debut, which premiered at TIFF. Following that, we look at Azazel Phillip’s latest, His Three Daughters, which is now on Netflix. This episode was supposed to debut last week, but circumstances prevented that, so you’re getting it today! Double episode day, woo!
We hope you enjoy it.
Continue reading “Podcast: Seeds & His Three Daughters”Podcast: Universal Language & Rebel Ridge
Greetings, Programs! This week on the show, we’re looking at Canada’s official selection for the Academy Award for Best International Feature, Matthew Rankin’s Universal Language. It’s a singular piece of art that we have a lot to say about, and it premieres in Canada at TIFF this week!
Following that, we look at Jeremy Saulnier’s new Netflix-produced action thriller Rebel Ridge, featuring star-in-the-making Aaron Pierre.
Join us
Continue reading “Podcast: Universal Language & Rebel Ridge”
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