Sep 11, 2026 · 3h 2m
Summer movies reclaim cultural ground as franchises lose their grip
The Winners and Losers of the Summer Movies Came Roaring Back. Plus: ‘Hope,’ ‘The Uprising,’ and 10 More We Missed.
The episode tests whether theatrical moviegoing is broadly recovering or merely being carried by a few familiar properties, then applies the same scrutiny to Abel Ferrara’s unruly career.
- 1A record-breaking summer suggests theatrical movies can regain cultural relevance beyond the strongest franchise brands.
- 2The hosts find ambition and memorable performances in several releases, but uneven execution repeatedly undercuts their biggest swings.
- 3Abel Ferrara’s films turn contradictions, collaboration, and personal obsession into a distinctive alternative to conventional studio filmmaking.
Don't miss
Sean and BenDavid Grabinski connect King of New York’s New York atmosphere, performances, and moral reversals to Ferrara’s larger artistic identity.
The brief
Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins read a record-breaking summer as evidence that movies have regained cultural relevance, while asking whether franchises or fresh audiences deserve the credit.
The winners include Michael, The Devil Wears Prada 2, and young filmmakers with internet-born ideas; the losers expose fatigue across Disney, Star Wars, superheroes, and streaming strategy.
Their reviews find ambition in The Uprising, Hope, and The Rivals of Amziah King, but each film loses force through digital effects, tonal confusion, or a late narrative turn.
The episode’s second half shifts from box-office forecasting to Abel Ferrara, whose crime films, experiments, and collaborators reveal a career built from artistic obsession and contradiction.
Sean and BenDavid Grabinski make the case for Ferrara’s 1990s work while tracing how music, actors, New York, religion, and autobiography keep reshaping his cinema.
Featuring
Christopher Walken
Willem Dafoe
Toy Story
Minions
The Mandalorian and GroguBooks & mentions
The Criterion Channel
Its Abel Ferrara collection provides the viewing context for the episode’s extended career discussion.
Listen to the full episode and explore every guest, topic, and moment on PodLume.