Maltin On Movies

Leonard and Jessie Maltin are back this week to talk about many facets of moviegoing: accepting a movie for what it is and not for what it isn’t, the experience of seeing a movie with an engaged audience at a film festival, and discovering a wonderful movie sometimes by luck.

Transferring hit TV shows to the big screen isn’t a new idea. This week Leonard and Baron discuss three films that have received this treatment: 1991’s dark and twisted The Addams Family, two unfortunate turkeys, and the underrated (and star-studded) SNL film Coneheads.

This week Leonard and Baron discuss three documentaries that are well worth your time and will make you cry: Jesse Moss’ The Overnighters, Crips and Bloods: Made in America, and an inspiring film about two remarkable people separated in age by more than 60 years.

Baron and Leonard are reunited once again! Inspired by leading ladies Amy Schumer & Melissa McCarthy, they discuss three films that feature funny ladies: Whoopi Goldberg in the crowd pleaser Sister Act, Lily Tomlin in The Late Show, a sleeper from 1977, and a stinker from one of everyone’s favorite female comics. (p.s. it wasn’t her fault).

Leonard and Jessie Maltin are back this week and this time they are answering your questions about music in film! What’s the best music score? Which film has the best soundtrack? What are some unknown musical movie gems? Tune in to find out!

Leonard returns along with his daughter Jessie Maltin to answer all your questions! What was Leonard’s first (and second) experience walking out of a movie? What is the best Alan Smithee film? If you can only watch movies from one decade which will it be? Tune in to find out!

Baron is joined once again by the globe-trotting Jessie Maltin as they discuss actors who fill major roles in major motion pictures constantly but aren't names known by "your mom."

This week Baron and special guest Jessie Maltin answer some listener questions addressed to Leonard & Baron including: favorite film of all time, favorite film composers, if they have ever changed their opinion of a film upon a second viewing, and much more.

This week Leonard and Baron welcome Leonard’s wife Alice to sit in with them as they discuss three excellent documentaries that take you behind the scenes of movies in different ways: Casting By, a celebration of the casting profession and casting pioneer Marion Dougherty, Lost in La Mancha which follows Terry Gilliam's doomed attempt to get his film, The Man Who Killed Don Quixote, off the ground, and It's All True: Based on an Unfinished Film by Orson Welles, the story of a notorious Orson Welles project about South America that was never completed.

Inspired by Father’s Day, Leonard’s daughter Jessie Maltin returns to discuss the movies that her dad shared with her growing up—and Leonard explains why he chose the classics. Plus, Baron explains how movies as diverse as Amadeus and the Muppets opened him up to a world of great movies.

This week Leonard and Baron discuss three films that prove cartoons aren’t always intended for children: the first animated feature ever submitted by France as its official entry for the Oscars, 2007’s Persepolis, a stop-motion animated sleeper from Australia, and a stinker from one of the medium’s true innovators. (Hey, nobody’s perfect…)

Every rule has exceptions, and while Leonard and Baron have reservations about many remakes of older films, this week they spotlight a couple they love! They praise the breathless, incredibly funny His Girl Friday, lament that the latest RoboCop was hamstrung from the beginning by a terrible script, and recommend a remake of a spooky Swedish thriller.

This week Leonard and Baron discuss three films adapted from books; two that are great, and one that’s just grating. They’re captivated by the many grace notes of the John Irving adaptation “The Cider House Rules,” and appalled by the bloated, lugubrious “How The Grinch Stole Christmas,” before recommending a classic from the 30’s that takes you to a remote, exotic land.

This week Leonard and Baron discuss three movies made by women: Love & Basketball, written and directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood, a reimagining of a popular TV show that’s not worthy of its director or star, and a compelling sleeper written and directed by Dee Rees called Pariah.

This week Leonard and Baron discuss three movies featuring female duos of all stripes! After praising the debut film of a famed directorial duo, they advise listeners to steer clear of the shrill caricatures that populate The Other Woman, and check out the haunting musical sister act Hilary & Jackie.

While Baron is on assignment, Leonard welcomes a special guest-co-host, his daughter Jessie Maltin to discuss the movies that made a deep impact on them in their formative years. Tune in to hear which films changed the game for both Maltins from generation to generation.

This week, Leonard and Baron sing the praises of movies about (fictional) musicians and bands. First, they celebrate Christopher Guest’s faux folk singers in A Mighty Wind, then blast a Broadway rock musical that shouldn’t have left the stage. Finally they recommend a sleeper called Still Crazy—a treat for music lovers and Anglophiles alike.

Inspired by Russell Crowe’s The Water Diviner, Leonard and Baron discuss three films in which a director also is the star of the film. Ed Harris’ outstanding film Pollock, a turkey from Kenneth Branagh, and Jennifer Jason Leigh and Alan Cumming’s wonderful sleeper The Anniversary Party.

This week Leonard and Baron discuss three films that fall under the umbrella of buddy movies: Robert De Niro and Charles Grodin in the classic Midnight Run, a prequel of a buddy movie that shouldn’t have been made, and Jim Carrey and Ewan McGregor in I Love You Phillip Morris, a movie you might have missed. Plus, Leonard shares a story about how he managed to land an interview with De Niro when Midnight Run was about to be released.

Cue the digital fanfare! In a first ever Bonus Episode, Leonard & Baron sit down with Stephen Tobolowsky to discuss acting, writing, storytelling, having your scenes cut from movies, the benefits of heated hallways, and of course, whether or not Godzilla was a documentary."