Reading Between the Reels: Film analysis with snark and heart

RBR #153: “Raiders of the Lost Ark: Bad Archaeology, Great Movie”

Raiders of the Lost Ark is what happens when archaeology, Nazi-hunting, supernatural artifacts, and spectacularly poor decision-making collide. In this episode, we return

RBR #152: “Top 5 Movies of Summer 2026”

For our first show back from summer break, we’re looking back at the movies that hit theaters during Summer 2026. We break down our favorite new releases, debate which mo

RBR #151: "The Ethics of Owning Droids" with Aaron Harris

In this year’s 6th and final installment of Star Wars 101, Aaron Harris joins my English classes for another conversation from a galaxy far, far away. Together, we explor

RBR #150: "Star Wars 101: Death Star Engineering" with Jeff McGee

In this year’s fifth installment of Star Wars 101, Jeff McGee joins my English classes for a conversation about the stories, themes, and ideas that have made Star Wars on

RBR #149: "Star Wars 101: Intergalactic Family Dynamics" with David Jesse

In this year’s fourth installment of Star Wars 101, David Jesse joins my English classes to explore family relationships in Star Wars. From fathers and sons to siblings,

RBR #148: "Star Wars 101: Advanced Force Applications" with Ian Doescher

In this year’s third installment of Star Wars 101, bestselling author Ian Doescher joins my English classes to explore how Star Wars uses storytelling, symbolism, charact

RBR #147: "Star Wars 101: Galactic Conflict Theory" with Din from F-105

In this year’s second installment of Star Wars 101, Din from F-105 joins my English classes to explore the causes and consequences of galactic conflict in a galaxy far, f

RBR #146: "Star Wars 101: Lightsaber Literacy" with Jay Krebs

Star Wars 101 is back! Join us for the first installment is our annual summer series in which middle school English students do their best to break down the themes and ch

RBR #145: “A.I.: Upgrade Your Son Today”

For this installment in our Steven Spielberg series, we unpack A.I. — the feel-good family story about replacing your dead child with an upgraded model. We’re talking aba

RBR #144: “Minority Report: Pre-Crime & Punishment”

In Minority Report, people are judged before they act—which hits a little close to home, because we definitely formed strong opinions early and spent the rest of the epis

RBR #143: “War of the Worlds: The Common Cold Strikes Back”

In War of the Worlds, global annihilation isn’t stopped by genius alien tech or tactical brilliance—it’s ultimately halted by Earth’s smallest, least cinematic residents:

RBR #142: “E.T.: Glow Fingers, Big Feelings”

The third episode of our Spielberg series covers E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial and explores how one glowing finger traumatized a generation, turned bikes into pedal-powered

RBR #141: “Close Encounters: Signals, Spuds, and Sudden Obsessions”

For the second stop in our Spielberg deep dive, we’re landing straight in Close Encounters of the Third Kind. From the five-note tune that ruins lives to mashed potato mo

RBR #140: “Jaws: The Bite That Won’t Quit”

We’re kicking off our Steven Spielberg series with Jaws, the movie that made beaches terrifying and mechanical sharks famous. Spielberg turns a busted shark into pure pan

RBR #139: “Dream Teams & Dumpster Fires: Building the Perfect Movie”

If you could snap your fingers and assemble the ultimate movie dream team, who’s on your list? The director who actually gets it, the writer who really writes, the compos

RBR #138: "Oppenheimer - Part Two: Faces, Places, and Consequences"

Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer isn’t just about explosions—it’s a visual and emotional symphony. In “Oppenheimer - Part Two: Faces, Places, and Consequences,” the final

RBR #137: “Oppenheimer - Part One: Light, Sound, and Panic”

Oppenheimer, directed by Christopher Nolan, hits like a ticking bomb. In “Oppenheimer - Part One: Light, Sound, and Panic,” the penultimate entry in our series on Nolan’s

#StarWarsPodcastDay Bonus Episode: “Solo: A Star Wars Story" (Re-Release)

For this year’s “Star Wars Podcast Day," we go back into the archives for one of our first deconstructions and revisit an early episode of “Coruscant Community College” i

RBR #136: “Tenet - Part Two: Cause Is Effect”

In the conclusion of our two-part Tenet breakdown, we examine the film’s performances, set design, and characters—all in hopes of unpacking one of the movie’s most brain-

RBR #135: “Tenet - Part One: The Beginning Is the End”

Strap in, reverse your entropy, and whisper “pincer movement” like you actually know what it means. In this episode, we launch Part I of our two-episode deep dive into Ch