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From Under The Rock
by Ben Wessels
We've all been asked "Have you seen ______?" and faced the horrifying choice between lying and hoping we're not caught in the lie with a follow-up question, or telling the truth and having "WAIT, YOU HAVEN'T SEEN IT?!?" exclaimed at us by a beloved friend, family member, or perhaps even a fully out-of-their-lane new acquaintance. We all live under a rock to some extent. So we are here to help. Hosts Sawyer Paine and Ben Wessels dive into movies that they themselves haven't seen and provide you with summary, reactions, and some insights for the next time someone corners you with that question.
Episodes
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Ep. 74 - The Big Short
This week, in the hopes of finding some light in the current darkness, Ben had the bright idea for us to watch a movie about a previous crisis, because I guess that would make us... feel better? Something about "things have been bad and we made it through before" or some nonsense like that....
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Ep. 73 - The Mark of Zorro
This week we covered The Mark of Zorro, not to be confused with The Mask of Zorro, not to be confused with The Sign of Zorro, not to be confused with Zorro, The Gay Blade, not to be confused with 1975's Zorro, not to be... well, you get the idea. This version, out of 1940, and arguably the…
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Ep. 72 - Game Night
As shameless nerds and tabletop gaming enthusiasts ourselves, this weeks movie - "Game Night" (2018) - felt like an almost must-watch as we continue to look for ways to distract ourselves from the outside world with a bit of goofiness. Starring Jason Bateman, Rachel McAdams, Jesse Plemons, and…
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Ep. 71 - Kung Pow: Enter The Fist
What can really be said about the 2002 co-winner of the "Stinkers Bad Movie Awards" prize for Most Painfully Unfunny Comedy other than it - 2002's "Kung Pow: Enter The Fist" - is exactly the movie that you think it is and is yet somehow still a seemingly essential part of a certain generation's...
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Ep. 70 - The Devil Wears Prada
This week we covered an all-time classic, and one of Meryl Streep's most iconic performances, "The Devil Wears Prada." Anne Hathaway, Stanley Tucci, Emily Blunt, and others all give excellent performances as well, but as we all know, Meryl is the showstopper. In the social media era, it's almost...
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Ep. 69 (Nice) - Stargate
Hark! A new episode drops! We apologize, friends, we've been navigating some work/life balance adjustments lately and it's been a little tougher than expected to keep up with the editing for the show. In any case, this week we covered 1994's "Stargate." A film that launched several long-running...
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Ep. 68 - Top Gun
Come for the Val Kilmer tribute, stay for us railing against this suprisingly bad film that I think we may have all remembered being way better than it is. I guess that's what a 35-years-later sequel can do for image rehab. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Join us!
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Ep. 67 - Dogma
Dogma. A wonderful movie about angels, demons, humans, and lots of other bible-y things in between that stars Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, Salma Hayek, George Carlin, and Jay & Silent Bob (among others). We're still working on actually making our episodes shorter than the films themselves, but in…
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Ep. 66 - Heretic
As we all know, the true meaning of Christmas is that it's important to keep the spirit of spooky season alive in your heart all the long year round. To that end, this week we're covering one of the most intriguing horror/thrillers from 2024: "Heretic." Starring Hugh Grant, Chloe East, and Sophie...
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Ep. 65 - Batman and Robin
They can't all be winners, right folks? Just as not every movie should take itself so seriously, so must every movie podcast also leave space for self amusement and having some fun with it. To that end, this week we covered Joel Schumacher's immortal-for-all-the-wrong-reasons superhero entry:...
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Ep. 64 - Porco Rosso
With awards season now rapidly shrinking in our rear view, we thought this week we'd aim for something more brief and more fun, while featuring another delightful animated film as animation never gets enough attention or love. This week, it's Studio Ghibli's charming 1992 entry "Porco Rosso."...
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Ep. 63 - The Brutalist
With just a couple days to go before the 97th Academy Awards, this week we're covering what was once maybe a presumptive favorite to walk away with Best Picture, but now runs neck and neck alongside others due to an A.I. controversy and, frankly, one of the most obscene runtimes Hollywood has…
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Ep. 62 - The Substance
With the Oscars right around the corner, this week we finally took the plunge and braved "The Substance." Boasting a better score with critics than with audiences, this movie is undoubtedly a shocking one, and one that is almost certainly not for the faint of heart (or stomach), but holy hell did...
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Ep. 61 - Anora
As awards season marches on, this week we took a look at one of the dark-horse darlings of 2024: Anora. Already the winner of the Critics' Choice Award for Best Picture and the coveted Palme d'Or from the Cannes Film Festival, this visceral Cinderella story gone wrong features a powerhouse...
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Ep. 60 - The Wild Robot
This week as we continue to cover films in the running to be honored at the 97th Oscars next month, we're taking a quick detour from Best Picture nominees to cover one of the nominees for Best Animated Feature Film - The Wild Robot. Starring Lupita Nyong'o, Pedro Pascal, Kit Connor, Bill Nighy,...
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Ep. 59 - Emilia Pérez
After a much needed week off, and now with Oscar nominations officially having been announced, we're back with another episode covering one of the movies you'll certainly be hearing a lot about in the coming weeks leading up to the 97th Academy Awards: Emilia Pérez. Starring Karla Sofía Gascón…
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Ep. 58 - Conclave
With the Golden Globes just recently behind us and awards season now in full swing, we once again turn our attention to the upcoming Academy Awards in March, much as we did for a few weeks last year. This year, we're endeavoring to bring you more of the Best Picture nominees than the three we...
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Ep. 57 - Mr. Holmes
Happy New Year, listeners! As we look ahead now to all the ambition and promise of the new year, this week we watched a film featuring one of the most ambitious and accomplished characters of all time - the great Sherlock Holmes. In this iteration, he is portrayed by the incomparable Sir Ian...
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Ep. 56 - Love, Actually
Merry Christmas, dear listeners! This week we covered one of the most iconic, most heartfelt, and most meme-ified Christmas movies of all time: "Love, Actually." Starring just about every last one of your favorite British stars (Grant, Thompson, Firth, Rickman, Nighy, Ejiofor, Atkinson…
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Ep. 55 - Hot Frosty
As the holiday season rolls along, the warmth of community swells all around us to the point of almost sometimes seeming just a little magic. And in some cases, like those of the fictional towns from the delightfully silly, cookie-cutter Christmas romance movies that come out every year, that…
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Ep. 54 - Die Hard
'Tis the season for some holiday cheer! And what better place to find it than Nakatomi Plaza circa 1988. Join us as we dive into one of the greatest action (and Christmas ^_~) movies of all time, Die Hard! Starring Bruce Willis and Alan Rickman, this movie is a festive romp from start to finish....
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Ep. 53 - Return To Oz
Of all the mystical and magical worlds of fiction, Oz is certainly among those that have inspired the most stories, retellings, speculations, and wonder. In keeping with that (and another little movie you may have heard just a little bit about lately), this week we're covering 1985's "Return To...
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Ep. 52 - Casablanca
Happy Anniversary, listeners! We can hardly believe that we've been doing this show for a full year now and we're thrilled that you have joined us along the way. To mark the occasion, this week we're covering one of the greatest and most classic films of all time, 1942's "Casablanca." Starring...
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Ep. 51 - Stepbrothers
After a short mental health break, we are so back baby. And we're returning with the pure, mindless fun of 2008's "Stepbrothers," starring Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly. What else is there really to say about this movie? It is every bit the insanely silly, childish romp you'd expect it to be…
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Ep. 50(!) - Dune: Part Two
Holy fifty episodes, Batman! To celebrate this milestone we're bringing you the breakdown of this enormous, spectacular sequel from just earlier this year - Denis Villenueve's sweeping masterpiece of a cautionary tale, "Dune: Part Two." Set against the visually stunning backdrop of the desert...
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Ep. 49 - Dracula
Happy Halloween, listeners! This week we dug back into old Hollywood to bring back and cover one of the ultimate all-time classics - the Bela Lugosi "Dracula" movie from 1931. By far the oldest film we've covered so far, this one was a real treat to get to cross off of our list and provided an...
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Ep. 48 - Scream
As spooky season marches on, it was high time that we cover a truly acclaimed horror film, so for this week's movie we watched 1996's "Scream." Starring Neve Campbell, Courtney Cox, David Arquette, and Matthew Lillard, this iconic film revitalized the horror genre and launched a slasher franchise...
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Ep. 47 - The League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen
This week, as spooky season continues, who better to visit with next than a truly extraordinary menagerie of some of the most iconic characters from gothic literature? Sean Connery stars as Allan Quartermain in a fictional ensemble that includes Dorian Gray, Captain Nemo, Mina Harkness, and Dr....
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Ep. 46 - Jennifer's Body
Continuing our spooky season coverage, this week we checked out the 2009 cult classic "Jennifer's Body." Starring Megan Fox and Amanda Seyfried, this thoroughly unhinged movie dances along the line between being a monster movie and being almost a parody of teen horror (while all the while seeming...
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Ep. 45 - Something Wicked This Way Comes
"By the pricking of my thumbs, something wicked this way comes. Then rang the bells, both loud and deep, God is not dead nor doth he sleep." It's spooky season, b****es! (And by b****es, we of course mean our dearly beloved listeners without whom we would be nothing). And in the spirit of the...
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Ep. 44 - Palm Springs
It's one of those infinite time loop situations you might have heard of! This week we're covering the perfectly strange mid-pandemic film "Palm Springs" from 2020. Starring Andy Samberg, Cristin Milioti, and JK Simmons, this Sundance-record-breaking movie (^_~) depicts the lonely hilarity of two...
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Ep. 43 - Gravity
Outer space can be a tricky thing; trickier still for a couple laymen like ourselves - so this week we were unable to escape from it and found ourselves once again exploring the great unknown beyond our skies, this time around with Alphonso Cuarón's critically acclaimed space flick "Gravity."...
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Ep. 42 - Alien
This week we follow up with another true Hollywood classic. By happy accident we're bringing you a horror movie this Friday the 13th, with the genre-redefining monster movie "Alien" from 1979. Directed by Ridley Scott and starring Sigourney Weaver, John Hurt, and Ian Holm, this revolutionary film...
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Ep. 41 - 12 Angry Men
Time for another old Hollywood classic, and what a classic it truly is. This week we watched "12 Angry Men," Sidney Lumet's directorial debut starring Henry Fonda, Ed Begley, and Lee J. Cobb. A courtroom/jury room drama for the ages, this film's incredible writing, pacing, and drama makes for a...
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Ep. 40 - John Wick
Here at From Under the Rock, we are a podcast of pet lovers, and so that made this week's episode uniquely upsetting and satisfying all at once. We're referring of course to "John Wick," from 2014, starring Keanu Reeves, Willem Dafoe, Michael Nyqvist, Ian McShane, and Lance Reddick. One of the...
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Ep. 39 - Jack
And now for something completely different! In the interest of lightening the mood a bit, this week we turned to the great Robin Williams, just over a week removed from the tenth anniversary of the incomparable actor/comedian's passing. And though there aren't too many Robin movies left that one…
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Ep. 38 - Se7en
Who among us is without sin? Not the sort of question we ask often on this show, but certainly one that might concern you more than usual after watching this week's movie - David Fincher's grotesquely-eerie murder mystery/thriller, Se7en. Starring Morgan Freeman, Brad Pitt, Gwyneth Paltrow, and…
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Ep. 37 - Paprika
About time for another foreign language film! This week Sawyer and Ben dive into the mind-bending dream world of Satoshi Kon's "Paprika." Set in a not-too-distant future, this story centers around technology that allows users to enter their own dreams and the dreams of others, influencing them to...
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Ep. 36 - Miracle
With the 2024 Paris Olympics in full swing, it felt like the perfect time to revisit one of Ben's favorite sports movies - Miracle, the story of the 1980 USA Men's hockey team that so miraculously took down the Soviet Union's hockey team - one of the greatest teams in the history of the sport and...
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Ep. 35 - The Grand Budapest Hotel
This week our intrepid hosts took on what is widely considered one of the great Wes Anderson's most essential works: The Grand Budapest Hotel. Starring Ralph Fiennes, Tony Revolori, F. Murray Abraham, Saoirse Ronan, and Adrien Brody among MANY others, this visually stunning, fast-paced romp…
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Ep. 34 - Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping
Are you stressed out over current events? Is the state of the world making it hard for you to relax lately? Then join us for an as-promised episode of PURE escapism. Starring The Lonely Island's Andy Samberg, Jorma Taccone, and Akiva Schaffer, among many of your favorite SNL legends, "Popstar" is...
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Ep. 33 - The Three Musketeers
...ANYWAY! This week we found ourselves in need of a palette cleanser and so we found one in the guise of 1993's "The Three Musketeers," starring Kiefer Sutherland, Charlie Sheen, Oliver Platt, Chris O'Donnell, and last but almost certainly most importantly, Tim Curry. Come for the muskets! Stay...
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Ep. 32 - Civil War
Prisoners of the moment? Perhaps. But anyways, happy birthday america, this week we covered one of the biggest films of 2024 so far, Alex Garland's "Civil War." Starring Kirsten Dunst and Wagner Moura, this dystopian portrayal of a potential worst case not-too-distant-future takes a surprisingly...
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Ep. 31 - Goodfellas
What can we say, we just liked Ray Liotta so much, we wanted more. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Enter, Goodfellas, one of the most iconic mob movies of all time. From master filmmaker Martin Scorsese, this 1990 based-on-a-true-story film portraying every last piece of the nitty-gritty of the organized crime life…
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Ep. 30 - Field of Dreams
This week we further peel back the curtain on our recording schedule - today's episode was recorded on Father's Day, this past Sunday, so to help celebrate that we covered one of the most iconic sports/daddy issues movies of all time - Field of Dreams. Starring Kevin Costner, James Earl Jones…
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Ep. 29 - District 9
This week on From Under The Rock we watched District 9, a Neill Blomkamp and Peter Jackson film from 2009 that takes a pretty unflattering look at mankind's imperialist tendencies and how we've historically treated "othered" groups, in this case - aliens. Starring Sharlto Copley and Jason Cope,...
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Ep. 28 - Spotlight
You can take the boys out of Boston, but not the Boston out of the boys, huh? This week we're looking back to our beloved home away from home for a gripping and emotional story that we spent quite a lot of our childhoods hearing about seemingly nonstop - Spotlight, the true story of the Boston...
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Ep. 27 - A Man Called Otto
It was never likely to take long for us to make Ben cry, but we finally got there, dear listeners. The subject of this week's deep dive, "A Man Called Otto," is an incredibly poignant and emotional story of a man wrestling with a life he no longer wants to live, but time after time finds himself...
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Ep. 26 - Ocean's Eleven
What's more fun than a heist movie? If done well, the answer is not a single solitary thing. And so this week we bring you one of the greatest, most quintessential heist films of all time, "Ocean's Eleven." This Rat Pack remake starring George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts, Andy Garcia, Matt...
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Ep. 25 - The Graduate
This week we have a look at one of the most iconic films of the 20th century; a film that gave birth to an entire genre of films about lost, lovelorn youths; and the movie that launched the career of one of the most prolific and polarizing actors of the past century: Dustin Hoffman. This week…
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
We've all been asked "Have you seen ______?" and faced the horrifying choice between lying and hoping we're not caught in the lie with a follow-up question, or telling the truth and having "WAIT, YOU HAVEN'T SEEN IT?!?" exclaimed at us by a beloved friend, family member, or perhaps even a fully out-of-their-lane new acquaintance. We all live under a rock to some extent. So we are here to help. Hosts Sawyer Paine and Ben Wessels dive into movies that they themselves haven't seen and provide you with summary, reactions, and some insights for the next time someone corners you with that question.
HOSTED BY
Ben Wessels
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does From Under The Rock have?
From Under The Rock currently has 74 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is From Under The Rock about?
We've all been asked "Have you seen ______?" and faced the horrifying choice between lying and hoping we're not caught in the lie with a follow-up question, or telling the truth and having "WAIT, YOU HAVEN'T SEEN IT?!?" exclaimed at us by a beloved friend, family member, or perhaps even a fully...
How often does From Under The Rock release new episodes?
From Under The Rock has 74 episodes. Check the episode list to see recent publication dates and frequency.
Where can I listen to From Under The Rock?
You can listen to From Under The Rock on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts From Under The Rock?
From Under The Rock is created and hosted by Ben Wessels.
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