The Critics and the Crowd

Send a textOur first year is behind us, and what better way to celebrate than to give out awards to the films that we've covered in 2025! Best film, best actor, best critics disappointment, best crowd disappointment... and many others! What are they? Tune in to find out as Liz and Steele go over the films that divided us and find out what was left!

Send a textChristmas may be in the rearview mirror, but due to scheduling snafus, we're continuing our holly jolly holidays with this, the second of our two-part Yuletide extravaganza. This time, Steele and Liz are taking on Madea in all of her (his?) glory. That's right, it's time for A Madea Christmas. Is this newfound audience darling a a classic or do the critics have it right and say it's a burnt turkey? Listen and let us know!

Send a textBetter late than never! The Critics and the Crowd is back with this posthumous holiday fun via Ludacris, Tim Story, and a tale about Santa soothing our hearts. Does "Dashing Through the Snow" bring yuletide cheer or is it another schmaltz-fest that can't quite stick the holiday landing? You let us know!

Send a textBack in the days before screened calls, you never knew if the next person on the line would be your best friend, a spammer, or some sort of demonic presence on the electromagnetic spectrum. We're channeling that infernal horror this week in our latest entry, in which Steele and Liz cover One Missed Call. It's another oh-fer, people, so get ready for drama and divisiveness aplent!

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Send a textLiz and Steele are the dynamic duo, covering this not-quite-so-dynamic double feature: the Rocky Horror Picture Show and Taxi! How are they related? You won't know until you listen in to these two films that polarized audiences but have gone on to cult like status!

Send a textLiz and Steele bravely venture into the Kingdom of Tyler Perry as they examine his dramatic look at abuse, family, and survival. This is the widest divide yet, with zero professional critics rating this film positively and seventy-five percent of audiences relishing the motion picture. Who got it right? Who got it wrong? Sit back, tune in, and find out.NOTE: This episode contains discussions of physical abuse.

Send a textActor and all-around talent Kathryn Fray joins our two beloved co-hosts as they pick apart the 2003 rom-com, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days. It was a smash hit with the crowd but a dud with the critics back in the day, which is why it's perfect fodder for this temporary trio. Tune in wherever you get your podcasts to hear if Kate Hudson's charms, Matty McC's abs, and a whirlwind faux romance took off or tanked.

Send a textIt's that time again: time to examine the inexaminable, time to talk divisive media, time for Steele to get annoyed with Liz, and time for Liz to get annoyed with Steele. The Critics and the Crowd is back to talk a polarizing piece of media: Step Up 2 The Streets. Is this little song and dance smash hit from yesteryear all it's cracked up to be, or were professionals right to trash it from the get-go? We'll guide but you'll decide!

Send a textFrom supposedly stupid stereotypes, to supposed stereotypes of stupids, we're covering TWO films this entry that don't quite cut the mustard. That's right, it's time for another 'double feature' entry. First, Liz makes Steele endure Bratz, and then Steele subjects Liz to Idiocracy. Who was right? Lovers of dolls? Lovers of Beavis and Butthead? Only you can decide! Well, that's not true... we've got a bombshell of a reveal in this in which one of our hosts comes clean with a guilty pleasure. Who is it? What is it? Tune in, turn off, and drop-out... but not before you download this episode!

Send a textWe're wrapping up our Halloween-centered month with a fan favorite: Hocus Pocus! Derided by critics (and Steele) at the time of its release, the film has become a juggernaut of pop culture since 1993. Does it deserve the fame? Were critics right to lambast it at the time? Get yer popcorn, get yer blanket, get yer fall fun time gear and let's dive into this movie!

Send a textWe continue our Halloween Horror Fest with the film that launched a thousand sequels... SAW! Jigsaw the puppet is with us in studio (not really) as Liz and Steele try to determine why the pros LOVED Drag Me to Hell and LOATHED this film, while audiences were cool on Sam Raimi's schlockfest but kowtowed to this piece of cinema. Who knows? You do! Join us as we determine who was right about this piece of horror magic.

Send a textLiz and Steele continue their round-up of Halloween season cinematic classics (and not so classics). This week? It is the cult hit and critical darling, It Follows! As for the fans? They're not so hot on this indie slice of scares. Who's got it right? You'll just have to listen in to find out!

Send a textLiz and Steele are heading back seventeen years to a time when senior proms had red carpets, paparazzi, and knife-wielding psycho teachers!Okay, so not much has changed in that time, but if you want a time capsule of early 00's schlock, join the duo as they determine who got this iteration of Prom Night: the critics who hated it, or the crowd who laughed at it!

Send a textAnd now for something completely different!We're into the first of our "double feature" episodes in which Liz and Steele cover films from yesteryear that may not exactly qualify for normal Critics and the Crowd examination. Maybe a movie was a bomb initially but has become a cult hit in later years: that's Big Trouble in Little China! Or maybe the film doesn't have enough reviews to qualify: that's Bring It On: In It to Win It. Our podcast team is covering both in short order today as they duel with the media that divides us!

Send a textLiz and Steele are diving headfirst into controversy this week as the Critics and the Crowd cover one of the most divisive titles of last year's awards season. Hitting a critical mass with numerous awards before flaming out due to numerous controversies that surrounded it, Emilia Perez is exactly the kind of film that this podcast tries to cover, but who got it right: the lovers or the haters? Or is somewhere in between? You won't know until you hear your favorite hosts delve into the outrageous musical numbers and epic plot of our latest episode.

Send a textIs he a superhero or an antihero? It doesn't matter, because most importantly, Venom is a cash cow! Derided by fans and critics alike when it first dropped, this 2018 vision of that most delightfully ravenous symbiote was nevertheless a smash hit and has since become a favorite of audiences. Join Liz and Steele as we try to determine who got this film right and why it left a sour taste in the mouths of many (and no, it isn't just the cannibalism).

Send a textLiz and Steele put their fingers on the pulse of New York crime as they--alongside three members of the Shaft family--attempt to uncover a criminal conspiracy, avenge a fallen comrade, and understand just why critics savaged this modern cult classic. Listen in as we talk blaxsploitation, tropes, misogyny, and much, much more in our latest episode!

Send a textOnce more, the critics and the crowd are divided, but not betwixt sparklepires and wolfmen or demons and innocent bank managers, but betwixt those who love romantic comedies and those who loathe them. Join Steele and Liz as they dive into this early 00's rom-com about a planner of weddings and the groom-to-be whose heart she steals. Who's angrier: the professionals who had to endure this, or the fans with knives out for anybody who comes after this beloved film from yesteryear?

Send a textLiz and Steele are back at it as they watch Alison Lohman try to escape from the clutches of demons... but judging by the cover and title, that may prove impossible. Join the duo as they try to ascertain why critics (who normally hate this kind of film) loved this film and why audiences (who usually love this kind of flick) are much more mixed!

Send a textJoin Liz and Steele on our very first episode! What better way to talk about divisive media than one of the most loved (and loathed) films of this century: Twilight! Will you side with the pros or the amateurs on this one? What do Liz and Steele think? You'll just have to tune in as we dig in. Sparkle vampires ahoy!

Send a textHere's our very first promo as we march toward our August 18th release! Subscribe now and never miss an episode! The Critics and the Crowd: who's wrong, who's right, and what's left?