Ranting Media

24/09/2025

What makes a great adaptation? The Critics Club crew dives into their Top 10 Adaptations, ranking the movies that brought books, plays, and even video games to life on the big screen. From classics like The Godfather and The Princess Bride to modern hits like Ready Player One and Crazy Rich Asians, we debate what worked, what didn’t, and why some stories thrive in translation while others fall flat.Join Geoff, Jim, and David as they break down fan favorites, argue over controversial picks (Ready Player Two, anyone?), and swap personal stories about how these adaptations shaped their movie-going experiences.Featured films & books:Ready Player One (Ernest Cline → Spielberg)Crazy Rich Asians (Kevin Kwan → Jon Chu)The Devil Wears Prada (Lauren Weisberger → David Frankel)Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (J.K. Rowling → Chris Columbus)The Godfather (Mario Puzo → Francis Ford Coppola)Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring (J.R.R.

The Critics Club ranks their top movie adaptations, from Jurassic Park and Casino Royale to Crazy Rich Asians and The Devil Wears Prada. Geoff, Jim, and David compare books and films, share opinions, and debate what makes an adaptation succeed.

07/08/2025

Welcome to Critics Club: Deep Cuts — a new series where we take a more focused dive into a single film. This time, it’s the haunting, unforgettable Japanese horror classic: Audition (1999), directed by Takashi Miike.What happens when a grieving widower looks for love... through a fake movie audition? Jim and Geoff walk through the film’s surreal structure, disturbing tonal shift, and ambiguous ending.

In this inaugural episode of Critics Club: Deep Cuts, Jim and Geoff dive into Takashi Miike’s psychological shocker Audition. What begins as a melancholic romance transforms into one of the most unsettling horror films of the early 2000s.

27/07/2025

The Critics Club: Superman Review (With Special Guest Louis)Geoff and Louis dive deep into James Gunn’s Superman, breaking down everything from the casting of David Corenswet and Rachel Brosnahan to Lex Luthor’s darker edge. They debate how this version stacks up against Man of Steel, gush over the film’s standout score, and discuss the impact of new characters like Krypto.

The Critics Club: Superman Review (With Special Guest Louis) **Full SPOILERS** Geoff and Louis dive deep into James Gunn’s Superman, breaking down everything from the casting of David Corenswet and Rachel Brosnahan to Lex Luthor’s darker edge. They debate how this version stacks up against Man o...

18/06/2025

The Phonecian Scheme: Review by Geoff Stevens

Myself, I feel very safe. You know what you’re getting into when you dive into a Wes Anderson film....(read more)

Myself, I feel very safe. You know what you're getting into when you dive into a Wes Anderson film. There's his quirky style (usually varying degrees of Pas

06/06/2025

We Crash The Cannes Film Festival - Critics Club by Geoff Stevens

Geoff and Jim (David’s off this week) crash the Cannes Film Festival 2025 and call out the hype. From Eddington to The Phoenician Scheme to Spike Lee’s latest, we break down what’s actually worth watching. No film school degree required—just press play....(read more)

Geoff and Jim (David’s off this week) crash the Cannes Film Festival 2025 and call out the hype. From Eddington to The Phoenician Scheme to Spike Lee’s latest, we break down what’s actually worth watching. No film school degree required—just press play.

01/06/2025

Well, the end of Season 2...Series 15? I don't really know how to call these anymore. We'll call them the Ncuti Gatwa seasons...of which there are two.

Spoilers, sweetie: That's all there ever will be.

Let me just say that I really enjoyed Ncuti Gatwa as the Doctor--he was a firecracker, full of energy. I also feel like he was dealt a kind of bad hand. Russel T. Davies (henceforth known as RTD) took up the reins as showrunner again and shook up Doctor Who lore...by making David Tennant the 14th Doctor after Jodie Whittaker. Ncuti is technically the 15th Doctor. There's the whole bi-generation business--it's a lot of "boldness". It also felt kind of desperate--and what I meant by bad hand earlier is that Ncuti didn't really get the entrance that he deserved. He had to follow up a David Tennant reunion tour, which let's be honest, was really good. I really enjoyed those episodes with Donna! They were pretty fu***ng great.

But following that was always gonna be a bit of a mess.

Well, the end of Season 2...Series 15? I don't really know how to call these anymore. We'll call them the Ncuti Gatwa seasons...of which there are two. Spoi

30/05/2025

Is this anti-divorce propaganda? This was rough! I am NOT a child of divorce, but I can just imagine the visceral reaction I would have had to these situations unfolding in front of me. It's weird length just rough ending makes me feel like it isn't even a movie. Like I said, weird propaganda.

26/05/2025

Sometimes, it is A-OK to turn your brain off and enjoy some ultra-violence!

26/05/2025

Minimalism at its coolest and most awkward. Jarmusch delivers a slice-of-life road movie that drifts through moments of dry humor and quiet longing. Eva is easily the heart of this film—so likeable and earnest that you can't help but root for her. Willie, on the other hand, kind of sucks at communicating, which makes the whole dynamic frustrating in a strangely fascinating way.Also—woah! Is that Spike from the Super Mario Bros. movie?!

Minimalism at its coolest and most awkward. Jarmusch delivers a slice-of-life road movie that drifts through moments of dry humor and quiet longing. Eva is easily the heart of this film—so likeable and earnest that you can't help but root for her. Willie, on the other hand, kind of sucks at commun...

25/05/2025

Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning Review by Geoff Stevens

Please just let it be overMission Impossible–there are eight of these films in the ether now. That’s a lot of impossible missions....(read more)

Please just let it be overMission Impossible--there are eight of these films in the ether now. That's a lot of impossible missions. The latest one is what w

25/05/2025

Watched on Saturday May 24, 2025.

24/05/2025

This review may contain spoilers. In Late Night with the Devil, directors Cameron and Colin Cairnes deliver more than just a clever genre twist. They conjure a richly symbolic, savagely sharp critique of ambition, media, and the corrosive cost of success. Taking place a 1970s late-night talk show that go's spectacularly off the rails. The film offers a darkly satirical, supernatural exploration of one man's descent into literal and figurative hell in pursuit of relevance and to defeat the evil Johnny Carson.At the center of this descent is Jack Delroy (played by David Dastmalchian), a charismatic host desperate to reclaim his fading fame. Delroy’s show, Night Owls, becomes the battleground for something far greater than audience share. As the film escalates in intensity, so too does its central thesis: what happens when ambition overshadows morality, and the thirst for success blinds one to the cost?The symbolism is thick and deliberate.

This review may contain spoilers. In Late Night with the Devil, directors Cameron and Colin Cairnes deliver more than just a clever genre twist. They conjure a richly symbolic, savagely sharp critique of ambition, media, and the corrosive cost of success. Taking place a 1970s late-night talk show th...