Ben's back again to share his personal top 20 films of 2022, as well as some others that are worth watching, a couple that are not and a very brief look forward at what is coming out in 2023.Share your thoughts at thearniethology@gmail.comFollow Ben on Letterboxd here: https://boxd.it/1lH3JMusic is Blackfly by audionautix (Jason Shaw)…

A propos of absolutely zilch, Ben has gone and watched all twelve Friday the 13th films. Do you want to know what he thought of them and how he ranked them? Give this a little listen then, child. Ben's Letterboxd profile: ‎Ben Highton’s profile • Letterboxd Ben's Friday the 13th ranking: ‎The Fridays the 13ths, a list of films by Ben Highton • Lett…

After a funny old year, Ben sits down to tell you about his favourites from 2021 and a handful of films that really should have tried harder.As always, get in touch at: thearniethology@gmail.comMusic is 80s by David SzesztayBy Alex Balerdi and Ben Highton

Things get personal this week, as Ben and Alex follow Oscar winners Jack Nicholson and Diane Keaton on their tumultuous relationship and it brings out the reflective side of the Arnietholy chaps. Writer-director Nancy Meyers is a brand unto herself and this isn't a bad example of why studios are so willing to throw tens of millions of dollars at he…

Ben watched 27 Jackie Chan films in January 2021. Here they are in his ranking order. Send yours to thearniethology@gmail.comBy Alex Balerdi and Ben Highton

Everything that has a beginning, has an end. And so Alex and Ben have come to the end (for now) of the Matrix franchise. Almost two decades of debate, both attacking and defending these films, has led to this moment. So after all this time and all these rewatches, does The Matrix Revolutions get the Arniethology seal of approval? Music is Black Fly…

I believe that this episode holds, for each and every one of us, the very meaning of our lives. Neo, Trinity, Morpheus and a bunch of others are back and Ben and Alex are going big for it. More divisive than its predecessor, the first part of the back-to-back sequels was one of the most hotly anticipated films of its era and left a lot of people sc…

A return to the world of Sport this week - Keanu is a degenerate gambler who gets sucked into the world of little league coaching in the suprising drama, Hardball. Ben and Alex are not your ideal candidates to walk you through a play-by-play, so there must be something special here to keep them engrossed. Could it be Keanu's performance? Or just th…

After a slew of bonus episodes. its the first actual Keanucopia episode of 2021 and to celebrate (?), Keanu has re-teamed with his Devil's Advocate co-star Charlize Theron for romantic drama, Sweet November. This is an odd confection, somewhat confusing for the first half and then, depending on your mindset, either much better or much worse in the …

One final bonus episode before we get back on track with Keanu fims - this time, a catch up on the emails you've been sending us in recent weeks, then Ben's got a top 20 list of his favourite films from last year and finally a look forward to 2021, as both Alex and Ben pick five films each they're looking forward to this year. Think you can do bett…

Another bonus crossover episode for you to see in the new year - this time we've linked up with Sean Malloy over at 'I Must Break This Podcast' to discuss the hyper-violent final entry (to date) in the Universal Soldier franchise. We big up Scott Adkins, discuss the career of JCVD and summarise the whole UniSol franchise before going deep into this…

In place of new Keanu, please ring in the new year with The Good, The Bad and The Remake - go to Netflix, watch Sudden Death and then give this a listen. It's a lot of fun.Music is 'Bring me the West' by phlaala. Contact GBR at goodbadremake@gmail.comBy Alex Balerdi and Ben Highton

Sam Raimi takes the wheel this week as Alex and Ben open up The Gift from 2000 and see if what's inside is Keanutopia or Keanunopia. A glittering cast including Cate Blanchett, Greg Kinnear, JK Simmons and Katie Holmes makes this a glimpse into a different time in a lot of ways and our man Keanu is playing a bad guy again. Or is he? (He is). This i…

There's not much to get excited about for Ben and Alex this week, as the contractual obligation The Watcher is the focus. Reeves is going through the motions, but the always noteworthy James Spader is also in this film. We're mostly just having a laugh on this one, it's that simple. Music is Black Fly by Audionautix. Get in touch here: thearniethol…

Its a return to the world of sports this week, as Alex and Ben dive into professional American Football with the comedy The Replacements. Gene Hackman, Jon Favreau, Faison Love and Rhys Ifans are lending support, while Keanu makes such a convincing quarterback (apparently), that he nearly had a change of career. This episode was recorded the week o…

With The Matrix done and dusted and half of the Keanucopia boxed off, we're taking an interval with a film we've talked about for years, Kevin Costner's "epic" The Postman. Corny lines, weighty ideas, sloppy fights and 180 minutes. If you've never had the pleasure, we recommend this as a unique experience. Music is "80s" by David Szesztay. Get in t…

It is The One. We've been talking about the Matrix for weeks, months, maybe years and it's finally time to dive in. As is The Arniethology way, this took us down some strange tangents, so don't come here expecting an analysis of the soundtrack or fashion. We're going down the rabbit hole. This is a film that Alex and Ben have bonded over for two de…

The Devil's in the house as Ben and Alex discuss the 1998 legal thriller The Devil's Advocate, which isn't really a legal thriller. It is pretty bonkers though and so the conversation goes to some strange places as The Arniethology grapples with what, if anything, the film is trying to say. Keanu is on top form, perhaps raising his game against Al …

It's the time of year to get out your spooky sticks and point them at scary things. And with that awful analogy out of the way, Alex and Ben are here to tell you what they think of some recent horror films, by way of trying to convert Alex... First up is Leigh Whannell's The Invisible Man, then - after a brief recap of The Shining - it's onto Mike …

An oddity in the Keanucopia this week, as Keanu plays second fiddle to Thomas 'The Punisher' Jane in an adaptation of Neil Cassidy's epic letter to Jack Kerouac that helped kick off the Beat generation. Virtually no-one saw this film and, on the surface, it's not hard to see why. But there is plenty to chew on, admire and enjoy here, not least an e…

After playing such a crucial role in the unfolding Tom Cruise shared universe, Cameron Diaz steps into the timeline once more to tie the Keanucopia to the Cruisiverse. Alongside her is Keanu - giving one of his most grounded performances to date - and the always exciting Vincent D'Onofrio and Delroy Lindo. The film itself has issues as well as surp…

A mighty dollop of nostalgia this week as Alex and Ben reminisce about the time in their lives that they became cine-literate, as they travel back to 1996, a year that gave us Heat, Seven, Mission: Impossible and this week's Keanu offering, Chain Reaction. The definition of average, this is a mixed bag as the director's follow up to The Fugitive, s…

There's a new Bill and Ted film out there - Bill and Ted Face the Music - and Ben and Alex have some thoughts on it. Don't worry if you haven't seen it yet, these are non-spoiler thoughts just to give an idea of whether we enjoyed it. Music is Black Fly by Audionautix. Get in touch here: thearniethology@gmail.com…

Keanu returns to period romance with the gentle, warm drama A Walk in the Clouds, a film neither Alex nor Ben have seen before. Given that Speed is the runaway winner of the Keanucopia rankings to date, will a soft hug of a film such as this - never mind one that's selling an idea of fate that appeals to neither of them - have much to offer? Well, …

After the giddy highs of Speed, it's back down to earth with a bump for the oddly televisual techno-thriller, Johnny Mnemonic. Not just Keanu's first foray into sci-fi, but an early adaptation of father of cyberpunk, William Gibson. All the elements were here for something special, but it seems they gave it to the wrong director. There's still fun …

The most hotly anticipated entry to the Keanucopia so far is here: 1994's action classic, Speed. As well as a bus that can't slow down, we get a new kind of Keanu (in only his second action lead role), his first collaboration with Sandra Bullock, a snarling psycho role for Dennis Hopper and Die-Hard-influenced cinematography, staging and editing fr…

Keanu takes on arguably his biggest challenge yet, playing Siddartha Gautama, the buddha himself. Is he up to the task? Ben and Alex have some thoughts, naturally, and are unafraid to get side-tracked into a brief discussion about Kevin Costner's The Postman along the way. Really. Music is Black Fly by Audionautix. Get in touch here: thearnietholog…

Gus Van Sant makes another appearance on the Keanucopia, as his My Own Private Idaho collective join forces with Uma Thurman in the strange, quirky road trip that is Even Cowgirls Get The Blues. First up, Ben and Alex are catching up with some of the recent changes affecting upcoming movies, including the imminent arrival of Bill and Ted Face The M…

A first for the Arniethology, as Alex and Ben get stuck into some Shakespeare and they've got some creative notes for the young up-and-comer. A cast that includes Denzel Washington, Kenneth Branagh, Emma Thompson, Richard Briers, Brian Blessed, Michael Keaton, Imelda Staunton, Kate Beckinsale and Robert Sean Leonard breathes life into Shakespeare's…

A change of pace for sure this week, as Alex and Ben get into Alex Winter's directorial effort Freaked, a weird, metatextual satire, wherein the once and future Bill S. Preston plays a deformed actor and Keanu plays a half-man-half-dog hybrid (not a werewolf) called Ortiz. There are laughs to be had and horror to be horrified by and the jury is sti…

An Oscar-winning director, a formidable cast, a literary classic and a unique vision are all in the mix this week, as Alex and Ben sink their teeth into Francis Ford Coppola's ambitious adaptation of Bram Stoker's Dracula from 1992. Ben's been harping on about this one for years and Alex finally sat down to watch it. What does he think of it and ho…

Keanu returns to his indie roots this week, as Ben and Alex try and decipher a critical darling of the early 90s independent scene, Gus Van Sant's My Own Private Idaho. A fractured narrative that emerged from multiple sources gives way to a touching story of love and friendship, street hustling and life on the road. And there's a big dollop of Shak…

As teased last week, Ben has joined up with another podcast - The Good, The Bad and The Remake - and their first episode was on Point Break and its 2015 remake. So as a way of launching the series and offering up something that the Arniethologists might enjoy, here is episode 1 of The Good, The Bad and The Remake. Keanucopia music is Black Fly by A…

It's that time where we get to discuss the second Bill and Ted film and joining us to help make sense of this wild trip is our most special of guests, Adam Stolfo from the Reel Chat podcast in Australia. Adam's been a long-term listener, supporter and friend to the podcast, and brings with him a wealth of knowledge and even an insider story or two.…

We've finally arrived at Keanu's first action role - as Johnny Utah in the 1991 surfer-bank-robber-skydivers action thriller Point Break - and, as is tradition when dealing with an action classic with slightly homo-erotic undertones, Ben's sisters (Jo Cardew and Laura Highton) have joined us to discuss Keanu and Patrick Swayze's respective hotness,…

Back into the unknown this week, with a film neither of us had heard of, let alone seen - the 1990 period comedy-fantasy, Tune In Tomorrow. Keanu heads a cast that includes The Entity's Barbara Hershey and Columbo himself, the late great Peter Falk. The film itself is a combination of romantic drama and bizarre (and sometimes risqué) humour, agains…

This week, we've got the comedic powerhouses Kevin Kline and Tracey Ullman more-than-ably supported by River Phoenix, William Hurt and, of course, our boy Keanu, in the strange black comedy I Love You To Death from Indiana Jones and Star Wars screenwriter Lawrence Kasdan. While not a complete departure from his usual goofy stoner shtick, Keanu is p…

Ron Howard's 1989 bittersweet dramedy is the subject of this week's conversation and it's another chance to reminisce about the golden age of the Steve Martin film. Keanu is arguably playing his finest 80s slacker here, as the idiot with a heart of gold, Tod. Does the funny stuff still make us laugh and does the dramatic stuff still give us chills?…

WARNING: This week's episode is extra sweary and explicit. In talking about the fledgling adventure of comedy duo Bill and Ted, we got into questions concerning some of the adult themes that so often appear in these 80s comedies, such as "What is a 69?" and "Did you spot Freud's drooping corndog?". And it's all in the name of answering the key ques…

Malkovich. Pfeiffer. Close. Uma. Capaldi. Keanu? Perhaps not as much as we would like, but he's finally played something other than a Broody Stoner Hunk Bro, as we try to pick apart Stephen Frears' multi award-winning period drama, Dangerous Liaisons. There's conspiracy, backsliding, sex, manipulation, love, death and even a strong vein of feminism…

A return to the original Arniethology for one week only, as the Austrian Oak has a new film out on home release, featuring his Around the World in 80 Days co-star, Jackie Chan. The Iron Mask (AKA Journey to China: Mystery of the Iron Mask) is a Russian-Chinese co-production and features the two megastars in supporting roles, as globe-trotting actio…

An extra short episode this time around, as Alex and Ben are somewhat underwhelmed by a romantic comedy hostage drama, that struggles to be one thing or the other. A pretty great cast gets them through, however, and is perhaps the only reason to see this film. Music is Black Fly by Audionautix. Get in touch here: thearniethology@gmail.com…

Before we get to the altogether unheard of and surprising film that is the focus of this week's episode, Ben and Alex have some suggestions for things to watch during the lockdown period (skip the first 13 minutes if you're not interested). Then it's on to director Marisa Silver's Permanent Record, a teen drama (stay with us) that tenderly deals wi…

Our exploration of the career of Keanu Reeves continues with The Night Before, a John Hughesian teen comedy about two kids who get lost on the way to prom and the journey to try and remember just what happened, before it's too late. Some pretty heavy topics get thrown around, for such a lightweight film, but the road to Bill and Ted is clear after …

In the words of the great John Wick, "Yeah, I'm thinking we're back". And we're kicking off the Keanu Reeves retrospective - AKA Keanucopia - with the first available film on our list, River's Edge. A dark and strange teen drama, this explores uncomfortable subjects through a less-is-more approach. We've got old favourites - It's Your Numbers - and…

For no reason other than the end of a decade comes but once every, what eight or nine years? Ben and Alex are listing their favourite films of the decade from 2010 to 2019. With two picks a year, this is a 40+ list of the films The Arniethology holds dearest from this most recent decade, along with plenty of mentions for films that came close to ma…

We're back with an interstitial episode, talking about the latest in the Terminator franchise. First, there's a catch-up on the state of the year's films so far, including a rather lacklustre summer season. Then the review starts proper at 16m, as we get into the film many are hailing as the best Terminator film since James "Jim to his friends" Cam…

We've got a special episode for you this time, as we talk through a potted history of the Fast and Furious franchise, before getting into (non-spoilery) chat about the latest entry - and first spin-off - 'Hobbs and Shaw'. We also take a quick look at the trailers for the upcoming Arnie and Cruise films in the shape of 'Terminator: Dark Fate' and 'T…

After a long delay, the final forgotten films of the 80s are upon us. And they look like a long forgotten - and perhaps underseen - Steven Spielberg film and a perhaps underappreciated time travel film in the shapes of 'Always' and 'Millennium', respectively. We're spoiling basic plot points from the off, but major spoilers for Always start @ 22m40…