The ThawedCast: Conversations About Animation
Arts
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Conversations About Animation
Episodes
- The Super Mario Galaxy Movie
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie continues the story of Mario and Luigi, who explore magical realms via sewer pipes and battle Bowser Jr. to protect the Mushroom Kingdom and Princess Peach.
- Project Hail Mary
Philip and Bridget discuss the film adaptation of Andy Weir's Project Hail Mary. The movie follows Ryland Grace, the sole survivor of a space mission to Tau Ceti, who must find a cure for "astrophage," a star-draining organism, to save Ear…
- Hoppers
Philip and Lara discuss Pixar's 2026 film 'Hoppers.' The movie features animal robots piloted by humans, which allow communication with anthropomorphized animals. The story follows Mabel as she uses this technology to find missing wildlife.
- Wuthering Heights (2026)
The ThawedCast hosts Philip and Jodi review the 2026 film Wuthering Heights, directed by Emerald Fennell and starring Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi. The discussion covers the film's plot, which follows the tragic romance between Catherine…
- Frankenstein (2025)
Philip and Lara discuss Guillermo del Toro's new Frankenstein adaptation for Netflix. They cover the film's cast, awards potential, and its narrative focusing on Victor Frankenstein's obsession with life and his creation, questioning the c…
- Marty Supreme
Philip and Jodi discuss 'Marty Supreme' and a variety of other topics such as the Safdie Brothers' filmography, 'Uncut Gems', and the late 2025/early 2026 media and content landscape. The they explore the parallels between 'Uncut Gems' pro…
- Wicked: For Good
Philip, Lara, and Bridget discuss the conclusion of the film adaptations of the Broadway musical 'Wicked.' Styled 'Wicked: For Good' and filmed simultaneously with act one of the duology, this Universal Pictures release takes place at leas…
- Predator: Badlands
Philip, Samara and Elliott review and discuss the new film from Twentieth Century Studios and director Dan Trachtenberg, 'Predator: Badlands'. This is the latest chapter in the 'Alien' and 'Predator' franchises that pairs Dek, a member of…
- American Psycho
Philip and Bridget discuss 'American Psycho,' a horror/thriller/Christian Bale vehicle from director Mary Harron. Released in 2000, the film is an adaptation of the 'American Psycho' novel by Bret Easton Ellis that is meant to be a grisly,…
- Tron: Ares
Philip and Jodi review and discuss 'Tron: Ares', the third film in Disney's TRON saga starring Jared Leto and Greta Lee, directed by Joachim Rønning. The film further expands on TRON's themes of technology and its effect on humanity by bri…
- KPop Demon Hunters
Philip, Bridget, and Lara discuss the new film from Netflix and Sony Pictures Animation, 'KPop Demon Hunters'. The film follows a group of K-Pop artists in South Korea, Huntr/x, comprised of pop stars Rumi, Mira, and Zoey. These are no ord…
- 2025 Summer Movie Roundup
Philip is joined by Samara and Elliott to talk about the summer movie season. Titles include '28 Years Later,' 'Jurassic World,' 'Superman,' 'Eddington,' and more. Follow The ThawedCast: Conversations About Animation: twitter.com/thawedcas…
- Snow White (2025)
Jodi, Lara, and Philip discuss the live action Disney remake 'Snow White' from 2025. Directed by Marc Webb and starring Rachel Zegler and Gal Gadot, this retelling expands the story to encompass Snow White's relationship with her parents,…
- Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)
The ThawedCast discusses the first feature-length animated film, 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs' from 1937. Philip, Jodi, and Lara examine the impact and legacy of this fairy tale classic that would influence countless films over the dec…
- Lilo & Stitch (2002)
Lara and Philip revisit the original 'Lilo & Stitch' from 2002. This was the feature animation debut for both directors, Dean DeBlois and Chris Sanders, who would team up again on DreamWorks' 'How to Train Your Dragon' (2010). Chris Sander…
- Lilo & Stitch (2025)
Philip and Alexandria review the new Disney live-action remake 'Lilo & Stitch,' a summer 2025 smash hit at the box office directed by Dean Fleischer Camp. Lilo and her older sister and guardian, Nani, find themselves in a precarious positi…
- A Minecraft Movie
Bridget and Philip discuss 'A Minecraft Movie,' based on the popular open-world, LEGO-esque video game, 'Minecraft'. The film follows brother and sister Henry and Natalie as they arrive in a new town and encounter a colorful cast of charac…
- Tiana's Bayou Adventure
Having made recent trips to Walt Disney World, Jodi and Bridget join Philip to discuss the new Magic Kingdom attraction Tiana's Bayou Adventure, a 'The Princess and the Frog' re-theming of the log flume ride Splash Mountain based on animat…
- The Substance
Philip and Lara discuss 'The Substance' written and directed by French Filmmaker Coralie Fargeat. Fargeat and 'The Substance' won Best Screenplay at the festival, and the film has since received many accolades and has earned strong word-of…
- Moana 2
Philip, Lara, Jodi, and Bridget discuss the new Disney animated sequel, 'Moana 2'. Moana returns to screens after eight years since the original. Set a number of years after the first film, the heroine has embraced her role as a wayfinder…
- Star Wars: Skeleton Crew
Philip and Elliott discuss the most recent Star Wars series from Lucasfilm and Disney Plus, 'Skeleton Crew'. Four kids growing up in the suburbs have their life planned out on the seemingly unremarkable planet At Attin. At Attin's place in…
- Spellbound
Jodi, Bridget and Philip talk about 'Spellbound' (2024), a new animated musical from Netflix and Skydance Animation. This is the second animated feature to come from Skydance after 'Luck' (2022) and is directed and co-written by 'Shrek' di…
- Nosferatu (2024)
Philip and Lara discuss the new film from Focus Features and Robert Eggers, a remake of the 1922 German silent film 'Nosferatu.' Eggers brings his signature austere style to this classic Gothic horror story, originally an unauthorized adap…
- Moana
Mele Kalikimaka as the ThawedCast covers 'Moana,' the monumental 2016 film from Walt Disney Animation Studios, directed by longtime Disney Animation dynamic duo John Musker and Ron Clements, and co-directed by Don Hall and Chris Williams.…
- Wicked
The ThawedCast celebrates the release of ‘Wicked: Part I’ from Universal Pictures, 21 years after the Broadway musical made its sparkling debut. Jodi, Lara, Bridget, and Philip discuss the new 160-minute film which concludes at the intermi…
- Uncut Gems
Jodi, Bridget, and Philip convene prior to Thanksgiving to sneak in a quick episode about a holiday classic (Passover, in this case)--2019's 'Uncut Gems,' directed by brothers Josh and Benny Safdie. Adam Sandler plays Howard Ratner, a jewe…
- Strange Magic
In celebration of Wicked Month, Philip, Bridget, and Lara discuss the 2015 LucasFilm animated feature, 'Strange Magic.' Featuring the voice talents of Evan Rachel Wood, Alan Cumming and Kristin Chenoweth, this fairytale combines the fantas…
- Late Night with the Devil
Samara and Philip review and discuss the found-footage horror film from directorial sibling duo Cameron and Colin Cairnes, 'Late Night with the Devil.' This re-creation of a 1970s late night talk show, the fictional "Night Owls" with Jack…
- Transformers One
Philip and Elliott chat about 'Transformers One,' the new animated film from Paramount Animation depicting the origins of the Autobots and Decepticons and their respective leaders, Optimus Prime and Megatron. These central characters withi…
- The Boy and the Heron
Hayao Miyazaki directs the latest film from Studio Ghibli, 'The Boy and the Heron' (2023). This Oscar-winning film serves a magnum opus for a venerated animator nearing the end of his career, reflecting on his early life in this quasi-auto…
- Nausicaä Of The Valley Of The Wind
Philip and Bridget discuss the 1984 film from Hayao Miyazaki 'Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind,' the film that kick-started the animation output of Studio Ghibli, co-founded by Miyazaki in 1985. Based on a manga series by Miyazaki, the f…
- Alien: Romulus
Philip and Samara discuss the latest film in the 'Alien' franchise, 'Alien: Romulus.' This new release from Twentieth Century studios and director Fede Alvarez delivers sci-fi thrills and chills as a group of young colonists attempt to esc…
- Twister
Philip, Jodi, and Lara discuss the 90s blockbuster 'Twister' and growing up in the 1990s in rural environments. Also discussions on modern blockbusters and introducing kids to media. Follow The ThawedCast: Conversations About Animation: tw…
- Inside Out 2
Philip and Bridget discuss the latest film from Pixar Animation, Inside Out 2, the smash hit sequel to 2015’s Inside Out. Riley Andersen is on summer break just as her emotions, Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear, and Disgust, are forced to reckon…
- Dune: Part Two
Jodi, Philip and Bridget discuss the sequel to 'Dune' from 2021, concluding Denis Villeneuve's adaptation of the original 'Dune' novel by Frank Herbert. After the massacre of House Atreides on Arrakis, the Harkonnens have retaken their str…
- Nope
Philip and Jodi discuss the 2022 film from Jordan Peele and Universal Pictures, 'Nope', an alien-abduction tale with a few genre twists. OJ and Emerald Haywood are a brother-and-sister duo who experience strange phenomena on their horse ra…
- Star Wars: The Bad Batch & Tales of the Empire
Philip and Elliott discuss some recent animated offerings from the Star Wars universe, 'The Bad Batch' and 'Tales of the Empire'. Both series depict the transition from the era of the Jedi and the Republic into the tyrannical Empire secret…
- ThawedChat: Wicked Wishes and Film Franchise Fantasies
Philip, Bridget, and Jodi chat about musicals, film franchises, motherhood and other entertainment hopes and hangups in the ever-evolving 2024 media landscape. Will new throwback franchise installments like 'Twisters' inject some much need…
- Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget
After the chickens escape the Tweedys' farm in 2000's 'Chicken Run,' they settle on a secluded island and enjoy their newfound freedom. In this stop-motion sequel, again from the claymation experts at the UK's Aardman animation studio, the…
- Chicken Run
The first feature animated film from Aardman, the animators of the famous 'Wallace and Gromit' stop-motion "claymation" short films, 'Chicken Run' was one of DreamWorks' first great successes as an up-and-coming rival to Disney and Pixar.…
- A Whisker Away
Bridget and Philip discuss ‘A Whiker Away,’ a 2020 anime film from Studio Colorido, Toho Animation and Twin Engine and distributed on Netflix. The film follows Miyo, a fanciful eighth grader in Japan who finds herself embroiled in a Fausti…
- Suzume
'Suzume' is the 2022 animated feature from CoMix Wave Films and the seventh film from writer/director Makoto Shinkai, who most recently saw global crossover success with 'Your Name' (2016) and 'Weathering with You' (2019). 'Suzume' is a su…
- Wish
Philip and Jodi review 'Wish', the 62nd animated feature from Walt Disney Animation Studios. 'Wish' continues a legacy that is currently being celebrated in the Walt Disney Company's 100-year anniversary as the foundation upon which the re…
- Wait, What? - Frozen Turns 10
Lara joins Philip to reminisce about ten years of Disney's 'Frozen'. They discuss the film's influence and how the film and animation industries have changed since 2013. They also explore the fandom of 'Frozen' and Disney more generally an…
- Ahsoka
Philip and Elliott discuss the latest live-action Star Wars series from Lucasfilm and Disney Plus, 'Ahsoka,' spotlighting the popular Jedi who first appeared in 'Star Wars: The Clone Wars.' Ahsoka Tano is portrayed by Rosario Dawson in thi…
- Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992)
Jodi, Bridget and Philip discuss the 1992 Francis Ford Coppola Film 'Bram Stoker's Dracula.' This film follows the 1897 'Dracula' novel and lends a signature artistic flourish courtesy of Coppola's visionary direction and diverse practical…
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem
Bridget and Philip discuss the new animated film from Paramount and Nickelodeon Studios, 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem.' Directed by 'Mitchell's vs the Machines' alumni Jeff Rowe and Kyler Spears, 'Mutant Mayhem' incorporate…
- TRON: Legacy
Philip and Jodi discuss 2010's 'TRON: Legacy,' the long-awaited sequel to 1982's 'TRON' starring Jeff Bridges as a plucky computer programmer who gets sucked into the computer world. This seminal "legacy sequel" from Joseph Kosinski, who w…
- Asteroid City
Wes Anderson's genre-bending, fourth wall-breaking new film 'Asteroid City' features a colorful cast collected in a remote desert setting. The government research hub of Asteroid City has few permanent residents but plays host to a science…
- Oppenheimer
Philip and Jodi discuss the latest film from Christopher Nolan and Universal Pictures, 'Oppenheimer,' documenting the Manhattan Project and the life of its co-leader and chief researcher, J. Robert Oppenheimer. Oppenheimer would earn the n…