The Screeners are back with a double-header of unique movies, one a blockbuster of sorts and one...not so much. Before that, though, we have a bit of nostalgia and nerdery to cover in Jump Cuts.

Comic books and consoles

First up, superhero movies. Yes, again. In fact, it seems like we’ll be talking about superhero movies almost constantly for the foreseeable future, since the Marvel and DC universes are collectively pumping out at least 29 of them over the next 6 years. Why stop one short of 30, you ask? We think they’re waiting until Christmas to announce a Valentine’s Day release of The Punisher vs. Cupid. What can we say? They’re running out of characters.

Next, though, we have a topic that’s pretty much the opposite of overplayed. Johnny Rockets, the 50’s-themed restaurant chain, is apparently trying to bring back the drive-in theater. The last time we saw one of these was in Into the Furnace, and it didn’t look like a fun place to be. Maybe some drive-through burgers would help that, though. So whaddya say? Would you watch a movie sitting inside or near your car to save a few bucks?

Finally, a conversation all the Screeners can get behind. Now that every last one of them is a parent, they’ve been spending time pondering the important things in life—things like when children should be babysat by the TV and when it’s more appropriate to give them an iPad, how young is too young for the Saw movies, and what video games to introduce to their toddlers first. Among the four of them, there are fond childhood memories from the whole gamut—Atari 7200, Sega Genesis, Super Nintendo, and even N64. Which controller will the next generation of Screeners wield first? (Hint: It won’t be the Atari joysticks; those blasted things never worked for more than 5 minutes at a time.)

Two Totally Comparable Movies

To round off our two-segment episode, a double-header of thrillers—or at least, um, thrilling movies? Something like that.

First off, Nightcrawler. Jake Gyllenhaal plays a man with a goal near and dear to the Screeners’ hearts—getting the perfect shot. Does the movie itself succeed in the same way as its main character? This one seems to have drawn some interesting dividing lines between our hosts.

From the streets to the stars; the Screeners take on Interstellar in the second half of the main event. Well, three of them do, at least... If you’ve already heard what Neil deGrasse Tyson had to say about the space flick, you might be hankering for a more, er, intellectual take on the film. Well, wait no longer, folks; Michael Bay’s biggest fan is about to drop some knowledge.

That’ll do it for this episode. We had plenty of open questions this time around, so head on over to our Facebook page and let us know what you think about family outings at the drive-in, the games you can’t wait to play with your kids, and how wrong Chad was about Nightcrawler. See you next time!