Episode 570 – How To Train Your Dragon / Materialists

Moviewallas is on YouTube!

🎬 Welcome to the Moviewallas Podcast!

This week, your hosts Joe, Rashmi, and Yazdi are back with fresh takes on a live-action reboot, an indie rom-com with bite, and all the usual film banter you’ve come to expect. 🍿🎧

In this episode, we’re diving into two wildly different films — one a high-flying fantasy remake, the other a sharply observed modern romance:

🐉 HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON (2025)

The beloved DreamWorks animated hit gets the live-action treatment. Does it soar or stumble? The team weighs in on the casting, the creature design, and whether Toothless loses a bit of his charm in the translation. With big boots to fill, this adaptation sparked a spirited conversation about nostalgia, fidelity to source material, and how remakes can (or can’t) recapture magic.

💎 MATERIALISTS

The latest from Past Lives director Celine Song, this sharp, stylish romantic dramedy explores love, ambition, and the emotional calculus of modern relationships. Set in New York and steeped in wit and yearning, Materialists prompted a lively debate from the hosts — with Yazdi applauding its depth, Rashmi appreciating its elegance, and Joe raising questions about its emotional accessibility.

📺 STREAMING PICKS

The team also shares a few things to watch from home:

  • The Seed of the Sacred Fig — streaming on Hulu

  • Dabba Cartel — a gritty Hindi-language crime series on Netflix

  • Long Way Round — Ewan McGregor’s global motorcycle journey on Apple TV+

 

💬 Like, comment, and subscribe if you enjoy witty, thoughtful film conversations with the occasional spicy take. Got thoughts on Toothless 2.0 or Materialists? Let us know below!

🎙️ Hosted by: Joe, Rashmi & Yazdi

📺 Listen on YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts

📍 Follow us on Instagram and Twitter: @moviewallas

🌐 Learn more at: www.moviewallas.com

🕰 Timestamps

00:01:57 – Streaming Picks

00:10:34 – How to Train Your Dragon (2025, live-action remake)

00:22:32 – Materialists (2024)

00:39:14 – Wrap-up and Final Thoughts

 

#Moviewallas #MoviePodcast #HowToTrainYourDragon #HTTYDRemake #Materialists #CelineSong #RomComs #LiveActionRemake #StreamingRecommendations #FilmDiscussion #ToothlessReturns #PastLives #MovieTalks #FilmReview #Netflix #Hulu #AppleTVPlus

Episode 569 – Tribeca 2025 Coverage (Part 5)

🎬 Moviewallas Ep. 569 – Tribeca 2025 Wrap-Up

📍 Final thoughts, last films, and a heartfelt goodbye from New York

After a whirlwind week of screenings, premieres, and passionate debates, the Moviewallas team—Joe, Rashmi, and Yazdi—bring you their final installment of Tribeca 2025 coverage. In this closing episode, they reflect on the festival experience and review four final films that slipped through earlier episodes—each one offering something bold, timely, or just plain unforgettable.

🎞️ Sovereign – Based on true events, this gripping drama follows a father and son who identify as sovereign citizens and find themselves in a deadly standoff with local law enforcement. With powerhouse performances from Nick Offerman, Jacob Tremblay, and Dennis Quaid, this timely and provocative film explores radicalization, authority, and the complexity of belief. (Coming July via Bleecker Street)

🎞️ Empire Skate – A kinetic and heartfelt doc that traces the birth of NYC’s skateboarding scene in the ’90s, the rise of Supreme, and the ways street culture shaped global fashion, art, and identity. A celebration of community, rebellion, and the creativity of kids who carved out their own path.

🎞️ A Tree Fell in the Woods – When a tree crashes into a New Year’s Eve cabin retreat, secrets unravel between two longtime couples. Anchored by performances from Josh Gad, Alexandra Daddario, Ashley Park, and Daveed Diggs, this witty dramedy takes a smart, often hilarious look at long-term friendship, trust, and moral gray zones.

🎞️ Natchez – This probing, richly textured documentary explores the tensions within a Mississippi town wrestling with its antebellum legacy. Told through a tapestry of local voices, Natchez confronts race, memory, and the meaning of historical preservation in modern America.

💬 The Moviewallas also share their festival MVPs, unexpected faves, and thoughts on why film festivals still matter in an age of algorithmic content. Whether you were at Tribeca or followed along from afar, this one’s for the film lovers.

🔗 Learn more about the films:

Sovereign

Empire Skate

A Tree Fell in the Woods

Natchez

🎙️ If you’re a filmmaker that we covered, say hello—we’d love to follow your journey.

#Tribeca2025 #Moviewallas #FilmFestival #Podcast #Sovereign #EmpireSkate #Natchez #ATreeFellInTheWoods #Documentary #IndieFilm #MovieReview #FilmCommunity

Episode 568 – Tribeca 2025 Coverage (Part 4)

📍 The home stretch—but still plenty of cinematic gems

In our fourth and (almost) final installment of Tribeca 2025 coverage, the Moviewallas trio—Joe, Rashmi, and Yazdi—review a diverse batch of seven films from around the globe. This episode brings emotional highs, auteur visions, and the most gloriously camp zombie rave ever put to screen.

🎞️ Esta Isla (This Island) – A soulful, Spanish-language debut set in coastal Puerto Rico, blending crime, romance, and self-discovery. A tender meditation on escape and reckoning, already picked up for distribution.

🎞️ Twinless – Yazdi’s favorite of the festival. A dazzling, witty, visually inventive story about grief, friendship, and unexpected connections—anchored by brilliant performances from James Sweeney and Dylan O’Brien.

🎞️ Inside – An Australian prison drama exploring cycles of violence, redemption, and institutional failure. Anchored by powerful turns from Guy Pearce and Cosmo Jarvis.

🎞️ The Wolf, The Fox and The Leopard – A heavy, visually stunning, and ambitious dystopian fable from David Verbeek. Over-directed in the best way, it’s a work of vision and cinematic muscle.

🎞️ HoneyJoon – A delicate, Azores-set tale of a mother-daughter vacation that quietly wrestles with grief, revolution, and generational tension. Warm, intimate, and deceptively deep.

🎞️ In Cold Light – A stylish, frantic thriller starring Maika Monroe and Troy Kotsur. Strong performances, but a plot that left us wishing for more clarity and cohesion.

🎞️ Queens of the Dead – A bonkers drag-zombie rave that’s as campy as it is chaotic. The fever dream child of Shaun of the Dead and RuPaul’s Drag Race. Not for everyone… but you’ll know if it’s for you.

✨ Special thanks to the filmmakers, Tribeca staff, and the unsung heroes who make festivals like this magic. We’ll be back with a wrap-up episode soon!

🔗 Learn more about the films:

Esta Isla (This Island)

Inside

Twinless

The Wolf, The Fox and The Leopard

HoneyJoon

In Cold Light

Queens of the Dead

💬 What’s been your favorite film of Tribeca 2025 so far?

#Tribeca2025 #Moviewallas #FilmFestival #Podcast #Twinless #QueensOfTheDead #Inside #EstaIsla #InColdLight #HoneyJoon #WolfFoxLeopard #IndieFilm #MovieReview #ZombiesAndDrag

Episode 567 – Tribeca 2025 Coverage (Part 3)

📍 Still in NYC… barely awake, but still watching

The Moviewallas team pushes through festival fatigue to bring you their biggest episode yet, reviewing seven diverse films from Day 3 of the 2025 Tribeca Film Festival. From dark psychological dramas to urgent documentaries and smart thrillers, this lineup truly had it all.

🎞️ Rosemead – Lucy Liu delivers a career-best performance in this harrowing drama about a Chinese-American mother confronting her son’s descent into violent obsession. Inspired by true events and directed with care by Eric Lin.

🎞️ Kites – A poetic, guerrilla-style Brazilian film blending realism and surrealism to explore race, morality, and police violence in the favelas.

🎞️ Titan: The OceanGate Disaster – A gripping Netflix documentary exploring the fatal implosion of the OceanGate submersible en route to the Titanic. A chilling lesson in hubris, ambition, and overlooked warnings.

🎞️ Bird in Hand – A dramedy exploring family dysfunction and the search for identity, anchored by strong performances.

🎞️ Pinch – A stylish, powerful Indian debut from writer-director-actor Uttera Singh. Tackling patriarchy, assault, and generational trauma with bold confidence and rich atmosphere.

🎞️ Eye for an Eye – A devastating Iranian documentary about justice, and blood money (diya). A raw, eye-opening look into a legal system shaped by religious law and gender patriarchy.

🎞️ Relay – A smart, high-octane thriller starring Riz Ahmed and Lily James. Double-crosses, tight pacing, and clever reveals make this one a standout.

🎧 We’re tired, we’re emotional, and we’ve possibly cried (more than once). But we loved this day of film.

🔗 Learn more about the films:

Rosemead

Kites

Titan: The OceanGate Disaster

Bird in Hand

Eye for an Eye

Pinch

Relay

💬 Let us know what you’re seeing at Tribeca—or which of these you’re excited to watch!

#Tribeca2025 #Moviewallas #FilmFestival #Podcast #Documentary #IndieFilm #Relay #Pinch #OceanGate #RizAhmed #LucyLiu #EyeForAnEye #Titan #NetflixDoc #MovieReview

Episode 566 – Tribeca 2025 Coverage (Part 2)

📍 Still in NYC, still movie-hungry

The Tribeca magic continues! Join Rashmi, Yazdi and Joe as they dive into a jam-packed second day of Tribeca 2025 screenings. This episode features four very different films—from outrageous satire to heartfelt tearjerkers—and includes some of the hosts’ festival favorites so far.

🎞️ Lemonade Blessing – A sharp, irreverent coming-of-age comedy set in a Catholic high school, following one boy’s battle with faith, hormones, and a dangerously charming classmate. From debut director Chris Merola and starring Jake Ryan in a breakout performance.

🎞️ The Travel Companion – A wry comedy about airline perks, co-dependency, and the growing pains of adult friendship. A great premise that stumbles a bit in execution, but still offers some clever laughs.

🎞️ She Dances – A tender and emotionally rich debut from actor-turned-director Rick Gomez. Featuring moving performances by Steve Zahn, Ethan Hawke, and Zahn’s real-life daughter, this is a rare film that celebrates enduring female friendship and the quiet grief of loss.

🎞️ Birthright – The Aussie comedy-thriller you didn’t know you needed. A jaw-droppingly pulpy and darkly hilarious battle of wills between a broke son and his wealthy parents. Think War of the Roses meets Heredity, with a killer dose of satire.

This was our favorite day at the festival (so far)! Expect laughs, tears, awkward moments, and a whole lot of heart.

🎧 Subscribe to catch our Day 3 coverage soon!

🔗 Learn more about the films:

Lemonade Blessing

The Travel Companion

She Dances

Birthright

💬 Drop your Tribeca faves or thoughts in the comments!

#Tribeca2025 #Moviewallas #FilmFestival #Podcast #IndieFilm #LemonadeBlessing #SheDances #Birthright #TheTravelCompanion #FilmDiscussion #MovieLovers

Episode 565 – Tribeca Film Festival 2025 Coverage (Part 1)

📍 Live from New York City

The Moviewallas are back at Tribeca! Join Joe, Rashmi, and Yazdi as they return to one of their favorite festivals — in person! In this episode, they share fresh takes, surprising favorites, and heartfelt reactions to four standout films from Day 1 of the 2025 Tribeca Film Festival:

🎞️ Videoheaven – A passionate, three-hour documentary love letter to the bygone era of video rental stores, narrated by Maya Hawke and directed by Alex Ross Perry.

🎞️ What Marielle Knows – A sharp, unsettling drama about a girl who gains the terrifying ability to hear her parents’ private thoughts. For fans of Yorgos Lanthimos and Force Majeure.

🎞️ Little Trouble Girls – A beautifully crafted Slovenian coming-of-age tale set in a convent, exploring faith, peer pressure, and adolescent desire with emotional honesty.

🎞️ The Square – A haunting adult animation about a forbidden romance between a Swedish diplomat and a North Korean traffic officer, told with aching melancholy and visual grace.

Whether you’re a film buff or just curious about indie gems, this episode is for you. No video this time—just the raw, sleep-deprived but passionate audio-only coverage straight from NYC.

🗽 Subscribe for upcoming episodes covering Days 2 and 3 of the festival!

🔗 Learn more about the films:

Video Heaven

What Marielle Knows

Little Trouble Girls

Square

📩 Questions or comments? Drop them below—we’d love to hear your festival picks!

#Tribeca2025 #Moviewallas #FilmFestival #Podcast #IndieFilm #VideoHeaven #WhatMarielleKnows #LittleTroubleGirls #Square #FilmLovers #MoviePodcast