logo
episode-header-image
Feb 2024
55m 4s

Spy (2015) and F/X (1986)

Simon Brew
About this episode
Two films with very short titles in this episode, starting with a comedy favourite from the 2010s. Director Paul Feig broke out of movie jail with 2010's Bridesmaids - and he used his freshly-inked deal with 20th Century Fox to get his own take on a James Bond film to the screen. Thing is: how do you persuade studio executives that Jason Statham can be a com ... Show More
Up next
Jan 19
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016) and Educating Rita (1983) | A mighty messy Star Wars production
Two very different films in this latest episode of film history podcast Film Stories. Firstly, it's Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, an infamously difficult production that saw director Gareth Edwards fashion a war tale in the Star Wars universe - and then reshoots become Hollywood ... Show More
1h 14m
Jan 16
In conversation with Tiff Stevenson | Movies, and featuring in a film that shouldn't be any good
She's a comedian, writer, actor and film nerd, and Tiff Stevenson also is a go-to for hosting things on boats, it turns out! In this Film Stories special, she talks about her role in a film called Slotherhouse. A horror slasher movie, with a sloth in it. As the pair discuss, it s ... Show More
33m 30s
Jan 12
Almost Famous (2000) and Cellular (2004) | A box office stumble, and an underappreciated action thriller
Regular episodes of Film Stories with Simon Brew resume for 2026, with two very different films in the spotlight. First up there's Cameron Crowe's superb Almost Famous, a film he got the greenlight to make in the aftermath of Jerry Maguire's success. A hugely personal story, here ... Show More
1h 3m
Recommended Episodes
Dec 2021
Kiss Kiss Bang Bang with Shane Black
As the writer of movies like Lethal Weapon, The Nice Guys, The Long Kiss Goodnight and Iron Man 3, Shane Black is a true screenwriting auteur, known for his scripts' pulse-racing action, quippy dialogue and genre-skewing surprises. At the heart of his stories are usually two odd- ... Show More
1h 18m
Apr 2023
#560 — Jason Statham & Guy Ritchie, Nicholas Hoult
It's an all-British affair on the Empire Podcast this week, as we finally get a chance to bring you the interview Chris Hewitt did with Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre director/star combo, Guy Ritchie and The 'Jason Statham' Stath over a year ago, before the film's release was ... Show More
1h 59m
Oct 2021
WERE THE XMEN MOVIES ACTUALLY GOOD? PART 2
One of the marks of the ’00s was the advent of Comic Book Films and the rise of the superhero genre in a big way. While Wesley Snipes “Blade” pioneered and opened the door. The X-Men Movies made an imprint in Pop Culture and Cinema History. These movies catapulted people like Hug ... Show More
45m 27s
May 2024
#618 — George Miller
On this week's episode of the Empire Podcast, the doctor is in. Doctor George Miller, that is, as the MD turned visionary director returns to the big screen with his latest slice of post-apocalyptic madness, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga. So, naturally, our Chris Hewitt went along and ... Show More
1h 43m
Jul 2023
Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One with Christopher McQuarrie
The world is changing and truth is vanishing in our very special episode today, accomplishing a mission we’ve been hoping to make happen since the very inception of the show. Yes, this week’s guest is a true maestro of modern blockbuster filmmaking – a writer-director who won a B ... Show More
1h 11m
Jan 2020
'1917' and the Roger Deakins Hall of Fame (SPOILERS) | The Big Picture
Sam Mendes's extraordinary World War I drama, designed and shot to look as if it is unfolding in one seamless take, has crashed the Oscars party and dominated at the box office in its first week of wide release. Sean and Amanda are joined by Chris Ryan to discuss the movie's tech ... Show More
1h 20m
Jan 2018
American Psycho (2000)
Today’s podcast was commissioned by Rylan who has commissioned the 2000 slasher/satire/thriller, American Psycho. Directed by Mary Harron and starring Christian Bale, the movie is dark, disturbing, hilarious in places, and provoked a lot of thoughts and opinions from Jim and I. W ... Show More
1h 24m
Apr 2023
The Funniest Films Ever Made?
This week on Screentime John Fardy brings the funnies in a special show where he looks at the best comedies the cinema has ever made. He’s joined by Aoife Barry and Chris Wasser as they debate what makes ‘funny’ with everything from ‘Some Like IT Hot’ to ‘Bridesmaids’ and many mo ... Show More
49 m
Jan 2019
M. Night Shyamalan’s ‘Glass’ Is a Twist On Superhero Box Office Power | Exit Survey (Ep. 119)
We react to ‘Glass,’ veteran director M. Night Shyamalan’s final installation in an almost-two-decade-long trilogy that includes ‘Unbreakable’ and ‘Split.’ Where does the movie, which stars a cast of James McAvoy, Samuel L. Jackson, and Bruce Willis, fit into a catalogue that inc ... Show More
31m 58s