Alam Nyo Ba?

The premium television network Home Box Office (a.k.a. HBO) launched as a regional service in northeastern Pennsylvania back in 1972, gradually building up over the years until it became the nationwide, 24-hour powerhouse we know it as at the end of 1981.

Needing to fill 24 hours of programming every single day, the network ended up showing some movies over and over. One of the most famous repeat offenders was the 1982 fantasy adventure film The Beastmaster. It allegedly aired so much that subscribers joked HBO stood for “Hey, Beastmaster’s on!”

This brings up a fascinating piece of cable trivia: Have you ever wondered exactly how many times The Beastmaster was shown on HBO in the ‘80s—and what the top 50 most-aired movies actually were?

I can’t say I ever pondered these specific questions. Yet, when I saw that the recently launched YouTube channel The HBO 80s Database had the data, I immediately clicked on their video.

What were the top 50 most-aired movies on HBO in the 1980s? You can watch the full 25-minute video embedded above to find out, and I highly recommend it. But if you just want the cheat sheet, here is how the numbers stack up:

The 12-Way Tie (38 Airings)

• Numbers 50 through 39: Yes, Giorgio (1982), Under the Rainbow (1981), The Man from Snowy River (1982), The Competition (1980), Tender Mercies (1983), Superman: The Movie (1978), Star Wars (1977), On Golden Pond(1981), Looker (1981), Gloria (1980), Dirty Tricks (1980), and Brainstorm (1983).

The 39-Airings Club

• Numbers 38 through 34: A five-way tie between Threshold (1981), Second Thoughts (1983), Raggedy Man(1981), Lone Wolf McQuade (1983), and King of the Mountain (1981).

The 40-Airings Club

• Numbers 33 through 25: A nine-way tie between The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia (1981), The Jazz Singer (1980), The Great Muppet Caper (1981), The Four Seasons (1981), Superman II (1980), The Sea Gypsies (1978, a.k.a. Shipwreck!), Kiss Me Goodbye (1982), Continental Divide (1981), and Any Which Way You Can (1980). (I have a feeling I personally caught most of those airings of Any Which Way You Can.)

The Top 24 Countdown

• 41 Airings (24 & 23): St. Helens (1981) and Six Weeks (1982)
• 42 Airings (22 & 21): The Incredible Shrinking Woman (1981) and Chariots of Fire (1981)
• 43 Airings (20 & 19): The Secret of NIMH (1982) and Blue Skies Again (1983)
• 44 Airings (18 to 15): Wonder of It All (1974), Right of Way (1983), Eddie and the Cruisers (1983), and Absence of Malice (1981)
• 45 Airings (14 to 12): The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976), Dragonslayer (1981), and Arthur (1981)
• 46 Airings (11 to 9): Super Fuzz (1980), My Favorite Year (1982), and Finnegan Begin Again (1985)
• 48 Airings (8 to 6): 9 to 5 (1980), Flash Gordon (1980), and Between Friends (1983). (Fun stat: No movies were shown exactly 47 times!)

The Top 5 Most-Aired on HBO

• 51 Airings (5 & 4): Victory (1981) and Daffy Duck’s Fantastic Island (1983)
• 54 Airings (3 & 2): The Terry Fox Story (1983) and The Cannonball Run (1981). (I distinctly remember watching the absolute hell out of The Cannonball Run when I was a youngster… though I still think my total viewings of Any Which Way You Can might beat it.)

The #1 Most-Aired Program of the ’80s

With 58 total showings, the number one spot goes to the 1983 stand-up comedy special Bill Cosby: Himself.

Yes, in a shocking turn of events, The Beastmaster didn’t even make it into the top fifty! According to the historical data, it was only broadcast 23 times. The running joke was a total myth.

Were you watching HBO in the 1980s? How many of these did you catch on repeat? Reminisce in the comments!

The post The 50 Most-Aired Movies on HBO in the 1980s: The #1 Spot Will Shock You appeared first on JoBlo.

Mike

We all know AI is scary. Amid all the good it could bring, there’s always the looming fear: job displacement, the collapse of creative industries, or worst-case scenario… Skynet-level catastrophe with rogue machines deciding humanity is the problem. But setting global extinction aside for a moment, what if someone built technology that could turn “Satan’s personal ChatGPT” into a walking, talking humanoid serial killer, programmed with the psychological profiles of over 200 of history’s most violent figures? People like Hitler and John Wayne Gacy. That’s the question the film Virtuosity dared to ask in 1995, back when people were still figuring out America Online using free trial CDs.

And somehow, this strange sci-fi action thriller starred two future Academy Award winners, helped inspire The Matrix, and still slipped through the cracks. So what happened?

A Cyberpunk Idea Before Its Time

After writing Surviving the Game, writer Eric Bernt pivoted from human hunting survival thrillers into full-on virtual reality horror sci-fi. Inspired by a 3D AI demonstration at Carnegie Mellon University, he created SID 6.7, a digital entity built from multiple criminal personalities. The concept was disturbingly forward-thinking: training AI on violent human behavior and watching it evolve.

Director Brett Leonard, fresh off The Lawnmower Man, was brought in to steer the project. He was already associated with popularizing the concept of “virtual reality” in mainstream film culture, even if he didn’t invent the term.

Leonard’s approach leaned heavily into spectacle. He wanted Virtuosity to be entertaining first, philosophical second, and unsettling always. He had also been influenced by K. Eric Drexler’s Engines of Creation, which explored nanotechnology and future systems that now feel uncomfortably close to reality.

The Story: A Killer Built From 200 Minds

Virtuosity (1995) follows Parker Barnes, played by Denzel Washington, a disgraced cop turned convict offered a chance at redemption. He’s forced to test experimental VR law enforcement training at LETAC. Inside the system is SID 6.7, a synthetic criminal built from over 200 psychopathic personalities. The role is played with chaotic energy by Russell Crowe.

SID isn’t just a simulation. He learns. Evolves. Escapes constraints. And eventually finds a way into the real world using nanotechnology. He becomes something like Freddy Krueger fused with a cybernetic god complex.

A Future That Looks Weirdly Familiar

The film opens with VR cops navigating digital environments filled with glitchy NPCs and over-the-top training scenarios. Even early on, it feels like a prototype for modern video game logic.

SID quickly proves he’s more than a training tool. He begins killing inside the simulation and destabilizing the system itself. When threatened with deletion, he responds with chilling arrogance, calling his creator “frighteningly inadequate for a deity.”

From there, things escalate fast. SID escapes into the real world via nanotechnology, turning physical reality into an extension of his digital violence.

Parker Barnes: A Broken Man on a Mission

Barnes isn’t your typical hero. His backstory reveals tragedy: the loss of his wife and child, and a violent breakdown that led to the death of two reporters. He’s emotionally volatile, damaged, and barely controlled.

The film leans into a grim, almost proto-Training Day energy, with Barnes constantly teetering between justice and rage.

Opposite him is criminal psychiatrist Madison Carter, played by Kelly Lynch, and police authority figure William Cochran, played by William Forsythe.

Russell Crowe’s Unhinged Breakout Energy

SID 6.7 is not subtle. He evolves into a physical form that behaves like a digital demigod of chaos: sarcastic, violent, theatrical, and completely unrestrained.

Crowe leans fully into the role, creating a villain who feels like a prediction of internet-era personality fragmentation: too many voices, too much stimulation, no moral grounding. He is, in every sense, a system overload made flesh.

The Film’s Most Insane Ideas (Even Now)

Virtuosity doesn’t just predict AI fears, it accidentally stumbles into them. SID’s ability to evolve, manipulate systems, and spread through infrastructure feels eerily close to modern concerns about autonomous AI behavior.

Other standout elements include:

• A nightclub massacre staged like a distorted digital symphony
• A futuristic UFC-style arena where SID causes chaos mid-event
• “Death TV,” an early version of interactive streaming violence
• Nanotech regeneration using glass as a fuel source
• SID literally consuming materials to rebuild himself

It’s messy. It’s absurd. But it’s also strangely imaginative.

Behind the Scenes Drama and Lost Romantic Subplot

Originally, the film reportedly had a stronger romantic storyline between Barnes and Carter. That subplot was significantly reduced during production, with conflicting accounts about creative control and script rewrites.

There were also claims that early versions may have been designed with different casting in mind, including Mel Gibson in the lead role.

The final version became much colder and more procedural, focusing on action and chaos rather than emotional connection.

Box Office and Critical Reaction

Despite its cast and concept, Virtuosity underperformed. It opened modestly and barely cleared its budget globally. Critics were largely unimpressed, and it holds a low aggregate score on major review sites.

Some praised its ambition and performances, especially Washington’s grounded portrayal in contrast to Crowe’s chaos, but overall reception was mixed to negative.

The Legacy: A Film That Aged Into Relevance

Over time, Virtuosity has been reassessed. Modern viewers increasingly recognize how many ideas it touched before they became mainstream fears:

• AI identity modeling
• Synthetic personality construction
• Digital violence simulation
• Interactive media as spectacle and control

It’s also frequently mentioned in discussions about early cyberpunk cinema that helped shape later films like The Matrix. According to industry accounts, filmmakers including The Wachowskis acknowledged being influenced by the era of ideas Virtuosity was part of.

Final Thoughts

Virtuosity is chaotic, uneven, and wildly over the top. But it’s also a fascinating snapshot of mid-90s anxieties about technology, filtered through action cinema, studio ambition, and pure creative overload.

Denzel Washington plays it grounded and serious. Russell Crowe plays it like a system glitch with teeth. And somewhere in between, the film becomes something unforgettable, even if it never fully found its audience.

It’s not a perfect movie. But it might be a perfect example of a film ahead of its time trying and occasionally failing to hold itself together. And that is what happened to Virtuosity.

A couple of previous episodes of this show can be seen below. For more, check out the JoBlo Horror Originals YouTube channel—and don’t forget to subscribe!

The post What Happened to Virtuosity? The AI Thriller That Predicted the Future (and Went Unnoticed) appeared first on JoBlo.

Cody

For more than 70 years, Godzilla has continually evolved to reflect the fears, filmmaking trends, and storytelling ambitions of each generation. The Reiwa era has taken that idea further than ever before. Rather than building a single shared continuity, Toho has treated each new project as an opportunity to completely reinvent the King of the Monsters, resulting in a wildly varied lineup that includes a politically charged live-action reboot, an ambitious anime trilogy, a cerebral television series, and an Academy Award-winning blockbuster.

This ranking covers Toho’s major narrative Godzilla releases of the Reiwa era: Shin Godzilla, the Netflix anime trilogy, Godzilla: Singular Point, and Godzilla Minus One. Some of these projects have become instant classics, while others are fascinating experiments that don’t always stick the landing. Taken together, they show a studio that’s far more interested in pushing Godzilla in unexpected directions than repeating past successes.

Here’s how every major Reiwa era Godzilla project stacks up.

6. GODZILLA: CITY ON THE EDGE OF BATTLE (2018)

• Release Year: 2018
• Format: Animated feature film (part of trilogy)
• Directors: Kōbun Shizuno, Hiroyuki Seshita
• Writer(s): Gen Urobuchi, Sadayuki Murai, Tetsuya Yamada
• Main Monsters: Godzilla, Mechagodzilla (conceptual/partial), Servum
• Continuity: Standalone anime continuity (Godzilla anime trilogy)
• Why It’s Ranked Here: Prioritizes extended philosophical dialogue and worldbuilding over monster action, resulting in a slow middle chapter that struggles to justify its runtime despite some strong conceptual ideas.
• Best Feature: The late-film escalation into direct confrontation with Godzilla.
• Biggest Weakness: Minimal kaiju action and heavy reliance on repetitive exposition.

Directors Kōbun Shizuno and Hiroyuki Seshita remained at the helm for the second installment in the trilogy of anime features that began with Godzilla: Planet of the Monsters, and returning screenwriter Gen Urobuchi was joined this time around by Sadayuki Murai and Tetsuya Yamada – although it’s not clear why three writers were required to craft this script, because there’s not much going on in the movie, despite its 100 minute running time.

Set 20,000 years in the future, in a time when humanity has largely been destroyed and Earth’s ecosystem has evolved to serve the planet’s ruler, the seemingly immortal (and six-times larger than before) Godzilla, this anime picks up directly after the events of Planet of the Monsters and proceeds to spend a lot of time spinning its wheels while the characters spout a lot of dialogue. We have not-quite human twin natives that guard the egg of their fallen deity, but don’t expect to see Mothra. There’s a reference to Ghidorah, but don’t expect to have him swoop in before the end credits. There’s talk of the characters activating a long-abandoned Mechagodzilla to fight Godzilla with, but don’t expect to see any Mechagodzilla action in here, either. We get references to other famous kaiju, but they’re not in the movie, which is quite disappointing.

Instead, we get humans and aliens teaming up to battle Godzilla with the nanometal that was used to create that unused Mechagodzilla. You would think that animation would give the filmmakers the chance to dazzle the audience with action sequences that wouldn’t be possible (or at least not cost-efficient) to bring to the screen in live-action, but the filmmakers didn’t really take advantage of that opportunity. There’s no excuse for City on the Edge of Battle being as slow, dull, and repetitive as it is. At least the climactic confrontation with Godzilla is somewhat exciting.

5. GODZILLA: THE PLANET EATER (2018)

• Release Year: 2018
• Format: Animated feature film (final part of trilogy)
• Directors: Kōbun Shizuno, Hiroyuki Seshita
• Writer(s): Gen Urobuchi
• Main Monsters: Godzilla, King Ghidorah
• Continuity: Standalone anime continuity (Godzilla anime trilogy)
• Why It’s Ranked Here: Attempts a philosophical conclusion to the anime trilogy with a focus on ideology and despair, but sacrifices monster spectacle and pacing in the process.
• Best Feature: The introduction of Ghidorah in a more cosmic, abstract form.
• Biggest Weakness: Dialogue-heavy structure limits payoff for the final confrontation.

The trilogy of Godzilla anime movies delivered by directors Kōbun Shizuno and Hiroyuki Seshita and writer Gen Urobuchi could be cut together into one four-and-a-half-hour movie, since the events of each one lead directly into the next… but it’s not advisable that anyone do that. Watching all three of these overly chatty animated movies in close proximity is already enough of an endurance challenge without trying to conquer all three of them in one sitting.

Following the events of both Planet of the Monsters and City on the Edge of Battle, The Planet Eater finds tension running high between the remaining humans and their alien cohorts, the devout Exif and the tech-savvy Bilusaludo, while the Houtua, the natives that live on Earth – which has been the domain of Godzilla for 20,000 years at this point – watch in wonder. The mission to annihilate Godzilla has reached peak desperation, so the Exif call in their god: Ghidorah. Of course, as viewers will have come to expect from the anime trilogy by the time they reach The Planet Eater, you have to sit through a series of interminable conversations before the movie finally gets around to showing off the kaiju clash. The action doesn’t kick in until the midway point… and even then, it’s not very exciting. (And if anyone was waiting for Mothra to hatch from the egg that’s protected by the Houtua, prepare for disappointment. She only makes a non-physical cameo.)

One could give the filmmakers kudos for focusing on character drama and the resolution of the philosophical issues at the core of their story rather than going all-in on monster mash spectacle, but someone watching a Godzilla anime shouldn’t feel like it’s too much to ask that there be a larger amount of exciting action than The Planet Eater, and the overall trilogy, decided to deliver.

4. GODZILLA: PLANET OF THE MONSTERS (2017)

• Release Year: 2017
• Format: Animated feature film (trilogy opener)
• Directors: Kōbun Shizuno, Hiroyuki Seshita
• Writer(s): Gen Urobuchi
• Main Monsters: Godzilla, Servum, Mechagodzilla (concept)
• Continuity: Standalone anime continuity (Godzilla anime trilogy)
• Why It’s Ranked Here: Strong concept and ambitious worldbuilding establish an intriguing future Earth, but the pacing is weighed down by exposition-heavy storytelling.
• Best Feature: The post-apocalyptic Earth setting dominated by Godzilla.
• Biggest Weakness: Delayed monster action and heavy exposition dumps.

Godzilla: Planet of the Monsters marked another major first for the franchise as Toho produced its very first Godzilla anime. Rather than testing the waters with a single animated feature, the studio hired directors Kōbun Shizuno and Hiroyuki Seshita and screenwriter Gen Urobuchi to craft a complete trilogy of anime features. The gamble didn’t pay off with audiences as well as Toho had hoped, but it demonstrated the studio’s willingness to experiment, and you have to give them credit for not holding back when they decide to try something new.

This take begins in the summer of 1999, when giant monsters started appearing all over the world and wrecking the place. The most dangerous of the bunch was Godzilla, who wiped out the other monsters before the major powers on Earth launched a nuclear war on the beast, almost destroying their own planet in the process. Not even two separate races of aliens, the devout Exif and the tech-savvy Bilusaludo, could help in the battle against Godzilla, so humans joined with the aliens to go searching for another planet to inhabit. After twenty years of unsuccessful space travel, the survivors return to Earth, only to discover that nearly 20,000 years have passed since their departure and the planet has evolved into an ecosystem ruled entirely by Godzilla.

Planet of the Monsters boasts one of the most imaginative premises in the franchise and the animation looks great, but a lot of the 88 minute running time is taken up by chatter, sci-fi exposition, and philosophical world-building. Things don’t really get exciting until about halfway through, when the humans who land on Earth find that Godzilla isn’t the only monster living on the planet, and then face off with the world-destroying monster in an extended final battle. There’s a lot of set-up, but the second half of Planet of the Monsters is entertaining enough to be worth the ride it took to get there. This movie lays the groundwork for a sci-fi saga unlike anything the franchise had attempted before, making it a fascinating addition to the Reiwa era, even if it’s a bit clunky and has a pair of lackluster follow-ups.

3. GODZILLA: SINGULAR POINT (2021)

• Release Year: 2021
• Format: Animated television series
• Director: Atsushi Takahashi
• Writer(s): Toh EnJoe
• Main Monsters: Godzilla, Jet Jaguar, Rodan, Anguirus, Manda, Kumonga, Salunga
• Continuity: Standalone anime continuity
• Why It’s Ranked Here: Reimagines Godzilla through dense science fiction concepts and rapid fire ideas, blending classic kaiju with complex theory and modern reinterpretation.
• Best Feature: Creative redesigns and reinterpretations of classic kaiju.
• Biggest Weakness: Overwhelming technobabble and dense exposition in later episodes.

Another Reiwa era project means another complete reimagining of Godzilla – and since this anime TV series (directed by Atsushi Takahashi from scripts by Toh EnJoe) had thirteen half-hour episodes to work with, we also get reworkings of multiple other kaiju from the classic Shōwa era like Rodan, Anguirus, Manda, and Kumonga. There’s also a newly introduced character called Salunga and an ever-upgrading version of the flying robot Jet Jaguar. Godzilla himself doesn’t really come into play until the second half of the show’s run – and even then, it takes a while for him to evolve into a recognizable version of himself. It’s a staple of the Reiwa era that we get versions of Godzilla that change over the course of the story.

This epic story EnJoe crafted centers on graduate student Mei Kamino and a trio of people who work at the “do-it-all” shop called Ōtaki Factory: Yun Arikawa, Haberu Katō, and eccentric inventor Gorō Ōtaki, whose latest creation is the Jet Jaguar robot. When kaiju start running loose around the world, Mei does some intensive investigating while the Ōtaki folks put Jet Jaguar to use fighting a variety of monsters – building up, of course, to a one-on-one battle between Jet Jaguar and Godzilla.

Singular Point is a really fun and fast-paced show, and it’s entertaining to see how the familiar monsters are reimagined… even if Anguirus gets screwed over again, much like he was at the end of the Shōwa era. Here, the creature is portrayed as playful and easily distracted, but that doesn’t save him from being executed. That’s a bummer, but the main downside to watching this show is how much sci-fi technobabble dialogue is packed into some of the episodes. That really starts to wear out its welcome as the show nears its conclusion. Nonetheless, it’s an enjoyable viewing experience overall.

2. SHIN GODZILLA (2016)

• Release Year: 2016
• Format: Live-action feature film
• Directors: Hideaki Anno, Shinji Higuchi
• Writer(s): Hideaki Anno
• Main Monsters: Godzilla
• Continuity: Standalone Reiwa era continuity
• Why It’s Ranked Here: Reimagines Godzilla as an evolving national disaster while using bureaucratic response systems as a framework, resulting in one of the franchise’s most radical reinventions.
• Best Feature: Godzilla’s constantly evolving design and conceptual reinvention.
• Biggest Weakness: Heavy focus on procedural dialogue over monster action.

When Toho gave TriStar the rights to produce a trilogy of American Godzilla movies in the ’90s (a deal that only resulted in one film), they put their own franchise on hiatus so the market wouldn’t become oversaturated with competing Godzilla projects. But when they licensed the King of the Monsters to Legendary for the MonsterVerse, they took the opposite approach. Their series had been dormant since 2004’s Godzilla: Final Wars, yet soon after Legendary’s Godzilla hit theaters in 2014, Toho announced that they would be reviving their franchise. They launched the Reiwa era with a film that, like the 1954 Gojira, was inspired by recent national tragedy. This time, the catalyst was the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, along with the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster.

Co-directed by Hideaki Anno and Shinji Higuchi (who previously collaborated on the anime Neon Genesis Evangelion), Shin Godzilla – which also has the rarely used English title Godzilla: Resurgence – doesn’t take any previous continuity into account, rebuilding the Godzilla concept from the ground up. Suitmation is left behind in favor of a fully CGI Godzilla, but this isn’t simply a digital recreation of the classic monster. Instead, Godzilla is reimagined as an evolving organism that begins as an awkward, amphibious creature with bulging googly eyes before transforming into a more recognizable form, albeit with a stranger appearance. This one gets so weird, there even looks to be humanoid creatures emerging from Godzilla’s tail in the final moments.

Shin Godzilla was a highly experimental addition to the franchise, and it’s almost surprising to see just how well-received it has been, considering the fact that the moments of Godzilla action are few and far between – and even when there is a monster rampaging through Tokyo, it’s not quite the Godzilla we’ve come to know and love over the decades. The human side of the story can be just as divisive, as it plays like a satire of Japanese bureaucracy, and that means we get scene after scene of various officials and authority figures discussing how to handle the situation. This is easily the most talky Godzilla movie ever made. It has been said that around 85% of the running time consists of “rapid-fire government meetings, diplomatic debates, and scientific jargon,” which not every viewer will find fun to sit through. Others will appreciate that the movie treats Godzilla as a national crisis that exposes the strengths and shortcomings of modern institutions. Whether you love or dislike the approach, Shin Godzilla proved that the Reiwa era wasn’t interested in repeating the past. Instead, Toho was willing to completely reinvent its most famous creation.

1. GODZILLA MINUS ONE (2023)

• Release Year: 2023
• Format: Live-action feature film
• Director: Takashi Yamazaki
• Writer(s): Takashi Yamazaki
• Main Monsters: Godzilla
• Continuity: Standalone Reiwa era continuity
• Why It’s Ranked Here: Balances emotional human storytelling with classic monster devastation, delivering a fully realized interpretation of Godzilla that succeeds across spectacle, theme, and character drama.
• Best Feature: The integration of human stakes with large-scale destruction.
• Biggest Weakness: Limited monster variety compared to other entries.

Toho first contacted writer/director Takashi Yamazaki about making a Godzilla movie around the end of the Millennium era, but he turned down the opportunity because he would have wanted to make Godzilla a CGI creature, and the tools required to pull that off weren’t available in Japan at the time. He did give Godzilla a fantasy cameo in his film Always: Sunset on Third Street 2 (2007), but waited almost twenty years before making a full movie with Goji… and it was worth the wait. Godzilla Minus One became the first entry in the franchise to win an Academy Award – and it took home Oscar gold in the category of Best Visual Effects.

Feeling that Godzilla worked best in the Shōwa era, Yamazaki takes us back to where it all began: the aftermath of World War II. A kamikaze pilot named Kōichi Shikishima first crosses paths with Godzilla (in its initial dinosaur form) on Odo Island in 1945, and many people lose their lives because he can’t bring himself to shoot the beast. As time goes by, Godzilla mutates and grows bigger due to nuclear tests at Bikini Atoll. When the giant monster starts wreaking havoc on the mainland and injures someone Shikishima cares about, he joins the effort to stop the monster – and this time he won’t hesitate to kill it.

Like the other entries in the Reiwa era, Godzilla Minus One first presents Godzilla in one form, then sees him change into another. What’s refreshing to see this time is that Yamazaki didn’t stray too far from what was familiar. Unlike other variations in this era, the Godzilla in this film still feels like the classic character. And yes, those visual effects were indeed Oscar-worthy. The Godzilla action in this movie looks great. Another area where Minus One shines is in the human drama scenes between the action. Yamazaki wanted viewers to empathize with and connect with his characters, and he and his cast managed to make that happen. While other Reiwa era projects go heavy on the chatter and technobabble, this is the one that does the best job of making the dramatic scenes just as interesting and engaging as the moments of destructive spectacle.

While other Reiwa projects excel in one or two specific areas, Godzilla Minus One succeeds across the board. It delivers thrilling monster action, compelling human drama, spectacular visual effects, and a version of Godzilla that feels both fresh and faithful to the character’s origins. That’s what makes it not only the best Reiwa era Godzilla project, but one of the finest entries in the franchise’s entire history.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Reiwa era of Godzilla?

The Reiwa era began with Shin Godzilla (2016), Toho’s first Japanese Godzilla film since Godzilla: Final Wars (2004). Unlike previous eras, the Reiwa period doesn’t follow a single ongoing continuity. Instead, Toho has treated each major project as a standalone reimagining of the King of the Monsters, resulting in live-action films, an anime trilogy, and an anime television series that all tell independent stories.

Which Godzilla movies are part of the Reiwa era?

The major narrative projects released during the Reiwa era are:

• Shin Godzilla (2016)
• Godzilla: Planet of the Monsters (2017)
• Godzilla: City on the Edge of Battle (2018)
• Godzilla: The Planet Eater (2018)
• Godzilla: Singular Point (2021)
• Godzilla Minus One (2023)

This ranking focuses on those major Toho productions and does not include short films, attraction films, or projects like Godziban.

Are the Reiwa era Godzilla projects connected?

No. One of the defining characteristics of the Reiwa era is that each major project stands on its own. Shin Godzilla, the anime trilogy, Godzilla: Singular Point, and Godzilla Minus One each take place in separate continuities with their own versions of Godzilla and supporting characters.

Why isn’t the MonsterVerse included?

Because this ranking is limited to Toho’s major Reiwa era productions. Although Legendary’s MonsterVerse movies were released during the same period, they are part of a separate American-produced continuity and aren’t considered part of Toho’s Reiwa series.

Which Reiwa era Godzilla project is best for newcomers?

Godzilla Minus One is the easiest recommendation for newcomers. It tells a completely standalone story, features some of the franchise’s strongest human drama, delivers spectacular monster action, and requires no prior knowledge of earlier films.

Which Reiwa era Godzilla project is the most experimental?

Shin Godzilla and Godzilla: Singular Point are probably the most experimental entries. Shin Godzilla reinvents the monster as an evolving national disaster while satirizing government bureaucracy, whereas Godzilla: Singular Point combines classic kaiju with dense science fiction concepts and an entirely new mythology.

All 15 Shōwa Era Godzilla Movies Ranked Worst to Best

Every Heisei Godzilla Movie Ranked, From Worst to Best

Millennium Era Godzilla Movies Ranked: All 6 Films From Godzilla 2000 to Final Wars

MonsterVerse Movies Ranked: From Worst to Best

The post From Shin to Minus One: The Reiwa Era of Godzilla, Ranked appeared first on JoBlo.

These days, every major horror release seems to need an outrageous themed popcorn bucket to survive the box office, and Evil Dead Burn is absolutely no exception.

Warner Bros. and New Line Cinema have officially unveiled a tie-in collectible inspired by one of the upcoming film’s most gruesome trailer moments: a character falling backward into an open dishwasher, landing directly onto a rack of upright kitchen knives. The studio leaned heavily into the fandom’s unhinged suggestions and actually constructed a miniature, movie-accurate dishwasher popcorn bucket—complete with an exposed knife rack right where you’re supposed to grab the popcorn.

It’s ridiculous, incredibly dangerous-looking, and completely perfect for the franchise. But there is a massive catch.

Can You Buy The Evil Dead Burn Popcorn Bucket?

We heard your screams. Only available in our nightmares.

Get your tickets for #EvilDeadBurn NOW – only in theaters July 10. https://t.co/t6oUYtDGx6 pic.twitter.com/eVBn2mdPU3

— Evil Dead (@EvilDead) June 30, 2026

Unfortunately, horror collectors will have a hard time finding this one at their local concession stands. According to reports from Dread Central, the horrifyingly creative bucket won’t actually be for sale.

Instead, the dishwasher piece was “created strictly as a promotional display piece” to drum up hype on social media. While a bucket that actively hazards a stabbing might have faced some legal and safety hurdles in real theaters, fans are already chanting like Deadites online for a limited commercial release.

But if you’re on the hunt for an exclusive popcorn bucket, you can win a JoBlo popcorn bucket (or bobblehead) by subscribing to our newsletter!

First Reactions to the New Sequel

Directed by Sébastien Vaniček, the upcoming film follows a woman who seeks solace with her in-laws in their secluded family home after the loss of her husband. However, the gathering becomes a family reunion from hell as members are transformed into Deadites one by one.

The first reactions recently began circulating on social media, and it sounds like this is another gruesome win for the long-running horror franchise. Gloriously mean-spirited. Seriously nasty. Relentlessly twisted. These are just some of the descriptions which emerged from the screening. Count me in. Evil Dead Burn will hit theaters on July 10.

Vaniček’s Evil Dead Burn isn’t the only Evil Dead movie on the way. We’ve also got Evil Dead Wrath, which was written and directed by Francis Galluppi (The Last Stop in Yuma County). The film takes place in 1972, which actually sets it before the events of Sam Raimi’s original film.

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For decades, director James Cameron‘s The Abyss has carried a reputation that borders on legend – not just for its groundbreaking underwater effects, but for what its cast endured to make it. Among them, Ed Harris has largely remained quiet. He has been quoted as saying, “I’m never talking about it and never will.” Now, thanks to his unexpected appearance at a cast reunion, Harris’s perspective on the shoot has finally taken clearer shape.

“Water was rushing up my nose”

During the reunion, Harris reiterated a bit of information that he has shared before: that he nearly drowned during the filming of a scene.

He said, “The one thing that I’ve talked about before was when they had me they were going to drag me across the bottom of the tank with no air supply of my own, negatively weighted in the darkness. And the water was rushing up my nose, and I gave in, and I was hanging on the wall because I couldn’t go anywhere and waiting for air, and nobody came. My safety diver had gotten hung up on a cable. And I remember just waiting, and then a guy put a regulator in my mouth upside down, unbeknownst to me. I took a big breath and got a bunch of water in my lungs. I purged it out, did it again, got more water in there. In a split second, I figured, I’m dead. Then I saw a hand come and rip that out. [Underwater cinematographer] Al Giddings put the thing in the right way so I could figure out how to breathe, and then they decided maybe they’d figure a different way to do that.“

James Cameron Was Difficult

The reunion brought Harris back together with The Abyss co-stars Michael Biehn, Kimberly Scott, John Bedford Lloyd, Adam Nelson, and Phillip Darlington, who was also Cameron’s underwater assistant. One thing several of them agree with is that Cameron was difficult to work with on this production.

Harris remembered standing up for co-star George Robert Klek: “Jim was on Klek’s ass all the time, he was really giving him a hard time. And I remember we broke for lunch one day, and I said, ‘Jim, I think it’s his first film, and he’s pretty nervous and stuff, you know? And I think maybe if you gave him a little more support or something like that, it would probably work out a little better.’ He goes, ‘Yeah, but I can’t do that.’“

This was also Scott’s first film. She said, “I actually told Jim too the same thing. I said, ‘Dude, you know, you attract more flies with honey than with vinegar. Come on, man. Don’t talk to people like this, you know?’ He goes, ‘I can’t do that.’ He’s like, ‘Kim, this is your first film. This is your very first film. You don’t know anything.’ I said, ‘I know, but I know that when you treat people well, they perform well for you, you know.’ Then he proceeded to try to haze me a little bit on a take. Then the camera crew kind of laughed at him and stood up for me. So it was all good.“

Damn Good Film

Despite the tough production and close calls with disaster, Harris has a positive outlook on the film that he doesn’t like to talk about.

He said, “I really like the movie other than the ending. I think it’s a really damn good film, you know. I think we all did a really great job.“

You can watch Harris and his The Abyss co-stars reminisce about their time working on the film for over an hour on the James Cameron 101 podcast.

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PLOT: During a nasty storm, Ava loses power in her apartment building. Before she can escape to safety, she encounters a mysterious killer who’s picking tenants off one by one.

REVIEW: When I heard Netflix was getting a new horror game on its app, I was like, “Meh.” I’ve never played a game on the platform, despite having a Netflix subscription since the streaming service’s introduction. Still, when I heard that David Fincher, Zach Cregger, and Sean Krankel, founder and studio director of Night School Studio, were involved in its development, I snapped to attention. The game Unhinged is a short, polished, first-person horror experience that has players trying to escape a killer during a power outage, and it’s fun, funny, intense, interactive, and worthwhile.

In Unhinged, you play as Ava (voiced by Zoë Kravitz), a young woman who wakes up during a wicked storm that has knocked out the power in her building. While navigating in the dark, Ava’s friend, Claire (voiced by Sadie Sink), warns her that there’s an intruder in her bedroom. The situation quickly spirals out of control, and the game becomes a fight for survival as Ava tries to escape a deranged killer.

The game, which you can play on Netflix via your TV or computer, has you use your real-life phone as your controller, with the device acting as a flashlight and a way to receive calls and texts from your friend Claire and the building’s superintendent Ben (voiced by Troy Baker). The phone also helps you navigate the building and interact with objects via a point-and-click mechanic. As Ava’s situation intensifies, how you move around the building becomes imperative to your survival, as the window to act is short.

Night School Studios, the makers of games like Oxenfree, Oxenfree II, Afterparty, and Next Stop Nowhere, handle the bulk of the game’s development, with help from Bloober Team (Silent Hill Remake, Chronos: The New Dawn), and other studios. Unhinged includes roughly 10 instances where the player can die, leading to cutscenes that flesh out the paper-thin story ever so slightly and add more gruesome visuals to the experience. I did not die on my first playthrough, leading to a nail-biting 40-minute play session that felt good from beginning to end. The game’s developers encourage players to die at least a few times to see more of the game, but the short playtime makes Unhinged perfect for multiple sessions and exploration of the little story there is.

Just because Unhinged is short does not mean it’s not worth your time. It took me all of two minutes to set up Netflix on my LG OLED TV (I usually use my PS5 to watch Netflix) and turn my phone into a controller using a URL code on the screen at the game’s start. Having never played a game on Netflix before, I was surprised and delighted by how simple yet innovative the experience was. My real-life phone screen became Ava’s personal device, with flashlight, text, and call buttons at the bottom. At one point in the experience, my character fell, and my screen cracked, the broken bits spidering out from the bottom-right corner. When my hands became bloodied, the liquid left smeared, crimson fingerprints on my screen. It’s little details like this that made me look at the interface and go, “Oh shit! That’s cool.”

With star power like Zoë Kravitz, Sadie Sink, and Troy Baker taking center stage, the voice-acting performances are top-notch. Kravitz hard-sells Ava’s terror, bewilderment, and sense of urgency, while Sink, as Claire, adds an intensity to the game by constantly checking in on Ava’s status via her smartphone. In a way, Claire is more of a villain than the actual killer, as she’s always texting and calling at times when Ava should remain silent. Still, her calls help keep the story flowing and underscore the need for Ava to book it when the killer’s not looking or distracted by his handiwork.

While the story is short, it still feels complete. Unhinged throws you into the mess right away, and communications with Claire and the killer keep the plot moving with a distinct sense of urgency. There’s never a moment to rest as you’re making your way through the building, the killer hot on your heels and your best friend panicking from somewhere nearby. The story ends on a note that could lead to a sequel, but all the beats you need for a satisfying narrative are there.

For what it is, a short, sweet, and thrilling slice of interactive horror, Unhinged is the kind of game that, if there were more like it on the Netflix app, I would consider looking at the platform as another option in my regular gaming rotation. The experience gave me P.T. vibes (If you know, you know), and I’d happily play a sequel, though there’s no guarantee we’ll get one. I’ll be the first to say it’s easy to pass on Unhinged because it’s on the Netflix app, but as your attorney, I advise you to seek it out. It makes for a spooky hours’ worth of fun, and it is as polished as one of these experiences gets. Unhinged also proves that games don’t need to be 14-100+ hours to be worth your time. If you’ve got about an hour to spare, a Netflix subscription, and a smartphone, turn off the lights, and give this one a go.

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It seems like every time we get a killer animal movie these days, it’s about sharks. Sure, sometimes gators get their time in the spotlight, but it’s mostly reserved for that hungry fish. But anyone who knows anything about nature knows there’s one animal that is the true king of its domain: the hippo. We’ve all seen videos and heard stories about how ferocious they are, and how you do not want to accidentally venture into their territory. They’ve always felt like the perfect subject for a killer animal movie. And now, we’re finally getting that with Hungry (you can check out my review HERE).

I spoke with lead actress Madison Davenport and writer/director James Nunn about their new film. Madison reveals (with James also finding out for the first time) that she actually injured herself just prior to filming. Nunn brings up an interesting point about how, since there really haven’t been any killer hippo movies, there’s also no other cinematic language to pull from when trying to execute their film. So they really had to learn what worked and what didn’t, as they went along. But what was most shocking was the revelation that they couldn’t actually get the hippo prop wet during filming. You can imagine the challenges. This was a great chat, and you can check it out in the video above!

Hungry plot:

HUNGRY follows thrill-seeking tourists on a riverboat tour through the treacherous Louisiana swamplands. Lured off the beaten path by the promise of an exclusive adventure, they soon find themselves fighting for survival against a ravenous hippopotamus lurking beneath the bayou’s murky waters. Set in a mysterious and dangerous landscape, HUNGRY is a tense survival thriller about an impossible battle with one of nature’s deadliest predators.

Hungry is now available on VOD!

Related

Hungry Review: A killer hippo film that takes itself too seriously

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