Episode 241: Shipwrecked

Avast, buckoes! This week on Mousterpiece Cinema, Josh and Gabe are headed to the high seas with a discussion of the 1991 Norwegian-American production of Shipwrecked, a kinda/sorta adaptation of Daniel Defoe's iconic novel Robinson Crusoe, starring Gabriel Byrne as an avaricious pirate and...lots of Norwegian people. Did we mention this was a Norwegian film? Yet it was released by Disney in the spring of 1991, and soon became one of Gabe's favorite movies of all time. Does it impress Josh? Was Gabe able to look at the film as an adult without wearing rose-colored glasses? Will an Irish accent be unveiled? (You know the answer is yes.) Listen to find out the answers to these and many more questions.

Episode 240: The Gnome-Mobile

Why, y'er sittin' on a gold-mine, folks! Hee-hee-hee-hee! Oh, come on now, why shouldn't we be unveiling our best impression of one of the iconic deliverers of frontier gibberish, Walter Brennan? He's only the star of this week's film on Mousterpiece Cinema, The Gnome-Mobile. Brennan's actually playing two characters here: an eccentric modern businessman as well as an irascible old gnome who the businessman's grandchildren (played by the same precocious kids from Mary Poppins) discover in the redwood forests of California. This 1967 film holds a special place in Gabe's heart--or, it did when he was a kid. Does it hold up to the test of time? Or is the whole film as painful as its faux-"Bachelor" finale? Listen to find out--and prepare yourself for maybe Josh's worst groaner of a pun in a very long time.

Episode 239: Zootopia

This week's episode of Mousterpiece Cinema might get a bit hairy, folks. Josh and Gabe are settling in to talk about the newest film from Walt Disney Animation Studios, Zootopia, featuring the voices of Jason Bateman, Ginnifer Goodwin, Idris Elba, J.K. Simmons, Jenny Slate, and more. Is this film truly like nothing we've ever seen be-fur? (Remember that pun from the teaser?) Your hosts are joined by friend of the show Scott Mendelson of Forbes to debate the merits of Zootopia--or, more accurately, to celebrate the film. (Like pretty much everyone else, we liked it! A lot!) We're covering a lot on this episode, from Zootopia's place in the WDAS canon to comparing it to Wreck-It Ralph (per Josh's recent essay at The A.V. Club on the topic) to the film's commentary on racial stereotyping. Check it out now!

Episode 238: The Adventures of Huck Finn

Last week on Mousterpiece Cinema, Josh and Gabe had a lengthy discussion about race in Disney films, specifically thanks to the glaring racism in Savage Sam towards Native Americans. Can they keep up the streak on this week's episode? Well, considering the film of the week is the 1993 adaptation The Adventures of Huck Finn, based on the iconic novel by Mark Twain, you can rest assured that this episode does include another patent-pending segment of Gabe 'n' Josh: Two White Dudes Talkin' 'Bout Race! But does this film, starring a young Elijah Wood and a fairly-new-to-movies Courtney B. Vance as Huck and his friend Jim, step right where other Disney films step wrong? Is it the best film from director Stephen Sommers? And will Gabe and Josh go on a tangent about...shudder..."Fuller House"?  Find out now!