For this bonus episode of Thank God for Movies, Jon Negroni welcomes back longtime friend of the show Cory Woodroof, writer for For the Win/USA Today. And yes, this is Cory’s first appearance since our TGFM rebrand! The mission: unpack Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu, Disney’s big-screen continuation of the Disney+ series and the first theatrical Star Wars movie in seven years.
Jon and Cory dig into why this release feels less like a true cinematic event and more like a few stitched-together episodes of television. They talk about how Disney+ may have changed the way audiences experience Star Wars, as well. And whether Dave Filoni and Jon Favreau’s corner of the galaxy has become too tied to franchise homework. They also debate the erosion of Star Wars as a big-screen phenomenon and the difference between fan service and storytelling. Also the legacy of George Lucas’s risk-taking and why Andor still proves this universe can produce bold, worthwhile work.
Plus, they open the show with a brief summer movie preview. From Toy Story 5 to Scary Movie 5, and maybe a few indies, they share notes on what might hit hard aside from the sun over the next few months.
SHOW NOTES:
- 00:00:00 – Summer Movie Preview
- 00:09:05 – Review: Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu
