Tag Archives: Best Picture

The Toy Department – Episode 447

  By toyAdmin | March 6, 2026 - 10:56 am | Uncategorized
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In Episode 447, Madden and Kolsky address an upcoming pod schedule change before wading through:

  • The Oscar-nominated film Marty Supreme (2:20) and all of its great acting performances, plus Kolsky’s discomfort with the Safdie style…
  • The Oscar-nominated performance of Rose Byrne (13:00) in If I Had Legs I’d Kick You, and the distinctly not-oscar-worthy nature of the film itself…
  • A sort of combined discussion about two network sitcoms (22:00): the Tracy Morgan/Daniel Radcliffe vehicle The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins, and the reboot of Scrubs from pod favorite Bill Lawrence & Co…
  • A few thoughts on Chelsea FC and premier league football (32:15), because the hosts can’t help themselves…
  • Homework for WEDNESDAY of next week (39:05), including: the premier of the new season of Top Chef, Hamnet (the final Oscar nominee for the pod), and the new HBO show DTF St. Louis…

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The Toy Department – Episode 446

  By toyAdmin | February 20, 2026 - 12:03 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 446, Madden and Kolsky briefly discuss Derek’s homework apology before (angrily) diving right into:

  • The widely acclaimed Best Picture nominee The Secret Agent (1:10) and how neither of our hosts can figure out why that acclaim exists…
  • Richard Linklater’s new film Blue Moon (12:45), which was abjectly hated by one of our hosts and marginally appreciated for its good qualities by the other…
  • Ethan Coen’s 2025 film Honey Don’t (21:10) and how it simply doesn’t rise to the standard of the work he’s done with his brother…
  • The new Netflix series How to Get to Heaven from Belfast (31:05) and how Northern Irish murder mystery capers apparently appeal more to one host than the other…
  • Homework for next week (37:30), including: the Oscar-nominated films Marty Supreme and If I Had Legs I’d Kick You, the Tracy Morgan show The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins on NBC/Peacock, and the Scrubs reboot on ABC/Hulu…

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The Toy Department – Episode 445

  By toyAdmin | February 6, 2026 - 11:18 am | Uncategorized
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In Episode 445, Madden and Kolsky briefly address the results of the Toy Department Derby (if it can be so called) before moving into:

  • Kolsky’s dad’s recommendation, the Bert Kreischer show Free Bert on Netflix (4:15), which neither of our hosts disliked, per se, but nobody here can exactly recommend…
  • This week’s Oscar film Sentimental Value (11:25) and how Madden and Kolsky’s differing expectations may have contributed to their differing experiences with the film…
  • The good-time action flick The Wrecking Crew (24:25) and the value of having some fun at the movies…
  • The return of Shrinking (33:05), the emotional journey that makes it one of the best shows out right now, and the work of creator/showrunner Bill Lawrence…
  • Some sports thoughts (40:00) with the Super Bowl on deck and the NBA’s trade deadline just passed…
  • Homework for TWO weeks from now (53:10), including: the Richard Linklater film Blue Moon (with Oscar-nominated Ethan Hawke), the Best Picture-nominated Brazilian film The Secret Agent, the new-to-Netflix Ethan Coen movie Honey Don’t, and the new Netflix series How To Get To Heaven From Belfast…

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The Toy Department -Episode 444

  By toyAdmin | January 30, 2026 - 10:32 am | Uncategorized
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In Episode 444, Madden and Kolsky have a breezy chat about whether or not they’ll have a breezy chat about some not-so-breezy content (does that make sense?) before having an [arguably breezy] chat about:

  • The Oscar-nominated Train Dreams (1:35) and how it does a lot of things right, even if it ultimately is more of a tone poem than a narrative film…
  • The distinctly not-a-tone-poem Netflix film The Rip (20:10) and the value of the Damon/Affleck let’s-have-a-good-time-at-the-theater attempt…
  • Amazon Prime Video’s crime thriller series Steal (28:05) and how it has all the pieces to be a good show but somehow isn’t quite coming together…
  • The new Marvel series Wonder Man (32:25), the enjoyability of a different sort of show within the context of the broader universe, and Derek’s continued distaste for MCU content…
  • A few thoughts on the upcoming Toy Department Derby (41:05) and the prospects of Chelsea and Arsenal…
  • Homework for next week (46:05), including: the third season of Shrinking on Apple TV+, the new Bert Kreischer sitcom Free Bert on Netflix (recommended by Kolsky’s father), the Amazon Prime Video action flick The Wrecking Crew and the Oscar contender Sentimental Value…

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The Toy Department – Episode 443

  By toyAdmin | January 23, 2026 - 10:52 am | Uncategorized
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In Episode 443, Madden and Kolsky discuss the various challenges presented by the sub-zero temperatures they’re experiencing before launching into:

  • Netflix’s new dramatic thriller His & Hers (5:30), and how it fails to reach the quality of a lifetime movie despite some heavy hitters in the cast…
  • A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms (13:20) and the wisdom of major IP properties telling small, disconnected stories…
  • The Night Manager (19:20), which came out ten years ago, but is really great and the guys needed to watch Season 1 before they could get to the brand new Season 2…
  • Peacock’s new Moscow spy series Ponies (23:55), the indelible charm of its leads and the desire for more high-quality shows like this one…
  • Some thoughts on the Oscar nominations (34:00) and what they say about the state of movies in 2026…
  • Homework for next week (44:45), including: the Oscar-nominated Train Dreams on Netflix, the new Damon/Affleck movie The Rip (also on Netflix), the Amazon Prime Video show Steal, and the new Marvel series Wonder Man…

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The Toy Department – Episode 380

  By toyAdmin | March 7, 2024 - 11:12 am | Uncategorized
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In Episode 380, Madden and Kolsky discuss the big house-dad day at the Kolsky home and Matt’s various dad behaviors before locking in to cover:

  • The second and final episode of The Challenge: Battle for a New Champion reunion (4:00) and a wrap-up on a less-than-thrilling season of the pod’s favorite competition show…
  • The Zone of Interest (31:15) which Kolsky couldn’t bring himself to watch and Madden didn’t particularly enjoy…
  • The bizarre and oversexed Poor Things (40:30) and our hosts very different views on a very weird movie…
  • The new Hulu/FX adaptation of Shogun (1:03:00) and how it won over a skeptical and reluctant Derek Madden…
  • Apple TV+’s new comedy The Completely Made-Up Adventures of Dick Turpin (1:06:50) and the varying mileage of incredibly stupid jokes…
  • Homework for next week (1:11:45), including: the Oscars broadcast, HBO’s new Kate Winslet-starring miniseries The Regime, Netflix’s new Guy Ritchie series The Gentlemen, Amazon’s new British thriller-comedy Dead Hot and the Peter Farrelly movie Ricky Stanicky…

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The Toy Department – Episode 379

  By toyAdmin | February 29, 2024 - 9:18 am | Uncategorized
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In Episode 379, Madden and Kolsky discuss Derek’s busy schedule and Matt’s various maladies before jumping into:

  • The first of two reunion episodes for The Challenge: Battle for a New Champion (2:20) and how one week probably would have been enough to cover everything if they had just limited some of the shouting matches…
  • The Vince Staples Show (19:00) and how it’s difficult not to see it as a second-rate version of our beloved Atlanta…
  • Apple TV+’s new show Constellation (22:40) and whether it is compelling enough to stick around for answers to the its many mysterious questions…
  • The Oscar-nominated Anatomy of a Fall (25:45) and how it is very French and pretty good but not necessarily on par with some of its opponents in the Best Picture category…
  • Homework for next week (32:05), including: the conclusion of the reunion for The Challenge: Battle for a New Champion, Hulu/FX’s Shogun, the remaining two Best Picture nominees — Zone of Interest and Poor Things — and the new Apple TV+ comedy The Completely Made-Up Adventures of Dick Turpin…

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The Toy Department – Episode 378

  By toyAdmin | February 22, 2024 - 10:56 am | Uncategorized
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In Episode 378, Madden and Kolsky have a lot to cover, so there’s no time for pleasantries before discussions on:

  • TJ’s Final on The Challenge: Battle for a New Champion (0:45), casting a bit of shine on at least two worthy competitors after a season filled with distasteful main characters…
  • The dramatic, intense and somewhat mystical conclusion of True Detective: Night Country (21:40) and the some of the interesting reactions to the series…
  • The Oscar-nominated Oppenheimer (33:15) and how Christopher Nolan’s opus stacks up to the other Best Picture nominees…
  • A fellow potential Best Picture — Past Lives (41:35) — and how it works as a much smaller and quieter film than most of its peers in the category…
  • The exceedingly light Next Goal Wins (49:25) and how Taika Waititi has fun with a story that feels worthwhile despite its frequent silliness…
  • Homework for next week (57:30), including: all the drama of The Challenge: Battle for a New Champion reunion show, The Vince Staples show on Netflix, the Best Picture-nominated Anatomy of a Fall and Apple TV+’s new space show Constellation…

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The Toy Department – Episode 375

  By toyAdmin | February 1, 2024 - 12:00 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 375, Madden and Kolsky address Derek’s road location and failure to shower — with a weird detour to the film Wonka — before splashing into:

  • A thrilling and dramatic episode of The Challenge: Battle for a New Champion (3:05) that leaves the show in an unfortunate place moving forward towards the final…
  • The fifth and final season of Fargo (35:30) and what a spectacular show it was throughout its run…
  • Netflix’s Emmy Award-Winning limited series Beef (42:05), which both hosts only returned to recently and ended up really enjoying…
  • The new series Sexy Beast (50:50) and the fundamental but still-unanswered question of why??
  • The excellent Best Picture nominee American Fiction (57:10) and some thoughts on the upcoming Oscar race…
  • Homework for next week (1:07:40), including: another episode of The Challenge: Battle for a New Champion, Apple TV+’s new World War II show Masters of the Air, Donald Glover’s Mr. & Mrs. Smith on Amazon, Netflix’s dour comedy Loudermilk and the film Self Reliance on Hulu (written/directed/starring Jake Johnson)…

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The Toy Department – Episode 59

  By toyAdmin | March 1, 2017 - 7:21 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 59, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky use the Berkeley weather as a detour before briefly addressing Kolsky’s unemployment status, then dive into a variety of subjects including:

  • FX’s The Americans (6:45) which Kolsky can now use his widely expanded free time to watch, much to Madden’s delight… which expands to a discussion of TV in general…
  • The Oscars (17:15) including: why Kolsky’s mom is unhappy with him, sad movies, Michelle Williams and Busy Phillips, Emma Stone, Jimmy Kimmel, Matt Damon and the Best Picture SNAFU…
  • The Ringer’s Top 50 Fast-Food Items (35:30) which you can find here: http://fastfood.theringer.com/ and which has a lot of explaining to do…
  • Some homework for next week (53:30): Kolsky assigns the new album Yesterday’s Gone by British hip hop artist Loyle Carner… PLUS make sure you’re watching The Americans because Kolsky is about to blast through it and it will be discussed…

By the way, if you like this podcast, TELL A FRIEND!! And if you want to subscribe via iTunes you can just click on the link below the player… Some other links down there as well… And if you want to contact the Toy Department, it’s easy — find us at ToyDepartmentPod (at) gmail.com… or tweet us: @MaddenOnAir & @thekolsky.

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