Cinema Sleuths

Space. The final frontier! 60 years ago, STAR TREK was released on the small screen. And nearly 50 years ago, STAR TREK THE MOTION PICTURE hit the BIG SCREEN! To celebrate TREK, this week, you Cinema Sleuths investigate Robert Wise’s Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979), the ambitious science-fiction epic that brought the original Star Trek crew to cinemas for the first time. Starring William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, George Takei, Nichelle Nichols, and Walter Koenig, the film reunites the crew of the USS Enterprise for a mysterious mission involving an enormous alien entity known as V’Ger, which approaches Earth with seemingly unstoppable power. Based on the television series created by Gene Roddenberry, Star Trek: The Motion Picture was written by Harold Livingston, with story contributions from Harold Livingston and Alan Dean Foster, and directed by acclaimed filmmaker Robert Wise. In this episode, we put Star Trek: The Motion Picture under the magnifying glass, investigating the extraordinary journey from beloved television series to blockbuster movie. And we are joined by special cinema sleuth Ayesha Khan, host of Every Sci-Fi FIlm Ever podcast! We explore the film’s troubled and famously expensive production, the pressure to bring Star Trek to the big screen after Star Wars' succes s , and the ambitious decision to make a slower, more cerebral science-fiction film rather than simply turning the Enterprise crew into action heroes. We investigate the movie’s visual effects, Jerry Goldsmith’s iconic score, V’Ger mystery, philosophical themes and spectacular Enterprise flyby, and so much more. We also look at the movie’s initial reception, its reputation as “the slow one” , and the reassessment it has received over the years. CASE FILE: STAR TREK: THE MOTION PICTURE (1979) Directed by: Robert Wise Written by: Harold Livingston Based on: Star Trek , created by Gene Roddenberry Starring: William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, George Takei, Nichelle Nichols and Walter Koenig Music by: Jerry Goldsmith Genre: Science Fiction / Space Opera / Adventure / Mystery Was Star Trek: The Motion Picture a misguided attempt to compete with Star Wars — or a bold, beautiful piece of science fiction that was simply misunderstood in its time? CREDITS Cinema Sleuths is produced by Luke Deckard and Matthew Booth Edited by Luke Deckard Music by Luke Deckard Logo by Phil Dragash DISCLAIMER: All content presented in this podcast episode is the property of the podcast creator and is protected under applicable copyright laws. Any copyrighted material used in this episode is used under the principles of fair use for purposes such as commentary, criticism, education, and review. No part of this episode may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior written permission from the copyright holder, except where permitted by law.

The Rip (2026), starring Matt Damon and Ben Affleck and directed by Joe Carnahan, is a Netflix crime thriller that raises the question: has the era of prestige filmmaking left Netflix?

Lanterns is the latest DC property that has enraged the internet. Some fans seem to love it while others are infuriated. Do they have a good reason, or has fan discourse gone too far? We discuss that and whether this show is really worthy of the hate.

The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946) is widely regarded as one of the classic film noirs — but does this celebrated adaptation of James M. Cain’s iconic hard-boiled novel still deserve its reputation? In this episode of Cinema Sleuths, we put The Postman Always Rings Twice to the test. We investigate Tay Garnett’s 1946 film and what made it a landmark of classic Hollywood and film noir.

Was Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990) the perfect adaptation of the original comics — or simply a very different movie hiding beneath the shadow of Turtle-Mania?

THWIP! The summer blockbuster has swung into town — and it’s a giant Spider-Man-sized case for Cinema Sleuths. Has Marvel finally moved on from Iron Man Jr and delivered a great Spider-Man movie again? Does Spider-Man: Brand New Day capture what makes the character so special? And can this new chapter give Peter Parker the fresh start that the title promises? That’s what we want to know.

THWIP! The summer blockbuster has landed! And it's a giant SPIDER! This week, your cinematic sleuths are swinging between skyscrapers, stopping runaway tanks, teaming up with lunatics, and thwarting bank robberies as we investigate SPIDER-MAN BRAND NEW DAY; directed by Destin Daniel Cretton, starring Tom Holland, Zendaya, Sadie Sink, and Jon Bernthal, and written by Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers. Are we back? Do we finally have a GREAT Spider-Man film? Listen and find out. Cinema Sleuths is produced by Luke Deckard & Matthew Booth Edited by Luke Deckard Theme song by Luke Deckard Logo by Phil Dragash DISCLAIMER All content presented in this podcast episode is the property of the podcast creator and is protected under applicable copyright laws. Any copyrighted material used in this episode is used under the principles of fair use for purposes such as commentary, criticism, education, and review. No part of this episode may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior written permission from the copyright holder, except where permitted by law. *All movie and TV clips used in this episode are the property of their respective copyright holders and are used here for the purpose of review and commentary under Fair Dealing / Fair Use. No copyright infringement is intended.*

Have Daredevil and the Punisher finally brought the old Marvel television magic back — or has the MCU moved on without them?

We investigate Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 and The Punisher: One Last Killer to see if Marvel's 2026 R-rated output is really all it's cracked up to be. Join us as we look at both and speculate about Punisher and Daredevil's involvement in Spider-Man Brand New Day! Be warned, spoilers abound! Cinema Sleuths is produced by Luke Deckard & Matthew Booth Edited by Luke Deckard Theme song by Luke Deckard Logo by Phil Dragash DISCLAIMER All content presented in this podcast episode is the property of the podcast creator and is protected under applicable copyright laws. Any copyrighted material used in this episode is used under the principles of fair use for purposes such as commentary, criticism, education, and review. No part of this episode may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior written permission from the copyright holder, except where permitted by law. *All movie and TV clips used in this episode are the property of their respective copyright holders and are used here for the purpose of review and commentary under Fair Dealing / Fair Use. No copyright infringement is intended.*

Luke Deckard and Matthew Booth investigate Verhoeven’s 1987 classic, exploring its savage satire of corporate America, privatisation, consumer culture, sensationalist news and a society increasingly obsessed with violence and entertainment

This week, we're investigating ROBOCOP (1987) starring Peter Weller, Nancy Allen, Ronny Cox, Kurtwood Smith, and Miguel Ferrer. Written by Edward Neumeier and Michael Miner. Directed by Paul Verhoeven. Special guest is Skye from co-host and co-created FILM 89 Cinema Sleuths is produced by Luke Deckard & Matthew Booth Edited by Luke Deckard Theme song by Luke Deckard Logo by Phil Dragash DISCLAIMER All content presented in this podcast episode is the property of the podcast creator and is protected under applicable copyright laws. Any copyrighted material used in this episode is used under the principles of fair use for purposes such as commentary, criticism, education, and review. No part of this episode may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior written permission from the copyright holder, except where permitted by law. *All movie and TV clips used in this episode are the property of their respective copyright holders and are used here for the purpose of review and commentary under Fair Dealing / Fair Use. No copyright infringement is intended.*

In this episode of Cinema Sleuths, we investigate the strange era when two wildly different Sherlock Holmes franchises became mega-hits at almost exactly the same time.

The game is afoot! Between 2009-2012 Sherlock Holmes exploded on the big and small screens with the Robert Downey Jr / Jude Law film directed by Guy Ritchie as well as the hit BBC series SHERLOCK created by Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman. This week, we're looking at the bonkers era in which these mega-hit franchises swept the world before suddenly dropping off the face of the earth. We're joined by Dr Mark Jones from the podcast Doings of Doyle and Sherlockian expert and BSI member Monica Schmidt. DISCLAIMER All content presented in this podcast episode is the property of the podcast creator and is protected under applicable copyright laws. Any copyrighted material used in this episode is used under the principles of fair use for purposes such as commentary, criticism, education, and review. No part of this episode may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior written permission from the copyright holder, except where permitted by law. *All movie and TV clips used in this episode are the property of their respective copyright holders and are used here for the purpose of review and commentary under Fair Use / Fair Dealing. No copyright infringement is intended.*

What went wrong with the early summer blockbusters, from Disclosure Day to Supergirl?

This week, we discuss some of this summer's blockbuster hits and flops. We investigate Supergirl 2026 starring Milly Alcock, Toy Story 5, and Steven Spielberg's DISCLOSURE DAY. Cinema Sleuths is produced by Luke Deckard & Matthew Booth Edited by Luke Deckard Theme song by Luke Deckard Logo by Phil Dragash DISCLAIMER All content presented in this podcast episode is the property of the podcast creator and is protected under applicable copyright laws. Any copyrighted material used in this episode is used under the principles of fair use for purposes such as commentary, criticism, education, and review. No part of this episode may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior written permission from the copyright holder, except where permitted by law. *All movie and TV clips used in this episode are the property of their respective copyright holders and are used here for the purpose of review and commentary under Fair Dealing / Fair Use. No copyright infringement is intended.*

Did Robert Altman misunderstand Chandler’s iconic detective? Or did he create one of the most fascinating reinventions of the noir detective story? Luke Deckard and Matthew Booth investigate Altman’s The Long Goodbye, exploring Elliott Gould’s brilliantly unconventional Marlowe!

This week, we're back with a banger, and we're joined by crime fiction author and expert Maxim Jakubowski! THE CASE: THE LONG GOODBYE 1973 Starring: Elliot Gould, Nina van Pallandt, Sterling Hayden, and Mark Rydell Written by Leigh Brackett Based on the novel: THE LONG GOOBYE by Raymond Chandler Directed by Robert Altman CREDITS Find Maxim's book here: https://maximjakubowski.co.uk/ Mean Streets is produced by Luke Deckard and Matthew Booth Edited by Luke Deckard Music by Luke Deckard Logo by Phil Dragash DISCLAIMER: All content presented in this podcast episode is the property of the podcast creator and is protected under applicable copyright laws. Any copyrighted material used in this episode is used under the principles of fair use for purposes such as commentary, criticism, education, and review. No part of this episode may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior written permission from the copyright holder, except where permitted by law.

Burton’s Planet of the Apes remains one of the most fascinating blockbuster misfires of the early 2000s. But was the film really as bad as its reputation suggests? In this episode, we investigate the troubled road to Planet of the Apes, exploring the many attempts to revive the classic science-fiction franchise before Tim Burton finally took the reins.

This week, WE GO APE with CIMEMA MISFIRES as we look back at 25 years of Tim Burton's PLANET OF THE APES (2001), starring Mark Wahlberg, Tim Roth, Helena Bonham Carter, Michael Clarke Duncan, Kris Kristofferson, Estella Warren, and Paul Giamatti. We map out the crazy road 20th Century Fox took to get there, the better sequel ideas that were ditched along the way, we discuss whether this film even feels like a Tim Burton project... and much more! CINEMA SLEUTHS IS PRODUCED BY Luke DECKARD and Matthew BOOTHE Edited by Luke Deckard Theme Music by Luke Deckard Logo and Thumbnails by Phil Dragash DISCLAIMER All content presented in this podcast episode is the property of the podcast creator and is protected under applicable copyright laws. Any copyrighted material used in this episode is used under the principles of fair use for purposes such as commentary, criticism, education, and review. No part of this episode may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior written permission from the copyright holder, except where permitted by law. *All movie and TV clips used in this episode are the property of their respective copyright holders and are used here for the purpose of review and commentary under Fair Dealing / Fair Use. No copyright infringement is intended.*

In this special Battle of the Big Screen Hulks , Luke Deckard and Matthew Booth put Ang Lee’s Hulk (2003) head-to-head with Marvel’s The Incredible Hulk (2008)