Diminishing Returns
312 episodes - English - Latest episode: 3 months ago - ★★★★★ - 17 ratingsThe podcast where film-fans, Sol Harris and Allen Turing, take a guest on a journey to Development Hell to discuss a film, then pitch their ideas for the sequel.
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Episodes
103 - Caravan of Courage: An Ewok Adventure
May 20, 2018 23:00 - 1 hour - 160 MBThat's right, it's Star Wars time yet again. Now that Disney have committed to pumping out one of these things every single year, we're having to mine the bottom of the Star Wars barrel for films to cover. Case in point: this week, to tie in with Solo: A Star Wars Story, we bring you The Ewoks Adventure. We cover both Caravan of Courage and The Battle for Endor. That leaves three Star Wars movies and then we've covered all of them. And that'll be the end of it forever, right?
102 - Deadpool
May 14, 2018 22:45 - 1 hour - 66.2 MBCalvin shat the bed and we nearly released an episode late, but it's still Monday... just. Here's Deadpool, in anticipation of Deadpool 2 which comes out tomorrow. Enjoy!
101 - Labyrinth
May 07, 2018 12:17 - 46 minutes - 34.7 MB100 episodes down, Diminishing Returns go back to their usual schtick with nostalgia-laden classic Labyrinth. Lots of Bowie, unsurprisingly.
100 - The Big Diminishing Returns Quiz
April 30, 2018 01:52 - 1 hour - 69.5 MBWe somehow made it to the number when people start getting syndication deals. Someone give us some money. In this episode, film reviews are thrown out of the window in favour of just having a big movie quiz game because, screw it: 100 episodes!
99 - The Avengers
April 23, 2018 00:04 - 1 hour - 214 MBWe've covered Iron Man, Doctor Strange, Thor, Thor: The Dark World, Thor: Ragnarok, the Captain America trilogy, Spider-Man: Homecoming and Guardians of the Galaxy volumes 1 and 2. Time to bring it all together in this delightful team-up episode. (Yeah, we know. We've still got The Incredible Hulk, Iron Man 2 and 3, Ant-Man and Black Panther to deal with. That's phase 2).
96 - Kung Fu Hustle
April 02, 2018 00:58 - 54 minutes - 125 MBThis week, Diminishing Returns take on the cult / mainstream (depending on what country you're in) martial arts comedy Kung Fu Hustle. Also, there's a good amount of Nicolas Cage in this one for some reason.
95 - God's Not Dead
March 26, 2018 03:16 - 1 hour - 218 MBIn the first ever Diminishing Returns Easter Special, we take on overblown Christian nonsense-film God's Not Dead, all ahead of the upcoming release of God's Not Dead: A Light in Darkness which is clearly set to be one of 2018's film highlights. Also, God's Not Dead 2. Warning: there's a whiff of antitheism about this one.
94 - Pacific Rim
March 19, 2018 01:00 - 47 minutes - 108 MBPacific Rim: Uprising is upon us like some sort of kaiju invasion, so Diminishing Returns is getting into a proverbial jaeger so that it can take on the beast that is Pacific Rim. Is it any good? Opinions are split.
93 - Tomb Raider
March 11, 2018 23:43 - 1 hour - 54.5 MBDiminishing Returns: Podcast:: Episode 93::: Tomb Raider:::: The Video Game, But Also the Film::::: Lara Croft:::::: Tomb Raider. Yeah, we're doing Tomb Raider because there's a new Tomb Raider movie out soon. Also, there's a video game themed music quiz!
92 - Diamonds Are Forever
March 05, 2018 01:10 - 1 hour - 65.3 MBIt's Diminishing Returns. It's James Bond. It's Diamonds Are Forever.
91 - Oscars 2018
February 26, 2018 00:54 - 1 hour - 64.2 MBWe're coming up to the 90th Academy Awards, so here's the 91st episode of Diminishing Returns, covering all of this year's Best Picture nominees (Call Me By Your Name, Darkest Hour, Dunkirk, Get Out, Ladybird, Phantom Thread, The Post, The Shape of Water and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri) as well as some other bits and pieces including a retrospective look at a few of last year's award winners.
90 - A Clockwork Orange
February 19, 2018 00:57 - 1 hour - 178 MBFirst, we covered Calvin's favourite film with an episode on Psycho. Now, we're bringing you part 2 of The Diminishing Returns Favourite Films Trilogy (tm) with Sol's favourite: A Clockwork Orange. Maybe we'll bring you a third episode on Allen's favourite film one day, if he's ever able to stop hating everything long enough to decide on a favourite.
89 - Captain America: The First Avenger
February 11, 2018 21:41 - 1 hour - 70.5 MBBlack Panther is out this week so we're taking a look back at his debut in Captain America: Civil War. Of course, before we get there, we discuss The First Avenger and The Winter Soldier, too. It's a veritable smörgåsbord of Marvel Cinematic Universe delights!
88 - Fifty Shades Darker
February 04, 2018 22:28 - 1 hour - 166 MBOur Fifty Shades of Grey episode went down so well that we figured we kind of had to cover the next one, what with Fifty Shades Freed coming out. Consider this the second in part of a new Valentine's Day tradition where the Diminishing Returns gags sit down and give away far, far too much personal information.
87 - Sunshine
January 29, 2018 13:31 - 1 hour - 80.3 MBIn one of the strangest choices of films to cover on the show yet, this week's episode takes a look at Danny Boyle's 2007 sci-fi effort Sunshine. They blinded me with science.
86 - The Maze Runner
January 22, 2018 00:56 - 1 hour - 54.2 MBIf there's one thing Diminishing Returns is good at, it's appealing to the youth... the cool kids. This episode is just for the young adults of the world; those youths that read young-adult fiction like The Maze Runner and then go to watch the young-adult movies based on the books like The Maze Runner. If it reads like this was written by someone too old to appreciate stuff for the kids, then that's probably because you're too old to get where the kids are even coming from... granddad. Go and...
85 - Back to the Future
January 14, 2018 23:45 - 1 hour - 65.6 MBThe long-awaited listener vote episode is finally here! Listen as we explore 1985 followed by 1955 followed by 1985, 2015, alternate 1985, 1955, 1885, then 1985 again (in that order) with this episode covering Back to the Future, Back to the Future Part II and Back to the Future Part III. As always, we pitch our own ideas for sequels to the trilogy and there's a Christopher Lloyd audio quiz, too. Great jigawatts[sic]!
84 - Another Diminishing Returns Outtakes Show
January 07, 2018 23:50 - 1 hour - 137 MBOur previous outtakes episode went down pretty well, so here's another one. Don't worry; we're all fine. We just wanted to burn this episode off before it got even more outdated than it already is - plus it meant that we could chill out after not taking a week off the show over Christmas. This episode contains previously unheard outtakes from: - "Oscars 2017" - "Live-Action Disney Remakes" - "Guardians of the Galaxy" - "Suicide Squad" - "Review of the Year 2017: Part 1" and - "Thunderball"
83 - Review of the Year 2017: Part 2
January 01, 2018 21:16 - 2 hours - 403 MBWe follow up our first Review of the Year 2017 episode with a look back at the last six months of film releases. This episode contains reviews of: - The Mummy (2017) - Transformers: The Last Knight - Despicable Me 3 - War for the Planet of the Apes - Death Note (2017) - It (2017) - The LEGO Ninjago Movie - Kingsman: The Golden Circle - Blade Runner 2049 - Cult of Chucky - Jigsaw - Thor: Ragnarok - Justice League - The Disaster Artist - Star Wars: The Last Jedi and - Jumanji: Welcome to the Ju...
82 - Christmas Special: Love Actually
December 24, 2017 14:26 - 1 hour - 246 MBHere's an early Christmas gift: a Diminishing Returns holiday episode. Yes, we're doing Love Actually instead of Die Hard (you'll hear why in the episode, itself). There's also a Christmas movie music quiz in there which is jolly good fun.
81 - Jumanji
December 18, 2017 11:14 - 1 hour - 51.7 MBThe Last Jedi is here. Star Wars season is over. That's it for Star Wars (until the week after next). In its place, we bring you an episode on 1995 family classic Jumanji. We look back to the Robin Williams-fueled '90s nostalgia-fest in anticipation of Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (and we touch on the sort-of-but-not-quite-sequel Zathura, too).
80 - Star Wars season: The Force Awakens
December 10, 2017 23:18 - 1 hour - 236 MBThe final part in the trilogy of the Diminishing Returns Star Wars season. We've covered The Prequel Trilogy, we've covered Rogue One and, now, we're covering Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens. Is it the shot in the arm Star Wars needed or is it a shot-for-shot remake of A New Hope without the charm? We get into it, plus what we're expecting from The Last Jedi, here! Oh, and, like in our recent On Her Majesty's Secret Service episode, there's a Star Wars music quiz, too. Think yo...
79 - Star Wars season: Rogue One
December 03, 2017 23:45 - 1 hour - 71.6 MBStar Wars season continues in the run up to the release of The Last Jedi. We did the prequel trilogy last week, so now we're following on with the next film in the series' internal chronology: Rogue One. How does it stack up against all the "real" Star Wars movies in the Skywalker saga?
78 - Star Wars season: The Prequel Trilogy
November 27, 2017 00:49 - 1 hour - 234 MBThat's right, Star Wars season: a trilogy of episodes dedicated to the Star Wars movies we didn't cover in our last episode looking at the original trilogy. With the upcoming release of The Last Jedi, in the coming weeks, we'll be turning our attention to Rogue One and The Force Awakens. This week, however, we're tackling the infamous prequel trilogy made up of Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace, Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones and Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the ...
77 - The Room
November 20, 2017 02:38 - 1 hour - 55.8 MBDiminishing Returns takes on "the worst movie of all time", Tommy Wiseau's infamous 2003 disasterpiece, The Room. Is it really that bad? Also, what's the deal with this James Franco movie coming out called The Disaster Artist?
76 - Wonder Woman
November 13, 2017 00:27 - 1 hour - 63.7 MBExactly what the world needed: three white men telling the world how to feel about feminism. That's right, Diminishing Returns turns its three heads to Wonder Woman! Gal Gadot and Chris Pine proving that DC movies don't have to be shit! Why Wonder Woman? Why now? Because Justice League is out soon. Justice League! It's probably going to be rubbish but maybe it won't be! Woohoo! Diminishing Returns!!!
75 - On Her Majesty's Secret Service
November 06, 2017 00:29 - 1 hour - 273 MBWe've covered the original Connery run of Bond movies. Now it's time to look at George Lazenby's short-lived turn in those spy shoes. Is Lazenby any good? Is "Bond" a codename? Is the world ready for a fat James Bond? All these questions and more are answered in this week's edition of Diminishing Returns! This episode also features The Big Bond Theme Quiz. Will Allen successfully identify the official James Bond music from the spoofs and imitations? Listen to find out!
74 - Podcast of Horror II: The Blair Witch Project (with Eduardo Sánchez)
October 30, 2017 00:33 - 2 hours - 290 MBIt's the 2nd Diminishing Returns Halloween special! And with special guest, director of The Blair Witch Project, Eduardo Sanchez! We've done this two years running, so it's now officially an annual tradition. Celebrate with us by listening as we discuss and review The Blair Witch Project, Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2 and 2016's Blair Witch (the third one with a similar name to the first one). Not only do we do the usual thing of pitching our own ideas for what the next sequel should be, ...
73 - Thor
October 22, 2017 23:41 - 56 minutes - 40.6 MBIt's another Marvel episode. We've done Iron Man and Guardians of the Galaxy; this time, it's Thor and Thor: The Dark World. You know the drill.
72 - Saw
October 16, 2017 01:52 - 1 hour - 262 MBIt's still October, so it's still the run-up to Halloween so we're still indulging in celebrating horror franchises! Hot on the heels of last week's episode covering the 6-part Child's Play series, we're now taking a look at the even larger Saw franchise spanning seven Saw movies from Saw to Saw 3D, all in the run-up to the new film, kickstarting the franchise: Jigsaw.
71 - Child's Play
October 09, 2017 01:16 - 1 hour - 224 MBIn movie circles, October is basically just "horror month". We get our horror month off to a great start with this episode; a restrospective of the Child's Play (aka Chucky) series, spanning Child's Play, Child's Play 2, Child's Play 3, Bride of Chucky, Seed of Chucky, Curse of Chucky and a look at the upcoming Cult of Chucky. As always, as well as weighing in on the films, we pitch our own ideas for sequels to the long-running series sequels.
70 - Blade Runner
October 01, 2017 22:47 - 1 hour - 48.9 MBIt's a cult favourite but what lies beneath the hype? We break down the pros and cons of Ridley Scott's dystopian classic Blade Runner and take a look at the many different versions of the film.
69 - The Godfather
September 24, 2017 23:33 - 1 hour - 197 MBIn a bid to do something special for the 69th edition of Diminishing Returns, we bring you an episode covering The Godfather, often regarded as the greatest film ever made. We also cover The Godfather: Part II, also often regarded as the greatest film ever made. Oh, and The Godfather: Part III, extremely rarely regarded as the greatest film ever made. This may go down as the most controversial episode of the show's run because... let's just say maybe we don't all love the series...
68 - Kingsman: The Secret Service
September 18, 2017 01:11 - 1 hour - 79.8 MBThis ought to tide the Bond fans over for a little while: an episode covering 2014's Kingsman: The Secret Service and looking forward to Kingsman: The Golden Circle. Given Calvin's tastes, it's safe to assume that James Bond comes up a lot in this episode, alongside Colin Firth, Matthew Vaughn, Samuel L. Jackson and a whole heap of other things.
67 - The LEGO Batman Movie
September 11, 2017 01:21 - 54 minutes - 39.6 MBBut we haven't done The LEGO Movie yet! It's fine. It's fine. We're doing LEGO Batman first. It's more fun. Yes, this week, we're looking at, reviewing and pitching sequels to The LEGO Batman Movie, tying into the upcoming release of the upcoming The LEGO Ninjago Movie. Oh, and there's a listener competition at some point - so have a listen and keep your eyes peeled on our social media accounts and website (www.dimreturns.com) for more details.
66 - It
September 04, 2017 00:07 - 1 hour - 166 MBIn anticipation of the new film adaptation of Stephen King's 1986 novel, It, we take a look at the book, a look at the 1990 mini-series (or TV movie, depending on who you ask) and, of course, the upcoming film that will be swapping Tim Curry for Bill Skarsgård as Pennywise, "the dancing clown". This episode is absolutely full of Tim Curry and full of clowns.
65 - Beavis and Butt-Head Do America
August 27, 2017 23:16 - 1 hour - 194 MBDiminishing Returns takes a break from the summer blockbusters to go back two decades and dig out the old VHS tapes of Beavis and Butt-Head. The leap from small to large screen has rarely been handled with greater skill but the young reprobates may not be to everyone's taste.
64 - Death Note
August 21, 2017 00:08 - 1 hour - 182 MBWith Netflix's upcoming American adaptation of the Death Note manga, we take a look at the four Japanese movies and the TV series before, as always, pitching our own ideas for Death Note sequels.
63 - The Shallows
August 13, 2017 23:43 - 1 hour - 70.2 MBWe already did Jaws, Ted! It's a different film! It's a very different film! It's a different shark! This week, we explore Blake Lively vehicle, The Shallows, directed by Juame Collett-Serra, then pitch our own sequels with ideas ranging from a Speed knock-off to something involving Gary Lineker going on a crisp safari... well, sort of.
62 - Crank
August 07, 2017 12:07 - 1 hour - 56.5 MBThis week, things get frantic as we look at the high-octane, Jason Statham action-movies, Crank and Crank: High Voltage. For once, Calvin has his derogatory hat on, as he takes Allen and Sol to task for liking the films. Imagine our Transformers episode in reverse.
61 - You Only Live Twice
July 31, 2017 00:51 - 1 hour - 161 MBThe long-awaited return to the James Bond franchise is finally here... and without wanting to sound as arrogant as Bond, himself, it might just be the best episode of the show to date. We give you some in-depth film chat, some particularly high-calibre pitches for sequels to You Only Live Twice, and, because it's a special occasion, a whopping 15 special guest stars! This week's sequel pitches include Bond getting into the #YOLO mindset from several years ago, Bond becoming a Friday the 13th...
60 - So It's Come to This: A Diminishing Returns Outtakes Show
July 23, 2017 23:31 - 56 minutes - 41.6 MBWe typically spend somewhere over 3 hours recording episodes of the show. As you can see, this is then edited down into something usually under 2 hours in length. We cut a lot of good stuff for the sake of time or purely because we're going off on too much of a tangent, so in this episode, please enjoy a whole load of all-new material that was cut from some of our classic episodes. This episode contains previously-unheard outtakes from: "It's a Wonderful Life" "M. Night Shyamalan season: Unb...
59 - Rise of the Planet of the Apes
July 17, 2017 01:02 - 1 hour - 141 MBWe covered the original Planet of the Apes movies last week, so this week, we're doing the current Apes franchise (Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes and War for the Planet of the Apes) starring Andy Serkis as Caesar. We also look at Tim Burton's remake because why not? As always, we cap things off by pitching our own ideas for what a new Planet of the Apes movie could be like.
58 - Planet of the Apes
July 09, 2017 22:21 - 1 hour - 63.2 MBWar of the Planet of the Apes is out this week, capping off a trilogy of snazzy, modern apes movies, but before the franchise was a surprisingly intelligent and emotionally resonant, it was a load of films in the '60s and '70s about chimp-men with coconut-faces, running around, causing chaos for people like Charlton Heston. We dive into those original films (Planet of the Apes, Beneath the Planet of the Apes, Escape from the Planet of the Apes, Conquest of the Planet of the Apes and Battle fo...
57 - Spider-Man
July 02, 2017 23:20 - 1 hour - 240 MBDiminishing Returns returns to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which, with this week's release of Spider-Man: Homecoming, itself returns to the characters of Spider-Man and Iron Man, last seen in Captain America: Civil War. This episode takes an in-depth look at Sam Raimi's trilogy of films that helped shape the modern superhero genre (as well as, inevitably, touching on his Evil Dead movies) before getting to The Amazing Spider-Man 1 and 2 and various, cancelled Spider-Man projects.
56 - Minions
June 25, 2017 23:29 - 1 hour - 68.8 MBThe Minions are quickly assimilating themselves into all areas of life; films, games, phone covers, shampoo, cereal... and now episodes of Diminishing Returns. With Despicable Me 3 out soon, we let the Minions take over the show for a week with a look at their spin-off movie and both Despicable Me and Despicable Me 2. As always, we pitch some Minion movies of our own.
55 - Transformers
June 18, 2017 21:50 - 1 hour - 55.4 MBIn case the current heatwave didn't tip you off, you know you're deep into Summer when a new Transformers movie comes along. Transformers: The Last Knight is out this week, so we took a look at 1986's Transformers: The Movie, as well as Michael Bay's 2007 effort, Transformers, and its sequels (Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, Transformers: Dark of the Moon and Transformers: Age of Extinction). We also discuss things like Hollywood commercialism, Shia LaBeouf's career before he stopped be...
54 - Review of the Year 2017: Part 1
June 12, 2017 00:20 - 1 hour - 269 MBHappy birthday, Diminishing Returns! 1 year old today (well, last week, actually, but we wanted to cover The Mummy). In order to prevent our end of year review episode being 5 hours long, we decided to celebrate our 1-year anniversary with a look back at the last 6 months of cinema (and some films we wanted to revisit from last time). This episode contains reviews of: - Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children - Star Wars: Rogue One - M. Night Shyamalan's Split - Fifty Shades Darker - L...