The podcast where film-fans Allen Turing and Sol Harris take a weekly journey to Development Hell to discuss a film, then pitch their ideas for the sequel.
Guest: Alana Johnston
Listen on:
iTunes
Android
SoundCloud
Stitcher
PlayerFM
Diminishing Returns are joined by Alana Johnston to tackle the divisive WW84 (or Wonder Woman 1984, depending on who you ask). To quote Alana: "It's a wild ride".
Films covered in this episode:
WW84
Alana: ✰ ✰ ½
Allen: ✰ ✰ ½
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 57%
Guests: Calvin Dyson, Judey Bignell and Chris Hunter
Films covered in this episode:
Deadpool 2
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 70%
Solo: A Star Wars Story
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ✰
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 64%
Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom
Allen: ✰ ✰
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Overall score: 67%
Incredibles 2
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Overall score: 77%
Ant-Man and the Wasp
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 67%
Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again
Allen: ✰ ✰
Judey: ✰
Sol: ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 37%
Mission: Impossible - Fallout
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 70%
The Nun
Allen: ✰ ✰
Sol: ✰ ✰
Overall score: 40%
The Predator
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Overall score: 70%
Johnny English Strikes Again
Allen: ✰ ✰ ½
Judey: ✰ ✰ ✰
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰
Overall score: 57%
Halloween (2018)
Allen: ✰ ✰ ½
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 67%
Suspiria (2018)
Allen: n/s
Sol: ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 50%
The Grinch
Allen: ✰ ✰ ½
Sol: ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 50%
Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald
Allen: ✰ ✰ ½
Chris: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Sol: ✰ ✰
Overall score: 54%
Creed II
Allen: ✰ ✰ ½
Judey: n/s
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Overall score: 65%
Aquaman
Allen: ✰ ½
Judey: ✰ ✰
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰
Overall score: 44%
It's that time, again! Diminishing Returns present their biggest episode ever: a solid three-hours looking back at the releases of 2018 covered on the show and more...
Sol and Allen are joined by Calvin Dyson, Judey Bignell and Chris Hunter to ring in the new year (or, to put it more accurately, ring out the old one). Also, there's a music quiz. All in all, it's bloody good listening.
Listen on:
iTunes
Android
SoundCloud
Guest: Chris Hammond
Films covered in this episode:
Justice League
Allen: ✰ ✰ ½
Calvin: ✰ ✰
Chris: ✰ ✰
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 50%
This week, Diminishing Returns collides with the Spoilt Milk Movie Podcast as guest Chris Hammond joins Allen and Sol to discuss DC's best attempt at an answer to The Avengers: Justice League. There's talk of the DC universe in general seeing as Aquaman is out soon.
Listen on:
iTunes
Android
SoundCloud
Episodes in the DC Cinematic Universe series:
"Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice"
"Suicide Squad"
"Wonder Woman"
”Justice League”
We also spoke about Justice League in:
"Review of the Year 2017: Part 2"
Our 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.
Listen on:
iTunes
Android
SoundCloud
This episode contains previously unheard cut material from:
"Oscars 2017"
"Live-Action Disney Remakes"
"Guardians of the Galaxy"
"Suicide Squad"
"Review of the Year 2017: Part 1"
and
"Thunderball"
Outtakes Episodes:
"So It's Come to This: A Diminishing Returns Outtakes Show"
"Another Diminishing Returns Outtakes Show"
"The Diminishing Returns 107th Episode Spectacular"
Review of the Year 2017:
Part 1
Part 2
Films covered in this episode:
The Mummy
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ½
Sol: n/s
Overall score: 55%
Resident Evil: The Final Chapter
Allen: ½
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ½
Sol: n/s
Overall score: 30%
Transformers: The Last Knight
Allen: ✰ ½
Calvin: n/s
Sol: n/s
Overall score: 30%
Despicable Me 3
Allen: ✰ ✰
Calvin: n/s
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰
Overall score: 50%
Spider-Man: Homecoming
Allen: ✰ ✰ ½
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Overall score: 70%
War for the Planet of the Apes
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 77%
Death Note
Allen: ✰ ✰ ½
Calvin: n/s
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰
Overall score: 55%
It
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Calvin: n/s
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Overall score: 75%
The LEGO Ninjago Movie
Allen: ✰ ✰ ½
Calvin: n/s
Sol: n/s
Overall score: 50%
Kingsman: The Golden Circle
Allen: ✰ ½
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Sol: n/s
Overall score: 34%
Blade Runner 2049
Allen: ✰ ✰ ½
Calvin: n/s
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Overall score: 65%
Cult of Chucky
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Sol: n/s
Overall score: 65%
Jigsaw
Allen: ✰ ✰ ½
Calvin: n/s
Sol: n/s
Overall score: 50%
Thor: Ragnarok
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰
Calvin: n/s
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 75%
Justice League
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰
Calvin: ✰ ✰
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 57%
The Disaster Artist
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Overall score: 74%
Star Wars: The Last Jedi
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ½
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 60%
Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Calvin: n/s
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 70%
We 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 Jungle
Allen also put a quiz together for this episode with questions focusing on each film, which is probably why this has ended up being our longest episode to date. Sorry about that or you're welcome depending on your views on long episodes. We didn't want to cut our Last Jedi argument too short, after all.
Listen on:
iTunes
Android
SoundCloud
This episode is a continuation of the following episodes:
"The Mummy"
"Transformers"
"Minions"
"Spider-Man"
"Rise of the Planet of the Apes"
"Death Note"
"It"
"The LEGO Batman Movie"
"Kingsman: The Secret Service"
"Blade Runner"
"Child's Play"
"Saw"
"Thor"
"Wonder Woman"
"The Room"
"Star Wars: The Force Awakens"
"Jumanji"
Review of the Year episodes:
"Review of the Year 2016"
"Review of the Year 2017: Part 1"
"Review of the Year 2017: Part 2"
"Review of the Year 2018: Part 1"
Films covered in this episode:
Wonder Woman
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 74%
Exactly 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!!!
Listen on:
iTunes
Android
SoundCloud
Episodes in the DC Extended Universe series:
"Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice"
"Suicide Squad"
"Wonder Woman"
We review Justice League in:
"Review of the Year 2017: Part 2"
Review of the Year 2017:
Part 1
Part 2
Happy 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
- Rogue One
- Split
- Fifty Shades Darker
- Logan
- Kong: Skull Island
- Disney's live-action remake of Beauty and the Beast
- Power Rangers
- the live-action Ghost in the Shell remake
- The Fate of the Furious
- season 4 of Bates Motel
- Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
- Alien: Covenant
- Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales (aka Salazar's Revenge)
- Wonder Woman
...and more!
There's also some games, special guests and all the usual fun and japes (and arguments) that come with the show. Be sure to listen to the end!
Listen on:
iTunes
Android
SoundCloud
Films covered in this episode:
Rogue One
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 77%
Split
Allen: ✰ ✰ ½
Calvin: n/s
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Overall score: 65%
Enjoy our film soundtrack comparison in the episode? Hans Zimmer: god of film-composers or rip-off merchant? Here's a clean listening post without us talking over the music so that you can decide for yourself.
Resident Evil: The Final Chapter
Allen: ½
Calvin: n/s
Sol: n/s
Overall score: 10%
Rings
Allen: ✰ ✰ ½
Calvin: n/s
Sol: n/s
Overall score: 50%
Fifty Shades Darker
Allen: ✰ ✰
Calvin: n/s
Sol: n/s
Overall score: 40%
Logan
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Overall score: 80%
Kong: Skull Island
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰
Calvin: n/s
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Overall score: 70%
Beauty and the Beast (2017)
Allen: ✰ ✰ ½
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ✰
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 60%
Power Rangers
Allen: ✰ ✰ ½
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Sol: n/s
Overall score: 60%
Ghost in the Shell (2017)
Allen: ✰ ✰ ½
Calvin: n/s
Sol: n/s
Overall score: 50%
The Fate of the Furious
Allen: ✰ ✰ ½
Calvin: n/s
Sol: n/s
Overall score: 50%
Bates Motel (season 4)
Allen: n/s
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 80%
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰
Calvin: n/s
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 65%
The Belko Experiment
Allen: n/s
Calvin: n/s
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Overall score: 80%
Alien: Covenant
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 80%
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales
Allen: ✰ ✰ ½
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ½
Sol: n/s
Overall score: 50%
Wonder Woman
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰ (rated post-episode)
Calvin: n/s
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 75%
This episode is a continuation of the following episodes:
"Tim Burton"
"Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi"
"Review of the Year 2016"
"M. Night Shyamalan season: Unbreakable"
"M. Night Shyamalan season: The Happening"
"Resident Evil: Retribution"
"The Ring"
"Fifty Shades of Grey"
"Oscars 2017"
"The Wolverine"
"King Kong"
"Live-Action Disney Remakes"
"Power Rangers"
"Ghost in the Shell"
"The Fast and the Furious"
"Psycho"
"Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2"
"Alien season: The Alien Quadrilogy"
"Alien season: The Prometheus Unology"
"Pirates of the Caribbean"
"Suicide Squad"
"The Mummy"
Review of the Year episodes:
"Review of the Year 2016"
"Review of the Year 2017: Part 1"
"Review of the Year 2017: Part 2"
"Review of the Year 2018: Part 1"
Released 29/05/2017
In a Diminishing Returns first, here's an episode about a film that we did an episode tying into (yes, we've been going so long that things are going to start getting meta).
If you haven't already heard it, got and listen to our Review of the Year 2016 episode, in which Calvin and Allen butt heads over whether Suicide Squad is a solid action movie or complete and utter dross. Afterwards, come back and listen to this one in order to hear Sol cast the deciding vote
All before some of the usual sequel-pitches and general pratting about.
Listen on:
iTunes
Android
SoundCloud
PlayerFM
Episodes in the DC Extended Universe series:
"Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice"
"Suicide Squad"
"Wonder Woman"
We review Wonder Woman in:
"Review of the Year 2017: Part 1"
and
"Wonder Woman"
Released 26/12/2016
This classic episode is in the Diminishing Returns vault. Sign up to our Patreon for as little as £1 to access our back-catalogue episodes!
It's Boxing Day, and in less than a week, it'll be 2017, so why not get comfy in your favourite chair, help yourself to a nice plate of Christmas leftovers and recover from yesterday's antics with a nice, relaxing Diminishing Returns? Well, we say "relaxing", but this one gets pretty full-on at times as film-Scrooge, Allen Turing, repeatedly butts heads with Calvin and Sol regarding the movie offerings of 2016.
This is a retrospective episode of the show, looking back at the last 29 editions of the podcast, and that essentially means that we cover a whole heap of films listed below (and more).
Films covered in this episode:
Finding Dory
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ✰
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 64%
Independence Day: Resurgence
Allen: ✰ ✰ ½
Calvin: n/s
Sol: n/s
Overall score: 50%
Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 77%
Ghostbusters (2016)
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Calvin: n/s
Sol: ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 60%
Star Trek Beyond
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Calvin: n/s
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 70%
Jason Bourne
Allen: ✰ ✰
Calvin: n/s
Sol: n/s
Overall score: 40%
Suicide Squad
Allen: ✰ ✰ (revised from original score of ✰ ✰ ✰ ½)
Calvin: ✰ ✰
Sol: ✰ ½
Overall score: 37%
David Brent: Life on the Road
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Calvin: n/s
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 80%
Ben-Hur (2016)
Allen: ✰ ✰
Calvin: n/s
Sol: n/s
Overall score: 40%
Bridget Jones's Baby
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Sol: n/s
Overall score: 80%
Ash vs Evil Dead (season 2)
Allen: n/s
Calvin: n/s
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Overall score: 80%
Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children
Allen: ✰
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ½
Sol: ✰ ✰ (rated in subsequent review of the year episode)
Overall score: 37%
Inferno
Allen: ✰ ✰ ½
Calvin: n/s
Sol: n/s
Overall score: 50%
Doctor Strange
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 67%
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Allen: ✰ ✰ ½
Calvin: n/s
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 60%
Moana
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Overall score: 84%
This episode is a continuation of the following episodes:
"Finding Nemo"
"Independence Day"
"Absolutely Fabulous"
"Ghostbusters II"
"Star Trek Into Darkness"
"The Bourne Legacy"
"Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice"
"The Office"
"Ben-Hur"
"Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason"
"Evil Dead"
"Tim Burton"
"The Da Vinci Code"
"Iron Man"
"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2"
"Frozen"
Some discussion from this episode is continued in:
"Review of the Year 2017: Part 1"
Review of the Year episodes:
"Review of the Year 2016"
"Review of the Year 2017: Part 1"
"Review of the Year 2017: Part 2"
"Review of the Year 2018: Part 1"
Released 01/08/2016 as “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice”
This classic episode is in the Diminishing Returns vault. Sign up to our Patreon for as little as £1 to access our back-catalogue episodes!
Diminishing Returns presents a Batman epic, spanning 2 hours, in which Allen, Calvin and Sol embark on a whistle-stop tour of the screen iterations of Batman, covering everything from the 1943 movie serial to the upcoming Suicide Squad. Oh, and Superman also.
Films covered in this episode:
The Batman (1943)
Allen: n/s
Calvin: n/s
Sol: ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 50%
Batman: The Movie (1966)
Allen: n/s
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Overall score: 75%
Batman (1989)
Allen: ✰ ✰ ½
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 64%
Batman Returns
Allen: ✰ ✰
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 67%
Batman Forever
Allen: ✰ ½
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ½
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰
Overall score: 47%
Batman & Robin
Allen: ✰ ✰ ½
Calvin: ✰ ½
Sol: ✰ ½
Overall score: 37%
Batman Begins
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 74%
The Dark Knight
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Sol: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 87%
The Dark Knight Rises
Allen: ✰ ✰ ✰
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰
Sol: ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 64%
Man of Steel
Allen: ✰ ✰ ½
Calvin: ✰ ✰ ½
Sol: ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 50%
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
Allen: ✰ ✰
Calvin: ✰ ✰
Sol: ✰ ✰ ½
Overall score: 44%
We review Suicide Squad in:
"Review of the Year 2016"
and
"Suicide Squad"
Allen's review of Suicide Squad
Episodes in the DC Extended Universe series:
"Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice"
"Suicide Squad"
"Wonder Woman"
You might also be interested in:
"The LEGO Batman Movie"