A bus. A bomb. And one very important rule: don’t drop below 50 mph.

This week on A Reel Pain, it’s John’s Millennial pick as he introduces Matthew to the 1994 action classic Speed, starring Keanu Reeves, Sandra Bullock, Dennis Hopper and Jeff Daniels. John grew up with this one—but can a Gen Z first-time viewer get past the ridiculous physics, impossible bus jumps and peak ’90s action-movie logic?

Turns out, Matthew might be a lot more on board than John expected. From Keanu’s one-liners and Sandra Bullock’s performance to the practical effects, the subway finale and one of the greatest uses of “shoot the hostage” ever put on screen, we’re breaking down everything that makes Speed such a ridiculously fun ride.

Does Speed still deserve to be called an action classic more than 30 years later? And more importantly… did the Millennial finally pick a movie Gen Z couldn’t tear apart?

Subscribe to A Reel Pain for new episodes every week as a Millennial and Gen Z trade movies from their generations and decide which ones actually deserve to be called classics.

It’s time for one of Gen Z’s sacred childhood movies. Matthew makes John watch Diary of a Wimpy Kid for the first time, a movie Matthew remembers being so convincing as a kid that it genuinely made him nervous about going to middle school. Now, more than 15 years later, does the movie still hold up without the nostalgia?

John and Matthew revisit the Cheese Touch, Rowley’s undeniable greatness, Rodrick and Löded Diper, the surprisingly massive number of memes this movie created, and one very important question: Are we actually supposed to be rooting for Greg Heffley? Matthew also makes the absolutely outrageous comparison between Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules and Terminator 2… which goes over about as well as you’d expect.

Two generations. One movie. Very different childhoods. Watch until the end to see where John and Matthew’s ratings land—and stick around for John’s next Millennial pick: Speed with Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock.

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Some movies survive purely on nostalgia. School of Rock might actually be better than we remembered.

This week on A Reel Pain, John introduces Matthew to the 2003 Jack Black classic School of Rock — a movie that somehow slipped completely past a music-loving Gen Z kid. From Dewey Finn’s questionable substitute-teaching methods and the ridiculously talented kids to Joan Cusack, “sticking it to the man,” and one of the most fun endings ever put on film, there’s a lot here that still absolutely rocks.

But does a movie built around landlines, CDs, rock bands, and casually sneaking children out of school still work more than 20 years later? Matthew expected to find plenty to criticize. Instead, he walked away wishing School of Rock had been part of his childhood — and John might have somehow talked himself into liking the movie even more.

Watch the full episode to see where School of Rock lands in the final ratings, and let us know in the comments: Does this movie still rock, or is nostalgia doing some heavy lifting?

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Matthew brings one of his ultimate childhood movies to the podcast: TMNT, the edgy 2007 animated adventure filled with mutant monsters, Linkin Park energy and enough early-2000s attitude to fuel an entire generation. John is watching it for the first time, but Matthew may have first seen it on a highly questionable bootleg DVD.

The guys revisit the film’s aging animation, relentless one-liners, surprisingly stacked voice cast and the incredible rain-soaked showdown between Leonardo and Raphael. Is that fight still one of the best sequences in the entire Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise, or is nostalgia doing some serious heavy lifting?By the final ratings, the real surprise is not whether TMNT still holds up, it is which generation ends up defending it the most. Watch the full episode, share your rating and subscribe for more generational movie debates from A Reel Pain.

The first rule of A Reel Pain is apparently to immediately talk about Fight Club. This week, John revisits David Fincher’s 1999 cult classic while Matthew watches it with the movie’s biggest twist somehow still intact. What starts as a review quickly becomes a debate about Tyler Durden, consumerism, masculinity, cult behavior and whether this is one of the most creatively edited movies of its era.

John explains why Fight Club hit so hard when he was a high school freshman—including the real-life “fight club” at his school—while Matthew reacts to the unforgettable reveal, Brad Pitt’s crop tops, Jared Leto’s surprise appearance and an ending that leaves him conflicted. They also break down their favorite scenes, hidden clues, filmmaking details and the movie’s surprisingly relevant message.

Did Fight Club earn its status as a modern classic, or is it the kind of movie you only need to experience once? Watch the full episode and share your rating in the comments.

Warning: This episode immediately breaks the first two rules and contains major spoilers.

What happens when a group of terminally online Gen Z friends lose power, lose cell service, and immediately begin accusing each other of murder? This week on A Reel Pain, Matthew brings the 2022 slasher-comedy Bodies Bodies Bodies for John to watch for the first time.

John and Matthew break down the movie’s chaotic characters, surprisingly smart satire, phone-powered cinematography, atmospheric sound design, Pete Davidson’s performance, and an ending that completely changes how the entire story should be viewed. Is it just another slasher about rich young people making terrible decisions—or is it one of the sharpest critiques of internet culture and performative friendships?

Both hosts entered the discussion with strong ratings, but the deeper they dig into the movie’s hidden details, unreliable characters, and clever use of lighting, the more their scores begin to climb. Watch to see whether Bodies Bodies Bodies deserves to be considered a modern slasher classic.

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Arnold Schwarzenegger has battled Terminators, Predators, and heavily armed criminals—but none of them compare to a classroom full of kindergarteners. This week, John introduces Matthew to the 1990 action-comedy classic Kindergarten Cop to see whether Arnold’s most unexpected role still holds up.

The guys discuss the movie’s surprisingly dark opening, Arnold’s endlessly quotable one-liners, the jokes that have not aged particularly well, and the emotional moments that somehow made John cry three separate times. Plus, they revisit “It’s not a tumor,” debate whether John Kimble should have stayed a teacher, and discover that this movie may contain Arnold Schwarzenegger’s greatest character transformation.

Did Kindergarten Cop deserve their matching scores, or is nostalgia doing most of the work? Watch the episode, leave your rating in the comments, and subscribe for more generational movie debates every week.

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This week on A Reel Pain, Matthew brings John into the hidden world of The Spiderwick Chronicles, the 2008 fantasy adventure movie starring Freddie Highmore that made a whole generation wonder if goblins, fairies, ogres, and secret creatures were hiding just beyond the backyard.

Matthew remembers The Spiderwick Chronicles as a creepy, magical Gen Z childhood favorite, while John watches it for the very first time as a millennial with zero nostalgia attached. The guys debate whether the CGI still holds up, how intense this Nickelodeon movie gets, why Jared is such a chaotic main character, and whether Hogsqueal is secretly the best part of the whole thing.

Is The Spiderwick Chronicles an underrated fantasy movie, or is it only a classic if you grew up with it? Let the generational movie debate begin.

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