Amandla Stenberg and Algee Smith in the reddish glow of a party looking at each other and smiling in the film The Hate U Give
2018 Movie ReviewsBOFCAMoviesSpoilerpiece Theatre

Spoilerpiece Theatre Episode 222: The Hate U Give

Evan Crean

“Spoilerpiece Theatre” is a weekly movie podcast where I talk about new releases with fellow BOFCA critics Dave Riedel and Kris Jenson. We don’t give a shit about spoilers. We just want to talk about the movies.

In Episode 222 below, we review The Hate U Give, First Man, The Oath, and Jolly Fellows. First things first: Congratulations to Dave and Joan on the birth of their son Teddy! Guest Kristen Halbert sits in for Dave this week, and thankfully Kris and I have our own microphones this time. After we all have a good laugh about the technical difficulties during Kristen’s last visit, Kris leads off with Jolly Fellows (3:10), an absurdly joyful Russian film from the 30s. Then Kristen covers The Oath (8:55) a social satire from Ike Barinholtz that attempts to emulate Get Out, but ends up more like Scary Movie 4. Next Kris reviews First Man (15:20), the Damien Chazelle drama about Neil Armstrong that inspires him to make space puns left, right, and center. Lastly, we all discuss The Hate U Give (29:38), a gripping, layered drama that tactfully tackles issues of race, class, and police brutality through one brave young woman’s experience.

Evan Crean

Hello! My name is Evan Crean. By day I work for a marketing agency, but by night, I’m a film critic based in Boston, MA. Since 2009, I have written hundreds of movie reviews and celebrity interviews for Starpulse.com. I have also contributed pieces to NewEnglandFilm.com and to The Independent, as a writer and editor. I maintain an active Letterboxd account too. In addition to publishing short form work, I am a co-author of the book Your ’80s Movie Guide to Better Living, which is available on CreateSpace and Amazon. The book is the first in a series of lighthearted self-help books for film fans, which distills advice from ’80s movies on how to tackle many of life’s challenges. On top of writing, I co-host and edit the weekly film podcast Spoilerpiece Theatre with two other Boston film critics. I’m a founding member and the current treasurer for the Boston Online Film Critics Association as well. This site, Reel Recon.com, is a one-stop-shop where you can find links to all of my past and present work. Have any questions or comments after checking it out? Please feel free to email me (Evan Crean) at: ecrean AT reelrecon DOT COM .