Podcasts by Movies We Dig: The Ancient World on Film
Is it a movie podcast? Is it a history podcast? Is it an unholy union of the two? Short answer: yes!
Each episode, hosts Colin MacCormack, Elijah Fleming and Christie Vogler break down a new movie about Greece, Rome or the wider ancient world and what works (or doesn’t work) about them. But this isn’t a podcast for nitpicking historical inaccuracies. Rather, it’s a chance to get hot takes on Hollywood films from professional nerds/academics and take a closer look at the relation between our movies and our pasts.
Further podcasts by Movies We Dig
Podcast on the topic TV und Film
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Hades (2020), with Donna Zuckerberg from 2023-12-13T15:45:03.136102
Joined by super extra awesome guest Donna Zuckerberg, we dig not down but up and out of hell with the 2020 rogue-like (or rogue-lite) dungeon crawler Hades by Supergiant Games. Yes we'v...
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I, Claudius (1976), part 2 from 2023-12-10T12:00
We finish out our discussion of this classic BBC adaptation of Robert Graves' novel. This half, we dig into the reigns of Caligula, Claudius and Nero, their adaptation on the series and our unde...
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I, Claudius (1976), part 1; with Liz Gloyn from 2023-12-02T12:05
We finally take on the elephant-in-the-room of Rome on television: I, Claudius (1976). Joined by super-special guest Liz Gloyn, we dig into the ...
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Rome (2005), part 3 from 2023-11-10T13:05
We're back to finish out our discussion on HBO's historical drama, wrapping up with our thoughts on the much-containing Season 2 of Rome (2005). We talk about the highs and lows, our fa...
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HALLOWEEN SPECIAL: A Wounded Fawn (2022), Commentary Listen-Along from 2023-10-25T12:20
We venture out into new seas -- or new remote cabins-in-the-woods -- with a new Halloween special listen-along commentary. Hear our real-time gasps, jeers and cheers as we group watch Travis Ste...
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Rome (2005), part 2; with Alexandra Sills from 2023-10-13T12:00
We're back to discuss the rise and fall of prestige television and Julius Caesar, now in one neat stab-able package. This episode we break down the back half of HBO's historical drama Rome <...
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Rome (2005), part I from 2023-10-05T12:00
Gird your togas, it's time for part one of our much-anticipated look back at HBO's 2005 prestige drama series, Rome. A big favorite of ours, we dig into what this show gets about antiqu...
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Season 4 Promo from 2023-09-21T12:00
We're coming back! We debut our plans for upcoming episodes featuring Rome in Television (HBO's Rome, I Claudius, Domina, Thermae Romae Novae) and a special c...
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The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964), with Fiona Radford&Peta Greenfield from 2023-05-19T13:00
How does an empire fall, from within or without, and would it make a good movie? Those are just some of the many questions we dig into with special guests and hosts of the Listen
Horrible Histories: The Movie–Rotten Romans (2019), with Emma Coffey from 2023-05-01T12:03
It's British edu-tainment at its finest? Opinions, like empires, are divided over this movie, a raunchy comedy adapted from of a popular TV/Youtube series adapted from a popular book series. Joi...
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Extremely Strained and Incredibly Forced: Altered Carbon (2018), with Jeremy Swist from 2023-03-31T12:34
Upload your stacks and get ready to get spun back up because we're taking on the labors of Netflix's cyberpunk action noir Altered Carbon. Super special guest Methuselah and Listen
Titus (1999), with Pramit Chaudhuri from 2023-03-15T12:00
This might be perhaps the wildest piece of classical reception we've covered to date, at least if we're going by number of dismembered body parts. Joined by super special guest Pramit Chaudhuri,...
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The Warriors (1979), with Joel Christensen and Tim Gerolami from 2023-02-17T13:00
That's right all you hard boppers, we're back with a new episode on the 1979 cult classic, The Warriors. Joined by special guests Joel Christensen, Tim Gerolami and 60,000 soldiers, the...
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Extremely Strained and Incredibly Forced: The White Lotus, Season 2 (2022) from 2023-02-02T07:00
We're back with a special, in-person episode recorded at the annual SCS/AIA meeting in New Orleans, LA. Christie pitches us on looking at the second season of HBO's The White Lotus thro...
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Extremely Strained and Incredibly Forced: The Wire (2002-2008), with Adam Rabinowitz from 2022-12-21T07:00
We're back to close out the year with a long awaited (and maybe the original) episode of Extremely Strained and Incredibly Forced. Joining us is very special guest, Adam Rabinowitz, who explains...
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Extremely Strained and Incredibly Forced: The Walking Dead (2010-2022), with Maxwell T Paule from 2022-11-21T07:00
The Reception Police are back with another take on the how Vergil's Aeneid is secretly lurking behind all your favorite shows and movies. This week, Maxwell T Paule pitches his theory t...
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The Eternals (2021), with David S Anderson from 2022-11-17T07:02
We dig back into the MCU with return guest and (pseudo-)archaeology expert, David S Anderson to excavate The Eternals (2021). Once more we revisit the thorny issue of what exactly is and isn't a...
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Thor: Love&Thunder (2022), with Jason Nethercut from 2022-11-03T07:20
We fly over to New Asgard and Omnipotence City to talk gods and god butchers with special guest Jason Nethercut. We dig into Thor in the MCU, the relation between myth and Marvel comics, and one...
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Extremely Strained and Incredibly Forced: Moana (2016), with Ayelet Haimson Lushkov from 2022-10-20T07:45
Dig into the firstest episode of our new special segment, Extremely Strained and Incredibly Force, where we seek out and/or create connections between ancient and modern popular media. ...
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The Sandman (2022), with Kira Jones from 2022-09-21T07:00
Joined by a very special guest and the Rock's personal Latin teacher, Dr. Kira Jones (@FlavianSophist),...
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The Lost City (2022) from 2022-06-01T07:00
This is a little at of order as we actually recorded prior to the last two episodes, but hey that's showbiz! We reflect back on the adventure archaeology genre with Sandra Bullock's send-up of t...
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Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008), with David S. Anderson from 2022-05-25T07:00
We continue our excavation of the Indiana Jones franchise with its fourth (but not final) installment. Joining us is Mesoamerican archaeologist and expert in (combating) pseudo-archaeology, Davi...
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Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), with Kara Cooney and Jordan Galczynski from 2022-05-20T07:00
After much ado, we finally tackle the big question: why did it have to be snakes? Joined by Egyptologists and hosts of the Listen
The Emperor’s Club (2002) from 2022-04-27T06:36
This episode, it's all about the three C's of classical education: Caesar, Cicero and Cheating at trivia contests. We dig into The Emperor's Cl...
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Atlantis (2013), with Liv Albert from 2022-04-06T06:03
Or as we like to call it "It Should Have Been Set on Crete." Join us with special guest from Let's Talk About Myths...
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Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey (2018), with Deb Trusty from 2022-03-30T06:48
Back again with yet another video game! Joined by expert archaeologist and gamer, Deb Trusty, we dig into Assassin's Creed's take on 5th century BCE Greece. We talk the sites, sounds and charact...
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Centurion (2010) from 2022-03-23T06:39
We tackle yet another late-aughts violent historical epic featuring a Roman centurion, painted barbarians and *sigh* the 9th Legion. This Gladiator-aspirant feels like a generic assembl...
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The Mummy (1999), with Amy Pistone from 2022-03-09T06:18
What's a place like me doing in a podcast like this? That's right we're jumping across the Mediterranean to Egypt to talk about everyone's favorite curse-dealing, gun-slinging, action-adventure-...
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Hadestown (2019), with Sam Lipert from 2022-02-25T14:21:19
Why do we build the podcast? We build the podcast to set us free! This week we shift gears into musical theater with very special super guest Sam Lipert, a Lynchburg student taking the professor...
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Superbowl Commercials (2004-2022) from 2022-02-16T06:38
We're here with a very special bonus episode on Superbowl commercials past and present. We dig into three classically themed features from 2022's Superbowl LVI as well as a special throwback to ...
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King Arthur (2004) from 2022-02-09T06:38
We're back to look at the more action adventures following the success of Gladiator and writer David Franzoni's next project: King Arthur (2004). Here, Antoine Fuqua directs a...
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Gladiator (2000) from 2022-01-24T12:30
We're back for the big one (because it sold us queer giraffes!). A critical and commercial hit, Gladiator spawned a revival for a genre that had been presumed dead for at least 40 years...
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Cleopatra (1970), with Chiara Sulprizio from 2021-12-16T12:00
Get ready for a real trip back to ancient Egypt, where Caesar is green, triumphs feature sports cars and gladiators bring handguns to the arena. Joined by animation expert Chiara Sulprizio, we d...
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Episode 34 – Cleopatra (1970), with Chiara Sulprizio from 2021-12-16T06:00
Get ready for a real trip back to ancient Egypt, where Caesar is green, triumphs feature sports cars and gladiators bring handguns to the arena. Joined by animation expert Chiara Sulprizio, we dig ...
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Fellini Satyricon (1969), with Sarah Bond and Gregory Hays from 2021-11-24T11:30
This is simultaneously an excavation of both Imperial Rome and late 60's Italian cinema. Joined by the amazing Sarah E. Bond and Gregory Hays, we dig into Frederico Fellini's dreamlike, even fre...
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Interview with Charley&Vlas Parlapanides (Blood of Zeus), with Zoé Elise Thomas from 2021-11-10T12:30
In a very special episode, Colin, Eli, Christie and special guest Zoé Thomas sit down with Charley and Vlas Parlapanides, the creators and head writers of Blood of Zeus (2020). We dig i...
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The Last Legion (2007), with Ayelet Haimson Lushkov&Pramit Chaudhuri from 2021-11-04T06:00
Sometimes we review movies we're very passionate about and sometimes we review The Last Legion. Fortunately we have special guests Ayelet Haimson Lushkov and Pramit Chaudhuri, hosts of ...
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The Odyssey (1997), with Deborah Beck from 2021-10-21T05:30
We're back at Troy, where shirts are optional, digging up an artifact from a bygone era: late 90's television. Joined by the wonderful Dr. Deborah Beck, expert Homerist from UT Austin, we we bre...
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Jason and the Argonauts (1963) from 2021-10-13T05:00
Do you even Argo bro?!? Christie Vogler is back with us again but we've decided to leave her name out of the title tos ave money on digital ink. We're back with Ray Harryhausen's most celebrated...
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Clash of the Titans (1981) from 2021-10-06T05:00
We're back with our first episode of season 2. Joined by threepeat guest and avowed servant of Rita Repulsa, the always amazing Dr. Vogler, we dig into Ray Harryhausen's 1981 Clash of the Titans...
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Proem for Season 2 from 2021-09-30T23:59
After a short hiatus, we're back to announce MWD will be returning for another season. More movies, more not-movies, all the hot-takes. We talk briefly about our vision for the show and tease so...
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Blood of Zeus (2020) Part II, with Zoé Thomas from 2021-06-19T00:33:31
Gigantomachy II: Electric Boogaloo! Our longest episode to date, we really don't lack for things to talk about. There's a a lot to love in this show and some to look critically at but we really ...
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Blood of Zeus (2020) Part I, with Zoé Thomas from 2021-06-10T18:48:56
"Screw your winged horse, I want a Manticore!" We break down the first four episodes of Netflix's original anime series with repeat guest Christie Vogler and newcomer Zoé Thomas. We dig into the...
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Troy: Fall of a City (2018), Part III, with Ava-Elana Tolley-Enstrom from 2021-05-21T19:03:57
“A man who thinks that he has been done wrong is a mad, mad man.” (the Iliad, abridged). Get these and other hot takes as we finish off our miniseries on this miniseries the only way we...
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Troy: Fall of a City (2018), Part II, with Lucile Chambon, Jordan Engstrom and Mitchell Jackson from 2021-05-07T23:05:38
Joined by three fantastic first year students from UT Austin, we continue our discussion of Netflix's miniseries as we get into episodes 4-6. We discuss how this show has updated the tale for th...
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Troy: Fall of a City (2018), Part I, with Adam Rabinowitz from 2021-04-24T17:58:32
We launch the first of a special, three part miniseries on the Netflix/BBC original on the Trojan War. Joining us is UT Classics professor and archaeologist Dr. Adam Rabinowitz who is currently ...
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The Eagle (2011) from 2021-04-17T22:50:42
Get your checkbooks ready Hollywood producers because we basically re-pitch a new, better version of this now 10 year old film. On top of that, we dig up the literary and historic source materia...
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Pompeii (2014), with Christy Schirmer from 2021-04-08T22:22:17
Are you ready to go back to Titanic Pompeii? Accompanied by another fantastic host, Christy "I didn't want Kiefer like that," Schirmer, we dig into a movie where being a gladiator is a ...
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Agora (2009) from 2021-04-01T23:08:58
Two questions: 1) Is this a nuanced and thoughtful take on the religious and political strife in Alexandria and the wider Roman world in the 4th/5th century CE? 2) Why is this movie called A...
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Episode 18 – Black Orpheus (1959) with Rebecca Futo Kennedy from 2021-03-21T17:52:17
Depressa! Toma! Toca faz o sol nasce! Bolstered by yet another mega guest, Dr. Rebecca Futo Kennedy, the creative mind behind Listen
Black Orpheus (1959), with Rebecca Futo Kennedy from 2021-03-21T17:52:17
Depressa! Toma! Toca faz o sol nasce! Bolstered by yet another mega guest, Dr. Rebecca Futo Kennedy, the creative mind behind Listen
Ben-Hur (1959) from 2021-03-17T01:01:01
Is this movie the spiritual predecessor of The Phantom Menace? Probably not, but we explore that idea anyways. This week, Colin and Eli dive into MGM's chariot-smashing mega-epic starri...
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Spartacus (1960) from 2021-03-04T23:43:55
We're Spartacus! This week Colin (aka Spartacus) and Eli (aka Spartacus) take on the classic epic written by Dalton Trumbo, directed by Stanley Kubrick and starring Kirk Douglas. This movie stan...
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Episode 15 – O Brother, Where Art Thou (2000) with Joel Christensen from 2021-02-28T01:45
Joined by another fantastic guest and man of constant sorrow, Joel Christensen, we trace the unbroken line from Homer to Mumford & Sons through the Cohen Brothers. Is this more or less of an...
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O Brother, Where Art Thou (2000), with Joel Christensen from 2021-02-28T01:45
Joined by another fantastic guest and man of constant sorrow, Joel Christensen, we trace the unbroken line from Homer to Mumford & Sons through the Cohen Brothers. Is this more or less of an...
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Episode 14 – Cleopatra (1963) with Jeremy Swist and Nicole Becklinger from 2021-02-19T22:01:07
We get into classic Hollywood's take on Egypt's most (in)famous queen with the help of Heavy Metal Cla...
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Cleopatra (1963), with Jeremy Swist and Nicole Becklinger from 2021-02-19T22:01:07
We get into classic Hollywood's take on Egypt's most (in)famous queen with the help of Heavy Metal Cla...
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Quo Vadis (1951) from 2021-02-12T19:36:58
This movie is... long... and hasn't aged amazingly well. For all its faults, mostly involving Marcus, this movie did pave the way for massive epic Hollywood blockbusters and has an interesting p...
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The Dig (2021), with Christie Vogler from 2021-02-04T04:51:41
A movie actually about digging! This week we're joined by special guest, Dr. Christie Vogler, to talk about the 3 D's of The Dig: death, dirt and drudgery. We get into the ins and out both of th...
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Episode 12–The Dig (2021) with Christie Vogler from 2021-02-04T04:51:41
A movie actually about digging! This week we're joined by special guest, Dr. Christie Vogler, to talk about the 3 D's of The Dig: death, dirt and drudgery. We get into the ins and out both of th...
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Monty Python’s Life of Brian (1979) from 2021-01-21T22:37:53
Romanes eunt domus?!? Back from a brief hiatus, we tackle a most blasphemous take on sword & sandal Biblical epics by Britain's most famous comedy group. What have the Romans ever d...
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A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (1966) from 2020-12-03T18:58:14
Was 1 a good year? Eli and Colin dive into Roman comedy and its brief but successful renaissance on Broadway in the 60's. We talk about what makes a Roman comedy a Roman comedy, the nature of re...
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Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001), with Clara Bosak-Schroeder from 2020-11-20T23:58:16
We dig (or dive) into Disney's attempt to pivot from songs to explosions with another wonderful guest. Is this movie undersea Pocahontas? Is there an accurate representation of responsible archa...
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Episode 9–Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001) with Clara Bosak-Schroeder from 2020-11-20T23:58:16
We dig (or dive) into Disney's attempt to pivot from songs to explosions with another wonderful guest. Is this movie undersea Pocahontas? Is there an accurate representation of responsible archa...
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Hercules (1997), with Ayelet Haimson-Lushkov from 2020-11-14T05:07:44
"The 90's are just the 80's until they become the mid 2000's."
We fully consider the coconut that is Disney's animated take on the mightiest of all heroes. Joined for the first time b...
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Episode 8–Hercules (1997) with Ayelet Haimson-Lushkov from 2020-11-14T05:07:44
"The 90's are just the 80's until they become the mid 2000's."
We fully consider the coconut that is Disney's animated take on the mightiest of all heroes. Joined for the first time b...
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Percy Jackson&The Olympians: The Lightning Thief (2010) from 2020-11-05T06:22:28
Colin & Eli alienate themselves to younger listeners by not understanding popular novels. They also reveal their own age by constantly comparing everything to Harry Potter. Colin argues Perc...
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Hercules (2014) from 2020-10-29T05:22:41
The film that makes the bold choice to be set in 358 B.C.!?! Is Dwayne "the Rock" Johnson the modern manifestation of Hercules? Listen to us fail at both starting our podcast and Greek mythology...
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Immortals (2011) from 2020-10-10T19:13:55
Another visually interesting but thematically frustrating film. More gods, more battles, more fake armor, more (not) chosen one narratives. Plus the birth of Superman! Are German shepherd dogs a...
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Clash of the Titans (2010) from 2020-10-10T19:08:17
We beat our heads against our desks over this movie (and the Cars franchise). What is the nature of the gods and how do you translate it to the screen? Are there any titans in this movi...
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300 (2007) from 2020-10-10T18:57:35
Now we sound nice. More screaming, but also more tolerable. We delve into the popularity and problems with this movie. Would you want to live in Sparta? Survey says... no.
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Alexander (2004) from 2020-10-10T18:50:36
Last one with crunchy audio (promise). Lots of history, lots of screaming. This movie is long...
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Troy (2004) from 2020-10-10T18:25:56
Our pilot episode (w/ some crunchy audio)! Epic battles, blood, romance, cousins, llamas & more!
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