FilmBook Staff - Film / TV Critics, Movie / TV Show Podcasters, Entertainment Industry Journalists
121 episodes listed below
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The Complete Works is a Podcast created FilmBook (https://film-book.com). During each episode of The Complete Works, we discusses a specific movie from a film actor, actress, director, or composer’s filmography.
Based on 4 episodes we listened to · September 2026
Doug Hess uses performance notes and well-chosen movie comparisons to make each film's place within a larger career easier to see.
Doug Hess takes one film at a time and places it within the career of a chosen actor or director. Episodes on Oppenheimer, Top Gun, A Few Good Men and The Firm combine direct judgments with attention to performances, casting, dialogue and the larger shape of each movie.
Top Gun gets measured against Iron Eagle; your nostalgic loyalties may need a minute.
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Short reviews from the PlayNext desk, based on the episodes we processed.
A conversational Nolan sendoff centered on Oppenheimer's cast, IMAX presentation, and standout performances.
Doug Hess closes out his Christopher Nolan run with a plainspoken look at Oppenheimer, keeping the focus on the large cast, the 70mm IMAX presentation, and the performances that land most clearly.
A steady take on Top Gun that favors its energy, soundtrack, and Tom Cruise boost.
Doug Hess keeps his Top Gun review clear and unhurried. He treats the film as a strong 1986 Tom Cruise vehicle and uses Iron Eagle as the comparison point, arguing that Top Gun feels more convincing even if neither movie is trying very hard to be realistic.
A relaxed courtroom-drama revisit that treats the ensemble as the movie's real strength.
Doug Hess keeps the focus on ensemble chemistry, not just Tom Cruise and Jack Nicholson. He pulls out six performances and makes the case that each one helps shape the film, which gives the review a steady, grounded feel.
A steady legal-thriller walkthrough that values cast work, genre memory, and a few thoughtful detours.
Doug Hess spends this installment on The Firm, the 1993 legal thriller directed by Sidney Pollack and part of Tom Cruise's film career, and he treats it as something worth revisiting rather than merely summarizing.
Mike Muncer and a different guest dissect two horror films per episode, by subgenre.
Doug Hess closes out his Christopher Nolan series with a chat focused on *Oppenheimer*.
Doug Hess argues that Days of Thunder repeats the formula of Top Gun, The Color of Money and Cocktail: a naive young talent, an older mentor, a superior woman, and a rival.
Doug Hess reviews Rain Man (1988) for The Complete Works Ep.
Doug Hance reviews The Color of Money (1986), directed by Martin Scorsese, in which Paul Newman's Fast Eddie mentors Tom Cruise's Vincent 25 years after The Hustler (1961).
Doug Hess reviews All the Right Moves (1983), calling Tom Cruise's performance possibly "one of his better performances early on in his career" and giving the film a 7 out of 10.
Doug Hess reviews Taps (1981), Tom Cruise's first full film after his roughly 45-second appearance in Endless Love, and gives it a 6 out of 10.
This episode of The Complete Works analyzes the 1993 legal thriller 'The Firm', starring Tom Cruise, discussing its plot, performances, and comparisons to other films.
In this episode, host Doug Hess analyzes the 1992 film A Few Good Men, discussing its strengths in acting and writing while addressing criticisms about its predictable plot.
Doug Hess reviews The Complete Works episode about Tom Cruise’s 1983 film Losing It, a teen sex comedy set in 1965 involving four Los Angeles school friends traveling to Tijuana, Mexico.
The Complete Works host Doug Hess analyzes Christopher Nolan’s 2014 film Interstellar through its survival premise, scientific concepts, production history, and trivia.
Doug Hess reviews Tom Cruise’s 1983 film Risky Business, released on August 5, 1983, as part of The Complete Works’ examination of Cruise’s career.
Doug Hess reviews *Top Gun* from Tom Cruise's career and gives a conversational take on why it works.