Wax up your board and grab your copy of Marcus Skinner's Straight Jacket. This week, we're cruising up the PCH to Orange County. A beloved film in his cabinet, Stephen turns a critical eye to this comedy to determine whether this quotable flick holds up to academic rigor or is a throwaway flash in the pan of early-aughts cinema. Discussions of camera movements, nepo babies, and misuse of literary allusion abound. Join us this week for the 2002 film Orange County.

In this episode of Shelf Criticism, Stephen dives into the 2005 tropical thriller Into the Blue. Known for its breathtaking underwater cinematography, Jessica Alba in a bikini, and Paul Walker perpetually shirtless, the film has often been dismissed as a shallow Hollywood spectacle. But is there more lurking beneath the surface? Stephen revisits the film, exploring whether it’s just an extended swimsuit calendar or if it holds genuine suspense and storytelling merit. Spoiler alert: It’s better than you remember, but maybe not by much.

As mentioned, check out the site for Shark Angels.

Our peerless host was, frankly, getting a little tired of having to discuss nudity and sexual content so often, but, as luck of the draw would have it, Sirens emerged from his sea of DVDs and called to him. Join him as he delves beneath the surface of this 1994 film starring Hugh Grant, Tara Fitzgerald, Sam Neill, and Elle Macpherson. He explores some of the symbols and motifs, discusses the setting, critiques the acting, and, yes, has a few things to say about the film's copious amount of flesh on display. See where this little artsy drama gets placed on the shelf.