This week, Alex and Wesley talk about why The Fault in Our Stars doesn’t (and kind of does) work. Then it’s on to Edge of Tomorrow, and the incomparable awesomeness of Tom Cruise, who seems determined to be The Last Movie Star — what makes him so fascinating to write about and fun to watch, whether the movies are bad and he’s bad in them?

Oh! There’s a new book for next month’s book club: It’s The Flamethrowers, Rachel Kushner’s novel from last year about love, sex, art, and going fast. In the 1970s. This is for the July 17 episode. Wesley and Alex can’t wait.

Here are links to topics from this week’s show:

“Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol,” film review, Boston Globe, December 16, 2011

“Timing is off on a dull ‘Jack Reacher,’” Boston Globe, December 20, 2012

“Beautiful Oblivion,” Grantland, April 18, 2013

“Reviving the Coming-of-Age Movie,” New York Times, May 30, 2014

Tom Cruise on The Daily Show, June 5, 2014

“Against YA,” Slate, June 5, 2014

“Die Another Day,” film review, Grantland, June 6, 2014

“Nerdsplaining Warhammer: Which of Your Favorite Actors (Besides the ‘Fault in Our Stars’ Kid) Like to Hand-Paint Tiny Figurines?,” Grantland, June 5, 2014

“Box Office by the Numbers: ‘The Fault in Our Stars’ Makes $48 Million Worth of People Cry,” Grantland, June 9, 2014

“How YouTube and Internet Journalism Destroyed Tom Cruise, Our Last Real Movie Star,” L.A. Weekly, May 20, 2014