Episode 1 - 28 -13

After a week locked-out of the studio, we came back with guns blazon', loaded with five film reviews and a fifth season of Tavern Trivia. On tap were reviews of John Dies at the End, Texas Chainsaw 3-D, A Haunted House, Broken City and The Last Stand. So, we were busy. We talked about postmodern culture, nostalgia, and the iron titans of the 80s who we cannot let retire. It was a whiz bang of a show, and we think you'll enjoy the look backward, the look forward, and the cross eyed look we give the present.

Musical Selections:
Cobra, 1986 - Sylvester Levay
Jaws 3-D, 1983 - Alan Parker
Red Heat, 1988 - James Horner

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Episode 1 - 14 - 13

Greetings duckies,

Back with our first real 2013 shakedown we're up and....talking about awards show nominations concerning the previous year and news stories of things in years to come, blegh. Golden Globes and Razzies and Oscars were discussed (for some reason). Spoiler: they're as boring and paint-by-numbers as we've come to expect. However, if you're in a betting pool...we've got you in a winning spot.  Beyond that, we reviewed Gangster Squad and Lincoln, both of which were sublimely mediocre.

We heard music from the following:

A Zed & Two Naughts, 1985 - Michael Nyman
Rango, 2011 - Hans Zimmer
L.A. Confidential, 1997 - Jerry Goldsmith

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Episode 1 - 7 - 13

Wow, so it's been about 3 weeks since our last show: we had quite a few films to review, mainly The Hobbit, Django Unchained, Zero Dark Thirty, Seeking a Friend for the End of the World, and Silver Linings Playbook. Then....then....we got to our annual worst-of-2012 and the venom really flowed. What you hear/heard was unfiltered, unrehearsed hate-jazz of the most disgusting moments of the past year. We talked for nigh on two hours and some change, all of it gold. Download it now. Just be warned that you may spew milk from your nose while listening...and you don't even have to be drinking any.

We heard a l'il music from:

Crimson Tide, 1995 - Hans Zimmer
The Last Dragon, 1985 - Various

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Episode 11 - 26 - 12

Having seen the aforementioned Red Dawn remake, I still have no idea how they made the North Korean invasion plausible, and neither did the movie! So, everyone is in a recession and "they" have some kind of electronic super-weapon? Hrm, ok. But then they invade...Spokane...and nobody stops them. But then they explain...something, and lo, the Russians are helping them, at least like six of them. But the movie itself? Ehhhhthbbbt. A useless enough action film with amusingly bad CG replacing PLA paraphernalia with *snicker* North Korean flags and Korean text. We had a good time talking about all the cultural underpinnings, though, so good?

DVD release highlights:
MIB 3, Paranorman, Berserk - Arc 1

In theaters nation wide this weekend:
Killing Them Softly

We heard music from:

1990: The Bronx Warriors, 1982 - Walter Rizzati
Mission to Mars, 2000 - Ennio Morricone
Black Hole, 1979 - John Barry
First Blood, 1982 - Jerry Goldsmith

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Episode 11 - 19 -12

I really hoped to see the new Red Dawn this weekend to see how exactly the film could depict North Korea invading the U.S. Frankly, envisioning a North Korean invasion of a KFC in Sheboygan, Wisconsin would be a stretch. Apparently the invading nation was changed from the plausible China to North Korea in post-production, probably so MGM and potential investors wouldn't alienate all the labor they've exported to China (and the distribution rights they've just purchased there). But seriously, in what geo-political alternative universe would that make sense? I really want to see this now, just to parse out more hilarious America-WWIII logic.

We heard music from the following:

Buffy the Vampire Slayer, 1992 - Various
Miami Connection, 1987 - Various
Lost Boys, 1987 - Various
Doom, 2005 - Clint Mansell
The Breakfast Club, 1985 - Various

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Episode 11 - 12 - 12

On tonight's show we discussed the damned-if-we-ain't-gonna-build-a-franchise latest installment of the Daniel Craig reBondboot Skyfall. I didn't really care for it. This whole new franchise has somehow consistently created high expectations without actually ever producing a reason for high expectations. This is new Bond franchise has prided itself on "realism" and a distancing from the hokum of Connerys and Brosnans past, but has not produced a truly engaging entry and now, as of Skyfall, is fully engaged in building another franchise that will inevitably eat itself through schlock and self-reference. And! As if that weren't enough, Skyfall is itself attempting to be a metaphor on the relevance of Bond the agent and, by extension, Bond the franchise in the Information Age. How convenient that the film's answer is: "Yep! He's still relevant! Old-dog...heh heh, you know the saying!" I'm not sure I agree based on the circular nature of this iconography. Thbbbt.

We heard music from the following:

Patton, 1970 - Jerry Goldsmith
Commando, 1985 - James Horner/Various
Skyfall, 2012 - Thomas Newman
Dr. No, 1961 - Monty Norman

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Episode 11 - 5 - 12

Hey, well, whadya know, we saw a new movie this week - the video-game-crossover-retro-arcade film Pixar never made: Wreck-It Ralph. Meh. I'm really surprised something like this hasn't popped up before, a pastiche of stuff from video games old and new; I suppose no one except Disney could afford the rights to use all those franchises. The film wasn't just a cameo-athon of games old and new, but a newer story based on game culture, which conversely made the cameos a little pointless. Still, the smarter card was played and this was amusing enough to divert.

Most of the garrulous gaff from this week's show regarded the uber-news that is Disney buying LucasFilm. So, that happened.

We heard music from:

The Empire Strikes Back, 1980 - John Williams

Robin Hood, 1973 - George Bruns, Roger Miller

Tron, 1982 - Wendy Carlos

Grim Fandango, 1998 - Various

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