On Episode 385 of the GenreCast, we're celebrating 8 years of this monstrosity. And, it's only fitting that we come full circle to another siege film as we take a look back at 2013's Olympus Has Fallen . We try our best not to call it White House Down , but mistakes do happen. The movie features a tarnished secret serviceman looking for redemption after the White House is overrun by terrorists. We're talking nationalism, ideology, geopolitics, the failures of the film, and much more as we bring ...
Sep 17, 2020•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 242
Grab your wig and fake mustache, it's time to talk the 1997 action film The Saint. On episode 384, we're talking all about globetrotting thief Simon Templar who manipulates and seduces a doctor in order to steal some formulas for cold fusion or something. This week, we're discussing geopolitics and Russian villains. We get into cycle of TV/IP reboots of the 90s and aughts. We also take a look at the odd relationship dynamics in this film before bringing the train into the station on The Saint. T...
Sep 10, 2020•55 min•Ep. 241
Once upon a time, on a podcast not so far away, we decided to discuss Catherine Hardwicke's Red Riding Hood. And, to help us out, is no other than our very own Frightful Femme, and one of the co-hosts of TwiLit, Kirsten Therkelson. In this sexy, stylized retelling of the classic fairytale, Valerie has fallen for a woodcutter named Peter. But, the village they live in is tormented by a werewolf—a werewolf that is keenly interested in Valerie. This week, we're discussing the themes of societal iso...
Sep 03, 2020•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 240
Every time a podcast plays, an angel gets its wings. We don't know if that's true or not, but by golly we're going to hope so. This week, things get heavenly as we explore the 1996 Nora Ephron hit, Michael starring John Travolta. When a tabloid journalist and his associates get wind of a living, breathing angel in Iowa, they set out to investigate. But what they discover is more surreal than they could have imagined. We're talking all about narrative constructs and tropes, the use of angels, sec...
Aug 27, 2020•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 239
We rebound from last week's debacle with a slow-brewing cult selection in the form of Vincenzo Natali's Splice. A movie much hotter and much weirder than Swimfan. When two geneticists push the bounds of science, a new human-animal hybrid is birthed. This week, we're talking about realism in science fiction, cycles of familial tragedy, Freud, and much more. Tune in now for our discussion of Splice! Time Stamps 00:30 - Introductions and Synopsis 03:25 - Quick Splice Reviews 14:40 - Expanding the S...
Aug 20, 2020•58 min•Ep. 238
Your favorite grown ass women are back to talk your favorite teen tales as they dive into Twilight: Eclipse. On episode 5 of TwiLit, Erin and Kirsten are giddy to talk Eclipse — and hope to not offend any vampires. Following a slight diatribe about the titling of the books, Kirsten and Erin dissect the third entry in this franchise. Come along for a journey with this in-depth look at Twilight: Eclipse. And, you'll get to find out who Bryce Dallas Howard's Wario is!...
Aug 14, 2020•1 hr 25 min•Ep. 237
So, it's come to this. A Swimfan episode. That's right, on Ep. 380, we're discussing the early aughts curiosity Swimfan. Jesse Bradford makes a second appearance this year as he leads this PG-13 attempt at an erotic thriller. Star swimmer Ben finds himself in a precarious position after a lust-filled swim. This week, we attempt to parse out what's going on in this movie, but it's mostly a lot of Dalton venting and talking through his anger at the film. We hit on misogyny, the film's lack of psyc...
Aug 13, 2020•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 236
On Ep. 379, we deliver an epilogue to our How Have We Never Covered... marathon with a redemption pick as voted by you, dear listener. The Prestige beat out 3 other finalists to gain a seat at the analysis table. Christopher Nolan's The Prestige was his last work before skyrocketing to new heights with 2008's The Dark Knight . A tale of dueling magician's willing to destroy themselves to one up the other, The Prestige is an er example of Nolan's work. We discuss the meta nature of Edison's prese...
Aug 06, 2020•54 min•Ep. 235
Welcome to the final week of How Have We Never Covered... And it's only fitting that the final spot in this tournament go to a sports movie. And a cult teen comedy to boot. That's right, we're discussing Bring It On . Peyton Reed's turn of the millennia cheerleader comedy with a hot young cast. A cheer squad is preparing for their next national championship run when they discover their cheers have all been stolen from a local underprivileged school. With little time left in the season, they try ...
Jul 30, 2020•1 hr 15 min•Ep. 234
How Have We Never Covered... continues with Week 3 Winner, Atomic Blonde . The 2017 action spy thriller stars Charlize Theron as an MI6 agent trying to find delicate information. With the John Wick team at the helm, does Atomic Blonde hit the same notes? Or does it get lost in its generic trappings? We discuss! This week, we're analyzing Atomic Blonde and talking all about 80s aeshetics, nostalgia, the male gaze, the possible queering of tropes, and much more. So, join us in our discussion of At...
Jul 22, 2020•1 hr 29 min•Ep. 233
How Have We Never Covered Spirited Away?? That's what you're asking us this week, as episode 376 is devoted to week two's champion, the beloved film from Hayao Miyazaki. We explore Spirited Away's run in the week two tournament, and the finals against Booksmart. But, you're not here for that, you're here for the analysis. This week, we dive into the story of Chihiro and the spirit world she finds herself trapped in. This week, as we put Spirited Away on the analysis table, we talk capitalism and...
Jul 15, 2020•1 hr 13 min•Ep. 232
Week 1 of How Have We Never Covered... is here as we talk all about The Truman Show , the winner of the first week's tournament. The Truman Show beat out The Prestige in the week one finals. Truman Burbank has been the unknowing subject of a 30 year reality TV series. As he nears his 30th birthday, things begin going awry that begin to create a deeper sense of confusion and doubt within Truman's mind. This week, we're talking all about artifice, the commodification of people, the multiple layers...
Jul 07, 2020•1 hr 26 min•Ep. 231
Ep. 374 of the GenreCast is another Patreon-awarded supporter pick. Our wonderful patreon supporter Bekah has chosen American Mary for us to discuss this week. TW: Assault is a part of the plot and we do discuss it in this episode. It has a certain sentimental value for Dalton, Dustin was excited to revisit it, and Arthur is watching it for the first time. American Mary tells the story of a broke med student looking to find a way to survive the financial strife of school. To do so, she finds her...
Jul 01, 2020•1 hr 18 min•Ep. 230
Episode 373 of the GenreCast as here, and we're predicting you're gonna like this one. This week, we're taking a look at the 1983 Stephen King adaptation, The Dead Zone. Directed by David Cronenberg and starring Christopher Walken, The Dead Zone is the tragic story of one man forgotten by time. Johnny Smith wakes up from a 5 year coma to experience the world has left him behind, and left him with the power to see events before they happen. This week, we're talking King, Cronenberg, adaptation, a...
Jun 26, 2020•1 hr 13 min•Ep. 229
Episode 372 takes us back to the beginnings of one of cinema's greats: Hayao Miyazaki. That's right, this week, we're looking at his feature directorial debut, The Castle of Cagliostro . It's a Lupin III adventure! And what's that? We're doing an anime film by choice? My how we've grown. On this week's episode, we're talking Miyazaki and his through lines, the Goths, Visigoths, Romans and more, politics of sovereign states and much, much more as we bring The Castle of Cagliostro to the film anal...
Jun 18, 2020•53 min•Ep. 228
Episode 371 takes us to the edges of sanity as we discuss the 1990 cult favorite Jacob's Ladder . And it's all thanks to our sweet Patreon donor, Brigham. Brigham has been a friend of us and the show since the beginning, and we're always excited to see what he has in store for us. Jacob's Ladder has been in the back of our mind for a long time but never found it's way to the table, but thanks to Patreon and Brigham, it's finally here. In this reality-bending tale, Jacob Singer can no longer tell...
Jun 11, 2020•1 hr 32 min•Ep. 226
Welcome back to the wonderful world of Twilight , you beautiful twi-hards! This week, the sparkling dynamic duo is back to discuss their thoughts on the discussion of thoughts had by the cast and director of Twilight. It's a commentary commentary! Erin and Kirsten dig into the deeper, more complex thoughts held by K-Stew and R-Patt and C-Hard(?). So, hit those download and play buttons and join in on the conversation as we fall even further into Twilight.
Jun 10, 2020•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 227
Episode 370 of the GenreCast takes us back to 1998 to discuss the OTHER asteroid movie of that year, Deep Impact . Back on Ep. 291, we talked all about Michael Bay's take on the genre, so this week we're talking Mimi Leder and her approach to the disaster film. Deep Impact boasts a star studded lineup, including Tea Leoni, Morgan Freeman, Elijah Wood, James Cromwell, and many more. It's a race against the clock, sort of, as America tries to stop an asteroid from wiping out life on earth. With a ...
Jun 04, 2020•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 225
Episode 369 of the GenreCast sees the gang diving back into the early aughts first attempts at comic book franchises with the lovably forgettable The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. This super team-up of literatures biggest heroes (and villains) seems Allan Quartermain, Dr. Jekyll, an Invisible Man, and more join forces to take on a terrorist known as The Phantom. But, is it as silly as it's oft remembered? Or is there something deeper going on? We submerge into the world of LXG to discuss Br...
May 28, 2020•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 224
Producer's Note: Dustin's mic goes wonky at about 15 minutes, which changes his sound, this coupled with additional file issues made the edit rougher than normal. But, I think I got everything worked out. Are you ready to go all in? We try to understand the cards we've been dealt in the form of Aaron Sorkin's adaptation of Molly's Game . This 2017 drama recounts the true story of Molly Bloom who ran lucrative celebrity poker games on both seaboards. But, as with all good things, it comes to an e...
May 21, 2020•1 hr 20 min•Ep. 223
Grab your bow and grab your quiver! This week, we're traveling back to 1991 to look at one of the second biggest movie of the year, Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves . While Arnie and the T-800 owned the year, Kevin Costner was hot on his heels as the titular Robin Hood. This age old story receives the blockbuster treatment from Kevin Reynolds as Robin seeks to steal from the rich and give to the poor. As we cut to its core, we take a look at the films approach to race, religion, and diversity in th...
May 14, 2020•1 hr 19 min•Ep. 222
Episode 366 of the GenreCast takes a look back at the 2000 psychological thriller from Sam Raimi and co-written by Billy Bob Thornton, The Gift. When small town psychic Annie Wilson begins having visions of a horrifying nature, she finds herself caught up in deep-rooted drama circling a mysterious disappearance. On this week's show, we're discussing the slate of spiritual/religious horror that hit at the turn of the millennium. From there, we look at the portrayal of women and men in this small ...
May 07, 2020•1 hr 30 min•Ep. 221
On Ep. 365 of the GenreCast, things get dark. We go back to 2013 to look at Denis Villaneuve's move into the American film scene with Prisoners. Hugh Jackman plays a desperate father whose daughter goes missing. Jake Gyllenhaal is the detective determined to bring her back. On the surface, it's very procedural. But there's a lot going on once you pull back the skin. We discuss the characters of Keller Dover and Detective Loki, dig into the war on God, evaluate the theology of the film, and much,...
Apr 30, 2020•1 hr 24 min•Ep. 220
On Ep. 364 of the GenreCast, we're taking a look at the newest film from Pixar, the fantasy adventure Onward . Tom Holland and Chris Pratt voice Ian and Barley, two elven brothers on a quest to find their dad—kind of. When he gets a staff and a spell to bring his dead father back, Ian's attempt to cast magic fails. The brothers then set out to find the materials they need to finish the spell and see their dad. This week, we're diving deep into dead dads. We also bring up topics of nerd culture a...
Apr 23, 2020•1 hr•Ep. 219
Episode 363 of the GenreCast features our annual Kathryn Bigelow discussion! This time around, we're talking all about vampires and lost boys with a discussion of her 1987 western-horror Near Dark. That's right, Adrian Pasdar, Bill Paxton, Lance Henriksen, and Jenny Wright are a troupe of renegade vampires cruising the south. Dealing with gender, outsiders, and style in ways that are uniquely her own, Bigelow's Near Dark is a fascinating early entry into her filmography. We tap into all of those...
Apr 16, 2020•54 min•Ep. 218
Thanks for tuning in to another edition of the GenreCast! This week's episode is a Patreon-awarded Patreon pick from Keithan. Keithan is a dear friend of the show, and always picks something outside of the box to make us think. This week, he picked the wholly original True Stories co-written by, directed by, and starring David Byrne of Talking Heads fame. This quirky vignette-driven musical romp puts life in a small Texas community under the microscope. We're talking cynicism, consumerism, love ...
Apr 09, 2020•56 min•Ep. 217
Ep. 361 of the GenreCast takes you back to 1998 to discuss the original caped crusader, Zorro! That's right, we're talking Antonio Banderas, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Anthony Hopkins, and The Mask of Zorro . The masked hero's return to the big screen was a big hit. This time, it's a look at an aging hero and the man he trains to replace him. Tune in and enjoy our discussion of The Mask of Zorro.
Apr 02, 2020•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 216
Hello dear listeners! As Oklahoma natives, we thought it would be a must to talk about the recent Netflix Original docuseries The Tiger King about Oklahoma public figure, political figure, big cat figure, and all around character Joe Exotic. We are based only a couple of hours from Wynnewood, Oklahoma where the zoo Joe owned is located. We dive into the figures presented, how it works as a documentary, and how it feels to watch as Oklahomans. So, kick back and enjoy our discussion of The Tiger K...
Apr 01, 2020•26 min•Ep. 215
Hello dear listener, we're doing something different for Patreon as we're kicking off our first-ever actual play podcast. Over the coming months (maybe more frequent), we're going to be taking you on a supernatural journey as we play Monster of the Week. Episode 0 is going to be made available and free to all, so you can decide if you'd like to become a Patreon for future episodes. Future monthly episodes will be available at the $3 dollar tier. If you're interested, please go to www.patreon.com...
Mar 29, 2020•47 min•Ep. 214
Its the final reprise as Song of Praise comes to an end on episode 360. We're jumping ahead to 2017, to see a more mature and nuanced Song Kang-ho leading in A Taxi Driver. Inspired by true events, Song stars as Mr. Kim, a Seoul taxi driver who is looking for a lucrative fare. It comes in the form of a German journalist who hopes to sneak in to Gwangju and cover the protests in the area. Their two ideologies clash as Mr. Kim has to face his government and country from a new perspective. This wee...
Mar 26, 2020•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 213
