Peculiar Picture Show

Brandon Gregory, Maria Milazzo•peculiarpicture.show

Hosts Brandon Gregory and Maria Milazzo, two neurodivergent former English majors, talk about movies as they relate to mental health, mental illness, and invisible illness. From blockbuster hits to arthouse films, there are plenty of movies commenting on these issues. Conditions ranging from depression, anxiety, and bipolar disorder to PTSD, emotional abuse, and oppression are discussed.

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Episodes

Dances With Wolves: Adding Humanity to Heritage

Naps with Cats (Brandon) and Makes Out with Dogs (Maria) discuss the 1990 Western/historical drama film Dances with Wolves. Naps with Cats gives us some history behind the movie and his biracial take on how Native Americans are portrayed, and Makes out with Dogs imitates the soundtrack while also talking about the movie’s depiction of suicide.

Aug 10, 2019

Let’s Talk About Mental Illness in the Movies

In this mini-episode, Brandon discusses mental illness as it appears in the movies, including negative portrayals, stigma against treatment, and some positive examples.

Jul 27, 2019

Shakespeare in Love: What a shitty movie

Brandon and Maria tackle the 1998 Academy Best Picture winner, Shakespeare in Love. Is it any good? Well, no. Both hosts feel pretty strongly about that.

Jul 13, 2019

Little Miss Sunshine: It’s OK to Not Be OK

Little Miss Sunshine (2006) is a film about family dynamics and how to be OK with who you are. During this episode, Brandon and Maria discuss (in)appropriate dinner conversations, family dysfunction, body issues/positivity, suicide, and gay issues. We also discover that Maria and Brandon don’t have any specific supper traditions anymore. Because of the 1990s.

Jun 29, 2019

The Rocky Horror Picture Show: Being Yourself Isn’t Easy When You’re Queer

Maria and Brandon discuss the 1975 cult classic The Rocky Horror Picture Show. They discuss the impact the film had on gay culture and why we need pride. Also, Maria forces Brandon to play another game.

Jun 15, 2019

Dog Day Afternoon: A Surprisingly Subtle Look at LGBTQ Issues

In this episode, Brandon and Maria discuss the 1975 bank heist film Dog Day Afternoon, a movie that focuses on LGBTQ issues without really focusing on it. This movie is set amongst the backdrop of the 1970s and the culture of that time (e.g., Vietnam War, Attica Prison riots, gay rights).

Jun 01, 2019

Once Upon a Time in America: Survivor’s Guilt, PTSD, and an Epic Bromance

In this episode, Brandon and Maria discuss Once Upon a Time in America. They explore the could-have-been award-winning musical score and how a mafia film focuses on friendship, which they both agree to be kind of refreshing. May is Mental Health Awareness month, so they also go into detail about survivor’s guilt and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Also, finally this movie features a tantalizing food scene!

May 18, 2019

Return of the Jedi: Feelings, Faith, and Carrie Fisher

Brandon and Maria discuss Return of the Jedi, the last film in the Star Wars trilogy. They discuss mental health and religion, and also officially name Carrie Fisher the patron saint of Peculiar Picture Show.

May 04, 2019

Clueless: Look who’s clueless now (hint: it’s Brandon)

As if we’re going to write a real summary of this episode! But you could say we wax intellectual about feminism, femininity, women’s roles, and the 1990s. This is basically a food-free episode.

Apr 20, 2019

Donnie Darko: We still don’t really know what it’s about

In this episode, Maria and Brandon discuss Donnie Darko, a movie about schizophrenia. Or maybe time travel. Wait—it’s about both. Well, we’re not actually sure. But we talk about schizophrenia. No food to be found.

Apr 06, 2019

Argo: A hostage situation we knew nothing about

This episode discusses Ben Affleck’s best picture winner Argo and the myriad of different mental health issues that can arise from being in captivity. The hosts spend some time going on a tangent about becoming parents. Also, Maria gets disappointed at the serious lack of food in this movie.

Mar 23, 2019

Captain Marvel: 6-word review (spoiler-free)

Brandon and Maria pick three words each to describe the new Captain Marvel movie. This review is spoiler-free.

Mar 19, 2019

Black Swan: Emotional abuse en pointe

Mental illness and trauma can cast a shroud over everything. In this episode, Brandon and Maria delve into the complex and brilliant film Black Swan and talk about what's going on behind that curtain of trauma and mental illness.

Mar 09, 2019

Natural Born Killers: A little drama and a lot of trauma

This episode tackles Oliver Stone's controversial film, Natural Born Killers. This is a deeply personal episode for Maria, who opens up about the source of her past trauma in great detail, which is tied to her memories of this movie. Also, Maria and Brandon discuss whether Stone did more harm than good in making this film.

Feb 23, 2019

The Royal Tenenbaums: Family drama has never been so quirky

What do you do when your family doesn't know how to be a family? Maria and Brandon discuss this in the context of the Wes Anderson classic, The Royal Tenenbaums. Maria opens up about some past family trauma. Brandon goes full English-nerd and explains all the metaphors. Also, Maria talks about food.

Feb 10, 2019

Silver Linings Playbook: An unflinching look at bipolar disorder

Representation of mental illness in film isn't great, although it is getting better. Brandon talks about his condition, bipolar disorder, and a movie that he considers the best representation of this disorder in film: Silver Linings Playbook. Maria opens up about her struggles and some past trauma. Also, Maria talks about food.

Jan 16, 2019

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