Oct 02 2014
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Gordon Smuder, in his element.
This week, dear listeners, we are joined by professional puppeteer Gordon Smuder for an episode all about PUPPET MOVIES! And, because we like a challenge, we have decided to discuss only non-Henson puppets, so no Muppets allowed! (Don’t worry, we still love Muppets — it’s just that everyone knows about Muppets already, right?) So bring your ventriloquist dummies and magic talking flutes and have a listen!
This week is an even-numbered episode, too, so Windy and Melissa are extra-sauced for this puppetry discussion. If you would like to drink along, we suggest Red Guitar Old Vine Temperanillo-Garnacha, which is what you hear being poured generously throughout the episode. Alternately, if you are a sober driver like Gordon, we suggest a mixture of fizzy mineral water and your juice of choice. It’s delicious, and you get to sound extra smart next to the silly drunk ladies.
Pictured: silly drunk ladies
Show notes behind the cut!
Sep 29 2014
Every Monday, each of us will suggest a film that we feel too few people have seen.
Windy’s Pick of the Week: Cloak & Dagger
Another family friendly entry from the mid-80s – sort of The Goonies meets Gotcha (and there’s another movie to remind you about!). Child star Henry Thomas is the central character – a lonely, motherless child who loses himself in video games. Dabney Coleman plays his imaginary friend, the star of his spy game. When our young hero accidentally comes into possession of actual spy secrets, he must use everything he’s learned from the game, and the advice of his imaginary pal, to save the day.
Melissa’s Pick of the Week: Gold Diggers of 1933
This film is one of the strangest musicals I have ever seen. On the surface, it looks like almost every other musical of its time: the “hey, let’s make a Broadway show!” plot, the dazzling Busby Berkeley dance numbers, and the occasional still-famous tune (namely, “We’re In the Money”). However, there is an underlying darkness to the movie called The Great Depression. While many musicals of this film’s time were an escape from the Depression, this one openly deals with it. The story begins with four actresses, who are struggling to pay rent. A show they have been rehearsing has shut down because it ran out of money. The lives of the people in the film are unglamorous. And while the bulk of the film’s running time is relentlessly upbeat, the final number takes a startling left turn into the Reality Zone that dropped my jaw to the floor when I first saw it. If you want to see what happens when Busby Berkeley gets socially conscious and turns to German Expressionism, this is the movie for you.
Sep 25 2014
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This week, we get our monster love on with an episode about Guillermo del Toro! To make this episode even better, we are joined in the Pleasure Dome by Matt Kessen, the very tall mad genius behind Reverend Matt’s Monster Science!
If Reverend Matt’s resonant voice makes you want to join in our drinking rites, we suggest a fine, peaty scotch like Laphroaig Cairdeas, which is the bottle we killed while recording this episode. We certainly enjoyed setting our mouths and souls aflame with that stuff.
More show notes behind the cut!
Sep 22 2014
Every Monday, each of us will suggest a film that we feel too few people have seen.
Melissa’s Pick of the Week: The Ipcress File
If you are unfamiliar with Michael Caine’s acting career during his younger days, you owe it to yourself to see the 1965 spy flick The Ipcress File. The film was made as a reaction to the high-fashion, sexy James Bond series, detailing the day-to-day life of a more realistic screen spy named Harry Palmer (played by Caine). Palmer lives in an apartment, deals with bureaucracy, and navigates departmental politics while he unravels a complicated plot involving the kidnapping of an esteemed scientist. The film is a slow burn, and you have to pay attention, but I assure you it’s worth the trip to get to the extraordinarily strange ending. Oh, and here’s some strange trivia: even though this film was a reaction to James Bond, it was produced by Harry Saltzman, who himself co-produced the Bond series through 1974.
Windy’s Pick of the Week: The Company of Wolves
Angela Lansbury anchors this moody anthology piece about the loss of innocence and the awakening of sexuality. The central werewolf theme is played out in a variety of forms, and the movie feels more like a fever dream than a coherent story. But it sticks with you, and it definitely entertains. Besides, it offers the very valuable advice: “Never trust a man whose eyebrows grow together.”
Sep 18 2014
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In this week’s extra-boozy episode, we talk about heist movies! Because, seriously, don’t we all want to be part of a heist at some part of our lives? It’s even a great word. HEIST. Roll that around in your mouth for a while. HEISSSSST.
Anyway, if you would like to drink along, we found a bottle of Layer Cake Malbec that served us quite well. We promise we paid for it. We did not steal it, because we like and admire the honest workers of our local alcohol-providing establishments.
Show notes and links below the cut!
