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This week we skinny dip into the largest, deepest, coldest lake in North America... Crystal Lake. Back before he was a mountain of an undead serial killer, Jason Voorhees was just a child. Join us as we take a look at the first two episodes of the new Peacock streaming series, won't you?    Crystal Lake Minisode 1- Greetings From Camp...

This week a director attempts an impossible take, a detective attempts to remember a clue, and a First Nations activist attempts to show the damage yet to be done.      The cast and crew of a low-budget zombie find themselves between a director, Higurashi, driven to extremes and the chomping end of an actual zombie outbreak. Before the last drop of blood is spilled, we take a look at what drove Higurashi to this extreme and what was happening off screen. The poster film for "let's put on a show" spirit and independent ingenuity that opens with a in a brilliant 37 minute uninterrupted continuous shot- One Cut of the Dead [original Kamera o Tomeru na!; lit. Don't Stop the Camera!].      A serial killer thought to have died eighteen years earlier returns. The only surviving witness, whose mother was the last victim in the original murders, and the case's now retired detective, who is suffering from age related memory loss, join together to finally end the terror that has haunted them both. A giallo from widely acknowledged master of the art, Dario Argento, Sleepless [original Non ho sonno; lit. 'I can't sleep'].      Peter Maguire is the lawyer for a First Nations reserve and trying to stop a logging company from building a road that will lead to clear cutting of Native land. After a meeting where the reserve's representative affirms their desire to fight, Arthur, an Indigenous activist, joins him on his trip back home. That night Arthur kidnaps logging plant manager, Bud, and the three men take a long trip through the wilderness. A brilliantly acted and brutal deconstruction of performative allyship, the limits of pacifism, corporate pillaging of the environment, and the land rights of First Nations people, Clearcut.      All that and three looks at a magnetic tape. Join us, won't you?     Episode 488- Cut to the Chase

In the spirit of spooky season and to milk hype for a newer Stephen King miniseries, we take a look at the ABC TV miniseries that started sixteen years of Stephen King adaptions- IT. Does is hold up? Do we just have nostalgia goggles? Does Tim Curry still stalk our nightmares? Join us, won't you?    A Spooky Season minisode- Beep Beep

This week- a two directorial debuts from industry veterans and the sixth film from one of the most divisive cult filmmakers.      Daisy works in content monitoring at Paladin, a harsh workplace with strict quotas, a martinet boss, and constant employee breakdowns. Trying to maintain her well-being, Daisy indulges in some numbing excess but nothing stops her increasing detachment. Until she can't just look away from one disturbingly violent video. An examination of modern disillusionment and digital detachment, American Sweatshop.      Philip is forced to return to his childhood home and elderly uncle, Maurice, after an incident involving this spider-like representation of personal trauma marionette. Despite multiple attempts and a suffocating desperation to dispose of the nightmarish puppet, it always returns to him, in tact and close. Maurice torments a mentally crumbling and regressing Philip while the police search for a possible abductor. The feature debut of a cult comedian and author is a brutal and bleak look at the repercussions of abuse and trauma, Possum.      A mysterious pyramid, showing details combining all the diverse pyramids on Earth, is found under an uninhabited Arctic island. Lex Woods is hired by Charles Bishop Weyland to guide a team of mercenaries and questionably competent scientists into the structure. Unfortunately, it turns out to be an elaborate interstellar hunting ground for the most dangerous organism and most skilled hunter in the galaxy. The sixth feature from both loved and hated genre filmmaker Paul W.S. Anderson, Alien vs Predator.      All that AND a we take a look at "Scottish Mist" the penultimate episode of Channel 4's brilliant horror comedy, Garth Marenghi's Darkplace. Join us, won't you?    Episode 487- Kill or be Kilt

This week- John finds some closure, Kerry does a whoopsie, Guy gets a the terms of his employment rearranged, Noah sees a cameo, and Halogram finally says the words RealHal couldn't. Join us in waxing philosophical for Lanterns finale, "Dirt and Stars", won't you? Lanterns Minisode- A Cuckoo in Play

This week we kick off Spooky Season festivities with three films about people having troubles with home ownership.      Simone waits for a letter from new wave superstar R. Thoughts of R and their future consume her every moment. When no reply arrives, Simone decided to help her fate along by hitchhiking to Munich and nothing will keep her and R apart any longer. An incredible performance propelling a tense psychosexual horror, Der Fan.      Independent film director Alister is fired by VHS distributor William King and told the project is dead. When he learns that the film is actually being sold and he won't be paid, he decides to take brutal and violent revenge on all of King's inner circle. No budget auteur Michael J Murphy's Bloodstream.      Jae-pil and Sang-goo have used all their life savings to buy a house in the country to begin an idyllic life. The local police and a soo to debut golf pro's entourage treat them with extreme suspicion and contempt due to their looks. When they save Mi-na from drowning, they kick off a bloody misunderstanding. Meanwhile the golf pro might have kicked off the end of the world. A Korean remake of the beloved cult classic Tucker & Dale vs Evil- Handsome Guys. All that and Dave take a trip out, Kevin settles in for a long month, and Craig plots to gift everyone an existential crisis. Join us. won't we?    Episode 486- Gorgeous Rivulet

This week a foursome with the ultimate pop diva and divisive actors to grace the silver screen.      A New York auteur goes to Hollywood to direct a drama about abuse. In order to get the performances he wants, he pushes his leads to their emotional extremes. In his quest for raw emotion on film, he doesn't even notice how his own careless behavior erodes all the real relationships around him. A metatextual dive through a film-within-a-film by Abel Ferrara, one of the most staunchly independent and unpredictable American filmmakers, Dangerous Game.      When crime boss and amateur choreographer Big Boy Caprice makes a move to take over all organized crime under his control, only the shovel jawed bright yellow trench coated detective Dick Tracy stands in his way. With only a young orphan witness and sultry singer as the only possible witnesses to Caprice's crimes, Tracy tries to end the reign of the crime kingpin before it begins. A visual treat inspired by the classic 1930s comic strip by Chester Gould that spawned a wave of imitators, Dick Tracy.      Nikki Finn just served four years for a crime she did not commit and is being released early for good behavior. Loudon Trott is a tax attorney on the even of his wedding to the boss's taxi frequenting daughter. When Loudon is ordered to make sure Nikki gets on a bus to Philly and deliver a rare large cat to an eccentric but very rich client, he ends up having the most screwball adjacent day possible and wondering... Who's The Girl?      Roberta is the neglected housewife of New Jersey's Hot Tub King. She occupies her time tracing the misadventures of a young and free pair of lovers through the paper's daily personal ads. When she decides to go witness their next meeting, she ends up drawn into a murderous conspiracy without her memory, accidentally stealing an identity, and living a life she could only fantasize about before. While she remains mostly oblivious, it seems the whole city is Desperately Seeking Susan.      All that and Craig becomes a zephyr in the night sky, Kevin wants to kiss you in Paris, and, oh God,  Dave thinks he's falling. Join us, won't we?    Episode 485: Desperately Seeking Madonna

This week- John Stewart goes back to Rushville, a large plant grieves, and we have thoughts about that. Join us, while we discuss "Bad Optics" Lanterns episode 6, won't you?     Minisode- Emerald Optics

This week a pair of films with dire actions at sporting events.      Carmen is placed in the care of her stepmother. Encarna is a scheming and vicious former nurse who used Carmen's mother's death in childbirth and her father's tragic bullfighting injury who will not let anything upset her lavish lifestyle. After the death of her father, Carmen escapes an assassination attempt but revives with no memory of her past but fortunately finds a place with a travelling group of bullfighters with dwarfism. A silent masterpiece that finds a new approach to the ancient Grimm tale- Pablo Berger's Blancanieves.      Peter van Cleese witnessed his grandfather's mysterious disappearance 17 years ago. Now he has returned to claim his inherited lodge and allow his group of friends to join the Muskie Madness. Unfortunately for all, what befell his grandfather will soon be targeting everyone on the lake. No one is safe from- Blood Hook.      All that and Craig is conflicted, Kevin wants a special cheese, and Dave can not master the art of the perfect cast. Join us, won't you?    Episode 484- Finding Matadory

This week- we bid The Shards a farewell while wondering who will carry Green Lantern's light forward? WIll Guy start with his bowl cut or will he get it through the power of the ring???  Join us, won't you?    The Final Shards/Lanterns minisode- The Splattening

This week- a pair of films about people put into unusual situations.       Rex has just served an 8 year sentence for the death of a bank teller cause by his actions while confronting a group of thieves. Rex decides to take a nice long vacation in Finland. As soon as he lands, Rex is abducted and now has to find a way out of a very hungry nightmare. The fifth film from director Alister Grierson just might make you exclaim- Bloody Hell.      A Japanese surrealist sketch comedy anthology featuring women at an onsen, a high school homeroom that has much to tell, two young dreamers who do not dream the same thing, and three brothers that ladies just do not care for. Cronenbergian instruments, aliens that feed on dreams, the music in one's soul, vaudeville slapstick, and one truly Funky Forest: The First Contact.      All that and Dave has a private anniversary party, Craig second guesses his life choices, and Kevin lives in the blissful warmth of his platinum trophy. Join us, won't you?    Episode 483- Funky Stumps

Hal and John and Bret and Robert all find strange new worlds at motor lodges in decades gone by. Both are VERY Shakespearian, even if one is too on the nose. Join us won't you?    Shards and Lanterns Minisode #2- Out Damn Green Spot  hards and Lanterns Minisode #2- Out Damn Green Spot

This week we cross examine a pair of films featuring musicians in speaking roles.      After small town lawyer Paul Biegler loses his reelection for DA, he spends his time quickly burning through his savings and fishing. When Mrs. Manion asks he defend her Army Lieutenant husband, who is charged with murdering an innkeeper, Barney Quill. Lt Manion claims he doesn't have any memory of the event. The first revisionist legal drama and another of Otto Preminger's most aggressive works pushing back against taboo and censorship, Anatomy of a Murder.      The Relentless, a pan-Atlantic rock band, come together under the charismatic leadership of Johnny Faust. The band begins having strange run-ins with a many who claims he just might be The Devil and will make them the biggest act on Earth for the outrageously reasonable price of a single human sacrifice. Soon they find themselves on top of the charts and connected to a massive outbreak of extreme violence. The second feature from Ash Avildsen, the founder of Sumerian Records and featuring a score by Korn frontman Jonathan Davis, American Satan.      All that and Craig forgets and Dave endures and Kevin lives in blissful denial of the same thing while Tyler shouts love from the void. Join us, won't you.    Episode 482- The Devil & Ms. Manion

This week... we have an extended stay in 1981 L.A. and wake up in Rushville, Nebraska. The Shards episodes 5, 6, & 7 AND Lanterns episodes 1 & 2. Join us, won't you?    The Shards minisode 3- Sharting Green

This week we are joined by John from And Now For Something A Little Bit Different... for four films made with modest budgets and grand ambitions.      Kato discovers that the monitor in his apartment shows what is happening in his cafe downstairs. That view is from two minutes in the future. When his friends and employee begin playing with the strange timey wimey wibble wobble they soon learn the future isn't always trustworthy. An impressive debut feature and nagamawashi, a genre of microbudget single shot films that gained popularity in Japan in 2017, Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes.      A film student is hired to make a documentary by Ray Shoesmith, a hitman in Melbourne. Ray talks about everything, openly showing who he is and what he does, and the pair bond while Ray goes about conducting several jobs with some surprising results and approaches. The inspiration for the critically acclaimed Mr. Inbetween and the series creator-producer-writer-star Scott Ryan's debut feature- The Magician.      A fisherman is pushed into a bad deal with a capitalist and soon finds himself flayed and cheated before his beloved pole is stolen through legal manipulation. As the rage simmers, a just as flayed mermaid appears offering to deliver his greatest wish- the love of the town's beauty. A darkly comedic fantasy musical comedy with puppet, distributed by The House That Toxie Built, Gutboy: A Bedtime Story. A painter takes a commission from a brothel. A young woman is forced out of her home after a playful afternoon in a river. Another young woman is chased from her village by an angry mob. A small group likes to frolic in the woods and a field. The fourth directorial feature from cinematographer Maxim Ford- Picture of Beauty.       All that and Dave makes a shocking recommendation, John revels in a good week, and Tyler is summoned from the digital abyss like the eldritch nightmare he always wanted to be. Join us, won't you?    Episode 481- Shoestrings