The Movies, Films and Flix Podcast – Episode 369: In the Mouth of Madness, Tentacles, and the Apocalypse Trilogy
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Mark and John discuss the 1994 horror film In the Mouth of Madness. Directed by John Carpenter, and starring Sam Neill, Julie Carmen and Charlton Heston, the movie focuses on what happens when people become too obsessed with a horror novelist. In this episode, they discuss gooey monsters, apocalypses, and Sam Neill’s horror career. Enjoy!
Make sure to check out our episodes that cover The Thing and Prince of Darkness.
If you are a fan of the podcast, make sure to send in some random listener questions (we love random questions). We thank you for listening, and hope you enjoy the episode!
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Quick thoughts: The first two episodes of Loki are fun, funky and very unique. Tom Hiddleston is clearly having a blast, and it will be fun to see where the other four episodes go
The first two episodes deal with the aftermath of Loki creating a new timeline after using the Tesseract to escape the Avengers in Avengers: Endgame. Loki’s freedom is short-lived, and he is arrested by a space bureaucracy known as the Time Variance Authority (TVA). A sprawling corporation that has time labs, time cops, and time courts that judge whether or not a time traveler should be considered a “Time Variant.” What is the punishment for being a time variant? Well, the person is wiped out of existence, so the sacred timeline can be restored. Since Loki doesn’t want to be wiped from existence, he uses all of his tricks, and some luck, to win over TVA agent Mobius M. Mobius (Owen Wilson – so much fun), a seasoned time agent who hunts down dangerous time criminals, and he recruits Loki to chase down a dangerous criminal who is killing members of the TVA. What follows shouldn’t be spoiled, just know that there’s talk of jet skis, and Loki calls him a “Mischievous Scamp.”
The joy of the first two episodes is watching the joy on Tom Hiddleston’s face as he finally gets to let loose. This is his Thor: Ragnarok, and you can tell he loves letting his hair down and having fun. This isn’t the emo-Loki we were introduced to in Thor (2011), this is the mischievous and fun god of mischief that he was meant to be. His interactions with Mobius, Ravonna Renslayer (Gugu Mbatha-Raw), Hunter B-15 (Wummi Mosaku) and a TVA office drone (Eugene Cordero) are a blast, and it’s fun watching time bureaucrats deal with the bombastic and untrustworthy Loki (who will definitely stab people in the back).
The direction by Kate Herron is lively and confident, and Herron seems to enjoy the tiny moments of conversation as much as the fight scenes. The show is refreshingly devoid of CGI-smackem ups, and instead focuses on the verbal wizardry created by writer Michael Waldron (only credited writer so far). Also, the cinematography and production design by Autumn Durald (Teen Spirit, Palo Alto) and Karsa Farahani (Bliss, Thor, Captain Marvel) are top-notch, as they manage to make drab office buildings, and cafeterias look expansive and impressive (they also love the color orange). The shot selection is always visually interesting, and it makes the many conversations seem alive and spirited.
If you are a fan of WanadaVision, Thor: Ragnarok and movies featuring space corporations, you will love Loki.
Final Thoughts: The first two episodes of Loki make me want to watch more of it. It will be exciting to see how it all plays out.
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The Movies, Films and Flix Podcast – Episode 368 – The Wolf of Snow Hollow, John McEnroe, and Jim Cummings
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Mark and Zanandi (@ZaNandi on Twitter) discuss the excellent 2020 film The Wolf of Snow Hollow. Directed and written by Jim Cummings (watch Thunder Road now), and starring Riki Lindhome, Robert Forster, and Cummings, the movie focuses on what happens when a ski town in Utah is ravaged by brutal murders that take place when there is a full moon. In this episode, they discuss monologues, angry people, and the werewolf genre. Enjoy!
If you are a fan of the podcast, make sure to send in some random listener questions (we love random questions). We thank you for listening, and hope you enjoy the episode!
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Deep Blue Sea – The Podcast – Episode 48: Deep Rising (1998), Lunkheads, and Beach Balls
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Jay and Mark take a break from Deep Blue Sea, and talk about the 1998 film Deep Rising. Directed by Stephen Sommers, and starring Treat Williams, Famke Janssen, Wes Studi and a jet ski, the film focuses on what happens when a gigantic sea monster attacks a cruise ship. In this episode, they discuss lunkheads, beach balls, and squishy monsters. Enjoy!
The Deep Blue Sea 3 series starts next week! Make sure you watch it, and follow along.
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The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It – An Earnest Horror Film That Mixes Up The Conjuring Formula
Quick Thoughts – B – The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It is a breezy horror film that is worth watching for the excellent chemistry of Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson
The third installment of The Conjuring franchise won’t achieve the critical and financial success of its two predecessors, but the new format (there’s a fun mystery) and likable characters make it a worthy addition to the franchise. Director Michael Chaves (The Curse of La Llorona) has made a visually interesting “whodunit” that is based on the trial of Arne Cheyenne Johnson, a murder trial that took place in 1981 Connecticut. Basically, a young man named Arne Johnson (Ruairi O’Connor) becomes possessed by a demon during an exorcism of a young child, and he goes on to stab his girlfriend’s boss 22 times while possessed. Instead of pleading guilty, Ed (Patrick Wilson) and Lorraine Warren (Vera Farmiga) have him claim demonic possession as a plea.The demonic possession plea becomes worldwide news that isn’t taken too kindly by the presiding judge, which means Arne will be possibly be sentenced to death if he’s found guilty So, it’s up to Ed and Lorraine to figure out what/who is possessing him, and that leads them towards a wildly dangerous foe.
What follows is a fun murder mystery which refreshingly has much less weight to it than the Warren’s other two cases. A fun wrinkle in the story involves Ed suffering a heart attack after a demon child punches him in the chest (it’s wild). So, needing extra help, he and Lorraine employ the help of Arne’s girlfriend Debbie Glatzel (Sarah Catherine Hook), Father Gordon (Steve Coulter), and Drew Thomas (Shannon Kook), so can they dive into occult studies that lead them to Kastner (John Noble – I miss Fringe), a former priest who has knowledge of the Disciples of the Ram Cult (AKA bad business). Kastner informs them that they should probably run the other way as this particular brand of Satanist is super nasty, and any curse that they place has to be seen through, or their souls are taken to hell. Eventually, they learn that they have to destroy the altar of the occultist to stop the curse, which is easier said than done because they have no clue where to find it.
The rest of the film is a lot of fun, and it’s admirable how earnestly it’s played. The movie works because of Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson, who after several films have a lived-in chemistry that give it a lot of credibility. The two sell everything, and it doesn’t matter how silly it is, they make everything that much more believable. The cinematography by Michael Burgess (The Nun) is excellent, as he keeps finding ways to make big houses feel bigger, and waterbeds look devious. After working as a camera operator of movies like The Avengers, The Lincoln Lawyer, and The Conjuring, it’s neat to see him working as the DP on a major film.
Final thoughts – The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It is a fun horror experience that won’t linger long in your memory.
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Quick thoughts – B- – Spiral: From the Book of Saw is a glossy continuation of the Saw saga that is made better by the presence of Chris Rock.
Directed by Saw veteran Darren Lynn Bousman (Saw II, Saw III, Saw IV), Spiral is a welcome addition to the Saw franchise as it provides new characters, decent kills, and an entirely new plot that doesn’t need to tie other films together. It’s neat that Chris Rock was a fan of the franchise, and after pitching an idea to Lionsgate, they let him star in the film, and be an executive producer. The end result never reaches the iconic heights of the 2004 original, but it’s fun watching Chris Rock and Samuel L. Jackson being a part of the Saw world.
Spiral revolves around a “game” loving murderer who is killing off corrupt police detectives in wildly intricate ways. The kills are reminiscent of the Jigsaw murders from years prior, and once again (like in the OG franchise) the killer singles out a police detective named Zeke Banks (Chris Rock), and his new partner William Schenk (Max Minghella) for the games. Banks is an interesting choice to take lead on the case, as he is universally disliked in his precinct because years prior he turned in his corrupt partner after he killed a witness. This leads to Zeke being shot when other detectives ignored his backup calls, and he’s only kept on the force because his dad Marcus Banks (Samuel L. Jackson), is a famous local detective who makes sure nobody else harasses him.
What follows is a fun mystery that involves ripped out tongues, glass shards, and creepy puppets. It’s fun watching Chris Rock in full-detective mode, and you buy into his sweat-drenched character as he struggles with finding the killer, and dealing with a precinct of corrupt detectives who don’t want to help him. The kills in the film aren’t memorable like the reverse bear trap, shotgun carousel, or the needle pit games that still induce nightmares. However, they do provide a wicked charm and don’t feel too familiar after eight movies worth of gruesome traps.
The cinematography by Jordan Oram, the guy who shot music videos for Drake, Usher, Coldplay, and Future (watch the Life is Good short) is much-less grungy than Saw 1-7, and still somehow more grungy than Jigsaw (which is good). Also, the costume design by Laura Montgomery (What We Do in the Shadows) is solid, and it’s nice seeing people wearing sweaty clothes as they inhabit an extremely hot city (this is rarer than you think). The script by Josh Stolberg and Pete Goldfinger (they also wrote Jigsaw) gives away a few killer hints early on, but still provides enough twists-and-turns to make the 93 minutes fly by.
Final thoughts – It never captures the gritty glory of the 2004 film, but Spiral does enough to provide a bloody good time.
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Deep Blue Sea – The Podcast – Episode 47: Chessboards, Time Loop Scenarios, and The Practical Clothing Realm
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Jay and Mark are joined by returning guest Nick Rehak (@TheRehak on Twitter) to discuss the 10th and final chapter of the Deep Blue Sea 2 DVD. In this episode, they discuss time loop scenarios, Slaterisms, and the Billboard Top 100 of August 28th, 1999. Enjoy!
We hope you enjoyed our coverage of Deep Blue Sea 2, and we hope you’re ready for Deep Blue Sea 3!
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Quick Thoughts – Plan B is a fun road trip film that features standout performances from Kuhoo Verma (The Big Sick) and Victoria Morales (Teen Wolf). It will be fun to see what director Natalie Morales does next.
Directed by Natalie Morales (so good in Dead to Me, Language Lessons, and The Santa Clarita Diet), Plan B is a refreshing film full of humor, likable performances and chase scenes that take place in mud. The script by Prathiksha Srinivasan and Joshua Levy blends heart and raunch well, and their script moves the film along at a breakneck speed that covers a lot of ground, and somehow allows the characters to have moments to breathe and converse. Also, the Syracuse (standing in for South Dakota) filming locations add a nice rural touch to the film, and give the same a unique look that stands apart from films like Booksmart, Superbad and Blockers.
Plan B focuses on best friends Sunny (Verma) and Lupe (Morales), two believably awkward, and very funny (when nobody is around) high schoolers who both have overbearing parents. When Sunny’s mom leaves town for a convention, Sunny throws a party so she can hang out with Hunter (Michael Provost), a cool kid who charmingly wears cardigans while playing sports. What’s nice is that the party isn’t some kind of Can’t Hardly Wait or Project X blowout. Instead, the kids are well behaved, and despite some wildly strong alcohol and cheeky sharpie work, it might be one of the most low key high school parties ever put on screen (which is very refreshing). During the party, Sunny ends up having sex with Kyle (Mason Cook), a self-described “Chris Pratt” type of nice guy. Problems arise the following morning when Sunny learns the condom fell off, and this forces an epic journey through conversative South Dakota to find the Plan B pill. (Aka the morning after pill). What follows involves playground drug deals, a concert at a bowling alley, and a gas station attendant who swings a mean baseball bat.
The film is loaded with heart and humor, and you genuinely like Sunny and Lupe. They are three-dimensional characters who act like teenagers, as their actions feel real because they believably have no clue what they are doing. Victoria Morales and Kuhoo Verma have excellent chemistry, and if the movie was just them singing the same song over and over in a car, you’d be cool with it.
Final Thoughts: Plan B is a lot of fun, and feels like Booksmart met Never Rarely Sometimes Always, and spawned a charming film with something to say.
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The Movies, Films and Flix Podcast – Episode 367 – The Rock (1996), Nicolas Cage, and Action Classics
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Mark and Niall talk about the 1996 action classic The Rock. Directed by Michael Bay, and starring Nicolas Cage, Sean Connery, Ed Harris, and Tony Todd, the movie focuses on what happens when an elite group of mercenaries come up against Nicolas Cage and Sean Connery. In this episode, they discuss car chases, classic lines, and Cage’s epic action run in the 1990s. Enjoy!
If you are a fan of the podcast, make sure to send in some random listener questions (we love random questions). We thank you for listening, and hope you enjoy the episode!
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MY CALL: This movie serves as a “Serial Killing 101” course and boy is it interesting! I’ll just warn that this wasn’t nearly as “shocking” as the consensus of online reviews suggested to me. Provocative? Yes. Shocking? Nah, not to a seasoned horror fan. Still very good? Absolutely. MORE MOVIES LIKE The Poughkeepsie Tapes: Well, by no means similar, but I’d recommend things like Mindhunter (2017-2019) and 8mm (1999). But for more documentary-style horror or documentary-gone-wrong horror, I’d recommend I’d strongly recommend Lake Mungo (2008), The Last Exorcism (2010), Grave Encounters (2011), Grave Encounters 2 (2012), The Taking of Deborah Logan (2014), Digging Up the Marrow (2014), Hell House LLC (2015), Demonic (2015), Ghost Stories (2017) and Butterfly Kisses (2018).
Director John Erick Dowdle (Quarantine, As Above So Below, Devil) delivers all the thrills of watching an actual true crime documentary program. The only far-fetched moments are the very moments that convince us the killer is twisted, just as we’d often experience in such a show.
We explore the discovery and content of a set of tapes comprising 2400 hours of footage taken by a serial killer chronicling what he did to his victims… and a lot of it is weird. Our killer makes women blow up oddly durable balloons and awkwardly pop them by bouncing on them in their underwear; he talks to a young girl before abducting her, with heavy mouth-breathing between his interactions; and he places a husband’s severed head in the partially disemboweled abdomen of his wife and awakens her to see his handywork. But perhaps just as disturbing are the videos stalking his victims in their own homes, often biding his time and enjoying observing from close distances.
The testimonials from FBI profilers, agents, and medical experts serve as an informative “Serial Killing 101” on how to best get away with a murder, from the best way to dismember a body or general profiling strategies to taking advantage of the disjunct flow of information between municipalities were a killer to (apparently wisely) do his serial killing across jurisdictional lines.
Eventually we have footage of the killer interacting with his victims. It’s disturbing. He toys with them, manipulates them, gets them to do things they’d never possibly do, and does things to them they never thought possible.
My final take on this film is that it was not nearly, not even close, to the level of disturbing conveyed to me by my movie reviewing peers online. I’d say this was a good film; a very good movie perhaps; but not “great” and not the shocker that was advertised. That said, I enjoyed this viewing, but like so many films I imagine I’ll never revisit it simply by virtue of the multitude of other films that need to be seen. But still, this was a pretty cool film!
Movies, Films & Flix 