This week, returning guest Theo (whose film review webseries Twin Cinema will be coming soon to the Alcohollywood Youtube Channel!) joins us to disassemble the cinematic mind-screw that is Shinya Tsukamoto's Tetsuo the Iron Man! Somewhere between the surrealism of Lynch and the body horror of Cronenberg, Tetsuo follows a terrified salaryman as his body is slowly supplanted with strange metal growths. We chat about the film's striking 16mm photography, the surrealist plot, and drill-does, while offering you our custom cocktail and drinking rules. Check it out!
(Thanks to our sponsor Cards Against Humanity as part of the Chicago Podcast Coop!)
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Get tickets here for the Music Box's midnight screening of 2014's The Guest (hosted by Clint!) on July 29th in Chicago!
This Week in Academia:
"A Cyborg Manifesto" by Donna Hareway
“Dead Channel Surfing: The Commonalities Between Cyberpunk Literature and Industrial Music” by Karen Collins
“Magical Girls and Atomic Bomb Sperm” by Annalee Newitz
For our 250th episode, we take on one of the more insane films we've ever seen, as playwright Dusty Wilson and improviser Pat Niday joins us to talk 1981's Roar! The infamously bloody animal drama is essentially a home movie in which Tippi Hedren's husband (the Charles Manson lookalike Noel Marshall) convinces his family to make a film about them hanging out with their menagerie of lions, tigers and other big cats. It goes about how you'd expect - 70 crew members were injured on set - but the end result is one of the most hilarious tense cinematic experiences you'll ever have. We break it down along with our custom cocktail and drinking game, so enjoy!
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(Thanks to our sponsor Iron Galaxy as part of the Chicago Podcast Coop!)
This week, we rock out with returning guest, Consequence of Sound's Nick Freed, to talk about the psychedelic 1975 rock opera Tommy! The product of Pete Townshend's musical genius, Ken Russell's frenetic direction, and (presumably) a whoollle lotta drugs, Tommy tells the tale of a 'deaf, dumb and blind kid' in post-WWII Britain who endures abuse and torment before finding his calling as a pinball wizard and leading a spiritual movement. The songs are crazy, the design is goofy, and we just couldn't get enough of it. Check out our episode along with our custom cocktail and drinking game!
(Thanks to our sponsor Second City as part of the Chicago Podcast Coop!)
This week, returning guest Derek Jarvis stops by as we break down the acerbic wit and tough-guy moralism of Martin McDonagh’s black crime comedy In Bruges! After a botched hit, the twitchy Ray (Colin Farrell) is sent to the medieval Belgian hamlet of Bruges with his partner Ken (Brendan Gleeson) by their inscrutable, temperamental boss Harry Waters (Ralph Fiennes). While there, they take in the sights, clash with the local populace, and occasionally gain an insight or two about the human condition. Of course, all this is set to a flurry of creative profanity, Gothic architecture, and the deeply, darkly human characters you can expect from an acclaimed playwright like McDonagh. Check out our discussion along with our custom cocktail and drinking game!
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(Thanks to our sponsor Emporium Chicago as part of the Chicago Podcast Coop!)
Related Links:
The Nerdwriter’s excellent video essay on In Bruges, “Morality In Dialogue”
Our friends at Spirits Podcast!
THIS EPISODE’S DRINK: Fucky Charms
An ode to the high saturation of profanity, as well as the film’s Irish pedigree and Belgian setting, we mixed Irish whiskey, orahovac green walnut liqueur, and walnut milk to craft an elegantly creamy cocktail befitting a sleepy stay in the oldest medieval town left standing.
3oz Irish whiskey
3oz walnut milk*
2oz Badel Orahovac fruit liqueur
Dash, Belgian chocolate bitters
Combine ingredients in a rocks glass with large cold ice cubes, Stir to combine.
*To make the walnut milk, just soak a bunch of shelled walnuts in water overnight, then blend until it forms a thick white puree. Strain the bits out with a fine seive or cheesecloth and there’s your walnut milk!
RULES:
1) Drink every time someone drops an f-bomb (PLEASE DRINK RESPONSIBLY)
2) Drink any time a new major location in Bruges is shown
3) Drink whenever the characters drink
FINISH YOUR DRINK WHEN:
Harry shouts, “Don’t be stupid, this is the shootout!”
Join us next week as we follow our mission from God with the Chicago classic The Blues Brothers!
This week, we go dog-avenging with Mike and Jessica of Down in Front as we check out the 2014 Keanu Reeves shoot-em-up John Wick! A straightforward but oh-so-stylish take on the action revenge thriller, the film follows Keanu's titular former hitman as he takes revenge on the mob family that unknowingly killed his dog and took his car. It's a ridiculous premise, but the pitch-perfect action staging and stylish direction make it a tremendously enjoyable bit of pulp, and gives Keanu a much-needed punch in the arm (or stab in the kidney). Check out our thoughts along with our custom cocktail and drinking rules!
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(Thanks to our sponsor Basecamp as part of the Chicago Podcast Coop!)
Happy America, everybody! We're ringing in America's birthday with returning guest Blake Goble from Consequence of Sound, as we gawk at the strange neo-con kid's flick The Adventures of the American Rabbit! Based on an obscure piece of 70s pop art, the film sees a young, wide-eyed rabbit turn into a star-spangled superhero and defeat thinly-veiled Communist stand-ins, advocate for American values of kindness and fairness, and...play piano in a jazz band? The whole thing's a crazy mess, and we do our best to unpack it, along with our custom cocktail and drinking rules!
(Thanks to our sponsor Cards Against Humanity as part of the Chicago Podcast Coop!)