90s movie classics

Tim and Andrew watch 1992's Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

Starring Kristy Swanson, Donald Sutherland, Luke Perry, Rutger Hauer and Paul (Pee Wee Herman) Reubens, this was somewhat of an oddity at the time, given more significance in light of the enormous success of the TV show that followed.

So how does it stand up as a movie in its own right?  Is Swanson a slayer worthy of the title?  Did Donald Sutherland have nothing else to do at the time?  Was Rutger Hauer's performance some sort of sick joke?

How have the years treated Buffy the Vampire Slayer?  Listen and ye shall learn.

WARNING: SPOILERS

Tim and Andrew watch 1996's Daylight.

Sylvester Stallone at the peak of his powers, battles his nastiest foe to date - a New York tunnel.  Thrilling!  Supported by Amy Brenneman before she was Judging and a young, brash Viggo Mortensen years before he picked up a sword, Sly is tasked with rescuing a group of disparate New Yorkers before they drown, get blown up, choke on chemical gas or kill each other.

Somewhat of a disappointment at the time, has it matured like a good wine or turned to vinegar?  Let's find out!

WARNING: SPOILERS

Andrew and Tim watch 1997's Volcano.

Released around the same time as Dante's Peak and generally considered the 'more crap one', Volcano has Tommy Lee Jones and Anne Heche trying to stop lava that starts streaming from the La Brea Tar Pits in post-race-riots LA.

Will Tommy Lee Jones save the day?  Will the town officials do their disaster-movie duty by refusing to believe the danger and interfering every step of the way?  Will the filmmakers imply a romantic relationship between Jones and Heche despite the 20+ year age difference?

And will Volcano live up to the one of the better taglines of the day - the Coast is Toast!

Listen to find out!

WARNING: SPOILERS

Tim and Andrew watch 1997's Anaconda.

Spawned multiple D-grade sequels, each more awful than the next.  But what about the original?  Was it the masterpiece we remembered from our youth?  Was Jon Voight's accent really that bad?  Does he really wink after getting un-digested or was that some sort of fever dream?

With an all-star cast of Jennifer Lopez, Ice Cube, Jon Voight, Eric Stoltz, Owen Wilson and (briefly) Danny Trejo, this scientifically-accurate and culturally-sensitive film was a huge hit at the time - has it survived the decades since? 

WARNING: SPOILERS

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Correction - in this episode, we referred to Danny Trejo as being South American.  He is in fact born in the USA to Mexican-American parents.  Sorry Danny!

Tim and Andrew watch 1997's The Relic, starring Tom Sizemore and Penelope Ann Miller.

Directed by Peter Hyams, hot on the heels of the Van Damme double, Time Cop and Sudden Death, the Relic asks what would happen if you let a large, bloodthirsty monster loose in a museum.  Smashed glass aplenty, for sure.  Add Sizemore as a grizzled cop and Penelope Ann Miller as the brilliant scientist who no-one listens to until it's too late, all the ingredients are there for a classic 90s monster movie.  But how does it stack up?

WARNING: SPOILERS

Tim and Andrew watch 1997's Mimic, starring Mira Sorvino and Jeremy Northam, with Josh Brolin and a blink-and-you-miss-it appearance by a young Norman Reedus from Walking Dead.

Guillermo Del Toro's first American movie.  Will the genius that followed be foreshadowed here?  Was he justified in later disowning the movie?  Will a film about giant human-like cockroaches be as good as it sounds? 

All these questions answered and more!

WARNING: SPOILERS

Tim and Andrew look back at the 1996 action classic, The Rock.

Back when 'the Rock' meant a prison and not an wrestler-turned-actor, we look back to the days when Nicolas Cage was an A-Lister, Sean Connery was playing Sean Connery and Ed Harris was lifting substandard material to a higher level. 

How does the Rock stand up?  And what movie will be selected for analysis next?

WARNING: SPOILERS

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Correction: In this episode, in an attempt to highlight the lack of female characters in the movie, we incorrectly commented that there were "two genders".  There are of course more than two genders and no offence was intended!  Please don't cancel us after our first episode!