Not Now in Theaters: A Retro and Cult Film Podcast

Why does Assault on Precinct 13 still hold up today?

John Carpenter's Assault on Precinct 13 was made for $100,000, written in eight days, scored by Carpenter in three, and shot in twenty.

Yet its status as a classic endures, and its influence still ripples through filmmakers we celebrate today.

A siege movie that combines the elements of Rio Bravo and Night of the Living Dead, the film is gripping as a shaky alliance between police and convicts comes together to survive the night against the ghoulish gangsters forcing their way in.

Join me for a discussion on why many film critics consider Assault on Precinct 13 among Carpenter's best works, as well as the movie's lasting legacy and influence.

This is the third episode of this podcast's John Carpenter series, with more of the master of horror's movies to come.

Starring Austin Stoker, Darwin Joston, Laurie Zimmer, Martin West, Tony Burton, Charles Cyphers, and Nancy Loomis.

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Why was Escape From New York an influential science-fiction film?

Now we're talking --  Escape From New York is the next movie in my John Carpenter series, and it's one of my favorites from his filmography.

Teaming up with collaborators like actor Kurt Russell, producer Debra Hill, cinematographer Dean Cundey, and many more, Carpenter presents a bleak vision of a future that seems all too relevant in our current political climate.

When the president is taken captive on the now-prison formerly known as New York, it's up to former WWIII soldier, now outlaw, Snake Plissken to swoop in and rescue him.

And to make matters worse, Snake has 24 hours to make the rescue or, thanks to the explosives lodged in his neck, die trying.

Join me for this episode as we discuss what makes this highly influential film still worth your time today, as well as its lasting legacy in cinema and beyond.

Starring Kurt Russell, Lee Van Cleef, Ernest Borgnine, Donald Pleasence, Isaac Hayes, Harry Dean Stanton, and Adrienne Barbeau.

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Why do horror fans still love ghost story The Fog?

The first of a fall series on the films of John Carpenter, The Fog is a seaside, small-town ghost story with all the spooky touches from the horror master.

Atmospheric and with a swirling score (composed by Carpenter himself), the film is yet another cult classic in the John Carpenter canon.

When Antonio Bay hits the 100th anniversary of a shipwreck, strange events occur across town, residents begin to die or disappear, and the secrets behind the nautical disaster come to light.

Can the people of Antonio Bay solve the mystery and stay alive as the cursed fog, concealing red-eyed revenants out for revenge, sweeps over the town?

Join me for a discussion on what makes The Fog a fun watch and its lasting legacy.

The Fog stars Adrienne Barbeau, Jamie Lee Curtis, John Houseman, Janet Leigh, and Hal Holbrook.

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In a head-to-head battle of early 90s gangster movies, will King of New York or New Jack City come out on top?

Abel Ferrara's King of New York  and Mario Van Peebles's New Jack City are New York gangster films released just six months apart.

While King of New York  didn't find success at release, it gained appreciation on the home rental market and has undergone re-appraisal as one of Ferrara's best.

New Jack City was a box-office hit, launching Wesley Snipes to leading-man status and cementing the acting career of rapper Ice-T.

But in a head-to-head battle, which one of these early '90s gangster films blows the other away?

This episode delves into the execution of these movies to answer essential questions, such as which would win a rap battle against the other, which characters would take out whom in a fictional fight, and, of course, which movie tops the other.

Join me for the first head-to-head, versus-format episode of Not Now in Theaters.

King of New York stars Christopher Walken, Laurence Fishburne, David Caruso, Victor Argo, Wesley Snipes, Janet Julian, Joey Chin, Giancarlo Esposito, and Paul Calderon.

New Jack City stars Wesley Snipes, Ice-T, Chris Rock, Mario Van Peebles, and Judd Nelson

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What Makes Luc Besson's Subway  Like an Extended Music Video?

Luc Besson's Subway is unlike the Luc Besson movies I know.

Growing up on his films The Fifth Element  or Leon: The Professional, I thought this was going to be another quirky action film.

I got something completely different, but I loved it.

The movie tells the story of Fred, an aimless miscreant, who flees the people he has stolen from to land in the mysterious labyrinth of the Paris Metro, where he falls into a life among other people who scratch out a living underground, all while trying to woo a beautiful woman and assemble his dream band.

Subway is a prime example of France's Cinema du look movement (Cinema of the Look), characterized by films full of alienated young characters with a visually driven and energetic, music-video-like style.

In this episode, I discuss what makes Subway such a compelling film and examine its lasting legacy in France, where it was nominated for 13 Cesar Awards, and worldwide.

Directed by Luc Besson. Starring Isabelle Adjani, Christopher Lambert, Richard Bohringer, Jean-Pierre Bacri, Jean-Hugues Anglade, Jean Reno, Michel Galabru, Jean Bouise.

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What makes Silverado a VHS-Era Comfort Watch?

Lawrence and Mark Kasdan's Silverado revives the old western genre tropes when the cowboy stuff had gone out of style.

Screenwriter of Raiders of the Lost Ark  and co-writer of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, Lawrence Kasdan (with help from his brother, Mark) brings the pulpy action and quickstep pacing he honed in those all-timer movies to Silverado.

But in stepping into the directing chair for his passion project, he injects a kitchen-sink love letter to the western genre, clocking in at 133 minutes.

And, hey, if you can roll with the film's apple-pie nature, it's a lot of fun.

Join me for this episode talking about the slightly campy but good times of VHS-era favorite Silverado.

We'll break down this stellar cast, the blending of four protagonists, and the unorthodox love story you will never see in another film that almost was.

Directed By Lawrence Kasdan. Written by Lawrence and Mark Kasdan. 

Starring Kevin Kline, Scott Glenn, Rosanna Arquette, John Cleese, Kevin Costner, Brian Dennehy, Danny Glover, Jeff Goldblum, and Linda Hunt.

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How Did The Shooting  Journey from Obscurity to Criterion Classic?

The Shooting, a so-called "anti-western" or "acid western," is compelling literally and figuratively.

A Criterion classic and a film with, at the time of writing, a 100% critical score on the website Rotten Tomatoes, the movie never had a widespread American theatrical release but survived thanks to its acclaim.

Produced by Jack Nicholson and Monte Hellman, the film was financed by the legendary low-budget king Roger Corman.

Shot almost exclusively outdoors in natural lighting, the movie was tight on funds but high on drama.

A mysterious woman hires two men to take her through the desert. For what purpose? She won't entirely say. 

As tension builds and things get more complicated, well, all you can do is feel the doom of it all.

And as things get fuzzier, perhaps the line between straight narrative and existential pondering builds. And the real mastery here is not overdoing it.

Join me for a discussion of Jack Nicholson's turn as a slick gunfighter, the film's murky but satisfying ending, and the movie's lasting legacy.

Directed by Monte Hellman. Written by Carole Eastman (credited as Adrien Joyce). Starring Jack Nicholson, Millie Perkins, Will Hutchins, and Warren Oates.

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What Makes the Science-Fiction Action of Fortress a Campy, Cheesy Watch?

Stuart Gordon's Fortress is a science-fiction and action film that feels like a B-movie, even with its theatrical release.

Well-remembered by many who saw it, it's a somewhat popular pick among video-store era enthusiasts.

There are warnings in here about one-child policies, dangerous AI robots, and the nature of institutionalizing prisons. But the movie is too silly to ponder that with any meaning, which many would argue that's what makes it fun.

With practical effects and the peculiar talents of the one and only Christopher Lambert (Highlander), this episode takes a look at whether the film stacks up as a worthy watch.

Join me for a discussion of the "Christopher Lambert stare" and the power of his raspy voice, how Kurtwood Smith couldn't quite find his proper bad-guy button as a sex-deprived robot, the unforgettable torture devices known as the intestinators, and a hilarious ending.

Directed by Stuart Gordon. Starring Christopher Lambert, Kurtwood Smith, Loryn Locklin, Lincoln Kilpatrick, Clifton Collins, Jr., Carolyn Purdy-Gordon, Jeffrey Combs, Vernon Wells, Tom Towles, Warwick Capper, and John Pierce.

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Why Did Rolling Thunder  Shock 1970s Audiences?

Rolling Thunder is a cult classic revenge film with notable fans, including being an all-time favorite of writer/director Quentin Tarantino.

Written by Paul Schrader (Taxi Driver) and rewritten by Heywood Gould (Cocktail), it's about a Vietnam prisoner of war's return home only to find a new conflict in suburbia.

When his family is killed, the already-damaged veteran Major Charles Rane gears up for a quest of revenge to kill the men who ruined what was left of his life.

Directed by John Flynn and starring William Devane and Tommy Lee Jones, the film is labeled as "vetsploitation" fare but carries tension all beneath the surface.

Listen in for a discussion of a new kind of Captain Hook, Tommy Lee Jones as the no-nonsense sidekick, and the merits of old-school shootouts.

Directed by John Flynn. Screenplay by Paul Schrader and Heywood Gould. Starring William Devane, Tommy Lee Jones, and Linda Haynes.

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Is Runaway Train the best film The Cannon Group ever made?

Runaway Train is the only "philosophical" action thriller I've ever heard of. 

Based on an original script by the legendary Akira Kurosawa, it combines American action thrills with Eastern existential questions.

This unique blend was a critical darling, but it didn't sell many tickets at the box office. But it's remembered today as arguably the best film exploitation masters The Cannon Group financed and frequently appears on "underrated" lists of the 1980s.

Powered by Oscar-nominated performances from Jon Voight and Eric Roberts, Runaway Train is about two convicts who escape prison only to find themselves aboard a conductor-less locomotive headed for a grisly crash.

Join me for a discussion of main character Manny's battle with destiny, Eric Roberts's talent for playing guys who think they're smarter than they are, and the finale that swerves the American action tradition for the Eastern existential thought balloon.

Directed by Andrei Konchalovsky. Starring Jon Voight, Eric Roberts, Rebecca De Mornay, Kyle T. Heffner, John P. Ryan, T.K. Carter, and Kenneth McMillan

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And to read more of Will's writing or check out more podcast episodes, you can visit him at: willturntale.com