Release Date Rewind

School's out for summer and Mark brings back his film scholar friends Jason Kashiwagi and C.C. Webster to talk about two June movies: 1971's Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory for its 50th anniversary and 1991's Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead for its 30th anniversary. These films have more in common than just 6 word titles! We bow down to Joanna Cassidy and Gene Wilder, and learn that we stand divided on sleeping in your parents' bed when they're away. And Soapdish, which also just turned 30, gets a special mention!

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Mark is joined by the mystical and magical Sabrina Santoro to discuss major movies in their lives: The Craft and Twister! The 90s thrillers about the dark side of Mother Nature turn 25 years old this month, and you may not immediately think they have much in common, but they do: terrifying CGI, great soundtracks, grieving heroines, connections to the Wizard of Oz, and more. Plus, Mark loved these movies so much, he brought candles to elementary school and wrote a Twister remake script starring his teachers.

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Mark brings fellow movie addict, podcaster, and almost-lawyer Funmi Sunmonu on a rollercoaster ride back to 1996 to celebrate the 25th anniversaries of twisty thrillers Primal Fear and Fear. It's a fearful episode! They discuss the arrival of Edward Norton and Mark Wahlberg as movie stars, and how they competed against each other for the coveted MTV Best Villain award that year, plus how gross smoking indoors was, and how these movies are connected to Leonardo DiCaprio.

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Mark goes on an imaginary trip to South Beach, Miami and Brainerd, Minnesota with entertainment lover and podcaster Tom Ciuba to celebrate the 25th anniversaries of beloved 1996 comedies The Birdcage and Fargo. They applaud performances by Nathan Lane (how was he not nominated for an Oscar?) and Oscar winner Frances McDormand, Agador Spartacus, Mike Yanagita, the Accordion King, and more. But what ever happened to that money Steve Buscemi buried?

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Mark has friend and scream queen Solana Sorrento on the show to have a dinner party Hannibal Lecter-style! For the 30th anniversary of Silence of the Lambs and 20th anniversary of Hannibal, these horror hounds discuss one of the most haunting movie (and tv) villains, FBI final girl Clarice Starling, and their adventures into darkness. From Jodie Foster to Julianne Moore to Rebecca Breeds in the new CBS series, we immerse ourselves in the Dr. Lecter universe. Speaking of the FBI, hopefully they weren't looking at our search history as we were researching for this episode! And voiceover star Kit Sheehan gives us a delicious grand finale.

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Mark is joined by friend Lauren Evangelista to chat about big screen romance from January 2001: Save the Last Dance & The Wedding Planner. Who would have thunk that years after watching films together in class at Fordham University they'd be chatting about these films on a podcast? Also, who approved Julia Stiles' fashion and hairstyles back then? And who told J.Lo she would be playing Italian and not Latina?

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Mark brings friend and fellow indie filmmaker Jeff Frumess on the show to discuss two well-known fantasy films that focus on odd things happening in the neighborhood: Edward Scissorhands (1990) and Jumanji (1995). Jeff shares his detailed list of notes and comparisons on the Tim Burton classic, and he miraculously remembers many details from the Joe Johnston adventure without even rewatching it. Shout out to The Rocketeer and we love you, Vincent Price!

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Mark is joined by his friend since elementary school Melissa Ward, who loves Christmas and the Olsen twins. They discuss classic 90s family comedies starring some of the most famous kids on the planet - Home Alone (1990) and It Takes Two (1995) - and they realize that both stories are actually quite freaky when you think about them. Melissa wonders who got it worse, Harry or Marv? And a common question: who is Steve Guttenberg?

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Mark has 2 friends on the show for Episode 2! His movie-obsessed pals C.C. Webster and Jason Kashiwagi join him on a trip back to the grungy and angsty 90s to discuss October 1995 releases To Die For and Empire Records. Jason loves female characters on the verge, while C.C. is on the verge of remaking Empire Records as a TV show.

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Mark has friend and fellow scary movie lover Jeff Bugajski join him in a lively discussion about the classic thrillers Psycho (1960) and Seven (1995). Jeff talks about how he sometimes pretends to be Janet Leigh's character while taking showers and packing, and shows Mark his ticket stub collection.

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