The boys are back from summer break and jump back into their Summer of Ninja with the second film of the holy ninja trilogy, Revenge of the Ninja. This high-powered action-ninja movie is maybe one of the most influential for Jaime and Eli growing up in South Texas. This movie set the standard for what ninja movies should be, with maybe one of the lightest storylines in the Cannon film repertoire. Can Revenge of the Ninja climb its way to the Top Shelf? 

Top Shelf Video – Reliving the Video Store Era with Gen X

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The whole gang gives a quick update on where we've been and what we're working on during this extremely hot summer in Texas.

Top Shelf Video – Reliving the Video Store Era with Gen X

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This week, the summer of action continues with a foundational genre film that defined both the video store and the desire for a martial arts video store section: Enter the Ninja (1981). This film was the start of the holy trinity of Ninja films with Enter the Ninja, Revenge of the Ninja, and Ninja 3: The Domination.  Jaime and Eli discuss how ninja movies weaved into their youth as young Gen-Xers. The big question is if this movie still holds up, and does it deserve a spot on the Top Shelf

Top Shelf Video – Reliving the Video Store Era with Gen X

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This week, the boys kick off the tournament of martial arts films at Top Shelf Video, starting with a video store champion in 1988's Bloodsport in honor of Donald Gibb. This was the first starring role for Jean-Claude Van Damme, who would go on to start the fighting tournament genre, which led to many more films and video games. 

Join us for this summer event of high kicks, low kicks, and kicks in the middle with a special guest appearance by store employee Julie Basile from Flickers from the Cave podcast.

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Mistaken identities! Revenge plots! Drunken boxing! Puns about pig trotters! The 1979 film Magnificent Butcher has it all. When Butcher Wing inadvertently starts a feud between his kung fu faction and another, fists fly until one man is left standing. Roundhouse kick your way to Film to Table with Eli and Denise for this kung fu classic!

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Agent X is on a mission to find the secrets to making the best Top Shelf Video choice. With the help of Jaime and Eli, who have the experience and skills to assist in this top-secret operation, can they complete their mission to find the films that make up the Top Shelf Video? Tune in and find out

Top Shelf Video – Reliving the Video Store Era with Gen X

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This week the Top Shelf Video boys go beyond the video store to look for help in fighting off the evil streaming companies to keep the ways of physical media alive in this Roger Corman take on Seven Samurai with Battle Beyond the Stars. One part Kurosawa, one part Star Wars, and a lot of cheese sum up this classic 80's hidden gem. Will this ragtag team fight off the powers of evil and make the Top Shelf? Tune in and find out

Top Shelf Video – Reliving the Video Store Era with Gen X

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The “Hooker with a Heart of Gold” trope gets a murder mystery treatment in Brian de Palma’s “Dressed to Kill!” Will the victim’s nerdy son find the clues? Who is behind the straight razor slashing through the city? Help Eli and Denise find the killer in this week’s Film to Table!

Top Shelf Video – Reliving the Video Store Era with Gen X

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This week, the boys of Top Shelf Video go on an adventure to find what has been missing in adventure movies and turn to their childhood foundational film, Time Bandits. Terry Gilliam makes a true childhood adventure movie, even if it was ahead of its time and not something most current generation parents would allow their children to watch. Will the time map lead this film to the top shelf, or will it get lost in a time portal, lost forever?

Top Shelf Video – Reliving the Video Store Era with Gen X

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Film to Table is back for Season 3, and we kick off with a hidden gem of 2026, Gore Verbinski's sci-fi film Good Luck, Have Fun, Don't Die. Set in a fictional (how fictional is sadly very questionable) time period, sets off Denise and Eli to go off on their thoughts on what this movie is wanting to say. With a bearded Sam Rockwell and a rag tag team on a mission to save the world this sci-fi film is something we highly recommend for all cinephiles. 

Top Shelf Video – Reliving the Video Store Era with Gen X

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Theme music by Colin Nance