Where the Long Tail Ends

Robert, Nat, and Cody are joined by Patrick Ripoll of Tracks of the Damned to deal with those damned kids. Not the kind of kids that won't stay off your lawn, but rather three films featuring specially powered creepy children that might be the future of the human race if they don't end it first. That's right, we're talking about 1960's VILLAGE OF THE DAMNED, its sequel CHILDREN OF THE DAMNED, and Joseph Losey and Hammer Films' take on the idea, THESE ARE THE DAMNED aka THE DAMNED. Albeit, after Robert spoils a 175 year old story, so be warned.

This month, Cody, Robert, and Nat check into the NEW ROSE HOTEL and discover a world of betrayal, loss, and regrets. Based on a short story by William Gibson, NEW ROSE HOTEL is an example of cyberpunk as two independent operators, played by Christopher Walken and Willem Dafoe, recruit a young woman, played by Asia Argento, to seduce a top scientist to defect from one corporation to another. Things don't go as planned, including Willem Dafoe falling in love with Asia Argento.   NEW ROSE HOTEL beat THE MATRIX to the screen, but they clearly have different purposes. As directed by Abel Ferrera, NEW ROSE HOTEL is more of a mood piece and a rumination than a sexy, exciting heist thriller. We have a lot to say about the film in regards to how it tells its story, William Gibson's world of corporate intrigue, its depiction of then-future technology, and the performances of Christopher Walken, Willem Dafoe, and Asia Argento. There are some disagreements, but we like to think there's more light than heat here.   As a bonus, we have some personal news to share and we take a look back at year two of the podcast, discussing our favorite and least favorite movies and episodes.

Nat, Cody, and Robert join up with the crew of the space cruiser C-57-D for a journey to the iconic FORBIDDEN PLANET this month. There's a lot to discuss including Robbie the Robot, monsters from the id, 50s gender politics, 50s design sensibilities, Leslie Nielsen, Walter Pidgeon, electronic scores, Anne Francis, and weird home schooled children. We follow that with a What We Watched segment where we cover STRANGE DAYS, X-MEN: APOCALYPSE, THE LOBSTER, THE MATRIX: RELOADED, A SCANNER DARKLY, and HIGH RISE.  As you can tell, it's a full episode.

Sooner than you think, it's June and Robert, Nat, and Cody have found time for a new podcast. This month we travel to 1968 for a tale of future shock, . It's not what you think, unless you think it's a Nigel Kneale written teleplay about a futuristic society where the elites use television as an opiate of the masses to keep the lower class complacent and apathetic.   Before we get there, we take a longer than usual detour as we discuss inappropriate movies Nat has shown his expectant wife (feel free to list some below or via email, we're compiling a list), Robert's shenanigans with , and some of our thoughts and guesses for the upcoming Summer season. You may wish to skip the first half hour if that doesn't interest you.   After the prelude, it's on to THE YEAR OF THE SEX OLYMPICS which proves quite contentious. We all agree that the teleplay predicted reality television, but is being prescient enough? Does Nigel Kneale adequately dramatize his ideas? What do we make of a young Brian Cox? And, what's Nat's favorite futuristic game show?   Finally, we wrap things up with a discussion of . We have some nice things to say about Marvel's latest offering. And, some harsh things too. It's no Civil War but clearly we have some internal divisions here.

Let's dance in style, let's dance for a while,

Heaven can wait we're only watching the skies.

Hoping for the best, but expecting the worst,

Are you gonna drop the bomb or not?

Wait, wrong ALPHAVILLE. Instead, this month Cody, Robert, and

Nat turn their attention to Jean-Luc Godard's 1965 science fiction

noir ALPHAVILLE starring Eddie Constantine and Anna Karina. We also

turn our attention to BATMAN V SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE and get

Cody to spill some Tales From Out of School.

Robert hits the road to Chicago and teams up with Nat as they visit the Patio Theater's Sci-Fi Spectacular film marathon. A Looney Toons cartoon, Harryhausen's The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms, Melies's A Trip to Jupiter, Westworld, and various shorts are discussed in this on location recording. No notes, no research, just on the spot reactions and thoughts. Are Nat and Robert up to the challenge?

Thanks for all the organizers at the Patio Theater. It's a classic venue. And, if you're headed to Chicago be sure to ask Nat for restaurant recommendations.