138: SFFCH – Strange Brew

This week, Jamie brought us Strange Brew (The Adventures of Bob and Doug McKenzie), a Canadian drunk comedy from 1983 with a plot that defies understanding or even description. (Oh, how we tried.)  After an opening salvo of dodgy Canadian impersonations by the males of SFFCH (Abi, being of Canadian heritage, chose not to participate) everyone concerned gets down to the knotty business of trying to understand comedy that was meant for an audience in a time and a place so very remote from SFFCH HQ with mixed results. But who liked what and why? Listen now to find out.

[Ep. 138, Rec 07/2016]

137: SFFCH – Dead Man’s Shoes

Ant had to make up for his previous choice of ‘Xanadu’ and what better way than to contrast a campy, trashy musical with some gritty, violent, British drama. So he did with this weeks choice of ‘Dead Man’s Shoes’, a 2004 effort from cult British filmmaker Shane Meadows. This time, Ant, Rich and Abi try to get to grips with a film that makes for some uncomfortable watching, ponder over just what the genre of this film is (in a good way, for a change), are constantly reminded that people are just awful and discuss whether regional British accents can be a little tricky.

[Ep. 137, Rec. June 2016]

136: SFFCH – Kiss Kiss Bang Bang

This week on SFFCH we’re talking about the repetitively named “Kiss Kiss Bang Bang” Shane Black’s neo-noir comedy thriller which gently pokes fun of Hollywood with it’s knowing satire. We reflect on Black’s back catalogue, Downey Jr’s historic hedonism and Val Kilmer’s fluctuating waistline, as well as reveling in the delights of this trope subverting movie for movie nerds. So join us to hear wild speculation about the film’s influence on Quentin Tarantino and the James Bond franchise as well as yet another reference to Batman forever. “Captain Fucking Magic”

*For those wondering we make it 10-12 deaths total, with some creative symbolism or fan theory you can maybe get it up to 16 to match the spy novels.

[Ep. 136, Rec 19/06/16]

135: SFFCH – Willie Dynamite

Alright, calm down! Settle down in the back there! There’s enough childish sniggering going on in this week’s podcast already where we finally return to the land of blaxploitation, a mysterious place full of guns, breasts, pimps, ‘hoes and colourful costumes. Now, it may sound like a gay adult movie or a particularly nasty venereal disease, but “Willie Dynamite” from 1974 is discovered to be a surprisingly complex affair despite being chosen for…other reasons. Rich presents this film to Abi, Anthony and Jamie this time and they get to grips with such topics as parallels between capitalists and pimps, oddly concealed weapons, ‘bottom bitches’ and the greatest conference of pimps ever seen.

[Ep. 135, Rec. 12/06/16]

134: SFFCH – Man on the Moon

“Troll” –  a person who posts inflammatory or inappropriate messages or comments online for the purpose of upsetting other users and provoking a response.

“Andy Kaufman” –  a person who made inflammatory or inappropriate remarks or comments in person for the purpose of upsetting other people and provoking a response.

This week Rich, Abi and Jamie talk about ‘Man On The Moon’ a film about Andy Kaufman that prints the legend with the occasional sprinkling of truth. Comedy, wrestling and the complexities of identity all come under the microscope this week and we reflect on the parallels between Kaufman and Jim Carrey, who portrays him in the movie. Also, does anyone else remember those little triangles they used to put on videos at the rental store to tell you the box was empty? Actually, the better question is: Does anyone else remember video rental stores?
[Ep. 134. Rec 05/06/2016]

133: SFFCH: Xanadu

This week we all decided to see what all the fuss was about and watch Xanadu, a film that purports to be about a muse coming down to earth to inspire an artist to enter into a partnership with a retired band-leader and open a nightclub but is actually about nothing at all and is very upsetting for all concerned. Listen as Rich, Abi, Anthony and especially Jamie unravel as they try to get to grips with the assault on the eyes and ears that is Xanadu.

[Ep. 133, Rec 29/05/16]

132: SFFCH – You Don’t Mess with The Zohan

Adam Sandler is…an acquired taste. Like liquorice or mouldy cheese. So how will our filmic taste buds react to Abi’s choice of 2009 action comedy You Don’t Mess With The Zohan, where he plays an Israeli counter-terrorist with ambitions of becoming a hairdresser. It is certainly an eyebrow-raising concept with some unexpectedly political comments, but can the more jaded among us still be won over by Sandler’s shtick? So, better make sure you have tons of hummus on hand, crank up your Mariah Carey and come and listen to us discuss unexplained levitating villains, excessive crotch-thrusting, literal fire-fighting and so many stereotypes that we don’t really understand.

{Ep. 132, Rec. 25/05/16]

131: SFFCH – Pack Up Your Troubles

We dive into our oldest film review this week with Rich’s choice of ‘Pack Up Your Troubles’ from all the way back in 1932. Now, we are all aware of the very iconic Laurel and Hardy, but how much do we really know about their work? ‘Turns out not very much past their short films. (Did you know they wore blue and yellow jackets?) Will we be able to handle them in a feature length dose where we find them drafted into the army and also bringing up an orphan child? Join Rich Abi and Ant this time as they ponder the out of date comedy references, reminisce about the old Laurel and Hardy cartoon and really learn that comedy and tragedy are intertwined, with such themes up for discussion as domestic abuse, child abduction and good men dying in war.

[Ep. 131, Rec 15/05/16]

130: SFFCH – Legend [1985]

Before The Lord of the Rings movies made them kind of legitimate, fantasy films were well weird. Especially in the 80’s and especially in Jamie’s choice of 1985’s Legend, directed by Ridley Scott. Now we all have a general respect for Scott’s movies here at Spoiler Filled, but this one really takes the biscuit. But what should we have expected from a film with such a troubled history, with several different versions out there with different soundtracks. We all tried to watch the original theatrical cut, but it seems we all ended up watching different things. None of which made any sense. Not even Tim Curry, as spectacular as he is, can save this film, but my god did he try. If you can bring yourself to face it, come and listen to us complain about: weird marriage rituals, the lack of rules, Tom Cruise squatting too much, why anyone, even the bloody devil, would want to marry the princess and why our favourite character is dispatched obscenely quickly.

[Ep. 130, Rec. May 2016]

129: SFFCH – Charley Varrick

We decided long ago that one of Spoiler Filled’s collective favourite directors, Quentin Tarantino, was not suitable for the general mediocrity/obscurity we deal with here on SFFCH. So how do we find a way to sneakily talk about his work? Well, we look to his 70’s influences of course with this week’s choice of Charley Varrick from 1973. Directed by legendary 70’s crime filmmaker Don Siegel, the film stars scamp-y curmudgeon Walter Matthau in a dramatic action role, something a few of us here are not used to. Will Ant, Abi and Rich be won over by Matthau’s darker side? Come listen to us ramble to find out about this and also: Matthau’s surprising attractiveness to the ladies in this film, having an older leading man in a action-crime-thriller, convoluted stunt-plane antics and  underground ping-pong dens.

 

[Ep. 129, Rec. May 2016]