Perturbing Behaviour

      This week three films about moral panics, the imagined threats lurking to upset social order from morality police happy to stoke public fear for a payout.

     A harmless game played by a group of college students. Nothing wrong with any of it... except... what if the game goes too far? What if an obviously schizophrenic player with a history of unresolved family trauma has a sudden and immediate break from reality while playing? It MUST be the game's fault and not anything else. I said, NOT ANYTHING ELSE, okay? Tom Hanks, in the brief period between Bosom Buddies and Splash, acts his little TV movie loving heart out while being corrupted by MAZES & MONSTERS.
     A fictionalized account of the rise of Norwegian Black Metal. Euronymous and his band Mayhem create a new subgenre that is eagerly devoured, by not just local youth, but globally. When the band is derailed by a tragedy, they regroup opening a record shop that is also a social hub for their growing brand of music. It isn't long until everything goes wrong and the dark edge of their music leads to arson and murder. Based on the book of the same name, titled after a group not connected to the events depicted here, Lords of Chaos.
     Billy Tipton was a jazz musician, talent agent, caring husband and doting father. When Billy died, a closely guarded secret was revealed, and his life was spun and reframed by tabloids and talk shows in the very LGBT unfriendly late-1980s. A meta-biographical documentary about both Tipton and some more modern trans masculine experiences. Layered revelations and personal interpretations try to reframe Billy's life and legacy from the sensationalist view that has dominated it in the decades after his death. A film about trying to have an ordinary life while being No Ordinary Man.
     All that and Tyler wears corpse paint, Dave gets his musical theater on, and Kevin casts a wide net in the cinematic ocean. Join us, won't you?
   Episode 314- Perturbing Behaviour

Reasonable Charges

     This week- a pair of films about lawbreakers who might be more than they appear.

     17-year-old Isabelle decides to start a side hustle after losing her virginity on vacation. When her favorite client, Georges, does something deeply traumatizing, Isabelle's secret life will soon be revealed. A more recent entry from Francois Ozon, one of France's most important modern filmmakers, Young & Beautiful (Jeune & Jolie).
     Early in the morning, two police detectives breakdown the door of Edward Fleming. After roughing him up, ransacking his apartment, and openly parading him, handcuffed, passed all of his neighbors, Fleming is left alone in an interrogation room without any idea why he is there. Slowly it is revealed the detectives believe he was in the company of a missing man and a stolen car but that's not what they are really after. As the hours pass a desperate game of cat and mouse develops between the three men. A film that won multiple AACTA Awards on release and driven by a powerhouse performance by Hugo Weaving, just a year before breaking through to global success with The Matrix, 1998's The Interview.
     All that and Dave watches some shorts about masculinity, Tyler jiggles his Travolta bubble erotically, and Kevin is starting to realize his partner might be planning on killing him. Join us, won't you?
   Episode 313: Reasonable Charges

Emerald Emotions

     This week green men of various sizes and the ladies who love them.

     When Bruce Banner is accidentally exposed to massive amounts of gamma radiation and exploding medical nanobots, it awakens a secret buried deep inside of him by his mad scientist father, David. Now whenever Bruce gets angry he becomes a green rage monster. Meanwhile, two estranged fathers try to use this as a way to reconnect with their children. Chaos ensues. Ang Lee's ambitious comic book adaption- Hulk.
     It's been 50 years since an accident involving lime soda and Seabrook's mysterious energy source created a zombie outbreak. In the decades that followed, the town has become stringently uniform, everyone dresses the same, the only ice cream flavor is vanilla, and cheerleading is the local obsession (because the football team has been dire since the outbreak). Now, thanks to the invention of the Z-band, zombies to live fairly normal lives in their quarantined section of the town. But change is coming, the first class of zombies are being integrated into the local high school and the cheer squad isn't happy with this development. Disney's West Undead Story- Zombies.
     All that and Kevin sees things no one should ever witness, Tyler tries to become a TV exec, and Dave slept the week away. Join us, won't we?
   Episode 312- Emerald Emotions

Boards & Bars

     This week- a pair of nightmares.

     For Michael's seventeenth birthday, his bestie Tony gifts him one of Hasbro's most popular board games and a pair of supernatural bonus gifts that apparently come with it. Now Michael has to try and save people we have to assume are his friends, despite how much believing he has friends breaks suspension of disbelief, from a serial killer. Why is Michael having these visions? Who is killing his circle of distant acquaintances? How much extra did they pay the romantic interest for her massive ability to not roll her eyes while speaking to Michael? No matter what, just Don't Panic.
     DC area punk band, Arlington's The Ain't Rights, are on an extended couch surfing tour on the other side of the country. Low on cash, out of gas, and without any future gigs they take a well paying slot in a Neo-Nazi bar somewhere outside of Portland. Soon they are drawn into a violent event that leaves them terrified, barricaded, and with little hope they will see the next morning. What happened in the Green Room?
     All that and Dave hopes dimensions to meet other Daves - they are all bastards but very pretty, Tyler plots revenge against the Pokemon Company, and Kevin swears a blood oath to the demon that lives in his neighbor's sump pump. Join us, won't you?
    Episode 311- Boards & Bars

Property Cowherd: 3 with Udo Kier

     This week we bring May to a close with a celebration of the most character of actors- Udo Kier! Two from his early days in 70s European art films and one of more recent vintage as a face among genre enthusiasts. 

     When Count Dracula, last of his line and quickly declining in health, must leave his ancestral home looking for a virgin bride for a quick sip to regain his lost strength. He travels to pre-Fascist Italy and becomes involved with the di Fiore family, impoverished landowners looking to improve their station. The only person standing in his way is estate handyman Mario, Marxist revolutionary and communal di Fiore lover. Will anyone have Blood for Dracula or will Mario sleep his way to the top of the social ladder first?
     A young photographer is taken by her lover, Renee, to a training facility for women getting deeper into the sadomasochistic lifestyle. Soon she is traded up to her lover's older step brother and sent for more training. The she's used to get her former lover a new woman by seducing her for him... and everyone is very detached and disaffected by all of it. Based on the notorious novel of the same name but jettisoning the lead's perspective to fully embrace the objectification inherent in the work- The Story of O.
     Everyone's best known little wooden boy has been fully human for a couple of years now and finds his life with old Geppetto fairly dull. Just when the old puppet maker has a bout of exhaustion, Madam Flambeau's travelling sideshow and miracle elixir sales rolls into town with a shocking number of people connected to our hero's previous adventure. Desperate to cure his father so he will have less work to do, our real live boy makes a stupid decision and signs away his life to the side show... unfortunately, the wrong person becomes a living puppet this time. However will he escape the witch's grasp? The New Adventures of Pinocchio.
     All that and Kevin shudders in delight, Tyler visits a happy place, and Dave is lost under the sea. Join us, won't you?
   Episode 310: Property Cowherd- 3 with Udo Kier

Diagnosis: Samurai Night Fever

     This week two films about Chinese-Americans and cross cultural experiences. 

     Billi maintains a close relationship with her Nai Nai (paternal grandmother), despite there being half a planet between them. When Nai Nai is diagnosed with late stage terminal lung cancer, which the rest of their family have decided to keep secret from Nai Nai. The whole family gathers under false pretenses to have The Farewell.

     Jo and Steve are purchasing their taxi medallion. Their friend, Chan, volunteers to be the transactional go-between. Unfortunately, Chan has disappeared, along with the money. The two men begin a search for their friend in San Francisco's Chinatown population. Wayne Wang's second feature and part of the US National Film Registry, Chan is Missing.

    Join us, won't you?
  Episode 309- Diagnosis: Samurai Night Fever

SCALES

     This week two movies with couples that really want to kiss but never do. 

     Mia is almost 16 and has just moved to a new town. Before long she befriends Gianna, head of a more rebellious clique, and tries to fit in. Unfortunately, she is about to undergo some changes which are a far cry from normal adolescence. The first feature by Lisa Brühlmann, Blue My Mind.
     An evil spirit takes a late night stroll and music teacher Eric Longfellow rises from his grave. Eric wastes no time in opening a new music school and starting a killing spree, where he squeezes the life force from others to extend his day pass from hell. Unfortunately, his neighbor Gerry Kinder spends an inordinate amount of time thinking about him. Soon the two men will be on a collision course to a final showdown. Don Dohler takes a break from visiting aliens to try his hand at a new kind of horror, Fiend. 
     All that and Dave watches a prison riot, Tyler pokes a bellringing Frenchman with a stick, and Kevin likes to watch. Join us, won't you?
    Episode 308- SCALES