Hold Up

A Christmas Story

In the spirit of the season, we are doing Bob Clark’s A Christmas Story. An absolute classic of the season, this flick shows us a series of Christmas vignettes threaded together with a boy's wish for a bb gun despite everyone telling him he’ll shoot his eye out. Starring Melinda Dillon, Darren McGavin, and Peter Billingsley, this movie made $70 million from a $3 million budget and became an instant classic and a favourite to watch during the holidays. But, does it hold up? Listen in as Jon, Colin, and Brent debate the artistry of limb illumination as we try to figure out if this one is naughty or nice.

Scrooged

We find ourselves in the Christmas spirit this week with Richard Donner’s modern…ish retelling of Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. Scrooged stars Bill Murray as Frank Cross, in the Scrooge role, joined by Karen Allen, John Forsythe, Bobcat Goldthwait, Robert Mitchum, Alfre Woodard, Carol Kane, and many other familiar faces. Made for $32 million Scrooged made $100 million at the box office and became a Christmas classic. But, does it hold up? Listen in as Jon, Colin, and Brent, debate the best way to secure antlers to a mouse and how to wrap 4 pounds of veal as we do our best to determine if this one belongs in the past, present, or future of holiday movie viewing experiences.

Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon

Today we dip our little toes into new territory with our first subtitled flick with Ang Lee’s epic 臥虎藏龍, otherwise known as Wò hǔ cáng long,  or for you western types, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. Crouching Tiger is a love story between two fabled warriors who are must recapture a fabled sword stolen by a mysterious young warrior and her murderous master. Starring Chow Yun-fat, Michelle Yeoh, Zhang Ziyi, and Chang Chen, Hidden Dragon was an absolute smash! It hit the record for box office for a foreign film surpassing $100 million in the US and making $213 million globally from a very humble $17 million budget, in addition to scoring 10 Oscar nominations, winning 4. But does it hold up? Listen in as Jon, Colin, and Brent debate hidden dragons and drinking while podcasting as we try to see if this is worth looking for or if it should keep hiding. 

Team America: World Police

In 2004, the guys that brought us South Park brought us a special little moment in cinema with their all-puppet extravaganza, Team America: World Police. This flick tells the story of Gary, a Broadway actor who is recruited by Team America to use his top gun acting chops to infiltrate various terrorist groups. But things get complicated when Gary quits and Team America suffers a major defeat and it’s up to Gary to swallow his...responsibility. Created by and starring the voice talents of Trey Parker and Matt Stone, Team America was an ambitious project that made a modest $51 million from their $32 million budget and had audiences horrified and entertained alike. But does it hold up? Listen in as Jon, Colin, and Brent debate puppet fornication and the right PSI for puking as we try to see if this one collapses under its own weight or stands on its own...fuck yeah.

Kingpin

1996 gave us two things, cloned sheep and the Farrelly brother’s bowling comedy, Kingpin. Kingpin brought us the story of Roy Munson, a disgraced bowling phenom who lost his glory, and his hand, and now sells bowling supplies. One day, a visit to a local lane introduces him to Ishmael, the sweet Amish boy with a serious knack for the lanes. Roy convinces him he can turn him with his help they can win the million dollar prize at a massive tournament and they embark on a wild adventure full of missteps. With a great cast of Bill Murray, Woody Harrelson, Randy Quaid, and Vanessa Angel, but modest reviews and modest earnings, this one really turned up on the home video sales and became a fan favourite. But does it hold up? Listen in as Jon, Colin, and Brent debate the line between good sex and great bowel movements as we try to see if this is a strike or if we should be spared.

The Ice Storm

In 1997, Ang Lee released a critically celebrated film called The Ice Storm. This flick tells the story of a couple of upper-class families and all the sex they wanna have with each other, with a few other sprinkles of social depression and anxiety thrown in. Starring Kevin Kline, Sigourney Weaver, Elijah Wood, Tobey Macguire, Christina Ricci, Joan Allen, and Katie Holmes, this flick had everything going for it but only made $8 million from an $18 million budget despite a strong critical response. But does it hold up? Listen in as Jon, Colin, and Brent debate clumsy kids and shocking turn of events as we see if this one is as cold as ice or just lukewarm.

Dirty Rotten Scoundrels

In 1988, we got another Frank Oz gem with Dirty Rotten Scoundrels. This flick gave us a look at two conmen with two very different approaches who are vying for one territory. So they decide to make a bet out of one of their marks by seeing who can con $50,000 out of her first. The winner will keep their rich little town in the French Riviera and the loser will move on to browner pastures. Starring Michael Caine, Steve Martin, and Glenne Headly, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels was not short on talent, made $42 million at the box office, and became a comedy classic. But does it hold up? Listen in as Jon, Colin, and Brent debate corks on forks and scam philosophy as we try to see if this flick is the real deal or if we’ve been conned.

Scent of a Woman

What’s that smell? Oh, I think it’s the Scent of a Woman! …welcome to this week’s movie, Martin Brest’s Scent of a Woman which tells the story of a prep school kid who takes a weekend job to assist an old retired Lt. Colonel while his family is away but gets more than he bargained for when the man takes him to New York for his suicide bucket list tour. Starring Al Pacino and Chris O’Donnell SoaW was critically celebrated, including Pacino winning the Oscar for best actor, and making $134 million from a $31 million dollar budget. But, does it hold up? Listen in as Jon, Colin, and Brent debate nose geniuses and handicap creep-passes as we determine if this flick has the scent of success or the stank of failure.

Halloween (1978)

Happy Halloween! To celebrate we are doing John Carpenter’s Halloween! Halloween tells the story of Michael Myers, a psychotic little boy who kills his sexy babysitting sister and later becomes a psychotic man who kills babysitters while being hunted by his obsessed therapist. Starring Jamie Lee Curtis in her first role, a reluctant and drunk Donald Pleasence, P.J. Soles, and Nick Castle as Myers, Halloween did not have immediate star appeal and was shot on a shoestring budget of $325K but ended up making a whopping $60+ million. Halloween became ingrained in our collective minds as the pivotal horror flick and spawned from its evil at least 11 sequels or spinoffs, so far. But does it hold up? Listen in as Jon, Colin, and Brent debate murder planning and creepy drive-by’s as we determine if this classic is a shriek or a snore.

Interview With The Vampire

Imagine you’re a sad slave owner whose wife and kid died, and now you also want to die, and then a cheeky vampire thinks he can make your dream come true with a technicality. You’ll be dead but still must wallow in your own miserable existence for eternity. Ha, that’ll fix it… Welcome to 1994’s Interview with the Vampire, directed by Neil Jordan. Interview was the attempt to turn the vampire genre into a big-budget epic and tell Anne Rice’s story of Lestat and Louis and their twisted time together and Louis’s meandering life afterwards. With the massive cast of Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt, Kirsten Dunst, Antonio Banderas, and Christian Slater, this flick was a box office success making $220 million from a $60 million budget and warming the blood of fans all over. But does it hold up? Listen in as Jon, Colin, and Brent debate Zoloft for vampires and coffin necessities as we try to determine if this one gives life or sucks it.