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203 - Tourist Trap (1979)
54 Plays1 month ago
“You’re so pretty…”
We’re out on vacation for Week Two of Spooky-thon and this week, we’re covering a rare PG-rated slasher from the earliest years of the subgenre and, along the way, discuss such diverse topics as the filmographies of Joel Schumacher and propagandist Leni Riefenstahl, whether or not this film’s star Chuck Connors (a.k.a. ‘The Rifleman’) was a good dad, who won the Academy Award for Best Actor in 2002, and the original Straw Dogs, its remake, and the real world and online personas of James Woods.
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Transcript
Introduction to Disenfranchised Podcast
00:00:27
Speaker
No, please don't kill me, Mr. Ghostface. I wanna be in the sequel. Welcome in weary traveler to the disenfranchised podcast where that podcast off the off the road a piece, you know off to the side But we're all about those franchises of one those films that fancy themselves full-fledged franchises before falling flat on their face after the first film Come in see what we have to offer over 200 episodes so far and this is one of them I am your host Stephen Foxworthy and joining me as always a man who may or may not be able to move things with his mind. It is Tucker. Hey, Tucker. Hi, Steven. How's it going? It goes, my friend. It goes. How are you? ah
Opinions on Joker's Popularity
00:01:11
Speaker
I'm good, man. I watched Tourist Trap. I'm good. You did. We both did. That's a thing we did for this episode.
00:01:20
Speaker
Unfortunately, our our other co-host Brett Wright. um Well, he he's on vacation. Last we heard he had to stop ah because he had a flat on the side of the road, had to walk a few miles to get it switched because he didn't put air in it. ah So we wish him a very speedy return and hopefully nothing bad happens to him along the way.
00:01:39
Speaker
i This is week two of our fifth annual spooky-thon. We do it every year, and this year is no exception, and we're doing it again. ah Last week, we talked about those killer clowns from that outer space, a movie that is apparently better than Joker-Falle-Adieu, according to most critics, from what I hear. Ooh. Apparently a movie so bad, ah people that hated and loved the last one are not going to find anything to enjoy in it, so.
00:02:09
Speaker
I don't know. I've still seen some fanboys defending it in the comments of reviews. Oh, well. Well, OK. And, you know, honestly, I like the kind of the kind of people who are stereotypically joker fans or fanboys of of that particular film. And I guess it's franchise um don't tend to be the type of people whose taste I trust. Right.
00:02:37
Speaker
But I'm going to have to see it because what if everybody doesn't get it? It happens all the time, Steven. I'm OK with not seeing it. I honestly I did. I'm one of the guys that did not care for the first movie. I don't want to see it, though, is the thing I don't want to see. it Like I've seen the trailers and I'm like, ah, the first the first movie I thought was interesting. I thought it was entertaining. And even though it was it was there was nothing really original about it was very well made, I thought.
00:03:07
Speaker
it Basically, it was it was a lot of nothing dressed up really, really well. That's how I felt about it. I had
Triumph of the Will Discussion
00:03:14
Speaker
a good time with it. Honestly, I didn't think it was dressed up that well. It's kind of one of those, like, it like you were talking about last week with Killer Clowns. like It was just an ugly movie, I thought. And I didn't find a lot redeemable in it.
00:03:26
Speaker
Um, even, even the Joaquin, the Academy award winning Joaquin Phoenix performance. I did not think I was kind of like, this is cause he didn't win for the master, right? Like we all agree. This is because he didn't win for the master. He didn't win for several roles that he walked the line gladiator, like eight millimeter. would Why would he have been nominated for a millimeter? Because he's in it.
00:03:52
Speaker
I mean, OK, sure. I mean, what is it? We giving Joaquin Phoenix Meryl Streep status now or? Kind of. I mean, he's really good in it. He's like it better than I like Meryl Streep. I've not. Well, there you go. Joel Schumacher is eight millimeter. Yeah, he plays. You always kind of see him as sort of the artsy dude who takes those kind of roles. But in eight millimeter, he's kind of he's like a street kid who works at a porn store.
00:04:23
Speaker
And I mean, that's kind of the role he plays in to die for as well. Gus fans hands to die for. I can't I can't believe that just by pushing the mute button on my microphone, I turned it from a 10 to a two. Hmm. Which is why I was so quiet there. What was I saying when I got really quiet? You're talking about walking in Phoenix is really good and eight millimeter and everybody should see eight millimeter.
00:04:52
Speaker
because it's really good. Who directs that, I wonder, Steven? I think it's Joel Schumacher. I think it's Joel Schumacher. it was this It was like, oh, you didn't like Batman and Robin? I got you, asshole. And then he made eight millimeter and you're like, okay, oh ah we're sorry. We're actually sorry. we apologize Everyone collectively apologizes, Joel Schumacher.
00:05:12
Speaker
Joel Schumacher is one of those directors. i don't like I don't know what his individual style is, but he was like the just a perennial journeyman. He made so many weird movies over the course of his career. Always willing to do something different. Exactly, exactly. like The man went from Batman and Robin to eight millimeter to Flawless.
00:05:38
Speaker
to Tigerland, to Bad Company, to Phone Booth. Like, what is that? What is that trajectory? Written by um B movie director and Blaxploitation director, great. Larry Cohen. We do love Larry Cohen. We do. He actually he wrote that movie twice. He wrote it as Phone Booth and a cellular. They're the same movie, but a couple of years apart because phone booths were a thing.
00:06:06
Speaker
Right for a couple of years and then cell phones and they were the same. It's the same movie. And he wrote them both. I mean, get get the paycheck.
Joel Schumacher's Filmography
00:06:15
Speaker
He also directed a future episode of this podcast, The Phantom of the Opera. Yeah, dude. Based on the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical that I hate. I know at least two people who are fans of the musical who actually who really like that film. So. OK. No, I'm not saying your thoughts aren't valid. I'm just saying, like, I don't know if that's a.
00:06:36
Speaker
if everybody who likes the musical doesn't like it. I don't like the musical either. Oh, there you go. I don't like Andrew Lloyd Webber. I don't either. Yeah, I'm I'm a Sondheim guy when it comes to musicals and Kander and Ebb. Like, that's that's my lane. And I'll stick with that. yeah ah But Andrew Lloyd Webber. No, thank you.
00:06:57
Speaker
Um, uh, but yeah, Joel Schumacher, uh, and like varying, like wild swings in quality too. Like he goes from like the incredible shrinking woman, St. Elmo's fire to the lost boys. Like what the fuck?
00:07:12
Speaker
o And then I mean, flatliners, um the was it the Michael Douglas film falling down that every libertarian I know loves because they don't get it. Did they watch the end? They didn't watch it. They stopped it like before the last 10 minutes, the movie where it's like, oh, fuck, I suck credit. Right. That's the whole point of the movie. It's like it's one of those like American history acts or like Fight Club that people like they take
00:07:43
Speaker
the setup as the point and it's not the setup is the thing that you're supposed to be learning from. Exactly. Getting into. Yeah. I've been doing a rewatch of um a Breaking Bad right recently, and boy, howdy if Walter White hasn't reminded me a lot of the Michael Douglas character from falling down. Yeah, a little bit.
00:08:10
Speaker
ah So can I tell you I have a VHS copy of falling down and it's very weird because I found it on the side of the road. OK. When I found this TV, you see the CRT right here, the JVC I have. Yeah, this was in the original box, never been used out on the side of the road a couple of years ago. I got it. And inside of it were there were two VHS tapes inside of the box.
00:08:39
Speaker
One was falling down. And the other was a copy of like a Nazi propaganda film. Oh. Like triumph of the will. Maybe I don't know. I get it. It's all triumph of the will. I hit it because I was afraid to throw it away because I thought somebody would go through my trash and be like, what? So I hit it. I don't remember where. i Actually, I think it might be right here. Hold on.
00:09:09
Speaker
Hold on, Tucker's going to go get his Nazi propaganda. Still sealed. Yeah, try him for the will. What did I tell you? Fucking Lenny Riefenstahls, try him for the will. That's like V in the box with
Chuck Connors' Career
00:09:22
Speaker
this. Oh my God. Oof.
00:09:27
Speaker
I got this really nice brand new old stock TV. But at what cost, Stephen? But at what cost? Why do you still have a copy of Lenny Riefenstahl's Triumph of the Well? Because I don't know what to do with it. Like I said, I don't want to throw it away. What if somebody finds it in my trash? I mean, you could so you could pull a George Lucas and smash it with a hammer. ah You're right. I'd say I'd burn it, but I don't like burning plastic.
00:09:55
Speaker
like um I mean, you know, that film stock will go right up, but. Oh, yeah, I do. Well, the yeah, still sealed. That is still sealed. Twelve ninety seven. It came right there. Look, Tucker, I'm not thinking you're watching Lenny Riefenstahl's Triumph of the Well to be still sealed. I know you well enough to know that listeners still sealed can bow still sealed. So like the second time I've touched this because I'm scared. I mean, yes, that is that is a cursed object.
00:10:25
Speaker
Here's what you do if you want to be really safe. Now falling down, open. Tramp for the will, sealed. um Falling down is currently falling out of the VHS box. But I mean, you smash it with a hammer, then you pull out the film stock and you burn the film stock. That's if you want to be safe.
00:10:47
Speaker
Okay, this is weird. Look at this. I don't know even how- Are you opening it right now? Are you fucking opening it? No, I'm not. But look, so this flap is like this, right? The rest of it completely sealed. That flap is right here. Oh, you're opening it.
00:11:03
Speaker
I'm not I'm just saying somebody could have maybe that's how they were accessing it. But why would they want to keep it sealed? Otherwise, who does that? I know some people used to like cut this part and then just because they're lazy, like the people who don't take the stickers off their CD, the labels off the CD top. Yeah, I can't. Oh, that bugs me when people do that. Oh, I can you see a bunch of them just like cut in the middle. I'm like, can I take those off for you? Yeah, please let me help you.
00:11:30
Speaker
Uh, I'm not, I do not suffer from obsessive compulsive disorder, but moments like that, I feel like I potentially could. So what is this though? Is, why is this bad? Cause I don't know. I'm afraid to look it up. Cause I don't want to put on a watch list. I mean, no, I mean it's a VHS, but it is no, it's, it's a not, it literally, it is a Nazi propaganda film from 1934 directed
Tourist Trap Plot Summary
00:11:51
Speaker
by basically Lenny Riefenstahl, a tragically, like the first female director of like, significance in global cinema, but like tragically. um But she was like, the Fures, like, favorite filmmaker, ah they offered like the gerbils offered the role of um
00:12:17
Speaker
like Chief Minister of Propaganda or whatever to Fritz Lang. And then the day ah the that that night he left Germany and fled to America. good um Because apparently ah Hitler was too dumb to understand that by ah putting his the Hitler's own words into the mouth of the villain of his film, Lang was criticizing him.
00:12:40
Speaker
Go figure. I can't believe it. um That is, of course, the last testament of Dr. or the yeah, the last the last testament of Dr. Mabusa, I believe is the name of that film. And it is amazing. Watch that one. um But no, Lenny Riefenstahl, like, again, what she was and trying for the well, in particular, it is a documentary propaganda film commissioned by Hitler as essentially like his Like whats what's so great about the Nazi Party in effect? yeah So there I've never seen it, but it's like up there with like um what's the name of the D.W. Griffith film? ah Birth of a Nation in like terms of like very problematic yet weirdly influential movies. Here's what the back says. um Terrifying proof of the power of the motion picture for the purposes of propaganda. Triumph of the Will is li how'd you say her name?
00:13:38
Speaker
letny reensta Lenny Lenny Riefenstahl's brilliant record of the Nazi Party Congress held at Nuremberg in 1934 have been there. Although banned for many years, this film has been acclaimed as a classic of cinema technique and as a grim reminder of the mad vision of the Nazis. Hour and 20 minutes.
00:14:01
Speaker
I mean, I want 20 minutes. Nineteen thirty six. Yeah. A breezy, a breezy 80 minutes. oh It's just it's it just feels so heavy. Like, yeah, I was just thinking to myself, well, maybe I should watch this, but I was just like holding it like feels so wrong. Yeah. I mean, you're not. And that's just that you're not wrong. That movie comes out in thirty five and she does like a number of short films. She does I mean, she's she's essentially like the Nazi filmmaker for years. And then like after the war ends, she doesn't do another movie for like 14 years. um And in 1954, she directs the final film that she would direct in her lifetime, ah which is called Lowlands Tiefland in in the original language. But like, yeah, like it's and it kind of sucks that she is
00:15:00
Speaker
That that is kind of her role because again, by all intents and purposes, she was probably pretty good filmmaker. She had talent. She had just used it for evil and not for good. Yeah. And to be clear, Nazism is evil. Yes. Yes.
Tourist Trap Production Insights
00:15:16
Speaker
I want to be very clear. We don't like Nazis. No. Never have, never will. Not a fan. No.
00:15:24
Speaker
whether whether they're led by a man named Adolf or a man named Donald. I don't like Nazis. So especially, you especially don't like the surf, the ones that surf. Right. Or the ones from Illinois. I, in fact, I hate Illinois Nazis. They're the worst kind, I feel like. I am inclined to agree. If I had to pick ah one group, one specific sect. Right. Of of that party, it would be Ohio, definitely. I mean, yes. Yeah, I mean, I mean, yes.
00:15:54
Speaker
no Um, but that is not why we're here. We did we fucking fuck minutes on Joel Schumacher and Lenny reef install. What the fuck is this episode going to be, man? We are. And I like this movie. We're punchy as shit.
00:16:10
Speaker
right now is what it is. Yes. i'm enjoying our I'm enjoying what we're talking about, though. It's very informative and fun to and to say nothing of like the half an hour where we just riffed before we even started recording. That's true. Talking about everything from Michael McDonald to.
00:16:27
Speaker
um Fuck, what else were we talking about? I don't know. Other tons of other shit. We we just kind of ran ran roughshod all over everything. um But we are here to talk about in week two of spooky fun. Hey, there we are. There it is. Back to square one. I know how we got on this. You said something about Joker. I did Joker movie because killer clowns are better than Joker. And then bam, we were off to the races. Tucker's ADD went. Oh.
00:16:58
Speaker
something i can talk about i found a thread whoop let me pull it and then went on this insane like what's a like a like free association like yeah just free associate it all over this podcast Um, but we are here in week two of Spookython. We are here to talk about 1979's Tourist Trap, directed by David Schmoller and starring Chuck Connors, uh, Shylar Kobe.
00:17:34
Speaker
Jocelyn Jones, Jon Van Ness, Robert Sherwood, Tanya Roberts, Don Jeffery-Nelson, Keith McDermott, and Blinken, you miss her really, Lene Quigley in this movie as well. What a cast. What a picture, Tucker. Can we talk about why we're covering this film, like schedule wise?
00:17:55
Speaker
Can we talk about that? I wasn't going to, but if you feel you must, then by all means. I just think it's a really cool substitute because we were going to talk about the House of Wax remake, the one with the ah Sam Winchester and Paris Hilton.
00:18:11
Speaker
We and had originally scheduled our good friend Arielle Powershobb to come in and talk about that. Her schedule is insane because I don't know if you guys know this, she has a book out and has been like on every platform, plugging and promoting it. And yeah you should absolutely read it. We both have and we really like it. I own it. You do. Hardback. You do. I need to buy it. I still have my advanced reader copy. I need to get the i need to get the signed one.
00:18:39
Speaker
Although that may have just been a preorder thing and I may be at luck and the BSOL. I may just have to wait until I eventually meet Ari in the flash. I didn't. I didn't preorder. Like what what it is is on the um the Instagram page of the publisher. Oh, no they'll they'll post a post and it'll be like, hey, don't forget to pick up your copy of this book. And we have this many signed ones. So whoever the next this many people are that order it, get a signed one.
00:19:08
Speaker
um And that's how I got my signed one. Yeah. Nice. ah But yeah, Ari's the best. We will absolutely have her back on. I did not want to cover House of Wax without her. And so Tucker said. I said, well, you know, House of Wax isn't actually a remake of House of Wax at all. In fact, it has nothing to do with House of Wax or the movie that it was a remake of. Which is a different title, and I can't think of the name of the Oh, gosh, damn it. See, I was on a roll and now I'm going to have to do stuff. No, you keep talking. I'll find it. Oh, it's too late. Except I don't have Internet for some reason. Go ahead. Go ahead with your thing. You you must have Internet because we're talking. I was going to say, no, go ahead. So, yes, the House of Wax remake by Dark Castle from like 2003, 2004, whenever it was that that one was made is has nothing to do with either House of Wax film that came before it.
00:20:06
Speaker
um It's actually a remake of this movie. It's a remake of tourist trap. And so much history of the black museum is yes. There you go. The director has just came out and straight up said it. That House of Wax is a remake of tourist trap, and if you've seen both of them, you will agree. And now Stephen has seen have you you've seen both of them now? ah No, in the remake. OK, so when you see the remake, we're going to talk about
00:20:38
Speaker
this movie again, and you'll be like, oh, damn, you were right. That'll be you. Yeah. OK, that sounds like me. It does sound like that does sound exactly like something I would say. Do yeah. Harum, harum, harum. Yeah, but that's why we're covering it, because I was like, hey, that's a really good substitution for that. And I said we could just cover House of Wax and Tucker said, no tourist trap.
Beer Preferences and Cultural Significance
00:21:04
Speaker
Yeah.
00:21:05
Speaker
because Hasselwax is not a remake of Hasselwax, it's not a remake of Torret's Trap. I mean, we could have been watching Vincent Price, is all I'm saying. But instead, we got to watch... calcal calc cal cal calc cal cal cal l The Rifleman, starring Chuck Connors. Thank you. Yes, Chuck Connors, the star of this movie. Yes.
00:21:30
Speaker
the famed conservative Chuck Connors. Oh, let's not talk about that part. Oh, he is. We're skipping the politics. He he this was supposed to we talked about this last week during our ah killer cons from outer space with Royal Dano. We talked about the the Western to horror pipeline.
00:21:52
Speaker
And Chuck Connors took this role hoping that this would basically lead to him becoming a Karloff-esque figure for the 80s. I'm so here for it, but it it didn't happen. It did not happen. cause i loved him and this did not happen but yeah I loved him in this movie, and I think that it shows a lot of potential for him to do So much fun stuff in the 80s with being not even just horror villains, but he could fill a lot of role in horror films. He'd be a great harbinger, dude. Fantastic harbinger, Chuck Connors.
00:22:28
Speaker
Like, I mean, he's got this very physically imposing build and he's got like that that square head. He's six five, dude. Right. He looks like the actor that plays Lurch in the original Adams family. He got a test, which I was watching today, strangely enough. You were. He looked like Lurch.
00:22:48
Speaker
um I know I don't know about you, Tucker. My first exposure to Chuck Connors growing up as a wee lad for some reason in old Yeller high school. I mean, it probably was old Yeller, but I didn't clock that that was Chuck Connors. Gotcha. My dad.
00:23:07
Speaker
um I read something about the movie The Dirty Dozen, and my dad was like, I love The Dirty Dozen. We should watch and The Dirty Dozen. And Chuck Connors is absolutely in The Dirty Dozen. He plays, I believe the act of the character's name is Clint Posey. um If I'm not mistaken, is that way or are in my fucking. Am I lying or not? I e might be. I actually might be. I.
00:23:37
Speaker
I think I am thinking of, I think I'm thinking of Clint Walker is who I'm thinking of. But he's not in it? Are you sure? I'm not, I'm looking it up right now is what I'm doing.
00:23:50
Speaker
um i Dirty Dozen, Donald Sutherland, Clint Walker is exactly who I was thinking of. Damn it, Chuck Connors is not in the Dirty Dozen. I guess that's who we were both thinking of.
00:24:03
Speaker
Yeah. um But yeah, no. ah My. Yeah. i But I fucking love the Dirty Dozen. OK, apparently that's not what I know Chuck Connors from. Apparently what I know Chuck Connors from is from old reruns of The Rifleman. The Rifleman. The Rifleman.
00:24:20
Speaker
Chuck Connors. Connors. I mean, this guy was kind of ubiquitous on television in the 80s, too, like Grizzly Adams, Fantasy Island. um You know, now that I'm looking as this at his filmography, you know what actually probably was my first exposure to so Chuck Connors? Airplane to the sequel. Probably, yeah. Where he plays the Sarge.
00:24:43
Speaker
um It was probably my first exposure there to to Chuck Connors. But um yeah, like, but again, like classic Western actor, a $6 million dollar man, he was in an episode of that, like um also Soil and Green, another movie I watched in high school. um Yeah, you he is. Yeah, I mean, I don't know if you know this, Tucker, and I feel like I should probably be the one to tell you. Soil and Green?
00:25:13
Speaker
Oh, yeah. It's made out of people. Really? ah People, Tucker.
Tourist Trap Cast Careers
00:25:18
Speaker
Interesting. It's people. Can I tell you something interesting about Chuck Connors that you might not know, Stephen? Please might not know it. Did you know that he was both a professional basketball player and a professional baseball player before he was an actor? I looked at his Wikipedia page and I learned that. Yes. He was in both the and NBA and the MLB.
00:25:41
Speaker
That's like so also Bo Jackson, Dion Sanders stuff right there. There's only 80. He's part of the 18 athletes that have done that exact same thing. Like playing two professional sports in those specific leagues leagues. There are only 18 people who have been in both the and NBA and the MLB. Well, and I mean, that wasn't Jackson and and Sanders, though. They were in MLB and NFL. Yes, that is true. um Also, he was.
00:26:09
Speaker
a tank instructor in World War Two as well at this point. So he kind of he kind of did a lot. He's a big dude. I mean, yeah, I mean, both physically imposing, but also like a really strong actor. And I do. Like I do really. Had a very storied career. I hate that his politics were shitty because I always see him In well, not always, obviously not in this role, but in stuff like Old Yeller and the Rifleman, he plays such a good dad. Mm hmm. He's a great dad. And like, especially in the Rifleman, when he's a single dad, like raising that little kid, dude, he's so good with that kid, man. And I just I love the interactions between him and children.
00:26:59
Speaker
in his western films. I think he's fantastic. He is which gives me a warm fuzzy feeling, you know, he is. He's one of those guys who just you get the feeling he probably worked really well with kids like he had four sons of his own. Like so he.
00:27:17
Speaker
And a lot of them ended up seeming to be fairly well adjusted individuals as, as adults. So, I mean, you know, had to have done something right as a father, but chuck conner's good dad. I hope that's what I want to believe. We're going to assume that's the head cannon and that's our speculation. Yes.
00:27:34
Speaker
But no, he he absolutely wanted to use this role to like springboard off into becoming like a Karloff esque figure in in for the later part of his career. Like he wanted to do horror and play the villain like play the the scary bad guys. And he i I'm just gonna say it. He's the best part of this movie and it's not even close.
00:27:59
Speaker
He's so good in this fucking movie. He's so good. This movie doesn't deserve him. It does not deserve him. Little spoiler. I am not going to be as positive on this movie as you are ah for a few different reasons, but we'll get into those. But like, I think he is really strong in this movie. And what he is doing, I think, works really like he knows what movie he's in and he's making it work.
00:28:22
Speaker
Yeah, he's he takes it very seriously. He comes to work on this movie. He does not sleep in. He does not and come in late. A boy is there ready to go in this movie. I mean, I didn't. We didn't do a cast overview. um Chuck Connors, or yes, yes, we did. I did the fucking Casper needed. The fuck am I talking about? I'm just there's only a couple of people in this cast who have really done anything else. ah The gal that plays Molly, actually, she became a consultant.
00:28:49
Speaker
Oh, in Hollywood. And she apparently makes a bajillion dollars doing that. And then the lady what plays um ah the the gal on the table, the rando gal on the table, Tina. Yeah. Yeah. Don Jeffrey. She became a child and baby wrangler yeah after that.
00:29:10
Speaker
So she's still in Hollywood, still making a bajillion dollars just working with kids. And like you look at the the ah photos on her IMDB and like all the kids that are with her are just like so happy, dude. And I mean, that people who are good at that sort of thing find that kind of work. You know, I love a book with her additional crew credits on IMDB and she's got just a list. um She's a little giants.
00:29:36
Speaker
Mm hmm. She was a dialogue coach on Little Giants. She was an acting coach and dialogue coach on the show Seventh Heaven. She worked with. Oh, she was. She worked with Jina Ortega on that Little Rascal sequel she did in 2014. I did see that. Sorry. Oh, there you go. Yeah. She was in the the TV miniseries of The Shining. She was the the acting coach for The Kid in that movie, the Danny for that one. Baby Wrangler on Meet the Fockers, Baby Wrangler on a series of unfortunate events. Future episode of this podcast.
00:30:05
Speaker
Also, Baby Wrangler on Big Mama's House 2, acting in dialogue coach on Paul Blart Mulkop, Baby Wrangler on A Very Harold and Kumar Christmas, Baby Wrangler on What to Expect When You're Expecting. Like she's she's got some pretty decent credits
David Schmoller's Career
00:30:20
Speaker
there. Dude, yeah. And like nobody and nobody in this movie, except for Tonya Roberts, Chuck Connors and Linnea Quigley, like but They're not anybody that was really in anything after that as an actor or before that, really. um But some of these people have gone on to do other things in Hollywood that are kind of fantastic. They've had really big careers, just not in front of the camera. Right. I mean, Tanya Roberts, of course, Bond girl.
00:30:49
Speaker
um im Trying to, if the last- She wasn't, she was the that was at the last angel. ah View to a kill. Future episode of this podcast, Sheena. She was in future episode of this podcast, Sheena. oh nice um So we'll we'll cover Tanya Roberts again. And then of course was on that 70 show as Donna's mom. Yep. Yeah. So I mean, you know, another kind of very familiar face. And where's, I will say, where's the hell out of a tube top in this movie? No, she do.
00:31:21
Speaker
She she sure do, though. Yeah, dude. Um, yeah, dude, dude. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, dude. That's I mean, that's all the cast that's really worth talking about, honestly. I've not to put anybody down. It's just.
00:31:39
Speaker
I mean, it and but that's just it. Like it's a lot of I mean, Robin Sherwood did, you know, she she she did some stuff. She was in Death Wish, too. ah She was in um Blowout. Fucking love Blowout. That movie is amazing. Oh, yeah. I still need to see that. You. Oh, you haven't seen Blowout. I've almost watched it so many times. You. I feel like you can really dig Blowout. You know, because I. ever You know, I like De Palma.
00:32:08
Speaker
No, I'm into some De Palma for sure. I know. De Palma, the king of the dang ass freaks. um Like that's her last big movie is Death Wish 2. And then before that, Blowout like she does four movies after this. um And then kind of just doesn't do a lot more after that. But again, I love fucking Blowout. Oh, she's ah here we go. She's a. Oh, she was born in. OK.
00:32:38
Speaker
Oh, OK, she's I guess a four term city councilman and successful restaurateur. Oh, good for her. Right on. Or something. No, maybe that was her parents. I don't. Man, this is a whole. OK, yeah. that Wow. Her whole biography, like paragraphs. Wow. Oh, man. Yeah, I don't know what she's doing. OK. OK, move to Paris. Her dad, her dad died. She did run his restaurant in Miami.
00:33:10
Speaker
Um, she's done some theater. It looks like she launched the freckle fam catalog, a home accessories printed catalog that reached an audience of 26 million women in 2000. Okay. In 2010, she did some theater 2014 documentary.
00:33:33
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, she's been around. She's just doing kind of kind of off the radar shit as far as Hollywood goes, it looks like. Right. I mean, and and John Van Ness, who plays Jerry, I just thought it seems like just a working actor, just a regular, regular working actor. But I mean, he's his some of his credit. He was in The Hitcher, the 1986 film, The Hitcher. He's in The Natural, that really great Redford baseball movie. Yeah. Oh, wait. And Paul Newman in that, though? Or is it Robert Redford? It's Robert Redford. What am I thinking of?
00:34:04
Speaker
Butch and Sundance? I don't know. No, I don't know. Go ahead. I'm sorry. I don't know what the fuck you're thinking about, dude. I don't either. Alligator two. I mean, you know, boys, but all of these are, you know, actors who people who've done stuff, even if they're not. Nobody's full. No, that's what I'm thinking. Nobody's full. I don't know. I got mixed up. So I don't know. Either do very different movies. I miss Paul Newman. I mean, we all do.
00:34:34
Speaker
we We hear really we all do.
00:34:39
Speaker
But yeah, I mean, in terms of the cast, I mean, it's it's a tiny, low budget core. I mean, i and this is something worth pointing out. This is the first full moon movie we've discussed on this podcast. We've made it over 200 episodes without Charles Band ever coming up on this podcast. And we're thankful for that because this really This is one of the only Charles like Charles band sometimes looks into making a movie that I like. Right. Not very often. No. Very often. I was I was perusing his his production filmography. He's like if Roger Corman sucked. I mean, yeah, it's he is he is all the worst characteristics of guys like Roger Corman and Lloyd Kaufman.
00:35:28
Speaker
and none of the good ones because those guys are a big deal for a reason. Right. w Right agreed. But like band doesn't, I mean, and look, I know there are people who love full moon films, who love like the puppet master and ginger dead man and evil bong and um demonic toys and doll man. Yeah. Like the man has a ton of franchises under his belt and a lot of failed franchise starters. We could very easily, I was looking, like I said, I was looking at the man's filmography. We could very easily do a Charles band month.
00:36:04
Speaker
If we really hated ourselves, like you can do it. guess If we feel like we need to punish ourselves, we'll do that. But I don't know. I don't know that I want to do that, but we could absolutely do that. Like if we need like to do penance for something, then. i shall man ah But until then, no, no, no. ah There have been how many evil bong movies you think there have been, Tucker? um I know there's at least.
00:36:35
Speaker
three plus the crossover. I'm going to say. Six. Eight. With the crossover, nine. Oh, wow. Yeah.
00:36:52
Speaker
Um, but I mean, yeah, then we've got like all the puppet masters, like it's, it's a, it's a whole thing. Like, and he's, he is crafted an empire for good or ill. He's crafted an empire. Wait, did they do, um, uncle go Sam, you uncle Sam? I don't think that was Charles band thing. Larry Cohen directed that and it's really good. It's really, really good. It's so silly, but also like the commentary is very serious.
00:37:22
Speaker
But it's one of the silliest movies I've ever seen. I i love Larry Cohen so much. All right. You do. You do. You love Larry Cohen. Let's see. Cue the wing and serpent. The stuff God
Hollywood's Cultural Landscape
00:37:32
Speaker
told me to. You just can't go wrong with Larry Cohen. He did the best episode of Masters of Horror, too. Oh, yeah, you have said that. um That one is not a full moon release. That is Apex and Solomon International. Yeah.
00:37:50
Speaker
And so also did the Jack Frost movies, I believe. Oh, there you go. Not the Michael Keaton ones, but right now. Well, I think there was only one of the Michael Keaton ones. Do you know who they originally cast in that role before he dropped out at the last minute? I i think i the snowman doesn't look a thing like Michael Keaton and looks exactly like John george Clooney. Same thing. No, very different. Yes. Must see TV.
00:38:18
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, are we talking about Return of the Killer Tomatoes, George Clooney? Roseanne's own George Clooney. Are we talking about Return to Horror High's George Clooney? The same. Huh. From Dusty Don's George Clooney. Yeah. to to Was that what's his what's his out of his own George Clooney? Yeah. Yeah. I like young George Clooney. He was hungry. He is good, too.
00:38:46
Speaker
like I mean, the the ah the ocean movies happened and he just kind of like and what I mean, he he bought and sold that tequila brand and realized he didn't fucking ever have to work again is really what happened. So he just when he does a movie now, it's because he a friend of his is doing it or because he just wants to. I got to tell you, like he is so funny in return to the killer tomatoes and he's not even the funniest character.
00:39:14
Speaker
I gotta to say, that's one of the funniest movies that I've ever seen in my life, Return of the Killer Tomatoes. maybe Future episode of Straight Up? Yeah, probably. Not a spooky-thon one though, that's for sure. I also really think George Clooney underrated as a director.
00:39:29
Speaker
We were talking about directors earlier. He was, Confessions of Dangerous Mine is fantastic. Good night and good luck. Yeah, sounds good too. I fucking stan Ides of March. Like, people do not like that movie. I haven't seen that one. I really like it. It's him and Ryan Gosling. That's Gosling and, yeah. Fucking Philip Seymour Hoffman, Evan Rachel Wood, Jeffrey Wright, Marissa Tomei, Paul Giamatti, like, fucking stacked cast. I like that cast, yeah. It's an unbelievable, and it's based on a ah play by Bo Willimon who,
00:39:58
Speaker
ah wrote House of Cards. And look, he was like really hot shit there for like two years. And so based on that, Clooney buys this movie, rewrites it like it's not Bo Willimon's script at all. um But I was really trying to direct that in the Indianapolis Community Theater scene for a while. the The play, it was based on Farragut North and no one, no one wanted to touch it. um Like I knew exactly how I wanted to stage it. Like I had, I had ideas and no one wanted it. So can I be in it when you do it, Steven? I legitimately had an actress on standby. Like she was like, I gave her the script. I was like, I want to do this sometime. I would love for you to do this with me. And she goes, you let me know when you do it. Whenever you do it, just call me. I will be there. I don't care where I am in the world. I will find you.
00:40:49
Speaker
Now you've got two. You got two cast members now, Steven. Except I've never seen you act outside of something directed by our friend JPLX. Well, I'll tell you what, as much as I dislike theater acting, I am a far better theater actor than I am a film actor. I mean, I love theater acting because I'm so much better at it. When you have to. Emote to the macro, man. I get the culture, you know, i get it up for me outside of high school, because like that's where That's where you find all the insecure gals. And so.
00:41:26
Speaker
I'm just saying I was a bad guy back in the day. I'll do respect. Oh, yeah. I hate man. I was a ah you know, I was I say that and it was true. I was I was definitely a slut in high school, but I was never like.
00:41:42
Speaker
I am not now nor have I ever been a slut. Never. I was never disrespectful or like super macho or masochistic or not masochistic. What am I thinking of masculine? No. Well, yeah, but I wasn't. um What is it when you're you're being an asshole, but you're specifically being an asshole because you're a man chauvinism?
00:42:05
Speaker
ah Yeah, but there's another word people use for it now toxicogeny there, you know, it wasn't like it wasn't like that. it It wasn't like toxic masculinity. It's just I i looked real good and I and and I was really charming and I knew where the girls were. That's all it was. I also knew where the girls were. They just had no desire to have anything to do with me. So well, you know.
00:42:29
Speaker
because I was short, fat and like nerdy things. So I like nerdy things, too. But yeah, but you were thin and good looking. Fuck you. And very charming, Stephen. Very charming. Look, I was charming, too. It got me nowhere. Oh, boo. Whatever, Stephen, whatever.
00:42:51
Speaker
I'm saying you're right. You're right. Respect the women. Respect the women.
00:42:58
Speaker
We absolutely must respect the women. um ah This is the first film of David Schmoller, the director of this film. He would go on to become a full moon mainstay. Like he directs a ton of movies for full moon. ah He directs the original puppet master. um He does the the Klaus Kinski film Crawl Space. Yes. um and like And then direct some theory about it later. Yeah. um Like Netherworld, the secret kingdom, the seduction, possessed.
00:43:33
Speaker
um a 2012 film called Little Monsters. And then he does the puppet master blitzkrieg massacre ah comes back to the puppet masters franchise later, like is just kind of one of those guys who like kind of hangs in there with with Charles Benton netherworld does netherworld does, ah you know, some episodes of TV renegade silk stockings like those renegade with Lorenzo Lamas. Yes.
00:44:02
Speaker
on the USA Network on the us and some stockings also on the USA Network. So stockings was ah one of those shows that always just felt very illicit to me as a child. And I bet I would go back and watch it now and it would just be aggressively tame. um Well, that's because it's not for adults. It's for the kids who are sneaking to watch it. Right. You can't be that. That show had a fucking season silk
Controversial Films Impact
00:44:28
Speaker
stockings. They show that no one remembers but was on the air for eight fucking years. Yeah. That is that's fucking wild.
00:44:37
Speaker
Something to say for titillation, I suppose. And oh, you know who's in 54 fucking episodes of that show as the announcer? Your boy Fred Melamed. Oh, that makes me think of David Duchovny in The Red Shoe Diaries. Oh, yeah, there you go. I don't know if you remember that. I mean, I never watched The Red Shoe Diaries, but I know he was in it. Him and Matt LeBlanc both got their start on The Red Shoe Diaries. Yes, dude. Zalman King's The Red Shoe Diaries. Yes. On HBO.
00:45:07
Speaker
And of course, when ah when we when we say we love ah Fred Melamed, what we mean is that we love Cy Abelman. Now, you know why they don't you know why they don't make any of those shows anymore? Those erotic shows on pay cable. Why? I mean, why do you think they don't make those shows anymore, Tucker? Because we don't need them. No one needs them. Everyone, men, women and children have Unrestricted access to all the porn they'd ever want. So why would you need something like that? There is a there is a cottage industry of pornography on the internet. I'm told. Mm hmm. I tell you about it. I've seen some of it, Steven. Yeah, wild. Pretty wild, dude. Right on. Wild. People just loving each other, dude. Is it love? Sometimes. OK. Fair enough.
00:46:05
Speaker
You see, Steven, when a porn star loves another porn star very much. When two porn stars are in desperate need of money. They hit record.
00:46:20
Speaker
Oh, but, yeah, David, this is David Schmoller's first film of of many, but he he sticks in like he's not he's not an auteur, like he's not someone that you're going to be. um But, you know, fuck, dude.
00:46:35
Speaker
He's the guy who gets things done. He can work on effects now. He studied theater with Alejandro Jodoroski. He was mentored in film by Luis Buñuel. These are big fucking names in film. so like um like he His pedigree is solid. um I don't know that that necessarily comes across in this film entirely.
00:47:03
Speaker
He's definitely, I think, a competent director. Like, he knows what he's doing. He is competent. Like, I will give him that. This film is competently made. I don't know. my My major issues with this movie are with the writing, if I'm going to be really honest. Like, I don't have a problem with the directing. My major issues with the film are with the with the writing, particularly my biggest gripe with this film, Tucker, is the telekinesis.
00:47:31
Speaker
I don't like it. I don't think the movie needs it. It doesn't need it, for sure. You're right. You're right. And there's probably a... The original script didn't have it in it. You know that. I do know that. Charles Band, in fact, is the one that insists that it be included. Oh, of course he did. Sounds like a very Charles, a very on-band of him. Oh, God.
00:47:56
Speaker
Fuck. Thank you. Thank you. Oh, that was awful. Yes. That was absolutely terrible. How dare you? I am offended. You have offended my delicate sensibilities, sir. But no, I mean, like, and so I think that's partly why it feels so out of place to me is Because this is this is a slasher film the year after Halloween, but it's not like so many of the others that would come after Halloween. It's not like the cookie cutter trying to copy the formula. It's very much trying to do its own thing. It has its own story and its own agenda, and I like that ah about it. It's almost as if... and ah According to Wikipedia, they tried to get Carpenter to direct this. Like Schmoller wanted Carpenter to direct. And ah Carpenter was probably just thinking, I just fucking did this. Yeah. Like I'm not doing. Fuck you. No, like because it's a very John Carpenter attitude. What did Carpenter do between Halloween and The Thing? Wasn't there something between those two? It's a little movie called Escape from New York. OK. All right. That tracks.
00:49:11
Speaker
I couldn't remember because I know, I knew, I know that Halloween was 78. OK, I know Halloween was 78 and the thing was 72. So I was like, I feel like there's some movies in between there, but I couldn't think of what they would have been. Yes. So he does. It's um yeah Halloween is 78. He does the TV movie. Somebody's watching me later in 78. The TV movie Elvis in 79.
00:49:34
Speaker
That's good, too, with Kurt Russell. Yeah, right. And then he does the fog in 80 and escape from New York and 81, which I didn't care for the fog. Does he assault from precinct 13 before Halloween, right? Yes, that's his his two first movies are dark star in 74 written by Dan O'Bannon. And you can kind of tell because it's got the alien shit all over it.
00:49:56
Speaker
And then like very proto alien in a lot of ways. And then Halloween or and then assault on precinct 13 and 76. Then he does Halloween and 78. I cannot watch assault on precinct 13 anymore because I got kids, man. That that opening scene is very upsetting. I don't have kids. And that scene is really upsetting. Like that's how well filmed that is. I used to be able to be like, oh, exploitation. Ah, whoa. And then I had children and I was like, nope.
00:50:24
Speaker
That's not for me anymore. No, man. It it it is hard. It is fucking brutal. It might be the single most brutal scene in Carpenter's entire filmography. Like it is fucking brutal. Him and Wes Craven were swinging for the fences in their early their early careers, weren't they? Absolutely they were.
00:50:43
Speaker
Yeah, Wes Craven, the guy who just goes, I don't know, let me let me remake The Virgin Spring as a horror movie. That sounds like fun. The fuck are you doing, dude? Like that movie also very upsetting. The revenge part is fun. That's what I'm saying. It's the rape revenge movies. Like you got to take the good with the bad because the good is always so satisfying after the bad.
00:51:07
Speaker
Speaking of, our friend Ariel Power Shab for the Pod and the Pendulum Patreon is doing a series on the, I think it's the I Spit On Your Grave? Yeah. Yes. The I Spit On Your Grave films. Which I wasn't aware that there were so many sequels to the remake. Oh, yes. Yeah, the remake is kind of its own thing. Franchise. It's a fucking franchise. It is.
00:51:36
Speaker
it's it and It's a rather involved one as well, I will say. um But yeah. Man, I remember when I saw that movie, I was ah the the original. That was an old fucked up thing I'd seen at that time. Yeah.
00:51:51
Speaker
And then I saw straw dogs and I was like, Oh, it's not gory. So it won't be as fucked up. Turns out it's more fucked up. Yeah. Straw dogs, a movie I still, I cannot bring myself. i I'm like, I should really engage with Peckinpah. And the thing that stops me from ever getting into any Peckinpah is fucking straw dogs. I can't fucking do it. It's such a good movie, but boy, boy, is it fucked up. And like, you're not sure what, what the movie is implying sometimes, like whose side the movie is on sometimes.
00:52:19
Speaker
Right. Like this makes me really uncomfortable. And I mean, that apparently that was the kind of director Peck and Paul was. Yeah, dude. And like it's like I've heard the wild the wild bunch is kind of a fucking masterpiece and I really want to watch it. But I'm like, if I'm going to get into Peck and Paul, I'm going to get into Peck and Paul. And I'm like, I don't know if I want to do that. I don't want to know if I want to do that to myself. I can't believe they remade straw dogs. With James Marsden.
00:52:50
Speaker
Yeah, and it seemed like it it almost seemed like um it felt I didn't see it, but like from just the way it looks like I've seen trailers and photos and stuff. It looks a lot like that Amityville horror remake.
00:53:05
Speaker
I mean, i look I would not be surprised. It's it's Marsden, it's Kate Bosworth, and it's Alexander Skarsgard. I can't believe I don't think an America's favorite America's favorite perb performer and Twitter personality, James Woods. That's another one I'm real disappointed in because I love James Woods, like even as an amazing actor and a terrible person. Well, i so that's saying I don't know. Yeah, I was going to say, like, he seems like a very complicated person because in all the And all the behind the scenes stuff I've seen with him, he seems like the the warmest, kindest, like like most approachable person. And then you hear about his political view. And even like people who have worked with him, they're like, yeah, he's literally the nicest dude ever. We love him. We hate his politics. Someone just needs to take his Twitter account away.
00:53:58
Speaker
Yes, it's so disappointing, and he's so good in everything to show me a bad James Woods performance. He's in my favorite movie from the year I was born. Like, I fucking love James Woods. Yeah, dude. Do you know my favorite movie from the year I was born? I'm waiting for you to tell me, dude, you were born in 1983. I was born in 1983. It's a little film by David k Cronenberg called Motherfucking Videodrome. Oh, yeah, you do like that movie. God, that movie rolls. I own it on on Criterion 4K. It's lovely. I love it. James Woods, good as hell, too.
00:54:28
Speaker
He is so good in that movie. um And like he is one I want to dig into more of his filmography, but like when he works with um John Carpenter on Vampires, Carpenter lets him ad lib like crazy, just because Carpenter, very progressive, always has been James Woods, very much not. And by letting him ad lib, Carpenter's like, no, I just wanted people to know like what he's really like. Like, that's just how he told us. Wow.
00:54:56
Speaker
Like all the shit about the Chocolata Estrada and all that, like that's just James Woods riffing. Carpinter's like, I didn't fucking write that. I don't like that. That's just what he's like. In the script, it says ah just be James Woods and talk about this subject. Go. That's what the script says. James Wood talks about this for a couple of paragraphs. He had shit he was supposed to talk about. He just would would go off and riff and Carpinter's like, yeah, OK, that's fine.
00:55:25
Speaker
do it, but it made it made the movie very unpleasant for me, the movie Vampires. um I love him as a voice actor. I thought he was really great in Clerks the Animated Series. but He is he's very good in Clerks the Animated Series. He is, I really love him in Family Guy and The Simpsons. yeah um And then he also, like he loved playing Hades in Disney's Hercules so much. Oh yeah, he was great. That he, anytime Hercules appears in literally anything,
00:55:55
Speaker
be it an episode of a television show or like a Kingdom Hearts video game, he's like, call me. He's like, I will do it. Just call me. And like his last three credits are Hades in Kingdom Hearts three Disney speed storm, both of which are video games and the once upon a studio short that they did for the celebration of the hundredth anniversary of Disney animation. Nice.
00:56:21
Speaker
um But yeah, he plays Hades in all of those if he could just fix those politics We'd have a just a kind of a perfect man, you know, I mean fix those politics man And I mean he he do keep showing up and stuff though, man. He do keep showing up and stuff. He's not in this movie though He's not. Yeah, we would have probably mentioned it by now. Yeah Well, he was one of the mannequins, probably uncredited. Right. Right. Right. Well, and that's it there's so there's a lot. This movie has a kind of there's a lot of.
00:56:55
Speaker
You know what we should probably do before I get into this show? We should probably talk the plot of this movie. I have the Coin of Justice here at the ready. And while I prepare it and you put one minute on the clock, I will explain the plot in 60. It's the part of the show where we at the behest of the Coin of Justice recount the plot of the film we're discussing, in this case 1979's Tourist Trap, in 60 seconds or less. Tucker's got a minute on the clock. I've got the Coin of Justice at the ready. Tucker, call it. Heads.
00:57:25
Speaker
And it is heads you bastard. Yay. Tell me when you would start talking Steven and I'll hit the button.
00:57:34
Speaker
This guy forgets to fill up his tire, and so he goes to get air put in the tire, and then he ends up getting attacked by puppets, and then impaled by a bunch of shit flying out of a cabinet. His friends go looking for him, find the tire way far away from where he dropped it, ah but then end up skinny dipping in like a river, and it's owned by Chuck Connors, who's holding a rifle, this entire fucking movie. Coincidence? I think not. um but So he invites them all in, tells them not to go outside, so they of course then immediately go outside.
00:58:04
Speaker
And when they do, they realize, oh, um they all start dying. ah This guy's brother apparently was really good at making mannequins and that was what the tourist trap was. ah They start dying one by one and getting replaced by mannequins. ah They think it's his brother. Turns out it's really him with a split personality. Find out at the end his brother and wife had been cheating on each other.
00:58:24
Speaker
He's got telekinesis, he makes the puppets dance. Everyone dies except the blonde girl. She ends up going fucking crazy, murders him with an ax while he's dancing with his wife's mannequin, piles all the mannequins of all her friends in the car and drives off Sally Hardesty style into the great unknown. and Well done, Steven. I'd like to mention that ah when he asks them in and asks them if they want a beer, ah the beer that they are drinking is hams.
00:58:52
Speaker
Which is one of my one of your favorite favorite my favorite shit beer of all time.
Chuck Connors' Pseudonym and Critique of Charles Band
00:58:58
Speaker
It's fantastic. And as someone currently living in the city of Chicago, I'm an old style man myself, but really that's understandable. um Well, you know, closer you get to Canada, you become a video person, I feel like. um But. ah The reason I mentioned that was ah because I like hams, like those tall boys, and I can't get them here.
00:59:23
Speaker
So they stopped selling them. um They have them in New York. And they have them in Massachusetts. But not in Vermont, not in New Hampshire, not in Maine. How far of a drive is would it be for you? I'd have to Massachusetts. I'd have to go to Boston to get it. i closest So it would be about an hour, 45, two hours.
00:59:49
Speaker
I mean, a due day trip stock up, visit and stop by the Sam Adams Brewery. Make a day of it. mayor my and I always get a couple cases. I always get a couple cases when I'm an indie for Christmas. Yeah. Take them back with me. I remember the reason I started drinking hams is because back in like. Probably 2017.
01:00:14
Speaker
ah Kroger was selling 30 packs of them for 10 bucks. Oh, nice. A real good deal for a real good beer. There you go. Like almost an insulting price for that tier of shit beer. But I'll take it. Less money, more beer, no problems.
01:00:35
Speaker
Um, I mean, yeah, like it, I used to, honestly, I did the same thing when I, um, was lived still living in India and I was making frequent trips to Chicago. I would just grab like, like several tall boy packs of old style and just bring them down with me. Um, like, yeah. Fucking love them. Dude. Yeah. Right now I'm drinking a moose head. um A moose head, eh?
01:01:04
Speaker
Yeah, I have an Amoose head. I didn't find a mouse in the bottle. But I'm hoping they got a closer you got to give you a free beer. um I was drinking a beer called pencil shavings and broken hearts, which was from a local ah brewery called sketchbook. And it's a Malort barrel aged Pilsner and fuck was it delicious.
01:01:27
Speaker
But I have consumed my glass of that. I have probably enough for one more glass in the fridge and I'm going to save that. Nice. I'm going to save that for probably tomorrow when I get off work. So there you go. Fucking A. Fucking A. Fucking A. You remember the the the song, right? Fucking A. Yeah, I'm going to bleep it.
01:01:52
Speaker
oh yeah you are I mean, it it what is what is the forbidden movie. So of course, it makes sense that we should always bleep it. So truly, truly, truly. It has affected how I say fucking A from now on. I i believe it. I buy it. yeah um the the The making of history of this movie is.
01:02:14
Speaker
inconsistent. um Like there are some things that people get fairly right consistently. Other things that change depending on who's telling the story. Like, for example, the name of the actor who plays Davey in this movie. um I used air quotes um because yeah that's something that really comes across in an auditory medium. um The actor that plays Davey in this movie was credited as Shylar Kobe. Shylar Kobe does not exist. Shylar Kobe was a ah stage name given to Chuck Connors because they didn't want people to know the twist that he was the villain, even though, come on.
01:02:55
Speaker
So like that guy exists just as much as the Coen brothers editor exists. Right. Or the score winning. Oscar winning person who does not exist. Right. Also the another Oscar winning person that does not exist the um this the ah the screenwriter for the other screenwriter for adaptation. ah Charlie Kaufman. Oh, yeah. Other Donald Donald. Yes, I love Donald poor Donald. Right. That movie so much. It's a good movie.
01:03:26
Speaker
Um, speaking of Nicolas Cage at one of his more subtle performances to most of it, right? Like, yeah, he does. He goes goofy, but it's at the part where it's supposed to be goofy. And I like everyone else loves when Nicolas Cage takes it up to 11, but it's also nice to see a good.
01:03:44
Speaker
subdued performance from him because you know that that is so much more difficult for him, but he still nails it. Just he does. He does because he's ah actually he is a good actor. He is. a um But he is like he was right to be Oscar nominated for that movie, I think for adaptation. I think it's OK that he didn't win. But I love that he was nominated one that year. That's a great question. Let me find out.
01:04:13
Speaker
I know Chris Cooper had that one. I didn't. No, I don't. ah Chris Cooper won supporting for that movie. um But the. He was the orchid guy. Yes, he he plays the the subject of the the original orchid thief novel. um weird And I love how weird that fucking movie is. That movie is so fucking weird. I do really love how weird it is, too. I think it is.
01:04:42
Speaker
There's nothing like it, man. Nothing like it. You know who fucking wins that year? Who? Adrian Brody for the piano. Hey, OK. I mean, or the pianist. Sorry, the pianist. Well, you know, Adrian Brody. I think he's one of the best ones that we've got right now. He doesn't always choose the. You know what most of us yeah consider? Adrian Brody, you really? I think Adrian Brody is he's he could do anything. He could do anything. It's one I think it's one of those instances of like a split card because here's who else is fucking nominated that year. ah Daniel Day-Lewis for Gangs of New York. Well, yeah. Daniel Day-Lewis for anything. Yeah, got it. Give him an offer. Jack Nicholson for about Schmidt. Michael Caine for The Quiet American, which is probably the most manh performance on the list. And Nicholas Cage for adaptation.
01:05:38
Speaker
That's kind of stacked, yeah. That's a tough decision, for sure. Can we give them all an Oscar? um I think with the... No, they all have Oscars. They all have Oscars. Fantastic. Daniel Day-Lewis has three, Nicholson has two, Kane has one, and Cage has one. Well, here's the union busting, am I right? There you go. Yeah. That's also the year that my mc girl Nicole Kidman wins for the hours. Oh. Wowzers. Yeah.
01:06:09
Speaker
I didn't realize that that's what she had won for. I knew she had an Oscar. Yeah, because with Denzel was because he won the year before for Training Day. So he's presenting right when he read when he opens the envelope, he yells, buy a nose because she's wearing the prosthetic Virginia Woolf nose in that movie. yeah Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, there you go. And then Catherine Zeta Jones wins Best Supporting Actress for Chicago. Fair. Chicago, also known as the one good Rob Marshall movie.
01:06:39
Speaker
Uh, Richard Gere, man. Um, you know, I. Richard Gere is not nominated for Chicago. Some people might not know this about me, but I'm a huge Richard Gere fan. I did not know that about you. And it's because there have been a few movies that he's been in that I like so much that he's so good in. Uh, you've got an officer and a gentleman. Mm-hmm.
01:07:03
Speaker
Seen that, Steven, you heard about this? I've heard about it. I've never seen it. You heard about. I know. lovely do well no I know Lou Gossett Jr. won an Oscar for that movie as and then went right to be movie hell, which I'll never understand. Outside of roots. It's it's the fucking ah it's the Oscar curse, man. Yeah. Same thing happened to fucking Cuba Gooding, Jr. I think it's I think it's worse for African-American actors, but probably.
01:07:33
Speaker
Primal fear is another one of his that he that he's in that I really, really, really, really like him in it. And the final one being the Mothman prophecies. Oh, you do love the Mothman prophecies. Did you know that Vanessa Jr. died this year? I did know that, I was very sad. And I watched Officer and Gentleman twice that day. Man, that's bummer. Yeah, yeah. I love that guy, he's good, man.
01:07:59
Speaker
Did you say you had seen officer and a gentleman? You said no not seen officer and gentlemen. You should watch it sometime. i I'm sure I will at some point. It really just becomes it's it's a question of when. It's a really, really it's a movie about people, man.
01:08:20
Speaker
It's a movie about people. In the best possible way, very, very much a human drama. more than.
01:08:32
Speaker
Go get him. There's a fucking human drama playing out right outside my window. Wowzers, that's insane. You have options, gentlemen. I recommend that to anyone who enjoys films from the 70s and early 80s that are human dramas, blue collar human dramas, stuff like Norma Ray, but not about unions. Anyway.
01:08:59
Speaker
Yeah, Richard Gear, my man, my man, man. And the guy who plays the other guy, he's in a bunch of stuff, too. Maybe he was in the the carry TV movie as the cop. That guy was also an officer and a gentleman. Yeah, anyway, all that. Oh, you guys, we have to talk about something different. I'm going to start crying because I'm thinking about the last scene of Officer and a Gentleman. Talk about something else, Stephen, quit, quit.
01:09:28
Speaker
You're not, why are you doing this to me? No. Okay, so to get back to my earlier point. um Yes, thank you. the the The fact that the actor who plays Davey is Chuck Connors, but they wanted to kind of throw everyone off the scent. So they gave him the name Shylar Kobe. The origin of that name differs depending on who's telling it. Like the Wikipedia article says it was named after the middle names of two of Chuck Connors' kids. IMDb Trivia says it was named after the first and middle names of the son of the director.
01:09:57
Speaker
um So conflicting reports, I don't quite know what's up. Well, here's the thing. You have to have sources for Wikipedia. You do not for IMDB. That's true. ah Let me see if there is a source cited for that um because it was it's an appendix.
01:10:16
Speaker
Um, the source is David Schmoller's tourist trap turns 37 retro review, uh, an article for pop horror dot.com that is no longer extant. So I don't know how and well researched that article would have been because it no longer exists. Dude. Yeah. But like, yeah. Um,
01:10:40
Speaker
I don't know why you would have had to list the actor playing Davey in the credits at all unless, you know, the fact that there's only one other man in this movie of any kind of imposing stature. So everyone would just assume it's Chuck Connors. And credits for who? It's not like we had IMDB back then. Not like people looking it up on the Internet. It's just on the poster. You only have to put who anybody fucking plays. You just put my fucking Chuck Connors, my fucking that one gal and that other gal. You don't have to put who they play.
01:11:10
Speaker
I mean, I understand why it's such a big deal, why they even had to go to the trouble. Shylar Kobe, not even on the poster. Uh, the actors on the poster, Chuck Connors, biggest one, Jocelyn Jones, John Van Ness, Robin Sherwood, and Tanya Roberts featuring Don Jeffery and Keith McDermott. Doesn't mention, doesn't mention Shylar Kobe at all. When you see a movie, I don't know if I'm sure a lot of people know this in the audience, but, uh,
01:11:38
Speaker
ah When you see a movie, the credits, they come after the movie. That's when you find out who played who. Usually sometimes of the intro credits, like if it's like a special kind of guest star sort of thing like and David Bowie as this guy. You know what I mean? You might get one or two character names depending. Jerry Mathers has the beaver, right? Exactly. But normally that sort of stuff is revealed in the Creditos, as they say in Yugoslavia.
01:12:04
Speaker
um So why would that even be a thing? like Because once you've seen the film, you know the twist. So who gives a fuck? Right. I don't get it. I don't know, ma'am. I don't know. But apparently we had level shit like everything that sort of surrounds Charles Band. It's just the dumbest shit like it was stupid ass problems to have. Very important that they put that in there for some reason. I don't understand it. I never will focus on the wrong shit.
01:12:32
Speaker
Exactly. If you put half that energy into the script. like And that but and that's what it is like.
Creepy Dolls and Mannequins
01:12:40
Speaker
And I think the script is the thing that suffers here. Like I I mean, the version that we watched was not it was supposed to have been remastered, but it did not look at. That's the worst I've ever seen it. I used to have a DVD of it that looked better than that. I had a VHS of it that looked better than that, actually. Right. Whereas it was so dark for me, I could barely see half of it, which sucked.
01:13:02
Speaker
um But yeah, I mean, like, I would have liked to have watched, you know, this movie. Something, yes. But, you know, a lot of it was just a lot of very shadowy figures that I could kind of make out pieces of. um I realized why dolls and mannequins are so fucking creepy, though.
01:13:23
Speaker
that unfu It's that uncanny valley, man. It's that fucking uncanny valley. like It's just, and particularly the more realistic they are, the more unnerving it is. And I think mannequins and dolls in particular, because they're so close, like the the features and like it Having those very defined features is very important for a lot
Preview of Stuart Gordon's 'Dolls'
01:13:43
Speaker
of those. I will be covering another Charles Band produced movie Dolls, Stuart Gordon's Dolls, at some point as well. I don't mind that one so much. I'm kind of excited to cover that one. Yeah, well, we'll cover that one at some point. I've got a guest already in mind for that one. Nice. You know, should we talk about... Go ahead. No, do go ahead.
01:14:05
Speaker
ah Someone who what, Steven? I'm curious. I need to know someone who went viral for purchasing a doll. Fuck, yeah, dude. Way into viral shit. I love the Internet. it It may it never die. The Internet was a
Debate on PG Rating for Slashers
01:14:19
Speaker
mistake. So we talked about should we talk about how this movie is rated PG? Yeah, let's please do because that's ah the rare PG slasher movie.
01:14:33
Speaker
Well, and look at this, uh, it is PG, which means parental guidance suggested the boy came into my room right after he covered that girl's face up with business and he was choking that other dude. huh I, I, as suggested, I guided as a parent, the boy out of my room. Right.
01:14:56
Speaker
Parentally guided him from your room. Like even. I don't think it's really an excuse, even it's before PG-13. This is still like some of the violence in this and some of the implications. And I think back then they weren't consider they weren't considering what they now call thematic elements. Right. Which this movie has a lot of. And this should be an even with Pete, even if PG-13 existed when this came out, it should be an R. And honestly, I agree with the director. I think it would have done better if it had an R.
01:15:29
Speaker
I agree. Because in 1979, you're like, oh, a slasher, this is a new thing. I remember Halloween that barely had any blood in it. Rated R. This motherfucker is PG. And I'm supposed to like want to see this. No, dude. Of course. Like this movie is this. But this movie has the same rating as Old Yeller. No, thank you. Yeah. Speak of the devil. Right. Speaking of the devil, Chuck Connors.
01:15:53
Speaker
Um, actually old yeller was, uh, you was just simply rated approved. Oh, it's approved a code approved. Yeah. Yeah. Code for the NPA. Right. But like, uh, yeah, it kind of vo dog in the west rated, rated the same
Praising 'Soylent Green' Cast
01:16:09
Speaker
as, uh, as Soylent Green, which was set in that far flung year of 2022. Steven, isn't Soylent Green people?
01:16:19
Speaker
You know, I've heard that. I have it on good authority that Soylent Green is, in fact, people. That's what. but Hey, that's what I've heard. I mean, many people are saying this. I don't feel like I can confirm or deny it because I'm not. I don't get down with that shit. But like I've heard his people understand. Tucker, you know, it's a really fucking good movie. Soylent Green named several. OK, I could name several like where are we going with this?
01:16:46
Speaker
Fucking Soylent Green, great movie. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Charlton Heston, right? Charlton Heston, Edward G. Robinson, Chuck Connors, Joseph motherfucking Cotton, Brock motherfucking Peters. I fucking love Brock Peters. Yes. um Like just an unbelievable cast, like really Dick Van Patten, an early Dick Van Patten role. Oh, okay.
01:17:10
Speaker
like 1973 Dick Patton or Dick Van Patton. Yeah. um But like just it's one of those great like dystopian future, like post Planet of the Apes dystopian future movies that I fucking love. well Like fun genre, love the genre. Hey, Steven, what was the thing that maybe before when before we started recording, you were like, oh, you should mention that during the recording and see if anybody else know.
01:17:39
Speaker
Oh, the quality of the but party the transfer. Yeah. Hey, audience. Hey, people listening to this right now. Yeah. You I'm talking to you. ah Have you seen the the the shout factory, the scream factory, whatever they call it? Blu-ray of this film. Does it look good? Does it look like it's been smeared with Vaseline when you watch it upscaled into 4K?
Nostalgia for Physical Media
01:18:04
Speaker
Is it dark as shit? I need to know these things.
01:18:07
Speaker
Uh, so if you have any experience with the, I think it was 2021 when shout put out a Blu-ray of this. I'm looking it up now. Let me know, please. If you've seen it, let me know because I, I love this movie and my DVD. I borrowed it to somebody a long time ago and they never gave it back. Like you do so many lost physical pieces of physical media.
01:18:37
Speaker
Borrow and shit to people. A lot of my all of my criterion DVDs, except for Man Who Fell to Earth. Borrowed never came back. That's probably about 11 DVDs. That sucks. I'm very sorry to hear that. I don't borrow out my Blu-rays or my four case. Of course, nobody has physical players anymore. Like even Marv, I'm like, hey, let me give you this suit. And he's like, I have nothing that takes a disk.
01:19:02
Speaker
like OK. All right. That hurts my heart. It does. It's it's sad. It's sad times. I will. I was visiting my partner's parents last last night and they were like, you've got a VHS player, right? I was like, no. They're like, oh, we were going to give you all of these VHS. I. Hey, hi. I'll take them. Steven, tell them you want them and then just give them to me.
01:19:28
Speaker
What are the, what kind of shit is it? Uh, it's varied. While the last green tomatoes, the last VHS they gave me was, um, the gate two.
01:19:42
Speaker
Surprisingly, I like your part, your partner's parents. The gate to was one of ah like it was a movie that she grew up with um because she watched a lot of like horror. I'm like that is a whole like the late night horror shit that would like run on like Basis, a network up all night, dude. ah Not even that, but like the stuff that would run on like network TV, like the horror host shit like with Sven Gulli and all of that and Sammy Terry.
Sammy Terry's Impact on Childhood
01:20:10
Speaker
Yeah, well, Samby Terry for you and I. Samby Terry. Sure, because you're doing the thing where you put bees into words unnecessarily. What are you talking about? I'm talking about. Yeah, I um I almost did a play with Sammy Terry, the guy, the actor who played the original Sammy Terry once. His son does it now. Yeah. You know, but I actually happened before he died. Like he. Yes. He trained him in like yeah to do it.
01:20:39
Speaker
I was I was. You met them both. They're great. I was I was doing ah ah a church musical at a church I did not go to. But we just man. He was very much so. I not know. Sammy Terry, religious man. Also, are you a fucking music store that all the store, all the schools got their band instruments from in Indianapolis? Oh, OK. You know, I can't remember what it's called. But you know, I'm talking about that. I know exactly which wood man instruments came from. They all did. Yeah.
01:21:07
Speaker
um I want to say it starts with a J, but I don't think that's right. um Doesn't matter. um But like, and he was, he was usually did those musicals, ah except he wasn't able to do this one, because he he like had just gotten very sick.
01:21:27
Speaker
Like he had just started to get sick when that happened. And so he was out. um But yeah, I still did the musical and it was it was ah it was it was a it was a thing. It was a thing I did. He hung in there, though. He did for many. He was he did not pass away shortly thereafter. Like he he kept kicking for several years thereafter. But that was like when he first got really sick. Now, we're talking about Bob Carter. That's his yeah real name. He died in 2013. He was 83 years old. Yeah.
01:21:55
Speaker
the actor who played Sammy Terry, who was the horror host in Indianapolis, Indiana, where Tucker and I and our co-host Brett all grew up. Yes. Also home to Cowboy Bob. Cowboy Bob. It must be attention must be paid to Cowboy Bob. Attention needs to be paid to Cowboy Bob because that was another. Who was old when I was a kid. Boy, I love Cowboy Bob, man. That was my shit back in the day. Oh, yes.
Mixed Feelings on 'Tourist Trap'
01:22:25
Speaker
Um, but yeah man tourist trap this I mean again it I think it's fine for what it is, but nothing in it really like grabbed me and and in Torus Trap. Like I was never really like, oh yeah, Torus Trap, God, yeah, this fucking rules. Like I was kind of like, okay, okay. And like I said, Chuck Connors, best part of the movie. Like the the closest I got to being really engaged was the Chuck Connors of it all. But by and large, I was not like sucked into this movie, you know?
01:22:57
Speaker
Well, no, I'm not either. This is definitely a movie that you can reap all the benefits of it while still being on your phone the entire time. Yeah. But I will say it is the reason that I like it. It is a very standard slasher. It's not a bad movie. It's not a bad slasher. Very middle of the road. But there are a few things that elevate it for me. One is Chuck Connors. Another are the special effects.
01:23:25
Speaker
um The way that they got all that shit to fly at that dude at the beginning, that is actually much like much like Nightmare on Elm Street. They had a spinning room. Well, I didn't have a spinning room. I think they just kind of like move, like put stuff on the wall and like, yeah, basically the way it was shot is not the actual perspective of what was happening. Right. ah Gravity was working in those scenes is what I'm trying to tell you. It was all gravity. And I find that kind of shit very clever. I thought the effects were very creepy. I thought the mask that Chuck Connors wore was very unsettling. There's so many just casually unsettling things in this film visually. I my letterbox review basically says that this is wax a house of wax by way of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre.
01:24:17
Speaker
um Same production designer, by the way, ah it shows um particularly in the design of the mask. Like they also did house. hall ah ah I'm sorry. Fucking hills have eyes.
01:24:29
Speaker
I recently learned that, same guy, text chainsaw massacre, hills have eyes, doors trap, sorry Steven, go on, I apologize. No, makes sense. um they the Apparently the cast was took to calling the villain in this ah plaster face as an homage to leather face. Leather face, yeah. was it Was a thing that they did, um just to kind of... um But yeah, I mean, like, particularly when he starts wearing the wigs, it very, very similar to leather face yeah wearing the wig like the the the mother costume and in Texas Chainsaw, like it's very much of that kind of ilk. So um like, but it it's like, let's take this kind of
01:25:12
Speaker
cheesy William Castle horror film from the fifties. And let's just infuse it with like a healthy dash of this proto slasher that came out several years ago. And that's essentially the soup, like, and I think there are elements of it that work very well. I love that opening scene. The opening scene is very well done. It's very well executed. Um, and it gives you some really creative shots there, even before like all the action starts happening.
01:25:41
Speaker
Yeah. There's some really, really fun shots. um And then you, ah that but then, you know, the movie itself starts in earnest. And I was, I mean, yeah, it's it at the end of the day, it was fine. Like I i was like, this isn't bad. It's not great. It's not life changing. It's not going to be my favorite slasher movie. But for what it is and for when it came out, it's fine. It's kind of where I fall on it. Yeah.
01:26:10
Speaker
Dude, yeah. Tourist Trap comes out on March 16th, 1979. And as with most movies that came out before 1980, I don't have a lot of information on this one. um ah the the The big new release this week was um an MGM film called Voices.
01:26:35
Speaker
of starring Michael Antkeen from um Twin Peaks. Oh, Harry v Harry Truman, the sheriff. Yeah. ah Your girl, Amy Irving. Oh, yeah. From Carrie and the Rage Carrie, too. And and our our collective boy, Alex Rocco, from Friends of Eddie Coyle, amongst many other things. Yeah.
01:27:02
Speaker
Love that guy. Fucking love that guy. In a film directed by Robert Merrowitz. Yeah, I know nothing about the movie Voices. That was the big release. um In fact, we have no box office information for this movie whatsoever. When I look on the numbers, it gives me the domestic box office as not applicable. If I may, from what I researched.
01:27:28
Speaker
Um, it seems like this film flopped pretty hard at the box office, but whereas it's PG rating may have killed it at the box office, it made it very easy to show on television. Right. So it made its money back and more so much more.
01:27:52
Speaker
on cable television, man, in the 80s and the 90s. Which is how it ah eventually does find an audience, which is how a lot of these movies survive. We never did our history with this film, but if I could just pop it in real quick. Do it. I saw this on ah either ah Joe Bob Briggs or USA Up All Night, one of those two. I saw this on one of those two programs and it was just It was kind of a time and a place sort of thing. It's like two in the morning and you're watching this and you're like 15 years old. Like it's the perfect storm. You know what I mean? Yeah. And it was actually the first DVD I ever rented from Netflix back when Netflix was a DVD mailing service. Yeah. This is the first one. I was like, oh, I want to see this in widescreen. So I'd never seen it in its original aspect ratio. That's right. Because I own it on VHS. I don't need to buy it.
01:28:51
Speaker
Right. But I do want to get that. Look at that DVD. look at Let's look at it. Yeah. Oh, they're coming back. They sound sad.
Spanish Version of 'The Night Chicago Died'
01:28:59
Speaker
Must not have been successful. Oh, now they're excited. Apparently everyone's having an emergency on the north side of Chicago tonight. Daddy was an EMT on the north side of Chicago. chicago Back in the USA. Back in the bad old day. Yeah. In the cool of an autumn night.
01:29:23
Speaker
Yeah, that's that's that's an earworm for Tucker and I. Did we were we recording when we did that last time? I don't remember. I don't remember if we were not, but we did like a lot of the night. Chicago died. Paper Lace. The night Chicago died for the uninitiated. Go check it out. It's a fucking great. It's a ah such a good song. Also, if you can find me, there's a Spanish language version. I don't remember who does it, but there is a very a very popular like if you look up
01:29:55
Speaker
um the night chicago died in spanish you're probably going to find the one i'm talking about my friend alex who actually lives in chicago ah she showed me that a long time ago as she is of mexican descent Oh, I want that.
01:30:10
Speaker
I won covers. And it was fantastic. In 1970, oh shit, there's a few of them. ah In 1974, Venezuelan singer, Mirla Castellanos recorded her version of the song translated into Spanish by her husband. Okay, so in also in 1974, Mexican group, La superb bando la Super Banda Macho recorded their own version ah titled, La Noche Que Murillo Chicago, whose lyrics are very different from the previous version.
01:30:40
Speaker
because I don't know if you know this, Steven, but there are ah so many people of Mexican descent in Chicago in Chicago that they have to learn. There's like a whole like ah like Like Chinatown, you know, but it's like for Latino peoples. There are two fucking incredible Mexican restaurants within walking distance of my apartment. And they are the two closest restaurants to my apartment. The best Mexican food I've ever had has been in Chicago. For sure.
01:31:13
Speaker
i I literally there are days when I go when I'm just I my lunch break hits and I'm just like I'm gonna go get some tacos and I'll just walk across the street, grab some tacos walk back up to my apartment and eat the tacos on my couch while watching kick talks like that's that's my lunch break. I gotta say I used to love that neighborhood to my friend Alex lived um in in a a very ah Latino pre prele Prevalent. Prevalent. I say Prevalent. You did. Prevalent's neighborhood. And I really loved that neighborhood. It's had a really good vibe. I had a lot of fun there, but it was very accepting. Yeah. Do you remember which neighborhood it was? I remember that there were a lot of like small two story houses all kind of stacked one next to each other. I don't remember what side of town it was on.
01:32:09
Speaker
I mean, that sounds like a lot of neighborhoods. Yeah, yeah that's every neighborhood in Chicago. I know. even but Even the suburbs, sometimes you'll get those little neighborhoods. but Correct. The last stop on the L is like.
01:32:21
Speaker
on the yeah, right. Yeah, I mean, pick pick your last stop on the L honestly, because there's there's a few. I'll do go. I'll do go for a ways. It'd be going further than most people riggity realize in in every direction. It do be popping into the suburbs like hey, what's up? Oh, it do. Oh, it do.
01:32:42
Speaker
Well, MTA, we love you. Yes, CTA because Chicago. Oh, you oh, yeah, because we're not in New York. You're right. Nope. OK. CTA, we love and hate you in equal measure. um I just love public transportation. You do. um I will say this movie, according to Wikipedia, is budgeted at three hundred and fifty thousand dollars. And even if that was considered a box office disappointment, if that tells you anything.
01:33:10
Speaker
Well, and in 79, that's for this kind of movie, that's not that's not a terrible budget. yeah That's not a great budget, but that's not like low budget for a movie like this. I don't feel like right. Well, I know it's under a million, but inflation calculator here. Did you save it when I sent it to you? Of course I did. Damn right, you did. Damn right, I did. But yeah, so let's do in nineteen seventy nine.
01:33:41
Speaker
350,000. Yeah, dude. And those days money is going to be about 11 million, 11.1 million dollars. That seems like a lot, actually. Right. For a movie like this today. Right. Because it's it's Charles Band. So like it's low budget.
01:34:05
Speaker
fair. right Like that's what it's designed to be. I mean, and I mean, I kind of be like a $5 million dollar picture. Now I feel like like right three to $5 million. dollars Yeah, the the the dollar wouldn't stretch as far um or would stretch further. I'm not really sure which one of those is correct. And I don't care to interrogate which one. um But yeah, movie comes out March 16th, 1979. I have no additional box office information. um But I can tell you the Tomatometer score, which is 40%.
01:34:37
Speaker
40% on this one. There is not really a critics consensus on this one. That does seem a little low. Yeah. um There is no meta score because there have not been four critic reviews for this movie yet. So there is not the the user score, though, is there's been nine user ratings and that's a six point four out of 10. That seems generally favorable. Yeah.
'Tourist Trap' as a Comfort Movie
01:35:02
Speaker
And Tucker, you want to take a stab at the letterbox review or the letterbox score on this one. This is a weird one. um They're all for a loop. I'm going to say. and Between two point three.
01:35:22
Speaker
And two point seven. Three point one. Letterbox surprising me, OK. There you go. You always bet on a you've always bet on a three. It's always three something. I mean, that that's a safe bet for most letterboxed, honestly. I was getting cocky. That's my bad. It's fine. You're OK. So Tucker, out of five stars, how are you rating 1979's tourist trap? Well, I'm kind of torn on it because. I know that it's not great.
01:35:56
Speaker
But the things that I love about this movie, I love them so much. That it carries me through the things that I don't particularly care for to make it a solid three. I mean, I feel like I'm giving it too much credit, but I just I this is a comfort movie for me and I don't really watch it. I don't really watch it. I just it's on and I'll do other things while it's on. I just like having it on. Sure. The tracks. Yeah.
01:36:27
Speaker
I mean, it's two point five for me. That's more than fair, I feel like. Right. I you know, it's again, it's nothing super like that. This just, you know, blowing my mind or blowing me out of the water with this one. But it's just, you know, it's it's a decent film. it It's not even it's not even remarkable for the time. Like I would say Halloween, remarkable for the time. I would say not quite remarkable, but just like solid and good for the time, something like My Bloody Valentine in 81.
01:36:57
Speaker
yeah again kind of elevating that a little higher but this I mean this isn't doing anything really special but it's still just you know it it is what it is unabashedly unashamedly and that's fine it doesn't need to be anything else yeah it is unique in and and around that time it kind of starts when it's coming out that starts the halloween clones you know and this doesn't feel like a halloween clone it's not and i think that's that that is what's great about it i think and i think that's what's unique about it is so many other people were copying the halloween formula a little too closely in some cases whereas this is just it's doing something similar
01:37:38
Speaker
in a way that still manages to feel very different. Like this movie doesn't exist without Halloween, but it's not like Halloween at all. Right. Right. And I mean, you know, that's that's 100% it. And I feel like this movie could have very easily become a franchise where you get, you know, the plaster face or the plaster face family. Hey.
01:38:08
Speaker
you know, plaster face or the plaster face family like maybe, you know, maybe he's got long lost kids or his his brother, his brother, Davey and his wife weren't actually dead. They just ran off together. And he as long as it's good, make it as absurd as you want. And that but that's that's the thing that these these slasher kind of franchises did in the the late 70s, particularly the early 80s. Right. Or good or ill for good or ill, mostly ill. Let's be honest.
01:38:37
Speaker
Um, but that's kind of the thing that they did. And you can easily see, even though, you know, your villain dies at the end, what, what slasher movie does the villain not die at the end and still manages to come back every fucking time? Like that's not a deterrent for these movies. Plus he's got powers, dude. Right. So that makes it even more believable that he might come back. We got a sequel to Carrie. We could get us equal to this. I love that movie. You do.
01:39:07
Speaker
We talked about it on our Patreon, patreon dot.com slash disenfranch pod, ah episode of Unenfranchised on the Rage Carry 2. We actually covered that. was Was that last spooky thought? Or no, that was during our Stephen King month. back January. Yeah, we talked about all Emily Burgle and whichever London boy that is and Randy from Home Improvement. Mm hmm. Yeah.
01:39:32
Speaker
Yeah, we we we sure did. No, that was brand like the same thing. No, Randy was JTT. Oh, OK. Well, I do love that movie, though. They do. Dude, they do still sue Snell dirty in that movie, but outside of that, they really do. Well, I love that movie. But yeah, anyway, that is our episode on 1979's Tourist Trap.
01:40:01
Speaker
ah It's on Amazon Prime. It's on Tubi. It's on Freebie. You can watch it free with ads pretty much everywhere. ah Check it out. Let us
Patreon and Podcast Aspirations
01:40:08
Speaker
know what you think. ah You can head on over to patreon dot.com slash disenfranchpod and join the official live chat of the disenfranchised podcast. We actually did get a new free member this week. Nice. um who who joined just to just to follow the conversation. So you can you can absolutely do that too. That is totally allowed. And if you want to know, like if you want to see what else we're covering this month.
01:40:34
Speaker
We've already revealed, our patrons already know. And you could know too, if you really wanted to. Head on over there, check that out. And then, you know, for five bucks, we'll let you know the rest of what we're covering this month. um we We also, the we last week we recorded an episode of What are we watching? The first one since May. May 28 was our last drop before the the other episodes I put out. It's the one I call Oops All Tucker. It's me, baby. Tucker did not let us talk. And that episode is still two hours long. How could I? Here's the thing. I watched more than you did, but I will not talk about it for as long as you did. yeah That's wild because I find that we I feel like we have
01:41:23
Speaker
longer conversations during your list than anyone's list. That's because you're paying attention. Well, because I like this kind of shit that you watch, man, like I've either already seen it and I'm way into it or I'm intrigued and like, what the fuck is that, Steven? Tell me about that. I've watched a lot since May. I've watched a lot since I'm excited. You might have to have your own episode. I don't know. Well, see I'm not going to do my I will share Episode 50 with Brett and I will let Brett go first and I'll take the rest of the episode if I have to. But.
01:41:53
Speaker
Well, see, I don't like that idea because like I said, I I'm very interested in your lists most of the time. So because of me, it takes a lot of time. So I'd rather you go first. So in case that goes long, I believe that first, that's that's a solid 45 minutes and then you pop in and I can't help myself. And then we're here for another three hours. I want that. Well, then you're just going to have to get creative with the editing. Son of a bitch.
01:42:19
Speaker
your favorite thing, getting creative with the editing. You know what I was thinking today, Stephen, I was thinking that if if I were either independently wealthy or I was supported by money that we made from this podcast, if I spent all week. On this show as a job, because. So I love the opening theme to the rifleman, it's very short, and it's just it's bam, bam, bam, bam, bam, bam, bam, bam, the rifleman.
01:42:48
Speaker
Music swell starring John or Chuck Connors. And then right into it. It's very right to the point. Love that. I wanted to put that like when I mentioned it, like in podcasts that have professionals who get paid to work on them all week. Do right when I had mentioned it, the clip would come in. The audio clip would come in. That'd be cool. And I was like, you know, I could do that if I had like if if this podcast were supporting me.
01:43:17
Speaker
And I could spend all week doing that. I could make this like the the coolest fucking thing in the world. And it got me to thinking again. About maybe trying to, you know, do some gig work as podcast editor, see if somebody does pay me for my time and I can spend a lot of time doing it, see how that comes out, because I think I got the skills, Steven, I got the skills, I got the ideas and I got the patience.
Engagement with Audience
01:43:47
Speaker
Yeah, anyway, we just I mean, I would that this podcast supported us all. Unfortunately, we're not big enough. And yeah, that's OK. Well, you know, in the winter, I have a lot more time, so I might see if I can just to maybe get a portfolio going. So maybe I can make some money doing some editing. I might jazz up some disenfranchised episodes as much as I can, because I mean, I still have responsibilities during the winter. I just don't work my nine to five motherfucker. I got kids. You do.
01:44:17
Speaker
So motherfuckers got kids. Peter Pan's got kids. You know what I'm saying? So anyway, I apologize for that interruption. It was just kind of a thing I was thinking about today. And I was like, man, I could really do some really cool stuff and make this like fancy and shit. And I would I would love to if I had the time. This would be the fanciest thing you've ever heard in your life. I believe it. um I mean, it's it's already leaps and bounds better than it was prior to your taking over, so.
01:44:46
Speaker
As much as I don't like to pat myself on the back, I agree with you. I mean, it it cannot be denied. And that's no slight to Brett. Brett was doing the best he could. Yeah. No slight to Brett. We love Brett to this day. We still love Brett. He is still part of the family. But the only reason that it has gotten better hurt and the only reason that I know how to do any of this shit is I've been recording music on computers and editing and and mixing and mastering and shit.
01:45:16
Speaker
for 25 fucking years. I'm not good at it, but I'm good enough to make a bomb ass podcast if you give me the time. Exactly. Exactly. No. Yeah. Yeah, dude. Yeah, Yeah. Dude. Yeah.
01:45:35
Speaker
Anyway, go to our Patreon and give us $5 or don't. Or don't. You can join for free and still be a part of the conversation. Tucker and I will still interact with you. Every time. Not Brett, but that's only because Brett's not of on the Patreon. But Tucker and I are and we will.
01:45:54
Speaker
Um, so there you go. Um, you can also, uh, give us a rating on your podcatcher of choice, particularly if that is Apple podcasts or Spotify, that helps us find more listeners like yourselves. And we like that for us. I mean, maybe if we find enough, we can support ourselves on this podcast and devote all of our time to doing it for you. Think about how much content there would be behind that paywall if we had the time to do that.
01:46:19
Speaker
how many copyright strikes we get on YouTube. Right. Oh, my gosh, so many. Yep. Have we ah are we monetized on YouTube? We could monetize, right? No. Well, there's Steven. A lot of things go into making money on YouTube. It's not just people watching your videos. Not only do you have to have so many subscribers and so many views, but you have to constantly upload shorts that get a ton of views.
01:46:49
Speaker
I don't have time for that shit. YouTube um can suck my balls. I don't think they want to, but I'm sure they're happy that they have the invitation. I would rather try to grow the podcast in a way that attracts ah sponsors, as opposed to trying to monetize on YouTube, because the monetizing on YouTube, but unless you're like the biggest podcast in the world or a content creator that has like over 100000 subscribers, you ain't doing shit on YouTube. You're doing a motherfucking thing on YouTube.
01:47:19
Speaker
That's fair. Now, when they pay, they pay before getting there is not fun. No. And you feel used and taken for granted because, oh, they're still playing ads on our shit, Steven. They're still playing ads on our shit. Oh, I know. But because we don't have so many views or we don't have so many subscribers or because we don't do shorts that are engaged with so many times, we don't do community posts that have a certain amount of engagement. We don't get shit.
01:47:47
Speaker
And that's stuff we could do if we had more time to do it. But that's true. But we just covered the fact that we don't have the time. we um So there you go.
01:47:58
Speaker
um But yeah, what else was I saying? Oh, yeah. um And, oh, disenfranchpod at gmail dot.com. Shoot us an email. Let us know if there's a failed franchise starter that we have not covered yet in our 200 episodes that you would like to see us cover. There are a lot. Throw one out at us. If you're old school like that, send us an email. That's what we're saying. Yeah. And you know what? We've gotten emails and we've read them on on the podcast before. So, you know. I appreciate a good email for sure.
01:48:29
Speaker
Absolutely. We haven't gotten any lately, but, you know, another thing we haven't gotten lately are those those ratings and reviews. We haven't gotten in one of those in a while. And, you know, we'll we'll read them when we get them. But I feel like we plateaued. We found our audience, Steven, you know, our audience of like one hundred and fifteen people a month, which honestly, that's more people than I ever thought wanted to hear me bullshit for an hour and a half. So correct. i'm I'm happy with it.
01:48:54
Speaker
more people than I ever expected to want to be in a parasocial relationship with me, so I'll take it. People want to be in a parasocial relationship with me? Really? I feel special. Is this what fame is like? No, no, it's not. Is this love? Do you love me? It feels like love. Are you my dad?
01:49:19
Speaker
Are you proud of me? Tell me you're proud of me. audience. Tell me you're proud. i've almost I'll be 42 years old in like two weeks. Tell me you're proud. This is all I've done with my life. Just tell him he's proud. Just tell him you're proud. You don't even have to be. Just tell him you are. Oh, God. um We have fun. We have fun. I don't even know where where the fuck I am. Oh, yeah, we're at this in French Pod on various forms of social media if you want to find us there. Sometimes I update them most of the time, but I don't.
01:49:50
Speaker
Um, such as, such as his life as it goes. Um, and, uh, yeah, got. You can find me, your host, Stephen Foxworthy on some social media at Chewy Walrus, uh, by my book check in checkout on, uh, Amazon for, on paperback or, uh, Kindle or just those two formats really. And, um, yeah, Tucker, where can we find you on socials these days?
01:50:20
Speaker
Hi, it's me, Tucker, and you can find me on Instagram and on YouTube, as always, at ice 909. That's I C E N I N E the number zero and the number nine. Uh, also we've got tuck mugs still, uh, tuck mugs will never die. Tuck underscore mugs also on Instagram. Uh, we put up a new post a couple of weeks ago. It's pretty rad. It's pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty rad.
01:50:50
Speaker
It is a, a post of Jimmy's guest mug that was featured heavily in his music video that he put out a couple months ago. That's really, really, really, really, really, really good. Also speaking of, he's got a new single that's going to be dropping here. Um, maybe by the time this episode comes out, maybe a few days after called, uh, ghost in the feel. Um, that's a song we worked together on.
01:51:15
Speaker
uh, in the disbandalopes that he is repurposing as a solo song. And I have been, um, I wouldn't say I've been a part of the making of it as far as like contributing to it, but every draft that he's done, every rough draft, every rough mix that he's done, every rough recording he has sent to me. And, and asked my thoughts on, because, uh, like I said, it is a song that we worked on together back in the day. So, um, I'm pretty excited for that to come out.
01:51:44
Speaker
It's a good one. If you like his previous stuff, you'll like it. So check that out at Graham Voodoo Band on all the social medias. I'm just going to start plugging Jimmy every show, because even though he's not a part of yeah the podcast, like he's I mean, he's every what are we watching episode? He does the theme to that. Right. And every straight up. He does the theme to every straight up, which I can't wait to go in and re-edit with the new theme.
01:52:10
Speaker
um Yeah. So if you like those themes, also, Jimmy's been on here and like we played his songs after the. Yeah. The credits and everything. So he's been on. He's been on two episodes of this podcast so far. Go listen to that shit. Look, it's on all your music streaming services. Just look up Grand Voodoo Dan Grand Voodoo Dan. Hi, I'm Grand Voodoo Dan Daniel from the Grand Voodoos. No, Grand Voodoo Band on anything is on Bandcamp, you know, all the music streaming services.
01:52:43
Speaker
Just check it out, because that's my boy. And we are friends and and frequent collaborators and tuck mugs is why I brought that up. But check out tuck mugs. I will once again, Stephen, ask you to somehow get me into contact with Kat for her very legally binding agreement that she made to do a guest mug on tuck mugs. If you could forward that to the social media manager and have him get ahold of her for that, I'd really appreciate it. And that's my socials.
01:53:14
Speaker
And speaking of friends of ours who are not on this episode, ah Brett Wright is, I think he Instagram sometimes, but mostly letterbox at sus underscore warlock. So there you go. That's us. That's the podcast next week spooky thon week three and it's it's one that we teased. We were going to do earlier this year and weren't able to because life ah found a way. And so we're revisiting it. We're coming back to it. And we're going to talk about it's one that we have previously said we would never cover. And that went right out the window. So we're covering it. It's is going to happen. And it's going to happen next week. Tucker is way into it. I'm also
01:54:00
Speaker
Brett was also brilliant weirdly into it um when we when I brought it up ah several months ago when we were initially tossing it around. You don't want one of my favorite parts about that movie is Steven without naming the film. What's that? Is not in it. You're going to beep that too, aren't you? No, no, um no, because no one knows the context of that, except for you. I mean, I do, but yeah.
01:54:26
Speaker
Um, but I don't, yeah, but there you go. You should still beep it anyway, just for the fun of it. But yeah, maybe, made it maybe, straight it maybe, um, big things you really do. It's like a hobby of mine. Right. It's like, I can't make this super fantastic. So at least I can beep some stuff out for fun and not waste too much time. Right.
01:54:49
Speaker
But anyway, if that if if if he didn't beep it, if dad didn't spoil it for you, tune in next week and we'll we'll talk about it ah in depth here on this podcast. So um this has been the disenfranchised episode on Tourist Trap. um So until next time, um I'm your host, Stephen Foxworthy for Brett Wright and Tucker. Until next time, you should have bought a squirrel.