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EPISODE 143: PLANTS ARE TERRIFYING!
471 Plays1 month ago
Green thumb? Well, you might hack that off after this episode. Tune in to hear tears of poisonous plants, a suicide tree, and more!
HORROR IN THE MOVIES
LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS and THE HAPPENING will have you rushing to the garden centre…
WHATCHA BEEN WATCHIN’, BITCH?!
Listen in to hear what we’ve been watchin’... bitch!
–
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Transcript
Introduction and Podcast Overview
00:00:01
Speaker
The Freigay the 13th Horror Podcast is a proud independent podcast. To learn more about the show, visit freigay13.com.
00:00:13
Speaker
Wow, who knew that Lesbian Gay Falls had a rainforest? It's a very complex place. Oh, look at that flower. Do you know what it is? It's the Hemerocallus Hybrids or the Daylily.
00:00:28
Speaker
Ooh, and look at that one! That one's interesting! What is Rudbeckia herta, more commonly known as the black-eyed Susan.
Hosts' Return and Pride Month Reflections
00:00:37
Speaker
Susan needs to get some help. Oh, now I've never seen this one before. I don't even know what this one is.
00:00:42
Speaker
Oh, I know that one! Homo eroticus analis. Don't touch it, though. It's poisonous. Shocking, a thin, young plant with a pretty head? They're all the same.
00:00:53
Speaker
It's episode 143, Plants Are Terrifying.
00:00:59
Speaker
I am the writing on the wall, the whisper in the classroom. I'm Marjorie Greene, and I approve this message. To save America, stop socialism, and stop China.
00:01:13
Speaker
Faith and five, we to be from life to death to rise. Horror in real life. Doubters, the doomsters, the gloomsters, they are going to get it wrong.
00:01:25
Speaker
Horror in the movies. Where are you going to
00:01:32
Speaker
Where are you gonna hide? Nowhere. Because there's no one like you left. What do we want? Justice! When do we want it?
00:01:43
Speaker
Let's go! What you waiting for, huh? What are you waiting for? I want you to know that the movement we started is only just beginning. Sometimes.
00:01:56
Speaker
is but
00:02:00
Speaker
Barcelona's Opera House has reopened its doors for the first time since March to perform for a particularly quiet audience. Occupying every seat of the theatre, nearly 3,000 plants attended the first concert in over three months, only a day after the state of emergency was lifted in a Spain.
00:02:20
Speaker
Welcome back to Friday the 13th Horror Podcast. My name is Matty. And I am Andrew. Now listen, we are back after a little hiatus in the month of May, the beautiful month of May.
00:02:33
Speaker
ah You had some great rewinds to listen to, but guess what? We are the podcast that talks all about horror. Horror in real life and in the movies from an LGBT perspective.
00:02:44
Speaker
And we are back with a new episode, episode 143, Plants Are Terrifying. Now listen, and plants are terrifying, mostly because every house plant I've ever had has pretty much died and they're not cheap. right um But look, also, I just want to say too, before we get into all of this, we are recording this on Sunday, June 1st, 2025.
00:03:05
Speaker
That means, Andrew, that this is the beginning of Pride Month. And I am, I got to tell you, now in my, you know in I am well into my forty s now. I have never been more proud to be a homosexualist. And i hope that I hope that you feel the same way. And I hope that everyone listening feels the same way. Because look, you're listening to a very big gay podcast. And this is it, man.
00:03:27
Speaker
um Real quick, too, I just want to i want to give a plug for one of our partners out there um in the horror verse. um Andrew, something really cool. is haunted magazine out of the uk um there's a little article in there by yours truly this month all about our podcast and about month so look if you're in the uk you can buy haunted magazine on newsstands everywhere um if you're not in the uk you can order it online by going to i i forgot the i forgot the website but look just search for haunted magazine you'll find it
00:04:00
Speaker
um And you can you can order a copy. If you want to subscribe, but I subscribe. It's a really fun magazine to get in the mail because it's all about ghosts and you know UFOs and like that kind of stuff. So if you're into this kind of thing, you might like it.
00:04:13
Speaker
So um thanks thanks so much to the folks at Haunted Magazine for for printing the article. We really appreciate it. We love being partners with you. And to everyone out there, have a really great Pride Month.
00:04:25
Speaker
That's really cool. I'm glad that you got the opportunity to do that.
Community Support and Challenges
00:04:28
Speaker
Thanks so much. there there are so many like people out there that reach out to us, like asking us to like push out, you know, different, different things or different movies or different like independent things. And, you know, we've done a lot of that in the past, but like the favor isn't always returned. And like, that's true. it It's so true. I'm just, I'm just being honest. Like it it's it in like to have someone actually like, like amplify our voices for a change. It's really refreshing and really nice. So that yeah, that's awesome. Honestly. and and just And just to give you the the name of the person, it's Paul, who's the editor at, at haunted. And you know, when we, we connected online not too long ago and ah it was great. And, and the way that he, that he reached out to help us, I just, I, I really appreciate it. And I'll be honest, like,
00:05:15
Speaker
as we go into pride month, you know, it's allies like Paul that want to amplify voices like ours, um, that, that it's, it's so important. And look, I don't have to tell people in America listening about, about the Trump
Discussion on Poisonous Plants
00:05:28
Speaker
administration and how awful they're being to trans people and to gay people. i don't need to tell people in UK and Ireland about how terrible the right wingers are here, blah, blah, blah. blah blah It's never been more important to be out and proud.
00:05:40
Speaker
And so, like this is the time friends and, and allies out there who are helping us. We appreciate it so, so much. So, yeah. And like, especially like independent voices too. Oh yeah. We're just like, literally we are a two person system here. We do, we literally, we record it, we edit it, we market it, we do everything. So like to have even like one little like thing, even want to feature us is such a,
00:06:08
Speaker
a profound um just heart accomplishment and like i i just love it i love when people actually want to help yeah me too me too now andrew look we've got a great show planned for our listeners today now you might be thinking plants what's scary about plants what the fuck honestly there's there's plenty scary about plants but i'll tell you i was i was telling andrew before we started recording the movies that we have planned for this are so good. Well, yeah, well, one of them is, they're perfect for the, they're perfect for the, the show.
00:06:41
Speaker
Right. But we, we're, we'll be talking, um, in the, uh, in, in the, the horror and movies segment about little shop of horrors, the absolute classic. And then, um, You know, a movie that did not win an Oscar called The Happening.
00:06:55
Speaker
um So look, it's going to be a really fun show. Now, Andrew, you i know that you've done a little of research into what some of the most dangerous plants are. um Do you want to tell us about those?
00:07:08
Speaker
Yeah, why don't we start with a um ah plant that maybe we've both had encounters with in our childhood. Sure. And that would be the deadly poison ivy.
00:07:21
Speaker
Oh, yes. Have you ever had on an encounter with either poison ivy or poison oak? I kind of lumped them into the same um echo chamber just because like theyre kind they kind of grow in the same places and they're kind of like Midwestern staples, if you will.
00:07:35
Speaker
Sure. So this is this is actually really interesting for me because um I am not allergic to poison ivy. What? And here's how I know, right?
00:07:47
Speaker
Because my brother, my brother, Michael, who's a longtime listener and a big time fan of ours. Hi, Michael. um And he he's probably he he knows where I'm going with this right now.
00:07:57
Speaker
Michael is like deathly allergic to poison. And he would if he comes in contact with it, he gets it all over his body. Yeah, it's easily spreadable, that oil.
00:08:08
Speaker
Oh, yeah. And it's really like when he gets it, it's really bad. He gets sick. Like I i remember as a kid him getting it pretty often um because, you know, we have people if you listen to past episodes, you know, I kind of like grew up in like a big like wooded kind of lot.
00:08:21
Speaker
So there was poison ivy all over the place, to be honest. And like if if we went hiking at the dunes or this place or that place, poison ivy is, you know, it's pretty ubiquitous where where where I come from. Yeah. three and eight Three leaves with red stems, right? yes Yeah. Yeah. And I think like in Michigan, it would be the kind of the same, right? Because it's oh yeah it's all over the place.
00:08:38
Speaker
So but Michael would get it. And like, so I know that I'm not because I was playing in the same places that he was. I was touching the same things that he was. You know what I mean I never had a problem with it.
00:08:49
Speaker
You never had a poison ivy rash? I've never had a poison ivy rash. And I've gone hiking. I've gone camping. I've done this. I've done that. You know, poison oak, I don't know, to be honest. But like poison ivy, I am. And look, I've never had a doctor tell me.
00:09:02
Speaker
But I am like, you know, 90% sure I'm not allergic to it. um That's very interesting. I didn't know that that was like a thing. that yeah I thought it just affected everyone um like ubiited ubiquitously. like I thought it was just like a thing.
00:09:17
Speaker
i'm ah i'm i'm I'm like Bella in The Last of Us. i'm I'm immune to... Well, we should kill you and study you. Oh, no, or actually do just do it. I'm ready. Let's go.
00:09:28
Speaker
No, I definitely had a few encounters with poison Ivy back in the day. Mostly just I don't really get like, like, quote unquote, like sick from it. But I definitely get like the the the like raised bump rash type of thing. no deep but i also Do you get it like really bad? Or is it just like in one spot when you get a kind of thing? um I think that I learned from a very young age, just like growing up in the country of like once you understand that you've encountered it, like you need to just like scrub down. Like you say just like like really like get in the shower. Well, and like rub your body because it's the oil.
00:10:01
Speaker
It's like the oil of the plant. So like do you use soap when it happens or like do you just like use water? No, just like it just take a bath, basically. I see. Okay. all right All right. And if the rash is really bad, then you take like an Epsom salt bath or like something like that.
00:10:17
Speaker
Okay. um But it's it's mostly just itchy and just like... um like irritated if that makes any sense. Yeah, absolutely. but yeah, I definitely had a couple of encounters in my life. Thankfully I never had like one of those like horror stories, like where you like, I don't know, like went to go poop in the woods and got it on your butt or like, you know what mean? Like, or like wiped your butt with it or you or onion nuts.
00:10:41
Speaker
Exactly. Like I've never had any encounters like that, but I've definitely heard horror stories growing up in terrible in the wilderness. So, but like yes, let's talk about the world's most dangerous plants for humans. and I will say I had to isolate this because when putting When I put it into Google world's ah most dangerous plants, it was like for dogs, four cats for So this is for humans.
00:11:05
Speaker
um And this comes from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services, which is probably now defunded. but probably gone now. Yeah. ah The first one is giant hogweed. Sounds like of my ex-boyfriends. That's pretty good. I think I know which one, actually. um Giant hogweed is native to Asia, but invasive in North America. okay Contact with this plant may cause severe irritation to the skin and eyes, blistering rashes, permanent scarring, and even blindness. Okay.
00:11:42
Speaker
ah The plant earns its title of giant regularly reaching heights of more than six feet, sometimes reaching up to 18 feet. Can you imagine a plant being 18 feet tall? That is Andrew. That is literally three of me on top of each. I know. That's crazy.
00:11:59
Speaker
Um, stems are thick and hollow with ridges and purple spots. Hopefully that helps you to avoid the, uh, giant hogweed.
00:12:10
Speaker
Um, listen, I will tell you there was uh, a ah link on, on this website that would take you to where these are the most prominent and it didn't work anymore.
00:12:21
Speaker
And so I really do think that this, um, ah Fish and Wildlife Services is not doing so good. My God. Look out for the giant hogweed. The next one is probably one that you're more familiar with, and that is the poison hemlock, which is also known as belladonna.
00:12:39
Speaker
Yeah, like this this one can kill you. Yeah. And this is um also used in Practical Magic, one of my favorite rom-coms. Right, right, right, right, right. To kill, what's his face? I can't think of the character's name, but um I always think of... My ex-boyfriend. Yeah. I always think of ah ah her looking in the rearview mirror and going, use the belladonna.
00:13:03
Speaker
Yeah.
00:13:06
Speaker
Can't wait for Practical Magic 2 coming in 2026. Amazing. That will be great. Poison hemlock is native to Europe, Africa, and Asia, but also is invasive in North America.
00:13:18
Speaker
All parts of this plant are highly poisonous to people and animals. Ingestion of even a small amount may result in death. This plant typically measures three to eight feet tall and has stems that are hairless.
00:13:32
Speaker
Oh, I've heard a plant called hairless. It's kind of weird. And hollow with ridges and purple spots. so so sounds like Sounds like a demon twink to me. what we're What we're getting to is that purple spots are bad.
00:13:45
Speaker
Sounds like a demon twink to me once again. All right. The next one is ah in the same family, the spotted water hemlock. Jesus. The spotted water hemlock is widespread and native to North America. Water hemlock is often called the most deadly plant in North America.
00:14:04
Speaker
All parts of this plant are highly toxic to people and animals. Ingestion may cause abdominal pain. oh I already have IBS. I don't need more of this. Convulsions, delirium, nausea, seizures, and vomiting often resulting in death.
00:14:22
Speaker
My God. plant typically measures three to six feet tall and has stems that are smooth and hollow. Stems may vary in color and pattern from solid green to purple to green with purple spots or stripes.
00:14:37
Speaker
Listen, as someone whose purple is one of my favorite colors, this makes me very sad. Why why the hell nature... doing the purple on the evil shit fuck i mean isn't purple kind of like associated with like disease or like bruises it it is also like but also it's also royalty i was just gonna say like it's also royalty and also i mean like if you um if you're into like church shit like you know like people who like run churches or mosques or temples or whatever like they always wear like purple because it's like that's like the color of like the leader kind of thing yeah
00:15:10
Speaker
I don't know. All right. I have two more for you. Okay. The cow parsnip is the next one. The cow parsnip is native to North America. is listed as endangered in Kentucky. Well, if it's maybe that's okay. I'm like, is that okay? Like like for what? Like, uh, hi, I'm on like the conservative side. Like let it burn. I know what I mean. Like let it die. We're Republicans against the cow parsnip. Guess what? I'm not woke anymore, bitch. Yeah.
00:15:36
Speaker
you know, contact with the cow. he woke Now about the cow parts. This is so stupid. Guess what? i'm I'm not woke anymore. I'm sleeping. Yeah. Contact with the cow parts. It may cause skin irritation, blistering rashes and skin discoloration. Sounds like we should get get rid of it. um This plant can measure four to 10 feet tall and has stems that are fuzzy and grooved. I get ready to join my club called. We hate endangered plants. Like get I'm being kind of real, like get rid of this fucker. I i don't care about it.
00:16:06
Speaker
you're but you're gone what would that be it's almost like wop wa why right like okay this is this is the one like okay handshake emoji it's me and donald trump i'm going yeah get rid of it go
00:16:20
Speaker
oh god and then the last one is the queen anne's lace the queen anne's lace okay is this is the gayest planet ever i know i know happy pride month everybody here's some queen and the lace you can see it walking down the runway you know you know how it walks now the queen anne's lace is native to asia and europe you can tell we haven't done this in a while we're laughing so much we're being ridiculous because it's just so much fun the queen anne's lace is native to asia and europe but invasive in north america how does this all become invasive in north america do people just like bring this no i'll tell you why it's called european settlers coming over yeah
00:16:58
Speaker
If you have sensitive skin, contact with Queen Anne's lace may cause skin irritation. Others may not experience any negative interactions. Before you consider handling this plant, make sure that you're positive that it's not one of the similar looking species. So it's a little bit incognito, if you will, of of the plants. This one is also fuzzy with small grooves.
00:17:22
Speaker
okay there needs to be all right there needs to be like a gay horror movie where it's like queen anne's lace you come in contact with it but then you become gay within 48 hours it's it's it's like the whole but it's about yeah yeah like that this this could be something interesting i i agree and and then you just you you come in contact with it and you cannot stop sucking dick like that's all you can do you have to do it or like you're gonna eat somebody it's all you crave but Alright, do you want to hear... i have one other thing, and then we'll into yours, because I feel like yours is like a good ending to it. um
00:18:00
Speaker
It's a happy ending, if you will. Talking about sucking dick. Alright, I have relatives that listen to this. I need to stop. Let them listen. Let them hear Guess what? Andrew's relative, guess what? We talk about dick on this show.
00:18:15
Speaker
and Not usually, actually.
00:18:20
Speaker
Also, yeah my my brother is probably sitting going, whoa, wow. Wow. wow quite and a they They come back after a month and this is what they're talking about. all right. Michael, do not let Sonny listen to this episode. Thank you.
00:18:31
Speaker
All right. i have a ah list from modernfarmer.com that are the six secret poisonous plants that we eat all the time.
00:18:42
Speaker
Modern Farmer, the magazine for the modern farmer. Mm-hmm.
00:18:48
Speaker
Oh, settle down. I need to stop laughing. um All right. So these are these are plants or ah things that we eat all the time that are actually poisonous.
00:19:01
Speaker
Now, the first one. so Pause was hilarious. I'm sorry. I'm trying to put on my radio voice and you just keep cracking me. Oh,
00:19:12
Speaker
all right. The first one, like wait, wait, wait, can I just say really quick? Modern Farmer reminds me of, ah remember the movie Best in Show? Yes, absolutely. So when, when Christy Cummings and, and whoever, whoever else owned Rhapsody in White, when, the when yeah the show was out and everything,
00:19:28
Speaker
And like they they're like they're like showing their life after. And like they start a magazine called American Bitch. Yeah. Christy Cummings goes, American Bitch, it's the magazine for the modern lesbian purebred dog owner.
00:19:41
Speaker
it's feel It's a big sector of the lesbian population. i don't if know this. But um I also will see Christopher Guest in a little bit. Yes, we will. All right. So these these plants are ones that we eat all the time that may be poisonous. Okay.
00:19:58
Speaker
The first one is one of my least favorite things, raw. I hate raw tomato. Oh, God. Okay, listen. I love a tomato in all forms.
00:20:09
Speaker
Or as we say over here, tomato. Tomato. No, I don't mind it. I don't mind it cooked, and I don't mind it like as sauces or like any of that kind of thing, but like just like a raw tomato on a sandwich gagged with a spoon. let Let me ask you this. A caprese salad with mozzarella. No, I'm touching it.
00:20:24
Speaker
You don't like that. okay um Is there any... raw tomato that you like at all anything i've had a bruschetta that i didn't mind okay all right um but that was like heavily dressed and everything like and like chopped up kind of thing yeah but like but like on the verge because it's you know because it has like citrus in it and stuff it's on the verge of cooked so i see what you mean okay yeah it's like it's like a tomato carpaccio if you will Yeah.
00:20:51
Speaker
So as of tomatoes, the fruit isn't, but the leaves, roots, and stem are. they are rich I did not know this. That's crazy. yeah but They are rich in tomatine, an alkaloid that is mildly toxic to humans.
00:21:07
Speaker
It won't kill you unless you chow down on pounds and pounds of it. Pounds and pounds of it that's it. That's in the article. I'm so sorry. Ha, ha, ha, ha.
00:21:18
Speaker
But it is likely to cause you some gastrointestinal distress. Sir, would you like to say pounds and pounds or many pounds? Let's say pounds and pounds. Why not? I wrote it that way.
00:21:28
Speaker
it is It is a gay show, so say pounds and pounds. All right. The next one is some of my favorite things. Apples, cherries, and apricots. Love all three. I love all three. Dehydrated, hydrated, but every which way you can.
00:21:44
Speaker
um The seeds of all these fruits are not considered edible. They're hard, bitter, and unpleasant. The bitter flavor. Oh, at least you said it. No, I'm just joking. That bitter flavor is a protective element.
00:22:00
Speaker
The plants put put it there um to discourage animals like us from destroying them. And it comes from a substance called amygdalin. Yeah, I'm going to go with that.
00:22:12
Speaker
Which turns into cyanide. when it comes into contact with acids in the human digestive system. Cherries, apricots, peaches, and nectarines have the substance in much higher concentration than apples, but all of the seeds and pits in these fruits are fantastically tough.
00:22:29
Speaker
Even if you solid some, no big deal. Your body will simply pass them out. That said, please don't pulverize and then eat, consume dry cherry pits. What out what else is in the teaches of peaches? Apparently cyanide.
00:22:42
Speaker
I guess so. You know, I kind of think I remember that from kit like from childhood, like about apple seeds. But that's like a weird... remember that from my first husband because he loved apples so much.
00:22:53
Speaker
And one day he just... Died. Never mind. I was telling the wrong story. I'm sorry. Go ahead, Andrew. The next one is kidney beans. Okay, listen. Don't tell me. You know I love chili.
00:23:06
Speaker
Many legumes can cause mild gastrointestinal disease distress when undercooked. But red kidney beans um are special.
00:23:17
Speaker
Kidney beans contain, I'm not going to say that. It is a chemical. Andrew who wrote this article. I love it so much. Wait, wait, wait. Let me try to say this. Phytohemega gluten.
00:23:29
Speaker
Glutenin. Sure. A chemical compound that I will always have to copy and paste because you are kidding me with that word. Literally. dr Um, ingestion of just a few undercooked kidney beans can cause serious diarrhea and vomiting.
00:23:45
Speaker
Um, it's not fatal, uh, but, and rarely causes a hospitalization, but fairly common for people end up being sick from chomping down on some merely soaked, uh, beans. Uh, that's crazy.
00:23:57
Speaker
Yeah. I've never heard of this before because like, like you said, like growing up with chili and like all this like weird. So are you telling me that like, if we don't put kidney beans in chili, like maybe our stomachs will handle chili better. Is that, is that it?
00:24:11
Speaker
Well, I make a chili and ah it's a Texas chili and it doesn't have beans it. Oh yeah. Fair enough. And I, and I won a chili cook-off. I won. Andrew's chili is very good. I'm not going to lie.
00:24:23
Speaker
I won an air fryer. but You did. That's right. I remember that. Remember? remember i I brought that guy I was dating at the time and made him vote for you. Yeah. Thanks. i want what All right. The next one is, and this one I kind of knew about. The next one is rhubarb.
00:24:39
Speaker
And I knew that rhubarb was mildly poisonous to people, but as long as you cook it, sure it's it's okay. um A rhubarb, a springtime stock most commonly used in the creation of America's best pie, the strawberry rhubarb pie. i disagree with that, but whatever. Yeah, but listen, cherry pie is better than strawberry rhubarb. Sorry about it. And apple pie is is the king of pies.
00:25:00
Speaker
I think that apple and cherry tie. I think they're the king and queen. I agree with you on this. You know what? That's a great way to look at It's king and queen. Thank you. Most often used in sweet applications, it's a sour vegetable that looks like a crimson celery.
00:25:15
Speaker
and i think a gay man wrote this article. Oh, yeah. Whoever wrote this, ah and for a modern farmer, by the way, is absolutely a homosexualist that is already right now at this moment sucking a dick.
00:25:28
Speaker
I guarantee you. And its leaves are spectacular poisonous. So the leaves are poisonous. Rhubarb leaves are highly in oxalic acid, which quickly causes kidney failure in humans. Whoa, crazy. Reminds me of my second husband who loved a rhubarb pot.
00:25:45
Speaker
Oh, never mind. About 25 grams of this acid is the average amount needed to kill a human. 25 grams is like nothing. It only took me 23. sorry. i'm sorry Those black eyed peas should look good to me.
00:26:00
Speaker
um And then two more asparagus, like the rhubarb, the the part of the asparagus that the plant that we love, the young stems are perfectly safe to eat. But the asparagus hides a deceptive, nasty secret.
00:26:14
Speaker
It's fruit, which are bright red berries are toxic to humans. I didn't even know asparagus has berries. Yeah. What? um Just a handful can cause vomiting and diarrhea. Can you know i imagine that you go out on fucking asparagus? like that's the it's Something about that doesn't surprise me too much, only because like ah I really like asparagus.
00:26:36
Speaker
And when i eat and like you know if you eat asparagus, you probably know your pee afterward is like, your pee kind of smells. And well and it's like kind of green. i will tell you.
00:26:48
Speaker
unlike your poison ivy i don't have that gene no way yeah my i don't have any effects of asparagus i never have any sort of weird pee or a weird smell or anything that is so crazy girl he eating asparagus right now he gonna pee clear i do like asparagus little grill of a little grilled like grilled oh bring it on bitch i love it so good all right and then the last one is cashews i think i kind of knew this about like raw cashews I'll tell you what. Cashews are fucking good, though. going to tell you what now.
00:27:20
Speaker
Yeah, i don't I don't really eat nuts anymore, those kind if you know what I mean. Love it and Cashews are another delicious product that should never, ever be eaten raw. I think I knew this. I did not know this. Oh, my God. like native to know Native to the Amazon, the cashew is not really a nut, but rather a seed that protrudes oddly from the bottom of a fruit.
00:27:43
Speaker
that's That's why I like it. It's a fucking bottom. Of course it is. called the cashew fruit. um You may have noticed the cashews are never found in their shell as almonds or peanuts are. And that's because when raw, they're covered in anacardic acid, closely related to the acid that makes poison ivy so irritating. Wow. It's much worse when you eat it.
00:28:07
Speaker
So I wonder, let's give you a raw cashew. Let's see what happens. that's that's say I have never heard that before. It's crazy. Yeah. um So, yeah, those are some common things that we just like discovered over time that were poisonous to humans and probably maybe really upset some people's stomachs back in the day. But we've learned to treat them the right way to make them edible.
00:28:30
Speaker
Wow. Crazy. Well, Andrew, listen, that was wonderful. Thank Now, I want to talk to you about another very poisonous plant. And it's one that we saw very recently in a TV show, a little TV show called The White Lotus Season 3.
00:28:48
Speaker
Mike White was just cast on Survivor 50. No way, was he? Yeah. Oh, my God. that That's amazing. um But you remember in White Lotus season three, right, that the dad, well, the whole family, the whole Southern family discovers that um the the tree that's like outside of their pool has has these like big sort of nut things that are very poisonous if you eat them.
00:29:11
Speaker
And they learned that because the like like they their butler basically who was taking care of them while they were there told them, that you you oh you definitely can't eat that because it will definitely kill you. And you know you will watch the if you haven't watched the show yet, you should watch it and you'll learn that whole storyline. Anyways, when we think of terrifying plants, we usually picture something out of science fiction. Giant vines, stringling people, or Audrey 2 from Little Shop of Horrors, belting out Feed Me Seymour. Or the ruins plants, which we've covered on this podcast before. I fucking love the ruins. What a great movie.
00:29:44
Speaker
um But the real world, something much scarier. And it's something called the suicide tree. That's its actual nickname and it earns it. Scientifically, it is called the Cerbera odalum.
00:29:56
Speaker
Its small to medium-sized tree grows in beautiful, warm places like India, Southeast Asia, and parts of Australia. You've probably walked past something like it if you've been to a tropical resort.
00:30:09
Speaker
It has pretty white flowers, soft green leaves, and a hard plum-like fruit that looks almost inviting. But hidden inside that fruit is a seed packed with cerberin, a toxin so deadly it can stop your heart like yours.
00:30:26
Speaker
And here's the really terrifying part. You'll probably never see it coming. Cerberin disrupts the electrical activity of the electrical activity of the heart. It messes with the rhythm, causes arrhythmias, and eventually leads to cardiac arrest.
00:30:41
Speaker
It's odorless. It's tasteless. And once it's in your system, it mimics a natural heart attack. Unless you're specifically testing for it, which anyone really wouldn't do, there's no trace.
00:30:53
Speaker
There's no red flags, no crime scene, just silence. So it's not, ah you can't, like if somebody did an autopsy on a person that had this, it wouldn't be traceable? They're probably not going to find out.
00:31:05
Speaker
yeah Wow. So in India alone, it's estimated that hundreds of people use this plan to die by suicide each year. Oh, that's awful. It's cheap, accessible, and heartbreakingly effective.
00:31:17
Speaker
But what's even more sinister, it's been used in murders, too. There's at least well one well-known court case in India... where a woman used the seeds to poison her husband. Because how do you prove that someone fed you a plant nobody's testing for?
00:31:31
Speaker
Historically, the tree was used in something called trial by ordeal in Madagascar. Accused criminals were forced to consume a brew made from its crushed seeds. if If you died, you were guilty.
00:31:43
Speaker
If you survived, which you wouldn't, you were innocent. Kind of reminds you of like like the witch trials, right? Yeah. Yeah. And get this, it's still around today, hiding in plain sight. In fact, like I said earlier, The White Lotus season three brought this killer plant into the mainstream with a storyline involving the suicide tree.
00:32:02
Speaker
But that wasn't just TV drama that was ripped from reality. In a tropical paradise, death can be growing right next to your cabana. So the next time that you're on holiday, walking through a gorgeous garden, admiring the blooms, maybe give that pretty tree a wide berth because sometimes so the most dangerous things in the world are the ones that don't make a sound.
00:32:25
Speaker
So it's great look out for that tree. Don't. Don't, um you know, maybe clean the blender before you use it. You know what I mean? Because well that's just that's just rich people not knowing how to clean. True. But yeah you don't want to have any of that tree because the server ain't going to kill you.
00:32:41
Speaker
Yeah, i'm I'm very surprised that I did not poison my little brother as a as a child because i would always I would always challenge him to eat different like berries and stuff off of trees. And i was just any he would do it.
00:32:54
Speaker
and so you know Wow. Well, you know what? but that's some Congratulations, Matt. He's alive and married now. so yeah he He's survived so far. god love him. Well, listen, Andrew, I think that does it for our horror in real life segment. Yeah, I think that was fun. that was so much fun.
00:33:11
Speaker
Let's take a little break here and go to everyone's favorite segment. What you been watching, bitch.
00:33:19
Speaker
Let's all go the lobby. Let's all go the lobby. Let's all go to the lobby to get ourselves a treat.
00:33:31
Speaker
Welcome back. It's time for What You Been Watching, bitch. What you been watching, you plant-feeding green thumb bitch. And this is the part of the show where we literally talk about what we've had our eyes on. Could be books.
00:33:44
Speaker
Most of the time it's movies, but it could be anything. And so, Matty, tell me, and the in the month that we've had off from the show, yeah What You Been Watching, bitch? I'm going to be honest. i had to really I had to really rack my brain because i I wasn't good at keeping track of things. So I definitely forgot a lot of what I watched.
00:34:01
Speaker
Oh, you don't think I have a notes app for this segment? Because I can't remember anything. Yeah, and I even fucking use Letterboxd. Do you know what I mean? But I was almost too busy to use it. Yeah. So I'll start off with this one.
00:34:13
Speaker
um It is Hacks Season 4. and I am a huge fan of Hacks. Love it so much. which i you know but Very few people don't love it. um So look, I love Hacks. I will say this season...
00:34:26
Speaker
was not my favorite one. um It felt a little forced at times. And like sometimes I was like, something just doesn't feel right in here. it was It's almost like hard to explain. like I think they're rushing it. I think that's the It's something like that.
00:34:43
Speaker
And I don't know. like i just I mean, look, I still love the show. I'm still going to watch it, don't get me wrong. But this one, I don't know. It just it didn't hit me the right way. And I'll also say this Those two being like bitter enemies, it got old for me.
00:34:59
Speaker
Okay, this is what I want to say. I was like, it's got to stop. So i'll like by the end of the show that it that it did, I was like, oh, thank fucking God, because I i was tired of it. Yeah, this is what I wanted to say about this, is this show is ah really good when they're just in step with each other.
00:35:15
Speaker
Agreed. And it doesn't make any sense anymore for them to be enemies. yeah And so like just let them get along. Agreed. Totally agree. And it was... Like when when season three ended and it ended up with that big cliffhanger of like you funny little girl or whatever she said.
00:35:32
Speaker
Like I was like, oh that'll be interesting. And then as soon as we got into it, I was like, actually, I hate this. I really hated it. Well, that they're such good screen partners that like just let them be together. Totally. Like stop. Stop this forced antagonism. Andrew, Andrew, love is love.
00:35:50
Speaker
Do you know what I mean? so let's let Let them love each other. Yeah, that that's my first one. Hack season four. I still had a good time watching it, but like it just didn't. They didn't do it for me like the other ones. I'm very hopeful that season five, which I hope is the last season because it needs to just end.
00:36:06
Speaker
um I hope it is a return to greatness, which I'm sure that it will be. Yeah, I still liked the season. i just was more on board after that beach scene. And if you watch the season, you you know. Yeah, totally. and And then from then on, I was like on board, except for the last episode I thought was kind of a kind of a, I don't know. That last episode was such a, if that was the last episode of this of the whole series, I would have been pissed. so I would have been so fucking mad.
00:36:31
Speaker
Yeah. But all right. My first one is Final Destination Bloodlines. my God. I love it. Which is the sixth in the Final Destination series, which i think I've seen all of them in the theater. Oh, my God. I love it. but not Listen, I'm a glutton for punishment on these movies.
00:36:50
Speaker
I just have fun with them. I don't care. Like you you kind of if you're a Final Destination person, you know what you're getting on board for. yeah Like, you know, like what it is. And listen, Bloodlines?
00:37:01
Speaker
Fantastic. It was really good. it was awesome. That's good news. I love that. um i will say that at this point with um just effects, I will say some of the CGI usage was unnecessary. like They could have just like done it practically. yeah do you think? Yeah.
00:37:21
Speaker
and There's just a couple of parts. There's a part at the end with it with a train that kind of just looks silly. And then like some of the stuff in the Space Needle, which you know you know from the previews, it kind of takes place in like a Space Needle type of restaurant.
00:37:34
Speaker
yeah That's like where the main um ah catastrophe happens. Sure, yeah. um But the cool thing about this one that's unlike all the other ones, and this is not spoiling anything because it's literally in the preview, is that um the person that is having the premonition is not the person who was in the premonition. It's her ah ah's her granddaughter.
00:37:54
Speaker
Oh, weird. And so ah her grand her grandma has had this premonition in the, I think, 50s. It's not specifically specified, but it kind of gives vibes. Granny, no.
00:38:05
Speaker
And she saves like a ah whole generation of people, but death has slowly been making its way down to her family. And now it's in the family, which is kind of interesting because every other final destination movie has been about like a friend group or like a, a grouping of people that don't know each other or a something of that, ah of that ether.
00:38:26
Speaker
And so to have it be like in a bloodline or in a family, I kind of gave it a little bit more like um heft in depth that these movies don't necessarily have all the time. So if you, if you can still go see it, cause I think it's still in the theater when this comes out, go see it. It's like the highest grossing final destination movie of like all time at this point.
00:38:48
Speaker
um So probably a lot of you have already seen it, but I had so much fun with it. And there is one scene ah with a garbage dumpster that will live in my, my God,
00:38:59
Speaker
in my in my in my uh in my my dreams and that reminds me of remind be of my third husband who never mind um lovely you know what i will see that for sure it's fun go see in the theater it's made for imax so it's you know what that sounds like a fun summer movie to see i i would love to see it yeah um my next one andrew i've changed it um i decided i wanted to talk about something else so Um, this is good because I've kind of given up on the show that you were going to talk about. fair enough and I still love that show, but I was like, yeah, let's about something else.
00:39:31
Speaker
Because this week on Wednesday, I got to see the final show of the Scissor Sisters tour. um for for uk and ireland and now they're going to be in north america supporting kesha and which i will be there in july you guys are going to um also at the show um after the show i went to the one of the gay bars in dublin called the george and who did i see there but one of our top listeners kyle kyle good to see you was fun to see you in dublin hope you had a great trip
00:40:03
Speaker
um Listen, I am a Scissor Sisters fanatic. I love the sisters. I love it every single one of their songs. I know the words to most of them. And um I'm a super fan.
00:40:17
Speaker
And I got to tell you what... I took two of my girlfriends, Grania and Avery, and we had a fantastic time. And I was a freak on the dance floor. i was singing along to everything. I was dancing my ass off. We we had so much beer. It was ridiculous.
00:40:33
Speaker
I had an edible. It was great. It was it was such a fun night. But, you know, i i'm i' I want to talk about this one because, like, For me, the sisters have always been like my like like little gay superheroes. And like, I love how they each have crazy names like Jake Shears or Baby Daddy or Animatronic.
00:40:54
Speaker
um And it was just and like they they were a part of like my early gay development. Like, I mean, that first album came out in 2004. Right. Like that's that's so it's not that long ago, but it is.
00:41:07
Speaker
And like, I can't imagine my own little gay life without their songs in it. so And I am so I'm just like so happy that they exist and that they did this because they have created music that has meant it's really meant a lot to us.
00:41:23
Speaker
Yeah. And like I remember when um Take Your Mama Out All Night would come on the Applebee's radio. there Totally. But I mean, like, there you know, there are songs in there, you know, I hadn't listened to them for a while because like, you know, like, like a lot of your favorite bands, like you just, you track you go in and out.
00:41:39
Speaker
But, you know, as the show was coming up, I like, I started to like listen more on like my runs or going to work or whatever. And there are, you know, there were some songs that like really hit me in whole new ways, like Return to Oz.
00:41:51
Speaker
Like and now that I'm in my 40s as a gay man, Return to Oz, hits in a whole ah like in a way that i could have never imagined in my 20s like completely for me it's for me it's only the horses oh i love that song so i mean like these these are songs that are that are really about a gay reality just being normal and um that's something really really special and i i am so glad that i bought tickets for the show and and and got to see them especially on their final night in dublin
00:42:22
Speaker
And it was, it was incredible. if If you have a chance in North America to see them supporting Kesha, go, don't be a fucking idiot. You go to that show because it is so much fun, so much fun and go and don't be embarrassed, dance and sing and be ridiculous and just go for it. So I loved it. And that is my little thing for you.
00:42:43
Speaker
This is your sister's concert. Yeah, I will be there July 13th. Yes. and we are we have seats in the amphitheater. Oh, nice.
00:42:54
Speaker
We are in the 25th row, so I'm pretty fucking excited. That'll be fun. Thank you, American Express, for the presale. So. All right. My next one is on Amazon Prime. It is a new show called Overcompensating. Have you seen this at all?
00:43:10
Speaker
No, not at all. Oh, my God. You're going to fucking love it. It is It is my new. So you remember how much like energy I had for English teacher on Hulu? Yes. Yeah. This is how I feel about overcompensating on prime.
00:43:24
Speaker
Like ah this is like my new obsession. I need a season two immediately, but don't rush it because I want it to be good. But, um, basically the, the, the origin of this story is like this, uh, this gay YouTuber. Okay. Um, he pretty much just wrote it about his like college experience. And then he also like went up to Charlie XCX at a party and like pitched it to her. And so she, my God.
00:43:48
Speaker
And so she like executive produced it and also is in it. Oh, my God. That's crazy. um But it follows a guy named Benny. And that's his real name. Well, his name is Benito Skinner.
00:44:00
Speaker
And he was a YouTube personality. No, no, no. Okay. I know that guy for sure. Benny Drama is his YouTube. like Oh, yeah. oh i've I've been following him for years. It's him. This is his show? Yeah. Shut up.
00:44:11
Speaker
um And it's all about like a a like college jock who's in the closet going to college for the first time and get this, though. It's it's like college like 10 years ago. So it's kind of it's kind of reminiscent of the college that we knew, like maybe like one degree separated from the college that we knew, but still relatable.
00:44:32
Speaker
Sure. um And it's all about him, like, you know figuring out what's what's going on. Like, and And it's so well done. It's so fucking funny. If you're not watching this show, ah beg and plead to you, please go watch the show on Amazon Prime. I know we don't like Bezos and I know we hate billionaires, but please go watch this show so it gets a season two.
00:44:52
Speaker
Yeah. Oh, I will. I will absolutely watch this for sure. It's so good. You're going to love it. The the soundtrack is so good. and um The little love crushes that remind you of college are so good. he has like a ah girl that he tries to date and it turns into like his best friend. It's just so good. i absolutely loved it. Go watch overcompensating on Amazon Prime.
00:45:13
Speaker
I will for sure. and My next one is one that Andrew has already watched, but I finally got a chance to finish this week and it is called mid century modern. Um, last two episodes kill me. So like, um, it's really, it's, it's such a great show. And like, and I know that you've already talked about it, but just to like, just to reiterate, this is a sitcom in like the very classic,
00:45:39
Speaker
like throwback it's like a 90s sitcom early 2000s sitcom like laugh tracky kind of thing right and it's about three gay men um who are you know all not young anymore and are all living together in palm springs and bunny who's played by nathan lane is sort of like it's it's his house and lives what ah lives with lives with his mom sybil and And um so like they're all kind of just like living life together in this space.
00:46:10
Speaker
Right. And it is it's bookended by by funerals if you think about this. Right. And so I got to tell you, I watched the last episode and I was not expecting that.
00:46:22
Speaker
I know. and And it hit me really hard. hit me very hard because I i could just think about about my own mom, of course. i didn't I didn't look anything up about the show going into it. And so I didn't know what was coming. And it hit me like a pile of bricks. Yeah. yeah i mean like look if if you i i won't talk about the end i'm just gonna say like it it look it's pride month it's a perfect time to watch this yeah if you have not watched it yet it's on it's on disney plus for me i i i think it is for you too i don't know lou and disney plus i see okay yeah so um so disney for here but yeah but you just said that anyways um
00:47:00
Speaker
It's so good. And I really loved it because it's just an unabashed show about gay guys. and Yeah. And it deals it deals with, like, politics and it deals with, like, the jealousy and it deals with... they're not And they're not afraid to make, like...
00:47:16
Speaker
nasty like jokes and and that is so important but it deals with all these like actually like like kind of important topics like by making fun of them a little bit and it's just it's a blast i loved it and it's also like ah like by the end of it it's also very touching so i thoroughly enjoyed watching this i really did and like i it's hitting all ages like And I think it's so it's a wonderful thing. If you have not watched this yet, you need to just watch it, especially in Pride Month. It is so worth it. So Mid-Century Modern, i loved it.
00:47:51
Speaker
Have a watch. And for people that are bashing this show, you don't know joy. Sorry. have Goodbye. listen if If you're bashing the show, I don't know what to tell you. Like, but honestly, if you're bashing the show, maybe you should watch more than one episode.
00:48:04
Speaker
Yeah. if ah If I'm being real. Yeah. All right. Speaking of bashing things, because I've heard a lot of negative things about my next one is I watched fear street prom queen. People she don't like this or.
00:48:18
Speaker
yeah People hate this. um listen I have not seen this yet. It's on Netflix. here's Here's what I'm going to say about this. And wait, it's it's new, right? Oh, yeah. It just came out like last week.
00:48:28
Speaker
I see. Okay. um ah Here's what going to say about this. ah People that don't like this are not Fear Street people. That's what going say about this. Fair enough. What I'm going to say is that Netflix kind of shot itself in the foot because they produced that three movie like epic thing.
00:48:47
Speaker
that happened during the pandemic that we were all excited about that was like spectacular. Like, like yeah I personally think that those Netflix fear street movies, those first three are an epic that should be studied because they're very good.
00:49:01
Speaker
They're very, very good. This is more like a fear street book than those movies. And what I mean by that is that R.L. Stine, hey guys, he's not that great of a writer.
00:49:15
Speaker
it's It's for young teenagers. I mean, he he wrote tiny books for for kids. Like, that's what he did. And, like, in the that's what I have to say about the Prom Queen Fear Street movie. is that It's actually more like a Fear Street book than those other three movies. Okay, interesting.
00:49:34
Speaker
As someone who grew up reading those and Christopher Pike and those kind of books, which I think Christopher Pike is a better author than Arlstein. Sorry, but i just do. Fair enough. Okay. um And, you know, you can go back and watch that other Netflix series, The Midnight Club.
00:49:52
Speaker
That's a good representation of Christopher Pike. God, was so good. And again, to all you haters, fuck off. But... um But no, I thought Prom Queen was like ah a very sufficient Fear Street movie. And I think that if they did one of these every year, i think that it would be successful and people would get on board with it.
00:50:10
Speaker
I think a lot of people are bashing it for like being kind of cheesy or being kind of like, um you don't get, oh, we didn't get to know the characters enough before they died. And I was like, yeah, welcome to 150 page book.
00:50:22
Speaker
like You know what mean? I mean, like, come on, give it a rest, dude. So I enjoyed it. I thought some of the kills were so funny. There's one kill, and this is a mild spoiler, but there's one kill where a guy gets his hands ah cut off by a paper cutter in a school. ah Oh my God. And then he, and then he, and then he runs to go try to open the door and he can't because. no, no. Oh no. Listen, I,
00:50:49
Speaker
I think as I get older, um things don't bother me as much anymore. Same. It doesn't matter if it's like not top-notch anymore. um you're just You're at that moment in your 40s where you've stopped giving so many fucks.
00:51:04
Speaker
Yeah. it just ah I just want to like things. I don't know. um And isn't that great, to be honest? Yeah. Maybe I want more joy in my life. I'm so i'm so much happier now. It's a good thing. But I still liked it. Was it a perfect movie? Absolutely not. But was it like, and why and do I want to see more interpretations of these fear street books? Absolutely. so you know, there it is.
00:51:26
Speaker
Nice. Very cool. um My final one is one that I've been looking forward to seeing for a very long time, and it is called Pee Wee as Himself. Yeah.
00:51:37
Speaker
So, okay, I want to start off with this. I am a Pee Wee fanatic. When I was a child, my anyone in my family will tell you, i was literally obsessed with Pee Wee Herman.
00:51:49
Speaker
Me too. I had a cherry. Yeah. It was a puppet. Oh, yeah. Like I made my mom rent the movie over and over and over again. And this was like before like buying your own VHS was like a thing. And so like my family got tired of watching it all the time. Everyone knew every word of the movie because we they had watched it a thousand times because I wouldn't let anyone watch anything else like because I was that tyrant of a kid. And you're you're just talking about um Big Adventure, correct? Yes. Yeah. Yeah. yeah And I would do the dance and i and I would wear a little red bow tie, which I still have to this day.
00:52:22
Speaker
And um I just, I love Pee Wee. i I loved Wee as a kid and I still love Pee Wee now. um And so like, you know, like like with everybody, you know, the the journey that we all went through, you know, if you if you were alive then, of like Paul Rubens and, you know, being caught in the porn theater and this thing and that thing, like... Oh, you mean what porn theaters are made for? Exactly right. But we've all we've all been through so much with with Paul Rubens and everything else. And...
00:52:52
Speaker
You know, look, this movie, this this documentary, it's a two-part documentary from HBO on Max whatever the fuck they call it. um Over here, you you you you can watch it on Sky or now.
00:53:04
Speaker
And um it was beautiful. it was it was and It's incredible to watch Paul Rubens for the first time, the very first time, be on screen and just talk about himself himself in In full and and and and and unabashedly and tell you everything, tell you every detail.
00:53:28
Speaker
And the the producer of it and the then the director of it, Matt Wolf, none of them knew while they were filming it that he was literally terminally dying from cancer.
00:53:40
Speaker
In fact, they didn't even get to finish it with him because he died while they were filming it. And he died like days after they filmed one of the interviews with him.
00:53:54
Speaker
And um it's so, it's so, like, once again, just talking about Pride Month, like, you know, one of the things that he talks about in this documentary is how he, Paul Rubens early on had the, have you seen this yet, Andrew?
00:54:10
Speaker
I've seen the first like 45 minutes. I haven't finished it yet. So one of the things that he talks about, which none of us have ever known until now, is that he had this like very serious relationship with a guy and his family loved him and he loved him and they loved each other and this happened and that happened.
00:54:29
Speaker
And just somewhere in there, like he felt like it was better to be in the closet because it was like better for his character and like better for who he was.
00:54:40
Speaker
And that is just, like, it it's it's it's this weird double-sided sword thing. It's like, on one hand, maybe we wouldn't have ever had Pee Wee if he had not broken up with this person.
00:54:55
Speaker
And then on the other hand, you look at Paul Rubens as just a human being and you're like, my God, i can't believe that you felt that way. Yeah, so much pain. It's so, this this documentary is so painful to watch and it's so beautiful to watch and it's funny because like he just can't stop joking around because he's Paul Rubens.
00:55:15
Speaker
um But also, like you see you see like the continuing struggle within Paul Rubens to just come to grips with who Paul Rubens is. Not with who i he is, but with who Paul Rubens really is in the world.
00:55:30
Speaker
And, you know, i I read a little thing from Matt Wolf, once again, who directed it, who said something like, you know, it's it's like he was he was so sad when he died because he felt like he really did feel like in the course of making this documentary that Paul Rubens was was finally beginning to accept himself.
00:55:49
Speaker
Yeah, I'm trying to do that. And as somebody who like has meant so much to me in this weird way, um in my life, like, it's, it's, painful it's painful. This is a painful thing to watch, but also like so important and so good and so wonderful. And like I said, so funny.
00:56:08
Speaker
So you you feel a lot of things watching this. It gave me an idea for my next tattoo, actually, which I'm really happy about, too. But like it's it's an amazing thing. like This is incredible. Thank fucking God Matt Wolfe made this.
00:56:22
Speaker
Because if we had never heard it any of this about Paul Rubens, not about Pee Wee, about Paul Rubens, it would be so sad to have his own story lost. But you learn so much about this person who gave so much of himself to us.
00:56:38
Speaker
And especially, like, gonna start crying, I always do. Like, he gave so much of himself to kids with with the Playhouse. Like, he gave so much of himself to kids. And he was so good to kids. He wanted kids to have fun.
00:56:50
Speaker
And like learn how to like grow up accepting themselves. And like all it's just like with all these other people, we just all treated them like garbage. We just treated them like garbage. And um I just think that's really sad.
00:57:02
Speaker
And so like you know once again, I think especially in Pride Month, this is what you should be watching right now. Because my God... Like, don't let this be the story of you or anybody else. Do you know what i mean? Like, oh, well, and it's just so it's just so interesting to hear the backstory of even making the documentary about like how Matt Wolf and Paul Rubens like at one point, like they cut ties like they didn't like they did not get along like in the because Matt Wolf was asking him certain questions that he didn't want to answer. Yeah.
00:57:32
Speaker
And just to have that be answered finally is just like, it's such like a finality of life that most people don't get. That is so refreshing.
00:57:44
Speaker
is. And I'm really happy that it exists and I can't wait watch the rest of it. Me too. like And and it it begins basically with, with Paul Rubin saying, uh, I'm here to set the record straight.
00:57:56
Speaker
And, and he basically does. Yeah. Oh, well, like you know me, I got I got to cry. if It can't be a day unless I'm crying about something. All right. Well, my last one is one that I did cry at.
00:58:13
Speaker
um And that is not seen this. I cannot wait to see. And that is Sinners. so um Sinners is the best movie I've seen in a decade. Yeah. seriously so good oh my god it the the basic premise and ah at this i i don't want to give anything away about the movie um but the basic premise is about a a twin brothers played by michael b jordan coming back from working for the mob in chicago coming back to mississippi to open up a juke joint to just like basically like open up like a bar like a dance bar um but there's um also this underlying ah mythology about music and musicians cool and how they tell like the story of generations and and then and then there's horror movie on top of that and i i don't want to give anything away because if you haven't seen it it's a it's a pretty big surprise of like what happens but like
00:59:10
Speaker
this movie is so fucking good. I can't even explain to you because there's, there's, there's a duality to the movies, right? So there's the movie that's happening and then there's the horror movie within it.
00:59:22
Speaker
Sure. But like both of them are equally good. so like, don't know. It's, um, this is, it's, I can't say enough good things about it. If it's not nominated for,
00:59:34
Speaker
uh stuff then i don't believe that horror ever will because this is like the best movie i've seen in forever um i almost wanted to go see it again because i saw it at the davis which is the local theater here in lincoln square sure which doesn't have like this movie's This movie it it literally advertises itself like shot for IMAX.
00:59:56
Speaker
like yeah so I kind of regretted going and seeing it there because while the theater is awesome in the theater, but but it's an old theater. like It doesn't yeah have like the technology that like IMAX does. so if you If it's still playing in theaters where you live, which I don't know if it is, but it's also not streaming yet, so maybe yeah it still is, go see it because this movie is made to go see in the theater.
01:00:19
Speaker
and It's just... spectacular all around great performances, great horror movie, everything. I'm looking right now and it is playing tomorrow for me and I'm going to go see it tomorrow. You you'd need to. it's Absolutely will.
01:00:32
Speaker
I don't want to give anything away. I don't want to say too much about it, but it was just so good. I shall do. All right. Well, that's good. Well, folks, that does it for what you've been watching, bitch. And look, Andrew brought us four great ones. He brought us Final Destination Bloodlines, which he saw in the theater.
01:00:50
Speaker
He brought us Overcompensating, which you can watch on Prime, Fear Street, Prom Queen, which is on Netflix and Sinners, which is still in theaters. And Maddie brought us Hacks Season 4, the Scissor Sisters concert, which is coming to America with Kesha, no less. So go party, people. dollar and Mid-Century Modern on Hulu or Disney Plus. And Pee Wee as himself on, which I guess they're going back to HBO Max now. I can't remember his naming stuff. Whatever. Whatever.
01:01:22
Speaker
So folks, that does it for what you've been watching, Mitch. Take a little break here. We'll be right back with our first film of the episode, Little Shop of Horrors. It all began in this little shop.
01:01:38
Speaker
Damn roses. Where, strange as it seems, something extraordinary happens. I'm afraid it isn't feeling very well today. No, isn't that bizarre?
01:01:50
Speaker
What kind of a weirdo practice that, Seymour? Little Shop of Horrors, a story about a boy. given you sunlight. I've given you rain. Looks like you're not happy.
01:02:03
Speaker
Unless I open a vein. Why did you get such a weird place?
01:02:13
Speaker
A girl. You don't make nice boys when you live on schedule, Mr. Mushnick. This is my date, my boyfriend. A florist. I'm telling you, Audrey, he's not a good, clean kind of boy.
01:02:24
Speaker
He's a professional. You'll be a dad. You have a talent for causing pain. Hey, be a dad.
01:02:39
Speaker
been saving all month for this. think I need a root canal. I'm sure I need a long, slow root canal. Feed me Seymour. And a plant. Feed me all nightly, Ma.
01:02:51
Speaker
How am I supposed to keep on feeding you? Whoa! I'm just a meaner.
01:03:04
Speaker
Yes! Rick Moranis. There's a total disgrace in the dental profession. Ellen Greene. Excuse me. Excuse me what? That. That's better. Vincent Gardina with special guest appearances by Steve Martin, John Candy, and Bill Murray. It's a professionalism that I respect. Little Shop of Horrors.
01:03:33
Speaker
feed me Maddie. Actually don't because I'm trying to to get in shape for summer. But anyway, Maddie, tell us all about little shop of horrors. Uh, don't feed the plants.
01:03:44
Speaker
A nerdy florist named Seymour discovers a mysterious plant that feeds on human blood. As the plant grows and develops a voice and a taste for murder, Seymour is forced to choose between fame and morality in this cult musical horror comedy.
01:04:02
Speaker
Directed by Frank Oz, written by Howard Ashman, the screenplay was. It's based on the musical by Howard Ashman and Alan Menken, which is adapted from the 1960s film by Roger Corman and Charles B. car Griffith.
01:04:16
Speaker
did a lot Love that ending. Isn't that ridiculous? yeah ah The production is from the Geffen Company and it's distributed by Warner Brothers. Rick Moranis plays Seymour Krelborn. Ellen Green plays Audrey. Levi Stubbs is the voice of Audrey too.
01:04:31
Speaker
Vincent Gardenia, also in Moonstruck, I'm just saying, ah plays Mr. Mushnick. Steve Martin plays Oren Scrivello, DDS. And there are wonderful cameos from these four legends.
01:04:45
Speaker
Bill Murray... john candy christopher guest and jim belushi crazy it's insane little shop of horrors rated pg-13 it's 94 minutes made in the usa released december 19th of 1986 it was filmed on the lot at warner brothers at their burbank studios in california the budget was 25 million surprisingly the gross on this was only 39 million which is kind of crazy um But that was just what the theaters gave it.
01:05:14
Speaker
So what an incredible movie. I was telling Andrew before we started filming, not filming, before we started recording, um that like, it was just such a joy to watch this again.
01:05:24
Speaker
um But Andrew, I think for you, this was your first time all the way through, right? Yeah, I i have definitely seen parts of this movie, but I have never seen it all the way through. And so this was an eye-opening watch for me.
01:05:40
Speaker
And what did you think of it? um So ah luck luckily enough, in in preparation for this episode, I was able to obtain the Blu-ray yeah this movie.
01:05:52
Speaker
And so I got to watch it in all of its like you know grand you know thing, including what we'll talk about later, the alternate ending. um But I watched the theatrical cut for this watch.
01:06:04
Speaker
um And I should say that this is a, our fourth musical on the show. Oh, I'm glad you thought about that. Yes. it that is true We've covered stage fright, Rocky horror picture show and Anna and the apocalypse. Oh, I love Anna and the apocalypse know and Rocky horror and stage fright.
01:06:22
Speaker
They're all good. So we should just, so we should just do more musicals. Is that what we're saying? Choose joy. Perfect. Yeah. um No, but um listen, this this time away through, there was a couple of new musical numbers that I'd never heard before.
01:06:35
Speaker
um Somewhere Green I had never heard before. i had never heard the Dentist song. And so I would... do to yeah um So i i loved it. I think that there's like one part towards the end where I got a little bit like, can we move on? But we can we can talk about that. There's always that part in a musical, though, I feel like like where you just like, all right, move on. Like, let's get to the ending.
01:06:59
Speaker
But overall, I loved like the vibe of it. I loved that we got like kind of the Grecian doo-wop threesome that kind of tells the story throughout. um i just had a great time with it. And I thought, you know,
01:07:14
Speaker
And looking at his career, you know, this is kind of like um middle of his career, Rick Moranis. And i I just it made me like really miss this kind of comedy and this kind of acting.
01:07:28
Speaker
Yeah, totally. Just because. We have so many people like Steve Martin and, you know, and Rick Moranis and all the and and even Ellen Green to a certain extent. But like, there's just like a different kind of acting in this where you're just like, oh, I'm watching a movie. And like, I don't know that we we kind of get gotten away from that. and recently it's It's what you and I grew up with. Yeah. Yeah. And like, listen, do I still appreciate like the grittiness of movies today and like telling real stories and that kind of thing? Sure.
01:07:59
Speaker
But every once in while, I just want to show. and this just I get it. This just gave me a show. And I just I really liked it. I didn't know that it was so violent.
01:08:10
Speaker
If I'm being honest, um just because like I didn't know, like I knew that um Audrey too was a carnivorous plant, but I didn't know that it was like an alien from outer space, like come to take over the world.
01:08:22
Speaker
So a little bit of a surprise there. um A charming ending, which I found a little too saccharine, if I'm being honest. well and we'll We'll talk about it when we get to the alternate ending. But overall, I had a great time. And I think that this is right up there with some of my favorite movie musicals. So what did you think?
01:08:42
Speaker
Uh, yeah, I, I, I adored it. I'm not going to lie. Like, um, that this, uh, I watched it on Friday that this, and this is Sunday. And, um, I was telling Andrew early, like, was this a long, long week as usual?
01:08:55
Speaker
Um, and to be able to just like pop it on the TV, I ordered some chicken wings and like, you know, had a beer, got a little stoned and like watch this.
01:09:07
Speaker
And it was yeah fantastic. It was fantastic. It made me, Like it literally made me so happy to watch a musical like this again and just, yeah and just have a great time.
01:09:19
Speaker
uh, it, it, you know, I've seen this a bunch of times. but I was a theater kid. So of course i've seen this a bunch of times. And like ever like, everyone fucking loves little shop. There's not, there's not a person that I know in theater who does not like little shop of horrors.
01:09:32
Speaker
And like, yeah, it's a little cheesy here and there. It's a little dated here and there perhaps, but like everyone still loves Little Shop of Horrors. And if you think- The whole Audrey subplot about her being abused all the time. It's ridiculous. oh it's It's terrible.
01:09:45
Speaker
But I mean, also like if you think about it, it is, we've used this word many times today, but it's also fairly ubiquitous. Like if you start singing Little Shop, people will go Little Shop of Horrors. Like everyone knows the music to this too.
01:10:00
Speaker
And it is an absolutely bizarre musical. It doesn't make a whole lot of sense. It's crazy. But like, this was also like the age of musicals that were original, you know, and like, like they they came out of nowhere and they just took off.
01:10:16
Speaker
And that doesn't happen a lot anymore because everything just has to be something else. It's it's ridiculous. But this is this is just a joy to watch. um It was great to see Vincent Gardenia, I'll be honest, who plays Mr. Mushnik.
01:10:30
Speaker
Vincent Gardenia is one. He's he's I love Vincent Gardenia. And why do I love him? Because longtime listeners will know that my favorite movie in the world is Moonstruck. And in Moonstruck, Vincent Gardenia plays Mr. Castorini or Cosmo.
01:10:45
Speaker
Pardon of me. Cosmo Castorini. And so I love Vincent Gardenia for ages because I've been watching that fucking movie for, since I was in first grade and he's just a brilliant actor and he's really great as Mr. Mushnick.
01:10:58
Speaker
And then of course you've got Rick Moranis as, ah you know, like, I mean, come on, and Rick Moranis in this is so good. And Rick Moranis is also like really cute in this in a weird way too.
01:11:12
Speaker
Yeah. like It's very opposite of, um, honey, I shrunk the kids. Totally. Yeah. Like, I mean, he's nerdy in this, but he's so lovable. He's endearing. I think it's the right word. Yeah.
Film Analysis: Little Shop of Horrors
01:11:21
Speaker
Endearing and lovable and just sweet. And like, he's, he's just trying to do the right thing. And,
01:11:26
Speaker
He doesn't know what to do and blah, blah, blah, blah. And it just, he's at the same time as doing the worst thing. Exactly. And like, you know, somewhere in there, you just, you have this, this very strange hero who shouldn't be a hero.
01:11:38
Speaker
And it's, it's a beautiful little story. It really is. of of At the end of the day, like like, like most good stories are, it's about love. um And then you've got, you know, Levi Stubbs doing Audrey too, doing, doing the voice as.
01:11:52
Speaker
And he's incredible. And that puppetry, that puppetry is insane. The puppetry in 1986 doing this. Are you fucking kidding me? It's incredible. It's amazing.
01:12:04
Speaker
It's all practical effects. Once again, I did listen to a little bit of commentary by Frank Oz and he said that um they couldn't get the puppet to like look right.
01:12:15
Speaker
And so they like were rewinding and forwarding, rewinding and forwarding. And they discovered that if it was sped up, it looked right. And so interesting. The entire thing of like big Audrey, like that towards the end. Yeah. um It is all sped up because that's how they could get it to look right.
01:12:33
Speaker
Which that is totally crazy. That's so cool. Yeah. So, I mean, like, look, it's, you know, um I could go on and on and on. I think the maybe the only thing about this movie that I just like doesn't hit me, right, is, you know, look, after a while, I love Ellen Green and I love the character of Audrey. After a while, her her non-singing voice does start to like,
01:12:55
Speaker
make your brain want to pop off of your body. Um, but that, but that's it. And, and, you know, like you said earlier, there are parts of this that, that like, I mean, in 1986, this is terrible to say, but like in 1986, like the idea of like a woman getting beaten was right kind of still normal.
01:13:14
Speaker
ah That's, that's a terrible thing to say, but it's, more like it's, It's kind of true also. Or like um unhoused people being scary. yeah Right. Totally. I mean, like, you know, like those parts of it are definitely dated. i definitely grant you that.
01:13:28
Speaker
But like other other the other than that, like this is just, it's an astounding, wonderful, fun, lovely, truly lovely romp. And I'm really grateful for it. Like it it's it it gave me such a great end of my week. I i just i just loved it. loved it.
01:13:45
Speaker
i loved it You know, when I was watching it and I was watching it, you know, seeing Ellen Green doing the Audrey part, which I think she does a great job. And I just wonder, was Leslie Ann Warren ever in the talks to do that part?
01:14:00
Speaker
Because I feel like that is like made for the Miss Scarlet and person. You know what? It's it's a it's it's interesting to think about. i could definitely say it I could I could see that. i could see it. not not to discount her performance i just kept listen listen for people that are listening clue is my absolute favorite movie in the world and so i often put characters from that in other movies so that's just my brain um but i'm just echoing that part where she's where he's like oh you got tied up and she's like oh no just handcuffed a bit was like what
01:14:33
Speaker
ah That's so stupid. And honestly, like my favorite song, a favorite moment in the movie probably is somewhere green because it's, it's so funny to think about someone so down on, and I shouldn't say funny. It's, it's just like, ah it's comical in the movie, but like someone's so down on their luck that all they dream about is a tract house with a toaster and a washing machine. like Yeah. Like, it's just insane. And in um and it and it really lands.
01:15:04
Speaker
It really, really lands. and And her big, enormous 12-inch screen. Yeah. I mean, like, you know, look, we've all been stuck in one way or another. Yeah. And, um you know, maybe not stuck in in the way that Audrey is, but, like, you know, we all get stuck and we all dream about something that even just something so normal, you know, and, like, it's...
01:15:24
Speaker
it Once again, it goes back to like, you the musicals have a great way of doing this, of making like silly things get so profound and like that. And that's why, like that, that's why musicals happen, you know, because like the, the, the theory behind the musical in in America is that is, and a musicals are where, America is where musicals were were born. Like it didn't exist anywhere else besides America. But when when when there's when this mode, yeah, when this mode of theater began, but like the the theory behind it behind musical theater is that, you know, when they're singing,
01:16:03
Speaker
that the emotion is just so big that it can only be sung. like it it wouldn't be It wouldn't be able to be spoken. So the the emotion is just huge. And so something like you know something like Somewhere That's Green is you know Audrey having this huge emotional moment inside of her. And the only way that she could possibly express this is by singing.
01:16:22
Speaker
And so that's that's the song, you super emotional for her. And like you know it can seem silly to people, it can seem funny to people, but for her, it's something so important. And like, you know, for that character, like what a lovely thing, you know?
01:16:38
Speaker
Well, and that's like her like thing. I mean, it's so, it's it is kind of funny the way that the show opens because like when we're inside the little shop, there are no plants at the beginning. there so not and Like how are we supposed to understand that this is a plant shop? if what there' no business What is the business and why is it failing? Probably because you're not selling anything.
01:16:59
Speaker
and And it actually leads to my my favorite bit in the movie is where Rick Moranis brings up Audrey too, which he got from a, ah listen, this is what they say in the movie from a Chinese man, from a strange Chinese man. Exactly. and And um they, you know, he's saying about the, you know, let's put this strange and uninteresting plant in the window and people who want to come in. And then he puts it in there and immediately Christopher guest shows up and says like, Oh, what is this strange and interesting plant? Yeah. just like that that whole bit with christopher guest yeah it had me cackling i just thought it was so funny because it's just played so perfectly um and i actually didn't even clock that it was christopher guest until they showed it in oh my god in the credits and then i was like oh my god that makes so much sense i love christopher guest so much and he and he has been a genius from day one i know just just just to have that brain would be amazing um but yeah let's talk about i'd like to buy three dozen roses yeah
01:17:57
Speaker
Oh, I only have 100. I guess I'll need more. ah ah um But um let's talk a little bit about the the cameos in this movie, because they like like like you said, they are profound. ah um Bill Murray playing the masochist, John Candy playing the radio host on WSKID radio, which reminded me of our skits. Like when we put stuff together is just like so silly.
01:18:22
Speaker
Christopher Gesson, we've already talked about and Jim Belushi as the marketing professional at the end, um which caught me off guard. And I think it's so funny that in the credits because of where he was at at the time, he goes by James Belushi. yeah Totally right. it's crazy.
01:18:39
Speaker
um but they' just like i didn't like i don't know like i thought that this movie was much smaller than it really is because it doesn't i mean we see it at sidetracks sometimes as like you know suddenly seymour will play or like whatever but like it doesn't really get talked about in like the grand like movie musical like um spectacles of it all you know what i mean like sure and i'm kind of surprised because i think this is one of the best ones like
01:19:09
Speaker
And maybe that's like, oh, so good. It's absolutely one of the best ones for sure. And it's, and it's quick. It gets in, it gets out and it does its job. Like, thank you. Like, I don't need, sorry, i don't need lame is a three hour musical.
01:19:24
Speaker
Like, Okay, I was just having a conversation about Les Mis yesterday with a friend. That's so funny. And like Les Mis, while we're talking about musicals, Les Mis is absolutely ridiculous.
01:19:35
Speaker
Like truly. about misery. It is a ridiculous musical. Bubliel and Schoenberg, who wrote both Les Mis and Miss Saigon. Now look, I'm a Miss Saigon fanatic. Don't get me wrong. Yeah. yeah And look, I do like Les Mis.
01:19:48
Speaker
But it is, it's so much. It's so much. And also, it's from it's from a different age of musicals. Yeah, like for sure. when you When you're comparing these two, it's like, come on. It's just it's it's it's it's very ridiculous. It really is.
01:20:02
Speaker
Yeah. Another part that ah made me kind of giggle, because it's it's actually like the but plant is kind of like mocking us to our faces, is right after Suddenly Seymour, right after this huge outpouring of... Suddenly Seymour! of like heart and love and finally like finally getting together is that it pans to audrey too and it's like full form and it just smiles and you're like it it knows what it's gonna have what's gonna happen and that leads me to where i think that the movie ending
01:20:40
Speaker
I don't know. i think I think I can go both ways. I still like the ending, but knowing what the alternate ending is makes so much more sense to me given the arc of the story.
01:20:54
Speaker
sure that If that makes any sense. so if If people don't know, um there's an alternate ending. It actually is on the Blu-ray. You can watch it like as a movie. like You can just watch the director's cut with the alternate ending.
01:21:07
Speaker
And and I watched it with Frank Oz's, which we we haven't even talked about Frank Oz, but Frank Oz is like legendary puppeteer for like the Muppets, Sesame Street, like all kinds of things um and has a filmography of his own.
01:21:22
Speaker
But um the alternate ending is basically we cut right before Audrey is like lifted into Audrey 2 and And, you know, that's when um Seymour comes in and saves her in the alternate ending.
01:21:40
Speaker
There's a completely different musical and she dies. And then he tries to go commit suicide and is interrupted by the marketing professional who is like saying like, hey, we we did it. We have a leaflet and we have an Audrey, too.
01:21:55
Speaker
Now we want to buy more of Audrey, too. and And make more of them. you know, they'll sell like hotcakes. It'll be like, ah ah like Cabbage Patch Kids. And um then he decides in that moment, and I need to go take care of this. And actually Seymour also gets eaten by Audrey too.
01:22:12
Speaker
Jesus. all the audrey twos that they manufacture take over the world and there's like this huge scene where it shows like the destruction of new york city and frank as the he he did all of this like it's it's out there like you can watch it it doesn't have like he kept saying like oh if we would have if we would have finished this we would have put more sound effects and we would have cut it a little shorter and da da but for for all intents purposes the alternate endings out there you can go watch it Well, and and here's more about it too. So they spent, I mean, it's 1986, right? and
01:22:43
Speaker
They spent 5 million on filming that ending and weeks of filming on doing it. But the people that they tested it on, they hated it, hated it.
01:22:55
Speaker
Well, I mean, it is a downer ending because like your heroes die. But like, isn't that life? I know. but I don't know. like It was like the studio was just panicking and they were like, can't do this. So they they they went with the other ending.
01:23:09
Speaker
Yeah, i i I don't know which way I prefer it. I think I prefer the darker ending just based on like the just based on like the arc of the character and like the choices that he makes and what he does. And I yeah, I think I think in today's context, it would probably work better. You know? Yeah.
01:23:28
Speaker
Yeah. But like back, i you you know, back then. And that is a long time ago now. That's I mean, how many years ago is that? I can't I can't count. Who who knows how to count and like 40 years? Yeah, it's a long fucking time.
01:23:39
Speaker
So, I mean, like, you know, back then, that's not the ending people wanted. It's not... Yeah. I don't know. Just be interesting. And I mean, I've watched the director's cut ending. i think next time I watch the movie, I might just watch it as the director's cut and see how I feel about it. um But it is a shame that there's like a whole, um there's a whole reprise of somewhere that's green that and she sings while she dies. That's really, really touching. Yeah, sure. That I think is robbed from the, from the original ending. That's a good point.
01:24:12
Speaker
But other than that, I mean, what i can't really complain because I think that, like I said, I think that this was such a surprise for me. Yeah. and And the amount of people we haven't even touched on Steve Martin, which like, come on, like as as is the the dentist that gets high in his own supply. Like he is he's insane in this movie.
01:24:33
Speaker
But like that what's great is like you've got all of these like you have – So you've got like musical folks and you've got these kind of folks and you've got actors and then you also have like the gems of comedy of that era. Comedians, yeah. Of that era and the 90s moving forward.
01:24:50
Speaker
And to have them all together in one place is absolutely incredible. This is like this is like a museum piece on top of everything else. Yeah, so I agree. Thank God we're alive to experience it because it's incredible. Now listen, Andrew, we could talk about this all day long.
01:25:07
Speaker
Yes. But we have to eventually rate it. So why don't you tell me your rating for Little Shop of Horrors? I gave a Little Shop of Horrors from 1986 six. a six
Film Critique: The Happening
01:25:17
Speaker
And I said, the music, the effects, the stars, what more do you need?
01:25:21
Speaker
Oh, maybe that alternate ending. And a reminder here on Friday five eight the 13th, we rate our movies based on the gay old rainbow. So that's out of seven stripes, right? So having a six is a big deal.
01:25:35
Speaker
Now for me, Andrew, I gave it a 6.5. Wow. love that much. Gave it a 6.5. And I said, look, from start to finish, this is a musical that has universally won the hearts of so many and for good reason.
01:25:47
Speaker
The music, the acting, the casting, the design, it has it all. Awesome. Well, that does it for Little Shop of Horrors. We will take a break and come back with a very different moving movie.
01:26:00
Speaker
The Happening.
01:26:04
Speaker
are
01:26:17
Speaker
Were we supposed to stop here? um What's going on? You can't just leave us here. Sir, we lost contact.
01:26:27
Speaker
With whom? Everyone.
01:26:35
Speaker
There appears to be an event happening.
01:26:44
Speaker
It's some kind of attack. The first stage is loss of speech. clai Claire. Claire?
01:26:56
Speaker
The second stage is physical disorientation.
01:27:02
Speaker
The third stage
01:27:06
Speaker
is fatal.
01:27:09
Speaker
um
01:27:14
Speaker
okay The attacks are spreading. Boston, Philadelphia. Maryland. It's all over the country. Authorities are now feeling that a terrorist group being responsible is becoming less and less likely.
01:27:27
Speaker
She says everyone's dead outside. No! Oh! Oh!
01:27:52
Speaker
Run. Is that the one who's in the doors? Here it comes.
01:28:01
Speaker
Could this really be happening?
01:28:13
Speaker
Whether you like it or not, we watch The Happening. Andrew, tell us all about The Crappening. M. Night Shyamalan takes you on a terrifying journey where nature strikes back.
01:28:27
Speaker
When a mysterious and deadly neurotoxin spreads across the northeastern U.S., causing people to suddenly take their own lives, a science teacher and his family flee the city in search of safety, only to learn that nature itself may be turning against humanity.
01:28:43
Speaker
Written, directed, and produced, I just want to overemphasize that, yeah by M. Night Shyamalan himself. Production and distribution were handled by 20th Century Fox, UTV Motion Pictures, and 20th Century Fox.
01:28:58
Speaker
ah Top build is Mark Wahlberg. And I say that because his name appears before the opening of the movie. Sure does. As as Elliot Moore, Zoe Deschanel as Alma Moore, John Leguizamo as Julian Ashlyn Sanchez as Jess and Betty Buckley as Mrs. Jones.
01:29:16
Speaker
Rated R. This comes in at 91 minutes. Thank God it was made in the U.S., mostly around Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, New York, and New Jersey. Came out on June 2008. This little movie this little movie made It was budgeted, sorry, for $48 million.
01:29:35
Speaker
And this is why I got mixed up because I'm so mad about this. It made $163 million. dollars which is Which is fucking insane. It's absolutely fucking insane of this movie made that much money.
01:29:47
Speaker
It is. Maddie, tell me, what what are your thoughts this? Okay, so listen. i ah From M. Night Shyamalamadindong, as I call him, um look, I love Sixth Sense.
01:29:59
Speaker
I love The Village. I quite like um Unbreakable. i'm i'm I'm kind of into it. We like Signs. We've talked about that before. I love i love Signs. it's it's It's by far my my favorite one from him.
01:30:12
Speaker
And I also like um the other one about the other character, the crazy person. forget it's called Split. Split. Yes. I actually, I don't mind Split.
01:30:24
Speaker
But some of his movies are very bad. Like lady in the water. Yeah. Lady in the water. Terrible. And if it's possible, the happening is actually worse.
01:30:34
Speaker
This is my first time watching it. It was a blind spot for me with with M. Night Shyamalan Madin Dong. And um it is it's atrocious. I'm not going to lie. It is. It's one of the worst things i've ever seen in my life.
01:30:46
Speaker
And let me tell you why um to quote the birdcage. So first off, um You know, i knew that people didn't like Zooey Deschanel, but I've never been one of those people.
01:30:59
Speaker
Like I really enjoyed, what is it? Like 200 Days of Summer or whatever that fucking movie is called. um I thought it was 500 Days Summer. yeah That's it. Right. i Lovely movie. You know, I love um the other guy in it, whatever.
01:31:11
Speaker
and um And, you know, it's sweet. And like other things I've seen her in have been good. And she's a good singer and whatever else. She is so bad in this. Like ah she's so bad in this. I can't mind boggling. can't even, can't really even understand how somebody could be that bad in a movie.
01:31:34
Speaker
She is, she's awful in this movie. i don't know fair To be fair, they all are. Oh, I mean, they all are, but she is the worst. And I don't know if it's the casting. i don't know if it's the directing.
01:31:45
Speaker
I don't know if it's the writing, which is very bad. I don't know what it is, but she's so bad in this. It is literally painful to watch. there I literally have in my notes, my third note of this movie says, why is Zooey Deschanel acting so weird? It is. it's but It is honestly bizarre.
01:32:03
Speaker
Number two, the writing. The writing in this movie ah is so, so, so bad. It's it's among the worst i've i've I've ever seen before my life. It is...
01:32:16
Speaker
it's It's cheesy. It's corny. it is ah it's It's on the spot with with an answer. It's ridiculous. It does it it's doesn't make any sense how it could be this bad. i'm i like how did How did any studio exact read this and go, yes, M night, go make this movie. Like I don't, I don't understand it.
01:32:39
Speaker
So there's 0.2 0.3. point three The premise of this movie is absolutely fucking stupid because it doesn't, if it it doesn't make any sense. Like there's a neurotoxin going around from these plants that don't like humans, I guess.
01:32:55
Speaker
Um, you don't really find out anything more than that. And the neurotoxin apparently like affects some people, but not all people. Like how could, how could these plants, um,
01:33:07
Speaker
how could they localize the neurotoxins so much that some people in like this area get it, but like literally 10 feet away, the other people are not getting it.
01:33:18
Speaker
Like that doesn't, that doesn't make any sense to me. I'm sorry. It doesn't make any sense at all. And like the thing that makes me so mad about the whole premise of the movie, and I haven't even weighed in on what I think about this, man but like, um The premise like that um at the end of the movie, they're still arguing about what actually happened. yeah So you don't even know really what happened. is yeah Anyway, chart sorry. No, no, no. Don't be sorry. I would can completely agree with you.
01:33:43
Speaker
and And then after that, just like the acting. The acting is is very... it's Besides Zooey Deschanel, it's very fucking bad. And like, look, I, I actually, I really love Mark Wahlberg warts and all. I love Mark Wahlberg.
01:33:58
Speaker
And, um, like, you know, um, thinking of what's the movie that we watched with him, uh, rollercoaster fingering. Uh, yes. year a Fear. Is it fear? yeah Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Fear. right Like, Oh, i are you fucking kidding me? He's awesome. isn' it Amazing. and oh And like, and like in, in the departed, I love him. And in this show, I love him and the natural love him. And like, I've always been really attracted to him. I can't help it.
01:34:21
Speaker
He's actually not a bad comedic person either. like Not at all. he's he's like I think he's honestly a fantastic actor. I really do. This one, it's what happened. it's it's not good This isn't going to work out.
01:34:35
Speaker
It's not going to work out. Then you have John Leguizamo, who I'll be honest, I'm not a very big fan of. John Leguizamo is always the only movie that I really love John Leguizamo in actually is Baz Luhrmann's Romeo and Juliet.
01:34:50
Speaker
I knew you were going to say that. I think he, as Mercutio, he is, he's, he's honestly, he's perfect as Mercutio. He is absolutely perfect in that role.
01:35:01
Speaker
What, you don't like the pest? I don't. This is... ah Once again, it's just John Leguizamo being a fucking weirdo. like he's He doesn't know how to be normal. I have more to say about that character. it is It's bizarre. and the and And the character, speaking of that, didn't make any sense to me. It was it was it was fucking weird.
01:35:22
Speaker
And then like there's just... and like there's no payoff in this movie. Like what is actually going on? Like nothing makes any sense.
01:35:32
Speaker
So you, you end you you, you, you, you're finished with this movie and you're like, okay, what? Like, and then finally, like, like, ah yeah you know, God bless M night.
01:35:45
Speaker
God bless him. Ah, this movie just takes itself so seriously. Doesn't it? And yeah, ah It's hard to take it seriously as a watcher, as a viewer, when it's dumb.
01:35:58
Speaker
It's just dumb. It's just a fucking dumb movie. And um that's what I have to say about it. Thank All right. um So my thoughts on the happening. um I saw this in the theater when it came out and I remember not liking it. And so I, I went into this with, I honestly went into this cause I mean, when did this come out? This came out in 2008. So I went into this not having seen it for what, what is that? 17 years or something like that. Sure.
01:36:31
Speaker
And so I honestly went into it with like an open mind. I was like, you know what, I'm going to try to go into this and maybe even think of it as like a farce or think of it as like, what can it be? Like, is it a horror movie or is it kind of making fun of itself? Like, what is it? Because I couldn't really remember like the um the tone of the movie.
01:36:50
Speaker
And like ah upon upon the first five minutes, I was like, oh this is kind of interesting. Like this is like I didn't remember being so gory. And so I was like kind of like a little bit like interested.
01:37:03
Speaker
And then the acting started. And. ah The first line in the movie before the neurotoxin even is in effect is two women sitting on a bench reading a book for probably a book for probably like a book club because they're both reading the same book.
01:37:23
Speaker
And the one woman goes, I forgot where I am. And the other woman goes, you're at the part where the serial killer dot, dot, dot, dot. And she's like, oh, yeah. And then they keep them. And then the movie starts. And I was like, who fucking sits there and is reading a book?
01:37:39
Speaker
And just all of a sudden forgets where they're at in the book. Totally. And that's just the beginning of where this movie doesn't make any goddamn sense at all.
01:37:52
Speaker
Speaking of We talk about the bees, the bees, the bees, the bees never comes into a ah it never takes into effect in the movie. We talk about John Leguizamo somehow having a ah ah a beef with Alma played by Zooey Deschanel because he saw her crying at their wedding.
01:38:16
Speaker
Doesn't make any sense. like There's not enough. There's not enough backstory for John Leguizamo and Alma to have a beef as big as what he does for her, where he basically tells his best friend to leave her throughout the movie several times.
01:38:33
Speaker
Then we get the endearing slow motion of a father leaving his daughter only to then have him slit his own wrists and get in a car accident. And I'm like, this movie is so fucking bad.
01:38:49
Speaker
I am so, this is far and away the worst movie we've seen on this, on this podcast. And that's it talking about, and that's talking about people that watched a fucking demon house. Yeah.
01:39:02
Speaker
ah ah The Ghost Hunters movie back in the fucking day, one of our first. And I just I can't get beyond some of this dialogue when he when the one I think it's the military guy when he is is is talking to them and he's hearing about like where, you know, they saw dead bodies back there. He just goes cheese and crackers. Oh, my God. And I'm like, what are we watching?
01:39:28
Speaker
Because he's trying to do this like serious tone, but it's also got this glean of just like goofiness. and it doesn't It doesn't work. And it's so it's so back and forth that I don't know what to watch. Because then we're introduced to Betty Buckley's character towards the end of the movie, who is...
01:39:48
Speaker
I don't even know what kind of insane because sometimes she's pretty nice and you know very endearing and saying, oh, I should – I guess I should cook you dinner now. well and And for like no reason this all happens. To then her like waking up and saying that they stole all of her stuff and going crazy. that's And keep in mind, that's before she's affected by the neurotoxins.
01:40:12
Speaker
And then – This part of the dialogue where we are talking at dinner and um Alma says to Betty Buckley's character says, Oh, I love your place. like I love your house. And she goes, Oh yeah. There's also a spring house in the back. And that's where the, that's where the slaves were escaped. And that has a secret underground talking system. And that's how the movie is like wrapped up with this stuff. I'm like, wow, way to just over explain your plot.
01:40:39
Speaker
I don't, it, Man, I this is this is like the worst movie I i think I've ever seen. i just hate it so much. I think that the whole suicide thing is handled very badly. i think that the explanation of what is going on is very bad. and We have on top of that, when we're trying to explain it, talk about hot dogs for for some yeah weird reason.
01:41:00
Speaker
You like like hot dogs. I'm like, what the fuck are you talking about? Why? and then Why? Why? this This character is trying to like help them and ah get out of here. Go find a safe space. They're suddenly in a greenhouse taking time talking about like plant science and talking about hot dogs they about hot dogs. Like what the fuck are you like? m Night Shyamalan.
01:41:22
Speaker
Can be very good. i agree. But people, something in him allows him to look at every idea that he has and go, you know what? Yeah, that is a good idea.
01:41:34
Speaker
And no one around him apparently ever goes m night. nateep I don't think you should do this. Maybe not this one. I don't know. Yeah. Stick to signs. Like, and that's the thing is like signs crazy.
01:41:46
Speaker
a fan. i think This is, this is the the strange thing about it. Signs is so good that when you look at this, it's just like, how is this the same person? yeah How is this fucking possible that, that the mind that wrote signs and that or the six cents or six cents. mean, both of them are great horror movies.
01:42:06
Speaker
That the mind that wrote both of those and executed them pretty flawlessly when you think about it. Like how on fucking earth did you make this piece of fucking shit?
01:42:19
Speaker
How? Yeah. And there's the one part. And just to get back into like the acting of the dialogue is where they're in the middle of the field. And we just learned that the one group is killing themselves essentially.
01:42:31
Speaker
And all Mark Wahlberg and goes, give me a second. I need a second. Give me a second. I need a second. Well, no one does it. Just give me some fucking time. he He does it for literally a minute. So I'm like, hey, dude, you got a second.
01:42:44
Speaker
You had a second. This is life or death. Like, you got to make a decision. And well like and ultimately, to reward that character with living, I was just like, what the fuck? This is so dumb. From top to bottom, start to finish, this is a real stinker. And like it's just...
01:43:00
Speaker
You know, like ah i knew that it was going to be bad walking in because once again, it was my first time seeing it. But like I didn't I honestly did not know it was going to be this bad. And then the cherry on top to end it with a cliffhanger of it. Now it's happening in Europe. and europe Fuck off.
01:43:18
Speaker
Whatever. like ah You know what? Look, I hope it happens and it kills us all. So we never have to fucking watch this ever again. one One little thing that I noticed in this um is that ah the little girl, Jess, at the end, she has an Avatar backpack, which I believe was the next movie that he directed after this. Oh, weird.
01:43:38
Speaker
Very weird. So kind of a little bit of an Easter egg in that and that area. But once again, like the little girl, okay, like... We get it, m Night Shyamalan. You like a precocious child. Like, we get it yes he does.
01:43:50
Speaker
Like, it's in Signs. It's in The Sixth Sense. It's in Cabin at the End of the World. It's in everything. Like, we get it. But, um honestly, I don't know if I have more to say about this because I just think that it's a pile, gar, baggio. And Andrew, I'll tell you, i i gave this my lowest rating in the history of the show. i'm Now that I've gotten out my hate, I'm going to go down on my score. Yeah. i I gave this a one and a half. I have never given that before. Not even for fucking whatever you call it. um the Demon home house.
01:44:23
Speaker
And I said, it's so incredibly bad. it honestly astounded me. I've never hated Zooey Deschanel or M. Night more in my life. I'm going to give it a two because I think that the idea is not that bad if it was handled differently. Fair enough. Yeah.
Episode Wrap-up and Audience Engagement
01:44:38
Speaker
And I said, any earnestness that they're trying to force into this movie is so discounted by the goofy over the top final destination deaths. The acting and dialogue are just awful. Steer clear of this stinker.
01:44:51
Speaker
Well, folks, you heard that mic drop right here on Friday. The 13th never watched this movie ever. Yeah. So listen, we'll we'll close it here. We'll be right back with our, ah with finishing out the episode and with our final game, which of course is hottie of the episode.
01:45:08
Speaker
And folks, that does for episode 143. But before we go, as always, we have little game And Andrew, tell them what the game and folks that does it for episode one forty three but before we go as always we have a little game for you and andrew tell him what the game is That is the world famous. Yes, I said it. World famous yeah game that we've been playing since I think episode one.
01:45:35
Speaker
Yeah, I think Yes. Hottie of the episode. And if you don't know the rules, the rules are. it's pretty easy. We pick who we're most attracted to in our movies.
01:45:47
Speaker
That's it. Today. That's all. um Andrew, I can tell you mine. Okay. um Mine is honestly Rick Moranis. I was honestly pretty surprised. Like he's a little twinkie in this, a little nerdy, which honestly is right up my alley.
01:46:04
Speaker
And I was really thinking and watching it. I was like, oh God, he actually is kind of cute in this movie. I'm kind of digging it. So for me, he's my hot of the episode. Cool. I definitely get it.
01:46:15
Speaker
um ah Listen, I'm going to be honest. There is slim pickings. Yeah, true. and and in this In this episode for Hottie the episode. um But the fact that I didn't even clock that it was him and I thought he was like kind of handsome. I think I'm going to go with Christopher Guest on this one.
01:46:33
Speaker
and i And I think it's literally like him as like a dressed up dapper towns person. Like, I don't know. It kind of just did something. So I think just going to go with that. i don't know if I'm always attracted to Christopher Guest, but in that role, I think it kind of worked.
01:46:48
Speaker
you're You're most attracted to him when he is quirky St. Clair and waiting for Guffman. So look, folks, that was episode 143, Plants Are Terrifying, from your favorite podcast, Freigate the 13th Horror Podcast. But look, before we let you go, a few things.
01:47:04
Speaker
Number one, just thank you again for listening. Thank you again for being with us. It was a joy to bring you a new episode. um And, you know, once again, of course, happy Pride Month to all of you. Now, look, if you want to support Friday the 13th, a big, beautiful, gay podcast, you can.
01:47:19
Speaker
Don't say big, beautiful. We're dealing with that in a different way. I didn't even think about that. I didn't think about that. But look, there's a couple ways that you can do this. Actually, actually a few ways that you can do this. So look, the first one is you can become a patron on Patreon with us.
01:47:33
Speaker
Second, you can buy some merch from us if you'd like to. um You can do both of those things by going to frygay13.com slash support. That's frygay13.com slash support.
01:47:45
Speaker
Once you're there, you'll find the links for both of those things to become a patron on Patreon and to buy merch. coming to patron on Patreon is really easy. Um, look, we even, we have different levels, but like we literally tell you every episode, like we don't even want you to pay the big ones. Like, honestly, please don't. It's like, don't do that.
01:48:03
Speaker
Just do a dollar. Yeah. Just, just do a dollar a month. And if you do a dollar a month, which is, Not that much money. um It's not. um That's $12 a year. That's all that is.
01:48:15
Speaker
And you have no idea how much that helps us. It helps us in a huge way. It scales out with enough of you. it gives us enough money to take care of equipment, take care of software, take care of movie rentals, and keep the show going. So thank you to everyone who's already a patron. Thank you so, so much for supporting us. It means the world.
01:48:33
Speaker
And thank you to everyone that right now listening to this is thinking, Hmm. Will I do it? Cause I know you're going to. So head over to frygate13.com slash support, click on that button, become a patron for just $1 a month.
01:48:47
Speaker
And Andrew, I think we have a new patron, don't we? We do. Um, we have a new patron. Um, the doctor who target book club podcast joined the Patriot. Fantastic.
01:48:57
Speaker
Fantastic. And i talked to them a little bit, and they are locally based here in Chicago, so maybe I will meet up at some point with ah those creators. We also had a couple of people that joined the free yeah um Patreon account, which is totally fine. um star Star and Jason, thank you so much for at least acknowledging that we have a Patreon and joining so that you can kind of get in on that um that chat and talk with us about the episodes. Because honestly, like...
01:49:25
Speaker
that the The fact that we are kind of downgrading our social um like footprint a little bit, um we just we just aren't interacting as much anymore on yeah a lot of the social platforms.
01:49:37
Speaker
The fact that people want to join the Patreon just to like talk with us and contact us kind of means the world. So even if you just want to join for free, go for it. Amen. But yeah, that about does it. I mean, there's only one other thing that I can think of, and that's if you leave a review on Apple Podcasts. What the fuck, Andrew? That's so fucked up. Oh my God, it made me scared. oh my God.
01:50:05
Speaker
oh there's two places you can leave review apple podcasts and spotify yeah so if you haven't do it because we are nine away nine away from our next big goal and if you can help us get to that that would be fantastic if you haven't left a review yet could you just please go fucking do it like i'm gonna be real just like like take the two minutes that it's gonna take you right now it takes 30 seconds just go fucking just go do that right now please please please wait please please just do it right. And then beyond that, happy Pride Month. We'll be back in a couple of weeks with our annual Pride episode. So stay tuned for that. And beyond that, you know what you can do this month? You can just go ahead and slayed.