Episode 38 - Beyond the Cave

Back in 1974, Mike and Marty remember being terrified by the trailer for a little film called Beyond the Door. Admittedly a rip-off of the enormously successful Exorcist with a touch of Rosemary's Baby, the film raked in cash from a public starving for tales of possession and evil fetuses ( feti ? ). Three years later, a Mario Bava film, originally titled "Schock" was released under the misleading title Beyond the Door 2.  The only thing consistent between the two films is one of the actors, but playing an ENTIRELY different part.  This was a total attempt to cash in on the success of the first film.  Over ten years later, producer Ovidio Assanitis had completed a film to be titled "Amok Train" but thought their might still be some value in changing the title to the completely baffling Beyond the Door 3.  There is zero common-ground between that film and the original in the "trilogy" and yet still, it exists.
The first film is solidly entertaining and packed with WTF moments and a few genuinely creepy moments.  The second film is by Mario Bava, one of the true maestros of Italian cinema, and is very much worthy of your time as a solid haunted-house movie with some great twists and turns.  The third film is 100% crap, and yet still entertaining if you don't mind suffering through bad story, acting and special effects.
Let us know what you thought of the show by writing to flickersfrom@gmail.com or flickersfrom@yahoo.com or by posting a message to our Facebook page.

Episode 37 - The Penis is Evil

John Boorman has given us many great films over his illustrious career. Two of our All-Time favorites are Deliverance and Excalibur.  Before he brought us his version of the incredible James Dickey novel though, he gave the world 1967's Point Blank which stars Lee Marvin, Angie Dickinson and features the debut of John Vernon.  This is a twisty story of criminals and double-crosses, of organizations and the man who stands up against them. It is the story of Walker, who wants his 93K, no matter what.  A brilliantly realized film, technically excellent and featuring a very challenging narrative.  Played very low-key, this surely set the tone for the world would expect from cinema in the 70s.  After Boorman had given the world Deliverance, he was given free reign for his follow-up, so he wrote and directed a real mind-bender, 1974's Zardoz.  Featuring surreal imagery, subtle technology, and enough satire to choke a horse, this is an unfairly lambasted effort.  Starring James Bond himself, Sean Connery, it is set in a post-apocalyptic world, where armed bands of Exterminators follow the command of huge, floating stone head, to wipe the earth clean of brutals. Your choices with Zardoz are to laugh AT it or to laugh WITH it, as it is both serious and also purposely goofy.  Watch it twice, watch it three times, and show it to others, just to see the WTF look on their faces.
Please let us know what you thought of the show by sending mail to flickersfrom@yahoo.com or flickersfrom@gmail.com or by leaving us a message on our Facebook page.

Episode 36 - Like Father Like Son

Episode 36 of the podcast turns to one of our favorite filmmakers, David Cronenberg, and his son Brandon who seems intent on following in his father's footsteps. We start off by looking at the elder Cronenberg's 1979 feature The Brood. Starring Art Hindle, Oliver Reed and the incredible Samantha Eggar, it tells the story of a father who wants only the best for his young daughter while his wife undergoes a mysterious psychological treatment at an isolated retreat. It still packs a wallop and asks questions that are still pertinent. We then turn to Brandon's feature debut, 2012's Antiviral.  Starring Caleb Landry Jones and with a guest appearance by Malcolm McDowell, it posits an alternate present where our celebrity-obsessed culture has taken things to a whole new level, incorporating the virus of famous people into our own bodies. This film has ideas that are big and uncomfortable and fascinating on many levels.
David Cronenberg could be considered the father of body-horror cinema, and we close out the show talking about some of our favorite and yet lesser-known films from his career.
Please let us know what you thought of the show by sending email to flickersfrom@yahoo.com  or  flickersfrom@gmail.com.  You can also leave a message for us over at our Facebook page.

Episode 35 - Zedd's Dead

 

Episode 35 of the podcast is a departure from the format of previous shows. We look at two incredible documentaries that foucs on the late 70s and early 80s of New York City and the largely underground art and music that was being created there at that time. We specifically focus on the Cinema of Transgression and the artists who were part of that movement. The two documentaries we look at are Llik Your Idols which is available on Vimeo, and Blank City which is streaming currently on Netflix. After exploring the two documentaries, we talk about two films that were part of the transgressive movement, Geek Maggot Bingo and They Eat Scum, both from the man who wrote the Cinema of Transgression Manifesto, Nick Zedd.  It was a wild time in the Big Apple, and these films help to give a glimpse of what it was like in those days.

The conversation rambles a bit, and if you've never seen Losman's Lair, you owe it to yourself to check it out over on the Wayback Machine here.

Let us know what you thought of the show by sending email to flickersfrom@yahoo.com or flickersfrom@gmail.com. You can also post a message on the Facebook page.

Episode 34 - Bruceless and Ruthless

Episode 34 features two films that seem, on the surface, to have only David Carradine in common.  The connections go deeper though, since both films were originally slated to star Bruce Lee before his untimely death in 1973. We start with 1978s Circle of Iron, AKA "The Silent Flute". This film has quite an impressive cast, including Mr. Carradine, Roddy McDowall, Christopher Lee and Eli Wallach in a thoroughly bizarre role. It tells the story of Cord the Seeker who seeks to defeat the wizard Zetan and gain the book of knowledge. Originally written by Bruce Lee and James Coburn as a means to spread the ideas of Zen Buddhism to the larger world and as a starring vehicle for the two of them, it eventually was brought to life after Lee's death and is impressive on many levels.  The second film is 1983's Lone Wolf McQuade which features the one and only Chuck Norris as an iconoclastic Texas Ranger who faces off against Mr. Carradine's gun-running social-climber. Barbara Carrera and L.Q. Jones both show up, as does William Sanderson in a small but excellent performance as a toady named Snow.  This is brimming with testosterone and chest hair, in a good way.  Please let us know what you thought of the podcast by sending email to flickersfrom@yahoo.com or flickersfrom@gmail.com or by leaving us a message on our Facebook page.

Episode 33 - Now on the Dollar Menu

The two films we cover on Episode 33 have one thing in common, and that is McBain!  We start off with the eponymous 1991 film McBain starring the almost always watchable Christopher Walken as the titular character.  It is hard to believe how catatonic Walken is as he stumbles through this film from the usually reliable James Glickenhaus.  We then turn to the incredibly fun Bulletproof from 1988 starring the always-toothy Gary Busey as an entirely different McBain.  Leaping from trope to trope and plot-hole to plot-hole, this movie is fun fun fun. There is a tank called the Thunderblast, an RPG-wielding Danny Trejo, and multiple uses of the phrase Butthorn!  What more can you ask from a movie?  Please let us know what you thought of the show by sending email to flickersfrom@yahoo.com or flickersfrom@gmail.com or you can leave us your thoughts on the Facebook page.

Episode 32 - By Any Other Name

Episode 32 of the podcast shows us being too clever for our own good. Two films, both about hitmen, both with the word "mechanic" in the title, and both starring two legendary tough guys.  Surely they must both be excellent, right?  Listen in and find out just how wrong we were as we talk about 1977's Satanic Mechanic starring Lee Van Cleef ( more commonly known as The Perfect Killer ) and 1972's The Mechanic starring the amazing Charles Bronson and directed by show-favorite Michael Winner.  The storylines from these two films are very similar but the quality is worlds-apart.  We had a great time talking about both though.  Please let us know what you thought of the show by sending email to flickersfrom@yahoo.com  or flickersfrom@gmail.com or, if you'd prefer, leave a message over at our Facebook page.

iTunes Problems on PC Fixed

Several listeners were reporting issues with downloading the podcast through iTunes on PC.  The problems have been sorted and now you can download each scintillating episode without trouble!  Welcome back to the cave!

RIP Ray Harryhausen

It would not be an overstatement to say that the incredible work of Ray Harryhausen was one of the gateway drugs that made us into the rabid movie nerds we are today.  His stop motion animation brought fantastic creatures and worlds to life in away that CGI just can't.
He will be missed, but his work lives on to inspire future  generations of film makers and viewers.

Episode 31 - Winner Takes it All

In episode 31 of the podcast, we focus on two films from the massive filmography of director Michael Winner.  Winner's most famous films are probably the Death Wish series which starred Charles Bronson.  We look at two, more obscure movies, 1977's The Sentinel and 1984's Scream for Help.
The Sentinel has a huge cast of top-notch talent, with the lead roles held by Chris Sarandon and Cristina Raines.  It tells the story of woman with a mysterious past who finds herself guided by unseen forces down a dark path in 1970's New York City.  The film is full of surprises, shocks, and squirmy moments galore. With a significant budget and a script based on a successful novel, it works on many levels and has an ending that is almost certain to spur conversation.
Scream for Help is one of the most breathlessly paced films we've ever seen.  It starts with a bang and really doesn't let up until the final credits are rolling.  It is a story of a 17 year old girl played by Rachael Kelly that is confident her step-father is trying to kill her mother. It is of equal measure goofy and grim, light-hearted and brutally frank, silly and deadly serious.  The acting is decidely sub-par and the script ( by the occasionally brilliant Tom Holland ) rings true on occasion, but is far to hit and miss to really be considered "good".  Despite all these issues, the film is impossible to look away from and is almost guaranteed to entertain you. If you have the option, go for the uncut version which features a surprising amount of nudity and sex on screen, and, if you're checking the fuses, watch out for a puddle on the floor.
Let us know what you thought of the podcast by writing to us at flickersfrom@yahoo.com or flickersfrom@gmail.com or you could always leave a message over on our Facebook page.

Episode 30 - Burke to the Future

Who exactly is Martyn Burke? Listen in to this episode of the podcast to hear about two films from this Canadian director that we only recently found out about.  We start off with 1981's The Last Chase which stars the Six Million Dollar Man himself, Lee Majors.  This tells the story of a future where individual transportation has been outlawed and a former racing car driver decides to make a break for the safety of "Free California".  The second film we look at is 1978's Power Play which, at the time of the recording, was available entirely on Youtube but which seems to have been removed now.  Please excuse our constant mentioning of how it was so easy to watch for free...Trust us, it's worth the money or effort that would be required to see it, no matter what.  This film has a truly stellar cast, headlined by David Hemmings, Peter O'Toole, Barry Morse and the always impressive Donald Pleasence.  The plot centers around the attempt by a group of military men to instigate a Coup d'etat. The story is tightly paced, brilliantly written, and delivers on every level.  Please let us know what you thought by sending email to flickersfrom@yahoo.com or flickersfrom@gmail.com or by leaving us a message on our Facebook page.

Episode 29 - Hello Muddah

Episode 29 of the podcast focuses on two remarkable films, 2012's Excision and 2012's We Need to Talk About Kevin.  Both of these movies look at the complicated relationship that exists between children and their parents, specifically focusing on the mother and child in each.  These are not easy films, as they deal very frankly with uncomfortable situations in stylish and artful ways.  Excision features an outstanding performances from AnnaLynne McCord and pornorgraphy's own Traci Lords.  We Need to Talk About Kevin is lead by the phenomenal Tilda Swinton as the beleaguered mother of the eponymous Kevin and she breaks your heart at every turn. Please let us know what you thought of the films and of the episode by sending email to flickersfrom@yahoo.com or flickersfrom@gmail.com, you can also leave us a message at our Facebook page.