July 2020 - Have You SEEN This?

077 – Hudson Hawk

Tim and Jen revisit everyone’s favorite dad-joke heist movie: the unfairly (to some) reviled Hudson Hawk!

Bruce Willis mugging in Hudson Hawk (1991) — Doing an comedy

The entertainment media subjected Hudson Hawk to an unusual amount of negative attention during production. This poor publicity appears to have had a detrimental affect on the box office returns. However, enough time has passed that a nonzero number of people (who aren’t Tim!) will defend it. One of those pieces appeared at the Guardian:

The action scenes are fun, particularly one sequence where Willis is riding a hospital bed down the Brooklyn Bridge (“How am I driving? 1-800-I’m-gonna-fuckin’-die!”)
Oliver Macnaughton

For another movie that became synonymous with “flop,” try our very first episode, where we discussed Ishtar.

076 – Jacob’s Ladder

Jen and Tim bring you another extra-stuft episode! This one’s about a haunting psychological thriller that 100% blames the US government: Jacob’s Ladder!

Hear the entire episode for a pledge of only $2/month and get access to all our other bonus content!

To see Joel Peter Witkin’s remarkable photographic work, view this gallery at Artnet.

075 – The Day After and Special Bulletin

Tim and Jen return to the fevered nuclear paranoia of the 80s! We look at one of the most important TV events of the era, The Day After. We also stick to the show mission statement by highlighting a lesser known nuclear horror telefilm: Special Bulletin.

You can watch Special Bulletin in its entirety here. We recommend it! Also: David Clennon, if you’re out there, come on the show, king.

Michael Madsen in a small role in Special Bulletin (1983) — Hey, this guy who has a bit part in Special Bulletin…does he have a sister?

Following the broadcast of The Day After, ABC aired a panel discussion moderated by Ted Koppel on nuclear proliferation. If you would like to see absolute ghouls like William F. Buckley Jr. and Henry Kissinger argue for “robust defense,” check it out. But really, we watched it for the much-missed Carl Sagan.

For discussion of a movie that makes The Day After look like an episode of Steven Universe, listen to our episode about landmark British telefilm Threads.