The Hopscotch Friday Podcast: Recent Episodes
Stevie and Emmet O'Cuana
Hopscotch Friday is an informed and impassioned pop culture binge. What does that mean? Well, it means we’ll review stuff and give you a good idea of what’s good, what’s bad, and what’s probably worth a cheeky watch anyway. Importantly, we also give you the why. Online we mostly focus on movies and DVDs. But we also like music, games, telly, comics…you name it. If you like what you hear, give us a shout at hopfriday@gmail(.com). Join Stevie and Emmet O'Cuana each week for a bit of pop culture pillow talk.
In part two of our run-down of Australian box office releases, we're up to our knees in cape-wearing vigilantes and magic folks.
BUT - at the time of publishing, James Cameron's Avatar the Way of Water has completely reordered the list! So consider this episode a curio, a remnant before the Ego landed. Enjoy.
In the first of our two-part chat about what movies Aussies went to the cinemas to actually watch in 2022, we talk Sonic the Hedgehog, the folly of Baz Luhrmann's Elvis, and well there's a lot of Chris Pratt chat!
Director David Weiner is back to toll the bells for the end of the In Search of Darkness part III campaign over on In Search of Darkness Part III - Ends Midnight Halloween! – CreatorVC Studios Inc (80shorrordoc.com)
Listeners have until Halloween midnight to get their order in for a copy of the film - as well as a chance to get your name in the credits (and some juicy sounding merch as well.
Emmet asks David Weiner about our nostalgia for horror movies, the thrill of discovering gross out catharsis in a VHS case hidden away at the back of a video store - and recent resurrected iconic horror franchises such as Hellraiser and Halloween.
This episode we have a chat about Lightyear: the controversy and culture war nonsense, and the quiet existentialism of Buzz's mission to return home.
Phew! Finally, we get round to discussing all things Stranger Things season 4. From the Eddie of it all, to the mushrooming cast and the changes to the kinds of horror being depicted onscreen, we dig in.
The loosely adapted tale of Blackbeard and Stede Bonnet - Our Flag Means Death - has proven to be a fan favourite. Stevie and Emmet discuss - also a cat gets involved.
Notes:
- As Emmet mentions, The Dollop and Last Podcast On The Left have also covered this material.
This episode is not a review of Matt Reeves's The Batman. It's a review of season 1 to 6 of Superstore on NBC. ....although you could be fooled!
Stevie and Emmet discuss how this workplace comedy used the format to raise issues with unionism, corporate America - and the COVID pandemic. How successful is Justin Spitzer's show in dealing with these storylines?
Listen on to find out!
(also Emmet keeps talking about Epix's From!).
So right out the gate - spoilers for this 'un if you haven't seen Kenneth Branagh's follow-up to The Orient Express. Stevie and Emmet have thoughts!
Also - Emmet has a comic story with Jeferson Sadzinski, Cardinal Rae and Marcela Corrêa Müller titled How To Win A Raid in the second volume of The BeBop from Bird's Eye Comics. The anthology is now being Kickstarted, so please share and support.
Stevie's back! And she's talking Moonfall, with Emmet, who recounts exactly how long he's hated Roland Emmerich movies.
Ten years ago Emmet had the opportunity to interview Larry Cohen, to promote a visit to Australia as part of MonsterFest October 2012. This episode features segments of their conversation, released as a tribute to mark the 4 year* anniversary of Cohen's passing. During their conversation, Cohen raises his feelings about the use of CGI effects in horror cinema, how his themes have allowed a new generation of film-fans to rediscover his films, as well as shout outs to Bruce Campbell, Quentin Tarantino, and The Big Lebowski.
Also for no apparent reason Emmet decides to shit on Sydney as a filming location!?
Taking on the reins from the late Ivan Reitman, director Jason Reitman returns us to the world of the Ghostbusters - and it feels more like an obligatory school reunion than anything. In this episode Stevie and Emmet discuss how this sequel restages whole sequences from the original movie, the clash of styles between the two Reitmans, and how Ghostbusters is yet another franchise graverobbing its stars using CGI à la Star Wars.
Safe to say, not a recommendation, and spoilers abound!
We were a little slow getting back in the groove for 2022 - so here's a madcap rush to give you some capsule reviews of things we liked so far this year (and some things....we didn't like)!
- Dexter New Blood
- The Matrix Resurrections
- And Just Like That
- The Legend of Vox Machina
- Inventing Anna
With quick mentions of Peacemaker, Archive 81, Arcane and Emily in Paris - we'll get back to those at a later date.
In a tip of the hat to Fred Armisen and Bill Hader's Documentary Now!, Stevie and Emmet look back at some recent documentaries exploring the darker sides of human nature.
How about something with a bet more pep, hurm? But then with the rise of the true crime podcast and - in a post-Tiger King world - there's clearly a demand for the kinds of documentaries that just leave a bitter aftertaste.
So what's that all about.
Included in this episode:
- Pharma Bro
- LuLaRich
- Generation Wealth
- The Way Down
- Weiner
- Repeat Attenders
- The Sparks Brothers
That last one is the exception that proves the rule.
Recorded hours away from the Hawkeye finale on Disney+, Stevie and Emmet weigh in on Hawkeye, the Renner of it all, and of course why Florence Pugh is the best.
Stevie returns for this chat about all things Dune.
We review the latest film, compare it to Jodorowsky's unfinished weird project and David Lynch's finished - and also pretty weird - 1984 production.
And Emmet's short review of Rafe Judkins's adaptation of The Wheel of Time is also featured at the end of the episode.
- Listen to Kumar's appearance on Deconstructing Comics reviewing the Marvel adaptation of Lynch's movie.
This Halloween, director David Weiner and CreatorVC are hosting a crowdfunding campaign to support the release of In Search of Darkness III. The concluding chapter in Weiner's exhaustive 80s horror documentary series, this campaign is offering fans the opportunity to curate what films will be discussed in this entry.
Emmet picks Weiner's brains on his approach to the In Search of Darkness series, his approach as a 'nostalgia curator', how cool Barbara Crampton is - and the discussion exorcises a video store trauma of Emmet's from the 1990s!
Mentioned in the discussion:
- https://80shorrordoc.com/
- Barbara Crampton's appearance on The Flop House
- Umbrella's release of Razorback with awesome Simon Sherry cover art.
After an impassioned text exchange with guest Tan, Emmet agreed to watch Midnight Mass on Netflix.
This episode is the result of that text message! This is a spoilerific conversations folks, so if you haven't yet seen Mike Flanagan's offering, we recommend checking it out first.
This episode we talk about shows and movies that use violence for comic and satirical effect.
Firstly a very impressive Korean drama just released on Netflix called Squid Game. Then we compare the show's approach to using violence - be it extreme and upsetting, or comical - to the likes of James Gunn's Troma-esque The Suicide Squad and Eric Kripke's adaptation of comic The Boys.
(And if you make it to the end, Emmet delivers his rant about HBO's Watchmen!)
Remember Black Widow? The movie that inspired its own Marvel's Civil War between the star and studio?
Well we talk about it here!
(Mainly because Stevie watched it for a second time and has thoughts!).
And Emmet bites his tongue to not blurt out his Taskmaster nerd rant - but here's his favourite comic panel featuring the character:
Director David Freyne's follow-up to Irish zombie drama The Cured is this heartfelt coming out drama set in Co. Kildare.
Fionn O'Shea and Lola Petticrew star as Eddie and Amber, two gay teens just trying to survive school. Spotting that Eddie is equally estranged from their classmates, Amber proposes a solution - they pretend to date until they can finish school!
Shenanigans ensue. This is a sincere and heartfelt film, and the semi-autobiographical touches stir up memories of surviving the 90s for Stevie and Emmet also!
(and before the trip down memory lane, Emmet briefly touches on Kevin Smith's Masters of the Universe for Netflix and the apparent 'controversy').
"Cruella De Vil
Cruella De Vil
If she doesn't scare you
No evil thing will
To see her is to
Take a sudden chill
Cruella, Cruella De Vil"
Stevie and Emmet review Craig Gillespie's Cruella.
Is it a harmless camp foray into Disney villainy with a sidelong glance at the style innovations of Vivienne Westwood, or a heartless corporate product aimed squarely at merchandising aisles?
In other news, Emmet was recently interviewed by Zoran Ilievski for his podcast Graphic Nature, where he discusses coming to comics, a weird coincidence involving a lost script from the early 2000s and The Beating of Wings.
How does Emmet draw a long bow connecting Wild Mountain Thyme and Army of the Dead?
He finds a way.
In happier news we also discuss the Matt "Ireland's favourite uncle" Le Blanc meme and if that brown bread ice cream took your fancy, here's where you can get it.
Stevie and Emmet take a drive to Major Tom's in Kyneton to buy burgers.
More episodes soon.
...barring further incidents with our kangaroo neighbours.
In this episode:
- Emmet mentions his upcoming interview with Zander Cannon (Top Ten, Smax, Kaijumax) for Deconstructing Comics
- Catherine Flynn's upcoming Ulysses anniversary edition (and podcast)
- Upstart Crow
- Girls5eva
- The Mitchells vs The Machines
'The Snyder Cut', officially known as Zack Snyder's Justice League, dropped this week on HBO's streaming platform.
The three year campaign by fans to restore director Zack Snyder's version of Justice League, which we reviewed in episode 42 with Dr Matt Finch, was endorsed by the film-maker and eventually the cast. Additional footage was shot late last year, in combination with original footage and special effects sequences.
If I could turn back time...Ezra Miller as The Flash.
So what did Tan and Emmet make of it?
Also you are strongly advised to check out Leslie Jones's delightful live tweet of Zack Snyder's Justice League here.
Well we cracked. We got Disney+ – after welcoming a wee kitten named Wanda into our house – and watched Wandavision.
We've got plenty to say about this latest show from Marvel Entertainment. In fact Emmet has a bee in his bonnet about whatever folks are saying about this weekly show that inspired intense speculation.
But there is a enough going on in this show, with stars Elizabeth Olsen, Paul Bettany and Kathryn Hahn succeeding to make some magical moments.
(And Emmet spruiks his comic The Beating of Wings, now printed and available at Ownaindi).
Save Yourselves! is an alien invasion dramedy with touches of horror starring Sunita Mani (from Glow, much-missed in this parish) and John Reynolds (Search Party) as a couple who escape to the country just as society starts to fall apart.
And they've just cut themselves off from the internet so for a number of days the couple remain blissfully unaware of their impending doom.
Emmet and Stevie discuss Save Yourselves as an unlikely response to COVID-pandemic and quarantine boredom, and its indie-feature budget inventiveness.
Also:
- Emmet delivers some bad news to Stevie.
- The Eileen Jones article on John Carpenter can be found here.
Just to note as well, this episode was pre-recorded before the latest lockdown in Victoria.
Shhh. This podcast has a kitten now - don't wake her.
Anyway, dozing cats aside, this episode Stevie and Emmet discuss the revamped Saved by the Bell, with returning stars Elizabeth Berkley, Mario Lopez, Mark-Paul Gosselaar and Tiffani Thiessen alongside a new cast of students returning to Bayside High.
And you know what? We loved it. Courtesy of writer/producer Tracey Wigfield and a game cast of actors, this is less a nostalgia-fest, and more an attempt to repair and restore a property with plenty of problematic elements that was simultaneously innocuous - and question why that was.
It's smart and fun stuff people, and pretty underrated as a show.
"Die Hard is a Xmas movie? You don't say!"
Insert Willy Wonka meme here.
Stevie and Emmet missed the boat on their planned 'unexpected Xmas movie run-down', but no matter! They're going to talk about Die Hard anyway. Because, as Stevie says, it's a good film anyway.
Also she has thoughts about Batman Returns she wants to share.
Emmet also raises examples of Die Hard-likes, such as Dwayne Johnson's Skyscraper (which we reviewed here) and the bloody good fun of Steven Yeun and Samara Weaving going on an office-workplace rampage in Mayhem.
Also mentioned:
- 2020 highlights, Heavn by Jamila Woods and in books, Francesca Wade's excellent history Square Haunting: Five Women, Freedom and London Between the Wars
- Emmet's new comic The Beating of Wings, with Jeferson Sadzinski, Thomas Mauer, Tim Molloy, Laura Renfrew, Aisling King-Macklin and Sarah Winifred Searle is available from Comixology now
With apologies to the guests Emmet invited to join him - here is a belated pilot episode for a dedicated podcast on every issue of Jeff Smith's Bone.
For a conversation about issues #1 and #2 of the comic, Emmet speaks to author, journalist and comic creator Anthony Castle https://anthonyncastle.com/.
The Queen's Gambit, based on Walter Tevis's novel, is the latest hit from Netflix.
Starring Anya Taylor-Joy, Marielle Heller and Moses Ingram, the miniseries explores themes of addiction and isolation through the experience of chess prodigy Beth Harmon.
Stevie and Emmet discuss the show, its treatment of addiction and the subsequent criticism of it within the press, and why Emmet is reluctantly going to watch The New Mutants.
First off, we open the episode with the ambition of reviewing The Queen's Gambit. That did not happen. We had too much to say about Lovecraft Country. So check back in with us next episode for that!
Instead Stevie and Emmet get stuck into a discussion of Misha Green's Lovecraft Country. Jonathan Majors, Jurnee Smollett, Wunmi Mosaku and Michael K. Williams are among the excellent cast-members of this horror series that centres the genre legacy of Lovecraft against the lived experience of Black Americans.
Also mentioned:
- Josephine Tay's novel The Daughter of Time
- How Lovecraft Country exemplifies the critical approach to the author H.P. Lovecraft the genre needs.
- 'Blank spots' in how history is taught in the US and Australia.
- Emmet's piece on Michael Shea.
Scream, Queen! My Nightmare on Elm Street is a horror film documentary with a lot to say.
Focusing on the experience of actor Mark Patton, who starred as Jesse in A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge, it explores the impact on the actor of the gay panic response to the homoerotic themes and imagery of the film.
Patton's candid and pained reflections on homophobia in Hollywood, and the wider world, in the era of AIDS and religious lobbyists targeting gay rights, form the spine of this emotional film.
Directors Roman Chimienti and Tyler Jensen also features the contrast of 'Freddy fans' who mock the perceived gay content of the film with advocates reclaiming both Freddy's Revenge, and Mark Patton, as an icon for queer cinema.
Stevie and Emmet discuss the film and the emotional highs and lows of this sensitive subject matter.
Also:
- Stevie's piece Strangeberries as featured in Polly Borland's Wundergym exhibition
- Emmet recommends listening to Tear Them Apart, with Paul M Yellovich and co-host Beasts of Burden/Blackwood creator Evan Dorkin, and their recent whistle-stop tour of the Friday the 13th franchise
- Emmet and Tim Molloy have an 'ecological horror story' featured in The Hierograph, which has a Kickstarter campaign
- Scream, Queen! is available to view on Shudder and on DVD from Umbrella Entertainment in Australia.
So as it becoming custom, we open this episode with an apology for the delay in posting!
2020 has been...eventful. And we are now living in country Victoria after escaping Melbourne's COVID-lockdown.
In a funk of post-move fatigue, we binged five Fast & Furious movies.
Turns out we have a lot to say about these films, from Vin Diesel's self-insert fantasy of an indomitable and virile hero-figure, to Lucas Black aging ten years in a scene, James Wan's prominence in Australian cinema and that bloody plane runway in Fast & Furious 6.
- Here's the link to the Hierograph Kickstarter, featuring a story by Emmet O'Cuana and Tim Molloy.
- And Aurealis #135 features an essay by Emmet on the writing of Michael Shea.
In our Emmy Awards round-up episode we mentioned the Hugh Jackman vehicle Bad Education. Here we go into the story of Frank Tassone – and shout-out to Laci Mosley's excellent show Scam Goddess which brought the Roslyn school district scandal to our attention.
But like everyone in Melbourne, we are still in lockdown, so instead of risking our lives to go see Tenet, we binged seasons 1 & 2 of Battlestar Galactica.
(Seriously don't risk your life to see a movie, it's not worth it).
Does the show live up to our memories of it? How about the controversial ending to the show, or how it handles politics, religion and paranoia as a genre show in a time before Game of Thrones mainstream plaudits?
Also:
- we're watching The Boys and Emmet stupidly reread the entire comic run by Ennis and Darrickson in two days
- Emmet's story 'The Physical Impossibility of British Art' is out
- Aurealis magazine - issue 135 will feature Emmet's article on Michael Shea.
Next month on Monday 21 September 2020, the 72nd Emmys will be held.
We haven't really discussed the Emmys before but this year has a cohort of nominees that caught our eyes.
From Succession, to Schitt's Creek, Watchmen to The Mandalorian, we give a quick accounting of our picks from the bunch.
This episode is a real sink and swim effort for any listener who hasn't played the Dragon Age video game series. Emmet reached out to Aimee Hart from Gayming Magazine after reading her article Here's Why You Should Play Dragon Age 2, Like, Right Now.
Following up on Aimee's piece, which identifies a number of ambitious themes featured in the writing for this much maligned game, this episode also touches on the gameplay, choosing the personality for main character Hawke, criticisms of Dragon Age 2, and how it sits with other entries in the franchise Dragon Age: Origins and Dragon Age: Inquisition.
On and Dragon Age 2 came out 9 years ago, so there are spoilers aplenty in this discussion.
And for fans of the series, here's Emmet's interview with Nunzio DeFilippis and Christina Weir the writing team behind Dragon Age: Blue Wraith, over on Deconstructing Comics.
Eurovision, a heady brew of camp and pop music, has finally landed in the consciousness of American pop culture zeitgeist thanks to this Netflix film starring Will Ferrell, Rachel McAdams and Dan Stevens.
Stevie and Emmet discuss the film, their connections to Eurovision, and throw in a nod to John C. Reilly flick Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story.
Emmet interviews Craig Cormick and Harold Ludwick on their book On A Barbarous Coast. A reimagining of the HMB Endeavour's arrival - it sinks - Cormick and Ludwick discuss how this fork in the accounting of Australia's history allowed them to reflect on how indigenous Australians have been excluded from the colonial record.
The authors also discuss:
- how their collaboration came about
- how their book treats of Captain Cook
- the use of language
- and the relevance of BLM protests to their account.
Nick Hornby's High Fidelity was adapted to film in 2000, and now Ugly Betty's Sarah Kucserka and Veronica West have brought it to Hulu as a vehicle for Zoe Kravitz.
Stevie and Emmet talk about the television series, comparing it to the Stephen Frears/John Cusack flick from 2000 and the original novel. The gender-swap conceit is addressed, as well as the ensemble cast (Da'Vine Joy Randolph, Jake Lacy, David H. Holmes, Kingsley Ben-Adir and Rainbow Sun Francks) and how the show fails to properly update material to the times leaning on nostalgia.
Thinking to put their money where their mouths are, Stevie and Emmet then share top five lists for one another.
To listen, check out this playlist on Spotify.
Also, here is a list of album cover art by Elaine 'Sgraffito' Nic Cuana.
Oh and this was our 100th episode! Thanks for listening folks.
Alejandro Landes's film Monos has screened to rave reviews around the world. Our roving reviewer Neevon Mohtaji attended a screening back in March. In this episode, Emmet challenges Neevon to try and remember a film he saw two months ago, in the before-COVID-19 times!
For digital release details, Australian listeners should check Madman for updates. Stay safe folks!
Oh why oh why did we agree to this!
In the last episode Emmet joked about watching the sequence of films that led to Alien Versus Predator in 2004 - and a listener thought that was a great idea. Apparently this was more a geas than a simple request, so Stevie and Emmet watched:
- Predator
- Predator 2
- Alien Versus Predator
- Aliens Versus Predator: Requiem
Phew!
The credit due to Randy Stradley, Phil Norwood, Chris Warner, as well as Mark Verheiden's comics work in setting this franchise in motion, published by Dark Horse, is also discussed.
Also discussed:
- Walt Williams's Significant Zero
- Dirty Money on Netflix
- coronavirus and capitalism
- Watts River Brewery (buy local kids!)
- Aliens: Dead Orbit by James Stokoe
- Aliens: Labyrinth by Jim Woodring and Kilian Plunkett
Handily collected on Netflix, the Jurassic Park franchise has been a blockbuster staple for almost thirty years.
Stevie and Emmet discuss the first, third and most recent 'Jurassic' flicks, the underrated Jurassic Park III, the overall theme of capitalism and science being turned to deadly or humanist ends - and just how creepy was Jeff Goldblum's Dr Ian Malcolm?
Also in this episode:
- those annoying Zach Braff podcast promos
- Finna by Nino Cipri
- Ghil Dirthalen, a Dragon Age Youtube channel's review of Blue Wraith (and a nod to Emmet's interview with Christina Weir/Nunzio DeFilipis)
- making a Dolly Varden cake
- Tiny Tim's The Ice Caps Are Melting
- the origins of Alien Versus Predator
We live in capitalism. Its power seems inescapable. So did the divine right of kings. Any human power can be resisted and changed by human beings. Resistance and change often being in art, and very often in our art, the art of words.
Ursula K. Le Guin
First thanks as always for listening folks. In this episode Emmet and Stevie relate a personal bereavement and how the Covid-19 pandemic has impacted them. The eulogy for Gerard Cooney can be found here https://www.emmetocuana.com/news/2020/3/20/rip-gerard-cooney-1942-2020
In the meantime, now that we're all shut-ins following social distancing protocols, some recommendations:
- Tiger King, the Netflix docuseries that's taken the world by storm
- Unbelievable, a rape drama series inspired by true events starring Kaitlyn Dever, Merritt Wever and Toni Colette
- Crowded, a near-future comic about a 'murder app' from Christopher Sebela, Ro Stein, Ted Brandt, Triona Farrell and Cardinal Rae https://imagecomics.com/comics/releases/crowded-vol-1-tp
Shout-outs also to Jason Franks and Neevon Mohtaji for....well helping us with groceries from our quarantine.
Jason Franks https://jasonfranks.com/
Neevon Mohtaji https://player.vimeo.com/video/240460026
Belatedly we catch up with the critical furore around Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of one Harley Quinn (...now rebranded as Harley Quinn: Birds of Prey).
After wading through all of ...that... we cover Queen & Slim, out in Australia this week.
Written by Lena Waithe and directed by Melina Matsoukas, this film takes head on the themes of 'black lives matter' and police violence head on. Emmet argues Waithe's screenply juxtaposes the figures of Slim (Daniel Kaluuya) and Queen (Jodie Turner-Smith), with the idea of the outlaw so precious to American folklore. Full of sudden bursts of violence and artfully staged sequences that point to Matsoukas' history as a music video director, Queen & Slim is a provocative and rich picture for our times.
Also mentioned:
- Soda and Telecast's Anthony Pollack interviews Emmet
- Emmet interviews Dr Brian Cremins on Shazam!
- And the What's in my Bag Flea ep.
Stevie attended the premiere for Miss Fisher and the Crypt of Tears and interviewed stars Essie Davis and Nathan Page, as well as author Kerry Greenwood.
This cinematic outing for Miss Fisher, out in Australian cinemas this week, follows a successful crowdfunding campaign, a testament to passionate fans of the television series. Stevie got to meet some of them in person at the 1920s costume themed event at the (appropriately art deco) Rivoli cinema in Camberwell.
In part two of Stevie and Emmet's chat about films they relate to in particular - and it's a long 'un - you can hear discussed:
- The popularity of The Castle
- Priscilla Queen of the Desert
- Australian film and cultural cringe
- The Dish
- Romper Stomper
- Hugh Sullivan's The Infinite Man
- Shirley Temple's The Blue Bird
- Trading Places
- Wayne's World
- Hackers
- Scully from the X-Files as a role model
- Morgan Freeman in Seven
- Tea With The Dames
- Pontypool
- The Godfather
- Raging Bull
- David Harbour
- Maggie Gyllenhaal
- Luc Besson's Lockout
- Jurassic Park
- Arnold Schwarzenegger movies - The Last Action Hero, Kindergarten Cop, Terminator: Dark Fate and Maggie
Phew!
Tip of the hat to Brett Goldstein's Films to be Buried With. We borrowed his structure of an interview on film based around the premise that the subject has died and is looking back on their favourite flicks.
We in turn asked one another a series of questions about the films that make us who we are.
So join us on this trip at times nostalgic, sometimes regretful, and listen as we learn a bit more about one another.
Part one of two episodes.
Making a welcome appeal to kindness and care for others, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood follows on from last year's documentary on Fred Rogers Won't You Be My Neighbor.
Impressively this fictionalised account of a journalist (Matthew Rhys) encountering Rogers when his life is at a low-point manages to combine the needs of narrative and a genuine impression of the television entertainer's life.
As a complement to Heller's film, we also discuss John Mulaney And The Sack Lunch Bunch. (available on Netflix) While the approach is not the same as Mr Rogers, the sincere interest in what children are thinking allows for the comparison.
A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood is out in Australia from January 23.
We are not reviewing Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. And that's because, well, we've already said everything we needed to.
While this household is a The Last Jedi is good household, two years ago in episodes 44 and 45 of this podcast we had already discussed how narrow the focus of Star Wars as a franchise had become.
So here are extracts from those episodes highlighting concerns we already had with the franchise, which The Rise of Skywalker...let's say it leaned into them and leave it at that.
Jake Kasdan and cast return to Jumanji for the sequel that provves if it ain't broke, don't fix it. Then a change of pace for Scarlett Johansson vehicles Marriage Story and Jojo Rabbit.
We're taking a trip back to 1980.
That is, we're revisiting the worlds of The Shining and The Empire Strikes Back, courtesy of Mike Flanagan's Doctor Sleep and The Mandalorian from Disney+.
Also discussed, Diane Johnson's account from 2018 on adapting the Shining with Stanley Kubrick. https://scrapsfromtheloft.com/2018/01/08/writing-the-shining-by-diane-johnson/
Are these films plumbing the nostalgia dollar? Where's left to go after recycling elements of works that were themselves recycled versions of 1950s pop culture?
Finally Emmet plugs his story Kill Screen, w/ Jeferson Sadzinski and Colin Bell, which was published in The Art of Hate http://centrala.org.uk/shop/the-art-of-hate/
It's Halloween, so we've got zombies, satanists, space necromancers - and killer robots from the future.
In this episode we discuss:
- the deliberately repetitive zombie humour of the sequel to 2009's Zombieland
- Samara Weaving vehicle Ready or Not, an Eat the Rich fable for our time
- Tamsyn Muir's Gideon the Ninth (with a tip of the hat to the author interview on Death//Sentence)
- and Linda Hamilton's triumphant return in Terminator: Dark Fate.
So something spooky and ooky for everyone.
What two episodes in one week!
Well we do like to spoil you.
This episode sees the return of guest, film-maker Tanzeal Rahim, to discuss all things The Joker.
Now in something of a change of format, here Tanzeal has been asked to convince Emmet to go see the film. Listen to find out if he was successful.
This week we try to look past the Ad Astra hot takes (daddy issues in space, Apocalypse Now in space, Space Cowboys 2....did we miss one?).
Is this a film loved by critics, but not by the punters?
On an entirely unrelated note, we also review Dark Phoenix...let's get it over with.
While Pennywise the clown is back in the cinemas, with IT: Chapter 2, Stevie and Emmet did not particularly like the first one. So they have not gone to see it.
This inspired a conversation all about Stephen King's four decades of immense commercial success and just why is it people are attracted to his stories about flawed characters facing off against cosmic horrors.
In this episode: IT, The Shining, Salem's Lot, The Mist and Mike Flanagan's upcoming adaptation of Doctor Sleep.
Also discussed –
Japanese and American Horror by Katarzyna Marak
"You have always been the caretaker: the spectral spaces of the Overlook Hotel, Mark Fisher's discussion of trauma and abuse in The Shining, collected in K-Punk from Repeater books.
Mud and Starlight: The Alan Moore Interviews 2008—2016 by Pádraig Ó Méalóid
20 years on we take a look at The Matrix, its influence on the broader pop culture and the reported return of the franchise courtesy of Lana Wachowski.
Plus we oo and aah over the ageless Keanu Reeves and Carrie-Anne Moss.
In addition:
- The Matrix as a gateway to cyberpunk
- The changing meaning of 'red pilling'
- That time Grant Morrison thought The Invisibles was ripped off
- And when Australia was the site of film culture in 1999!
Our recommendations this episode –
High Weirdness by Erik Davis
https://mitpress.mit.edu/books/high-weirdness
Television by City Calm Down
https://youtu.be/alws83lvELM
http://smarturl.it/CCDTelevision
This episode, director Tanzeal Rahim – who previously appeared on episode 39: Urine Aid – returns to discuss Quentin Tarantino's latest Once Upon A Time in Hollywood.
The discussion takes in the use of violence, Tarantino's essential convervative vision, the choice to cast the Manson family with the daughters of Hollywood actors and directors – as well as Tarantino's own critic-proof reputation as a cinematic genius.
Booksmart and Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw, two movies that defy segues and punctuation.
We could try and sell you on how the two films treat of gender from their respective positions of indie movie critical darling and monster global franchise about cars...and spies?
But let's not.
Look we've been drinking some wine you guys.
Well first off spoilers for Avengers: Endgame.
This second collaboration between Marvel and Sony Pictures on Spider-Man is an unexpected conclusion to the events in that film.
In addition to the usual superheroics (with a dash of media commentary), Far From Home also returns the winning cast of classmates for Peter Parker, including Zendaya, Jacob Batalon, Martin Starr and Angourie Rice.
And then we squeeze in the most bingeable of Netflix shows, Stranger Things 3, which goes in hard on the 80s nostalgia.
How do you have a world without the Beatles and the Rolling Stones are exactly the same!
Well Yesterday doesn't trouble itself with such questions.
We discuss Richard Curtis and Danny Boyle's Beatlemania 'Mandela effect' movie Yesterday.
Then we round out the episode with Men in Black: International which powers along thanks to the combined charm of Tessa Thompson and Chris Hemsworth.
Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett's Good Omens was a favourite book of Emmet's back in the 90s and over two decades later it has landed on Amazon Prime. Last year Justin Cronin's vampire apocalypse epic The Passage also was adapted to television (sadly it has since been cancelled. As a fan of both books, Emmet has thoughts on their televised iterations (Stevie didn't read the book, but also has opinions on the shows).
Also Emmet messed up - the nod in the Roman sequence of Good Omens was to Spartacus, not Ben Hur
Here we are folks, a movie franchise about a man who is on an unstoppable rampage of revenge, full of bloody violence - and we love it. We want more!
In this film, John Wick (Keanu Reeves) is stripped of all protections by the mysterious High Table and is forced to go on the rule, while his former allies are investigated by the Adjudicator (Asia Kate Dillon).
Also lots of dudes die.
Stevie and Emmet talk director Chad Stahelski's emphasis on stuntcraft, connections with other films - and the appearance of the one, the only, Jason Mantzoukas.
(For more of Priscilla Page's writing on John Wick, see her Twitter account, e.g. https://twitter.com/BBW_BFF/status/1129895235876581376 ).
SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS
Well everyone else was doing one, so we did too.
A review of Avengers: Endgame that is.
So what did we make of this closing chapter to a series of 22 films? And is this the death of cinema, or just a good time at the movies that will in all likelihood make you cry? Listen to find out.
(Also we talk Hellboy...yes the new one).
We review Marvel's Captain Marvel and DC"s Shazam!, who used to be Captain Marvel....confused yet?
First up Brie Larson's turn as the galactic superhero who lands in the 90s. How does this character introduction in a film that acts as a bridging chapter between Avengers movies pan out? And what did Stevie make of the use of chart music from the mid-90s (spoiler - not a fan).
Then Warner/DC's Shazam! veers into a happier, sunnier superhero flick for that fictional universe (with occasional flashes of David F. Sandberg's horror credentials).
Where Captain Marvel has to introduce a new character, Shazam! feels like a tonal course correction for a studio. We were big fans.
Also if you are in Sydney on 26 April, check out the Ledger Awards ceremony at the State Library NSW for a celebration of all things Australian comics. For more information visit http://ledgerawards.org/
Us and Russian Doll are two special auteurist productions that defy easy categorisation.
Firstly Jordan Peele's Us delivers on its promise from the first shot of a strange fable about America, with nods to 80s horror. Then Natasha Lyonne's Russian Doll escapes the dangers of an autobiographical warning about the dangers of excess, by becoming an existential fable that soars.
Now only one of us went to see, um, Us, so it's a one-sided discussion, but we're both going this week. So take that as you will.
(Also this interview with 'Us' star Winston Duke by Scroobius Pip is well worth your time http://tiny.cc/edhm4y )
Stephen Merchant's comedy biopic of Paige, WWE star and the first of a new generation of wrestlers - is an absolute treat.
Heartfelt, touching, and very, very funny.
Also Nick Frost and Lena Headey are a revelation as the loving parents of Paige (played to great effect by Florence Pugh.
This is a great flick and well worth your time (also it stars The Rock!).
Apologies for the late episode folks, but it's been quite busy in the O'Cuana household. For one thing Emmet's got a comic out called Faraway, illustrated by Jeferson Sadzinski and Thomas Mauer - learn more about it here https://www.emmetocuana.com/news/2019/2/23/faraway-is-here-away
Speculating about the Oscars is clearly more fun than the Oscars. But the 2019 promises to be something of a shambles.
From missing presenters, to nominee controversy, there's a lot to shake one's head at.
But certain nominations - and snubs - have really got Emmet and Stevie's goat up. So that's what this episode is mostly about (also, Avengers Endgame and sad Steve Rogers, but that's more an aperatif).
The marketers have declared - seniors at the cinema means big dollars.
But while this commercial push for films aimed at older cinemagoers has produced some regrettable flicks - Last Vegas... - there are quite a few films about aging and reflection that are enjoyable.
Stevie and Emmet talk Tea With The Dames and Last Orders, two films that capture a generation of British acting talent.
This episode is also dedicated to the memory of Albert Finney.
Stevie, following a binge of Netflix's recent acquisition of You from Lifetime, wanted to know if the show has something to say about onscreen relationships.
In this episode we discuss other examples of emotionally abusive relationships on screen, from You to Gone Girl, and whether these productions represent a shift in how we talk about this topic since the days of the bunny boiler.
(Also Emmet manages to segue the conversation to Supernatural, because of course).
Ok well at least it wasn't a sequel to Bright.
Netflix has claimed some extraordinary viewing numbers over the Xmas season, with 45 million of you streaming Sandra Bullock vehicle Bird Box. Also social media went wild for Charlie Brooker's latest nihilist futurist vision Black Mirror: Bandersnatch (well 1980's futurism - look it makes sense when you watch).
Stevie and Emmet review the two offerings from the streaming service and question just how engaging a Netflix view is against a trip to the cinema - which has a dollar value attached.
*Nice
Apologies for the late review, but Xmas descended suddenly and well - we didn't do it.
So here is part one of a bumper episode, with part two discussing how Netflix dominated the holiday season.
Mortal Engines is adapted from Philip Reeve's inventive fantasy series by the team behind the Tolkien films - but did they show the same grasp of how to play to the source material's strengths and invent more cinematic sequences?
Next up - Bird Box and Black Mirror: Bandersnatch.
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is the perfect Xmas present - a superhero film that is unashamedly comic book-y.
A coming of age story that nails each and every emotional beat.
Oh and it has Nicholas Cage!
Look you've already read the reviews of Robin Hood (2018) - in fact Folding Ideas anticipated almost Emmet's entire review!
He's not bitter but.
Antifa hoodies, Gulf War film tropes in the time of the Crusades and that Batman riff - there's lots to talk about here.
Also we visited Real Groovy in Auckland and give the store a shout-out (then rip-off the excellent 'What's in my bag' show from Amoeba).
Stevie raves about a whole bunch of films, instead of sticking to the 5*5 rule! Grrr. Arrg.
While the reputation of this film has been coloured slightly by the loss of director Michael Reeves at a young age, it remains a cult classic.
A flop on its release - and apparently used as roadfill! - The Wicker Man is a pagan folk horror curiousity that has endured over the years.
It is easy to understand why the film remained one of Christopher Lee's personal career favourites.
It's the Exorcist - what more do you want!
Stevie revisits Friedkin's classic for her latest Halloween Horror Bite.
Jordan Peele's Get Out feels like a horror chamber piece Shirley Jackson and Ralph Ellison maybe put together during the writing of The Invisible Man. It is timely, brilliantly unnerving and heralds the arrival of a new horror director with a vision.
It's also Emmet's third Halloween horror pick.
Before bringing about the downfall of Asgard in Thor: Ragnarok, Taika Waititi gave us - Wellington. Or Vellington, as this Kiwi horror comedy depicts the town as being overflowing with supernatural creatures. Stevie explains her love of What We Do In The Shadows.
For his second horror flick recommendation, Emmet makes the case for George Romero's Night of the Living Dead. Not just a classic of the zombie genre, but a game-changer for independent cinema as well.
For the second Hallowee Horror Bite Stevie chooses Tremors - and gives a sneaky shout-out to Irish horror flick Grabbers.
Hereditary is our first pick for this Halloween season. Not just a good scary flick, but a genuine horror classic.
This year we're trying something different. From now until Halloween, Hopscotch Friday will be posting short reviews of our personal favourite horror films - in case you're looking for something to watch over the season.
This episode we review - Damien Chazelle's biopic of Neil Armstrong First Man, Tom Hardy's cannibal alien flick Venom, and the latest adaptation of Nick Hornby 'Juliet, Naked'.
And we also shout-out Fearscape from Vault Comics, by Ryan O'Sullivan and Ram V.
Last season the Gorgeous Ladies Of Wrestling were trying to get a show together.
This year they are fighting to not get cancelled.
It's a show about gender politics, the vagaries of the entertainment industry, discrimination - and lots of wrestling.
Also this episode -
ACMI's Alice exhibition, Wonderland, which is wrapping up in Melbourne this October.
And Emmet retracts a book recommendation.
Does Insatiable, a vehicle for star Debby Ryan that caused a wee stir with its headline grabbing trailer, challenge fat-shaming in society?
Or is this a show that wallows in discrimination while claiming to be satire?
We talk all things Insatiable this week, as well as give shout-outs to -
Somebody Feed Phil
Glow season 2 from Netflix
Giant Days volume 8 from John Allison and Max Sarin
Oh and Stevie's side project.
Mission Impossible: Fallout follows on from the events of Rogue Nation, and continues to mark the franchise's upswing in quality.
Partly this is due to the rewarding collaboration between star Tom Cruise and director/writer Christopher McQuarrie.
But this is also a franchise that has found its feet after the initial post-Cold War confusion as to who the enemy is.
Turns out, it's us. Anyway we dive in to what we liked about the most recent entry and trace the series' growth over the years.
This episode we talk A Quiet Place - is it a Christian right parable for family values....or just a silly monster movie?
Then we talk season 3 of Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, which begins at the lowest point of Rebecca Bunch's life (brilliantly played by show co-creator Rachel Bloom) and then ends on a cliffhanger that has us eager to see where the show will finish in season 4.
And while you're there....
Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson and Neve Campbell star in this Hong Kong-set riff on Die Hard. There's a building - but a bigger one. There's terrorists - but they're beefier. And there's an unstoppable family man on the loose to stop them - but instead of Bruce Willis, it's the Rock.
What did Emmet and Stevie make of it all? Listen to find out.
Also discussed -
PCAF
Ant-Man and The Wasp/Incredibles 2
Top five 'good' comics from the past ten years
Eleanor Davis - How to be Happy
Roger Langridge - Snarked.
The Long Weekend in Alice Springs - Joshua Santospirito.
Gary Spencer Millidge's Strangehaven serialised in the Meanwhile... anthology from Soaring Penguin Press.
Emily Carroll - Through the Woods.
Cinemascore be damned - Hereditary is great!
Gee people whaddya want?
Beyond the conversation about the difficult measures horror cinema is held to by both critics and fans, we also review Ari Aster feature film debut.
J.A. Bayona's Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom is discussed, as well as the declining appeal of Chris Pratt.
In addition:
The Trauma Cleaner: One Woman’s Extraordinary Life in Death, Decay & Disaster by Sarah Krasnostein
Bloomsday in Melbourne, as well as the Bloomsday theatrical production Holy Cow!
PCAF - Perth Comics Arts Festival, featuring both a symposium and a market day
Halloween (2018) and Here Alone (2016)
SPOILERS FOR DEADPOOL 2
Firstly - Stevie is back! And then we open our review episode of Deadpool 2 by discussing Ireland's Repeal the 8th Amendment referendum. Other points raised include
- Marvel UK's Knights of Pendragon and Schitt's Creek
- Deadpool 2
- Was Shatterstar ever cool?
- Deadpool as a blend of badass and camp.
- Did the screenwriters employ the hoary comic book trope of 'fridging?'
- 'Would that this hoodie were a time hoodie'.
- Black Tom Cassidy!
Neevon is back - and he comes with reviews of Amy Schumer's I Feel Pretty and the Martin Freeman zombie flick Cargo.
This episode we:
- Talk about Avengers Infinity War quickly, without any spoilers
- What comics you should read to catch up on the events of that film, including Jim Starlin's Warlock
- I Feel Pretty's theme of body confidence
- Emmet's simmering resentment that Cargo didn't win Tropfest
- The use of Indigenous peoples as fantasy figures in genre stories
- The potential advantage of Cargo landing on streaming for horror in Australian cinema
Till next time, cheers folks.
Peadar Ó Guilín stops by to talk about The Invasion, his sequel to the Irish mythological horror series that started with The Call.
Peadar talks his sources of inspiration for the series, the changing face of genre writing - and a tease of what's in store with his upcoming stories for George R.R. Martin's Wild Cards series.
(Also we get into a quick study of what the séimhiú is and how to pronounce Saoirse Ronan - so Irish students, take note).
David Chang's series on Netflix sparks an unlikely conversation encompassing politics, culture and identity.
It also has Chang, food critic Peter Meehan, and other chefs in beautiful locations around the world eating fantastic looking meals. So far, so Bourdain.
But this show organically develops into a far more wide-ranging discussion - and Stevie and Emmet are fully on board.
(so on board they took a break on their wedding anniversary to discuss).
Also in this episode:
Judas Priest
Quitting Facebook
Penny Dreadful
And the charming film Pork Pie (which we reviewed in episode 13)
Kay Cannon's Blockers really surprised me. While I went in expecting a grossout comedy after catching the trailer (which caused Stevie to bow out), what I discovered instead was a sincere and sharply witty film about our attitudes to sex.
Concerned more with the hang-ups of parents played by Leslie Mann, John Cena and Ike Barinholtz than their onscreen children (Kathryn Newton, Geraldine Viswanathan and Gideon Adlon), Blockers does indulge in scenes with bodily fluids flying hither and thither - but it's also an interesting investigation of the pressures we put on young women when it comes to sex.
Next we discuss Alex Garland's long-awaited Annihilation, adapting the first novel of Jeff VanderMeer's The Southern Reach trilogy to the...well our smallscreen as it turns out.
This episode we discover the playful (yet terrifically black) comedy The Death of Stalin from director Armando Iannucci.
This is a fantastic piece of political satire that challenges the safe revisionism of historical dramas onscreen through the choice to have the actors use their actual accents.
We also talk about the Marimekko exhibition currently on at Bendigo Art Gallery and Altered Carbon on Netflix.
Also - let us know for an upcoming episode what films personally disappointed you. Email hopfriday@gmail.com, or drop us a line on social.
And we're back - Hopscotch is now a fortnightly podcast, giving us more time to do this whole 'life' business we've heard so much about.
This episode we talk Ladybird and Black Panther.
Emmet attempts to link the two by arguing that Ladybird, directed by Great Gerwig, occupies the position of 'sensitive young person comes of age' vacated by male film-makers - who are now applying that model to superhero films.
But is the quickly becoming familiar Marvel model holding back film concepts like the rich world of Wakanda in Black Panther? We discuss.
A series of mortals travel to a land of Faerie - and things go bad.
This is the substance of Jason Franks's novel, a wickedly inventive take on fantasy fiction, or "C.S. Lewis with curse words" as Emmet puts it.
And if you are in Melbourne on Thursday 15 February at 6.30, come along to the launch at Readings Hawthorn, 701 Glenferrie Rd, Hawthorn, Victoria 3122 to meet the author (and you can check out the book itself here).
Margot Robbie and Allison Janney are receiving Oscar attention for their daughter/mother roles in I, Tonya.
But does Craig Gillespie's film play too loose with facts, or is the approach he takes an astute method of confronting audiences too willing to look the other way to stories of domestic abuse?
Also - from next week Hopscotch is going fortnightly.
Neevon Mohtaji joins the show to discuss The Post, starring Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks as owner Kay Graham and editor Ben Bradlee of The Washington Post during its transformation into the paper of record.
Is this another Oscar contender for Spielberg given its themes of the importance of the Fourth Estate - or a formulaic 'prestige picture'?
Emmet and Neevon discuss.
Driven to his sickbed by a nasty bug, Emmet decided the only thing for it was to read Michael Wolff's surprisingly slim cause de célèbre Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House.
Then we talk Guillermo del Toro's aquatic romance The Shape of Water starring Sally Hawkins, Michael Shannon and Octavia Spencer, with Doug Jones as the underwater lover.
Finally the gig that Godspeed You! Black Emperor just hosted in Launceston for MOFO, in partnership with dance troupe The Holy Body Tattoo - which simply had to be seen to be believed (we try to talk about it anyway).
It was very loud.
Next week Neevon returns to discuss Spielberg's The Post.
Is pop culture something we're passionate about - or something we're told to be passionate about?
That's the question we're asking ourselves with this episode, which turns into a recommitment to what Hopscotch Friday was meant to be from the beginning, a show about the things we love.
This week we talk the backlash against critics, toxic fandom and the PR media cycle, as well as:
- Bright
- The Babysitter
- Black Mirror - USS Callister
- The Phantom Unmasked by Kevin Patrick
- Just to be Sure (dir Carin Tardieu)
- Shadow of Mordor Youtube scandal
Here it is, our wrap up of all the things we loved in 2017. Books, films, telly and comic books - we've got our picks of the things we loved, including some we already reviewed here on the pod.
And if you want a sampling of what we discuss in this episode -
- Twin Peaks The Return
- Brooklyn 99
- The Good Place
- Colossal
- Thor Ragnarok
- Logan Lucky
- Get Out
- Logan
- Ladybird
- My Favorite Thing is Monsters
- Giant Days
- Legion
- Woman of Substances
- The Flop House
- I Don't Even Own A Television
- My Favorite Murder
- The Dollop
Happy new year folks - see you in 2018.
Star Wars and Paddington - two films that smack of adult nostalgia for their childhoods, now re-marketed to children today.
Paddington 2, directed by Paul King, conjures up a sense of Englishness that is at once classic, but also modern.
It's a charming film that is well worth your time.
The latest Star Wars - which Stevie has not seen, so Emmet is left to be interrogated on its merits - is brought to the screen by Rian Johnson.
Instead of heavily relying on the established Star Wars formula, Johnson chooses to highlight the use of those repeated plot threads - temptation by the dark side, a Jedi mentor crippled by failure, a resistance army forced to continually retreat from an evil empire in pursuit - then flips these narratives in interesting ways.
This is a spoiler free discussion that treats of The Last Jedi's position in relation to the original films - and the whole Star Wars marketing phenomenon.
Star Wars redefined Hollywood by creating the blockbuster and sfx technology - but does it still work as a continuing story?
And what does it mean for franchises like Star Wars, and Harry Potter, require constant immersion even outside the movie theatre?
The Disaster Artist, directed by James Franco and based on the tell-all memoir by Greg Sestero about his experience of starring in The Room, hits Australian cinemas on December 7.
And folks - this may be one of the best films of 2017!
With an all-star cast and a stunning central performance that is more sympathetic recreation than mimicry (Tommy Wiseau being a living cartoon in his own right) - The Disaster Artist has finally made something great out of The Room.
This week is all about trash cinema meeting the mainstream, but seriously - catch this film.
Dr Matt Finch joins the podcast to talk Justice League, Jason Momoa, the DC universe, Jason Momoa, and the impact of the male gaze - and Jason Momoa.
(pictured - Not Jason Momoa) This is a spoiler-filled discussion so be warned if you have not yet seen the film.
But if you're looking for a giddy, rifferific take on the culmination of Zack Snyder's DC movieverse - here it is.
How does Stranger Things 2 and Thor Ragnarok evoke the 1980s through the dimly remembered lens of 80s VHS box art, arcade games and teenage hormones?
The Duffer Brothers and Taika Waititi have served up two different kinds of nostalgic reflection on the decade children retreated from the street to the home entertainment room.
Does Stranger Things 2 serve simply as a decent sequel to the surprise Netflix hit - or does it have a responsibility to be all things to all viewers?
And has Taika cracked the Marvel Movies code with Thor Ragnarok?
Books! Love 'em - don't have a lot of time to read 'em anymore.
Blame modern life, or whatever, but a good book takes time and deserves an attentive reader, so no smartphone distractions, or Netflix binge-athons please.
In the end we packed our bags, stuffed in a few paperbacks, and over a week of sunshine read:
- Doomsday Book by Connie Willis
- The Death of Grass by John Christopher
- Slade House by David Mitchell
- Hunger Makes Me A Modern Girl by Carrie Brownstein
- Twisted Clay by Frank Walford
Among others.
When the likes of David Avocado Wolfe are being regarded as medical experts in place of practicing doctors, what does that mean for the discussion of health?
It's a question that has been on my mind lately, particularly in the social media space where expertise is now diffuse.
Screening as part of the Melbourne Underground Film Festival, Urine Aid is a documentary all about people who practice urine therapy. These are people looking for answers who have turned their backs on so-called "Western medicine" - so I was interested to learn what lies behind their decision to, well, drink their own piss.
Finally apologies for the quality of the recording. There were some technical issues on the night that we decided to push through to capture the interview.
One of the funniest - and best - shows to listen to is The Dollop, an "American history podcast" that sketches the ridiculous and absurd in an at times painfully familiar fashion.
Comedians Dave Anthony and Gareth Reynolds are the hosts, and this month they were in town for a number of shows in Melbourne. In this episode Stevie interviews Gareth Reynolds ("who has no idea what the topic is going to be about") on how he first got involved with the show, its popularity in Australia - and drawing parallels between history and today.
The Dollop also now comes in book form - check out The United States of Absurdity, available from Penguin Random House.