Mid-Life Crisis Task Force: Recent Episodes
Mid-Life Crisis Taskforce
A free form discussion of movies we've been watching, a rant about some stuff we haven't, a brief talk about music.
We have a discussion about which bad movies are good beginners for someone who might be curious about what to watch.
Welcome back to Trash for the Masses! This time we take on 1987's "Tough Guys Don't Dance", starring Ryan O'Neal, Isabella Rossellini, Wings Hauser, and Lawrence Tierney. It was written and directed by Pulitzer Prize winning author Norman Mailer, who should have stuck to writing. Words cannot describe the incomprehensible plot and awkward dialog in this film! Also the source of the "OH GOD, OH MAN, OH GOD, OH MAN" meme.
There will not be a commentary track for this one. Most of it was long stretches of silence followed by, "what is going on here" comments. We were completely at a loss for words at how bad this film was!
Haven't had a chance to edit any of our recent recordings, so here's a classic episode from the first run of our podcast. It's from 2014 and we discuss then current events, celebrities in surprising roles, and review the Rudy Ray Moore magnum opus, The Human Tornado. This became the bad movie by which all other bad movies were judged!
We welcome back David Leninhawk for a discussion of Roman Polanski's classic neo-noir, Chinatown. Starring Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway, and John Huston, this story of murder and corruption and in 1930's Los Angeles won the Oscar for Best Screenplay.
What this synced with the movie at our YouTube channel!
https://youtu.be/AkwWwL1y6vo?si=Lrs1-TgKcUwMx-4o
Welcome to the conclusion of our The Hoff, Dudikoff, and the Paper Chase guy trilogy!
Today, we watch and discuss Three Kinds of Heat, a 1987 turd from Cannon Films. Features Robert Ginty (The Paper Chase Guy, also the best actor in the film, believe it or not), two Doctor Who alums (Sylvester McCoy, the 7th Doctor, and Mary Tamm, the first Romana), one of the worst actresses we've ever seen in a movie, and racism. Oh, the racism!
Nicholas Cage, Donald Pleasance, Lance Hendricksen. They're great actors, but they frequently appear in terrible movies.
Watch along with us as we skewer The Hoff and his pet puma!
Amazon Prime: https://shorturl.at/ikEGS
YouTube: https://youtu.be/RUjYf7HAVlo?si=dF8gELkUOlc9F50J
It's The Hoff's turn! Join us as we discuss 1989's Final Alliance, in which our titular hero and his pet puma take on a biker gang in one of the most formulaic movies we've ever watched.
Listen to us watch and make fun of Battle of the Network Stars!
https://youtu.be/TnaIGg-xN_k?si=QXgD44zq6RjrT0zK
Take a trip down memory lane with us as we watch and discuss an episode of Battle of the Network Stars from way back in 1980!
It's a bit late, but here's the movie riff/commentary track for River of Death 1989.
Prime
https://tinyurl.com/ybch6z58
Youtube (MGM+ subscription required):
https://youtu.be/4PpwV0rg0fQ?si=C6oJNEswqiypA-Se
Welcome to the first of a new series of film reviews we're doing of movies starring Michael Hasselhoff, Michael Dudikoff, and Robert Ginty (the guy from The Paper Chase). We begin with the River of Death, a formula Indiana Jones still adventure in the jungle tale starring Michael Dudikoff and produced by Cannon Films. It's a lot of walking, some stuff blowing up, and features lots of sweaty people.
We borrowed (OK, stole) an idea from Red Letter Media and ran with it: What if The Beatles White Album was only one record? What songs would you take off?
Words can't describe this film. Other than it being painful. VERY painful.
Quick synopsis: Bruce Lee wakes up in hell and fights mummies with Popeye. (I'm not making that up!)
There will be no commentary track for this film as we're having issues with our recording software. In the meantime, here's a link to the actual film if you're morbidly curious and a glutton for punishment.
https://youtu.be/xhXbHZDZWAg?si=8YcPJnU0XBRvTs5A
As you may or may not know, this is Mid-Life Crisis Taskforce version 2.0. We originally start this back in 2012, but had to put it aside due to… well… life. Since we’re coming off the Holidays and we haven’t had time to record anything new, we thought it would be a good time to pull up an original episode for your enjoyment. And this one features an added bonus of guests Kathryn & Elizabeth, who would go on to start Binary System Podcast a short time later. Hope you enjoy!
Merry Christmas!
For this episode of Trash for the Masses, we choose an obstensively Christmas themed horror film from 1972, Silent Night, Bloody Night. It has about as much to do with Christmas as it does Arbor Day.
Highlight of the film: John Carradine and his bell.
No commentary track for this one due to recording issues. ):
Our friend David Leninhawk returns with a movie for us to watch: Resurrection from 2022 starring Rebecca Hall and Tim Roth.
SPOILER WARNING: PLOT ELEMENTS ARE DISCUSSED! If you're at all curious about this film, go watch it before listening to this episode.
The Beatles have a new song! In this episode, we discuss it and the role AI played in its creation.
Links to reviews mentioned in the podcast:
Rick Beato: The Beatles, "Now And Then" My Reaction and Breakdown
David Bennett Piano: Comparing John's demo to the final Beatles track
A trip down memory lane for Chris & Nate, as they watch two special episodes of The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries.
Our first reaction to watching these two shorts. Enjoy!
https://youtu.be/Uw3qkLOQAao?si=DWW9ZFj8pp59We8w
Chris & Nate review two Halloween safety films made by Centron in 1977 & 1985, then discuss horror movies. Happy Halloween!
In our ongoing series of discussions of good movies, we discuss Sidney Lumet's 1975 film Dog Day Afternoon. Starring Al Pacino, John Cazale, and Charles Durning, it's the true story of bank robbery gone wrong. Features a plot twist you won't see coming.
SPOILER WARNING!
Chris & HAP have always loved this album. Nate recently found a copy on vinyl in a bargain bin and listened to it for the first time in about 30 years.
Come along for the ride as we riff on this piece of history.
https://youtu.be/UGdaTPu5bZY?si=wjXmRW37GNKICpKT
A short episode for a short film!
We watch and review an industrial musical from 1954, produced by Chevrolet for... something? We assume this was to motivate sales people, but we don't know. They never show a car!!!
For this episode of Trash For The Masses, we watch 1975's "The Devil's Rain," starring Ernest Borgnine, William Shatner, Ida Lupino, and Tom Skerritt. An all star cast not used to it's full potential.
Trailer: https://youtu.be/bGT2JW81P1A?si=cv-HDNw6vdrlfb7p
Welcome back to the podcast David Leninhawk!
David & Nate went to see Neil Breen's new film and discuss it with the rest of the guys. It was an experience!!!
Trailer: https://youtu.be/msWWqbN6HgI
In this episode, we couldn't come up with a formal topic, so we rambled for awhile about Jethro Tull, Pink Floyd, Tony Bennett (RIP), and our favorite topic, the general state of the entertainment industry.
For this episode of Trash for the Masses, we take on David Prior's 1991 film The Lost Platoon.
The description for this made it seem like it was going to be amazing. It was not.
Note: There were will be no commentary track for this film, due to a software crash wiping out that part of the recording. This isn't a great loss, as you don't want to watch this film under any circumstances.
Part 2 of our discussion about separating the art from the artists. We discuss a few more instances of misbehavior, then delve into a discussion about art for the sake of art.
Can you separate an artist work from the artist themselves when they've behaved badly? Is it easier said than done?
Come experience the pain and confusion of House of the Black Death as we watch and riff for the first time.
Available on YouTube, Tubi, and Prime.
In our latest episode of Trash for the Masses, we take on 1960-something's "House of the Black Death," starring b-movie legends Lon Chaney Jr. and John Carradine. It's a confusing mess about a group of Satan worshipers and has nothing to do with the Black Death.
Trailer
IMDB
(Note: we refer to this film as "Night of the Black Death" cause we don't pay attention to things like we ought to.)
As usual, we had no plans for recording, and no HAP, so we just turned on the mics and chatted for awhile.
For the curious (and the masochistic):
https://youtu.be/rKdtO2HWWoc
And the Red Letter Media episode that started it all:
https://youtu.be/FT5D7rJ8TPQ
Come along as we experience Equinox (1970) for the first time! Believe it or not, this film is part of The Criterion Collection!
Watch along for free on YouTube: https://youtu.be/S0wb8-k46gY
Join us for a special edition of Trash for the Masses as we discuss 1970's Equinox, a low-budget horror film from three college students who "repurposed" $6500 of their tuition money to make this film. Features early visual effects work from artists who would go on to work on Star Wars, Laserblast, and Jurassic Park.
Trailer: https://youtu.be/s2ofWZtcww0
More from David Leninhawk: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtYOQsoVbAksp_SD7T4uSfg
Chris & Nate talk about one of our favorite bands, Pink Floyd. We go through a ranking Nate made and discuss every studio record the band put out during it's 50+ year career.
First of a two part discussion.
Come along as we talk about one of our favorite films, The Andromeda Strain from 1971. A true science fiction film in every sense of the word and worth checking out.
The first in a new series of snippets of our conversations before recording an episode. In this, we talk about going to the movies in the theater only to have to deal with fellow theater patrons.
Nothing ever stays the same and that is true of music, as well. Over the years, the artists we grew up with grow and change. But is it always for the better?
Come along as we watch Vicious Lips (1986) for the first time!
Highly encouraged if you plan to watch this film. It needs all the help it can get!!!
Amazon Prime link.
Also available to YouTube, but you'll need to skip forward a few seconds in the commentary.
For our latest foray into bad movies, we take on Albert Pyun's 1986 (although not released on video until 2013) film Vicious Lips, about a "rock" band in outer space. We think. Seriously, this one hurt.
https://youtu.be/fWqSdVHeq5s
Welcome to our guests, Kathryn & Elizabeth, from The Binary System Podcast!
In this episode, we discuss the recently announced slate of DC Cinematic Universe properties dreamed up by James Gunn and Peter Safran. Will DC finally catch up to Marvel?
We discuss what movies/shows we've been watching and what music we've listen to recently. And we say goodbye to David Crosby.
Some links to some of our musical suggestion if you're interested:
Carson McGee
Reina del Cid
Daniel Donato
Our commentary/riff track for the 1974 thriller The Mutations aka The Freakmaker, starring Donald Pleasance and Tom Baker (yes, THAT Tom Baker).
Watch along at:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/video/detail/B00DG45EMG/ref=atv_dp_share_cu_r
https://youtu.be/uxrtNhqAYNg
For our newest Trash for the Masses, we take on a little British film from 1974 starring Donald Pleasance and Tom Baker. Yeah, THAT Tom Baker!
Pancho & Lefty discuss the recent trend of remaking older movies vs coming up with original ones. Is Hollywood running out of ideas?
Listen along as we watch and make fun of, Hallmark's The Christmas Shoes!
Available on YouTube: https://youtu.be/3YH_vgE9B8o
"The Christmas Shoes" was voted worst Christmas song of all time by Jezebel.com, so of course Hallmark made a film out of it! Starring Rob Lowe and Kimberly Williams, it'll tug at your heart strings, or at least trigger your gag reflex.
This one is a departure from our normal fare.
We begin by talking about technology and social media, but start to delve into politics and how the three are intertwined. We hope you enjoy!
In the first of a series in which we discuss good movies, we take an in-depth analysis of director Fritz Lang's 1931 film M. A masterpiece of German Expressionist cinema that still holds up today from the directory and writer (Thea von Harbou) that brought you Metropolis.
SPOILER WARNING!!!! We go into the story and plot lines of this film, so we highly encourage you to watch it before listening to this podcast if you're new to it. DON'T SAY WE DID'T WARN YOU!!
With Rando out of town, Pancho & Lefty sit down to discuss their musical tastes, the recording industry, and how listening to music has changed over the years.
(This episode was recorded before the Spooky Halloween music episode from two weeks ago.)
Pancho & Lefty discuss music appropriate for the Halloween season, from heavy metal favorites like Blue Oyster Cult and Black Sabbath to the traditions of the murder ballad in Country and Americana.
With Halloween coming, we discuss horror movies: what makes a good one and which ones are our favorites.
Join as we watch and react to The Manster for the first time! This was recorded prior to our discussion what was featured in last week's Trash for the Masses episode. Simply start this recording when you press play on the film! Hopefully it syncs up properly! :D
Watch for on Amazon Prime (colorized): https://www.amazon.com/gp/video/detail/B096FLCNG1/ref=atv_dl_rdr?autoplay=1
Or on YouTube (Black & White): https://youtu.be/Sn2dztCLvL8
This is the first our Trash for the Masses series in which we watch and review bad movies and such. Today, we discuss the 1959 classic(?) The Manster.
In this episode, we discuss the midnight movie. What is it? What constitutes one? Which ones have we seen (or not seen)?
In this episode, we left the proverbial tape running after recording our previous episode and discussed movies in general and how the industry and the movie watching experience has changed post-pandemic, along with some other topics. At times a bit unfocused, but we thought it interesting enough to share.
The Mid-Life Crisis Taskforce returns!! Meet the guys in this re-introductory episode.
This episode is also available as a blog post: http://mlctaskforce.com/2022/08/11/were-back/