Nerdstalking Takes a Lightsaber Stab at Star Wars: The Force Awakens
This time the panelists air their views after having watched the first full-length Star Wars movie in 32 years - Star Wars: The Force Awakens....
Ep. 043 – Sick Movies by Sick People for Sick People: Some Nicolas Roeg Films
Although grossly unsung, Nicolas Roeg is one of the more interesting filmmakers in the history of cinema. Unsung, but in this episode Chad and Bill sing his praises loudly. Join us, won’t you?
Show Notes:
01:57 – The Man Who Fell to Earth.
06:41 – We throw a wrench at Rip Torn.
12:29 – Hello, Thin White Duke.
13:45 – Not quite as much death as Rogue One.
15:03 – Don’t Look Now.
19:07 – The Bad Timing of Art Garfunkle.
21:21 – All aboard for Track 29.
25:59 – The significant Insignificance.
30:52 – We uncover the shocking link between Roeg’s The Witches and J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter books.
36:57 – Roald Dahl.
Thanks for listening!
Trailer for The Man Who Fell to Earth:
https://youtu.be/KUtJ5FnwfCk
Trailer for Don’t Look Now:
https://youtu.be/AUWB-Kw4FiM
Interview with Donald Sutherland about Don’t Look Now.
https://youtu.be/wKbjATtxS6w
Connect With Your Nerdstalkers:
Bill Hunter – writer, and creator of video game history website The Dot Eaters
Chadwick Gendron – writer, musician and creator of the Canadian Culture Thing
Our Website: http://nerdstalking.com/
Social Media Links:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/NerdstalkingPod
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nerdstalking/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nerdstalking/
Ep. 40: Post-Apocalyptic Films
Killah cockroaches! A new ice-age! Blossoming mushroom clouds! This episode, Bill and Chad crawl out of their underground bunker and survey the blasted and irradiated landscape of post-apocalyptic films. You maniacs! You blew it up!
Show Notes:
01:11 – The end is nigh! The apocalyptic Doug Ford.
02:44 – Chad reveals the horrific political skeleton in his closet.
04:24 – A definition of the term “post-apocalyptic”.
05:45 – Environmental apocalypse: The Lorax.
07:07 – The inevitable zombie apocalypse: 28 Days Later and Dawn of the Dead.
16:17 – Escape from New York.
17:45 – Still trying to get a grip on the meaning of “post-apocalyptic”.
20:45 – A Boy and his Dog.
30:40 – The Mad Max films.
34:48 – Damnation Alley.
39:00 – Snowpiercer.
45:09 – Yet more defining of “post-apocalyptic”.
47:39 – The 70’s Charlton Heston post-apocalyptic cycle.
53:01 – Mortal Engines.
Thanks for listening!
A Boy and his Dog trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YkJV19sxKgc
Official video for Tina Turner’s We Don’t Need Another Hero:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dq4aOaDXIfY
Dawn of the Dead (1978) trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yd-z5wBeFTU
Trailer for Mortal Engines:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fupYIggOq38
Connect With Your Nerdstalkers:
Bill Hunter – writer, and creator of video game history website The Dot Eaters
Chadwick Gendron – writer, musician and creator of the Canadian Culture Thing
Our Website: http://nerdstalking.com/
Social Media Links:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/NerdstalkingPod
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nerdstalking/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nerdstalking/
Ep. 037 – Worldbuilding in Movies
So, have you ever walked out of a movie theatre thinking you just didn’t like that film, but you’re not sure why? It could be that the filmmakers didn’t put enough thought and effort into good worldbuilding. In this episode of Nerdstalking, we ponder what worldbuidling means, and look at some examples of it in action, good and bad.
Show Notes:
03:03 – What worldbuiding means.
04:33 – The future world of Back to the Future.
05:46 – The worldbuilding of Star Wars.
09:26 – Not ready for the crappy worldbuilding of Ready Player One.
11:44 – The mythology of Middle Earth in Lord of the Rings.
13:08 – Game of Thrones.
15:21 – Minority Report.
24:46 – The Fifth Element.
25:56 – Heavy Metal.
29:22 – Why is so much worldbuilding just Arabian markets?
32:24 – Blade Runner.
34:04 – A dystopian future built on still photos: La Jetee.
36:06 – Bill calls Chad by Bill’s son’s name.
37:22 – An example of lousy worldbuilding: Tron.
42:31 – Yet more crappy Ready Player One.
43:58 – The Alien movies.
Thanks for listening!
La Jetee captioned in English on YouTube:
Back to the Future Part. II trailer:
Blade Runner (1982) trailer:
The Fifth Element trailer:
Connect With Your Nerdstalkers:
Bill Hunter – writer, and creator of video game history website The Dot Eaters
Chadwick Gendron – writer, musician and creator of the Canadian Culture Thing
Our Website: http://nerdstalking.com/
Social Media Links:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/NerdstalkingPod
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nerdstalking/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nerdstalking/
Ep. 036 – The ‘Back to the Future’ Movie Trilogy
Forget Ready Player One’s appropriation of the famous DeLorean, Bill and Chad jump in their own time machine and go back to the past and examine the movies of the Back to the Future trilogy. Get ready for 1.21 Gigawatts of rollicking adventure!
Show Notes:
BTTF 1 – 01:51 to 21:38
01:51 – One of those perfect films.
03:08 – Marty McFly invented Chuck Berry.
04:06 – “Is it okay to go back and have sex with your mother?”
05:32 – Examples of how well put-together the film is.
13:47 – How did Doc & Marty start their bromance?
16:56 – Every dog should have a boy.
18:11 – Chad points out some anachronisms in the film.
21:38 – It’s your cousin Marvin. Marvin BERRY!!
BTTF 2 – 25:49 to 43:24
25:49 – Jennifer sleeps through the rest of the trilogy.
31:10 – Some good worldbuilding.
34:54 – A darker film.
36:27 – Chad meets the ape-shit crazy Chrispin Glover.
39:12 – Chad finds a visual homage to the 1960 Time Machine movie.
43:24 – The best part of BTTF 2: Marty goes to 1955. Again.
44:33 – Count Floyd arrives.
BTTF 3 – 48:27 to 55:05
48:27 – Doc Brown’s letter from 1885 doesn’t make sense.
50:19 – At least BTTF 3 doesn’t need a chalkboard lecture.
52:37 – Bill’s insensitive Indian joke.
55:05 – The terrible train ending.
Thanks for listening!
Rocket 88, the first Rock n’ Roll record:
A visit to the Back to the Future filming locations 30 years later:
Doc Brown and Marty reunite on Back to the Future day, 2015 on the Jimmy Kimmel show:
Connect With Your Nerdstalkers:
Bill Hunter – writer, and creator of video game history website The Dot Eaters
Chadwick Gendron – writer, musician and creator of the Canadian Culture Thing
Our Website: http://nerdstalking.com/
Social Media Links:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/NerdstalkingPod
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nerdstalking/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nerdstalking/
Ep. 035 – ‘Ready Player One’ Movie Review, Part 2
This is part 2 of our review of Steven Spielberg’s nostalgia-porn movie Ready Player One. In it we lament the lack of any real danger or even drama in the film, as well as laugh at its lack of knowledge of the actual nature of online gaming, and discuss how the changing nature of copyright and IP management these days has made this film easier to make. All this, and much more in the last of our two-parter on Ready Player One. Plus, it’s dangerous to go alone, so take this warning along with you as you listen to this episode: we take a deep dive into the movie and explore many plot points, so be pepared for MANY SPOILERS!
Here’s a handy link to Part 1 of our Ready Player One review:
Show Notes:
02:50 – The myth of Parzival.
06:14 – The terrible acting of Mark Rylance.
11:34 – Put the f’ing key in the f’ing lock!
12:38 – The ghost in the machine.
16:02 – Is the movie saying video games should be revelled in or regulated?
17:24 – i-R0k!
18:37 – In the future, everyone lives in Columbus, OH.
19:24 – RP1 is an amazing technological breakthrough in drama-less movies!
20:17 – A funny joke in the movie: the Alien bit.
33:24 – Everybody loves to queue in a video game.
38:06 – How copyright has changed in the Internet era.
42:18 – Our final verdict.
Thanks for listening!
Video featuring the real-life Infinadeck VR treadmill featured in Ready Player One:
If you have the stomach for it, here is a video with over 300 Easter eggs from the movie, the vast majority of which are not actually Easter eggs (protip: Easter eggs are hidden): https://youtu.be/PfeVH2bbzlw
A video review of Ready Player One, by the jerks over at RedLetterMedia:
A reporter from CNET tries out a RealDoll sexbot (in conversation, not what you were thinking, sicko!):
Connect With Your Nerdstalkers:
Bill Hunter – writer, and creator of video game history website The Dot Eaters
Chadwick Gendron – writer, musician and creator of the Canadian Culture Thing
Our Website: http://nerdstalking.com/
Social Media Links:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/NerdstalkingPod
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nerdstalking/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nerdstalking/
Ep. 033 – Animated Movie Classic ‘Heavy Metal’
Chad and Bill take a look back at a cult movie classic: the animated epic Heavy Metal. We examine its impact over the years, and break it down segment by segment. Smoke a bowl and join us on a fantastic magical mystery ride (with boobs!).
Show Notes:
04:05 – The ultimate stoner movie.
08:18 – What does it all mean?
12:13 – Captain Sternn’s Hanover Fiste as Paul Ryan.
14:54 – The movie’s magazine roots.
16:22 – Elon Musk: Big fan of Heavy Metal.
17:00 – Explanation of the central plot.
18:20 – Death rays and taxi cabs.
19:32 – A look at the Den sequence.
21:16 – So Beautiful, So Dangerous, and so much plutonium nyborg.
23:54 – STERNN!!!
27:24 – B-17.
32:08 – The deep impact of Heavy Metal.
32:50 – Help Chad kill a singer.
Thanks for listening!
Trailer for Heavy Metal –
Soft Landing sequence from the movie, with Elon Musk’s Spaceman edited in:
Oliver Jewellers TV ad: “The Cashman” – https://youtu.be/NSQVVHyvOZU
Connect With Your Nerdstalkers:
Bill Hunter – writer, and creator of video game history website The Dot Eaters
Chadwick Gendron – writer, musician and creator of the Canadian Culture Thing
Our Website: http://nerdstalking.com/
Social Media Links:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/NerdstalkingPod
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nerdstalking/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nerdstalking/
Ep. 032 – Lead-Up to ‘Ready Player One’ Movie Release
What happens if you take TRON, mix it with The Last Starfighter, and throw in a pinch of references to every SF movie and video game of the last 30 years or so? You get Steven Spielberg’s latest flick Ready Player One, based on Ernest Cline’s love-letter-to-videogames novel of the same name. We anticipate the release of the film with all the giddy glee of kids waiting in line for Back to the Future in 1985. Plus we celebrate Sam Rockwell’s 2018 Oscar win with a retrospective of his career, and take a look at Steven Soderbergh’s guerilla feature filmmaking iPhone experiment Unsane.
Show Notes:
01:01 – We start in on Ready Player One.
01:33 – E.T.‘s scrotum sack.
03:47 – Ready Player One compared to Who Framed Roger Rabbit?
07:38 – The nostagia train has left the station.
09:43 – Again with the Inception city-folding SFX.
11:58 – Ready Player One as TRON sequel.
15:13 – Where have you gone, Clint Eastwood of our youth?
17:26 – Sam Rockwell: real actor.
30:34 – Is Steven Soderbergh Unsane?
34:40 – Chad’s dangerous obsession with Downton Abbey.
Thanks for listening!
Pure Imagination, from Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory –
The electronica version of Pure Imagination as used in the Ready Player One trailer –
Trailer for Who Framed Roger Rabbit? –
Bill’s article on the history of the movie TRON, at The Dot Eaters –
Bill’s article on the history of The Last Starfighter, at The Dot Eaters –
Connect With Your Nerdstalkers:
Bill Hunter – writer, and creator of video game history website The Dot Eaters
Chadwick Gendron – writer, musician and creator of the Canadian Culture Thing
Our Website: http://nerdstalking.com/
Social Media Links:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/NerdstalkingPod
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nerdstalking/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nerdstalking/
Scary Effin Halloween Moments: Rosemary’s Baby (1968)
Rosemary’s Baby was a blockbuster when it was released in the late 60’s, and its brilliant conceit of putting gothic horror themes of Satan and his followers in the environment of the bright NYC apartment of a young couple was groundbreaking for the time. It paved the way for other urban horror hits like The Exorcist and The Omen, and was a profound influence on writers like Stephen King. The movie culminates in this scene when Rosemary, played by fragile waif Mia Farrow, discovers the true nature of her newborn child. Her plaintive question at the end reveals the horror of her progeny more than any make-up job could.
Scary Effin Halloween Moments: Carrie (1976)
Any kid coming of age in the 70’s was permanently scarred by the ending of this flick, based on the first published novel by Stephen King. Director Brian DePalma lulls you into a sense of calm with a tinkling soundtrack and a diffuse lens… and then gives you one hell of a jolt.
Speaking of Stephen King, I complained in Nerdstalking Podcast IT Review that that movie had too many jump scares. You can probably trace the lineage of the cheapest of all film frights to this moment in Carrie. Still, it’s fun to look back on a time when it wasn’t the overused trope it is today.
Creepy Effin Halloween Moments – Twilight Zone: The Movie (1983)
John Lithgow is one of those actors where, no matter how mediocre the film, he’s always interesting to watch. His segment in the film version of The Twilight Zone, based on the original series entry Nightmare at 20,000 Feet, was anything but medicore. It takes a real actor to out-hysteric William Shatner, but Lithgow somehow manages it as a harried aviophobic who keeps seeing a gremlin on the wing of the airplane he is flying in.
While the scene featured here occurs before the fireworks really get started, its weirdness serves to put both Lithgow’s character, and the audience, ill at ease.
Great Effin Moments in Film: Aliens (1986)
When it comes to great film moments, this one has an edge. As a fan of the original Alien (1979), I was wondering a couple of things when I was in the theatre watching this scene from the 1986 sequel. First, since the crew has woken up from cryogenic sleep and they’re gathered in mess eating a meal, is someone gonna start convulsing and you-know-what pop out? You have to wait for a full chest-bursting scene later (and they already kind of pulled the trigger on that earlier in the film, as well).
The other question they answer here is, as with Ash in the first film, is there a shady android among them? The answer comes in this great scene, where Bishop (Lance Henriksen) exhibits an otherworldly skill with a knife, at the expense of eternal whipping-boy Hudson (Bill Paxton).
Great Effin Moments in Film: Taxi Driver (1976)
Great moment in film: Time to wash all this scum off the street.
Nerdstalking Video: Is the Creepy New Pennywise from ‘IT’ Too Creepy?
With the release of the new teaser trailer for IT, the new film adaptation of Stephen King's iconic novel about a group of outcast kids...
Nerdstalking Podcast Ep. 017
With the recent passing of actor Richard Hatch, we take a look at Battlestar Galactica, the epic 1978 TV series that he starred in, which also brought Star Wars caliber visual effects to television. Ross also gives us his take on The LEGO Batman Movie, and Chad pokes a few holes in the plotline for the original Star Wars movies. Bill just generally smiles and nods his head.
