Ep. 038 – ‘Avengers: Infinity War’ Deep Review
Bill and Chad felt the hairs on their arms stand up, heeded the call, and ran to the theatre with everyone else in the world to watch the culmination of 10 years of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and 18 previous superhero flicks – Avengers: Infinity War. What’s with Cap’s beard? Can a CGI character make you cry? Is this the end of our intrepid heroes? Assemble around your podcast player of choice and join the Nerdstalking team as they drill down into the biggest cinematic event ever! WARNING: as usual for a Nerdstalking movie review, we examine many facets of the film and don’t skirt around plot points to give the most thorough, honest review. So SPOILERS ASSEMBLE!
Show Notes:
02:23 – Your heroes are only as good as your villains.
04:05 – Can a Thanos make you cry? Yes he can.
05:35 – Confusing motivations with Thanos: Movie v Comics.
09:25 – A supremely weird ending.
10:52 – Where’s Hawkeye?
12:41 – Avengers MVP: Thor.
15:41 – A better Wakanda than the Black Panther Wakanda.
17:28 – Why does Black Panther do that cross-your-arms thing?
18:58 – Doctor Strange.
20:40 – Thanos has good backup.
21:50 – Spider-Man continues to be great.
24:37 – Hulk impotence.
27:37 – Some digressions: Robocop.
30:07 – Ready Player One: the book.
30:55 – Donald Trump.
34:24 – Another great Thanos moment.
37:43 – The Vision and Scarlet Which love story.
40:03 – This movie is an amazing achievement.
45:08 – Thor’s new eye.
48:37 – Our final verdict.
Thanks for listening!
Avengers: Infinity War trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QwievZ1Tx-8
Avengers: Infinity War blooper reel and funny cast stuff:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_GFAd2O_kg8
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/
Your ‘Avengers: Infinity War’ Primer
Why not prepare yourself for the huge mash-up that is Avengers: Infinity War by catching up with the solo efforts of Marvel’s stable of superheros? There’s a podcast for that, namely Nerdstalking and our reviews of the following, more recent heroic outings:
Doctor Strange: http://nerdstalking.com/2016/11/22/nerdstalking-podcast-ep-014/
Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2: http://nerdstalking.com/2017/05/15/nerdstalking-podcast-ep-019/
Spider-Man: Homecoming: http://nerdstalking.com/2017/07/31/nerdstalking-podcast-ep-021/
Thor: Ragnarok: http://nerdstalking.com/2017/11/08/nerdstalking-podcast-ep-024/
Black Panther: http://nerdstalking.com/2018/02/24/nerdstalking-podcast-episode-028/
Start cramming, peeps! The Avengers exam is just days away!
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/
Official ‘Solo: A Star Wars Story’ Trailer
I gotta admit, this one is better than the first. At least you get an inkling of what Han is up to here.
Ep. 034 – ‘Ready Player One’ Movie Review, Part 1
Ready Player One is so stuffed with pop-culture references, and our derision so strong for this hollow exercise, we can’t even fit our review into one Nerdstalking episode! Log in and listen to Part. 1 of our review as we slag director Steven Spielberg for not understanding video games, knock the world-building of the film as being as shaky as the Stacks, and lament about the lack of heart in the film, among other complaints. And you might even find a couple of positive comments in here too; consider them the Easter eggs you have to search for. As usual here at Nerdstalking, we give the movie a thorough going over and dive deep into what it is and what it means, so also be on the search for MANY, MANY SPOILERS!
Show Notes:
01:19 – Will they start patching movies next?
03:37 – Steven Spielberg: out of touch.
05:59 – Bill’s favourite line of the movie.
07:33 – The real problem with video games these days.
11:27 – A case study in better world-building: Alexander Payne’s Downsizing.
19:58 – Would the kids of this near-future give a shit about all this retro stuff?
29:31 – Missing in action: any character arcs.
36:13 – The movie lacks a solid heart.
41:51 – So much exposition!
43:24 – The best part of the movie: the Shining sequence.
Thanks for listening! Tune in next week for the conclusion!
Trailer for Ready Player One – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixWL1BWi44U
A video detailing 138 different pop-culture references in the movie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VYmfEx3taAM
Author of the novel, Ernest Cline, reveals every video game reference in the book – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zglevXKpJGY
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/
‘Deadpool 2’ Official Trailer
Is it Deadpool’s non-stop stream of hilarious quips? Is it the copious ass-kicking? Is it the chutzpah of Deadpool ripping off the plot of Logan (must protect a mutant kid)? No, it’s the fact that they stole Chad’s joke from our podcast, where he said filmmakers always lose their way with the third movie in a series. Anyhoo, enjoy the vision of restraint and good taste that is the official Deadpool 2 trailer:
Ep. 032 – ‘WarGames’ Reboot, ‘Black Lightning’ TV Show and More
This episode looks at the classic cold-war computer hacker film WarGames, and the new interactive reboot based on the property. We also shine some light on the other black superhero, DC’s Black Lightning, found on Netflix. Lastly, Chad latches onto the inexplicable Venom teaser trailer and tries to make some Spidey sense of it.
Show Notes:
00:56 – We start with WarGames.
04:43 – A description of the reboot, and a look at the original movie.
06:53 – Chad starts in with Short Circuit.
08:22 – Dabney Coleman is a dick.
10:36 – Again with Short Circuit?
24:56 – Start of Black Lightning discussion.
29:03 – The unbearable deadness of James Remar.
37:31 – Chad breaks down the Venom teaser trailer.
Thanks for listening!
WarGames trailer – https://youtu.be/hbqMuvnx5MU
WarGames web series trailer – https://youtu.be/ZfObVggo5QE
#WarGames interactive series website (also available on Steam and iOS) – https://helloeko.com/wargames/episode-one-chasing-bryce/?autoplay=true&utm_source=verge&utm_medium=affiliate
Bill’s article on the history of the movie WarGames, at The Dot Eaters: http://thedoteaters.com/?bitstory=games-on-film-iii-wargames
Black Lightning series trailer – https://youtu.be/uoUlGwYa4QE
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/
Avengers: Infinity War Official Trailer
The latest trailer for Avengers: Infinity War has dropped, and it’s only slightly amazingly awesome. Come see Doctor Strange get an acupuncture treatment, and Thanos and Cap arm wrestle:
