Cult Fiction

In this episode, we pick a desert island band as we discuss Jeremy Saulnier’s GREEN ROOM. Join us as Andy schools Stephanie on why this movie is better than she gives it credit for, and Stephanie schools Andy on douchey social media rants. Plus, Andy fawns over Patrick Stewart, and Stephanie learns what duck butter means (hint: it’s not a culinary term). READING RECOMMENDATIONS PLEASE KILL M...

In this episode, we follow the yellow brick road as we discuss Walter Murch’s RETURN TO OZ. Join us as we talk about L. Frank Baum, how this movie almost wasn’t made, electroshock therapy and PTSD, and the earliest example of a trans character in children’s literature! READING RECOMMENDATIONS RETURN TO OZ, by L. Frank Baum THE REAL WIZARD OF OZ: THE LIFE AND TIMES OF L. FRANK BAUM, by Rebecc...

In this episode, we take a (drug) trip through Gapsar Noe’s ENTER THE VOID, a philosophical examination of life after death. Join us as we discuss DMT, the Tibetan Book of the Dead, and questionable Freudian narratives. READING RECOMMENDATIONS:  THE TIBETAN BOOK OF THE DEAD, by (most likely) Guru Rinpoche THE LOVELY BONES, by Alice Sebold

In this episode, we squeal with rainbow joy over Jamie Babbit’s BUT I’M A CHEERLEADER, an essential piece of LGBTQIA+ film canon. Join us as we talk about RuPaul, conversion camps, and how pure love conquers all. Reading Recommendations: BOY ERASED: A MEMOIR OF IDENTITY, FAITH, AND FAMILY, by Gerard Conley STONEWALL: THE RIOTS THAT SPARKED THE GAY REVOLUTION, by David A. Carter

In this episode, we discuss John Waters’s CECIL B. DEMENTED, a bizarre and grimy love letter to cinema. Join us as we walk about metafiction, boom mics attached to shotguns, and the sad fate of hamsters. Reading Recommendations: MR. KNOW-IT-ALL: THE TARNISHED WISDOM OF A FILTH LEADER, by John Waters AMERICAN HEIRESS: THE WILD SAGA OF THE KIDNAPPING, CRIMES AND TRIAL OF PATTY HEARST, by Jeffr...

In this episode, we discuss John Hughes’s PRETTY IN PINK, which Andy and Stephanie actually watched in person together! Join us as we gag over clothing choices, swoon over Spader, and Stephanie explains her thing for Duckie. Reading Recommendations: WHEN IT HAPPENS TO YOU: A NOVEL IN STORIES, by Molly Ringwald GETTING THE PRETTY BACK: FRIENDSHIP, FAMILY, AND FINDING THE PERFECT LIPSTICK, by...

In this episode, we discuss Mitchell Lichtenstein’s TEETH. Join us as we posit superhero theories, youth group culture, and Stephanie teaches Andy about that hand mirror thing vagina-havers do. Reading Recommendations: THE POWER, by Naomi Alderman WHAT’S UP DOWN THERE?: QUESTIONS YOU’D ONLY ASK YOUR GYNECOLOGIST IF SHE WAS YOUR BEST FRIEND, by Lissa Rankin

In this episode, we drift and gyrate through Paul Verhoeven’s SHOWGIRLS. Join us as we cringe at this over-the-top acting and realize that, surprisingly, this movie passes the Bechdel Test with flying pasties. Reading Recommendations: THE ETHICAL SLUT, by Dossie Easton and Janet Hardy G-STRINGS AND SYMPATHY: STRIP CLUB REGULARS AND MALE DESIRE, by Katherine Frank

In this episode, we dance through MONTY PYTHON’S LIFE OF BRIAN. Join us as we consider the lillies and argue over shoe vs. gourd. Reading Recommendation: LAMB, by Christopher Moore THE PYTHONS, an autobiography

In this episode, we wade through one of cinema’s. . . stickest (?) films, Michael Herz’s THE TOXIC AVENGER. Join us as we grapple with New Jersey’s anti-hero and discuss how Toxie is short for “Toxic Masculinity.”

We joyfully prance through one of cinema’s purest films, Hayao Miyazaki’s MY NEIGHBOR TOTORO. Join us as we discuss the best Dad in fiction and why everyone should believe in just a little magic.

Join us, Andy and Stephanie, on the beginning of our journey through Hollywood’s Crypt. In this episode, we explain why we started Cult Fiction and what, in our minds, is cult.