Video Store Podcast

Season’s Greetings and Happy Holidays! Maybe I’m old school, but I still make New Year’s resolutions every year and this year I decided to look back at some of my favorite creature features to find inspiration. Each of this week’s movies feature characters who overcome adversities, saving themselves and others in the process! In Ants! (1977), construction foreman Mike carr (Robert Foxworth) teams...

This week on The Video Store Podcast I am recommending four films that sit in an interesting stretch of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s career, when their action persona took a left turn into broad studio comedy. These are all wide release films that played constantly on cable and sat on the front wall of the video store for years. They did well in theaters, but they almost felt built to be rented, watche...

Welcome to the Video Store Podcast. It’s Christmas movie season but not everyone wants peppermint sweetness and cozy small-town charm. Some of us want our holiday movies filled with explosions, heists and a whole lot of chaos. This week on the Video Store Podcast, I’m spotlighting four Christmas movies that trade twinkling lights for trouble. Reindeer Games (2000) Reindeer Games is a crime thrille...

Welcome back to the holiday season at the Video Store Podcast . I’m back today with another edition of Rankin/Bass B-Sides. I love Rankin/Bass so much, and they’re part of just about every holiday season for me. Here are four more lesser-known Rankin/Bass B-Sides for you to enjoy this holiday season. And bonus! If you missed it last year, go back and check out my original edition of “Rankin/Bass B...

This week on the Video Store Podcast I am picking four Disney tapes you might have turned to when the big animated titles were already gone at the store. These were the ones that less visited shelf of the Disney section. You might not have planned on renting them, but once you did, they stayed with you. They would sometime sit untouched for weeks, but occasionally a family would rent one and their...

Welcome to the Video Store Podcast. It’s Turkey Time! The leaves are changing and the air is crisp. As the jack-o-lanterns turn into pumpkin pie I love to sit down and watch Thanksgiving movies. Some people will tell you there’s only one Thanksgiving movie to watch this time of year, I disagree. I’m going to recommend four other Thanksgiving movies that will get you in the holiday spirit and hopef...

November means Thanksgiving, and for me, that means holiday specials and Thanksgiving-themed TV episodes. One of the most popular shows to hit American television, Friends , had 10 Thanksgiving episodes across its 10-season run. I’ve picked 4 of my favorites for this week’s show. Bonus: if you want to watch the other 6, we’ve got the entire series here at the store. Season 5, Episode 8, “The One W...

When I was a kid if you wanted to talk to people about movies, you went to the local mom and pop video rental store… but if you wanted to hang out with other kids your age, you went to the mall. On this week’s episode of the Video Store Podcast, I’m recommending four movies that were filmed and heavily feature malls. First up is Fast Times at Ridgemont High , a film that follows several teenagers...

This week on The Video Store Podcast I’m talking about a handful of horror movies from the late 1980s that sit in a strange corner of the genre. They’re not the big ones you always hear about, just the kind of titles you’d find tucked on a back shelf of the local video store with a wild cover and not much else to go on. The first is The Kindred from 1987, directed by Jeffrey Obrow and Stephen Carp...

Welcome to the Video Store Podcast. I’m the new guy, you can all me Pitfall Gary. Today is my first time running the store alone. I’ve spent the last couple weeks watching training videos and stuck on the automatic rewind machine. With Halloween right around the corner I have a few movies from the master of Horror himself, John Carpenter. Not the normal Carpenter movies, these are a few of his und...

Welcome back to the Video Store Podcast and welcome to Spooky Month! We’re halfway to Halloween, and I’ve picked four underrated Halloween specials to help you celebrate the season. Halloween is Grinch Night! (1977) This lesser-known Grinch special adds a bit of spooky, Seussian fun to the Halloween season. Young Euchariah Who gets lost on a trip to the “euphemism” during a wind storm and has an e...

Hello, friends! Welcome back to the Video Store Podcast. After a short break (you’ll find out why in this episode), the store has reopened just in time for Halloween! On this episode of the podcast I’m recommending four films in which characters accidentally open portals, unleash evil spirits into this world, and spend the majority of the film trying to send it back before… gulp… you know. Evil De...

This is just a short little message. We are taking a break after over a year of putting out shows. Time to do some more watching and get our recommendations ready for more episodes. We are also interested in bringing more people into the Video Store, so if you have some podcast experience and can follow along with our format, we would love to hear from you. Send us a message or comment below and w...

On this week’s episode of The Video Store Podcast, I’m recommending four movies. They’re all from the 1980s and 1990s and all have some connection to my home state of New Jersey, even if it’s a loose one. These aren’t big studio classics. They’re weirder, smaller, and have built and kept loyal followings for decades. The Toxic Avenger (1984) Made by Troma Entertainment, this is probably their most...

Welcome, all True Believers, to another episode of the Video Store Podcast . This week, I’ve got four films showcasing the superhero genre, long before the big superhero boom of the late 90s/early 00s that’s still going strong today. Put on your mask, your spandex, and join me on the couch for a movie marathon that’s, well, super! Batman: The Movie (1966) First up is Batman: The Movie from 1966. A...

We love our automobiles here in America. We love driving cars and fixing up cars… but not every experience on the open road is a good one. This week I’m recommending four road trip films that turn out to be bad trips. Duel (1971) David Mann is just trying to make his way through a lone desert highway when he begins being tormented by an 18-wheeler for no apparent reason. Despite Mann’s attempts to...

This week, I’m pulling four titles off the shelf that all deal with prehistoric humans in some form. They’re all very different films. Some take the subject seriously, others just go for laughs. What they share is a central idea of how humans interact with one another. Whether it's science labs, high schools, or the open world, these movies all find something worthwhile to focus on. Caveman (1981)...

Welcome back to another episode of the Video Store Podcast , where we love sharing about the films that mean the most to us. Today, in honor of my fortieth birthday, I’m going to share with you four of the films that have shaped my life in varying ways. I hope you enjoy these films as much as I do, or at minimum, appreciate why I appreciate them. Sleeping Beauty (1959) First up is the 1959 Disney...

From the dawn of time, man has been fascinated by the stars and what — or more importantly, who — is out there. Unsurprisingly, from the dawn of filmmaking, Hollywood has been also been fascinated by visiting (and visitors from) other worlds. One of the earliest silent films, A Trip to the Moon, was about shooting astronauts to the moon (using a cannon) and the alien creatures they find. There are...

This week on The Video Store Podcast, I’m recommending four films that are all about films and filmmaking in one way or another. Some are about the industry. Some about obsession with its product. All are worth watching. The Stunt Man (1980) – Directed by Richard Rush. This film took nearly a decade to get made. It’s about a fugitive who ends up working as a stuntman on a chaotic film set. Peter O...

Welcome to Camp Video Store Podcast ! While we’re not actually going to camp, we are getting your summer started off the right way with some summer-themed horror movies. We hope you packed your sleeping bag, your flashlight, and a big bowl of popcorn. Here are four films that give us the Summer Spookies. Friday the 13th (1980) The second of the big three slashers, Friday the 13th, gave us Jason an...

Shortly after graduating high school, Ed Gale — who stood 3’4” tall — left Michigan with $40 in his pocket and went to Hollywood. Gale said his goal was never to become a leading man, but to make a living as a working actor… and that he did, appearing in more than 200 television shows, commercials, and films. Upon arriving in Hollywood the first role he was offered was none other than Howard the D...

This week I’m recommending four crime films from the 1970s and early 80s. Each one centers on a planned job, bank heists, robberies, break-ins, and none of them go smoothly. The tone across these films is lean, serious, and focused on the people involved more than the action. There’s a lot of attention to detail, and they hold up well. Charley Varrick (1973) Directed by Don Siegel. Walter Matthau...

Welcome back to another edition of the Video Store Podcast! We’re celebrating Memorial Day weekend with four films that might not have made your typical holiday weekend watchlist. Captain America (1990) You may have heard of Reb Brown, Chris Evans, Anthony Mackie, and Carl Lumbly, but you may have missed Matt Salinger. This overlooked Captain America film isn’t highly rated, and yet boasts 2 Oscar...

I grew up on Route 66 and have road trips in my veins. I’ve driven all over this great country, visited every single state and seen thousands of interesting things. Nothing inspires me more than a good road trip film — if you’re the same way, check out one of this week’s recommendations. All of the my picks on this week’s list are pretty well known, which makes them so much fun to revisit. If you...