Pleasers & Punishers

Life is like spaghetti—it’s hard until you make it! Join us for another installment of Giallo January as we cover Emilio P Miraglia’s final feature. From Giallo genre standards to ill-advised threesomes, we’ll once again confer with our occasional co-host Kayte Terry to get to the bottom of this potentially supernatural murder-mystery.   Find us online: https://www.instagram.com/pleasersandpunishe...

Pull on your black gloves, grab your straight razor, and organize your newspaper clippings, because we’re taking a deep dive into Dario Argento’s incredible giallo. From John Saxon’s hat to Argento’s penchant for defenestration, real life inspiration, and the world of film censorship, we’ll dig through all the clues to piece together this mystery!   Find us online: https://www.instagram.com/please...

Welcome to 2026, bitches. It’s our end of year review and we’re doing it a little differently than most folks, so buckle up! From first-time watches to major disappointments, pleasing punishers, and punishing pleasers, we’ll cover a lot of ground, and also go on a lot of tangents. Thanks for listening to us, and we look forward to bringing you more in a year that’s hopefully better than the last o...

Take your measurements and be careful with those mushrooms, because it’s time to dive into the world of mid-century fashion. We’re very divided on this film, from the kink dynamics to Daniel Day Lewis’s performance, but at least we agree on the incredible dresses!   Find us online: https://www.instagram.com/pleasersandpunishers https://bsky.app/profile/pleaserspunishers.bsky.social pleaserspunishe...

Patch your condoms and practice your singing saw, because we’re taking a trip to post-apocalyptic France in the debut feature from Jeunet & Caro. We’ll talk class struggles, advertisement idea theft, and the mixed effectiveness of the film’s whimsy. Plus, a test of Mae’s willpower against her coulrophobia!   Find us online: https://www.instagram.com/pleasersandpunishers https://bsky.app/profil...

Pop open some Timmy Chardonay & put out that cigarette, because we’re heading to Hawthorne for a meal you won’t forget… Joined by gastro-horror expert Sarah Stubbs, we go long discussing food, class, and the inherent misogyny in the restaurant industry. Plus, tangets about SOV & found-footage horror, weddings, and more.   Find Sarah online: @sarahstubbssays https://linktr.ee/sarahstubbssay...

Please take your seats for the beginning of Decadent December with our conversation about Peter Greenaway’s Brechtian, singular vision, rendered with gorgeous colour and grotesque imagery. Joining us is author & critic Gretchen Felker-Martin, who helps us parse out the film’s rich, horrifying world, and brings some excellent perspective about filmmaking and storytelling.   Find Gretchen online...

We’re closing out nunsploitation month with Jeff Baena’s underseen, raucus convent comedy. We’ll discuss its stacked cast, irreverent humor, and delightful horniness. We'll also get very giggly even as Caitlyn delves into the history of the middle ages & the damaging effects sexual repression, and Mae gets eager for a Brie & Franco sandwich.   Find us online: https://www.instagram.com/plea...

This week, we’re getting pervier than two horny nuns as we discuss Paul Verhoeven’s historical nunsploitation film. From masturbatory objects & self-flagellation to the ridiculousness of the catholic church & trans-masc jesus, we have zero filter. Joined again by honorary co-host Kayte Terry, we delve deeper than Bartolomea’s hand into whatever the hell was happening in Pescia in the 17th...

Don your habit and enter the gateway to hell as we journey into Bruno Mattei & Claudio Fragasso’s 1981 nunsploitation shocker. We’ll talk about the history of the Catholic church, the true story that forms the basis for the film, and how to make the most of your budget!   Find us online: https://www.instagram.com/pleasersandpunishers https://bsky.app/profile/pleaserspunishers.bsky.social pleas...

Get thee to a nunnery, strap in to your torture chair, and prep that herbal enema, because we’re getting horny for Oliver Reed in Ken Russell’s epic tale of corruption in 16th century France. Joining us is special guest Amanda Jane Stern to talk Brechtian theatre, the Catholic church, and forearms & foreskins—Goodness will we giggle!   Find Amanda online: Letterboxd - witchywanderer Bsky &...

Scoop up your potatoes & molasses, eat your dirt, and beware the beast! It’s time to venture into the unknown with a stacked cast of voice actors, incredible tributes to classic animation, and POETRY & CLARINET! We’ll dive into the history of Betty Boop, the importance of the music on the show, and more, just in time for Halloween.   Find us online: https://www.instagram.com/pleasersandpun...

Rip that skin off your face and get ready to transform, because we’re diving through the portal into Jeremy Gillespie & Steven Kostanski’s goopy practical effects extravaganza. We’ll talk about the problematic origins of cosmic horror, the history of Astron-6 (RIP), and the efficacy of actors doing their own stunts, but we may wander off into hellish hallucinations, so hold on tight!   Find us...

Podcasting is never a straight line. It's a forest. And like a forest it's easy to lose your way... To get lost... To forget where you came in. Special guest Ian Carlos Crawford joins us to talk about Japanese metallurgy, the Wu Tang Clan, & possibly forming a group of deadly assassins!   Find Ian online: @ianxcarlos @slayerfestx98 @mybloodyjudy   Find us online: https://www.instagram.com/plea...

Googly googly go away! No, wait, come back! Bring your morphine and your oranges because we’re jumping off a bridge into Tarsem Singh’s fantastical epic. Joining us is guest Leslie J Rising who helps us thirst after Lee Pace as we explore the numerous locations & make our way to defeat Governor Odeus.   Find Leslie online: fangs.zone https://bsky.app/profile/lesliejrising.com https://lesliejri...

Grab your garbage bags and kiss your bullets because we’re hitting the mean streets of New York with Abel Ferarra’s rape-revenge masterpiece. Caitlyn, Mae, & special guest Jamie Alvey go long on this one talking about the genre, the legacy of Zoë Lund, and unexpectedly great disability representation. Content warning for discussions of SA, as well as major spoilers for the film Bystanders !  ...

Gather your girls and stock up on watermelon as we head out to the Japanese countryside for Nobuhiko Obayashi’s House (1977). We’ll discuss cat demons, ghosts, and world war II, as well as our own haunted experiences! Don’t fall asleep while you listen, because you may turn into a pile of bananas...   https://www.instagram.com/pleasersandpunishers https://bsky.app/profile/pleaserspunishers.bsky.so...

Let’s burn the house down and bring out the spirits, because we’re singing and dancing our way into Ryan Coogler’s 2025 masterpiece, “Sinners”. Joined by actor Christopher Livingston, we thirst after the cast, praise every aspect of the film, and condemn the disgusting history of the United States. Grab your mojo bag and meet us at the juke…we hope you’re thirsty…   https://www.instagram.com/pleas...

As Tom Waits says: Don’t go into that barn. But we doubt his song was about an alien who enjoys getting their freak on, unlike this movie!   That’s right—this week we’re discussing the origins of tentacle porn, queerness in Mexico, and more with our episode on Amat Escalante’s film about a dysfunctional family and alien sex.   https://www.instagram.com/pleasersandpunishers https://bsky.app/profile...

Dive deep with us into the French porn revolution of the 1970s with Yann Gonzales’ sophomore feature.   We’ll talk queer monsters, gloryhole etiquette, and birds, with our returning guest Kayte Terry.   https://www.instagram.com/pleasersandpunishers https://bsky.app/profile/pleaserspunishers.bsky.social pleaserspunisherspodcast@gmail.com   Art by The Haunted David Theme music by Everson Poe

Beauty isn’t everything—it’s the ONLY thing. Find out why as we discuss Nicolas Winding Refn’s ode to the LA modeling world.   From predatory men to witchy women, we dive into the seedy underbelly of Refn’s brightly-colored facade. Who wants sour milk when you can get fresh meat?   https://www.instagram.com/pleasersandpunishers https://bsky.app/profile/pleaserspunishers.bsky.social pleaserspunishe...

Snake that drain and iron that money because we’re talking the ultimate sapphic neo-noir courtesy of the Wachowskis, Bound. From the implementation of the Hayes code to the villain of Silence Of The Lambs, we’ll discuss what this film aimed to do and why it was so successful.   Referenced essay: Be Gay, Do Crime by McKenzie Wark   https://www.instagram.com/pleasersandpunishers https://bsky.app/pro...

Put on your creepiest mask and meet us at the empty opera house, because we’re going all the way back to the early days of giallo with the third installment in Dario Argento’s animal trilogy.   We’ll talk queerness & gender, the rise of post-fascism filmmaking, and what we want to see before we die.   https://www.instagram.com/pleasersandpunishers https://bsky.app/profile/pleaserspunishers.bsk...

We’re transcending multiple layers of reality as we blast some cover songs and pull off a heist in Zack Snyder’s divisive film Sucker Punch.   Featuring a video game-esque storyline, a bunch of hot women kicking ass, and sleazy men doing everything they can to be awful, we have all the weapons we need…now fight!   https://www.instagram.com/pleasersandpunishers https://bsky.app/profile/pleaserspuni...

Part the clouds and find your inner clarity because we’re tackling Drew Hancock’s feature debut Companion. We’ll touch on the ethics of artificial intelligence, the inherent political nature of existing in the world as a woman/femme, and how many amazing bits they managed to fit in one movie!   https://www.instagram.com/pleasersandpunishers https://bsky.app/profile/pleaserspunishers.bsky.social pl...