Peak Movies: 1985

This season finale episode has a little bit of everything, folks. Scott and Eric pay their respects to some important figures from 1985 who sadly passed during the making of this little podcast. Your trusty cohosts also use the power of hindsight to update their personal Rank & File lists — because everyone loves a good list! You'll even be whisked away to our recent live Celebration Scre...

We’ve reached the penultimate stop in our journey together, Peak Movie fans! Eric and Scott reminisce about all we learned in Quarter 4. Plus, a crack team of special contributors briefly address a few additional December films that didn’t make the cut. Attention to detail and a suddenly open schedule … we haz it.

Two sworn enemies become unorthodox co-parents … IN SPACE! Steven Spielberg and Quincy Jones join forces for the big screen adaptation of Alice Walker’s Pulitzer Prize winning novel featuring the film debuts of Whoopi Goldberg and Oprah Winfrey! Special guest Aflamu Johnson (actor, comedian, co-founder of Dr. Chorizo Productions, check out his hood comedy mockumentary Dem Young Boys on Youtube) jo...

Terry Gilliam’s dystopian dark comedy is also one of Scott’s favorite movies of all time! Two Hollywood screen legends find romance and a bunch of Oscars in Africa! Special guest Pete Gardner (actor, master improviser, Daryl from Crazy Ex-Girlfriend ) joins Eric and Scott to share his experiences traveling abroad back in 1985 and the role movies played in that epic solo journey. Both films release...

When the going gets tough, the tough get their final sequel of the season! Plus the Parker Brothers bring their talents to the silver screen with the help of a ridiculously talented ensemble cast! Special guest Amy Claire Sparks (professional funny person, secretary extraordinaire, co-host of Herstory The Podcast ) joins Eric and Scott for an illuminating discussion about the collected works of Jo...

A ballet dancer and a tap dancer walk into a Siberian bar! Two bumbling morons get laid and exploited by the military industrial complex! Special guest Jessica Makinson (actor, director, improviser, multiple voices on South Park) joins Eric and Scott for a double feature episode steeped in Cold War intrigue and plenty of questionable male behavior. Both films premiered in theaters on December 6th,...

A Spielberg produced Sherlock Holmes prequel! Two convicts F around on a runaway train and find out! Special guest and solitary member of the PM85 Three Timers Club Patrick Gorman joins Eric and Scott for a surprisingly satisfying double feature about Egyptian death cults and a woeful lack of runaway train contingency plans. The Holmes film debuted on December 4th while the train flick went wide D...

Ivan Drago! A robot maid! A full blown James Brown song and dance number! Plus RIP Apollo Creed! Special guest Paul Vaillancourt (improv guru/teacher, multi-hyphenate entertainment industry jack of all trades, YouTube Creator Coach) joins Eric and Scott for a solo episode all about how Rocky Balboa singlehandedly thawed the Cold War using nothing but the power of montage. Stallone’s epic sequel hi...

Scott and special contributors Matt Taylor and Garry Crystal briefly address a trio of films from November ‘85 that didn’t make it to the main pod. Attention to detail … we haz it.

A young Willem Dafoe prints money and wreaks havoc in the City of Angels! The Dow Chemical Company turns frozen Yugoslavian funds into a slap dash monster movie spoof starring Jeff Goldblum and Ed Begley, Jr! Special guest Jonathan Howard (writer/performer, The Varnell Hill Show, The Goldbergs, Schooled) joins Eric and Scott for a tender look back at the stylish crime drama and a deliberate look a...

Freddy's back but not Wes Craven! Charles Bronson ran out of immediate family members so now he's avenging an old war buddy! Special guest and longtime pal Michael Preonas (fellow movie hound, proprietor of Columbine Valley Liquors in Littleton, Colorado) joins Eric and Scott for a nightmarish journey through the underbelly of middling Hollywood sequels. Both films released back on Decem...

Scott prepares a short lecture on the rise of VCR technology. After that, your trusty cohosts hand things off to a fresh new crew of special contributors in order to briefly address a few films that didn’t make the October cut. Attention to detail … we haz it.

An absurd comedy about teen suicide and downhill skiing! A surreal dark comedy SoHo survival film from some dude named Martin Scorsese! Special guest Owen Hammer (playwright, comic book writer, cryptic film whisperer at his Hammered Out channel on Youtube) gets weird with Eric and Scott for this look back at this pair of oddball 80s comedies. Both films went wide in theaters on October 11th, 1985.

Michael Caine headlines a cinematic anxiety dream adapted from a Robert Ludlum novel! Jeff Lebowski and Nova-Prime explore the sexy limits of attorney client privilege! Special guest Michael Patrick Jann (MTV's The State, Reno 911, Drop Dead Gorgeous, Alma and the Wolf) joins cohosts Eric and Scott for a little hot n' steamy pillow talk about this pair of less celebrated thrillers. The H...

With three quarters of the season officially in the books, Eric and Scott reminisce about all we learned in Quarter 3. Plus, some special contributors briefly address a few films that didn’t make the cut in August and September. Attention to detail … we haz it.

Chuck Norris shrugs off a terrorist invasion with a cute little pair of Micro Uzis! Arnold goes full first person shooter mode and solos an entire army singlehandedly! Returning guest Brad Stevens joins Eric and Scott for a giddy tour of these two all time classic/ridiculous 80s action flicks where no stunt man is left standing. The Chuck flick released on September 27th, 1985, while Ahnold’s offe...

Jane Fonda chainsmokes her way through a mysterious and disturbing nun murder case! Late in his career, master filmmaker Akira Kurosawa delivers high art in the form of a Japanese historical epic inspired by King Lear! Special guest and professional film critic Tim Grierson joins Eric and Scott for a substantive discussion about one of the classier movie pairings of the season. Both films released...

Eric, Scott, and some special contributors briefly address a handful of films from the summer of ‘85 that didn’t make it to the main pod. Attention to detail … we haz it.

A gritty R-rated crime drama from Mickey Rourke and the guy behind Heaven’s Gate! Director Paul Verhoeven’s first English language film starring Rutger Hauer and Jennifer Jason Leigh! Returning special guest Joel Watson joins Eric and Scott for a dark night of the soul style journey into the adult themed underbelly of 1985. The Chinese mob picture released August 16th while the Middle Ages erotic...

Comic lead era Tom Hanks reunites with John Candy and his future wife Rita Wilson! Michael J. Fox wolfs out and wins some basketball games as well as our hearts! Special guest Pete Alton joins Eric and Scott for a deeply personal conversation about two very different high concept comedies. Volunteers went wide on August 16th, 1985, followed by Teen Wolf on August 23rd.

The only John Candy comedy vehicle that ends with a big boat race! A loner/rebel loses his most valued possession! Special guest Ian Gary joins Eric and Scott for a look back at two very different ’85 comedies with drastically different levels of staying power. Both films released on August 9th, 1985.

Vampires with a whole mouthful of teeth! Dennis Hopper presumably cashes a nice paycheck! Special guest/special contributor/friend of the show Joel Watson joins Eric and Scott for an enthusiastic discussion about a couple of weird and wild genre films from the era. The suburban vampire nightmare released on August 2nd, 1985, while the forgotten (totally deserved until you get to the third act) sci...

A couple of amusing nobodies create a magical supermodel with nothing but some moxie and a home PC! Pacific Tech’s finest get their revenge by creating the world’s largest serving of Jiffy Pop! Special guest and fellow podcaster Ilana Cohn joins Eric and Scott as they reflect on our second John Hughes film of the year which released August 2nd, 1985, followed by the Val Kilmer comedy classic which...

A foreign made Brazilian prison drama! The Griswolds win a game show and embarrass their home country for 90 minutes! Appearing via fancy high tech remote, special guest and fellow podcaster Steve Berg joins Eric and Scott for an unlikely double feature that really showcases what a wide spectrum of stories this year has to offer. Both films released on July 26th, 1985 … and you’ll never guess whic...

The pod has been overrun by the undead! Our chronological journey through the films of 1985 takes a bit of a detour for purely thematic reasons as special guest and filmmaker Nick Simon joins Eric and Scott for a grisly convo about two cult classic zombie flicks from the two men behind the original Night of the Living Dead. George A. Romero’s Day of the Dead went wide on July 19th, 1985, while Joh...