Ruined Childhoods

Goldie , Bette , and Diane - name a more iconic trio. We’ll wait. On this episode, Dan and Jon celebrate the 1996 classic, The First Wives Club , and decide once and for all how it should be (and has been) brought back in modern times. Buy or merch at Teepublic.com ! Next episode: The Game (1997)

Most moviegoing audiences in 1995 were turned off enough by the disaster stories coming from the set of Waterworld that, by the time it was released that July, few people were still ready to give it a fighting chance. Dan and Jon have put on the swim trunks, waited at least 30 minutes, and dived back in to revisit the film and its many controversies. Were they able to find anything salvageable in...

When it comes to films about journalism, you needn’t go further than one co-written by the Executive Editor of Time Magazine. Written by David and Stephen Koepp . But this podcast features a different set of brothers, Dan & Jon, and they set out to celebrate 1994’s The Paper and imagine how it could be brought back today. Next Episode: Waterworld (1995) BUY OUR MERCH ON TEEPUBLIC.COM

Find our Merch on TeePublic.com Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau may go together like peanut butter & jelly, but they also go together like orange juice & toothpaste, or such is the case in the Odd Couple or this week’s movie duo, Grumpy Old Men and Grumpier Old Men . Dan & Jon go over their history with the franchise and imagine new opportunities and old ideas for ways to bring this typ...

Say what you will about Steven Seagal (go ahead, we’ll wait), but the guy definitely brought the goods for 1992’s “Die Hard on a Battleship”, Under Siege , and to a lesser extent, Under Siege 2: Dark Territory . Dan & Jon discuss this anomaly of a man while celebrating these two utterly enjoyable movies. And perhaps there’s room for a 2nd life for the franchise. BUY OUR MERCH ON TEEPUBLIC.COM...

Travel back with Dan and Jon to a simpler time, a time when knights chivalrously rescued trampled cabaret singers and engaged on quests to retrieve Holy Grails from Upper East Side fortresses - 1991, which we learn was a great time for movies, including this Oscar-nominated release. With the disclaimer that director Terry Gilliam has shown himself to be a pompous misogynist, they reveal all of the...

Gratitude month continues on RCP as we step back into the world of Hal Ashby’s cult classic Harold & Maude . Jon shares his ongoing love for a film that he discovered years ago and continues to revisit, while Dan shares his struggle to stay awake through evening viewings despite genuinely appreciating it. Next episode: The Fisher King (1991)

Schmucks, and Schmos, and Nogoodnicks - OH MY! On this episode of Ruined Childhoods, we’re thankful for Fargo , the 1996 Coen Brothers masterpiece that was eventually adapted into a successful FX anthology series . Jon breaks down his list of categories for Coen Brothers characters, recounts his first time seeing the film, and imagines a new way to tell crime stories from unexpected places. Dan al...

What would it be like if children’s entertainers were all corrupt…except one? How long would it take for them to break? On this episode, Dan & Jon break down the 2002 dark-as-hell comedy, Death to Smoochy , and celebrate its absurdity, astonishingly funny performances, and the brilliance of Danny DeVito’s direction. Next episode: Fargo (1996)

When two NYC yuppies and a pair of sibling Brazilianaires accidentally find their way into a house filled with bizarre execution machines and a maniacal Judge with a hatred for bankers and love for Digital Underground, you have the perfect recipe for an episode of Ruined Childhoods. Nothing But Trouble (1991) is a punchline to most, but to Dan and Jon, it’s an overlooked effort straight from the m...

The Academy called it 1989’s best picture, but Dan and Jon have some other thoughts on what should have happened with this film and what could happen with this film. This Ayktobyr, we celebrate Driving Miss Daisy for what it was - the film that got Dan Aykroyd his Oscar nomination. Next episode: Nothing But Trouble (1989)

The second episode of “Ayktobyr” delves into the hit comedy that helped rocket Dan Aykroyd and Eddie Murphy to superstardom and showed that Jamie Lee Curtis was capable of doing more than running from Michael Myers . Dan and Jon note the relevance of the movie's themes, such as white privilege and systemic racism, while appreciating the intelligence of the underappreciated screenplay and nuanc...

Welcome to AYKTOBYR! It’s our month-long celebration of actor, writer, director, producer, and purveyor of fine vodka, Mr. Dan Aykroyd . We begin with Aykroyd at his villainous best as John Cusack ’s fast-talking, labor-organizing, rival (and mentor?) hitman Harry Grocer in Grosse Pointe Blank . Next episode: Trading Places (1983)

In 1960, Billy Wilder perplexed audiences with an adultery comedy that swept the Oscars. Jack Lemmon , Shirley MacLaine , and Fred MacMurray star in The Apartment , a tale of institutionally accepted infidelity, a peon who enables it for personal gain, and a woman caught in the middle. And 60 years after its release, Dan and Jon discuss its legacy, debate the motives of the main characters, and im...

Dan and Jon devote an episode to their favorite sisters - Sister Mary Clarence, Sister Mary Patrick, Sister Mary Robert, Sister Mary Lazarus, and the entire St. Katherine’s Convent! Sister Act was a huge hit in 1992, due in no small part to the performances of its phenomenal cast as well as some rousing musical numbers. While its 1993 sequel is remembered fondly, particularly for its introduction...

What happens when Bill Murray , Geena Davis , and Randy Quaid attempt to escape New York after a daring bank robbery? Quite a bit, as it turns out. Dan and Jon revisit the offbeat comedy as it celebrates its 30th anniversary. In addition to celebrating its outstanding cast, which also includes Jason Robards , Tony Shalhoub , Phil Hartman , and Stanley Tucci , they delve into what might have preven...

Ain’t no party like a Peter Sellers party cause a Peter Sellers party is CONTROVERSIAL! In 1968’s The Party , Peter Sellers plays Hrundi V. Bakshi, an actor from India trying to make his way in Hollywood. Dan and Jon review his performance and puts it in context with other work by Sellers and director, Blake Edwards , to encourage others to watch first and judge later. Does The Party have a place...

Lewis, Gilbert, and the gang address nerd persecution in the first of this series of films that lives on as a cult classic, but is certainly not without its problems. Followed by one theatrical sequel and two made-for-TV movies (the fourth features an all-star cast), Revenge of the Nerds has been on the back burner for a reboot for years - Dan & Jon weigh in. Next episode: The Party (1968)

The Bad News Bears (1976) Everyone’s favorite fictional Little League team (and the inspiration for many others) has been featured in three films, a short-lived TV series, and a remake made for the PC era. Where do they go from here? Dan and Jon attempt to answer this question while discussing what made the 1976 original so special, how its sequels failed to recapture the magic, and why the 2005 r...

The Wizard (1989) Our third episode “Child Star Month” features Dan and Jon’s hometown homie Jeff Rubin ( The Jeff Rubin Jeff Rubin Show , College Humor , Buzzfeed ), who joins them to reminisce about their childhoods and discuss The Wizard , also known as “the Nintendo movie” (which ironically does not focus much on Nintendo ). They discuss how stars Fred Savage and Jenny Lewis have both transiti...

Dan and Jon are joined by hometown homie Brian “Box” Brown, author of the new graphic novel, Child Star , to talk about the 1995 classic, Heavyweights . This film is the 2nd in our month-long series of films celebrating child stars, in honor of the release of Brown’s book. Heavyweights features child stars Kenan Thompson , Aaron Schwartz , and Shaun Weiss , all of whom we whole-heartedly salute! B...

It was director Joe Dante ’s follow up to his blockbuster hit, GREMLINS , and the screen debuts of Ethan Hawke and River Phoenix , two young actors who would each leave his mark on cinema despite the quite different (and, in Phoenix’s case, tragic) trajectories their careers would take. So why exactly wasn’t this movie a huge hit 35 years ago? Dan and Jon dig in and explore its troubled path to th...

In the final, sweat-drenched episode of “JOEL-ly”, we take an extended look at two of Joel Schumacher ’s biggest hits, both adaptations of novels by bestselling author John Grisham . Joining us is attorney Laura Richardson, who shares some stories from her days working in Memphis and tells us what the novels and films capture best about practicing law in the southeast USA. Also, Dan shares his tan...

Flatliners (1990) What happens when you bring yourself to death’s door and turn back right before crossing the threshold? Joel Schumacher and a cast of impressive young Hollywood talent explore the consequences of experimentation in this psychological thriller, which Dan and Jon discuss in this episode, the third in our month of episodes celebrating the legacy of the late director. Also, Jon share...

Anyone who has seen and remembers this film probably doesn’t need to be told how relevant it is to today’s world. In their analysis of Falling Down , Dan and Jon discuss how the themes of the film and the character of “D-Fens” ( Michael Douglas ) resonate today, 27 years after the film’s release. As this is also the second film of “JOEL-ly”, they also continue answering the question, “What are the...