Shat the Movies: 80's & 90's Best Film Review

"The Legend of Billie Jean" had a little something for each Shat The Movies host. Gene got his Honda Elite scooter. Ash got her Christian Slater. And Big D got Helen Slater with no bra. But that's not why listener BreAnn M. commissioned this 1985 coming-of-age film. For her, "The Legend of Billie Jean" was an inspiration, a gateway to feminism and a radical view of what kids could do. In this epis...

When listener Rob F. commissioned "Gattaca" in honor of his father, we all remembered it as beautiful, futuristic and distinct. Oddly enough, we couldn't remember much else.  We remembered Ethan Hawke but not his lengthy voiceovers. We remembered Jude Law but not the incinerator scene. We remembered Uma Thurman but not her character's heart condition.  This 1997 sci-fi debut for director Andrew Ni...

Shat The Movies didn't invent sexual perversion, edgy attitudes and impeccable taste in music, we just perfected it. More than 25 years earlier, Christian Slater inspired teens to "talk hard" in the 1990 box office bomb "Pump Up The Volume." Ash was delighted when listener Eric commissioned this coming-of-age movie to highlight his belief in the power of listening. Dick Ebert viewed it from a pare...

We noticed all the biggest podcasts seem to have celebrity hosts, murder or hot takes. Shat The Movies lacks star power. And it doesn't have thrilling true-crime tales. So this week we're banking on misguided opinions as we plug into "Short Circuit." Big D doesn't think Johnny 5 is really alive. Ash believes this is Ally Sheedy's worst performance. And Gene is convinced Ben Jabituya isn't Indian....

Before Arizona was the playground of retired athletes and conservative Californians, it was a quiet, spooky place full of Old West ghosts, dusty roads and alien abductions. We're taking you back to the Travis Walton story with "Fire in the Sky." Released in the same year "The X Files" debuted, "Fire in the Sky" terrified a young Gene Lyons, who went day camping in the same woods where aliens scoop...

Shat The Movies power couple Carlos and Natasha were kind enough to gift the Shat Crew three film commissions of our choice. So we  used the first to fill a glaring omission in the Pantheon of Shat: "Legend." Nursing a "Hawk The Slayer" hangover, Ash was a bit worried venturing back into her beloved fantasy genre, but she quickly discovered Legend's production value was top-notch. Gene was impress...

Shat The Movies takes its anglophilia to a new level with an English commissioner, an English guest host and a movie that epitomizes the English film renaissance: "Four Weddings and a Funeral." Rob Will Taylor joins Ash and Gene to discuss the reality of British weddings, why they start so early and why they suck for guests. The Shat Crew also explores the tragic tale of Charlotte Coleman, the cha...

When listener Joe asked to commission a pair of films for his grandmother's 100th birthday, the Shat Crew never suspected his first choice would be "Hawk The Slayer." And the surprises didn't end there. This low-budget 1980 sword-and-sorcery fantasy treated us to machine-gun crossbows, a magical fisting sword and Jack Palance in a cape. We also got a Lord Rockingham soundtrack, serious Medieval Ti...

If you had to assemble a film canon, a collection of movies you'll never outgrow, what would be in it? For listener Shawn, the answer is simple: "Death Becomes Her." We're kicking off 2024 with cutting-edge computer-generated effects (for 1992), life lessons about immortality and Goldie Hawn in a fat suit. As Big D explores the appeal of "Death Becomes Her" to the gay community, Ash dives into her...

Proving that we always save the Shat for last, Shat The Movies humbly presents its final film review for 2023: "Philadelphia Experiment 2." It's a movie full of time travel, family drama and big people giving small performances. Closing out the Month of Mark from Minneapolis, this 1993 sci-fi sleeper has all the feels of a prescription-drug ad mixed with military mistakes, questionable casting and...

What more do you want from Christmas than some warm fuzzies, friends returning from afar and the miracle of Shat The Movies covering another film from the new millennium? Maybe some Will Farrell. "Elf" is the rare movie that old people like Dick Ebert and young people like Ash's kids can equally enjoy. It's timeless, hilarious, a bit optimistic and a clever nod to the Christmas classics that came...

The Month of Mark from Minneapolis enters its Christmas phase with the 1999 crime comedy "Go." Or, as we like to call it, "MTV Magnolia." While Gene praises the film's optimistic attitude toward drug use, he struggles with painful memories of how trivia failed to make him popular. Ash compares director Doug Liman to Quentin Tarantino, and Dick tries to convince his co-hosts that being middle-aged...

Ash is back! Shat The Movies' "female expert" rejoins the team and breaks the millennial wall to cover her favorite movie: "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind." Topics in this episode run the gamut from manic pixie dream girls to breakups to losing pets. Gene airs some personal grievances about ex-girlfriends who needed to talk "right now;" Dick questions why people are allowed to relabel their...

What do "The Quick and the Dead" and NBA Jam have in common? Is loose clothing appropriate for quick-draw competitions? How many flashbacks is too many?  Commissioner Edwin instructed the Shat Crew to drink a few beers and have fun with this episode, and we were happy to oblige. Technically, Big D drank decaf coffee, but Gene made up for it with a few Red Trolleys.  Along the way, Dick Ebert offer...

If you made a mashup of Shat The Movies films, "The Blood of Heroes" might be the result. It has a dose of "Mad Max," a pinch of "Blade Runner," two tablespoons of "Robot Jox" and just a hint of "The Sandlot." Definitely an acquired taste. Rutger Hauer returns to a dark, wet dystopia in this 1989 sci-fi cult classic that spawned the real-life game of Jugger and reminded Dick Ebert of all the niche...

Of all the '80s movies that needed a sequel, "Young Guns" wasn't one of them. But when you quadruple the budget, beef up the cast and toss in Christian Slater, the Shat Crew (and commissioner Kelly B.) certainly will saddle up. This 1990 Western is more "The Ballad of Brushy Bill Roberts" than an accurate retelling of the events following the Lincoln County War—with questionable wound care, incred...

If you aren't a Kathleen Turner fan, haven't experienced a young Nicolas Cage or want to see what would happen if Francis Ford Coppola directed a time-travel fantasy rom-com, "Peggy Sue Got Married" is the movie for you.  Both Shat The Movies hosts went into this 1986 film with low expectations, and each found something to appreciate. Dick Ebert appreciated the life lessons about living "in the no...

Who doesn't love a movie about making a movie? Who doesn't love Eddie Murphy? Who doesn't love Steve Martin? By the end of our "Bowfinger" podcast, you'll find out exactly who. Along the way, you'll hear Big D downplay the tragedy of Anne Heche's death. Gene will explain his fascination with Gogglebox. And you'll discover this 1999 comedy's connection to the Church of Scientology. As the Shat Crew...

This year's Shat The Movies Spooktacular brings you three movies in one: It's the 1985 horror anthology "Cat's Eye." What do all the stories have in common? A cat, Drew Barrymore and a heavy dependence on Stephen King's name recognition. In this episode, Gene questions why anyone would own a cat. Big D makes the case for rabbits being the ultimate pets, and both hosts admit to using racist terms t...

Shat The Movies has dabbled in films from the 1970s, but we've never reached back this far. More than 50 years ago, a Francis Ford Coppola epic changed the way America viewed organized crime and set a new standard for storytelling. This is "The Godfather." And who better to commission this film about family than an Italian-American listener from New Jersey with fond memories of sharing mob movies...

"Sneakers" is to Dick Ebert as "Hackers" is to Gene Lyons. This 1992 thriller doesn't have flashy graphics, funky fashions or a techno soundtrack—but it does have Ben Kingsley, Sidney Poitier, Dan Aykroyd and Robert Redford. In loafers. With its playful tone, low barrier to entry and established cast, this gateway thriller appeals to the familiar to explain the cutting-edge. And Big D likes that....

"The Warriors" is a movie that many people quote but few truly appreciate, at least not as much as listeners Carlos The Mailman and Natasha The Mail Lady. And for them, Big D faced his childhood fears and ventured back to 1979 New York. In this episode, Dick Ebert ranks "The Warriors" diverse gangs, highlights their fashion arms race and argues Cyrus' assassination was an inside job. Gene Lyons of...

Does Big D hate "Spaceballs" or does he hate Mel Brooks? Shat The Movies Fantasy Football champion John decided to settle the question once-and-for-all by commissioning the 1981 ensemble comedy epic "The History of The World, Part I." Spanning from prehistoric man to the French Revolution, this movie features Brooks in FIVE different roles (although Dick questions just how different they are) and...

On a transatlantic odyssey to discover the magic of Bob Hoskins, the Shat Crew instead finds itself wondering "is this Ireland?" and "did all the English look alike in the 1970s?" Come get lost with us in "The Long Good Friday." In this episode, Gene laments the loss of '70s pub culture and criticizes the film's wasted deaths with no emotional impact. Dick focuses on the "slasher film" vibe of the...

Dick Ebert wonders why Damon Wayans wasn't in more movies after filming "Major Payne." Gene Lyons wonders why Damon Wayans was in any more movies after filming "Major Payne." This 1995 comedy featuring the musical stylings of 2 Live Crew and star power of Michael Ironside and Bam Bam Bigelow had us asking what was wrong with Major Payne's romantic interest (Karyn Parsons) and why any director woul...