The Kulturecast

We near the end of DCOM month with a look at one of the true classics of the DCOM pantheon: Zenon: Girl of the 21st Century. Starring Kirsten Storm as the titular character, the film follows her adventures both in space and on Earth as she tries to uncover a secret that could spell doom for her space station home. It's not only a film that features a strong female protagonist but also a message ab...

We take a break from Disney Channel Originals to do our first joint podcast with The Projection Booth to talk about one of the greatest film trilogies of all time, and it just happens to be about time: The Bill and Ted Trilogy! The Projection Booth's Mike White and film critic Josh Steward join Chris to talk about all three films, the tv show, the cartoons, and so much more. Along the way, they'll...

As we near the end of Disney Channel Originals Month, we take a look at a film that may exist solely to sell tons of CDs: Camp Rock. Starring Demi Lovato and the Jonas Brothers, the film follows Demi Lovato as Mitchie, a talented young singer who attends the titular camp to further her musical training. At the camp, she learns to find herself and becomes romantically entangled with one of the Jo B...

Continuing on with Disney Channel Originals Month, we take a look at a film that was not only ahead of its time but also is shockingly relevant in 2021: Smart House. Starring Katey Sagal and Kevin Kilner, the film features Sagal as PAT, a house-based AI that attempts to ingratiate itself to a new family that has moved into. It's similar to so many things but yet manages be both simultaneously ente...

With 2020 in the past, let's talk about the first theme of 2021 with Disney Channel Original Movies and a film that pays homage to musicals of the past: Teen Beach Movie. Starring Ross Lynch and Maia Mitchell as two best friends who get trapped inside a surfer musical and have to play their parts and figure out how to escape. Not only does it hew close to the source material but it also manages to...

With the year that was 2020 now somewhat in the rearview mirror, we take a look at the insane year that it was. From the pandemic to the loss of the movie theater industry to much more, it's been a wild year on all accounts. Scary Stories We Tell's Jess Byard joins Chris to talk 2020, what things made their list, and so much more. You can follow Chris Stachiw at @Casualty_Chris and the Kulturecast...

While Body Swap December might be over, there's still one loose end to tie up with a remake of a remake of a remake: Freaky Friday. Starring Lindsay Lohan and Jamie Lee Curtis as daughter and mother, the two get body swapped by outside forces and must figure out how to switch back before it becomes permanent. It's the most basic of basic body swap movies and one that suffers due to how generic it...

We end Body Swap December with a film that features an octogenarian taking over his grandson's body by accident: 18 Again!. Starring George Burns and Charlie Schlatter as Jack and David Watson, a grandson, and grandfather who accidentally switch bodies after Jack's 81st birthday. It somehow manages to be the most sincere body swap film of the month. First time guest host Mark Begley of the Wake Up...

We continue Body Swap December with a look at one of the few new films to actually come out of 2020: Freaky. Coincidentally also a body swap film, it follows Kathryn Newton as a nebbish high schooler who accidentally swaps bodies with a local serial killer hellbent on staying in her body forever. Originally titled Freaky Friday the 13th, it's a mash-up of every body swap trope imaginably plus a he...

We continue Body Swap December with a film starring two of the biggest names in the '80s as another father/son duo who swap bodies, this time with a large age difference between the two: Vice Versa. Starring Judge Reinhold and Fred Savage, the pair are a father and son who swaps bodies due to magical occurrences and must find out how to switch back while also living each other's lives. It's Like F...

If you're expecting a film about a gorilla that plays baseball to be a light-hearted romp in the vein of Airbud, think again folks because Mr. Go has more to offer than a few guffaws. Starring Sung Dong-il and Xu Jiao, it's a tonally mismatched tale of a gorilla, the girl who teaches him baseball, and the manager who exploits them both. It's not your typical animal playing sports film, not at all....

We kick off Body Swap December with a look at a film that features Dudley Moore and Kirk Cameron swapping bodies: Like Father Like Son. Starring the aforementioned duo, they get body swapped through a magical bottle of hot sauce and must figure out a way to swap back and grow as father and son. It's the first in a long line of '80s body swap films featuring icons of the decade. Pulp Serenade's Cul...

We end Fantasy Film November with one of the greatest film trilogies of all time, not just in the fantasy genre: The Lord of the Rings. Starring one of the greatest ensemble casts ever; the trilogy follows the adventures of Frodo Baggins as he and the rest of the Fellowship attempt to thwart the dark lord Sauron from taking over Middle Earth. Not only is the trilogy a technical masterpiece, but it...

We near the end of Fantasy Film November with one of Tom Cruise's early efforts where he is completely overshadowed by one of the greatest living actors of all time, Tim Curry: Legend. Starring the aforementioned Cruise and Curry, the film follows Cruise as Jack, a woodland fairy tasked with saving a princess and the world from Curry's menacing yet charismatic Darkness. The film is remembered for...

We continue Fantasy Film November with a Disney film that not only happens to be a fantasy film but also based on one of the most important video games of all time: Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time. Starring Jake Gyllenhaal as the titular character who must save his kingdom from a threat from within that could destroy the entire world through the use of the Sands of Time. It's not the worst vid...

We continue Fantasy Film November with a sequel to the original Babe that shirks all conventions of typical sequels by going completely off the wall and putting the titular pig in the big city in Babe: Pig in the City. Starring a boatload of talented voice actors, it follows Babe as he is transplanted to the city due to unfortunate circumstances and must figure out a way to save the family farm. I...

We kick off Fantasy Film November with a Patreon request that host Chris has had a storied history with, a film about CGI owls voiced primarily by Australian actors: Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole. Starring Jim Sturgess as Soren, a young owl who is tasked with finding the legendary Guardians so that he can stop the evil Pure Ones. Along the way he meets a cavalcade of memorable char...

We end Horrortober VI: Down Under with part slasher, part mad scientist romp that is all horror: Strange Behavior. Starring Dan Shor and Michael Murphy, it follows the two as they attempt to discover why children in their small Illinois town turn up dead, having been murdered by an unknown assailant who may actually be a mad scientist. At times, it's a mashup, a sendup, but through and through a u...

We near the end of Horrortober Down Under with a look at one of Australia's great lost films and a terrifying look at the Outback: Wake in Fright. Starring Gary Bond as a schoolteacher attempting to return home from the Outback who gets more than he bargained for. Along the way, he goes "full native" and learns the truth about the less-traveled side of Australia. It's a wild journey through the Au...

We continue Horrortober Down Under with a look at Razorback, a film that's uniquely Australian and features one of cinema's great menace's: a giant hog. Starring Gregory Harrison as an American who ventures to Australia to track down his missing wife who happened to get eaten by the titular beast, it's a creature feature in the vein of Jaws, but on land. It's a tonal mess that never really decides...

With You've Never Seen September in the rearview mirror, we kick off the 6th annual Horrortober with a focus on Aussie horror films and a look at Thirst, an Australian take on vampires. Starring Chantal Contouri, the film follows her as the descendant of Elizabeth Bathory, one of history's most infamous "vampires" as a shadowy organization attempts to gaslight her into joining them. It's an intere...

We end You've Never Seen September with a film that stars Geena Davis and Jeff Goldblum once again, except this time, Goldblum is a fuzzy alien: Earth Girls are Easy. The film follows three aliens played by Goldblum, Jim Carrey, and Damon Wayans as they attempt to fix their spaceship with the help of lovelorn Geena Davis. It's a musical romp unlike anything you've ever seen. Diabolique's Heather D...

You've Never Seen September nears its conclusion with a film that we guarantee you've seen if not heard of, the one and only Beetlejuice. Starring Michael Keaton as the titular bio-exorcist, the film follows the recently deceased couple of Geena Davis and Alec Baldwin as they attempt to rid their home of pesky yuppies. In a moment of desperation, they turn to the ghost with most, Beetlejuice who t...

You've Never Seen September continues with a look at a film that puts the ick in icky and a fly in Jeff Goldblum: The Fly. Starring the aforementioned Jeff Goldblum and Geena Davis, the two play Seth Brundle and Veronica Quaife, a scientist and the journalist tasked with discovering the technology he's invented. This invention ends up having horrible consequences on both of their lives, including...

You've Never Seen September continues with a look at yet another film featuring Geena Davis; however, she's criminally wasted in the Dow Chemical Company-produced Transylvania 6-5000. Starring Jeff Goldblum and Ed Begley Jr. as two intrepid reporters who are tasked with going to Transylvania to find out if found footage of Frankenstein is real, and if it is, what the monster is up to. Once they ar...