The Kulturecast

We kick off our second annual Indian Cinema Month with a look at a film centered on a high-stakes game of cricket between the colonial British and rural Indians: Lagaan. Starring charismatic lead Aamir Khan as Bhuvan, he wagers three years of grain taxes on a game of cricket against the occupying Brits. Its sports meets musical in this epic that succeeds most of the time but makes some truly mindb...

We round out the films Chris hasn't seen with a look at a war film that may be the best the genre has to offer: Saving Private Ryan. Starring Tom Hanks and an ensemble cast, it follows Hanks as a captain in WWII tasked with bringing a soldier back from the front whose siblings all died. It features some of the most harrowing and realistic combat footage ever recreated but stumbles otherwise. On Se...

In this bonus episode, we take a look at yet another HBO Max release that aims to right the wrongs of the previous entry: Mortal Kombat (2021). Featuring an ensemble cast, it follows Cole, an MMA fighter, who is thrust into the world of inter-dimensional fights and fatalities as he must figure out his destiny. It's better than MK: Annihilation but still suffers from issues that plague many video g...

As we continue to look at important films that Chris has never seen, we come upon a film considered to be one of the greatest films of all time: Citizen Kane. Written, starring, and directed by Orson Welles, it tells the story of Charles Kane, a media magnate whose life seems to be as out of control as it is grand. The film is as technically impressive as it is well written as it is well-acted and...

As we continue to look at important films that Chris hasn't seen, we take a look at not only the best film of Spike Lee's filmography but a truly amazing film: Do the Right Thing. Featuring an ensemble cast, the film takes place over several scorching summer days in New York City's Bed-Stuy neighbor. With both the temperature and racial tensions heating up, it's a slice of life look at what it mea...

This month we're taking a look at films that Chris hasn't seen, and most of them are going to be some of the true classics of the medium including the first film of the month: Chinatown. Featuring Jack Nicholson and Faye Dunaway, it follows Nicholson as J.J. Gittes, a private eye who is approached by a wife who is convinced that her husband is sleeping around on her. He is then drawn into a web of...

We end Mike White March with a film that pushed the Hayes Code at the time and continues to offer an intriguing look at the lengths one woman will go to get what she wants: Baby Face. Featuring Barbara Stanwyck as the titular character, she embarks on a journey of self-discovery and self-realization within the world of 1930's finance. It pushes the boundaries of what was acceptable at the time and...

We take another break from Mike White March to watch the second film in the HBOMax home streaming experience: Godzilla vs. Kong. Featuring the two titular characters, it also stars a handful of human actors trying to understand why the two monsters are fighting. It's another lackluster entry in a mediocre connected universe. The Projection Booth's Mike White joins Chris to talk all about the entir...

We take a break from Mike White March to take an extended look at a film that many of us thought didn't exist let alone would ever see the light of day: Zack Snyder's Justice League. A completely recut, reshot version of Joss Whedon's disaster, it tells the story of the formation and early trials of the titular Justice League. It's a film whose journey to existence is more exciting than the film's...

We near the end of Mike White March with a look at a film that pushes the boundaries of what was acceptable in cinema at the time: Three on a Match. Featuring Anne Dvorak, Joan Blondell, and Bette Davis, the three play friends reunited after years apart whose lives spiral out of control after their chance meeting. It features drug addiction, suicide, and child abuse; oh boy! The Projection Booth's...

We come to the halfway point of Mike White March with a pre-Code film that stars one of the eras indomitable stars James Cagney: Blonde Crazy. With Cagney in the lead as Bert Harris, it follows his quick-thinking bellboy as he schemes his way across the United States trying to win over Joan Blondell. It's another fantastic entry in an already solid Mike White March. The Projection Booth's Mike Whi...

We continue Mike White March with a film that not only nabbed its lead an Academy Award but also features a wild opening that has to be seen to be believed: The Divorcee. Starring Norma Shearer as the titular divorcee, she spends the film falling in and out of love with her husband and bevy of would-be callers. It's a film that straddles the line between drama, comedy, and pre-code era euphemisms...

Join Chris as he chats with WWE superstar, actor, and producer CJ "Lana" Perry all about her new film "Cosmic Sin" featuring Bruce Willis and Frank Grillo along with discussing her WWE career, her future aspirations, and how her upbringing affected her work ethic. You can follow Chris Stachiw at @Casualty_Chris and the Kulturecast @kulturecast. You can also subscribe to the Kulturecast on iTunes h...

Every March, we turn the programming over to our good friend Mike White from The Projection Booth, and this March is no different with a look as we focus on Pre-Hayes Code films starting out with the fantastic Jewel Robbery. Starring William Powell and Kaye Francis, the two play a jewel thief and a wealthy heiress who cross paths during the titular jewel robbery. It's a fantastic example of what i...

We end Noiruary with an adaptation of a Chester Himes novel that puts a decidedly absurdist spin on the hard-boiled noir genre in the Bill Duke directed A Rage in Harlem. Starring Forest Whittaker and Gregory Hines, the film follows the two estranged brothers as they attempt to get one the woman of his dreams and the other a chest full of gold. The film meshes comedy with a heavy dash of bloodshed...

We continue Noiruary with a Jim Thompson adaptation that is next to impossible to find, primarily because it's never been released on DVD: The Kill-Off. The film takes place in a seaside New Jersey town that has fallen on hard times and features even harder people. It's a slice of salacious Americana that only Jim Thompson could have written. Wake Up Heavy's Mark Begley joins Chris to talk about t...

We continue Noiruary, our all noir month programmed by Pulp Serenade's Cullen Gallager, with another film that breaks with traditional noir tropes: Night Falls (Le Noche Avanza). Starring Pedro Armendariz, he plays Marcos, a celebrity jai alai player with a massive ego who gets himself into some hot water with mobsters and femme fatales. Not only does it break with noir conventions but it also fea...

We kick off Noiruary, our all noir month programmed by Pulp Serenade's Cullen Gallager, with a film that feels oddly prescient in 2021: The Sound of Fury. Starring Frank Lovejoy and Lloyd Bridges, the film follows Lovejoy as a man down on his luck who falls in with a charismatic criminal and then gets in way over his head after a kidnapping goes awry. The film features imagery that's particularly...

We end DCOM month with not only an early entry into the Disney Channel Originals filmography but one that continues with the genre trappings: Can of Worms. Starring Michael Schulman and Erika Christensen, it follows Michael as a teenager who is convinced he's not from Earth only to get more than he bargains for when he sends a distress signal into space. The animatronics are worth the price of adm...

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...