The Kulturecast

We are at the halfway point of 2001: A Horrortober Odyssey with the only horror movie Harrison Ford ever starred in, which also happens to be directed by Robert Zemeckis: What Lies Beneath. Harrison Ford plays Dr. Norman Spencer, whose wife, played by Michelle Pfeiffer, is being haunted by a seemingly benevolent spirit in their house they are renovating. She later realizes the spirit may be trying...

We continue 2001: A Horrortober Odyssey with a film that started its life as a spec script for The X-Files then ends up being directed and written by two of the show's most influential writers, only later to become a horror franchise: Final Destination. The movie follows Devon Sawa as Alex Browning, a teenager who, alongside his classmates, narrowly avoids an airline disaster due to his premonitio...

We take a break from 2001: A Horrotober Odyssey to take a look at a film that is in the running for the most controversial film of 2019: Joker. The film follows Joaquin Phoenix as Arthur Fleck, a mentally disturbed man whose life is falling apart around him. Unable to make a name for himself in the world of clowns for hire, Arthur slips farther and farther into insanity, possibly becoming the famo...

We kick off 2001: A Horrotober Odyssey with a look at one of the forgotten slashers from pre-2001 that never even got a theatrical release: Cherry Falls. Starring Brittany Murphy, the film focuses on the town of Cherry Falls as it comes to terms with a serial killer in their midst. When it's determined that the killer only murders teenage virgins, insanity ensues that engulfs the town and leads to...

We end You've Never Seen September with a look at a film that is as notorious awful: Dan Aykroyd's vanity project and only directing credit Nothing But Trouble. Starring Chevy Chase, Demi Moore, John Candy, and Dan Aykroyd, it follows Chase and Moore as two yuppies who get pulled over by a local sheriff played by Candy who takes them in front of his deranged "hanging judge" grandfather played by A...

We near the end of You've Never Seen September with a look at a film that we guarantee you've never seen unless you're a fan of a certain '90s VHS pre-film trailer line-up: Big Girls Don't Cry... They Get Even. Starring a veritable cavalcade of notable stars including David Strathairn and Griffin Dunne, it follows Hillary Wolf as a teenager in a mixed family featuring step-brothers and half-sister...

We kick off You've Never Seen September with a look at a film that harkens back to the golden age of cinema and the gimmicks that came along with it: Joe Dante's Matinee. The film focuses on Lawrence Woolsey, a William Castle-type, who brings his gimmicky newest film to a 1962 Key West that is on edge during the Cuban Missile Crisis. Supported by a knockout performance by the immensely talented Jo...

We take a break from Weird 90's Comedy Month to take a look at the "conclusion" to the massively successful It franchise: It Chapter Two. The film follows the Losers Club from the first film as they are brought back to Derry to fight the evil entity known as Pennywise once again. They reforge the bonds of friendship, fight off Pennywise's fear-inducing hallucinations, and come together as a group...

Our 300th episode is finally here! Not only is Chris joined by almost all of his current co-hosts but they join him to talk some of the more memorable Kulturecast episodes, movies, and moments of the last five years. Along with reminiscing about the history of the podcast, David Lynch's final film Inland Empire is given its time in the sun as well. The film stars Laura Dern as a budding starlet wh...

Patricia Arquette August comes to a close with a look at David Lynch's only collaboration with Patricia Arquette and a film that verges into the Lynchian dreamscape: Lost Highway. The film follows Bill Pullman as Fred Madison, a saxophone player, who not only might have killed his wife, played by Patricia Arquette but also has transformed into a younger man, played by Balthazar Getty. Once changed...

Patricia Arquette August nears the end with a look at a film that is more music video than actual narrative: Stigmata. Focusing on Patricia Arquette as a non-religious hairdresser afflicted with stigmata, the film is a late 90's attempt to cash in on the doomsday enthusiasm heading into the new millennium. The film fails to be The Exorcist for a new generation and ends up being a cautionary tale a...

Patricia Arquette August continues with a look at a film written by everyone's favorite cinematic plagiarist but not directed by him: True Romance. The film follows two lovers, played by Christian Slater and Patricia Arquette, who are on the run from the cops and the mob all due to a suitcase full of cocaine. While Slater and Arquette are the leads, the film also features a veritable cavalcade of...

We continue Patricia Arquette August with a look at a film that has no reason to exist and frankly couldn't in 2019: Holy Matrimony. Patricia Arquette plays Havana, a woman down on her luck, who through convoluted plot contrivances, ends up being married to a thirteen-year-old Joseph Gordon-Levitt in his first film role. It's a film that is as bizarre as it is boring with even the fact that it's d...

With Body Horror July in the rearview mirror, we move on to Patricia Arquette August with a look at her only collaboration with auteur Martin Scorsese: Bringing Out the Dead. The film stars Nicolas Cage as Frank Pierce, an ambulance paramedic who crosses paths with Arquette's Mary over three nights on the drug-riddled streets of New York City. Based on the novel by Joe Connelly, its a look at addi...

Body Horror July comes to a close with a film that's part Eraserhead, part Videodrome, but entirely Japanese: Tetsuo: The Iron Man. The film follows a businessman who accidentally murders a metal fetishist who ends up getting his revenge by slowly turning the businessman into a disgusting mass of flesh, metal, and rust. It culminates with a fight scene that has to be seen to be believed including...

Body Horror July is on hold for the final time to cover the ninth and latest film from cinematic plagiarist, Quentin Tarantino: Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood. The film follows Leonardo DiCaprio as an aging actor attempting to hang on to the last vestiges of his popularity while his stuntman/bodyguard/best friend played by Brad Pitt has a solo adventure through 1969 Hollywood. Margot Robbie is...

Body Horror July nears its conclusion with a look at a film that helped launch the career of one of the most prolific filmmakers of all time even if it features some of the most creative gore in cinema history: Dead Alive. Directed by Peter Jackson, it follows the shy Lionel who falls in love with gorgeous Paquita only to find that his overbearing mother has become an undead ghoul and is attemptin...

Body Horror July hits the halfway point with a look at one of Larry Cohen's writer/director satirical pieces: The Stuff. Michael Moriarty stars as Mo, a business saboteur, who is being paid by the big dessert industry to figure out where The Stuff, a mysterious addictive dessert, comes from. It's a film that relies too much on comedy and satire and not enough on the horrific aspects of how The Stu...

Body Horror July is once again put on hold to talk about Marvel's latest blockbuster cinematic universe outing sure to make more money than anyone knows what to do with: Spider-Man: Far From Home. Tom Holland returns as the friendly neighborhood webhead who's school trip to Europe is interrupted by the arrival of elemental monsters bent on destruction and a new mysterious hero played by Jake Gylle...

Body Horror July is put on hold to take a look at the latest horror film to be unnecessarily rebooted for no reason other than that sweet, sweet cash: Child's Play. The film follows the same formula as the original film except for the Chucky doll being a malfunctioning animatronic doll as opposed to a doll possessed by the soul of a serial killer. It's a definitively 21st century spin on the tried...

Body Horror July continues with a look at a film so revolting, shocking, nonsensical, and downright weird that it may be a first for the Kulturecast: Kuso. The film is less of a structured narrative and more of an audio-visual exploration focusing on Los Angeles after a significant earthquake. Inspired by works such as Salad Fingers and other Flying Lotus projects, it's a disturbing, disgusting fo...

With Jess Byard June at a close, we now kickoff Body Horror July with a look at the progeny of David Cronenberg's first film, Antiviral. The film follows Caleb Landry Jones as Syd March, a lab technician at a company that sells celebrity viruses, who gets infected with a viral pathogen that is seemingly incurable. He then attempts not only to cure himself but also sell the celebrity virus to the h...

Jess Byard June comes to a close with a look at a slasher film that has become not only classic within the summer camp subgenre but also a thoughtful and pointed meta entry along with movies such as Scream: The Final Girls. The film stars Taissa Farmiga as Max, daughter of late scream queen Amanda, who gets transported alongside her friends into her late mother's most well-known film where they at...

Jess Byard June nears its conclusion with a look one of the Friday the 13th films that seem to care less about continuity and canon and more about giving the viewer tits and gore: Friday the 13th: A New Beginning. The film follows the further exploits of Tommy Jarvis, the young boy who killed Jason Voorhees in the previous film, as he is now a troubled adult who begins to hallucinate that Jason is...

Jess Byard June continues with a look at a film that we guarantee you've probably never heard of, but you've seen some of the folks getting sliced and diced in it: Cheerleader Camp. The film stars future Saw franchise star Betsy Russell as a cheerleader whos trip to a cheerleading summer camp with her troupe is interrupted by a maniacal serial killer bent on killing everyone close to her. It's a l...