The Kulturecast

Chris and Eric head into the Oasis to talk the big screen adaptation of Ernest Cline's bestseller Ready Player One; CGI avatars and heavy-handed references can be expected! Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-kulturecast--2883470/support .

Chris is joined by The Projection Booth's Mike White to kick off Brian De Palma Month with a look at Carrie, one of his earlier works. The film stars Sissy Spacek as a bullied teen who finds out she has a power that will have devastating effects on her life. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-kulturecast--2883470/support .

Chris is joined by The Projection Booth's Mike White to round out Mike White March with a look at Kôji Wakamatsu's Ecstasy of the Angels. The film follows two warring factions as they attempt to cause a revolution in Japan during the early '70s. The film veers farther into experimental cinema than any film this month and definitely isn't a film for everyone.   As always, you can follow Chris Stach...

Chris and Eric head to a mysterious island full of tombs and raiders with a look at yet another attempt to make a video game movie worth watching, Tomb Raider. The film stars Alicia Vikander as the titular hero who is tasked with stopping a mysterious sinister organization from finding a centuries-old weapon hidden away in the Pacific. It's a middle of the road video game movie which, for video ga...

Chris is joined by The Projection Booth's Mike White to continue Mike White March with a look at quite possibly the finest example of Japanese New Wave cinema, Yoshishige Yoshida's Eros + Massacre. The film focuses on two separate storylines: the final days of anarchist Sakae Ōsugi before his assassination and the lives of two students Eiko and Wada as they research the teachings and philosophy of...

Chris and Eric tackle one of their most anticipated films of 2018 and a sequel to one of the greatest horror films ever made The Strangers: Prey at Night. The film follows a family taking their troubled daughter to boarding school when they are attacked, hunted, and systematically picked off by the murderous trio from the first film. It's a stylish follow up to the bleak original and fails to live...

Chris is joined by The Projection Booth's Mike White to continue Mike White March with a look at Toshio Matsumoto's Funeral Parade of Roses. The film follows Eddie, a Japanese transvestite, who unknowingly becomes a participant in his own Oedipus Rex adaptation. It's another fantastic entry into the Japanese New Wave movement and a film that transcends explanation and genre. As always, you can fol...

Chris and Eric break-down the first new release of March with Red Sparrow. The film stars Jennifer Lawrence as a Russian espionage agent tasked with finding a double agent within the Russian government. It's a film that focuses more on over-the-top sexual violence and stale dialogue than telling an interesting and compelling story all while casually attempting to be 2018's answer to Atomic Blonde....

Chris is joined by The Projection Booth's Mike White to kick off Mike White March with a look at the first Japanese New Wave film, Nagisa Ôshima's Death by Hanging. The film follows R, an ethnic Korean living in Japan, who survives being executed by hanging only to have his entire life and being examined by the Japanese justice system. It's a black comedy that turns the mirror on not only Japanese...

Chris and Eric talk about the first truly great film of 2018 and next fantastic entry from the director Ex-Machina Alex Garland, Annihilation. The film stars Natalie Portman as Lena, a cellular biologist, who goes on a journey into the Shimmer, a mysterious area caused by a meteor, that may hold the secret to saving her husband. It's high science fiction with a heavy helping of philosophy and just...

Chris and Eric are joined by oughtfivefilm's Mike Wallace to talk the final romantic comedy of rom-com month, The Truth About Cats & Dogs. The film stars Janeane Garofalo and Uma Thurman as two women who get dragged into a comedy of errors surrounding a guy, a mistaken identity, and a dog on roller skates. It's a retelling of Cyrano De Bergerac but with more Blues Traveler and a heaping helping of...

Chris and Eric talk Marvel's 18th film and the world's introduction to the nation of Wakanda, Black Panther. The film stars Chadwick Boseman as the eponymous superhero and is directed by Creed‘s Ryan Coogler. It's the highest rated film on Rotten Tomatoes and has become a cultural zeitgeist unto itself. As always, you can follow Chris Stachiw at @KultureStach, Eric Kniss at @tychomagnetics and Kul...

Chris and Eric kick off Rom-Com Month with a look at one of the classics Breakfast at Tiffany's. The film stars Audrey Hepburn as Holly Golightly, a New Yorker with her sights set on the big time who meets the man of her dreams in her apartment building. It's a film that hasn't aged well and is full of anachronisms including an astoundingly racist Mickey Rooney. As always, you can follow Chris Sta...

Chris and Eric are joined by OughtFiveFilm’s Mike Wallace and Rainbow Comic's Zach Pogany to talk the final film of David Lynch month Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me. The film follows up the first two seasons of the show while filling in the backstory of who Laura Palmer was leading up to the day of her death and the mysterious murder of Teresa Banks. It's a divisive follow-up to the show and a wort...

Chris is sans Eric but joined by Rainbow Comics' Zach Pogany and InkFilmsInc's Oscar Moreno to talk David Lynch's most mainstream film Blue Velvet. The film stars Kyle MacLachlan as Jeffrey Beaumont, a college student who returns home only to find a disembodied human ear behind in the woods behind his house. This discovery leads him to discover the disturbing underbelly of his sleepy little town i...

Chris and Eric are joined by Rainbow Comics' Zach Pogany to kick off 2018 and David Lynch month with a look at the auteur's first film Eraserhead. The film stars Jack Nance as Henry Spencer, a simple man whose life is turned upside down by the arrival of a very bizarre newborn. The film catapulted Lynch into the public eye and established him as the progenitor of American film surrealism. As alway...

Chris and Eric are joined by director Matt Campagna and Rainbow Comic's Zach Pogany to talk the most surprisingly controversial film of the year: Star Wars: The Last Jedi. The film picks up immediately where The Force Awakens left off and follows the return of Luke Skywalker, the surviving resistance forces escaping the Starkiller Base, and the continued rise of Kylo Ren. It's a film that shirks t...

Chris and Eric are joined by OughtFiveFilm's Mike Wallace to talk one of Mike's favorite holiday horror films Black Christmas (1974). The film stars Margot Kidder and Olivia Hussey as two sorority sisters whose annual Christmas party is interrupted by a sadistic serial killer dead set on killing all of them. It's the proto-slasher that influenced every slasher afterward coming out four years befor...

Chris and Eric are joined by frequent guest Quinn Fleming to talk about the meta-comedy biopic about the infamous auteur Tommy Wiseau and the making of The Room, one of the worst films ever made. The film stars James Franco as Tommy Wiseau and Dave Franco as Greg Sestero whose dreams are tested as they set out to make their fortune in Hollywood and end up becoming infamous due to their parts in th...

Chris and Eric sit down to wrap-up the year in film that was 2017. From the disappointing lows of Alien: Covenant and Justice League to some of the best films of the year, they break down their favorite films, most overrated, most overlooked, and least favorite films of the year. As always, you can follow Chris Stachiw at @KultureStach, Eric Kniss at @tychomagnetics and Kulture Shocked at @Kulture...

Chris and Eric are joined by director Matt Campagna to talk the latest misstep in the troubled DC Comics Extended Universe Justice League. The film stars Gal Gadot, Jason Momoa, Ben Affleck, Ezra Miller, Henry Cavill, and Ray Fisher as the eponymous team who must fight an interstellar threat from destroying Earth. It's a poorly conceived film that does little to alleviate the persistent issues wit...

Chris and Eric are joined by OughtFiveFilm's Mike Wallace to talk Martin Scorsese's spiritual sequel to Goodfellas also featuring Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci, Casino. The film follows De Niro as Sam Rothstein, a bookie who is tasked with running the Tangiers Casino in Las Vegas, and Pesci as Nicky Santoro, a mobster who is tasked with protecting De Niro and the mob's investment. It's a fantastic...

Chris and Eric are joined by director Matt Campagna as they talk Marvel's newest film and the third Thor film Thor: Ragnarok. The film reunites Chris Hemsworth as Thor and Mark Ruffalo as Hulk as they battle to escape Skaar and prevent the total destruction of Asgard. Along the way, he is joined by Loki, Valkyrie, and some newcomers as they fight Hela and her undead minions. It's the most comedic...

Chris and Eric kick off their Martin Scorsese retrospective with a look at a film that is a perfect companion piece to Taxi Driver, The King of Comedy. The film stars Robert DeNiro as Rupert Pupkin, a delusional up-and-coming comedian, who goes to unfathomable lengths to attempt to win the favor of Jerry Lewis' Jerry Langford and become a stand-up comedian. It's a film that is as prescient as ever...

Chris and Eric tackle what may be the worst film of 2017, the film adaptation of Jo Nesbø's best-selling Harry Hole novel The Snowman. The film stars Michael Fassbender as the alcoholic detective is being taunted in Oslo, Norway by a serial killer obsessed with building snowmen at the site of each of his crimes. It's a massive disappointment due to the amount of fantastic talent both in front of a...