Xanadu Cinema Pleasure Dome

This week, we share our love of REMAKES! Okay, we only love good remakes, but there are plenty of good remakes to talk about, right? We certainly thought so! We also thought this week’s wine selection was excellent: Castello di Volpaia Indue, which was given to us by one of our fine Brians, Mr. Donohue . We learned that “Indue” is Italian for “Two Together”, which mad...

This week, we celebrate our 30th episode with our second Off Topic extravaganza! If you missed our first Off Topic episode , here’s what’s going on: while we edit our regular episodes, many things get clipped out. Usually, the stuff that winds up on the cutting room floor is just long silences or drunken ramblings, but sometimes those edits are worth saving for another time. THE TIME IS NOW. The a...

Windy’s chest is also a creature. Good tidings, dear listeners! This week, we are joined by Jennifer Menken of the Bell Museum of Natural History for an episode all about movie critters! That’s right, we’re bringing SCIENCE to creature features! SCIENCE also brought us the tasty Protocolo 2011 Tempranillo that we drank while recording this episode. Please feel free to sip along!...

Photo by Meghan Murphy This week, we have part two of our discussion with screenwriter , author , and film critic C. Robert Cargill, which we recorded a few days after our live podcast at CONvergence 2014. That’s right: if you were at our CONvergence panel, there is still more podcast to enjoy! Once again, we apologize for the sound quality of this week’s episode. We recorded this sess...

Photo by J. Garth Wilcox This week, we have a very special thing for our fine listeners: our first two-part episode! In Part 1, you will hear us with screenwriter , author , and film critic C. Robert Cargill, in a discussion we recorded in front of a real live studio audience at CONvergence 2014. In this episode, we tackle the issues surrounding writing good feminist media and tackle a very nice b...

In this week’s episode, special guest Kelvin Hatle, comedian and erudite thought-leader, returns to the Pleasure Dome to profess his love of so-bad-it’s-good filmmaking. Did Vikings wear bath mats? Does furniture crave fried chicken? Where can you find Patrick Swayze doing a sexy belt dance on roller skates? Find out in this episode! If you would like to drink along with us, we highly...

This week, we have DC Comics artist Christopher “Danger” Jones, Esq. back one more time, and we FINALLY ask him about the media thing he cares about most: the Batman. This bat-episode is filled with bat-ness! If you need a bat-drink while you enjoy our bat-chat, we suggest an Angry Orchard Apple Ginger Hard Cider. We’re not sure if that’s something that Bruce Wayne would ke...

This week, we talk to Fes Works from the Webcast Beacon Network ! Our topic du jour is musicals… or, rather, how Windy loves musicals and how Fes… has issues with musicals. Our choice of alcohol this week was Ravenswood Wines Chardonnay Vinter’s Blend 2012. And Fox Barrel Pacific Pear Cider. And New Glarus Moon Man beer. And rum. Really, we were all just plain sauced. Y’all are e...

Meghan Murphy is twisted and cute, just like her art. We like her. This week, we talk to Meghan Murphy of Kawaii Not and Murphypop fame! She’s a big horror movie fan, so the three of us finally get down to professing our love of monsters, terror, and gore. We unfortunately had some technical difficulties in recording this episode (translation: in a moment of desperation, we recorded it with...

This week, Windy and Melissa make use of listener Ryan Alexander’s suggestion and talk about BOOZE MOVIES! (“Because meta,” writes Ryan.) We, of course, did not do this episode sober. We found a bottle of wine with a sheep on it (Le Grand Noir Malbec) and enjoyed it very, very thoroughly. Show notes behind the cut! Movies mentioned: The Thin Man Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Ca...

  Actual photo of Windy, taken while recording this episode. This week, we are joined by erudite comedian Kelvin Hatle as we unravel our feelings about “probematic media”: movies and shows that are great except for that ooooooone super offensive part. We go a little long on this one and hit upon some not-very-nice subjects, so buckle up with a bottle of  Penascal Temperanillo or T...

This week, DC Comics artist Christopher “Danger” Jones, Esq. returns to discuss “family friendly” movies, and all the problems audiences seem to have with them. And if you thought talking about family fare would prevent us from drinking, well, pop open that bottle of Castello Banfi Centine Toscana and drink along with us! Show notes behind the cut! Movies mentioned: Star Wa...

This week, we are joined by comedian Molly Glover , of Geeks Without God and Fearless Comedy fame! Our subject du jour is one near and dear to our hearts: portrayals of mental illness in film. We go big with the dark comedy in this one! Our wine pairing for this week is  Barone Fini Merlot, which certainly loosened our tongues, as this episode runs a bit longer than most. I assure you, I clipped a...

Melissa and Romeo displaying their love of wine and Superman. This is what a typical Xanadu Cinema podcast recording session looks like. This week, Superman enters our Pleasure Dome! (Wait, that didn’t sound quite right…) Tune in to listen to hear us wax nostalgic about Christopher Reeve and argue about everything else with Man of Opinions, Romeo Azar! Also, you can listen carefully fo...

This week, we talk about NAKED PEOPLE! Well, we talk about naked people in the movies. Because nudity is so interesting in an audio format. Our wine pairing for this week is Louis Jadot Beaujolais Villages , which was partly selected because it’s fun to pronounce “boujolais”. Tasty AND fun! Show notes behind the cut! Movies mentioned: Some Like It Hot Terminator To Live and Die i...

This week, we bring in our friend, DC Comics artist Christopher Jones, to talk with us about GODZILLA! We chat about the new film, the Japanese franchise, and other kaiju-related things. Our wine pairing for this week is Bolla Sangiovese di Romagna, because a discussion about giant monsters needs a robust wine offering. However, if you’re more the cider type, Mr. Jones was drinking a Angry O...

This week, we are posting an experiment: our very first Off Topic episode! See, if you’ve listened to any of our other podcasts, you already know we heavily edit our material. A lot of what we talk about gets edited out for time, irrelevance, or just general failure. This episode is crafted from the very best of our random ramblings, which happened while recording all our previous episodes....

This week, we are posting the second half of our recording session with Lex Larson! (The first half can be found in Episode 7.) In this episode, we get uncharacteristically serious and talk about issues of bigotry in entertainment. Even though it doesn’t sound like it in the episode, all three of us were thoroughly enjoying a couple bottles of wine. If you’d like to drink along with ou...

This week, we are joined by very special guest Romeo Azar, local creative director and Man of Opinions, for a discussion about James Bond and all things 007! Booze fans can also rejoice this week, as we have many options for your drinking. Our primary recommendation is Rosenblum Cellars’ Stark Raving Malbec, but feel free to also sample  Crispin Classic English Dry Cider or Pacific Pear Cide...

This week, we are joined by Windy’s husband, Chris “Monte” Bowlsby, and we talk about movies that scarred us as children. Join us in our group therapy! This week’s booze pairing is Montecillo Rioja Crianza. We don’t know if we’re pronouncing it right, but it sure was nice. Further show notes behind the cut! Movies mentioned: E.T. Signs Close Encounters of the Th...

This week, we chat about religious movies from a secular perspective. Were we able to complete our mission before the laptop’s battery ran out? Listen to find out! We also finally get to read out a listener’s response to our Pleasure Dome questions! (Have you answered our questions yet? You should! ) This week’s booze pairing is Zonin’s lovely Montepulciano d’Abruzzo,...

This week, we talk about Star Trek vs. Star Wars: comparing and contrasting the two properties, and why we love them both. This week’s booze pairing is either a Schell’s Dark beer (if you side with Melissa) or a Hakusuru draft sake (if you side with Windy). Further show notes behind the cut! Movies mentioned: Star Trek (everything) Star Wars (everything) Rustler’s Rhapsody Hidden Fortr...

This week, we talk about dumb action movies and why we love them! This week’s wine pairing is a seriously amazing 2011 Victorian Claret from Guenoc. And a quick note: remember to come to our web site and answer our listener questions! We haven’t yet started calling out to our listener responses in our podcasts yet, but only because we currently have about a six week buffer on our episo...

This week, we talk about… well, we started talking about something and then wandered merrily into Drunkland. I really can’t explain this episode. This week’s wine pairing is a Ravenswood Wines Cabernet Sauvignon, Vinter’s Blend 2011. Further show notes behind the cut! Movies mentioned: Star Trek: The Motion Picture Star Trek II: Wrath of Khan Star Trek III Star Trek V Seven Bride...

This week, we talk about Korean cinema with our friend and Pleasure Dome co-founder, Lex Larson! This week’s wine pairing is a Castilla de San Lorenzo Rioja (which we somehow killed before we even started recording) and a Barefoot Zinfandel. Further show notes behind the cut! Movies mentioned: Muoi: The Legend of a Portrait White A Tale of Two Sisters Yoga Hakwon The Host Sympathy for Mr. Ve...