Cinema Oblivia

Chopping Mall isn't a forgotten film, if anything it's the opposite - it came out to little fanfare and only grew in reputation since! But I wanted to talk about it anyway and so did Madeleine Koestner, so we did. We also talked about what stores we'd want to have sex in in a shopping mall, what the third best exploding head in film history is, and the complexities of ductwork.

Pretty Maids All in a Row is a 1971 comedy about a serial killer at a high school and statutory sexual assault, starring Rock Hudson and Angie Dickinson, written and produced by Gene Roddenberry, the creator of Star Trek. Yes. This is a real movie. That's whose in it, and that's who made it. Diamond Feit bravely joins me to dive into the minefield of a movie that, while I find immensely entertaining and enthralling, has aged terribly and may have shone just a bit too much light into the somewhat askew mind of one of the most beloved TV producers and writers of all-time. All the content warnings.

After Brian Bosworth's NFL much ballyhooed NFL career went bust, The Boz turned to acting with this over-the-top, insane, masterpiece of excess, Stone Cold. Is it good? Eh, not really. But is it amazing?!?! Hell yeah. Anthony Abatte joins me to talk bikers, explosions, mullets, explosions, and then more explosions.  This movie has a lot of explosions.

Christopher Lambert travels to Japan, meets a beautiful woman, gets involved with modern day ninjas, lots of people die, but not much happens in The Hunted, another entry in the "stupid foreigner finds himself over his head with Japanese ninjas and/or samurai" sub-genre. Diamond Feit, a fellow American living in Japan (who I assume has never run afoul of ancient ninja cults) joins me to discuss this very odd movie. Where the star/hero barely does a damn thing while ninja descend from the skies to murder everyone around him.  Sadly, it's not as good as it sounds.

Joe Don Baker is framed (duh) for a crime he didn't commit, so he commits several violent crimes to find out who set him up and why in this sleazy, sweaty, brutal southern-fried exploitation classic that features some of the most violent fights and craziest stunts you've ever seen. Anthony Abatte joins me to talk about this underseen gem, and we also go over our recent obsessions with James Bond and Dirty Harry movies. Content Warning for sexual assault discussion: One of the people who wrote Framed did some extremely unpleasant things, and we discuss that.

Hammer Films have been releasing a ton of stuff in 4K recently, so much that it's actually a little bit overwhelming. In today's episode, I go over all their 4K releases to date (that I know of) and recommend some lesser-known titles, as well as the obvious classics. I also point out the few that are so bad you should avoid them like the zombies in Plague of the Zombies (which is not yet available in 4K, sadly).

Today we're tying something different! Diamond Feit joins me once more and they help me decide what we feel are the best, worst, and "most" Arnold films (as well as the most underrated). This is an idea I've been kicking around for a while, and I thought I'd give it a try this month, as I've been too sick to properly do my deep dive research on an obscure film. Let me know what you think! I also use this episode to go over my health issues, for those who are worried, and that's covered at the end of the episode (spoiler: none of it is terminal, as far as I know).

LARRY COHEN WAS A MADMAN and Madeleine Koestner is here to talk about one of his most unhinged films, 1990's The Ambulance. Eric Roberts! James Earl Jones! An ambulance that hands out in a nightclub! You've never seen anything like this one. We also complain about Geese. The band, not the animal - although too be honest I'm not a fan of either.

Shane Bettenhausen returns to Cinema Oblivia to talk about Candy Snatchers, one of the gnarliest, nastiest, grimiest, most hateful movies of the grindhouse era. Seriously, this one has all the ick. You've been warned! Also, some talk about the future of this podcast, or lack thereof! Content Warning: Seriously, Candy Snatchers is a messed up film with graphic portrayals of sexual assault, allusions to child abuse, and some unflattering portrayals of children with autism. You've been really warned.

Vampires! Spies! David Byrne! Gangsters! Beavers upon Beavers! Japanese bankrobbers! Chainsaw Man! Joan Crawford! Cher looking more amazing than anyone else who ever lived! Anthony Abatte and I run down some of the best, worst, weirdest, and craziest movies that we saw this year. I hope you finish this episode with 20 or so movies you want to see next year!