40's on the 80's

Fright Night - 40's On The 80's Film Review

Back in 1985, we learned that being a nosey neighbor can be bad for your health.... and the health of your friends, your car and several nameless ladies of the night!  Charlie Brewster, who is soooo cool, is distracted from his pursuit of cancelling his virginity by the suave Jerry Dandritch who moves in next door and enjoys being a bit of an exhibitionist for his teenage voyeur. 
Dan the Man isn't joining us on this venture so the use of the Queen's English will be put on hold in favor of us American cousins who can drive trucks, watch wrastlin' and swill beer!  
If you've never seen this version of Fright Night, give it a watch!  It has some great moments, fun special effects, a surprisingly engaging soundtrack and an homage to all of those late and great night horror tv shows. We all have to have faith for this to work!  

80's Horror - 40's On The 80's Genre Review

For the month of October, when so many of us enjoy venturing into the 'darker corner' of the video store (and no.... not the corner that was blocked off by glass beads in the door way), it seemed proper to highlight horror films of this great decade. 
Danny leads this discussion of blood, gore and video-tape from the era we consider to be the center of OUR universe. From ground breaking special effects to the cultural commentary left over from the Viet Nam war and the suspicions cultivated into society after having been lied to by so-called 'trusted agencies,' there is a treasure trove of art for us to view and review. 
You may THINK you know horror films.... so join us for this discussion and see if we get it right or fire off some messages our way to let us know if we got something wrong. And then be sure to open your puzzle box and file a complaint with our (pin)head of customer success. He LOVES interacting with the public.

House on Haunted Hill (1959) Watch Party - 40's On The 80's

Yeah.... so it wasn't filmed in the 80's. BUT.... we found a way to connect it to the 80's!  Tune in and see how we did it. 
This special episode was a journey suggested by our man, Rick, and I was happy to go along with the ride. Anyone who ever spent any time watching Mystery Science Theater 3000 would love to get some friends together to watch this one. And if no one is available.... join Rick and myself!  
So cue up the scream track, get ready for lots of sarcastic remarks and jump right into the pool of acid as we continue to celebrate one of our favorite times of the year.... Spooky Season!  

The Burbs - 40's On The 80's Film Review

Leaving on vacation has it's risks, the same as any kind of travel. So it would make sense that having a 'Stay-Cation' where you putter around the house would be safer. WRONG! Especially if you live on a cul-de-sac where one of your neighbors turns out to be a legitimate family of crazies. 
So what do you do when confronted with odd behavior? Zero curb appeal? Bringing down property values? Well... if you are Ray Peterson (played by Tom Hanks), you join forces with other neighbors and begin an investigation. It's a serious thing to share a property line. If you're lucky, that relationship can be balanced but that's not always the case and when you decide to begin digging... you may not like the femur bone you uncover.
Join Ricky and Johann as they visit the suburbs and try and decide if Satan is good.... and if he is, indeed, a pal. 

Tin Foil Hat Episode - 40's On The 80's Discuss JFK, CIA and The Scorpions

Every now and then... one of our Monkey Holes strays so far off path that we can't include it as an episode about something we love from the 80's. But when it's too good to just drop on the cutting room floor... it CAN become an episode all it's own.
So keep an eye out your window after you listen to this episode... keep an eye out for strange looking vans parked in your neighborhood with non-descript people in sunglasses just chilling. 'They' may be on to us!  Grab your tin foil hat and join in our conversation and as always... you are always welcome to leave a comment or ask a question as we would love to hear from you!

The Running Man - 40's On The 80's Film Review

Prophecy in Science Fiction and Film..... how many things have we seen in film that eventually came to be? I'm still waiting to be able to do a hover conversion on my car... and whereas many of the cool things we've seen in Sci-Fi films would be great, I feel that some of the less glamorous things of Sci-Fi seem to be turning to reality. Films like 'Idiocracy' and today's gem, 'The Running Man,' seem to be closer to reality than any version of Star Trek or Star Wars I've seen. 
In this film, based off a novel by Stephen King (when he was using the pen name 'Bachman') tells the story of a near-future where there media seems to control everything. Even goes so far as to mention the President of the United States having an agent that works with the largest studio in this story. Arnold plays a character named Ben Richards who stands up to 'The Man' and gets put in prison for it. His subsequent jail-break gives him a brief taste of freedom until he is recaptured and spotted by the host of the world's number one game show, 'The Running Man,' as a potential contestant. 
Richards Dawson does an amazing job as the sleaze-ball, Damon Killian, who some say was never really a good actor.... but is GREAT at being a sleaze-ball!  This film has some of Arnold's greatest one-liners and some great action sequences. We hope you will visit the new episode and hear what we think about this one. 

Action Jackson - 40's On The 80's Film Review

If you never have.... then we encourage you to endure a little session with Action Jackson! Now, young people, if I tell you about Action Jackson, do you promise not to go befoulin' your comfy chair? By now you may be asking yourself.... "Who's Axin....." And that's when I come over the top and correct you.... it's ACTION! And then regale you with his pedigree.
"Some say he didn't even have a mother, that some researchers from NASA created him in a test tube, to be the first man to walk on the moon without a space suit. Others say his mother was molested by bigfoot, and Jackson is their mutant offspring."
If you have read this far, you're either a fan of the film or completely confused! Either way, won't you join us in our tribute to the late, great, Carl Weathers as we review his spotlight film, Action Jackson. Arguably he is most famous for playing the antagonist, Apollo Creed, in the Rocky franchise with Sylvester Stallone. But he was Arnold's counterpart in the jungles of Val Verde when they faced off against the Predator (where Carl went from being armed and dangerous to de-armed and less dangerous). 
We absolutely love Carl and his works. And we are thrilled to have this film to revisit his gloriously over the top action film that puts the description right in the title characters name. Rest in power, king. 

Beetlejuice (Original) - 40's On The 80's Film Review

Candyman.... Candyman.....Candyman...... uggh...... who has the time to say the name 5 times?? For REAL emergencies, you need help sooner rather than later. When you have reached the end of your rope and absolutely, positively need to rid yourself of the thorn in your side... there's only one choice. BEETLEJUICE!  This 1988 Tim Burton classic stars the immensely talented Michael Keaton, Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis as the otherworldly specters who enter into a business deal without fully understanding the gravity (or lack thereof) of their situation. 
Life after death can have it's challenges and what happens when you're trapped in your home with disturbances you can't control? Figure it out yourself or call someone for help? Our heroes end up having to resort to calling for help in one of the first real artistic flexing's of Tim Burton. 
Two of us love this film..... one of us feels quite the opposite!  Join us for this discussion as we unpack those emotions and look forward to finding out how the follow up film holds up to the original. So 'Happy Birthday' Mr. Keaton (born 5 Sep 1951) and good luck on 'Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice' opening 6 Sep 2024. 

Roadhouse - 40's On The 80's Film Review

As Dalton would say, "Opinion's vary," but I think you won't catch any of us being 'Not Nice' when it comes to one of our favorite movies about bouncers!  Heck.... is it the ONLY movie about bouncers? Hmmm... worth researching. 
Follow along as we look into real estate in Jasper, Missouri where the rich dude in town controls his businesses by destroying them, employs ex-convicts and the residents don't mind getting naked near water in the Missouri summer!  Patrick Swayze and Sam Elliott are the 'coolers' that EVERYONE has heard of. Maybe a pre-quel to Roadhouse would have been a good venture instead of attempted re-boot. Now don't get me wrong, I liked the re-boot just fine. But what does it say when you finish watching the re-boot and immediately follow it up with going back to watch the originial? 
We hope you'll enjoy our discussion and perhaps even choose to re-visit Jeff Healey performing at the Double-Doosh.....and ask yourself..... what kind of wanker throws bottles at a blind man playing guitar???

Alien & Aliens - 40's On The 80's Film Review

What came first? The face hugger or the egg?
We started off with the idea of only looking at Aliens (since it came out in the 80s) but the first film, Alien, was just too good a film and too important to this series to go un-mentioned. So we rolled them together into a single review. Alien (1979) and Aliens (1986) would be a great set all by themselves. Never mind the almost 'Weyland-Utani' like push by the film studies to make as much money off this franchise as possible. There are tons of common-sense roadblocks that our fearless crew just lovingly leap over and thanks to that.... we're graced with some very memorable moments in film history and, next to Sarah Connor, arguably one of the toughest leading ladies I've ever seen in Sigourney Weaver. 
Join us on this bug hunt as we wonder whether or not it truly is.... GAME OVER, MAN!