Paid in Puke S10E3: Ready or Not

On season 10 episode 3 of Paid in Puke, we’re playing with Matt Betinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett’s 2019 horror comedy, “Ready or Not” starring Samara Weaving, Andi McDowell, Adam Brody, and Mark O’Brien. It was written by Guy Busick and R. Christopher Murphy. Olpin and Gilette also joined Busick for “Abigail”, the 2022 Scream reboot, and “Scream VI“.

“Ready or Not” tells the story of Grace, a plucky woman from a modest background, who learns, on the night of her wedding to the heir of a board game empire, that she must play a life-or-death game of Hide and Seek with her new in-laws.

It’s Keggers with Kids all this episode, as Amy’s child, Dash, joins us to talk about why this is one of his favorite horror films, and how it stacks up against Betinelli-Olpin and Gillett’s other films.

The “Ready or Not” script is a rare example of tight perfection, symmetry, and depth that also manages to walk a horror comedy tightrope. It belongs to a fun micro-genre: Evil People in a Mansion.

We also praise Samara Weaving for the fun vibe she brings to her scream queen role, Adam Brody’s recent renaissance, and why we’ve been on the Brody train since David Wain’s underrated comedy, “The Ten”.

Listen to the episode!

Really Weird Stuff #34 – Twin Peaks the Return Part three “Call for help.”

On episode 34 of Really Weird Stuff, we’re discussing Twin Peaks: The Return, Part Three – “Call for help.” This episode was written by David Lynch and Mark Frost, and directed by David Lynch. It originally aired May 22, 2017 on Showtime, along with Part Four. This episode is best known for Jade giving two rides.  

We gather in the Red Room-inspired basement of returning guest, Krishane Jones, to explore such mysteries as:

WHY does Naido have to sacrifice herself before Coop can go out?

WHAT is the point of Jacoby?

WHO is American Girl?

HOW does Jade have so much patience when it comes to Dougie? 

PLUS:  Lots and lots of barf! 

Listen to the episode here!

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Hammer to Nail Review: The Becomers

Writer/director Zach Clark (Little Sister, White Reindeer) returns with his fifth feature film, The Becomers– a unique pandemic-era allegory with notes of Jonathan Glazer’s Under the Skin, Jim Jarmusch’s Only Lovers Left Alive, and The Coneheads.

When an unnamed alien couple (called X and Y in the script) evacuate their dying planet for the refuge of earth, they are separated, and must enact unimaginable horrors to assimilate to their new surroundings and ultimately reunite. Aided by the universal trauma of the 2020 global pandemic, Clark fits a lot of context into a tight ninety-minute story. The result is an impactful, at times grotesque, occasionally comedic, and wholly romantic depiction of what it takes to regain a sense of normalcy and contentment after losing everything you once knew.

Differentiated only by the color of their pupilless, glowing eyes, X and Y utilize a technology invented by their planet’s scientists, to assimilate on Earth. Unfortunately, in involves stealing the body of a human, at the cost of their life. Worse still, the effect is only temporary, resulting in a string of unwitting deaths in the name of their own survival. They just happen to land in the Chicago area during the uncertain, mask-filled, social-bubble era of our recent past. This timing has its advantages and disadvantages.

The plot unfolds organically, with a voiceover (from Russell Mael of the band Sparks) metering out the events that brought the couple into this predicament. The narrator continues revealing the backstory throughout the present narrative. We learn a bit about the culture of their former lives, and this is where the Coneheads comp comes in. It began with a blind date over “squash steak wraps and black drink” before the couple “connected pods” and made a life together. “There were signs of things to come – the news was strange, scary, yet our little lives were as normal as ever.” They describe a rather familiar set of events that result in their own global crisis, and ultimately, a complete planetary evacuation to save their species…

Read the rest on Hammer to Nail!

Paid in Puke S10E2: Cat Person

On this episode of Paid in Puke, we analyze Susanna Fogel‘s 2023 thriller, Cat Person based on the 2017 short story by Kristen Roupenian, and adapted for the screen by Michelle Ashford, who was the showrunner for Masters of Sex, but most importantly, wrote the teleplay to the abortion episode of 21 Jump Street. The film stars Emilia Jones, Geraldine Viswanathan, Hope Davis, Isabella Rossellini, and Nicholas Braun.

We all had very different feelings about this film, both from our initial watch together in the theater, and after our analytical watches for the pod. Journey with us as we discuss how heavy-handed a metaphor we can tolerate; why Fogel might have tried a bit too hard to cater to a male audience, at the film’s expense; the surprisingly problematic element of the source material; and how Nicholas Braun perfected towing the line between awkward and creepy. 

Plus: Did Harrison Ford ruin a generation of men? 

Listen to the episode!

Paid in Puke Podcast: S10E1: Abortionpalooza 2024

It’s our Season TEN premiere AND our ONE HUNDREDTH EPISODE! Thank you to all of our listeners! We are thrilled to be back with our third Abortionpalooza, but much less stoked about the fact that thanks to the overturning of Roe V. Wade, uterus-owning Americans currently have less bodily autonomy than they did in Nineteen Hundred and Seventy Three. 

We kick things off with a brief history of abortion depiction on television and examine season 3, episode 5 of the teen cop drama, 21 Jump Street“Whose Choice is it Anyway?”. It originally aired on December 11th 1988 on the Fox network. It stars Holly Robinson-Peete, Stacey Edwards, and Dana Ashbrook (Twin Peaks). The teleplay by Michelle Ashford (Masters of SexCat Person), is surprisingly progressive and they even go so far as to make an anti-choice terrorist the villain. 

Then we tool around with Lily Tomlin and Julia Garner in 2015’s “Grandma”, directed by Paul Weitz (American PieAbout a Boy), and co-written by Tomlin, who put a lot of her own voice in it. Garner plays a high school girl who asks her free-wheeling grandmother (Tomlin) to help her scrounge up enough money to make it to an abortion appointment by 5 pm. Judy Greer, Marsha Gay Harden, Laverne Cox, and John Cho round out a fun supporting cast. 

We touch on themes such as who *needs* to be involved in deciding what to do about a pregnancy (*spoiler alert* it’s pretty much just the person carrying the fetus), where should kids get information about pregnancy and birth control, and why women should be valued for more than just their fertility. 

On the Lunchtime Poll, we reveal some information we wish we had never received.

Listen to the episode!

Really Weird Stuff: A Twin Peaks Podcast – The Return Part Two – “The stars turn and a time presents itself.”

On episode 33 of Really Weird Stuff, we’re discussing Twin Peaks: The Return, Part Two – “The stars turn and a time presents itself.” This episode was written by David Lynch and Mark Frost, and directed by David Lynch. It originally aired May 21, 2017 on Showtime, along with Part One. This episode is best known for the return of Laura Palmer. 25 years later, she is still dead (yet she lives). Also, she’s got a new brooch and a crazy detachable face.

Special guest, Michael Hayes joins us to explore such mysteries as:

WHY doesn’t Mr. C want to get pulled back into the Lodge?

WHAT does Laura whisper to Coop?

WHO is pretending to be Philip Jeffries?

WHEN exactly CAN Coop go out?

PLUS: Some Really Weird Stuff Firsts, including awards mayhem and our guest watching the episode cold. 

Listen to the episode here!

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Really Weird Stuff: A Twin Peaks Podcast – The Return Part One – “My log has a message for you.”

On episode 32 of Really Weird Stuff, we’re discussing Twin Peaks: The Return, Part One – “My log has a message for you.” This episode was written by David Lynch and Mark Frost, and directed by David Lynch. It originally aired May 21, 2017 on Showtime. This episode is best known for being the long-anticipated, much-rumored third season of Twin Peaks. It takes place 25 years after we left the real Dale Cooper in the lodge with his doppelgänger on the loose out in the world. It was also miraculously filmed 25 years later, and that’s only one of the myriad coincidences that makes this thing feel serendipitous and inevitable. 

Special guest, Two Thangs (a.k.a. Matthew Brennan, IV) joins us to explore such mysteries as: 

WHY is Tracy gagging to get into that secret room with Sam?

WHERE did the security guard go?

HOW does Marjorie not know her address (or much of anything)?

WHAT does Matt have to do to get eyebrows like Otis?

PLUS: Kyle MacLachlan is a character actor in the body of a matinee idol!

Find Two Thangs and his amazing art on the socials @two.thangs. You can order custom pop culture art for yourself, unique merch featuring previous commissioned paintings, and pre-order his coffee table book, “Anythang & Everythang”, which will come out August 2024. 

This episode is dedicated to Catherine Coulson and Bob Silva.

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Paid in Puke Minisode: Cora Bora

On this very special minisode of Paid in Puke, we’re falling in love with Hannah Pearl Utt’s 2024 comedy, “Cora Bora”, starring Megan Stalter, Ayden Mayeri, JoJo T. Gibbs, and Manny Jacinto, with cameos from Chelsea Peretti and Margaret Cho. The Pukettes got a sneak peek at this hilarious movie that will hopefully propel Megan Stalter to the stardom she deserves. 

Rhianon Jones’ very PDX screenplay tells the story of an L.A. based musician with a tragic past who returns to her home in Portland Oregon on a whim after sensing that her open relationship with her girlfriend in in jeopardy. Megan Stalter owns this movie start to finish. She’s hilarious as always, but also brings out an unexpected dramatic side. We absolutely loved “Cora Bora”, and will definitely give it the full Paid in Puke treatment once it’s out on streaming, but we also want to tell everyone to go see it while it’s still in theaters! As always, there are spoilers, so if you don’t want to know the big reveal about what’s wrong with Cora, see the movie first and then come back and listen to this (or navigate around them*).“Cora Bora” is in limited release starting June 14th, 2024 – around L.A. and New York. It’s not super easy to figure out where and when it’s playing but we promise it will be worth the goog. It opens in Seattle, Washington on June 22nd 2024at the Grand Illusion Cinema, which is a wonderful little arthouse cinema and there aren’t that many of those left so please support small indie movie houses whenever you can. And please throw down some $$ to support “Cora Bora”*Spoilers 10:07-14:20; 16:00-16:26

Listen to the episode here!

Paid in Puke S9E10: The Bling Ring

On this episode of Paid in Puke Podcast, we’re rummaging through Sofia Coppola‘s 2013 true crime drama, “The Bling Ring”, starring Emma WatsonKatie ChangTaissa FarmigaClaire JulianLeslie Mann, and Israel Broussard. Coppola based the script on Nancy Jo Sales’ 2010 Vanity Fair article, “The Suspects Wore Louboutins”. Our returning guest is the Sparkle Queen known as Laura Lawrence (“9 to 5”). Laura has has seen the film many times, jammed out to the soundtrack many MORE times, and brings a shopping bag full of fun facts. 

We also get into the film’s prescience for today’s influencer culture, and why kids are less inclined to aspire to landing “a good job”. On the Lunchtime Poll, we reveal the things we have in such abundance, we might not notice getting robbed.

Listen to the episode here!

Really Weird Stuff: A Twin Peaks Podcast – Fire Walk With Me

On episode 31 of Really Weird Stuff: A Twin Peaks Podcast, we’re diving headlong into the 1992 cinematic prequel, “Fire Walk With Me”, written by Robert Engels and David Lynch, and directed by David Lynch. It was released to theaters August 28th, 1992 and flopped HARD. It had premiered at Cannes earlier that year, to the bafflement of audiences and most critics. A handful of European critics were pioneers of understanding the film for the masterpiece it is. Sheryl Lee and Ray Wise give everything they have to tell the story of Laura’s final days. We also learn a little about Theresa Banks and the agents who mysteriously disappeared whilst investigating cases with the top secret designation: Blue Rose. 

We did a tremendous amount of prep for this episode, including studying the lore of the Lodge Entities,  providing foot notes from The Secret Diary of Laura Palmerand doing our best to understand The Coop Loop 

Predictably, the discussion gets fairly heavy at times. 
TRIGGER WARNINGS: for discussing Sexual Assault, Drug Abuse, and Incest.

But we also manage to have a little fun mining the moments of levity, heaping love onto some favorite characters (including Bobby and Carl), and reminiscing about when we first got to know Laura Palmer. As Amy overheard from some teenage girls in the bathroom of the Westfield New Jersey Mall Cinema in 1992, “there are some movies you just have to be an adult to understand”. And even then, it takes some leg work. 

Gobble… Gobble. Gobble. 

Listen to the episode here!

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