Hammer to Nail Review: Strange Journey: The Story of Rocky Horror

If you’re reading this review, chances are you’re already aware of the awesome power of movies. The best films can be the connective tissue for society’s outcasts. Even those with more “normie” proclivities can unlock something hidden deep within them when exposed to the right combination of moving images, sounds, and vibes.

For many people, that first magic film was and IS The Rocky Horror Picture Show. So-called Transylvanians don’t forget the first time they saw Frank-N-Furter throw off his cape to strut around in a saucy corset without apology. At the Frankenstein place, It’s Brad and Janet, in their J.C. Penny undergarments, who are the outsiders. But even they will be welcomed into the fold with open arms (and legs).

Linus O’Brien’s film, Strange Journey: The Story of Rocky Horror, is so much more than a historical document. It’s an origin story for a cultural touchstone of Queerdos. And yes, you can be straight and still be counted among their ranks, so long as you leave your judgments outside in the rain. Richard O’Brien first birthed his masterwork in the form of a 1973 London stage show, with Tim Curry in the original cast. It was wildly popular, but it would take fits and starts to grow into the juggernaut it is today. Fifty years later, it resonates anew with young audiences and slips on like an old fishnet stocking for O.G. fans.

Who better to tell this storied history than a guy who literally grew up with Rocky Horror: Linus O’Brien. Richard O’Brien’s son was always aware that his dad wrote a pervasive musical, but it didn’t dawn on him until a few years ago, just how meaningful it is to people. He explains it beautifully in his director’s statement:

“As I read through the comments [on a youtube video of “I’m Going Home”], I was overcome with emotion – each person shared their personal story and the deep place the song held in their heart… this was the first time I truly grasped the enormity of its influence on individual lives… the unique cult phenomenon it fostered and the safe space it created for all kinds of people; and the unfortunate reality that, in today’s political climate, Rocky is as relevant as ever.”…

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October 1, 2025
Categories: Filmpinions . Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Author: Baxter . Comments: Leave a comment

Hammer to Nail Review: I Don’t Understand You

Watching I Don’t Understand You, the new semi-autobiographical comedy/thriller co-written and directed by real-life married couple Brian Crano and David Joseph Craig, I was reminded of my own “imminent parenthood” time. There is a certain panic that sets in when it’s definitely happening but you’re not sure you’re ready. In the case of I Don’t Understand You, it goes off the rails in very broad ways, but the vibes are inherently relatable. The dark comedy stars Nick Kroll (TVs Kroll Show, Big Mouth) and Andrew Rannells (TVs Big Mouth, Girls) as the Craig and Crano proxies, who embark on a wedding anniversary/babymoon to Italy on the cusp of their impending fatherhood.

Crano and Craig’s debut is, in many ways, a tribute/throwback to outrageous comedies about couples who see their relationship tested beyond their wildest imaginations. Films like, The Money Pit, Date Night, and Flirting with Disaster spring to mind. There’s also a top note of misunderstanding-based violence, like in Tucker & Dale vs. Evil. I won’t spoil the journey, but viewers should be prepared. for. anything.

We first meet Dom and Cole as they record and then re-record an introduction video to send to their prospective surrogate (played sparingly and virtually by Amanda Seyfried). The men struggle to find the balance between being themselves and making a good impression. But no matter what, they don’t want to get burned again (their previous surrogate wasn’t even pregnant and made off with a large sum of money). Plus, they REALLY want to become parents.

Craig and Crano really were scammed by a would-be surrogate, got stranded in the Italian countryside, and had to make their way through the crisis with only the most basic Italian skills (there are several jokes about the ineffectiveness of Duo Lingo in the film). Dom and Cole can barely communicate with the people tasked to help them, and the cultural differences between Italians and Americans cannot be overstated…

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June 26, 2025
Categories: Filmpinions . Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , . Author: Baxter . Comments: Leave a comment

Paid in Puke Podcast S9E3: But I’m a Cheerleader

On season 9, episode 3 of Paid in Puke, we’ve got spirit for Jamie Babbit’s 1999 satirical comedy, “But I’m a Cheerleader”, starring Natasha Lyonne, Clea Duvall, Melanie Lynskey, Cathy Moriarty, Katharine Towne, Mink Stole, RuPaul, Bud Cort, and for 5 seconds, a Dawson’s Creek-era Michelle Williams.

Special guest Kate Preusser, managing editor at Lookout Landing* joins us to talk about why this is one of two influential films from her early twenties (the other being Showgirls). Still, Kate had the most Hot Probs, in relation to representation and some of Megan’s toxic traits. 

Kate also brings to us some Fun Facts, as well as the not-so-fun bad takes from the (mostly cis male) critics of 1999 that saddled this delightful film with a low Rotty T score that persists to this day. 

Baxter’s offspring joins us on Keggers with Kids, and on the Lunchtime Poll, we reveal things we didn’t know about ourselves until someone else pointed it out.

Listen to the episode here!

November 8, 2023
Categories: Filmpinions, Pod People . Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Author: Baxter . Comments: Leave a comment

Paid in Puke S6E4: Carol

On today’s episode, we’re falling in love with Todd Haynes’ 2015 romantic period drama, Carol, starring Cate Blanchett, Rooney Mara, and Sarah Paulson. We’re joined by special guest, Alicia Mullins of Gal Pals Watch Podcast, who gives us all the Superfan details about the film and the source material (Patricia Highsmith’s semi-autobiographical novel, “The Price of Salt”). 

There’s an awful lot of Harge hate and swooning over Cate Blanchett’s ethereal presence and silky voice, as well as marveling at Carol’s brass ovaries for standing up for herself in the 1950s, despite having so much to lose. Carol simply rules.  

Paid in Puke is available on all major podcast platforms or you can download this episode directly by clicking here!

September 1, 2021
Categories: Filmpinions . Tags: , , , , , , , , , . Author: Baxter . Comments: Leave a comment

Film Review: Happiest Season

Talented multi-hyphenate Clea DuVall (The Intervention) has achieved nothing short of a miracle with her sophomore feature, Happiest Season. She has made me love a Christmas movie. If you know me, you understand just how grand a feat this is. I have literally said “Bah, Humbug” out loud on more than one occasion. I’m not a full-on Grinch, mind you. Because I have kids, I’ve had to find things to love about the holidays. But you’ll never catch me watching a Hallmark holiday movie marathon. I think A Christmas Story and It’s A Wonderful Life are outdated and overrated. I’d rather roast my own chestnuts than watch Love, Actually or A Christmas Prince. On the other hand, if you told me someone was playing a marathon of Clea DuVall’s queer holiday rom-com, Happiest Season, I would be there with bells on.

Happiest Season follows Abby (Kristen Stewart, Personal Shopper) and Harper (Mackenzie Davis, Tully), a fun, co-habitating couple who are nevertheless fresh enough in their relationship that they have unspoken plans to spend the looming holidays apart. Abby’s parents died when she was 19 and she’s pretty much ignored Christmas ever since. Harper’s parents live in an idyllic town 50 miles outside Pittsburg where her conservative family celebrates the holidays in a major way. In the heat of a romantic moment, Harper invites Abby to come home with her, only to backpedal the next morning. But Abby remains so moved by the invitation that she insists on following through…

Read the rest at Hammer to Nail!

December 3, 2020
Categories: Filmpinions . Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Author: Baxter . Comments: Leave a comment

Film Review: Wild Nights with Emily

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History isn’t always written by the winners. Sometimes, it’s written by mediocre opportunists capitalizing on the talents of others. Regardless, history has always had a patriarchal hue, even when written by women. We now know that Emily Dickinson was not a spinster recluse, but a passionate and vibrant woman who understood that if she wanted to follow her heart in the 19th century, she would have to do so in secret.

Madeleine Olnek’s third feature film, Wild Nights with Emily, is more than just an attempt to right the way history has wronged Emily Dickinson (Molly Shannon). Though the story takes a few narrative liberties, a great deal of it is based in fact. Olnek used Dickinson’s letters and poems – with permission from Harvard University Press – in order to piece together an honest supposition regarding Dickinson’s personal life. She suggests that the person responsible for creating and perpetuating the myth was likely also a victim of her time. Mabel Todd (Amy Seimetz) forged Dickinson’s persona without ever actually meeting the woman. Furthermore, she did so whilst carrying on an affair with Emily’s married brother, Austin (Kevin Seal). Seimetz plays Todd with a lighthearted humblebrag swagger atop a desire to do what she felt was necessary to get Dickinson’s work published. Todd erased the name “Sue” from many of Dickinson’s more impassioned works. It’s likely that she wasn’t acting completely out of self-interest. She thought that the world wasn’t ready for a lesbian poet, but that Dickinson’s verse was too revolutionary to keep hidden…

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April 18, 2019
Categories: Filmpinions . Tags: , , , , , , . Author: Baxter . Comments: Leave a comment

H2N Review: Handome Devil

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Few things can make you feel more alone in this world than being surrounded by people whose priorities are completely at odds with your own. Ned (Fionn O’Shea) knows this pain all too well. He’s the only artistic fellow in a posh Irish all-boys boarding school where rugby is religion. If you aren’t part of the game, you’d best be cheering from the sidelines. And if you aren’t doing that, you’re in for a rough time. But when Ned gets stuck rooming with the new kid, a fetching rugby prodigy named Conor (Nicholas Galitzine), he finds kinship in an unexpected place.

Writer/director John Butler knows a thing or two about rugby fanatics. While the film isn’t autobiographical, per se, he did base the school in Handsome Devil on his own childhood alma mater. Ned is a suitable “every freak,” with a general interest in the arts, minus the talent to focus on any particular area. He gets good marks for writing, but only because he passes off song lyrics as his own. That all ends when a passionate and hip younger man (Andrew Scott, TV’s Sherlock) replaces the doddering old English teacher, and immediately spots the plagiarism.

Read the rest on Hammer to Nail!

Handsome Devil played at the 2017 Seattle International Film Festival.

 

 

June 23, 2017
Categories: Filmpinions . Tags: , , , , . Author: Baxter . Comments: Leave a comment

SIFF Review: Finding Kim

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There has been a recent surge in films about trans people, both narrative and documentary. And it’s about time. Trans rights have long been either lumped in with the rest of the LGBTQ issues, or ignored altogether. According to Kim, a trans man and the subject of Aaron Bear’s first feature documentary, Finding Kim, the Ls, Gs, Bs, and Qs have been some of the worst offenders for undermining trans equality. Trans women in particular have been excluded from women’s events as if they were devious cisgender men in disguise.

Fortunately for Kim, he lives in Seattle, where he has a supportive group of friends and can utilize his health insurance to cover his first surgical procedure, done by a sympathetic specialist. This has been a long time coming for Kim, who didn’t come to terms with being trans until his late 40s. Raised as a girl, Kim was often called a boy by peers, as if it were an insult. His classmates also barred him from using the bathroom at school – any bathroom. He never told his parents what he was going through, resulting in a very lonely existence. When he was older, he thought he might be a lesbian, but after spending time in that community, he still didn’t feel quite right. He finally had his life-altering breakthrough when he met a therapist who told him that all those masculine feelings he had were because he was a man. Within a couple of months, he was taking daily testosterone shots (called “T”) and finally starting to feel at home in his own body…

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September 29, 2016
Categories: Filmpinions, Seattle . Tags: , , , , . Author: Baxter . Comments: Leave a comment