Cinema Eclectica | Movies From All Walks Of Life

You can't stop the music, although a lot of people wanted to when The Village People's 1980 movie musical came out. Released in the wake of the infamous "Disco Demolition Night" in which rock fans burned disco albums, its appeal to its natural constituency was blunted by its strange tone. A film that is extremely squeamish around sexuality yet far freer with the drugs and nudity than a PG-certificate film ought to be, it's as mismatched as the band's famously eclectic stage outfits, though much less successful.Join Graham and Film Stories's Mark Harrison as they explore Can't Stop the Music's part in the creation of the Golden Raspberry awards, the surprisingly heavily contested origin of the 'YMCA' dance, Caitlyn Jenner's acting abilities and the Village People's post-fame afterlife from bar mitzvahs to - oh yes - Presidential Inaugurations. Plus, find out which controversial film was shooting at the same time as this, and why Mark's tangents need to have a Burial soundtrack.If you'd like to help us help Steve Guttenberg make it in the music biz, you can donate to our Patreon, where we're publishing regular reviews of The Twilight Zone and The X-Files, plus Outside the Blue Box, our series about what Doctor Who's cast and crew do in their time off. All this and a monthly bonus podcast! Find out more by following us on Instagram and Facebook.

What better time for a crossover than a comic book adaptation? This week, Graham is joined by Andrew and Mick, the two hosts of Behold!, to examine the 2024 remake of James O'Barr's cult comic The Crow. Famously the source for a 1994 film starring Brandon Lee, that star's on-set death sparked rumours that the property was cursed, rumours that can only have increased once people saw this.Entering Pop Screen's airspace thanks to its decision to cast FKA Twigs as the hero's doomed love Shelly, the trio discuss her music and acting as well as the largely-ignored wider Crow mythology, the puzzlingly miscast films of Rupert Sanders, Bill Skarsgard's strengths and limitations as a leading man and the film's unexpected debts to Paddington 2. Also opera - the entire art form - catches some strays.If you want to help us reach a state of eusexua, you can donate to our Patreon, where you'll get a bonus episode every month - there's one imminent right now, dealing with the great Miles Davis. Plus monthly reviews of classic Asian genre cinema in Fantastic Asia, weekly write-ups on classic TV science fiction and a nice everything-and-the-kitchen-sink podcast to round off each month in the form of Last Night... Follow us on Instagram and Facebook to find out more.

Look at our [stuff]! Yes, it's time for Pop Screen to don its neon balaclava and tackle one of the most iconic and divisive pop movies of the 2010s - Harmony Korine's Spring Breakers. With Selena Gomez and Gucci Mane in the cast, Skrillex on the soundtrack and James Franco playing a character who is legally distinct from Riff Raff, it has more showbiz connections than you'd expect from a director whose previous movie was shot on VHS and involved people in latex masks having sex with garbage bags.Join Graham and Robyn as they discuss the film's value as a time capsule, the past and future of its mostly Disney Channel-drawn stars, Korine's journey from Kids screenwriter to EDGLRD (yes, that is the name of his streaming service) and so much more. We also hear a joke about John Landis that genuinely appalls Graham, and the police show up. Not a moment too soon.If you want to add to the tally we've got from robbing a convenience store, we have a Patreon where you can find an exclusive bonus episode of this very show every single month, plus weekly written pieces on Red Dwarf, The Twilight Zone and The X-Files, our Fantastic Asia column on classic Asian genre cinema, and much more. Follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook to find out more.

You know you're dealing with a slightly classier type of pop star movie when the director has a knighthood, and Sir Steve McQueen's Blitz is no exception. Despite getting no love at this year's Oscars - it's no Emilia Perez, eh, the Academy? - it's still an ambitious, multi-stranded tale of one boy's adventure through the underworld of World War II-era Britain. It tackles racial prejudice, community organising, McQueen's usual theme of the communal role of music and... wait, is that Paul Weller?Maybe it was inevitable that the former frontman of the Style Council and the Jam would end up in a film where people do, indeed, end up down in the tube station at midnight. But there's more to it than that, as Weller superfan Mick points out. Rejoining the show after previously tackling the Style Council movie Jerusalem, he talks to Graham about the many near-misses of Weller's screen career, as well as the many palpable hits of McQueen's. And, since this podcast was recorded late last year we might as well say it here: RIP Rick Buckler.If you want to help us make money without robbing the victims of the Luftwaffe, you can donate to our Patreon where you'll soon find the latest exclusive episode of this very show - one for fans of The Jesus Lizard, we'll say - plus exclusive regular articles on classic Asian genre cinema, The X-Files, Red Dwarf, The Twilight Zone and much more. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to find out more.

One year ago, a very good boi and a steel-drum cover of 50 Cent became the most unexpected Oscar-season obsessions this side of Karla Sofia Gascon's tweets. It's Anatomy of a Fall, of course, and if you're thinking "Where's the Pop Screen connection?", look closer - you've got former Savages frontwoman turned "personal album"-maker and prolific collaborator Jehnny Beth playing the nanny, the real hero of the film. Real hero? Well, yeah - she saves the dog.Join a flu-riddled Graham as he reteams with Film Stories's Mark Harrison to discover, once and for all, whether she did it or not, talk about Sandra Huller's incredible 2023, uncover what was originally going to replace that immortal Fiddy needle-drop, and discuss this thoughtful, grown-up hit in the only way men of their generation can: through Simpsons references and repurposed gags from The Day Today.Not everyone can afford a house like the one in this film on a writer's wages, so we'd be grateful if you could back our Patreon, where you'll get a bonus episode of this very show every month, plus regular written reviews of The Twilight Zone, classic Asian genre cinema, Red Dwarf and The X-Files, and a special chaotic bonus podcast at the end of every month. Follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook to find out more.

As soon as we heard the tragic news about David Lynch's death, we knew we had to do one of his films on Pop Screen. But which one? Most of Lynch's films feature some sort of musician cameo - and, to answer your next question, we've already done his version of Dune. But there's only one that caught the industrial, trip-hopping, nihilistic zeitgeist of the late '90s, and that's Lost Highway. Join Graham and Rob as they discuss Lost Highway's iconic soundtrack, featuring Trent Reznor, Rammstein, David Bowie and Barry Adamson. We also talk about its on-screen cameos from Henry Rollins, Marilyn Manson - come back! - as well as the cut one from Scott Ian, and the movie's other cut scenes and multiple enigmas. Plus chat about Jack Nance, The Straight Story, and everything we'll miss about the unique Eagle Scout from Missoula, Montana. Like the Man From Another Place says, let's rock! We recently failed to steal five hundred dollars from a sleazeball we accidentally killed with a glass coffee table, so we'd appreciate your support over on our Patreon. We're about to release an exclusive bonus episode on Masked and Anonymous, and we also post regular written reviews of The Twilight Zone, Red Dwarf, classic Asian genre cinema and The X-Files. Follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook for more.

It's suppertime! Yes, after our review of 2024 Pop Screen is back to its old tricks with a look back at 1986's Little Shop of Horrors, the horror-comedy-musical powered by an unforgettable voice performance from none other than The Four Tops's Levi Stubbs. As the "mean green. mother from outer space" Audrey II, Stubbs made Academy Awards history - but you'll have to listen to find out how... Join Graham and Mike in their weird world as they discuss the songs and set-pieces both added to and taken from the stage musical, as well as the film's relationship with the Roger Corman film it's inspired by. We also unearth Little Shop of Horrors's unexpected connection to Kurt Vonnegut, its successfully unreal soundstage aesthetic, its cameos for everyone from John Candy to Miriam Margolyes... and THAT original ending. If you want to keep us from being bought out by World Botanical Enterprises, you can join our Patreon where we're just about to drop an exclusive bonus episode about Better Man - yes, the Robbie Williams monkey film. You'll also find an end-of-month round-up podcast called Last Night..., Mike's Twilight Zone reviews, Graham's X-Files reviews, more written pieces about Red Dwarf and classic Asian genre cinema, and more. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram for more.

You've heard the first half of our retrospective of 2024's cinema on The Uncut Network, now Pop Screen takes over for an even more epic second half - and that's just the bit where we all argue about The Substance. Join Graham, Robyn, Rob, Kat, Simon, Mike, Faye, Aidan, Andy and - in spirit if not in person - Ygraine as they run down their favourite UK releases from July to September. Which one reminds Aidan of Robert Altman? Which one does Kat think sums up modern motherhood? And which one features hundreds - possibly thousands - of beavers? From Oscar frontrunners like Anora to instant cult favourites like Strange Darling, from multiplex smashes like The Wild Robot to British debuts like Sky Peals, from the guts and gore of Terrifier 3 to the guts and glitz of, er, Guts and Glitz, this is your definitive guide to everything that mattered at the movies in the back end of 2024. And, at the end, our festival-going contingent give you some tips for what to look out for in 2025... And we've got more! Over on our Patreon we're putting out weekly written reviews of classic science fiction series including The X-Files, Red Dwarf and The Twilight Zone, our series on Asian genre cinema gems is about to relaunch, there's a freeform monthly podcast - Last Night... - where we catch up with anything we've been watching recently, and a monthly bonus episode of this very show - we're about to release one on the chimp-mendous Robbie Williams biopic Better Man. Follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook to keep up.

Marvin Gaye! Originator of conscious soul, Motown legend and surely the coolest man ever to be called "Marvin", he had the kind of raw charisma that you'd think the movies couldn't get enough of. In fact, his acting roles were few and far between, with this curious Vietnam-vets-versus-bikers B-movie the most prominent of them. In Pop Screen's last show of 2024, Aidan returns to discuss with Graham the legacy of Roger Corman, the bitter glory of Here My Dear, director Lee Frost's super-sleazy entry onto the Video Nasties list, and why the discovery of unreleased tracks by Marvin Gaye could be bad news for a British sitcom legend. Also, after last week's cameo from Mark's dog, another animal makes an appearance... We'll be back in a fortnight's time with our Best of 2024 show, but in the meantime you can donate to our Patreon, where you'll get an exclusive episode of this show every month, plus regular written reviews of Red Dwarf, The Twilight Zone, The X-Files and classic Asian genre cinema, plus our Patreon exclusive end-of-month review Last Night... Follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook to find out more.

Last Christmas, we gave you a Christmas special, and this year we're doing the same because we're not very imaginative. This year, to save you from tears, we're doing Paul Feig's Wham-inspired romantic comedy Last Christmas. It was poorly received on its 2019 release, but as was generally the case with 2019 we didn't know how good we all had it. Now, it's settling in to become a Christmas favourite, with all the cheesy appeal of a Netflix or Hallmark movie filtered through two key talents - Feig and screenwriter Emma Thompson - who actually know what they're doing. Join Graham, Mark and show favourite Dexter (Mark's dog) as they discuss George Michael's legacy, the recent documentaries about him, the connection between the former Yugoslavia and the KLF, and how this film gets the most out of its often-miscast stars Emilia Clarke and Henry Golding. Plus appreciations of supporting player Ritu Arya and Jason Statham, the latter of whom isn't in this movie but I dunno, the conversation just went that way. If you want to help us audition for the big ice show, you can donate to our Patreon, where you'll get a bonus episode of this show every month - the next one comes out tomorrow, and it's about Santa Claus Conquers the Martians - plus weekly articles on The Twilight Zone, Red Dwarf and The X-Files and our end-of-month miscellany podcast Last Night..., which is gearing up for its own Christmas special. Follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook for more.

The 1990s! A time when Hollywood's brightest minds were trying to solve the impossible problem of how to make a whole movie from those comic book thingies. Nowadays, they're trying to work out how to stop doing that, but that hasn't decreased the charm of things like Rachel Talalay's Tank Girl, a post-apocalyptic slice of pop feminism in which Lori Petty's titular antihero fights a scenery-chewing Malcolm McDowell while also - and there is no polite way to say this - getting it on with mutant kangaroos. One of whom is Ice-T. It's fair to assume you won't be seeing this in Phase Whatever of Marvel, but plenty of people have sought it out since its legendarily unsuccessful initial release. On this episode, we're joined again by comics expert Andrew from Behold! podcast in order to properly assess the film's position in comic-movie history, talk about its quintessentially '90s soundtrack and tease out its connections to alt-rock icons like R.E.M., Devo and Bjork. Please note that our statement that Margot Robbie is usually well-cast was recorded before the Great Wuthering Heights Casting Disaster of 2024. If you can forgive us for that, we'd be super-grateful if you could go over to our Patreon. In return, you get a bonus monthly episode of this show - the latest one, about House of Gucci, is a howl - as well as lots of other stuff that isn't available anywhere else: exclusive podcasts, reviews of The X-Files, Red Dwarf and The Twilight Zone, and much more. Follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook for more.

In all the annals of Hollywood flops, Heaven's Gate stands tall. Michael Cimino's follow-up to The Deep Hunter, a film beloved by seemingly everyone other than Jane Fonda at the time, it bankrupted its studio and became a byword for commercial failure. But what if we told you... it was good? Admittedly you might not be as surprised as people once were. Since its 1980 release, Heaven's Gate has been restored and reassessed, and now Graham and Mark are teaming up to give it a few more flowers. We also pay tribute to its star, the late, lamented Kris Kristofferson, a man who practically exemplifies the concept of a solid dude. From a film about hate comes an episode about love. It's gettin' dangerous to be poor in this country, but if you've got the money to spare we'd love to get your support over on Patreon. We're just about to launch our review of the original Twilight Zone, to add to our ongoing written series about Red Dwarf, The X-Files and classic Asian genre cinema. All this plus our end-of-month round-up podcast Last Night... - follow us at Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to find out more.

Bow before the mighty Thor! That's Jon Mikl Thor, obviously, the musclebound Canadian hard rocker whose mix of riffs and strongman stunts never quite led him to rock Valhalla. Not that it stopped him trying, and Rock 'n' Roll Nightmare was his biggest swing at the big leagues. On paper, it's a canonical hard rock horror movie, right down to the not-exactly-a-stretch casting of Thor as the frontman of a rock band. In practice, it is far, far stranger than that. Join Graham and Jeff as they discuss the film's alarmingly phallic puppets, its inexplicably long driving sequences and the insane third-act twist that seals its cult movie legend. We also discuss the twisty career of Thor himself, not least the time when he got a new manager who wanted to reshape his career path based on the channelled wisdom of the New Age entity "Seth". The '70s, everyone! If you want to hear us talking about rock - rock! Rock! - as well as several other musical genres, you'll find a monthly bonus episode of this show on our Patreon, as well as our monthly movie round-up Last Night..., weekly reviews of The X-Files and Red Dwarf, articles on classic Asian genre cinema and much, much more. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to keep up!

Phoebe Bridgers! Snail Mail! Fred Durst?! The list of Pop Screen-qualifying cast members is only the beginning of the weirdness in Jane Schoenbrun's sophomore film I Saw the TV Glow. Released in the UK after a wait almost as punishing as the film's devastating time-jumps, it's the story of two kids who really, really like a TV show. That is, if you're satisfied with a surface-level reading. If you're not, allow Graham and Robyn to take you through the film's multitude of trans and queer readings, its nods to 1990s telefantasy classics from Buffy to Twin Peaks, its use of - and critique of the abuses of - nostalgia, its subtle coding of each time period it's set in, and of course its soundtrack, whose mix of modern artists and '90s vibes has already made it a cult classic independent of the film it's soundtracking. We also discuss Harmony Korine's short films, the weirdness of early internet video and so much more. It's for the ladies, the fellas and the people who don't give a [censored] - which, we now realise, is an acknowledgement of nonbinary identity. Who knew? If your heart is like a claw machine, grab a subscription to our Patreon where we release an exclusive episode of this podcast every month, plus lots of other DVD bonus features: written reviews of The X-Files and Red Dwarf, classic Asian genre cinema under the microscope and even more. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to find out more.

It's time for Pop Screen's Halloween month, and as luck would have it one of the biggest new horror films of the year has plenty of pop connections. The final instalment in a trilogy which started with X, MaXXXine takes the story of Maxine Minx through to the '80s, and finds Halsey and Moses Sumney waiting for her there. Join Graham and Andrew from Behold! podcast as they dive into the film's period detail, which of its supporting actors get away with their outrageous accents, and the magic of Mia Goth. We also discuss Halsey's collaboration with Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, Moses Sumney's enviable satellite connection, and that world-class Buster Keaton scene. It's a film with balls, alright. Over on our Patreon, we're getting ready to drop a Patreon exclusive episode on Satan's Bed, an absolutely bizarre obscurity starring Yoko Ono with lots of strange stories attached to it. Subscribers also get monthly written reviews of classic Asian genre cinema, weekly reviews of The X-Files and Red Dwarf, and our end-of-month round-up podcast Last Night... Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to find out more.

On 13th September 1996, Tupac Shakur died in a still-unexplained killing (well, unless Eminem just blew the case wide open). It left a lot of things in limbo, including Vondie Curtis-Hall's spiky, charming directorial debut. Nobody wanted to see a crime comedy starring someone who'd just been the victim of a horrific crime, even if - as Graham and Mark unpack on this week's episode - the crime in Gridlock'd is rather more small-time than the web of corruption that got Tupac killed. Twenty-seven years later, and Gridlock'd has a deserved cult following for its tricky but successful blend of caper comedy and angry commentary on American healthcare. Join our hosts as they explore this, plus the wonders of Thandiwe Newton's accent, the movies Tim Roth nearly starred in, the iconic '90s hits that made this risky film possible, and the timelessness of G-funk production. Plus, Graham explains Tupac's odd, involuntary role in the Kendrick-Drake feud to Mark. All eyez on this! If you can spare us some Patreon money from your healthcare-and-smack budget this month, you'll get a wealth of riches, including our monthly what-have-you-been-watching? podcast Last Night..., weekly written reviews of The X-Files and Red Dwarf, retrospectives on classic Asian cinema and extremely niche genres, and a monthly bonus episode of this very show - we've just released our review of the new Irish rap biopic Kneecap, and it's only available on Patreon. Follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for more.

Outside of documentaries and one unforgettable appearance on The Simpsons, The Ramones only made one film appearance - but what an appearance! Allan Arkush's chaotic, Joe Dante-scripted Rock 'n' Roll High School wasn't even meant to star da brudders, with Todd Rundgren and Cheap Trick considered for the film's musical guests. Then, one of the film's stars told producer Roger Corman there was a much hipper band whose asking price was much lower - and Corman, as ever, was sold on the second part. In the first of September's triple-headed shows, Graham is joined by Rob and Aidan to talk about that first wave of NY punk, as well as this film and The Ramones's unexpected connections with The Beatles, John Carpenter and Frank Sinatra. We also discuss why Joe Dante's films connect so well with da yoof, the experience of feeling old when you listen to Radio 1, bands who sell a lot of t-shirts and Rob's hatred of Blink-182. Hey! Ho! Let's go! For less than one pound ninety-nine you can subscribe to the lowest tier of our Patreon, where you'll get weekly reviews of The X-Files and our end-of-month round-up podcast Last Night... Up the amount and you can also get Red Dwarf reviews, revisits of classic Asian genre cinema and a bonus subscribers-only episode of this podcast - we're covering the Irish hip-hop biopic Kneecap this month! Follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook to find out more.

When David and Graham are on the show together, you should be on high alert for a camp catastrophe, and lord do we get it in the form of Ken Hughes's Sextette. An innuendo-stuffed sex farce starring Mae West, it could have been a smash hit if it was made in the 1930s, when she was in her forties. Instead, it was made in the 1970s, when she was 84, and the result is the vanity project to end all vanity projects. Join us as we discuss the star-studded cast, including a relentlessly hammy Keith Moon, an unrecognisable Alice Cooper, and Ringo Starr; discuss ways in which an OAP sex comedy could actually have worked; catalogue the film's strange relationship to both Britain and the laws of physics; and talk about Sextette's unbelievable musical numbers. Plus, discover the secret of Mae West's shoes and find out how true love brought David to this highly special film. Aww. If you want to hear our scandalous secret memoirs, well, tough. But if you sign up to our Patreon you can get a bonus episode of this show every month, plus exclusive written articles on The X-Files, cinema's most niche genres, Red Dwarf and classic Asian genre cinema. At the end of every month we've also got a fun, chaotic podcast called Last Night..., about our month's most memorable viewing, which like all this content isn't available anywhere else. Follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook to find out more.

What was the British pop movie like before The Beatles? They were quite a lot like What a Whopper, as Graham and Mark discover this week. A featherweight farce in which a struggling writer and his bohemian friends try to fake a Loch Ness Monster sighting - just go with it, OK - it features a plethora of British comedy legends, a script by Dalek creator Terry Nation, and, as its lead, one Adam Faith. It's easy to forget what a massive name Faith was in his heyday, and our hosts examine every aspect of his wild career, from his other acting roles in Budgie and Beat Girl through his career in financial advice to his delightful last words. We also discuss the real-life Loch Ness Monster hoaxes that may have inspired Nation's script, the tragic life of female lead Carol Leslie, the film's not-wholly-unstereotypical vision of Scotland and the state of Michael Winner's finances. It's a monster of an episode! If you don't want to see us reduced to hoaxing cryptids to make ends meet, you can donate to our Patreon, where you'll get a bonus episode of this podcast every month. There's a new one, about the classic blaxploitation movie Truck Turner, out in just one day's time! You also get written reviews of The X-Files, Red Dwarf and classic Asian genre cinema, and our monthly miscellany podcast Last Night... Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to find out more.

Get your motor running, head out on the highway... wait, it's not that Peter Fonda-starring 1960s biker movie. No, The Wild Angels came a few years before Easy Rider, and it centres around a noticeably less idealistic group of bikers. Director Roger Corman hired several real Hell's Angels to serve as extras in his film, and if you're thinking there's probably stories from that set, you're right. Let Ben and Graham tell you them: from Corman's sociological reasons for having Bruce Dern's character work at an oil refinery to the unexpected trouble he had involving a coffin and the letter "Z". And, because this is Pop Screen, we also talk about the film's musical legacy - Primal Scream are certainly fans - and its female lead Nancy Sinatra. whose career teaches us many valuable lessons. Here's one: if you're accused of being a nepo baby, why not get together with an incredibly rum country singer and release a series of duets that are so unwholesome as to sound actively diseased? All this and Frank Sinatra's prog album, discussed herein! If you wanna get loaded, and have a good time, there are few better venues than our Patreon, where you'll find a bonus episode of this show every month, plus two exclusive podcasts concerning cult genre franchises (From the Video Aisle) and whatever we feel like (Last Night...). There's also written articles on cult Asian genre cinema, Red Dwarf and The X-Files, plus plenty more - follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook to find out more. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pop-screen/message

What do you get if you combine the most divisive woman in 1970s America, the least divisive woman in modern America, and a comedy legend? You get an absolute treat, at least if it goes as well as 9 to 5 did. Colin Higgins's film brings together Jane Fonda, Dolly Parton and Lily Tomlin in a class-conscious romp about three women who kidnap their sexist pig of a boss and find the office runs a lot better without him. It's basically The Communist Manifesto with a thumping C&W theme song. This week, Graham treats himself after self-harming with The Idol by getting back together with Jeff to talk about this lasting classic of early '80s Hollywood. Prepare for an in-depth comparison of the many beards of Sterling Hayden, an appreciation of Jane Fonda's shrewdly against-type performance, and our pitch for a Dolly Parton horror movie. Patreon - what a way to make a living! Subscribe today and you can hear Graham and Aidan talking about Fred Durst's The Fanatic in an exclusive Pop Screen episode, plus our end-of-month round-up podcast Last Night..., written reviews of The X-Files and Red Dwarf, classic far eastern genre cinema reconsidered in Fantastic Asia, and more. Follow us on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter for more. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pop-screen/message

Ladies and gentlemen, The Weeknd. To celebrate - 'celebrate' - the first anniversary of one of the defining pop star ego trips of our age, Graham and Robyn have reconvened to look at all six - no, wait, all five - episodes of Sam Levinson's disasterpiece. If you're wondering why we won't get a third season of Euphoria until the cast are in a retirement home, forget the writer's strike - this is why.From the twisted minds of Robyn and Graham, please enjoy discussion of: the Weeknd's remarkable anti-charisma and his future acting plans that will definitely, definitely happen, the troubled production of this show and the Amy Seimetz cut we'll never see, The Idol's strained relationship with queerness, its downright nonexistent relationship with modern pop, and much much more. Worth listening this week just for the Jojo Siwa joke, frankly.Our exclusives are about something even more interesting than LA club owners nobody's ever heard of - classic Asian genre cinema, Red Dwarf, cult film franchises, Doctor Who, The X-Files, and whatever the hell our critics have been watching in the last month. In case your thirst for watching us suffer hasn't been sated by this episode, we've also got a Patreon exclusive episode of this show about Fred Durst's The Fanatic coming up. Follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook for more. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pop-screen/message

Back with a vengeance! Yes, ahead of the release of Furiosa, we're looking at the Mad Max movie that features the most legendary pop star in the whole series (well, apart from the Doof Warrior): Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome. Initially reviled for its lighter tone and child sidekicks, the film now feels like a stepping stone to the operatic excesses George Miller has taken the franchise to in the 21st century - and Tina Turner as Aunty Entity is a piece of stunt-casting that truly works. This week, Producer Rob rejoins the show to talk about all things Mad Max, including the series's fascinatingly improvisatory attitude towards continuity, the extent to which Max Rockatansky obeys Joseph Campbell's laws of heroism, and the absolute goldmine of memorable quotes this movie contains. It's two podcasters enter, and, er, two podcasters leave - but not before revealing this film's unexpected place in hip-hop history... Come to our Barter Town over at Patreon, where you can exchange your money for a monthly bonus episode of the show - we've just covered every single pop star appearance on Doctor Who, from the Beatles to Billie Piper - plus written articles on classic Asian cinema, The X-Files and red Dwarf. Backers also get two bonus podcasts: the unclassifiable miscellany of Last Night... and the methodical run-through of cult franchises that is From the Video Aisle. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram to find out more --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pop-screen/message

We've covered plenty of biopics of musical legends on this podcast, and one word has hovered unspoken in the background: Cox. Dewey Cox, that is, the legendary rocker played by John C Reilly in Jake Kasdan's Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story. A musical innovator, a tortured genius, a tireless advocate for small people's rights... he didn't exist, of course, but this spoof is so beautifully observed it doesn't really matter. Let's duet! This week, Mark Harrison of Film Stories rejoins Graham to look at the film that makes it impossible to watch any other biopic without giggling inappropriately at all the sad parts. We discuss the cameos that were cut, the gruelling promotional tour Reilly embarked on in support of the film, and which of 2024's biopics include scenes from this film played dead straight. It's a beautiful ride, alright. If you want to buy us a sink to replace the ones we broke during our dark period, you can donate to our Patreon, where you'll get a monthly bonus episode of this very show, plus two other podcasts not available anywhere else - From the Video Aisle, looking at cult favourite franchises, and the unclassifiable Last Night... We also do written articles on classic television science fiction and Asian genre films, and much more besides. Follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for more. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pop-screen/message

John Singleton was 21 - 21! - when he made one of the most acclaimed debuts of the 1990s, one which led to him becoming the first African-American to get a Best Director nomination at the Oscars. It would be the perfect punchline if it was bad, but annoyingly for this deeply unserious podcast it's great: a frontline dispatch from a world plagued by violence and poverty that still feels vital, and also finds room for more humour and tenderness than you might expect. Join Rob and Graham as they discuss this landmark film and its star Ice Cube, then perhaps the most controversial music star in America, now a reliable, familiar presence in all kinds of movies. They also discuss the film's unexpected inspiration, its heartbreaking ending and venture a cheeky but probably-accurate guess as to why there are so many movies about gentrification. Plus: hot takes on gangsta rap from early '90s political columnists that have not aged as well as this movie!If you don't want us to be drawn into the terrible gang culture that surrounds podcasting, you can give us some money over at our Patreon, where in return you'll get a bonus episode of this show every month. We also have no less than two podcasts - Last Night... and From the Video Aisle - and we give you weekly written reviews of Red Dwarf, The X-Files and Doctor Who. Follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook to learn more. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pop-screen/message

Sam Taylor-Johnson is about to release Back to Black, her second music biopic following 2009's Nowhere Boy. So naturally Pop Screen decided to review... her EL James adaptation? Yeah, why not, it's got Rita Ora in it. Returning co-host Joe did a lot of Ritasearch for this podcast and was delighted to remember that she only has about a minute of screentime. Not that there's any shortage of other things to talk about when it comes to 50 Shades of Grey. Its status as a cultural phenomenon, its dubious sexual politics, its troubled production and long list of nearly-stars... all of this and more is covered in this dangerously erotic edition of Pop Screen. We also explain why Christian Grey's chauffeur is the secret hero of these movies, and reveal what the Frenchest film ever made is. It's not this one. If you don't want us to be financially dependent on a creepy billionaire who uses us as sex slaves, you can donate to our Patreon where we're about to drop an exclusive episode on the 1994 police thriller The Glass Key, as well as publishing written reviews of Red Dwarf, The X-Files and Doctor Who every week. Patreon backers also get two whole podcasts that aren't available anywhere else: From the Video Aisle is in the middle of a Mr. Vampire retrospective, and the movie and TV miscellany that is Last Night... comes out every month as well. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram for more information. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pop-screen/message

There are some pop movies that capture the appeal of an entire genre. Such was the case with Perry Henzell's The Harder They Come, a crime drama that was such a hit it essentially popularised reggae in the United States. Such things are possible only with a star of the calibre of Jimmy Cliff, plus soundtrack and screen appearances from the likes of Toots and the Maytals and Prince Buster. This week, Aidan rejoins Graham to talk about Henzell's film, and uncover the reason why he might be the ultimate Pop Screen director. We also talk about Chris Blackwell's Island Records, whose film division was launched by this very movie. There's also discussion of the film's real-life inspiration, the "original rude boy" Ivanhoe Martin, its possible subtexts and the white-knuckle experience of watching that bus swerving all over the place during the opening credits. If you want to keep us from plying our trade as door-to-door gardeners, you can donate to our Patreon and get a monthly bonus episode of this show, plus two exclusive podcasts not available anywhere else - From the Video Aisle, which is currently working its way through the Mr. Vampire series, and the completely unclassifiable Last Night... There are also weekly written reviews of Doctor Who, The X-Files and Red Dwarf, plus a monthly pick of a classic Asian genre film in Fantastic Asia. Follow us on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook for more. www.patreon.com/thegeekshow --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pop-screen/message

In 2024, Pop Screen is spending a month in Jamaica, hailing the island's mighty presence in the field of music. And to kick off, we're talking about... er, 10cc? Yes, when they said they don't like reggae, they love it, few could have expected that love would manifest itself in multi-instrumentalist Lol Creme directing a 1991 Jamaican comedy about a small-town eccentric who thinks he can talk to trees, cows and cricket balls becoming involved with a lusty German photographer. As you do. The Lunatic is, as you can probably tell from the above synopsis, a weird old thing. Fortunately Graham and Mark Cunliffe have re-teamed in order to make it even weirder, with digressions about the original TV version of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, how Small Axe got Graham through the first lockdown year, and the film's tonal similarity to the saucy seaside postcards of Donald McGill. We're not in love - but we did enjoy it. If you'd like to throw a bit of spare change at your local village idiots, we've got a Patreon which is just about to drop an episode on the Neil Young/Devo collaboration Human Highway. We've also been covering everything from Mr. Vampire to Neighbours in our other podcasts Last Night... and From the Video Aisle, as well as writing reviews of Doctor Who, classic Asian genre films, The X-Files and Red Dwarf. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram to find out more. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pop-screen/message

In 2004, the veteran Welsh rock band The Alarm pulled off an audacious hoax, releasing their single '45 RPM' under the alias of The Poppy Fields. The Poppy Fields were supposedly a new band of teenage rock stars in skinny jeans, as was the style at the time. As the song ascended the charts, Alarm mainman Mike Peters revealed the deception, kicking off a debate about ageism in the music industry. It's a fascinating story, so fascinating that Mick has dragged himself out of his sickbed to talk to Graham about Vinyl, the 2012 film loosely based on it. We discuss its many missed opportunities, its bizarre decision to make the Mike Peters analogue more or less totally unsympathetic, and the question of whether this con would work in 2012 - which is more of a cultural gap than the eight years it is on paper. We also discuss The Alarm's long career, the rock movie baggage of star Phil Daniels, and the irony that - these days - a middle-aged heritage act is a better money-spinner than a sexy young rock band. We don't pretend to put out a load of extra content on our Patreon - we actually do it, including a monthly bonus episode of this show (the latest one is about Priscilla), exclusive podcasts Last Night..., about anything our critics have watched this month, and From the Video Aisle, reviewing cultishly adored franchises, as well as written pieces on classic Asian genre cinema and British and American TV science fiction. Follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook to find out more. www.patreon.com/thegeekshow --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pop-screen/message

Good vibes only this week, as Mark Cunliffe of We Are Cult rejoins the podcast to talk about Cyndi Lauper's lead role in the 1988 supernatural comedy Vibes. A film so inspired by Ghostbusters that Dan Aykroyd was briefly attached to star, it has an enviable cast fronted by Lauper, Jeff Goldblum and Peter Falk. And yet, somehow, it tanked. On this episode of Pop Screen, then, we attempt to solve the timeless Fortean mystery of why people didn't watch this at the time, taking detours to talk about the career of supporting players Julian Sands (RIP) and Steve Buscemi, consider the odd self-seriousness with which 1980s family comedies treat their paranormal mythos, try to ascertain what the worst Dario Argento film is and talk about a Winnebago full of balloons, I guess. It's one of those weeks. Tomorrow sees the release of our latest Patreon exclusive episode, about Sofia Coppola's Priscilla. Subscribers also get two bonus podcasts a month - Last Night... and From the Video Aisle, the latter of which is prepping a Mr. Vampire retrospective - plus written reviews of classic Asian genre cinema, Doctor Who, The X-Files and Red Dwarf. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to find out more... --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pop-screen/message

Memo to you: Pop Screen is back for 2024 and we're covering one of the wildest, most controversial and most ambitious rock movies of the 1970s. Starring Mick Jagger among a motley cast of models, gangsters, boxers and one father of a national embarrassment, Performance saw Nicolas Roeg and Donald Cammell join forces for a joint debut like no other. On this episode, Rob and Graham reunite to talk about the film's turbulent production, its difficult journey into a form Warner Brothers - who thought this was going to be like A Hard Day's Night - found acceptable, and the short but eventful life of the mysterious Donald Cammell. If you want to hear us talk more about his co-director, Rob and Graham have also covered The Man Who Fell to Earth. If you want us to talk more about Mick Jagger, well... ...there's an exclusive bonus episode of this podcast concerning Tony Richardson's Ned Kelly coming out on our Patreon very soon, where it'll join a galaxy of quality content: the franchise-reassessing podcast From the Video Aisle is about to dive into the Mr. Vampire series, our X-Files and Red Dwarf reviews are well into the golden age of those shows, and there's also the movie miscellany podcast Last Night... at the end of the month. This isn't even close to the limit of what we do: check Twitter, Instagram and Facebook to find out more. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pop-screen/message

Last week, our sister podcast Uncut took you through January through to June in our two-part review of 2023. Now, Pop Screen takes up the reigns with Vincent, Naomi, Rob, Graham, Kat, Simon, Mike, Oliver and James all returning to give their favourite films of the second half of the year - culminating in that all-important top ten. What will make the cut? Who did Barbenheimer on the day of release? How many diverging opinions on Saltburn can we get? And who put the Puss in Boots sequel above the new Scorsese? But it's not all about the year's big talking points and blockbusters. We also shine the spotlight on smaller films you might have missed, including The Passenger, Raging Grace, Femme, Trenque Lauquen, Smoking Causes Coughing, Eileen, How to Have Sex, Afire and many more. We'll be back in a fortnight's time with a regular Pop Screen episode on Mick Jagger's first acting role in Performance, but until then... ...if you want more, you can always donate to our Patreon where you'll get monthly bonus episodes of this show, exclusive podcasts about cult franchises and the wider world of movies and TV, written articles about classic Asian genre cinema, plus cult TV reviews covering The X-Files, Red Dwarf and Doctor Who. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to stay in touch. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pop-screen/message

Pop Screen finishes 2023 with a movie that could not be less stock to our ears - Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky's Metallica: Some Kind of Monster. Granted unprecedented levels of access to the world's biggest heavy metal band, the directors of the Paradise Lost trilogy made a raw documentary about a band somehow staying together and making an album despite unprecedented personal turmoil. The punchline: the album they make is St. Anger, perhaps the most reviled album in their back catalogue (or at least the most reviled one that doesn't feature Lou Reed). Join Aidan and Graham for this exploration of the lifestyle and indeed deathstyle of the metal legends, including diversions to talk about Lars Ulrich's feud with Napster, which type of dad James Hetfield is and the vexed question of whether Metallica are actually good. We also discuss the band's history and former members, their decision to hire a group therapist to get them back together and, of course, that infernal snare drum sound. If you want to keep us tapping on a tin can despite public opposition, you can donate to our Patreon where you'll get a monthly bonus episode of this show, written reviews of classic SF television and Asian genre cinema, and two whole bonus podcasts that aren't available anywhere else. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to find out more. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pop-screen/message

All we want for Christmas is this: Mariah Carey's notorious film vehicle is the subject of Pop Screen's festive episode. Equally reviled and unfortunate, it's the tale of a foster child who grows up into an aspiring singer, and whose rise to fame is, shall we say, subtly patterned on Carey's own career. Its soundtrack album was released on 9/11, which stymied its commercial potential. That inspired a #JusticeforGlitter campaign many years later; the film was less fortunate. On this year's Pop Screen Christmas special, David rejoins Graham to talk about the many unlikely couples in this film, the almost surreally undercharacterised friends of Carey's Billie, and how Carey's divorce from Tommy Mottola may have forced this film into its 1980s setting. We also discuss Carey's triple-threat legacy: her world-class voice, her current status as Queen of Christmas, and the "I don't know her" gif. If you want to help us transcend being backing singers for... Top Chef's Padma Lakshmi? Apparently, you can donate to our Patreon where you'll find a monthly bonus episode of this show, as well as our Patreon exclusive podcasts Last Night... and From the Video Aisle, the last of which is midway through a reassessment of the V/H/S franchise. Plus written reviews of classic Asian genre cinema, Doctor Who, Red Dwarf and The X-Files. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram for more. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pop-screen/message

Get ready for (a) love (-in): Graham is joined once again by the Uncut Network's Rob for a look at Iain Forsythe and Jane Pollard's massively acclaimed sort-of documentary about Nick Cave. As well as providing an intimate look at the Australian legend's creative process and history, it also features appearances from his deeply unexpected celebrity friends: Ray Winstone and Kylie Minogue, together at last! Along the way, there's time to consider the idiosyncratic concert demands of Nina Simone, while a look back at Forsythe and Pollard's career lets us talk about The Cramps and reveal the name of God. But mostly, this is a celebration of Cave - and there's more to come, with Andrew Dominik's duology of One More Time With Feeling and This Much I Know To Be True out tomorrow on our Patreon... If you want to put stacks of green paper in our red right hands, you can donate to our Patreon, where you'll get the aforementioned Pop Screen bonus episodes plus reviews of Eastern genre cinema in Fantastic Asia, our monthly movie round-up Last Night..., cult franchises discussed in From the Video Aisle and weekly reviews of Doctor Who, Red Dwarf and The X-Files. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to find out more. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pop-screen/message

On this week's Pop Screen, Graham has a very important and special guest: Mark's dog! And, fine, yes, also Mark, with our favourite quizmaster and Film Stories writer coming back to talk about Russell T Davies's most personal drama. Set across the early years of the AIDS crisis, It's a Sin has a cast full of breakthrough young stars, memorable cameos from acting veterans, plus Olly Alexander, whose day job in Years and Years allows us to cover the show. Not that we need much of an excuse to talk about it, or indeed Davies's day job showrunning Doctor Who for its imminent 60th anniversary specials. There's also space for digressions on Prime Ministerial cameos, the real-life inspirations behind the central characters, an appreciation of Erasure and why Russell T Davies must be hopping mad at Stranger Things right now. The T stands for "Thatcherism has left a legacy of death and division", by the way. If you want to fund our dreams of leaving the Isle of Man and becoming an actor, you can donate to our Patreon where you'll get a monthly bonus episode of this show - currently it's one about Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour, as if you needed further incentive - plus our other podcasts Last Night... and From the Video Aisle. You'll also get weekly written reviews of Doctor Who, Red Dwarf and The X-Files, classic Asian genre cinema under the microscope in Fantastic Asia, and more. Follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for more information. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pop-screen/message

Our Halloween special is over and done with, but this week Graham faces his most terrifying challenge yet - enjoying a film about jazz. If you're going to watch one film about jazz, though, Bertrand Tavernier's 'Round Midnight is the one to watch. Its bona fides are impeccable: named after a Thelonious Monk song, starring Dexter Gordon, with a score by Herbie Hancock and inspired by the lives of Lester Young and Bud Powell. That's a lot of jazz, and fortunately Aidan is back on the show to help Graham navigate it. But there's more to Tavernier's film than its music. It's a profoundly cinephilic film as well, with a memorable late appearance by notable Letterboxd user Martin Scorsese. Graham also gets to venture his classification system for 1980s French cinema, which won't be approved by Cahiers du Cinema any time soon but eh, it just about works. If you want to help us manage our tormented yet strangely stylish alcohol addictions, you can donate to our Patreon where we're about to drop an exclusive episode of this very podcast about Taylor Swift's Eras tour movie. We've got a lot of content that isn't available anywhere else, including reviews of underrated Asian genre films in Fantastic Asia, From the Video Aisle's new series on the V/H/S franchise, our end-of-month miscellany podcast Last Night... and weekly reviews of Red Dwarf, Doctor Who and The X-Files. Follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for more. www.patreon.com/thegeekshow --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pop-screen/message

Oh god, Graham's shining the spooky light under his face again - sounds like time for a Halloween special. And it is, with Mark Cunliffe of We Are Cult joining the show once again to talk about The Haunted House of Horror, a 1960s British horror movie with an all-bases-covered title. It's the familiar tale of a group of horny and stupid teens who go to an old house for a seance and end up beset by entities even older and more sinister than Frankie Avalon, the Beach Blanket Bingo star who plays a character described as the essence of Swinging London. So, not entirely persuasive casting in the lead role, but there's an impressive supporting cast including Jill Haworth and Get Carter's George Sewell, who does not play one of the teens, as he was never young. Aside from exploring the varied CVs of cast and crew, Graham and Mark also appreciate the movie's surprisingly nasty kills, the reshoots that led to the ending making no sense at all, and the time when Mark accidentally went to a Chesney Hawkes concert. If you want to keep us buying clothes at the Men's Shop, you can donate to our Patreon where Mark and Graham are about to reteam and tackle Taylor Swift's Eras concert film in a Pop Screen exclusive. You'll also find regular written reviews of classic British sci-fi television and our favourite Asian genre movies, the monthly movie miscellany podcast Last Night..., and cult franchises reviewed in From the Video Aisle. Follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook for more news. www.patreon.com/thegeekshow --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pop-screen/message

Don't call it a comeback! Literally, given the number of alternative titles Pete Walker's 1978 chiller goes under. Best-known as The Comeback, stars crooner Jack Jones as crooner Nick Cooper - a stretch, then - who is all fresh from a stay in rehab and ready to record his comeback album. The process is interrupted by artistic conflicts, record industry politics, scary ghosts and a hag-masked killer armed with a sickle. Not necessarily in that order. The first in Pop Screen's 2023 Halloween month sees Robyn Adams rejoin the show to talk about the genius of Sheila Keith, Walker's gift for an outrageous title - including some contradictory advice given to his female protagonists - and the sheer weight of classic comedy connections in this ostensibly straight-faced horror film. If you've ever wanted a slasher featuring the stars of This Is Spinal Tap, Not the Nine O'Clock News and Last of the Summer Wine, this is for you, you absolute weirdo. If you'd like to help us detox from heroin and restart our tarnished careers, you can donate to our Patreon, where you'll get a monthly bonus episode of this show. The next one, about aliyah's posthumous role in Queen of the Damned, is out tomorrow. Plus a new series of reviews of Asian genre classics in Fantastic Asia, cult franchises go under the lens in From the Video Aisle, weekly reviews of Doctor Who, Red Dwarf and The X-Files, and much more. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and that which once was Twitter for more. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pop-screen/message

When we announced a month of Madonna-themed movies, we could have just looked at her acting performances, maybe a documentary or two. Instead, we felt like it was our journalistic duty to blow the lid off her steamy affair with 'Weird' Al Yankovic. That's just one of the extremely accurate facts contained in Weird: The Al Yankovic Story, a merciless lampoon of biopic cliches which Weird Al superfan Jeff is back on the podcast to discuss with Graham. The film immediately received attention for Daniel Radcliffe's insanely committed lead performance, but there's more - and not just Evan Rachel Wood's superb turn as Madonna, either. Jeff and Graham discuss which of the film's cavalcade of cameos they'd like to see a full biopic about, the film's long gestation period and how the rock biopic changed (or didn't) during production, and the critical importance of preserving the Quibi archive for future generations. If you'd like to help us dare to be stupid, you can donate to our Patreon, where you'll get a monthly bonus episode of this show, as well as our movie and TV round-up podcast Last Night..., cult franchises reviewed in From the Video Aisle, weekly written reviews of Doctor Who, Red Dwarf and The X-Files, plus Unseen Asia and more. Follow our Instagram, Facebook and Twitter for more. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pop-screen/message

This week, Pop Screen is showing you Dick. As part of our ce-e-le-bration of the fortieth anniversary of Madonna's breakthrough single Holiday, we're taking you back to 1990, when Warren Beatty became one of the few men to ever tell her what to do as he directed his then-partner in the comic book hit of the summer, Dick Tracy. Obviously, the landscape of comic book adaptations has changed since the days when a 1930s detective strip was a box office smash and Captain America was the subject of a cheap B-movie. But has it changed for the better? This question can only be answered by bringing back Andrew of Behold! podcast, who revisits his childhood favourite film to ask: does it hold up, and why isn't it set on the moon? Plus vital detours to discuss the film's excellent make-up, Al Pacino's, uh, high-intensity villain performance, the documentary Six by Sondheim and the insane excess of a film that can afford to get Kathy Bates for, essentially, one great sight gag. If you'd like to help us hold on to the rights for a 1930s comic strip using a series of Zoom calls - seriously, it's a thing we discuss - you can back us on Patreon, where you'll get an exclusive episode on Dangerous Game, another of the many curios in Madonna's screen career. Plus written reviews of Red Dwarf, The X-Files and classic series Doctor Who, From the Video Aisle works its way through the [Rec] series, the film and TV miscellany podcast Last Night... and more. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram for more. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pop-screen/message

Some people think little girls should be seen and not heard, but Pop Screen says: welcome to our episode on Poly Styrene: I am a Cliche! Co-directed by Celeste Bell in collaboration with Paul Sng, it follows Bell's journey to explore her late mother's iconic time with the punk band X-Ray Spex, as well as her troubled life and - more important than it sounds, this - her one-of-a-kind fashion sense. The documentary is based closely on the book Day-Glo, by Bell and Zoe Howe, and on this episode We Are Cult's Mark Cunliffe joins Graham to discuss what was left out from that text, as well as appreciate Poly Styrene's classic work with X-Ray Spex, her distance from the mainstream British punk scene, the afterlife of her band and her still-underrated solo career. We also pitch an ITV1 detective series starring Kate Bush, although we're still unsure why. The free episodes are only part of our identity: subscribe to our Patreon and you'll also get a bonus episode on Barbie, as well as access to our other podcasts From the Video Aisle - about cult franchises past and present - and Last Night..., which is literally about what we watched last night. Both of those are only available on Patreon subscribers, as are our written reviews of classic TV science fiction serials Red Dwarf, The X-Files and Doctor Who. Follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for more. www.patreon.com/thegeekshow www.wearecult.rocks --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pop-screen/message

This week, Mark Harrison from Film Stories rejoins Pop Screen to taunt Graham about one of his most extravagantly failed predictions. Remember our The Dead Don't Die episode? Where we looked at that film's star Austin Butler's upcoming movies and decided there was no way an Elvis biopic was going to make bank in 2022? WELL... Actually, the strangest thing is not that it made money, but that we enjoyed it. Join Mark and Graham as they discuss their mixed feelings towards Baz Luhrmann, the "crisis in media literacy" and the many ways in which Colonel Tom Parker could have been a better mother to Elvis. There's also room to talk about Parker's role in the birth of PR, the changing image of Elvis following his death in 1977, and why this was the best superhero movie of 2022. Thank you - thank you very much! There's much more than a one for the money over on our Patreon - as well as Mark and Graham reuniting for a Patreon exclusive Pop Screen episode on Greta Gerwig's Barbie, there's reviews of Red Dwarf, The X-Files and Doctor Who, a look at Asian films that need a UK distributor, and two exclusive podcasts. From the Video Aisle is about to begin a retrospective on the found-footage horror franchise [Rec], and Last Night... is just covering anything it wants to, as usual. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Threads for more. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pop-screen/message

It's our 100th episode! And what better way to celebrate than to look back at one of the great musical flops of all time, 1980's Xanadu. Starring Olivia Newton-John, Gene Kelly and a guy from The Warriors, it's the story of a Greek Muse sent to Earth on a mission to inspire. If she knew she was going to inspire him to make a swing dancing/roller disco fusion club, she'd have stayed on Mount Olympus. One of the films that led to the foundation of the Golden Raspberry awards, Xanadu nevertheless has a devoted cult following, two members of which - previous co-hosts David and Jeff - are here to guide Xana-newbie Graham through this bewildering film. Is it bad? Good? So bad it's good? Only the 100th edition of Pop Screen can solve the mystery! Making content is not quite as lucrative as this film suggests, so if you want us to keep creating you can donate to our Patreon, where you'll get a monthly bonus episode of this show, our film and TV miscellany Last Night..., From the Video Aisle's retrospectives on cult franchises (currently going through the Cube sequels), Unseen Asia, reviews of Red Dwarf, The X-Files, and Doctor Who... it's a lot, and you can keep up with what's going on by following us on Instagram, Twitter or Facebook. it is still Twitter too, nobody's ever going to call it X. Give it up, plastic-face. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pop-screen/message

After last week's voyage into self-importance courtesy of U2, Pop Screen tackles a film that couldn't possibly be more lightweight - the 1965 teen comedy Beach Ball. Strange, as it features one of the most tortured souls in '60s pop - Scott Walker - and one of its defining divas, Diana Ross. But this is an entry in the brief but prolific fad for beach party movies, in which mysteriously parent-free teenagers meet on the shore to date and do nothing that threatens a U certificate while listening to the drumming stylings of... exploitation film stalwart Sid Haig?! Yes, there's some stuff that needs unpacking in here alright, and Mick from our sister podcast Behold! is on hand to help Graham unpack it. Join them as they run through the now-forgotten history of the beach party movie, discuss which of this year's summer blockbusters is most inspired by it (a clue: it's not Oppenheimer) and work out how this stacks up against the genre's avant-garde masterpiece Gonks Go Beats. It's like an endless summer, except this podcast does actually end, so it isn't. If you'd like to help us buy our own musical instruments without having to beg the crusty old dean for money, you can donate to our Patreon where you get three exclusive monthly podcasts - a bonus episode of Pop Screen, our latest show From the Video Aisle, and the movie and TV miscellany Last Night..., plus written reviews of Asian films that need UK distribution, classic series Doctor Who and Graham's new series going through The X-Files's conspiracy episodes. Follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for more news. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pop-screen/message

It's a story we keep running into here on Pop Screen: a band are so big, so acclaimed, that they think "We could make a film, how could that go wrong?" and the universe then demonstrates exactly how that could go wrong. Coming just one year after their worldwide smash The Joshua Tree, U2 decided to make Rattle & Hum, a documentary about their American tour. It earned them their first negative reviews, and caused people to reflect - for the first time, if you can believe it - that Bono was quite annoying sometimes. And yet... you might like it all the same. Joining Graham this week, Joe from Dreaming Machine talks about his complex relationship with U2 after a mammoth revisiting of all their albums. They discuss the failures and the less-heralded triumphs of Rattle & Hum, also finding space to wonder about the Manic Street Preachers' album reissues and tell a delightful anecdote about Joe's old alarm clock. You've given us love, now give us money money money over at Patreon, where you'll find all sorts of content not available anywhere else: a bonus monthly episode of this podcast, for one, reviews of Asian films that need UK distribution in Unseen Asia, our latest podcast From the Video Aisle, which kicks off with an episode about the Canadian SF/horror classic Cube, X-Files reviews and our monthly movie and TV round-up Last Night... Follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for more. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pop-screen/message