The Pick: Fight Club

The first rule of podcasts is… nevermind, you get it. We’re talking about Fight Club this week, in honor of both Brad Pitt starring in Ad Astra and in honor of the worst kinds of white males getting their due in the upcoming Joker. While talking about Fight Club, Colin, Sean, and John wrestle with their mixed feelings about the film and its impeccable filmmaking but chaotic storytelling. Also, we get into talking about the Fight Club video game, as I’m sure you’re all dying to hear about. Continue reading →

The People’s Albums #14: Jagged Little Pill

I know. There are more pressing things going on in the world right now than an alternative pop/rock album from the ’90s. But I started listening to and researching this album prior to Criterion Month, and I never got around to writing about it before that month started. So now, here I am attempting to write about it before Shocktober begins.

Album: Jagged Little Pill
Artist: Alanis Morissette
Release Date: June 13, 1995
Copies Sold In The U.S.: 15.3 million Continue reading →

The Pick: Looney Tunes: Back In Action

Looks like it’s pick season, as we take a trip to Looney Tune Land while talking about the non-Space Jam sequel Looney Tunes: Back in Action. Well, actually we don’t go to Looney Tune Land so much as a cartoony version of our reality, which is rife with slapstick, self-awareness, and bizarre black-and-white cameos. This might be the most insane mishmash of a film we’ve talked about yet, which is saying something considering last week’s pick was It Chapter 2. So check it out, folks! Continue reading →

Pop Girl Summer

Taylor Swift – Lover / Lana Del Rey – Norman F***ing Rockwell!

I’m well aware that these will be very cold takes, considering these are two pretty huge albums that got the hot take treatment upon their release a few weeks ago. However, I couldn’t help but feel the need to compare and contrast these two albums, considering they have a lot in common, as well as a lot of differences in terms of how their pop star creators have navigated their careers up until now. Also, I’m not sure that they’re albums that are all that conducive to the “hot take” treatment, considering their breadth and ambition. Continue reading →

The Pick: It Chapter Two

This episode we’re making our first foray into reviewing a movie currently in theaters on The Pick, as we take a look at It Chapter 2. John shares with us not only his thoughts on the film in question, but also its relation to the book it’s based on, the 1990 made-for-TV adaptation, and the Stephen King-iverse in general. The movie is a bit of a long, semi-indulgent mess, so it seems only appropriate that this is our most epic episode of The Pick yet. Continue reading →

The Pick: Body Heat

We’re back with a very sexy episode of The Pick in which we’ll be talking about Lawrence Kasdan’s 1981 directorial debut, Body Heat. We’ll discuss the film’s noir motifs, excellent performances, twisty-turny plotting, and copious amounts of sweat. Also, we introduce a new segment where we’ll be giving our own individual “Little Picks” to supplement the big pick of the week. Continue reading →

Som Rise, Som Set

Jay Som – Anak Ko

Is it just me, or did indie rock get a lot dreamier over the course of this decade? Perhaps blame it on some of the more influential bands of the decade who literally put “dream” in their album titles (ahem, War on Drugs, Beach House), or just blame it on drugs in general. But it seems that more and more bands have embraced a flurry of hazy guitars and half-comprehensible lyrics that harken back to shoegaze, but with less of the inherent noise. Jay Som proved on her last album that she could embrace the noise with stand-out track “1 Billion Dogs”, but here she plunges deeper into some dreamier jams. Continue reading →