I have done ridiculous podcasts. I have done funny podcasts. But I don’t think I have ever done as ridiculously funny a podcast as this one, our final entry in the Binge Jaws Retrospective.
In 1987, twelve years after the film which started the summer blockbuster, original Jaws co-star Lorraine Gary was retired. But put a script where she is the ‘hero’ of the story, and she fights a revenge seeking shark with her The Last Starfighter son Lance Guest, and you have the recipe for disaster known as Jaws The Revenge. Oh, did I mention the presence of Oscar winner Michael Caine?
I know I usually put a long winded history of the film discussed in the podcast on this page. But I think this show speaks for itself. Listen to a drunk Law, a semi drunk me, and a semi awake Nathan discuss what is widely considered one of the worst films of all time. But will all of us agree? And why am I so fixated on The Jets?
A big thank you to both Law and Nate, as this particular retrospective has been a real treat to do. Download the wacked out of its skull conclusion below.
Welcome to the third installment of our look at the Jaws franchise. Or, as Law and I call it, the part we do not remember doing. See, this podcast was recorded after we had been drinking and recording this week’s Binge Cast. Combine that with a wide awake and ready to hate on anything avocado related Nate Peterson, and yet another co-host who decided to watch the film as we were reviewing it, and you have yourself a recipe for podcast disaster.
Speaking of disasters, that would bring me to this week’s film. Jaws 3 was highly touted as being a terrifying addition to the franchise when it was being released. To top things off, it was riding the 80s wave of (cardboard glasses) 3D, as well as starring recent Oscar winner Louis Gossett Jr. What could POSSIBLY go wrong?
Join the three of us as we take the winding road that answers this question. And be sure to join us NEXT week, when we conclude this series with another entry in the Jaws franchise which stars an Oscar winner. Again, what could go wrong?
Just when you thought it was safe to go back to the movies, producers Richard Zanuck and David Brown put together a sequel to the first ever summer blockbuster. But how does Jaws 2 come off now, especially to the Brit who is watching it for the very first time?
Delve into the movie with Scarface Shark and Two Face Shark, and listen to us argue over just how bad (or good) it is. The weird thing is despite the absence of Robert Shaw, Richard Dreyfuss, and Steven Spielberg, Jaws 2 has a good reputation amongst fans. But you know our motto here at the Binge studios. If it has a good rep, we will argue about it.
Ok. Before I get into the long winded written intro to this series of Jaws based podcasts, there are a couple things I want to point out. One, you may notice that there are four scores (Lincoln??) above my little set of images below this wording instead of three. That would be because some asshole on this podcast decided to score the film TWICE. Listen to hear who THAT winner was.
Second, if you scroll through the images below, you may notice a shear terrifying one that you more or likely do not recognize. That image….is also explained on this here podcast.
Ok, with THOSE bits of business out of the way, here is the long short of the next month or so of podcasts. Law and I are massive fans of the original film (listen in future weeks to hear if we are fans of the sequels as well), and Nate has only seen the first one. Do the math. We are going to put him through the motions, Aftertaste style, and then hear his response to all four films, one by one, one per week.
Sound reasonable enough? Good, because I’m thirsty.
It came to this. After almost twenty years, and countless inquirees from fans of when the team behind one of the most beloved franchises of all time would get back together to make a new film, the universe formed the foundation for Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. With a director who was now respected -and a few gold statues to further prove his worth- and a co-creator who was just coming off closing out his OTHER beloved franchise, Steven Spielberg and George Lucas, along with always game Harrison Ford, were here to create a new Indy adventure. And boy were we excited.
Well, at least two of us were. Listen as Law, Nate and I go through the journey of watching the fourth film of the franchise, and Law gets ever increasingly annoyed. We also detail what the next move for our favorite fedora wearing hero could be, and whether we would welcome a return to the screen for him.
I must say. As painful and hard as it was to put these shows together, they sure were a hell of a lot of fun to record. A big thanks to both Law and Nate, as well as that Sneaky bastard Juan Carlos for our kick ass logo.
Stay tuned. More retros coming!
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008) (?/10, ?/10, ?/10)
By the time 1989 rolled around, five years after the previous Indiana Jones entry, the film landscape had changed. Steven Spielberg was not the only one turning out blockbusters, as a quirky filmmaker named Tim Burton rolled out Batman, a superhero juggernaut starring Jack Nicholson and Michael Keaton.
So how would Spielberg and pal George Lucas retort? By turning their once daring franchise into a sentimental journey for a father’s love and the key to immortality. Join Nate, Law, and I as we sort through Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. As always, some of us enjoyed the journey. While one, was left out in the cold. But which one of us is it this time? Listen to find out.
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) (?/10, ?/10, ?/10)
Welcome to the second of Binge Movie Aftertaste’s four part look at the Indiana Jones franchise. As one part of our crew so observantly puts it, at the rate we are going, we should finish up Crystal Skull by 2019. But this week, we are here to talk about Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. And do we have an interesting podcast for your ear holes. Listen as Law and I get once again baffled by the out of planet living Nate Peterson. At one point, he says that he is indeed going with the ride and ‘meeting us in the middle.’ But is he? You make up your own mind.
We hit it all here, as we talk about subjects such as how the film affected how ratings are done today, how it contains perhaps the worst character Spielberg ever put to film, and how two of us like Short Round while the other hates him with a passion. I’ll give you one guess as to who that is.
So what are you waiting for? Download the episode and get ready to yell at your phone. Loud.
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) (?/10, ?/10, ?/10)
After months of jump starting this series of podcasts only to have it pushed back, the Binge Movie Aftertaste Indiana Jones Retrospective is finally here. Listen as me, Law, and Nate dissect the first beloved film of the franchise Raiders of the Lost Ark. What is it that makes it so great? Why is Ford’s gruffness part of his charm here? And why oh why does one of us not agree with the other two?
Listen to find out. And don’t forget – we are going to look at the other three as well, so keep checking this space every Friday, as these podcasts will get even more interesting and rant filled as they go on.
Since CS Jim Law was calling out us staffers for not writing anything on the site in a while, and also PERSONALLY calling me out for writing reviews elsewhere that weren’t actually reviews (check Facebook for deets) I decided to write him a CS’ing review, so here it is.
For those of us who are starting to get fatigued with the constant bombardment of sequels/prequels/reboots/remakes, it seems that movies, at the theater at least, are starting to get stale. Yeah, I love me some good Marvel movies, and Mad Max Fury Road, a sequel, was my favorite movie from last year, so I don’t hate all of it, but there’s no denying that the unending stream of previously-made IP extensions is getting tired. Thankfully, it seems that TV has really picked up the slack on that end with filmmakers and writers taking some serious chances with the format. It has been happening for years, with shows like Breaking Bad, Game of Thrones and Making a Murderer getting the public invested in continuing stories that break storytelling conventions (it goes back further than these selections but you get my point). It is always great to see a new story told well, and with that sentiment I am happy to report that The Night Manager is well worth your time.
The Night Manager is the story of Jonathan Pine, played by Tom Hiddleston, a proverbial night hotel manager at one of Cairo’s most elite hotels. As the night concierge, Pine lives a structured but diligent life, taking care of every guest with the same attentiveness as any VIP. One day, a woman enters the picture and changes Freddie’s outlook on the world around him. Eventually, he crosses paths with Freddie Hamid, a wealthy son of Cairo whose family owns most of the city. Through some events I will not spoil here, Pine becomes embroiled in a situation dealing with notorious arms dealer and public philanthropist Richard Roeper, played by Hugh Laurie. Eventually these characters interact, with Hiddleston playing the inside man and Roeper the “big cheese”, so to speak. The story becomes a sort of pseudo-Bond story, with Hiddleston playing the everyman’s version of a 007. In fact, if the rumors have any truth to them, Hiddleston would probably make for a great Bond based off of his work here.
While the story is based off the John Le’Carre novel of the same name, that book was written at a time when the Cold War was still fresh in the minds of the public, so many of the situations and circumstances were adapted to a modern setting with the author’s blessing (he even appears in a small cameo). The best way to think about this series is as a 6-hour movie rather than a mini-series as the episodes have a natural propensity and progression that requires a binge watch. I found the writing to be particularly refreshing due to the fact that a lot is done to humanize the characters and build some natural conflict into the story. Granted, some of the familiar tropes of the spy genre are exploited here, such as the irresistible and attractive female character and some bait-and-switch scenarios, but for the most part this is quality storytelling at its finest.
While a lot of the story had me intrigued, there were a few elements that seemed convenient. For starters, Pine’s integration into this espionage plot was a bit too quick for my liking. Granted, he had a military background to justify his actions, but I did not think the inciting action for the story was enough emotional/moral justification for his character. Also, oddly enough, I wanted to spend a little more time in this world. I really loved the exotic locales and the acting pretty much across the board, but I just felt like this story could have used another hour or two to really savor the details.
At the end of the day anyone looking for more quality television should give this a watch. The Brits definitely have a handle on quality espionage and I hope this paves the way for more great miniseries like it.
