108.2: There is No Magic

The following feature has been rated R by the Motion Picture Association of America. It is intended for mature audiences and parental discretion is advised. It's showtime, folks! Enjoy the show! Hi, John Amplis, and you're listening to Movie Meltdown, the greatest movie geek show on Earth.

It's time for Sofa Theater. My name is Martin. I'm 84 years old. People think I'm crazy when I tell them how old I am. I'd like to be normal.

I just have a sickness. The only way I can survive is by drinking blood. It's not easy living the way I do. I have to be careful all the time. I'm pretty good at it.

I think as I get older, I get better. I haven't been caught yet. You see, people don't understand what's wrong. They think that I'm a monster. They think I'm a vampire.

Martin, another kind of terror. I would like to be like everyone else. I have to do things that I don't necessarily like to do. But I want to stay alive. I do need blood.

I just pretend. Dead angels speak to me sometimes Giving me advice that I should hear You are what I'm looking for Because you're close Because you're. Near Welcome to Movie Meltdown Sofa Theater. Once again, I am Brian. I am Greg.

This is Jay. I am Lucy. I'm Marlena. This week's Sofa Theater feature is Martin. The year is 1977.

Director George A. Romero. The plot, according to IMDb, a young man who believes himself to be a vampire goes to live with his elderly and hostile cousin in a small Pennsylvania town where he tries to redeem his blood-craving urges. And with that, spoiler alert, because, yeah. Actually, it's weird how many people haven't seen this for as old as it is and is connected to, yeah, is connected to a huge director, especially in the horror world.

It's like, there's still a lot of people that haven't seen this. I think I was okay with having not ever seen this. We'll get to that in a minute. Before we get to our own thoughts on the movie, it is time for... One from the vaults.

Our ongoing series where we delve into the vaults of an actor and hear their thoughts on the movie. This week, we talk to John Amplis, the star of Martin. So let's see what John has to say. In fact, my senior year of college is where George saw me do a play and then cast me as Martin. That's what I was going to ask, how you got involved.

So he just saw you. On the stage? He saw me on the stage, went away, and I think he had an older character in mind initially and rewrote it and called me two months later and offered me the role. What did you think? The first time you read the script for Mark?

I liked it because for me it's not a horror film. It's a psychological thriller. And so I think it's a character study. And as an actor, doing a character study is far more interesting than doing a slasher film or a cartoon. So I really enjoyed the text and I related to it. pretty quickly and easily.

That's what I was going to ask. How different is Martin of that age as John at that age, aside. From all the murders? Well, I was a little older than what Martin appears to be. I was 27.

Martin probably looked about 17 or 18. But I related to the teenage angst, and I also related to the isolation of Martin was obviously orphaned and passed around. And my early days as a kid, you know, I didn't grow up with my parents, so I had a similar experience in terms of living with people other than my own family members. So those things about Martin I readily related to. Everything else, then the dissimilarities you figure out how to do.

And that's where the acting comes into play. What did you do to prepare for the role? I think I did all the preparation I could in terms of reading and working out the dramatic action in my head and on paper. And then once you. Get to the set and you're in front of the camera, everything has to be moment to moment.

So you can't foretell the future. You can't, the past has already been told, so you have to do what you're supposed to do right then and there. And that's how it works. Once you played it, it was, I guess, a very different movie than a lot of, even horror movies at that point. Yes.

Did people you know look at you differently? No, not at all, no. I mean, everybody understands that we're actors and it's a job, and so professionally, you know, everybody seems to get that, you know, actors are just actors, and Both characters in movies and plays are just characters in movies and plays. You're pretty convincing, though. He comes off as a pretty unstable kid.

Well, that is part of the job. That's to your credit. That's part of the job. He's very convincing. That's what actors are supposed to do.

As far as the. Somehow, in the middle of it, you come off with a very sinister look. Is it something that you... And I don't know if sometimes it seems like a shot, that it's something that maybe George set up, but sometimes it comes up... It's almost just the look of... on your face but it's almost the shot itself.

Well I can't tell you anything about how that may or may not have happened I know that George I mean George certainly was generous in terms of and a mentor in terms of helping. Me through through the. Film Mike Gornick who shot the film is a tremendous cinematographer And he and I got along very well. And I think the big key is you have to be aware of the camera, and yet at the same time you have to not be aware of the camera. A little dichotomy there, but the idea is know what you're supposed to do, know where you're supposed to look, hit your mark, do what you're supposed to do.

It works so well with him, though, because he's got, you know, you come off playing it very innocent one minute, and then it'll kind of cut to a shot, and he just looks really evil. Yeah, well, that doesn't have anything to do with me. It's just maybe, I'll give it to George and Mike. As far as just, was. There anything specific, like, story-wise that you really remember about the shoot itself?

You know, I mean, not really, other than what George has created with every film he ever does. is he creates a family atmosphere. And in Martin, especially, since Martin was probably the lowest budget since Night of the Living Dead that he had to deal with. And so everybody chipped in. Everybody worked. Everybody picked up cables.

Everybody moved cameras. Everybody chipped in. And it was really a big kind of wonderful family affair. I was kidding before. Do you watch Dexter?

I love Dexter. I haven't seen all of the episodes, but I love Dexter, and I think he's terrific. I think he owes a little bit to you. I think Dexter owes a little bit to me, too. Although, what's the guy's name that plays him?

Michael C. Hall. Michael C. Hall. He's terrific.

He's amazing. Yeah, he's terrific. Yeah, the holding the needle in them, and there's shots every once in a while. You know, although I'm sure he's probably never seen Martin. I don't know.

Maybe he did. He's got a good reputation. Maybe he did. He just has better drugs than you, because. His are meaty.

Oh, absolutely. Yours took way too long. Yeah, he's got the good stuff. Yeah. He works in the police station.

I was back in, you know, I'm old school. They've made a lot better drugs since then. Absolutely. So yes, thank you once again to John for sharing his memories of Martin. And now on to us.

So I ask you, where do we begin? Hey, on the thing, IMDB says that he thinks he's a vampire. Don't they point... out in the movie that he's been around for quite some time. 80 some odd years. Yeah.

It depends on where you go from. And that's kind of what I like about this because it leaves it very vague. It's sort of like who you listen to. And then in the end, you're kind of like, there's a couple of stories going there and you don't really a hundred percent know who to believe. But yeah, he says at one point he's 84 years old.

Yeah. And then by appearances, like even when he's talking to normal people, His cousin says that he's not even 20. So, I mean, he definitely comes off as being this kid. But, yeah, I mean, it. Well, no, I mean, his older cousin, the one who looks like Colonel Sanders?

Yeah, yeah. Because I think at some point, doesn't he say that he's been around for a long time? Yeah, when he's looking through the family album, and he's going back through, like, the generations of this curse. He's talking about his age being 20, but he looks, I guess. Yeah.

But he also said, and this is weird, it's like it took me a couple times to catch exactly what he was saying. He talked about when his father died... And he said he had his father until he was 36. Now, the first time I was hearing it the other way, like his father was 36 when he died. No, Martin was 36 when his father died.

And then just recently, I think, if I'm getting it right, his mother committed suicide recently, and that's why he had to come stay with his cousin. So, the crazy old man. So, yeah. That's kind of one of my favorite things about this, is it never really nails it down... As to what's going on, and you can kind of take away from it what you want.

To me, that's one of the most annoying things about this game. That's because you're difficult. I don't know. It's just too out there with itself. Like, ooh.

He was kind of a sloppy vampire for something that's been around for a while. The worst damn vampire I've ever seen. I will give you, he left a lot of loose ends. And thank God for him that this was a time when they didn't do any sort of investigations, obviously. Right.

There was no DNA samples. There was no... Fingerprints. Fingerprints, yeah. No CSI team.

Yeah, you could get away with anything according to this movie. I think they took DNA at that time, but at the time they didn't know how to process it. They could just eliminate it by blood type. Yeah, that's probably what they could do. Because, yeah, they're finally getting around to testing stuff from this, you know, back in the 70s sometimes in these cold case kind of bullshit that they bring up, but...

Every once in a while, they actually do find somebody and, like, prove, oh, you've been dead for ten years, but you know what? You were innocent. Sorry we sent you to prison. Oops. And when that guy released from Texas, finally.

Yeah, after how many years? 30 years. So, I mean, yeah, they were just at the infancy of figuring out some of that stuff. But obviously, according to this movie, it was not in practice because he was pretty sloppy as a killer. It's the worst method I've ever seen in my entire life.

This was the lamest, most. And whoever his drug supplier was to knock chicks out with was an idiot. Well, I said that to John. I was like, well, and it really, I mean, I guess the drugs weren't quite as potent as they are now. Because now, I mean, you can hit somebody and they'll hit the floor.

I mean, it's, and again. Experience with this? Maybe. But on top of that. I watch a lot of Dexter.

And we can get to that, too. But yeah, that's, I mean, that's one of those that you have to question some of that. But at the same time. It's not like he's trained in this. I don't really know for sure that he knows what he's doing because he says that's a recent addition, too, is that, you know, in just the last, you know, few years of these 84, he's started introducing the needles into the process.

The other thing that I was thinking of, too, that hadn't really occurred to me, I was an E.T. technician at one time. E.T.? Yeah. Jolting aliens back to life. But if you didn't hit, if you didn't hit the vein, Yeah, it would take a while. it would take, maybe 15 minutes, maybe 5 minutes, depending on the size of the dog, and then it would finally just kind of flop around on the floor and then pass out.

And half the time here, he was hitting the back and the legs, like the fat part of the legs. Yeah, muscle parts. So, you know, that kind of makes a little bit more sense now that I think about it, about hit the, you know, what the hell? Why isn't this acting so fast? You hit a vein and boom, they're out.

Right in the neck. Yeah. That's where you gotta go with it. I agree. He usually could be within a matter of seconds, but like when you're Just kind of poking around.

Yeah. You know, wrestling with the girl on the floor. Which he did. So that's our intro. I mean, we get the all aboard and we're on the train for the set off there.

I mean, it is a really cool way to open it because you have no idea. Especially, I mean, I'm thinking at the time of probably people not knowing that much about movie news and just going in and sitting down and watching this. And you're just thrown into this scene of him attacking this girl. Yeah. You don't really know what he's going to do.

No, and you really, I mean, it's like a third of the way in the movie before you really start to piece together not only what he's doing, but what other people think he's doing, what he thinks he's doing. Like, it really takes a while. I mean, there's a good three or four different levels of things going on that, again, I give credit for writing-wise. Like, it's a pretty complicated structure to this, and it's executed pretty well. It's...

Again, some people have issues with it. I feel like if this movie. It's not accessible. I feel like if this movie were redone, it would be really amazing. By the right people on the right.

Yeah, it could be. It could be, but at the same time, I can also see him doing a really terrible version of it. Oh, yeah. I mean, that's what I worry. I worry about anybody just taking a movie.

Yeah. I mean, if you give it to the right people, you can look at True Grit now. I mean, I thought that was a horrible idea when I first heard about it, and then I found out who it was going to, and I was like, oh, well, okay, you know what, that's... competent hands okay let's do that so it's possible to do remakes that kind of you know at least live up to if not improve upon the original idea but I would be afraid somebody would just do something terrible with. This so because I really like the idea of the story a lot yeah you. Don't really know what he is and what he's doing aside from being a sloppy vampire because.

I like I mean I like I like vampires I always have sorry I'm not into Twilight and that's kind of like vampire movies are retarded nine times out of ten let the right one in was really good but that's about the only one i can think of off the top of my head that's not like completely stupid but i do like kind. Of the old idea of vampirism where maybe they didn't have fangs these are all just myths and stuff that got tacked onto the story that they're really just crazy people that just like the slash people. And some of that, I mean, you look at going back all the way to, like, Vlad the Impaler, I mean, there's a real story there, and then there's what it became over the years, so, I mean, it's, yeah, it's a lot of, especially since this is rooted so much in that, like, the old country, and you've got Cuda telling you this, you know, you don't understand, you're not from, you know, that part of the world, so when you are from that part of the world, and you've got these generations of people building up this story around you, and Not only everyone in the town thinking that, but, like, your own family telling you, oh, by the way, you've got the curse, you know, and you are, you know, Nosferatu.

So it's... It makes the story really different. And, you know, it is something that could happen to people as time goes on. I mean, when everyone around you is convincing you of something, regardless of what he is, I mean, he's going to start to behave accordingly. And that opens it up to, you know, because... none of the conventions of what a vampire is are, does he have other than the blood, the blood.

Exactly. And so therefore, could it be the thing where he was raised in a completely fucked up family and just is convinced that he is a vampire? They convinced him and they convinced him that he's, you know, 80 years. Old and who knows? They're all, they're all, I mean, Grant or his cousin or the old, the old man was half insane as well.

So, um, And the flashbacks that he has aren't necessarily reliable. So, yeah, he could just be a normal 20-year-old guy that's been through a really fucked up life. I really like the flashbacks, and it's funny, Romero wanted to shoot the entire thing in black and white originally, and as usual, the studio will not, even today, the studios won't get on board for that idea, so that was his way of compromising, was going back and working in the flashbacks in black and white, but I like those scenes and I think that's what I think it does so well. And if you want to go with what, what, if you listen to Romero, he really kind of planned for, I mean, I guess in his mind, it is more that he's just crazy that, you know, he, but I like that it's left to, and it's almost delivered in a way that you're almost buying the vampire thing.

And then Martin definitely is buying it. So, I mean, I think you kind of need that to be able to get the perspective of our, our main character, but, If you listen to what Romero says about it, the way that he envisioned it all is he's just kind of crazy and this has all happened. So I think it's really cool that they put these flashbacks in there because from one sense you can look at it and assume that it is these are scenes from the past. This is actually him 50 years ago and this all really happened or this is all in his head. And this is why he's– I mean because it all mimics what's going on in present day.

So it's like maybe it's this weird thing where his brain is seeing things and also like deja vu-ing it to the point of, you know, he thinks all this has happened and that's that's why he thinks that he's 84 years old now because he keeps putting all these memories into his head of these 84 years that aren't even real it's all just delusion and He's just sort of built it all up in his head, thanks to everybody else telling him that he's like that. Yeah, you would think after 84 years he would be a little bit cleaner on his execution methods. That's why it doesn't add up. Like not using sticks. Yeah, kind of, but at the same time it's like if you look back at the old footage, back then you didn't have to do anything.

Like even if you watched the old Vampire movie, they would just kill people, dump them on the road, walk away with blood all over them. Yeah. Old-time vampires, you know, back in the old country, you know, they kind of ruled the town. It's like, unless you got the whole mob together to hunt them down and kill them, they did whatever they wanted. And, you know, you look at all the old Hammer films, you don't see them worrying about people.

Unless it's Van Helsing, they kind of come up, kill people, walk off, be like, whatever, see you tomorrow night. Plus, there were no lights. I mean, you know, when you think about there were no lights, you had to have an expensive torch or you'd have to have, you know. And a lot of them, yeah. You know, candles weren't, you know, so.

You could hide pretty easily back then. And it was hard to track you down. You couldn't have people, one person, go and get you. It's like you really did have to have an entire lynch mob following you around to even maybe have a shot at keeping track of you. It was a lot scarier back then.

Yeah, and that's the only time they could find them. If they're gone during the day, it's like the only time you find them. There is no electricity, so there's no way to hunt them down and get a hold of them. No light vision, no heat vision, right? I mean, there's a lot of it that, if you want to look at it that way, is sort of plausible.

It is something that, you know, could take place in someone who's kind of crazy. They really could start to convince themselves that all this happened. Actually, I mean, that happens a lot. Yeah, I mean, you hear all these stories about people in asylums that think... They have an entire life, or they have lived an entire life.

Or that they're JFK. Or, yeah, and they're like, well, yeah, but you've been here for 20 years, so when did all this happen? But they're thoroughly convinced that all this is real. So, I mean, that's all just kind of how the brain. Works, really.

How crazy people operate. How crazy people are. It's crazy. I can't believe this is happening. It's a nightmare for you and him.

Your father was not from our part of the world. Your mother knew. She believed. Well, if she did, then thank God I was too little to know her. Grandfather, he is just a boy.

Look in the books, Christina. We have the books of the family. Did you ever look? Of course, the books. The books will show it.

Those damn books, they should be burned. That's where you get your horrible ideas. Ask the boy himself. Ask Martin. He will tell you.

He's unbalanced. He's mad. And you and those books have driven him to it. He is Nosferatu. He was born to a lignibulressa. and Rudy Mathias in The Old Country in 1892.

I do like, and this is something I noticed just kind of watching this again this week, it's like independent film was something very different back then, and this was almost like the last era of that, because by the time you hit the 80s, you have videotape, and by the time now, you've got digital, so it's a very different thing, and I think at this point, and all of that's probably why you have all these great movies of the 70s, it's like, when people wanted to make a film, there was a lot invested in it, I mean, it was a lot of time, even something that's an independent feature like this was, I mean, it's a hell of a lot of time, a hell of a lot of work, so you really kind of have to put a lot into it, and I think that's the difference, when you look at, you know, 90% of independent film now is just, somebody gets a Lark, they buy a digital camera, they get some of their friends, and they make a movie, and I think it shows where watching this kind of reminded me of, of, you know, that dedication to making an independent film on film on actual celluloid and how much work it was.

Yeah. How much work it took just to put that together. So I think that was something again, watching this, you know, them actual shooting at that point. That's another thing that was kind of cool was just the seeing the city at that point. This is 77.

So it is kind of this time capsule of this little, town coming like coming coming to a grinding halt in pittsburgh i mean it's like it really is like and they were talking about that if you go back they're talking about how kind of sad it is i mean the shots of him like walking through the town are amazing and it's not because it's beautiful it's not because it's you know a brochure to move to pittsburgh i mean it's it's just like seeing this town falling apart and you're seeing all these empty storefronts and you're seeing you know all these old people shuffling around and it's like it's kind of sad because it is one of those towns that was built around the mill and it's gone. And there's people just sitting around there waiting for the jobs to come back and waiting for something to come along and fix things.

And you, you kind of know, especially now that that's not going to happen. Most of the young people move away. Yeah. They have to come back. And that's what, you know, Coot is complaining about is like, fine, get out.

We don't need you anyway. But there's a. Lot of universities and, um, computer technology there in Pittsburgh now, but the steel is gone. There were a lot of shots in. The movie of steel, like the bridges that he crossed near the train station and some of the structures that he was around walking around town that.

They took extra time showing. Yeah. Cars, the crushing. I like the crushing of the cars. That's what I was going to say.

All of that was definitely part of that Rust Belt look. And very, the cars in particular, very symbolic of, like, what's happening there. It's like, this is the big, mighty Pittsburgh steel industry and now it's just crushed and it's, like, left to rot. So it's, yeah, it's kind of, I don't know, I thought that was all kind of cool and, like, a little more poignant than you would expect out of, you know, a weird horror movie. But, A city like Pittsburgh also is indicative of a group of people that, you know, I have some family from near that extreme eastern Ohio, near there, and they're all that eastern European stock of people that very much in the old ways and the, you know, older Catholicism or even some of the Orthodox religions where they have a lot of that.

And the old ways of doing things. I know he liked using the Pittsburgh area anyway, but you can definitely tell that feel of this is the way it was and the whole conversation with the young priest about do you believe in the old ways? That's very much tied to. Vampire myths and things like that. Yeah well that was speaking of the shots too that shot of all the church steeples as it's just running through and it's like that's giving you this idea of you know it's not like they're all the same piece of that it's all little yeah different offshoots of it but you see how many are there and just how many kind of rule that little town and how like straight laced they are and how set in the old ways that they are so that's another one that you can really kind of there's a good sense of reality in this weird vampire movie because it is based around kind of religious zealots.

You know, it's like people that are so crazy that they will, you know, by the end start killing people because they think they're evil and they, you know, they need to be stopped and their, their evil ways are something that can't be, you know, dealt with. So we just must destroy them and. Drive a stake into a kid in your family. Yeah. Because some lady in town died.

Yeah. That's how, You know, and there are a lot of stories, again, about people that are that crazy with the religion, whatever their religion may be. They get so deep into it that, I mean, their way is right. And regardless of anything else, in the end, they're going to do, yeah, they will do what needs to be done to, you know, protect their religion, protect their ways, protect their way of life. It's, I don't know.

Again, that's just a weird little angle that kind of comes into it and, I do like the crazy priest just chain-smoking as he sits in there. He seems very laxed in his ways, his genuflecting and throwing food in his mouth. He does not seem really hardcore like the cousin, crazy old man. Oh, what else? Some realistic paint they had in them.

Yeah. Blood paint. Blood paint. Yeah. Yeah.

It's amazing how blood has kind of evolved in the movies. It looks a little bit more realistic now, but for some reason back in the 70s it just looked like really bad red paint. It wasn't the. Right color for this movie. It was like a salmon color at almost.

Do you think that they thought they were going to be filming a black and white and they bought the blood and they think, fuck, now we're stuck with. This orange blood. That would normally make sense. Actually, I mean, again, one of our favorite pals, Mr. Savini, is in this movie and did the makeup on it.

And he said it's because at that point that was just the formula. That was stage blood. Yeah. They were like, on stage, you know, this probably reads pretty good. You're sitting, you know, how far back?

It's like you really can't see it. Plus, you almost need it to be a little overly done. To really sort of project what you're trying to do. I guess nobody really ever stepped up. It was like the one said formula.

Nobody stepped up and said, hey, you know what? I'm going to make my own stage blood and make it a little bit more realistic. Yeah, it was. It was just one of those common things. It was like right there.

Here's the recipe for stage blood. At that time, yeah, it was like. That would have looked more realistic. Yeah. Do you think possibly too.

Because there were, I mean, censorship laws and things still that perhaps they. It was too real. Yeah, it was too real to show real blood. Yeah, I mean, because even this movie as it stands, they were going to give them an X rating. They had to trim...

A few scenes... Well, actually, it was like one little frame out of one of the... I think it's the first kill scene when he slices the girl on the train. I think that's the one they had a big problem with, and they cut one little frame and then trimmed time further out in the movie so that at the end they were like, look, the running time's shorter. And again, how ridiculous they are about those rules because they then went, oh, okay, rated R, and nothing was changed.

One frame was changed. That really made that big a difference. I mean, those... rating laws are such bullshit at this point even now I mean we just had another incident of that of them trying to rate something in C-17 for no good reason really so it's what is the one I don't know that Ryan Gosling movie whatever the hell that thing is I don't know it's up for Oscars this year but I mean it was oh it's a good movie who cares well no I mean it was yeah But yeah, they went through that whole thing of them trying to get it in C-17, and they're like, well, the act that you have problems with is in this other movie that just came out this year. Blue Valentine? Yeah, I think it is Blue Valentine.

Out of nowhere, dude. See? That's what I'm saying. It was Blue Valentine, and they were going through that same thing of like... NC-17.

And Rated R, like, you have to be 17 to see NC-17. In Rated R, you have to be 17 to see it. But nobody will carry NC-17. It's still the kiss of death. It might as well still be X, because any of your chains are not going to pick up NC-17.

Well, hell, wasn't... Wasn't Showgirls NC-17? I think they cut it back, too. See, I remember. They were promoting it.

Maybe they did get it out. No, I think it was NC-17 because I remember going to Showcase. And seeing it. And they had security guards outside of the theater. They were checking your ID as you came in.

But that was also when it was still new. So I think that was also novelty at that point. Hey, look, we've got NC-17. Whereas now, everything's just boring and family homogenized. Because it's the same rule for Rated R.

Well, Rated R, you can be... accompanied by somebody when they you know could be accompanied by somebody. Who's older even your parent but in c17 you have they're not supposed to let anybody yeah that's r but yeah yeah i think c17 is just nothing yeah so i mean it is one of those that probably yeah no problem So that may have factored in, because, yeah, this one they had problems with the blood scenes, and I'm trying to think if there was something else. But, I mean, to me. Was it the boobies? No, they can get away with it.

Was it the ass crack? Yeah. Or lack of ass crack. It was the ass crack on the train, because it's the middle of the train. I think it's just some total graphicness.

I mean, you've got what's practically a rape, you know, rape scenes and death and blood and. again it's it's pretty it's a lot about sex it's pretty sensitive material for 1977 so i can see them having a lot of problems with this actually but it's funny looking at it now it's it's a pretty i mean you don't have i don't know i mean topic wise it's. Still a lot of rough material but as far as visually i don't think there's anything that's gonna go freak out most people who are used to watching movies now but. Yeah it's fairly tame compared to movies now yeah I think it's because there aren't any other. I mean, the scenes are just one right after another. Murder, rape, sex.

But he doesn't. Actually rape anybody. Well, I don't know. He's sleeping with them. Technically.

I think he does it because. He said he never does the sexy stuff with them. When they're awake. When they're awake. Yeah.

No, he said he's never done. Because when he slept with them. A chick. He said, this is the first time I've ever. I think he was lying to you.

Because I think earlier, I think he actually said, when they're awake. I think maybe it's on the radio he says that. Because he, again, he's usually kind of doing it. Which, again, I was like, well... Yeah, and he's never attacking them in his mind.

I mean, they're just asleep. And truthfully, all but one, they're already dead. I mean, the girl on the train, she's bled out by the time he starts doing anything. So really, that's just necrophilia. I'm not sure.

That's pretty much NC-17. Yeah, that's like I'm saying, if you look at what's going on, I mean, just drugging and raping girls and having sex with dead bodies, this is a fucked up movie. But, again, it doesn't present it really. I mean, it presents it in a way that's, again, pretty... real world but without being overly gratuitous about it i think it does it is as tastefully as you can do these horrible acts uh i guess again i think romero's still kind of you know artful in the way he shoots a lot of this stuff that it it lightens it up a little bit almost because it looks so good and it's it's still entertaining on a non-creepy level What was in it? Tell me.

Damn it, why won't you say something to me? What the hell do you want? Give me my money. Give me my money. It's not in here.

You can have what you want. I have a lot of money. This isn't a job you can't do. It's all right. I'm always very careful with the needles.

It won't hurt you. It won't hurt you. It's just to help you sleep. It's just to help you sleep. Why don't you just take what you want and go?

I won't tell anyone you're here. I'm always very careful with the needles. It's how it puts you to sleep. And it doesn't hurt. I was actually creeped out by the first scene because it's so real he takes so much time in her falling asleep and that's so real that it's not like the oh you know she's dead in a second or she's out in a second there's that she's confronting him what are you doing don't do this to me and it's just it kind of sits with you that moment of.

Her realizing what's happening to her that's kind of you know. Off-putting yeah and creepy that he's having to rationalize it you know that he's having to answer back to her and go no you're just gonna go to sleep it's gonna be okay you know i'm not gonna hurt you and and he's almost making it okay in his mind too you know it's it is creepy and it is probably how things go i don't know but it's it's really i don't know it's such weird topic if you want to get into it again i don't know if people look at it that way because the more i was thinking i was like Yeah, all but that one girl, they're all kind of dead when he starts doing that. So that's even weirder if you can go that way. Put your finger in there.

Go ahead. I can't. Try it. I can't put my finger in it. Wow, that's really good.

See, it has two blades, a real one and a slip blade. You hold the real one and pull the slip blade up. Things only seem to be magic. There is no real magic. There's no real magic ever.

Misty, do you want to address the magic? You didn't like that there was magic. I had to deal with magicians at work, constantly doing their card tricks and their coin tricks and their magic hands and I'm going to end up punching somebody in the face. The fact that I just told you this like last week and then you make me watch this movie. You're doing this magic trick with this fucking little.

That was already in the works well before you told me that. Made me cuss a lot. I forgot to tell you that my New Year's resolution is that I'm not going to cuss as much. Good luck. I did pretty good until you brought up the magic.

Alright, we'll see. More power to you. We'll see how this goes. I'm not making such promises. I told you this a couple days ago.

I don't know this because it's always been such a. Yeah, I didn't realize how much you cuss until I decided I'm not going to cuss. Yeah, well. Yeah, there's nothing lamer than a grown man trying to do magic tricks. There's nothing in the world.

If you're out there listening, don't do magic tricks. Please stop. Nobody wants to see your card tricks. Nobody wants you pulling coins out of their ears unless you're going to make them a million. I'll be all right with it.

They never let you keep that fucking coin, did they? Exactly. Jerks. Hey, you know the only thing worse than people who do magic tricks? There's nothing worse.

People who randomly come up to you and tell you jokes. Even that would be better. We did have a few good jokes. I'll take the jokes. But anyway, nothing lamer than magic tricks.

Nothing. But see, that's, again, what I kind of like about this is him, like, he's using that as, like, his way in. He has no way to kind of interact with these people he's so like socially awkward that he doesn't even know how to begin so he's using this goofy little magic trick that's supposed to amuse them but then he's also using it as this way to address the bigger issue the giant issue that's weighing on his house is that you know they think he's a fucking vampire you know they think that he especially the old you know the old man thinks that he needs to be destroyed so it's like he's using this as his little way in But even he doesn't buy into it. As soon as he does it, he tells you the trick.

And he's like, you know what? There is no magic. It's all bullshit. All of this story, not just magic in general, but all of this story that's built up about vampirism and what goes on in movies and all of this is kind of bullshit. And he's immediately sort of calling that out because... it's what he's been living with his entire life.

Everybody has these theories of what a vampire is and he's just like, none of it's real. Just like magic, none of it's real. It's all just bullshit that we've been fed our entire lives. So I kind of like his approach because he's debunking magic you know right off the bat he's he's throwing that out there that it's all just sort of this superstition and and stuff. End up debunking these guys at work until.

You know please do and then that. Was the other thing i was wondering as he as he says that in the beginning when he runs in there and he's like he bites the garlic and he puts the cross up against his face and he says there is no real magic And I'm trying to decide, is he talking about the vampire mythos, or is he talking about the religion? Right. He's probably talking about the religion. Because there's a little of both.

I mean, you can kind of look at that either way. Your face is not doing anything to me. There's people who will tell you, that's just magic, too. That's all magic. And again, that will probably offend a lot of people if you actually believe who's telling you that.

I'm just a little throwing it out there that it's funny that you could kind of take that either way. To old school. Eastern Europeans, the religion and the mythos are one and the same. It's all tied together. And equally as crazy sometimes.

They're one and the same. Not that vampirism has anything to do with their Christianity or anything like that, but those stories are older than the Christianity that came to them and was taught to them. So they're one and the same at that point two different beliefs that kind of come together and they kind of mold each other they kind of form into one belief they take a little bit of. This and a little bit of that which again kind of leads you to that zealot stage where I mean you really can lose track of what is a crazy superstition that you were taught as a kid and what is part of your belief system that was taught as a kid it kind of becomes a blurred line when you exist in that world where it's all kind of one big thing and everybody in that area seems to believe the same thing, so it really...

Yeah, I mean, you can see where people will grow up and kind of have a weird, messed up sense like Kuda. He's completely convinced that his way is right, that his ways are, you know, the only ways, and, I mean, you can kind of see how that could... Again, it's not like he's evil in his mind. He's doing what's right, you know? He sees the kid as evil, and he's doing what needs to be done, but, I mean, you watch this, and You don't really like him.

I mean, as the viewer, you're kind of seeing things more. He's a crazy old man. Yeah, you're seeing things more like, you know, you're the kid, you're the Martin, and you're just like, why is this old man coming down on me? Why is he always hassling me? Shit, I'm just trying to do my own thing.

So, I mean, you do sort of approach it as, you know, you're that teenager thrown into this, and he's the old man trying to, you know, keep you from doing what you want to do. So, yeah, I mean, it's weird. You can approach it from either angle. It's not like either side is right. It's like both sides are wrong in what they're doing.

Identify with the girl wanting to get the fuck out. Yeah, that you do. I kind of like her. Actually, that is Mrs. Romero.

She was the old man's granddaughter, basically. Romero, I think, had just started dating when he was putting this together, and he wrote this role with her in mind. And by the next movie, they were married, and they are still married to this day. So that's pretty awesome. Yeah, the grandpa just completely blocks her.

Because, like, with her and her boyfriend, you know, he's just kind of like, you know, you don't want to get married. What do you want. Your granddaughter to do? Tom Savini. Tom Savini.

Well, that's not why. That's not why. He was, I don't know. He was unemployed, too. Unemployed, too.

He was just mad because Tom Savini was going to get married to his daughter and they were going to move off together. He didn't want his granddaughter taken off. He wanted her to stay right there with him. And cook dinner every night. Basically.

She did everything. Even when he's inviting people over to the house, he was like, you will make a good dinner. And I'm like, you're the one that invited this little dinner party over. Why don't you start it? He doesn't walk with her.

He's like, I'm just going to leave. And it's not like you're completely ignorant. You work in a place that sells food. I would think by now you'd know how to make some damn food. You come from the old country.

Come on, that's all they did was make food. You're just being a bastard and making her do all the work. Oh, man. You know, the part, you know, you're talking about faith. When the church burned down, obviously the people didn't have a lot of money because he was like, well, sell your stuff so we can rebuild the church.

And he says that the church burning has really shaken the faith of most of the congregation and that you don't know how to act and you don't know what to believe. And to me, you would. Think that your faith would be a lot stronger than just a building burning. So that shows you that there's, across the board with that congregation, they're pretty weak to begin with. It was about the building and not your faith.

Oh, God wouldn't have let this happen to our church. I would think if you're really keeping your religion in your gut, that something as simple as a. Building burning. You need your big fancy building you need the gold cross and you need you know i mean there are people that like those trappings are what make religion to them like if you don't have all that you know that it's just not right and then you know it can't be like well that's kind of not really once again there's the bullshit you know if you have faith it's like you should have faith in what's really being taught they're not in the aesthetics of what's you know in that building who And all that was real. I mean, that church actually did burn down.

That's where they were shooting was a church that had just burned down. So it's, yeah, that scene where they're shooting that is a burnt out church that was in that neighborhood. Once again, the lovely town of Braddock, Pennsylvania. I want to talk about these creepy faces that guy was making. The John, as you're going, whatever it is, Martin.

Martin. He was making some creepy, creepy faces. Looking at that girl. See, it's not just me, because I said it, as you heard earlier, I said to him, you just came off as, like, evil at times. Like, he would just throw some glances that I was just like, wow, that was just mean.

Like, that is just, he does come off as evil. And it's funny, he seems kind of. I said more creeper than evil. Well, that too. I mean, he definitely is very creepy and very weird.

Well, he's like a stalker person. Rapist. Vampire. It's as creepy as you get. But again, he doesn't really know that he is.

Like a regular person who's a stalker or a rapist, I mean, they kind of know and they're like logically planning all this out where he's still under this delusion that he's doing what he's supposed to do. So he also seems very innocent about it. Like he doesn't realize what he is really. He's so bought into the vampire end of it that he doesn't realize, well, from the other end, you're also just a creepy guy and you're lurking around following people And eventually you're killing and raping and, you know, it's, yeah, it's like there's also this, which ties into him being kind of that, like, 19-year-old kid. It's like you really do buy into that innocent level to him, that he really is just so, there's part of him that really is just this shy kid who is completely socially awkward, doesn't know how to interact with people.

And that would exist regardless. Like, that's just kind of who he is. And then you have this vampire mythos thrust upon him his whole life. So that makes everything worse. So it's like, he really is messed up anyway, and then you pile all this other stuff on it.

I don't know, to me, I think he came off playing that really good. Like, I really, that's, you know, what Romero says, he's like, I can't imagine anybody else in this role because he does it so well. He does a great job, but I think it's also the thing that can kill a career, too. Because once somebody sees that, they're. Like, well.

Unless we want a creepy guy. Not really. He's not going. To be your lead heroic male or anything like that. Cast Crispin Glover in a feel-good movie.

Right, right. He gets cast in creepy. Weird roles. Once you're creepy, you're usually creepy forever. That's not true, because, I mean, he was in Back to the Future.

But that was before. He was. And he was also the weirdo even in that role. He's still kind of weird. Yeah, he's the weirdo even in that role.

Yeah, because he also did a voice in Nine, which we watched, and we saw the credits, and we're like, which one was Crispin Glover? I'm like, he was probably a crazy one. He was a crazy one. Imagine that. I was just glad this movie made it a lot easier for stalkers in Syria because it was about putting brick ladders on the sides of their houses.

And open windows. Fancy 70s snazzy house. I'm telling you, that house was awesome. I want to move into that house. You could lost it.

But I want to rape this proof at first. Space radios. Space radios. Open garage door. I want one that can just go around and open garage doors.

Maybe he messed with it. Maybe he rigged it up because he's a crazy 84 year old genius and he's been He learned stuff from Einstein back in the day. They hung out together. But again, you could overlook the weird little things like your space radio opens your garage doors. I still didn't get why.

I thought it was awkward that the husband left the house, through the front door, walked around and opened the door with the clicker that would belong in the car when there's a door entering from the garage. I was like, Because he knew it. Yeah, he... He wasn't real smart anyway. That was awkward.

That was awkward. I didn't you. Know he's not real with it because you saw he goes off and leaves his wife and obviously there's something going on there so he's kind of oblivious to everything going on it seems oh man but yeah I think that scene in the house is actually kind of cool it is weird how extended a chase scene it becomes and like this roundabout version of just going around the house and like attacking them in different rooms but It's kind of amazing that they set it up and it's all still sort of real. He found a way to separate them from each other. He found a way to lock the guy away from him every time.

He found a way to get a hold of her. It does seem very last minute. You just look at him and go, man, this guy's just all thumbs. He doesn't know what the hell he's doing. He's running around, trying to answer the phone, hang up the phone, trying to get more juice to juice him up with.

But they argued about what how to call and call information and then call the cops and then forget the number. And then fuck, if I got stabbed with something, I'd be out the fucking door. Yeah. But she was not wanting, you know, she didn't want her husband to find out. And that became like a safety net for this entire situation.

Like every step along the way, it's like, well, she can't really do anything about any of this because she doesn't want to get busted on that. So, I mean, even by the end of it, when there's a dead body involved, it's like, well, I guess he's still safe because more than likely she's not going to ruin her marriage and, get kicked out of her fancy 70s house when uh all she has to do is shut up about it so pretty shady yeah that's again he lucked into that one where he could have gotten in trouble in a more simple situation but i guess if nobody would have been there he just would have stabbed her and killed her anyway so yeah but. His his reaction to when the guy's in there he's you're not supposed to be here yeah he keeps repeating like he can't he can't his brain can't handle the fact that something's thrown a wrench in the plan.

That how dare you I came to kill this person. How dare you. Mess up my plan. Which again is why I think he plays it so well because he really plays it as a broody teenager. He's pissy.

How dare you mess up my plans. I had plans tonight. It was to kill this woman. She knew to be here. I knew to be here.

You're fucking things up. Why are you messing up my plans? All the way through he kind of goes through and he comes off as this teenager but even then like him not knowing how to deal with it it's like he really he is he's just kind of a teenager and he doesn't he stabs a guy with a stick yeah he's like I you know you're not supposed to be here just saying that like a little brat like that's that's kind of how he comes off at that point he plays it like this this little kid who doesn't know how to deal with things so his way of acting out is killing people stabbing them. This guy has skin like butter I gotta figure out how to he didn't like have to apply any force he just like went straight into his.

That's Tom Savini's fault. Butternut. He was supposed to make the neck better. Old butternut. Old butternut.

Like a hot stick doula. Right in the jibby now. I think you'd have to play at least a little bit of horse. No, not if you're a vampire. He's got super strength.

Well, maybe he broke it off into a little pointy end. It was pointy. But still. It was still pretty easy going in. You'd have to push really hard.

You'd have to get a little... I'm no doctor. Or stabbing people with stick persons. I don't know the exact amount of force one would have to apply. I did really like the music.

I think you brought it up midway through. But I think the theme, like that basic piano theme, is really creepy. And kind of, to me, now watching it reminds me of Halloween. Like the John Carpenter theme. There's notes there that are very similar.

And I'm like, this was the year before that. because I'm like, I'm just wondering. I was thinking it was very much more Peanuts. The middle part is. Kind of the theme, like, where Snoopy's... The Red Baron scene.

The Red Baron scene. It's got that really kind of creepy... No, not to say... I mean, Peanuts. Well, Peanuts is amazing musically, really.

It's amazing musically, but even in the Red Baron scene, when I was a kid, it used to be kind of creepy, because it's him sneaking around. It's the tense music, and that's kind of how they use it here. It's like during the, like, Running around scenes and, you know, during the chase scenes and stuff. When he's picking the lock at the beginning, that's... It just.

I guess the only thing I can say is I guess that's freeform and it's just. Yeah, it's creepy. It's creepy. But it is so, like... It's...

Donald Rubenstein did it and it's like he's... he's so all over the place and does them all. Well, it's like he does the creepy stuff and then he does the, the, a little more upbeat, like we were saying, the, the, the stuff that's kind of thrown into the chase scenes and stuff. But, but yeah, overall it's like, there's several, especially like when he goes to the city and you get that little funky stuff kicks in as you see him walking around the strip clubs and stuff. So it's like, it's, it's a pretty wide array of music, but like it all comes off really well. And I think fits with this movie pretty good.

I actually kind of liked the music. It's so funny that he's so going out of his way just to get blood, and I guess you're assuming that's the only way he can get it, but I'm like, well, you know, you fast forward 20 years, there's goth girls that would just let you cut them and drink their blood. It became a thing later, and you could have found a whole subculture to get into, Martin. You were just born a little too soon, buddy. Yeah, yeah.

Yeah, I don't know if they'd be on board with the actual killing, but if you just want to cut them a little bit and drink their blood, there's a whole scene for that, man. They're called Fangbangers. There you go, see? It's a whole group waiting for you. Oh, man.

Well, I brought it up with him, but I did want to at least address, because, again, I found this, like, years ago and found an old VHS copy and watched it and was just really taken with it. I really liked this movie in it. caught me off guard because I had no expectations going in I didn't really even know what the plot was so a lot of this sort of caught me off guard but it's funny when I went back and rewatched it you know just in right before we went and talked to John I was like all I saw were these weird parallels with Dexter and maybe it's because I watched too much Dexter but it's funny how many things I'm starting to see but this one I was like it became so many I couldn't I mean I can't imagine them not having seen this at some point Because then I was running through later.

It's like, well, obviously the needles. I mean, that's how he's got. Yeah, he's got the whole toolkit that rolls up and keeps in his bag. He's got the needles that that's the way he gets to his victims. He knocks them out so that he can do whatever he needs to do with them.

The lock picking, right off the bat, Dexter picks a lock every 15 minutes on that show. He's a social misfit. He's a social misfit. He has no way of dealing with people. He doesn't understand people, really.

There's the two scenes when he knows he's going out to get someone. He almost has a kill suit, which is what Dexter is now starting to refer to, that outfit that he wears when he goes out at night and he knows he's going to kill people. He has an outfit specific to wear to go out and kill people in. Oh, what else? He continually refers to himself as like, you know, because Dexter always refers to himself as the monster and not knowing how to deal with like the evil inside you and almost finding a way to work around that and have a life even though you're, you know, you've got this evil inside of you.

Dexter does it in a more productive way, but they both sort of have that, especially once he gets on the telephone and he starts doing this almost voiceover and doing the narration that seems very much like the Dexter stuff, that he really does do this voiceover about, you know, dealing with this evil inside of yourself. And learning how to kill because you have to, you know? It's almost processing it that way. I mean, Martin thinks that he has to drink blood and he has to kill people to survive. Dexter is just convinced that he's crazy and he has to kill people so he finds a better way to kill people, you know, a more deserving group of people.

But they both are thoroughly convinced. I mean, even recently when it came to, you know, if you could just stop, you could have a normal life, and he couldn't do it. He knew he has to kill people, and they're both sort of convinced of that. And even, I mean, as simple as, like, the title. I mean, it's just their name.

So it's like there's so many things in this that I'm just like, okay, you can't tell me, like, the creators, you know, that the guy wasn't sitting at home watching this at some point as a kid because... there's just too many things there that, I mean, granted, there's no vampire subplot in Dexter. There's, I mean, it's a very realistic version where this becomes kind of crazy and has the whole vampire lore, but I don't know. I mean, to me, there was just so many things that crossed over that I was just, that's all I saw, you know, going back and rewatching it this time is how much that tied in and the parallels that it pulls that are sort of like these truths that they're pulling from both stories, even though they're very different stories, they're different characters, but that kind of wrestle with the same problems.

Oh. I'd rather watch Dexter than watch this. Yeah, I do love Dexter. But I, I mean, I really like this. Like, this is probably, and it's funny, Romero even says this is his favorite movie that he's done.

And I'd, I'd put it up there, I mean, to me, it's, it's right up there with Night of the Living Dead. I mean, it's, I really like this, and I know it's got its issues here and there, as far as, you know, I mean, it's only an $ 80, 000 budget. That's, That's pretty ridiculously cheap. So, I mean, for what they were dealing with and what they had to do, I just really like the character study that they do. I like the tale that ends up coming out of this and the creepy kid that John plays.

I think his performance kind of makes it for me. Oh, yeah. Without him, it wouldn't be. Yeah, I don't think it would be near the movie that it is. It would still be an interesting storyline, but, yeah, it wouldn't come near what it is.

So in the end, was anyone before we discussed this convinced that he was a vampire did you read it as that way i mean i think the first time through i kind of felt like that i kind of felt like that first time i watched it that he was he at least had some sort of you know watered down otherworldly version of vampirism that he really in some way you know maybe it was just mental but needed to drink blood and took it upon himself to kill so he was like this real world version of a vampire he didn't have fangs he didn't have powers he couldn't turn into a bat you know but it was sort of this real world version of vampirism that you know I don't know that's kind of the way it read that first time and going back I find new things as I rewatch it to me To.

Be a vampire or a vampire film, the person has to conform to the conventions of a vampire. So Twilight is not a vampire. Exactly. Twilight is not a vampire film. I don't know.

Martin lucks out a lot. I could have attacked chicks better than this. He's not real efficient. Sure, you can need, this might be some disease or some craziness that he needs blood, but he doesn't. Nothing else matches what a vampire is.

Nothing. So you can't call it, to me, a vampire, other than his grandpa calls him Nosferatu. He doesn't get piggyback rides. Right. Or sparkle in the sun.

But again, how much of that... Baseball. Vampire baseball. How much of that is what we've built it up to? And especially in the last, you know, 56 years of how much movies have turned all that into.

So, I mean, if you go back far enough, it's like if you take... the Bram Stoker story out if you take out all of these like fictionalized version in the end what is the vampire mythos there. Is no vampire without Bram Stoker yeah I mean there was no vampire but you know. But I'm sure they all have those tales of like people drinking blood and people being sort of undead and I mean so there's always some sort of lore that kind of ties into that sort of thing so I mean to me there is like a level where you can look at it as that yeah and then there's a whole other way that you can be like this kid was just crazy right And I see more of that as I rewatch it now, but I think originally I kind of enjoyed it as this weird vampire tale, and now I go back and watch it as just a weird psychological...

I kind. Of see it as he could have been probably a normal kid if it hadn't. Have been for. these conditions that he grew up in, and the fact that they were telling him, you're a vampire, you're cursed. Yeah. His environment and the people that he's been around that made him into this monster.

Yeah, because otherwise, as you said, he has nothing else. Like, there's nothing that he does that comes off that way. I mean, he uses needles and razor blades to kill, I mean, hell, I can do that. You know, so it's like, there is no real separation from him and regular people, as it were, other than he's been told since day one, and now he believes... that he suffers this affliction, this curse, that has ruined his whole family line at this point. It's a more interesting story for the entire family to be fucking crazy.

Yeah. And to think that they're vampires, and to think that, you know, that makes the old man killing him at the end even more. Spoiler alert. Well, yeah. We already...

We've spoiled many things already, so if you made it this far, you're in trouble. So that makes him... It makes it even more creepy. Yeah, it makes it more creepy. If he was a vampire, okay, it's just the end of a vampire movie.

But if he's just a kid, it's like, dude, this guy's fucked up. He just killed this kid because he's convinced he's a fucking religious zealot. Yeah. Exactly. Which is probably more likely than that.

That's the more realistic... I mean, you know, that's the... When something becomes more real. and you take the supernatural out of it, that's when it really becomes creepy. And that's what I thought was cool about this. It is, again, as weird as the vampire end of it is, it's a very real-world version of he is using razor blades and needles to take these people out.

So it's all based in stuff that could happen. If this person was crazy enough, they could believe that they need to do this. And it's sort of based in the real-world version of killing people. And that's what they were saying, that him dying at the end, it's almost more tragic... not really knowing or if you assume that it's wrong but it does that doubt in there kind of makes it more creepy when his you know cousin just stakes him through the heart i mean it's and it's so. For the heart it was more than like yeah.

Well it's kind of it sort of moves to from the other shot but yeah he just sort of shoves a stake through his middle but um But it's also so abrupt. I mean, it's just like, he's just talking. And he's talking about learning to... Like, that line right before they cut to that is like him... He's saying you get used to it and you learn to deal with your life.

And it's like almost him, like he'd already said, he's letting people live. He's starting to try to, you know, deal with it and not have to kill people. So it really is almost him growing as a person. And maybe it's him not being that stupid kid anymore. Maybe he's realizing... this is wrong and I need to do this.

And maybe like his, the girl leaving town sort of had that effect. Like this is the only person he's ever really connected with. And the other girl he is carrying on with kills herself. So it's like maybe all this traumatized him in a good way enough to realize what I'm doing is wrong. And he starts sort of, you know, dealing with that.

And the next scene you see, he's getting staked. So it's like, it's so out of the blue. It's just like, I don't know that one originally too, that, that really caught me off guard that first time. And, In an amazing way. It's like it is something you don't see coming and you're not prepared for at that point.

But then again, it's sort of truly, you know, if you want to look at the artistic end of it, I mean, that's the only way you could cap this off. Because what did he say to him when he walked in? You know, the first thing when he brings him in the house. You kill anybody in this town, I will stake you. Not even that.

Before that, he says, first I will save your soul and then I will destroy you. He said from day one in the house, I'm going to kill you. And in the end, that's what he does. So it's like, it is sort of this only way to bookend it. It's like, he comes in the house, he says, I'm going to kill you.

In the end, he takes him out. And again, he assumes for his own right reasons, he assumes he's, and it's ironic, I guess the one person he didn't kill in the movie is the reason he gets killed. He gets taken out for that woman who killed herself and for once wasn't his fault. And he actually was sort of upset about her dying, but that's the reason he gets killed. And that's, Kind of does make it more tragic and more sad is that he wasn't even responsible for the thing that then gets him killed.

What a shame. What? What a shame. How about those bumbling cops? I think it said they were actual cops in Philadelphia.

That's even more sad. You're going to worry about those guys chasing you. No, not really. That's what I thought. I was like, just run.

They're not going to catch you. You weigh like 98 pounds, dude. You will completely smoke them. Yeah. You'll be gone.

They already spent every. Eight rounds out of the revolver. Out of the revolver, yes. Oh, man. So, I don't know.

I really... took to this movie, I think it really is kind of impressive to watch. I know not everybody enjoyed it as much, but... I thought it dragged on a little bit too long. And that's good. I want to hear opposing points, so anything you have.

I really like the story, but like I said, like... Jurassic needs to be redone. I really think... I mean, they do all kinds of shit. They redo shit that doesn't need to be redone, and I feel like this...

I feel like the scenery and everything about it was dated, you know, and I'm someone who likes... Old movies and movies set in different times, but I just feel like this movie was really dated. It's the 70s and you don't like the 70s. No, I can't get into movies that are from the 70s. It's very few, like 90% of movies from the 70s.

I'm just like, I just don't feel this. I don't care. It seemed to drag on and on forever. His creepy face is, I wasn't a big fan of. He had no ass.

Yeah. They wore tighty-whities. Yeah, they did. Oh, again, it was the 70s. They had that one tooth.

That was, like, wider than the other one. Wider than the other, and it, like, stuck out. That's fluoride. Didn't you hear that report? We're all getting too much fluoride now.

Well, why wasn't the other tooth matching it then? Actually, in the 70s, we probably weren't. That was the news report the other day. Now they're over-fluoriding the water. Yeah, you know what?

The government doesn't need to be putting shit in the water. Yeah, I don't trust that. I didn't like that the guy was too stupid to break into his store to... steal clothes, and run, and then change clothes. I'll give you that one. I mean, even when I watched it, I was like, what are you doing?

Like, this is just a bad plan. Let's go to a store, which I would, that store looked pretty awesome. I kind of want to go shopping there. Yeah. You know, he breaks in, the alarm's going off, all whoop whoop, and he's sitting there stripping down, changing clothes in the store.

I think you just underestimated the Philadelphia police. That crack staff. Showed up that quickly. Pittsburgh police. Yeah.

There's a donut shop somewhere. Right around the corner. But, well, that was my first thing was, dude, it's dark. You're wearing black. Nobody's going to see blood.

Just walk home. All you got to worry about is Kuda and just distract him or something. But. I was like, you really don't need to go to this much trouble in a city that's this grimy and dark anyway. It's like, there's not like anybody's going to see.

And if they do, the pimps you're walking by probably aren't going to care if you're covered in blood. Just turn your shirt inside out and go on. Yeah. That one pimp had an awesome outfit. That was cool.

The one that started the gunfight. Yeah, he was cool. He looked like from I'm Going to Get You Sucked. Yeah. Well, that was, again...

In some of the other Romero movies around that time, his street thugs, I mean, you look at the bikers in Dawn of the Dead. Those aren't real world. Those guys would get their asses kicked by real world bikers. so he always has this weird like almost comic book version of like the street punks and bikers and thugs and they're never quite real world yeah. But even at that point i've noticed a lot of like older biker movies and even some of the 80s movies that kind of dealt with like you know these are punks it's like This is what version most people are used to seeing because 90% of moviegoers have never ran into a real thug on the street. They never ran into a real group of punks.

They weren't all these big steroid, you know, crazy guys with mohawks, you know, and stuff like that. A lot of them were just skinny kids with attitudes. Maybe that's just. How the thugs in Pittsburgh work. Maybe all the real thugs already left.

Well, if you want to see the real thugs, I mean, basically all you have to do is go to the grocery in Pittsburgh. Yeah, really. You cannot leave the grocery without being hassled by, like, ten guys. Hey, mama. Hey, pretty mama.

I do not want to go to the grocery in Pittsburgh. I was like, where are these grocery stores? And why do you keep going back? I know. That's why women get their groceries delivered.

Yeah, that's true. That's why you get meat brought to your house. Delivering the meat. And then there was that one old bitch who was all like, You're lazy. You're lazy.

Why didn't you kill her? And he said, I don't even kill them. And that was that dividing point. That's right. When he started going, I'm letting...

And where was she going? What was she doing that was so bad? I was really confused by that. Nothing. She's walking in a shady part of town.

She's doing something that was... She was up to no good somehow, but. Well, that whole little montage there is like him running into horrible people and people that he probably should be okay with killing. That old woman and the biker guys that are hassling him on the street and that weird neighbor guy. And it's like he's watching all these people and like these are the people that... need to be taken out, really.

I mean, in his world, these are the real evil people. These are the people that are always giving him shit and should be really easy for him to dispose of. He usually went out with a pretty girl. After having sex with that girl, none of the girls were pretty to him anymore. Well, it was both.

It was like he'd already gotten to the point he didn't want to the girls weren't pretty enough for him before. And then he's like, well, I just need blood. Maybe I can take out these people, you know, that deserve it. And he's homeless. Yeah.

He'd gotten to his trash. Yeah. He'd gotten to the point where he didn't really even want to take them out anymore. It really did seem like that last couple of minutes that he was starting to piece together that this really isn't a life and, and I don't need to be doing this. And maybe, you know, again, maybe following suit that the girl left town and it's like, maybe I need to restructure my life because this is fucked up.

And, you know, I've, I've, i don't know it seemed like there was a little bit of change or at least a little trying to change and then he got staked yeah he was busy getting staked from that point so he should. Have killed the old man then he'd have been all. Right yeah they had a they had a pretty cool house and you know the the granddaughter was cool he could have hung out with her i don't know she did right as long as she didn't make any more stuffed cabbage That's just nasty. I don't want to think about that. Gross.

But yeah, to me, I don't think it felt that long. It's like a 90 minute run time, so it's pretty quick as far as I'm concerned, but if you were thinking it drags on, you better be glad the initial cut didn't happen, because the way he originally made it, it's 2 hours and 45 minutes. Oh lord. Yeah, that would have been too long. And again, I give him credit for smart editing, because he cut it back to the bare minimum, and I think it runs at a pretty decent pace, and it totally catches you off guard.

So I think it's probably much better off having the cuts in there. Yeah, I think some of the, he tends to linger on scenes like the walking scenes and transition scenes takes just a little. Bit slower pace and a little longer, and that's probably what makes it feel like it's longer. You're like, okay, let's get to the next scene, and you're just kind of a little bit longer than it should be. You know, I like it visually, but I don't necessarily like it for, okay, let's.

Go, Probably, but again, almost also keeping in mind this is the first handful of movies he's made. I mean, he did like industrial films for a while, but I mean, Night of the Living Dead was really the first real movie they made. But you know, everything moves. In Night of the Living Dead, there's constantly something going on. That's true.

There's not a whole lot of. But you gotta understand, this is the 70s. This is his life in Pittsburgh, and there's nothing going on. And things probably drag. He didn't have anything interesting happening, except for stabbing guys in.

The neck sticks well that's that's the thing him sitting up in the room it's like he didn't even have a phone at that point there's no tv in there so he's playing with that little kid's toy and i'm like this is his whole day no wonder he's out murdering people there's fucking nothing to do every night he gets on the once he gets the phone yeah it's on the. Radio i mean there's no like Well, and the men there.... They would go to work and they'd work 10-hour days and they'd come home and they'd be dead because they'd been. They'd eat dinner and go to sleep. Watch the game.

Yeah. You watch the game. You go to work. You come home. You watch the game.

You do that every night. Yep. Or go out to bars and be a drunk biker like his next-door neighbor. These are your options in this town. There's not a whole lot of other things to do.

And then they drink. Yeah, they drink. Yeah. Because it's got me in just a pain of probably working in those, you know, in that environment all the time. It's tiring.

And there's no way out, you know. The heat? Sorry. Probably dragging on too long with this. I don't know.

I ended up really liking it, but if anybody else has any final words, go for it. I don't like it. At all? I think it's something that should be seen. It should be seen.

I wondered why no one had... I barely never heard of it. I've never heard of it. She said Martin I was like thinking we were watching like a Martin Lawrence. Film god no please no Black Knights or anything that's what.

Someone said I think I'm gonna watch this movie called Martin Martin Lawrence god no I really do think I mean they remake all kinds of stupid shit all the time I really think they should remake this movie. It would be interesting if given to the right people. Again, not Romero at this point, because everything he's done lately, I would much prefer it go to someone else at this point. Christopher Nolan. That would be interesting.

If you've seen Following, that's some creepy stuff. Following people around and living there, breaking into their house to take. Little trinkets and stuff. That's creepy stuff. He can handle that guy.

Or I'm just thinking, look at what he did with Dark Knight. It's like you take a very sensationalized superhero story and make it gritty and real world again and make it like, well, if you had to be a superhero in the real world, this is what you would have to do. And it's kind of that same if you have to be a vampire, if you have to kill people in the real world. I think, yeah, somebody like that would get a hold of it and do something really interesting. So if somebody good would do it, I would watch that.

But I still think this one has a lot to offer, but. That is my take. I guess that will round out Martin. We will take a break here and be back with the rest of the show. Jim Rex?

What's Jim Rex? Would you believe a movie audience guide presented as a public service by this theater's management to help you select your motion picture entertainment? Well, that's what it is. And we urge you to learn these rating symbols and use them as a guide for you and your family. G means suggested for general audiences.

All ages. M. Suggested for mature audiences. Parental discretion advised. R.

Restricted. Persons under 16 not admitted unless accompanied by parent or adult guardian. X. Persons under 16 will not be admitted. This seal in advertising indicates that the film was approved under the motion picture code of self-regulation.

They started something they can't stop. The crazy.... Something that demands, inclines. Something that brutalizes. It's madness unleashed by human error.

The crazy. And they tame it before time runs out. I'm a key man on the 50 team. A key man. I'm one of the developers of that goddamn thing.

Now, if you want me to get that job done, you get me the stuff I need, and you get the hell out of here before the morning's over. A small town becomes a giant stockade. Evans City must be contained or leveled. We're all concerned with Evans City, Mr. Hawks.

If we have to push the button, would you say the weapon went off? Get me the president. 3,614 people are trapped by an unknown enemy. Five are on the run. Can they escape the spreading fury of the crazy?

Welcome to a night of total terror. That's Mickey Mouse's penis. They don't look to be afraid. They look to be shocked. Here's vagina.

Did you see Miley Cyrus' globulous breasts? Night of the Living Podcast. I found more syrup on my pants. Bizarre adventure in fear. There was, however, a guy using.

An experience in shock. More shattering than your strangest nightmare. Pain and pleasure. Night of the Living Podcast. Ass to mouth is fantastic.

Holy shit! That just happened. What's that bad man doing to my donkey? A night of total terror. I can't maintain this level of ridiculousness.

They made a song. Night of the Living Podcast. Of The Living Podcast. My mom wants to do this show! It's part of your problem, you know.

You haven't seen enough movies. All of life's riddles are answered. In the movies. And now, on with the show. By the way, don't take the time to watch the Joaquin Phoenix.

It's not the Joaquin Phoenix. The bio. The fake bio? Yeah. That is so...

I was like, okay. I considered it because I saw it on there. So many people said it was... I looked at it and said, you know what? Fuck Joaquin Phoenix.

Right. Fuck you and your fucking stupid ass beard. I don't give a fuck. I thought maybe it's genius. I thought maybe it's genius and I'm going to watch it.

I got like. 40 minutes into it, I was like, this is the biggest fucking waste of my time. Well, it's not genius. Because nobody fucking cares. Well, but they ruined it themselves.

Right. Like, they should have waited, like, years before they told people. What happened? I'm confused. I mean, it was all fake.

It was all... That whole thing of him with the crazy beard and being out of his mind and having a rap career and all of that shit for, like, a year of his life. He did that. And it was all fake. It was all an act that they were doing, shooting this documentary...

He quit acting. He quit acting to be a rap star. By good. By good. All of that crazy shit was all fake.

So that's what I've heard. His version of the fact that he did all that and how committed he was is kind of impressive. And just how good at being that he was. But then they're like, the movie's kind of crap. It's very poorly done.

I thought, okay, this will be interesting if they pulled off something good. But it's not like Andy Kaufman could do something that you didn't know if. He really was doing. It was never revealed if he was. I bought that he was that crazy.

And you're like, is he fucking with us or not? And then you never knew. And it was still good. Whatever he was doing was still good. This was just crap.

Don't waste your time. I turned it off and I don't turn stuff off. Alright, we're back and we've got feedback. really yeah from from various sources but um randy one of well several but the first one was actually on the site which i don't even usually check so i i don't even recommend that version but um Yeah, I say just send us an email or call it in. But this one is from LT. He left a post that said, it was on the Joe Bob Texas Chainsaw Massacre episode.

And he said, this was an excellent interview with Joe Bob Briggs. It's good to hear new material after all these years that isn't a DVD track. He also says you're a good interviewer, which I am very thankful for because I tried to put a lot into, and his was a weird one because his started off sort of interview, you know, kind of talking about him, you know, the 20 years before this. stuff he used to do on the show and stuff that, you know, when I worked in, in with him doing the, the movie reviews and stuff. So a lot of that was kind of cool. And then tying it into just talking about the movie.

So it was, that one took a little more planning of, of how to sort of ease from one thing into the next. So, uh, yeah, I was kind of happy with how that episode turned out. So it's kind of good to hear somebody else appreciated it. So it's getting pretty good response. So if you haven't heard it yet, go check out the, uh, Joe Bob Briggs episode.

And we also heard from Randy. And some of these were just on the forum. So if you're not on, however, get on over there. But some of these were just, I didn't know if you'd seen them. So he wanted to, and this was for you two definitely because you were there last time out.

He was commenting on our Christmas show. He says, listening to this, driving around on the job, Christmas Eve. First time in years I've actually enjoyed something Christmassy. I think of all the pre-podcast years where I'd be stuck listening to the same goddamn Bruce Springsteen Santa songs. Those were dark times.

Long live movie meltdown. And then, I didn't know if everyone had seen it. I actually put a post on there because I'm trying to, I still for like months now have been saying we need to update the bio section there and we're going to get you in there. And I still don't think you're on there either, Marlena. So we're going to update it and I was going to throw it out there for people to give us you know different questions other than the few that i came up with that first.

Time like a form spring or whatever it's called the question thing question. And answer kind of but a lot of those are ridiculous i mean if there were ones i was originally tying it more to movies these are more of just like specific to people i mean not even like because before i did like a set of questions and everybody answered the same questions some of these are more specific to individuals so i thought maybe i'd just throw them out here on the show There's one here I might sort of throw in there. I don't know. But his first question is, where the fuck are you, Roger and Joni? Yeah.

To that, I don't know. I hate to tell you. Yeah, it's been quite a while since I've heard from them. They're still out there. I hope they're doing fine.

Joni commented on my Facebook once. Yes, I mean, they're still on Facebook. Still alive. We know they're alive. I know, right?

If you guys. If you. Guys are their friends on Facebook, you can send them a message. Harass them. Harass them.

Send them a message. Say that they are missed. Or at least that you want to have them come back so that you can yell at them. Or just get some closure. Whichever.

Yeah, I don't know. We need closure. Make sure that somebody hasn't hijacked your account. You're not dead. You're dead, but they're still every couple of days going, feeding the cat.

Going to the grocery. That's all you've got to do. And people would still think you're alive for like months, really. That's the world we live in now. You could kill someone.

People wouldn't know as long as you updated their Facebook status. Send out a tweet every once in a while. People would just be like, oh, no, they're fine. I saw their post the other day. Yeah, exactly.

All right. So this one is specifically he wants some background details on the rise of Greg. And it's supposed to be set to the theme of Terminator 2. So it's kicking in right now. Go for it.

Do you want to work on that one? I can work on that. The Rise of Greg. I didn't know it had risen. You're to the heights of being a star of this fabulous show.

Somebody that once listened to the show and now. People around the world love this. Last time we heard from Australia. Dream a little dream. There you go.

You too. That's true. You too can be on a podcast. Yes. Yeah, not everybody can do a podcast.

I started hitchhiking out in Wichita with dreams one day of being on the show. Not just this show. Right, this show. This show. I moved to the region.

Just to be on the show. You were in a whole different area. You couldn't have been sitting here. So, yeah, just thank your lucky star every single day. All right, Misty.

That's what you thought in the mind. What is Misty hoping to hate in the new year? Nutrition. Magicians Magicians Just magicians. Card tricks Coin tricks Exceptionally.

Alright Especially not exceptionally Especially Especially. Even worse Be a ginger magician Oh I like that. Right now Alright Ginger magician Magic Magicians Tricks in general Yeah keep them away from Misty That's what we're taking. From this I'm sure I have many more things, and I'm sure I'll continue to hate the things that I hated last year. Oh, I'm sure.

This one I think is going to be met with a puzzled look. Possibly... A head tilt? Possibly a puppy head tilt of. Is it for me?

Yes. What is Marlena's metachlorian count? My medical? Metachlorian count. Metachlorian count.

I have no idea. Is it some Star Trek shit? It's Star Wars. Star Wars, technically. And it is some shit because...

It is shit. Metachlorians They're bullshit. It's bullshit. Any real Star Wars fan will tell you, fuck Metachlorians. Yeah, I know.

I was in the theater. My friend dragged me along to see that movie. I didn't want to see it, but he dragged me. Hey, you've got to turn down a free movie. We're sitting in the theater, and all these kids are in there, and they start talking about the Metachlorians.

I fell asleep through most of the beginning, but I ended up waking up to that point, and loudly in the theater, this was Showcase, he said, Metachlorians. I was like, the fuck i know i mean they could have it was fucking liam neeson as a new jedi and you fucking ruin it yeah yeah talking about midichlorians. It's bad enough that they. Freshen your breath well. It's bad enough they then made you know they totally took the jedi ways and turned them into hippie bullshit i mean by the time they were dead we really didn't know a lot of what about you know about what was going on with the way that they work so when you go back and see them in their heyday you're like what a bunch of fucking hippies wearing robes and long hair and being peaceful yeah leave the.

Mystery and stuff don't attach science to myth. Well then again it was all very they were still very mythological like and then they jammed this weird science fact in the middle of it I was like now they're a bunch of hippies but now they're fucking scientists and they're checking scientist hippies yeah I was like what is this bullshit damn you George Lucas you should have stopped making movies with Star Wars That's the last decent movie you made. Oh, God. Now, this one, I think we may have found a way around it. We may have remedied it already.

It's for Jay, but if we just show up here at his house, he doesn't have to worry about this. He was requesting the occasional call-in from Jay. Because he's too busy preventing delinquency or posting Misty's bail is the way he puts it. Preventing delinquency? Just being a parent.

Oh, I thought I was contributing towards delinquency. No, you're already a delinquent, but you're trying to keep the next generation from being a delinquent. I've never had to close my veil. I've never been in a veil. No, no.

Misty, thankfully, hasn't been in jail for beating any magicians yet. The year has just begun. Don't rent the prestige. Jessica also hates magicians with a violent passion. She started a club for anti-magicians.

She's going to be wandering the streets waiting for a magician rumble. My cousin's a magician. I don't want your cousin. How far related. He's a bird, so it's on my grandmother's side.

I thought it. Was close enough for me to have a dislike for you. No. You can't have a dislike. He has magic in his blood.

The force is strong with this one. You're going to get punched. Somebody told me it was a good way to pick up chicks. I did it once. He's like, you know what?

This is the dumbest thing. I was like, who the hell am I going to pick up a damn car? That's a lie. Yeah, that is chick repellent. I violently hate men who like.

Slip a roofie under their. I don't know if that's magic. It's just day rape. You violently what? I violently hate magicians.

I mean, like... I hate magicians too. It's not just me. All women hate them. One of my friends is a long time ago...

Long, long time ago. He was just trying to be a dick. Yeah, in Florida. He was like, you want to pick up chicks today? This is what you do.

You need to pick up a thing because you don't smoke. I didn't smoke, but I hung out with a lot of guys who smoked. And there were always chicks at the bar that smoked. And so I couldn't be like, hey, you want a cigarette? Or they would come up and say, can I have a cigarette?

And I'd be like, I don't smoke. And they're like, oh. And then they'd walk off. And you don't have, they would try to look for that kind of entrance into a, into a conversation and I just kill it by saying, I don't smoke. And you're a loser because you do.

Yeah. That's like, fuck off. Yeah, pretty much. I used to blow a lot of people off and I never really realized it. So he was like, what you got to do is you got to work at a car trip.

And I'd be like, no, but you can pick this car. And I was like, okay, I guess. And I read it and I'm like, I'm a dick and I'm a douchebag. Oh my God. That reminds me.

Sorry. I got rid of that real quick. I think he was just working you. Yeah, I was like, okay, am I going to be the guy at the bar that does card tricks or. Flips a Zippo and doesn't smoke?

I was both of those at one point. Or a second. I think he's working you. Like I said, just a second. one side he's over on the other side of the bar and as they leave in a huff he's like doing that guy lame hey come over here i got a cigarette for you he goes up you. Want to watch something funny look at this dude.

Watch this girl shoot him down. That's so true so true i just realized something a couple weeks ago i went out with my friend to dinner and her roommate and her roommate's best friend came along and he had been magicians yeah he was um But I'd block this out until just now. But I just, I usually don't know if a guy's interested in me because they're usually not. But this guy was and I could tell and he used to have a ponytail. So he grosses me out.

Just for that fact, because I've seen him. He doesn't have it now, but I've seen him with the ponytail. So I'm like. Residual ponytail damage. I can still see it.

I know it's there. Phantom ponytail. Yeah. He has phantom ponytail pains. Yes.

Phantom ponytail. And we were like sitting to dinner and he was like, he was trying to be like, oh, I'm going to drive real fast in my Jeep. I'm so tough. I'm going to turn my music up real loud. And then he was like, pick a card.

And I looked at him and I said, are you fucking kidding me? Oh, wow. Pick a card. I blocked that out, but I just remembered that. Watch me make my penis disappear.

It just shrivels up. Wow. Wow. So there you go. Magicians.

No magic tricks. Girls don't find it attractive. I like how all of our answers to every question have been, fuck magicians. We've had five questions they've all ended with, you know magicians, stay away from them. We know somewhere out there in podcast land there's a magician listening to this, or several magicians.

I'm going to get pissed off right now. There's going to be a red-headed magician that's going to be. Like, I'm going to. That fucking bitch. If we've learned anything from the movie today, there is no magic.

That's our theme for this entire half of the episode. There is no magic. Let's keep it that way. He does round out the questions, and actually this one is sort of already on there, but we'll readdress it, I guess, and post the other people's versions on there. He did ask for a distinct childhood memory involving a movie, which I think we already have one, because I know I have mine of seeing Star Wars, and Misty had Beastmaster, and I think yours was going to showcase too, Jay.

So I think we already have a version of that on there. Well, it depends on which one you're wanting. Yeah. First movie I remember seeing was Batman. This is any anecdote that comes springing to mind will do.

I was going to say, theology of terror really scared the shit out of me when I was a kid. I was always afraid that men's fetish dolls were going to. Come get me. I remember the first movie I saw in theaters was a Batman movie, and I'd never been in a theater before, and it was dark, and there were lights on the ground, and I was with my grandma and my whole family, and I was just confused. I'm like, what the fuck is this place?

I'm like, what the fuck is this place? What's going on? Why is this kid staring at the floor the whole time? What is wrong with this girl? That was a really weird.

Check out this kid over here. And then, I remember when I was little, my mom took me to see Die Hard, and that was like... pure torture whatever that's awesome i will not watch that movie to this day because my mom took me to see it when i was young and i was like are you fucking kidding me well. That's just bad mother right there we know that that's another running theme for. This yeah but i mean like die hard like a small child saying die hard though it was just pure torture i think i like crawl around on the floor. You're obsessed with the floor in movie theater.

Which, by the way, is a gross play. No! But I didn't want to watch Die Hard. It was like... The first.

Movie I saw in the theater was one of the Ernest. I'm pretty sure it was Ernest Goes to Camp at the Dollar. Classic. That's pretty cool. My grandma took me and my cousin Aaron.

I'm pretty sure we're covered in mud. What are we going to see in Ernest? Aaron's the cousin that died? Yeah. It's like theme you know you go into camp covered in dirt oh the bats that's a good.

The first movie i remember seeing over and over again like as i've said would be the beast master god i watched that movie so many. Damn times i watched that to death on cable in the theater again i think that was. My story what hbo stood for. And that's why I've seen it 10 million times. See, that's the thing.

We didn't even have HBO, so we got, like, the regular straight-to-TV version of it. Oh, that's worse. I had it on VHS from when you get the free preview of the, like, Showtime or HBO, and I recorded it and watched it. That was, yeah, that's my story on there. That's what it is.

I bought my first blank VHS tape to record Beastmaster. That is why I bought it. It's fucking awesome. I'm still, in love with Mark Singer. Sorry.

First movie I ever saw, we got a VCR because our house had been broken in two. So my dad had this money from the TV. It was more expensive than, you know. And so he's like, well, I got a bit by a VCR too. And went to the store and I had, seen at the grocery store where the movies were i had seen.

The box for kroll i thought this was gonna be the most awesome movie ever and i was like i want that movie i've been wanting that movie since i knew about what a vcr was they've had it here at kroger i think it was win dixie is what it was used to carry a movie and and we we bought it and They kept sticking it in and playing it, and they couldn't get the hold right. That was back then when each channel had to be specifically dialed in. You had to adjust your tracking with a little knob. I kept telling them, I don't want to see the movie when I can't see the movie. And they're like, don't worry, we'll roll it.

Back until the very beginning of the tape, and you can watch it. And I remember thinking... The box is so much cooler than the movie. See, if ever there was an example of video boxes that warped my brain, you were sold on that one, surely on the video box. That's awesome.

I remember going to the theaters plenty as a kid, but that was the moment that I couldn't believe that you could put something into a VCR and watch a movie. The first movie we. Had was The Heavenly Kid. My dad got a VCR for. That's where a kid got killed in the subway or something.

I don't remember, but that was the first movie. The second movie we watched was Cannonball Hunt. Nice. I don't even remember what we first started watching on VHS. I kind of remember that theater stuff, but yeah, VHS, it all just became a big blur.

I mean, I watched so much stuff. We got top salesman of the year. And his prize was a VCR, and that was back when VCRs were like, you know, you remember, they. Were like $ 200, $ 300. Like $ 1, 000.

They were more than that. Yeah, well, that's what we did. We went to the little supermarket down the street. It was a little, like, gas and go. It was a mom and pop shop, and they.

Had that back wall that had all the fucking VCR covers that you would go up there and pick one, and then you could rent it for, like, one or two nights, and then you had to bring it back. Yeah. They charged you if you didn't rewind it. But yeah, just going through, I remember as a kid, I was with my dad. It was my mom and my dad and me.

And he's like, we're going to go pick out a movie. And I'm looking at all these movies and I'm just like, you know, it's a ninja movie. You know, dad's like, no, not that one. And I'm like, oh man, what about this army movie? No, not that one.

What about Night of the Living Dead? No, no, not that one. Oh God, man, come on, you got to pick something cool. I was like, cool we get these ninja movies and now we got the heavenly kid and I was like man come. On that's not the one I was thinking of.

I remember being my cousin Stevie and Aaron we used to go play Jason. Out in the woods which involved the tools for the fireplace of course until my grandma realized what we were doing or what Jason was it's good that she's you know on top of her horror movies. Yeah, they're the two of us playing. Yeah, especially like the tool, I guess it's like the long grabber. You kids did not need to be playing with those tools.

I remember you kids in action. That's trouble. I've seen the videos. I've seen the videos. They're scary.

Yeah, I remember that. I don't even think I'd seen Jason at that point, but I knew enough about it. To know that they didn't. It's a game at that point. Yeah, I mean, every kid, I think, had that.

Come on, let's play, and you could just name a movie or a character from a movie, and it became a game. It's like every... neighborhood you gotta come get me you gotta come. Kill me kill me with the fireplace. Tool I'm gonna kill you you can't get me. I remember there was a kid that was several years younger four or five years younger than me that lived behind me and his family.

Was kind of messed up anyway that the. Uncle's coming over and the dad's coming over and you don't really know who's the real dad. That kind of family that kind of family and grandma it was grandma's house but everybody just kind of came and went and the kid was always there And I remember him reenacting the scene where Tommy's hacking the guy up and. They're screaming for him. And he's just yelling, die, die, die.

And he's several years younger than me. I'm like 12 and he's like 7. And I'm thinking, even then I'm like, this kid is. Fucked up. And he is.

He's not quite right. In the head. To prove the point, yep, don't let your kids watch this. The kind of stuff that we grew up on. He's like an enforcer for like a loan shark or something like that now.

That all seems fine. I remember watching Candyman. I guess I came out in what? 92 maybe? 90 or 92.

I was singing. In the bathroom. Everybody be quiet. Now the water's running. But anyways, I remember watching Candyman when it came out in 92 and I was probably about 12 and I remember just being absolutely petrified to go in the bathroom because my grandma had one of these mirrors that ran the entire length of the counter so it was like longer than like my arm span so I was petrified to go in the bathroom but like I see in the mirror Candyman's gonna come get me so I made her take.

The mirror out of the bathroom for like a week because I was too afraid to go in. You know I can't blame you because I still think Candyman's a scary movie especially as a kid. It is yeah yeah I don't know if we watched that one of the times when you know me, Stevie and Aaron and one of us would have to sit in like the hallway and keep watch to make sure she wasn't coming or your mom or my. Grandma when we watched Candyman Yeah. We'd do that.

We'd sit and try to watch the scrambled porn channel. Well, we all played that game. What is that? Oh. We never got that.

We didn't have cable. We had three channels. It was like you couldn't really see it because. It was the. If you turn it.

My buddy had satellite. He had the spice channel because his dad ordered the spice channel. Nice. Yeah, we walked in on his dad one time. what are you kids. Doing home from school so early we're all like just.

Dance on the couch jerking off stop it that's. Not yeah he is I just got out of the shower you kids go outside and play. And he never lived that down and now that kid is fucked up as well he is Martin yup he has become that there's nothing worse than. Like I've never had that happen but that's a pretty traumatic thing I've never caught my parents in the act, but I think, like, my ex-boyfriend's mom caught me, and that was awkward. Yeah, that's sort of in reverse and weird.

Not just me, but us. A friend of mine, he said his parents' room was right next to his, and he said he heard his parents. All the time. That's even creepier. I think that's really, and he got, eventually he said, I'm going to sleep in the basement because that's just creepy.

Not even just the act, but the all the time part. Right, right. Creepy traumatized is what. We take we'd have to watch the hallway make sure grandma wasn't coming downstairs I'd have to be with some buttheads who weren't allowed. To watch equally as offensive as porn yeah.

I was petrified after watching Candyman. It's still kind of creepy it's an amazingly impressive movie. I tried to rent Fritz the Cat once, and Mom wouldn't let me. That's what we need to do. Fritz the Cat?

Fritz the Cat. It's very different than I expected. Well, I was a kid, and I would have kitty cats on the cover, and it was cartoon. All right, we're throwing that in the mix then. I didn't say I wanted to see it now.

Too bad. I was like, come. On. So hopefully that has sufficed for your... Are you.

Sniffing or seeing if you shaved? No, I know I shaved. I forgot to put deodorant on. I mean, I don't really smell bad, but I could smell better. She doesn't do it nonchalantly.

She just shoves her whole face into the room. We're all fun, too. Classy with a K. Wow. It's not like I'm in public.

Millions of people are listening to you do this right now or three a little more accurate but whatever. Randy or maybe some other guy in Wisconsin. Armpit fetish if anybody knows anybody with armpit fetish tell. Them to listen to me there's a lot probably I guess if there's a website for women with puffy nipples there's gotta be armpit fetishes out. There There's way worse stuff than that out there, I hate.

To tell you. Cake fart. Yeah, that's one of the top of the list of worst things out there. Cake fart. Are you not familiar with that one?

Cake. Cake. Cake fart. What? Oh, unfortunately, I'm familiar with it.

I have yet to go there, thankfully, but... I've just heard about it. No, I heard about it on another show. One of our brethren of, yeah, they did a whole little session where they went and watched it while recording and their reaction to it. See, I was.

Telling someone this story about this guy that my best friend and I used to work with at Kmart when we were teenagers. His name was Scott. And one day he went up to us. He's like, hey, girls, step on this piece of gum. And we're like, okay.

And then later he came up to Jessica with a hostess cupcake and was like, Jessica. fart on this cupcake. And she was like, no, why? He was like, just fart on this cupcake. Fart on it. And she's like, no.

He's like, burp on it. Burp on this cupcake. cupcake no well yeah he tried to give her like a dollar actually he did she didn't do it no she was like that's really weird and he's just like following around so he's like come on just fart on this cupcake fart on it. When Jessica should make a matter of time yeah just stand there for a few minutes laughing. It's going to come out of some end. I'll tell Jessica.

She knows. Everybody knows. She jokes about it more than anybody. Yeah, like yesterday, she was like, want to smell my hands? They smell like onions.

I'm like, no. And she kept asking me that. I'm like, you fucking retard. I do not want to smell your goddamn onion fingers. Stop.

I was trying to make him smell his wash right after he's been hanging up and mildewing. For a couple days gross I don't. Understand why it gets so mildewy it's got soap on it and it's hanging up how does it get mildewy. And why do you think I want to smell it I don't. Know I want to share these experiences with you.

And then right after I was telling people that sorry I saw that guy Scott at the flea market like a couple of weeks ago And I was like, I had to text everybody. I'm like, I just saw that guy that came out that wanted us to. Was he asking anybody to fart on him? That you saw, but in the parking lot later, I'm pretty sure. Probably.

He got fired for asking the manager to smash some grapes with her feet. Yeah, that's even normal. Yeah. He almost got fired before he ever asked Jessica to fart on a cupcake because he asked someone else to like he asked someone else to rub a chocolate bar between their toes. He's like, rub this Kit Kat between your toes.

What the fuck is wrong with this guy? He's fucking weird. You gotta offer money. You offer big bucks. Don't give me a dollar.

I don't have to spend it. Right. You think I'm cheap? Yeah. Oh, God.

True story. True story. Wow. I'll sell you my sheep cushion for $ 100. I mean, really, people, stuff like this happens to me all the time.

That's so funny. I have a Louisville Mojo. I have to buy my underpants. Ew. How much did you get?

I remember in Louisville Mojo, I'd get random messages from old guys such as, like, a massage. No, not for me, you fucking creep. I'm pretty sure that's still going on. They've just changed websites now. Yeah.

Take your pick. The Japanese sell used underpants and vending machines. Oh, yeah. That's a normal occurrence. Yes.

Japan, give in to your fetishes. Make money off them. Yeah, really. And put it out on the street. Exactly.

All right. So, how we got to those places. It was my fault. Don't ask questions. Good luck.

Asking questions will lead to this. That leads. Any other questions, hey, you know, send them on out in an email or give us a call. Don't be shy. We'd like to hear from you.

So give us a call at 502-365-5565. Or you can email us at geeksatmoviemeltdown.com. And just stop by the website for our frequent updates. That's moviemeltdown.com. On by, on by.

On by, on by. Write them down on a pair of used panties and send them in. There you go. Ew. And please include the tongs that we're going to need to pick them up because, yeah.

Never mind, I don't trust those coming from you either. We'll get our own. Or you could just use paper. That's cool, too. I don't know.

Now I don't trust. My favorite paper vitamin. That's sterile. Yeah, voicemail. We prefer voicemails and emails.

They're going to be naked while they send it. Whatever. I can deal with that. They're going to fart on your voicemail. Oh, Jesus.

What does that mean? We're supposed to be wearing gloves? I mean, actually, I just thought of something a long time ago. This isn't really... I mean, this wasn't a podcast, but it was like a... show that we'd record.

It wasn't me, personally. It was my ex-boyfriend's retarded dad and his neighbor. His neighbor would get drunk and he thought it would be really funny to have a show called The Gas Hour. And basically all they did was sit around and laugh and fart and try to see who could light their fart on fire first. Why didn't we think of that?

The Gas Hour. I weep for this country. Yeah. And for humanity in general, truthfully. Alrighty.

Alrighty. Okay, kids, get out your decoder bins. I didn't bring my copy of Git. Git. Git.

I don't even know where that started, but I just know doing it. What? It was in the $ 9. 99 packet at our. Section at Suncoast, and it was just a VHS.

There was a dog trainer and the box just had G-I-T exclamation point. So we'd run around and we'd just go, Get! Get! And then I did it to Christine's cat at the Oscar party. And just kept yelling and the cat was just freaking out.

Oh, shit. So, yeah. I love it. So Sam, as my parting gift for leaving Suncoast, he bought. Me a copy of Get!

Get! Have you watched it? Yeah. Oh, yeah. And he's kind of like the rambling guy, and there's a dog that nobody can train.

You know, he's getting kicked away, and so he comes in and trains the dog, and they're both kind of like the rebels, you know, of town. So it's a bad movie. Wow. So, yeah, I get it. It is time for the Movie Outdown Secret Circle reveal of an upcoming feature.

And based on what you just said, I'm throwing Fritz the Cat out there. Oh, man. What are you planning on doing next week? Are we back for that? No, we're working other things, and that's the thing.

That's why I'm not even pinpointing them anymore. We've got many other projects in the works, one of which I'm also going to throw out there right now. We're also working on a new segment, a more expanded segment, so that people don't have to come to my creepy house. Or Misty doesn't want it. She barely let us in her house today.

So we can't always do this option when we're bringing other people in. Yeah, I don't want anybody I don't know in my house. That's what I'm saying. So I'm coming up with other options. I told him Greg could come, but just if he wouldn't play with my toys.

And he's controlled himself very nicely. There's a lot of toys, too. I specifically gave him those instructions. He agreed to them. Yeah, the real collection is in the other room.

Yeah. Don't show them. Don't show me. But, yeah, we've all conducted, you know, somewhat professionally today. We didn't break your stuff, so.

I kind of broke the little ribbon on her charm bracelet. Oh, my God. That's it. We're not excited. You're out.

It's an anniversary present. I know. I feel really terrible. I can't replace it because it won't be special. It's sentimental.

I know it's the only one I have. Try to stay here. Wow. Okay, so we, yeah, in the new option of stuff I've been coming up with, I'm thinking of doing a regular episode where we go take over a coffee shop, get hopped up on coffee, and just... I don't drink coffee.

You can have hot chocolate or something, whatever. You have to bring your own hot chocolate. So, bring a thermos, please. Okay. With plaid and a cup built right in.

Anyway, so... There you go. Alright, whatever. So anyway, we're gonna do the... You ruined the.

One with plaid because you put it in the dishwasher. Hey, I didn't know the paint was gonna come off of it. That was my grandpa's. How am I supposed to know the paint was gonna come off of it? He's dead.

Now you've got a broken charm bracelet and your grandpa's thermos is broken. That's it. We can't go on anymore. So, coffee shop, regular show. New and improved version, a sort of offshoot version of the show.

Probably very similar to what we normally do, but with a few extra additions and being hopped up on coffee as we break in the new version, which will be the caffeinated movie geek. And on that note, I have something new and cool to show you. Which is just coincidentally coming around at the same time. I've actually been working on this plan for about seven or eight months now, but it just happened to come in at this point as we start this new era of the show. Check that out.

I've just sat down a sweet movie meltdown coffee mug. Handmade, mind you. But they are going to be offered on the website, available to be ordered. Somebody buys anything we have. I don't care.

I've got one. I've got one. That was my main reason for making them, because I want one. It's almost as cool as the coffee mug that I gave you today. And the handle doesn't spin or anything.

All right, you know what? Don't put it in the dishwasher, Jake. I know you got one of them goddamn coffee mugs. I'll help you find it. You're trying to make me nuts.

She just has it hidden under the sink. I know! I know it's around here. Did you pay any attention to the copy mug I presented to you earlier? Yes, and it is awesome.

It's vintage. It's a vintage Star Wars copy. It's a vintage Empire era, I'm assuming. It's got Yoda and Luke in the Dagobah set up on it. So that was my leftover Christmas present.

So yeah, that was my Christmas present from Rowena, which is awesome, but we're not. I have your Christmas present in the other room. We're not offering that on the website because it's mine and you can't have it. What you can have is one of these fabulous movie meltdowns. Which are cooler.

It says Adams on the bottom of it. Handmade, I'm telling you. These are going to be a very limited run. His link will be on there on the site, too. I'm definitely promoting his work.

He does fine ceramic work, so commission him to do whatever you want. But we're definitely going to have a run of these, and I'm working on a new awesome artwork to go along with the caffeinated movie geek segment. So I'm hoping we'll have a specific one just of that in the near future, somewhere, or distant future. So place your orders now. They're awesome.

I almost bought you something last night, but I didn't because it would have involved having money. You know those stupid little bean things? The little, um. I guess you play games with them. Mighty Beans.

The roly-poly looking... They had a Greedo Bean. I've hung out with Greedo. As we've all heard. I'm assuming.

Greedo Bean. That's pretty funny. Maybe we need a Greedo blend of coffee. Made with real Greedo Beans. Whatever, I'd drink it.

Yeah, but you're weird. Yeah, that's true. Alright, anything else you guys want to round out this episode? We're back with a vengeance, I tell you. That's right.

I'm not really vengeance right now. It's getting late. That's what I'm saying. We delivered a hell of an episode, I'd say. It's super late.

Watch out, ginger magician. Misty's gunning for you in 2011. Revenge of the ginger magicians. Or vampires. Neither of the magicians I work with are gingers.

That's why I have not killed them thus far. Yet. Again, it's early in the year. So with that grim warning, we will round things out. As for our closing song, I mean, when Soft Cell writes a song inspired by your movie, we have to go out on that.

Soft Cell did? Soft Cell, for God's sakes. What was it? Martin. Martin.

I've never heard it. I'm just telling. Soft sell. Martin. Y'all looked at me like I was retarded.

I only know one soft sell song. Everybody only knows one soft sell song. I have a whole soft sell album. Can you name any of the other ones, though? Uh.

I don't know. There's another one that I used to know, but I don't really know it anymore. Nobody does. It's okay. I mean, even they bank on the fact that that one hit has made them rich their entire careers.

Just when they play it. One of them now is like a priests for the church of satan or something. Well i mean now they play it on commercials like once a year i see it turn up on a new commercial i'm just like they will ride that song for the rest of their life i don't blame i don't blame you you know what i'm like i'd be i'd be writing that forever so i'd be a one-hit wonder hell yeah i'll take it yeah that's right can't complain about one hit can't complain if you got one hit Otherwise, that about does it. We will return next week. Same geek time, same geek feed.

Thanks for listening. Later, y'all. Amen. Martin is a boy with problems. Martin has a family history.

Martin has too many nightmares. He lives in a fantasy. There's a danger that he'll take too far. It's morbid curiosity. He knows he's not to blame The face at the window The hand under the bed Martin has hallucinations Dreams that he's done He's finding hard to keep control, he.

Knows it won't be long And a tongue rolls over. His dry lips, and a voice. Lingers on The face at. The window, the hand under the bed Martin has hallucinations. Too.

Keep control, keep control, keep control Finding hard to keep control Keep control He's finding hard to keep control Keep control Finding hard to keep control Keep control, keep control. Nosferatu. This show is a production of Movie Meltdown, produced and edited by Brian Renfro, featuring contact music performed by Tamara Deering. To help support the show, email producer at moviemeltdown.com for ways that you can contribute or advertise with us.