Cinematix Problematix

[RERUN] Revenge of the Nerds: Frat Boys, Boobies, and the Horny Underdog

[In honor of the passing of Donald Gibb, we're re-releasing one of our Revenge of the Nerds episode in his honor. R.I.P, Ogre.] Today, we’re talking about the 1984 comedy Revenge of the Nerds directed by Jeff Kanew, which follows horny freshman nerds Lewis and Gilbert as they get into college, only to be bullied by the cool, jocular members of the Alpha Beta fraternity. In response to their humiliation and their sudden lack of housing at the hands of the Alpha Beta frat bullies, they not only form their own fraternity born out of the all-Black fraternity Lambda Lambda Lambda, but they challenge the jocks to various competitions at the Homecoming Carnival so that they can rule the Greek Council and get the girl(s). The film stars Robert Carradine, Anthony Edwards, Curtis Armstrong, Ted McGinley of Shrinking Fame, and John Goodman as the evil football coach. This film has a runtime of 1 hour and 30 minutes. Sins against it: sexual assault, voyeurism, gratuitous boobies, and infantile sexual innuendo. CREDITS Hosts: Erin Maxwell & Kristina "Krissie" Rettig Edited by: Russ Lichter Theme Song by: Spooky Dan

Mommie Dearest: Wire Hangers, Wigs & Wholesale Wickedness

And today, we’re talking about 1981’s Frank Perry film Mommie Dearest. Based on the best-selling book by Christina Crawford, it depicts in VIVID detail the abuse she suffered at the hands of her movie star mother, Joan Crawford. It follows Joan’s initial desires to have a child and difficulties with adopting Christina and her brother Christopher, to not-so-gently catapulting the audience into a near-endless parade of cringe-inducing scenes depicting escalating child abuse. Rocketing this film into its camp classic status is an iconic performance by Faye Dunaway as Joan Crawford, as she goes FULL FUCKING HAM to show Crawford’s perfectionism, alcoholism, manic-depression, and especially her disdain for wire hangers. The delicious scenery-chewing of Dunaway’s performance paired with a problematic marketing campaign from Paramount may have launched this into camp classic status, but it’s worth discussing if rampant child abuse is the best use of your marketing dollars, especially when it winds up being this fucking funny. The film stars Faye Dunaway, Diana Scarwid, Mara Hobel, Steve Forrest, Rutanya Alda, and has a runtime of 2 hours and 9 minutes. Hosted by: Kristina "Krissie" Rettig & Erin Maxwell Edited by: Russ Lichter Theme song by: Spooky Dan

Pretty Baby: Pretty Disturbing and Exploitative, Baby

And today, we are talking about the 1978 Louis Malle film Pretty Baby which tells the story of a 12-year old girl (Violet) who grows up in a brothel who can't seem to wait for the day where her virginity is auctioned-off to the highest depraved bidder. Along the way, she falls in love with a local New Orleans photographer (Bellocq) who frequents the brothel, who eventually returns her affections. Oh, and he's in his 30's in case you were wondering. If that weren't disturbing enough, the film shows Violet kissing grown men, grown men groping and kissing her back, as well as a fully nude Brooke Shields. This is all wrapped in a deceptive arthouse label that does little to suppress our desire to projectile vomit in shock and disgust. The film stars Brooke Shields, Susan Sarandon, Keith Carradine, and has a runtime of 1 hour and 50 minutes. CREDITS Hosted by: Erin Maxwell & Kristina "Krissie" Rettig Edited by: Russ Lichter Theme song by: Spooky Dan

The Blind Side: White Saviors, Suburbs, and Sandra Bullock

And today we’re talking about 2009’s John Lee Hancock film The Blind Side. It tells the inspiring tale of a woman named Leigh Ann Touhey who finds it in her affluent, white no-nonsense heart to take in a homeless black child named Big Mike that she and her family find walking home alone on cold Tennessee night. But obstacles turn into opportunity when she discovers that - despite his dismal grades - he happens to score in the 98th percentile for protective instincts. She then ensures he’s put on the football team where he learns to block, tackle, and love.The Touhey family eventually winds up adopting Mike so he can be an official part of the family which is topped off by him accepting an athletic scholarship to the family’s alma mater, Ol’ Miss. Happily ever after right?? WRONG. If the white savior narrative wasn’t problematic enough, we’ve discovered in recent years that Michael Oher wasn’t actually adopted; he was placed under conservatorship under the guise of adoption that allowed the Touhey family to sell Michael’s story for which he didn’t receive a dime since - under conservatorship - you aren’t really a part of the family and are therefore not entitled to the spoils they collected from his story. Talk about a Blind Side. The film stars Sandra Bullock, Quinton Aaron, Lilly Collins, Tim McGraw, Jae Head, Kim Dickins, and Kathy Bates, and has a runtime of 2 hours and 9 minutes. CREDITS Hosted by: Kristina “Krissie” Rettig & Erin Maxwell Edited by: Russ Lichter Theme song by: Spooky Dan

Tootsie: Gimmicks, Gaslighting, and Faux Feminism

And today, we're talking about 1982's Sydney Pollack film Tootsie. It follows unemployed actor Michael Dorsey who decides to impersonate a woman to land a role as a saucy, no-nonsense hospital administrator on a soap opera. In the process, he finds wild success, learns how it feels to be treated like a piece of meat, falls for his co-star, and seduces his friend only to toss her aside while he espouses the virtues of feminism. Is Michael kind of trash? Yes. Is this film hilarious? Also, yes. The film stars Dustin Hoffman, Jessica Lange, Terry Garr, and Bill Murray and has a runtime of 1 hour and 56 minutes. CREDITS Hosted by: Erin Maxwell & Kristina “Krissie” Rettig Edited by: Russ Lichter Theme song by: Spooky Dan