The Film Theorists The Film Theorists

What films wowed us and what disappointed us in 2022? What's coming for 2023? Chloe and Steve talk about what we've been watching lately and why all horror fans should get the Shudder app. What was each of our Top 5 films of the year? One of us has a horror film as their favorite film of the year and the other doesn't even have a horror film in their top 3. What are your favorites of '22 and most anticipated films of '23? Tune in to find out ours.

Chloe and Steve just can't help it! We had two comedy episodes last time but now we're back to our first love: horror! Alex Garland's provocative third film, Men, and David Cronenberg's return to body horror, Crimes of the Future, are discussed in detail. Yup, we both agree on the success (or failure) of Jordan Peele's Nope. We also agree on William Brent Bell's attempt at a prequel to 2009's Orphan. And did Bodies Bodies Bodies, which was lit in a lot of scenes by cell phone camera light, work?  Steve laments about amateur film critic crutches like "pacing", "gorgeous cinematography", and "likeable" or "relatable" characters and unfilmic podcasts that discuss a particular film in detail for an hour and never once mention the name of the director. Chloe gushes about Stranger Things!  Bitchin' !!

00:00-20:00 : Intro

20:00-34:00 : Men

34:00-48:00 : Crimes of the future

48:00-1:11:00 : Bodies Bodies Bodies

1:11:00-1:20:00 : Nope

1:20:00-1:39:00 : Orphan: First Kill

1:39:00-2:13:00 : Stranger Things

2:13:00-2:21:56 : Outro

Doing a podcast is no different than riding a bicycle. It's just a lot harder to put baseball cards in the spokes.  



In Part 2, Chloe and Steve continue our Comedy categories discussion and go in-depth on Airplane!, the 1980 zany, surrealist spoof comedy film written and directed by brothers David and Jerry Zucker and their childhood friend Jim Abrahams. 

Can racial humor be funny and not racist? 

One of us calls this the greatest comedy of all time, and the other says they only laughed once. 

Passengers certain to die!

Airline negligent!

There's a sale at Penney's!

Surely you can't be serious! Our

multi-part examination of Comedy.

What makes Chloe and Steve

laugh? We catch you up on what

we've been up to, including an

Oscar discussion and why Will

Smith is starring in the next

Jackass film. 

What is comedy?

Comedy sub-genres, types of

comedy, and categories of comedy

films are analyzed. Also our Top 6

(why six? Why not?) favorite

"comedies" loosely defined of all

time.

In Part 1, we do some comedy

genre discussion and go in-depth

on Edgar Wright's

underappreciated2010 adaptation

of the Bryan Lee O'Malley graphic

novel Scott Pilgrim Vs The World,

the comedy subgenre traversing

romantic comic super hero fantasy

satire.

And stop calling me Shirley!

Our scary Horror sequel! Chloe and Steve discuss the Korean Netflix series Squid Game, A Quiet Place Part 2, and Halloween Kills. Also, we offer film analysis, talk feminist theory, and discuss gender representation in Leigh Janiak's Netflix film series Fear Street Parts 1, 2, and 3 and French auteur Julie Ducournau's two bizarre body horror films, 2016's Raw and 2021's Titane, the latter which won the Palme D'Or at this year's Cannes Film Festival. What is the Bechdel Test? Who is Alison Bechdel and why is she so important to how we portray women in film? What's up with Geena Davis and why does she have an Institute named after her?  Be afraid. Be very afraid. You have been warned!



00:00 intro

19:45 feminist film 

37:15 squid game

01:15:45 raw/titane/julie ducournau 

01:42:57 halloween movie series 

01:51:37 fear street films 

02:23:26 a quiet place part 2

02:56:48 outro

HAPPY HALLOWEEN SEASON!!!

Finally, our long-awaited, amped-up HORROR episode!!! Chloe and Steve discuss their personal horror history, horror definitions, subgenres, and genre films through the decades. German expressionism and the silent era, Universal monsters, Gothic, Hitchcock, and the sci-fi and horror boom of the 50's are discussed. Who is Carol Clover and Laura Mulvey and why should every true horror fan and film nerd read their work? Why are Psycho, The Exorcist, Jaws, Halloween, Alien, Friday the 13th, Nightmare on Elm Street, and The Babadook important to the genre? Spielberg, Hooper, Carpenter, Depalma, Scott, Craven, Polanski, Kubrick, Miner, Aster, Eggers, and Jennifer Kent are talked about. Feminism, Final Girl, and Male Gaze are analyzed within the genre. Newer films like James Wan's Malignant and the newer Halloween films are reviewed. One of us is not a fan of The Blair Witch Project and the other thinks The Conjuring is overrated. One of us gives The Exorcist two thumbs down and the other calls it the greatest horror film ever made. A Quiet Place and A Quiet Place Part 2 are analyzed. Tune in to our horror extravaganza. It's a scary one. You have been warned!

Timestamps:

00:00 Introduction

10:21 Our personal history with horror

19:23 Horror genres/subgenres/horror through the ages

53:20 History of horror and cinema

1:18:14 Continuation of horror through the years (80s and up)

2:01:04 Recent watches (Malignant, Blair witch project)

2:39:20 Winding up + outro