The Contrarians

Alex Mattis & Julio Olivera
  • 4.8 (57)
  • TV & Film
  • Updated Weekly

Hosts Alex Mattis and Julio Olivera take on popular opinion, trashing movies everyone loves and praising movies everyone hates. Visit their website at www.wearethecontrarians.com

  1. 3d ago

    269 - Pt. 2 - The Running Man 1987 (RT)

    Well, Alex stretched the B2B gimmick pretty thin for this episode - no, Kurt Fuller did not star in an adult film early in his career - but the important thing is we got THE RUNNING MAN in Contrarians Canon. The better version too (not that Edgar Wright’s take offered much competition.) So why did Arnie’s failed to connect with the world the way his other 1987 movie, Predator, did? We have theories. Listen to them in this Real Talk segment! TIMELINE 00:01:26 The One With The Boat 00:01:59 Real Talk 00:52:22 The Future & Patreon Stuff - Interested in more Contrarians goodness? Join THE CONTRARIANS SUPPLEMENTS on our Patreon Page! Deleted clips, extended plugs, bonus episodes free from the Tomatometer shackles… It’s everything a Contrarians devotee would want! - Our YouTube page is live! Get some visual Contrarians delight with our Contrarians Warm-Ups and other fun videos! - Contrarians Merch is finally here! Check out our RED BUBBLE MERCH PAGE and buy yourself something nice that’s emblazoned with one of our four different designs! - THE FESTIVE YEARS have been letting us use their music for years now and they are amazing. You can check out their work on Spotify, on Facebook or on their very own website. - Our buddy Cory Ahre is being kind enough to lend a hand with the editing of some of our videos. If you like his style, wait until you see what he does over on his YouTube Channel. - THE LATE NIGHT GRIN isn’t just a show about wrestling: it’s a brand, a lifestyle. And they’re very supportive of our Contrarian endeavors, so we’d like to return the favor. Check out their YouTube Channel! You might even spot Alex there from time to time. - Hans Rothgiesser, the man behind our logo, can be reached at @mildemoniospe on Instagram or you can email him at mildemonios@hotmail.com in case you ever need a logo (or comics) produced. And you can listen to him talk about economy on his new TV show, VALOR AGREGADO. Aaaaand you can also check out all the stuff he’s written on his own website. He has a new book: a sort of Economics For Dummies called MARGINAL. Ask him about it! Up next, our Bedroom to Box Office event gets very European and very pretentious, as we hit one of the most explicit movies every covered on the show, the French drama ROMANCE! In the meantime, let us know what you thought of the 1987 version of The Running Man: Is Arnie the better, funnier, buffer protagonist when compared to Glen Powell? Does Maria Conchita Alonso get more to do here than in Predator 2? Can you ever watch Family Feud the same way again? E-mail us at wearethecontrarians@gmail.com or share your thoughts with us on Threads or BlueSky!

    59 min

  2. 3d ago

    269 - Pt. 1 - The Running Man 1987 (CC)

    We like Glen Powell as much as the next film fan, but let’s get real. There’s only one Running Man, and his name is Arnold Schwarzenegger. Critics and audiences weren’t quite ready for Arnie in full wisecracking mode though, and Paul Glaser’s 1987 adaptation of Stephen King’s THE RUNNING MAN is branded with a rotten 59% Tomatometer score. Listen to Alex & Julio as they welcome a cavalcade of favorite performers back to the show and luxuriate in 80s nostalgia! TIMELINE 00:01:24 The Running Man (1987) 00:14:25 Contrarians Corner - Wanna know how we really feel about THE RUNNING MAN (1987)? Check out the Real Talk (RT) episode, on your feed RIGHT NOW! (or pretty soon — Spotify can be a pain when it comes to refreshing the feed) - Interested in more Contrarians goodness? Join THE CONTRARIANS SUPPLEMENTS on our Patreon Page! Deleted clips, extended plugs, bonus episodes free from the Tomatometer shackles… It’s everything a Contrarians devotee would want! - Our YouTube page is live! Get some visual Contrarians delight with our Contrarians Warm-Ups and other fun videos! - Contrarians Merch is finally here! Check out our RED BUBBLE MERCH PAGE and buy yourself something nice that’s emblazoned with one of our four different designs! - THE FESTIVE YEARS have been letting us use their music for years now and they are amazing. You can check out their work on Spotify, on Facebook or on their very own website. - Our buddy Cory Ahre is being kind enough to lend a hand with the editing of some of our videos. If you like his style, wait until you see what he does over on his YouTube Channel. - THE LATE NIGHT GRIN isn’t just a show about wrestling: it’s a brand, a lifestyle. And they’re very supportive of our Contrarian endeavors, so we’d like to return the favor. Check out their YouTube Channel! You might even spot Alex there from time to time. - Hans Rothgiesser, the man behind our logo, can be reached at @mildemoniospe on Instagram or you can email him at mildemonios@hotmail.com in case you ever need a logo (or comics) produced. And you can listen to him talk about economy on his new TV show, VALOR AGREGADO. Aaaaand you can also check out all the stuff he’s written on his own website. He has a new book: a sort of Economics For Dummies called MARGINAL. Ask him about it!

    59 min

  3. Jun 11

    FIRF #10 - The Namesake

    The tenth installment of Fresh Immigrants, Rotten Fascists introduces us to the Gangoli family - first generation Indian immigrants to America. Familiar faces Irrfan Khan and Tabu play the parents, but the big marketing angle was Kal Penn’s dramatic turn as their son, he of the multiple names throughout the movie. THE NAMESAKE, based on a novel by Jhumpa Lahiri, directed by Mira Nair, was certainly an important step in Penn branching out from his Harold and Kumar persona, but it’s also a gentle, heartfelt portrayal of what it’s like to have two homelands.Thank you for checking this new project out, whether you are a long-time Contrarians fan or someone who’s just trying to listen to people talking positively about immigrants and negatively about fascism. If you have any recommendations for future entries in the series, let us know! Many thanks to the amazing Jordan Cooper for composing our intro and outro. Fantastic collaborator to work with - and he has a They Might Be Giants podcast: DON’T LET’S START. You can also check out Jordan’s band TROUBLE’S AFOOT on Bandcamp! - Interested in more Contrarians goodness? Join THE CONTRARIANS SUPPLEMENTS on our Patreon Page! Deleted clips, extended plugs, bonus episodes free from the Tomatometer shackles… It’s everything a Contrarians devotee would want! - Our YouTube page is live! Get some visual Contrarians delight with our Contrarians Warm-Ups and other fun videos! - Our buddy Cory Ahre is being kind enough to lend a hand with the editing of some of our videos. If you like his style, wait until you see what he does over on his YouTube Channel. - THE LATE NIGHT GRIN isn’t just a show about wrestling: it’s a brand, a lifestyle. And they’re very supportive of our Contrarian endeavors, so we’d like to return the favor. Check out their YouTube Channel! You might even spot Alex there from time to time. - Hans Rothgiesser, the man behind our logo, can be reached at @mildemoniospe on Instagram or you can email him at mildemonios@hotmail.com in case you ever need a logo (or comics) produced. And you can listen to him talk about economy on his new TV show, VALOR AGREGADO. Aaaaand you can also check out all the stuff he’s written on his own website. He has a new book: a sort of Economics For Dummies called MARGINAL. Ask him about it!

    1h 8m

  4. Jun 4

    268 - Pt. 2 - 52 Pick-Up (RT)

    How much sleaziness is too much sleaziness? Is Elmore Leonard’s 52 PICK-UP as nasty as its John Frankenheimer adaptation? Does the movie deserve its somewhat forgotten status in the director’s filmography, or should we all push for a 52 PICK-UP re-evaluation? This and more in this Real Talk segment - including a roll call of all the adult performers in the infamous party sequence! TIMELINE 00:01:26 Second Feature 00:02:23 Real Talk 00:53:27 The Future & Patreon Stuff - Interested in more Contrarians goodness? Join THE CONTRARIANS SUPPLEMENTS on our Patreon Page! Deleted clips, extended plugs, bonus episodes free from the Tomatometer shackles… It’s everything a Contrarians devotee would want! - Our YouTube page is live! Get some visual Contrarians delight with our Contrarians Warm-Ups and other fun videos! - Contrarians Merch is finally here! Check out our RED BUBBLE MERCH PAGE and buy yourself something nice that’s emblazoned with one of our four different designs! - THE FESTIVE YEARS have been letting us use their music for years now and they are amazing. You can check out their work on Spotify, on Facebook or on their very own website. - Our buddy Cory Ahre is being kind enough to lend a hand with the editing of some of our videos. If you like his style, wait until you see what he does over on his YouTube Channel. - THE LATE NIGHT GRIN isn’t just a show about wrestling: it’s a brand, a lifestyle. And they’re very supportive of our Contrarian endeavors, so we’d like to return the favor. Check out their YouTube Channel! You might even spot Alex there from time to time. - Hans Rothgiesser, the man behind our logo, can be reached at @mildemoniospe on Instagram or you can email him at mildemonios@hotmail.com in case you ever need a logo (or comics) produced. And you can listen to him talk about economy on his new TV show, VALOR AGREGADO. Aaaaand you can also check out all the stuff he’s written on his own website. He has a new book: a sort of Economics For Dummies called MARGINAL. Ask him about it! Up next, our FIRF journey takes us back to 2006, with Kal Penn honing his chops as a dramatic lead in THE NAMESAKE! Then Arnold Schwarzenegger shows Glen Powell how it’s done in the 1987 adaptation of THE RUNNING MAN! In the meantime, let us know what you thought of 52 Pick-Up: Does John Glover have the Embry locked down? Are you curious about Elmore Leonard’s novel? Is that Roy Scheider’s real hair? E-mail us at wearethecontrarians@gmail.com or share your thoughts with us on Threads or BlueSky!

    1 hr

  5. Jun 4

    268 - Pt. 1 - 52 Pick-Up (CC)

    The second chapter of B2B - Bedroom to Box Office - brings us a gaggle of porn stars smack dab in the middle of a mean, nasty, supremely entertaining John Frankenheimer joint. Sadly, 52 PICK-UP was too sleazy for critics and not even the Elmore Leonard connection or having Roy Scheider as its star saved it from a rotten Tomatometer score. Listen to Alex & Julio as they welcome the man behind Reindeer Games back to the show with another banger! TIMELINE 00:01:24 52 Pick-Up 00:08:34 Contrarians Corner - Wanna know how we really feel about 52 PICK-UP? Check out the Real Talk (RT) episode, on your feed RIGHT NOW! (or pretty soon — Spotify can be a pain when it comes to refreshing the feed) - Interested in more Contrarians goodness? Join THE CONTRARIANS SUPPLEMENTS on our Patreon Page! Deleted clips, extended plugs, bonus episodes free from the Tomatometer shackles… It’s everything a Contrarians devotee would want! - Our YouTube page is live! Get some visual Contrarians delight with our Contrarians Warm-Ups and other fun videos! - Contrarians Merch is finally here! Check out our RED BUBBLE MERCH PAGE and buy yourself something nice that’s emblazoned with one of our four different designs! - THE FESTIVE YEARS have been letting us use their music for years now and they are amazing. You can check out their work on Spotify, on Facebook or on their very own website. - Our buddy Cory Ahre is being kind enough to lend a hand with the editing of some of our videos. If you like his style, wait until you see what he does over on his YouTube Channel. - THE LATE NIGHT GRIN isn’t just a show about wrestling: it’s a brand, a lifestyle. And they’re very supportive of our Contrarian endeavors, so we’d like to return the favor. Check out their YouTube Channel! You might even spot Alex there from time to time. - Hans Rothgiesser, the man behind our logo, can be reached at @mildemoniospe on Instagram or you can email him at mildemonios@hotmail.com in case you ever need a logo (or comics) produced. And you can listen to him talk about economy on his new TV show, VALOR AGREGADO. Aaaaand you can also check out all the stuff he’s written on his own website. He has a new book: a sort of Economics For Dummies called MARGINAL. Ask him about it!

    48 min
  6. 267 - Pt. 2 - Rabid - 1977 (RT)

    May 21

    267 - Pt. 2 - Rabid - 1977 (RT)

    The real surprise when it comes to RABID is that Cronenberg meant it to be about the dangers of mishandling an epidemic. As much as we can all relate to that, it can be difficult to connect to that theme when it’s carried by a movie that plays like a parody of the director’s body-horror obsessions. But how does Marilyn Chambers do, regardless of the film’s shortcomings? Listen to this Real Talk segment and find out! TIMELINE 00:01:26 Get out of there!!!! 00:02:25 Real Talk 00:56:33 The Future & Patreon Stuff - Interested in more Contrarians goodness? Join THE CONTRARIANS SUPPLEMENTS on our Patreon Page! Deleted clips, extended plugs, bonus episodes free from the Tomatometer shackles… It’s everything a Contrarians devotee would want! - Our YouTube page is live! Get some visual Contrarians delight with our Contrarians Warm-Ups and other fun videos! - Contrarians Merch is finally here! Check out our RED BUBBLE MERCH PAGE and buy yourself something nice that’s emblazoned with one of our four different designs! - THE FESTIVE YEARS have been letting us use their music for years now and they are amazing. You can check out their work on Spotify, on Facebook or on their very own website. - Our buddy Cory Ahre is being kind enough to lend a hand with the editing of some of our videos. If you like his style, wait until you see what he does over on his YouTube Channel. - THE LATE NIGHT GRIN isn’t just a show about wrestling: it’s a brand, a lifestyle. And they’re very supportive of our Contrarian endeavors, so we’d like to return the favor. Check out their YouTube Channel! You might even spot Alex there from time to time. - Hans Rothgiesser, the man behind our logo, can be reached at @mildemoniospe on Instagram or you can email him at mildemonios@hotmail.com in case you ever need a logo (or comics) produced. And you can listen to him talk about economy on his new TV show, VALOR AGREGADO. Aaaaand you can also check out all the stuff he’s written on his own website. He has a new book: a sort of Economics For Dummies called MARGINAL. Ask him about it! Up next, John Frankenheimer returns to the show with an Elmore Leonard adaptation, 52 PICK-UP! In the meantime, let us know what you thought of Rabid: Did you enjoy the Contagion vibes? Did Marilyn Chambers’ past work influence your experience? Will you remember this movie ten years from now? E-mail us at wearethecontrarians@gmail.com or share your thoughts with us on Threads or BlueSky!

    1h 1m
  7. 267 - Pt. 1 - Rabid - 1977 (CC)

    May 21

    267 - Pt. 1 - Rabid - 1977 (CC)

    Our Bedroom to Box Office Summer Event begins with David Cronenberg’s sophomore effort, RABID - a horror ditty starring iconic adult movie star Marilyn Chambers. The concept of patient zero using an armpit-stinger to infect other people must have blown critics’ minds back in the 70s, leading to a fresh 78% Tomatometer score. To us? It’s basic, uninspired Cronenberg. Listen to Alex & Julio as they analyze this awkward takedown of plastic surgery culture! TIMELINE 00:01:24 Rabid (1977) 00:12:42 Contrarians Corner - Wanna know how we really feel about RABID (1977)? Check out the Real Talk (RT) episode, on your feed RIGHT NOW! (or pretty soon — Spotify can be a pain when it comes to refreshing the feed) - Interested in more Contrarians goodness? Join THE CONTRARIANS SUPPLEMENTS on our Patreon Page! Deleted clips, extended plugs, bonus episodes free from the Tomatometer shackles… It’s everything a Contrarians devotee would want! - Our YouTube page is live! Get some visual Contrarians delight with our Contrarians Warm-Ups and other fun videos! - Contrarians Merch is finally here! Check out our RED BUBBLE MERCH PAGE and buy yourself something nice that’s emblazoned with one of our four different designs! - THE FESTIVE YEARS have been letting us use their music for years now and they are amazing. You can check out their work on Spotify, on Facebook or on their very own website. - Our buddy Cory Ahre is being kind enough to lend a hand with the editing of some of our videos. If you like his style, wait until you see what he does over on his YouTube Channel. - THE LATE NIGHT GRIN isn’t just a show about wrestling: it’s a brand, a lifestyle. And they’re very supportive of our Contrarian endeavors, so we’d like to return the favor. Check out their YouTube Channel! You might even spot Alex there from time to time. - Hans Rothgiesser, the man behind our logo, can be reached at @mildemoniospe on Instagram or you can email him at mildemonios@hotmail.com in case you ever need a logo (or comics) produced. And you can listen to him talk about economy on his new TV show, VALOR AGREGADO. Aaaaand you can also check out all the stuff he’s written on his own website. He has a new book: a sort of Economics For Dummies called MARGINAL. Ask him about it!

    56 min

  8. May 15

    Bonus! - Haywire Commentary Track

    As the long-awaited(?) Ronda Rousey Vs. Gina Carano fight looms, Julio and Alex are, once again, joined by Joe and STEVE(!) to reflect on a fighter crossing over to film.As the four travel back to 2012 for Steven Soderbergh's Haywire, the conversation takes some wild, and some very expected, turns.The perfect appetizer for Saturday's Netflix MMA event is here. Grab a drink and join the boys for an (semi)action-packed jaunt! - Interested in more Contrarians goodness? Join THE CONTRARIANS SUPPLEMENTS on our Patreon Page! Deleted clips, extended plugs, bonus episodes free from the Tomatometer shackles… It’s everything a Contrarians devotee would want! - Our YouTube page is live! Get some visual Contrarians delight with our Contrarians Warm-Ups and other fun videos! - Contrarians Merch is finally here! Check out our RED BUBBLE MERCH PAGE and buy yourself something nice that’s emblazoned with one of our four different designs! - THE FESTIVE YEARS have been letting us use their music for years now and they are amazing. You can check out their work on Spotify, on Facebook or on their very own website. - Our buddy Cory Ahre is being kind enough to lend a hand with the editing of some of our videos. If you like his style, wait until you see what he does over on his YouTube Channel. - THE LATE NIGHT GRIN isn’t just a show about wrestling: it’s a brand, a lifestyle. And they’re very supportive of our Contrarian endeavors, so we’d like to return the favor. Check out their YouTube Channel! You might even spot Alex there from time to time. - Hans Rothgiesser, the man behind our logo, can be reached at @mildemoniospe on Instagram or you can email him at mildemonios@hotmail.com in case you ever need a logo (or comics) produced. And you can listen to him talk about economy on his new TV show, VALOR AGREGADO. Aaaaand you can also check out all the stuff he’s written on his own website. He has a new book: a sort of Economics For Dummies called MARGINAL. Ask him about it!

    1h 44m
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4.8
out of 5
57 Ratings

About

Hosts Alex Mattis and Julio Olivera take on popular opinion, trashing movies everyone loves and praising movies everyone hates. Visit their website at www.wearethecontrarians.com

Information

  • Creator
    Alex Mattis & Julio Olivera
  • Years Active
    2015 - 2026
  • Episodes
    300
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Show Website
    The Contrarians