The Contrarians

Alex Mattis & Julio Olivera

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. 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
  2. 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

  3. 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

  4. May 13

    FIRF #9 - Wag the Dog

    The ninth installment of Fresh Immigrants, Rotten Fascists features a presidential sex scandal, and the (fake) war the White House creates to distract from it. WAG THE DOG could have been written yesterday! Although you could argue Robert DeNiro, Anne Heche, and Dustin Hoffman are waaaaaay more competent than the crooks we get in the real world…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 3m

  5. May 5

    266 - Pt. 2 - Dennis the Menace (RT)

    It’s hard to think anyone could argue against the cast of this DENNIS THE MENACE adaptation. It’s not just Matthau, Thompson, and Christopher Lloyd doing solid work, but also Mason Gamble as Dennis, holding his own against them. And it’s directed by Nick Castle, the original Michael Myers? We can all agree it’s an artifact of interest at least. But is it a good movie too, or does it only work if you let nostalgia for the 90s (and perhaps your own childhood) overwhelm you? TIMELINE 00:01:26 Only been around for five years 00:02:27 Real Talk 00:49:59 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 to a time when Robert DeNiro, Anne Heche, and Dustin Hoffman faked a war to distract from a presidential sex scandal in WAG THE DOG! Then, our 2026 Summer event begins: FROM BEDROOM TO BOX OFFICE opens with a Contrarians episode about the David Cronenberg horror RABID! In the meantime, let us know what you thought of Dennis the Menace: Did it make you yearn for simpler, screen-less times? Will there ever be a better Mr. Wilson than Walter Matthau? Would you sign up for the Lea Thompson spinoff? E-mail us at wearethecontrarians@gmail.com or share your thoughts with us on Threads or BlueSky!

    1 hr

  6. May 5

    266 - Pt. 1 - Dennis the Menace (CC)

    We’ve been around our fair share of children and we can assure you, there is far worse than poor Dennis out there. That’s not to say that DENNIS THE MENACE doesn’t work as a brutal takedown of bad parenting and the crux carried by the community that has to deal with a spoiled kid. With a 28% on the Tomatometer, this Walter Matthau vehicle (no, he doesn’t play Dennis) is screaming for a Contrarians defense! So listen to Alex & Julio as they celebrate the return of Lea Thompson to the show and commiserate for the unfairly reviled Mr. Wilson. TIMELINE 00:01:24 Dennis the Menace 00:16:46 Contrarians Corner - Wanna know how we really feel about DENNIS THE MENACE? 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!

    58 min

  7. Apr 23

    265 - Pt. 2 - Rye Lane (RT)

    Like Westerns and Musicals, Romantic Comedies keep being pronounced dead and then fighting their way back into relevance. RYE LANE is certainly a strong effort to revive the genre, even if it doesn’t reinvent the wheel the way some of the critical acclaim proclaims. Does it matter if you have a good time? And can you have a good time if you are very much over some of the tropes the movie embraces? Let’s find out in this Real Talk segment! TIMELINE 00:01:26 The arms are nice 00:02:24 Real Talk 00:44:02 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, we witness an unexpected Back to the Future reunion in the 90s classic (?) DENNIS THE MENACE! In the meantime, let us know what you thought of Rye Lane: A successful adrenaline shot to the romcom genre? A bit too try-hard? A worthy entry in the Garden State echelon of cringe quirkiness? E-mail us at wearethecontrarians@gmail.com or share your thoughts with us on Threads or BlueSky!

    49 min

  8. Apr 23

    265 - Pt. 1 - Rye Lane (CC)

    When you take the concept of the Manic Pixie Dream Girl and you apply it to an entire movie - making a Manic Pixie Dream Film, if you will - you get RYE LANE. And you know what, critics are so starved for romcoms that the super quirky romance between David Jonsson and Vivian Oparah received an impressive 98% score on the Tomatometer. How could we resist? Listen to Alex & Julio grind their teeth and make their way through the British equivalent of a Zooey Deschanel vehicle. TIMELINE 00:01:24 Rye Lane 00:14:25 Contrarians Corner - Wanna know how we really feel about RYE LANE? 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!

    49 min
See All (300)

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

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