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Don’t Push Pause is a monthly podcast bringing you discussions on movies from the 70s, 80s and 90s. DPP consists of a main discussion on a featured film, followed up by our Picks of the Week, and closing with our signature (Bill) Murray Moment.
Episodes
Monday Nov 12, 2018
Monday Nov 12, 2018
A dark November begins with our most controversial movie yet, Larry Clark’s, Kids (1995). It received an NC-17 rating upon its release, and in the subsequent years, a lot of kids have felt accurately represented on film, while parents are still shocked and the rest of the world feels sucker-punched in the gut. Nineteen-year-old Harmony Korine wrote this film about an unsupervised teenage world full of immediate gratification, curiosity, unbridled vulgarity and never thinking about consequences. Kids was a wake-up call to the world.
▶️ Taking place in a 24-hour time span, Kids follows a teen girl who, after having sex with only one person, discovers she’s been infected with HIV. She spends the rest of the movie trying to track the boy down. In between and intertwined with the main story, the film is a voyeuristic endeavor into teenage lives concerned only with drugs, sex, talkin’ smack and lots of partying. We’ll discuss the issues tackled by the controversial film, emotionally difficult scenes, how Kids sparked the careers for its director, writer, all main actors, including Chloë Sevigny and Rosario Dawson, and why this film is still important over 20 years later.
▶️ Picks of the Week go in different directions this time out. Justin went with a shocking, yet analytical depiction of how a group of teens deal with a murder of a close friend in The River’s Edge (1986). Lindsay takes us to the beginning of the end of a bygone era, filled with transparent friendships and elitist, bourgeoise college grads in The Last Days of Disco (1998).
▶️ Maybe Billy Murray wasn’t a careless, New York club-goin’ skateboarder like the ones in Kids, but he did cause some trouble in his youth. Find out how he once got kicked off a plane and arrested in this week’s MurrayMoment!
▶️ Kids may be jarring and harsh, but its ugliness is effective and meaningful. One can assume the message is only about practicing safe sex, but the honest and impactful generational voice of the film should serve as an eye-opening story that goes deeper. Take a moment to let yourself be submerged into the world of Kids — it’ll be an experience you won’t soon forget. Viewer discretion is advised.
Monday Oct 29, 2018
Monday Oct 29, 2018
Finally, the Halloween episode has arrived! And no other movie better illustrates the scary, fun-loving spirit of the season than Tom Holland’s Fright Night (1985). It’s not just a run-of-the-mill vampire flick... it’s responsible for altering the entire vampy genre, which has been around since the beginning of moviemaking. In the years that preceded Fright Night, many felt the vampire genre had become stale and played out, definitely moving away from being anywhere near terrifying. And in 1985, writer/director Holland changed the vampire genre landscape forever.
▶️ Fright Night skillfully blends horror and comedy, which makes for a supremely fun and entertaining film. When a teen boy-next-door type discovers his charming new neighbor is an enthralling and murderous vampire, how will he ever convince anyone to believe him? We dive into how this film reinvigorated the vampire genre with fresh blood (pun intended) and a different take on vampires, the smartly casted crew of actors, practical special effects vs. digital effects, the hauntingly sexy synth-heavy soundtrack and how a simple idea with a smartly written script can result in brilliance.
▶️ Picks of the Fright Night Week hold strong to the vampire genre. Justin chose Near Dark (1987) with Bill Paxton, an early film by Kathryn Bigelow that departed from typical vampire movies, this time going for more a western-style, action film. Lindsay went for Once Bitten (1985), a Jim Carrey vampire comedy roped into teen sex-comedies of the day more so than the vampire parody realm.
▶️ Who woulda known there was a way to connect Billy to Fright Night’s Roddy McDowall!? Find out how in this week’s MurrayMoment deep cut!
▶️ Fright Night isn’t a tired old vampire yarn and it’s not a slick, teen vampire movie either. Holland’s self-referential, directorial debut means to scare, while making you smile at the same time. It’s a treat for horror fans, and for those non-horrorheads ... You may actually enjoy being frightened this time out!
Monday Oct 22, 2018
Monday Oct 22, 2018
Bonus episode time! And in celebration of Halloween, we wanted to stick to a classic horror film — Wes Craven’s A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984). It’s the movie that revived the tired slasher genre of the 1980s with a pizza-faced, claw-wielding fiend named Fred Krueger. Nightmare made him a household name, spawned six sequels and influenced countless films after it. Non-stop merchandising for Nightmare still persists today, thus showing what a strong hold the film still has on the psyche of anyone who crosses Krueger’s path.
▶️ A Nightmare on Elm Street follows a group of kids being terrorized by the same murderous creeper in their dreams, Freddy Krueger. The film easily attacks the subconscious because there’s no physical way to escape these terrifying dreams. We’ll dive deeper into the dearly departed Wes Craven’s career and how he came up with Nightmare, some history of the film, the legacy of the franchise, Robert Englund and Heather Langenkamp, as well as why Nightmare is still significant to the horror genre.
▶️ Both Picks of the Week were inspired by Wes Craven, of course. Justin goes for a surprisingly shocking, under-the-radar Craven film about black magic and living zombies, The Serpent and the Rainbow (1988). Lindsay revisits The People Under the Stairs (1991), a title you may remember, but have forgotten the sociopolitical element of eating the rich and disturbing humor under the surface.
▶️ For this extra special Episode 15, Lindsay and Justin are inspired to share their own worst nightmares. And who knows, maybe they have something in common!
▶️ What real-life person have both Billy and Nightmare’s Johnny Depp portrayed in separate movies? Although having a shared experience, Billy had a warning to give Depp for the future of his career. Find out the details in this weeks MurrayMoment!
▶️ No matter how dated it seems at times, the complexity of Nightmare’s story remains solid and deeper than ever expected, especially since it originated 30 years ago. It’s still a strong, smart film that never lets up. Our bonus episode this week is jam-packed with everything A Nightmare on Elm Street, so don’t. fall. asleep.