Best Hardbodies Podcasts (2024)

1
Episode 154 - Hardbodies (1984) 48:43

5d ago48:43

48:43

A Malibu dirtbag is recruited by three older men to teach them how to pick up chicks, and a parade of topless women ensues. A world of sex, female bodybuilding, and hair metal opens up for our trio of losers, until one of them takes it too far, and our young dirtbag suddenly has to grow up and grow a pair. Starring Grant Cramer, Courtney Gains, Rob…

1
Episode 155 - Atlantic City (1980) 1:12:10

7h ago1:12:10

1:12:10

An Atlantic City oyster-schucker and an aging gangster are on the run after her ex-husband rips off a Philly drug-running operation. Filmed as the Jersey Shore opened up to gambling, it captures a city under the wrecking ball of an uncertain future. Starring Burt Lancaster, Susan Sarandon, Kate Reid, and Robert Joy. Written by John Guare. Directed …

1
Episode 153 - Witness (1985) 59:12

15d ago59:12

59:12

A young Amish boy witnesses a murder by corrupt Philadelphia cops, leaving a rogue detective to protect the boy and his family from their wrath while hiding in the Pennsylvania countryside. A dreamlike mix of brutal noir, romantic longing, and pastoral comedy, it's one of the rare films that let Ford stretch out as an actor during his action heyday…

1
Episode 152 - Chariots of Fire (1981) 44:31

24d ago44:31

44:31

Just in time for the 2024 Paris Olympics, we visit the 1924 Paris Olympics and the true story of two runners who overcome discrimination--antisemitism, class differences, and religious devotion--to become a team and win the gold. With its iconic Oscar-winning synth score by Vangelis, it also won Best Picture, Screenplay, and Costumes. Starring Ben …

1
Episode 151 - The Great Outdoors (1988) 48:33

1M ago48:33

48:33

John Candy just wants to take his family to the lake for a summer vacation, the last thing he needs is Dan Ackroyd tagging along, humiliating him, and stealing his money. But that's family for you. This feels like an unused National Lampoon's Vacation script, and it turns out, thats exactly what it is. Starring John Candy, Dan Ackroyd, Stephanie Fa…

1
Episode 150 - Tron (1982) 1:06:50

1M ago1:06:50

1:06:50

A computer programmer gets sucked into the mainframe of his former employer and does battle with a malevolent artificial intelligence in a futuristic world right out of a black-light poster. One of Walt Disney Pictures' better forays into science fiction brings us a visually-dazzling world, but that doesn’t quite make up for a story that’s both non…

1
Hollywood Avalon, Episode 15 - The Fisher King (1991) 6:47

2M ago6:47

6:47

An arrogant New York shock-jock's fall from grace is tempered by the debt he owes to an eccentric unhoused man, the woman he loves, and a search for the Holy Grail in Terry Gilliam's magical-realist tale of redemption. Starring Jeff Bridges, Robin Williams, Mercedes Ruehl, Amanda Plummer, and Michael Jeter. Written by Richard LaGravanese. Directed …

1
Episode 149 - The Bad News Bears (1976) 1:00:29

2M ago1:00:29

1:00:29

A washed-up, alcoholic ex-ballplayer is recruited to coach the worst team in little league, and sets off to pull them together into a real team, where the star pitcher is a girl and the best player is a dirtbike-riding juvenile delinquent. It's a classic 1970s snobs-versus-slobs story of rooting for the losers, the bums, the misfits. Starring Walte…

1
Episode 148 - Silver Streak (1976) 1:12:49

2M ago1:12:49

1:12:49

A book editor witnesses a murder during a cross-country trip, and is plunged into a Hitchcockian world of murder and intrigue. Eventually Richard Pryor shows up, and we get some unfortunate blackface. What can I say, it's the 1970s. Starring Gene Wilder, Richard Pryor, Jill Clayburgh, Patrick McGoohan, Ned Beatty, Ray Walston, Scatman Crothers, and…

1
Episode 147 - Hard Boiled (1992) 32:33

2M ago32:33

32:33

A Miami Vice-influenced cross between neo-Noir and over-the-top action, it’s the story of two cops—one an alcoholic detective, the other an undercover cop playing hitman—taking down some Hong Kong gangsters. It has gung-fu, babies in peril, and the boxiest, beigest computers the 1990s could deliver. Starring Chow Yun-fat, Tony Leung, Theresa Mo, Ph…

1
Hollywood Avalon, Episode 14 - Morgane et ses nymphes/Girl Slaves of Morgana Le Fay (1971) 5:04

3M ago5:04

5:04

Young lovers Anna and Françoise, freshly graduated from college, find themselves in a mysterious forest, where they fall prey to Morgan le Fay, the fairy queen of Avalon who rules her magic island as a savage, Sapphic nightmare. For a sleazy erotic horror film, it's much better than it deserves to be--surprisingly atmospheric, with authentic elemen…

1
Episode 146 - Pennies from Heaven (1981) 1:03:23

3M ago1:03:23

1:03:23

A sheet-music salesman's life spirals out of control during the Great Depression, but that doesn't stop him from daydreaming about a better life through song. A film noir plot dressed up as a big, Busby Berkeley-style musical comedy, this remake of a British tv series was a massive box-office bomb, but has become a cult favorite. Starring Steve Mar…

1
Episode 145 - Footloose (1984) 45:10

3M ago45:10

45:10

In a world where dancing is banned, only one boy has the courage to stand up to the religious fanatics denying his magical feet. Or something. I guess. Starring Kevin Bacon, John Lithgow, Lori Singer, Diane Weist, and Christ Penn. Written by Dean Pitchford. Directed by Herbert Ross.By Mary Jones & Dennis Lingg

1
Episode 144 - Over the Edge (1979) 1:11:26

3M ago1:11:26

1:11:26

Bored suburban kids get into trouble, hassled by the cops until it turns deadly, and ending in an orgy of destruction--a pretty familiar American story. Sitting somewhere between low-budget exploitation films and more thoughtful, nervy fair, this cult movie pulls off having its cake and eating it, exploring the root causes of juvenile delinquency w…

1
Episode 143 - Stranger Than Paradise (1984) 1:16:50

4M ago1:16:50

1:16:50

A gambler's cousin shows up from Hungary and suddenly turns his dirtbag life upsidedown, sending them on a roadtrip around America. Starring John Lurie, Eszter Balint, and Richard Edson. Written and directed by Jim Jarmusch.By Mary Jones & Dennis Lingg

1
Hollywood Avalon 13 - Camelot, Part II 9:19

4M ago9:19

9:19

We return to Camelot with a look at the 1967 film production of the Lerner & Loewe musical, again starring Richard Harris as King Arthur. At three hours, it's an overly-long production that loses steam in its third hour, but the first two are lush and often inspired, and possibly the best-looking movie we've covered for the show. Starring Richard H…

1
Episode 142 - Eating Raoul (1982) 40:49

4M ago40:49

40:49

A black comedy about a sexually-repressed couple who fund their dream of opening a restaurant by posing as sex workers and robbing and murdering Los Angeles swingers. When a local thief worms his way into the scheme, everything goes haywire, jeopardizing their chance at the American Dream. Starring Paul Bartel, Mary Waronov, Robert Beltran, Susan S…

1
Episode 141 - D.A.R.Y.L. (1985) 41:00

4M ago41:00

41:00

A mysterous boy is adopted by a couple and soon shows himself to be unnervingly perfect. Is he really a robot? Maybe even a secret military project? Yeah, of course he is, this is the 1980s. It's not great. Starring Barret Oliver, Michael McKean, and Mary Beth Hurt. Written by David Ambrose, Allan Scott, and Jeffrey Ellis. Directed by John Heyman…

1
Episode 140 - Dream a Little Dream (1989) 1:02:53

4M ago1:02:53

1:02:53

We welcome back Alana Phelan to the show to talk about a Corey Feldman-Corey Haim fantasy with weirdo philosopher Jason Robards inhabiting Feldman's body as he tries to romance Meredith Salinger. It's a very weird movie loved by this weeks' guest. Starring Corey Feldman, Corey Haim, Meredith Salinger, Jason Robards, Piper Laurie, and Harry Dean Sta…

1
Episode 139 - Dragnet (1987) 41:29

5M ago41:29

41:29

Dan Ackroyd's misguided take on the copaganda classic Dragnet was a huge disappointment when Dennis saw it in theaters back in 1987. Does his opinion hold up? Or is the film even worse than he remembers? Should he have talked Mary out of covering this at all? But at least we finally get to cover a Tom Hanks movie for the show, right? Starring Dan A…

1
Hollywood Avalon, episode 12 - Camelot, Part I (1960/1981) 4:37

5M ago4:37

4:37

We start the first of a two-part series examining the musical Camelot, the Broadway hit based on T.H. White’s The Once and Future King, which I recently re-read in preparation. For part one, we look at both the original cast recording from 1960, as well as two clips from the Ed Sullivan show, featuring Richard Burton as King Arthur and Julie Andrew…

1
Episode 138 - Rock 'n' Roll Nightmare (1987) 42:41

5M ago42:41

42:41

We finish "Dennis versus the movies" with a very silly Canadian hair metal horror movie wherein Jon Mikl Thor battles a rubbery devil. It's the kind of goofy trash they used to show at 3 a.m. when we were a proper country. Starring Jon Mikl Thor. Written by Jon Mikl Thor. Directed by John Fasano.By Mary Jones & Dennis Lingg.

1
Episode 137 - The Last Unicorn (1982) 1:10:55

5M ago1:10:55

1:10:55

The Rankin-Bass adaptation of Peter S. Beagle's fairy tale about the last unicorn in the world and the small band of humans who help her is a melancholy story gorgeously animated by the Japanese studio Topcraft. This was a favorite movie of Mary's as a kid, but completely unknown to Dennis. This month, we fix that. Starring Mia Farrow, Alan Arkin, …

1
Episode 136 - After Hours (1985) 1:03:17

5M ago1:03:17

1:03:17

"Dennis vs. the Movies" continues with a look at Martin Scorsese's black comedy about a yuppie who meets the wrong woman, is stranded overnight in Soho, and hunted by an angry mob. It's a comedic take on the country's feelings about New York, expressed in other film of the period--a terrifying, lawless place, Escape from New York, The Warriors, "th…

1
Episode 135 - The Great Muppet Caper (1981) with special guest Zach Woliner 1:20:56

5M ago1:20:56

1:20:56

We kick off "Dennis versus the movies" month with a viewing of the second Muppet movie, The Great Muppet Caper, in which the Muppets go to England and get tangled up with Charles Grodin and a jewel heist. Joining us is our special guest, Zach Woliner, a puppeteer and children's entertainer. Starring Jim Henson, Frank Oz, Dave Goelz, Jerry Nelson, R…

1
Episode 134 - Wild At Heart (1990) 47:10

6M ago47:10

47:10

David Lynch's violent romantic drama plays like William Faulkner had written The Wizard of Oz starring Elvis Presley--a strange, campy, Southern Gothic road trip through America that Lynch described as "a love story in Hell". Starring Nicolas Cage, Laura Dern, Willem Dafoe, Diane Ladd, Harry Dean Stanton, and Isabella Rossellini.…

1
Episode 133 - Mona Lisa (1986) 44:27

6M ago44:27

44:27

Neil Jordan's neo-noir romance about a jailbird driver, a high-priced escort, and the mob boss running everything is a bleak, sometimes-funny look at duplicity, delusion, and the seedy side of London. Starring Bob Hoskins, Cathy Tyson, Michael Caine, Robbie Coltrane, and Clarke Peters. Written by Neil Jordan and David Leland, and directed by Neil J…

1
Hollywood Avalon, Episode 11 - Unidentified Flying Oddball 5:29

6M ago5:29

5:29

From the nadir of Disney filmmaking comes yet another spin on Mark Twain's Connecticut Yankee, this time featuring Dennis Dugan as a NASA engineer accidentally sent back in time with his android twin Hermes. It's not the worst movie we've covered for the show--the supporting cast of English comedians as Arthur's court are fine--but it's not exactly…

1
Episode 132 - My Beautiful Launderette (1985) 41:55

6M ago41:55

41:55

Omar, a young Brit from a Pakistani family, and his boyfriend Johnny, a former skinhead, attempt to open the nicest laundromat in London while tackling issues of family, race, class, sex, crime, and Thatcher-era austerity. Starring Saeed Jaffrey, Roshan Seth, Daniel Day-Lewis, Gordon Warnecke, and Shirley Anne Field. Written by Hanif Kureishi and d…

1
Episode 131 -A Room With a View (1985) 50:13

6M ago50:13

50:13

Merchant-Ivory's lush adaptation of E.M. Forster's novel of romantic struggle against Edwardian repression is the best possible version of those PBS dramas your mom likes to watch--better, even, because this one has full frontal male nudity. Starring Helena Bonham Carter, Julian Sands, Maggie Smith, Denholm Elliott, Daniel Day-Lewis, Judi Dench, an…

1
Episode 130 - Liquid Sky (1982) 47:30

7M ago47:30

47:30

New York's hottest club is Liquid Sky. This club has everything: heroin, David Bowie impersonators, aliens, necrophelia, shrimp, cocaine, a Fairlight CMI synthesizer, Germans, murder, and anorgasmia. (A UFO causes havoc in the New York downtown art scene, where sex and drugs mix together with casual cruelty and sometimes murder. It's pretty cool.) …

1
Episode 129 - Tetsuo: The Iron Man (1989) 37:02

7M ago37:02

37:02

It's a cyberpunk body-horror story of sex and violence, shot through with the kind of late 1980s indie movie aesthetics that we seriously miss, sitting somewhere between David Lynch and MTV. Starring Shinya Tsukamoto, Tomorowo Taguchi, and Kei Fujiwara. Written and directed by Shinya Tsukamoto.By Mary Jones & Dennis Lingg

1
Hollywood Avalon - Episode 10 - The Green Knight 5:33

7M ago5:33

5:33

David Lowrey’s rewriting of the medieval poem Sir Gawaine and the Green Knight is well-acted, and has some lovely art direction, it ultimately misses the mark in several ways: the CGI is murky, the crucial section at Sir Bertilak’s castle is truncated, and the ending is muddled at best. The poem having an ambiguous meaning is fine—you can debate wh…

1
Episode 128 - Misery (1990) 52:30

7M ago52:30

52:30

Toxic fandom by way of Stephen King, with one of the most famous torture scenes in cinema. Look, our fans are great, and we're gonna keep saying that, please put down the hammer. Starring James Caan, Kathy Bates, Richard Farnsworth, Frances Sternhagen, and Lauren Bacall. Written by William Goldman and directed by Rob Reiner.…

1
Episode 127 - Matinee (1993) 45:57

7M ago45:57

45:57

Joe Dante's love letter to the midcentury monster movie, nestled in a comedy about a William Castle-type director promoting a film in the Florida Keys during the Cuban Missile Crisis, is a deliriously silly movie that feels made for Mary and Dennis. Starring John Goodman, Cathy Moriarty, Simon Fenton, Omri Katz, Lisa Jakub, Kellie Martin, Jesse Lee…

1
Episode 126 - Diner (1982) 1:02:13

8M ago1:02:13

1:02:13

Barry Levinson’s first film, set in that quiet week between Christmas and New Year’s Day, is a surprisingly smart examination of young men and relationships, and why people should (or shouldn’t) get married. It’s nostalgic without being overly sentimental, looking back at 1959 not as some golden age of youth, but simply another, earlier time, and n…

1
Episode 125 - The Dead (1987) 1:00:55

8M ago1:00:55

1:00:55

John Huston's final film is a surprisingly warm adaptation of James Joyce's short story about a Twelfth Night Christmas party that shows the cracks in a marriage, opening up questions about love, identity, and how well we can truly know one another. Starring Anjelica Huston, Donal McCann, Helena Carroll, Cathleen Delany, Dan O'Herlihy, Donal Donnel…

1
Episode 124 - The Leprechauns' Christmas Gold (1981) 37:53

9M ago37:53

37:53

Rankin-Bass are responsible for several classics, from The Hobbit and The Last Unicorn to Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and Santa Claus is Comin' to Town. This is not one of them. No, it's twee Stage Irish nonsense with Americans doing terrible accents, and a complete misunderstanding what a banshee (bean sí) is. Also, apparently St. Patrick is a …

1
Hollywood Avalon episode 9 - Four Bugs Bunny Cartoons 6:25

9M ago6:25

6:25

We're surveying a selection of Bugs Bunny cartoons, all with a medieval theme, some of which are explicitly Arthurian. The earliest, "Knights Must Fall", is a pretty generic burlesque of Bugs Bunny versus a powerful knight, but draws some inspiration from A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, especially in Bugs's use of locomotives and whatn…

1
Episode 123 - The Big Chill (1983) 1:15:15

9M ago1:15:15

1:15:15

Two hours of upper-middle-class naval-gazing? A poison pill of nostaliga? An exericize in self-loathing? A critique of ex-hippies who sold out? Or an attempt at excusing "going straight" and embracing being a yuppie? Maybe it's all those things. Or maybe that's putting too much weight to put on a movie that's mostly a small drama about people comin…

1
Episode 122 - Red Dawn (1984) 1:02:08

9M ago1:02:08

1:02:08

A right-wing paranoid fantasy where a Cuban-Russian communist invasion is defeated by child soldiers in Colorado should be a lot more fun than this incoherent slog of a movie. Politics aside, this movie just isn't very good, with interchangable characters and a plot that feels stitched together from boys' adventure magazines and John Bircher rags. …

1
Episode 121 - The Day After (1983) 59:36

9M ago59:36

59:36

A dark and sober look at the consequences of a nuclear war between the US and USSR, full of panic and confusion, and surprisingly light on sensationalism, released at the height of the Cold War. Still one of the highest-rated tv programs of all time, and possibly influential enough to get Reagan to come to the table for armament talks. Starring Jas…

1
Hollywood Avalon episode 8 - King Arthur (2004) 7:02

10M ago7:02

7:02

Well, here we go--a movie which boldly asks "what if we took the Arthur legend and made it Dances with Wolves meets the atheism subreddit?" Starring Clive Owen, Keira Knightley, Stellan Skarsgard, Mads Mikkelsen, Ioan Gruffudd, and Ray Winstone. Directed by Antoine Fuqua. Written by Dave Franzoni. To hear the entire episode, join the Mary Versus th…

1
Episode 120 - Ruthless People (1986) 54:54

10M ago54:54

54:54

The Spandex King of L.A. is delighted when his wife is kidnapped by two bumbling criminals, less so when he's blackmailed by two even more incompent criminals. It's "The Ransom of Red Chief" in high 1980s Memphis-Milano decor. Starring Danny DeVito, Bette Midler, Judge Reinhold, Helen Slater, Anita Morris, and Bill Pullman. Directed by Jim Abrams, …

1
Episode 119 - Re-Animator (1985) 1:11:41

10M ago1:11:41

1:11:41

Loosely based on an H.P. Lovecraft novella and produced by the maker of Society, Re-Animator is the gory, gross, graphic, and goofy parody of Frankenstein that spawned a horror-comedy franchise. After a screening at the gallery/studio Space 1026, we interviewed Bruce (@gumball_eyes), the curator for the film series Space Melt, and talked about the …

1
Episode 118 - Waxwork (1988) 1:36:14

10M ago1:36:14

1:36:14

We bring back writer Alana Phelan (@hellolibrarian) to talk about the horror-comedy Waxwork, which features the great David Warner doing his best Vincent Price impression as the villainous owner of a waxwork museum, and a group of college students as his victims. Starring Zach Galligan, Deborah Foreman, Michelle Johnson, David Warner, Dana Ashbrook…

1
Episode 117 - The Lair of the White Worm (1988) 57:26

11M ago57:26

57:26

This adaptation of a Bram Stoker novel is a campy bit of folk horror about a villainous pagan priestess who feeds the unsuspecting to the subterranean serpent she worships, and the hapless villagers who battle her, including a young archaeologist, a pair of sisters whose parents are missing, and the foppish local lord. It’s a Ken Russell film, so n…

1
Hollywood Avalon episode 7 - King Arthur Was a Gentleman (1942) 10:10

11M ago10:10

10:10

We jump back to the 1940s for a little British war-time musical about a nerd who is joins the army, is tricked into thinking he's found Excalibur, and decides to capture Nazis using it in a real "Dumbo's feather" situation. It's slight, silly, and mostly harmless. This is a preview of the episode, part of our series Hollywood Avalon, a podcast dedi…

1
Episode 116 - Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) 1:02:30

11M ago1:02:30

1:02:30

An Indiana electrician encounters a UFO and goes insane, a baby is abducted by aliens, and scienists have a battle of the bands against a spaceship. Steven Spielberg's follow-up to the massive success of Jaws turns out to be a blueprint for the rest of his filmography: the dissolution of the nuclear family through parental abandonment; strong relig…

1
Episode 115 - 2010: The Year We Make Contact (1984) 1:25:36

11M ago1:25:36

1:25:36

This sequel to Stanley Kubrick's visionary masterpiece 2001: a Space Odyssey is a frustrating, uneven, but ultimately enjoyable and well-done science fiction film that is more about the need for world peace and space exploration than Kubrick's grappling with the mystery of consciousness and what it means to be human. Not the groundbreaking weirdnes…

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