Happy 2017! We're kicking off the new year with Lyndsey's treasured VHS copy of Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey, the 1993 Disney remake about three pets -- wise Golden RetrieverShadow (Don Amiche), pompous Himalayan cat Sassy (Sally Field), and scrappy American Bulldog Chance (Michael J. Fox) -- who try to find their way back home after a serious miscommunication from their milquetoast owners. Trailers include montages for the Disney Family Film Collection and the Disney Masterpiece Collection.
Episode 40: ELVES
A chain-smoking department store Santa must stop a Nazi plot to create a new master race of two-foot elves on Christmas Eve! No, we're not making this up. It's 1989's Elves, starring Dan Haggerty (Grizzly Adams), a deep cut from Sean's holiday VHS collection. Topics include the trailer for Alien Seed, incest, rape culture, conspiracy theories, weirdo professors, cover art, and our favorite VHS Instagram accounts.
Episode 39: TO GRANDMOTHER'S HOUSE WE GO
Ho, ho, ho! For the holiday season, Lyndsey revisits her VHS copy of the Olsen twins classic, To Grandmother's House We Go from Full House creator Jeff Franklin. The film stars Mary-Kate and Ashley (of course), with co-stars Cynthia Geary, J. Eddie Peck, Rhea Perlman, and Jerry Van Dyke. Topics include egg nog cocktails, the absence of likable characters, and a major ethical dilema that goes largely ignored. Trailers: The Little Princess, The Secret Garden, Black Beauty, and a lot of Dual Star productions.
Episode 38: MAD MAX
In a flailing spiral of stomach-churning agony and dread, Disney's Tom and Huck did not seem like an appropriate choice for the historical moment that is November 2016, so we watched Sean's VHS copy of the 1979 post-apocalyptic classic Mad Max, starring Mel Gibson and directed by George Miller. Topics of discussion include the awful American dub, Goodtimes Entertainment, The Road Warrior, Mad Max: Fury Road, simple storytelling, and the complete lack of exposition in this film. No trailers on the tape.
Episode 37: BEAUTY AND THE BEAST
In this episode, Lyndsey selects her VHS copy of 1991's Beauty and the Beast, the beloved animated film that upped the bar for the Disney renaissance of the 1990s. Trailers discussed: Aladdin, Sleeping Beauty, Pinocchio, and 101 Dalmations.
Episode 36: HALLOWEEN / HALLOWEEN II / HALLOWEEN H20 (1978-1998)
Dee-doo-doo-dee-doo-doo-dee-doo-dee-doo! This time we're doing not one, not two, but THREE spooky VHS selections with Sean's own specially curated "chillogy" (or "thrillogy") of select films in the Halloween series, specifically John Carpenter's classic 1978 original, Rick Rosenthal's direct sequel Halloween II, and Steve Miner's polished Halloween: H20, all starring Jamie Lee Curtis in her breakout role of Laurie Strode. Topics include Dean Cundey's beautiful cinematography, Donald Pleasance as Michael Myers' deranged hype man Dr. Loomis, the music, the masks, those other sequels, and so much more!
Episode 35: THE WITCHES
Happy Halloween! For the spookiest month of the year, Lyndsey selects her VHS copy of 1990's The Witches, based on the Roald Dahl book of the same name and starring Angelica Huston as the grand high witch.
