Tag: indie

054 – Immortel, ad vitam

Egyptian gods in Immortel, ad vitem (2004)

Niel Jacoby (@fuckinalpamare on Twitter) joins us to ask: just what the hell is Immortel, ad vitam? It appears to be an incomprehensible dystopian flick based on an incomprehensible graphic novel. We spend a lot of time mocking the movie’s incredibly cavalier attitude towards sexual assault.

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The film is based on a graphic novel by Enki Bilal. Remarkably, Bilal was allowed to direct the film in spite of having only one feature and a couple of shorts under his belt.

Along with films like Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow and Sin City, Immortel, ad Vitam was part of a new wave of “digital backlot” movies. This refers to movies made entirely in a green screen environment.

We highly recommend Niel’s very funny podcast (and maybe the only one about Timothy Spall), Spall Talk!

For some much better big-budget sci-fi, try our episode on Event Horizon.

053 – Interstate 60, Part 1

Have you heard of Interstate 60? It’s what we call a “Tim movie”—that is, a movie that only Tim seems to have seen. We go incredibly deep, even though the movie probably didn’t merit it. So much so that you’re getting a two-parter!

Interstate 60 was written by the guy who co-wrote Back to the Future and it’s tailor-made for dads who wistfully scroll through classics dot autotrader dot com on weekends.

Hear the whole episode at our Patreon and get access to more than 50 bonus episodes!

For Part 2, click here.

042 – Romeo & Romeo

Jen and Tim welcome a mysterious podcast newbie to praise a magnificent work of queer cinema to the skies: Romeo & Romeo. We’re not kidding, you need to watch this movie, and how fortuitous that it’s on YouTube!

No seriously, you absolutely have to watch this movie. Here’s a clip:

For more outsider cinema, why not try our episode on Canadian horror classic Things?

037 – Return of the Ghostbusters

Jen, Tim, and guest Kristian Boruff dissect something even more pointless than Funko Pops: a Ghostbusters fan film from 2007! It’s called Return of the Ghostbusters, and Kris does not care about burning bridges in this episode.

If you must see it for yourself, it’s on YouTube.

035 – Things


Just in time for Halloween, Tim and Jen attempt to make head or tail of a 1989 homebrew Canadian movie called Things! Possibly one of the worst and most inexplicable movies ever made, Things went direct-to-video…and straight to our hearts.

Jen LOVES this shit

Don’t miss these outtakes and bloopers from Things, posted by the writer/producer himself, Barry J. Gillis!

Our friends at Severin Films have Things on DVD! Yes, that specific thing called Things, the movie from 1989! Third base!

For more incredibly stupid horror, listen to our episode on Truth or Dare: A Critical Madness.

025 – Wonder Boy

Wonder Boy (2010) title screen, with writer credit for Robin Morningstar

Jen and Tim are joined by writer K. Thor Jensen to discuss a true example of an outsider movie, Wonder Boy. It turns out that Uwe Boll is only the second worst video-game-based film director currently living.

K. Thor Jensen’s article on Wonder Boy, which includes a link to the…well, it’s barely a movie: Wonder Boy is the Most Bizarre Video Game Movie Ever Made

Update: As of 2021, the movie has disappeared from YouTube and other video upload sites. But in 2011 someone put it on DVD, we assume the creators.

For more internet madness, listen to our episode on weird algorithm-generated YouTube videos!

022 – The Evil Within

Jen and Tim take a look at a singular auteur statement: a movie called The Evil Within. It’s a nasty little film made by a reclusive oil fortune heir on his own dime. Turns out it’s…pretty good!

Watch the trailer for The Evil Within:

People Magazine covered the story of filmmaker Andrew Getty soon after The Evil Within’s posthumous release in 2017.

For more weird horror, listen to our episode on Dutch anomaly The Johnsons!

005 – The Wizard of Speed and Time (1989)

Jen welcomes special guest Paul Jay (Twitter: @pauljaycomic) for today’s episode, in which we discuss The Wizard of Speed and Time! We’re a little hard on filmmaker Mike Jittlov, perhaps unfairly— WoSaT producer Richard Kaye allegedly absconded with the film’s completion money, and Jittlov himself considers the project to be only 75% done.

Jittlov started as a math and language major at UCLA back in the 60s, but an animation elective awakened him to his true calling. His breathtaking, award-winning short films led to work at Disney, where he clashed with execs over his desire to be credited for his work. After The Wizard of Speed and Time’s drawn-out production period, Jittlov worked on some major film projects (including Ghost, in which he was responsible for animating the dark spirits that drag Tony Goldwyn to hell). Later, he spent the 90s making the rounds of conventions and screening his only feature for his devoted fans. He still lives in the LA area, and if anyone knows what he’s up to lately, please drop us a line!

The Night Flight website has an excellent write-up about Jittlov and The Wizard of Speed and Time here.

Mike Jittlov’s personal website