They Must Be Destroyed On Sight!

Lee and Daniel let their freaks off the leash this week as they cover Tod Browning's "Freaks" from 1932. Some of the topics brought up: is the film a horror film?; does it exploit the actual freaks who performed in the film?; who are the real freaks?; the background of some of the performers; early anti-eugenic stances just before the Nazis came to power in Germany; how this film ruined Tod Browning's career; and if a remake would be possible. Also, Lee uses the soundboard software he bought and plays a live .mp3 listener comment. The hosts respond to other listener comments and talk about what they have watched as of late. Get your freak on! If you would like to submit an audio message, send your .mp3 here: houglyreviews@gmail.com "Freaks" IMDB  Featured Music: "Pinhead" by The Ramones; "Circus" & "Lucky Day (Overture)" by Tom Waits.

Lee and Daniel have made their way back to the 1930s this week. This time out they look at two films from 1931; one of which holds up really well and another that doesn't at all. Between the witty and energetic script and camera moves of "The Front Page" and the slow, plodding mystery of "The Black Camel", they'll let you guess which is which. Things talked about: RIP Ennio Morricone; how Charlie Chan was considered progressive on Asian stereotypes in its day; yellow face; the real man behind Charlie Chan; a bit of the history of Hawaii; Lucy Liu; fancy camera moves in 1931; a mother-fucker with a banjo; taking shits and having drinks in a movie; listener comments and what the hosts have watched as of late. "The Black Camel" IMDB  "The Front Page" IMDB  Featured Music: "Uheuhene" by Sol Hoopii; "Na Lei O Hawaii" by Alfred Apaka; and "By the Light of the Silvery Moon" by Joan Edwards.

Lee and Daniel are back this week to walk the path to enlightenment and talk about Jim Jarmusch's "Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai" (1999). Much talk of bullshit codes of honour is had. Also covered: communication without having a common language; sad gangsters watching cartoons; Lee's theory about a slightly hidden subplot in the film; and why are so many homeless people living on the top of buildings in this film? Listener comments are also read. Now, sit back, un-screw that drain-pipe, and take aim. "Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai" IMDB Featured Music: "Samurai Theme" by The RZA & "Armagideon Time" by Willie Williams.

Lee is back with some lesser known misfits, outright strangers - and, of course, a few well-known - selections from Cowboy Pasta scores that are not from Ennio Morricone. Lee also reads some comments from someone whose work has been featured on a past episode of BotT! There's probably too much talking on this one. Sorry about that. --Djurado Seq. 9 from "Djurado" (1966) --Gianni Ferrio --Seq. 2 from "Colt in the Hand of the Devil" (1967) --Gian Piero Reverberi --Sandstorm from "Requiem for a Gringo" (1968) --Angelo Francesco Lavagnino --Crying from "A Hole In The Forehead" (1968) --Roberto Pregadio & Walter Rizzati --Seven Men from "Seven Winchesters for a Massacre" (1967) --Francesco de Masi --Main Titles from "A Stranger in Paso Bravo" (1968) --Angelo Francesco Lavagnino --Titles (Alternate Version) from "If You Meet Sartana Pray For Your Death" (1968) --Piero Piccioni --Travel from "A Train for Durango" (1968) --Carlo Rustichelli --Main Titles from "The Night of the Serpent" (1969) --Riz Ort

Lee and Daniel continue to insist that their picks for 1990s movies were not intentionally made in relation to current events. That being said, this week it's John Sayles "Lone Star" (1996), which is a tale of race relations, bad cops, and hidden secrets in a small border town between Mexico and the USA. Fathers and sons; racism even within cultures; police corruption; and the bullshit of the Cold Winter Theory are just a few of the thing talked about, along with the brilliant performances and Sayles flashback techniques. Listener comments are also covered. "Lone Star" IMDB  Featured Music: "Down on the Rio Grande" by Johnny Rodríguez & "Blue and Lonesome" by Little Walter.

Daniel, Lee, Kerry and Greg have a fun chat about a really fun MCU film, "Guardians of the Galaxy" from 2014. The hosts spend a lot of time just talking about their favourite moments in this first real look into the outer space side of the MCU, and discuss how this snarky action-comedy manages to softball pitch the viewer a shit ton of world building and main plot threads for future films in the series. "Guardians of the Galaxy" IMDB  Featured Music: "Come and Get Your Love" by Redbone.

Lee (who is half in the bag as this starts) and Daniel are back to look at a 1990s favourite of theirs, that being Kathryn Bigelow's "Strange Days" (1995). The hosts talk a lot about how well the sci-fi and noir elements are melded here, and the various plot threads, and if this film holds up over-all, or if it's firmly dated at this point. Other topics include Juliette Lewis being sexy; how the film does or does not confront police corruption and racism head-on; the way rape is presented in the context of the film; and other actors who were considered for the lead role. The hosts also mention what they've watched recently and respond to listener comments. "Strange Days" IMDB  Featured Music: "Hardly Wait" by Juliette Lewis & "No White Clouds" by Strange Fruit.

Lee and Daniel intended to record a regular episode on "Strange Days" (1995), but technology conspired against them long enough that they decided to give up and just record an intermission, where you'll get to hear a bit of their fumbling with tech live, and then they move into a very casual chat about some tv and movies they've been watching, among other things. It's essentially just what happens off-air when they record every week, so don't expect too much. Featured Music: Excerpt from the score for "Confessions of a Sex Maniac" (1974) & "Fuckin' Up" by Neil Young.

This week Lee and Daniel look at Sidney Lumet's "Q & A" (1990). Does this lengthy film manage to properly explore the issues of systematic racism and corruption within police forces, or does it badly drop the ball? Does Nick Nolte's fantastic performance elevate or overshadow the material. And yes, a bit of discussion about the current 2020 riots and clashes with police is had. It was kind of unavoidable. Also: listener comments and what Daniel has been watching lately. "Q & A" IMDB  Featured Music: "Tiptoe Through the Tulips" by Tiny Tim & "The Hit" by Ruben Blades.

Even if someone has never watched an Italian Western, there's at least a good chance they've heard the soundtrack or score from one. While Lee has featured some tracks from Italian Westerns before on the show, he's never done a dedicated look at the genre. This will be part one of three shows attempting to cover the scope of music that came from the Italian Westerns. Episode one is focused on selections that have vocalists on the tracks singing a song of some sort (note: the typical chorus of unintelligible chanting found on many Italian Western scores does not count in this case). As mentioned before, in some cases, you'll encounter a track that has been featured on a previous episode, but the majority of these shows will be featuring new material. Also, although he states on the episode that he was trying to keep this episode within the usual confines of an hour runtime, he quickly discovered the folly of that, as there is too much great music to play. Expect all of the episodes in this series to be as lo

Lee and Daniel steal an old piece of shit boat and go on a mission around India this week, covering "The Sea Wolves" (1980). What does this WWII men-on-a-mission film, full of over-the-hill actors, have to offer to the genre if anything? How closely does it stick to the real-life events it's based upon? Is Roger Moore a better Bond here then in the official Bond series? Or is he just a horny serial killer? All of this and more, including what the hosts have watched recently is covered. "The Sea Wolves" IMDB  Featured Music: "Enemy Beneath the Waves" & "Warsaw Concerto" by Roy Budd.

Lee is joined this week by two of his regular co-hosts on the Cape Sh!t podcast to talk about John Hughes' "Weird Science" (1985). Is it a classic of the 1980s? Does the film hold up at all, or is it just one big, dated misfire, full of rape, racism, and bad jokes? Somewhere in-between? The hosts ponder this and also tackle listener comments and talk about what they've watched as of late. "Weird Science" IMDB   Kerry on YouTube   Greg on YouTube   Where all we often review beer together on YouTube...  Featured Music: "Deep in the Jungle" by Wall of Voodoo & "Weird Science" by Oingo Boingo.

Lee, Greg and Kerry try and stay warm and one step ahead of their enemies, while touching upon what makes "Captain America: The Winter Soldier" (2014) one of the better entries in the MCU. The more low-key, yet deeper plot, the character work, and the action scenes are talked about, as well as if the Winter Soldier is worth a damn as a character. "Captain America: The Winter Soldier" IMDB 

It's time for another intermission episode, as Lee is joined by Paul to talk about two somewhat obscure slasher films that spent a lot of time on the shelf before getting anything approaching a proper release. First up it's the killer-in-the-woods slasher "The Final Terror" (1983), featuring a lot of future stars, and then they check out the supernatural slasher "Superstition" (1982), featuring a bunch of people who went nowhere after their work on the film. "The Final Terror" IMDB  "Superstition" IMDB  Featured Music: "Raptus" by Electric Wizard & Main Theme from "The Final Terror" by Susan Justin.

Lee and Daniel try not to be responsible for any war crimes this week as they dig into Oliver Stone's semi-autobiographical anti-war film, about his experiences in Vietnam, "Platoon" (1986). How well does the film hold-up? Does it suffer from being a 1980s Oscar-bait film? Or is it possibly the best film about the Vietnam war, even if it's flawed? Is Charlie Sheen any good in it? All of this and more is covered. "Platoon" IMDB Featured Music: "I-Feel-Like-I'm-Fixin'-to-Die Rag" by Country Joe and the Fish & "Fortunate Son" by Creedence Clearwater Revival.

Lee's been busy, so here's another grab bag of soundtrack and score selections featured on episodes of the They Must Be Destroyed On Sight! podcast. Big playlist, little talking = more value for the dollars you don't actually even pay for this hour of musical bliss. Enjoy! --All American Hero from "Flesh Gordon Meets the Cosmic Cheerleaders" (1990) --Terrea Smith (Episode 123) --Venus in Furs from "Venus in Furs" (1969) --Manfred Mann w/vocals by Barbara McNair (Episode 125) --Processo from "Count Dracula" (1970) --Bruno Nicolai (Episode 126) --Bar Confrontation & Captain Kronos Theme from "Captain Kronos - Vampire Hunter" (1974) --Laurie Johnson (episode 128) --Drowned Guthrie from "Let Sleeping Corpses Lie" (1974) --Giuliano Sorgini (Episode 134) --Main Title from "The Funhouse" (1981) --John Beal (Episode 135) --The Descent from "The Last Wave" (1977) --Charles Wain (Episode 141) --Orson's Theme from "F for Fake" (1974) --Michel Legrand Orchestra (Episode 143) --Theme of Ali from "The Battle

Lee and Daniel find themselves knee-deep in the swamps of the American deep south this week as they tackle Walter Hill's "Southern Comfort" (1981). The conversation mostly is split into two parts, where the hosts try to give the film its fair shake as both a semi-survival horror/hicksploitation mash-up film, as well as a very obvious discussion about America's sins during the Vietnam war (even if Hill denies the latter up and down). Also covered: listener comments and what the hosts have watched as of late. Come swampin' wit' us, mon amis. "Southern Comfort" IMDB  Robert Evan's Behind The Bastards Podcast's episodes on "Soldier of Fortune" magazine: Part 1 Part 2 Featured Music: "Canoes Upstream" & "Theme from Southern Comfort" by Ry Cooder.

The podcast has made it to episode 200, and thus it goes back to cover the last film in George A. Romero's original "Dead" trilogy - the trilogy where its name and mascot originated. That's right, the hosts have decided to time travel ahead from where they currently are in their reviewing schedule, and cover 1985's "Day of the Dead". Long lost host Paul has returned! In addition to this, podcaster Ricky Morgan of The Hail Ming Power Hour, Short Bus Cinema, and a ton of other great podcasts sits in the guest host chair. Smart zombies; scenery chewing; compromised production budgets; mad scientists; predicting a pandemic crisis, and how people would actually react; who is cooking the food?; and the terrible remakes are all topics that are brought up. Listener comments are also covered. So why not waste your time in this audio monkey farm, eh, Frankenstein? "Day of the Dead" IMDB Check out Ricky's great podcasts: The Hail Ming Power Hour Short Bus Cinema You Know What's Awesome? Featured Music: "On the Be

Lee and Daniel found themselves in the talkies by mistake this week, but that didn't stop them from watching and giving their thoughts on "In Old Arizona" (1928) & "The Virginian" (1929), which are two post-silent era pre-code Westerns with a hell of a lot in common both good and bad.Things brought up include brown-face and bad stereotypical accents; the genre tropes of love triangles and the schoolmarm taming the wild cowboy; strange tonal shifts; The Cisco Kid series that "In Old Arizona" spawned; great moments in these early films that are ignored by so-called film experts, and the value of said experts opinions; and how "The Virginian" is really just a prequel to a film we've already covered, also starring Gary Cooper. Also covered: listener comments and what Daniel has watched as of late. "In Old Arizona" IMDB  "The Virginian" IMDB  Featured Music: "My Tonia" by the Nat Shilkret Victor Orchestra; "Ta-Ra-Ra-Boom-De-Ay" by Elsa Lanchester; and "Bury Me Not on the Lone Praire" by Burl Ives.

Lee is hunkered-down in his secret bunker this month (actually, it's every month), doing his best to avoid the Coronavirus. As serious as this situation is turning out to be, it doesn't mean we can't use it as inspiration for a playlist of film music, does it? Of course not! Wash your hands, cough into the crook of your arm, and eat up an hour of your social distancing with Lee. --Soundtrack Suite from "The Last Man on Earth" (1964) --Paul Sawtell & Bert Shefter --Jumped by the Family from "The Omega Man" (1971) --Ron Grainer --Wildfire from "The Andromeda Strain" (1971) --Gil Melle --Heaven Help Us from "The Crazies" (1973) --Beverly Bremers --Benihana from "Rabid" (1977) --Marilyn Chambers --Vulcain from "Rabid" (1977) --Claude Vasori --Hideout from "Rabid" (1977) --Brian Bennett --Introduccion from "12 Monkeys" (1995) --Astor Piazzolla --Dreams Awake from "12 Monkeys" (1995) --Paul Buckmaster --In the House, in a Heartbeat from "28 Days Later" (2002) --John Murphy --Karen Falls Apart from