When We Were Young - An 80s And 90s Pop Culture Podcast

The 1980s may not have been quite as bleak as 1984 predicted, but the Reagan era did see plenty of doom and gloom in entertainment, from Mad Max and Blade Runner to The Terminator and RoboCop. In When We Were Young’s latest episodes, Reel Gents podcast host Travis Dukelow joins us to dissect a cornucopia of dystopias unleashed in the 80s. In Part One, we cover Terry Gilliam’s legendary BRAZIL (1985), which takes several cues from Orwell’s 1984 and adds a healthy dollop of dryly absurd British humor. Jonathan Pryce stars as meek cog-in-the-machine Sam Lowry, whose heroic fantasies offer the only hope of escape from a dreary, duct-ravaged world — at least, until Robert De Niro shows up as the world’s most swashbuckling repairman. If your vision of the future involves Christmastime, lobotomies, plastic surgery gone awry, and terrorism, this is the dystopia for you! If you prefer a more scathing satire of consumerism and media, however, look no further than John Carpenter’s camp classic THEY LIVE (1987), di

We need your clothes, your boots, your motorcycle and your full attention for our new episode! James Cameron's THE TERMINATOR (1984) put the filmmaker on the map, becoming a classic almost instantly upon its release. By the time T2: JUDGMENT DAY (1991) came out seven years later, Cameron had become one of the most successful filmmakers of all time and Arnold Schwarzenegger was a bonafide movie star. It's clear that the first two films in the long-running (and seemingly never-ending) Terminator franchise are the most beloved by fans - but can they survive our scrutiny? Does Linda Hamilton hold up as a feminist hero? And was casting Arnold as the titular terminating cyborg actually the wrong call? It's judgment day on When We Were Young. We also sit down with Ben Foster, co-director of the new sci-fi adventure TIME TRAP, to discuss the hardships of indie filmmaking and why people are so drawn to the time travel genre. Come with us if you want to relive two of the most iconic sci-fi movies of all time!

Masks on, listeners! This October, we’re celebrating Halloween by celebrating HALLOWEEN — the iconic horror film that unintentionally concocted the formula for an entire genre. John Carpenter’s 1978 chiller was made on a shoestring budget and went on to become the most profitable independent film ever made. It also launched horror’s most enduring villain, the tight-lipped but heavy-breathing Michael Myers, and the career of Jamie Lee Curtis, crowned the genre’s official Scream Queen. Curtis returned to her blood-spattered roots in 1998’s HALLOWEEN H2O, co-starring Josh Hartnett, LL Cool J, and Michelle Williams, in the 90s slasher revival spawned by Scream. Now, in 2018, she once again portrays Laurie Strode, the “Final Girl” who made her famous, in David Gordon Green’s new spin on this cinematic classic. The podcast welcomes wife-and-husband duo Chelsea and Dan to discuss all matters of splatter, then looks back at the original Halloween in observance of its 40th anniversary. After countless knock-offs

Calling all creeps! If you were a literate kid in the 90s, you almost certainly cracked open a GOOSEBUMPS book at some point. With 62 titles in its original run, R.L. Stine’s legendary YA horror anthology is one of the best-selling book series of all time. It also spawned games, toys, lunchboxes, apparel, two major motion pictures, and one very Canadian TV series — and the spin-offs just keep on coming. When We Were Young invites Goosebumps fanatic Daniel Montgomery onto the show to reminisce about the halcyon days of the Scholastic Book Fair and our favorite preteen reads. Then we dare turn back the cuckoo clock of doom to revisit three classic titles from our childhoods, including The Haunted Mask and Night of the Living Dummy, to see if Stine’s writing still thrills and chills. From outlandish twist endings to the many, many fakeout scares, there’s at least as much campy comedy to Goosebumps as there is genuine spine-tingling. Do these books still dish out the deep trouble, or was R.L. Stine just cry

How does 1988’s Best Picture Oscar winner hold up? We’re too busy answering a question from a half hour ago to weigh in right now, so you’ll have to listen to When We Were Young’s latest episode, just in time for the 30th anniversary of Barry Levinson's RAIN MAN. Dustin Hoffman’s Academy Award winning role set the stage for many actors playing mentally or physically disabled characters to go for the gold. Does this still come off as a credible way to depict autism, or have changing times made this a more problematic performance? And how do we feel about Tom Cruise as a full-on dramatic leading man in an action-free film? Take a break from memorizing that phone book and make sure you’re wearing the proper underwear, because we’re about to make like Wapner and judge whether Rain Man soars like Qantas or sucks like Kmart. When We Were Young is a podcast devoted to the most beloved pop culture of our formative years (roughly 1980-2000). Join us for a look back to the past with a critical eye on how these

Our Summer Bruce Willis trilogy - Bruce Willogy, if you will - comes to a close as we return to the womb and the year 1989 to reexamine Amy Heckerling's hit comedy LOOK WHO'S TALKING. Willis voices Mikey, the titular talking baby... who isn't really talking, per se, since we are just hearing his thoughts... though sometimes the actor playing Mikey on screen is actually talking but we don't hear what he's saying... look, this movie turned out to be way more confounding than we thought possible. We also discuss the film's two lesser successful sequels, LOOK WHO'S TALKING TOO (1990) and LOOK WHO'S TALKING NOW (1993), and count the many diminishing returns of talking babies and talking dogs. Plus, we deliver the good news about one of our hosts expecting their own bundle of joy, and get nostalgic about the last year of podcasting during our 2nd Anniversary special! When We Were Young is a podcast devoted to the most beloved pop culture of our formative years (roughly 1980-2000). Join us for a look back to t

Do you believe in magic? In this episode, your three favorite podcast hosts call all four corners with the help of returning guest Krissy, our go-to guru for movies involving spells and sorcery. First, we chat about the stigma of being goth in the 90s, and casting fake spells on our enemies. Then, When We Were Young explores the dark arts via 1996’s THE CRAFT, starring Neve Campbell, Robin Tunney, Rachel True, and Fairuza Balk as teenage witches Sabrina wouldn’t be caught dead with. From the fashion to the soundtrack to the casting of Skeet Ulrich as the big man on campus, The Craft casts a very dated spell in some ways. But how does the film’s twisted take on 90s “girl power” hold up 22 years later? Is Balk’s kooky, spooky turn as the coven’s queen bee Nancy as magnetic as we remember? With perfect love and perfect trust, we bind you from not listening to this podcast. When We Were Young is a podcast devoted to the most beloved pop culture of our formative years (roughly 1980-2000). Join us for a lo

The Phantom of the Opera is here... and so are Eva Peron, Mr. Mistoffelees and Jesus Christ! Our latest episode explores the magical musical world of ANDREW LLOYD WEBBER, the man who pretty much composed the soundtrack to Broadway, the West End, and our childhoods in the 1980s and 90s. Andrew Lloyd Webber - we're sorry, SIR BARON Andrew Lloyd Webber - is arguably the most successful Broadway composer of all time, boasting many of the highest grossing musicals in history. His legend and influence cannot be disputed, but do his shows stand the test of time? Is "Evita" still high, flying adored? Is "Phantom" best kept hidden far below the opera house? Does "Cats'" memory live on? Does "Jesus Christ Superstar" need to be crucified? Go, go, go Joseph, and join us on this symphonic journey through Lloyd Webber's biggest hits! When We Were Young is a podcast devoted to the most beloved pop culture of our formative years (roughly 1980-2000). Join us for a look back to the past with a critical eye on how these

THERE'S SOMETHING ABOUT MARY (1998) Bad taste. Bad behavior. Bad hair. There's a lot to be offended by in the Farrelly Brothers' 1998 hit comedy, THERE'S SOMETHING ABOUT MARY, which celebrated its 20th anniversary this month. But does all that bad make for a good movie? Or have movie audiences matured beyond jokes targeting the mentally challenged, the physically disabled and the incredibly wrinkled and tan in the last 20 years? In our latest episode, we debate the merits of "Mary's" reliance on crude comedy - from Ben Stiller's unfortunate zipper incident, to Cameron Diaz's infamous hair don't, to Chris Elliott's presence. (He's super gross, right?) We also discuss our appreciation of - or very, very deep disgust for - gross-out humor in general. So is there still something about the Farrelly Brothers' "Mary?" Listen and find out! When We Were Young is a podcast devoted to the most beloved pop culture of our formative years (roughly 1980-2000). Join us for a look back to the past with a critical

DIE HARD (1988) Welcome to the party, pal! In this episode, we’re celebrating Christmas in July with the 30th anniversary of DIE HARD, a (debatable) holiday favorite. John McTiernan’s 1988 hostage thriller posed Bruce Willis as a kinder, gentler action hero alternative to the likes of Schwarzenegger and Stallone — but don’t worry, he still murders lots of greedy terrorists. Ho, ho, ho! This genre classic set the mold for many action flicks that followed, and featured one of the most beloved bad guys of all time in Alan Rickman’s Hans Gruber. But what about its depiction of women in the workplace as a threat to masculinity? Or its serious skepticism toward capitalism, the media, and law enforcement? Before you RSVP “yes” to John McClane’s holiday bash, remember this: Die Hard also co-stars a series regular from TGIF’s Family Matters. Will Die Hard hold up as well as Nakatomi Plaza under fire? And how about those sequels? Kindly remove your shoes before stepping into this nostalgic experience, because it

Grab some tissues, because in our latest episode, we’re sharing the movies that made us cry when we were young! In the summer of 1998, two blockbusters hurtled into theaters with virtually the same premise: astronauts blasting up into space to blow up deadly space rocks with nuclear weapons. In many ways, these twin disaster flicks couldn’t be more different. DEEP IMPACT has Tea Leoni, Elijah Wood, and a comet, focusing on journalism and science. ARMAGEDDON stars Bruce Willis, Billy Bob Thornton, and an asteroid, concerning loudmouth white male oil drillers with minimal education or training. (Bet you can't guess which one Michael Bay directed!) In 2018, these doomsday vehicles turn out to be surprisingly relevant in terms of current politics, but how do they hold up as mindless special effects-driven entertainment? When We Were Young discusses America’s actual first black president Morgan Freeman, plus child marriage, daddy issues galore, and the efficacy of Ben Affleck's animal cracker seduction. You

JURASSIC PARK (1993), THE LOST WORLD: JURASSIC PARK II (1997), and JURASSIC PARK III (2001) Dodgson! Dodgson! We’ve got Dodgson here! Does the fact that JURASSIC PARK is celebrating its 25th anniversary this month make you feel like a dinosaur? Or does the impending release of JURASSIC WORLD: FALLEN KINGDOM have you ready to RRRUUUUNNN toward the nearest cineplex all over again? You don’t have to be a clever girl to know that the original holds up — Steven Spielberg’s monstrous masterpiece is arguably the definitive blockbuster of the 90s. The When We Were Young podcast spares no expense in recounting the film’s lengthy development and risky production, also touching on Jeff Goldblum’s rock star nerd allure, the iconic score by John Williams, and how those once-groundbreaking CGI effects hold up 65 million years later. But chaos theory kicks in once we extract 1997’s THE LOST WORLD from amber and dig up the fossilized remains of 2001’s JURASSIC PARK III. Are these sequels one big pile of dino droppings

90s PROM-COMS We bet you can't make that girl with glasses listen to this podcast. In our latest episode, we look back to the teen movie explosion of the late 90s via SHE'S ALL THAT, NEVER BEEN KISSED, and 10 THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU, all released in the first few months of 1999, and all culminating at — where else? — the prom! (Gasp!) If you don't think Drew Barrymore, Rachael Leigh Cook, and Julia Stiles are three of the world's least desirable women, you may have trouble buying the mischief and shenanigans teen boys resort to in search of true love. This was the moment in pop culture when teen entertainment took a cue from Shakespeare and other classic literature — without doing much to update centuries-old sexual politics. If you thought 80s teen comedies were problematic, wait 'til you get a load of the sexist, stalkerish antics of 90s dreamboats like Freddie Prinze Jr., Heath Ledger, Andrew Keegan, Paul Walker, and Joseph Gordon Levitt! Are any of these 1999 prom-coms "all that," or are there 10

THE GOLDEN GIRLS (1985-1992) Hungry for a midnight snack? Cozy up in the kitchen with your three best audio-friends and help yourself to a slice of rich, satisfying comedy cheesecake, because it's time to visit THE GOLDEN GIRLS! From 1985 to 1992, this show about four women of a certain age was a ratings smash and an awards darling, winning each one of its pitch perfect stars an Emmy. As it turns out, it was also one of the edgiest shows on primetime, tackling issues like gay marriage, prescription drug addiction, AIDS, and suicide ahead of its peers. Are we still thankful to call Dorothy, Rose, Blanche, and Sophia our pals and confidantes? Or has this old sitcom about aging gracefully aged not-so-gracefully? Whether you're listening from St. Olaf or Sicily, you'll want to tune in for all the quips, barbs, and geriatric slut-shaming we can muster... before one of your favorite podcast hosts gets shipped off to Shady Pines. When We Were Young is a podcast devoted to the most beloved pop culture of our

SHOWGIRLS (1995) You can't touch us, but we can touch you. In When We Were Young's raw, uncensored NC-17 episode, we reveal our most inappropriate pop culture encounters from childhood, then set our sights on the Las Vegas underbelly (and undercarriage) of 1995's SHOWGIRLS, widely considered to be the best bad movie of all time. Meet the consistently hot-and-bothered Nomi Malone, who hails from "different places." She's a dancer but not a stripper (except by profession) and definitely not a prostitute, who dreams of one day leaving behind the seedy, sleazy world of removing her clothes for money to become a topless dancer. She is not a prostitute. Meet Cristal Connors, the gorgeous "Goddess" who takes a manipulative, seductive interest in this Amazonian ingenue. Will Nomi ever do Cristal's nails? Will Cristal ever do Nomi? After a bare-breasted leather dance-fight, who will push who down the stairs? Paul Verhoeven's uniquely confounding flop is explicit but never sexy, strikingly feminist and queasi

THE SPICE GIRLS  So here's the story from A to Z: you wanna get with us, ya gotta listen carefully! In this episode, we're headed back to the years of 1996-1998 when the world collectively spiced up its life big time with the introduction and pop domination of THE SPICE GIRLS. This was a special time in our youth when adult women were referred to by the infantile pseudonyms of Ginger, Baby, Scary, Posh and Sporty; when platform heels and cheetah-print jumpsuits were trendy; and when we couldn't get enough of the undeniable hooks packed within nearly every single released by the British pop quintet. But do those songs hold up today? And after two decades, does the Spice Girls' slogan/mission statement of "Girl Power" come off as a genuine feminist battle cry... or a cringeworthy gimmick? Slam it to the left, shake it to the right, chicas to the front - hai, si, ja, hold tight for the latest episode of WHEN WE WERE YOUNG! When We Were Young is a podcast devoted to the most beloved pop culture of our for

NINTENDO Video Games & THE WIZARD (1989) Sliding down drainpipes... chucking smiley-faced vegetables at ghost-faced villains... transforming into a raccoon and flying through the air... either we just took a large dose of LSD, or we're entering the weird, wonderful world of Super Mario. (Possibly both!) In the pursuit of channeling the competitive spirit of our youths when our main concern in life was finding warp zones, we spent a whole day playing decades-old video games we loved as kids, including Tetris, The Legend of Zelda, Donkey Kong Country, Goldeneye and every Mario Brothers game from Super Mario through Super Mario World. In this episode, we discuss the experience of playing these old-school games as adults, debate the gender fluidity of Super Mario 2 boss "Birdo," and vex our many frustrations regarding the 1989 film THE WIZARD, Nintendo's grand attempt to create a movie-length commercial for Super Mario 3 and the Power Glove. Listen as our hosts are joined by lifelong gamer Mike Van Gorde

THE BIG LEBOWSKI (1998) A rug that really tied the room together until it got peed on. A hippie burnout who kept burning. A Vietnam vet who drags everyone else into his world of pain. Add to this a case of mistaken identity, the kidnapping of a trophy wife (in the parlance of our times), and an erotic artist seeking a good and thorough man and you have just *a few* of the characters and plot elements of the woolly and disoriented world of THE BIG LEBOWSKI, the cult favorite 1998 film by the legendary writer-director team of Joel and Ethan Coen. The Big Lebowski was on every single level the intentional opposite of its Oscar-winning, box office-hit predecessor FARGO (1996), and audiences and critics at the time (like some of our hosts) didn't abide this strangely hypnotic film. The Coens' vision of Los Angeles is distinctly un-Hollywood, and it's filled with anachronistic characters seemingly unstuck in time from the Wild West, the Summer of Love, and the Vietnam War all thrown into the plot of a 1950's

MADONNA Before there was Britney. Before there was Beyonce. Before there was Gaga. There was one woman who reigned the radio waves in the 80s and 90s — Her Madgesty, now and forever the Queen of Pop. Ms. Ciccone is known for her iconic, chameleonic looks, and it just so happens that our hosts each gravitated toward a different era in her storied career. First, Becky goes bananas for I’m Breathless, the Broadway-inspired Dick Tracy soundtrack, and the revealing concert documentary Truth or Dare. Next, Chris whips his co-hosts into shape for the leather-heavy Sex/Erotica/Bedtime Stories period, which ignited a very sado-masochistic relationship between Madonna and the media. Last, Seth looks directly into the Grammy-winning Ray of Light, which introduced us to a softer, gentler, and much more geisha-like incarnation of the Material Girl. We were all crazy for at least one of these albums growing up, but what happens when we listen like virgins as adults? Is Madonna’s 90s oeuvre still something to re

90s TEEN IDOLS JONATHAN TAYLOR THOMAS, DEVON SAWA, JONATHAN BRANDIS, BRAD RENFRO, ANDREW KEEGAN, and RIDER STRONG For our very special Valentine's Day episode, we're taking a look back at the fanatic love we had back in the day for the 1990s' biggest teenage heartthrobs. If you didn't have a poster of Jonathan Taylor Thomas, Devon Sawa, Jonathan Brandis, Brad Renfro, Andrew Keegan or Rider Strong on your wall and would stare at it for hours and maybe even practice kissing on it... well, you clearly were more emotionally mature than we were as pre-teens. In this episode we dive into the history of teen idol mags like Tiger Beat and BOP, discover that LADYBUGS is most definitely not a movie for children, and try not to feel like creeps discussing the wholesome sex appeal of teenage boys. Also, Becky shares the intimate details of her internet relationship with JTT (or, more likely, someone pretending to be him). It's our most embarrassing episode yet! When We Were Young is a podcast devoted to the most