Episode 76: Eulogy (2004)

What this episode covers

The holidays are upon us, and many U.S. Americans are smack dab in the middle of having just had an awkward meal with their families and gearing up for another one, less than a month later. At least during the holidays it's an event we can plan for. We know there will be food, we know there will be arguing over politics, we know that at the end of the day we can gather around the warm glow of the television for a shot at a parade or a football game and renew our bonds with each other. What really is the pits, is when you have these family gatherings unplanned, and with a lot of stress involved. The Nighthawks podcast salutes the awkward family gatherings surrounding the holidays with an awkward family gathering at a funeral. Rip Torn plays the deceased, Piper Laurie his suicidal widow, Hank Azaria his failed actor son, Ray Romano his perverted lawyer son, Debra Winger his bigoted daughter, and Kelley Preston as the daughter who is gearing up for a same-sex wedding in 2004. Add to that Zooey Deschanel as a manic pixie dream girl who is simultaneously trying to juggle her horrible family and her left-it-at-a-weird place summer romance. Eulogy is the lone film credit for writer/director Michael Clancy, and it was not well received among critics at the time. Well, Matt and Trevor are critics NOW, and they say that the critics of 2004 were totally unfair. Are they right? You be the judge.

PodParley-generated summary based on available episode metadata and transcript content.