Totally Pretentious: A Podcast About Great Movies

The Last Unicorn and the fairytales of the natural world! In our second edition of Into the Wardrobe, Jen and Shaun discuss the adaptation of Peter S. Beagle’s The Last Unicorn, directed by Jules Bass and Arthur Rankin, Jr.  We discuss the film’s major themes, including the underlying meaning of its emotional narrative, the nature of good and […]

What do you get when you make a film that even John Wayne hated?  The classic man-on-his-own Western, High Noon (1952; dir. Fred Zinnemann).  This episode, David and Shaun discuss the history of High Noon, it’s treatment of classic Western tropes, its representations of masculinity and religion, and much more!  Plus, we have some very late thoughts about the […]

GripeFest  2016 is here!  In our 14th episode, Shaun is joined by Rachael Acks to discuss the 2016 Academy Awards.  Which movies don’t belong?  Which movies are sorely missed?  What the heck is wrong with the Oscars this year?  Listen to find out what we thing about everything from gender and race issues in the […]

The Vampire, the Western, and the Setting Sun! In our 13th episode, David and Shaun play catch-up on films left over from last year with an intense discussion of Kathryn Bigelow’s 1987 vampire western, Near Dark.  Among the subjects under discussion:  the cinematography and the western myth, where Near Dark went wrong (and where it veered heavily […]

A Christmas Carol (1951) and the Terrors of the Past, Present, and Future! In our final episode of the year, David and Shaun discuss the 1951 classic adaptation of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol (starring Alastair Sim).  We discuss the film’s influence on later adaptations, its approach to Dickens’ classic, its approach to wealth, the performances, and […]

The People Under the Stairs: Wes Craven’s Legacy and an Unusual Mythic Terror David and Shaun return after an unnecessarily long hiatus to discuss Wes Craven’s work, with special attention to The People Under the Stairs.  We cover the film’s history, its mythical themes and imagery, and just what it says about Craven as a director […]

The Goonies and the 80s Child (or, How I Learned to Find a Pirate Ship on a Weekend) In our first ever Into the Wardrobe subcast, Jen Zink joins the Totally Pretentious crew to discuss the 1985 class, The Goonies.  We discuss how the film represents the child, both in the acting and the direction, how the […]

Last Night and finding the self in the Canadian apocalypse. In our 9th episode, we talk about what we’ve been up to for the past month and dive into Don McKellar’s celebrated apocalypse film, Last Night.  Given that David is a Canadian and Shaun is an American, we take a look at the film’s Canadianisms, discuss its […]

The Secret of Roan Inish, the pastoral, and the child!! Filling in for David, Jen Zink joins me to discuss the state of Marvel’s Cinematic Universe and our main event film, The Secret of Roan Inish (1994).  We explore The Secret of Roan Inish‘s treatment of its child protagonist, the conflict between the modern world and the pastoral […]

Blockbuster Spectable and Reconstituting the Family! We take our first stab at a blockbuster hit — the incredibly influential Jurassic Park (1993).  We discuss the film’s visual effects and influence, its treatment of corporations and family, and the film’s legacy.  Plus, we spend a considerable amount of time discussing Jurassic World (2015) and its place within the franchise. We’re also still […]

On Christopher Lee’s Legacy and the Trials of Religion! In this special episode, we talk about the late Christopher Lee and his legacy, from Hammer Horror films to Lord of the Rings and Star Wars. We also take some time to discuss The Wicker Man, one of Lee’s most compelling horror productions, with particular attention to the film’s treatment […]

The Surreality and Collapse of WASP Culture! In our fifth episode, we discuss what we’ve been watching lately — a little bit of Dredd and Abel Ferrara — and then head back to the 60s to discuss the recently-reappraised Burt Lancaster film, The Swimmer (1968; dir. Frank Perry).   We tackle the film’s exploration of age and morality, […]

Romantic Fantasies, Cults of Personality, and the Chaos of Capital! In our fourth episode, we drop back a decade to discuss Ernst Lubitsch’s The Shop Around the Corner starring James Stewart and Margaret Sullivan, from the character’s fantasies about romantic relationships to the posturing of its characters to the underlying metaphors and references embodied in the shop. […]

Teenage Body Horror, Modern Decay, and It! Our third episode is a special one!  We jump outside of our normal programming schedule to host an impromptu discussion of David Robert Mitchell’s acclaimed new horror film, It Follows.  Special guest Rachael Acks joins us as we explore the film’s underlying sexual mythologies, its treatment of capital, […]

Playing Genre, Masculinity, and the Post-War World! In our second episode, we open by discussing what we’ve been watching, how films “stand the test of time,” and the supposed problem with the Hollywood blockbuster.  Plus, there’s a little bonus conversation about the state of horror films since 2000. The main event involves Henri-Georges Clouzot’s suspense […]

The Vigilante, the History, and Beginnings! In this inaugural episode of Totally Pretentious, David and Shaun introduce the show and discuss the iconic Dirty Harry (1971), from its influence to its underlying mythologies.  They also reveal next month’s film, which you can watch along with us! Download Episode 001 (Dirty Harry)(MP3) Show Notes: Dirty Harry (1971) Further Reading: […]