John Carpenter and The Thing (1982)! Plus, Lucé Tomlin-Brenner!

Summary

Dear Movies, I Love You

Episode: John Carpenter and The Thing (1982)! Plus, Lucé Tomlin-Brenner!

Airdate: February 24, 2026
Hosts: Millie De Chirico & Casey O'Brien
Guest: Lucé Tomlin-Brenner

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Episode Overview

This episode immerses listeners in the icy paranoia of John Carpenter’s The Thing (1982), widely regarded as one of the finest remakes and horror films of all time. Hosts Millie and Casey examine Carpenter’s craftsmanship, the enduring chills, and the film’s themes of isolation and mistrust. The show also welcomes filmmaker and comedian Lucé Tomlin-Brenner for a sharp, passionate discussion around “women driven to madness by an unkind or apathetic society,” tying cinema’s past and present to broader cultural anxieties.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Living with Cold (01:50 – 13:46)

• Setting the Mood: The hosts joke about recording "from Antarctica" to parallel the film’s harsh setting. They reminisce about growing up in cold vs. warm climates and dissect their evolving tolerance or dread for winter.
  • "Every year that I get older, I start really hating the cold. Now if I catch a chill, I can't get rid of it for a long time." — Millie (04:18)
  • Winter clothing loyalties and the culture of “embracing” frigid weather, with side-bars on old-fashioned boots (Blundstones, Merrells), and anecdotes about L.L. Bean and REI shopping adventures.
• Cabin Fever: Millie details the restless boredom of winter days stuck inside, revealing nostalgic, impulsive internet shopping (a new caboodle and Guns N' Roses T-shirt).
• Cold Culture: Casey offers insight into Minnesotan resilience:
  • "People refuse to let weather stop them. It's almost like a point of pride that they go to social events, ride bikes in winter — people just will not be stopped." (11:56)
• Transition to Film: The segment closes with excitement for The Thing and teasing Lucé Tomlin-Brenner’s forthcoming guest spot.

2. Film Diary: Weekly Movie Watches (23:53 – 33:59)

• Millie: Extended riff on Mystic Pizza (1988), including a hilarious “movie-ruining” prank about secret pizza ingredients (“I said, 'Oh shit, this is the movie where there’s jizz in the pizza, right?’” — 26:44).
• Casey: Highlights Night Shift (1982) as a fun, heartfelt comedy (“They don’t make movies like this anymore”), and Set It Off (1996) as a dark, high-stakes girl-powered heist movie — sparking a tangent on the psychological thrill of bank robberies onscreen.
• Both: Explore what makes certain genres exciting, including stakes, criminal plans, and the peculiar thrill/fear of heist films.

3. Deep Dive: John Carpenter’s The Thing (1982) (34:00 – 75:39)

Why This is the Greatest Remake (17:09 – 19:01):

• Millie champions it as “an improvement so extreme it became a staple of film culture.”
  • “If you think about somebody that took something and just improved upon it to the point where it has become like a cultural staple... you really can't find another that comes close." — Millie (18:21)
• Top John Carpenter films are debated: consensus settles on The Thing and Halloween in the lead.

Plot Summary & Character Breakdown (43:59 – 54:56):

• Opening with the Norwegian dog and introduction to the U.S. research station.
• Overview of main characters: Mac (Kurt Russell), Blair (Wilford Brimley), Childs (Keith David).
• Detailed account of film’s events: the spread of “the thing,” the paranoia, and the shocking, gooey practical effects.

Performance & Iconography: Kurt Russell’s Mac (46:04 – 50:09):

• Rugged, manly, but with a touch of goofball — his inappropriate wardrobe for Antarctica becomes a running joke.
  • “His outfit is not appropriate for this climate. He’s got his little bomber jacket from Wilson’s, no insulation…” — Millie (36:17)
• Product placement: J&B Scotch, a through-line for 70s/80s “tough guy” iconography.

Cold, Isolation, and Group Dynamics (50:34 – 54:56):

• Fantasy of working at an Antarctic research station — Millie and Casey reflect on the psychological/claustrophobic terror of being “stuck” with others, and the appeal of the crew’s downtime and game room.
• Thematic alignment with isolation horror like The Shining.

The Alien, Paranoia, and Practical Effects (54:56 – 63:13):

• Analysis of the alien’s ever-shifting, illogical “rules”— which heighten terror.
• Practical effects lauded as “scarier, artful, and more fun” than any CGI.
  • “There’s this like stutter of the effect... it’s fun when it’s shitty!” — Millie (59:51)
• Hosts bemoan Hollywood’s drift from practical SFX, longing for its return.

Social Paranoia & Modern resonance (64:32 – 68:20):

• The group draws connections between The Thing’s atmosphere of mistrust and current social fragmentation, political paranoia, and online culture.
  • “Movies about paranoia like this always hit harder in times of political upheaval and fascism… this is real, we're all doing this." — Millie (64:32)
• Facebook quirks: vetting old friends with suspicion echoes the film’s 'who can you trust?' anxiety.

The Ending’s Ambiguity (68:20 – 72:25):

• Final scene analyzed — the unresolved fate of Mac and Childs.
• Debated whether either is “the thing” and why the opacity still resonates.
• Mac's pride (“He won’t even wear a hat, let alone eat Childs if it came to it!” — Millie 71:46) as character-defining to the end.

Masterpiece Status: Why The Thing Persists (72:25 – 75:39):

• Praised for pacing, production design, cast of compelling "non-movie-star" actors, and timeless relevance.
• The “unwinnable war” of paranoia — it endures because of its philosophical richness, unforced social metaphor, and visceral chills.

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4. My Area of Expertise: Lucé Tomlin-Brenner on Women Driven to Madness (76:30 – 111:16)

Introduction and Background (76:30 – 79:01):

• Lucé’s “video visions” comedy/film event at LA’s famed VideoTech store. She champions physical media and DIY community in a streaming world.
  • “We’re not just an archive, we’re an experience — $5 for a rental, but you get to talk to real people about real movies.” — Lucé (79:01)

Theme Introduction (84:28 – 93:43):

• Expertise: “women driven mad by an unkind/apathic society,” from Carrie and Shirley Jackson to 70s horror like The Haunting and Let’s Scare Jessica to Death.
  • “There’s a freedom to cinematic female insanity that I am very envious of… Sometimes, I just want to stand naked in a crosswalk and scream!” — Lucé (89:16)

Classic & Cult References:

• Age of female horror: 60s-70s seismic shift, influenced by society’s changing view of women’s roles (Rosemary's Baby, The Brood, Criminally Insane).
• Deep dive into the “revenge” vs. “delirium” (yield to the haunt) subgenres — Miss 45, Alucarda, Messiah of Evil, and analysis of (truly) madness-inducing domestic spaces.
  • “The house… is the site of domesticity, and for women it’s both the home/prison and locus of possession in these films.” — Lucé (93:43)

Modern Resonance & Gaps:

• 21st-century trends: Current films are often less nuanced, more “message-forward” (The Substance, Greener Grass).
• Societal pressure to “perform goodness” — why there’s less room in contemporary film for authentic, “messy” female antiheroes or open rebellion.

Societal Snark and Shifting Empathy (104:10 – 108:40):

• Cultural move from rooting for outcasts to siding with authority/victims — example, reappraisal of Carrie (“now we don’t feel sorry for her classmates”) and Ghost World (“Thor Birch’s “meanness” is punk, not cruel”).
  • "No, the boot's not gonna leave my neck because I'm licking it. ... It aligns with fascism to say that you should be nice to people who are being mean to you." — Lucé (108:18)
• Subcultures, authenticity, and why the “outsider” voice must still be radical, not sanitized for mainstream consumption.

Closing (111:16):

• Lucé encourages everyone to check out It's Always Halloween and visit VideoTech’s “Video Visions” if in LA; she’s plotting new film projects featuring more “crazy women content.”

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Notable Quotes & Moments

• On Paranoia:
  • “Part of what makes ‘The Thing’ so timeless is that it’s an unwinnable war: either you’re infected, or you’re killed for someone thinking you are. At some point, paranoia and anger win anyway.” — Millie (72:52)
• On Practical Effects:
  • “There’s this two seconds of shittiness that happens with a practical effect, and it's so wonderful. It’s fun when it's shitty.” — Millie (60:25)
• On Social Culture:
  • "Men are expected to wear less than the bare minimum of layers when it's cold... but it's cold! I refuse to play your game." — Casey (49:43)
• On Cinematic Violence:
  • “You should be cheering for Carrie!” — Casey (87:15)
  • “Sometimes I just want to stand naked in a crosswalk and scream.” — Lucé (89:34)
• On Modern Cinema’s “Kindness” Fetish:
  • “Art is not moral. You cannot look at art and be like, good and bad. ... I want to be a fuck up and still be a good person.” — Lucé (103:00)

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Segment Timestamps

• Living with Cold / Opening Banter: 01:50 – 13:46
• Film Diary: 23:53 – 33:59
• The Thing Analysis: 34:00 – 75:39
  • Intro & Top Remakes: 17:09 – 19:01
  • Plot, Characters: 43:59 – 54:56
  • Effects, Paranoia: 54:56 – 63:13
  • Sociopolitical Paranoia: 64:32 – 68:20
  • Ending: 68:20 – 72:25
  • Why it Endures: 72:25 – 75:39
• Lucé Tomlin-Brenner Interview: 76:30 – 111:16
• Film Recommendations: 112:16 – 116:46

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Film Recommendations (112:16)

• Millie: Day of the Dead (1985, George Romero) — another “bunker” movie, but steamy and claustrophobic in the Everglades.
• Casey: Wolf’s Hole (dir. Věra Chytilová, Czech, 1987) — atmospheric, “cold” isolation horror with an alien infiltration twist.

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Next Week

Film: Her (2013, dir. Spike Jonze)
Theme: AI in love and prophecy; what the film got eerily right (and wrong) about our present.

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Episode Tone & Style

Conversational, unpretentious, and sharply funny. Hosts playfully roast each other, digress into personal anecdotes, and drop vivid asides—yet maintain relentless focus on film as art and lived cultural experience. The Lucé Tomlin-Brenner segment is pungent, hilarious, and incisive—leaning into feminist critique and cultural commentary with full-throated honesty.

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Final Thoughts

A rich, witty podcast episode melding film history, genre appreciation, and personal reflection, with a particularly memorable guest segment spotlighting women's rage and madness as sites of both oppression and cinematic liberation. Carpenter’s The Thing isn’t just examined as a horror classic, but as a living text for every anxious, isolated, or skeptical moment—social, political, or personal.

Transcript

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[Millie de Jericho]

That's loseweightnow co. Ooh, Casey, it's freezing.

[Casey O'Brien]

Brr. Ooh, I'm cold. Because we're doing something a little different. This episode we're recording from Antarctica at a US Research facility. Much like the movie we're talking about today. It's cold. Millie, how do you do with the cold?

[Millie de Jericho]

I can't, to be frank. So when I was younger, you know, I lived in Chicago briefly as a child.

[Casey O'Brien]

How old were you when you left Chicago?

[Millie de Jericho]

I was in kindergarten.

[Casey O'Brien]

But were you born in Chicago?

[Millie de Jericho]

No, my sister was.

[Casey O'Brien]

Okay.

[Millie de Jericho]

I was born in California, but my. My dad lived there. My mom lived there For a while after they. Basically, when my dad immigrated to America, the family was kind of split between Chicago and California. Like la.

[Casey O'Brien]

I see.

[Millie de Jericho]

Right. And so they kind of started out when my mom, of course, my dad married my mom in the Philippines, and then they moved to America together. They kind of lived in, you know, up basically coastal California, L.A. san Diego. I was born in San Diego. I see. On the naval base there. But then we moved. I spent, like, six months of my life in San Diego, and then I got on a train with my mom, according to legend, and we took an Amtrak from San Diego to Chicago. And then I lived there. My sister was born there. I lived there until I was about. In kindergarten. Ish. And then we moved to the South

[Casey O'Brien]

a large chunk of time.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah. So, you know, I lived in Chicago. I remember it. I remember it being cold. And when I was a young person, I liked the cold weather. I thought, you know, living in the south, we didn't have much of it in comparison. And I was always like, I love being bundled up and wearing, like, pea coats and being, you know, wrapped in scarves and all this shit. Every year that I get older, I start really, really hating the cold. Like, it's getting worse and worse to the point where I'm like, now if I catch a chill, I can't get rid of it for a long time. Yeah. And I'm starting to really understand why old people live in hot climates.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Millie de Jericho]

I don't know about you. I mean, what are you gonna do? You've been in Minneapolis for. I'm very.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah, I'm very intimate. I have an intimate relationship with the cold. It was recently, like, last week. Negative 21 degrees here.

[Millie de Jericho]

Why?

[Casey O'Brien]

And that's insane. I mean, it was crazy how cold it was. I kind of take. You know, I kind of embrace it. And I have some rules for myself. I refuse to be even slightly chilly. So even if it might be kind of embarrassing, I'm wrapping myself up in blankets, you know, jackets, scarves, so that I'm always incredibly toasty. And I feel like psychologically that helps me. And, you know, if you have the right equipment to go outside, you can be actually pretty comfortable out in the cold. So you just. It's more of a preparation and effort type of thing. But the cold, I mean, it's harsh sometimes it gets me down, and it just feel it physically is painful. You know, when you get into, like, a cold car.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah.

[Casey O'Brien]

Oh, God.

[Millie de Jericho]

You got any brand loyalties? Like.

[Casey O'Brien]

Like, what's your brand loyalties? The big one I'm not loyal to this brand, but a lot of people wear Car Heart. But there's another company called the Duluth Trading Company, which is a Minnesota company, and I like to buy their wintry things because it's Minnesotan.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah. My aunts, I used to have to get underwear and socks from them for my dad for Christmas.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah.

[Casey O'Brien]

So I'm frequently, frequently wearing long johns, you know, under my clothes just because I want to be toasty. I just refer to. I have a space heater next to me right now. I refuse to be cold.

[Millie de Jericho]

Do you wear a specific type of boot? Any brand, Any brand loyalty?

[Casey O'Brien]

I have no brand loyalty there. No. And you know what? To be honest, I'm like a fake Minnesotan because I lived in California for 17 years, so I'm like, still trying to, like, learn this stuff still, you know? Wow. And I feel like my body has yet is still not quite acclimated to this frigid weather.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah.

[Casey O'Brien]

You know, I'm weak now.

[Millie de Jericho]

Well, I'll tell you my, My, my winter fit brand loyalties, if you will indulge me, because I do a lot of hard research on things I'm a. I'm an informed consumer. I love a wire cutter podcast, as you know, because it's been like, it's not as cold here, but in the past, like, couple weeks, it's been in the, like, teens.

[Casey O'Brien]

That's cold.

[Millie de Jericho]

That is cold.

[Casey O'Brien]

That counts for here for sure.

[Millie de Jericho]

I have a Columbia jacket, a down jacket with, like, a fur, fake fur collar, which I hadn't worn. I bought it when I went to England, and then I. I didn't wear. I haven't worn it in years, but I figured if it's 14 degrees, I should wear that jacket. And I still really love it. My boots, I. I either wear. I'm usually in. I know this is not cool anymore, okay? I know this is not cool anymore, but Blundstones, I love Blundstones, okay? And I'm just going to wear them until they come back around. I know that people are like, fuck. Bloodstones are like, not cool anymore.

[Casey O'Brien]

But, yeah, you think the trend is going to whip back around.

[Millie de Jericho]

Whatever. That's all I do is ride out. Ride out. When the kids decide that some brand isn't cool anymore, I just ride it out until it comes back. I either wear Blundstones or also have a pair of Merrell boots that I really like a lot. And also because. I don't know. I don't know if you remember all this, Casey, but do you remember when I Went up to Maine with.

[Casey O'Brien]

I do.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah. And I went to, like, you guys

[Casey O'Brien]

ransacked, like, an L.L. bean.

[Millie de Jericho]

We went to, like, three L.L. beans, Casey. Okay. I have a lot of L.L. bean socks. I do, like, darn tough socks. I'm like, an REI's best customer, basically.

[Casey O'Brien]

I see. So they hate to see you coming. What's the expression? REI hates to see me coming? Something like that. Do you? It was really cold in Atlanta. Did you do anything while you were, like, you know, sequestered away in your house alone?

[Millie de Jericho]

Casey. This is, like, part of the reason why I also hate the cold. I hate being stuck. I don't want to be stuck. I live alone, okay? As I love being stuck for maybe, like, two days after that, I'm like, nah, I don't want to be here anymore. I want to go to the hardware store. I want to go to, you know, the grocery store.

[Casey O'Brien]

I want to, like, want to go to L.L. bean.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah. I want to go to my fourth L.L. bean, which we don't even have down here, but you know what I mean? Like, I started to get, like, a little restless or I want to, like, go outside in the yard and, like, do, like. I just want to do stuff. So again, after, like, the second day. First day was great. I watched tv. I, like, did a couple things in the house. Second day, I was like, all right, I'm gonna cook all my foods, do my crock pots, recipes. And then, you know, whatever it was. So it was great. The third day is when I was like, all right, I'm getting a little bored.

[Casey O'Brien]

I started getting cabin fever.

[Millie de Jericho]

Oh. I start getting on tick tock. I start looking at all the bad news over the place. I start going a little crazy about that. I was looking at these dumb, heated rivalry memes, which now I'm getting a little tired of. Little tired of. And I was like, okay, I'm tired of the Internet. And then I started, like, ordering things online, which is, again, another dangerous territory. I ended up buying. This is so stupid, Casey. For some reason, I, like, had this weird order online where I ordered a caboodle. Do you know what a caboodle is?

[Casey O'Brien]

I don't even know what that is.

[Millie de Jericho]

No, a caboodle is just, like, 1980. The peak of the caboodle was probably, like, 1986.

[Casey O'Brien]

I know what a caboodle is. Yes. I just didn't know that was the name.

[Millie de Jericho]

Oh, yeah.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yes.

[Millie de Jericho]

It was, like, a place for, you know, girls and anyone else that was interested in makeup to, like, store their makeup in a Very fashionable, colorful way. And then I ordered. So I ordered a new caboodle. Cause I was like, oh, they still make caboodles. Wow. I could use something to organize my makeup. So I decided to order one of those. And then I ordered a Guns and Roses T shirt.

[Casey O'Brien]

Wow. The classic one.

[Millie de Jericho]

Oh, no, it's actually from use your illusion one. Okay, so. Because I was like, okay, everybody has the appetite for destruction shirt. What about use your illusion one, which is an illusion?

[Casey O'Brien]

Does that have November rain on it?

[Millie de Jericho]

Yes, does. Listen, when 1 use your illusion 1 and 2 came out, I was at peak obsession with Guns n Roses. And it was basically like, in one fell swoop, one fail ordering swoop. I was like, jettisoned back to middle school, where I was like, I ordered a caboodle and a Guns n Roses T shirt. I am way too bored. I need to leave the house. This is not good.

[Casey O'Brien]

Things are getting grim.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah.

[Casey O'Brien]

Wow.

[Millie de Jericho]

What do you do? I mean, you probably spent a lot of time indoors, so it's not like a thing.

[Casey O'Brien]

Here's the Minnesota thing, though. They. People refuse to let weather stop them. It's almost like a point of pride that, like, they go to social events. People are really into bike riding during the winter. That's its own culture here, you know, People just will not be stopped. So that's sort of my attitude, too. Like, just because it's freezing doesn't mean we can't get freaky out in them streets.

[Millie de Jericho]

But, see, they probably clear the streets. Like, like, the biggest issue, I think, with where I live is that they'll clear the major roadways. But if you live in a neighborhood that's, like, kind of outside a main thoroughfare, like, you'll be lucky if they come and fix your power if it goes out. Like, it's kind of.

[Casey O'Brien]

Are you talking about clearing the snow?

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah, or the ice or whatever. Like, they'll salt the street or whatever.

[Casey O'Brien]

But, like, most streets, like, side streets, like, neighborhood streets, are, like, still packed with snow. And you got to put little special tires on your bike to bike around on.

[Millie de Jericho]

Oh, so the city doesn't do that for you.

[Casey O'Brien]

They're doing more main thoroughfares. They'll salt the roads and they'll plow the roads, but it's still, like, there's still a lot of snow on the road. It's like the road is white. So.

[Millie de Jericho]

Wow.

[Casey O'Brien]

Anyways, that's cold talk for you, but we got a big show today. We're talking about a cold movie, the thing from 1982. And then we have a great guest. We have my friend Luce Tomlin Brenner, filmmaker, comedian, podcaster. She's going to be on for my area of expertise. She's going to be talking about women driven to madness by an unkind or apathetic society. And this is a great conversation. Millie and Lusay both go insane during it and it's fun.

[Millie de Jericho]

We actually go insane saying but that's about it.

[Casey O'Brien]

A great show.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yes. Please stay tuned. Bundle up, it's going to be chilly. You're listening to Dear Movies, I love you. Dear Movies, I love you and I've

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

got to know if you love me too.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yes or no?

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

Check the box below.

[Millie de Jericho]

Foreign.

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Support for the show comes from Public, the investing platform for those who take it seriously. On Public you can build a multi asset portfolio of stocks, bonds, options, crypto and now generated assets which allow you to turn any idea into an investable index with AI. It all starts with your prompt. From renewable energy companies with high free cash flow to semiconductor suppliers growing revenue over 20% year over year, you can literally type any prompt and put the AI to work. It screens thousands of stocks, builds a one of a kind index and lets you back test it against the S&P 500. Then you can invest in a few clicks. Generated assets are like ETFs with infinite possibilities, completely customizable and based on your thesis, not someone else's. Go to public.com podcast and earn an uncapped 1% bonus when you transfer your portfolio. That's public.com podcast paid for by Public Investing Brokerage Services by Open to the Public Investing Inc. Member FINRA and SIPC Advisory Services by Public Advisors, llc. SEC Registered Advisor Generated Assets is an interactive analysis tool. Output is for informational purposes and is not an investment recommendation or advice. Complete Disclosures available at public.comDisclosures ready to

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[Millie de Jericho]

All right folks, you are listening to Dear Movies, I Love youe. This is a podcast for those who are in a meaningful relationship with the movies. My name is Millie de Jericho.

[Casey O'Brien]

My name is Casey o' Brien and

[Millie de Jericho]

we are talking about John Carpenter's the thing from 1982 this week, which many say is the greatest movie remake of all time.

[Casey O'Brien]

Many are saying, I think that is interesting. I haven't put any thought to that, but I agree.

[Millie de Jericho]

You really don't have never thought about the Thing being the best movie remake?

[Casey O'Brien]

I guess I haven't. I've never seen the original one.

[Millie de Jericho]

I mean, so. Okay, not to say like I have, because I have, but it is like a 50s science fiction movie. Yeah, right.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah. Well, I really like Invasion of the body snatchers, the 70s one too, with Donald Sutherland. That's a good remake too.

[Millie de Jericho]

But I mean, I think that beats per minute many. And when I say many, I feel like it's a lot of like cinephile types, but also kind of like general consensus types believe that John Carpenter is the thing from 1982 is the best remake of a movie that was ever made thus far.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah.

[Millie de Jericho]

And I listen. I know I have skin in the game. I love John Carpenter forever. But I do actually think that that's true. I mean, if you think about somebody that took something and made it and just improved upon it to the point where it has become like a cultural staple, like an icon of film. I mean, you really can't find another really that comes. I mean, you might have a couple things that come close, but I mean, come on, like.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah, no, I think you're right. And I think. Would, would you say this is John Carpenter's best Movie.

[Millie de Jericho]

Oh, hands down.

[Casey O'Brien]

Really? Oh.

[Millie de Jericho]

Oh, yeah. Without it.

[Casey O'Brien]

I would say so. I would say so too.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah.

[Casey O'Brien]

I was scared for a moment to say,

[Millie de Jericho]

I mean. Yeah, I mean, like, he's made incredible films. Obviously. I would. I mean, I don't know if you want to do like a top three real quick. Your top three. John Car.

[Casey O'Brien]

My top three. Well, I would probably put the thing as number one.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah. What are your other two, though?

[Casey O'Brien]

I guess I would have to put Halloween. I really love Halloween.

[Millie de Jericho]

I think that's the other movie that people would. Would say is just about as iconic as the Thing.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah, I would say Escape from New York too. I love Escape from New York.

[Millie de Jericho]

Sure. I would.

[Casey O'Brien]

That would probably be my top three.

[Millie de Jericho]

Okay. Okay.

[Casey O'Brien]

What about you?

[Millie de Jericho]

Interesting. I would probably. I would definitely do the thing. I would definitely do Halloween.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

Now.

[Millie de Jericho]

The third one is probably either the Fog or They Live.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah, those are good.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah, I think that's gotta be it. But yeah, we are aligned on. On the two, though. On the thing and.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. They're just. His movies are so fun. Yeah, they're so fun. But this one. Yeah, the thing I would put number one, definitely.

[Millie de Jericho]

Well, we'll talk more about it in just a moment.

[Casey O'Brien]

More to come on that. Millie, let's. Before we get started, we mentioned this on the last episode, but submit your listeners stories. The inbox is open. We want to hear your stories specifically about movie dates. Tell us your stories if they were bad, good, sexy, and record it on your phone. Try to keep it under two minutes, please, and email it to dearMoviesactlyrightmedia.com so just want to get that out there before we get started today.

[Millie de Jericho]

Excellent. Thank you for that.

[Casey O'Brien]

You're welcome, Millie. Let's open up the film diary.

[Millie de Jericho]

This is a cold diary.

[Casey O'Brien]

It's a cold diary because we're back from Antarctica where we were recording the intro.

[Millie de Jericho]

Only get the film diary in your rucksack.

[Casey O'Brien]

In my rucksack? I kept it in a little small barrel under my chin like, you know, those dogs would.

[Millie de Jericho]

With the Saint Bernard.

[Casey O'Brien]

The Saint Bernards with the little, like whiskey around their neck. Would you ever go to Antarctica? Do you have any desire to go there?

[Millie de Jericho]

I gotta be honest with you, this is so petty of me, but I'm gonna just say it anyway. I really didn't until like, one of my old co workers. So. Okay. One of my old co workers from a long time ago, she was a single gal. She on a whim, decides that she wants to go on a trip to Antarctica. Like she Was like, when I have the time. I don't know, she was on a severance package or something and she was like, she had some free time and she had some free cash. And she's like, I'm going to Antarctica. And it was like her and a friend of hers and she ended up meeting a dude in Antarctica. Like, what are the odds? I mean, I guess maybe there are a lot of dudes there, but like,

[Casey O'Brien]

a lot of like minded people, though, free thinkers are going to Antarctica.

[Millie de Jericho]

But he ended up, like, she ended up marrying him and having a kid with him.

[Casey O'Brien]

Oh, my God.

[Millie de Jericho]

And I was like, damn. I didn't really realize that Antarctica could be like a hot spot for dating.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah.

[Millie de Jericho]

So of course I was like, I wonder if I could meet a dude in Antarctica. Wouldn't that be awesome?

[Casey O'Brien]

I love this. I love this. For this possible storyline, this is like the last holiday or something, I feel like.

[Millie de Jericho]

But isn't that an incredible story?

[Casey O'Brien]

Incredible. I mean, what a story.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah.

[Casey O'Brien]

God, unbelievable.

[Millie de Jericho]

I mean, to be completely honest with you, I don't think I would ever have enough money to go there because I think it's like super expensive to go as like, just a tourist, not as a, you know, researcher or whatever, so.

[Casey O'Brien]

Well, I'd want to work in the kitchen at like one of these facilities. I think that'd be fun. Yeah, I. I have like a. A weird, deep desire to like work and live in Antarctica.

[Millie de Jericho]

Really.

[Casey O'Brien]

But I don't think it's ever gonna happen.

[Millie de Jericho]

You could be like. It would be like below deck, except it would be like a thing. The thing meets below deck for you.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah, it's all the, all the movies I've seen that like, take place in Antarctica or like horror movies. So I. Maybe I could write like a rom com that takes place there and then film it there.

[Millie de Jericho]

Oh, my God, Casey, that's actually a really good idea.

[Casey O'Brien]

I mean, it could be your story. Maybe it could be a documentary. We follow you to Antarctica to meet a husband. Okay, we're cooking with gas here. All right, Millie, we opened up the cold film diary. What do you got?

[Millie de Jericho]

So we went a little bit off script this week because, you know, I talked about in the past episode, or was it the last week's episode or the week before where I talked about

[Casey O'Brien]

it was last week, I believe.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah. I talk about Julianuary, right? Julianuary, which is my new themed month where we are all going to watch Julia Roberts movies in January. And I have mailed that idea to myself, so I now have the trademark on Julianuary. But we weren't done, to be honest, with watching Julia Roberts movies.

[Casey O'Brien]

And it wasn't done with you.

[Millie de Jericho]

No, we were. Julia Annuary has us in its grips like a vice. And, you know, it's damn near March, and I'm like, let's go. Let's keep going. So we ended up watching mystic pizza from 1988 because my two friends Ben and Janine had never seen it before. Now I have a little story to tell about this, which is gonna be really gross, so bear with me.

[Casey O'Brien]

Lay it on me.

[Millie de Jericho]

But it is also something that is probably the shittiest thing you could possibly do to somebody who has never seen a movie before. Okay, it's up there. It's up there. So for those of you who have never seen Mystic Pizza, it's like a, you know, rom com about these three women that work at a pizza restaurant in Mystic, Connecticut, which is a real town, right? And it's. And the pizza shop is run by Conchata Farrell, who is, like, this older woman of. I think she's, like, Portuguese or something. Her and her husband own this beloved pizza shop in this town. And, you know, it's about, like, you know, these three young women finding love and, you know, meaning and shit like that. Whatever. You know what I'm talking about. But in the film, this pizza that Concetto Farrell and her husband make is apparently amazing, and people, like, love it so much, and people come in from around the globe, including some stuffy British guy who writes a gourmand column for some paper or something, right? So everybody's like, what's the secret? What's the secret? And, you know, the Concerto Pharrell character is basically like, oh, well, I'll tell you. I'm going to pass it on to you, Lily Taylor, who's in the movie when I retire. And throughout the entire film, it's kind of lingering in the air, like, what's in this pizza, huh? So halfway through the movie, like, halfway, I would say a considerable amount of time had gone by. I turned to my friends and I said, oh, shit, this is the movie where there's, like, jizz in the pizza, right?

[Casey O'Brien]

I saw this coming from 100 miles away.

[Millie de Jericho]

Okay, thank you. Because I did, too. And they, like, looked at me, and they were like, are you joking right now? And I was just like, yeah, I swear to God, I think it's this movie, right? It's got to be this movie. And I was, like, laughing the entire time because I was just like, this is the funniest, stupidest Meanest thing to do to somebody when they're watching a movie like this. And they were rocked. They were so rocked by that information that they could not stop thinking about it. And then periodically through the movie, they would, like, turn to me and be like, okay, well, then whose jizz is it? Is it her? Like, is it Vincent d'? Onofrio's? Is it the husband's? And I'm like, oh, my God, I just laughed. And I was like, I don't know, dude. I don't know. Like, I was.

[Casey O'Brien]

I can't remember. I just remember the jizz.

[Millie de Jericho]

I was set them up for this, like, ridiculous thing. And they were at the end of the film, which, spoiler alert, they don't tell you what's in the pizza, obviously.

[Casey O'Brien]

So it may or may not be jizz.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yes. But the moment the movie ended, they turned to me and they were like, you're a. Like, why would you say that to us?

[Casey O'Brien]

And I'm like, you ruined this movie for these people. That's so funny.

[Millie de Jericho]

But they will never forget it. Well, they know they will never forget

[Casey O'Brien]

you gave them a gift. It's like when somebody jumped, like someone's skydiving, and the instructor pretends to and says, wait, your parachute. You know, they won't forget that.

[Millie de Jericho]

Listen, had it been any other movie than Mystic Pizza, I probably would have said nothing. I know I would have said nothing. But listen, we had some wine, and it was 14 degrees outside, and I just thought, let's. Let's, you know, make these people laugh, and maybe they'll write in with a film gripe and talk about me. Sure. But anyway, that's what happened. That's the only movie I saw this week, though.

[Casey O'Brien]

That's great. I saw two movies this week. I enjoyed both of them. Number one was night shift from 1982, starring Henry Winkler and Michael Keaton. Directed by Ron Howard. Yeah, it's sort of like risky business in that they're running a brothel out of a morgue, like a city morgue. I thought it was really sweet and fun, and I kind of miss, like, heartfelt goofy comedies like this. You know, they don't make. They don't make movies like this anymore.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah.

[Casey O'Brien]

And, you know, Henry Winkler is charming. And it's funny because this is, like, his first movie after Happy Days. And I think Happy Days was still on while he was in this movie. But in, like, this movie, he's, like, a mid-30s, you know, man, which is what he was. But on Happy Days, he's, like, ostensibly, like, just out of high school, I guess, but just kind of fun.

[Millie de Jericho]

Had Ron Howard and Henry Winkler worked like. Was this the first time that they were doing something together that wasn't Happy Days?

[Casey O'Brien]

I believe so.

[Millie de Jericho]

Okay. And.

[Casey O'Brien]

But it was fun. I had a good time. And you can kind of see the beginnings of Beetlejuice and Michael Keaton's character. This sort of felt like a rehearsal for Beetlejuice. So that was fun.

[Millie de Jericho]

That's good.

[Casey O'Brien]

Then I watched Set it off from 1996 with Queen Latifah, Jada Pinkett. Who else is in it? Viva K. Fox and Blair Underwood. A great time. Man, was it fun.

[Millie de Jericho]

So fun. I was like.

[Casey O'Brien]

I was. I was like having a blast. I was just totally into this when I. I'd never seen it before. Oh my God, it was great.

[Millie de Jericho]

We did an episode about it on. On. I saw what you did.

[Casey O'Brien]

Oh, you did, huh?

[Millie de Jericho]

But it's, it's. It's so fun. I don't know why I was like trying. I was excited when you said set it off and I was like making like little pistol noises and then I. It morphed into Spider man fingers. And I don't really know why that happened because there's no Spider man in Set It Off.

[Casey O'Brien]

Spider man is not and set it Off. But. Oh, I loved it. I thought it's. I don't want to spoil it for anybody, but I mean, it is like a hard R rated movie. It is like really violent and dark.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah, girl.

[Casey O'Brien]

I was kind of surprised by that.

[Millie de Jericho]

It's real, girl. Powery.

[Casey O'Brien]

It is.

[Millie de Jericho]

And I love that shit. And the. The end is really good.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah, I thought it was a really good ending. And there's something. Bank robberies kind of scare me for some reason. There's something about like. Like I kind of get obsessed with them in real life too. Like the North Hollywood bank robbery, that famous one where it was like a huge shootout and a guy killed himself during the shootout. And it's like. I don't know. There's just something about these people who are like, either I'm going to be fabulously rich or I'm going to die violently. And I'm kind of ready for either extreme. That's kind of scary to me. There's something about that that really kind of gets to me.

[Millie de Jericho]

Well, I think it's because I might be wrong about this, but I understand. I think I'm basically saying I empathize with this fear and I think maybe it might be the idea that it's such high stakes because a. It is probably the biggest concentration of money you could possibly get. Like one sitting, right. Yeah. So there's that on top of that. It's gotta be a huge undertaking because of the complications of like, the security and the amount of space and all this stuff. So it almost requires like extra. It's like an extra thing where you're like. You can't just like walk in and be all willy nilly about things. Like, you have to have a plan, sort of. You have to have, like. You have to be okay with the idea that it may go wrong because of all of the factors.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah. You know, I feel like there's like kind of like two ways you can rob a bank. And all of my research is based on movies and not fact, obviously, but it's kind of the nimble. Like, I've got a gun. Give me the money and I'm gonna walk out of here. Like, just kind of like the quiet bank robbery or the. Like, we have machine guns and are taking over in a hostile takeover of the bank. Like, there's no in between, you know, and. Yeah.

[Millie de Jericho]

But to even do. Because. Okay, who want to bring this back to film? There's like the silent partner way, which is basically like slipping a note.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yes.

[Millie de Jericho]

What's the most you could probably get is whatever's in the drawer. Right. But then there's the Dog Day afternoon way, which is basically like a good morning everybody. Like, you know, hostages and.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah.

[Millie de Jericho]

Go to the safe. Like that kind of bank robbery. So I don't know. Both seem kind of dicey.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah.

[Millie de Jericho]

Too much ground to cover. Too much planning.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah, I know. It's funny. Queen Latifah's character is like, God, why do we gotta be talking about all this plans and stuff? Let's just go in there and blow it up. I was like, do not listen to Queen Latifah.

[Millie de Jericho]

She's. She's hot to trot. What a good movie.

[Casey O'Brien]

But I loved it. I loved it. So. All right, let's close up the diary.

[Millie de Jericho]

All right. Goodbye.

[Casey O'Brien]

Goodbye. All right, let's get into our main movie discussion. The thing from 1982. This is a very classic and iconic, like, credit sequence too, where it's like the burning of the thing appearing in the screen.

[Millie de Jericho]

You know what I'm talking about?

[Casey O'Brien]

That's cool. It's good to see that again. Anyways, this was directed by John Carpenter, based on. It's a screenplay by Bill Lancaster. It's based on the novella who Goes There? By John W. Campbell Jr. And as Miliarity said, this is A remake. There's an. There's another movie, the Thing from Another World. And yes, that's. It's a remake of that movie, but it's also based on the novella. Standout Actors. Kurt Russell, Keith David, Wilford Brimley. This is kind of a classic John Carpenter movie where it introduces like 75 men and you're like, all these fools are going to die. I think of the movie Prince of Darkness, it introduces like 800 characters.

[Millie de Jericho]

Oh, my God. Remember when we talked about that movie, we were like, man, they got like a couple Asian people in here.

[Casey O'Brien]

That's like. That's unheard of personal connection to you, Millie. What's your personal connection to the thing? Do you remember the first time you saw it?

[Millie de Jericho]

God, I actually don't, to be honest. I. I don't either. I don't either. I don't either. I don't and had to have been when I was younger because I've loved this movie for so long. My personal connection to it is that I'm a huge John Carpenter fan. Obviously a very essential film to watch in his filmography. I'm also a fan of Kurt Russell with a beard and longish hair.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah, we were kind of laughing when we were watching it this time, Trish and I, because I was like, you know, he wears that big sombrero hat sometimes. Kurt Russell does.

[Millie de Jericho]

We gotta talk about this because. Should I talk about this now?

[Casey O'Brien]

Do it.

[Millie de Jericho]

Okay. I'd like to read to you a weather fact about Antarctica, which is where this movie is supposed to take place. Cause these people are Antarctic researchers. Antarctica's average temperature varies wildly from a chilly average of around 14 degrees Fahrenheit in the summer on the coast to a brutal negative 76 degrees Fahrenheit during winter, with the interior averaging around negative 71 degrees Fahrenheit annually. So I want to point this out in reference to talking about Kurt Russell's sombrero and outfit. Okay. The thing that bothered me the most about watching this is that his outfit is not. Not appropriate for this climate.

[Casey O'Brien]

No, it's not.

[Millie de Jericho]

And he's.

[Casey O'Brien]

And neither is a lot of them. I feel like Keith David was out in a thin turtleneck.

[Millie de Jericho]

That's like. You know that in these climates, if you walk out into the open air and you don't put gloves on in like 20 seconds, you get frostbite and stuff. You know, it's like, this is the. This is the type of climate. And I think from what I remember, this is the beginning of winter when they.

[Casey O'Brien]

This movie, he Said it's the first day of winter, I think, right?

[Millie de Jericho]

So we're not getting the ne. We're not getting the 14 degrees Fahrenheit. We're getting the negative 50. And I'm like going, Kurt Russell has, like a little tiny bomber jacket on with his, like, fucking. He's got it from like, Wilson's the leather experts. It's got no insulation beyond, like a fur collar, you know, he's got his little, you know, REI sun hat and his little pants. And I'm like, he is so underdressed and he's like going up in a helicopter. No, I don't.

[Casey O'Brien]

Well, the thing that's funny is, like, he wears the sombrero like once or twice, but really, he just has the most beautiful flowing hair. And it's like, clearly they're like, we're not putting a hat on this. Of course, you know, there's like, for cinematic reasons, no way.

[Millie de Jericho]

We're not. We can't cover this hottie up in any, you know, actual low temperature gear because it would distract from his beautiful face and his beautiful eyes.

[Casey O'Brien]

It should be noted too, that Millie and I spent about 30 minutes discovering that there is a difference between the Arctic Circle and Antarctica. After we recorded the intro, we both didn't really realize they were separate places, but now we are informed.

[Millie de Jericho]

Well, I mean, I always knew. I was like, okay, Santa Claus is from one place and then the other place is where they research penguins. But is it the same place? That was my. That was my big question. And as we found out, it's not.

[Casey O'Brien]

So this movie takes place in Antarctica, which is the southern. Which is an actual continent at the bottom of the earth where my friend

[Millie de Jericho]

found romance and, you know, the love of her life.

[Casey O'Brien]

So, yes, my personal connection. Yeah, I love John Carpenter. I've been kind of on a kick lately, too, of watching his, like, later movies like Ghosts from Mars, Ghosts of Mars, whatever that one is, and Escape from la, another movie I like, he needs. And I watched Vampires recently too, which is probably, to me, his worst movie. But I love him. I think he's great. And I rewatch his movies all the time. To me, when I think of watching horror movies around Halloween, I think of John Carpenter movies.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah, I told you that I hung out with him briefly, right? What? Yeah, when I was in LA at the TSM Classic Film Festival, baby, I, you know, was his talent escort for something. And he actually came up like we were sitting in the green room and he was like, oh, I watched TCM Underground.

[Casey O'Brien]

And I was like, that's tight, Millie. That's great.

[Millie de Jericho]

No, my fucking heart dropped into my ass when he said that. And then he goes. Because honestly, like right afterwards he goes, you don't play enough 50th science fiction films. And I was like, yes, sir, I'm sorry. I'll fix that immediately.

[Casey O'Brien]

He's a certified grump. He seems like a.

[Millie de Jericho]

But like a good one. He's like a good grump. He loves basketball.

[Casey O'Brien]

He loves the Lakers. I know that much. He was supposed to be at a Q and A that I went to, but his wife showed up and was like, sorry, the Lakers are on tonight. He's not coming.

[Millie de Jericho]

What a guy. I fucking love that shit. And like, honestly, the best thing about him when I had met him that time was that he was wearing baseball stirrup socks. You know what I'm talking about? Like, yeah, you get him in like Little League or whatever. And then he went outside and smoked a cigarette and came back in. I mean, I just love the guy.

[Casey O'Brien]

So he's another one of those guys that looks like he's been 63 for the last 40 years.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah. Oh, man.

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[Millie de Jericho]

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[Casey O'Brien]

well, let's get in the movie a little bit kept. Antarctica, that's where we're at. A random dog has made its way from a Norwegian research station to our main location which is a US Research station. The movie starts with these Norwegians shooting at this dog running across like this field of snow. And the dog makes it to this US Research station which is where we spend the rest of the movie basically. And there, like I said, there's like 75 people in this movie. So I'm just going to say the main ones that we have to know about. There's Mac, played by Kurt Russell, he's a helicopter pilot. There's Blair, played by Wilford Brimley, he's a doctor. And there's Childs, played by Keith David, he's the main mechanic. So the dog ends up at this research station with these guys. These Norwegians are coming after them and they are like crazy and shooting at people and the trying to get the dog and they, they're like going so nuts they accidentally blow themselves up and get shot. So the US station is confused because these two guys, Norwegians are dead, but they have this dog that they were chasing after. Okay, so they're like, we gotta figure out what happened at the Norwegian station. Let's go over there. So Mack and the doctor, played by Richard Dysart, they go to check out the Norwegian station, and it's blowed up. It's like on fire. And no one's there. But they discover these disgusting, mutilated and mutated human bodies, and they bring the bodies back to the US Research station. They soon discover that the Norwegians had uncovered a flying saucer that was deep beneath the ice and that it had been there for like a hundred thousand years. And they uncovered some life form from that space station, that flying saucer. I mean, we've touched on Kurt Russell a little bit. What do you think of our guy?

[Millie de Jericho]

Just generally or in the film?

[Casey O'Brien]

His character in the film, and generally

[Millie de Jericho]

both very rugged, very manly, you know, kind of takes like a leadership role, despite the fact that he's not the captain.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah, he's kind of got a goofiness about him, too. I always appreciate that. It's kind of like he could see him getting hit in the head with a frying pan in a movie, too, and it would. He would be able to handle that.

[Millie de Jericho]

Oh, he's exactly like, like every helicopter pilot that you'd ever see in an 80s movie. Wasn't Mel Gibson and Air America the same guy? Like, is that the movie that. I'm thinking of?

[Casey O'Brien]

That one missed me. I didn't. I didn't see that one.

[Millie de Jericho]

Or maybe Mel Gibson wasn't a. Hell, I think Robert Downey Jr. Was the helicopter pilot or something in that movie. But anyway, it's the same kind of premise where it's basically like some kind of pilot that is like, you know, real, like, easy breezy. He's like a. He's like a guy's guy. You know, he's at the beginning of the thing. Kurt Russell's character, first of all, all he does is drink JB Scotch. Right. Which, if you don't know, by the way, is it J and B Scotch? Maybe I said it wrong.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah. Jambi, all he's doing.

[Millie de Jericho]

All he's doing is drinking JNB Scotch.

[Casey O'Brien]

Right?

[Millie de Jericho]

And he's. He's playing computer chess, which I think is really interesting. But he. If you don't know about this, JB Scotch is like a huge 70s movie exploitation movie drink.

[Casey O'Brien]

It's like in every movie. Yeah, it's kind of like a wink. You're kind of like, oh, I put JMB Scotch in my movie. It kind of is like a kind of a signal to that. It's in on the joke or something.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah. I mean, and it's like every detective, every crime boss, every, you know, Hitman in a 70s movie is drinking JMB Scotch, right? It's kind of an iconic symbol of, I would call, like, cult movies or genre movies or whatever, right?

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah.

[Millie de Jericho]

So that, to me is already, like, establishes that he's a man's man, is the JNB Scotch. But then it's like, you know, him wearing his. You know how guys. You're not this guy because you just talk. You just said this. Guys that are just like, I don't need a jacket. I don't need. I'm going to wear shorts.

[Casey O'Brien]

You know, Millie, it is a huge issue in Minnesota. It's this. It's this thing where it's kind of like guys are expected to wear the bare minimum or less than the bare minimum amount of, like, layers when it's cold. So that's why when you go to, like, the grocery store and it's like negative 21 and you'll see a guy in shorts in there because it's kind of like a thing. Men don't want to, like, wrap up too much or you get kind of made fun of. You're like. You're a little overdressed, aren't you? But it's like, it's cold. I refuse to play your game, you know?

[Millie de Jericho]

Is it because men are supposed to endure the elements and not be pussies? Is that why?

[Casey O'Brien]

That's right.

[Millie de Jericho]

That's stupid. That's like the stupidest thing I've ever heard.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah, men are stupid. I don't know what you want to hear. It's stupid. I agree.

[Millie de Jericho]

You know what being a pussy is? Having your fingers and toes fall off.

[Casey O'Brien]

That's right. I agree.

[Millie de Jericho]

There you go.

[Casey O'Brien]

So, yeah, that is like a big thing here. I noticed, like, if it gets above 30, all of a sudden guys are, like, wearing T shirts outside.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah, but that's a little. Little bit of a Kurt Russell character in the thing, right? He's definitely, like, manly, drinking J and B scotch, underdressing for the Antarctic winter, and is sort of like, you know, like a guy that's gonna take care of business. Like, you know that he's going to take care of business when he's, you know, asking for the fucking flamethrower and shit.

[Casey O'Brien]

You know, that's the thing. It quickly establishes, you know, this computer chess game. One, he's pissed off. He pours the JMB Scotch into the computer, destroying it. So, you know, he's fast acting. He Doesn't. He doesn't think too much, you know, or. He's decisive, I should say. So. I do like that he has his own little shack. He's kind of removed from the rest of the group.

[Millie de Jericho]

He's definitely like. Like his own. His own weird guy. Yes, I. You know, it's funny that you mentioned this earlier about the idea that you'd love to, like, work in Antarctica one day.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yes. I mean, I don't know what reality this would happen because I have a wife and child, but, you know, I can dream.

[Millie de Jericho]

What if they. They were like, Casey, the Antarctic researchers here at the United States, whatever meteorological society or whatever it is down there, they want to start a podcast, and they need a podcast producer, and it

[Casey O'Brien]

needs to be about Garden State.

[Millie de Jericho]

And your mission lasts for three months over the course of the most brutal winter you've ever experienced.

[Casey O'Brien]

Well, if they needed me, I'd be there with my little microphone and my computer.

[Millie de Jericho]

So you're okay with, like. Because I think part of, obviously, the terror of this film, the thing is the idea that you're in a bunker and you're kind of. It's kind of like you're in an enclosed environment with other people where, you know, much like the Shining, it's like the door is shutting, it's too cold to go outside. You're going to have to have everything that you need in this bunker.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah.

[Millie de Jericho]

And if something goes wrong in the bunker, you're kind of fucked because you can't go. So you're okay with that? You don't feel claustrophobic about that scenario whatsoever?

[Casey O'Brien]

I'm not a claustrophobic. I like staying inside. I like being in an enclosed space.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah. I think it's. I can dabble in it for. I think much like now I would be able to do it for the first, like, maybe week.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah.

[Millie de Jericho]

And then I would start to get a little restless.

[Casey O'Brien]

You know what made me really want to go to the Antarctic into Antarctica in this movie? They're like, little game room looked tight. They're playing pool, they got a bar, they're playing cards. They're smoking cigarettes every night. That sounds fun.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah, I do love that.

[Casey O'Brien]

Didn't that look fun?

[Millie de Jericho]

I do love that. But then, I don't know, then you got to sleep in bunk beds with other dudes and.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah. I mean, it would probably get pretty grim.

[Millie de Jericho]

No Internet.

[Casey O'Brien]

Do you think there'd be no Internet? I bet there'd be Internet.

[Millie de Jericho]

Well, not in 1982 is the thing.

[Casey O'Brien]

That's true. But that's True.

[Millie de Jericho]

But I don't know. I'm thinking the Internet is not that great in Antarctica.

[Casey O'Brien]

Probably. Probably. I'm going to move on to the next part here. So that random Norwegian dog, he's put with the other dogs that they have, but this ain't no dog. The men soon discover that this Norwegian dog is a fucking freak. It's an alien that assimilates and perfectly replicates other living creatures. So they catch it kind of like absorbing these other dogs, and it's like. It's hard to even explain visually what this looks like. I mean, it's disgusting. There's like tentacle tongue things whipping all around. It's crazy. But now, you know, they discover that this alien thing, you know, they take a flamethrower trip, but they discover they're like, you know, this alien thing, it assimilates and it replicates other people, so. Other living creatures. So any of the guys here could be an alien. And they don't know who is an alien and who's not. And it's around this time when Blair, who's the Wilford Brimley character, he goes nuts because he realizes that this alien creature, if it got to civilization, would, like, just take over the human race. So he, like, intentionally destroys all of their means of transportation and the radio and stuff. He goes nuts. So they lock him away. He doesn't seem to be infected, but he just kind of went crazy. So they lock him away in Mac's little shack, far away from everybody else. The powers of the thing, the alien, are, like, a little confusing because it, like, replicates, but it also just grows into, like, a giant beast creature. You know what I mean? It's, like, not totally clear what the powers are.

[Millie de Jericho]

Well, and also, I guess my. What I was trying to figure out when I was rewatching it, I should know this by now. I've seen this movie many times, but I guess I just haven't really sat and thought about it. Is when it decides to, like, pop out.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah.

[Millie de Jericho]

Do you know what I mean? Because that they. They. They sort of go into this realm where it's like, if it feels like it's being threatened, then it'll manifest to try to save itself. Right. Yeah. Which is the blood test scenario that they were, you know. Yeah.

[Casey O'Brien]

Later on, they do this test where they take blood from people and they realize if they touch heat to the blood, that the blood will freak out and you'll be able to tell that they're an alien. But the thing is, I couldn't. I can't tell if, like the guys that have been taken over, if they're like, I'm an alien or if they're it like pops. They don't even know it's in there. And it pops out of them. Yeah.

[Millie de Jericho]

You know, and I guess it's kind of like, well, when does it happen? Because it's some. It's. For some of them, it seems like a very short time from infection to, you know, exploding out of their bodies. And then other times it takes a longer time. And so I'm kind of like, what's the tempo? And maybe that's it. Maybe it's just random, which I guess is the scariest thing of all.

[Casey O'Brien]

But I kind of like that it's sort of random because it's sort of like we don't know. Like, these characters would never really know the answer of what it is doing. They have like a guess of what it's doing, but it is like an alien creature and it could have powers they don't even understand, you know?

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah. I guess it really does up the stakes when it's like you could be sitting next to this guy for like a year. A whole year.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah.

[Millie de Jericho]

And be like.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah.

[Millie de Jericho]

And all of a sudden his alien comes out his thing.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah. You turn around, he's got little tentacles coming out of his eyeballs.

[Millie de Jericho]

Let me. Let me tell you this.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah.

[Millie de Jericho]

I think obviously, because I've gone through some hard times in the past couple weeks with my dog, having to, you know, have my dog transition over to her new life, her Rainbow Bridge thing. I don't even know how to say it. How do. Like, I'm just having a hard time with everything these days, articulating my thoughts when it comes to the death of my beautiful bestie, Sophie. But I think because of that, I really couldn't take the dog stuff this time. Yeah. Like the sweet little husky. Right. Because they're all like these husky dogs, you know, Alaskan husky. You need. That's the type of dog, the sled dogs, the cold weather dogs. Right. Beautiful eyes. It's like laying on its. Like, it's like, you know, like on its little paws. Laying on its paws and its head down. And the next thing you know, it just like this. Right through the mouth, which I thought was. Oh.

[Casey O'Brien]

And I felt bad for the other little doggies in there getting attacked. I mean, it was. It was. It was hard.

[Millie de Jericho]

I know they were like. Because Richard Missour, who's one of the. I guess he's the keeper of the dogs, right. He's like the dog guy.

[Casey O'Brien]

The dog guy, you know, puts them in their kennel.

[Millie de Jericho]

Which, again, I was like, I know that they're like, they're good with the cold weather, but I was like, can't y' all dog pile? Like, you guys should sleep next to each other. But they. They other dogs. When the dog that was being chased by the Norwegians gets put into the kennel and the other dogs are kind of sitting around being like, there's something going on with this dog, they start growling at him. And then that's when, you know, the whole trans transition happens from, yeah, sweetheart to alien. And then they're trying to get out of the kennel. Like, one of the dogs is, like, biting the chicken wire trying to bust out of there.

[Casey O'Brien]

I know.

[Millie de Jericho]

And I just was like, I can't take this. Like, my heart is hurting for all these Alien dogs. I don't want them to have this stupid thing in their bodies.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah. So I know. That was. Anyway, that was hard. Yeah. I mean, maybe we could talk about the practical effects a little bit. I mean, I think that's kind of what this movie is known for. Two is like the really insane and impressive practical effects. It is fun and it's just really. This movie just proves you can tell the difference visually when something is computer generated and when it's a practical effect, you know, when the time is taken

[Millie de Jericho]

to do it, there's this like. Like, right when you figure out it's a practical effect, because there's kind of this, like, stutter of the effect, you know, Whereas, like, a CGI thing is automatic. Like, it's very smooth. Like, the transition is smooth, but with a practical effect, it's like you have to wait for the, like, chest cavity to open up, and then, you know, it's like a. It's like a machine or something. And you're like, oh, I love a practical effect for that. Love this look. Like two seconds of shittiness that happens. It's so wonderful.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah, but, like, I would rather there be two seconds of shittiness than just sort of this, like, bland, smooth thing.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yes. You know, it's fun when it's shitty. God, it's fun when it's shitty.

[Casey O'Brien]

But I think it's also scarier because you're like, that's a real thing. I know it's not really a monster, but they created something that's real, that's on the screen. You know, your eyes can tell. So, like, that when Norris, you know, like, the doctor's about to do the. What are those The. The electrical pads to clear. And then his. Puts his hand, the defibrillator, and the guy's stomach opens up and he just bites the doctor's hands off. And you're like, oh. And then that guy's head comes off and starts walking around. And they did that all practice. It's like, it looks good. It's so good.

[Millie de Jericho]

It's an art piece. It's wonderful. I wonder who has that chest cavity now. Is it in somebody's house, you know?

[Casey O'Brien]

Well, like, you know, they don't do practical effects like this unless it's, like, intentionally schlocky. But it seems like the money is always put towards cgi. And I'm like, is it just too expensive to do practical effects at this high A level now? Or are people lazy? Or do they feel like that looks cheap in a modern Hollywood movie?

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah, obviously, I'm thinking it's probably less expensive to do computer.

[Casey O'Brien]

That's what I would think.

[Millie de Jericho]

And also time. And also, you know, like, you're gonna have to pay practical effects artists, like, you know their trade, which is, like, annoying too, because those people are artists. They're like, geniuses. Absolutely.

[Casey O'Brien]

But I wonder if, like, you know, a Marvel movie would never spend the money on this and the time, even though they have both to do practical effects. Because I think CGI has a specific look to it, and they feel like. Well, they don't want it to look too rough around the edges. You know, they want it to be like a really professional looking thing. And I wonder if that has something to do with it. Not just, like, just aesthetically. It looks more polished to do CGI for everything.

[Millie de Jericho]

God. Do we know any practical effects people? Can we have them on a podcast so I could just ask questions?

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah, let us know. Do some research. Try to find if you have any friends who do practical effects for movies we want to talk to.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah. Dear movies@exactly right, media.com. the caveat being they have to let me ask them every stupid question I've ever wanted to ask.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yes.

[Millie de Jericho]

Okay.

[Casey O'Brien]

It could take hours.

[Millie de Jericho]

Sorry. It's just part of it, so thank you.

[Casey O'Brien]

Well, the next part of this movie, we kind of talked about it, guys are. Chests are opening up, biting. Guys arms off. Things hit. Shit hits the fan. This guy Bennings, he gets assimilated. They flame, throw his ass. This other guy, Fuchs, sets himself on fire. So he doesn't get assimilated. Mac shoots Clark the dog guy, because the dog guy was going to come after him with a knife. Yeah. The doctor gets his arms bitten off. Norris's head mutates and crawls away like a spider. Other guys get infected, blow them up. Just a lot of shit going on. And all the while, you know, Blair is out in the shed. So they're like, we got to go check on him, bring him back in. But they go out there, and guess what? He's gone. He's not in there. So he must have been infected. The alien, the thing must have gotten him. So he's out there somewhere. But they discover this was a. This was. This took me out of it a little bit. They discover that in the hours that Blair has been out in the shed, he has built a spaceship to fly off because he's been taken over by the thing, I guess.

[Millie de Jericho]

Wow.

[Casey O'Brien]

So this thing built a spaceship really quickly.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yes.

[Casey O'Brien]

But that was kind of crazy.

[Millie de Jericho]

You know, this is the section of the movie where, you know, start to think about current political climates and whatnot. And I always find that, you know, movies about paranoia like this always hit harder in times of political upheaval and strife and fascism. Yes. And so, of course, I'm like, watching the thing this time going, ah, this is real. This is real. We're all doing this. We're all walking around not knowing who each other is.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah.

[Millie de Jericho]

You know, we're all, like, freaking each other out, you know, being like, you know, whatever.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah. It's like, who's got the woke mind virus, you know, or who's been infected

[Millie de Jericho]

with MAGA ism or whatever.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah. Ultimately QAnon.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah.

[Casey O'Brien]

Out there. Who's not. Yeah. And like, I mean, remind me of. During the. The COVID stuff. It's like, who's vaccinated and who's an anti vaxxer. You never know.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah. It's crazy. And I, you know. You know, this is so insane because, you know, I still have a Facebook account. I don't know why. I think it's because of Facebook Marketplace, to be honest, Because I use free. That's the only thing I really use on Facebook. But I got this friend request from somebody that I knew from, like a million years ago. And this happens randomly. Like, I'll get a friend request from somebody from middle school or something.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah.

[Millie de Jericho]

And I had this moment, and this has happened many times in the past where I, like, looked at the person who fretted me and I just, like, look at their profile photo. I like, go to their Facebook page and see, like, what? Because I just want to know, what's the vibe. Are you, like a crazy right winger? Because if you Are. I don't want to deal with your ass. Like, I'll just ignore your friend request because I really just don't want you fucking up my Timeline with all your weird shit. Do you ever do that?

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah, absolutely. I mean, Facebook is a real stinkhole to go into, and I'm on there pretty frequently because I'm on some groups for, like, Minneapolis, local groups that it's helpful there. But, you know, a lot of it, it's like, I don't know, my mom posting something about, like, get ice out of many Minneapolis, and then one of her Facebook friends being like, you're an idiot.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah.

[Casey O'Brien]

You know, it's like, all that kind of stuff is on there all the time.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah. And that's like, normally like this. Like, during normal travels through Facebook, where I'm always seeing bad comments on. It's like, either you're. It's like a friend of a friend or a friend of a family member. And I'm just like, for me, if I can cut it off at the hilt and be like, is this person asking for my friendship, is it going to aggravate me? Like, because otherwise, I don't want the aggravation. Just like, I don't need to smoke. I don't need, you know, your weird take. So let me just, like, put you in Facebook friend request purgatory until I can find out whether I think you might be okay.

[Casey O'Brien]

And you've been put in the black lodge of Facebook.

[Millie de Jericho]

Right. And I'm sitting here going, that's the kind of, like, paranoia we live in right now is that we're just sort of like, we just want to know. We want to know who you are and what you believe in. Because it's like, if it's. If it's going to be a thing, if we're going to have to fight all the time, I don't want that for myself. And, you know, it's sad in some kind of way, I suppose, but, you know, after God, after the second time Trump got elected, I was like, fuck it. Like, this is just survival at this point. I ain't fucking with any of this. Like, sorry.

[Casey O'Brien]

Well, let me just wrap this up here. You know, Mac and a few other guys who are left, they plan to blow up the whole station so that the creature has no chance of surviving. But out of nowhere, Wilford Brimley comes back and he starts sucking people up. He's an alien. He assimilates the last couple of guys and mutates into a giant creature. You know, they were setting up all this dynamite to blow up the station. And the Wilford Brimley creature sort of messes that up. But Mac throws a stick of dynamite in there and he blows the whole place up, effectively killing the creature, we think. But then Childs, played by Keith David, he shows up out of nowhere. Where do you go? Where were you? He's like, oh, I was just over there. So it sort of seems like, are you an alien? But Kurt Russell's like, seems like he's kind of on the brink of death and it's, like, freezing and there's no shelter. So they're like. Well, it's just. You're kind of unclear how it ends. Like, either of them an alien, this child's an alien, they're just going to hang out and drink some JMB till the sun comes up, I guess. So kind of a vague ending, or you're, like, not sure which way it's going to go, but it seems like they're both. They're both goners.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah. I kind of love the ambiguity of the ending.

[Casey O'Brien]

The ambiguity? Yeah.

[Millie de Jericho]

Isn't it nice? It is to not really know.

[Casey O'Brien]

Do you have a theory?

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah, I think they probably die just natural. Of natural causes.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah. But do you think Childs is an alien?

[Millie de Jericho]

I don't. I don't think so, actually.

[Casey O'Brien]

I don't either.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah, I don't think he is. I. I don't want him to be. I think this because it's Keith David and I. I love Keith David so much and I don't want him to be an alien, but I feel. I feel like what will happen to them is that they will not be rescued.

[Casey O'Brien]

They're gonna have. No, they definitely won't.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah, they don't. They don't get rescued because they can't radio out of there because of, you know, earlier information you get. And I think that they probably just die of hypothermia and.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah, apparently freezing to death is one of the more pleasant ways to die.

[Millie de Jericho]

Is it?

[Casey O'Brien]

You get kind of drowsy and you get all hot and you kind of just fall asleep. Comfy, cozy.

[Millie de Jericho]

Is that true?

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah. That's why when they find people frozen to death, they're. They're frequently naked because they get so warm.

[Millie de Jericho]

Oh, so the body, like, what, believes that it's warm when it's actually cold. Oh, wow.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah. Wow. They're worst ways to go.

[Millie de Jericho]

But that would take forever, don't you think?

[Casey O'Brien]

I don't know. I don't know.

[Millie de Jericho]

That's interesting.

[Casey O'Brien]

Maybe they were cuddled up. They Died in each other's arms. That's how I choose to believe.

[Millie de Jericho]

Aw, that would be actually lovely. I would love that. Have I ever seen that movie Alive from. Was it 1993? About the alive?

[Casey O'Brien]

I've never seen it, but I was looking into it in research for this movie.

[Millie de Jericho]

Do you think that they ate each other at all?

[Casey O'Brien]

In Alive?

[Millie de Jericho]

No, in the thing.

[Casey O'Brien]

Well, would one of them have to have eaten the other one? I don't think they would have because I think they would have been like, after this, then what?

[Millie de Jericho]

You know, I think Mac is too proud to eat or be eaten.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah. That's what I. I agree.

[Millie de Jericho]

He won't even wear. You want to wear a hat, scarf, Let alone. He just like, I'm not taking a chunk out of your thigh or anything. I. I don't know. I just think he's.

[Casey O'Brien]

I liked. I liked cold Kurt Russell in this because he'd come back in and he. They, like, threw some white powder on his face, and he's like, it's like,

[Millie de Jericho]

it's freezing out there. Like, it's freezing. Why did you get a. You know, you need to get your, like, Stone island giant, you know, $500 coat and just get. Get going here, buddy. So what do you think, in conclusion? What are your takeaways from the thing?

[Casey O'Brien]

I like what you said about paranoia and how that can.

[Millie de Jericho]

Paranoia will destroy you.

[Casey O'Brien]

Paranoia will destroy you. But, you know, I also feel like nobody did anything, like, stupid. You know, when you're watching a horror movie and you're like, don't do that, you idiot.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah.

[Casey O'Brien]

No one does anything, like, stupid. Like, I understood every decision that they made in this movie, so I was. I enjoyed it in that regard. And they all acted quickly, but it was no use.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah. For the alien. Well, I mean, part of, like, this is the type of thing where. Yeah. I mean, they're really. Everybody loses because essentially it's like you're either actually an alien or somebody thinks you're an alien and kills you. There's no happy endings here.

[Casey O'Brien]

No.

[Millie de Jericho]

You know, and that's all it is, is that it takes just, like this one seed to be planted, and then that's it. Like, we're all just dead at the end of the day. And I try not to think like this when I think about, like, current life, but it is, like, part of this movie that I think makes it. I think this movie is obviously a masterpiece. I think it's a masterpiece in. In many ways. The. The pacing of it, the production design, the cast, which I. I would argue the cast is not super famous, like Kurt Russell and Keith David probably being the most famous. Wilford, Brimley, Richard, Missouri. But, like, for the most part, there's a lot of people who are just kind of like, there's no, like, George Clooney, Brad Pitt, like, Ocean's Eleven thing happening here. This is like, you know, a group of, like, character actors or guys are in the John Carpenter world and, you know, it all clicks into place. Like, there's just so many things that make it a masterpiece. But I think that obviously the. The thing that makes it persist, maybe in a long term way is just the themes of it, of the idea that, you know, you're kind of in an unwinnable war when you're in a situation like this because you're basically either like, again, going to be dead from some infection of some extraterrestrial kind, or somebody will think that you are and you can't. It's basically like whether or not you can prove it. And a lot of times paranoia and anger just win anyway, even if you

[Casey O'Brien]

try to prove it.

[Millie de Jericho]

So I don't know, it's just. It's philosophical is what I mean, people.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah, it persists. Yeah, I think that's good. Have you ever heard the Lil Wayne song Phone Home? Where he's like, we are not the same. I am an alien.

[Millie de Jericho]

I'm a huge Lil Wayne fan. Even though I recently heard that he is MAGA or something, right?

[Casey O'Brien]

Oh, God, it's hard to keep track. Him and Nicki Minaj, they're pals. Are they both MAGA now? Well, she is for sure.

[Millie de Jericho]

But yeah, Basically, somebody on TikTok was like, who? Everybody affiliated with Young Money is now, like, weirdly right wing. And I'm just like, that is so sad.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah, please, not Birdman.

[Millie de Jericho]

Not Juvenile, please. Yeah, I'm like, who is? Because I think clearly with like the big, like, Drake. I mean, don't even talk about Drake. Nikki. Don't even talk about Nikki. You've got Tyga. Is he fine? Like, what's going on with, you know, little Twist? I don't know, I'm just a little Lloyd. Is Lloyd, like, good? I think Lloyd might be. Okay. This is sad.

[Casey O'Brien]

It is sad. Well, that was our chat about the Thing. I love the title of this movie, the Thing. It's so good. Next we're going to talk to my pal, our pal, Luce Tomlin Brenner. So buckle up. All right, everybody. It is another installment of my area of expertise, and we have a dear, a very special Guest today, it's my dear, dear friend. She's a comedian, filmmaker. I produced one of her movies. She's the host of the podcast It's Always Halloween. She's host of Video Visions at Video Tech in Los Angeles. She's a video store manager at videotech. Luce tomlinbrenner. Hi, Luce.

[Millie de Jericho]

Hello.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

Thank you so much for having me on this fantastic podcast that I love so much.

[Casey O'Brien]

It's a dream. I'm so glad you're here. We always try to get people who are like. Like our guests. We try to get, like, film people or, like, people who are very obsessed with movies, and I feel like that's how our friendship blossomed.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

Absolutely. We met on another film podcast. Like, this Is Our Legacy.

[Millie de Jericho]

Which one?

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah, Luce was a guest on at the time. I think it was called who Shot Ya? But it's now called Maximum Film.

[Millie de Jericho]

That's how I met you too.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yes, that's how I met Millie. So. Oh, my gosh, kismet. All my friendships and social relations are because of Maximum Film. But, yeah, I remember because Lusay lived near. Not to dox you, but you lived near the old Max Fun Building. Yeah, I walked there, and you were a guest on the show. And then I was walking down the street, and then we passed each other, and we both, like, stopped and, like, turned back and were like, I know you. And then we started chatting for a while, and I feel like that's really where the friendship was born. On the street.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

Yeah, we had, like, such a good conversation. I think we ran into each other a couple of times like that.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah, that's so funny. It was like 2019. 2018, maybe.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

I think 2018. Because I was on the show, like, three or four times before the pandemic.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Wait, before we get started, Luce, can you talk about Video Visions a little bit? Cause it's really a cool thing if you're in the Los Angeles area. Yes. That's comedy and film.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

Yes. The two things that I am obsessed with and won't ever stop talking about. I needed to combine them. So I've managed Video Tech, which is one of the last thriving video stores in the country and one of, like, five in Los Angeles. And so we have over 40,000 titles there, which is like, twice as much as what's available streaming. And I am constantly, like, my life's missing mission because this is my fifth video store that I've worked at. The main thing I've done in my life is worked at video stores and done stand up comedy. And yeah, basically, yeah. And been very low income, which is fine because I'm thriving. I'm thriving creatively and emotionally and I don't need to buy more shit. It's fine, just not financially. Yeah, financially is a hellhole. Do not ask, ask me my credit score, I haven't looked in a long time. But all that to say I have been championing physical media since my first store that I worked at in like 2001. And I was, you know, there for the latter part of video stores lives. And I could see what was happening because I worked at them all through the 2000s almost. Yeah, every year of the 2000s. And so I was there for Netflix and I was there for people telling me that they shouldn't have to pay late fees because Netflix doesn't have late fees and like trying to defend local business over corporations. And it's very interesting, after seeing people scream at me for so long, people are finally coming back to like physical media again. So I was like, how can I get more people into the video store and see how important physical media is? And I was like a comedy show. And so I do this show where I, I get five to six comedians and I pick a theme every single month, a film theme. This month we had our show last night for January was expressionist films. So we did stuff from German expressionism in the twenties through like sci fi futurism of the eighties. I pick six surprise clips. The comedians, the audience don't know what they're going to be, they just know the theme. And then I show the clip to the comedian and the comedian has to do 8 to 10 minutes of improvised standup on that film. So it's really fun. It's this combination of all of my loves. And we bring in a ton of comedians and a ton of people who don't know about the video store. And they get to be in this space and they get to see how it's thriving and it's not this like dusty old place filled with old tapes which, listen, I love. That could describe my apartment essentially, but like, because I'm also a VHS collector. But no, we've got everything, Blu Rays, 4Ks, all the latest stuff. And we do have like 60 VHS still available to rent because there are still films that have never been released on any other format. And the whole point of places like video stores and libraries and I mean these are essentially archives now because of the way that these national corporations, excuse me, have monopolized their power, they just get to take things away. You know, streaming Services don't give a shit and about our access to art or cinema or knowledge. In fact, it's better for them if we know less. So video stores and libraries keep these titles available and it's, you know, yeah, $5, you know, for a rental is maybe more than $10 a month. But you actually get to go in public and be with people and talk about movies with real people. Not just like argue on X or letterboxd or like be like, huh, why does this person have such a bad opinion with film? Oh, I've been Talking to a 15 year old this whole, whole time. You know, like I, I really just want people to like, like what? They like to come in, to fall in love with film. The video stores these days are not these like bullying places where you come in and someone's going to make fun of your taste because you're renting like Life Size with Tyra Banks. You know, like we don't make fun of anything that people bring up. I just want people to give a. About movies and small business and third spaces. You know, I'm not going to drive anybody away unless they start with me first. Don't step to me and I won't step to you.

[Casey O'Brien]

I love that. And I, I have never, you know, you started it after I moved or like just around the time when I moved and so I've never been to Video Visions and I really have to go.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

We, you're next. We have to line it up.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yes, I think, I mean, I'd love

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

to have you perform. You are also, you're a former comedian. I don't know how many people know that, but.

[Casey O'Brien]

Well, you know, it's gonna come up in a. We are gonna do an episode at some point of Bradley Cooper's Is this thing On? And we will discuss that a little bit.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

Fantastic. If you're going to have one of your best friends on, you're going to have some secrets divulged.

[Millie de Jericho]

Lucy, shut up.

[Advertisement Voice]

Come on.

[Casey O'Brien]

Well, Lusay, let's get into your area of expertise. And you have many.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

I was going to say after I just had such a big ramble on video stores locked in so hard I blacked out.

[Casey O'Brien]

No, it's great. So the area of expertise that you pitched is this is what you said, women driven to madness by an unkind or apathetic society.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

Yes.

[Casey O'Brien]

Can you speak to that a little bit? How did this become a trend that you noticed and maybe sought out? Where did the seed of this expertise start from?

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

Well, since we were talking about being pretentious I have to say, it started when I started engaging with literature in high school.

[Casey O'Brien]

Okay.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

I think it came from one of our great literary writers, Stephen King. Who? Carrie was the first Stephen King book I ever read. I read it at 14, the summer between eighth grade and ninth grade, which is like, so clutch. It's like, exactly when everyone should read Carrie, especially when they're a woman. I've got my Carrie hall crossover T shirt on. Carrie lives with this.

[Millie de Jericho]

That's awesome. Right?

[Casey O'Brien]

Right?

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

Yeah. Cuz live to this is also my favorite album. So I was like. When I saw this, I was like, holy. But all that. All that to say. I read Carrie and I was like, oh, my God, this. I totally get this girl. I had heard, you know, that story is in the muu. It's. It's in the atmosphere. Everybody kind of knows the story of Carrie. And I did not realize, like, what a sad story it was when I read it. And I. I was bullied teen and just such an obvious weirdo. My mom worked at our high school, and everybody, like, was just like, oh, my God, it's the teacher, Donna. You know, Like, I was just like, everybody knew me when I started high school. Like, it just was like, bad vibes, you know? And I just really. I really related to Carrie and I was like, yeah, all those people do sort of deserve what happened to them in the book.

[Millie de Jericho]

I feel that way too. And like I said, I've been on. I'm not calling anybody out. I've been on other film podcasts before where they got mad at me for that. They were like, you don't believe, like, all these people, like, died? Yeah, they were assholes and they were trapped. They were trapped in the school. Like, you're condoning that? And I'm like, in the context of this movie, hell fucking yeah, I am. Are you kidding me? Like, these are people who are pouring fucking blood on one of their students.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

There needs to be repercussions.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah. And like, did you not see the first five fucking minutes of this movie? Like, where they were throwing tampons at her? Like, they're. These are, like, mean people. They're not just like. This goes beyond the pale of just, like, people, you know, having a laugh. These are mean people who want to orchestrate shitty things. So, yes. What's the problem? And they were just like, well, God, I can't believe that you would. Like, I. I was like, should I even be on this podcast? What the are we talking about? Do we watch the same movie or what?

[Casey O'Brien]

So anyway, I Would you should be cheering for Carrie? Yes.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

People are. Are telling on themselves because you're like, oh, were you a bully at some point in your life? And you don't like the idea of, like, any accountability or repercussions.

[Millie de Jericho]

See, I was bullied, too. So maybe that's the key, is that I'm like, no. If you were bullied, you can understand a character like Carrie to the degree which you will condone her killings, her psychic killings. But it's like, my thing is, like, I just am. Like, I feel like it goes back to the thing that I think is, like, maybe the crux of your area of expertise, which is that, you know, the whole idea that women aren't allowed to have those types of even thoughts or emotions or anything like that, where they're not allowed to be vengeful.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

Yes.

[Millie de Jericho]

And even in the midst of their own pain. Right. Exactly.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

Exactly. And I think that's why I found a lot. So I related to Carrie, and then I really got. Because Stephen King has always talked about how much he loves Shirley Jackson, the writer, and how inspirational her work was to him. And so I actually started reading Shirley Jackson because of Stephen King, which. Thank God, because, you know, the Haunting of Hill House, obviously a classic, but I was really grasped by. We have Always Lived in the Castle, which I think is, like, the greatest book ever written. With the worst film adaptation. The absolute worst. I hate the movie is bad. No one should watch it. It was. It was made by the people in the town. Not.

[Casey O'Brien]

It's like, not in the Castle.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

Yeah, not in the Castle. They completely misunderstood. But these stories then led me to finding, like, you know, I watched the Haunting, the original Robert wise one from 1963, and I was just so struck by it. Even more. Like, I loved the book. And then I watched the movie, and I just loved seeing this woman, you know, melt down and, like, feel her feelings and, like, go insane. There's, like, a freedom to cinematic insanity, female insanity that I am very envious of. Like. Yes, yes.

[Millie de Jericho]

Okay.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

Realistically speaking, it's a good thing to be medicated and to be in therapy and to try to not repeat heat cycles that you were raised with. But also, sometimes I just want to, like, stand naked in a crosswalk and, like, scream. You know, I just want to be like, this is fucked. And, like, not be.

[Casey O'Brien]

Well, you know, now, Lusay, it seems like if I may just sort of organize, you know, some. You send over some films here, you know, that kind of express this feeling of woman driven to madness by an unkind or apathetic society. And I feel like you can divide them into kind of two categories, which is like the Carrie category, the violence, like the revenge type of movie where it's like Miss 45, Carrie. But then there's this also this other type of insanity that you also expressed, which is like the others, let's scare Jessica to death. The haunting, which is like, these women are not necessarily getting violent revenge, but they are like becoming intimate with ghouls basically. Like, it's like that's like the other type of women driven to insanity.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

Yeah, they're giving themselves over to it. Which I really like too, because, yeah, it's not just like, I don't love every revenge fantasy. I'm actually not a big rape revenge watcher. But I do love Ms. 45. Similar to Carrie, where I'm like, well, I'm kind of happy that she made the decision she did at the end of the film. But yeah, I love Alucarda is another one. I love that. Just like I am being spoken to from the beyond and I have fought it for too long and now I am just gonna go with it. Messiah of Evil is another one that I love that's like that. And it's like in these movies, a lot of the times it's like there either really is something nefarious and otherworldly supernatural going on or the fucking husband is trying to drive her insane. And I also really, I relate to that type of like intimate partner violence as well. Of like, oh, this person actually does not want the best for me. And again, it's that like in real life you want to fight for your sanity. But I do just love the idea of being like, fine, you want me insane? I'll be insane. You said I'm crazy. I got your crazy. To quote Britney Spears,

[Casey O'Brien]

our queen.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

But I love especially like, like what? Oh, let's scare Jessica to death. That is like a movie where you're like, is this whole town vampires or ghouls? Or is horror? Or did her husband orchestrate this entire gaslighting so that she would go back to the mental institution? He could like be free or have an affair or something and you're not ever quite sure what it is. But I love on the lead character, it's like there's so many great close ups on her. There's a lot of her own interiority. It's like a lot of her thoughts are narrating it and she is trying to figure out what's going on. And it's very dreamily shot but also the way she speaks is like, I woke up today and I went for a walk and I couldn't tell if this was happening or if that was happening. And it has this, like, just. Her voiceover is haunting and, like, you hear her get a little crazy and I'm like, God, wouldn't it be so nice to just. When someone's like, how are you doing today? And you're like, I don't know. I got up and I couldn't tell it was real. Like, that's like the person I want to be. But then I also want to have, like, a moderately successful career in entertainment. And you cannot talk to LA people like that.

[Casey O'Brien]

You don't want to just drift through a field. Yeah, no, I totally. Yes.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

God, I would love to drift through a field in a gauzy white nightgown, ideally holding a candelabra.

[Casey O'Brien]

Sure. Those types of movies, too. There's something about the house, too. Like, all of those movies are out of the house.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

Yeah, yeah.

[Casey O'Brien]

And it's almost like, you know, these women are, like, trapped in the house. And it's almost like they're like, okay, I'm trapped in the house. I'm gonna go deep into the house. Like, the soul of the house, and the soul of the house speaks back. There's something about, like, going. Becoming, like, even more, like, intimate with this place, you know, and it's speaking back to them.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

It's such a great point, Casey. I'm so happy you said that. Because also, what is the house? You know, it is the. The site of domesticity is the domain of women. Especially when you think about a lot of these movies being made in the 70s, the early 70s. It aligns with the civil rights movement and with the. With the. The era, the fight for the era, and women's rights as well. So, like, there's a lot of cultural exploration in here. And it's like, when you think about Shirley Jackson, you know, writing these novels in the mid century, I mean, this was her grappling with being a smart, intellectual, curious woman in a society that didn't want that from her. So it's like this wasn't just an intellectual exercise. This is really a woman being driven crazy. And then we also, you know, get the impression that she was gay or queer and. But was forced into this domestic life with having children and the husband, because that is what she had to do in the mid century, you know, so it's like this is. These books are, like, truly coming out of her psyche. The women are trapped in the house in these movies because the women were trapped in the house, you know, for the first 70 years of the 19th century or the 20th century. So there's a lot there. Even if these movies are heightened and they're supernatural and they're not. What I mean, something I love about them is like, there's so much to read into it without it being like a heavy handed, heavy handed message. And right now we're sort of trapped in message cinema, which is driving me fucking nuts. Even though a lot of these messages are things that I agree with, I'm like, yes, but I don't like being hit over the head or being like, you should be kind like, I don't want to fucking hear that shit from people.

[Millie de Jericho]

I no, I wanted to like just pick up like a little thing that you dropped a little bit ago about the idea of maybe there being this like, boom or like a proliferation of these movies that are happening in this like time period of like maybe late 60s to the 70s and how it ties to, you know, the women's movement and things. Because I see it in so many different angles. When you look across the board at movies from this time period that are about women, female characters, you're right, it's like the Rosemary's Babies, you know, talking about pregnancy. You've got, you know, movies like the Brood even later in the 70s, stuff about like, you know, mental illness, age. A lot of like those Grandin Guignol movies coming out in this era about older women. I personally love this crazy movie called Criminally Insane. I think I've talked about this many, many times.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

I don't watch this movie, but I love the title.

[Millie de Jericho]

It's insane. Oh my God. It's like a. I wrote it a paper on it in grad school. That's how much I love this movie. It's this very like Nick Millard grade Z like exploitation movie about a killer fat lady basically, and how she just like can't stop, like people. She kills people who don't allow her to eat or whatever. And it's like the concept of it is so absurd. But then I have gone in and like written like pages upon pages, pages of like analysis about this being this like 70s secret, 70s feminists like tale. And it's like, it's like the Honeymoon Killers. That's. I use that movie too as a good example of this, of the ideas of like, women, like women kind of like getting out of these like old narratives of like being too old, being too fat, being too ugly, you know, needing to Be pregnant, needing to be sane and a. And a mother and, you know, like, basically the patriarchy. Right. And I'm like, this period of time is obviously happening in this political period of time. And I'm like, okay, so now we're shifting to this new era where pretty much the same shit is happening. Where are these movies? I was like, how come there's not, like, 20 Rosemary's babies? And how come there's not 20, like, criminally insanes or anything? And so I'm just curious what you think about that, if there's any kind of, like, do you see, like, in newer films, like, a return to this kind of era at all?

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

I guess there is a little bit. Right. Like, we've got. Oh, my gosh. How do you pronounce her name? Coraline Farage. Who?

[Casey O'Brien]

You know, Carly Farjan.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

Oh, my God. I'm a reader. I don't always know how to pronounce things.

[Casey O'Brien]

Coralie Farjot, I think it is.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

Yeah.

[Casey O'Brien]

So we've got, like, director of the Substance.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

Substance and Revenge, you know, so, like. But both of those movies are pulling so hard from stuff that's already been made in the 70s and the 80s. I am really desperate to see something that feels really new. There's been a few versions of Rosemary's Baby made in the last few years. One of the Girls from Broad City did a very similar movie to that. Again, I'm blanking on the name of it. There is a really great movie that I'm obsessed with that's like a dark comedy called Greener Grass. That.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yes. I love that movie.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

So good. It was so inspirational to me when I made my last movie with Casey Surprise. But it explores, like, the oppression of domesticity and the suburbs and that. That, you know, feeling for grasping to be better than people all the time and. And. And, like, money issues and beauty issues. But it is so John Waters gross out over the top. And that's a movie not a lot of people heard about or saw. And again, it's because I think it's very nuanced, even though it's very, like, absurdist, but it isn't trying to. I do feel like movies like the substance, it's just very obvious. And I don't know. I feel like this is all off the top. I feel like it's because we live in a time when the studio system is, like, has a. A grip on everybody. It's so hard to get movies funded. There's so much going on in the DIY scene that I work in and like, really low budget indies, you know, and great indie companies, of course, like neon and a 24. But even that, like, only a few things get through, you know, like, it's hard for Kelly Reichardt to make a film and she's like a genius. So when you're pitching something that is not, I don't know, a reliable formula or it feels like now everything has to be like, this is like Rosemary's Baby, but everyone's a werewolf, you know, like.

[Millie de Jericho]

Or yeah, or like everybody is a witch from the 16th century or something like that. Like, yeah, there isn't that, like, like the idea of letting, like. Because when you talked about let's scare Jessica to death and stuff like that, like, I was like, oh, it wouldn't it be so awesome to have, like this really glacially paced, atmospheric candelabra running through the forest. Feminist movie about revenge and psychosis. And it doesn't have to be, you know, that kind of standard, I guess, for black, for a better term, a 24 look. But it doesn't also have to be the substance, which is just like so obvious and, you know, really stylized.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

Yeah.

[Millie de Jericho]

There's somewhere in the middle that can happen. I guarantee it. I don't know.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

I will say I did. One of my favorite films of the year was Die My Love.

[Casey O'Brien]

Okay. I haven't seen it yet.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

I do really recommend it. Lynne Ramsey directed it and she's obviously fantastic and has done some great crazy women films. I really love. Oh, my God, the Christmas movie. Morvin Caller is a really great woman. Losing it.

[Casey O'Brien]

That is a Christmas movie. I sort of forgot.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

Yeah. You know, here. Here's something I think is difficult about now that has more to do with culture than it has to do with, I don't know, the system or money or whatever. But like, we. It is very. People are really being challenged by living through a fascist regime, which makes sense. But we're moving in this way because we're being surveilled in a way that wasn't the same. Maybe like, you know, 80, 90 years ago, where, like, everyone has to perform not being a fascist more than they actually have to do the work of fighting fascism. And so there's this really big concern about being a good person left of center. You have to be good, you have to be kind. Anything that if you're not being good in every moment, you're a fascist, you know, and it's like, that's not. That's. We don't have a lot of space for, again, nuance and a Lot of like, you can not be a bootlicker and make bad personal choices. Or you can be like a. To your friends or your partner and still not be a mess. A mega supporter. But. But there is just this, like, be kind npr, tote bag liberal idea. Feel free to cut any of this, but never.

[Millie de Jericho]

This is incredible. Keep going.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

Be kind tote bag idea of like, well, if you're not being nice, you are the bad guy. That, like, when they go high, when they go low, we go high, you know, and it's like, that's is horrible for film. Art is not. We are not just making morality plays. Like, art is not moral. You cannot look at art and be like, good and bad. Like, that is not the point. Characters and people have a lot of depth to them. You can fight fascism and still be like a generalized asshole. That is okay. And I don't think there's a lot of room for people to be assholes anymore. And I think a lot of the left is very concerned with being a good boy, being a good girl, doing things the right way. And it's like, no, I want to be a little bit of a personal failure and still be very clear that I'm not a fucking bootlicker. You know, Like, I want to be a fuck up and be a good person.

[Millie de Jericho]

Going back to the whole, like, reinterpretation of a movie like Carrie where now we don't feel sorry for her shitty fucking classmates. It's like that. That exactly. Of being like, wait a minute.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

Like, we can't fight violence with violence. We can't destroy a Starbucks. We have to.

[Millie de Jericho]

We can't be like them to people who brutalize you. I'm like, holy shit. Like. Like, you're so right about this. Yes.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

I mean, obviously this is a large cultural issue, but this is affecting art in a really negative way. You know, it's interesting that you bring that up about Carrie because I was recently on a podcast that I was brought on to do to talk about Ghost World. We were talking about, like, you're supposed to be talking about your favorite movies. And Ghost World is like my all time favorite movie. Emotionally, it means a lot to me because I am those girls. I was those girls when that movie came out. And so. And the whole point was to talk about a movie that meant something to you emotionally. And the other guest had never seen the movie before. And it was like, oh, we have a conversation with two people, one who loves it, one who just saw it. And the other guest was like, I couldn't get into It. Those girls were just so mean. And I was like, you brought on one of the people. That is the reason these girls. Girls are upset.

[Millie de Jericho]

Like, what?

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

And I was like, oh, no, babe, you were popular in high school. That sucks.

[Millie de Jericho]

Oh, my God, I could go off on this for hours. You have no idea.

[Casey O'Brien]

You have.

[Millie de Jericho]

You and I are alive. I swear to God. I swear to God.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

Yeah, well, I only want to hang out with outsiders. Like, no more poser violence. I cannot handle these people.

[Millie de Jericho]

I mean, it's like, I could go off on the idea that we're like, modern society has no use for subculture and how people aren't fucking authentically punk rock and how all these people are just, like, cosplaying, basically. It's all been, come on punk. Yeah. And so I'm just like, that's why Thor Birch and Ghost World is mean now. Whereas when I saw that movie, I was like. Like this. This woman is expressing every single feeling I've ever had about any of these people. And by the way, it's not even just towards, like, whomever the waiter at Wellsville, but it's also like the fucking punk rock guy at the record. The comic book shop.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

I know when she goes, everyone's too stupid. Like, the way I say that almost every day. Like, this was a movie about seeing through fake artists. You know, it was satirizing in Art World because it's based on a comic book. You know what I mean? Like, Daniel Close wrote about his own experience being told that his art and that comics weren't valuable and weren't actual art. Like, we are literally still having this battle. I was on this podcast where they keep telling me how dated the movie is, and I was like, this. The story of Ghost World is so evergreen.

[Millie de Jericho]

I'm.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

I was just like, oh, my God, I am in Ghost World right now.

[Casey O'Brien]

Neither of you are allowed to go on other podcasts. What's going on?

[Millie de Jericho]

Never. Who are these people having us on podcasts. But that's the thing is a fucking read is a. Like, that's the thing is that, like, that movie is all about, you know, to me, the technique that I don't know, people of my age and people before us use, which is that, like, you have to be. You're smarter than the people who are bullying you, and you have to remember that. And if there's an opportunity for you to read them to fucking filth.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

Yes.

[Millie de Jericho]

Then take it, you know? And now that is considered me mean. So. So protection against, I don't know, people, like, punching up Is now or punching down? No, wait, is it? No, it is punching up is now mean. And I'm like, I refuse to believe that. Fuck that. I'm not feeling sorry for Taylor Swift. I'm not feeling sorry for all these fucking millionaires. I'm not feeling sorry for fucking, you know, whomever. People who are extremely cruel because, you know, we have to stay nice. Fuck that shit. That's crazy to me.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

No, the boot's not gonna leave my neck because I'm licking it. Like, please. No, I. No, it aligns with fascism to say that you should be nice to people who are being mean to you.

[Millie de Jericho]

Oh, my God. I swear, we're gonna have to cut. Cut me out of this entire episode because I am on.

[Casey O'Brien]

I am on one up.

[Millie de Jericho]

Thank you. Thank you for making. We need to wrap this up.

[Casey O'Brien]

Casey.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

It's just Casey talking to no one else.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah, it's just like me, me breathing. Huh?

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

I get an email tomorrow. It's like, we only have five minutes that we can use from this interview.

[Millie de Jericho]

Sorry. I'm sorry.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

Like, bazookas out at the end and we're like, I'll meet you in the streets.

[Millie de Jericho]

I know. I'm so activated by you. God, it's amazing.

[Casey O'Brien]

Oh, my God. Well, Luce, this is incredible. Thank you for being on the show. Is there anything you want to plug other than what we've talked about already? Can people watch some is surprise online right now?

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

No, you know, I need to get it online. We should have a meeting about it because I get.

[Casey O'Brien]

Okay.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

I get overwhelmed by the business hours aspect, which is why I feel like I haven't been more monetarily successful. People love my attitude, but I have a hard time turning it into money.

[Casey O'Brien]

I think that's loose. Say maybe that's why I became friends, because in that specific way, I think you and I are both kind of stupid. I have a hard time with the business stuff. I feel like I just. I'm like, I don't know how to do it, best way to promote things

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

or where to pitch stuff.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah. But yeah, Lucy wrote and directed a great movie that I helped produce.

[Millie de Jericho]

And.

[Casey O'Brien]

And we'll get it online at some point. But yeah, and people should listen to It's Always Halloween.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

Yes, they should. It's a community driven all year long Halloween podcast where people share their own history and memories. And I weave that into original, like, research that I do about the history of not just Halloween, but icons of Halloween, like skeletons and spiders and Friday the 13th and witches and like, how did we get here? Essentially, I took a little break this last year, dealing with some grief and depression. If you can't tell, I've got some mental illnesses. But I am coming back online.

[Millie de Jericho]

We.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

I have five years of episodes. So I took a little break recently. But the podcast is going to come back. And yeah, you can come to Video Visions on the last Thursday of every month at Video Tech Video Store. It's open every single day, day 11 to 10pm and yeah, I do stand up all over town sometimes. I travel and do it and you can follow me and get all those updates at LTB Comedy on Instagram. I think that's everything. I want to make a new movie this year, so stand by. Hopefully that'll happen. More crazy women content. Like I. I am making it. So yes, yes.

[Casey O'Brien]

Jose is doing the work.

[Millie de Jericho]

I love it.

[Casey O'Brien]

Absolutely. Well, Lucie, you're one of my dearest friends. It was so great having you on same.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

Love you so much. Thank you for having me, Millie. I'm so happy we finally got to meet officially. You're a delight.

[Millie de Jericho]

You're an absolute joy. Obviously, we're not besties too, so this is great. Thank you so much.

[Luce Tomlin Brenner]

Yeah, we were meant to be friends. So happy to be here. And thanks for this fantastic podcast. We really need it. You guys are putting out smart joy into the world, so thank you.

[Millie de Jericho]

All right.

[Casey O'Brien]

That was a lovely chat with Lucy. Great to talk to her.

[Millie de Jericho]

She's great.

[Casey O'Brien]

Love Lucy.

[Millie de Jericho]

She's so good. So good. Fast friends. Immediately I was like, I. I like her. I like this one.

[Casey O'Brien]

That was fun. That's a. She's a real. She's a real film freak. She's a real one. All right, now it is time for film recommendations. Our employees picks. Millie, what do you got?

[Millie de Jericho]

Here it is. Here it is. Here it is. Well, I figured why not go for something that also takes place in a closed environment in a bunker with a unknown enemy? I am picking George Romero's Day of the dead from 1985.

[Casey O'Brien]

Nice.

[Millie de Jericho]

Can you imagine? Okay, you don't know this maybe because have you spent a lot of time in Florida?

[Casey O'Brien]

I have spent very little time in Florida, no.

[Millie de Jericho]

Okay, so talking about a bunker in Antarctica in Day of the Dead, the bunker is in the Everglades in Florida, which is insanely hot. It's the complete opposite environment. And I kept thinking to myself, damn, I don't know if I could be stuck in a bunker in the Everglades. That would be so steamy. You'd be. If you were Kurt Russell, you'd be h. Wearing your like, you know, men's bikini briefs and nothing else. Riding around in the hell in the

[Casey O'Brien]

helicopters and stuff, you know, I've never seen Day of the Dead.

[Millie de Jericho]

Oh, really? You'd like it.

[Casey O'Brien]

I've only seen Night of the Living Dead and Dawn of the Dead and Return of the Living Dead, which is different, obviously, but I've never seen Day of the Dead.

[Millie de Jericho]

You should watch it. In fact, ask Trisha. Probably seen it. No.

[Casey O'Brien]

Oh, she's probably. Yeah, definitely.

[Millie de Jericho]

Go and see it. Come see it. It's good.

[Casey O'Brien]

Very good. I am going to recommend a movie I think I've talked about on the show previously. I watched it this year, but it's called Wolf's Hole. It's a weird name. Wolf's Hole. Okay.

[Millie de Jericho]

You have picked, I swear, consistently for the past, like, couple weeks. Like, really punchy. Two word film rec. Titles.

[Casey O'Brien]

Bone Lake, Wolf's Hole.

[Millie de Jericho]

Then she wasn't it. What was the other one? It was like. Like something else because we. We tooled on it and I can't remember what it was. It was like a Coachella name.

[Casey O'Brien]

Well, we talked about Miss Toot from. From the Longest Yard. I was trying to think of another blank, blank, you know, first cow. First cow. Wolf's Hole. This is directed by Vera Chitalova, a Czech filmmaker. She's probably most famous for 1966's Daisies US. But Wolf's Hole is. It's. I think it's on the Criterion channel right now. But it is about this, like, group of high school students who get a mysterious invitation. Invitation to this ski school up in a mountain. And they, like. It's so funny because the parents are like, oh, a free ski trip that's mysteriously sent to my child. Yes, please go. Yes. And so they, like, are led by these people who are like, yes, we're in charge of the trip to Wolf's Hole. And they stay and they go up on the mountain and they come to this shit, shitty lodge. It's, like, disgusting and, like, broken down. And it turns out these people who sent out the invitation are aliens. And they're here to do stuff to these high school students. So it's kind of creepy. It's scary. And they're trapped. And it seems very cold. Like, it seems like, you know, and the thing. I'm sure they were all actually pretty comfortable filming that, you know, but in Wolf's Hole, it seemed like they were actually just outside in on a mountain for, like, days at a time. And it seemed miserable. So. But it's kind of scary and spooky. It reminded me of under the Skin, the Jonathan Glazer movie. Oh, yeah, yeah, Check that out. Wolf's Hole, Bone Lake.

[Millie de Jericho]

Dogs too.

[Casey O'Brien]

Dick.

[Millie de Jericho]

I don't know. Dog's Dick.

[Casey O'Brien]

Millie. That's our show.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah, it is.

[Casey O'Brien]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Millie de Jericho]

All right, well, listen, if you would like a film recommendation, if you need some film advice, if you got a film gripe, if you got a film consensual grope, if you've got a film regret, please email [e-mail] we love answering. Also, we're looking for listener stories on going on dates to the movie theater. Now, that's either bad or good. Bad dates or good dates. But if you have a movie date story.

[Casey O'Brien]

Eventful.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yes. Please send it in a voicemail and make it under two minutes, please. So we could actually air it but record a voicemail and send it to dearMoviesactlyRightMedia.com that's correct. Yeah. And. Yeah, that's it.

[Casey O'Brien]

Follow us on our socials. Ear movies. I love you on Instagram and Facebook. And you can follow us on our letterboxd handles acleobrian and mdecherico. And you can also follow lusay on letterboxd. You can Google Lusay Tomlin Brenner letterboxd, but her handle is at Cha Cha heels.

[Millie de Jericho]

Great.

[Casey O'Brien]

So follow her there. She's very active. And listen to dear movies, I love you on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts and rate and review our show. Millie, what are we watching next week?

[Millie de Jericho]

So we're gonna watch a movie that came out in 2013, which doesn't seem like that long ago, but is actually a long time ago.

[Casey O'Brien]

Feels like a distant time over a decade ago.

[Millie de Jericho]

And that movie is Spike Jones's her. We'll be talking about artificial intelligence a little bit, perhaps.

[Casey O'Brien]

AI.

[Millie de Jericho]

AI. I know that could be annoying to you, but it could be actually really fun hearing us talk about it, especially the context of this film, which a lot of people say is like kind of a prophetic little film.

[Casey O'Brien]

It seems like it, doesn't it? But at the time it was like, ooh, what a weird concept. It felt like way out there. And now we're here. We did it.

[Millie de Jericho]

We did it. We made it happen. Thank you, Spike Jonze, for your foresight. And honestly, I haven't seen this movie since it came out. And I'm like, now knowing what we know. I mean, I'm like, oh, I gotta watch this again. I mean, this is it'll.

[Casey O'Brien]

Be interesting. Also, that was the last movie that Spike Jonze made. Isn't that crazy? Doesn't it feel like he should have made a couple more movies since then? I think he's great.

[Millie de Jericho]

Yeah, I know there's like new Jackass stuff happening, so maybe he's been.

[Casey O'Brien]

He was involved with Vice too. But anyways, I'm excited to see it. Excited to talk about it.

[Millie de Jericho]

Me too. Well, Casey, thank you so much for and being on this cold adventure with me this week.

[Casey O'Brien]

Thank you, Millie.

[Millie de Jericho]

Stay warm everyone. Bye bye. This has been an exactly right production. Hosted by me, Millie de Cherico and produced by my co host Casey o'. Brien.

[Casey O'Brien]

This episode was mixed by Tom Bryfogel. Our associate producer is Christina Chamberlain, our guest booker is Patrick Cotton, and our artwork is by Vanessa Lilac.

[Millie de Jericho]

Our incredible theme music is by the best band in the entire world, the Softies.

[Casey O'Brien]

Thank you to our executive producers, Karen Kilgariff, Georgia Hardstark, Daniel Kramer and Millie de Chirico.

[Millie de Jericho]

We love you.

[Casey O'Brien]

Goodbye.

[Millie de Jericho]

Be kind.

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