The Stacks

Episode 186 - The Man Who Knew Too Much + Falcon & The Winter Soldier + Attack of the Clones + Cannibal Orgy + Black Magic Rites + Gutwrencher + Tiger Claws II + Mansion of Madness

This week on The Stacks, in part one (0:00-1:19:32) Shana and j. talk about Alfred Hitchcock's 1956 remake of his own earlier film, The Man Who Knew Too Much, as well as concluding our coverage of the first season of Star Trek (TOS) with "Operation: Annihilate!" - the 29th and final episode, then choose a new show to cover. In part two (1:19:33-2:13:07), we discuss in brief form the 2021 MCU TV series The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (all episodes directed by Kari Skoglund) and six additional features: George Lucas' terrible 2002 sequel prequel Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones, JT IV's 1995 psychedelic DTV gorefest Cannibal Orgy, Renato Polselli's wild 1971 sex gothic Black Magic Rites, Bill Reeves' 1997 SOV sleep study The Gutwrencher, J. Stephen Maunder's 1996 Canuxploitation kung-fu sequel Tiger Claws II, and Juan Lopez Moctezuma's peculiar 1973 psychological horror The Mansion of Madness. As usual, in part three, we talk in capsule form on all the other stuff we've been watching on physical media in the past week and make our picks for next time.

The live list of The Stacks is online at https://letterboxd.com/jshopa/list/the-stacks/

Episode 185 - Incubus + Collateral + Shang-Chi + Star Trek Insurrection + 38 Especial + Devil Fetus + Indiana Jones & The Last Crusade + Her Body

This week on The Stacks, in part one (0:00-1:13:56), Shana and j. discuss the 1966 pre-Trek Shatner starring vehicle Incubus, shot in Esperanto by director Leslie Stevens, in addition to the most celebrated episode of Star Trek (TOS), "The City on the Edge of Forever" written by Harlan Ellison and directed by Joseph Pevney. In part two (1:13:56-2:11:13), we discuss seven additional films in shorter form: Michael Mann's 2004 neo-noir crime thriller Collateral, Destin Daniel Cretton's 2021 MCU wuxia Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Jonathan Frakes' second entry in the Star Trek franchise with 1998's Insurrection, the 1992 Angel Sancho Mexican DTV crime thriller 38 Especial, the 1983 Lau Hung-Chuen Cat III supernatural horror Devil Fetus, the 1989 Steven Spielberg adventure blockbuster Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, and Natálie Císařovská's 2023 biopic Her Body. As usual, in part three, we discuss everything else we've watched on physical media since last time and make our picks for next week.

The live list of The Stacks is online at https://letterboxd.com/jshopa/list/the-stacks/

Episode 184 - Black Sunday + WandaVision + Macumba Sexual + Ironmaster + Elegant Beast + The Cat + Tiger Claws + Quatermass and the Pit

This week on The Stacks, in part one (0:00-1:34:52) Shana and j. talk in detail about the 1977 John Frankenheimer action extravaganza Black Sunday, as well as "The Alternative Factor" - the 27th episode of Star Trek (TOS). In part two (1:34:53-2:36:07), we discuss in shorter form the 2021 MCU WandaVision TV series (all nine episodes directed by Matt Shakman), in addition to six movies: Jess Franco's 1980ish weird sex nightmare Macumba Sexual, the 1983 Umberto Lenzi caveman movie Ironmaster, the 1962 Yuzo Kawashima scamily drama Elegant Beast (aka Graceful Brute), Dominik Graf's 1988 bank heist film The Cat, Kelly Makin's 1991 Canadian DTV martial arts picture Tiger Claws, and the conclusion of the original Hammer Quatermass trilogy, Roy Ward Baker's 1967 entry Quatermass and the Pit. As we typically do, in part three we talk more briefly on all the other stuff we've watched on physical media in the past week and make our picks for next week.

The live list of The Stacks is online at https://letterboxd.com/jshopa/list/the-stacks/

Episode 183 - Death Curse of Tartu + Loki S1 + Star Trek First Contact + Francis in the Haunted House + Extreme Prejudice + Slap the Monster on Page One + White Cannibal Queen

This week on The Stacks, in part one (0:00-1:16:56) Shana and j. are chatting about the 1966 William Grefé Florida mummy flick Death Curse of Tartu, in addition to "Errand of Mercy" - the 26th episode of Star Trek (TOS). In part two (1:16:56-2:25:44), we talk in briefer format about five additional features as well as a TV series - starting out with the 2021 MCU series Loki, all six episodes directed by Kate Herron, and continuing with Jonathan Frakes' 1996 Star Trek franchise entry First Contact, the 1956 concluding entry in the Francis the Talking Mule series, Francis in the Haunted House, directed by Charles Lamont, the 1987 Walter Hill secret ops vs cartel Peak Action movie Extreme Prejudice, the prescient 1972 Marco Bellochio newspaper drama / crime procedural Slap the Monster on Page One, and the super-cheap 1980 Jess Franco cannibal boom picture White Cannibal Queen (aka Mondo Cannibale). As always, in part three we briefly talk about everything else we've watched on physical media since last time, and make our picks for next week.

The live list of The Stacks is online at https://letterboxd.com/jshopa/list/the-stacks/

Episode 182 - The Longest Yard + Keanu & Co + Phantom Menace + Temple of Doom + Bat Pussy + Shreck + Autoerotic + The Mummy + Face/Off

This week on The Stacks, in part one (0:00-1:40:13) Shana and j. talk about the classic 1974 Burt Reynolds prison/war/sports film The Longest Yard (directed by Robert Aldrich), in addition to "The Devil in the Dark" - the 25th episode of Star Trek (TOS). Part two (running 1:40:14-3:19:05) features briefer discussion of a number of additional discs, including the Canadian International Pictures collection Keanu & Co. featuring the films of the NFB Family Crisis Series, George Lucas' 1999 revival of the Star Wars franchise with Episode 1: The Phantom Menace, Steven Spielberg's 1984 follow-up to Raiders, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, the 197? anonymous 'porno' Bat Pussy, the 'Carl Denham' psuedonymous SOV slasher Shreck, the 2011 Joe Swanberg & Adam Wingard anthology film about masturbation Autoerotic, the 1999 Stephen Sommers action-horror The Mummy, and the 1997 John Woo ludicrous action film Face/Off. As usual, in part three we talk in brief capsule format about everything else we've watched on physical media since last time, and make our picks for next week.

The live list of The Stacks is online at https://letterboxd.com/jshopa/list/the-stacks/

Episode 181 - Fitzcarraldo + Black Widow + Francis in the Navy + Star Trek Generations + The Carpenter + Quatermass 2 + Lethal Weapon 4 + Dream Team + The Insider

This week on The Stacks, in part one (0:00-1:15:12) Shana and j. cover Werner Herzog's 1979 masterpiece Fitzcarraldo, in addition to "This Side of Paradise" - the 24th episode of Star Trek (TOS). In part two (1:15:13-2:30:45), we discuss eight features in shorter form: the 2021 Cate Shortland MCU entry Black Widow, Arthur Lubin's final entry in the Francis the Talking Mule series, 1955's Francis in the Navy, David Carson's 1994 launch of the TNG movies Star Trek: Generations, David Wellington's 1988 Canadian slasher The Carpenter, Val Guest's highly influential 1957 sci-fi horror sequel Quatermass II, Richard Donner's 1998 action / buddy cop sequel Lethal Weapon 4, the 2024 Whitney Horn & Lev Kalman pastiche of 90s horny crime shows Dream Team, and Michael Mann's 1999 true story about tobacco industry whistleblowers The Insider (apologies for considerable yardwork noise at the beginning of part two). As usual, in part three we talk in brief capsule format about everything else we've watched on physical media since last time, and make our picks for next week.

The live list of The Stacks is online at https://letterboxd.com/jshopa/list/the-stacks/

Episode 180 - Reptilicus + Star Trek I-VI + Mutant Hunt + ET + Duel

This week on The Stacks, in part one (0:00-1:32:11) Shana and j. discuss the 1961 Danish kaiju movie Reptilicus (in both its Danish and American versions), as well as the 23rd episode of Star Trek (TOS), "A Taste of Armageddon." In part two (1:32:12-2:36:28), we discuss in short form all six Star Trek movies starring the original series' cast (The Motion Picture, Wrath of Khan, Search for Spock, Voyage Home, Final Frontier, and The Undiscovered Country), as well as Tim Kincaid's 1987 ultra-low-budget sci-fi horror Mutant Hunt, and two early Spielbergs - the 1982 megahit E.T.: The Extraterrestrial and the theatrical version of his 1971 TV movie debut Duel. As usual, part three consists of briefer capsule discussion of everything else we've watched since last time, and our choices for next week.

The live list of The Stacks is online at https://letterboxd.com/jshopa/list/the-stacks/

Episode 179 - Yakuza Graveyard + Spiderman Far From Home + Francis Joins the WACs + ZK3 + Vampires Night Orgy + Witch From Nepal + Heat + Quatermass Xperiment + Raiders of the Lost Ark

This week on The Stacks, part one (0:00-1:42:16), begins with Yakuza Graveyard, a 1976 yakuza film from Kinji Fukasaku, in addition to "Star Seed" - the very famous 22nd episode of Star Trek (TOS). In part two (1:42:17-2:59:10), we talk in briefer format about eight additional features: the 2019 Jon Watts MCU franchise entry Spiderman: Far From Home, Arthur Lubin's fifth entry in the Francis the Talking Mule series, 1954's Francis Joins the WACs, the highly self-aware 2013 Michael J. Murphy digital video feature ZK3 (or Zombie Knights 3), the 1972 Leon Klimovsky Spanish horror film The Vampires' Night Orgy, the 1986 Tony Ching HK romance/wuxia/horror Witch From Nepal, the 1995 Michael Mann masterpiece Heat, the highly influential 1955 Val Guest British sci-fi horror The Quatermass Xperiment, and Steven Spielberg's 1981 action/adventure classic Raiders of the Lost Ark. As usual, part three consists of brief capsule discussion of everything else we've watched since last time, and our picks for next week.

The live list of The Stacks is online at https://letterboxd.com/jshopa/list/the-stacks/

Episode 178 - Mission Impossible 2 + Morbius + Terrornauts + The Midnight Man + Avengers Endgame + Way Bad Stone + Boiling Point + Virtuosity

On The Stacks this week, part one (0:00-1:58:54) we discuss the ultra-Y2K megahit Mission Impossible 2, directed by John Woo, in addition to "The Return of the Archons" - the 21st episode of Star Trek (TOS). In part two (1:58:55-3:10:51), we have shorter-form discussion of seven additional features: the disastrous 2022 Daniel Espinosa superhero picture Morbius, the 1966 British low budget Montgomery Tully sci-fi The Terrornauts, the oddly proto-Twin Peaks 1974 crime drama The Midnight Man, directed by Roland Kibbee (and co-directed by Burt Lancaster), Anthony & Joe Russo's massive 2019 MCU phase-capper Avengers: Endgame, the 1991 Archie Waugh SOV LARP spectacular Way Bad Stone, the hilarious 1990 Takeshi Kitano black comedy / yakuza film Boiling Point, and the overlooked 1994 Brett Leonard cyber-thriller Virtuosity. As usual, part three consists of brief capsule discussion of everything else we've watched since last time, and our picks for next week.

The live list of The Stacks is online at https://letterboxd.com/jshopa/list/the-stacks/

Episode 177 - Giant Claw + Close Encounters + Satan War + Robotrix + Capt Marvel + Seventh Curse + Francis Covers the Big Town + Iced + Last of the Mohicans

On The Stacks this week, part one (0:00-1:23:41) features a more detailed re-do of a favourite movie we covered way back in the early rougher episodes, the 1957 Fred F. Sears / Sam Katzman silly turkey-that-threatened-the-world movie The Giant Claw, in addition to "Court Martial" - the 20th episode of Star Trek (TOS). In part two (1:23:42-2:45:58), we talk in shorter form about eight additional features: Steven Spielberg's 1977 first contact blockbuster Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Bart LaRue's bizarre lo-fi 1979 Satanic Panic anthology film Satan War, Jamie Luk's totally unhinged 1991 category III wuxia Robocop knockoff Robotrix, the 2019 MCU 90s flashback origin story Captain Marvel (directed by Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck), the 1986 Lam Nai-choi splatter-adventure wuxia Indiana Jones riff The Seventh Curse, Arthur Lubin's 1953 talking animal picture Francis Covers the Big Town, Jeff Kwitny's 1988 video shop ski slasher classic Iced, and Michael Mann's 1992 quasi-historical epic Last of the Mohicans. As always, in part three, we briefly go over everything else we watched on physical media in the past week and make our choices for next time.

The live list of The Stacks is online at https://letterboxd.com/jshopa/list/the-stacks/