WEBVTT 1 00:00:31.920 --> 00:00:37.159 It's the spooky season. Officially, welcome back midnight viewers to 2 00:00:37.159 --> 00:00:39.719 follow them Alone's a weekly round up. I'm following alone 3 00:00:39.719 --> 00:00:44.399 and beside me, she's already in costume. That's from Logan's Run, right, Yeah, 4 00:00:44.399 --> 00:00:49.280 as a sandman. Oh, you're specifically Richard Jordan. Okay, the 5 00:00:49.399 --> 00:00:52.960 Richard Jordan's Sandman beside me is Ripley, Say hi, Ripley Jean. 6 00:00:54.320 --> 00:00:57.479 Halloween is coming, by which I mean it's September. It's 7 00:00:57.479 --> 00:00:59.560 two months away when you think about it. But if 8 00:00:59.560 --> 00:01:01.439 there's much it's nice to be sold. We should be 9 00:01:01.479 --> 00:01:04.400 selling it months in advance. Not that I'm complaining. The 10 00:01:04.560 --> 00:01:07.239 Christmas mania always drove me a bit bonker, so having 11 00:01:07.280 --> 00:01:09.799 its polar opposite around is not the worst thing in 12 00:01:09.840 --> 00:01:12.280 the world. Plus gives us an excuse to do a 13 00:01:12.280 --> 00:01:15.840 themed episode. It's just horror. We're just doing horror stuff, 14 00:01:15.879 --> 00:01:21.799 but relevant horror stuff. How would you describe your legs slender? Oh, dainty, Sure, 15 00:01:22.040 --> 00:01:26.159 that's accurate. Would you describe them as long as hypothetical? No, 16 00:01:26.280 --> 00:01:29.319 of course they're not. You're not long legs. Nicholas Cage 17 00:01:29.400 --> 00:01:30.120 is long legs. 18 00:01:31.280 --> 00:01:34.239 Is it scary being a lady FBI agent. 19 00:01:35.439 --> 00:01:42.560 Yep, take a nice long look. Aletta was left with 20 00:01:42.599 --> 00:01:46.239 the bodies sign of one word. 21 00:02:00.599 --> 00:02:02.400 I saw a bee strides up out of the sea 22 00:02:03.480 --> 00:02:08.039 with seven heads and ten horns, And. 23 00:02:08.159 --> 00:02:14.919 On his horns he wore ten crowns. On each head 24 00:02:14.960 --> 00:02:18.159 was written a blasphemous name. Why aren't you telling me 25 00:02:20.960 --> 00:02:23.000 he'll kill and kill again? 26 00:02:24.719 --> 00:02:28.639 I know you're not afraid of a little bit of dark, 27 00:02:30.599 --> 00:02:36.400 because you are the dark. 28 00:02:37.800 --> 00:02:44.840 Do you still say your prayers number? 29 00:02:44.840 --> 00:02:45.080 Once? 30 00:02:46.599 --> 00:02:47.280 They scared me? 31 00:02:48.159 --> 00:02:49.479 Hello? 32 00:02:50.840 --> 00:02:54.800 You could have you nice with me. 33 00:03:03.879 --> 00:03:15.039 As to me. 34 00:03:16.840 --> 00:03:17.159 Wait. 35 00:03:25.520 --> 00:03:29.039 This is in current release and streaming. Long Legs, written 36 00:03:29.080 --> 00:03:32.479 and directed by Osgood Perkins and starring Michael Monroe, Blair Underwood, 37 00:03:32.840 --> 00:03:34.960 and a garbage pail come to life in the form 38 00:03:34.960 --> 00:03:38.800 of Nicholas Cage as the eponymous Long Legs. Michael Monroe 39 00:03:38.800 --> 00:03:41.280 plays a newly minted FBI agent put on a year's 40 00:03:41.319 --> 00:03:44.879 long case involving a serial killer who doesn't actually perpetrate 41 00:03:44.960 --> 00:03:48.520 his crimes. Each of the victims' families have commonalities. They 42 00:03:48.520 --> 00:03:50.520 all have a daughter, and those daughters were all born 43 00:03:50.560 --> 00:03:53.240 in the same birthday, and in the end, one member 44 00:03:53.280 --> 00:03:55.680 of the family slaughters all of them before taking their 45 00:03:55.759 --> 00:03:58.879 own life. Though all the clues in several taunting ciphers 46 00:03:58.960 --> 00:04:01.599 left behind. Let the authorities know that this is all 47 00:04:01.599 --> 00:04:06.000 the work of one man Osgod Perkins Ozgod Perkins is 48 00:04:06.039 --> 00:04:10.080 an interesting cat. Yes, he's Anthony Perkins's son, Norman Bates. 49 00:04:10.520 --> 00:04:13.840 My girl and I have alakoi named Norman Bates LAIKOI 50 00:04:13.919 --> 00:04:17.720 are those werewolf cats. He's perfectly named. He stares at 51 00:04:17.759 --> 00:04:22.199 you uncomfortably for a very long time. But putting aside 52 00:04:22.240 --> 00:04:26.279 mister Perkins's parentage, he is a filmmaker after my own heart. 53 00:04:26.800 --> 00:04:31.639 He makes tiny, independent, self contained, generally slow burn horrorflex 54 00:04:32.000 --> 00:04:36.040 They're economical and thoughtful, and they can actually elicit dread 55 00:04:36.160 --> 00:04:39.160 and not just real world, contemporary or period stuff either. 56 00:04:39.199 --> 00:04:42.600 I thought his film Dreteline Hansel was terrific. Hansel is 57 00:04:42.639 --> 00:04:45.120 so hot right now, that's for you, Jess. So when 58 00:04:45.160 --> 00:04:47.000 he set his sights on Silence of the Lambs as 59 00:04:47.000 --> 00:04:51.120 a framework, I was really intrigued. And it mostly pays off. 60 00:04:51.879 --> 00:04:56.240 Mostly it's period piece set in the nineties. It must 61 00:04:56.319 --> 00:04:58.879 be jarring for young viewers for a character to announce 62 00:04:58.920 --> 00:05:00.759 that they need to make a phone call and then 63 00:05:01.040 --> 00:05:05.240 leave the room, potentially leave the building and find a payphone, 64 00:05:05.800 --> 00:05:09.240 and once they do, they're tethered there. The attention to detail, 65 00:05:09.240 --> 00:05:11.279 like in all of his films, is off the charts. 66 00:05:11.319 --> 00:05:14.199 And I really like Michael Monroe. Like Jane Levy, she 67 00:05:14.240 --> 00:05:17.319 feels like an accidental scream queen, which is the best kind, 68 00:05:17.680 --> 00:05:20.279 but she also has what I call Cianna Miller syndrome. 69 00:05:21.000 --> 00:05:23.439 She's a wonderful actress, but she looks like a dozen 70 00:05:23.560 --> 00:05:27.680 other more successful actresses all at once. If you've ever 71 00:05:27.680 --> 00:05:29.879 read A Scanner Darkly by Philip K. Dick, the lead 72 00:05:29.959 --> 00:05:32.839 character is an undercover agent. He wears this suit that's 73 00:05:32.879 --> 00:05:36.240 constantly cycling through personas, so you never really quite get 74 00:05:36.279 --> 00:05:39.319 a glimpse of who they are. That's Michael Monroe, but 75 00:05:39.399 --> 00:05:41.519 she's great here. I'm not taking anything away from her. 76 00:05:41.560 --> 00:05:43.360 I would say that the real standout of the film 77 00:05:43.439 --> 00:05:46.120 is Blair Underwood just dropping into her mind everyone how 78 00:05:46.160 --> 00:05:49.079 fucking awesome he was and is and can be. But 79 00:05:49.240 --> 00:05:52.240 he is not the best thing in Long Legs. Oh No, 80 00:05:53.040 --> 00:05:57.600 that is Alicia Witt. She plays Michael Monroe's mom, which 81 00:05:57.639 --> 00:06:00.720 is bracing. I saw Dune in the theater. Her folks, 82 00:06:01.160 --> 00:06:03.959 tiny Alicia Witt, She's all great up here. And she's 83 00:06:04.000 --> 00:06:06.680 a mom in long Legs, and she's better than I've 84 00:06:06.720 --> 00:06:10.079 ever seen her sincerely. She's got maybe ten minutes of 85 00:06:10.079 --> 00:06:13.560 total screen time, and she wrestles the spotlight onto herself 86 00:06:13.600 --> 00:06:18.680 with some incredibly naturalistic weirdness. She deserves all the awards 87 00:06:18.879 --> 00:06:22.079 and more weirdo parts. I love her, But this isn't 88 00:06:22.079 --> 00:06:25.120 the FBI story, and it isn't the weird mom tail. No, 89 00:06:25.360 --> 00:06:28.279 this is about the serial killer long Legs. Who is 90 00:06:28.360 --> 00:06:31.079 long Legs. I'll tell you he sounds a lot like 91 00:06:31.120 --> 00:06:33.399 the character Charlie from Peggy Sho got married, and he 92 00:06:33.439 --> 00:06:36.079 looks like he overdosed on a steroid like pregna zone. 93 00:06:36.720 --> 00:06:41.160 Same weird vocalizations, weird misshapen head that does nothing but 94 00:06:41.199 --> 00:06:44.639 distract you. I've read reviews that claim he was unrecognizable. 95 00:06:45.040 --> 00:06:47.319 I didn't know it was Nick Cage until the end credits. 96 00:06:47.360 --> 00:06:50.759 Are you out of your fucking minds? Look, there's nothing 97 00:06:50.800 --> 00:06:53.079 revelatory in his performance here, which I'm not saying is 98 00:06:53.120 --> 00:06:56.000 bad in any way. It's great, but we've seen wilder 99 00:06:56.079 --> 00:06:59.000 and weirder choices for mister Cage. This is really just 100 00:06:59.040 --> 00:07:02.199 stock in trade. If the movie resonates, it's not because 101 00:07:02.199 --> 00:07:05.199 of him. It's despite him. Nearly every interaction with long 102 00:07:05.279 --> 00:07:08.560 legs is shot from the neck down or some other obfuscation. 103 00:07:08.680 --> 00:07:11.000 When I was watching it, it seemed like a stylistic choice, 104 00:07:11.000 --> 00:07:12.800 and maybe it is, but I, for one, would have 105 00:07:12.839 --> 00:07:15.360 filmed his shoes the entire time rather than yank the 106 00:07:15.399 --> 00:07:17.879 audience so forcibly back to reality every time he's got 107 00:07:17.879 --> 00:07:20.839 a close up. It's a strange thing to have committed to. 108 00:07:21.199 --> 00:07:24.240 He's a serial killer, flying under the radar for decades. 109 00:07:24.680 --> 00:07:27.560 Actual serial killers can do this because oh he was 110 00:07:27.600 --> 00:07:30.319 so quiet, he was a nice guy. Oh no, I 111 00:07:30.439 --> 00:07:35.079 never would have suspected they're inconspicuous. Everybody will remember the 112 00:07:35.079 --> 00:07:40.399 falsetto Pillsbury, dull boy interrogating young girls about their birthdays. Everyone. 113 00:07:41.079 --> 00:07:43.240 There are handmade dolls that figure into the plot of 114 00:07:43.240 --> 00:07:45.480 this film. I kept expecting them to come to life 115 00:07:45.519 --> 00:07:49.079 and say, that guy's weird. Maybe it's me. Maybe you'll 116 00:07:49.120 --> 00:07:51.480 be swept away with the magic of heavy prosthetics. I 117 00:07:51.519 --> 00:07:54.120 hope you do. I wish I had, because the movie 118 00:07:54.199 --> 00:07:56.759 itself is as good as you've been hearing. It's just 119 00:07:56.800 --> 00:07:58.959 not for the reasons you've been hearing. Much loved a 120 00:07:58.959 --> 00:08:02.000 ghost Rider, but he's just kind of ruined it for me. Ultimately, 121 00:08:02.000 --> 00:08:04.839 I'm recommending this because Osgood Perkins is such a good 122 00:08:04.839 --> 00:08:07.240 filmmaker and he needs to keep at it. Also, Nick 123 00:08:07.519 --> 00:08:09.439 said he won't be doing roles like this anymore, so 124 00:08:09.519 --> 00:08:13.519 we've got that going for us, which is nice. Okay, 125 00:08:13.560 --> 00:08:17.680 tiny Legs, time for your choice. Rips picks, rips picks. 126 00:08:17.680 --> 00:08:20.600 I should get a Paul Schaeffer like bumper here. Remember 127 00:08:20.639 --> 00:08:22.519 anytime they would do a bit on Letterman, they'd cut 128 00:08:22.519 --> 00:08:24.560 to the World's Most Dangerous Band who'd have a theme 129 00:08:24.600 --> 00:08:27.279 song ready, which is usually just some wacky rave up 130 00:08:27.279 --> 00:08:29.600 with an organ swirling and Paul Shaffer screaming the name 131 00:08:29.639 --> 00:08:31.800 of the bit over and over again. HP. Can you 132 00:08:31.839 --> 00:08:41.240 hear me? The magic of HP? Everybody. I don't say 133 00:08:41.360 --> 00:08:44.000 enough about him. HP does every music cue on everything 134 00:08:44.039 --> 00:08:46.600 I'm involved in. He does the weirding way media bumpers. 135 00:08:46.600 --> 00:08:48.080 You hear at the start of all the shows on 136 00:08:48.120 --> 00:08:50.519 the network. He's got a band camp site you should 137 00:08:50.559 --> 00:08:52.879 be going to when it's linked in the description. You 138 00:08:52.919 --> 00:08:55.559 know HB has a dog. No, I don't think she 139 00:08:55.639 --> 00:08:58.679 co hosts anything, but she can speak English. Oh my god, 140 00:08:58.720 --> 00:09:01.639 it's a twist. And that's the thing that comes to 141 00:09:01.679 --> 00:09:04.639 mind when you consider the filmmaker behind Ripley's pick. It's 142 00:09:04.679 --> 00:09:07.159 another current one. What's going on here? We're supposed to 143 00:09:07.200 --> 00:09:10.240 be doing older stuff that people can get really easily. 144 00:09:10.240 --> 00:09:12.080 When are we gonna do Phantom of the Paradise and 145 00:09:12.159 --> 00:09:14.480 Dawn of the Dead. I guess when current stuff stops 146 00:09:14.480 --> 00:09:18.159 and being so yddamned excellent anyway, currently in theater or 147 00:09:18.159 --> 00:09:22.159 some probably streaming from m night Shyamalan. This is trap. 148 00:09:22.879 --> 00:09:26.080 Ladies and gentlemen, put your hands together. 149 00:09:26.279 --> 00:09:27.440 For lady Raven. 150 00:09:29.600 --> 00:09:33.120 Where were more talk about it? 151 00:09:33.320 --> 00:09:34.240 No jokes? 152 00:09:34.279 --> 00:09:35.120 This is serious. 153 00:09:35.279 --> 00:09:36.879 Come on, sorry, I. 154 00:09:38.679 --> 00:09:47.519 Mean slapt out, thank you, thank you. This is literally 155 00:09:47.559 --> 00:10:06.000 the best of my life. I gotta go to the bathroom. 156 00:10:06.279 --> 00:10:07.080 I can leave it here in. 157 00:10:07.000 --> 00:10:26.000 The seat, right all right, Cooper, Jamie, what's plice? 158 00:10:26.039 --> 00:10:30.279 Trucks outside the cameras everywhere, Jamie, I'm not supposed to tell. 159 00:10:32.279 --> 00:10:32.919 Something happening. 160 00:10:34.120 --> 00:10:36.000 Don't wrap me out, I won't. 161 00:10:37.960 --> 00:10:38.159 You know. 162 00:10:38.240 --> 00:10:42.080 The butcher, a freaking nutshot that goes around just chopping 163 00:10:42.080 --> 00:10:45.360 people up. Or the Feds or whatever heard that he's 164 00:10:45.399 --> 00:10:48.840 gonna be here today, so they set up a trap for. 165 00:10:48.879 --> 00:10:56.840 Her this whole concert to trap, the watching, all the exits, 166 00:10:57.440 --> 00:11:05.840 checking everyone that leaves. 167 00:11:02.120 --> 00:11:03.200 No way to get out of here. 168 00:11:12.559 --> 00:11:20.679 I see, yes. 169 00:11:27.759 --> 00:11:28.879 I'm sorry, Riley, what was that. 170 00:11:31.600 --> 00:11:34.720 Ready for? Listen? 171 00:11:40.360 --> 00:11:41.960 Your daughter is never gonna forget this day. 172 00:11:52.480 --> 00:12:01.639 We kind of dope, right, here's the real twist, for real, 173 00:12:01.720 --> 00:12:05.240 for real. Shamalan got written off too quickly, not saying 174 00:12:05.240 --> 00:12:07.440 he didn't make a bunch of cluckers. I'm not even 175 00:12:07.480 --> 00:12:10.080 a fan of the sixth sense. Bruce Willis has costume 176 00:12:10.200 --> 00:12:14.480 changes frequently. None of the other goes do that, think 177 00:12:14.519 --> 00:12:17.559 about it, Dirty Pool, m Night. He's always been best 178 00:12:17.600 --> 00:12:19.919 on an intimate level, which is why this film presented 179 00:12:19.960 --> 00:12:22.840 as if it could be more happening than Signs. It's 180 00:12:22.879 --> 00:12:25.000 the story of a dad played by Josh Hartnett, who's 181 00:12:25.000 --> 00:12:27.679 taken his daughter to her favorite pop stars concert at 182 00:12:27.679 --> 00:12:31.240 an indoor arena. He begins to notice significant police presence 183 00:12:31.279 --> 00:12:34.039 and discovers that the FBI and local law enforcement are 184 00:12:34.080 --> 00:12:37.279 there to catch a notorious serial killer. No one can 185 00:12:37.360 --> 00:12:41.919 leave a scary situation, particularly if you're the serial killer. 186 00:12:42.200 --> 00:12:45.200 Shamalan is channeling Brian to Palmer and Alfred Hitchcock more 187 00:12:45.200 --> 00:12:47.840 than Rod Serling and Steven Spielberg for this flick, and 188 00:12:47.960 --> 00:12:50.720 it is most welcome. It's a cat and mouse thriller 189 00:12:50.720 --> 00:12:52.679 where the mouse is already in the trap and is 190 00:12:52.720 --> 00:12:56.399 surrounded by hundreds of cats. The concert features Lady Raven, 191 00:12:56.600 --> 00:13:00.480 a thinly veiled Taylor's swift character played by Selika Knights Amalan. 192 00:13:00.919 --> 00:13:03.759 That's two Shamalan children hitting the scene this year. His 193 00:13:03.840 --> 00:13:07.360 other daughter Ishana wrote Indirected Watchers, which we covered a 194 00:13:07.360 --> 00:13:10.120 few episodes ago. Nepotism is only a negative when the 195 00:13:10.159 --> 00:13:15.720 beneficiary can't deliver. These kids deliver. Selika is remarkable not 196 00:13:15.879 --> 00:13:19.799 only for the solid, really solid performance, but also she 197 00:13:19.879 --> 00:13:23.240 wrote all of her character's songs and performed them. I'd 198 00:13:23.240 --> 00:13:25.679 say she's the standout she would be in any other case. 199 00:13:26.039 --> 00:13:28.240 But the fact is this film is anchored by a 200 00:13:28.279 --> 00:13:30.399 performance by an actor I've been a fan of for 201 00:13:30.440 --> 00:13:33.159 a long time. I think the early part of his 202 00:13:33.240 --> 00:13:36.399 career got derailed by a dismissive just a pretty boy 203 00:13:36.440 --> 00:13:38.679 thought of him. But I've always thought of him as 204 00:13:38.720 --> 00:13:40.720 an interesting actor, and I think the rest of the 205 00:13:40.720 --> 00:13:42.919 world is going to have to agree after this film. 206 00:13:43.200 --> 00:13:46.799 It's pure acting here. While there's tons of great dialogues throughout. 207 00:13:46.919 --> 00:13:51.399 It's everything unspoken by Heartnett that really conveys everything. We 208 00:13:51.440 --> 00:13:54.039 don't need one line from another character to let us 209 00:13:54.039 --> 00:13:56.360 know that the police are there for him. You read 210 00:13:56.519 --> 00:14:01.120 every emotion, every panic, every machination on his face, all 211 00:14:01.200 --> 00:14:03.399 the while trying is best to convince his daughter that 212 00:14:03.600 --> 00:14:05.960 all's well and they're just having a fun concert going 213 00:14:06.000 --> 00:14:09.039 experience together. Shamalan seems like one of the only filmmakers 214 00:14:09.120 --> 00:14:11.279 left who knows the power of a slow zoom in 215 00:14:11.879 --> 00:14:13.960 giving us the whole scene and then taking us into 216 00:14:14.000 --> 00:14:16.080 the meat of it. I love that his filmmaker has 217 00:14:16.159 --> 00:14:17.879 never been in question, and I don't think you can 218 00:14:17.919 --> 00:14:21.000 ever accuse him of anything less than being stylish. I mean, 219 00:14:21.000 --> 00:14:23.399 he's great in it. He cameos again, sure, but he's 220 00:14:23.399 --> 00:14:25.480 a better actor than we give him credit for. He 221 00:14:25.480 --> 00:14:29.519 plays Lady Raven's uncle, and speaking of great Hayley Mills 222 00:14:29.840 --> 00:14:35.679 identical twins. She plays the FBI profiler, coordinating the police 223 00:14:35.720 --> 00:14:38.919 and providing a constant stream of information that not only 224 00:14:38.919 --> 00:14:41.360 illuminate the Butcher as a character, but let us know 225 00:14:41.399 --> 00:14:44.000 how formidable she is. And that's a good word for 226 00:14:44.039 --> 00:14:47.360 her performance. Formidable. The whole thing is formidable. I don't 227 00:14:47.360 --> 00:14:49.600 want to give anything away, but there's no giant twist here, 228 00:14:49.679 --> 00:14:52.879 gang no giant revelation, so don't go in with that expectation. 229 00:14:53.360 --> 00:14:56.480 This is a puzzle box, and a really well crafted one. 230 00:14:56.720 --> 00:14:59.360 It makes you feel for everyone involved at different moments, 231 00:14:59.360 --> 00:15:04.799 and the payoff are satisfying. Also Josh Hartnett, Yes, we do. 232 00:15:04.840 --> 00:15:06.720 We have to recommend a TV show. It's been a while, 233 00:15:06.879 --> 00:15:08.360 and because we have a spooky theme, it has to 234 00:15:08.360 --> 00:15:11.759 be horror adjacent, which is a tall order. Unless we've 235 00:15:11.799 --> 00:15:14.519 been talking about Josh Hartnett, and unless the entire series 236 00:15:14.600 --> 00:15:16.919 wasn't available on showtime, and unless we're discussing one of 237 00:15:16.960 --> 00:15:20.480 my favorite series of all time from John Logan, starring 238 00:15:20.519 --> 00:15:24.799 Eva Green, Timothy Dalton, Reeve Carney, Harry Treadaway, Rory Kinnear, 239 00:15:25.000 --> 00:15:29.399 Billy Piper. And Yes, and Josh Hartnett, this is Penny Dreadful. 240 00:15:30.279 --> 00:15:31.320 Do you believe there is. 241 00:15:31.279 --> 00:15:34.879 A demi mom mister Johnler, a half world between what 242 00:15:34.960 --> 00:15:37.840 we know and what we fear. The place in the 243 00:15:37.879 --> 00:15:40.879 Shadows rarely seem but deeply felt. 244 00:15:43.919 --> 00:15:45.000 That sounds like a warning. 245 00:15:45.360 --> 00:15:46.200 It's an invitation. 246 00:15:48.480 --> 00:15:52.679 My daughter has been taken to save her, I would murder. 247 00:15:52.480 --> 00:15:55.080 The world, So malcolmit I have a need for a 248 00:15:55.120 --> 00:15:58.159 gentleman who's not hesitant to engage in dangerous endeavors. 249 00:16:00.159 --> 00:16:00.399 Job. 250 00:16:00.919 --> 00:16:09.279 Yes, there will be cases, there will be demons, there 251 00:16:09.320 --> 00:16:12.000 will be monsters. 252 00:16:13.120 --> 00:16:14.879 There is no going back from this brand. 253 00:16:16.879 --> 00:16:19.159 Doctor Frankenstein, Join Madden. 254 00:16:19.240 --> 00:16:22.240 You will behold terrible wonders. 255 00:16:22.320 --> 00:16:25.879 Life and death, the flicker that separates one from the other. 256 00:16:27.240 --> 00:16:28.759 We are responsible for it. 257 00:16:30.159 --> 00:16:33.200 Look into each other's eyes and pledge to go as. 258 00:16:33.080 --> 00:16:34.759 Far as your soul will allow. 259 00:16:36.600 --> 00:16:39.840 To be different, to be powerful? Is that not a 260 00:16:39.879 --> 00:16:40.600 divine gift? 261 00:16:40.720 --> 00:16:46.720 Missiles, there are things you can't control, Battles you lose. 262 00:16:47.279 --> 00:16:48.559 We will have a cases, don't we. 263 00:16:52.080 --> 00:16:54.600 If you have been touched by the demon, it's like 264 00:16:54.679 --> 00:16:58.159 being touched by the backhand of God. You must look 265 00:16:58.240 --> 00:17:01.279 into your heart and you almost answer me a question, 266 00:17:01.480 --> 00:17:06.480 just one, do you really want to be normal? I 267 00:17:06.519 --> 00:17:08.519 will show you're the monster you've had. 268 00:17:09.759 --> 00:17:13.920 We will created to rule, and the blood of mankind 269 00:17:14.160 --> 00:17:22.119 will water our card. I've run from the darkness for 270 00:17:22.240 --> 00:17:22.720 so long. 271 00:17:23.519 --> 00:17:26.039 Remember, death comes for us all. 272 00:17:27.039 --> 00:17:31.799 We must do whatever's required to protect. Missives, you have 273 00:17:31.960 --> 00:17:36.200 been chosen. You are unlike all others. And you have 274 00:17:36.200 --> 00:17:40.319 a profound destiny. Well you see that. 275 00:17:44.119 --> 00:17:47.480 I think that trend of gathering together fictional disparate characters 276 00:17:47.519 --> 00:17:50.519 into a shared piece of entertainment probably began with Alan 277 00:17:50.559 --> 00:17:53.720 Moore and Kevin O'Neill's book The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. 278 00:17:54.359 --> 00:17:57.160 But it wasn't their innovation really, just look back to 279 00:17:57.200 --> 00:17:59.759 Scooby Doo and Batman hanging out together. But it was 280 00:17:59.759 --> 00:18:02.359 that book and subsequent film adaptation that seemed to stoke 281 00:18:02.400 --> 00:18:05.200 the fires of hey, let's jam a bunch of fairytale 282 00:18:05.279 --> 00:18:08.440 characters together and stuff like Once upon a Time, or hey, 283 00:18:08.599 --> 00:18:11.079 let's jam a whole bunch of fairytale characters together like 284 00:18:11.240 --> 00:18:13.960 grim or hey, well you can get the idea. The 285 00:18:14.000 --> 00:18:17.519 best of them easily handily is John Logan's series Penny 286 00:18:17.599 --> 00:18:21.680 Dreadful Oscar Winner. John Logan, Yes, that one. He wrote 287 00:18:21.680 --> 00:18:25.720 Gladiator and the Aviator and Skyfall and Specter, and in 288 00:18:25.759 --> 00:18:29.119 twenty fourteen he created this series. It's said in London 289 00:18:29.160 --> 00:18:32.359 in eighteen ninety one. Hart Knet's character, a genuine American 290 00:18:32.400 --> 00:18:35.480 cowboy sharpshooter who's come to England with a traveling Wild 291 00:18:35.519 --> 00:18:38.119 West show, is our proxy and through him we are 292 00:18:38.200 --> 00:18:41.319 led into a world of Victorian depravity thanks to the 293 00:18:41.319 --> 00:18:44.640 finest authors of the age. He's befriended by Vanessa Ives, 294 00:18:44.720 --> 00:18:47.279 played by Eva Green. Do I have to tell you 295 00:18:47.359 --> 00:18:49.359 how much I love Eva Green? I can do a 296 00:18:49.400 --> 00:18:52.799 dozen podcasts about her. But anyway, Vanessa's best friend has 297 00:18:52.799 --> 00:18:55.240 been missing for some time, and she and her friend's 298 00:18:55.279 --> 00:18:58.279 father are on the constant hunt for her. Vanessa's friend 299 00:18:58.359 --> 00:19:01.240 is Mina Murray. Fans of Acula ought to recognize the 300 00:19:01.319 --> 00:19:04.319 name and her father. While not Alan Quartermain, he may 301 00:19:04.359 --> 00:19:07.359 as well be. He's an explorer and an adventurer, played 302 00:19:07.400 --> 00:19:10.920 with his usual fucking excellence by Timothy Dalton. During their 303 00:19:10.920 --> 00:19:14.759 investigation through the grimy, sooty streets of nighttime London, they 304 00:19:14.880 --> 00:19:17.480 enlist the aid of a medical student named Victor Frankenstein 305 00:19:17.839 --> 00:19:21.240 and make the acquaintance of a society dandy named Dorian Gray. 306 00:19:21.920 --> 00:19:25.440 Mash Up with gravy, Yes, it is so on its face, 307 00:19:25.480 --> 00:19:27.480 I can understand it getting lost in the shuffle back 308 00:19:27.480 --> 00:19:30.880 in the day, and it's continued obsolescence, even though everyone 309 00:19:30.880 --> 00:19:33.599 seems to be howling for mashups these days. So maybe 310 00:19:33.599 --> 00:19:37.160 I can find a new audience. Frankenstein's first experiment comes calling. 311 00:19:37.279 --> 00:19:39.839 By season three, we're hanging out with Doctor Jekyl. It's 312 00:19:39.839 --> 00:19:44.319 a smorgasboard of Victorian naughtiness and oh how naughty. I 313 00:19:44.359 --> 00:19:46.960 listened to Brent Goldstein's podcast and he always asks his 314 00:19:47.079 --> 00:19:49.960 guests what's the sexiest film that they've ever seen. I'm 315 00:19:49.960 --> 00:19:52.039 always a bit flummixed to choose one of my own, 316 00:19:52.079 --> 00:19:55.359 But if the question was sexiest television series, it's Penny 317 00:19:55.400 --> 00:20:00.200 Dreadful in all its blood soaked, depraved and horny glory. 318 00:20:00.279 --> 00:20:03.480 The blood. There's a scene, no spoilers where two characters 319 00:20:03.680 --> 00:20:06.839 dance at a ball that is absolutely drenched in blood. 320 00:20:07.160 --> 00:20:11.240 The walls, the floors, the sconces the dancers, and it's 321 00:20:11.279 --> 00:20:13.960 one of the most alluring images I've ever seen. Oh 322 00:20:14.000 --> 00:20:16.240 and here's something. The show is many things, but it's 323 00:20:16.240 --> 00:20:19.359 a horror show first and foremost, and it manages to 324 00:20:19.359 --> 00:20:23.160 accomplish something ninety nine percent of self avowed horror television cannot. 325 00:20:23.640 --> 00:20:27.240 It's actually scary. The season two premiere has more genuine 326 00:20:27.240 --> 00:20:30.559 fright than ten seasons of American horror story. Ooh bho. 327 00:20:30.680 --> 00:20:32.960 I just creeped myself out remembering one of the characters 328 00:20:35.240 --> 00:20:39.200 I enview virgin viewers. The series follows many plots, many characters, 329 00:20:39.200 --> 00:20:42.559 many threads, but it also doesn't skimp on illuminating the 330 00:20:42.599 --> 00:20:45.920 various forms of entertainment that would shape the twentieth century. 331 00:20:45.960 --> 00:20:47.920 We spend a good deal of time at the Grand 332 00:20:47.960 --> 00:20:50.720 Gugnol Theater. I hope I pronounced that right. I probably didn't. 333 00:20:50.880 --> 00:20:54.440 They spend time at a waxworks, a shadow show early 334 00:20:54.480 --> 00:20:56.960 forms of animation. Logan has always had an ear for 335 00:20:56.960 --> 00:20:59.160 stylized period dialogue, and I think this show is his 336 00:20:59.240 --> 00:21:03.359 crowning achieved. Also, the production design is top notch movie quality. 337 00:21:03.400 --> 00:21:06.839 All of it is movie quality. Now. A quick caveat 338 00:21:06.920 --> 00:21:09.640 the series is three seasons should have been four. I 339 00:21:09.640 --> 00:21:12.079 get the sense it was plotted for four. Logan has 340 00:21:12.079 --> 00:21:14.400 said he chose to end the series, but the truncated 341 00:21:14.400 --> 00:21:16.640 way in which the third season wraps up every plot 342 00:21:16.680 --> 00:21:19.680 thread does not feel like the season we'd received thus far. 343 00:21:20.319 --> 00:21:22.480 It feels like they knew they were getting a fourth season, 344 00:21:22.599 --> 00:21:24.720 planned it, and then just prior to going to camera 345 00:21:24.799 --> 00:21:27.559 for season three, were informed they weren't being renewed. I 346 00:21:27.599 --> 00:21:30.279 might be Devil's advocating for Logan here, because while it 347 00:21:30.319 --> 00:21:32.359 is an ending and it does satisfy the various plot 348 00:21:32.359 --> 00:21:35.720 threads we've been following. It feels rushed and wildly unfocused 349 00:21:35.960 --> 00:21:39.279 for what is such usual laser precision. It's odd, and 350 00:21:39.359 --> 00:21:41.599 it prevents this from being my absolute favorite show of 351 00:21:41.599 --> 00:21:46.440 all time because it's this close, this close, Ripley, I 352 00:21:46.480 --> 00:21:48.759 now realized that this is a topic way larger than 353 00:21:48.799 --> 00:21:51.240 a wrap up episode. I may need to devote a 354 00:21:51.240 --> 00:21:53.599 bit more attention to the series, maybe over on the 355 00:21:53.640 --> 00:21:59.880 Patreon channel. Episode by episode. We can do it, Ripley. Yes, 356 00:22:00.079 --> 00:22:04.599 it's gray bearded, silver Fox, Timothy Dalton. She's in. Should 357 00:22:04.640 --> 00:22:07.640 I be worried about you anyway? Benny Dreadful? Please go 358 00:22:07.680 --> 00:22:09.519 watch it. Give the first couple of episodes a go. 359 00:22:10.000 --> 00:22:12.680 It is tops as far as shared universes go, and 360 00:22:12.920 --> 00:22:16.160 it makes Victorian stuff scary again. That in and of 361 00:22:16.200 --> 00:22:18.480 itself is worth your time. You know what, Wait, I 362 00:22:18.480 --> 00:22:20.319 can't wrap it up. I need to scream the virtues 363 00:22:20.319 --> 00:22:22.279 of a couple of the performers here, and I haven't 364 00:22:22.279 --> 00:22:24.880 mentioned either yet. That's how fucking snacked with talent. This 365 00:22:24.920 --> 00:22:28.599 show is. Season two features Helen McCrory and Sarah Green 366 00:22:28.799 --> 00:22:32.920 as witches. Helen McCrory most will know as Draco Malfoy's 367 00:22:32.920 --> 00:22:36.079 mom in the Harry Potter films. She's icy in those films. 368 00:22:36.359 --> 00:22:41.759 She's everything here, calculating, sweet, seductive, and horrifying. She could 369 00:22:41.799 --> 00:22:44.200 do it all, and she does it all here. She 370 00:22:44.279 --> 00:22:47.000 passed away a few years ago, so fuck you death. 371 00:22:47.519 --> 00:22:50.759 Quit taking all the greats. Sarah Poole plays a character 372 00:22:50.839 --> 00:22:53.599 named Heckty, and she's a potential third side to a 373 00:22:53.640 --> 00:22:57.200 triangle between Josh Hartnett and Eva Green. So that's great 374 00:22:57.279 --> 00:23:02.000 because unlike most romantic triangles faulty angle, here all three 375 00:23:02.079 --> 00:23:04.720 characters are super strong and you can see the appeal 376 00:23:04.720 --> 00:23:07.920 of them all around. Oh and she's horrifying. I am 377 00:23:07.920 --> 00:23:11.200 gonna spoil something. The witches in Penny Dreadful transform into 378 00:23:11.279 --> 00:23:15.200 chilling creatures that remain sexy and scary in equal measure. 379 00:23:15.440 --> 00:23:17.519 I fucking love this series. I'm gonna stop. We're gonna 380 00:23:17.519 --> 00:23:20.119 wrap this up, wrap up the roundup. Thank you everyone 381 00:23:20.160 --> 00:23:22.640 for listening week in and week out. You've made the 382 00:23:22.680 --> 00:23:24.920 show double in popularity over the past few months, and 383 00:23:24.960 --> 00:23:28.119 I'm humbled and grateful. If you want more of something 384 00:23:28.200 --> 00:23:30.559 or less of another, let me know. We're open to suggestions. 385 00:23:31.720 --> 00:23:34.279 I'm open to suggestions. You can reach me at follow 386 00:23:34.359 --> 00:23:36.680 alone seven to one at gmail dot com. And if 387 00:23:36.720 --> 00:23:38.240 you want to support the show, head on over to 388 00:23:38.279 --> 00:23:41.160 Patreon and become a subscriber. You can sign up for free. 389 00:23:41.359 --> 00:23:43.240 You won't get anything, but my ego will grow two 390 00:23:43.319 --> 00:23:47.160 sizes that day. Paid members get episodes early and ad free, 391 00:23:47.200 --> 00:23:49.359 and evidently are gonna get a new show dedicated to 392 00:23:49.400 --> 00:23:52.519 Penny Dreadful. Fuck. Now I've said it, so it's gonna happen. 393 00:23:53.000 --> 00:23:56.559 That's patreon dot com slash follom alone or if money's 394 00:23:56.599 --> 00:23:59.599 a bit scarce, boy, ain't it, you're gonna help us 395 00:23:59.599 --> 00:24:02.119 by giving up it's a five star review on Apple Podcasts, 396 00:24:02.240 --> 00:24:05.559 or sharing it or just telling someone about it. Either way, anyway, 397 00:24:05.680 --> 00:24:08.119 thank you for listening. This Friday, We've got an episode 398 00:24:08.119 --> 00:24:11.279 of Anthologies attach. I haven't decided which one you're getting with. 399 00:24:11.400 --> 00:24:14.319 The choices are all fun, so tune in then and 400 00:24:14.480 --> 00:24:17.039 until next time. Here's a line from Penny Dreadful. I'm 401 00:24:17.039 --> 00:24:19.319