Wow, THE HOLY MOUNTAIN sure is something! Alejandro Jodorowsky's 1973 follow-up to El Topo is a wild psychedelic trip, a critique of the militarization of 20th century life, and even a satire of the counterculture that spawned it. At least, we think. Today, Bill and Renan try to explain to each other what they think happened in the movie, what it's supposed to be about, recount how the film was made, how it disappeared from public view, how it's influenced other artists in the years since—and discuss the perfectly understandable reason why George Harrison turned down the lead role.
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REPO MAN (1984) is a bit of a departure from our usual kind of film, and boy is it worth it: written and directed by Alex Cox and starring Emilio Estevez and Harry Dean Stanton, Repo Man is a gritty, funny, occasionally baffling ride through 1980s LA, through a wasteland of generic brands, smarmy televangelists, flying cars stuffed with aliens, and fears of nuclear annihilation. Your hosts explore these themes, plus: how the film was saved by punk and yet challenges the idea, what kind of kooky things Alex Cox has been up to lately, and offer a remembrance of the late, great Art Bell.
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This week, the delightful motion picture under discussion is Takashi Miike's AUDITION (1999), which you definitely should not read about before you watch this movie—not to mention listen to this podcast. Once you're all caught up, rejoin us as your hosts attempt to explain the film's second half, discuss misogyny and #metoo as well as sympathy for flawed characters, torture porn and gearshift movies, creepy romantic comedy tropes, parental advisories, and whether your hosts have ever lied to get a date.
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For our second episode of the season, your hosts return to the eerie beauty, philosophical pondering, and deliberate pacing of Andrei Tarkovsky with STALKER (1979). Less a science fiction film than Solaris and more of an unconventional road movie, Stalker takes the viewer on a journey through a mysterious Zone where three protagonists seek the fulfillment of their greatest desires at risk of equally great peril. Or... do they? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Meanwhile, Renan and Bill discuss the film's infamously troubled production, the film's influence on Annihilation and Blade Runner 2049, Tarkovsky's faith and defection from the Soviet Union, and what he might make of our relentless social media age.
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For the eighth season premiere of ENTER THE VOID, we're tackling Mary Harron's 2000 adaptation of AMERICAN PSYCHO, based on the Bret Easton Ellis novel of the same name. Originating as one of the most controversial novels of the 1990s to becoming one of the most iconic films of the 2000s, there's a lot to unpack here: the uneasy balance between satire and horror; how a dark fantasy of male rage became a feminist statement; how the novel and film differently present the character of Patrick Bateman; when exactly the movie becomes a mindscrew; what the film has to say about contemporary U.S. politics and society; and oh, by the way, are the murders even real? Also in this episode: your hosts revisit, update, and debate their criteria for describing the genre this podcast is meant to explore.
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Our long national nightmare is over! Wait, no it's not. But at least here's some good news: Season 8 of ENTER THE VOID is coming! Renan and Bill are back with today's preview episode, giving you the rundown on what you need to watch to keep up with us over the next eight weeks. And a big shout-out to our fans in our Podcast Club, who picked every single one of this season's films. Here's the lineup:
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P.S. Big thanks to Michelle LeClerc for the new logo! (The previous ones were hers, too.) You should follow her on Twitter @michelleleclerc.
For the final installment of the seventh season, Bill and Renan welcome back third season guest Ray Patnaude to discuss ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND. Chances are good you not only have heard of it, but it's very possibly a favorite film of almost everyone you know. In this finale episode, the trio discuss how they felt about it on release and upon revisiting; the techniques director Michel Gondry and writer Charlie Kaufman deploy to make it both emotionally effective as well as dream-like and disorienting; Gondry's music videos and the film careers of his fellow video directors; plus, what else belongs in the list of best films of the century so far?
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Which FUNNY GAMES is your favorite? Is it the Michael Haneke film about a bourgeois couple subjected to home invasion by a pair of sadistic killers from 1997, or the Michael Haneke film about a bourgeois couple subjected to home invasion by a pair of sadistic killers from 2007? Is either of these films your favorite telling of this particular story? In today's episode, Renan and Bill compare the two versions, try to understand what Haneke was trying to say with them, explore what is compelling about them in spite of the subject matter, make unexpected comparisons to the filmography of James O. Incandenza, and discuss other close remakes.
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Today we're talking about arguably 2017's most controversial film, and one of the most controversial on this podcast: Darren Aronofsky's MOTHER! (technically, mother!) starring JLaw, JBard, Ed Harris, and Michelle Pfeiffer. Plus, joining us to bring a skeptical point of view is Vulture's movies editor, Rachel Handler! In this episode: mother! as Biblical allegory and environmental parable; or, is the movie actually all about being a demanding artist?; the religious concept of eternal return vs. scientific concept of the oscillating universe; plus: what's that yellow substance, and how obvious is it he wrote it in five days?
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Jean-Luc Godard's 1967 WEEKEND (or WEEK-END, if you prefer) is a scathing political satire if you understand what's going on, or a long strange trip if you don't. Your hosts have been on both sides of this divide, and today they come together to talk about seeing the film as a clueless undergrad; Tarantino and Wheatley as JLG fans and other films it influenced; the automobile and capitalist society; anti-colonialist speeches with sandwiches; a digression on the legacies of Hunter S. Thompson and Jann Wenner; Black Mirror, Get Out and other contemporary satires; and the puzzles of Lewis Carroll.
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To discuss Ben Wheatley's 2015 dystopian drama HIGH-RISE—based on the J.G. Ballard novel of the same name, adapted for the screen by Amy Jump, and starring Tom Hiddleston and Jeremy Irons—we welcome to the show Simon Owens, a past colleague of Bill and Renan's and a journalist based in DC. The film looks and sounds amazing, the source material is first-rate, and the acting is all around superb. So why does this movie actually make less sense than some of the crazier movies we've talked about this season? Debate ensues.
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Today ENTER THE VOID considers its first (and maybe last?) Coen Brothers film, 1991's BARTON FINK, starring John Turturro and John Goodman. Examined in detail: how this movie swept Cannes and is somewhat overlooked today; what it has to say about about writers and writing; Barton Fink's real-life influences and Hollywood wrestling pictures; its amazingly detailed Wikipedia page; and, is this a classic mind-bender of the sort this podcast is supposed to be about?
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Nobuhiko Obayashi's 1977 HAUSU (or ハウス, or HOUSE) is possibly the most insane movie we've ever discussed on Enter The Void Podcast—and that's really saying something! This week Renan and Bill are joined by Teo Bugbee, who brought this psychedelic slapstick haunted house bubblegum horror comedy to our attention. And yet, as crazy as it is, it's also immensely enjoyable, and worthy of discussion for its distillation of childhood fears, commentary on the atom bomb, debatable feminist content, and of course its pure sensory overload.
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Alex Proyas' DARK CITY is a tough one to properly summarize. It's not just that it's part film noir, part horror and part science fiction. It's also that its critical esteem, cult status, and lasting influence have never really found a point of consensus. In this episode, Bill and Renan try to figure out how to regard the film's reputation, especially in light (so to speak) of the 2008 director's cut. Plus: if Dark City was made today, would it be a video game?; why Roger Ebert loved it so much; eerie similarities to The Matrix (and The Force Awakens); and so many questions left unresolved.
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Season 7 of ENTER THE VOID is nearly upon us! In today's preview episode, Renan and Bill quickly run through the list of films to be discussed over the next eight episodes, so you can watch with us and get the most out of these discussions. The films are:
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For the last installment of our three-part special series on TWIN PEAKS: THE RETURN, we have two more interviews: Bill talks with Alex Fulton, author of a widely-read essay arguing the final two episodes are meant to be watched in sync; and Renan has a conversation with writer Alex Pappademas, formerly of Grantland, GQ, SPIN and MTV News, about the the origins of his Twin Peaks fandom, his double reaction as a fan and critic, critical response to the show, analysis of episode 8, and Fire Walk With Me.
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We're back with the second installment of our three-part series on TWIN PEAKS: THE RETURN! In this episode, former guests Brian Gluckman (The Congress, Oldboy) and Mark Netter (Videodrome, Last Year at Marienbad) return to share their views on David Lynch's Showtime series. With Brian: the idea of television as art, whether or not there should be a season 4, and the possible influence of musicians Richard and Linda Thompson. With Mark: The Return as the summation of Lynch's career, connections to his filmography; and how elements of the new series inform our understanding of both.
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Through the first 50+ episodes of its existence, ENTER THE VOID has kept its eye on the feature film. But today the show returns from its customary inter-seasonal hiatus for a very special reason: David Lynch's astonishing TWIN PEAKS: THE RETURN is now over, and your hosts couldn't live with themselves if they didn't give it the consideration it deserves. In this first of three special episodes, Renan and Bill share their thoughts and feelings on the show's 18-episode run; offer their half-baked theories on its mind-breaking conclusion; run a mock draft of their favorite things from the show; consider Twin Peaks' revised position relative to other great TV shows; and ruminate on the inventive names of Peaks podcasts.
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For the final episode of season 6, Renan and Bill tackle a biggie: it's David Lynch's 2001 masterwork MULHOLLAND DR., which many view as Lynch's greatest movie, and some critics even consider the best film of the young century. In this extra-long episode, your hosts get right down to it and explain how their views on it have evolved over repeat viewings; try to explain how Diane's real world and Betty's dream world are connected; examine a few of Lynch's "10 clues" to the film; recount the film's origins as a pilot for ABC television; admire the performance of Naomi Watts; and ruminate on Mulholland as movie industry commentary. Plus: did you know there is a real Club Silencio?
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Starring an early career Johnny Depp with a rogue's gallery of great American and British character actors, Jim Jarmusch's 1995 DEAD MAN is one of the coolest, independentest movies around. In this episode, your hosts discuss: the widely divergent critical reactions, the similarly divisive Neil Young soundtrack, the influences of English poet William Blake and surrealist Henri Michaux, and your hosts' differing thoughts on Western films. Plus, the greatness of Tommy Boy.
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Jim Henson and Frank Oz's 1982 film THE DARK CRYSTAL is dark, morbid, and yet still ostensibly for kids. Bill and Renan consider this movie's most terrifying elements, other beloved disturbing works intended for audiences of children, and how puppets and CGI characters can fall into the "uncanny valley." Does this movie need a Han Solo? How much can you buy a Henson puppet for? What's the deal with the upcoming Netflix series?
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As the first film of a director who only made a half-dozen films in 50 years, 1971's THX 1138 might be an obscure discovery. But as it happens, it's the directorial debut of merchandising tie-in billionaire George Lucas, and it's just weird enough to merit analysis by your loyal hosts. Today Bill and Renan ask: is THX more like Nineteen Eighty-Four or Brave New World? is it visionary, derivative, or a combination of both? where did George Lucas find so many bald people? can we actually compare Lucas to Harmony Korine? and, is it possible THX is actually a film improved by its CGI special edition?
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This week your hosts consider Harmony Korine's infamous 1997 low-budget freak fest GUMMO, a hillbilly elegy of cat-killing, glue-sniffing, eyebrow-shaving and, most memorably, chair-wrestling. Loved and hated by critics, admired by one co-host as a nihilistic suburban teenager and previously avoided by the other, Korine's directorial debut is tough to get one's head around—but they try! Also addressed: Korine's career trajectory, his comic pastiche of a novel, and his legendary appearances on the Late Show with David Letterman.
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Good news: this week Bill and Renan talk about Shane Carruth's 2013 transcendent sci-fi romance UPSTREAM COLOR! Bad news: now they're all out of Shane Carruth films. Famously directed, written, starring, scored and edited by Carruth himself, UC is much different than his cult debut Primer—an ETV selection in season 1—a more ethereal, impressionistic, and even mature film. Questions your hosts attempt to answer in this episode: how much does the look and feel of this film owe to Terrence Malick?; we know what the movie is about, but what does it mean?; do we like it or not how willing Carruth is to explain anything about the film that he can?; how does UC contribute to the representation of pigs in Western culture?; how good is Amy Seimetz in this, huh?; and, will Shane Carruth ever have an actual movie career?
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Shinya Tsukamoto's 1989 short feature TETSUO: THE IRON MAN borrows from Lynch's Eraserhead and Cronenberg's Videodrome—both films discussed in ETV's second season —and creates something entirely its own. Clocking in at a slender 67 minutes and blessedly shot in B&W to maximize gore while minimizing your hosts covering their eyes, Tetsuo is a cyberpunk-meets-splatterpunk anime come to life. Also discussed in this episode: Tsukamoto's encounters with Tarantino and Scorsese; comparisons to Evil Dead and Robert Mapplethorpe; a long digression on Japan's anxieties and its perpetually aging population; plus, could it possibly have influenced the Playstation 2 classic Katamari Damacy?
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