The Media Morgue

Longlegs x Manhunter

Welcome back to the Morgue! Assembled after a long break, the Morticians tackle one of their most hotly-anticipated releases of the year: LONGLEGS. Did Nic Cage miss his calling as a hair metal singer? How effective is horror for the communication of Oz Perkins’ particular trauma? And then we dip into the deep cerulean underbrush of MANHUNTER, Michael Mann’s third feature and the one that introduced Hannibal Lecter to moviegoers. It’s a double crime thriller doozy, so grab your boxes of dusty files and scrub in!

TIMESTAMPS

[0:00 - 17:45] Intro & News: Trailer Talk for 'Alien: Romulus', 'Beetlejuice Beetlejuice', 'Gladiator II'

[18:05 - 58:55] 'Longlegs' (2024) dir. Osgood Perkins

[59:15 - 1:22:04] 'Manhunter' (1986) dir. Michael Mann

2023: The Year's Best

Happy New Year ya lovely screen-huggin hunks! 

For our first episode of 2024, the Morticians took a look back over the pretty stacked year that was 2023 to talk through their favorite performances, directorial debuts, documentaries, and of course those vaunted top 5 lists. Clocking in at close to two hours, there was clearly a lot to talk about. So check your Letterboxd and scrub in! 

May December x Sex, Lies, and Videotape

Happy New Year from the Morticians! 

On the last episode of 2023, the Morticians discuss one of the late entries for best of the year: Todd Haynes's 'May December', and pair it with 'Sex, Lies, and Videotape'--the feature-length debut of legendary Steven Soderbergh. Grab your camcorder and scrub into the new year with us!

TIMESTAMPS 

[3:40] News! Jonathan Majors's conviction, Rockstar and Insomniac leaks, Melissa Barrera's firing, + other odds 'n' ends

[28:10] 'May December' (2023) dir. Todd Haynes 

[1:03:40] 'sex, lies, and videotape' (1989)

Pinocchio x Hellboy

Welcome back to the Morgue! 

Guillermo del Toro: everyone's favorite cinephile tío. Known just as much for the projects he's almost made as the ones he has, few directors are as beloved. On this episode, we take a look at his most recent labor: the 2022 stop-motion retelling of 'Pinocchio', and 2004's 'Hellboy', the comic adaptation that was an introduction to GDT for many of us. How does he use wartime setting and monster iconography to tell fully human stories? Grab your giant revolvers and talking crickets, it's time to scrub in for yet another director double feature.

TIMESTAMPS

[2:53] News! Trailer Talk for 'The Boys' S4 and 'House of the Dragon' S2; impromptu mini-view of 'Invincible' S2 Part 1

[24:59] 'Pinocchio' (2022) dir. Guillermo del Toro 

[56:05] 'Hellboy' (2004) dir. Guillermo del Toro 

Killers of the Flower Moon x After Hours

In awareness of Native American Heritage Day, visit Osage Nation Foundation to learn more about the powerful tribe depicted in this film.

Films about Palestine/by Palestinians!
A cinematic resource list curated by friend of the show Amir Moverman.

Welcome back to the Morgue! 

Martin Scorsese. Whether you love him or hate him, you've heard the man's name. On this episode, we're getting into the thick of his latest opus: Killers of the Flower Moon, alongside an old dark horse in his filmography called After Hours. Examining both these films gave us a chance to look at the themes, questions, and methods that run through the wide gamut of Marty's filmography—but if Killers turns out to be his final work, how excellent an exit would it be? Just in time for Thanksgiving, this is a feast of an episode, so grab your plate and scrub in! 

TIMESTAMPS

[3:15] News! LOTS of News. 'Creed IV' announcement; Fantastic 4 rumors + more MCU shakeups; Warner Bros. sacking Wil E.; Nathan Fielder's 'The Curse' press tour; 2023 Game Awards; & more

[36:00] Killers of the Flower Moon (2023) dir. Martin Scorsese 

[1:25:30] After Hours (1985) dir. Martin Scorsese

 

Cruising x Sorcerer

Films about Palestine/by Palestinians!
A cinematic resource list curated by friend of the show Amir Moverman.

Welcome back to the Morgue! 

On this episode, we continue to discuss William Friedkin's directorial body by reviewing two of his lesser-known works: Cruising and Sorcerer. One of the pioneers of the New Hollywood movement, we examine how both of these films demonstrate a clear stylistic identity, how Friedkin blended different genres and media to create them, and how the controversy around them at the time of release has changed in the decades since. Grab your leather jackets, color-coded handkerchiefs, and volatile nitroglycerin—time to scrub in! 

TIMESTAMPS

[1:40] News! SAG & AMPTP reach a deal; the MCU "in crisis"?; GTA 6 trailer announcement

[27:05] Cruising (1980) dir. William Friedkin

[1:03:18] Sorcerer (1977) dir. William Friedkin 

{Recorded 11/11/23}

The Exorcist: Believer x The Exorcist

Welcome back to the Morgue! 

For our third "Spooktacular" episode we have left Haddonfield and Michael Myers behind for the latest horror legend to receive the Blumhouse treatment: William Friedkin. With the recent release of Believer, the Morticians unpack the legacy and craft behind what many have called the scariest film ever made as we continue to discuss the merits and mishaps of contemporary genre revivals. Grab your holy water and scrub in! 

TIMESTAMPS

[0:00] The Morticians' Monster Hunter Draft! 

[20:35] The Exorcist: Believer (2023) dir. David Gordon Green 

[58:15] The Exorcist (1973) dir. William Friedkin

Barbenheimer

Welcome back to the Morgue!

Who would we be as critics and Morticians if we did not analyze this peculiar double feature event that has swept the nation during the most perilous time for American cinema in over 60 years? Join us as we dissect the latest magnum opuses from indie titans Greta Gerwig and Christopher Nolan. Plus, what IP from the Mattel pile do *we* want a shot at bringing to life next? Stuff your tobacco pipe, set up your Malibu dream houses, and scrub in! 

TIMESTAMPS

[0:00-24:30] News! Trailer Talk for 'Wonka' and 'Exorcist: Believer'; the SAG/WGA Strike; the new "MCU" (and why it's a terrible idea) 

[24:45] The Barbenheimer Phenomenon

[36:45] Barbie (2023) dir. Greta Gerwig

[1:10:45] Oppenheimer (2023) dir. Christopher Nolan

 

Fox and His Friends x Funeral Parade of Roses

Welcome back to the Morgue! 

We are resuming our third season with a discussion of Rainer Fassbinder's 'Fox and His Friends' and Toshio Matsumoto's 'Funeral Parade of Roses'; two films quite revolutionary for their time in their detailed depictions of these pockets of queer livelihood. Scrub in!

TIMESTAMPS

[3:00] News! Summer Games Fest, Trailer Talk for 'Kraven the Hunter', Netflix's 'The Last Airbender'

[22:19] 'Fox and His Friends' (1975) dir. Reiner Werner Fassbinder

[51:57] 'Funeral Parade of Roses' (1969) dir. Toshio Matsumoto

The Morticians at CUFF: Volume V

Welcome back to the Morgue! 

We recently teamed up with Columbia University to interview some of the contestants in their 26th annual film festival this month. We're honored to be a platform for these great conversations and excited to share them with you! 

TIMESTAMPS

[0:30 - 23:15] 'Primos' and 'Homing' directed by Ricardo J. Varona | premiering 7:00pm Friday, May 12th and 7:00pm Saturday, May 13th 

[23:20 - 34:24] 'Steal the Bacon' directed by Angeline Dimambro | premiering 5:00pm Friday, May 12th

[34:28 - 49:38] 'Well, I Should Get Going' directed by Celine Rose Sutter | premiering 7:00pm Sunday, May 12th