Shat the Movies: 80's & 90's Best Film Review

This week, Shat The Movies heads behind the Iron Curtain—or at least a Zucker-Abrahams-Zucker version of it—with Top Secret!, the absurdist spy spoof that introduced the world to Val Kilmer as a legitimately charismatic movie star who could also sing, dance, and commit fully to absolute nonsense. Long before Top Gun or

This week, Shat The Movies parks the surveillance van and cracks open Stakeout, the 1987 buddy-cop hit that proved Richard Dreyfuss could be both wildly neurotic and a believable romantic lead. Gene and Big D revisit this Reagan-era crowd-pleaser to figure out how a movie about police spying on a civilian somehow became a rom...

This week, Shat The Movies heads into the Pacific Northwest wilderness with Shoot to Kill, the late-'80s thriller that blends serial killers, mountain survival, and peak "competent adult movie" energy. Starring Sidney Poitier, Tom Berenger, and Kirstie Alley, this 1988 sleeper feels like the kind of grown-up studio thriller Hollywood simply doesn't make anymore.

This week, Shat The Movies heads to rural Iowa for Field of Dreams, the baseball fantasy that turns whispered voices, cornfields and unresolved daddy issues into cinematic magic. This episode is especially meaningful as it marks the first episode edited by our first-ever intern, Elias, officially ushering in a new era for the show. If you build it… apparently El...

Shat The Movies unsheathes the katana and heads to modern-day Japan for The Hunted, a mid-'90s action oddity that asks a very important question: What if Christopher Lambert was a reluctant samurai caught in a centuries-old ninja blood feud?

Released in 1995 and promptly forgotten, this movie blends corporate intrigue, mystical...

This week, Shat The Movies heads to Prohibition-era Chicago with Brian De Palma's The Untouchables, a glossy crime epic that somehow combines operatic violence, moral absolutism, and one of the most iconic staircases in movie history.

Featuring Kevin Costner at his most upright, Sean Connery at his most Oscar-winning, and Robe...

This week, Shat The Movies looks to the stars with Contact, Robert Zemeckis's thoughtful, talky, and occasionally frustrating sci-fi drama about faith, science, and whether humanity is ready for the truth. Based on Carl Sagan's novel and anchored by a career-best performance from Jodie Foster, Contact dares to ask big question...

This week on Shat the Movies, we march into Glory (1989), the powerful Civil War epic telling the true story of the 54th Massachusetts, the first African American volunteer infantry regiment. With unforgettable performances by Denzel Washington, Morgan Freeman, and Matthew Broderick, the film tackles courage, sacrifice, and the fight for dignit...

This Christmas, Shat The Movies takes a detour into one of the strangest holiday comedies ever made with Mixed Nuts, Nora Ephron's chaotic 1994 remake of the French farce Le Père Noël est une ordure. We're revisiting this deeply uncomfortable Christmas movie in honor of the late Rob Rei...

This week, Shat The Movies dives headfirst into early-2000s suburban dread with Donnie Darko, the cult classic that launched a thousand dorm-room debates and taught a generation to fear jet engines and men in bunny suits. Commissioned by listeners Wes and Fernando, this episode tackles Richard Kelly's time-bending, angst-soaked sci-fi drama that somehow feels ev...

Struggling writer and wine enthusiast Miles (Paul Giamatti) takes his engaged friend, Jack (Thomas Haden Church), on a trip to wine country for a last single-guy bonding experience. While Miles wants to relax and enjoy the wine, Jack is in search of a fling before his wedding. Soon, Jack is sleeping with Stephanie (Sandra Oh), while her friend Maya (Virginia Madsen) connects with Miles. When Miles lets slip th...

This week on Shat the Movies, we're heading underground with Day of the Dead (1985), the grim and gory finale to George A. Romero's original zombie trilogy. As scientists and soldiers clash in a bunker full of tension (and entrails), we break down the film's bleak tone, standout effects, and the unforgettabl...

This week, Shat The Movies tumbles through the space-time continuum with Terry Gilliam's Time Bandits, a chaotic fantasy adventure filled with Monty Python humor, mischievous dwarves, and a cosmic battle between Good, Evil, and negligent parenting. Commissioned by listener Mark, this 1981 classic follows young Kevin as he's swept away by a crew of dimension-hopp...

This week, Shat The Movies goes back to school—literally—as we revisit Adam Sandler's breakout man-child classic, Billy Madison. Commissioned by Hot Sauce Steve, this 1995 comedy asks the eternal question: what if the heir to a hotel empire had to redo grades 1 through 12 because he's too dumb to inherit a business?

Gene and Bi...

This week on Shat the Movies, we roundhouse-kick our way into Best of the Best 3: No Turning Back (1995), where Phillip Rhee takes on a small-town gang of neo-Nazis with nothing but martial arts, a leather vest, and a serious sense of justice. Forget international tournaments, this one's all shotgun blasts, burning ...

Just when you thought our annual Shat The Movies Halloween Spooktacular was over, we've back with one more mystical mission into the macabre. Commissioner Rob is raising "Vampire Hunter D" from the '80s crypt and bracing for our darkest takes. 

In this episode, voiced by Dick Ebert, Gene and Big D clash on whether the animation is delightfully nostalgic or criminally cheap. Gene a...

This week on Shat the Movies, it's alive! We're dusting off Young Frankenstein (1974), Mel Brooks' black-and-white masterpiece that parodies horror classics with heart, brains, and a healthy dose of innuendo. Gene Wilder leads a pitch-perfect cast including Teri Garr, Peter Boyle, Marty Feldman, and Cloris Leachman i...

In this special Spooktacular commission from Emmett, the guys dive deep into Tim Burton's 1994 biopic, Ed Wood. Starring Johnny Depp in one of his most beloved roles and Martin Landau in an Oscar-winning turn as Bela Lugosi, the film explores the life of the eccentric B-movie director often labeled the "worst" filmmaker in history.

Does Burton's loving tribute to cinematic failure still hold up, or is it m...

This week on Shat the Movies, we're slicing into The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974), the gritty, low-budget horror that redefined the genre. Gene and Big D brave the sweltering heat, meat hooks, and chainsaws to figure out how this disturbing, relentless nightmare became a cultural landmark. With Leatherf...