Meatballs (1979)

When listener John S. commissioned the 1983 cult slasher Sleepaway Camp, Big D had zero expectations. Gene was cautiously optimistic after two disappointing summer camp films. Neither was prepared for what they got. What starts as Meatballs with murder — beehives, boilings, and drownings — escalates into something far darker, culminating in one of cinema's most shocking twist endings. Gene calls it his favorite slasher finale of all time. Big D says it's up there with The Terminator, Empire Strikes Back, and Back to the Future Part II. In this episode: How Sleepaway Camp earned its 82% Rotten Tomatoes score despite being dismissed as a Friday the 13th knockoff The legendary practical effects of Ed French (Terminator 2, Star Trek, Buffy) — going way harder than the budget demanded Robert Earl Jones (James Earl Jones' father!) as the camp cook who looks the other way The most authentic New York swearing since your last family gathering A thoughtful debate on whether the film's famous ending is transphobic or a tragic story of a child failed by the adults around him Why both hosts agree: watch this movie before you listen to this episode. The twist is that good. Sleepaway Camp is available free on multiple streaming platforms including Plex. Go watch it first — seriously — then come back and join the conversation. Subscribe Now Android: https://www.shatpod.com/android Apple/iTunes: https://www.shatpod.com/apple Help Support the Podcast Contact Us: https://www.shatpod.com/contact Commission Movie: https://www.shatpod.com/support Support with Paypal: https://www.shatpod.com/paypal Support With Venmo: https://www.shatpod.com/venmo Shop Merchandise: https://www.shatpod.com/shop Theme Song - Die Hard by Guyz Nite: https://www.facebook.com/guyznite

When a filmmaker gets a second chance at the same idea and decides to just fucking lose his mind, you get Evil Dead 2. Gene and Big D continue their Shat Spooktacular Halloween celebration with Sam Raimi's 1987 horror-comedy sequel — the film that turned Ash Williams into a legend and gave us the one word that defines an entire franchise: "Groovy." Commissioned by Spooktacular junkie John, this episode digs into the remake-vs-sequel debate, Bruce Campbell's transformation from likable lead to chainsaw-handed icon, a shell-company distribution workaround to dodge an X rating, and the stop-motion skeletons that still divide the hosts. Gene compares the movie to mopeds — not the best-made, not the scariest, not the funniest, but more fun than better movies. Dick's turning point? When Henrietta's eyeball shoots across the room and lands in her daughter's mouth. Perfect. No notes. Subscribe Now Android: https://www.shatpod.com/android Apple/iTunes: https://www.shatpod.com/apple Help Support the Podcast Contact Us: https://www.shatpod.com/contact Commission Movie: https://www.shatpod.com/support Support with Paypal: https://www.shatpod.com/paypal Support With Venmo: https://www.shatpod.com/venmo Shop Merchandise: https://www.shatpod.com/shop Theme Song - Die Hard by Guyz Nite: https://www.facebook.com/guyznite

This week on Shat the Movies, we're heading into the woods with The Evil Dead (1981), where five friends discover that renting an isolated cabin is apparently the fastest route to demonic possession. Gene and Big D break down Bruce Campbell's early Ash, Sam Raimi's inventive camera work, buckets of blood, questionable decision-making, and special effects held together with imagination and whatever they could afford. Is this low-budget horror landmark still genuinely scary, or has forty years of imitation turned it into something closer to a comedy? Tune in and find out.

The 10th Annual Shat Spooktacular kicks off with a bang. People are melting. A penis is flying through the air. And somebody brought a woodwind. Commissioner John kicks off our first-ever full month of horror by taking us back to 1987 for Street Trash, the cult splatter comedy where a Brooklyn liquor store sells poisoned Tenafly Viper to the local homeless population and things go exactly as wrong as you'd expect. With a budget of roughly $100,000, this movie had no stars, no money, and no business being as memorable as it is — and yet here we are, still talking about it 39 years later. Big D and Gene break down the melt-movie subgenre, the infamous junkyard dong toss set to Looney Tunes clown music, a homeless man shoving raw chicken down his pants, and the discovery that Martin Scorsese found Tony Darrow in this very film. Plus: Big D identifies a BB gun from his childhood, makes a case that B-movie filmmakers were in it for the fetishes, and asks the question nobody wanted answered — is an oboe enough to make a sexual assault scene feel "playful"? We also hear from the Shat Gang: Fernando calls in with the alternative ending to Born in East LA, and Chris from Chicago corrects Big D on the Buddy Revell vs. Matt Dillon debate. Dick folds immediately. Subscribe Now Android: https://www.shatpod.com/android Apple/iTunes: https://www.shatpod.com/apple Help Support the Podcast Contact Us: https://www.shatpod.com/contact Commission Movie: https://www.shatpod.com/support Support with Paypal: https://www.shatpod.com/paypal Support With Venmo: https://www.shatpod.com/venmo Shop Merchandise: https://www.shatpod.com/shop Theme Song - Die Hard by Guyz Nite: https://www.facebook.com/guyznite

This week on Shat the Movies, we're going rogue with Licence to Kill (1989), the Bond movie where 007 forgets about saving the world and makes things very personal. Timothy Dalton's Bond quits MI6 and goes after drug lord Franz Sanchez, giving us revenge, exploding tankers, questionable undercover decisions, and one seriously pissed off James Bond. Gene and Big D break down Dalton's darker take on the character and whether this stripped down Bond adventure was ahead of its time. Does Licence to Kill deserve another look, or was this just too much Bond for 1989? Tune in and find out.