Forbidden Cinema

Forbidden Cinema 73 - Interview with a Vampire - Going Deeper

We are back from our spooky New Orleans Halloween trip and ready to answer the questions that nobody thought to ask while watching Interview with a Vampire from 1994.  We look at the culture and the box office of the day to see where this fit in.  It turns out this episode is actually dropping on the 28th anniversary of this film hitting theaters, Happy Birthday!!!
Diversions and tangents abound.  Some of my favorites are Zack and his vampire contacts, trying to remember Jenny's quote "tits to the chin", Jenny's laughter breakdown about a dark joke in a movie, and Zack actually being right about something when it comes to Diagnosis Murder.

Forbidden Cinema 72 - Fright Night (Bonus)

Welcome to our spooky season wrap up.  For this week we look at the movie that is Jenny's first forbidden experience.  We wonder what our parents were up to during these times.  We spend a lot of time talking about who the intended audience was for this movie and about the time of the mid 80s where we have lived for a while now.  Welcome to the podcast Chris Sarandon and Roddy McDowell, 2 actors Zack loves but probably won't show up all that much on our forbidden lists.  This one is a lot of fun, if you haven't had the chance check it out.  Also check out Midnights and That Thing You Do.

Forbidden Cinema 71 - Interview with a Vampire

Join us in October as we prepare for Halloween.  This week we take a look at a classic that Zack remembers from being on a tape with a Batman Forever.  We take a look at the nostalgia of having 3 movies on a tape that had nothing to do with each other.  We remember rewinding and checking to see where we were on the VHS and coming upon something we were not meant to see.
The Forbidden Cinema journey is about excitement and longing and the sheer rush that comes with stumbling across something in the pre-internet world that was verbotten or above your station.
Jenny thinks back fondly to her parents buying her all the books and having them signed at book fairs having no idea what the hell they were doing.

Forbidden Cinema 70 - Angel Heart - Going Deeper

Brace yourself as the Zack and Jenny tackle the questions nobody thought to ask in the  1987 supernatural thriller Angel Heart.  
Zack crunches the numbers of movie rentals to decide if this thing made back it's budget.  We also look at the top grossing films of 1987 and wowza what a curve ball.  Coming off a year when Top Gun and Crocodile Dundee(not a typo) battled neck and neck for the top spot, this year came out of nowhere.
We find the original serialized story in the podcast's favorite nudie mag, and you will never guess who is on the cover this month.  Hint, she is the best at everything.  We also have for 2 episodes in a row, no topless ladies who have come to horrible ends.  Things are looking up.
We check out the local newspaper in western PA to see what was going on in the world, and it doesn't seem like much has changed from 84 or 86.  We also get the results of a celebrity kiss print auction and Zack nerds out about Planet Hollywood for a few.
Finally we look into what it would take to put on one of the Judgement House "Christian Haunted House" from our old youth group trips.  It is more that we are willing to spend for a gag, but surprisingly affordable if you are in to that.

Forbidden Cinema 69 - Angel Heart

"Sixty Nine, Dudes!"
Can you believe we have made it this many episodes.  This week we start Spooky Season 2022 off with a bang with the 1987 flick, Angel Heart.  This movie stars Mickey Rourke and features a fresh off The Cosby Show Lisa Bonet.  Also Robert Deniro is in this for only a small role, but steals the entire movie.
This thing has it all.  There are gruesome killings, steamy sex, trippy religious hallucinations, spooky nuns, voodoo, New Orleans, Harlem in the 50s, so much smoking, black magic, and more.  On top of that it is a really well crafted thriller that has obviously influenced other films we love.  This was rated X in a time before NC-17 and earned it.
There are twists and turns all over this flick, so if you ever plan on watching it, hold off on the podcast until you finish it.

Forbidden Cinema 68 - 9 1/2 Weeks - Going Deeper

Welcome back to the fold.  
Soooooo... Zack bought a first edition of the book and has read it since the last episode.  We go into the differences and look at the making of the film.  Did you know "You Can Leave Your Hat On" was not a stripping song before this movie.  News to us.
As always we look at news media of the time.  Did you know Joan Rivers was a late night host?  This is wild.  We also do our weekly deep dive into a Playboy magazine of the era.  We manage to get through an entire issue without having a topless lady who is dead!  Football players, not looking great.
Also, Adnan is going home.  Let's figure out who killed that poor girl.

Forbidden Cinema 67 - Nine 1/2 Weeks

Whoah, buckle in folks, this one is going to be a doozy.  This week we tackle the 1986 erotic drama, 9 1/2 Weeks.  Content warning, this one has some coercive control and consent evocative of almost 40 years ago.
That being said, welcome to the podcast to Mickey Rourke and Kim Basinger.  There is some icky and sticky stuff happening, but these two heat up the screen with sex appeal and chemistry.  And have we mentioned the costuming and the soundtrack, yes please.  Oh yeah, Christine Baranski is in this credited in the top 5 and doesn't even speak.
Come back with us to the waning days of Wall Street, American Psycho, and Reaganomics.  Hang out for a little while in the New York that was still in it's sleazy heyday.  This one is long, and we come out with more questions than answers.

Forbidden Cinema 66- Body Heat - Going Deeper

Join us and Zack answers the questions nobody thought to ask about 1981's steamy thriller, Body Heat.  We try to figure out who this JA Preston guy is and should we know him.  Tangentially from there we figure out that Kim Zimmer "Mary Ann Simpson" has been in almost 2500 episodes of TV entertainment.  We hit the career of Ted Danson and the unusual slow burn that was Cheers.
We take a trip down Forbidden Cinema True Crime Lane discussing the history of forensics and whether it would matter how much DNA was left behind in the film.  We also look at Florida's laws on sex.  As per usual, when we look at laws, things are way too recent for our liking.
We discuss the wild release schedule of 1981 where there were huge, important, blockbusters coming out every week.
Guys, there is another safe in this one.  We dig into the Observer Reporter newspaper from western Pennsylvania.  This time it is in a sunken luxury liner.  Spoiler alert, it is full of pointless crap like all the others.  Also in Forbidden Print Corner we look at the September 1980 issue of Playboy that Ted Danson was reading in the film.  There is some fun stuff, some weird stuff, some stuff that maybe could be sexy, but the first article that jumps off the page is about the promising future of model/actress Dorothy Stratten.  Unfortunately we get back to Forbidden True Crime Lane again.

Forbidden Cinema 65 - Body Heat

Go watch this movie.  Spoiler Alert.  You want to watch this before listening.  There aren't many movies we have done on this podcast that we recommend more than this.
Come back to 1981 with Zack and Jenny as we watch the origin of the Erotic Thriller and the Neo Noir genre all in one.  Kathleen Turner and William Hurt steam the place up and things get murdery.  Oh, did we mention Ted Danson is turning in an Oscar caliber supporting performance.  And heads up, this thing is written and directed by the guy that did Raiders of the Lost Arc and Empire Strikes Back.  Are you freaking kidding me, this thing is the definition of steamy, seductive, forbidden film and it is actually great.
Join us as we dive deep into this classic of the genre.

Forbidden Cinema 64 - Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom - Going Deeper

Join your hosts as we go deeper on the questions nobody wanted answered on Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.  Zack reaches his hand into the dark, insect ridden hole of the internet, pulls the lever, and figures out what opens up.
This week we try to figure out what the world was like in the 80 days between this movie and the first PG-13 movie ever to be released.  We find out that the Iran-Contra affair is just starting.  Zack realizes that he finds Joan Collins, Julie Andrews, and the wife from Raging Bull far hotter than this years college coeds.  We realize that Revenge of the Nerds came out the day after Zack turned 4.
We look at missing lovers after prom.  We dig deep on "sensuous avocados" as the new food for brunch.  We learn why Calvin Klein can't stand wearing clothes with his name on them and find the origins of the Witches of Eastwick.  We talk about Howard Hughes being married at sea and discuss the cars of the future.
As we go on, Zack discovers that 1 actor has played 4 roles in the 3 Indiana Jones movies (that's right, 3, crystal skull doesn't count) and it blows both of our flipping minds.  Look up, and share the wonders we've seen.