Hit Factory

Diggstown feat. Matt Christman

We're joined by one of the hosts of Chapo Trap House, Matt Christman to discuss Michael Ritchie's highly entertaining con-man/sports movie mashup 'Diggstown'. We explore the film's distinct 70s throwback appeal, set aside personal politics to make the case for James Woods as one of the finest actors of his generation, and yearn for a time when studio movies still permitted excessive perspiratio...

Citizen Ruth

We discuss Alexander Payne's debut feature 'Citizen Ruth' an all-too-timely satire about abortion starring Laura Dern, Kurtwood Smith, & Swoosie Kurtz. We discuss the film's nuanced (if slightly dated) look at the contemporary abortion "debate", why we think the movie's message is destined to be misinterpreted by modern critics, and whether this is an example of a 'Yojimbo'. 

We ...

Happiness feat. 30 Years Later

We're joined by hosts of 30 Years Later Podcast, Ricky Camilleri and Chris Chafin, to discuss Todd Solondz's grimly funny ensemble comedy 'Happiness'. We discuss the writer/director's singular talent for handling "sticky" subject matter and characters, the film's remarkably prescient and timely themes of emmiseration and depravity in modern American existence, and why current media discourse an...

The Fisher King

For the first time in Hit Factory history, we're recording from separate locales to discuss Terry Gilliam's 1991 fantasy drama 'The Fisher King'. We discuss the bevy of brilliant performances (including an Oscar-winning turn from the great Mercedes Ruehl), Gilliam's singular ability to effortlessly navigate his film's disparate tones, and the subversive empathy the film employs in its considera...

Malice feat. Jack Wranovics

Cinephile and friend of the show Jack Wranovics (aka William Friedkin Truths) joins Aaron to discuss Harold Becker's 1993 pulp thriller, 'Malice' starring Nicole Kidman, Alec Baldwin, and Bill Pullman. The fellas discuss the film as a proving ground for the fledgling dual talents of screenwriters Scott Frank and Aaron Sorkin, the compelling sociopolitical undercurrents guiding one of the movies...

Apollo 13 feat. Dadcore Cinema Club

Masters of the Middlebrow and hosts of Dadcore Cinema Club Podcast, Brandon & Charlie, join us to discuss the Space Race drama 'Apollo 13', a technically masterful ode to the patriotism & resolve of Cold War America released as Boomers were forced to reckon with the ideological drift of the 90s - Helmed by one of our most proficient journeyman, Ron Howard.

The crew take to the LE...

Vote For Our Last Film of The Month

We're once again asking our listeners to choose the film we cover on our final episode of April! This month's theme - Early 90's Jeff Bridges. 

Voting is open through Friday 4/15 @ 5pm PST. Choose wisely!

-Hit Factory Pod

Contact feat. Aaron Thorpe

Podcaster, writer, and Twitter's Most Wanted Man™ Aaron Thorpe returns to discuss Robert Zemeckis's 1997 science fiction masterpiece 'Contact' starring Jodie Foster and Matthew McConaughey. It's a thrilling, expansive film that explores Big Questions about science and faith while maintaining a profoundly moving sense of wonder throughout.

We discuss Contact's origins as both film treate...

PREVIEW: Secs, Guys, and Videotapes #63 w/ Parents Just Don't Understand

A special advance preview of Aaron & Carlee's new limited series, Secs, Guys, and Videotapes: an exploration of Steven Soderbergh's 1998 crime thriller 'Out Of Sight'...one second at a time. On this episode, the Hit Factory hosts are joined by Chris Woodward and Kurt Schiller of the excellent Parents Just Don't Understand Podcast to explore second number 63. It's a wide-ran...

Lone Star

We discuss John Sayle's masterful, novelistic 1996 neo-western LONE STAR. It's a brilliant, ruminative film that explores race, class, justice and the question of who gets to write our collective history.

We talk the deliberate emphasis on ensemble and shared spaces within the fictional town of Frontera, TX, the film's elegiac cinematography that erases the boundaries between past and pre...

Out For Justice feat. Jeremy Herbert

Writer and filmmaker Jeremy Herbert joins us to discuss the fascinatingly flawed 1991 action thriller, 'Out For Justice' and its star Steven Seagal, a singularly minted Hollywood asshole. We examine the film's lofty ambitions to transcend the limitations of both its genre and star with weighty monologues and largely ornamental subplots and characters, explore the bizzare, brief rise of Seagal's...

Point Break feat. Eli Olsberg

Los Angeles-based comedian and podcaster Eli Olsberg joins us to ride some big waves and talk Kathryn Bigelow's 1991 action masterpiece 'Point Break', starring Patrick Swayze and Keanu Reeves. It's a film that delivers on the action genre's promise of bracing, visceral set pieces while also subverting its tropes with a uniquely sensitive focus on male intimacy. 

We discuss why the ca...

BONUS: Chuck Klosterman's 'The Nineties' feat. Alex Ross

University of Toronto PhD candidate and writer Alex Ross joins to discuss culture writer Chuck Klosterman's latest collection 'The Nineties'. The book is a confounding, myopic work that frequently reveals both the sociopolitical blind spots of its author & the greater failures of Gen X to understand the decade's ramifications. We talk through the frenzied, dizzying construction of the book ...

Hoop Dreams feat. Shawn Glinis

We're joined by Shawn Glinis, co-host of Wiseman Podcast, to discuss a defining nonfiction film of the 1990s - 'Hoop Dreams'. The film is a singular and heartbreaking portrait of urban living, the education system, race & class that also succeeds as an incredibly gripping sports movie told through the journeys of its two subjects - Arthur Agee and William Gates. Topics include the film's li...

Thank you for helping us support tenants' rights with your December 2021 patronage!

A little late, but as mentioned previously, all of our December 2021 Patreon funds went directly to the Pasadena Tenants Justice Coalition, plus $50 we matched ourselves. 

Stronger renters' rights in any city means more opportunities to combat the exploitative rental market more broadly. A victory in Pasadena will bring us one step closer to our rent control dreams everywhere. <...

Jade

Just us this week as we explore a fascinating critical and commercial dud from the great William Friedkin: 1995's erotic thriller 'Jade'. Topics include the pitch perfect performance from Linda Fiorentino, the film's brilliant "bare essentials" approach to its genres, and its thematic relationship to a classic of the 70s neo-noir canon. We also talk some recent critical misreads of onscreen ero...

DOUBLE FEATURE: Miller's Crossing & Barton Fink feat. Bill Ryan

Writer Bill Ryan returns to talk about a pair of early masterpieces from Joel & Ethan Coen - 1990's 'Miller's Crossing' and their follow up, 'Barton Fink,' released the following year. We discuss both films' stacked rosters of scene stealing performers, a rare occurence of "coolness" in the Coens' ouevre, and extol the value of trusting an artist with exemplary instincts even when you're no...

Any Given Sunday feat. Abdul Malik

Screenwriter, journalist, and co-host of The Off Court Podcast Abdul Malik joins to discuss Oliver Stone's underrated, sprawling sports epic 'Any Given Sunday'. We cover the film's first-rate ensemble cast, Stone's meticulous examination of the capitalist systems that run professional football, and why the film bears more in common with 'Lawrence of Arabia' than 'Friday Night Lights'. Then, we ...

But I'm A Cheerleader feat. Caroline Thompson

Caroline Thompson of the excellent movie podcast How Have You Not Seen joins us to discuss 'But I'm A Cheerleader' starring Natasha Lyonne & Clea DuVall. We talk the film's evolution from critically maligned coming-of-age comedy to Queer Canon Classic™, its sly anti-capitalist undertones, and the brilliant effect of comically satirizing one of the least funny places imaginable.

Fol...

The Fifth Element feat. Pacino Pod

What if you made 'Star Wars'...but they fucked? 

The wonderful hosts of Pacino Pod, Jane & Kalie, join us to discuss Luc Besson's "very French" cinematic space opera, 'The Fifth Element'. We talk the murderer's row of European talent responsible for the film's rousingly original aesthetic, the deeply troubling views of both film and filmmaker, and why the Diva Dance scene goes so...

The Piano feat. Bailey Herdé

Culture writer Bailey Herdé joins us to discuss 'The Piano', Jane Campion's brilliant period drama about yearning, desire, & passion set against the lush yet foreboding New Zealand wilderness. We chat about the film's pair of (unusual, but well-deserved) Oscar-winning central performances, its potent examination of 19th century colonialism through its male characters, and praise Campion's ...

Showgirls feat. Karinne Smith

An indefensible piece of shit. A midnight movie camp classic. An unsung masterpiece. All three at once?

New Haven-based artist Karinne Smith joins us to discuss Paul Verhoeven's chimeric commercial & critical bomb, 'Showgirls', widely considered at its time of release to be one of the worst movies ever made. We praise the fearless go-for-broke performances of the film's two leading wo...

No Escape feat. Owen Morawitz

On our first episode of the new year, Owen Morawitz returns to discuss the 1994 action-thriller 'No Escape', a film set on the maximum security island prison of Absolom in the dystopian future of 2022. We discuss a few standout performances from the top-tier cast (including a rarely seen action hero version of Ray Liotta & best in show Stuart Wilson as the villainous Marek), how the film re...

Strange Days feat. Dan Boeckner

Musician and podcaster Dan Boeckner  joins us to bid farewell to 2021 by revisiting the near-future of New Year's Eve 1999 in Kathryn Bigelow's dystopian cyberpunk noir 'Strange Days'. We discuss the underseen film's boundary-pushing visual language, its prophetic vision of an emboldened police state carrying out extrajudicial violence, and Bigelow's disappointing (but unsurprising) 21st c...

BONUS: The Matrix Resurrections feat. Aaron Thorpe

Writer and podcaster Aaron Thorpe joins us (for once) firmly in the 21st century to discuss the 'The Matrix Resurrections', the divisive latest entry in the franchise. We examine director Lana Wachowski's incisive commentary on the commodification of revolutionary ideas, her vision of a less overt- but more insidiously oppressive- system of control, and the ways in which the film challenges the...

Santa with Muscles feat. Zach Vasquez

Writer and lifelong pro wrestling fan Zach Vasquez returns to discuss the 1996 Hulk Hogan holiday dud 'Santa with Muscles', executive produced by The Wolf of Wall Street himself, Jordan Belfort. Along with the film, we discuss the fractious history of the WWE, modern challengers to the promotion's hegemonic superiority, and the life and crimes of the man behind Hulkamania, Terry Eugene Bollea.<...

BONUS: Gus Talks Domino

Voice of the voiceless Gus Lanzetta spent some extra time with us ahead of our recent 'Office Space' episode to (finally) discuss Tony Scott's 2005 film 'Domino'. We also briefly riff on McRib NFTs and a recent controversy involving a Michelin-starred Italian chef.

Follow Gus Lanzetta on Twitter.

Office Space feat. Gus Lanzetta

Writer and podcaster Gus Lanzetta returns to the show to discuss Mike Judge's seminal '90s workplace satire 'Office Space'. We examine the film's searing indictment of corporate monotony (and the limits of its critique), the exploitative fallacy of the "labor of love",  and why we are all Milton under the thumb of the capitalist order. 

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Breakdown feat. Parents Just Don't Understand

Kurt & Chris from Parents Just Don't Understand return to discuss the lean, mean and underseen 1997 thriller 'Breakdown' starring Kurt Russell, Kathleen Quinlan, and indelible character actor J.T. Walsh. We discuss the simple pleasures of discovering a great movie while watching cable TV, the film's economical mastery of multiple subgenres, and the 90s resurgence of hicksploitation cinema a...

Thank you for helping us support workers on strike!

Hello Hit Factory Patrons!

As some of you may know, at the beginning of November, we donated all of our October 2021 Patreon funds to the John Deere UAWD gofundme for John Deere workers on strike. We matched the Patreon amount with our own funds for a total of $250 donated. Thank you for making th...