Alcohollywood

Harry Connickuh everybody! In celebration of that, we check in with Little Man Tate, the 1991 kid dramedy starring (and directed by) Jodie Foster. Foster plays Dede, a working class mom in New York who struggles to raise her little man, Fred Tate, a young genius, and the pressures of celebrity and achievement coming from the early-90s obsession with kid geniuses. Connick himself also stars (well, cameos) as a charismatic college student who teaches Fred the ways of pool and awkwardly walking in on someone having sex. Despite its good intentions, the film's a bit of a slog, and most of the characters (particularly Fred) don't have the charisma to carry a feature film. Nonetheless, give it a shot and find out what you think, bolstered by our custom cocktail and rules!

This week on Alcohollywood, we check out the 1980s Danny Devito-directed comedy Throw Momma from the Train, starring DeVito as a schlubby mama’s boy who, wishing the death of his mother (Anne Ramsey, The Goonies) gets mixed up in a Strangers on a Train-like bargain with his struggling writing teacher… Continue reading The post Throw Momma from the Train (1987) appeared first on Alcohollywood.

This week on Alcohollywood, we check out the 1980s Danny Devito-directed comedy Throw Momma from the Train, starring DeVito as a schlubby mama's boy who, wishing the death of his mother (Anne Ramsey, The Goonies) gets mixed up in a Strangers on a Train-like bargain with his struggling writing teacher (Billy Crystal) to kill his mom in exchange for her lamprey-like ex-wife. The result is a surprisingly hilarious and darkly comic buddy piece, with Crystal and Devito giving career-high performances bolstered by a strong, genuinely witty script and nuggets of magical realism in the strange world of the film (one of Devito's hallmarks as a filmmaker). Throw yourself off the wagon with our custom cocktail and drinking rules!

This week on Alcohollywood, we praise Crom with our review and drinking game to 1982’s Conan the Barbarian, the John Milius flick that put Arnold Schwarzenegger on the map! This silent, episodic epic follows the eponymous barbarian (Schwarzenegger) on his quest for revenge against the warlord-turned-cult leader Thulsa Doom (James… Continue reading The post Conan the Barbarian (1982) appeared first on Alcohollywood.

This week on Alcohollywood, we praise Crom with our review and drinking game to 1982's Conan the Barbarian, the John Milius flick that put Arnold Schwarzenegger on the map! This silent, episodic epic follows the eponymous barbarian (Schwarzenegger) on his quest for revenge against the warlord-turned-cult leader Thulsa Doom (James Earl Jones), joined by his friends Valeria (Sandahl Bergman) and Subatai (Mongolian Sonny Bono). With a huge and bombastic score from Basil Pouledoris, fantastic camerawork, and an unconventional 80s feel, it's definitely worth a watch, even if the pace drags a bit. Luckily, we'll help you crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and hear the lamentation of the women with our custom cocktail and drinking rules!

This week on Alcohollywood, we’re ushering in the new Spielberg film (Lincoln) with one of his last films named after the surname of one of the main characters – Hook! This 1991 nostalgia misfire, starring Robin Williams and Dustin Hoffman, explores what happens if Peter Pan wakes up and becomes… Continue reading The post Hook (1991) appeared first on Alcohollywood.

This week on Alcohollywood, we're ushering in the new Spielberg film (Lincoln) with one of his last films named after the surname of one of the main characters - Hook! This 1991 nostalgia misfire, starring Robin Williams and Dustin Hoffman, explores what happens if Peter Pan wakes up and becomes a cynical workaholic lawyer who ignores his kids, complete with floppy '90s cellphone. When the nasty Captain Hook (Hoffman) kidnaps his kids to bait Peter to come back, Tinkerball (a distracted Julia Roberts) must drag him kicking and screaming back to Neverland and train him for the fight of his life against Hook. Does it still hold up twenty years later? Check out our review and drinking game here!

The name’s Bond….James Bond! This week, Alcohollywood is doing its first New Release with the latest James Bond film Skyfall, in which James Bond (Daniel Craig) deals with the specter (get it?) of his childhood and his empty life as a spy, all while melding the gritty Bourne-era Craig Bonds… Continue reading The post Skyfall (2012) appeared first on Alcohollywood.

The name’s Bond….James Bond! This week, Alcohollywood is doing its first New Release with the latest James Bond film Skyfall, in which James Bond (Daniel Craig) deals with the specter (get it?) of his childhood and his empty life as a spy, all while melding the gritty Bourne-era Craig Bonds with more traditional elements. Here, an attack on M (Judi Dench) brings Bond back out of the shadows, in order to track down her potential killer and a list of undercover spies that is threatened to be released by flamboyant villain Raoul Silva (Javier Bardem). Throw in a couple Bond girls, a new Q (Ben Whishaw) and Ralph Fiennes channeling a more serious John Steed from his Avengers movie, and you’ve got a great cast bolstered through strong direction from Sam Mendes, absolutely gorgeous cinematography from Roger Deakins, and a wonderful score from Thomas Newman (pinch-hitting for David Arnold) to create a fantastic Bond movie that attempts – for better or worse – to bring the character a bit more dimension, and question the validity of these kinds of movies in today’s technological world.

Remember Dorf? Those 1980s VHS tapes with Tim Conway where he plays a dwarf golf instructor by standing in a hole in the ground, with tennis shoes glued where his knees are to simulate having shorter legs? This week on Alcohollywood, we’re finally tackling one of those hit “cult bad… Continue reading The post Tiptoes (2003) appeared first on Alcohollywood.

Remember Dorf? Those 1980s VHS tapes with Tim Conway where he plays a dwarf golf instructor by standing in a hole in the ground, with tennis shoes glued where his knees are to simulate having shorter legs? This week on Alcohollywood, we’re finally tackling one of those hit “cult bad movies” you kids these days seem to like so much – Tiptoes! This time around, we get to see the “Dorf effect” be given to acclaimed actor Gary Oldman, in what the schizophrenic trailer claims is “the role of a lifetime.” I assume this means that, after you do it once, you have enough sense not to do it again. Either way, the film vacillates between (attempts at) a tender drama of midget relations and the complexities of starting a new family – personified by bored and confused thespians Matthew McConaughey and Kate Beckinsale – and a wacky comedy about just how funny those midgets are. Co-starring real dwarf actor Peter Dinklage as a greasy French Marxist and Patricia Arquette as a dumb-as-nails drifter, this film is as perplexing as it is misguided. Luckily, we’ve got our custom cocktail, some drinking rules, and frequent guest Julia, who joins us for a quiz! Take a listen:

Welcome to the second episode of Alcoholloween, as we finish up HORROR OCTORBOR!, our month of Stephen King films, with the 1982 horror anthology Creepshow! Here, dated and wacky cartoon transitions from George A. Romero (Night of the Living Dead) speed us along five tales of terror. Prepare for two… Continue reading The post ALCOHOLLOWEEN! Creepshow (1982) appeared first on Alcohollywood.

Welcome to the second episode of Alcoholloween, as we finish up HORROR OCTORBOR!, our month of Stephen King films, with the 1982 horror anthology Creepshow! Here, dated and wacky cartoon transitions from George A. Romero (Night of the Living Dead) speed us along five tales of terror. Prepare for two hours of: a vengeful father who just wants his cake; a dumb yokel (a blissfully rare acting role from King himself) finding a meteor with strange properties; a vengeful husband takes his sadistic jollies from torturing his wife and her lover; a strange Yeti in a crate helps a weak-willed husband solve the problem of his shrewish wife; and finally, a Scrooge-like germophobe deals with a pernicious bug problem. The film is full of 80s kitsch, so be prepared for that - we'll help you along the way with our custom cocktail and drinking rules!

This week on Alcohollywood, we check in to the Overlook Hotel with 1980s Stanley Kubrick film The Shining, as we continue HORROR OCTORBOR! Watch the slow but intense haunting of the Torrances, who care for the hotel by themselves, with the help of fantastic cinematography, chilling performances and a haunting… Continue reading The post HORROR OCTORBOR! The Shining (1980) appeared first on Alcohollywood.

This week on Alcohollywood, we check in to the Overlook Hotel with 1980s Stanley Kubrick film The Shining, as we continue HORROR OCTORBOR! Watch the slow but intense haunting of the Torrances, who care for the hotel by themselves, with the help of fantastic cinematography, chilling performances and a haunting sense of atmosphere that makes thus truly one of the best Stephen King adaptations to date (even if King himself doesn't think so). Along with this, we can descend into alcoholism right with Jack along with our drinking game and custom cocktail!