john carpenter's the thing

Joel and Chris have brought the brilliant Andrea Regan back to discuss the other film that Kurt Russell said every boat owner has on VHS: Overboard! And put The Thing into it.
Cult misstep? Weird classic? Problematic flop? We throw this film into the water of discussion and see if it ends up with amnesia and will look after our kids.
Joel loves Dr Norman Korman. Chris never believes fake movie photos. And Andrea analyses why this was once one of her favourite films!

Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Joel and Chris are back and it's time to talk about one of the two films that Kurt Russell said every boat owner has on VHS: Captain Ron! And put The Thing into it.
Cult classic? Weird misstep? Secret early version of Fight Club? We dive deep into the film and maybe don't come back up for air.
Joel has a new name for the Horror genre you're going to love. Chris finds the first 5 minutes of the film more personally upsetting than most of the horror we've watched.  And do you want to know how this film connects with The Simpsons, Mary Poppins and Stephen King's It? Then listen to the show!

Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Joel and Chris invite regular guests Alex and Matt to their 2023 Christmas special, and because it's Kurt Russell season they're all going to watch The Christmas Chronicles and put The Thing in there!

Joel realises Die Hard and Home Alone are the same, Chris reveals what heartwarming Christmas musical gave him nightmares, Alex has kindly done some actual research, and Matt is astonished that a famously loud and bearded actor has never played Santa onscreen.

PLUS: A special guest performs the instant classic music quiz SONG CARPENTER!








Intro/Outro Music - Enter Krampus by MASKED

Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Joel and Chris are joined by Quentin Tarantino buffs Alex and Katy to discuss how to put The Thing into Death Proof, Tarantino's grimily ironic grindhouse tribute. 
Joel pitches his UK version of Grindhouse, 'National Film Theatre'.  Chris discusses his uncertainty about the film's foot footage. Alex likes Kurt Russell's unlikeability.  And Katy reveals a secret about Stuntman Mike that many may have missed!
Also our stupidest quiz ever. And that's saying something.

Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

 Joel and Chris are joined by author Peter Regan to discuss Big Trouble in Little China! ...and put The Thing into it.

For our 25th episode we look at the third part of the Russell/Carpenter collaboration pentagon. Is this film now underrated, overrated or correctly rated? What is its connection to The Golden Child?  And do you really need to know Jack Burton's backstory?

Chris and Peter also talk about their scriptwriting, and connection to the Dad From Twilight,  and Joel talks about The Raccoons for some reason.

Check out Pete's book, The Strange Case of Robert Louis Stevenson

Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Joel and Chris are thrilled to be joined by Dan from the brilliant movie podcast Shoot the Hostage to discuss Dark Blue, an underseen, possibly underrated corrupt cop drama starring Kurt Russell.
Then they put The Thing into it. Obviously!
With a script by James Ellroy and David Ayer and directed by Ron Shelton,  will this film be LA Confidential meets Training Day, or Suicide Squad meets Hollywood Homicide?
Joel thinks Scott Speedman's character is a momo, Chris thinks Ron Shelton is a very nice man, and Dan thinks David Ayer needs some career advice.

Check out the Shoot the Hostage podcast.
https://shootthehostagepod.podbean.com/

Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Joel and Chris are joined by Matt O'Dwyer as they try to understand the ridiculous intensity of 1989's Tango & Cash! And then put The Thing into it. 
Kurt Russell and Sylvester Stallone wisecrack their way through the ultimate distillation of 1980s Buddy Cop nonsense. Parody? Sincere? Genuinely gritty cop drama? Probably not the last one.
Chris drops one of the few names he has to drop and genuinely impresses Matt. Joel has a wicky wicky wild comparison to offer. And Matt loves Brion James' bizarre cockney accent, primarily because he loves Brion James.
PLUS: An incredible quiz that somehow becomes a huge bonding experience.

Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

How has it taken Chris and Joel this long to tackle a Steven Seagal film? 
Of course, 1996's Executive Decision is really more of a Kurt Russell film, but there's plenty of Seagal talk to be had in this episode, just before they add The Thing to it in the best way possible!
Seriously, how many podcasts cover Executive Decision? Give this a listen!
Joel finds the not-so-secret connection between this film, Suicide Squad and Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho. Chris somehow confuses the movie for a different one he hasn't actually seen.  And they both find that John Leguizamo grows in their estimation. Or should that be... Pestimation?

Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Joel and Chris discuss Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One!
SPOILER WARNING as in this bonus episode before the next season we do our own stunts, and by stunts we mean talking about this surprisingly strange film. 
Want to see how it connects to spaghetti westerns, John Wick, Grant Morrison, JJ Abrams ... and The Thing? Then listen!
Joel explains why he thinks Ant-Man 3 was written by Dan Brown. Chris finally understands Ethan Hunt and he's not happy. (Chris, not Ethan). And we reveal that the entire Mission Impossible film franchise is a secret sequel to an eighties film classic and then apparently completely lose it.
PLUS: An extra Thing based quiz!

Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Joel and Chris celebrate their one-year podcast anniversary with a discussion on all they've learned from the movies of 1982!
Do we deliver an incisive definitive answer as to why The Thing flopped in that year? Maybe? Do we take a look at the 1982 films we watched and also somehow end up talking about the 2001 film Swordfish? Yes! 
Chris remembers the time he was living in a horror film, Joel gets carried away with some cinema based roleplay, and they announce the subject of their next series!

Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Joel and Chris discuss Steven Lisberger's ground-breaking sci-fi epic Tron, and then try to put the creature from John Carpenter's The Thing into it.
Cult masterpiece or weird experiment? Or both? And did they cast Dan Shor because he was easy to lift? 
Joel confesses his lamest prank ever,  Chris reveals their surprising Tron connection, and they plan 'Dogville: Tron Version'.
Please subscribe, rate, and tell a stranger on the street about this show. END OF LINE

Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Get ready for a Just The Thing like you've never heard before, as Joel and Chris discuss Wayne Wang's documentary-style indie detective film Chan is Missing, and then try to put John Carpenter's The Thing into it!
Joel and Chris get very personal about their own experiences together at university  making guerilla films! They discuss Chris' Dad's obsessive videotaping!  They accidentally insult a lot of different high profile directors! This is a good one, folks.

Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Joel and Chris are joined by film analysts Alex Jessep and Matt O'Dwyer to discuss 1982's Blade Runner and put a Thing in there!
The Thing. John Carpenter's The Thing.
Alex and Matt are two of Joel's oldest friends, so who better to discuss Blade Runner, the ultimate film about friendship? 
Chris loves Harrison Ford's goofy persona, Joel realises it's not the ultimate film about friendship, Alex thinks Gaff is the worst detective and Matt wonders if you can replicate a replicant? A replireplicant?

Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

1982 season continues as Joel and Chris put John Carpenter's The Thing into First Blood! 
It's the second part of our Stallone mini-mini-series as we look at the surprisingly low-key first Rambo film and ask the question: masculinity?
Chris is terrified by Australia, Joel does much less Stallone impressions than last time, and we start to put together our pitch for a 'The Thing' cinematic universe. Thingiverse?

Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

It's the Just The Thing 2022 Christmas Special!
Joel Jessup and Chris Regan are joined by Andrea Regan to discuss Santa Claus: The Movie, and put The Thing into it!
Andrea's such a big fan of the film that she married Chris many years ago, just so she could get on this podcast. 
Joel absolutely roasts Dudley Moore,  Chris reveals his anti-wooden toy agenda, Andrea explains how she's an elf in spirit, and we all discuss exciting revelations about Mrs Claus' real name.

Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

1982 Season continues as Joel and Chris discuss Rocky III!
They've never seen any of the other films, and they don't know anything about boxing! Can they turn their relative ignorance into a pile-driving knockout blow of insight?
Joel falls in love with the limpid eyes of the young Stallone, Chris ponders the very existence of Mr T, and they both engage in possibly their most shambolic attempt to get The Thing into a movie so far!

Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

1982 season continues as Joel and Chris are joined by author (and part-time Chris' brother) Peter Regan to discuss Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan and put The Thing into its plot, somehow!
Our first ever guest means a super-sized episode! Joel realises he can't pronounce oeuvre, Peter tries to steal Joel's vocal tic, and Chris discusses his chronic wig-blindness.

Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio
The Time After Time Episode of The People In The Dark Podcast
Peter's Book, The Strange Case of Robert Louis Stevenson

Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

In this special Halloween episode, Chris and Joel discuss 1982's Poltergeist.
Was this the film that held The Thing's hands behind its back while E.T. beat it up? 
Joel gives such a spooky opening that the audio quality drops horrifyingly! (It gets better.) Chris is most horrified by all the beer being wasted in the opening sequence. And we have a special Halloween quiz that is somehow the opposite of ASMR. RMSA?

Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Joel and Chris discuss what would happen if The Thing was in Conan and ask all the important Conan-related questions, like did right-wing politics used to be more palatable? And what exactly is a snake cult? This episode also includes a rare deep dive into the actual plot of the film so if you haven't seen Conan the Barbarian you would be well-advised to rectify this before listening.

Music - Solitude by Karl Casey
https://karlcasey.bandcamp.com/

Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio