118 - Halloween (2018)

You know you are through the looking glass when the latest installment of your horror franchise is written by Danny McBride. But that’s exactly where the final chapter in Haddonfield Nights takes us: HALLOWEEN (2018), yet another rewriting/erasing of Michael Myers’ rich backstory! Listen to Alex and Julio discuss what happens when a filmmaker tries too hard to imitate what made Halloween H20 so cool, wonder why is it that even a jaded, wiser Laurie Strode continues making rookie mistakes, and lament the fact that every single man in this movie is a dumbass.

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Bonus! - Halloween H20

You would think that the return of Jamie Lee Curtis to the Halloween franchise would be received with much more enthusiasm than a paltry 53% on the Tomatometer… and you’d be wrong. Audiences and critics were split, failing to rally together behind a film that boldly retconned Michael’s cosmic origin story and brought a much needed post-modern Scream vibe to the franchise 20 years after its debut. Listen to Alex and Julio discuss HALLOWEEN H20, a movie that may not have anything to do with water, but has everything to do with introducing Josh Hartnett! Plus: MIchelle Williams, LL Cool J, Adam Arkin… How could you resist???

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117 - Halloween 6: The Curse of Michael Myers

Throughout five movies, audiences demanded an explanation for Michael Myers’ behavior. In 1995, they finally got it with THE CURSE OF MICHAEL MYERS, and it was an epic whopper of a backstory. Did anyone appreciate it? Of course not! Listen to Alex and Julio as they discuss Paul Rudd’s film debut, Donald Pleasence’s film exit, and The Shape’s… baby?!?! It’s the lowest ranked Halloween movie and the most recent installment of our HADDONFIELD NIGHTS!

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Bonus! - Halloween III: Season of the Witch

How important is Michael Myers to the Halloween franchise? According to HALLOWEEN III: SEASON OF THE WITCH, not important at all - a bold stance that made it an unfairly maligned film. Listen to Alex and Julio as they take a minor Haddonfield Nights detour into the black sheep of the Halloween family, the one that replaced Dr. Loomis and Laurie Strode with younger, sexier counterparts! Share their awe at Tom Atkins’ sexual feats! And celebrate the pure insanity of the Silver Shamrock genocidal plan!

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116 - John Carpenter's Halloween (1978)

Remember earlier this year, when Julio was over the moon about the MCU and Alex struggled to care? Well, the tables have turned, as The Contrarians finally cover Alex’s favorite movie ever, John Carpenter’s original HALLOWEEN! But before they can reconcile their differences regarding this so-called classic, they have to give it the Contrarians Corner treatment: how bad is Carpenter’s version of a Sorkin “Walk & Talk”? How can Laurie spend an entire night watching horror movies, then constantly fall into horror genre tropes? And how ridiculous is it to see Michael Myers drive all around Haddonfield? It’s the second installment of our HADDONFIELD NIGHTS!

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115 - Rob Zombie's Halloween (2007)

And now, for something completely different… We leave Winona Ryder behind and jump feet first into the world of Michael Myers! First stop? Rob Zombie’s controversial reimagining of the Halloween mythos! Listen to Alex and Julio as they revisit Roberto Zombirelli’s most mainstream movie and the Halloween franchise’s most brutal and excessive entry as The Contrarians start their HADDONFIELD NIGHTS!

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SoW Finale Part Two - The Winonies

Four months of pandemic quarantine. Twelve Winona Ryder movies and a TV show. Way more introspection than we expected from this season. And before it’s truly over, we have some awards to hand out! Listen to Alex and Julio as they highlight the good, the bad, the ugly and the iconic of The Summer Of Winona in this summer’s closing ceremonies, THE WINONIES!

And stick around until the very end for a special announcement about our next arc!

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SoW Finale Part One - Stranger Things

Netflix figured it out, didn’t they? The recipe for a hit show is simply to recreate 80s tropes and mainline nostalgia to the audience. Hence, STRANGER THINGS! Listen to Alex and Julio as they take one of those rare detours into TV to explore the most recent (and insanely popular) Winona Ryder project and wonder why anyone would sink about 30 hours into three seasons when they could get the same rush from watching a two-hour long 80s movie. The Summer of Winona Finale begins with an episode that might lose us half our listeners and we are sadly aware of how on-brand that is!

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Bonus! - Heathers

If there has been one constant throughout The Summer of Winona, it’s been the terrible romantic relationships Winona’s characters tend to find themselves in. Her much lauded first major leading role is no exception, as she finds herself dating a serial killer - one that looks and sounds like Christian Slater. Listen to Alex and Julio discuss the many ways HEATHERS falls short when compared to more modern high school movies! Share their frustration at seeing pretty girls being demonized once again! Sense their disbelief when Veronica keeps falling over and over again for JD’s mindgames! And be ready for a Real Talk that might have gotten too real!

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114 - Little Women (1994)

Meg marries poor. Beth dies. Amy marries the guy who was in love with Jo. And Jo… well, she says she wants a career but really she just needs to meet the right guy. Tale as old as time! Listen to Alex and Julio discuss the 1994 version of LITTLE WOMEN, the one starring our beloved Winona Ryder and a cavalcade of future stars! Young Christian Bale! Young Claire Danes! Young Kirsten Dunst! Slightly less old Gabriel Byrne! All of them bored out of their mind because they have to sit out the Civil War!

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