The Silver Linings Playlist

Latest Episodes:

Episode 207: Akira Jul 21, 2025

Show notes

So many movies and television shows owe a lot of their success to Akira. Stranger Things, The Matrix, Batman: The Animated Series – they all drew inspiration from this classic anime about a dystopian Japanese city riddled with violence, misery, and some of the coolest hand drawn visuals you’ll ever see. Is it the greatest anime feature of all time? Put on your coolest jacket and perform the sickest motorcycle slide ever while you listen to us discuss it, as well as the awesome N64 game Extreme-G 2, JT and Nathan’s Johnny Yong Bosch story, and of course the dramatic cancellation (and possible comeback) of Tiny Chef.

Akira stars Mitsuo Iwata, Nozomu Sasaki, Mami Koyama, Taro Ishida, Tesshō Genda, Mizuho Suzuki, Tatsuhiko Nakamura, Fukue Itō, and Kazuhiro Shindō. Directed by Katsuhiro Ôtomo.

If you enjoy what we do please subscribe to our show and leave us a rating & some feedback as well! You can also check out our website, join the free Discord, sign up for more on our Patreon, or grab some merch.

Brought to you by HOLY Propaganda.

Episode 206: The First Omen (with Coby Evans) Jul 14, 2025

Show notes

We don’t often cover movies in the nunsploitation department, but Arkasha Stevenson’s prequel The First Omen is something special. It’s tough when you’re tasked with making a prelude to a true classic horror flick, but this film nails everything that made that original great while simultaneously crafting its own vision. In a post-overturning Roe v. Wade world, this movie has a lot to say about women’s agency and religion’s intrusion into the right to choose. Oh, and it's also truly horrific. So strap in (literally) to this wild nightmare as we discuss the movie, plus turning the Alamo into a Buc-ee's, the deranged ending of 28 Years Later (spoiler-free), and of course the undeniable similarities to Immaculate with returning Catholic expert Coby Evans. Roll tide!

The First Omen stars Nell Tiger Free, Ralph Ineson, Sônia Braga, Tawfeek Barhom, María Caballero, Charles Dance, Bill Nighy, Nicole Sorace, and Ishtar Currie Wilson. Directed by Arkasha Stevenson.

Brought to you by HOLY Propaganda.

Episode 205: Saw V Jul 07, 2025

Show notes

Saw V is not a good movie. In fact, some would argue it barely qualifies as one since it spends most of its 95-minute runtime showing the audience scenes from the previous four films and flashbacks that don’t amount to much. Couple that with one of the most milquetoast villains of all time in Hoffman and you’ve got yourself a pretty bland Saw entry. Good luck making sense of the timeline if you’re a casual fan as well because this film makes no attempts at creating an entry point for newcomers to this series. So strap in for this emotionally bleak and visually dark movie as we’re discussing the movie, plus the Saw traps we least would like to find ourselves in, how cell phones work, and the Saw vs. Trap crossover we need ASAP.

Saw V stars Tobin Bell, Costas Mandylor, Scott Patterson, Betsy Russell, Mark Rolston, Julie Benz, Carlo Rota, and Meagan Good. Directed by David Hackl.

Brought to you by HOLY Propaganda.

Episode 204: Slumber Party Massacre II Jun 30, 2025

Show notes

If you haven’t seen the first Slumber Party Massacre, don’t worry – there is no need to watch it if you want to enjoy our episode on Slumber Party Massacre II. This bizarre little movie from 1987 is barely a feature film, and that’s not just because it’s only 77 minutes long with credits. And yet there is so much to discuss in that short runtime. How good could a horror-comedy starring the heir to the Little Caesar’s empire playing a rockabilly serial killer with a guitar-drill as a murder weapon be? (Yes, you read all of that correctly.) Well, grab a bottle of champagne & some loose Oreos, and we’ll let you know. Plus, we’ll discuss Matt’s Giallo room, Atanas Ilitch’s brief music career, and of course that damn blow-up doll. If you’re gonna go all the way with one of our episodes, make it this one.

Listen to Atanas’s song “Let’s Live Together” in full here.

Slumber Party Massacre II stars Crystal Bernard, Kimberly McArthur, Juliette Cummins, Patrick Lowe, Heidi Kozak, Joel Hoffman, Scott Westmoreland, Jennifer Rhodes, Cindy Eilbacher, Michael Delano, Hamilton Mitchell, and Atanas Ilitch. Directed by Deborah Brock.

Brought to you by HOLY Propaganda.

Episode 203: Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning: Part One Jun 23, 2025

Show notes

Ethan, listen: switching gears entirely from last week’s episode, we’re diving into a film series and a movie star we somehow haven’t talked about yet in our show’s history. Tom Cruise took an IP that was somewhat forgotten, dusted it off, and turned it into a multibillion-dollar franchise. But Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning: Part One is the first time a movie in this series ends on a cliffhanger. Can Ethan Hunt get to the Sevastopol before Gabriel? What will he do with the Entity’s source code? Will Shea Whigham actually get to successfully pull a mask off someone? Disconnect yourself from the Internet (except your podcasting app) and listen to us discuss the film, as well as the gross neglect of AI regulation in our real world, who did the Spanish Steps sequence better (this or Fast X), and of course Ilsa’s iconic yellow dress from Rogue Nation.

Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning: Part One stars Tom Cruise, Hayley Atwell, Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg, Rebecca Ferguson, Vanessa Kirby, Henry Czerny, Esai Morales, Pom Klementieff, Cary Elwes, and Shea Whigham. Directed by Christopher McQuarrie.

Brought to you by HOLY Propaganda.

Episode 202: Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me Jun 16, 2025

Show notes

This week on TSLP, we’re discussing an incredibly divisive film from a director we haven’t dared to discuss until now. David Lynch was a mythical force amongst cinephiles and filmmakers alike, and while his work was often times impenetrable, Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me left some fans and newcomers seething. Without context, could one even thread a cohesive narrative together from this film? Listen to our episode as three separate viewpoints (a Twin Peaks veteran, a newcomer that binged it all in a month, and a clueless viewer who only watched this movie and nothing else related to the series) try to piece it altogether with a little extra help from The Missing Pieces and The Return. We’ll discuss it all from David Bowie’s southern fried accent to (possibly) explaining what that whole Formica table thing is all about - and everything in between.

If you haven’t watched any of Twin Peaks before but still want to enjoy parts of this episode, you can safely listen to the first 30 minutes virtually spoiler-free.

Warning: this episode covers the topics of sexual assault and other acts of domestic abuse. If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual assault or abuse, the National Sexual Assault Hotline is 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).

Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me stars Sheryl Lee, Moira Kelly, David Bowie, Chris Isaak, Harry Dean Stanton, Ray Wise, and Kyle MacLachlan. Directed by David Lynch.

Brought to you by HOLY Propaganda.

Episode 201: Godzilla (1998) (with Michael Moss) Jun 09, 2025

Show notes

We’re back from our little break, and we’re back discussing the King of the Monsters. This version, however…not much of a king. Way back in 1998, Toho handed the keys to the kingdom over to TriStar Pictures to see what America could do with their everlasting, incredibly malleable kaiju, and what we got was a less than stellar representation. Godzilla is worse than you remember, and it’s a damn shame. Hear what we have to say about it as we discuss the film, as well as conversations on Audrey’s many, many capital offenses, Zilla’s disdain for all forms of transportation, and so much more with noted Godzilla fan Michael Moss.

Godzilla (1998)stars Harry Shearer, Kevin Dunn, Vicki Lewis, Matthew Broderick, Arabella Field, Jean Reno, Doug Savant, Michael Lerner, Malcolm Danare, and Maria Pitillo. Directed by Roland Emmerich.

Brought to you by HOLY Propaganda.

The Secret of the Duuudes! - Episode 1: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990) Review Apr 21, 2025

Show notes

While we're away on a brief break for Nathan's wedding, we thought we'd bless all of you non-Patreon members with a gift. Here's the first episode we released in our bonus mini-series The Secret of the Duuudes, where every episode we're discussing a new property in the TMNT pantheon. If you like what you hear, sign up for the Patreon today. It's only $1 a month after a 7-day free trial, and you'll gain access to all the episodes of our other mini-series Showguys all about the Showgirls Cinematic Universe, tournament brackets, behind the scenes bonuses, episodes released early, and yes, more Turtles talk.

In the premiere episode of our new mini-series, we’re starting with the film that set this whole thing in motion. It’s easy to forget how massive 1990’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was at the time, so sit back, grab a slice of pizza and a nice cold Pepsi, and let us remind you as we discuss our relationship with the turtles, the history of how the film came to be, and so much more. Cowabunga!

Brought to you by HOLY Propaganda.

Episode 200: Back to the Future Part II Apr 07, 2025

Show notes

Holy crap, we did it – we made it to 200 episodes! And it only took us 9 years. Anyway, to celebrate, we’re keeping that 2 theme going with the classic Back to the Future Part II. Did the actual 2015 live up to the idea of the future portrayed in the movie? Not even close, but what a fun time this one is. So grab your hoverboard & self-lacing sneakers and hop in the DeLorean with us as we travel to the future (and then back to the present, then the past again, then potentially the Old West?) to talk about the film. Discussions on navigating movies you didn’t own on VHS that were big in the zeitgeist, the inherent problem with Marty’s Achilles’ heel of being called “chicken”, and how Rick and Morty fans may have ruined Back to the Future fandom forever await you in this jam-packed episode. Plus, little Baby Theo the Bunny stops by for a quick visit.

Thank you so much for your continued support as we celebrate 200 episodes.

Back to the Future Part II stars Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson, and Thomas F. Wilson. Directed by Robert Zemeckis.

Brought to you by HOLY Propaganda.

Episode 199: Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore (with Jennie Lee) Mar 31, 2025

Show notes

We’re back in the Wizarding World yet again talking about a truly dreadful one this time. What good is a universe of wizards and fantastic beasts if everything is drained of color and everyone is miserable? If you were planning to escape the real world for two hours while watching Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, you’ll be sadly disappointed to find there’s a lot of events and quotes spoken verbatim from our real life in this movie than you’d expect. So grab your cool stick and put that blood troth around your neck as we’re going back to Hogwarts (briefly) to discuss the movie with returning guest Jennie Lee, as well as how Newt has become a neutered version of Ash Ketchum, Jennie’s insane “hear me out”, and our own potential coup with our 200th episode poll of which we’ll detail the results. You don’t want to miss this one!

Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore stars Eddie Redmayne, Jude Law, Mads Mikkelsen, Ezra Miller, Dan Fogler, Alison Sudol, Callum Turner, Jessica Williams, and Katherine Waterston. Directed by David Yates.

Brought to you by HOLY Propaganda.

Our TOPPODCAST Picks

Follow Us

Stay Connected

The Silver Linings Playlist

Related Podcasts

Links

Stay Connected