The Movies That Made Me

The Cycle writer/director Jordan Downey breaks down his 10 favorite practical effects movie/television monsters (and their makers) with hosts Josh Olson and Joe Dante.

Show Notes:

Movies Referenced In This Episode

The Cycle (2026)

The Sixth Sense (1999)

Nekromantik (1988)

Pig (2021)

Critters (1986)

Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990)

Killer Klowns From Outer Space (1988)

Critters 2 (1988)

Robocop (1987)

Elf (2003)

Alien Xmas (2020)

The Fly (1986)

The Fly 2 (1989)

*Tremors (1990) - 17:28

Alien (1979)

Aliens (1986)

Looney Tunes: Back in Action (2003)

The Blob (1958)

Ghoulies (1984)

The Monster Squad (1987)

Frankenstein

The Creature From the Black Lagoon (1954)

The Wolfman (1941)

The Thing (1982)

E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982)

Piranha (1978)

The Howling (1981)

Infested (2002)

Citizen Kane (1941)

From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)

Tales from the Crypt: Demon Knight (1995)

Willow (1988)

Puppet Master (1989)

Puppet Master II (1990)

Puppet Master III: Toulon's Revenge (1991)

Puppet Master 4 (1993)

Puppet Master 5 (1994)

Curse of the Puppet Master (1998)

Retro Puppet Master (1999)

Puppet Master: The Legacy (2003)

Puppet Master vs Demonic Toys (2004)

Other Notable Items

Our revamped Patreon!

The Hollywood Food Coalition

Bruce Willis

Midnight Mass miniseries (2021?)

Mike Flanagan

M. Night Shyamalan

Shudder

Deborah Ann Woll

Daredevil TV series (2015-18)

The Rockford Files TV series (1974-1980)

Jeffrey Donovan

Gretchen Corbett

Nicolas Cage

Our podcast episode with Pig filmmakers Michael Sarnoski and Vanessa Block

The Chiodo Brothers

Rob Bottin

TFH Guru Rick Baker

TFH Guru Mick Garris

Bugs Bunny

Rankin Bass Animated Entertainment

Chris Walas

Jeff Goldblum

Geena Davis

Mel Brooks

The Lord of the Rings film trilogy (2001-03)

David Cronenberg

Amalgamated Dynamics, Inc

Alec Gillis

Tom Woodruff Jr.

Stan Winston

Reba McEntire

Michael Gross

Jabba the Hutt

COSI science museum in Columbus, Ohio

The Academy Museum in Los Angeles

H.R. Giger

“The Host” episode of The X-Files TV series (1994) - 24:25

Toby Lindala

Our Charles Band podcast episode

Darin Morgan

Peter Boyle

Our Fred Dekker podcast episode

Universal Monsters

Tom Noonan

TFH Guru Guillermo del Toro

Hammer Films

Bela Lugosi

Rob Bottin

John Carpenter

Dean Cundey

Veronica Cartwright

Universal Pictures

Our Robert Picardo podcast episode

Vincent J. Guastini

Tom Savini

Harvey Keitel

TFH Guru Ernest Dickerson

Our Ron Howard podcast episode

Val Kilmer

Warwick Davis

George Lucas

Siskel and Ebert TV series (1975-1999)

Gene Siskel

Roger Ebert

Phil Tippett

Puppet Master franchise

Child’s Play franchise

Gremlins franchise

Stephen King

SpectreVision Radio is a bespoke podcast network at the intersection between the arts and the uncanny, featuring a tapestry of shows exploring creativity, the esoteric, and the unknown. We’re a community for creators and fans vibrating around common curiosities, shared interests, and persistent passions.

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The great Adam McKay joins hosts Josh Olson and Joe Dante to talk about overlooked climate change movies.

Show Notes:

Movies Referenced In This Episode

Digger (2026)

The End (2024)

The Act of Killing (2012)

Don’t Look Up (2021)

Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (1978)

Apocalypse Now (1979)

Speed Racer (2008)

Vice (2018)

An Inconvenient Truth (2006)

The Day the Earth Caught Fire (1961)

No Blade of Grass (1970)

Silent Running (1971)

Soylent Green (1973)

Roger and Me (1989)

Starship Troopers (1997)

The Pawnbroker (1964)

Sleepless in Seattle (1993)

Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)

Naza (2026)

Thrash (2026)

A History of Violence (2005)

Other Notable Items

Our revamped Patreon!

The Hollywood Food Coalition

Joshua Oppenheimer

Rotten Tomatoes

The Academy Awards

Alejandro Gonzalez Innarrittu

Tom Cruise

Yellow Dot Studios

The Hollywood Reporter

Deadline

Penske Media

Sinclair Media

Joe Morgenstern

The Wall Street Journal

Newsweek

Rupert Murdoch

Rachel Carson

Barack Obama

Joe Biden

Donald Trump

Xavier Becerra

Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva

Flávio Bolsonaro

Bill Clinton

Michael Moore

NAFTA

Elizabeth Holmes

Chris Hayes

MS Now

The Wachowski Sisters

The Holocaust

Nora Ephron

Richard Nixon

James Hanson’s 1988 Senate hearing speech

George W. Bush

Dick Cheney

Jennifer Lawrence

Leonardo DiCaprio

Netflix

A24

Neon

The Mad Max series

Current Affairs

David Lynch

Gavin Newsom

Chuck Schumer

Hakeem Jeffries

Tim Kaine

Amy Klobuchar

Karen Bass

Ronald Reagan

Professor Eliot Jacobson

Climate News

Drop Site News

The Lever

The planet is ⁠⁠⁠the warmest it's been in about 120,000 years⁠⁠⁠. We have seemingly gone past the ⁠⁠⁠1.5-degree tipping point⁠⁠⁠ mark for global warming that's been advised, which could be very dangerous for all of us!

⁠

SpectreVision Radio is a bespoke podcast network at the intersection between the arts and the uncanny, featuring a tapestry of shows exploring creativity, the esoteric, and the unknown. We’re a community for creators and fans vibrating around common curiosities, shared interests, and persistent passions.

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠spectrevisionradio.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Wicker writer/directors Alex Huston Fischer and Eleanor Wilson talk hosts Joe Dante and Josh Olson through the romantic movies that made them!

Show Notes:

Movies Referenced In This Episode

Wicker (2026)

Snowy Bing Bongs Across the North Star Zone (2017)

Beauty and the Beast (1943)

The Sound of Music (1965)

West Side Story (1957)

High Society (1956)

Camelot (1967)

Edward Scissorhands (1990)

Strictly Ballroom (1992)

Romeo + Juliet (1996)

Moonstruck (1987)

Joe vs. the Volcano (1990)

Wild Mountain Thyme (2020)

Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019)

Petite Maman (2021)

Before Sunrise (1995)

Before Sunset (2004)

Before Midnight (2012)

Dazed and Confused (1993)

Slacker (1990)

Boyhood (2014)

Nouvelle Vague (2025)

Blue Moon (2025)

Pride and Prejudice (2005)

Anna Karenina (2011)

Cyrano (2021)

High Fidelity (2000)

Brief Encounter (1945)

Doctor Zhivago (1965)

Oliver Twist (1948)

Great Expectations (1946)

Lawrence of Arabia (1962)

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

Legends of the Fall (1994)

Past Lives (2023)

Love Serenade (1996)

Punch-Drunk Love (2002)

Phantom Thread (2017)

Magnolia (1999)

Boogie Nights (1997)

Hard Eight (1996)

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)

I Heart Huckabees (2004)

Other Notable Items

Our revamped Patreon!

The Hollywood Food Coalition

Weta Workshop

Alexander Skarsgård

Peter Dinklage

Richard E. Grant

James Bond

Brad Zimmerman

Justin Lothrop

Olivia Colman

"The Wicker Husband" short story by Ursula Wills (2008)

Ed Sinclair

Topic Studios

Ryan Heller

Oliver Kassman

Andrea Cornwell

Jean Cocteau

TCM Film Festival

Christopher Plummer

Ve Neil

Alan Arkin

Baz Luhrmann

Tara Morice

Bertolt Brecht

Terry Gilliam

Wong Kar-wai

Danny and the Deep Blue Sea play by John Patrick Shanley (1983)

Norman Jewison

Nicolas Cage

Cher

Emily Blunt

Richard Linklater

Geronimo

Joe Wright

Succession TV series (2018-23)

Matthew Macfadyen

Spooks TV series (2002-11)

David Lean

The Academy Museum in Los Angeles

The Aero Cinema in Santa Monica

Brad Pitt

Our Celine Song podcast

Shirley Barrett

Miranda Otto

Adam Sandler

Paul Thomas Anderson

Jon Brion

Emily Watson⁠

SpectreVision Radio is a bespoke podcast network at the intersection between the arts and the uncanny, featuring a tapestry of shows exploring creativity, the esoteric, and the unknown. We’re a community for creators and fans vibrating around common curiosities, shared interests, and persistent passions.

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠spectrevisionradio.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Spooky season is upon us, and what better way to celebrate than with the latest steward of the FRIDAY THE 13TH franchise? CRYSTAL LAKE showrunner Brad Kane is on the slab this week, and he walks hosts Josh Olson and Joe Dante through the sleazy movies that made him!

Show Notes:

Movies Referenced In This Episode

Warrior (2011)

Friday the 13th (1980)

Halloween (1978)

The Parallax View (1974)

Klute (1971)

The Spy Who Loved Me (1981)

Cannonball Run (1981)

Class of 1984 (1982)

Oliver! (1968)

Firestarter (1984)

Armed and Dangerous (1986)

Commando (1985)

Blackboard Jungle (1955)

It’s Alive (1974)

Q: The Winged Serpent (1982)

Dressed to Kill (1980)

Sisters (1972)

Psycho (1960)

Mandy (2018)

The Beast Within (1982)

The Howling (1981)

An American Werewolf in London (1981)

Total Recall (1990)

The Monster Squad (1987)

Fright Night (1985)

High Plains Drifter (1973)

Hollywood Blvd. (1976)

Demon Seed (1977)

Doctor Zhivago (1965)

The Legacy (1978)

Performance (1970)

White of the Eye (1987)

Don’t Look Now (1973)

Wild Side (1995)

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

The Terminator (1984)

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre II (1986)

Gremlins II: The New Batch (1990)

The ’Burbs (1989)

The Last Movie (1971)

Beetlejuice (1988)

The Breakfast Club (1984)

Vice Squad (1982)

Barry Lyndon (1975)

A Clockwork Orange (1971)

Beastmaster (1982)

I Eat Your Skin (1971)

The Kindred (1987)

Obsession (2026)

From Beyond (1986)

Re-Animator (1985)

Society (1989)

Song of the South (1946)

The Devil and Max Devlin (1981)

Sleepaway Camp (1983)

The Cowboys (1972)

E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982)

Xtro (1982)

The Brood (1979)

Tales from the Darkside: The Movie (1990)

10 to Midnight (1983)

Cape Fear (1962)

Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)

Kinjite: Forbidden Subjects (1989)

Other Notable Items

Our revamped Patreon!

The Hollywood Food Coalition

Brad’s new show Crystal Lake (2026- )

The Friday the 13th franchise

Our Jonathan Tropper podcast episode

Linda Cardellini

Tokyo Vice TV series (2022-24)

Lodge 49 TV series (2018-19)

Our Jim Gavin podcast episode

DTF St. Louis TV series (2026- )

Emmy Awards

Sean S. Cunningham

Victor Miller

Peacock

TIFF

Mad Men TV series (2007-15)

Our Walton Goggins episode

TFH Guru Roger Corman

Mark L. Lester

Mark Lester

Michael Patrick Kelly

Arnold Schwarzenegger

Twin Peaks TV series (1990-91, 2017)

Clint Eastwood

Doonesbury comic strip (1970- )

Perry King

Roddy McDowall

Tim Van Patten

The Sopranos TV series (1999-2007)

Michael J. Fox

Leopold and Loeb

TFH Guru Larry Cohen

John P. Ryan

Michael Moriarty

Nicolas Cage

Brian De Palma

Alfred Hitchcock

Michael Caine

Angie Dickinson

Janet Leigh

Our Keith Gordon podcast episode

Our Panos Cosmatos podcast episode

American International Pictures

Empire International Pictures

Charlie Brown

Christopher Walken

The “More Cowbell” sketch on Saturday Night Live (2000)

Ronny Cox

Paul Verhoeven

Tom Holland

Fred Dekker

The MPAA ratings board

Julie Christie

Pierce Brosnan

The Simpsons TV series (1989- )

Donald Sutherland

Nicolas Roeg

Donald Cammell

Robert Vaughn

Fritz Weaver

The Cannon Group

Tobe Hooper

Dennis Hopper

Tom Hanks

Bill Moseley

Michael Keaton

Wings Hauser

Frank Capra Jr.

Frank Capra Sr.

John Alcott

Stanley Kubrick

The Cinerama Theatre in Manhattan

The Loew’s Orpheum Theatre in Manhattan

Gary Swanson

Steve McQueen

“Herbert West—Re-Animator” short story by H.P. Lovecraft (1922)

Charles Band

Brian Uzna

Stuart Gordon

Barbara Crampton

Jeffrey Combs

The United Artists East 85th Street Theatre in Manhattan

Bruce Dern

John Wayne

The Brothers Quay

David Lynch

David Cronenberg

Douglas Sirk

Charles Bronson

J. Lee Thompson

Looney Tunes

The Aero Theatre in Santa Monica

SpectreVision Radio is a bespoke podcast network at the intersection between the arts and the uncanny, featuring a tapestry of shows exploring creativity, the esoteric, and the unknown. We’re a community for creators and fans vibrating around common curiosities, shared interests, and persistent passions.

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠spectrevisionradio.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Scott Waugh, director of the acclaimed new Alan Ritchson/Owen Wilson starrer Runner, sits down with hosts Josh Olson and Joe Dante to break down his favorite scenes from action movies! Sometimes, they are not action scenes at all...

Show Notes:

Movies Referenced In This Episode

Runner (2026)

Jack Reacher (2012)

Lethal Weapon (1987) - 43:07

Lethal Weapon II (1989)

Lethal Weapon III (1992)

Lethal Weapon IV (1998)

Act of Valor (2012)

Die Hard (1988)

Die Hard 2: Die Harder (1990)

Die Hard with a Vengeance (1995)

Live Free or Die Hard (2007)

Need for Speed (2014)

Commando (1985)

Smokey and the Bandit (1977)

Hooper (1978)

The Wrestler (2008)

The Last Movie Star (2018)

Deliverance (1973)

Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)

Expend4bles (2023)

Rocky (1976)

Hidden Strike (2023)

Step Into Liquid (2000)

First Blood (1982)

Rambo: First Blood Part II (1985)

Top Gun (1986)

Return of the Jedi (1983)

Against All Odds (1984)

The French Connection (1972)

Point Break (1991)

The Matrix (1999)

Eat My Dust (1976)

Other Notable Items

Our revamped Patreon!

The Hollywood Food Coalition

Alan Ritchson

Owen Wilson

One Shot novel by Lee Child (2005)

Paramount Pictures

Tom Cruise

Reacher TV series (2022- )

Fred Waugh

Joe Pesci

Steven Spielberg

Tobey Maguire

Miles Hubley and Tommy White

Michael Mann

Hal Needham

Burt Reynolds

Our Buddy Joe Hooker podcast episode

Stunts Unlimited

Dick Ziker

Jackie Gleason

TFH Guru Adam Rifkin

Harrison Ford

Sylvester Stallone

John Kerry

Bob Kerrey

Clint Eastwood

Jackie Chan

Bruce Lee

Mel Gibson

Alan Rickman

Rodrigo Santoro

Bruce Willis

John Rambo

Clay Cullen

Peter Cullen

Optimus Prime

Transformers

Tony Scott

Tom Cruise

Keanu Reeves

Patrick Swayze

Glenn Wilder

James Bond

TFH Guru Roger Corman

Quentin Tarantino⁠

SpectreVision Radio is a bespoke podcast network at the intersection between the arts and the uncanny, featuring a tapestry of shows exploring creativity, the esoteric, and the unknown. We’re a community for creators and fans vibrating around common curiosities, shared interests, and persistent passions.

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠spectrevisionradio.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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