The very first episode of The Rad Carpet is now live!
Thom, Art, Whalen, and CJ offer a window into their respective film tastes (or lack thereof) by running down their favorite films from the first half of the 1980s year by year, relishing the madcap delights of Airplane!, celebrating the alien brilliance of John Carpenter’s The Thing, and roasting with vigor The Right Stuff, among other 80s highlights. The Rad Carpeteers also heat up some takes on the Guy Ritchie universe for an inaugural round of “In or Out”.
The Rad Carpet is, above all, a club, and we want you, the listener, to join in! Unfurl your takes in the comments section below: Were any of your early-80s favorites overlooked? Do any of the 80s touchstones celebrated on The Carpet fail to hold up for you? Are you In or Out on these Guys? Is it possible to be Out on Jason Statham?
Keep an eye out on this site and on Twitter for the second part of the Rad Carpet 1980s rundown, as well as for announcements on the upcoming Rad Carpet curriculum. Thanks for listening… stay rad!
00:00 – Intro
01:50 – In or Out
12:10 – The 1980s, Year by Year
13:45 – 1980
20:00 – 1981
25:45 – 1982
33:45 – 1983
43:35 – 1984
49:00 – Closing credits
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1980: Out of the Blue, Cannibal Holocaust
1981: The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Miss Osbourne, Cutter’s Way
1982: The Draughtsman’s Contract, Veronika Voss
1983: Sans Soleil, Videodrome
1984: Crimes of Passion, Purple Rain
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Strange Case is such a boss pick. ’81 was a tremendous year for genre film–it was heartbreaking to leave that one on the cutting room floor, to say nothing of Possession, Ms. 45, The Beyond, American Werewolf, My Bloody Valentine…
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Hey guys. First thing’s first: Love the show. Can’t wait for more!
Three more things:
1. It’s really difficult to choose a top two by year (I had to add “Sad to leave off”)
2. I was born in 1980, so I love beginning there.
3. Like Whalen, I’m big into 80s slasher flicks
Here’s my 80 – 84:
1980
First Place: The Empire Strikes Back.
Runner Up: Friday the 13th.
Sad to leave off: Airplane | Caddyshack | The Shining | Stardust Memories
1981
First Place: The Evil Dead
Runner Up: Raiders of the Lost Ark
Sad to leave off: An American Werewolf in London | The Burning | Clash of the Titans | Escape from New York
1982
First Place: The Thing
Runner Up: First Blood
Sad to leave off: Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid | Fast Times at Ridgemont High | Halloween III: Season of the Witch | Tootsie
1983
First Place: Return of the Jedi
Runner Up: A Christmas Story
Sad to leave off: The Dead Zone | Fanny and Alexander | The Man with Two Brains | Sleepaway Camp | Zelig
1984
First Place: Beverly Hills Cop
Runner Up: The Terminator
Sad to leave off: Amadeus | Dune | The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension! | Night of the Comet | Purple Rain | Top Secret
To be continued in 1985
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Awesome stuff. 1982 was such a top notch year for genre film–I could make a runner-up list as long as my arm. So stoked that you mention Clash of the Titans, a favorite of mine from way back!
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After Beverly Hill’s Cop, ’84 was so hard!
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