It’s all been building up to this. The Last Temptation of Christ is one of the most, if not the most, controversial films of the 1980s—and of Martin Scorsese’s career. Willem Dafoe plays Jesus, but this isn’t your grandmother’s technicolor epic Messiah. This Jesus wrestles with violence, lust, and self-doubt. Naturally, the film enraged many Christians. There were boycotts, bans, death threats against Scorsese, and even a terrorist bombing by Catholic Integralists.

Easter falls on 4/20 this year, so the guys decided to push their Last Temptation of Christ episode back a couple of weeks, to make room for two other, culturally important, long-haired, bearded dudes. ”Cheech and Chong’s Last Movie” comes out on Easter this year, which falls on April 20th, appropriately, so we decided to go back to the beginning, by reviewing 1978’s ”Up in Smoke”.

Ben Affleck plays an autistic accountant, whose neurodivergent mind allows him to be a genius with numbers, and even better with a gun. Let’s just say the guys had...takes on this movie. With The Accountant 2 coming to theatres on April 25th, it felt like the perfect time to revisit this film, and to ask ”does this film actually warrant a sequel”?

Time to go deep deep down the Italian genre cinema rabbit hole, as the guys dig into Bill’s birthday pick - a Mario Bava comic book adaptation and cult classic, which inspired everyone from Roman Coppola to the Beastie Boys. Diabolik is the world’s greatest super-spy, and one of Italy’s most famous comic book heroes. The guys talk Ennio Morricone, PVC vs. Leather bondage wear, Italian vs. English overdubs, and debate just how much Diabolik and Eva pay in property taxes on their secret lair. If you love Austin Powers, James Bond, Matt Helm, and comic book movies, you won’t want to miss this wacky birthday episode.

What made Kiss Me, Stupid (1964), a comedy starring Dean Martin and directed by Billy Wilder (Some Like It Hot), so scandalous that it became the first U.S. film since Elia Kazan’s Baby Doll (1956) to receive a ”Condemned” rating from the Legion of Decency? In 1964, both Kiss Me, Stupid and The Pawnbroker shocked the Catholic censors and the Hays Office, pushing the MPAA to rethink Hollywood’s entire ratings system.

Missed Valentine’s Day? No worries—we’re bringing you a heartshaped box of classic horror, featuring, as Kendrick Lamar would say, ”A Minerrrrrrrrrrr!” 🔪⛏️ This week, Bill and Cisco talk Damien Leone’s statements in the wake of Terrifier 3, as well as the controversy surrounding the Superbowl half-time show, in relation to censorship and pearl-clutching of the past.

What was it about Design for Living—the film by Ernst Lubitsch, Ben Hecht, and Noël Coward—that sent critics and the Catholic Legion of Decency into an uproar? This pre-Code classic tackled themes of polyamory, infidelity, and sexuality with a wit and sophistication that became known as The Lubitsch Touch. But its bold approach was too much for Catholic censors, who saw it as a moral threat.

We weren’t initially planning to cover Conclave, but since launching our podcast in late October, the film has sparked intense debate. Despite not receiving a ”Morally Offensive” rating, Conclave has faced significant criticism from Catholic Bishops and prominent right-wing figures including Ben Shapiro and Megyn Kelly, who claim the movie is anti-Catholic. On the other hand, Conclave has earned multiple Oscar nominations and won a Golden Globe for Best Screenplay, making it a major contender this awards season. To dive deeper into this heated conversation, Bill and Cisco decided to don their metaphorical Zucchettos and watch Conclave themselves to determine if it truly deserves its controversial reputation and if they find the film morally offensive or anti-Catholic. (Spoiler alert: plenty of plot twists!)

Charlize Theron’s action-packed cold war passion project, Atomic Blonde, was not well received by audiences when it dropped in late Summer of 2017. Some dismissed the film as a ”female John Wick” knockoff, or criticized it for it’s confusing, labyrinthine plot. 8 years later, the guys re-examine this singular, unique entry into the Action genre, and look at how it’s reputation has grown since it’s release.

What do MaXXXine, Pearl, Promising Young Woman, and Midsommar have in common with a 1933 pre-code melodrama starring Barbara Stanwyck? They all fall under the banner of the ”Good for Her” film. Barbara Stanwyck stars this pre-code film that sent the Catholic ”Legion of Decency” into a rage, and which gave them the firepower they needed, to force the hand of the studio moguls. Bill and Cisco are joined by Milwaukee Professor, Dr. Jess Sellin-Blanc (and Bill’s wife Kelly) to talk the Hayes Code and censorship in Hollywood. They get into the making of the film, as well as the social conditions which informed it’s content. In this episode, they ask the question: Is it immoral for a woman to do whatever she has to do, to survive in a world which is not built for her, and which wants her to fail?

To celebrate the release of Robert Eggers’ remake of Nosferatu, the guys decided to cover the original classic, in a slight deviation from the Catholic Legion of Decency ”condemned” list. The film was released in the US in 1929, seven years after it’s Berlin premiere, but it was still too early to be OFFICIALLY condemned by the American Catholic ratings system. However, being that Nosferatu is both the FIRST occult film AND one of the rare films to grace the Vatican’s top 40 films list, it only seemed appropriate to cover it this month.

It’s Christmas time in NYC, and three friends are about to embark on their very last annual Christmas rager together. Joseph Gordon Levitt is an orphan, stuck in a dead-end job with no real career prospects and no romantic partner. Seth Rogan is coming to terms with his fears over being a father, and Anthony Mackie is a pro athlete, so obsessed with fame, that he’s willing to risk his family, friendships, and integrity for his career.

"Why Are Men?" It's the question Bill and Cisco find themselves asking, after viewing 2010's comedy about time travel and friendship, Hot Tub Time Machine, starring John Cusack, Craig Robinson, and Daily Show alum Rob Corddry. The guys talk male friendship, the 2024 election, toxic masculinity, the butterfly effect, and the difficulties of maintaining solid friendships, as one enters middle-age. Diversions include the manosphere, Cardinal Burke's dislike of girl altar servers, Matt Walsh's fear of platonic love, the new E-Man-gelization, Crispin Glover's rat poetry, that one time Bill saw Echo and the Bunnymen spin Pink Floyd 45s, and why Chevy Chase doesn't work much these days. Will they find the answer to their question? Will Hot Tub Time Machine provide clues? Will Cisco fulfill his quest to find a copy of the film on Blu Ray? Only time will tell.

Cisco makes Bill watch the Exorcist, a film he has been terrified to watch since childhood. Diversions include Dungeons and Dragons, hot priests, new age music as gateway to the devil, and the problematic Conservative Catholic fears and hand-wringing over yoga.

For the pilot episode, Bill and Cisco discuss their respective Catholic upbringings, discuss censorship and the Hayes Code, and introduce the Legion of Decency and USCCB film ratings systems, before doing a deep dive into Richard Donner’s The Omen.