Binge-Watchers Podcast

Viral Hits: The Andromeda Strain

March 10, 2020 Johnny Spoiler and The Binge-Watchers Season 17 Episode 2
Binge-Watchers Podcast
Viral Hits: The Andromeda Strain
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Show Notes Transcript

While the world spirals, let’s play the “viral hits.”  First up is The Andromeda Strain (film, 1971)

Tagline:

A satellite crashes near a small desert town, bringing with it a deadly alien virus in this science fiction thriller based on Michael Crichton's novel. After the townspeople are wiped out by the contagion, a team of scientists bands together to eliminate the virus before it spreads nationwide.

“My God, there’s bodies everywhere…”


--- Watch the movie ---

On Tonight’s Episode:

  • "Andromeda Strain is a slow burn employing a powerful split screen editing technique that was revolutionary at the time."⁠
  • Americans will break self-quarantine as soon as the hot pockets run out.
  • Dr. Ruth unusual sex appeal in a “plain Jane scenario.”
  • Intelligence is sexy
  • G rated antics back in the day can include butts and boobs?
  • Did these animals die in this movie?
  • Switching gears because of Coronavirus
  • Pandemic ratings
  • SXSW Festival gets shut down
  • We can actually book interviews
  • Fan trailers online spark interest in A Nightmare On Elm Street series
  • Netflix is not producing a new Freddy Krueger
  • Day The Earth Stood Still holds up
  • Why we are talking about virus movies 

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--- Watch the movie  ---

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spk_0:   0:02
with the Corona virus. We thought, Hey, let's play the viral hits First up is the Andromeda strain of film from 1971 hears the tagline A satellite crashes near a small desert town, bringing with it a deadly alien virus. And the science fiction thriller based on Michael Crichton's novel. After the townspeople are wiped out by the contagion, a team of scientists band together to eliminate the virus before its presentation. Wide, My God

spk_1:   0:32
crack open a cold box of wine. or pour something cold on ice because it's the binge watchers podcast.

spk_0:   1:06
it's been watchers. You got dangerous Dave and Johnny Spoiler here, all trying to spoil the movie right up front. What I could give you is we got leaking our podcast. Don't you get a free rental from Red Box? That's pretty cool. I don't think the drama the string will be available, but who knows? You get like the I'm sure Contagion has made its way back to the red box because right now everybody's just talking about virus movies because the Corona is like a what a pandemic. At this point, right

spk_2:   1:34
at the last I've seen hasn't been called that but e, I don't know.

spk_0:   1:39
I don't know you like I was working at an event and a hotel like a my day gig. You know, that's right, people. It's a Batman Bruce Wayne situation. You know, everybody's got a day job, and then they got a passion project like this podcast. Um, like the hotel next door got shut down because they're like, 20 cases of like, people that went from one conference to the next, and they brought it with him. But also what's interesting is it's very pretty fast, but I guess like, uh, I don't know, it's spreads faster than the regular flu, but it kills less than regular flu is one of the statistics that I saw, but people are taking it pretty seriously in other countries anyway. But I've seen, like a lot of people posting on Facebook that I know, like there's, ah, one of the young actors that was in a clown pilot, that big guy. What we worked on years and years ago was like, Ah, she was posted that she went through. All these different countries and airports were like locked down. Everybody had mass on appropriate gloves. Whatever taking precautions, she could say like an ex. No gloves, no special precautions, no security clearances. You know, people think

spk_2:   2:47
she's

spk_0:   2:47
America's, like not with their shit. And, like I was reading one thing about, like, a case in New Jersey or something shall into New Jersey, by the way, we got a lot of fans in New Jersey and maybe after I say this, but this guy in New Jersey or whatever, like he was, like, quarantined. And then he's like, Fuck it, I'll just go to the store and I'm like, That's the most American thing I've ever heard. You got a fucking highly contagious virus. But you're like, Hey, fuck it, I'm going to story of hot pockets. I don't give a shit. You'll never get away like my God! Wow! And then South by Southwest, which is like one of the biggest film festivals in the United States. And HBO was like the number one sponsor like assume Is HBO backed out there like Fuck it. They killed the whole festival, and blue or not, we had a big interview like they're premiering like a four K restoration of this famous BMX movie. That's like legendary that people were passing around like, you know, like bootleg VHS tapes and like, ripping copies online because it was not available. We're talking a red like we were gearing up to talk to the filmmakers and maybe like one of the cast members and the publicity people were like, Yeah, come down for a press day and I'm like, Well, we won't be there for pressing. We're not gonna be the actual festival. But, hey, if you're gonna release it like, let the venture watchers talk about it, you know, you know about this legendary movie, so we'll talk to you guys about it. I'm like, literally, like I shared the part of the email on Instagram because I was like, Yeah, I couldn't believe it Like, First of all, I don't want people to think we made up the interview. You like it is possible bleed or not like, yeah, we're a few degrees removed from Hollywood, but we're still connected to some people, and it is possible for us to book an interview. Okay. Oh, my God. Yes. I show this because we're like, Hey, in light of the offensive, it was like recently I go south myself always got canceled, so we don't know how that's gonna affect the release will get back to you. I'm like, damn! Do you like I didn't think Well, first of all, I didn't think like I would get anywhere near Corona virus And that second of all, I don't think would affect my life in any way, shape or form. I definitely think I didn't think it was gonna cancel on interview on our show, such the way I would have to plan the month over like basically everybody. If you're keeping up with the visual watches, you know that we plan these little seasons now that air, like a month long and they have themes and like, he's like, Hey, let's do you know these these crazy like extreme sports or the sports movies that air that you know, we like whatever. We're kind of kept like the skating and biker, same in that kind of thing. And we were going to like a you know, a couple movies like that way, just a thrashing. That was a pretty great episode. People digging on that one, and we're gonna move right into rat and then wanted other things like vision quest or whatever. And, uh, and then this whole spiraling out of control of like, people dealing with this Corona virus thing. And it's on. It's on everybody's radar. And it's like the only thing that anybody's talking about. We're like, Yeah, kind of debating with ourselves like, Yeah, maybe we should, like, do some shows about these movies that are cropping up. Like on the streaming service is like they loaded like outbreak, like all the majors. Like Netflix ends up prime for gin. What have you, you know? Yeah. Maybe we should just do that. And then, um, you could try your day with you want, because you you're the one who put it out like, let's go back to the Classic.

spk_2:   6:03
Well, yeah, there's, like, you know what I think disease. Air. Like these types of movies, the three comes that kind of mind where outbreak, like you mentioned contagion, the course. And then, um, the Andromeda strain, which is the original one from like seventies? Yeah, 1971. Exactly.

spk_0:   6:19
Yeah. Um, well, Michael Crichton wrote a book like in 69 and it was like, This is a TV movie, right? It wasn't like

spk_2:   6:27
you know that this this one that we watch This was a theatrical money. There was a TV remake. Oh, yeah, that's right. 2008.

spk_0:   6:38
Not pit. There was another bread think. Or Benjamin Benjamin Bratt. That's his name. Yeah, uh, I've seen that one. I remember watching that one, too, but the original is much, much better, actually.

spk_2:   6:52
Suppressing hell. I mean, it's definitely Ah, seventies pace or it's a 70. It's It's definitely a seventies movie. But I know, uh, it was definitely old school. I I appreciate it. A lot of the s split screen in the er some of those effects.

spk_0:   7:09
You gotta give it up to the editor on this movie. Well, you gotta get up to two people. Really? I think it won an Oscar for best production design. Like they pulled out all the stops on the spaces that made and also on the editing. Yeah, the split screen technique which I haven't seen in a movie before. At that time, they did some really fascinating things. Using split screen is a way to tell the story, which is a really cool editing technique for the time. Uh, I'm getting pretty excited But I'm also excited to tell you some other things. So let's take a break here real quick. Brief word about some awesome offers. Stars of the APP for TV movies and Maur. You can watch current and past seasons of stars Original Siri's Today's best movies like Spider Man, Far from Home, that streaming right now and other favorites wherever. Whatever and as much as your heart desires. It's all right here, and it's all yours just watching a computer download on a smartphone or tablet. Start the obsession. Passing present Seasons of Stars Original Siri's plus movies currently on our channels or right there at your fingertips. You could just find your passion and hit play right now if you grab the lead in our podcast. Notes. You get three months of stars for only five bucks. Three months of stars, five bucks or check this out. You could try red blocks if he only one wants. Maybe you just want one night stand boom. Try right box. Get a free one night DVD rental in the podcast notes or fall the offers under our website. And there's one more thing I want to tell you about before we get back to our discussion. Alamo Drafthouse Victory Rewards Program is a great way to get deals on Bogo movie tickets. They're available week after joining their Rebel on Select Films and and Select Markets. That's Alamo victory. It's Alamo Drafthouse is Free Rewards program. Every member enjoys at least three free movies a year, plus surprise awards. Again, we got a deal on Stars, A Deal of Red Box and if you love the Alamo, which is a Kuwaiti experience movies, they go behind the scenes that make a whole evening out of it, just like a regular theater. I've done it myself, but it was a Tarantino movie recently. It's pretty exciting. Um, grab the show notes, and you get either stars for three months. For five bucks for the red box, we'll join the Alamo Victory Awards program. If you're a big watcher, you're about to have overload. But it's gonna be great. All right, back to the show is a saying. Get the Indians. Anything is crazy. I was gonna write down the energies name I didn't get a chance to, but the idea that using small frames or like cutting the film so it looked like split screen. I don't know what technique they used back then because back then they're doing like what? They're they're still doing, like, really, really still like or splicing film, right? We're talking about early seventies, so they're splicing film in the right.

spk_2:   9:51
Yeah, man, that's

spk_0:   9:54
ahead by hand technique, folks, which is pretty insane. The last time I saw that wasn't that a documentary about the film maker? And, um, what's his name? Where is where is he from? American movie? Where is the Mark Bouchard from?

spk_2:   10:05
Like Minnesota,

spk_0:   10:07
Someone in the Midwest and like he was doing like he was cutting frames of film and slicing them together.

spk_2:   10:17
Yeah, that's how they do back then. No, I mean, we'd still film process does have a lot of patients,

spk_0:   10:24
So this movie it's kind of a slow burn, but it's also what makes you called a thriller. But they have this like the threat with our presence is Thean Dramatise Train, which is like this, uh, biological agent comes down from a crashed satellite and you don't ever, really I mean, it's not like tangible right is microscopic, but it spread so fast that that becomes the threatened. The expediency of the threat is kind of like what? Build up the tension and kind of turns it into a thriller. But what's cool is like how the movie just gets like, right into it. You go right to the town, and it was really disturbing, really? Did the rate you would just patch like he showed you the military base and that one sergeant like, got the call over the radio and the two guys were in the van, but you didn't see them. But you just heard them, like as I slowly approached the town as they encounter somebody who's sick and then like, Then there were you goes dead and your stuff away. And so your imagination is just peek right. You're like, Yeah, my God, Look what just happened. And then, like people in the military base, they don't know what to do. And then they go to, like, a protocol book, right? They take out a book, and then they call the guy who supposedly developed asshole like emergency response procedure for biological situations. Right? And that's the first doctor that they go on, pick up with the military police, right? And, um I should have kept the doctor's name because I can't remember them. I remember Dr Ruth, who's the lady, but I'll get into that a little while while I remember who. Dr Ruthless. So who's Who's a male in the book? By the way, it's Dr Peter and not and not Dr Ruth. But anyway, So they pick up like this little special team that's been sitting on this emergency response to Is it extra terrestrial problems with just any biological things outside of like the scope of normal military? I mean, I guess the impression is it's a special response team, right?

spk_2:   12:18
Yeah,

spk_0:   12:18
because they like biohazard suits on it look like ask around. Suit's a little bit. I mean, definitely 60 style like, you know, biohazard suits. Yeah, So the the guy who's the specialist who developed this top secret program goes and gets what he thinks is like the best of the best. I guess there's one guy who studies animal organisms, and he does like autopsies. Later in the movie, there's a lady who just studies like the microbiology. There's a regular doctor who's just supposed to be good at general medicine, I guess, but he's well regarded, so they take him up, and so him and the doctor get dropped in the town. And they're like walking through the bodies, which is kind of disturbing, like that's what I loved about the movie, like right away like this being, and you could jump in any time even I'm talking about because I'm just really excited about this one.

spk_2:   13:11
But it's a very moved.

spk_0:   13:12
Yeah, just like walking through that town with all the dead bodies. Like I would say, like most of the cast in this movie, it's just playing it at body. But they're setting up this whole scenario where the whole town is that the only other movie I can think of that I've seen is that movie like Phantoms, Which is the Dean Koontz novel like Ben Fo down like in the nineties. Or the town was eaten by that monster, which is supposed to be the origin for what happened to people of Roanoke, Rhode Island, right? Yeah, yeah, but it's kind of like that. They're walking around there, has met suits and you don't hear anything until you hear a baby crying. And so they go into one of the houses and they find a baby. But they also seen people that, like word affected right away that decided to commit suicide. So that's all the other sister been partly found like a lady hanging in

spk_2:   13:56
a bathtub. Yeah.

spk_0:   13:59
So you're calm, bone like camp, so they don't just get attacked by whatever this thing is. They also, like, go crazy a little bit and then, um, feel like trying to evacuate the baby in a helicopter. And then the old man comes out with a cleaver, and you're like, Oh, shit, the doctor's gonna get it. There's no like that. He's gonna take out the doctor because the doctor is like trying to calm him down. They didn't go that way, but, like, I guess I've just seen so many movies that you just feel like Okay, this is it. He's gonna like

spk_2:   14:26
your whole

spk_0:   14:26
the doctor suit and the doctors out of this movie, But But it doesn't happen. We call him Dr Boner. I guess we could come up with nicknames. I can't remember the names. I didn't write down the names of people So there will call the guy who created the whole thing. Dr. Program There's Dr Dr Autopsy. Um, Dr Ruth And then we'll calm doctor boner because he's like, just looking for somebody. Fuck. And at one point, he's trying to have sex with a voice that announces all the announcement of the base. Will they? Okay, they have this underground bunker that they called Project Wildfire has, like, eight different levels. And there's a computer simulation I want to do on each level. And there's two keys to set off a nuclear bomb in case the base is compromised. They're gonna nuke themselves and yeah, and then proceed from there because they take the contamination to study it back to the space. The baby's still alive. So is the crazy old man. And they put it, It doesn't make any sense that they put them in the same room together.

spk_2:   15:28
I guess, uh, just because you want to basically put your infected together or you I don't know, that's but it just feels like you drive that guy crazy.

spk_0:   15:42
He's gonna just Yeah, he's gonna strangle babies what I think of like but

spk_2:   15:46
they explaining they explain why I like, you know, the like. He and the kid are the ones that are like ness of susceptible.

spk_0:   15:54
Yeah, but that's later. A plot like first. They've got to figure out what it is, how it forms, whether it's alive or not on what it's up to take a long time to figure that out. Looks like a 72 hour period of Lord. The movies, like cranking down like, four days into, like, this investigation. Nobody's sleeping. They have all these tests they're doing and it kills the animals, like, instantly the rats dying with two seconds, the monkey dies in, like, 10 seconds. That one hops he's infected in there. And then the doctors like playing out his theories like, Oh, you gotta breathe faster. It has something to do with the way you're breathing. They're like, Oh, no, I have something to do with the way you're breathing Has to do with, like with your brother Has this much outline in it, or you don't have alkaline a boat. Well, you know, like trying to, like, literally figure this out, and then, um I mean, at one point, the doctor is climbing through. This is where they have, like, a ticking time bomb, right? We've talked about this before, like how everything in the seventies was like There's a bomb in a briefcase. Yeah, I'm like So the countdown comes into this movie, and at one point the doctor's climbing a ladder, and it's really disturbing. He gets burned by lasers. They do like they do this thing where you feel like that's exactly what a human body would feel like. If it got burned by lasers, you would be disoriented and feel like radiation poisoning. You wouldn't know like your head from your tail. It burns a hole in his cheek, which is like pretty. It sounds more graphic than it is, but the way that it strikes him and bulges out of skin a little bit, you're like, Oh, shit, like you just got shot by a laser. You know, it's not. It's not really that corner, because it's not over the top like lasers in a James Bond movie during the 60 CNN. I mean, it's like very like you never see them, except for where the pinpoint of light from the camera hits. So it's like, yeah, in real life you were struck by a laser. You wouldn't know it if you would just be burned you know what I mean? So it's kind of like that. And, uh, but Dr Ruth man like, here's the thing. Files quarantine in that building. I would definitely hook up with her. This little girl. Yeah, she was cool. She was kind of like Stout built right. She's not overtly sexual, but her intelligence is sexy and she has curly hair and glasses. I'm like, Damn, she is definitely d t f. That's down to fuck people if you don't know what that means. And Dr Ruth was all about it, definitely all about it. Plus, I mean, is unusual casting to like. She's like a BBC actor from Canada. She's, ah, lot of theater. Her name is Kate Reed, but I was just thinking like, man, Yeah, the whole reason I know that because I googled her because of this movie. I was like, Oh, Kate Reed. We'll see what else you've been in.

spk_2:   18:32
Yeah, this had a pretty unrecognizable cast for the most part.

spk_0:   18:36
Yeah, well, the author, I think his name is Arthur Hill. He's also another big There's a lot of Canadians in this. This is basically a can in a movie. They're all kids like they're all candidates. Life BBC slashed London theater like they want. That's true of every casting. I mean, if you look at it like certain casting agencies cast the same collective, they have their favorite actress that go to actors Some of the faces I recognize, though from TV and film of the time. And I couldn't place how I knew who they were. But some of them I've seen another other things, you know. So, yeah, so there's that. I was present pleasantly surprised that I liked the original. I vaguely remember watching the remake on TV, not really liking it. Um, I know a little bit about the book. I've read some of Quentin's other stuff. Um, like you eaters of the dead I like, which is, I guess, like a fantasy. It's based on the bail Will Smith, and it's like it's only non

spk_2:   19:35
like science fiction. Yeah, you know, I want to point out like I don't know if you knew this going in, but like this movie, what would you do if you didn't already know? What would you guess? Movies rated authority G. Yeah. Isn't that fucked up like this? Well, this movie has butts, boobs and, like, fucking crazy shots of animals dying. And I know is I hope it was fake, Blake. I mean, dramatic to say to showed a little kid, and yet it says, Oh, well, anybody can watch it.

spk_0:   20:07
Yeah, I remember boobs. I remember, like cleavage like cleavage level things. And again, they were teasing me. Dr. Ruth was like, Come on, here we go. Uh, and it's unusual for album it. It's a very unusual attraction, but she was. She was swaggering with sex appeal. I don't know why, but she waas and I could see what they want in Production Design Award. It's almost like What's that outer space movie where it's like, uh, where the monkeys get the stone computer like

spk_2:   20:35
2000 Lord? Yeah,

spk_0:   20:37
it's like 2001 like everything is like, done so well. The colors and the building has different levels, and each level has a different thing, and they're supposed to be like self contained if there's contamination. So when you're working on a certain floor, you have to wear like a certain uniform like one hallway that's Red's your jump. Susan actually read the yellow one. You wear a yellow jumpsuit and you burn your clothes and you take a decontamination shower. Always crazy, like, you know, safety things in place. But let's say they built a lot of things like the robotic arms that could really move the cages opened up like a lot of movies. Now they have, like, really crappy, like Bluetooth headsets for people in outer space, Do you mean? Yeah, like, Oh, they went to the dollar store and picked up a headset for the restaurant. You know?

spk_2:   21:19
Well, I read somewhere that, like this set, the cost of the main set of the station was, like $300,000 0 thinking like 19 seventies dollars.

spk_0:   21:28
Yeah, it was probably like, pretty much, I would say, they that's must have been the core of the story, right? So that's probably where they focused all of their concentration like that. It is, in a way, the base, their underground facility. The laboratory is like another character in the movie, you know? So it's pretty ft. Um, the computer simulations were kind of cool to like how they set this up like this is what it looks like. This is the form of this you know, biological thing. And, uh, but it's interesting, Like the politics come out at one point, They're like, Oh, you were trying to weaponize this thing this entire time. You Yeah, that's how you got. I was sitting there thinking, like, why would they build a facility like this? Why would they let the scientists just play around all day? You know? Oh, there. We gotta let make sense, you know? And also where the safest people. It has some weird cuts, though, Like the amp up the the scariness of the situation. Like when they just cut to the jet pilot and all that green stuff is just coming out of his mouth on the sides of the mask, a light comes out of nowhere, but there's no natural. There's no natural cutting in this movie. Like, you know, it cuts to like, Oh, suddenly, this whole entire floor is contaminated because the thing must have eaten its way through all the sprockets or whatever the hell, the whole thing. All right, You know, I also go. Duke is gonna go off, you know? Yeah. Medway. And then I don't know. We've told maybe we're told maybe half the story. We didn't spoil the whole.

spk_2:   23:02
Yeah, well, you know, this was, like, also directed by, you know, like I think to time can be war wintered Robert Wise. I mean, his his two of his movies have won best picture, huh? Um, sound of music and ah, West Side story. Um, he also directed or day there stood still the original like he's Ah, yeah. So he's like a big, big ad director of his time.

spk_0:   23:31
They thirsted still on alien robot comes down and says, your fox, you know,

spk_2:   23:35
you you know, I've still yet to see that. I think I even owned a copy of it. Oh, really? Yeah,

spk_0:   23:43
Dave, Something to copy this movie, folks, I'm sure you could get it somewhere. It's actually all the majors. Prime

spk_2:   23:48
bacon, really? On booze. You're some private Google's. Yeah, you know, Googling ghouls. You got the Googles?

spk_0:   23:57
Yeah. Again, We're improvising folks because we have, like, a whole different march planned for you, But this is where we're going. We're gonna play these viral hits and see

spk_2:   24:05
where they take it. Yeah, Yeah. If we had, like, one of those, like radio style shows, we could like have, like a good, you know, emergency seven. The beginning, you know, interrupt your scheduled programming. But, uh,

spk_0:   24:21
another thing I want to bring up is like people are passing around this trailer online. It's fake. It's not a really a nightmare on Elm Street on Netflix. His big thing that's happening, like in the last hour or so, Like it's trending online. It's not. Netflix did not pick up a nightmare on Elm Street to make it a new show. So your fans are rabid and they have apparently have a lot of time on their hands. Like I got like Fan spent a lot of money on their movies. They spent a lot of money making fake versions of the movies they love. Like like there's like, What a handful. There's at least five people that have spent money to make a Batman movie, you know?

spk_2:   24:55
Way for that. You

spk_0:   24:56
think so? Yeah, the most. Before you select something I spent like $45,000 on the one where he choked the dough Joker to death. Then that also that one. Where is that? Men fighting the Predator aliens? And they I mean, there's a comic book where that happens. But I think somebody made a fan film where, like, the aliens come out of nowhere. I think, Um, one of the best fan films. Did you ever see the Predator? Many Middle Ages thing?

spk_2:   25:23
Well, where

spk_0:   25:24
at night was fighting the pressure, like in the dark ages? That was pretty cool. Who? That That might be what it was called creditor. Dark Ages. Anyway, Yeah, we're gonna rock out these viral hits for, like, the rest of the month. Probably. And if we come down with Corona virus, we'll just stay home. We promise. And Well, that's great about podcast, man. Like, if you're stuck in a self quarantine, just listen to your favorite podcasts. Like binge watchers.

spk_2:   25:50
Yeah. Yeah. What's the just movies to watch? What? You're second help during quarter team. Yeah.