April 8, 2016

EP. 117 — BONUS! Talking Comedy, Sex and Sci-Fi at SXSW

On this special BONUS episode of The Cracked Podcast, we’ve got no mind-blowing views on social anthropology or insane fan-theories about how many Martys died for ‘Back to the Future’ to make sense. Instead of dissecting the movies this week, we thought we should go straight to the source and talk to directors themselves about how their films are inspired and made. Recorded in Austin, Jack O’Brien sits down with three filmmakers for intimate conversations about their respective SXSW premiere films. First, Jack musters up the courage to talk to one of his favorite directors, Jeff Nichols, about the Southern and Speilbergian influences in his new sci-fi film ‘Midnight Special’. Jack is then joined by writer/director/actor Linas Phillips for a wide-ranging conversation about his film ‘Rainbow Time’, and how it truthfully depicts the mentally challenged, family, and sex. Finally, Jack, along with Cracked’s Soren Bowie and Daniel O’Brien, sit down for a hilarious conversation with comedian/writer Henry Phillips about his movie ‘And Punching the Clown’ and how it farcically weaves together elements of his stand-up, his music and his real life. Buy tickets to our next live episode taping this Saturday, April 9th at 7pm at the UCB Sunset Theatre in Los Angeles: https://goo.gl/VeEDmF

Recent Episodes

January 26, 2020

Freedom sucks…and that is why we have to defend it. Because our democracy involves doing a lot of stuff that takes energy, takes time, and lacks that Michael Bay Quality that only a surprise missile launch can provide. So on this episode of The Cracked Podcast, Alex Schmidt and special guest Jason Pargin (who writes for Cracked as David Wong) are exploring the ways being afraid of everything (an easy action) can stop us from being free. Discover the decades-long tradition of some Americans wanting to give up everything in exchange for not needing to think, the centuries-long tradition of people inciting fake panics, and the reasonable ways you can help change things for the better.

Footnotes: https://www.cracked.com/podcast/why-fear-based-democracies-arenE28099t-free-with-jason-pargin/

January 19, 2020

How’s your local shopping mall doing? Have you checked on it lately? Swing by sometime, because its department store might’ve turned into a call center or a hospital or a go-kart track. On this episode of The Cracked Podcast, Alex Schmidt is joined by the one and only Kai Ryssdal (Marketplace, Make Me Smart) for a look at surprising, strange, and shocking stories from all over the U.S. economy. Discover an international pig flu, a 26-word statement that built the modern Internet, and more amazing ways cash is ruling everything around you. By the way, if you’re an American listener, you spent the past few years funding an astonishingly huge bailout. Surprise! Listen for details!

Footnotes: https://www.cracked.com/podcast/5-parts-u.s.-economy-that-are-stranger-than-you-think

January 12, 2020

Movies, TV, gaming: three things that are theoretically a waste of time. Oh sure, they deliver value in the art sense, and comfort in the goofing-off sense. But what if they’re more valuable than that? What if consuming shows and playing video games (accidentally) turns people into real-life heroes? On this episode of The Cracked Podcast, Alex Schmidt is joined by comedians/writers Caitlin Gill and Alex Watt for a look at the surprising number of times that exact thing happened. They’ll explore stories of regular people who saved a life thanks to skills gained randomly from cartoons, sitcoms, ‘World Of Warcraft’, and more silly entertainment.

Footnotes: https://www.cracked.com/podcast/9-times-pop-culture-accidentally-taught-people-to-save-lives/