What happens when a midnight movie show isn’t all that midnight?
The Gist
Periodically released, Midnight Movie Cowboys has been around for a little over two years now. While the name of the podcast may contain the word midnight, the aim of the show is simply to cover the world of film as the hosts see fit. The episodes I listened to varied in length from a little over an hour to a shade over two hours long. The hosts are Hunter Duesing and Stuart Baulk.
Episodes Listened To
#Unknown: The Eh-Vengers Review
#13: Fury Of The Little Dragon
#Unknown: The Dark Knight Rises
My Thoughts
I didn’t come away with a whole lot positive to say about Midnight Movie Cowboys. That’s not to say that I came away with nothing but negative thoughts, but I simply ended up not aligning with the hosts all that well. I found myself disagreeing with what the hosts had to say more often than not. I don’t need to agree with other people about movies, but I do need some sort of area of understanding. I need to understand where someone is coming from, and that was never the case with Misters Baulk or Duesing. They didn’t lack knowledge about the world of film, but our tastes were so far askew that I found myself tuning them out quite often. For a podcast the audience tuning out your words are a red flag, but that’s the way I came down on Midnight Movie Cowboys most of the time.
There were a couple of areas where I did come away feeling very negative towards Midnight Movie Cowboys. First and foremost was the rant by Mr. Baulk towards an usher during The Dark Knight Strikes Back episode. Mr. Baulk admitted that he snuck into a movie (not an act I have a problem with mind you) and when asked to leave by an usher doing her job described the usher as a “stupid bitch twat.” I can’t go along with that sort of response, and I found it abrasive in a way that made me want to stop listening to the podcast right away. Everyone knows the rules of sneaking into a movie, if you get caught you get caught, calling the person who catches you any sort of expletive is just uncalled for.
Then there was the issue of the hosts fanboys rant during The Eh-Vengers Review episode contrasted with their thoughts at the end of the last episode I listened to. Mr. Baulk especially unleashed a lot of vitriol towards so called fanboys during their review of The Avengers. People can like or dislike The Avengers as they please. However, calling out people as fanboys drops you down to the same level as the people you are calling out. Mainly it was the language that Mr. Baulk uses to talk about certain sections of fans in the two episodes I’m highlighting. Calling people fucking idiots, and much worse, only serves to turn me off of what you have to say. Yes, the people who called for a female critics head after a negative review of The Avengers for no other reason than her being a female are in the wrong. But, when you sink to their level my response is to shrug at your review and not bother paying attention to anything else you have to say.
I can ignore the ignorant comments made about Mixed Martial Arts by a couple of guest hosts in the Fury Of The Little Dragon episode. I can deal with the tastes of the hosts and my own not matching up. I may not have come away from Midnight Movie Cowboys with a lot of negative things to say were those my only issues with the podcast. But, as I wrote this review and thought further about the attitude of Mr. Baulk I was left unimpressed. My verdict is to unsubscribe from Midnight Movie Cowboys, save yourself the aimless name calling and unneeded vitriol, it’s not worth taking in.
The Bottom Line
Unsubscribe
Cheers,
Bill
Bill,
Thanks for taking the time to listen to the show, I’m sorry you didn’t enjoy it, but I appreciate you giving it some ink, even if you aren’t recommending it.
I understand that Stu’s shoot-from-the-hip style isn’t to everyone’s taste, but I do wish you would have elaborated on why you felt our guests on our Bruce Lee show, Louis Fowler and John Grace of the DAMAGED Viewing podcast, were “ignorant,” as I’m a bit puzzled.
Anyway, cheers to you
-Hunter Duesing
PS: or rather, why Louis and John’s comments were “ignorant.” Important to distinguish that, since you said their comments were that, and not they themselves.
As far as Stuart goes, I think there’s “shooting from the hip” and there’s being a dick. I didn’t find what he was doing to be shooting from the hip, but rather conducting himself in such a way that it makes him sound like the kid in the crowd who wants everyone to stop what they’re doing and look at him. Maybe that’s not what he’s like in real life, or even most of the time on the podcast. But, that’s how he conducted himself in the episodes I listened to and that’s how his attitude came across to me.
In the case of the ignorant comments from Louis and John that was in regards to their comments about the skill shown in MMA. They compared MMA fighters to the equivalent of two fat rednecks fighting it out in a bar. I’m fine with people not liking MMA, I understand that it isn’t for everyone. But, it is a highly skilled sport, the most skilled combat sport there is. There’s a reason why the majority of men/women who compete in MMA come from backgrounds in wrestling, jiu-jitsu, judo, and muay Thai. Those are martial arts that require copious amounts of skill to be proficient in. The comments from Louis and John completely ignored all of that, and that’s why I found their comments to be ignorant.
Louis and John have done several podcasts on their show where they talk knowledgeably about MMA, as John is a practicing martial artist himself (they plug podcasts like MMA Radio etc on DV). He knows what he’s talking about, and they’ve praised MMA in the past, it’s the MMA fan base they usually make fun of. I think you may have misunderstood whatever the context was of what they were saying, or maybe they were just making a joke.
I find your impressions of Stuart to be off base, but you’re entitled to them (can’t really blame you, since one of the shows you listened to was admittedly one of our most negative). He’s a love him or hate him kinda guy, which is why I like working with him.
Cheers,
-Hunter
On the MMA front maybe I did take what they said out of context, and if I did I apologize.
As far as Stuart goes, we’ll have to agree to disagree. Calling someone who asks you to leave a film that you snuck into a “stupid bitch twat” is inexcusable as far as I’m concerned, and when coupled with some of his other remarks told me what I needed to know about him.