Ep. 816 - Novocaine
Added 2025-03-25 16:00:14 +0000 UTCDavid, Devindra, and Jeff head to outer space with Ash, clock into the second season of Severance, and dig into the arresting power of Adolescence. Then they grit their teeth and see how much pain they can withstand with Novocaine.
We're making video versions of our reviews! Be sure to follow us on the following platforms:
Weekly Plugs
David - Decoding TV
Devindra - Engadget Podcast on Google’s Pixel 9a
Jeff - DLC 592 with Jesse Norris
Shownotes (All timestamps are approximate only)
What we've been watching (~00:25:27)
David - Ash, CHAOS: The Manson Murders, American Murder: Gabby Petito
Devindra - Severance S2
Jeff - Adolescence
Featured Review (~01:03:24)
Novocaine
SPOILERS (~01:14:52)
Support David's artistic endeavors at his Patreon and subscribe to his free newsletter Decoding Everything. Check out Jeff Cannata’s podcasts DLC and We Have Concerns. Listen to Devindra's podcast with Engadget on all things tech. You can always e-mail us at slashfilmcast(AT)gmail(DOT)com.
Credits:
Our theme song is by Tim McEwan from The Midnight. This episode was edited by Noah Ross who also created our weekly plugs and spoiler bumper music. Our Slashfilmcourt music comes from Simon Harris.
If you’d like advertise with us or sponsor us, please e-mail slashfilmcast@gmail.com.
Comments
Dave just FYI if you’re interested in learning more about the Manson murders, Karina Longworth’s You Must Remember This podcast dedicated an entire season to the story, and it is excellent and thoroughly researched, I highly recommend.
Rob
2025-03-27 23:38:07 +0000 UTCAlso, I wondered (momentarily): was the use of a battering ram and SWAT team really appropriate for this arrest? Wouldn’t they have knocked on the door and spoken with the parents first? But still: the show is magnificent.
CDMatthew
2025-03-27 21:33:12 +0000 UTCStrongly agree with you, William. I can’t think of another work of art—of any kind—that has better examined our present culture of indoctrinating boys into misogyny and violence by way of the “manosphere.” One thing the film does very deftly is to look at the VARIOUS factors that play into this: not only online toxicity, but also prison-like school systems, generational trauma, and more. The series looks at all this without being didactic or pointing blame to any one thing. I’m sensitive to Jeff’s personal situation, and if he passes on ADOLESCENCE it would be understandable. And yet: if he doesn’t see it, he’d be foregoing a cultural milestone, and an incredibly edifying dramatic work. Here’s hoping for a deeper conversation about ADOLESCENCE, with or without Jeff…and maybe a guest podcaster in Jeff’s place might be a good idea.
CDMatthew
2025-03-27 16:17:41 +0000 UTCWhat if Infinity War ended with the first 10 minutes of Endgame, and Endgame doesn’t get released for 5 years with the “5 years later” opening. No marvel movies released for 5 years.
Donald Ward
2025-03-27 04:44:10 +0000 UTCPlease someone go see The Day the Earth Blew Up. It’s really terrific and the more people are talking about Looney Tunes, the better it is for Coyote Vs Acme.
Kyle Smith
2025-03-27 04:37:05 +0000 UTCDamn I might be an old cynic but all I could think about during Ep1 of Adolescence was how the f-ck did the police put this all together in literally under 10 hours. The CCTV from private businesses that would’ve been closed, identifying the perpetrator, gathering the school reports from teachers that would’ve been asleep (this one might’ve been the worst of all), putting together a squad of tactical policeman to raid the house by 6am. Couldn’t they have made it that the murder happened the prior night at least?
Mark P
2025-03-27 03:07:25 +0000 UTCI don’t mean this to be critical of Jeff I think we all to one degree or another have been emotionally affected by fiction, but with the degree that he particularly is affected I don’t understand with the state of the world as we see a literal genocide unfolding before our very eyes as people are taken from their homes in broad daylight how he isn’t a quivering mess every waking hour
Bmac
2025-03-27 01:53:35 +0000 UTCEpisode 3 of Adolescence was my favorite. So well done.
Andrew Fast
2025-03-26 22:02:54 +0000 UTCI am listening to this now, and I am with Jeff on the icky factor. I mostly thought that this ridiculous, nonsense movie was a blast once I got into it, but it was very uncomfortable. My biggest, heartiest laugh was that, in one of the "oh, that is nasty" moments, my buddy, who is a middle-aged hyper masculine guy, absentmindedly grabbed and squeezed my leg b/c he is used to watching this kind of thing with his wife. We laughed for minutes. The other notable things is that the twist involving Midthunder should not have been dropped so early. It makes it feel like "what is the point of this entire endeavor?"
Johnathanblade
2025-03-26 17:49:15 +0000 UTCThe Bond villain in the world is not enough has the same thing too
April Reid
2025-03-26 15:57:12 +0000 UTCDave gets his jokes from old popsicle sticks. 😆
Jaxon Hampton
2025-03-26 15:32:47 +0000 UTCWhy is Jeff treating the movie like it’s not a silly action comedy… everyone in my theater was squirming and laughing , not thinking about how realistic it is . He doesn’t do this marvel movies or other over the top action movies like John wick .
Nick Esqu
2025-03-26 14:40:25 +0000 UTCI think Adolescence is one parents SHOULD watch as it touches on societal issues that are very much relevant in our lives today and haven’t really been explored this well in any TV show or Film that comes to mind.
Lahiru
2025-03-26 12:46:02 +0000 UTCAs tough as it may be, I really hope Jeff finishes Adolescence.
Garry L
2025-03-26 11:42:13 +0000 UTCSo, I'm hoping we get a longer convo about Adolescence because I just powerhoused through all 4 episodes and need to hear their thoughts. For what it's worth, I'd say Jeff should finish it. I thought the first episode was the most "shocking" of them all, by far, though the last episode will definitely make him cry.
Hahmstrung
2025-03-26 06:01:05 +0000 UTCI have never heard such an emotional confrontation. It was obviously completely unintentional, but this was pure curb your enthusiasm levels of cringe for poor Dave. In the end Jeff’s insistence on not being spoiled at all about anything largely contributed just as much as Dave to the unfortunate situation. Amazing podcast. Thanks guys.
Jeremy L
2025-03-26 05:42:50 +0000 UTCI haven't listened to the podcast yet nor have I seen the movie, but I'll just remind everyone that Sam Raimi's 1990 film Darkman had a superhero who was not invulnerable but felt no pain due to a surgical procedure, and whose superstrength came from surges of adrenaline! It was entertaining for what it was.
Daniel Shaw
2025-03-26 00:42:21 +0000 UTCNovocaine was like a live action anime and also one of those 90s pulpy genre movies. I suspended all my disbeliefs and had a lot of fun with it. Logic can go all out the window when I get to see the insane crazy things Jack Quaid puts himself through in this movie.
Albert VergeldeDios
2025-03-26 00:22:14 +0000 UTCThere’s an Indian movie that came out in 2018 called “Mard ko Dard Nahi Hota”, literally translates to “The Man Who Feels No Pain”. Could it be, improbable as it seems, the premise for Novocaine was loosely inspired from a Bollywood movie?
Minha A
2025-03-25 22:28:52 +0000 UTCAs a dad of a young boy, Adolescence completely wrecked me. I have never bawled at the end of movie, ever, I choke up, shed a tear, but at the end of episode 4 I was crying like I was given fatal news of a family member. It was also the most amazing experience and I was just so captivated and thankful for this kind of artistry. I’d recommend any parent to finish it because I think it’s important to know or be aware of certain modern experiences that can affect kids. But also don’t. Haha. Just hug and love your kid and support them and champion whatever their “thing” is.
Christopher DeLorenzo
2025-03-25 20:13:35 +0000 UTCI understand Jeff's strong reaction to Adolescence. But I'm hoping that Dave and Devindra do a deep dive into the series. This series is an astounding technical achievement and a masterpiece of acting all around. Also, the subject matter is of utmost importance to bring into the forefront. The radicalization of our young population by social media is a public safety disaster that is contributing to the collapse of society. Would love to hear more of D, D, and (if willing) J's takes on this astounding piece of work. This deserves an After Dark.
William Ching
2025-03-25 19:58:55 +0000 UTCTelling Jeff not to finish adolescence is crazy work
Maxaveli
2025-03-25 19:26:21 +0000 UTCI watched adolescence with my wife. The episode ended and she immediately said “fuck that show”. And has maintained that position since. I think that final episode really was incredible. The way they wrapped everything up was so well done. I did not expect it to have a satisfying conclusion.
Danny Champlin
2025-03-25 19:12:03 +0000 UTCCalling it: Dave's going to bend the law to his will and put Adolescence in his top 10 films of 2025.
I like drawing pigeons
2025-03-25 19:07:42 +0000 UTCI thought Dave had indicated that he had watched Adolescence in its entirety last week. Now I’m curious how much he had actually seen.
Gareth
2025-03-25 19:00:35 +0000 UTCHe could at least do episode 2 safely I think.
Chris Cameron
2025-03-25 18:38:28 +0000 UTCHaving watched all 4 episodes, I personally think Jeff could watch episode 2 of adolescence without significant devastation. But he should definitely stop there.
Chris Cameron
2025-03-25 18:37:44 +0000 UTCSo who else binged Adolescence in an extremely devastating block? Is Dave's Emotionally Devastating picks a new podcast segment where he tells us nothing about a movie/series but just recommends it and it wrecks us emotionally?
Aaron Miller
2025-03-25 18:31:39 +0000 UTCYeah maybe but the end of 4 might literally kill him based on his experience with 1 😅
Mountain of Conflict
2025-03-25 18:13:35 +0000 UTCSo cure cancer a win win for everyone
Reynaldo K. Cruz
2025-03-25 18:01:09 +0000 UTCKeep Chadwick Boseman alive. That’s what hurt the most
Reynaldo K. Cruz
2025-03-25 18:00:28 +0000 UTCThe Day the Earth Blew Up was a lot of fun! It subverts expectations in a great way - definitely worth checking out, especially if you'd want Coyote vs. Acme to see the light of day.
Mathew
2025-03-25 17:58:53 +0000 UTCMy daughter recently requested to watch the new Pixar series, Win or Lose, and I’ve actually been really impressed with this show. It’s made up of a bunch of interwoven storylines and the way it all builds together is really cool for what is ostensibly a kids’ show. Would recommend checking it out!
Austin Buccowich
2025-03-25 17:23:09 +0000 UTCJeff u gotta power thru it’s a masterpiece. Episode 3 is Jeff cannata cat nip and would be a huge mistake if u didn’t see it. Steven graham is such a beast. Boiling Point is one of my all time favorite movies for anyone who liked adolescence.
Asher Maitin
2025-03-25 17:08:19 +0000 UTCJeff, you have only watched one episode of Adolescence. That first one was tough, but it doesn't get easier and my wife and I were wrecked by the end. Not sure I would recommend. I'm still shaken.
Eric Williams
2025-03-25 16:59:50 +0000 UTCI had a lot of fun with Novocaine. There's a pretty epic nepo baby fight in it.
Stranger2Reality
2025-03-25 16:43:45 +0000 UTCGoddamn, knowing that Jeff has watched Adolescence means I have to prepare myself to cry because it's gonna be an emotional one
Jonathan NGO VAN
2025-03-25 16:05:03 +0000 UTC
