I Hate Critics Movie Review Podcast · Bob Zerull

RIP Catherine O'Hara

·1 hr 49 min·10 clips

Sean Patrick and Jeff start the show the way they usually do: talking movies, talking around movies, and letting the conversation settle into its own rhythm. Sean says he is not doing much on social media lately, though he does post when something important comes up. He also mentions that he has been working with friends at Movies of the 80s, doing some research and writing for them on Substack. The episode title points to the real destination. Catherine hangs over the whole conversation, and Sean and Jeff treat that title like a farewell and a compliment at the same time. The tone stays loose, but the affection is hard to miss. The middle of the episode gets argumentative in the useful way. Sean leans into the idea that a detail does not have to drive the plot to matter. He argues that if something feels tangential but ties into the movie's themes, that is good storytelling, not clutter. He uses one film discussion to make that point. Udo Kier comes up as a figure who seems incidental at first but ends up reinforcing the movie's themes. Sean connects that to identity, persecution, and the way a corrupt system keeps hurting people who have already been hurt. The conversation also touches on police corruption and the casualness of death in 1970s Chile, including the image of a body left at a gas station after a failed robbery. The show keeps its usual brisk pace. Sean corrects himself when he needs to. Jeff pushes back and keeps things moving. They move from one thought to the next like people who have done this long enough to trust the detours. The ending shifts everything into something softer. Sean talks about seeing Macaulay Culkin introduce Catherine when she got her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and he says it made him cry a little. Jeff points him toward the thread Culkin wrote about her, and the two of them let that feeling sit there without trying to joke it away. The final stretch makes the episode feel like a tribute disguised as a movie show. The title lands with more weight once the conversation gets there. What starts as regular review banter ends as a sincere salute to an actress they clearly love. They even note that they had seen four incredible movies, but Catherine is still the story they want to end on. The episode does not try to be polished. It is chatty, referential, and occasionally all over the place. That looseness is part of the appeal, because the hosts sound like people who have seen too many movies, remember too much about them, and still care enough to argue about the small stuff. The result is a mix of criticism, memory, and affection. The Catherine material gives it warmth. The theme talk gives it teeth. The Culkin anecdote gives it a clean emotional landing.

As heard by us

A loose movie-review hangout that ends on a warm Catherine O'Hara and Macaulay Culkin note.

The episode settles into an easy, talky movie review, with Sean Patrick and Jeff tossing opinions back and forth and drifting just enough to keep it lively.

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Why you'd press play

You want a movie-review episode that wraps on a Catherine O'Hara sendoff.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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