The Last Video Store

Hitting cinemas next week, TOGETHER marks the brilliant feature debut of filmmaker Michael Shanks. Before teaming up with Alison Brie and Dave Franco for this inventive blend of horror and relationship comedy-drama, Shanks built a cult following online through his YouTube comedy channel timtimfed and the hilarious series The Wizards of Aus. Now, he steps into The Last Video Store to chat with Alexei about some of his all-time favourite films and his new film TOGETHER. BOOK TICKETS for Alexei’s comedy fest show REFUSED CLASSIFICATION with Zach Ruane in CANBERRA, SYDNEY ENCORE and MELBOURNE ENCORE in JULY Follow ALEXEI TOLIOPOULOS on Letterboxd for all the rental combo lists. GUEST PICKS: TOGETHER, ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND, SIGNSSTAFF PICKS: SEEDING OF A GHOSTSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Aotearoa’s own Marlon Williams steps into the Last Video Store alongside filmmaker Ursula Grace Williams to talk about Marlon Williams: Two Worlds – Ngā Ao E Rua, a stunning portrait documentary about the making of Marlon’s most ambitious musical project yet, an album sung entirely in te reo Māori. Host Alexei Toliopoulos calls it not only one of his favourite films of the year, but one of the greatest music documentaries he's ever seen (and this a guy that has seen a lot of fricking movies). The film is screening at MIFF this August - tickets here BOOK TICKETS for Alexei’s comedy fest show REFUSED CLASSIFICATION with Zach Ruane in CANBERRA, SYDNEY ENCORE and MELBOURNE ENCORE in JULY Follow ALEXEI TOLIOPOULOS on Letterboxd for all the rental combo lists. GUEST PICKS: Marlon Williams: Two Worlds - Ngā Ao E Rua (Documentary), Kill List (horror), The Eternal Memory (Documentary)STAFF PICKS: Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched: A History of Folk Horror (Documentary)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Australia is known for it's horror movies, but for every Wolf Creek and The Babadook there are dozens of freaky films that you might not be on your radar yet. This week, Alexei is joined by horror direction Kane Senes (Sissy, For Now) to trawl through the horror section and uncover some lesser known Aussie gems, from the 1970s to the 2000s…right up to the New Wave of Australian horror cinema BOOK TICKETS for Alexei’s comedy fest show REFUSED CLASSIFICATION with Zach Ruane in CANBERRA, SYDNEY ENCORE and MELBOURNE ENCORE in JULY Follow ALEXEI TOLIOPOULOS on Letterboxd for all the rental combo lists. Here are Kane and Alexei's picks from this episode.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

While touring his comedy show, DEMI ADEJUYIGBE IS GOING TO DO ONE (1) BACKFLIP, Demi Adejuyigbe stopped by the Last Video Store to pick up some of his favourite films from little Alexei Toliopoulos. Genuinely one of the most exciting comedians in the fricking world right now, you might know Demi from GAME CHANGER, writing for THE GOOD PLACE or even as one of the best Letterboxd users. Demi could not be a more perfect guest to slide into the Last Video Store to talk MOVIESSSSS, DUDE! BOOK TICKETS for Alexei’s comedy fest show REFUSED CLASSIFICATION with Zach Ruane in CANBERRA, SYDNEY ENCORE and MELBOURNE ENCORE in JULY Follow ALEXEI TOLIOPOULOS on Letterboxd for all the rental combo lists. GUEST PICKS: SINNERS (horror), LADY BIRD (drama), WHAT’S UP DOC? (comedy)STAFF PICKS: LOOKING FOR ALIBRANDI (comedy)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the 25th anniversary of their classic debut album REFLECTOR, rockstar siblings Ella Hooper and Jesse Hooper join Alexei in the LAST VIDEO STORE to pick up some of their favourite films. From the all-timer classic space odyssey from a galaxy far far away to turn of the millennium zombie nightmares, Ella and Jesse are true video store connoisseurs with a rich history of loving cinema. PLUS they talk about having songs on the iconic LOOKING FOR ALIBRANDI and SPIDER-MAN 2 soundtracks.  Catch them on tour with 25 YEARS OF REFLECTOR right now! BOOK TICKETS for Alexei’s comedy fest show REFUSED CLASSIFICATION with Zach Ruane in CANBERRA, SYDNEY ENCORE and MELBOURNE ENCORE in JULY Follow ALEXEI TOLIOPOULOS on Letterboxd for all the rental combo lists.  GUEST PICKS: 28 DAYS LATER (horror), STAR WARS (adventure), CITY OF LOST CHILDREN (cult), MEET THE FEEBLES (cult) STAFF PICKS: ATTACK THE BLOCK (action)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

From Eurovision to collaborating with THE David Byrne from Talking Heads (and the movie masterpiece TRUE STORIES), Montaigne is a truly creative artist with a distinct style… and yes that is very apparent in their picks on the Last Video Store. Montaigne stacks their favourite movie picks on the counter and chats about loving mucked-up absurdist world-building.  Montaigne’s new album “it's hard to be a fish” is out right now! And check out the music videos on YouTube.  BOOK TICKETS for Alexei’s comedy fest show REFUSED CLASSIFICATION with Zach Ruane in CANBERRA, SYDNEY ENCORE and MELBOURNE ENCORE in JULY Follow ALEXEI TOLIOPOULOS on Letterboxd for all the rental combo lists.  GUEST PICKS: MICKEY 17 (sci-fi), SWISS ARMY MAN (comedy), SPEED RACER (cult)STAFF PICKS: TOMORROW I’LL WAKE UP AND SCALD MYSELF WITH TEA (cult)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on The Last Video Store, Alexei Toliopoulos dusts off a well-worn VHS and welcomes a true icon of Australian music into the store: Robert Forster, co-founder of The Go-Betweens, acclaimed solo artist with the new album STRAWBERRIES.Together, they rummage through Robert’s cinematic memories. From the art-house films that shaped his songwriting with creative collaborator Grant McLennan, to the immersive recreations of Bob Dylan’s early electric days as performed by Timothée Chalamet. BOOK TICKETS for Alexei’s comedy fest show REFUSED CLASSIFICATION with Zach Ruane in CANBERRA, SYDNEY ENCORE and MELBOURNE ENCORE in JULY Follow ALEXEI TOLIOPOULOS on Letterboxd for all the rental combo lists. GUEST PICKS: A COMPLETE UNKNOWN (music), BELL BOOK & CANDLE (comedy), SUNSET BOULEVARD (crime)STAFF PICKS: TOO LATE (crime)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Perusing the shelves this week is Calum Hood, best known as the bassist of 5 Seconds of Summer, he’s about to release debut solo album “ORDER chaos ORDER”. A very funny episode that sees Calum and Alexei chat through childhood oddities like ANTZ and forgotten Aussie dog movie Napoleon. BOOK TICKETS for Alexei’s comedy fest show REFUSED CLASSIFICATION with Zach Ruane in CANBERRA, SYDNEY ENCORE and MELBOURNE ENCORE in JULY Follow ALEXEI TOLIOPOULOS on Letterboxd for all the rental combo lists. GUEST PICKS: HELL OF A SUMMER (Comedy), TRAINSPOTTING (cult), MOULIN ROUGE (music)STAFF PICKS: HUMAN TRAFFIC (cult)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Twin brothers Danny and Michael Philippou are the most excited voices in Australian genre cinema since the release of their horror hit TALK TO ME. Their latest film, BRING HER BACK is another emotionally resonant horror exploration of grief and loss that, in many ways, surpasses their remarkable debut. Starring Oscar nominee Sally Hawkins (THE SHAPE OF WATER), Billy Barrat (RESPONSIBLE CHILD), Jonah Wren Phillips (HOW TO MAKE GRAVY) and newcomer Sora Wong, BRING HER BACK is poised to be the horror event of 2025. It’s more than a pleasure to have RackaRacka peruse the shelves of the Last Video Store and pick out some of the films that influenced them.  BOOK TICKETS for Alexei’s comedy fest show REFUSED CLASSIFICATION with Zach Ruane in CANBERRA, SYDNEY ENCORE and MELBOURNE ENCORE in JULY Follow ALEXEI TOLIOPOULOS on Letterboxd for all the rental combo lists. Here’s the RackaRacka pick-up list.  GUEST PICKS: BRING HER BACK (HORROR), WHATEVER HAPPEND TO BABY JANE (THRILLER), BRAINDEAD (aka DEADALIVE) (CULT)STAFF PICKS: SINGAPORE SLING (CULT), HIRUKO THE GOBLIN (HORROR)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

From the MISH & ZACH podcast, comedian Mish Wittrup wanders into the Last Video Store, and the desk is manned by both Alexei Toliopoulos & Zachary Ruane. A passionate and opinionated movie buff and film lover Mish appropriately picks out the 2 best films that prominently feature video stores. BOOK TICKETS for Alexei’s comedy fest show REFUSED CLASSIFICATION with Zach Ruane in CANBERRA and SYDNEY ENCORE show in JULY Follow ALEXEI TOLIOPOULOS on Letterboxd for all the rental combo lists. Here’s Mish’s list and here’s her actual letterboxd profile. GUEST PICKS: MURIEL’S WEDDING (Comedy), SCREAM (Horror), EARTH GIRL’S ARE EASY (Comedy)STAFF PICKS: CELIA (Horror), Shirley Valentine (Comedy)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.