The Last Video Store

It’s the year of the vampire in cinema so what better way to celebrate the spooky season this Halloween. Acclaimed author and vampire/horror expert Maria Lewis (The Graveyard Shift and The Phantom Never Dies podcast) bites into a list of the greatest films in the vampire cinema canon to add to your Halloween watch list. There’s only one rule… NDA (No Draculas Allowed). Happy Halloween from Alexei and your friends at the Last Video Store! Alexei and Maria’s screening at the Sydney Opera House - Saturday Film Club: Bram Stoker’s Dracula Nov 1 Follow ALEXEI TOLIOPOULOS on Letterboxd for all the rental combo lists. Hit up the Last Video Store on instagram for all of our guests picks.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

One of the most acclaimed artists in electronic dance music, Alison Wonderlands’ new album Ghost World sounds like a cinematic score destined for a film, so we had to get her into the Last Video Store to pick up her favourite films. Alison and Alexei get their teeth stuck into Jaws for its 50th Anniversary and talk about her husband, master horror filmmaker Ti West, introducing her to the genre. Ghost World, Alison’s album will be released in December. Alexei’s screening at the Sydney Opera House - Saturday Film Club: Bram Stoker’s Dracula Nov 1 Follow ALEXEI TOLIOPOULOS on Letterboxd for all the rental combo lists. Hit up the Last Video Store on instagram for all of our guests picks.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

One of our favourite guests Nina Oyama returns to The Last Video Store to rate Alexei’s recommendation (the Korean film MICROHABITAT) and pick up controversial, dark, provactive and envelope pushing big screen comedies. Alexei’s screening at the Sydney Opera House - Saturday Film Club: Bram Stoker’s Dracula Nov 1 Follow ALEXEI TOLIOPOULOS on Letterboxd for all the rental combo lists. Hit up the Last Video Store on instagram for all of our guests picks.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s finally happened, TAKE 5 meets THE LAST VIDEO STORE. Zan Rowe, one of Australia’s greatest broadcasters and minds on music joins the movie brain himself Alexei Toliopoulos for one of the very best conversations on film and cinematic tastes. The new season of TAKE 5 is out in its entirety on ABC iview NOW and includes Kevin Bacon and our very own customer Aaron Chen. Alexei’s screening at the Sydney Opera House - Saturday Film Club: Bram Stoker’s Dracula Nov 1 Follow ALEXEI TOLIOPOULOS on Letterboxd for all the rental combo lists. Hit up the Last Video Store on instagram for all of our guests picks.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Heartbreak High student turned cosmic hero and star of the outrageously funny new Australian animated comedy LESBIAN SPACE PRINCESS, Gemma Chua-Tran enters the Last Video Store. LESBIAN SPACE PRINCESS is out NOW in Australian cinemas, alongside Gemma, the film stars so many of your favourite funny Australians like Aunty Donna and Demi Lardner. So listen to this great episode and then go see a sick flick. Alexei’s screening at the Sydney Opera House - Saturday Film Club: Bram Stoker’s Dracula Nov 1 Follow ALEXEI TOLIOPOULOS on Letterboxd for all the rental combo lists. Hit up the Last Video Store on instagram for all of our guests picks.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Splitsville, it’s a incisive comedy about modern relationships with particular style and a fight sequence most action movies would envy. It’s the second film from star/filmmaker Michael Angelo Covino who joins Alexei Toliopoulos in the Last Video Store to pick up a few of the films that influence his cinematic voice and style + he’ll get a couple of staff pick recommendations in the form of a pair of comedic oddities from Australian film history.SPLITSVILLE arrives in Australian cinemas on September 11th. Alexei’s screening at the Sydney Opera House - Saturday Film Club: Bram Stoker’s Dracula Nov 1 Follow ALEXEI TOLIOPOULOS on Letterboxd for all the rental combo lists. Hit up the Last Video Store on instagram for all of our guests picks.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Actor Dacre Montgomery (Stranger Things) and filmmaker Samuel Van Grinsven (Sequin in a Blue Room) might just be the two most passionate film lovers to enter the Last Video Store. They’ve just collaborated on the exquisite new film WENT UP THE HILL, a ghost story quite unlike any you may have seen before. Also starring Vicky Krieps (Phantom Thread), the film explores death and grief in inventively dreamlike way. It’s a fantastic episode with some of the best film talk we’ve had in the Last Video Store.WENT UP THE HILL arrives in Australian cinemas next week on September 11th. Alexei’s screening at the Sydney Opera House - Saturday Film Club: Children of Men, 6 September 2025 Follow ALEXEI TOLIOPOULOS on Letterboxd for all the rental combo lists.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

From Superman’s origins in Smallville, to modern day Adams Family in Wednesday and a list of the most tonally diverse sequels (including Herbie: Fully Loaded and Spiderman 2), Al Gough and Miles Millar are Hollywood’s experts on adaptation and sequels. Alexei Toliopoulos sits down with the creators of Wednesday to talk video store memories, working with Tim Burton and hopefully sling a staff pick recommendation at them. Follow ALEXEI TOLIOPOULOS on Letterboxd for all the rental combo lists. Alexei’s screening at the Sydney Opera House - Saturday Film Club: Children of Men, 6 September 2025See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Recommending a film to Col Needham is no easy task… His personal film diary literally evolved into THE comprehensive catalogue of all films, the Internet Movie Database. The founder of IMDb and quite possibly the most supreme movie loving guest we’ll ever have on The Last Video Store to pick up his favourite films. Alexei joins Col on one of the great adventures of movie watching to find out how a mobile travelling video store van helped shape his love of film.Follow ALEXEI TOLIOPOULOS on Letterboxd for all the rental combo lists. Alexei’s screening at the Sydney Opera House - Saturday Film Club: Children of Men, 6 September 2025 Our huge thank you to the Melbourne International Film Festival for getting Col to visit the Last Video Store GUEST PICKS: Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning (action), Vertigo (thriller), Touch of Evil (crime)STAFF PICKS: Limbo (2023) (crime)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

She wrote the book on Tom Cruise (for Cahiers Du Cinema) and has examined cinema greatness with Paul Scheer on the great film podcast UNSPOOLED, now while in Australia for the Melbourne International Film Festival, Amy Nicholson enters the Last Video Store to talk big screen movie musicals with Alexei Toliopoulos. Follow ALEXEI TOLIOPOULOS on Letterboxd for all the rental combo lists and follow Amy here. Alexei’s screening at the Sydney Opera House - Saturday Film Club: Children of Men, 6 September 2025 GUEST PICKS: BETTER MAN (music), FOOTLIGHT PARADE (music), HAIRSPRAY (cult)STAFF PICKS: WOMEN HE’S UNDRESSED (Documentary)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.