Paid in Puke Podcast!

On season 11 episode 2 of Paid in Puke, we're digging into Mary Bronstein's semi-autobiographical dramedy, If I Had Legs I'd Kick You, starring Rose Byrne, A$AP Rocky, and Christian Slater. The story follows Linda, a woman at the end of her rope dealing with full-time care for her ailing daughter, an absent husband, her talk therapy practice, an increasingly contentious relationship with her own therapist, and a supernaturally gaping wet hole in the ceiling of her apartment. 

We all loved this movie for different reasons. But we agree that Rose Byrne is a powerhouse, Bronstein is a genius, and sometimes ordinary life, especially for women, can feel like a horror movie. 

On The Lunchtime Poll, we talk about a time when we were already struggling, and an authority figure seemingly relished in using the letter of the law to make matters worse.

On the Season 11 premiere, of Paid in Puke Podcast, we're checking out Mike Nichols' 1990 dramedy, Postcards From the Edge, written by Carrie Fisher, based off her memoir of the same name. It stars Meryl Streep as Fisher's meta proxy, and Shirley MacLaine as her mother, (a thinly veiled stand-in for Debbie Reynolds). This film was a smash upon release, but has fallen off the radar over the years, despite the A-list cast (many of whom were already famous) and the legendary director. We discuss the uniquely Hollywood problem of being a moderately successful actor when your mother is a showbiz legend, and how hard it must be to grasp reality when your day job is based in artifice, and how sometimes moms can be like that even when they aren't Hollywood icons.

On the Lunchtime Poll, we reveal what songs we would sing at a coerced post-rehab surprise party. 

It's our annual Oscars episode, with our resident Oscars Scholar, Denise Rodriguez*! Despite the fabulous "Sinners" getting a record 16 noms, we found some egregious snubs to discuss: Eva Victor, Naomi Ackie, and "Sorry, Baby"; Jesse Plemons for "Bugonia", Jennifer Lawrence and "Die My Love", to name a few.

We get hot and heavy about the new casting category (only one man nominated here), "Sinners" and the other films/performances nominated that we loved. Plus, the perpetual injustice of the Diane Warren nomination, and why it's time for a Best Performance By a Non-Binary Actor category. 

*Denise has recently launched an exciting new service: Menopause Doula! She explains that menopause starts much earlier than you might think. And traditional medicine is not cutting the mustard on diagnosis and treatment. Check out her website for more information and also connect with her and other middle-aged uterus owners on instagram and facebook. 

On the season 10 finale of Paid in Puke Podcast, we're devouring Halina Reijn's (Bodies, Bodies, Bodies) 2024 erotic drama, Babygirl, starring Harris Dickinson, Sophie Wilde, Antonio Banderas, and the Goddess of Movies herself, Nicole Kidman. This film is a marvel of performance, sex positivity, nuanced dialog, and stunning cinematography. Topics include how sub/dom relationships are portrayed, Nicole's flawless acting, and the gentle masculinity of Harris Dickinson. 

On the Lunchtime Poll, we reveal what someone could have in their pocket that would placate us immediately. 

Paid in Puke Podcast will return in March, 2026, with our annual Oscars episode! 

On season 10, episode 9 of Paid in Puke, we're falling for John Dahl's 1993 neo-noir The Last Seduction, starring Linda Fiorentino, Peter Berg, and Bill Pullman. Fiorentino commands the screen as a femme fatale who is as brilliant and sexy as she is cold, and calculating. She steals the whole pot from a joint drug deal devised with her husband (Pullman), and hides out in small town in upstate NY. There, she passes the time with a naive townie (Berg), who eventually proves himself to be useful in ways other than sex. Dahl directed this film as a black comedy, but the script is also extremely smart and tight, making it a standout of the 90's neo-noir genre. 

We have a lot of fun dissecting Bridget's schemes, appreciating her fashion and quick wit, marveling at the range of Bill Pullman, the ahead-of its time race and homophobia commentary (including a non-problematic trans character played by an actual trans woman!) and the surprising connections to Barb and Star Go To Vista Del Mar.

On the Lunchtime Poll, we reveal the aliases we would adopt if we were ever to go on the lam.

On this episode of Paid in Puke, we're having a gay old time in the Australian outback with Stephan Elliott's 1994 debut feature, "The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert", starring Hugo Weaving, Guy Pearce, and Terence Stamp. It tells the story of two drag queens and one trans woman who bring their cabaret act across the country to places both receptive and dangerous. The movie has some Hot Probs (including an inexcusable Asian stereotype character), but it also served as a pioneering film queer cinema, despite the cis maleness of the three lead actors. 

We're joined by special guest Lynn Harris: writer, producer, standup comedian and founder and CEO of Gold Comedy. We discuss the origin of pride parades, the proverbial desert that is trans representation, how far drag has come since the 90s, and some of our favorite modern queens. 

On today's episode of Paid in Puke, we're mainlining Coralie Fargeat's 2024 body horror comedy, The Substance, starring Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley. Special guest Bettina McKelvey joins the Pukettes to share our experiences with watching the unique and memorable piece of cinema.

Trigger Warning: Body horror discussion and upsetting sound design. 

On Keggers with Kids, Baxter's 15-year-old gives their perspective from the younger side of things. Guess what scene everybody, both young and old, related to HARD.

We also fantasize about a beauty-neutral world and an unproblematic Oscars. And on the Lunchtime Poll, we cast our respective Sues.

 

On this episode of Paid in Puke, we're partying with Emma Seligman's (Bottoms) 2021 anxiety-ridden comedy, Shiva Baby, starring Rachel Sennott, Molly Gordon, Dianna Agron, and Polly Draper. It tells the story of Danielle, a young art student who has an identity crisis at a Shiva, when she is forced to interact with her parents, her ex, her sugar daddy, and his beautiful wife, plus everyone who has known her since she was a baby.

This movie is an poignant as it is hilarious. We talk about awkward interactions with relatives, sugaring, top quality food-acting, and the difficulties of being an impending college graduate.

On this episode of Paid in Puke, we're all over Luca Guadagnino's 2024 frenetic sports drama, Challengers, starring Zendaya, Josh O'Connor, and Mike Faist. It's about ambition, failed dreams, jealousy, friendship, a love triangle, and also tennis! This is a perfect script brought to screen by a man who says he thinks tennis is boring. Though Amy (our resident tennis fan) finds a couple of minor tennis-related hot probs, this thing is a banger through and through. We get into all sorts of topics including whether or not Patrick and Art have feelings for each other, how Tashi's bitterness manifests in some understandable, but also unforgivable ways, the sexiness of the leads, and just what exactly happens at the end. Grab and banana and COME ON!!!

It's the 2025 Paid in Puke Oscars Special with our Academy Award Pukette, Denise Rodriguez! We all saw and loved a TON of movies this year, and most of them didn't get nominated for anything! Regardless, we talk about the films we loved and why they didn't get any Academy props, the Emilia Pérez mess, films about the trans experience that were actually good, the ethics of using AI in films, and why we come to Nicole Kidman for magic.

Films covered include: A Different Man, Anora, A Real Pain, Babygirl, Between the Temples, Bird, Challengers, Emelia Pérez, Flow, Ghostlight, I Saw the TV Glow, Love Lies Bleeding, Maria, Nightbitch, Nosferatu, Queer, Sing Sing, The Apprentice, The Brutalist, The Last Showgirl, The Substance, The Wild Robot, Will & Harper