The Crime Is Up Podcast

Steven Seagal is... Above the Law. Steven Seagal is ...Out for Justice. Steven Seagal is... Exit Wounds.
Steven Seagal is many things. A Buddhist. A Russian Citizen. The star of countless aikido action movie classics. This episode, we are taking a closer look at three of those movies.
Layered deep in these fascinating films are numerous examples of the noir tropes that we crime fiction and film noir fans know and love. So join us, dear listeners, on a journey through the crime films of Steven Seagal!

Release date April 01, 2023.

It's a hybrid podcast! Each episode features original crime fiction and an appreciation of a film noir or crime film classic. Check out Chris and Will’s super-sized comparison episode where they talk about The Getaway ! They’re tackling the Jim Thompson crime fiction classic as well as both film adaptations of it.

We’ve got Sam Peckinpah’s slow-motion bloodbath featuring the King of Cool himself, Steve McQueen, with Ali McGraw. Then there’s the 90’s action flick that’s way better than you remember it starring Alec Baldwin, Kim Basinger, James Woods, and Michael Madsen.

Jersey Devils centers on Mitchell, a small-time hustler scraping a living together with petty theft in Asbury Park.

But those days are behind him, because Mitchell has finally found his best scam yet. Because it isn’t even a scam... well, mostly it isn’t. All he has to do is drive.

Mitchell buys in on a tractor trailer truck with a false floor and the promise of the open road it brings. Only problem is, he wasn’t counting on the type of cargo his new partner would be making him carry.

Dwight may be leaving town, but the professional gunman he hired isn’t going to make Malcolm’s return from prison simple. And it’s hard enough for Malcolm as he tries to start over with Mary and their son Michael, whom he has yet to meet.

How will the boy take to finally meeting his father? And what sort of revenge does Malcolm have in mind for his former partner-in-crime? Have a listen to Cut You Down Pt 02 to find out.

And this episode Chris and Will are taking a look at the always practical, sometimes brutal, criminal creation of Richard Stark: Parker! We’ve got a supersized comparison lined up as we discuss the book The Hunter and its various movie and comic book iterations.

So we have John Boorman’s existential action picture Point Blank with Lee Marvin, two vastly different versions of Payback with Mel Gibson, and Darwyne Cook’s fantastic and faithful comic book adaptation.

It’s road trip time listeners! We’ve got a deep dive into the grittiest, strangest road trip movie of the 70’s. It’s part violent crime story, part love triangle, part buddy comedy and maybe even part Greek Myth. Featuring a legendary lead performance from the criminally underutilized Warren Oates, this is one of Sam Peckinpah’s most divisive (and best!) movies. And it’s the only one that features a decapitated head in a picnic basket.