A woman arrives in a sleepy California beach town looking for her missing father and finds the locals waiting for the blood moon. Ben is joined by Danielle Aubuchon and Kathryn Horan to kick off the Halloween season with Messiah of Evil (1973), the surreal, Lovecraftian cult oddity from the husband-and-wife team who went on to write American Graffiti.

Paired with Peet's Big Bang, the medium roast Peet's built for their 50th anniversary in honor of founder Alfred Peet. Another stranger who turned up on the California coast with something nobody there had tasted before, with considerably better results for the locals.

CHAPTERS

0:00 Welcome to the Halloween Party 2:50 Exploring Recent Films and Nostalgia 6:04 Diving into Messiah of Evil 8:58 Initial Reactions and Confusions 12:00 Cinematography and Visual Style 14:55 Plot Analysis and Character Development 17:58 Soundtrack and Its Impact 21:11 Setting and Atmosphere 23:57 Character Dynamics and Relationships 32:23 Unraveling the Mystery of the Diary 39:13 The Ominous Journey to Town 49:44 The Horror Unfolds in the Grocery Store 55:50 The Tension Builds in the Movie Theater 57:35 The Transformation Begins 1:00:19 Confronting the Past 1:02:05 The Climax at the Beach House 1:04:31 The Aftermath and Reflection 1:06:50 The Artistic Choices and Production Challenges 1:08:52 Exploring the Cast and Their Backgrounds 1:13:22 Final Thoughts and Future Discussions 1:14:36 Coffee Pairing: Peet's Big Bang 1:19:31 What's Next: Vampire & Halloween Specials

THE COFFEE

https://www.peets.com/products/big-bang

GUESTS

Danielle Aubuchon: https://www.danielleaubuchon.com/ Kathryn Horan, Cine Scare Horror: https://cinescarehorror.com/

RESOURCES

Messiah of Evil is in the public domain, so you can watch it free: https://archive.org/details/messiah-of-evil-1973_202404

Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Messiah_of_Evil Rotten Tomatoes: https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/messiah_of_evil Radiance Films Blu-ray, with Kim Newman and Stephen Thrower commentary: https://www.radiancefilms.co.uk/products/messiah-of-evil-se The History of Peet's Coffee: https://peets.com/blogs/peets/the-history-of-peets-coffee

REEL BEANS

Website: https://reelbeans.com Episodes: https://reelbeans.com/podcast Merch: https://reelbeans.com/merch Support the show: https://reelbeans.com/support Instagram: https://instagram.com/reel_beans YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@reelbeans

Sip · Watch · Repeat

Ben is joined by Danielle Aubuchon for Shadow of a Doubt (1943), paired with Land and Water Coffee's Godspeed Blend.

Charlie Newton wishes for something to shake up sleepy Santa Rosa, and gets her beloved Uncle Charlie, the man she was named for, who may also be the Merry Widow Murderer. Ben and Danielle get into Hitchcock's gift for turning a safe small town menacing, what kind of man Uncle Charlie actually is, the dark comedy running underneath the tension, and how one bad summer can end a girl's childhood for good.

The pairing fits three ways. Land and Water roasts in Santa Rosa, about two miles from the house Hitchcock shot in. Godspeed is a 50/50 blend of Zambia and Honduras, two origins under one name, which is the two Charlies exactly. And Godspeed is what you say to someone leaving on a hard journey, which this film has plenty of.

The Coffee Godspeed Blend: https://landandwater.coffee/products/godspeed About the roaster: https://landandwater.coffee/pages/about

Resources AFI Catalog: https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/657 Deep Focus Review: https://www.deepfocusreview.com/definitives/shadow-of-a-doubt/ Press Democrat on Hitchcock's Santa Rosa: https://www.pressdemocrat.com/2026/05/20/in-shadow-of-a-doubt-hitchcock-found-evil-in-small-town-santa-rosa/ The Alfred Hitchcock Wiki: https://the.hitchcock.zone/wiki/Shadow_of_a_Doubt_(1943) Brenton Film on the Wilder collaboration: https://brentonfilm.com/writing-on-a-classic-shadow-of-a-doubt-1943 Beyond Doubt: The Making of Hitchcock's Favorite Film (Blu-ray)

Our Guest Danielle Aubuchon: https://danielleaubuchon.com

Reel Beans https://reelbeans.com https://instagram.com/reel_beans https://youtube.com/@reelbeans Merch: https://reelbeans.com/merch Support: https://reelbeans.com/support

Sip. Watch. Repeat.

What happens when a spoiled heiress finds a "forgotten man" at the city dump and hires him as the family butler? In 1936, it made for one of the sharpest, funniest, and most quietly radical comedies of the Depression era.

This week, classic film expert Josh Rozett joins Ben to dig into MY MAN GODFREY (1936), Gregory La Cava's screwball classic starring William Powell as the mysterious Godfrey and Carole Lombard, the reigning queen of screwball, as the madcap Irene who can't stop meddling in his life. We get into what makes the film tick, why it still stings as class satire nearly a century later, and how a movie this funny smuggled in such a pointed message about wealth and inequality.

In the cup: Stumptown Ethiopia, brewed in the moka pot, the humble, everyman's coffee maker that makes a bold, honest cup with no fuss and no frills. A fitting brew for a film about what's really hiding under the surface.

Dig deeper:

My Man Godfrey at the Criterion Collection: https://www.criterion.com/films/653-my-man-godfrey

"My Man Godfrey: The Right Kind of People" (Criterion essay): https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/5928-my-man-godfrey-the-right-kind-of-people

Bialetti Moka Express (Seattle Coffee Gear): https://www.seattlecoffeegear.com/products/bialetti-moka-express-stovetop-espresso-maker

The History of the Moka Pot (Sunday Baker): https://sundaybaker.co/the-history-of-the-moka-pot/

Support the show:

Website: reelbeans.com

Listen: reelbeans.com/podcast

Merch: reelbeans.com/merch

Support Reel Beans: reelbeans.com/support

Instagram: @reel_beans

If you enjoy the show, follow, rate, and share it with a fellow film-and-coffee lover. It helps more than you'd think.

Available now on all podcast platforms, or visit reelbeans.com/podcast.

Sip. Watch. Repeat.

What if the kindest man in town is the one everyone wants to fix? Kathryn joins me for Harvey (1950), where Jimmy Stewart plays Elwood P. Dowd, a man whose best friend is a six-foot invisible rabbit and whose only real crime is being too pleasant for polite society.

We dig into the question the film never answers. Does Harvey exist, or is he a figment of Elwood's imagination? You can't just blame the drink, because Veta sees him too. Then there's Formula 977, the serum that would make Elwood normal again, and the knot at the center of it. How often do we try to change the people we love, or ourselves, just to feel comfortable in a room?

We get into Elwood's radical kindness, and we call out Dr. Chumley, who wants Harvey for himself while signing off on the shot that would take him from Elwood. Then the big one. Does the comedy at Chumley's Rest hold up in 2026, or does its take on mental health belong to 1950? We make the case both ways.

Plus the trivia is loaded this time. Josephine Hull's Oscar win over a brutal field, the record million dollar rights deal that nearly sank the film, the censors who never let Stewart take a sip, and the Francis the Talking Mule cameo that almost was.

COFFEE PAIRING

Verve Vancouver Swiss Water Decaf, brewed Chemex, 40g to 600g. Here's the thesis. Decaf is Formula 977. It's coffee with the one thing removed that everyone swears makes it what it is, altered so it's acceptable to all of society, looking and smelling the same while missing its core. Swiss Water does it with no chemicals, one thing out and everything else intact, which is exactly what Veta is about to allow before she stops the needle. Notes of chocolate, honey, and almond. The chocolate hits right out of the bag. Skip the French Press on this one and let the Chemex give you the clean cup it deserves.

So pour a cup that everyone says isn't real coffee, and settle in.

Sip. Watch. Repeat.

LINKS

Watch Harvey: https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/harvey | IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0042546/ | Josephine Hull Oscar Speech: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KFArR_cVtIU

The coffee: https://www.vervecoffee.com/products/vancouver-swiss-water-decaf | How Swiss Water decaf works: https://www.swisswater.com/pages/coffee-decaffeination-process

Cast deep dives: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Stewart | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Josephine_Hull

Friends of the show, Cinescare: https://cinescarehorror.com/

REEL BEANS

Website: https://reelbeans.com | Support: https://reelbeans.com/support | Merch: https://reelbeans.com/merch Instagram: @reel_beans | YouTube: https://youtube.com/@reelbeans Sip. Watch. Repeat.

She Done Him Wrong (1933) — Come Up and Kick Ass Sometime

Mae West didn't wait for permission. She wrote the play, sold it to Hollywood, and walked onto the Paramount lot with her own material, her own rules, and a wardrobe that made censors reach for their pencils. She Done Him Wrong is the film that made her a star, nearly broke the Hays Code all on its own, and gave us one of the most misquoted lines in cinema history.

Ben and Danielle sit down with Diamond Lou -- the original bad girl of the Bowery -- and unpack what makes this 66-minute firecracker still feel dangerous nearly a century later. They dig into pre-Code Hollywood, Mae West's genius for self-invention, a young Cary Grant who barely gets a word in edgewise, and why "good" is such a relative term when you're this entertaining.

The coffee? Kicking Horse Coffee's Kick Ass dark roast. Full-bodied, unapologetic, dark chocolate and molasses with a finish that lingers. Mae West didn't do subtle. Neither does this roast.

Sip. Watch. Repeat.

Stream She Done Him Wrong: https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/she-done-him-wrong Kicking Horse Kick Ass: https://kickinghorsecoffee.com/products/kick-ass-coffee Guest: Danielle Aubuchon -- danielleaubuchon.com Support the show: reelbeans.com/support | Merch: reelbeans.com/merch Instagram: @reel_beans | YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@reelbeans

Shirley Temple brings pure joy and golden-age innocence to this week's double feature. Ben and returning guest Danielle Aubuchon dive into Bright Eyes (1934), the film that made Shirley a household name, plus the delightful Donald Duck short The Autograph Hound (1939) where Shirley steals the show. And what better pairing for Depression-era escapism and gumdrops-and-lollipops sweetness than Boyer's Butterscotch Toffee Coffee? A 50-year-old roasted favorite that's as unapologetically indulgent as Shirley Temple's infectious charm.

GUEST

Danielle Aubuchon | @danielleaubuchon | danielleaubuchon.com

Where to watch:

Bright Eyes: https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/bright-eyes

Autograph Hound: https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x8b0cvl

Boyer's Butterscotch Toffee Coffee: boyerscoffee.com

Reel Beans: reelbeans.com

Support Reel Beans: reelbeans.com/support

Shop Reel Beans Merch: reelbeans.com/merch

Subscribe to Our Podcast: rss.com/podcasts/real-beans

In 1961, Luis Buñuel's Viridiana was banned in Spain and declared blasphemous by the Vatican. Centuries earlier, the Catholic Church condemned coffee as "the Devil's drink" due to its Islamic origins - only to later "baptize" it when it proved too delicious to resist. Same institution. Same playbook.

This week Reel Beans teams up with Bill Holland of Morally Offensive Podcast to explore Buñuel's masterpiece - a biting satire on religious hypocrisy, the failure of idealism, and the gap between genuine faith and institutional corruption. Both hosts are sipping Dark Matter Coffee from Chicago: Ben with Devil's Lettuce and Bill with Unicorn Blood.

In this episode:

• Why Viridiana was banned and declared blasphemous by the Vatican
• The Church's pattern: condemn first, baptize later
• The iconic Last Supper scene and why it still shocks
• Dark Matter Coffee: Chicago's rebellious roaster and why it fits perfectly

MORALLY OFFENSIVE PODCAST Exploring films considered banned or offensive to the Catholic diocese, hosted by Bill Holland. Website: https://www.morallyoffensive.com Instagram: @morallyoffensivepod

DARK MATTER COFFEE https://www.darkmattercoffee.com Ben's Pairing: Devil's Lettuce | Bill's Pairing: Unicorn Blood

REEL BEANS Films paired with great coffee. Sip. Watch. Repeat. Website: reelbeans.com Instagram: @reel_beans Listen: https://rss.com/podcasts/real-beans/

RESEARCH & FURTHER READING

• Viridiana - Criterion Collection: https://www.criterion.com/films/373-viridiana
• The Viridiana Controversy Explained: https://www.slashfilm.com/723199/the-viridiana-controversy-explained/
• Criterion Essay - "The Human Comedy" by Michael Wood: https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/423-viridiana-the-human-comedy
• Coffee: How "Satan's Drink" Spread to Europe: https://sacredfootsteps.com/2019/07/12/coffee-how-satans-drink-spread-to-europe-through-the-ottomans/
• Pope Clement VIII & Coffee - Satan's Brew: https://www.papalartifacts.com/pope-clement-viii-coffee-satans-brew/

In this episode, host Ben welcomes special guests Joe Janz and Matt Speak, the hosts of the Cinescare Podcast, for a deep dive into Steven Spielberg's 1981 action-adventure classic, Raiders of the Lost Ark, paired with a Fresh Roasted Coffee LLC Peru Medium Roast.

Ben shares that this was his first time seeing the film, in a sold-out 35mm screening at Quentin Tarantino's New Beverly Cinema in LA. The three discuss what makes the film a near-perfect adventure movie: the thrilling practical effects, groundbreaking in-camera action sequences, iconic cinematography by Douglas Slocombe, and John Williams' legendary score. They also share behind-the-scenes trivia, including the truth about the famous swordsman scene, Spielberg's SpaghettiOs diet in Tunisia, the swimming pool trick used to create the Ark's supernatural spirits, and the real story behind the fly on Belloq's lip.

Joe and Matt also give a rundown of their own podcast, Cinescare, and tease an upcoming episode featuring a Malort tasting.

Coffee: Fresh Roasted Coffee LLC — Peru Medium Roast (warm cinnamon, caramel, and orange notes) Film: Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), dir. Steven Spielberg

🎙️ Find Cinescare Podcast wherever you listen to podcasts. Follow Cinescare on Instagram @cinescare

🌐 More film and coffee recommendations at realbeans.com 💬 Instagram: @real_beans