Cozy Quilt Cinema

Dark Harbor (1998): A Slow Burn with Very Familiar Smoke

Dark Harbor feels wet, soggy and very critical, like a mother-in-law who fell out of the boat. Then it becomes a quiet, intimate, and simple projection of wife-killery.
This week, Beth and Michelle discuss the 1998 psychological thriller that hides its sharpest twists behind the completely unexplored gotcha of homophobia. We explore the film’s slow-building tension, constant mockery and shifting power dynamics. Whether the final reveal changes everything or leaves us feeling dissatisfied.
Is this a story about manipulation, projection, or loneliness? And does its emotional depth make it more haunting than it seems at first? As always, we run it through the Stitch Count to see where it fits in the Cozy Quilt canon. Wrap up, settle in, and join us. If you enjoy thoughtful, cozy conversations about films that stick with you, follow the show and leave a rating. It really helps other movie lovers discover us.
I found a better copy to view - Dark Harbor 1998

A Mighty Wind (2003)

As Beth and Michelle travel down the back roads of this home we love so much, we feel a mighty wind's a-blowin’. It's one of our favorite mockumentaries traveling around the bend. We discuss the loss of an icon, Catherine O'Hara and how much she meant to us as fans. And we enter the nostalgia vortex of a New York bound model train.
 
The Stitch Count:
The Castellini Test: Pass
Inclusivity & Gaze: 3
The Tremors Index: 3

Little Shop of Horrors (1986)

Beth and Michelle go downtown, where the guys are drips. Downtown, where they rip your slips. Down on Skid Row, where they follow the Greek Chorus as they underscore and narrate the romance of Seymour and Audrey. We will follow along through the abuse, the dismemberment and murder and have some laughs along the way. This comedy is as dark as the soot which coats the walls of Seymour's basement room.

Death Becomes Her (1992)

Beth and Michelle camp out on the couch for a movie that is deeper than it appears. While it has the energy and surface of an over the top comedy about avoiding death and eternal beauty quickly becomes a story of misogyny masquerading as feminine empowerment. It's surprisingly easy to love this film and also be revolted by the message it unintentionally alludes to. Wondering how this film will fare in the Castellini test? I think you will be surprised.

Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga (2020)

Beth and Michelle reassemble the blanket fort in Iceland where they follow the story of Fire Saga, a musical journey of persistence, loss and of finding your true joy. It has daddy issues, mommy issues, maybe or maybe not sister issues, but nothing another rousing round of Jaja Ding Dong won’t brush away for another time.
Music from #Uppbeat (free for Creators!):https://uppbeat.io/t/julien-schwarz/my-chaptersLicense code: MNQCVJ4WDX2TILQC
Links for the community concerning the ICE terrorist attacks in Minnesota:
Rapid Response & ICE Activity Hotlines
MN NOICE – Immigrant Support Hub  
Directory + rapid response numbers (including Monarca Rapid Response Line and COPAL Navigators Line)
https://www.mnnoice.org
COPAL MN – Community Organizing & People’s Action  
(Hosts the statewide immigrant support helpline used by IDN and MN NOICE)
https://www.copalmn.org  
 
Immigrant Rights & Anti‑Deportation Organizing
 
MIRAC – Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee  
Grassroots, abolitionist immigrant‑rights organization fighting raids, deportations, and anti‑immigrant laws
https://miracmn.org
Immigrant Defense Network (IDN)  
Statewide coalition of 90+ nonprofits coordinating legal defense, rapid response, and community protection
https://immigrantdefense.org
Legal Aid & Direct Services
Arrive Ministries (Legal Services Directory Listing)  
Provides immigration legal assistance including naturalization, family petitions, TPS, and more
https://www.arriveministries.org
National Immigration Legal Services Directory – Minnesota Listings  
Comprehensive list of Minnesota orgs offering immigration legal support
https://www.immigrationadvocates.org/nonprofit/legaldirectory/ 
 
Community Support & Mutual Aid
Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation – Immigrant & Refugee Support Organizations  
Curated list of trusted Minnesota groups supporting immigrant and refugee communities
https://www.spmcf.org
 

Knives Out (2019)

Beth and Michelle discuss a new(er) movie this time, the 80s is so whack. It’s a rollicking fun movie filled with family intrigue and honest emotional discoveries that will keep you riveted to the screen. How is it going to rate against our standards? I think you can deduce that, dear Watson.
 
Music by Melody Ayres-Griffiths from Pixabay
 
On a serious Note:
To demand answers and accountability for the recent death at the Robert A. Deyton facility in Lovejoy, GA, you can point listeners to Georgia Detention Watch (GDW) and their partners at El Refugio.
Website: gadetentionwatch.org
Action: Follow their Instagram or Twitter/X for the specific "Call to Action" scripts regarding the mid-January death.
Direct Advocacy: Listeners can also contact the ICE Atlanta Field Office at (404) 893-1210 to demand a transparent investigation.
These cards are designed to be shown through a window or slid under a door so residents do not have to open the door to agents.
NILC Printable Cards (PDF): nilc.org/know-your-rights-card
Informed Immigrant "Red Cards": These include the specific legal language to invoke the 4th and 5th Amendments.
Link: informedimmigrant.com/red-cards
In the Twin Cities, the primary line to report "Operation Metro Surge" activity, masked agents, or raids is the Monarca Rapid Response Line.
Hotline Number: 612-441-2881
MIRAC (Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee): They also coordinate responses. Their resource page can be found at miracmn.com/resources.

The Mummy (1999)

Cue the sand storm, it’s time for perhaps our coziest adventure movie, The Mummy! Beth and Michelle get comfy in the blankets for this necropolis romp full of magic and two-gun firefights and sweet, simple romance. It’s like Jewel of the Nile, without the rain, parrots and snark. 
Background Music by Ruud from Pixabay
Support for the Good Family
GoFundMe: Support for the Family of Renee Good Launched by family friend Mattie Weiss, this fundraiser directly supports Renee’s wife, Rebecca, and her three children (ages 15, 12, and 6) with immediate needs and long-term stability.
The GoFundMe was removed per the family as it more than attained it's goal. 
Take Action & Demand Prosecution
Resistbot: Demand Justice for Renee Good This tool allows listeners to quickly send a pre-written letter to their specific elected officials (Congress and the Department of Homeland Security) demanding a full investigation and prosecution.
Text SIGN PENBUH to 50409 or visit resist.bot/letters/206e2562-dab4-4c47-b6eb-db4142acf0b9.
ACLU of Minnesota: Tincher v. Noem The ACLU has filed a lawsuit challenging federal law enforcement violence and misconduct in Minnesota. You can follow the case and support their legal fund.
Link: aclu-mn.org
Organizations Leading the Fight
Freedom for Immigrants They monitor all deaths in ICE custody and provide a "National Detention Map" that tracks abuse and neglect across the country.
Link: freedomforimmigrants.org
National Immigration Law Center (NILC) A primary legal group fighting the "Operation Metro Surge" and "Operation Midway Blitz" policies that led to the recent escalations.
Link: nilc.org
The Legal Defense Fund (LDF) The LDF has officially condemned the killing and is active in civil rights litigation regarding federal overreach in Minneapolis.
Link: naacpldf.org

Ghostbusters 2 (1989)

Beth and Michelle ring in the New Year with Egon, Ray, Peter and Winston. They're back! And they must save Dana's child from Vigo the Carpathian, the city from it's own negativity and themselves from a failing business. It's a movie literally about emotional goo and auld lang syne. So, dive with us into the pneumatic transit slime because it's ghost busting time. Thank you, wonderful listeners, for an amazing year in which we were able to sit with you in our blanket fort and share our thoughts about the movies that moved us. We are looking forward to continuing our time with you, sharing our quilt and emotional conversations, in the new year!

Trading Places (1983)

‘Tis the season for giving and apparently taking. Beth and Michelle burrow in on the couch to watch the “haves” be callous, while the “have-nots” give them their comeuppance. It’s a journey from statue-beladen stairways and dirty-Santa-beard salmon, but not as long as you might think. This movie isn't quite robin hood, but it’s all still very satisfying.

The Princess Bride (1987)

This is a hard one folks, Beth and Michelle pay their respects to Rob and Michele Reiner and try to talk about “The Princess Bride” without crying. Even with the tragedy, they found themselves absorbed and laughing during this beloved classic. Cozy in with your true love and listen in as we climb the cliffs of insanity, travel the fire swamp and experience true love's kiss. Thank you Rob and Michele, you were a beacon of light to so many.
 
*Stand By Me By dccharles is licensed under a Creative Commons License