Written and directed by William Bagley, The Murder Podcast follows lovable slackers Chad Thadwick (Andrew McDermott) and Eddie (Cooper Bucha). They dream of podcast glory while always in a daze of weed and ramen. However, their podcast, “Ramen Review,” has little-to-no success, and the two friends face constant pressure to get “real jobs.”
Their podcast is in serious need of rebranding when an unlikely opportunity presents itself. Following the grizzly murder of a local townsperson, Chad throws himself into the world of detectives and crime solving, hoping to capitalize on the world’s fascination with crime drama. Now rebranded as “The Murder Podcast,” Eddie and Chad begin investigating the recent murder-spree devasting their small community. But, without help from the lead investigator, Officer Stashburne (Levi Burdick), the case begins to run cold for our would-be heroes. That is until the murders start to take on a supernatural element. After discovering a mysterious coin at each crime scene, the pair unravels a massive conspiracy dating back to Chad’s late father and a string of murders decades prior.
McDermott and Bucha have solid chemistry throughout The Murder Podcast. Both actors give stellar performances as goofy, would-be detectives/podcasters. They are constantly building on each other’s jokes in ways that feel organic. Unfortunately, some other characters throughout the film are underdeveloped or serve as pure exposition. Still, it has fun moments mocking the amount of exposition the minor characters spew out.
“…the pair unravels a massive conspiracy dating back to Chad’s late father…”
Bagley has crafted a self-aware film. It knows the majority of the humor stems from Chadwick’s lack of ambition, massive amounts of profanity, and the occasional gross-out bit. But instead of trying to be something else, the writer and director steer the story into a plethora of low-brow, high laughs comedy. The film features solid visual cues and punchlines, including some frenetic Edgar Wright-inspired quick-cut montages set to retro synth-wave.
As a comedy, The Murder Podcast is incredibly efficient. Everything on screen is setting up the next joke or paying off the previous one, making this a solid indie-popcorn flick. But, it has shortcomings; only some jokes land, and some characters, even a few main ones, lack development.
The Murder Podcast is a fun buddy stoner horror-comedy regardless of any minor or major faults. The montages are exciting, the chemistry between the two leads is palpable, and Chad Thadwick, as a character, jumps off the screen. It’s ripe for fans of films like Hawk & Rev: Vampire Slayers or those wanting a more supernatural horror-inspired Pineapple Express.
"…a fun buddy stoner horror-comedy..."
