ThePoeticCritic (aka Rori Stevens)
ThePoeticCritic has been an amateur cinephile going back to her toddlerhood having access to both a VCR and pay cable. By the turn of the '90s she was seeking out professional film reviews in newspapers, libraries, and bookstores. While her formal education in film did not extend beyond two college classes while getting her degrees in other subjects, she feels she has some authority to speak.
ThePoeticCritic is CatBusRuss’s older sister. She has come to the rescue of the podcast many of time when our host could not secure a guest for the show and has participated in panels to promote “NinetyForChill” at comic conventions. CatBusRuss is usually her escort to these events, so the two have quite the symbiotic friendship.
At least half of her appearances, the two siblings just discussed the state of cinema instead of an individual film or theme. Thus, a lot of their conversations cannot be easily categorized. The only thought that CatBusRuss can categorize it as Stevens Debates. Our host thinks it is best to just give her own tab.
Raw. Baked. Ridiculously Good.
3X the Protein, 50% the Sugar, 20% the Carbs.
ThePoeticCritic’s Contributions
-
C2E2 2026: Super Mario Body Horror with Geena Davis & "Aliens: Resurgence"
CatBusRuss is joined by ThePoeticCritic to recap the whole C2E2 2026. Was the Geena Davis or Christopher Eccleston panel the must? CatBus reviews “Aliens: Resurgence - For the Hive” and “The Super Mario Bros. Movie.”
-
B-Fest 2026: Too Many Pirates, Too Many Ron Perlmans, and ThePoeticCritic
CatBusRuss and ThePoeticCritic return to Northwestern Univeristy for their annual B-Fest. This 24-hour celebration of the “Best of the Worst” movies ever made. 2026 featured “The Pirate Movie”, “The Dragon Lives Again”, “Down”, “Voyage of the Rock Aliens”, “Demons”, and more.
-
Chicago TARDIS Warm Up: Wicked for Predator with ThePoeticCritic
The Stevens’s siblings needed to be in Chicago on Thanksgiving for the “Doctor Who”, TARDIS. Only the Lombard AMC had food for sell that holiday, so CatBusRuss & ThePoeticCritic went to the movies.
-
C2E2 2025 with ThePoeticCritic; "Civil War" and "The Dogs of War" with CatBusRuss
CatBusRuss compares C2E2 experiences with ThePoeticCritic. Is it about community or content? Who had the best Verhoeven cast reunion?
-
B-Fest 2025: #Beepfest with ThePoeticCritic
"Truth or Dare? Critical Madness", so bonkers that you could not help but enjoy it with the crowd. "If Footmen Tire You, What Will Horses Do?", the audience bonded together with the insults and riffs that all fascists deserve.
-
Live From Twin Cities Con 2024 - Ninety For Chill: The Panel
CatBusRuss's Blue Snowball was enough to capture the vibe of 2024's Twin Cities Con. Our host and his big sister, ThePoeticCritic introduced Minneapolis to "Ninety For Chill: The Podcast" and after a little time, they got a pretty good crowd who were more than willing to give the two some "Wahoos".
-
Twin Cities Con 2024: Booze, Brian, "Blood and Bone"
A recap of Twin Cities 2024’s panels, Brian Posehn stand up and Michael Jai White movie “Blood and Bone (2009)”.
-
Twin Cities Con 2024 - Day 1: Vampire in Brooklyn (Park, MN)
It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.
-
B-Fest 2024 & ThePoeticCritic
Bad musicals (The Apple), some deep hurting (She-Devils on Wheels), kaiju (Tammy and the T-Rex), and roller skates (The Monkey Hustle). If only there was some classic action, but we will let the elder sibling speak on that (Runaway).
-
TV Animation & Disney Damnation the MEGA Pod
If there was anything you could count on as brief, fun films, it was cartoons. Then the Disney "Renaissance" came, and animated features became longer and longer. Joe Golwitzer (@quidpro_joe) and ThePoeticCritic(CatBusRuss's big sister) look back the time where VHS was king and animation was cheap.
-
Buckaroo Banzai vs. ThePoeticCritic
Jeff Goldblum may draw ThePoeticCritic out, but Peter Weller seems to have an ability to capture CatBusRuss's attention. Our host has the Shout! Factory's Steelbook of 1984's "The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension", an underappreciated blueprint of how all comic book movies should operate.
-
"Earth Girls Are Easy"??? ThePoeticCritic Responds
CatBusRuss and ThePoeticCritic discuss a movie with all of her favorite things: Jeff Goldblum and Jim Carrey.
-
Gold Diggers of 1933 (1933)
Busby Berkeley was a master of musical spectacle, but did it translate to telling a narrative CatBusRuss thinks not. ThePoeticCritic comes on to argue otherwise.
-
The Return of Godzilla (aka 1985)
The King of Monsters demands his spot in spooky month. ThePoeticCritic returns to Ninety For Chill to discuss what is truly scary about kaiju. International politics and Western adaptations.
-
Criterion's "Kpop Demon Hunters" v. Chris Benoit for the Hall of Fame
CatBusRuss & ThePoeticCritic debate whether or not “Kpop Demon Hunters” is worthy of having a spot in The Criterion Collection. After watching the French animated feature “Fantastic Planet”, our host further believes Huntrx’s recognition is undeserved.
-
ThePoeticCritic & Her Ironic WISH That Magnifico Won't Grant
ThePoeticCritic return to the podcast to state her frustrations with the current state of the American box office. Where are the personal stories? Why so much IP? When did Disney lose their way. CatBusRuss cannot pinpoint it. He thought “Wish” is the cartoon we need right now.
-
Dressing Up Halloween: The Story of Ben Cooper, Inc. (2024)
Per IMDb: Ben Cooper Inc.'s costume-in-a-box revolutionized Halloween in the late 1930s, allowing children to dress as pop culture characters.
-
Ninety For Chill 200: A Christmas Miracle with ThePoeticCritic
An investigation of what makes a holiday picture. Has Shane Black actually wrote a genuine Xmas movie? Are all Oscar-bait features representative of the holiday spirit as "Mystery Science Theater 3000" suggests?
-
Captain America v. #Filmsky & ThePoeticCritic
Welcome to the "I Dig Crazy Flicks" era of the podcast. It allows for a greater range in cinema to discuss and is definitely more marketable. And the craziness kicks off this year after Russ saw his father's reaction to a television ad for "Captain America: Brave New World".
-
X-Mas Deathmatch: Dudley versus Goldberg
CatBusRuss and ThePoeticCritic discuss a wide rage of Christmas movies. “Santa Claus: The Movie” to “Santa’s Slay”
-
Buddy the Elf, Zombie Diaries, Antibirth, Sailor Moon & Muppets
ThePoeticCritic and CatBusRuss discuss “Elf” and other Xmas flicks. CatBus reviews “Zombie Diaries”, “Sailor Moon S: The Movie” and “A Muppet Christmas: Letter to Santa”.
Support I DiG CRAZY FLiCKS
Become a member of the “Thrill Chill Cult” by signing up for the I DiG CRAZY FLiCKS Patreon.
For three dollars a month (enough to give Eva the Queen Kitty three tins of wet food, or CatBusRuss an energy drink to push through his 50-hour work weeks), you will receive an I DiG CRAZY FLiCKS waterproof sticker and a shout out on each episode of “Ninety For Chill: The Podcast”.