Does anyone actually have Showtime?

Because if anyone actually had it, the denizens of earth would have a chance to watch what is turning out to be one of the most acclaimed hour-long movies of the year. I am speaking, of course, of Joe Dante's Homecoming, the sixth episode of the allegedly so-so-so-far anthology series Masters of Horror. Dave Kehr, a fellow Dante-head, responds in kind. Sam Adams lumps it in with Land of the Dead and Serenity as key politically-minded genre films of the year. And now some Slate guy chimes in with more of the same (plus a reference to Bob Clark's great Deathdream, to which it bares more than a passing resemblance). There are doubtless more raves, flowing through the magma of the internet.

While glad I am that Dante is getting the best reviews he's gotten in many, many a moon, Homecoming almost too close to the real thing: Robert Picardo is Rove, Thea Gill is Coulter, et al. The great thing about Dead was that the allusions weren't too, too obvious. (Favorite oblique bit: lead zombie dude shoving an oil nozzle through Dennis Hopper's car window.) It was able to mix and match to come up with a nutty, expansive dissection of current day American geopolitics. Of course, I'll have to wait till well after this weekend to find out if this theory is correct. Because no one I know or have ever known has or has ever had Showtime.

Also note that Takashi Miike has an episode in the series. Dish for HBO next time, bud.