Ben Mendelsohn

Made films the shows talk about.

Counted as actor. The films the hosts said they acted in, which the two lists below run through too: Animal Kingdom (2010); Darkest Hour (2017); Captain Marvel (2019); Mississippi Grind; Ready Player One; Rogue One.

Draws on

What the speakers say they, or a film of theirs, drew on. Each is a speaker's account: “the maker said so” when they report the maker's own words, “the host's read” when the read is theirs.

Guardians of the Galaxy (2014): 2 lines

  1. lineage (lineage) · through Captain Marvel (2019), which they acted in: Guardians of the Galaxy ⇒ Captain Marvel (the host's read). As a prequel, Captain Marvel brings back Guardians characters Ronan (Lee Pace) and Korath (Djimon Hounsou).
    “this is, of course, a prequel, so their characters appear in this film again.”
    The Big Picture · ‘Captain Marvel’ Is a ’90s Nostalgia Play. Did It Work? | Exit Survey · 0:43:32 · Sean Fennessey (0.80 sure it was them)
  2. craft (craft) · through Captain Marvel (2019), which they acted in: Guardians of the Galaxy ⇒ Captain Marvel (the host's read). The Flarkin cat in Captain Marvel is a version of the Drax metaphor joke, but this film's joke lands better thanks to the cut to his face.
    “And you know, you know, the cat in Captain Marvel is like a version of this joke.”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Guardians of the Galaxy · 1:46:06 · unknown (0.30 sure it was them)

Pan (2015): 2 lines

  1. career (career) · through Darkest Hour (2017), which they acted in: Pan ⇒ Darkest Hour (the maker said so: Wright, on the show). Wright says Pan's failure and his own doubt are what made the doubt-ridden Churchill script resonate.
    “I had made a film called Pan, which had lost about $100 million, and had been slated, really, by most everyone, and I was suffering my own crisis of confidence”
    The Big Picture · Joe Wright Bounces Back From His Darkest Hour | The Big Picture (Ep. 37) · 0:02:29 · Joe Wright (0.95 sure it was them)
  2. career (career) · through Darkest Hour (2017), which they acted in: Pan ⇒ Darkest Hour (the maker said so: Wright, on the show). After Pan he decided he was not cut out for big studio movies and wanted to return to his wheelhouse.
    “I realized after Pan that I wasn't cut out necessarily for the kind of big studio movies, and I wanted to return to something that was closer to my wheelhouse.”
    The Big Picture · Joe Wright Bounces Back From His Darkest Hour | The Big Picture (Ep. 37) · 0:03:05 · Joe Wright (0.95 sure it was them)

Andrei Tarkovsky: 1 line

  1. lineage (lineage) · through Darkest Hour (2017), which they acted in: Andrei Tarkovsky ⇒ Darkest Hour (the maker said so: Wright, on the show). Wright wants his work called cinematic and cites Tarkovsky's 'sculpting in time'.
    “as Tarkovsky put it, sculpting in time.”
    The Big Picture · Joe Wright Bounces Back From His Darkest Hour | The Big Picture (Ep. 37) · 0:15:27 · Joe Wright (0.95 sure it was them)

Anna Karenina: 1 line

  1. contrast (contrast) · through Darkest Hour (2017), which they acted in: Anna Karenina ⇒ Darkest Hour (the maker said so: Wright, on the show). Darkest Hour's stripped-back look is a reaction against Pan and Anna Karenina.
    “as a kind of reaction to what I've been doing before, including Pan, but also, you know, Anna Karenina and movies like that.”
    The Big Picture · Joe Wright Bounces Back From His Darkest Hour | The Big Picture (Ep. 37) · 0:04:41 · Joe Wright (0.95 sure it was them)

Batman Forever (1995): 1 line

  1. craft (craft) · through Captain Marvel (2019), which they acted in: Batman Forever ⇒ Captain Marvel (the host's read). The prosthetic-ears-and-face-paint alien look recalls the trashy 1990s comic book movies, specifically Batman Forever.
    “It felt a little bit like Batman forever at times where I was like, that guy is definitely just wearing face paint.”
    The Big Picture · ‘Captain Marvel’ Is a ’90s Nostalgia Play. Did It Work? | Exit Survey · 0:12:25 · Amanda Dobbins (0.70 sure it was them)

Captain America: The First Avenger (2011): 1 line

  1. lineage (lineage) · through Captain Marvel (2019), which they acted in: Captain America: The First Avenger ⇒ Captain Marvel (the host's read). The film goes back to the Steve Rogers style of origin story.
    “here's how Steve Rogers became a super soldier style of storytelling.”
    The Big Picture · ‘Captain Marvel’ Is a ’90s Nostalgia Play. Did It Work? | Exit Survey · 0:03:27 · Sean Fennessey (0.80 sure it was them)

Max Richter: 1 line

  1. craft (craft) · through Darkest Hour (2017), which they acted in: Max Richter ⇒ Darkest Hour (the maker said so: Wright speaking of his own film on the show). Wright says he wanted a cinematic equivalent of the minimalist music he was listening to, including Max Richter.
    “I was also listening to a lot of minimalist music at the time, Max Richter and Niels Fram and, of course, the great Philip Glass and so on.”
    The Big Picture · Joe Wright Bounces Back From His Darkest Hour | The Big Picture (Ep. 37) · 0:05:00 · Joe Wright (0.95 sure it was them)

Nils Frahm: 1 line

  1. craft (craft) · through Darkest Hour (2017), which they acted in: Nils Frahm ⇒ Darkest Hour (the maker said so: Wright speaking of his own film on the show). Wright says he wanted a cinematic equivalent of the minimalist music he was listening to, including Nils Frahm.
    “I was also listening to a lot of minimalist music at the time, Max Richter and Niels Fram and, of course, the great Philip Glass and so on.”
    The Big Picture · Joe Wright Bounces Back From His Darkest Hour | The Big Picture (Ep. 37) · 0:05:00 · Joe Wright (0.95 sure it was them)

Philip Glass: 1 line

  1. craft (craft) · through Darkest Hour (2017), which they acted in: Philip Glass ⇒ Darkest Hour (the maker said so: Wright, on the show). Wright aimed for a cinematic equivalent of minimalist music by Richter, Frahm and Glass.
    “I wanted to try and achieve some kind of cinematic aesthetic equivalent to that music.”
    The Big Picture · Joe Wright Bounces Back From His Darkest Hour | The Big Picture (Ep. 37) · 0:05:08 · Joe Wright (0.95 sure it was them)

Pulp Fiction (1994): 1 line

  1. lineage (lineage) · through Captain Marvel (2019), which they acted in: Pulp Fiction ⇒ Captain Marvel (the host's read). Samuel L. Jackson driving around mid-90s Los Angeles evokes Jules Winfield, a clever but surface 90s nod.
    “a Samuel L. Jackson character in the mid 90s driving around in a car in Los Angeles, a la Jules Winfield in Pulp Fiction.”
    The Big Picture · ‘Captain Marvel’ Is a ’90s Nostalgia Play. Did It Work? | Exit Survey · 0:18:39 · Sean Fennessey (0.70 sure it was them)

Stanley Kubrick: 1 line

  1. lineage (lineage) · through Ready Player One, which they acted in: Stanley Kubrick ⇒ Ready Player One (the host's read). The film contains a deeper homage to Kubrick, maybe its best part.
    “There is a much deeper and fascinating homage to Stanley Cooper.”
    The Big Picture · Steven Spielberg's Top 5 Movies With Bill Simmons and Chris Ryan | The Big Picture (Ep. 57) · 0:08:46 · Sean Fennessey (0.85 sure it was them)

The Avengers (2012): 1 line

  1. lineage (lineage) · through Captain Marvel (2019), which they acted in: The Avengers ⇒ Captain Marvel (the host's read). The Tesseract, the glowing box, was a MacGuffin in the first Avengers and in Infinity War.
    “you may remember the Tesseract from the 1st Avengers film, and then, of course, the most recent Avengers film, Avengers Infinity War”
    The Big Picture · ‘Captain Marvel’ Is a ’90s Nostalgia Play. Did It Work? | Exit Survey · 0:09:03 · Sean Fennessey (0.85 sure it was them)

The Shining (1980): 1 line

  1. lineage (homage) · through Ready Player One, which they acted in: The Shining ⇒ Ready Player One (the host's read). Ready Player One has a fun sequence set in the hotel.
    “Ready player one, they go to the hotel.”
    Blank Check — Patreon · The Shining with Timothy Simons (Ad-Free) · 2:26:19 · David Sims (0.40 sure it was them)

Drawn on by

What the speakers say drew on them or a film of theirs, marked the same way.

No line says anything drew on them or a film of theirs.

What the speakers said they did

Acting (6) everyone in acting

What was said about them, by kind

career (5)

  1. career (career): Ben Mendelsohn → Animal Kingdom. Animal Kingdom is where Mendelsohn became a known commodity to Sean.
    “I think he really became a known commodity to me when Animal Kingdom came out”
    The Big Picture · ‘Captain Marvel’ Is a ’90s Nostalgia Play. Did It Work? | Exit Survey · 0:36:06 · Sean Fennessey (0.80 sure it was them)
  2. career (career): Ben Mendelsohn → Terrence Malick. Mendelsohn worked long and prosperously before, including in Terrence Malick and Baz Luhrmann movies.
    “he had appearing Terrence Malik movies and Baz Luhrmann movies”
    The Big Picture · ‘Captain Marvel’ Is a ’90s Nostalgia Play. Did It Work? | Exit Survey · 0:36:23 · Sean Fennessey (0.80 sure it was them)
  3. career (career): Ben Mendelsohn → Rogue One. Mendelsohn played Director Orson Krennic in Rogue One, in a flowing cape.
    “He played a character with just a phenomenal name named Director Orson Krenik.”
    The Big Picture · ‘Captain Marvel’ Is a ’90s Nostalgia Play. Did It Work? | Exit Survey · 0:36:49 · Sean Fennessey (0.80 sure it was them)
  4. career (career): Ben Mendelsohn → Darkest Hour. Mendelsohn played King George VI in Darkest Hour, a bit too in control compared to the stutter.
    “he was King George, the, the, the 6th in Darkest Hour.”
    The Big Picture · ‘Captain Marvel’ Is a ’90s Nostalgia Play. Did It Work? | Exit Survey · 0:36:54 · Sean Fennessey (0.80 sure it was them)
  5. career (career): Ben Mendelsohn → Ready Player One. In Ready Player One he plays Nolan Sorrento, a basic evil corporate villain who still brings flair.
    “where he plays a character named Nolan Sorrento, who's just a villain.”
    The Big Picture · ‘Captain Marvel’ Is a ’90s Nostalgia Play. Did It Work? | Exit Survey · 0:37:43 · Sean Fennessey (0.80 sure it was them)

people (1)

  1. people (people): Mississippi Grind → Ben Mendelsohn. Mississippi Grind features a wonderful Ben Mendelsohn performance.
    “And also features a wonderful Ben Mendelssohn performance who is also very funny in this movie.”
    The Big Picture · ‘Captain Marvel’ Is a ’90s Nostalgia Play. Did It Work? | Exit Survey · 0:22:58 · Sean Fennessey (0.80 sure it was them)

Fun items about them

  1. fun, about Ben Mendelsohn: Sean calls Mendelsohn one of his favorite living people and loves his charmed lisp.
    “he is one of my favorite living people.”
    The Big Picture · ‘Captain Marvel’ Is a ’90s Nostalgia Play. Did It Work? | Exit Survey · 0:35:58 · Sean Fennessey (0.80 sure it was them)