Prepares history: novel, casting, budgets, box office. Reveres the film and thinks it reads as a normal ground-level story. A sucker for Hollywood deal backstory and box office game.
Stances
Praises Keitel and Dafoe casting
Respects Scorsese's persistence and Corman discipline
The film is now well regarded though not 'canonical Marty'
Humor: Deadpan nerd asides and mock outrage about movie titles.
In their words
“It's a very well-regarded movie.” (2:18:48)
“Paul's 1st version, apparently, he has Jesus taking his heart out.” (0:46:13)
Loves 80s star vehicles and detailed Hollywood production history. Is a sucker for Paul Newman and for the idea of living inside a pool hall. Defends polished mid-budget studio work and is wary of Cruise's late-career legacy-sequel plans.
Stances
Hud is among the best screen performances
The first hour of Color of Money is like Citizen Kane; the rest is less thrilling
Cocktail is a dog shit movie but fun
Legacy sequels like Days of Thunder 2 are a mistake
Humor: Dry, quick asides and mock outrage, often pushing back on friends' takes with a deadpan correction.
In their words
“Yeah, my favorite's HUD.” (1:03:56)
“It's a dog shit movie for a stupid movie.” (1:33:18)
Reveres Scorsese's lesser-seen work, loves Addicted to Love and Practical Magic, and delights in awards trivia and box-office rankings. Is a sucker for Hitchcock/noir comparisons and Rosanna Arquette. Hates Weezer covers.
Stances
After Hours is his favorite Scorsese film
Griffin Dunn deserves a director series
Remakes pile on too much incident
Humor: Explosive tangents, trivia dumps and shameless transitions.
In their words
“This is my favorite Martin Scorsese film, unsurprisingly.” (0:11:34)
Loves The Elephant Man and Popeye and cites Altman and Casavetes as favorite directors. Interested in the history, box office and Oscar context around the film. Admires Raging Bull's sound and picture.
Stances
Raging Bull was robbed in Oscars cinematography
Oscars do not respect comedy
The film's moral ambiguity is by design
Humor: Dry, mock-indignant, with the box-office game guessing bits.
In their words
“It is my favorite.” (2:10:47)
“And we know how much Oscars just will not respect comedy.” (2:03:45)
This is his favorite or one of his ten favorite movies and he has seen it 15-20 times; he loves comforting, likable, steady-hand movies and the Aubrey-Maturin friendship. He is a sucker for the weevils dinner scene and ensemble craft, and an Anglophile who saw it at 17 in London.
Stances
This film is a miracle that could not be made today
It is best viewed as dad cinema, now lost to streaming
Praises Bettany's performance as arguably the best in A Beautiful Mind and a strong turn here
Rations rewatches of favorites so they stay special
Humor: Deadpan, quick with a callback and a tangent into Oscar-year trivia and box-office minutiae.
In their words
“It's my favorite movie ever.” (2:53:55)
“I saw it at the Odeon Leicester Square with Howard Amos.” (0:38:37)
A critic who prefers dossier-driven history. Loves action movies like Demolition Man and Jeff Bridges' earthy 90s era. Dislikes elite-school lionization, a recurring bit about Juilliard. Avoids flying since COVID and has twins.
Enthusiastic about Fargo's perfection and its nice-versus-good theme; tends toward film-criticism takes, Oscar history and 1990s box-office. Skeptical of the Dark Marge reading and fond of horror and genre follow-ups like Final Destination.
Stances
Fargo is about the difference between being nice and being a good person
Skeptical of the Dark Marge theory
A Final Destination sequel fan; distrusts stopwatch screen-time stats
Mr. Holland's Opus is trash
Humor: Chewing-ice gags and sarcasm; teases Ben and Griffin with off-handed jabs.
In their words
“I think if anything, this movie is about the difference between being nice and being a good person.” (0:40:48)
“I always question the way that people fucking stop watch these things.” (1:42:45)
Film critic who loves studio-era comeback stories (Sea of Love), Travolta in Get Shorty, and box-office archaeology. Dislikes Travolta's bad instincts, such as Hairspray. Loves the opening-weekend charts, and has strong opinions about Chevy Chase stories.
Stances
Travolta is undeniable when good and annoying when bad
Travolta's Tarantino rescue story is overstated
Sea of Love was Pacino's real comeback
Humor: Deadpan bits and rapid-fire tangents, often at the expense of the guest or a studio.
In their words
“I do think that is my single favorite Travolta movie star performance.” (0:57:48)
“It's Ridley Scott's Black Reign with Michael Douglas.” (2:11:14)
Enjoys Spielberg's crowd-pleasers and Indiana Jones; considers Last Crusade his favorite and his most successful comedy; likes Oscar speculation, Wall Street, Planes Trains and Automobiles, and Adrian Lyne. Dislikes Always.
Stances
Last Crusade is his favorite Indiana Jones
Lincoln is great
Williams should have won for Home Alone
Humor: Quick quip man; plays straight man to Griffin and mocks critics and awards bodies.
In their words
“It is my favorite, but I'm also like, I don't think it's a particularly deep film.” (0:21:06)
“Jurassic Park is the much better version of what the story that Huck is trying to do.” (0:24:09)
“I think he should have won for Home Alone over Dances with Wolves.” (0:38:53)
Marvel and comics devotee who treats Thunderbolt Ross as the best character in the Marvel universe. Loves Harrison Ford's craftsmanship, Bond, and chronicling career arcs; cares about movie-star persona and industry history.
Stances
Harrison Ford's grumpy era began around Hollywood Homicide
Raiders is the greatest distillation of Ford the movie star
Hook is clunky
Humor: Dry and deadpan, plays along with being called cranky and joking about turning into a Red David.
In their words
“Have you ever written Thunderbolt Ross, the best character in the Marvel universe?” (0:01:18)
“What if I become the red David in 2025?” (0:06:49)
He leans on film-critic comparisons (Oppenheimer, Fury Road, The Mist) and loves Lynch's visual-effects ambition and unvarnished plainness. He appreciates structure and ties up the episode's plot, and is skeptical of lore talk, saying it sounds stupid when talked about. He also cares about trivia and media-business details, like People's sexiest man list and ratings.
Stances
Lore is more fun to experience than to explain
Part 8 is both the most abstract and most straightforward episode
The last 15 minutes are among Lynch's best
Ratings and network context matter
Humor: Dry, trivia-driven asides that spiral into offhand references and bits.
In their words
“I will say that like the this stuff is all more fun to watch an experience than it is to talk about.” (1:10:43)
“it's one of the best 15 minutes of his whole career.” (1:43:39)
Treats Dune '84 as a David Lynch movie through and through and loves it as a strange object, with a particular fondness for Lynch's signature fingerprints in the margins. Is the one who flags the sleeper must awaken line as Lynch's invention. Loves Furiosa and has real affection for Alicia Witt.
Stances
It's 100% a David Lynch movie; Lynch overstates how little of him is in it
Sleeper must awaken is Lynch's most important contribution
Villeneuve cracked the populist-but-grown-up Dune
Humor: Big, quick riffs with absurd metaphors (the bracelet with a watch face).
In their words
“I'm David.” (0:05:35)
“It's 100% a David Lynch movie.” (0:08:52)
“I had a huge crush on Alicia Witt, specifically in Sybil.” (0:30:00)
Critic's taste: values craft and performance, loves a good-looking cheap movie. Admires Park as a sensual filmmaker and Tang Wei's inscrutability. Not a Cassavetes fan, but enjoys Eastern Promises and Stronger, and champions Javier Bardem in Lyle Lyle Crocodile.
Stances
Wants movies to be hot without being lurid
Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile sucks but Bardem is incredible
Amsterdam is a film he walked out of in his head
Humor: Dry, deadpan deflation; goes along with the bits.
In their words
“He is absolutely more my guy.” (0:17:52)
“Yeah, that movie sucks, but Javier Bird has incredible in it.” (2:01:52)
Prepared with printed plot synopses and notes, and loves tight gag construction, Keaton's streamlined modernity and trivia (title-card puns, cast and box office). Has an eye for casting names and silent-era minutiae. He gets the box office game right and enjoys obscure film-history jokes.
Stances
Sherlock Jr. is perfect and Keaton's best film
Keaton's modernity and lack of indicating make him timeless
The Navigator is a series of boat bits, a step back after Sherlock Jr.
Humor: Dry, research-fueled asides, name jokes and affectionate teasing of his co-host.
In their words
“I do think it's his best film.” (0:58:11)
“I feel like it's supplanted the general as sort of the critic consensus, perfect Keaton movie.” (0:58:18)
“going on a honeymoon without a bride is like singing in the words of Kiss Me Again to the music of Alice, where art thou?” (2:00:45)
Critic who covers festivals; liked Wendell & Wild at TIFF after a sleepless night. Loves how it looks and the punk soundtrack, appreciates its political point about prisons, and is fond of Monkeybone. Rankings: Coraline 1, Nightmare 2, Peach 3, Wendell & Wild 4, Monkeybone 5.
Stances
Wendell & Wild is great but plotty
Studios should restore theatrical windows
Claydream is essential viewing
Voted Mad God first in the Critics Circle
Humor: Deadpan storyteller who spirals into bits, and owns his own stressed behavior in the Airbnb tale.
In their words
“I think it's great.” (1:53:48)
“I fully like it. But I also support the in spite of its selfness.” (1:53:06)
A film critic who respects movies that provoke a reaction but gives no credit for mere upset. Loves film-history trivia and box-office lore, responds to Star 80 strongly but wants to put it away, and calls Cabaret his sentimental top pick.
Stances
Cabaret is the top Fosse
Star 80 is the weakest Fosse for him
Emotional reaction is not the same as quality
Eric Roberts was seen as a talent in the 80s
Humor: Dry, quick-witted and sarcastic, leaning on movie-star gossip and trivia.
In their words
“I'm a film critic.” (0:55:09)
“There are movies that like upset me that I don't give any credit to.” (0:55:21)
Admires the film's matter-of-fact handling of trauma and its structure as a small-scale epic of one woman's life; anchors discussion with festival and release history. Likes heightened, bright movies and is a self-declared Annie fan. Comfortable gently ribbing Griffin over trivia.
Stances
Praises matter-of-fact restraint over trauma
Notes Campion's rise through film festivals
Believes The Power of the Dog rewards repeat viewing
Likes The Piano but conceded its score is divisive
Humor: Dry, quick ribbing and pop-culture riffs, often at Griffin's expense.
In their words
“I think it was, it's famously the 1st movie I ever saw.” (0:52:41)
“Perhaps the biggest discovery of this film for me.” (1:14:36)
Loves Jeff Bridges, Karen Allen and Oscar-season lore; a fan of Moulin Rouge-era Baz Luhrmann and of a good road movie. Mixed on Charles Martin Smith's role and finds the sex scene off the rack. A sucker for the Midnight Special comparison and the baby-prop weirdness.
Stances
Bridges is among the least pretentious great actors
The sex scene feels divorced from the emotion of the film
Karen Allen deserved a nomination
Box Office Mojo cannot be reformed
Humor: Dry, bit-loving, goes after Griffin with deadpan callbacks; a Hank the Cow Dog true believer.
In their words
“I think Karen Allen absolutely should have been nominated.” (1:00:36)
“Defund box office mojo cannot be reformed at this point.” (2:17:27)
Critic who likes ambitious and pop-oriented movies (Rogue Nation) and has strong opinions on directors; loves Demme but is blunt that Ricki disappoints. Can't stand Jason Reitman and bad-movie trends, and is a sucker for box-office trivia and the Monday-morning numbers game.
Stances
Ricki is disappointing but Demme is not the worst of his own career
Streep and studio interference hijacked the script
Loves Mission: Impossible Rogue Nation
Humor: Dry, contrarian one-liners and mock-outrage.
In their words
“But also, Jason Reitman directs a lot of her movies who I am increasingly cannot stand.” (0:02:39)
“Stephen Frere is the king of mediocrity.” (0:22:38)
A critic who reaches for franchise-career context and Hollywood politics; likes tidy thematic readings (Dune, WALL-E, Starship Troopers comparisons) and a trusted small-scale film. Hates press-trained performative behavior and bad films like The Hustle. A sucker for sandwiches, Spirited Away, and a good fan-theory.
Stances
Nausicaä is a beautiful-feeling world but not a kid's movie
The Farewell may be the movie of the year
Press fatigue and interview transcripts distort people
Ranks Nausicaä as the buggiest Miyazaki
Humor: Dry and conversational, he undercuts earnest moments with fandom needling and food tangents.
In their words
“I don't know what a kid gets from this movie.” (1:41:57)
“I think it's more of a movie for teens.” (1:42:05)
“It is nuts.” (0:31:20)
Their shows' recurring bits
Running bits, not opinions; a critic read aloud is cited, not present.
The Big Picture
Drafts: Hosts and guests draft films in rounds; every pick is a recommendation with an argument.
Hall of Fame: A star's or director's best, ranked and argued.
Countdowns: Ranked lists, top five or top ten.
Blank Check with Griffin & David
The box office game: Guessing the film's opening weekend and what it was up against.
The sung theme: "Blank Check with Griffin and David", sung; the transcriber garbles it.
Their claims
Showing 1–100 of 1,091 claims.
unmapped (controversy):
The Last Temptation of Christ → Kundun.
Kundun, via Chinese government anger, is offered as a rival for Scorsese's most controversial film.
“If you're going by pure numbers, I guess you could go for Kundu”
unmapped (controversy):
The Last Temptation of Christ → Benedetta.
Protest against Benedetta was six nuns, showing religious outrage has faded since Last Temptation.
“it kind of shows that they just can't be bothered anymore.”
lineage (origin of project):
Barbara Hershey → The Last Temptation of Christ.
Hershey also planted the book in Scorsese's head and told him to let her audition as Mary Magdalene.
theme (shared locations):
The Last Temptation of Christ → Ishtar.
Per Miriam Bale, it shares many Moroccan locations with Ishtar, shot around the same time.
“Yes, it shares a lot of locations with Ishtar, which was made around the same time.”
industry (business deal):
The Last Temptation of Christ → Cape Fear.
Universal's deal to make Last Temptation obliged a bigger film later, resulting in the Spielberg swap and Cape Fear.
“it gets fear is a direct result of his deal with Universal for this month.”
industry (Oscar oddity list):
The Last Temptation of Christ → Satyricon.
Collider's list of films with a lone director nomination includes Satyricon and Last Temptation.
lineage (legacy-sequel precedent):
The Color of Money → Return to Oz.
Reddit consensus calls Color of Money the first legacy sequel, with Return to Oz as a debated earlier candidate dismissed as too weird.
“Uh, color money is generally agreed to on to be the 1st legacy sequel. Some people are like, does return to Oz count?”
career (career pivot):
The Color of Money → After Hours.
After Last Temptation failed in the early 80s, Scorsese made cheap After Hours to prove he could finish something, then took Color of Money.
“Uh, it fails and so he makes after hours as a sort of pivot out of that of like, I'll just do something.”
lineage (legacy-sequel heirs):
The Color of Money → Top Gun: Maverick.
Gap-based legacy sequels like Top Gun Maverick, Tron Legacy and Blade Runner follow the template Color of Money invented, though in 1986 sequels were derided.
“now we get more and more like your your Tron legacies and your Top Gun Mavericks, where it's just casually... 37, 40 years later”
industry (box office rival):
The Color of Money → Crocodile Dundee.
Color of Money opened number two in October 1986; Crocodile Dundee was the year's number one hit.
“Number one at the box office. is a film we've covered, one of the biggest hits of 1986.”
career (career arc):
Addicted to Love → Election.
Broderick's 90s search for a new persona (Godzilla, Inspector Gadget, Addicted to Love) ends when Election cracks it.
“And then election is how he like closes out the decade where he's like, you fucking cracked it.”
verdict (rewatch-frequency / favorites):
Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World → Jerry Maguire.
David lists Master and Commander among favorites seen many times, like Jerry Maguire (40 times), versus Late Spring, which he rates among the greatest but has seen 2-3 times.
“It's sort of like Jerry Maguire, I've seen 40 times. Master and commander have seen it many, many, many, many.”
theme (shared-motif):
Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World → The Truman Show.
Asked how the studio sold a Weir boat movie, the hosts note the poster could not say 'from the director of The Truman Show' but both films have sailing scenes.
industry (dad-movie / theatrical-vs-streaming):
Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World → Greyhound.
Greyhound, a naval Tom Hanks movie meant for theaters, went to Apple TV because of COVID, showing the dad audience now lives on streaming, unlike when this film got a major-studio release.
“the number one movie in the history of Apple Plus is Tom Hanks's Greyhound, which was meant to be a theatrical movie.”
verdict (teen-favorites-that-year):
Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World → Elephant.
David's favorite movies at 17 in 2003 included Elephant and All the Real Girls, alongside Lord of the Rings, X2, 28 Days Later and Kill Bill; Master and Commander was liked but grew over time.
“My favorite movies of that year were elephant, which was a big movie for me then.”
lineage (marriage / origin):
Paul Bettany → Jennifer Connelly.
Bettany and Connelly met on A Beautiful Mind where his character is imaginary and shares no scenes with her; after 9/11 he called her and they married about six months later.
people (casting-ideal):
Russell Crowe → Richard Burton.
Weir's ideal Aubrey would have been Richard Burton; Crowe is the closest you get in 2000, and Hodgman says Burton lacks Crowe's humor.
“Weir says his ideal choice would have been Richard Burton. Unfortunately, he was very dead.”
unmapped (star-type):
Russell Crowe → Ben-Hur.
Quoting Lex G on Ben-Hur's Charlton Heston who could be larger than life yet steady, they say Crowe is the one modern guy who can do that.
“no one can hold a movie like this and sort of know how to be larger than life, but also just steady at the center.”
unmapped (only-guy-who-can):
Russell Crowe → Exodus: Gods and Kings.
When someone else, even a proven actor like Christian Bale, tries the big-epic role, audiences don't buy it; Crowe is the one who can pull it off.
“when they try to put someone else into this, even when it is a proven actor, like you get fucking Exodus gods and kings with Christian Bale is Moses and everyone's like not buying it.”
people (actor-other-work / career-trajectory):
Billy Boyd → The Lord of the Rings.
Dominic Monaghan said that while Billy Boyd was off on this ship of the line, his own career stalled after the LOTR films, then flipped.
“I have this like double act with Boyd. We make these 3 movies together. And then I couldn't book a gig for 2 years.”
people (cinematographer-return):
Russell Boyd → Picnic at Hanging Rock.
Boyd shot Picnic, Last Wave, Gallipoli and Year of Living Dangerously for Weir; he and Weir reunited by chance on an airplane for this film.
“Peter Weir made his 1st 4 films or no, 4 of his early films, though, with Russell Boyd, picnic, uh, wave, Gallipoli dangerously.”
career (career):
John Steele → Russell Boyd.
Weir used John Steele, Boyd's assistant on some of the earlier films, as his cinematographer before Boyd came back for this film.
“It's just like he started using John Steele, who was the assistant on some of the earlier stuff, and then the, you know, he went to Hollywood.”
unmapped (shared-technology):
Titanic → White Squall.
Ridley Scott made 1492 and White Squall in a Gibraltar tank, but it had fallen into disrepair, which is why Cameron's tank mattered.
“Scott had made both 1492 and White Squall, I think, in a tank in Gibraltar, but that tank was in disrepair.”
“I can tell you, according to Nathan McGillis, McGinnis from Asylum, another VFX company. There's not one piece of ocean in that storm sequence that isn't real.”
“Peter Weir, Wolfgang Peterson. Rob Reiner, Jonathan Demi, the great bad Brad Silverling, director of your favorite Casper, participate in a creative bake off”
verdict (tangent-from-review):
Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home → Star Trek (franchise, generally).
Prompted by the review's Star Trek comparison, the hosts digress on Star Trek IV: Scotty talking into the Mac mouse, Chekov's 'nuclear wessels', and its box-office spike as the one entry needing no prior viewing. (No Wrath of Khan is mentioned in the episode.)
“it is fascinating to look at the box office spike on 4 because it was the one movie where they could just market it and be like, you don't need to have seen any fucking Star Trek.”
career (career guarantor):
The Year of Living Dangerously → Witness.
Year of Living Dangerously got Weir into Hollywood; Witness is the guarantor of his Hollywood run.
“I think witness is the guarantor for the next... for the Hollywood story.”
industry (awards competition):
Fearless → Schindler's List.
Fearless lost heat to that year's heavy hitters Schindler's List, The Piano and The Fugitive.
contrast (contrast):
Fearless → Flight.
Both are post-crash aftermath movies, but Fearless is in conversation with the intangible while Flight resolves into two pre-set systems (sobriety and faith).
“Whereas I'm like, this movie is spiritual because it's in conversation with the intangible.”
career (career):
Rosie Perez → In Living Color.
Perez came to acting from choreographing the Fly Girls on In Living Color; Do the Right Thing was her first movie.
“she's, of course, a Flygirl choreographer on a living color, right?”
unmapped (screen presence):
Benicio del Toro → The Usual Suspects.
In the 90s del Toro was almost too interesting, like a Philip Glass score in a movie.
“Like, you know, especially things like usual suspects is he is like a Philip Glass score in a movie where you're just like, he's almost too interesting.”
people (cinematography):
Fearless → Allen Daviau.
Daviau, fresh off Spielberg films, shot Fearless; the first American DP Blank Check covered with Weir.
“Alan Davio shot this film, who, of course, the 1st American cinematographer that we had worked with.”
craft (craft):
Peter Weir → John Seale.
Before Fearless, Weir mostly kept his Australian above-the-line crew such as John Seale; Allen Daviau was the first American cinematographer the show covered with him.
“He mostly kept his, like, above the line, Australian, John, John Seal, and guys like that.”
craft (craft):
Fearless → Allen Daviau.
The speaker praises how Fearless looks, a film about absorbing textures and the feeling in the air, tied to Daviau shooting it.
“this film looks incredible and this is a movie that needs to just look good because it's so much about like absorbing textures of things and and the space and the feeling in the air”
“They had to overdub him swearing because they didn't want it to if they wanted to be able to say he's still like he is not sullied by the swear words.”
fun, about
The Judge:
The judge's tell is that he forgets his bailiff's name; the hosts say it is set up in the first scene and is open and shut at trial, yet they convict him anyway.
“The bailiff who he's had at his side for like 30 years.”
fun, about
Warner Bros.:
The Judge's tornado father-son fight is a Man of Steel homage, so Warner Bros. is the go-to studio for father-and-son tornado fights.
“Warner Brothers has become the go to studios for tornado fights.”
fun, about
Robert Downey Jr.:
Pitch to Downey for an Oscar: play Buster Keaton, whose voice was a gravelly surprise after MGM made him do talkies with Jimmy Durante.
fun, about
Joel Kinnaman:
Kinnaman said his dad, an American soldier, deserted during Vietnam and ended up in Sweden; he spoke English with his dad and Swedish with his mom.
“I spoke English with my dad in Swedish with my mom.”
fun, about
RoboCop (2014) - suit:
The first suit reveal got an awful response a week or two into filming, so the production panicked and had two weeks to build a second, 80s-style suit that could fit only 15 to 20 minutes of the film.
“the production panicked when the 1st photos came out and the response was so bad”
fun, about
Jackie Earle Haley:
Haley told the host while filming The Tick that he was proud of this performance because it was a different thing he doesn't usually get.
fun, about
RoboCop (2014) - ending:
The final showdown is Keaton holding the wife and son at gunpoint on a rooftop helipad to get away in a helicopter.
“The final showdown of this movie is Michael Keaton holding Alex Murphy's wife and sonic gunpoint on the rooftop helipad.”
fun, about
Samuel L. Jackson:
The film ends with Jackson saying good night; the host jokes that his favorite part of his movies is when he doesn't say motherfucker.
“It's my favorite part of his movies is when he doesn't say motherfucker.”
fun, about
RoboCop (2014) - sequel:
Neill Blomkamp was attached to a sequel and Neumeier and Miner came back with an old-man script called RoboCop Returns; it never happened.
fun, about
Six Men Getting Sick:
Lynch's first proper short is a one-minute film of casts of Jack Fisk's head throwing up; it earned him a $1000 grant.
“It's a one minute film of these like weird casts of Jack Fisk's head throwing up.”
fun, about
Eraserhead:
After rejections from Cannes' Directors' Fortnight and the New York Film Festival, a bad Variety review at Filmex led Lynch to cut about 20 minutes.
“Lynch then cuts about 20 minutes out of the movie.”
fun, about
Andrew Kevin Walker:
Fincher pitched Walker a five-chapter plan for The Killer in 2008, nothing happened for ten years, then in 2018 he recited it back word for word and said he was set up at Netflix. Walker told this at the Q&A.
“And then 2018, he goes, do you remember that killer thing?”
fun, about
Michael Fassbender:
Halfway through the shoot Fassbender told Fincher he finally got it: precision modeling, holding a head position for long takes.
fun, about
Erik Messerschmidt:
Michael Mann told the speaker he likes Messerschmidt (Gone Girl's gaffer, now DP on Ferrari) because cinematography is all lighting.
“to me, cinematography is all lighting and no one understands lighting anymore.”
fun, about
The Social Network:
The 166-page script was too long for Sony; Fincher and Sorkin read it aloud against a stopwatch and it came out at two hours.
“And Fincher was like, you and me are going to sit down and read the script.”
fun, about
Armie Hammer:
The twin effect (Hammer plus Josh Pence's body) is called one of Fincher's most impressive technical feats, though the 4K shows a little deep-fake tracking on big moves.
“honestly, maybe one of the most impressive things Fincher has ever done technically.”
fun, about
Rick Springfield:
Springfield owns one of the great Star Wars action figure collections, though by his own admission he is more a figure fan than a movie fan; the hosts tie it to Fincher's Return of the Jedi credit.
“Rick Springfield has one of the greatest Star Wars action figure collections in the world.”
fun, about
David Fincher:
A host says Fincher thinks the death of the music video cost a generation of visually distinctive filmmakers their training ground.
“the death of the music video has really been at the expense of a new generation of visually distinctive filmmakers coming up.”
fun, about
Nicole Kidman:
If Fincher had shut the film down after Kidman's injury, the insurance would have paid out a profit.
“They basically, I mean, the numbers I saw, there was some sort of calculation of like, if they had shut the movie down and just never started filming again, they would have made $3000000 off the insurance.”
fun, about
The Game:
Fincher on Douglas, as read from the dossier: the story is a little prurient and sadistic because you enjoy the central character's suffering, and nobody embraces that as eagerly as Douglas.
“You want to see him learn a lesson, and nobody embraces that quite as eagerly as Michael Douglas.”
fun, about
The Sky Is Falling (unmade):
Fincher's post-Se7en idea: two clerics on a dig find proof that God is dead and are hunted by a terminally ill hitman.
“Two clerics on an archaeological dig, discover proof that God is actually dead.”
fun, about
The Game:
Fincher wanted the audience to have nothing to hold on to; he calls it a movie about movies, where the protagonist doesn't know how to act like a movie star.
fun, about
Jodie Foster:
She wanted to play the waitress; Fincher said she was too famous; she suggested sister, then daughter, then Douglas refused to play her father; she was written out and sued.
“She then filed a huge lawsuit saying she was supposed to be in it.”
fun, about
The Game:
Not in print for a long time (a Polygram issue, per a host); the Criterion Blu-ray in 2012 carried features shot during production for Criterion.
“This is a movie that was like not in print for a very long time.”
fun, about
The Full Monty:
At 5 weeks in 387 theaters it was on its way to a best picture nomination; one host picked it down the ballot at an Oscar party against Titanic.
fun, about
Panic Room:
The three-disc Panic Room DVD is called the most comprehensive special-feature package for any movie ever, and the movie is not on Blu-ray.
“peak DVD Fincher being like every single 2nd of this will be documented.”
fun, about
Jordan Cronenweth:
The first cinematographer was diagnosed with Parkinson's weeks in, barely shot anything, but set the look; Alex Thomson took over, and the son later became Fincher's DP.
“He barely shot anything, but he set the look that then was continued.”
fun, about
Henry Selick:
Selick on Burton: five set visits in two years, 8 to 10 hours total; 'it was like me adapting a book that was never actually written.'
“it was like me adapting a book that was never actually written.”
fun, about
Tim Burton:
Burton and Selick fought over the Oogie ending (Scooby-Doo reveal that he's Finkelstein); the fight reportedly ruined an editing bay.
“Selleck wanted the ending to be that Oogie Boogie was actually Dr. Finkelstein in disguise.”
fun, about
Henry Selick:
1994 Sight and Sound quote read to close: audiences are more open than Hollywood imagines; the stranger the imagery, the straighter the story.
“But the audience is more open than Hollywood imagines.”
fun, about
Henry Thomas / Doctor Sleep:
Henry Thomas, Elliott from E.T., plays Jack Torrance in the bar scene, shot in profile with his chin down; the host did not recognize him until the credits.
“And then somehow the moment he comes on screen and the entire scene, extended scene is all done from profile.”
fun, about
Ewan McGregor / The Island:
A studio exec threw The Island under the bus: the mistake was hiring the stars of tomorrow rather than the stars of today.
“the mistake we made was hiring the stars of tomorrow rather than the stars of today.”
fun, about
Rebecca Ferguson:
A host notices her Irish accent slips in on purpose, since Rose has lived thousands of years and the roots are nearly gone.
“She is choosing to have an Irish accent slip in sometime, because the point is this character has been alive for 1000s of years.”
fun, about
Doctor Sleep:
In the baseball scene a sideline parent is the actor who played Danny in The Shining, now a school teacher who was excited to do it.