Loves movie-star, over-the-top, kinetic filmmaking (JFK, The Verdict, A Few Good Men) and old-school craft; favors Paul Newman. Willing to admire films he doesn't believe in. Sucker for big speeches and taste-making directors.
Stances
Courtroom drama must be in the courtroom: no legal thrillers, no 12 Angry Men
JFK is a masterpiece despite being hogwash
Winner of the A Few Good Men scene is Tom Cruise
Humor: Mock-legalistic framing and affectionate hyperbole.
Loves the theatrical culture of places like Alamo Drafthouse, pedigreed auteurs (Fincher, Nolan, the Coens), and deep film-history binges. Can't stand corporate pettiness dressed as principle, and thinks The King's Speech beating The Social Network should die in a fire. A sucker for trivia glory and big awards-season structure (wants 75 awards).
Stances
Theaters will survive as a boutique business but wide-scale moviegoing will not last five years
Netflix's lead of finished movies makes it well positioned for the Oscars
Windowing will change and studios will test higher VOD price points
Humor: Mock-grandiose and self-aware, with bits like hosting a five-day awards festival and running out of frame during trivia.
In their words
“There should be 75 awards.” (0:50:42)
“I'm just trying to have a cinematic experience at all times.” (1:06:36)
Loves big, noisy, auteur and genre-bending work: The Lighthouse, Midsommar's ending, Alita and 6 Underground action, Gemini Man, Triple Frontier. Wants more categories and a nine-hour ceremony; adores Paul Walter Hauser and Uncut Gems. Can't stand news-anchor cameos in fiction and Oscar-bait homogeneity.
Stances
Wants more Oscar categories, not fewer
Spider-Man's post-credits scene counts as an ending
Defends Midsommar and The Lighthouse
Wants a casting Oscar and a best first feature
Humor: Cheerfully obsessive and self-mocking about his hobby-horse enthusiasms (the minute-by-minute Lighthouse podcast), with mock-legalistic rule enforcement.
In their words
“I will be starting one of those for the lighthouse.” (0:52:43)
“I personally would like there to be a 9 hours Oscar ceremony.” (0:12:22)
“Have you ever been sewn inside of a bear skin and lit on fire in a giant triangle.” (0:45:39)
Loves Parasite, Marriage Story, Little Women, Uncut Gems and champions Toy Story 4. Prickly toward Joker-style noisy awards bait, wants more fun and weirdness at the Oscars. Sucker for Hark segments and sporting analogies.
Stances
Academy has a taste gap against pop culture and women's stories
He loves The Cabin in the Woods, It Follows and The Witch and likes discussion-making horror like Get Out, but he distrusts elevated-horror branding. He wants to be physically dominated by a horror film, and says he is dead inside and cynical, so he is impressed when a film makes him feel something.
Stances
Get Out is the best horror film of the decade
Elevated horror is an ugly phrase
Horror needs something supernatural or extraordinarily visceral to qualify
Wingard is creative but ultimately disappointing
Humor: Deadpan needler of his guest who takes bits to their end, like the Tim Apple joke.
In their words
“I tend to think there has to be something either supernatural or extraordinarily visceral about the movie to qualify.” (0:10:18)
“I think I'm pretty dead inside and very cynical.” (0:11:46)
Loves big, event-level filmmaking and prizes one great movie over a great season of TV; he is a champion of Once Upon a Time in Hollywood and of Tarantino and Anderson. Likes working through discourse and being a guide who tells friends what to see or skip. Has a soft spot for old-fashioned Hollywood comedy and for Mike Nichols.
Stances
One great movie beats prestige TV
Disney's dominance is overwhelming but not to be underestimated (Cameron)
Streaming may hollow out comedies made without theatrical money
Was surprised and moved by Luce
Humor: Dry deadpan teasing of co-hosts with running bits and impressions, such as PTA at D23.
In their words
“I still would always, always, always rather have one great movie than an experience like that.” (0:52:42)
“And that's why this is the big picture and not the watch.” (0:52:43)
Loves long things, big-tent Oscar movies (Ford v Ferrari, Once Upon a Time) and the business and career-arc angle of franchises. Skeptical of Tom Hooper and unclear streaming strategies; cares about artists controlling their image. As interviewer he probes how Garfield picks directors.
Stances
Homecoming is long, not boring, and great because of Beyonce the performer
Guava Island lacks a strategic purpose and sits outside Glover's mission
Under the Silver Lake has been slightly mischaracterized in the press
Humor: Self-deprecating wonk who plays his own wounded vanity for laughs and teases Amanda with Star Wars archetypes.
In their words
“I'm a big fan of long things.” (0:05:20)
“I am confused about what the strategic purpose of something like that is.” (0:11:33)
“This is upsetting how you have targeted my feelings.” (1:07:11)
Fennessey likes fun, audience-pleasing superhero movies that do something different and cares about tone and the business of the DCEU. He is curious about process, and is a fan of the filmmakers he interviews. He enjoyed Shazam!, though he found the final fight less effective.
Stances
DC's turn from interconnection to standalone movies is interesting and lower-risk
Shazam!'s first half works better than its punch-up ending
Wants to know how directors communicate what is in their heads
Humor: Dry and teasing, as in his mock-eager 'Can't wait for the trench.'
In their words
“I thought Shazam was a very fun and entertaining movie” (0:01:41)
“I don't think that part was as effective.” (0:05:55)
Loves origin-story craft done efficiently, Ben Mendelsohn, indie directors like Boden and Fleck, and Annette Bening. Bothered by surface-level 90s nostalgia, a rickety Marvel mythology load, and a character too powerful for stakes. Sucker for comic lore and for character actors.
Stances
Captain Marvel is rickety, overstuffed, and does too many jobs
Boden and Fleck taking a big-studio job is understandable, not a sellout
Captain Marvel is too powerful to build tension around
Wonder Woman did the origin story better
Humor: Dry teasing of Amanda's comic-book blind spots and deadpan asides about names like Yon-Rogg.
In their words
“I can't believe Jan Rag is the name of a character that I'm talking about on a podcast.” (0:07:03)
“he is one of my favorite living people.” (0:35:58)
“it's funny to see, you know, the McDonald's Happy Meal version of those movies in a lot of ways.” (0:25:50)
Defends Roma as a masterpiece worth reclaiming, loves Spider-Verse (the self-declared devotee), and takes Avengers: Infinity War seriously. Likes craft people with a through-line (Libatique, Corwin). Cannot stand the Oscars' song performances and the Green Book result.
Stances
Green Book winning is a farce
Bohemian Rhapsody should not be taken as great cinema
Spider-Verse beats Sense and Sensibility
Humor: Deadpan and bit-driven, with running gags like the Close Zone and the jar of cold fusion.
In their words
“I am putting my money down right now that says Spider-Verse better than Sense and Sensibility.” (1:00:25)
“green book winning best picture is a farce.” (0:22:56)
Loves GLOW and big, sincere genre movies, and is a hardcore former WWE kid who still lights up at Beyond the Mat. Treats wrestling movies as an industry phenomenon worth tracking. Is a sucker for lists and double features.
Stances
Fighting with My Family signals a more refined era of movies and wrestling
Rocky is the template for sports films
Wants guests' favorite lists (loves the 500-movie idea)
Humor: Dry, quick teasing, such as his joke about Michael B. Jordan in a Junkyard Dog biopic and Die Hard 8 or a Red Desert remake.
In their words
“I'm a huge fan of that show.” (0:03:35)
“I remember being a such such a hardcore WWE fan when that came out” (0:15:27)
“This is exactly my sort of thing.” (0:51:34)
“imagine Michael B. Jordan signing up for, you know, the junkyard dog biopic right now.” (0:09:47)
Loves a clear narrative and critics' consensus picks; Roma, Beale Street and Spider-Verse are his side. Cannot stand the HFPA and films that claim truth while drawing criticism. Sucker for Queen songs and Mahershala Ali.
Stances
Green Book and Bohemian Rhapsody are not the best of the year
Globes versus critics is a problem for Roma and Star
Academy is lost without a plan
Humor: Mock-outrage escalation and self-aware yelling about a meaningless award show.
In their words
“I don't hate green book.” (0:10:42)
“We have to be able as a society and also as people who freaking vote on awards” (0:14:47)
Loves films that are sincere, meta and inventive, and praises vocal performance and rap on a soundtrack. Quick to dismiss the generic superhero origin slog and the lowered bar of Aquaman. A sucker for comic-book feel and a good casting parlor game.
Stances
Spider-Verse is extraordinary and unlike any animated movie
Origin stories are overdone, but the film subverts the trope
Rooting for it to win best animated feature
Having several Spider-Man continuities is a lot for a weekly film writer
Humor: Dry, self-deprecating, acting the aging man and the adult who tucks in his shirt.
In their words
“It's absolutely fantastic.” (0:01:29)
“I now find myself rooting for it for this strange silly award.” (0:29:24)
Loves Oscar-season contenders and deep conversations with filmmakers; says he just really loved Eighth Grade. Little else is stated in this trailer.
Stances
The Big Picture is moving out of the channel 33 feed into its own feed
Will cover more Oscar contenders and filmmaker interviews
Humor: Brief and promotional; no real jokes in the trailer.
In their words
“We're going to keep bringing you more banter about this year's Oscar contenders and more deep conversations with the filmmakers behind them” (0:00:17)
Loves the lean, tightly-told Spielberg entertainments like Jurassic Park and Raiders, and rates Close Encounters and Schindler's List highly. Is lukewarm on E.T. and Munich and a skeptic of the long-form Spielberg-as-prestige push. A sucker for Tom Cruise talk and Day-Lewis.
Stances
Jaws is the perfect movie
Munich is overrated
E.T. is fine but not a favorite
Close Encounters deserved a higher spot than he gave it
Humor: Dry, needling, and self-aware about the show's habits (Tom Cruise riffs, 'safe space').
In their words
“The more I look at my list, the more boring it feels to me.” (0:18:42)
“Will there ever be a podcast where you and I don't talk about what Tom Cruise should do next?” (1:02:21)
Admires the craft of this film and wants to know how directors build rhythm and performance. Interested in awards, box office and streaming. Ends interviews with a last-great-thing question.
Stances
Curious about how a chamber piece becomes propulsive
Presses on awards and box office
Humor: Dry and light; teases with a superhero question and the Friday sing-along.
In their words
“So no superhero movies coming from you anytime soon?” (0:22:54)
“I will start applying the Friday sing-along.” (0:19:03)
Loves the MCU best and thinks it is the most important film business now. Frames everything in industry terms: genre cycles, infrastructure, risk. Skeptical of DC's lack of voice and Snyder.
Stances
Superhero movies are the only movies of consequence in studios
Marvel's strength is infrastructure and filmmaker choice
Genres are most vulnerable when they seem strongest
Humor: Dry host asides and self-deprecation, like claiming empathy for Scott Summers.
In their words
“what matters is the infrastructure.” (0:55:28)
“are never more vulnerable than when they seem strongest.” (0:55:31)
Loves uncomfortable, unusual comedy and says he really loved Lemon. Draws lines from film to TV (Curb, Atlanta) and reaches for Twin Peaks as a tonal comparison. Likes ending interviews on what people are watching.
Stances
Lemon is awkward, fascinating and deeply unusual
Awkward comedy has evolved from Curb
Humor: Dry, teasing; jabs at the guests and himself.
Interested in directors' careers and the industry's shape; pushes on obsession, failure and reception. Notes how many filmmakers now pitch TV. Knows his jungle-film canon.
Stances
Frames Gray as a great American filmmaker deserving more notice
Curious how the Amazon release and streaming change moviegoing
Humor: Dry and light; mostly a straight interviewer.
In their words
“Yeah, Bird of Dream, sure.” (0:07:04)
“You have resisted the urge to make a TV project.” (0:30:24)
“I'm curious that you've partnered with Amazon to release the movie.” (0:26:31)
Calls himself one of America's preeminent Mank defenders and watched it four times in the 2020 Oscar season. Loves Citizen Kane, Paramount in the 70s, and the studio-hand-as-auteur idea. Dislikes Mank-mid takes that he thinks are phony and a Welles-defense posture he calls bullying.
Stances
Mank is a summation of Fincher's worldview and his father's influence
Welles defenders are bullying, not bullied
The Offer is compellingly bad but he finished all ten episodes
Netflix should not be Fincher's only home
Humor: Dry film-critic asides and confessions of excess, like watching Saw X at ten in the morning.
In their words
“I watched it 4 times in the Oscar season of 2020 to 2021.” (0:17:23)
“I don't do drugs.” (0:14:39)
“I not only watched it but I completed it.” (1:06:08)
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.
The Rewatchables
Apex Mountain: The moment a star peaks; where on the mountain a performance sits.
Who Won the Movie: The hosts name the person who came out of the film best off.
The Ebert review: Roger Ebert's original review and star rating read aloud. Ebert is cited, never on the show.
Casting what-ifs: Who was almost cast, or who should have been.
Most rewatchable scene: The scene each host would stop on while flipping channels.
Aged best / aged worst: What holds up and what does not.
Picking Nits: The little things in a film the hosts love that they don't think totally work: the nits.
Double feature: The film each host would pair it with; a programming pick.
Their claims
Showing 201–300 of 1,576 claims.
unmapped (archetype successor):
Pete Davidson → Chevy Chase.
Davidson in his Staten Island movie plays the 2020 version of the wisecracking, can't-be-serious Chase archetype.
“He's basically doing 2020 Chevy Chase in a lot of ways in that movie.”
lineage (failed remake):
Fletch → Kevin Smith.
Kevin Smith spent years trying to remake Fletch with Jason Lee; Weinstein said Lee was not a big enough name, Affleck entered, then Bill Lawrence, and it died.
“Harvey Weinstein's like he's not a big enough name.”
unmapped (critic split):
Gene Siskel → Roger Ebert.
Siskel understood Chase's detached persona was the point of Fletch; Ebert gave 2.5 stars and wanted a character to invest in.
people (casting symmetry):
Tim Matheson → Animal House.
Otter was written for Chase, so Matheson's Animal House turn is a Chase impression; in Fletch Matheson hunts a lookalike to kill.
“So then when you watch Animal House, Tim Matheson is just doing a Chevy Chase impersonation, it's not actually Chevy Chase.”
industry (marketing context):
Fletch → Beverly Hills Cop.
Once Beverly Hills Cop hit, Fletch could be sold as an action comedy with Faltermeyer music and two action sequences.
“as soon as Beverly Hills cop hit, this movie made a lot more sense because you could put 2 big action sequences in it”
theme (noir plotting):
Fletch → Raymond Chandler.
Alan Stanwick's incoherent plan is Raymond Chandler style; Faulkner famously could not get the plot of The Big Sleep out of Chandler.
contrast (contrast):
Harold Faltermeyer → Stephanie Mills.
Speaker prefers Faltermeyer's score to the Stephanie Mills theme song 'Bit by Bit' that opens Fletch.
“I don't like the Stephanie Mills bit by bit at the beginning.”
unmapped (wardrobe knack):
Chevy Chase → Eddie Murphy.
Both could wear terrible 80s clothes and look cool, Murphy in Beverly Hills Cop, Chase in Fletch.
“him and Eddie Murphy had a real knack for being able to wear absolute dog shit clothes and make them look really cool.”
what-if (recast what-if):
Dana Wheeler-Nicholson → Elizabeth Shue.
Sean says casting Elizabeth Shue or Sharon Stone as Gail Stanwick would make Fletch a thousand times better.
“if you just put Elizabeth Shu or Sharon Stone in this movie, it's a 1000 times better.”
lineage (career origin):
Joe Don Baker → Walking Tall.
Baker is recognized by people 35 and over from Walking Tall, and later roasted in the MST3K episode Mitchell.
“Yeah, walking tall was kind of a borderline phenomenon when it came out.”
lineage (character lineage):
Alan Ruck → The Breakfast Club.
Cameron is an extension of Anthony Michael Hall's Breakfast Club character, with similar anxiety and a near suicide beat.
“Yeah, it's kind of an extension of the Anthony Michael Hall character in Breakfast Club.”
contrast (persona inversion):
Matthew Broderick → The Cable Guy.
Within ten years Broderick is playing Cameron-like weak men in The Cable Guy, inverting his Ferris persona.
“within 10 years, he's in the cable guy basically just playing Cameron.”
“literally the I dream of Jeannie song and the Star Wars theme appear in the movie, and those songs don't belong to the movie, and yet they do at the same time.”
people (casting contrast):
Jeffrey Jones → Paul Gleason.
Jones is more sitcommy like Laurel and Hardy while Gleason is a huge prick; Jones was the right choice for tone.
“Paul Gleason has a different energy than Jeffrey Jones.”
career (career-arc comparison):
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood → The Verdict.
This period of Pitt (Moneyball, OUATIH) is likened to Newman's The Verdict and Color of Money stage.
“once upon a time in Hollywood is, like, almost like verdict, color of Money Newman.”
craft (craft):
Casino Royale → Quantum of Solace.
Casino Royale sung by Chris Cornell and Quantum by Jack White and Alicia Keys, both strange compared with Adele.
“theme song in Quantum of Solace is sung by Jack White and Alicia Keys, and it's actually quite strange.”
craft (craft):
Roger Deakins → Skyfall.
The shot-from-behind-Bond's-shoulder Silva intro is Deakins photography, and the movie is candy for movie nerds.
career (career):
Sean Connery → Daniel Craig.
Craig is a legitimately great actor, which wasn't true of most Bonds; Connery hadn't yet built his chops.
“They were great movie performers, but not necessarily great actors.”
lineage (lineage):
Beverly Hills Cop → Mean Streets.
The Detroit opening with the two guys in the truck has a Mean Streets moment that distinguishes it from other 80s blockbusters.
“I love the fact that they just like kind of have this mean streets moment in the beginning of this movie.”
industry (Oscar snub):
Do the Right Thing → Driving Miss Daisy.
Driving Miss Daisy won best picture the year Do the Right Thing was not nominated; the snub is the reason the film is remembered in awards history.
“This is, of course, the year that driving Miss Daisy won best picture.”
craft (craft):
Do the Right Thing → Ernest Dickerson.
The speaker calls it one of the most beautifully shot films he has seen, crediting Dickerson's color, weather and tilted camera angles.
“It's one of the most beautifully shot films I've ever seen. Ernest Dickerson.”
contrast (tone contrast):
Do the Right Thing → Wedding Crashers.
Most Rewatchables picks are quotable fun like Wedding Crashers; this movie is different.
“a lot of the movies we do on this show are like wedding crashers.”
contrast (tone contrast):
Do the Right Thing → Beverly Hills Cop.
Beverly Hills Cop is a comfort rewatch whose social import is extra-textual; Do the Right Thing is working hard to be important and disrupt comfort.
“it's working hard to be important, and it's working hard to disrupt your feeling of ease and comfort.”
lineage (pseudo-sequel):
Red Hook Summer → Do the Right Thing.
Mookie reappears delivering for a Sal's that has relocated to Red Hook, though Spike insisted it was not a sequel.
contrast (critical opposite):
Roger Ebert → David Denby.
Ebert's Cannes tears and empathy versus Denby's New York magazine scorn; Sean calls Denby's one of the worst pieces of criticism he has read.
“You know, one of the worst pieces of film criticism that I've ever read.”
unmapped (commercial work):
Spike Lee → Michael Jordan.
Spike was famous partly via Mars Blackmon and the Michael Jordan commercials, which colored critical reception.
“he was a famous person in part because of Mars Blackman in part because of Michael Jordan and the commercial work that he did.”
unmapped (political framing):
Joe Klein → David Dinkins.
Klein framed the movie as a problem for Dinkins' mayoral campaign, the opposite of Spike's intent.
“The way that Klein positioned it was in opposition to David Dinkin's mayoral campaign.”
people (collaborator):
Spike Lee → Ernest Dickerson.
Dickerson, Spike's DP here, went on to be a filmmaker without a huge public profile; the two storyboarded the final sequence together.
“him and Dickerson, storyboard, exactly what happens”
lineage (callback):
25th Hour → Do the Right Thing.
25th Hour repeats the racial slur montage as Ed Norton's mirror monologue; Wesley says the repeats made the original less effective for him but 25th Hour has greatness.
lineage (influence):
Wes Anderson → Do the Right Thing.
Direct address to camera (Mr. Senor Love Daddy and the like) was taken up by the whole indie revolution, Wes Anderson most of all.
“Using direct address into the camera as a style, which has been now jacked by basically the whole indie revolution that came after him.”
people (feud):
Spike Lee → Quentin Tarantino.
Sean thinks Spike's long clash with Tarantino is partly because Tarantino took things directly from this movie.
“So there's this longtime clash between Spike and Tarantino.”
unmapped (borrowed line):
Quentin Tarantino → Do the Right Thing.
Sean says Tarantino lifted the 'shoot me in a dream, wake up and apologize' line from Do the Right Thing into Reservoir Dogs.
“you shoot me in a dream, you better wake up and apologize, which is something that I think Robin Harris says in the movie, which later appears in Reservoir Dogs”
unmapped (borrowed speech):
True Romance → Do the Right Thing.
The Sicilians-and-Moors speech in True Romance echoes what Mookie says to Pino in Sal's.
“Well, Sicilians and and Africans and the Moors in that whole speech that appears in true romance, which is also something that Mookie essentially says to Pino”
what-if (casting what-if):
Robert De Niro → Do the Right Thing.
Spike campaigned for De Niro as Sal; Wesley argues his baggage would have tipped the film's equal-weighted balance and made it a different movie.
craft (craft):
Ruth Carter → John Savage.
Spike bought the Larry Bird jersey in a store and gave it to costume designer Ruth Carter, who gave it to John Savage, debunking Savage's own story.
“Spike bought that shirt in a store, gave it to Ruthie Carter, the costume designer of this movie and the costume designer on many of Spike's movies, and Ruth Carter gave it to John Savage.”
lineage (real-events inspiration):
Do the Right Thing → Eleanor Bumpurs.
The film was inspired by Howard Beach and Eleanor Bumpers, plus a list of other deaths in 1980s New York.
“It was also inspired, as you mentioned, by the Howard Beach racial incident in Eleanor Bumpers.”
unmapped (double standard):
Do the Right Thing → Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Spike points out nobody feared audiences leaving Schwarzenegger films to kill people.
“I don't remember people saying people were going to come out of theaters killing people after they watched an Arnold Schwarzenegger film.”
theme (moral-panic parallel):
Do the Right Thing → Basic Instinct.
Basic Instinct raised concern about its effect, a different kind of fear than Do the Right Thing.
“There was concern, though, about whether or not basic instinct was going to what effect it was going to have.”
verdict (apex debate):
Do the Right Thing → 4 Little Girls.
Wesley argues 4 Little Girls and other work challenge the claim that Do the Right Thing is the Spike apex; Sean says the screenplay is why this one is, for fiction.
“the reason that I'm saying do the right thing is the apex of his filmmaking.”
unmapped (prescient detail):
Do the Right Thing → Black Panther.
A character holds a Black Panther comic and eats pizza; Sean first noticed it in the age of Coogler.
lineage (TV adaptation question):
Do the Right Thing → She's Gotta Have It.
Asked whether it could work as a 10-episode Netflix show, Wesley says no, noting Spike already made a TV show of She's Gotta Have It.
“As we know, he already made a TV show out of she's got to have it.”
industry (industry):
Reservoir Dogs → Sex, Lies, and Videotape.
Sex, Lies and Boys n the Hood are the two festival-born indie films that Reservoir Dogs continues.
“indie-minded festival entries from young people who are going to basically take over Hollywood”
career (career comparison):
Will Ferrell → Mike Myers.
Ferrell tried Myers' playbook of turning an SNL character into a movie, but never got his Wayne's World.
“He tried to take a character from the show and make a movie out of it, and that was not successful.”
theme (same-era run):
Old School → Wedding Crashers.
Old School starts the R-rated comedy boom that runs through Wedding Crashers, Superbad, Step Brothers, and The Hangover.
“This sets off an era from 03 all the way through, and the R-rated comedy boom”
unmapped (meta-commentary on 80s comedies):
Old School → Pineapple Express.
Old School and the Apatow-era movies after it are meta commentaries on earlier comedies; Pineapple Express is that generation's Midnight Run or 48 Hrs.
“they're basically trying to make their version of Midnight Run or 48 hours or those kinds of action comedies, thriller comedies from the 80s”
people (same director groundwork):
Old School → Road Trip.
Road Trip, Phillips' first narrative film, laid groundwork for the R-rated run; it is set at an upstate New York college like Old School.
“Todd Phillips's 1st movie. First narrative movie.”
unmapped (borrowed from):
Old School → Life of the Party.
Melissa McCarthy's Life of the Party is basically a solo Old School, down to the closing pop-star performance.
“That is basically like a solo old school about how she goes back to school.”
lineage (sequel wish list):
Wayne's World 2 → Old School.
Asked which comedy sequel they'd want, Old School 2 beats Wedding Crashers 2; Wayne's World 2 is the great comedy sequel.
people (character-actor trail):
Patrick Fischler → Mulholland Drive.
Fischler, the Piven henchman, is the guy telling the diner story in Mulholland Drive.
“What is he's also so memorable in Mulholland Drive, where he tells the story in the diner”
craft (joke structure):
Old School → Fight Club.
The Godfather secret in front of Pompeo works like a Fight Club rule about not talking about it outside.
unmapped (producing partnership):
Todd Phillips → Bradley Cooper.
Phillips and Bradley Cooper are producing partners, so Phillips could be on stage if A Star Is Born wins.
lineage (inspiration dispute):
Frank Sinatra → The Godfather.
Sinatra was mad because Johnny Fontane resembled him and the From Here to Eternity role; Sean denies Fontane is a Sinatra replica.
“Johnny Fontaine is not a replica of Frank Sinatra.”
fun, about
Jack Black:
Sean's gloss on Black's character: Steve is the Christopher Columbus of Minecraft, an interloper colonizing a land he did not originate.
“He's sort of the Christopher Columbus of the Minecraft world, I would say.”
fun, about
Misericordia:
Murder in movies is elegant and thrilling; this film is closer to real murder: blunt, quiet, distancing. Sean calls it a movie for the sickos.
fun, about
The Ballad of Wallace Island:
A fan pays a once-famous duo to play on a private island for him alone; it sounds creepy but is the sweetest movie Sean saw all year, maybe too sweet.
“In fact, it's probably the sweetest movie I've seen this.”
fun, about
The Ballad of Wallace Island:
Sean's Franz Ferdinand story: he spent an afternoon in the lead singer's apartment while profiling them, and has loved the band ever since.
“I was hanging out in the lead singers apartment for the day.”
fun, about
The Assessment:
Alicia Vikander plays an adult assessor who acts as a three-year-old in the couple's house; she nails the tantrums and defiance.
fun, about
On Becoming a Guinea Fowl:
Sean saw it with a packed house; a woman finds her dead uncle in the road, with serious tone and absurdist touches.
“Um, I solicit idiots in a pack with a packed house and had a really good experience seeing it.”
fun, about
Presence (Soderbergh):
Soderbergh, as camera-ghost, tiptoeing around the house in grippy socks; a metaphor for how he sees himself, a ghost haunting humanity.
fun, about
Nicole Kidman:
Her Letterboxd four favorites were Clueless, The Piano Teacher, The Piano and A Woman Under the Influence, though guests are tipped off beforehand to prep.
“Um, you know, I love Letterbox, but they're, these people are getting tipped off beforehand that they're going to get asked by Letterbox, so they're prepping.”
fun, about
Moulin Rouge!:
A rant against the film, singing Smells Like Teen Spirit in a can-can, from a host who says it makes him want to be shot in the face.
“But with turn of the 20th century, France singing smells like teen spirit in a can can.”
fun, about
Babygirl:
The dog-and-cookie scene: Samuel calms a dog with a cookie, then offers her one. In Sean's screening that is where the laughter started.
“In my screening, that's when everyone started laughing was the, do you want one scene with the cookie?”
fun, about
Gladiator:
Chris calls the original arguably the last truly practical blockbuster, right before Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter and Spider-Man.
“it's arguably the last truly practical blockbuster.”
fun, about
Gladiator II:
Lucius being Maximus's son: Maximus slept with Lucilla while having his own kid, which the panel finds funny in a strength-and-honor way.
“Well, it's also just like, that means Maximus was like fucking Lucilla right when he was having his own kid.”
fun, about
Denzel Washington:
Denzel is both multi-Oscar-nominated and the surest box-office draw who skips Marvel, and here plays a bisexual, earring-wearing schemer.
“He's really struck this harmonious balance in his 70s of being wildly acclaimed multi-Oscar nominated actor.”
fun, about
Denzel Washington:
Denzel's Esquire as-told-to piece about getting sober, plus his Oscar-voting jabs, made this an unusually fun promo cycle.
“he did this esquire as told 2 piece that is fascinating about his life and getting sober”
fun, about
Gladiator II:
Real monkey business: Dondus the monkey really did nibble fruit and, per the panel, relieve himself on Fred Hechinger's shoulder.
“That was a monkey shitting on Fred Heckinger's shoulder.”
fun, about
Babylon:
The cold open joke: the show's tagline is replaced with a gag about who wants to see someone's dad fight a snake, referencing the film's rattlesnake scene.
“And this is the Big Picture, a conversation show about who wants to see my dad fight a fucking snake?”
fun, about
Babylon:
Framing of the whole movie as a 'we're so back, it's so over' manifestation: everything good and bad about Hollywood and the 21st-century promise of movies.
“this movie is the perfect manifestation of, we're so back, it's so over.”
fun, about
Oppenheimer 4K:
The Oppenheimer 4K and Blu-ray sold out; a Variety piece by Todd Gilchrist covered it, and Nolan urged buying physical copies over streaming.
“they had sold out and people were like, we've never seen this before.”
fun, about
Wings of Desire:
Wim Wenders told Sean the film's negative was wrong, and he and his DP and editor always knew; the restored version is the intended one.
fun, about
Black Hat:
The Arrow Black Hat 4K includes a recut with a significant sequence moved to the front, making it more coherent but maybe less disorienting.
fun, about
Zulawski box set (Eureka):
Eureka box with The Third Part of the Night, The Devil, On the Silver Globe; waited for a sale under $50 and loved all three.
“there is an Andrews, uh, Andre Zalowski box set that Eureka makes, but possession's not in it.”
fun, about
Indicator Boetticher box:
Daughter adopted the colorful Indicator Budd Boetticher Westerns box as her favorite toy without seeing any of the films.
fun, about
Oscars 2024:
Amanda delayed the birth of her child for the Oscar nominations announcement, and the hosts joke they are first responders for awards.
“the woman who delayed the birth of her child for the Oscar nominations announcement.”
fun, about
Mickey 17:
Mickey 17 (Bong Joon Ho, Robert Pattinson) has been undated by Warner Bros.; hosts debate whether it is awards timing, Dune 2, or Zaslav, and note Pattinson gets parental leave.
“my number one most anticipated movie of 2024 has been undated”
fun, about
Maestro (Bradley Cooper):
Cooper learned crane technique from del Toro for the On the Town sequence; the hosts joke about him buying a farm near Gigi Hadid and say they should remake Witness together.
“They should they should remake witness together.”
fun, about
Poor Things (script of the sex scenes):
Sean notes Emma Stone is in about 14 sex scenes and as nude as a major American star rarely is; second viewing, Amanda found there were too many.
“It's very, very unusual for an American movie star to be in like 14 sex scenes in a movie”
fun, about
Poor Things (Jerrod Carmichael):
The hosts agree Carmichael, a funny stand-up, is miscast; he is deadpan in a movie whose cast bounces off McNamara's rhythm.
fun, about
Poor Things (socialist line):
Bella says she and her friends are 'our own means of production'; the hosts credit it as a clever moment and tease Bobby and Amanda's politics.
fun, about
Poor Things / The Da Vinci Code:
A riff on Bella's inverted-triangle hair leads to asking whether Bella is Robert Langdon's great-grandmother.
“Is Bella, Dr. Robert Langdon's great grandmother.”
fun, about
The Big Picture:
A joke at the end: a live audition for the next producer, plus plans for an Iron Claw episode and a possible New Year's Eve Aquaman 2 solo.
“Raw audio. Maybe we should have a live audition for the next producer of the big picture.”
fun, about
The Killer:
Opening hit: the killer needs heart rate below 60, kills a woman instead of the target, then flees by rented scooter to change in a dirty tire-shop bathroom.
fun, about
The Killer:
The killer's work playlist is only The Smiths, on an iPod nano; others include a yoga playlist. He listens to Girlfriend in a Coma while buying a trash bucket at Home Depot to put a body in.
“he is listening to girlfriend in a coma when he goes to a Home Depot to buy a trash bucket to put a dead body in.”
fun, about
The Killer:
The killer's disguise is inspired by a German tourist: bucket hat and khaki jumpsuit, which is basically what Fincher wore to the Q&A.
“he wears a bucket hat in a kind of khaki jumpsuit, which is basically what David Fincher wore to the Q and A after the film.”
fun, about
The Killer:
The killer's aliases are all 70s sitcom character names (Archie Bunker among them), a gag the hosts say lands because nobody checks anything anymore.
“they are all names of 70s sitcom characters, which is an incredible joke”
fun, about
The Killer:
New Orleans: Charles Parnell's secretary zip-ties herself on his orders and begs not to be disappeared so her kids get the life insurance; the killer thinks 'forbid empathy.' Her car scream is the film's one non-subjective moment.
fun, about
The Killer:
The Green River killer quote at the open echoes the band Green River, who were not on Sub Pop, so 'it all comes back to grunge.'
“there was a band named Green River that was not signed to subpop.”
fun, about
Killers of the Flower Moon:
At 3:26 on 3,800 screens it may be the longest widely released movie of the century, and a live check of Gettysburg (4:21) gets no theatrical box office listing.
“I am live Googling Gettysburg, the movie, the 1993 film.”
fun, about
Killers of the Flower Moon:
The Lily Gladstone and DiCaprio dining-room promo still that became a meme for years turns out to be one of the movie's two or three most important scenes, and plays differently in motion.
“It is also like one of the 2 or 3 most important scenes in the movie.”
fun, about
Killers of the Flower Moon:
The coda is a 1930s FBI-sponsored radio show with sound-effects men, a live orchestra, and Jack White; Scorsese appears on screen reading Molly's obituary and adds that there was no mention of the murders.
“Martin Scorsese shows up on the screen. Um, as Marty, basically. And um, and reads her obituary.”
fun, about
Rodrigo Prieto:
The cinematographer also shot Taylor Swift videos and may DP her forthcoming directed feature; hosts float having him on during Oscar season.
“he's also shot a few Taylor Swift videos and may or may not be the DP on the forthcoming Taylor Swift directed feature film.”
fun, about
Jack Fisk:
Per an NYT Magazine piece, Grann saw Fisk had researched how billiard halls kept score; Sean wants him to build a billiard-room barbershop for the Ringer.
“every studio executive listening, you need to stop spending your $250 million on garbage VFX and you need to spend it on Jack Fisk, just building shit.”