Appreciates craftspeople and lesser-known directors (loves The Boost and City Hall) and attends Cannes. Scrutinizes plot logic and loves Buscemi's Fargo energy. Disdains the garage finale.
Stances
The movie works until the murder, then the investigation sinks it
Modern tech would have ended the plot
Harold Becker's career deserves a look
Humor: Wry, uses film-nerd references and dry understatement.
In their words
“I just saw it for the 1st time this year is amazing.” (0:30:27)
“I just feel like reverse image search alone on a photo of Rick just ends this whole thing.” (1:08:35)
Treats After Hours as a top-5 Scorsese and an all-time favorite; loves style, Pee-wee-adjacent oddballs, Frances Ha and film-history research. Can't stand lazy comic-book flatness or explicit violence for its own sake. A sucker for homage, trivia and a clean pace.
Stances
After Hours is a hinge in Scorsese's career
Goodfellas' look starts here
Pauline Kael misread it
Nighttime New York movies are a lineage
Humor: Dry, researched asides and a New Yorker's grumble about the city changing.
In their words
“It's just a hinge movie for him, you know?” (1:41:36)
Barely audible in the transcript; credited by Bill's live-show promo and addressed as 'Fantasy', he offers short remarks on Spider Rico. Little can be said about his taste from this episode.
Admires Walken's monologue craft and Tarantino's refusal to sell out. Likes movie stars taking risks in non-star roles (Stallone in Cop Land). Dislikes how the film ends up with Fabienne.
Stances
Walken wins the Dion Waiters Award
Travolta, not Day-Lewis, was right
Tarantino never sold out
Humor: Quiet, wry one-liners; takes the long view.
In their words
“Don't massage my wife's foot unless you're a professional masseuse is one of my takes.” (0:10:40)
“I love when movie stars play non-movie star roles.” (2:41:43)
“Having him play like just one normal hitman having a weird day would be awesome.” (1:39:01)
Likes the sketch-driven silliness and Mini-Me/Scott Evil feud. Annoyed by Fat Bastard's grossness and Felicity sleeping with him. Likes Rob Lowe's resilient career.
Stances
Fat Bastard scene is the worst-aged
Dr. Evil nipples age best
Heather Graham deserves credit
Humor: Dry, plays straight man to Bill's tangents.
In their words
“Felicity sleeping with Fat Bastard has just grossed me out in 1999.” (0:37:25)
Sean is the most film-critical of the three, with a theory of Pacino as broken by Scarface and an argument that The Insider is his most calibrated performance. He admires Plummer's non-impression of Wallace and values the Mann-Roth research. He is less into the score and the style when applied to a white-collar story.
Stances
The Insider is probably Pacino's best performance
Mann's style strains for individuality and sometimes ages him
The movie is a little masturbatory when applied to a hotel-room decision story
The score is not his favorite Mann element
Humor: Wry and observational, with film-critic asides and self-deprecating comments about being excommunicated from the Mann club.
In their words
“I think this is truly his last great masterpiece.” (0:07:22)
“I think that the insider is probably his best performance because it's the one that is the most finely calibrated between loud, crazy, and kind of subtle and stormy” (0:12:36)
A DVD head and Letterboxd regular who would cave on the deleted scenes. Likes the fact sheets, craft details like Ozu, and friendship movies. Dislikes the sequel idea and the Costner scene being sat on forever.
Stances
Would show the cut Costner scene
Doubts Grand Canyon
Humor: Dry quips and the straight man to the Letterboxd jokes.
Cares about directorial craft and homage; Scorsese devotee. Praises performances and lessons over the direction, which he finds first-time-filmmaker plain. Bothered by mixed Goodfellas homages.
Stances
Wonders if Goodfellas echoes are purposeful
Scorsese directing would be more thrilling but less breezy
Wants answers on who planted the car bomb
Humor: Plays straight-man with deadpan nitpicks and question lists.
In their words
“my obsession with Martin Scorsese is probably rooted in the fact that I didn't have that.” (0:08:56)
“I just want to know how much of what he was doing was a purposeful homage to Goodfellas” (1:32:47)
Altman is in his top five favorite filmmakers and he knows the filmography cold, from Tanner '88 to Cookie's Fortune. He's a sucker for Carver and Blu-ray collecting and defends Greta Scacchi. He has little patience for TV-style stretches of an asshole.
Stances
Altman's legacy is the filmmakers he influenced
The Player is one of Altman's three or four best
Movies have been good for 15 months
The oral biography is the place to start with Altman
Humor: Dry and a little snobby about his own collector habits; deadpan fact-drops.
In their words
“He is in my top 5 favorite filmmakers ever.” (0:08:57)
“I think it's really like definitely one of his 3 or 4 best movies.” (0:10:20)
“I think movies have been good for like 15 months.” (1:40:05)
Film-nerd who values Willis's daring taste in directors and takes seriously the craft and the cultural footprint. Fond of Renny Harlin's Long Kiss Goodnight, De Palma, and a good that-guy roll call; skeptical of the movie's incoherent plot and the 9/11-erased airport.
Stances
Willis took risks with unproven filmmakers
Die Hard 2 is still among the better action movies of its era
Long Kiss Goodnight is Harlin's coolest movie
Air traffic control access was problematic
Humor: Dry, specific and film-literate; sets up jokes with precise references.
In their words
“he was willing to take on projects with filmmakers who were maybe not as proven.” (0:07:32)
Film-nerd who builds the big readings (Hitchcock lineage, Fincher career arc) and loves camera moves through walls and Blu-rays. Won't love the accent in Silence of the Lambs; sucker for nitpicks about propane physics.
Stances
Panic Room is Hitchcock doing Psycho after North by Northwest
Silence of the Lambs is still Foster's best
Likes Adventureland best of Stewart
Nitpicks the propane tank and phone logic
Humor: Dry and literate; gets teased for loving cameras inside walls and Blu-rays.
In their words
“I still think is probably the best thing she's ever been a part of” (0:29:47)
“I would say Adventureland is my favorite, Kristen Stewart” (1:34:50)
“Sean loves when we take cameras inside walls.” (1:21:07)
Loves Ang Lee's range, Brokeback Mountain, tragedy with satire, and thinking about how industry changes. Can't stand over-explained text. A sucker for Joan Allen and small observed behavior.
Stances
Lee has the most varied filmography of any major director in 30 years
The film is more satire than bum-out
Joan Allen is the apex pick
Humor: Earnest and precise, then undercuts with a deadpan aside.
In their words
“He probably has the most varied filmography of any major director in the last 30 years.” (0:09:07)
“Joan wins out of all the actors.” (1:23:11)
“I thought that movie was good, and that kind of came and went, and it was almost in the wrong decade.” (1:12:00)
Film-history lens: loves the Method actors versus movie-star divide, Scorsese's visual flourishes, and Newman's integrity. Dislikes the idea that Ebert missed the ending's point. A sucker for Grady Seasons and Amos scenes.
Stances
It's a torch-passing movie in both business and story
Ending ambiguity is the point, not a flaw
Newman integrity explains the forfeit
Scorsese is great at making a small movie feel big
Humor: Dry film-nerd asides, like claiming he will be 'young and vital forever.'
In their words
“Just that I'm going to be young and vital forever, so I still don't relate to any of that stuff, you know?” (0:21:09)
“it's one of the most exciting and entertaining movies he ever made.” (0:16:10)
“Newman is one of the few guys who basically fused both disciplines.” (0:05:48)
Proud Bill Murray devotee who frames careers in eras; loves the 'from hell' genre and craft details like cinematographer and editor credentials. A champion of Julie Hagerty and Dr. Melfi. Gets a kick out of deep trivia and the Muppets.
Stances
Murray has two phases, pre- and post-Rushmore
The film is a successor to Pacific Heights
Anna may be a post-college adult
Dreyfuss finally plays the character he was destined for
Humor: Confident, nerdy deep cuts and theory-building that makes the others groan, such as the post-college Anna reading.
In their words
“Think of this movie as a logical successor to Pacific Heights.” (0:46:51)
“Sean, you're a Bill Murray guy. Proudly. Proudly.” (0:03:35)
Admires Mann's themes and the rich cinematic lineage; calls himself a weed smoker for Heat but loves Thief. Fond of Caan's volatile nuance, finds Weld and Nelson fascinating.
Admires Fincher as a control-freak craftsman and sees Hitchcock behind Se7en. Can't stand when the Academy rewards uplift over difficult genre filmmaking. A sucker for the Freeman-as-lead reading.
Stances
Se7en is the darkest mainstream American movie ever made.
Pitt is not top-tier here; it is Freeman's movie.
Fincher won the movie.
Humor: Dry and precise, deadpan asides.
In their words
“this is just about the darkest mainstream American movie ever made.” (0:05:59)
“it's also just completely a Hitchcock movie in so many ways.” (0:14:30)
Critic-minded and history-minded: loves the real SNL oral histories, Siskel, Ritchie and Chandler-style noir. Cannot stand weak acting, especially Dana Wheeler-Nicholson here, and defends Siskel over Ebert. A sucker for HBO Max old movies.
Stances
You have to get Chevy Chase to get Fletch
Dana Wheeler-Nicholson is a bad actress
Ebert missed the point
Humor: Dry, authoritative asides and long rants framed as scholarship.
In their words
“I think if you don't get Chevy Chase, you will never get this movie.” (0:02:14)
“You may recall from the Tombstone podcast that I noted that she is a bad actress and she's not good in flutch.” (0:51:31)
Loves the Cameron-Ferris friendship, Hughes's relationships, and the film as a closed system of perfection. Cannot stand overthinking about why it works; a sucker for people who keep it together while coiled. Defends innocent fun and Cameron.
Stances
Ferris is the movie but audiences relate to Cameron
The film works as an unreplicable perfect moment
Jeffrey Jones was the right choice over Paul Gleason
Hughes is a rare writer who channels all kinds of characters
Humor: Dry, deadpan, quick to drop a zinger; the host who delivers the Silent Judge side-eye.
In their words
“It's like a, this is a very closed system of perfection.” (0:19:12)
“Your dirtbag ethics have nothing to do with what makes Ferris Bueller beautiful.” (1:26:08)
Treats Tarantino as the central author, loves Leo DiCaprio's work here, and defends the movie's themes against online complaints. Loves the Bruce Lee roof scene. Can't stand criticism that misses the point about beginnings and endings of careers.
Stances
Quentin wins every Tarantino movie
Leo's performance is the best of his career
The Margot Robbie criticism missed the point
Humor: Dry, deflecting, and gets teased about Equinox and Leo.
In their words
“I think Leo decided in like 1992.” (0:15:50)
“I think Quentin wins all of his movies.” (1:17:39)
Self-described not a huge Bond person who finds Skyfall scratches the part of his brain other Bonds do not; loves the Silva rat speech and dialogue scenes. A Peter Morgan disciple and Anglophile who can pick out British character actors.
Stances
Skyfall's action is accessible and legible
Silva dominates the film
Hacking is the worst-aged element
Humor: Deadpan nitpicks and bits about vlogging villains.
In their words
“I am not a huge bond person.” (0:04:20)
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.
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 301–400 of 1,576 claims.
career (career):
Kevin Costner → Dances with Wolves.
Costner, fresh off Dances with Wolves, could make any film; his blessing and Buena Vista deal shaped Tombstone.
“Costner was coming off dancing with wolves and could make any movie he wanted and that he bowed out of this.”
people (same director, different register):
Mission: Impossible → Body Double.
Body Double puts De Palma's sexual obsessions on the surface; Mission: Impossible keeps them under it for a mass audience.
industry (franchise template):
Mission: Impossible → Mission: Impossible – Fallout.
Every MI film reuses the same three-set-piece structure plus a McGuffin, which is why the franchise is elastic.
“they used the same exact structure in every single movie that came forward.”
industry (franchise turning point):
Mission: Impossible → Mission: Impossible II.
Hiring John Woo for MI2 is when Cruise's brand became 'I did that stunt myself'; the cliff image set the template.
“that image of him hanging off the cliff at the cold open of that movie. basically sets the template for what 0 shit thing will he do next?”
lineage (franchise influence):
Mission: Impossible → The Fast and the Furious.
The modern MI films combine Bourne-style hand-to-hand combat with Fast and the Furious over-the-top action.
“the 2 biggest influences on Mission Impossible are born in the Fast and the Furious.”
theme (image echo):
Mission: Impossible → The Departed.
The rat in the air duct at Langley recalls The Departed's final shot, the hunt for a betraying rat.
“the rat in the air air duct in Langley, like a little bit of like the departed final shot”
people (typecasting):
Henry Czerny → Clear and Present Danger.
Czerny built a 90s career on the office-infighter archetype, with Clear and Present Danger his iconic turn.
“after clear and present danger, which is, to me, the iconic Henry's or any performance”
theme (joke comparison):
Mission: Impossible → Tropic Thunder.
Joked that Cruise's transformation as an old senator deserved the praise given to Tropic Thunder.
“Why were we so praiseworthy of Tom Cruise's performance? His transformation in Tropic Thunder?”
career (career):
Stephen Burum → The Untouchables.
Asked to pick the apex of De Palma's cinematographer Stephen Burum, the panel runs his filmography (The Outsiders, Rumble Fish, St. Elmo's Fire, 8 Million Ways to Die) and lands on The Untouchables.
unmapped (negotiations):
Noah Baumbach → Barbie.
Baumbach and Gerwig are reportedly negotiating a payday to return to Barbie, while Baumbach goes to Warner's Clockwork.
“Bombach and Gerwig are currently mired into negotiations to get a really good payday to come back to Barbie.”
craft (craft):
Resident Evil → The Crow.
Fennessey says DP Darius Wolski is working in his The Crow / Dark City register on Resident Evil.
“the director of photography of this movie is 70-year-old Darius Wolski, who is best known, I think, recently for his work with Ridley Scott, but who is really in his The Crow Dark City bag in this movie.”
people (people):
Resident Evil → Ryan Hayes Holladay.
The Holladays return to score, implying a repeat collaboration with the earlier Cregger films; Fennessey loves the score.
“Ryan and Hayes Holiday are back doing the score.”
lineage (tonal influence):
Resident Evil → Evil Dead II.
Cregger said he wanted an Evil Dead 2 style rock-em sock-em movie and got crazy with the camera.
“I'm doing it because I think this movie is going to be fucking awesome.”
theme (character comp):
Resident Evil → Die Hard.
Abrams's Brian reminded the speaker of John McClane, with humor built from the experience; the elevator shoe-melting is a Die Hard nod.
“He's not as cool and he's not as accomplished with a gun, but he kind of reminded me a little John McClain at times.”
unmapped (rewatchability):
Resident Evil → Boogie Nights.
Listing the film's scenes reminded the speaker of prepping the Boogie Nights Rewatchables: every scene is the best scene.
unmapped (creature/set-piece comp):
Resident Evil → Aliens.
The elevator ascent and maternity ward pods recall Alien and Aliens; xenomorphs coming out of the wall.
“this is really where a lot of the alien and aliens stuff starts to come in”
career (career comp):
Zach Cregger → Paul Thomas Anderson.
Early-career PTA was a comp for Cregger, but Resident Evil would be his Punch-Drunk Love (a simpler follow-up after the bigger film).
“I had been thinking about his career in terms of PTA's early career.”
career (career comp):
Resident Evil → Punch-Drunk Love.
The film is Cregger's Punch-Drunk Love: a more direct follow-up after a bigger film, though Punch-Drunk Love feels more weighed down by feelings.
unmapped (horror-comedy short list):
Resident Evil → Fright Night.
Gore plus comedy that works is an extremely short list: Fright Night, American Werewolf, Shaun of the Dead.
“Like, it's like fright night, an American werewolf in London.”
lineage (lineage):
X → Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma.
After X, Pearl and MaXXXine the self-referential riffing on rape revenge and slasher films hit a dead end, and Miasma rebuilds the bridge.
“we have kind of gotten to the conclusive point of self-referential riffing on rape revenge and slasher films”
people (people):
John Carpenter → Halloween.
Carpenter told the speaker he did not know what a 'final girl' was, until told it came from a Carol Clover essay.
career (career-launch comp):
Obsession → The Sixth Sense.
Obsession might be like The Sixth Sense, a breakout that puts a new filmmaker on the map and starts a brand.
“is it more like maybe a 6th sense kind of thing where that kind of puts Shamalan on the map and then there's like a Curry Barker brand?”
lineage (handmade lineage):
Obsession → The Texas Chain Saw Massacre.
Foundational horror films like Night of the Living Dead and Chain Saw were handmade and unpolished, an essential quality Obsession shares in kind though not in quality.
“But so if you look back at Night of the Living Dead or, um, Texas Chainsaw Massacre or Last House on the Left or even Halloween to some extent.”
unmapped (emotional comp):
Masters of the Universe → Ghost World.
Watching it as a fan-turned-commentator, the speaker thought of Seymour in Ghost World saying he hates his interest.
“I kept thinking of the Sibu semi-character in Ghost World when Thor Burch recommends that he meets a woman his age, who shares his interest, and he goes, I hate my interest.”
unmapped (end-credit tease):
Masters of the Universe → Evil Dead.
Orko's three-second end-credits cameo feels like Bruce Campbell saying groovy in the Alvarez Evil Dead credits.
“the end of the Fede Alvarez evil dead reboot where in the end credits, it just inserts a shot of old Bruce Campbell saying groovy.”
verdict (ranking):
The Dark Crystal → The NeverEnding Story.
Sean would add Dark Crystal and Excalibur to Griffin's fantasy list as the two worthy of sitting alongside it.
“Yeah, I would I would throw Dark Crystal and Excalibur into that cannon.”
lineage (lineage):
Conan the Barbarian → Dragonslayer.
Conan kicked off the 80s fantasy wave; before it, Weissmuller Tarzan films evolved into things like Dragonslayer.
“that's sort of the Johnny Wart Mueller Tarzan films are sort of what evolved into things like Dragon Slayer and things like that.”
programming (recommendation):
Mike Flanagan → Ouija: Origin of Evil.
The second Ouija film, directed by Flanagan, is really good, as is the Daley-Goldstein D&D film.
“I mean, I do think the 2nd Mike Flanagan Ouija movie is really good.”
unmapped (movie kink):
Clue → Transformers (Michael Bay films).
Clue and Transformers touch something personal in the speaker beyond critical distance.
theme (theme):
The Strangers → Mamma Mia!.
Amanda argues the two 2008 films share a theme of knowing thyself and what can't be known; later both end by withholding the answer.
“And I would, I'll argue, has some things in common with Mama Mia.”
programming (programming):
Mamma Mia! → Shrek.
Reflecting on their movie swaps, Sean ties Shrek, the earlier one-way swap, to Bobby Wagner's last episode.
“Bob's last episode was like a one-way movie swap, which was Shrek.”
fun, about
Bohemian Rhapsody:
Queen's opening felt like a Jones Beach concert you'd see with your mom; and there were as many cutaways to Brian May in the show as in the film.
“It was just sort of like a concert you'd see at Jones Beach, like with your mom.”
fun, about
Die Hard / Red Desert:
His list runs from Fellini and Antonioni to Predator and Die Hard; Fennessey sums it up as Die Hard 8 or a Red Desert remake.
fun, about
Close Encounters of the Third Kind:
Chris moved it up the list mid-conversation after realizing how many ideas are in it; the Lucas/Spielberg wager story.
fun, about
Peter Sellers:
Sellers received a best actor nomination for what are effectively three supporting roles; the speakers think it may be the only such nomination.
“It is such a unique nomination to be like, this guy is the lead of the film because he plays 3 supporting characters in an ensemble.”