Loves the Friday series as a communal, rental-era memory and tells childhood stories about the ads and theaters. Likes casting what-ifs and sports analogies for everything. Skeptical of horror at Christmas and of anything that wastes the premise.
Stances
Friday the 13th is not the best entry but the origin story had to be told
Friday 2 is a leap over the original
Humor: Digressive, sports-analogy heavy, and self-teasing about his office and Rewatchables running gags.
In their words
“There was 2 commercials, spring, summer, 1980 that scared the fuck out of me.” (0:07:38)
Loves Halloween and the 1970s; admires the film's craft and rewatchability, especially Leatherface's unintentional comedy. Hates Franklin, hitchhikers, and unlikely logistics. Uses sports and pop-culture analogies for everything.
Stances
The film is a rewatchable, not just a great movie
Leatherface is the hilarious favorite slasher
The hitchhiker is scarier than Leatherface
Hooper won the movie
Humor: Runs sports, NFL and podcast-world analogies and mock-outrage bits against Craig and the staff.
In their words
“I think it is a rewatchable, but I'm willing to hear the other side of it” (0:01:29)
Loves from-hell thrillers and movies that are fun to talk about even when they fail; a Boston guy who remembers where he saw things (Zoolander two weeks after 9/11). Can't stand a movie that wastes a good premise. A sucker for hoops details and stars' career arcs.
Stances
Domestic Disturbance is bad but a rewatchable good-bad movie
Vaughn and Travolta are mismatched to their roles
Cut footage and PG-13 killed the movie
Humor: Dry, trivia-heavy, with self-mockery about his own research and notes.
In their words
“I'm so relieved that this is how you're framing it.” (0:03:10)
“I saw Zoolander in the theater in Boston.” (0:11:47)
Loves ranking, tallies and lists (Pantheon, Hall of Fame, Mount Rushmores), and treats the show like a sports franchise with categories as awards. Hates inauthentic, silly-looking athletics and bad stinkers, and has always disliked narration (now conceding). Sucker for Midnight Run, Almost Famous, and sports analogies for everything.
Stances
Concedes narration is fine when the movie is good
Wants to build a Rewatchables Hall of Fame with plaques
Wants to rewatch Midnight Run
Treats the cell-phone conspiracy as plausible
Humor: Self-deprecating bits about his own mispronunciations and sports-metaphor overreach.
In their words
“Okay, these are all actual emails from actual listeners.” (0:04:36)
Loves sports movies, tropes and underdog arcs; loves racing movies more than real racing. Can't stand people who throw cards. Sucker for Pacino speeches, Pitt as an old-school star, and hot takes about better endings.
Stances
F1 is the movie of the 2020s on feel
Sonny should have crashed and JP won
Brad Pitt is above Matt Damon in culture
Nobody should throw cards for fun
Humor: Dry listmaker who stages bits and fake categories with deadpan.
In their words
“This is a better movie if Sonny crashes.” (0:55:40)
“I don't like anybody in real life or in movies that throws cards for fun.” (1:19:45)
Loves 1980s teen comedies and the Hughes run, ranking The Breakfast Club an all timer; lists teen movies by year and tracks careers and what-ifs. Rates the movie fun but is bothered by how Lisa is written and by the age gap in the kiss.
Stances
Weird Science is a super fun watch with weird elements you must factor in with the 80s
Anthony Michael Hall should have been a bigger star
Hottest take: Lisa sucks
Humor: Dry list-making and award names, reading research aloud like a deadpan docket.
In their words
“And I mentioned this because I was 15 years old when I saw this movie in the theater.” (0:03:11)
“They're both pantheon for me, but breakfast club's an all timer for me.” (1:23:34)
Loves sprawling statistics and lists (genre-checkbox years, Carrey's run) and a good Oscars grievance. Cannot resist a bit about bars, themed restaurants and sports metaphors. A sucker for the 1990s and for movies that hold up on repeat.
Stances
Carrey's 94-2000 run is the best by a comedian
1998 checked every genre box
Movies should run about 100 minutes
Humor: Rapid-fire riffs that fold sports and gambling into movie talk.
In their words
“Carries the star, obviously, and carries in this heater from 94 to 2000.” (0:27:23)
“I think 1998 is in the running for the greatest checking all the boxes movie year we've ever had.” (1:06:05)
Loves 80s TV that wrecks him (China Beach), cool-guy actors like Madsen, and big dumb 90s movies sold on a single premise. Teased for being a sucker for the Hollywood Hills guy's lifestyle. Dislikes Sil-adjacent logic holes less than he enjoys them.
Stances
Species is a great B movie that gets a pass
Wants Madsen and Helgenberger to have been a TV duo
Would be Robbie in another life
Humor: Deadpan sports-and-pop-culture analogies and self-aware sleaze.
In their words
“I fucking love China Beach.” (0:07:15)
“Bill, you see yourself as Robbie, huh?” (0:37:46)
Loves 80s and 90s crowd-pleasers, Goodfellas as his favorite movie, and a good Hollywood backstory. Can't stand pot smoke and bike traffic in modern New York, Pee-wee, or Jade. A sucker for actresses who deserved better careers (Arquette, Fiorentino) and sports-brain comparisons.
Stances
Fiorentino and Arquette were robbed of better careers
80s Scorsese is the best
Warriors is superior to After Hours as a night movie
Tom Hanks or Keaton would improve the lead
Humor: Breathless riffs, absurd hypotheticals (kill Reagan for Arquette) and sports analogies.
In their words
“I don't know how Linda Fiorentino was never on the Sopranos.” (1:09:50)
“Would you have killed Ronald Reagan for Rosanne Arquette?” (0:33:25)
Loves the pop-culture web of the 80s: songs, TV, sports ads and movie stars tied together, and reads Ebert and old press clippings. Will take a bold contrarian stance (Tess may be the villain) and invents award categories. Cannot stand an unexplained plot hole or a premise that ruins itself, but forgives absurdity when the emotion works.
Stances
Tess might be the villain; she took Catherine's idea, boyfriend and job
The Pointer Sisters' 'I'm So Excited' is secretly the most important pop-culture song
Humor: Runs deadpan bits and invented awards, and teases co-hosts' obsessions.
In their words
“is secretly the most important pop culture song of all time.” (1:27:43)
“Are we sure Tess isn't the villain of this movie?” (1:59:14)
Loves Rocky as a cultural phenomenon he lived through in 1976, and the sports-movie recipe it created. Loves the casting what-if games and the running categories. Can't stand slow courtship scenes in 2025 terms. A sucker for Stallone and for lore.
Stances
Rocky is one of the most important movies of the last 50 years
Rocky was a phenomenon in 1976, comparable to Jaws and Star Wars
Stallone wins the movie
All the President's Men should have won the Oscar
Humor: Drops running bits (Ebert, hot takes, categories) and teases the others about Boston and doo-wop.
In their words
“I saw in Dedham, Massachusetts with my dad.” (0:08:57)
Loves football, sports movies and the long run of sports books and shows; likes nitpicks and ranking lists. Fond of Billy Bob Thornton and the TV show, with a Grantland-era sense of history. Enjoys odds, lines and fantasy-football talk.
Stances
Friday Night Lights is a top-six football movie, behind The Longest Yard
Movies where the good guys lose are great for rewatchability
Billy Bob should have been the TV Coach Taylor, as a career move
Coach Gaines is arguably a bad coach
Cruise is too small and not Texan, so Hanks wins
Humor: Banter, tallies and running-bit award names, plus deadpan wagers and career-strategist asides.
In their words
“I think Billy Bob should have played the coach in the TV show.” (1:17:08)
“I think longest yard is just number one.” (1:39:56)
Loves the whole texture of Pulp Fiction and builds the whole show around categories and awards. Cares about specific lines, casting what-ifs, and bits that tie to sports (Paul George, Dion Waiters, NBA draft). Can't stand lazy nitpicks and the weak link of Fabienne's 12 minutes. A sucker for diners, milkshakes, and the lifestyle nostalgia of the movie.
Stances
Fabienne's 12 minutes is the weakest part of Pulp Fiction
Dump 8 of those minutes for a real Wilson vs Coolidge boxing sequence
Vincent Vega is completely incompetent
Cruise as Vincent or Butch is the Apex Mountain casting pick
Humor: Runs category gags and sports analogies, and escalates absurd 'unanswerable questions'.
In their words
“Well, we have some bonus categories for this one.” (0:02:34)
“I will say that for as awesome as this film has so many great shots.” (1:11:22)
“I hate to tell Tarantino what to do, who's incredible creative achievement, but if you dump 8 of the 12 minutes with Butch's girlfriend,” (1:36:04)
He disliked Twister in 1996 because it felt like the start of the effects-driven blockbuster era but now loves it for the old-school feel of real danger. He is a sucker for summer-calendar history, box office numbers, and a movie you can leave on for three days. He reads casting and career arcs through NBA and NFL analogies.
Stances
Twister is underrated and he held it unfairly in 1996
Practical effects make the actors feel in actual danger
1996 is the year the summer blockbuster calendar was set
Jonas should have had more scenes
Disaster movies should be natural disasters and not star the Rock
Humor: Sports analogies for everything, dry running bits, and mock-outrage over the group's picks.
In their words
“I watched it twice in the last week.” (0:03:10)
“I actually like it more than I've ever liked it in my life.” (0:03:12)
“I treated it this time around, like basically tried to recreate the circumstances of an old school rewatchable” (0:10:05)
Loves the 90s Myers era (Wayne's World, Axe Murderer) more than the Powers films. A sucker for Heather Graham and Garth-style sidekicks. Dislikes the rap song and the Fat Bastard sleeping bit; wants comedians to stay comedians.
Stances
Myers era best in Wayne's World/Axe Murderer
Comedians should not go serious
Mike Myers won the movie
Humor: Digressive trivia dropper and conspiracy-tangent jokester.
In their words
“We never want them to become serious actors.” (0:15:47)
Loves 80s movie-star careers, studio and box-office lore, and Kathleen Turner as a teenage ideal. Cannot stand wasted runtime and the DeVito framing scenes. A sucker for production trivia, deleted scenes and Phil Collins-style what-ifs.
Stances
The DeVito framing scenes are the weak link and could be cut
Turner is the better performer in the Douglas/Turner combo
The dog should have been made into pate
Roses is 'hall of fame' evidence that they don't make movies like this anymore
Humor: Dry, list-making and rhetorical, with sports analogies and running-bit category names.
In their words
“But man, when I was growing up in the 80s.” (0:08:23)
“She was like my platonic ideal for like someday I hope I get to marry somebody like Kathleen Turner.” (0:08:26)
“The Danny DeVito scenes, even though there's good wisdom in them” (0:48:09)
“I think it's more important that they both actually die than that you know for sure that the dog died.” (1:05:02)
Bill loves Richard Gere's charisma at full power and a movie that gets more unhinged as it goes. He keeps the categories moving and loves sports analogies and long-ago junket stories. He is a sucker for a villain you end up rooting for, and he is dismissive of Bad Lieutenant for trying too hard.
Stances
Gere's Dennis Peck is his best performance
He actually wants more dirty-cop movies
Bad Lieutenant is not a rewatchable
Humor: Sports-flavored riffs and mock-awards, like the Rick Dalton Award, and impressions.
In their words
“I think this is his best performance in a movie.” (0:09:09)
“Little like Kenny Pickett on the Steelers.” (0:18:52)
“I interviewed Ron Silver at the Ali Junket in 2001.” (0:51:48)
Bill loves Pacino's swagger and Any Given Sunday, loves Heat, and treats the Michael Mann signature as a thing he can pick at, calling out the slow-motion ending and score as dated. He is a sports guy who can't let go of the Knicks 'semifinals' line, and he has little patience for stray bad casting like Wings Hauser. He is a sucker for scenery-chewers like Bruce McGill.
Stances
Pacino's Any Given Sunday is his favorite Pacino performance other than The Godfather
The slow-motion ending is bad and tacky
Cigarette smoking in movies makes people look cool
Pacino should have smoked in this movie
Humor: Digressive and comic, uses sports analogies (LeBron, Knicks, Dion Waiters) and bits that run on.
In their words
“The Inch's speech is all time for me and that movie's terrible and he's carrying it like LeBron carried the 2007 caps.” (0:09:36)
Loves The Big Chill enough to make it his birthday movie and has seen it more than almost anything. Cares about football-movie accuracy, soundtrack craft and the 80s ensemble dramedy. Can't stand bad touch football scenes and the Oscars' snubs.
Stances
The Big Chill is a movie he returns to again and again
Touch football in movies is never done right
Kasdan's first five years are the greatest screenwriting run
Humor: Runs bits and riffs, jokes about the show's low bar and his own friends.
In their words
“Every year on my birthday, we do a movie that I love, and this year we're doing the big chill.” (0:00:58)
“I've never been satisfied with the movie touch football scene.” (1:34:03)
Loves quotable, rewatchable movies (Godfather, Goodfellas, Casino, Speed), the Sopranos, and craps and sports analogies. Hates narrators generally, but allows this one. Sucker for lists, categories, and made-up channels.
Stances
Lessons from the movie are the best part; 'nobody cares' wins
Bar-intro scene is a Goodfellas rip
Chazz Palminteri won the movie
Hasn't seen John Wick 4 yet; will wait for the perfect time
Humor: Runs the format as a bit machine, with channel pitches, rankings, and teasing his co-hosts.
In their words
“I hate narrators.” (1:10:32)
“I always wanted an all-jail movie channel called Bars, B-A-R-Z.” (1:05:05)
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 901–1,000 of 1,295 claims.
people (people):
Sylvester Stallone → Staying Alive.
Stallone directed Staying Alive and put himself in the redone opening credits.
unmapped (torch passing):
Tom Cruise → Paul Newman.
Cruise was number one and Newman tenth in the 1986 Quigley poll, so the narrative was Cruise taking the torch; Cruise modeled himself on Newman but went the Redford route.
“Cruz did kind of model himself after Newman in some ways, but ultimately went more of the Redford route”
verdict (career ranking):
The Color of Money → Slap Shot.
Only Butch Cassidy, Cool Hand Luke, The Verdict and Slap Shot rank above this among Newman's films for the speaker.
“I think only Butch Cassidy, cool hand Luke, the verdict and slapshot would come ahead of color money for it.”
career (career tone):
Paul Newman → The Sting.
The Sting is the movie Bill associates him with most but sees it as his most easygoing, cruising performance.
“I think it's also his most easygoing performance.”
what-if (casting what-if):
Paul Newman → Jaws.
Newman turned down Quint in Jaws; Bill thinks he would have made a good Brody, but Quint is Robert Shaw.
unmapped (directorial constraint):
The Color of Money → Panic Room.
Both directors were handed a confined, mundane space and responded with showy camera flourishes.
“it reminds me a little of panic room with Fincher.”
people (performance extremity):
Tom Cruise → Heat.
Cruise's Werewolves of London pool scene goes for it as hard as anyone on the podcast other than Pacino in Heat.
“cruise goes for it as much as I think anyone's ever gone for it. Maybe in the history of this podcast other than Pacino and Heat.”
people (same actor):
Bruce A. Young → Risky Business.
Moselle in this film is the same actor who played Jackie the prostitute in Risky Business, likely brought back by Cruise.
what-if (casting what-if):
Jackie Gleason → The Color of Money.
They thought about bringing back Gleason as Minnesota Fats, but he felt the role was an afterthought.
“They thought about Gleason, bringing back Minnesota fats.”
people (same actor):
Paul Herman → Goodfellas.
The Atlantic City bar guy is Paul Herman, who is the 'helicopters' guy in Goodfellas and Beansy on The Sopranos.
“is Paul Herman, who in Goodfellas is like, you want to see helicopters? I'll make you see helicopters.”
unmapped (production trivia):
The Color of Money → Goodfellas.
Scorsese came up with Goodfellas while filming this movie after reading a review of Wiseguy.
“Scorsese came up with Goodfellas when he was filming this.”
career (career arc):
Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio → The Abyss.
After this she did The Abyss and Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves; they wonder if criticizing Cameron hurt her career.
“she came out so hard against Cameron during the abyss, whether that made her like a problem child”
unmapped (Cruise sing-along):
Top Gun → Cocktail.
In the best Tom Cruise singing-along category, Top Gun, Cocktail, Risky Business, Jerry Maguire and this film compete; Top Gun wins as camp and 80s.
“Top Gun probably wins because it's a whole scene and it's Anthony Edwards and It's out of control, campy”
career (career phase):
Bill Murray → Groundhog Day.
Bill's three-phase Murray: What About Bob?, Groundhog Day and Quick Change form the adult phase after Ghostbusters.
“he has, what about Bob and Groundhog Day pretty close together? And quick change”
what-if (casting what-if):
Will Ferrell → What About Bob?.
Only Will Ferrell, in his view, could also have played Bob over 35-40 years; but Murray has a character-actor gear Ferrell may lack.
“I actually think Will Ferrell would have also crushed this part.”
unmapped (recurring bit):
Bill Murray → Stripes.
Murray's flirt-by-annoying persona goes back to SNL's Todd and Lisa Loopner sketches with Gilda Radner and Stripes, then becomes the whole premise of What About Bob?
“He did it in stripes when he was trying, you know, his way of trying to like flirt with people would be to annoy them.”
unmapped (therapist movies):
What About Bob? → Good Will Hunting.
Bill's therapist Mount Rushmore includes both, along with Analyze This and Ordinary People.
“Movies that had to include a therapist used in some profound way in the actual plot.”
theme (same premise):
Analyze This → The Sopranos.
The Sopranos has basically the same mob-boss-in-therapy premise and cut the legs out of Analyze This's legacy.
“the Sopranos completely cut the cut the legs out of that movie from a legacy standpoint because the Sopranos is basically the same premise”
unmapped (prior episode):
Mr. Holland's Opus → Richard Dreyfuss.
The trio did Mr. Holland's Opus a few months earlier and discussed Dreyfuss's addiction history there.
“We talked about him a lot when the 3 of us did Mr. Holland's Opus a few months ago”
people (actor's heel turn):
What About Bob? → Mr. Holland's Opus.
Both are Richard Dreyfuss movies where he plays an asshole; Sean traces his heel turn from nice-guy hero to the worst guy in the movie, starting here.
“No one has had a heel turn. Like Richard Dreyfuss. And it starts with what about Bob?”
unmapped (80s wagoner / lake-house comedy):
What About Bob? → The Great Outdoors.
The 80s station wagon shows up in many comedies, including The Great Outdoors and Harry and the Hendersons; also lake-house small-town dreaming.
craft (era tone):
What About Bob? → Parenthood.
Parenthood used a school-shooting imagery as a comedic device, another example of things no longer made.
“Or even parenthood where they use a school shooting for a comedic device.”
what-if (casting what-if):
Woody Allen → What About Bob?.
Woody Allen was approached to play Dr. Marvin, direct, and possibly co-write; he turned it down.
“Woody Allen was approached to play Dr. Leo Marvin, was also considered to direct, which is bizarre, and possibly co-write the script.”
what-if (casting what-if):
Charlie Korsmo → Terminator 2: Judgment Day.
Korsmo was the original choice for the Edward Furlong role in T2 but did What About Bob? instead.
“We found out he was the original choice for the Edward Furlong role, but he did what about Bob instead?”
unmapped (child-star cohort):
Charlie Korsmo → Elijah Wood.
Korsmo, Macaulay Culkin and Elijah Wood are called the early-90s three-headed dragon of child actors, like dunking KG and C-Webb.
lineage (ripped off):
Growing Pains → The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.
Bill's hot take: Fresh Prince's famous Uncle Phil scene was lifted from a Growing Pains episode with Leo.
“was actually ripped off from growing pains and Leo”
theme (house comparison):
What About Bob? → The Good Son.
Bill says the lake house is one thing, but the house in The Good Son was probably made up; leads to Culkin evil-kid horror.
“Here's here's where this game ends when you see the house from the good house from the good son.”
unmapped (evil-kid horror):
The Good Son → Brightburn.
Evil-kid horror lineage: The Good Son, The Omen, Orphan, and Brightburn (Superman-as-alien child).
“He made a movie called Brightburn. Oh, Brightburn's great.”
lineage (lineage):
Seven → Heat.
Grouped with Usual Suspects, Heat and Casino as the four defining 1995 movies, three of which were shut out at the Oscars.
“Our usual suspects, which we recently did, Heat Casino in seven.”
contrast (contrast):
Seven → The Usual Suspects.
Both were hugely influential 1995 genre movies that the Oscars largely ignored; Usual Suspects got a screenplay win while Se7en got only editing.
“Usual suspects had space to get nominated for best supporting actor, and it got nominated for best original screenplay.”
industry (industry):
Seven → The Usual Suspects.
Spacey went uncredited in Se7en and the earlier-released Usual Suspects built momentum; two twists may have been too much for the Academy.
“I wonder if 2 super duper, incredibly memorable twists, a quarter of a century later, uh, was too many for the academy to handle”
career (career):
Kevin Spacey → Seven.
Spacey's billing choice (uncredited) kept the twist secret in a pre-internet era, which fed a slow-building box office.
“And it was a great move by Spacey not to be credited.”
career (career):
David Fincher → Alien 3.
Fincher fought the studio on Alien 3 in press coverage, with Sigourney Weaver backing him, then seemed unlikely to direct again.
what-if (what-if):
Seven → The Sopranos.
Fincher's planned fade to black would have resembled the Sopranos cut to black, which Bill came around on after years.
“I think I would have eventually felt the same way I do about the Sopranos ending where I actually like the Sopranos ending now.”
verdict (verdict):
Seven → Casino.
Casino was a near miss against Goodfellas, framed as 98 out of 100 versus 100 out of 100, the same tier of 1995 hall-of-famer.
“It's like a 98 out of 100 compared to Goodfellows 100 out of 100, you know?”
career (career):
Brad Pitt → Interview with the Vampire.
Pitt's pre-Se7en run had flops and weird roles, including the homoerotic vampire movie he did with Cruise.
career (career):
Brad Pitt → Legends of the Fall.
Pitt fought the changed ending of Legends of the Fall and vowed not to do that again, then made Se7en and 12 Monkeys.
“Legends of the Fall, which some people like, but they changed the ending.”
career (career):
Morgan Freeman → Unforgiven.
Freeman's 1992 to 1995 run of Unforgiven, Outbreak, Shawshank, Se7en is a strong quartet with Outbreak the weak link.
“Outbreak is obviously the week, the weak link, but the other 3 are Hall of Famers.”
verdict (verdict):
Seven → Roger Ebert.
Ebert gave 3.5 stars, then republished a four-star review years later, which becomes the show's running Ebert gag.
what-if (what-if):
Sylvester Stallone → Seven.
Stallone reportedly turned down Mills, post-Tango and Cash, hunting for a dramatic movie that turned out to be Copland; Sly would have derailed it.
industry (industry):
Morgan Freeman → Deep Impact.
After Shawshank and Se7en Freeman had the juice to take shitty parts like Deep Impact for giant paychecks.
“he does this movie, and both of them are smashed successes, and that paves the way for him to be able to take shitty parts and deep impact and stuff like that”
fun, about
Gazzo's driver:
Best that guy award goes to Gazzo's driver, who also gets the 'take her to the zoo' line; Bill and his dad used the license plate joke for 20 years.
fun, about
Friday Night Lights (2004 film):
Coach Gaines lying that Boobie will be fine, never getting an MRI: the hottest take is that he is a bad coach.
fun, about
Joe's dad (the opening scene):
The panel invents a new category blaming Joe's dad: a cheap lock on the storm shelter door, and he should have just let go.
fun, about
Twister (most 1996 thing):
A one-off category inspired by the 1999 episode: options include no internet, the Dodge Ram, no Oklahoma City Thunder references, and Helen Hunt's hair.
fun, about
Aunt Meg's kitchen scene:
Chris's favorite scene: steak and eggs, gravy and Aunt Meg, setting her up so the crew later saves her; Bill singles out the gravy and 8 coffees to go.
fun, about
Philip Seymour Hoffman:
In an early lawn-chair scene Hoffman lifts his leg laughing and a split second of exposure was edited from later DVD and VHS releases.
“you can see his genitals for a split 2nd that they had to edit out of future DH DVD and VHS releases.”
fun, about
Wakita, Oklahoma:
The real town was used; houses were bought and demolished; there is a Twister Museum there that Paxton helped stock with memorabilia.
fun, about
Luke Wilson:
Craig's hot take from a prior episode, that Luke Wilson could have been Harrison Ford, now has the hottest-take award renamed after him.
“So the CR thinks Luke Wilson could have been Harrison Ford, hottest take award.”
fun, about
The War of the Roses:
Deleted scenes on YouTube include the indoor garden before he saws off her heels, and a heater scene explaining why everyone is sweaty.
fun, about
Richard Gere:
Gere's best performance, with An Officer and a Gentleman; he is shown as a villain who is still charismatic enough to root for.
“I think this is his best performance in a movie.”
fun, about
Billy Baldwin:
The comeback-to-flop arc is told with an NFL analogy: Hollywood gave him a four-year window like Kenny Pickett on the Steelers.
fun, about
Roger Ebert:
The running Ebert bit: no review found, but At the Movies with Siskel, where both loved it and Ebert called it a movie about personalities.
fun, about
Richard Gere:
The taco-stand scene wins the new Rick Dalton Award for best acting; the line is 'I'm married, you're married, we're married.'
“I would like to introduce a new award to the rewatchables.”
fun, about
Tova Arocus:
A hot take: Tova, the wife, is the real villain because she prompts the killing of her husband's parents, sleeps with Peck, then pays Peck to kill her husband.
fun, about
Al Pacino:
Pacino is in three late-90s dances with over-the-top; his Any Given Sunday inch-by-inch speech is called all time in a terrible movie, carrying it like LeBron.
“The Inch's speech is all time for me and that movie's terrible and he's carrying it like LeBron carried the 2007 caps.”
fun, about
The Insider:
The golf range scene: a henchman stares Wigand down after each swing until he grabs the 5 iron; the hosts rate the henchman a 9.5 swinger and Crowe a 4.
fun, about
Bruce McGill:
Bruce McGill's courtroom outburst, 'Wipe that smirk off your face,' wins the Dion Waiters award and is a triple-crown candidate.
“This is not North Carolina, not South Carolina, nor Kentucky.”
fun, about
The Insider:
Title brainstorm: a better title might have been The Whistleblower or Cigarette Burns; Thank You for Smoking is cited as a title that tells you the subject.
“It just needed to have an element of danger to it.”
fun, about
The Insider:
The Knicks 'semifinals' line in the car scene draws a long riff on how nobody says semifinals; conference finals, since the Knicks were in the NBA finals that year.
fun, about
The Insider:
Apex Mountain: the golfing henchman, Bruce McGill and Plummer; Plummer's is probably The Sound of Music; Mann's apex may be getting this movie made 34 years after Heat.
fun, about
The Big Chill:
JoBeth Williams: for the Costner scene they rented a big house in Atlanta and installed bead curtains, rock posters, incense and 1968 Life magazines.
“they rented a big house in Atlanta and installed bead curtains, rock posters, incense, and 1968 life magazines”
fun, about
A Bronx Tale / Lillo Brancato Jr.:
The film's big line about wasted talent became Brancato's real life: found out of thousands of kids, he was doing drugs while shooting, later jailed after a robbery in which an off-duty cop died; the New York Post headline said 'wasted talent'.
fun, about
A Bronx Tale / Chazz Palminteri:
Palminteri refused to sell his one-man show unless he played Sonny, the Stallone-Rocky bet on himself. He was 40; De Niro offered to direct and play Lorenzo. He still tours the one-man show every year.
“Yeah, this was also a famous Hollywood success story where Chaz Palmentari. There's a one-man show.”
fun, about
A Bronx Tale:
The door test: Sonny's rule that if a girl does not reach over and unlock your car door, dump her fast. It now fails because there are no pull-up knobs, and the hosts also debate the Mario test.
“The door test is now defunct because we don't have buttons that you pull up and down?”
fun, about
A Bronx Tale:
Lessons from the movie, the show's rare lessons segment: better to be feared than loved (Machiavelli in prison), trouble is a cancer, nobody cares, a rat is the lowest thing, and three great women. 'Nobody cares' voted best.
“I would say the best, greatest lesson from this movie is probably the nobody cares.”
fun, about
Bill Simmons / TV channels:
Simmons pitches a prison-movie channel called Bars (B-A-R-Z) running Shawshank, Escape from Alcatraz, Oz and Orange Is the New Black; a gambling-movie channel is also pitched for FanDuel TV.
“I always wanted an all-jail movie channel called Bars, B-A-R-Z.”
fun, about
A Bronx Tale:
Best quote: 'The saddest thing in life is wasted talent', delivered by Coach Finstock-style line; it also resurfaces as the 'best quote' of the episode.
“Best quote, saddest thing in life is wasted talent.”
fun, about
A Bronx Tale casting:
Casting what-ifs: Kathrine Narducci brought her nine-year-old to audition for Calogero; Frank Vincent was to play a boss but the scene was cut; Philip Garbarino lost the C role to Brancato and played Sonny's killer.
“And he lost out to our guy Lola Broncado Jr. for the role.”
fun, about
A Bronx Tale / Eddie Mush:
They could not find anyone to play Eddie Mush, so they cast the real Eddie Mush, Eddie Montenero; on the first day it rained and they could not film. Mush is now gambling slang ('he's gonna mush me').
“they ended up finding the real Eddie Mush, and his name is Eddie Montenero.”
fun, about
A Bronx Tale / De Niro:
Trivia: De Niro got a Class B commercial driver's license for the role; he tried in Boston and they would not let him. Hosts also note people think Rob Schneider is in the biker fight.
“And then De Niro did get his commercial driver's license, Class B, and he tried to get it in Boston and they wouldn't let him.”
fun, about
A Bronx Tale / Apex Mountain:
Apex Mountain calls: crap scenes, bus drivers (this or Speed), racists burned alive (this or Django Unchained), Palminteri (this or Usual Suspects), Broncado yes, Pesci no, and Kathrine Narducci no.
fun, about
A Bronx Tale / Satan's Messenger scene:
Biker bar fight: would out-of-shape Italians really beat a biker gang? Ryan says gangsters have the fighting equivalent of dad strength; proposed sequel is Hell's Angels vs. the Mafia Battle Royale.
“I feel like gangsters have the fighting equivalent of dad strength”
fun, about
A Bronx Tale:
Is this movie better: Bill adds Frank Vincent to the candidates list (Wayne Jenkins, Danny Trejo, Catherine Keener, Steve Buscemi, Sam Jackson, J.T. Walsh, Philip Baker Hall).
fun, about
My Cousin Vinny:
Film's famous breakdown: the real difference between Jack Palance and the frozen envelope conspiracies in Tomei's Oscar win.
“I believe the David Stern thing, the frozen envelope way more than the Jack Palance.”
fun, about
Austin Pendleton:
Said in 2022 he regrets playing the stuttering lawyer after letters from the stuttering community; hosts say the device was low.