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.
craft (craft):
Explosions in the Sky → Kid Cudi.
Rates the Explosions in the Sky bus-ride cue as the best needle drop, setting it beside Kid Cudi's 'Pursuit of Happiness'.
“I have that as kid cutty pursuit of happiness where best needle drop.”
what-if (what-if):
Matt Damon → Friday Night Lights (2004 film).
A mid-90s Matt Damon, as in School Ties, would have been ideal for Winchell, but he was too old by 2004.
“And what I realized was that this would have been an amazing mid 90s Matt Damon part.”
verdict (verdict):
Friday Night Lights (2004 film) → The Longest Yard.
Bill's football-movie ranking: Longest Yard first, then Friday Night Lights, North Dallas Forty, Titans, Rudy and Any Given Sunday in some order.
lineage (lineage):
Pulp Fiction → Pulp Fiction imitators.
The Royale-in-Paris, Amsterdam conversation is the most parodied and copied stretch of screenwriting of the last 30 years.
“Yeah. I would argue this is the most ripped off four and a half minutes of screenwriting in the past 30 years.”
lineage (lineage):
Pulp Fiction → Lee Majors.
The setup of Vincent taking the boss's wife out echoes a Hollywood story about Lee Majors asking someone to take Farrah Fawcett out while he was away.
industry (industry):
Quentin Tarantino → Reality Bites.
Reality Bites got My Sharona for its convenience store scene; licensing chose it over the gang rape scene, and Tarantino says he is glad.
“Reality Bites also wanted it for the convenience store scene.”
programming (programming):
Twister → Apollo 13.
The 1995 summer slate (Crimson Tide, Die Hard, Braveheart, Batman Forever, Apollo 13) was when Hollywood began slamming mid-May to July 4.
“Batman forever, Apollo 13th all before July 4th.”
programming (programming):
Twister → Mission: Impossible.
1996 is when the studios locked in the early-May-to-July-4 summer blockbuster calendar: Twister, Mission: Impossible, The Rock, Eraser, Independence Day.
industry (industry):
Twister → The Cable Guy.
Chris pushes back that The Cable Guy, a notorious failure, still made 104 million, and Twister made 495 million.
industry (industry):
Twister → Twisters.
Twister and K-Hive both came back on Twitter in the same week ahead of the sequel, and the original is on Max.
“And Twister is on, I think it's on the Max app, but it's just it just feels very omnipresent right now.”
career (career):
Bill Paxton → True Lies.
In the 90s Paxton had important non-lead roles in True Lies, Tombstone and Apollo 13 before finally leading Twister.
career (career):
Bill Paxton → Sam Neill.
Like Sam Neill, Paxton did not become a star because the audience remembers the spectacle (storms, dinosaurs), not the lead.
career (career):
Bill Paxton → Kevin Bacon.
Paxton belongs to the Kevin Bacon, Bill Pullman, Kiefer Sutherland tier; the third guy in the cocktail with Tom Hanks in Apollo 13.
career (career):
Todd Field → Eyes Wide Shut.
Todd Field as an actor is an absolute banger in Eyes Wide Shut, Twister and Sleep with Me, then directed only three unique movies.
“Nick in eyes wide shut, twister, and sleep with me.”
verdict (verdict):
Twister → Roger Ebert.
Ebert gave 2.5 stars, saying loud dumb escapist entertainment works but not for thinkers; this became a running joke later.
craft (craft):
Twister → Van Halen.
The hail tornado is dubbed the Van Halen storm for its needle drop, a song that works in the movie but would not make a Van Halen playlist.
theme (theme):
Twister → The Shining.
The drive-in tornado scene works because a tornado tears the screen while the audience watches The Shining, a frightening movie with a real threat behind it.
“there's something coming behind that that's actually fucking frightening and it just starts ripping.”
theme (theme):
Twister → Heat.
A joke that Chris Ryan lost the town its treasury of cinematic knowledge when blown away, still hadn't seen Heat, which hadn't been made yet.
craft (craft):
Twister → Eric Clapton.
The most inexplicable music choice is Dusty watching an Eric Clapton video, which the speaker writes off as product placement.
“The most inexplicable song is just when Dusty's watching the Eric Clapton video from Motherless Child.”
contrast (contrast):
Helen Hunt → Steven Seagal.
Helen Hunt's running through the cornfield is likened to Seagal and not athletic despite Quarterback Princess.
“I'm just not happy with the running in this movie.”
what-if (what-if):
Twister → Steven Spielberg.
Spielberg was initially attached to direct, as he was for every movie in the 90s, before Jan de Bont took over.
“Spielberg initially attached to direct, which I think was the case for every single movie in the 90s”
what-if (what-if):
Bill Paxton → Tom Hanks.
Hanks read for Bill, passed, and suggested Paxton; Hanks even had wardrobe ready, so Paxton got the role via a big star.
what-if (what-if):
Twister → Sally Field.
Casting a bigger actress for Aunt Meg is floated with Sally Field, Ellen Burstyn, Shirley MacLaine and Debra Winger.
“Who was available at? Ellen Bursten? Sally Field? Coming off Forrest Gump?”
career (career):
Jami Gertz → The Lost Boys.
The guess for Jami Gertz's apex mountain is Less Than Zero or The Lost Boys, when she was one of the biggest under-25 actresses.
“It felt like she was one of the biggest under 25 female actresses on the rise.”
theme (theme):
Twister → Armageddon.
The panel debates whether Twister is the apex 90s disaster movie against Armageddon, Outbreak, Dante's Peak, Deep Impact, Independence Day; natural disasters only.
“So so I consider disaster movies to be natural disaster movies.”
contrast (contrast):
Twister → San Andreas.
Modern disaster movies fail by casting the Rock, who is never in peril, instead of normal-looking actors like Adam Driver.
what-if (what-if):
Twister → Denzel Washington.
Denzel is too cool, like Charlton Heston as Brody in Jaws, so nobody believes he would lose to a tornado.
what-if (what-if):
Bill Paxton → Aliens.
A proposed category: actors reprising a different character from their own filmography; Paxton just doing Hudson from Aliens and screaming Cows.
industry (industry):
Twister → Titanic.
Twister started a playbook of putting not-yet-A-list leads in a spectacle, which Titanic and later Star Wars followed.
career (career):
Michael Douglas → Kathleen Turner.
Douglas and Turner were the Hepburn and Tracy of the 80s and seemed headed for 20 movies together; Roses was the last.
“Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner were the Hepburn and Tracy of the 80s”
career (career):
Kathleen Turner → The Man with Two Brains.
Turner was in Steve Martin's The Man with Two Brains, not a great movie but one a Martin completist enjoys.
“she's in Man with Two Brains, which is not a great movie”
career (career):
Kathleen Turner → Who Framed Roger Rabbit.
Turner voiced Jessica Rabbit in Roger Rabbit, a hugely influential movie, in the same 80s run.
“She was the voice in who framed Roger Rabbit, which was a massive deal”
career (career):
Michael Douglas → Fatal Attraction.
Douglas's hit run from 87 includes Fatal Attraction, Wall Street, Black Rain, Roses, Basic Instinct and more.
“And then from 87 on when he rips off Fatal Attraction, Wall Street, Black Rain, War of the Roses, shining through.”
industry (industry):
Michael Douglas → The War of the Roses.
Douglas's producer background gave him a spot-on commercial taste that produced rewatchable classics.
“Michael Douglas, because he thought, like, a producer and had this whole producer background”
career (career):
Danny DeVito → Michael Douglas.
DeVito was a big 80s star who was always the third wheel with Douglas and Turner, and was doing the Schwarzenegger movies.
industry (industry):
Phil Collins → The War of the Roses.
Phil Collins wrote a song for Roses that was supposed to be in it but took too long and the offer was withdrawn.
“Phil Collins wrote a song called Something Happened on the Way to Heaven that was supposed to be in this.”
career (career):
Richard Gere → An Officer and a Gentleman.
Internal Affairs and An Officer and a Gentleman are probably the final two for Gere's best performance.
“It's this and it's officer and a gentleman probably in the final two.”
contrast (contrast):
Internal Affairs → Ghost.
The same movie could be made with Ghost's dirty banker and the drug dealer; the cop element is not necessary because it is about power and manipulation.
“So remember how in Ghost he was the dirty banker that was funneling money for the drug dealer, whatever?”
craft (craft):
Internal Affairs → Lethal Weapon 3.
The unfinished Granada Hills development recalls construction sites in Lethal Weapon 3 and other action crime movies.
“Because when you think about, I guess it's lethal weapon three.”
what-if (what-if):
Nancy Travis → Annabella Sciorra.
The movie would be better if Sciorra and Travis swapped roles because the dark Italian-Latin side would contrast with Peck.
“What if, is this movie better if Annabelle Shiora and Nancy Travis swap roles?”
fun, about
Fletch (cut scenes):
Original posters showed Fletch as a hockey player; a cut fantasy had him pitching in the World Series until Lasorda pulls him, explaining his later grudge against Lasorda.
“There's another fantasy moment that was cut where he pitches in the World Series and Lasorda pulls him from the game.”
fun, about
Fletch (Apex Mountain):
Apex Mountain: Chevy's apex is SNL or the 85-86 comeback; Harold Faltermeyer's is Beverly Hills Cop into this into Top Gun; Kareem's is 1980 or 1985.
fun, about
Fletch:
Lakers jersey, the Magic-Bird poster in the apartment, and the faded purple; Fletch jersey became a thing people wore; Chick Hearn's street named maybe because of Fletch.
fun, about
Matthew Broderick:
Casting what-ifs: first choice for Alex P. Keaton, cast then dropped out of The Flamingo Kid (Matt Dillon's breakout), turned down Johnny Utah in Point Break. Hosts say he is not a quarterback.
“He turned down the role of Johnny Utah, point break.”
fun, about
Ferris Bueller's Day Off:
Bill's 2009 mailbag timeline test: fit the whole day (Sears Tower, exchange, art museum, Chez Louis, Wrigley, parade, car repair) into under 8 hours. He challenged readers to reenact it; no one did.
“I challenged everyone in 2009 to to, I was like, all right, 3 high school or college people, just try to reenact this and see if you can do this in 8 hours.”
fun, about
Ferris Bueller's Day Off:
Most Rewatchable Scene nominees: the they bought it monologue, Cameron deciding to leave, Ferris picking up Sloane, the Abe Froman call, the Star Wars Ferrari joyride, the art museum, Cameron destroying the car, and Ferris sprinting home.
“My winner for this is I'm going to break rewatchables tradition for the 1st time in 110 episodes”
fun, about
Ferris Bueller's Day Off:
Bill's pick: the parking attendants' joyride in the Ferrari set to Star Wars music, one of the hardest he has ever laughed.
“It probably made me laugh top 4 hardest ever in a movie”
fun, about
Robert Smith (The Cure):
The art museum scene bombed with Robert Smith's original music; they swapped in an instrumental of a Smiths song and it worked.
“they even said in the test screening for this, they use different music and it just didn't work.”
fun, about
Mia Sara:
Mount Rushmore of mid-80s teen girls: Bill inducts Mia Sara alongside Kelly Preston, Joyce Hyser, and Elizabeth Shue; Chris is accused of taking it too far.
“I do want to induct her into the mid 80s Mount Rushmore with Kelly Preston, Joyce Heiser, and Elizabeth Shu.”
fun, about
Richard Edson:
Joey Pants Award (best that guy): both parking attendants. Edson's filmography is notable, including Stranger Than Paradise, Platoon, Do the Right Thing.
“Edson is in more important movies than almost any actor in the 80s.”
fun, about
Charlie Sheen:
Dion Waiters Award (small role, big impact): Charlie Sheen in the police station. Reportedly stayed up over two days for the look.
fun, about
Ferris Bueller's Day Off:
Deleted scene: Ferris takes a bond bought at his birth from his dad's closet and cashes it, funding the day. Cut because it made him look like a thief.
“It was removed because it made him seem like a thief.”
fun, about
Matthew Broderick:
Broderick hurt his knee in the running scene, which was shot before Twist and Shout, so he could not do much choreography; a blessing because the scene would have run longer.
“thank God, because then that scene would have been longer.”
fun, about
Ferris Bueller's Day Off:
The post-credits bus scene was supposed to be in the film; Hughes loved it and threw it at the end, so the school bus of kids coming home at 6 makes no sense.
“I think John his is just like, fuck it, I'm putting it in.”
fun, about
Ferris Bueller's Day Off:
Hosts say the car in the movie is a replica; maker Modena Design was sued by Ferrari and went bankrupt. A real 1961 250 GT California sold for around $18 million.
“Ferrari ended up suing them and they went bankrupt because of this movie.”
fun, about
John Hughes:
Cameron wears a Red Wings jersey, not Blackhawks, because Hughes grew up in Michigan and idolized Gordie Howe, which still bothers Bill.
“John Hughes grew up 1st 12 years of his life in Michigan, loved the local hockey team, the Red Wings.”
fun, about
John Hughes:
Who won the movie: Hughes first, Broderick second, Cameron third. Bill argues Hughes is the most-seen, most-loved director since 1980 and had no rival in his lane.
“I think you could make the case that since 1980, he is the director who more people have a serious relationship to his movies than any other person”
fun, about
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood:
Tarantino's 10-film plan and the idea of 300 minutes of Bounty Law: he has threatened to make five episodes of it, possibly on Netflix, though Leo may not agree.
“he's been threatening doing 5 episodes of bounty law. like for real.”
fun, about
Eddie Murphy:
On Letterman after this film, Eddie came on in a Michael Jackson suit and behaved differently; after buying Bubble Hill, the speaker says, a mansion every night is death for comedy.
“He was one of the biggest stars in the world and he had reached a point where there was no way to have normal interactions with anybody.”
fun, about
Beverly Hills Cop:
Eddie was hired about two weeks before shooting on a script that had been kicking around since the 70s, and he improvised large swaths of it. Brest said every time they hit a jam he asked Eddie for something.
“every time we got into a jam, I turn to Eddie and say, can you come up with something?”
fun, about
John Ashton:
In the super cop scene, Ashton looks pained but is actually trying not to laugh, Carol Burnett Show style. Ronny Cox can be seen fighting it off too.
fun, about
Eddie Murphy:
Axel's checking-in-at-the-Beverly-Palms bit: a Rolling Stone writer doing a Michael Jackson cover story, crying racism without saying it, and getting a room at half price. Watch his wordless take when he hears the price.
“he gets like one of the all-time, like, wordless takes where they give him the price of a single room.”
fun, about
Beverly Hills Cop:
The banana-in-the-tailpipe line became a playground catchphrase, used at Little League, then revived when Tiger Woods arrived in 1997.
fun, about
Beverly Hills Cop:
Mumford Phys Ed t-shirts were a mid-80s thing and a high school got flooded with requests; Cop 2's lion jacket was intentionally merchandised.
“The Mumford Phiz ed t-shirts were really a thing in the mid 80s.”
fun, about
Mickey Rourke:
Don Simpson reportedly tore a picture of Mickey Rourke out of a magazine and said 'isn't he great?'; Rourke then signed a $400,000 holding deal and left the project.
“Mr. Simpson tore it out, held it up and said, isn't he great?”
fun, about
Martin Scorsese:
Scorsese was offered the directing job while trying to get The Last Temptation of Christ made, and was reportedly bewildered by the script.
“According to the research, Scorsese was, quote, bewildered by the script.”
fun, about
Michael Eisner:
Eisner says the idea came from a 1975 speeding ticket: stopped in a beater, he decided he needed a Mercedes. Simpson claimed he had the idea in 1977 and the two argued until Simpson died.
“But they've, they argued about it until Don Simpson died about who came up with that idea.”
fun, about
Beverly Hills Cop:
CBS made a pilot for a Beverly Hills Cop TV show from the creator of The Shield, with Brandon T. Jackson as Axel Foley's son. It didn't work.
fun, about
Lisa Eilbacher:
Apex Mountain pick: Lisa Eilbacher 'one hundred thousand percent'; she is also named most aged-well and the winner of the movie.
fun, about
Beverly Hills Cop:
The movie never lets Axel have a love scene, and the guys read Axel and Mikey as the love story. 'Is Axel Foley gay?' is described as a long-running Reddit conspiracy theory.
“And the axe is Axel gay is like a long term, that's like a Reddit board conspiracy theory thing that's been going on for years.”
fun, about
Reservoir Dogs:
Ewing Theory Award for best theory: Madonna, Madsen's Ladera Heights joke, the finger-cutting theory, or Buscemi's tipping. Chris picks the tipping.
fun, about
Reservoir Dogs:
The 2006 video game used only one actor's likeness, Madsen, who 'needed the paycheck'; GameSpot called it an out and out failure.
“GameSpot called it, quote, an out and out failure.”
fun, about
Reservoir Dogs:
Budget trivia: actors wore their own clothes, Chris Penn used his own car, and the soundtrack budget went to 'Stuck in the Middle with You.'
“the entire soundtrack budget was spent on securing, stuck in the middle with you.”
fun, about
Tarantino:
Pulp Fiction was to follow the Vega Brothers: Vic Vega is Vincent Vega's brother; a prequel 'Double V Vega' never happened because the actors aged.
“And then Tarantino said he always wanted to do a prequel called Double V Vega.”
fun, about
Reservoir Dogs:
Origin of the title: at Video Archives he recommended Au revoir les enfants and a customer mockingly said he did not want to see no reservoir dogs.
fun, about
Reservoir Dogs:
Best quote: Bill leaves it blank because the whole movie is the best quote; Chris's pick is 'let's get a taco' after the finger speech.
fun, about
Mean Girls:
Most rewatchable scene picks: the talent show (Jingle Bell Rock), the sabotage montage, the four-way phone call, the lunch scene, the burn book blowup, Tim Meadows in the gym; Simmons picks the burn book blowup into the gym.
fun, about
Jonathan Bennett:
Aaron Samuels' IMDb is aged worst; running gag that Juliet will be trained by Aaron Samuels and a Mark Ruffalo road-trip indie.
fun, about
Mean Girls:
The reverse Vivian Award for worst clothes: wide-waistband mini skirts, kitten heels, blue eyeshadow, the party dress; the Henley top and short skirt also hated.
fun, about
Regina George:
Lohan originally wanted to play Regina but the director insisted Katie (Cady) was the heroine; the irony is she really was Regina.
“So I had a war with the director and he said, no, Katie is the heroine and that's who you are.”
fun, about
Lindsay Lohan:
Lohan has repeatedly pitched and treated a Mean Girls sequel; direct-to-TV Mean Girls 2 aired on ABC Family January 23, 2011.
fun, about
Lindsay Lohan:
Apex Mountain: Lohan's 2004 is the highest peak anyone has reached, unanimous; Tina Fey, McAdams, Seyfried, Chabert and Poehler also considered.
“It's the highest peak anyone may have ever reached on their apex mountain.”
fun, about
The Natural:
Bill's 1997 website list of the 30 greatest sports movies graded each film on whether it had a chill scene; The Natural's fireworks home run is the best.
“This movie has, I think, the best chill scene of any sports movie, which is the home run with the fireworks”
fun, about
The Natural:
The film maps onto Greek myth: Max Mercy as Vulcan in red and brown, Pop as Zeus with uniform number one, the Judge as Hades, Memo as Calypso, Gus as the cyclops, Iris as Penelope.
“Max Mercy is the Vulcan god of fire who could make or break you.”
fun, about
The Natural:
Bill's 2001 Page 2 piece estimating Roy Hobbs's stats; hosts redo it by freezing newspaper dates, landing near 70 games and 28 homers.
“This one, I just tried to figure out his stats and people loved it.”