Drawn to movie stars who own the frame (Lily Gladstone) and to character-driven emotional storytelling; wants more of Molly. Skeptical of The Wolf of Wall Street-style glorification and of pop morality; devoted to Silence and the Scorsese catalog, and passionately anti-Oppenheimer in this episode.
Stances
Does not think it is a minor masterpiece; it is an epic
Rejects Oppenheimer as comparable to Killers
Skeptical of the Wolf of Wall Street-type male voiceover until Molly's narration
Thinks it is overwhelming on first viewing and needs a second
Humor: Rambling digressions, self-deprecating about being off the rails, and a vendetta against Oppenheimer.
In their words
“I'm a supremely stupid movie viewer.” (0:15:53)
“Oppenheimer does not deserve to be in the same sentence as what killers the flower moon does.” (1:36:00)
“I held it together for 18 years and we're still paying it off.” (1:42:46)
Loves personal, formal films about women and families (The Eternal Daughter, Happening, The Fabelmans) and controlled star turns (Tar), plus big communal blockbusters like Top Gun: Maverick. Not a horror enthusiast; less moved by Aftersun because she watches as a child of parents. A sucker for Joanna Hogg and for romantic comedies and Howard Hawks.
Stances
She watches movies as a daughter
2022 was a top-heavy year and then pretty thin; her kid affected her movie-going
Tar is a Rorschach test and not too long
Andrew Dominik owes penance for Blonde
Humor: Deadpan and teasing; needles Sean and Chris about mid-ness and refuses to watch Speak No Evil.
In their words
“I did have a child in February, and let me tell you, that just took me down for the count for a while” (0:21:30)
“I'm just into the Joanna Hogg project.” (0:37:14)
“I realize I still watch movies as a daughter primarily” (0:36:53)
A non-comics, non-MCU-fan viewer who consumes these as movies. She liked the original Black Panther, loves the Ruth Carter costumes and Wakanda production design, and was moved by the opening and ending. She can't stand overstaffed plots and weak CGI set pieces, and says her brain shuts off with comic book lore.
Stances
Wakanda Forever was overstaffed and disappointing
Marvel may no longer be making movies for the Amandas
Ruth Carter should win another Oscar
Chief Nolan hater
Humor: Deadpan and self-deprecating, plays the lore-skeptic to Van and Sean's comic fandom.
In their words
“I'm the Chief Nolan hater.” (0:22:12)
“And I just, it was just overstaffed, man.” (0:14:20)
“I think Ruth Carter should win another Oscar, even though I didn't really like this movie.” (0:53:03)
A pop-culture generalist and self-described child of MTV who loves a bewitching performance and a love story, and has a real soft spot for the music biopic. She can't stand sloppy storytelling and rushed pacing, and is a sucker for Walk the Line, Amadeus and the Beach Boys.
Stances
Elvis is a mess in storytelling decisions
Music biopics are a stupid genre that sometimes works anyway
Good parody needs a sincere object, so Walk the Line deserves number one
Performance-driven biopics can overcome ordinary filmmaking
Humor: Wry and self-deprecating, with a talent for quick riffs on cultural trivia.
In their words
“I just decided to put walk the line at number one because you know what?” (1:03:56)
“it's a stupid genre that sometimes works anyway.” (0:38:14)
“I really am, I guess I'm just a child of MTV” (0:49:09)
Responds to Cruise charisma, underdog arcs and navy uniforms; loves A Few Good Men best. Skeptical of Edge of Tomorrow-type indulgence and Cocktail. Suckers for the Nicholson showdown.
Stances
A Few Good Men is her favorite Cruise performance
Cruise doesn't challenge himself like he used to
Born over Rain Man
Humor: Dry deadpan, quick on the political and pop-culture asides.
In their words
“I really do feel that Tom Cruise looks very handsome in navy uniforms.” (0:37:17)
Likes screwball energy, Dave, That Thing You Do!, Frances Ha, and Singin' in the Rain; laughs at Muncher; a theater fan; mostly dislikes cynical or product-driven nostalgia but is less worked up about nostalgia than Sean. Not a fan of Broadway-theater-kid musicals like Tick, Tick... Boom!
Stances
Afterlife is a movie for seven-year-olds
Tick, Tick... Boom! is not for her
Feel-good picks that make her smile involuntarily
Humor: Deadpan, self-aware gripes and teasing her co-host.
In their words
“I thought it was a fine movie for 7 year olds.” (0:03:19)
“I laughed.” (0:11:31)
“I judge these movies by like, do I just involuntarily smile at the screen.” (0:54:19)
Loves Fast Five above all and the grandiose silliness, winking meta jokes and the gang-assembling scenes. Not a Vin Diesel fan and tired of believability limits.
Stances
Fast Five is number one
Furious 7 is third
Villains do not matter
Humor: Deadpan sincerity about absurd plot logic, such as praising the safe-dragging as problem solving.
In their words
“Fast five, a transcendent movie experience.” (0:02:47)
Loves Soderbergh almost inappropriately, and Minari-style personal warmth. Allergic to corporate storytelling talk like 'stories matter' and wants the Oscars weird. Wants the Oscars to try pre-produced films and montages.
Stances
Not against Black Widow but not vociferously for it
Prefers watching at home to theaters for MCU
Wants the Oscars to make the best of a drab season
Supports Soderbergh's weird Oscars
Humor: Deadpan exasperation, as when she says she wants to jump out a window at the word 'stories'.
In their words
“My affection and devotion to Stephen Soderberg is well documented and like possibly bordering on inappropriate, but that's okay.” (0:17:07)
“I just was thinking about how I could, like, jump out this window.” (0:21:43)
“I'm just trying to bring a little positivity to the world, Sean.” (0:27:21)
Loves old Hollywood glamour and comfort (Cary Grant, Katharine Hepburn, Singing in the Rain), screwball comedy and Nora Ephron, and Sense and Sensibility. She leans toward joy, escapism and fast dialogue, and also likes a good Oscar-race pundit take. She does not enjoy her husband's golf lectures and is skeptical of award-season over-narratives.
Stances
Classic movies should be pleasurable, not homework
Streaming is not the problem for the Oscars, pandemic viewing is
Her do-overs favor movies she actually loves over canonical choices
It's not for me is a legitimate school of taste
Humor: Warm, self-deprecating domestic storytelling, including relentless public slander of her husband Zach.
In their words
“I'm a huge believer of the, it's not for me, school, uh, as you well know, because like, personal taste is personal taste.” (0:22:50)
“It's just like, oh, imagine if we could all be like that, wouldn't that be fun?” (0:57:15)
A West Wing devotee who loves Sorkin's idealism and memorized dialogue, with American President, Moneyball, Social Network and the West Wing as pillars. Cynical about institutions yet a sucker for hopeful, earnest characters; likes Sorkin's craft and grudgingly accepts his politics.
Stances
Sorkin's optimism is unrealistic but she is a sucker for it
Chicago 7 is a good Sorkin film that feels small and whose timeliness does not work in its favor
Rank Sorkin by Sorkiness, not general greatness
Start the West Wing at season two
Humor: Self-aware superfan comedy, joking that she and Sean are podcasters talking quickly like Sorkin characters.
Amanda loves movies as shared events and the narratives around them (the Oscar campaign, Good Will Hunting), wants big communal Bond and Top Gun-style theater experiences, and gravitates to character and female-director what-ifs (Kusama on Tully, Meyers on Gone Girl). She likes boundaries, dislikes influencer content and Emily in Paris (kind of), and wants more women in film criticism.
Stances
Theater experiences should be boutique events
Movie Pass was unsustainable but a missed habit-building window
Does not love bad movies; failure wastes her time
Wants a female director for Tully
Wants more women on Letterboxd
Humor: Anxious-organized deadpan; roasts Sean's systems and her husband Zach's takes with affection.
In their words
“I a person who likes boundaries, as we've discussed.” (0:21:09)
“an all-female heist movie, sign me up.” (0:37:18)
“My my pick is Army Hammer.” (1:31:10)
“I would love to find more women on Letterbox” (1:39:01)
Loves Elton John, romantic comedies, and heroines who just live up to their own potential. Cannot stand chosen-one magic or Disney franchise bait. Sucker for Emma Stone and Disney songs that are real pop songs.
Stances
Probably would remove the magic
Skeptical of the Disney remake machine
Prefers dropping the love interest
Dislikes the original Mulan's songs
Humor: Deadpan and contrarian, happy to say the heretical thing ('average ass ballad').
In their words
“this is just like an average ass ballad about finding yourself. Okay, whatever. It's not Elton John.” (0:49:22)
Raised on Grisham and Tom Cruise; loves Agatha Christie formulas, rewatchable crowd-pleasers, and movies where a woman gets a role. Skeptical of the over-the-top nuance of Stone's JFK. Fond of fantasy and comedy courtroom picks.
Stances
Courtroom dramas are her sports movies
Wants an opponent as formidable as Nicholson yelling you're so right
Wolf Hall repudiates A Man for All Seasons
Humor: Self-deprecating confessions (preschool lawyer, PSATs, LSAT) and dry asides.
In their words
“courtroom dramas are essentially my sports movies” (0:10:00)
Enjoys Judd Apatow, Soderbergh and star-driven spectacle like Tom Cruise stunts; wary of tentpole-only futures and mourns smaller films losing a platform. She is a sucker for drama and pettiness in the business, and for Portrait of a Lady on Fire.
Stances
Wants a best first feature or best breakthrough category
Skeptical of the viral demand for a stunt category
Expects a traditional Oscars year of movies about movies
Humor: Dry and teasing, sending up Sean's Zoom habits and exaggerating pandemic cabin fever.
In their words
“Okay, listen, I agree with the CGI stuff. I just want to watch Tom Cruise jump out of things.” (0:51:45)
“It's the Incredible Hulk and Iron Man, you fools.” (1:05:03)
Moved by Greta Gerwig and Little Women, loves a movie-star performance and Brad Pitt, and Archie Yates and Julia Butters. Can't stand fussiness and filmmaking that anticipates the discourse (Midsommar, The Lighthouse). A sucker for a good ending and ensemble comedy; wants to see a movie about Olivia Wilde's FBI agent.
Stances
Wants Laura Dern to get the It's Time Oscar
Spider-Man's tag is a teaser, not an ending
Picks Greta Gerwig for best director
Skeptical of the A24 Reddit crowd
Humor: Dry deflation of Sean's big-theory moments and bits like 'A24 merch, bro'.
In their words
“You know that I just can't stand anything where the work is showing and where the people are infatuated with the work as opposed to the result.” (0:54:47)
“I didn't know you could do that, but also you were in my brain.” (1:29:04)
“Brad Pitt's having his therapy on the screen and someone filmed it and let me watch it.” (1:13:29)
Devoted to Brad Pitt, Joaquin Phoenix as a campaign personality, Bridget Jones, and Little Women. Dislikes Joker. Anti-democratic on lists, avoids animated movies.
Stances
Joker is intellectually bankrupt
Anti-democracy on list-making
Baffled by Renee Zellweger frontrunner
Humor: Dry, self-deprecating, deadpan comebacks at Sean.
In their words
“I am anti-democracy.” (0:38:10)
“Bridget Jones diary, hugely important to me.” (0:48:05)
Responds to mood, discovery and raw performance, such as The Souvenir and Maya Erskine in Plus One. Is skeptical of franchise lore and anything about space aliens, and likes things she cares about, such as Spider-Man. Can't stand movies that raise hot-button issues without developing them (Luce) and is a sucker for Brad Pitt.
Stances
Disney's monopoly is a confirmation, not a surprise
Luce failed to provoke her
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood is a tier of one
Brad Pitt is a presence-based form of acting
Humor: Self-deprecating and quick, with comic storytelling that undercuts her own taste, such as the Star Wars plot story.
In their words
“I'm not a parent, so I don't need like the parenting newsletter from the New York Times in film form” (0:42:55)
Loves costume dramas (Downton), crowd-pleasers, and Greta Gerwig; likes things with a clear tone. Bored by The Last Waltz and unimpressed by Hooper. Can be sentimental (sad if Captain America dies) while resisting franchise lore.
Stances
Les Mis is much better than Cats
Homecoming is long, not boring
Amazon vs Netflix release execution explains Guava Island's smaller footprint
Humor: Dry and blunt, with quick undercutting asides.
In their words
“Les Mis is a much better musical than cats.” (0:20:24)
Loves Wonder Woman and its emotional impact, and responds to women on screen. Not a comics or sci-fi person and not an origin-story fan. Sucker for celebrity and a 90s song, and for Annette Bening.
Stances
Captain Marvel is not Wonder Woman
Female superhero movies carry an unfair burden
The film's female empowerment feels reactive and half-baked
A female superhero movie can also have a love story
Humor: Self-deprecating about not knowing comics, with blunt nitpicks.
In their words
“my immediate reaction was this is not Wonder Woman.” (0:01:18)
“Catch me out here crying about it.” (0:56:50)
“It should be like if Nora Efron wrote a Marvel movie.” (1:04:07)
Loves celebrity and public image, Olivia Colman's warmth, and Lady Gaga. Sentimental and more forgiving of Bohemian Rhapsody as a ratings play. Sees the Oscars as a fight between old and new Hollywood.
Stances
The Academy is split between two academies
Netflix resistance explains part of the Roma loss
Song performances do not belong at the Oscars
Humor: Dry and conspiratorial, fond of absurd comparisons.
In their words
“as a person who loves celebrity and movie stars” (0:33:29)
“I used to work as a cleaner and I loved that job.” (0:18:48)
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 520 claims.
unmapped (academy habit):
May December → Julianne Moore.
The Academy does not always love Todd Haynes but always nominates Julianne Moore, so she is a way to recognize the film.
“the Academy doesn't always love Todd Haynes, but they love Julianne Moore.”
unmapped (screenplay-category stand-in):
Asteroid City → Maestro.
Asteroid City, wrongly abandoned, was liked more than Maestro, which is only a cowardly default pick for original screenplay.
“I guess I'm going to put maestro here, but it's a cowardly pick.”
people (great actor, weak film):
Rustin → Colman Domingo.
Domingo is good but Rustin is a flat, obviously written 2D movie, so a nomination for it would annoy the hosts.
industry (awards-speech complaint):
Oppenheimer → Emma Thomas.
The hosts say Thomas keeps giving the final acceptance speech instead of Nolan, which they object to.
“I do feel that the director should be giving the acceptance speech.”
people (auteur respect):
Barbie → Greta Gerwig.
Barbie's Oscar push comes from the overwhelming respect for Gerwig, which female directors did not used to get.
“There's an overwhelming amount of respect for her that female directors just didn't use to get.”
craft (tone shift):
Mean Girls → Mean Girls.
The musical sands the edges off the Plastics and replaces bite with empowerment, a generational update on the original's Tina Fey punchline comedy.
“the edges are sanded off the plastics. And most of the jokes don't have the same bite.”
unmapped (star power):
Renee Rapp → Rachel McAdams.
The 2004 film's success depended on the anti-chemistry and star power of Lindsay Lohan and Rachel McAdams, which the new cast lacks.
“the absence of Lindsay Lohan and the Lindsay Lohan, Rachel McAdams kind of anti-chemistry and star power is a big part of why that movie is so successful.”
people (performance contrast):
Angourie Rice → Renee Rapp.
Rice is a subtler actress, which is not the skill a musical wants, so she cannot hang with Rapp's outsized, absurdist performer energy.
“She's actually a much subtler actress, which is not actually the skill you want in a musical.”
people (performance contrast):
Avantika → Amanda Seyfried.
Avantika plays Karen as a big over-the-top performer, which a fan of the original may not accept after Seyfried's version.
unmapped (backstory):
Mean Girls → The Sex Lives of College Girls.
Rapp's earlier show is where her feud with millennial women allegedly started, per the hosts' gossip.
“I think those are the millennial women in question, who she doesn't like.”
unmapped (autobiographical):
All of Us Strangers → Andrew Haigh.
The film is filmed in Haigh's childhood home and blends his own romantic experiences with those of his partner's parents.
“The movie is literally filmed in Andrew Hayes' childhood home.”
unmapped (emotional core):
All of Us Strangers → Claire Foy.
Amanda watched this as a mother for the first time and Foy's mother, regretting her failures, devastated her.
“This was the 1st movie I think I've ever watched where I was watching it as a mother.”
theme (comparison):
Poor Things → Barbie.
Both arrived as feminist coming-of-age stories about a created girl learning about the world, six weeks apart.
“it was about 6 weeks after the Barbie wave and there are some really obvious comparisons to be made here.”
craft (craft):
Poor Things → Holly Waddington.
A host raves that the clothes in Poor Things are out of control and credits the costumes to Holly Waddington.
theme (genre per Lanthimos):
The Killing of a Sacred Deer → Poor Things.
Sacred Deer is framed as Lanthimos's horror movie, in a run of one-per-genre films ending with the monster movie.
career (career shift):
Alexander Payne → Yorgos Lanthimos.
A host is a fan of both directors and felt both The Holdovers and Poor Things were shifts away from what she loved.
“these movies felt like shifts that I didn't vibe with as much, ultimately.”
programming (programming):
Heat → The Rewatchables.
Chris listened to the Reheat Rewatchables episode, celebrating 100 episodes, the morning of recording.
craft (craft):
Ferrari → Killers of the Flower Moon.
Ferrari's quick impressionistic opening flashback recalls the silent-film-style opening of Killers of the Flower Moon.
“it reminded me a bit of the opening sequence of the Killers of the Flower Moon, where it's kind of shot in this old school, like silent film style.”
theme (theme):
Collateral → Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.
Collateral is part of Amanda's movie map of Los Angeles, with Clueless and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.
“my movie map of LA is probably like clueless collateral, uh, once upon a time in Hollywood”
craft (craft):
Collateral → Miles Davis.
Collateral features Miles Davis and Audioslave, and Cruise talks about jazz in one of the weirdest scenes of the 2000s.
“Tom Cruise talking about his appreciation for jazz”
people (auteur persona year):
The Killer → Killers of the Flower Moon.
2023 was defined by films that force conversation about the filmmakers (Gerwig, Scorsese, Nolan, Fincher) and their pasts.
“this year has really been defined by these movies with by filmmakers who have such towering personas.”
unmapped (promo absence):
The Killer → Killers of the Flower Moon.
Because actors weren't doing press during the strike, audiences were thinking about Marty rather than DiCaprio appearances.
“we didn't get hit with like 10 Leonardo DiCaprio TV and podcast appearances before Killers of the Flower Moon.”
lineage (genre lineage):
The Killer → Gone Girl.
It is the closest Fincher has come to a pure thriller since Gone Girl, maybe Dragon Tattoo.
“he hasn't made a movie quite like this, I guess, since Gone Girl, but even, I mean, you could maybe even going back further to Dragon Tattoo is maybe a little closer to this kind of a pure thriller.”
unmapped (pop-culture decay):
The Killer → Private Benjamin.
The 70s sitcom aliases riff leads Sean to say nobody under 35 knows even Private Benjamin.
“We were talking about private Benjamin on the rewatchables the other day and I was like, they're not a single person under 35 knows what Private Benjamin is.”
unmapped (streamer master-work):
The Killer → The Irishman.
The Killer, Roma, The Irishman and Killers of the Flower Moon are master filmmakers' self-reflective work enabled by streamer power.
“those are all films from quote unquote master filmmakers who are responding to their own work and life and experience and they're using the outsized corporate power of a streaming service to do so.”
career (Netflix career):
The Killer → Marriage Story.
Baumbach used Netflix to elevate his status, whereas Fincher and Scorsese use it to brand-manage their legacies.
“he's somebody who used the system to elevate his status in some way, whereas Fincher and Scorsese in a handful of these other people are almost like facilitating and kind of brand managing their legacies”
theme (thematic echo):
The Killer → The Pigeon Tunnel.
John le Carre's remark about reaching the room and finding nothing in it fits Fincher's lockbox characters and this film.
“The room be on the room, and then when you get there, there's nothing in it.”
programming (paired double feature):
The Killer → Fight Club.
Both are very funny first-person-narrated films about sociopaths who rationalize brutal violence as a personal mission.
“This movie would make a neat pairing with Fight Club. Two very funny films about sociopaths whose inner monologues rationalize brutal violence as expressions of a personal mission.”
“I thought a lot of Wolf of Wall Street. While doing it because that is a guy who is too smart for his own good, but also doing a lot of really dumb shit.”
contrast (inverts):
Killers of the Flower Moon → Goodfellas.
Same crimes by white men but with no romance or good life, a deliberate answer to Goodfellas' seductiveness.
“there's a romance to Goodfellas that does not exist here.”
contrast (contrast):
Lessons in Chemistry → Killers of the Flower Moon.
Greenwald's critique of anachronistic righteous modern politics in a period piece is contrasted with Killers refusing pop morality.
people (same director):
The Eternal Daughter → The Souvenir.
Amanda says the character is named Julian, linking it to Hogg's Souvenir project as a coda.
“this is a part of her souvenir, I guess, trilogy now, or like the project.”
verdict (ranking):
Happening → Saint Omer.
Amanda places Happening at four as a clear-eyed thriller structured week by week; Adam later places Saint Omer, another French film, at two.
“it almost like becomes a thriller of her trying to get the abortion and it goes like week by week”
contrast (contrast):
Happening → Blonde.
Amanda says Andrew Dominik should be made to rewatch Happening's abortion scene as penance for Blonde.
“I think that Andrew Dominic should be sentenced to rewatching the abortion scene in this movie for the rest of his life is penance for what he did in blonde”
verdict (ranking):
The Fabelmans → The Eternal Daughter.
Amanda ranks The Eternal Daughter at five and The Fabelmans at three, noting a taste for directors making movies about themselves.
“But I like all of the director projects of let me just make a movie about myself.”
people (performance):
Tenoch Huerta → Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
Amanda says Huerta is really dynamic as Namor, and the film picks up once he emerges as the main rival.
unmapped (backdoor pilot):
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever → Ironheart.
Amanda feels the Riri Williams plot turns the movie into a backdoor pilot for the Ironheart show, which weighs down an already crowded film.
“the movie also simultaneously kind of becomes like a backdoor pilot for the Ironheart TV show.”
unmapped (CGI weakness):
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever → Black Panther.
The first film's video-game-looking CGI showdown is doubled down on in the sequel, with flying robots and an aircraft-carrier fight.
“You know, it just kind of looked like a video game a little bit.”
craft (craft praise):
Ruth E. Carter → Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
Amanda says Carter's costume design and the production design are the electrifying part, even though she did not like the film, and that Carter should win another Oscar.
“I think Ruth Carter should win another Oscar, even though I didn't really like this movie.”
unmapped (action set piece):
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever → Black Panther.
Amanda rewatched the first film's casino fight, built around Okoye, and found nothing in the sequel as exciting.
“I really loved the casino fight. I think that's like a really great action set piece.”
unmapped (parody target):
Walk the Line → Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story.
Amanda argues effective parody must work from something that works, and watched the two back to back; the buzz-saw brother incident mirrors Walk Hard's setup.
“for something, to be an effective parody, it has to be working from something that actually works.”
unmapped (parody of a parody):
Elvis → Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story.
Elvis seems to parody Walk Hard's parody of women ripping open shirts at the star.
“somehow this movie is doing a parody of the Walkhard parody of the scene of like women like busting open.”
unmapped (missing scene):
Elvis → Respect.
Respect's songwriting-in-the-studio scene always works; Elvis disappointingly has no 'they're writing Jailhouse Rock' moment.
“there's no point where they're just like, oh my god, they're writing Jailhouse Rock or whatever.”
contrast (structure contrast):
Love and Mercy → Elvis.
Love & Mercy splits its story across two Brian Wilsons (Cusack, Dano) rather than a cradle-to-grave Wikipedia run.
“it gives you kind of 2 lenses to, to go through the 60s and the creation of the Beach Boys”
contrast (contrast of approach):
Amadeus → Elvis.
Amadeus conveys Mozart's genius without answering who he was; Elvis also skips interiority but fails to fill the gap.
“it's smart that Elvis doesn't do that, even though you feel the lack of it because Elvis doesn't fill anything else in.”
people (double bill, auteur):
I'm Not There → The Velvet Underground.
Both show Haynes's fascination with originating power: where it came from and how pieces assembled into a singular figure or band.
“the thing that it fascinates him is originating power. It's like, where did this come from and how did it come together?”
career (career arc):
Oblivion → Top Gun: Maverick.
Oblivion has a football scene mocked as Cruise loves sports in films; Sean rewatched it to prep for Maverick.
“I did just rewatch oblivion to prep for Maverick”
unmapped (transformation):
Tropic Thunder → Born on the Fourth of July.
Cruise's wig and transformation in Tropic Thunder was for laughs, the opposite of Born on the Fourth of July.
verdict (ranking):
A Few Good Men → The Firm.
The hosts treat them as the two lawyer movies and only one can survive the final Hall of Fame cut; A Few Good Men wins.
“I didn't realize that this was a one lawyer only hall of fame.”
verdict (ranking):
Born on the Fourth of July → Rain Man.
Two Oscar-bait Cruise films; the hosts prefer Born on the Fourth of July and cut Rain Man despite its Best Picture win.
verdict (ranking):
Collateral → Edge of Tomorrow.
Collateral and Edge of Tomorrow are the self-indulgent last picks; the group questions whether the list reflects Big Picture taste.
career (career arc):
Rain Man → Born on the Fourth of July.
Rain Man, Born on the Fourth of July and The Color of Money are grouped as his Oscar bait run defining an era.
industry (industry):
Ghostbusters: Afterlife → Marvel's Avengers.
Afterlife and the 2016 film both chase the Marvel model of serialized connected stories to succeed at the box office.
“trying to recreate what Marvel has done and just that's the only way you have success at the box office now is by latching onto that serialized story.”
career (career):
Andrew Garfield → Under the Silver Lake.
Speaker will follow Garfield wherever he goes, citing Silence, Under the Silver Lake, Tammy Faye.
fun, about
Poor Things (ending):
Abbott's character gets a goat brain and ends up on all fours chewing shrubbery; the household includes a pug that is also a chicken.
“Christopher Abbott on all fours, uh, chewing the shrubbery, like the, like the goat that he is.”
fun, about
Oscar nominations (Amanda):
Amanda asked her OB to delay her induction a day so she could host the Oscar-nominations pod; the baby arrived the next afternoon.
“And I said, well, because the Oscar nominations are being announced on Tuesday morning, and if he's not here, at, you know, at least I'd like to do my job.”
fun, about
The Killer:
Hotel trick to look for: he balances a glass on the door handle with the room-service tray underneath so a jiggled handle smashes it, then sleeps in a chair for three and a half hours.
“if anybody jiggles the handle, the glass will smash and make a noise and wake him up”
fun, about
The Killer:
He expects six to seven minutes to interrogate Parnell and the man dies almost instantly; the hosts take it as proof the killer is bad at his job.
“he kills Charles Parnell and thinks that he's going to have 6 to 7 minutes to interrogate him and he dies almost instantaneously.”
fun, about
The Killer:
The Miami fight in the dark: grabbing for a weapon in the kitchen, he finds a cheese grater, a huge laugh, then uses it as a noise distraction. Also he miscalculates the dose of a dog-drugging treat for the pit bull.
“and comes up with a cheese grater and you're like, ooh, a cheese grater.”
fun, about
The Killer:
Tilda Swinton scene in Beacon, NY: she eats solo at the bar, orders a whiskey flight tasting menu and asks for her own bottle, and the hosts debate whether she is the life he could have had.
“when Tilda Swinton's doing a tasting menu with a whiskey flight.”
fun, about
The Killer:
Shot out of a cannon: on Netflix there is no box-office report, Fincher hasn't had a traditional theatrical release since Gone Girl, and Adam saw it at Alamo and Toronto theaters.
“He hasn't released a movie to the public since Gone Girl in the traditional theatrical style.”
fun, about
David Fincher:
At the Academy Museum Q&A, an audience member asked how to make iconic movies in the age of TikTok. Fincher sighed and said he never thinks 'how can I make this more iconic' when setting up a shot.
“when I set up a shot, I don't think, dude, how can I make this more iconic?”
fun, about
Killers of the Flower Moon:
They saw it twice, the second time together at 2:30 p.m. at a local AMC the day before recording; Sean calls it a masterpiece but jokes he needed seven hours to get there.
“I don't know whether the joke is on the movie or me that I had to see it twice to get to that, um, point”
fun, about
Killers of the Flower Moon:
Early rewrite lore: DiCaprio was to play FBI investigator Tom White in the procedural version, then pushed Scorsese to rewrite and took Ernest instead.
“Leo was originally slated to play FBI investigator Tom White in the more procedural version of the film, and he went to Scorsese and said, I think there's something missing here”
fun, about
Killers of the Flower Moon:
Owl motif: Molly's mother sees an owl before dying; the second viewing, a bathroom break caused Amanda to miss the first owl on the windowsill.
“I realized about 30 minutes later that I had missed that 1st image of the owl landing on the windowsill”
fun, about
Christopher Cote:
Osage language consultant's widely quoted reaction: he wished it had been from Molly's perspective and says conspiring to murder a family is not love; the hosts treat it as a valid challenge.
“when someone conspires to murder your entire family, that's not love.”
fun, about
Lily Gladstone:
She was offered Molly in the original script version; per Allison Willmore's New York profile she calls the attention of 'the masters' to Native stories a double-edged sword.
“You want to have more natives writing native stories. You also want the masters to pay attention to what's going on.”
fun, about
The Simpsons:
Amanda's masonry knowledge extends only to the Stonecutters episode, which she calls one of the greatest half-hours in TV history.
“the Stonecutters episode of The Simpsons is one of the greatest half hours in television and history”
fun, about
Killers of the Flower Moon:
Sean worries about watching it in installments on Apple TV+; the movie is meant to overwhelm and is not episodic.
“It's not episodic. Yeah. It builds. Correct. And it is meant to completely pulverize you over 3.5 hours.”
fun, about
Oppenheimer:
Running bit: Amanda rages against Oppenheimer, with Sean needling her; Amanda says Nolan thinks great men existed and Scorsese isn't sure any did.
“Martin Scorsese's like, I'm honestly not sure. in retrospect.”
fun, about
Speak No Evil:
A Danish couple visits a Dutch couple in the Netherlands. Chris calls it a what-the-fuck-is-wrong-with-you movie and a gut test for horror fans; Amanda says friends who took Sean's recommendation confronted her about it.
“This is the what the fuck is wrong with you, movie?”
fun, about
Happening:
Amanda tried not to pick it because of another year of abortion dramas in her top five, noting the timing alongside the overturning of Roe v. Wade; she calls it a week-by-week thriller.
“another year, another abortion drama in my top 5 list”
fun, about
Top Gun: Maverick:
Jennifer Connelly acts like she has been at the bar the whole time; the hosts joke that her Porsche is safe parked on the street in Miramar as an admiral's daughter.
“And the idea that she just acts like she's been there the whole time is the funniest thing.”
fun, about
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever:
Before the screening Sean tells Amanda the IMAX holding poster shows Namor and promises she will learn a lot about him.
“Sean was just like, cool, okay, you're going to learn a lot about Neymar.”
fun, about
Working Girl:
After Van gives his top five, a host complains Working Girl is missing and calls it an all-time spiritual favorite for both hosts, then riffs on Alec Baldwin popping in and out.
fun, about
Elvis:
Amanda zoned out and missed that Elvis's mother died, and only realized the fancy house was Graceland when the film moved on; the pacing is endless yet frenetic.
“Like, quite literally, I missed that Graceland was purchased as Graceland, you know, like 2 hours in the movie.”
fun, about
Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story:
Amanda saw it on a Netflix mailer on a couch with a group of young people, which she thinks is how this whole generation of films should be experienced.
“which is how I think all this this entire generation of movies should like truly be experienced.”
fun, about
Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story:
The film's jokes annotate themselves: characters introduce themselves and each scene has a thesis statement, which the film dares you to call out.
“daring you to call it, call bullshit on this trope of just people saying who they are at all times, which I think is priceless.”
fun, about
24 Hour Party People:
The real Howard Devoto, as an extra in the frame, turns to camera during a scene of Devoto sleeping with Tony Wilson's wife to say he doesn't remember it happening.
“there's an extra in the frame who turns to camera and says, I definitely don't remember this happening and the person who does that is the real life Howard DeVoto.”
fun, about
Walk the Line:
Amanda was embarrassed about picking Walk the Line at number one but took a 'Tony Hawk 720' route to going with her heart; she notes Reese Witherspoon is lit like a Greek goddess.
“Also, she's lit like a Greek goddess. It's extraordinary how beautiful she looks in this movie.”
fun, about
A Few Good Men:
Amanda notes a tiny scene of timing where Kaffee says sit down to people already sitting and pauses for a second before moving on, without Sorkin-ing it.
fun, about
Tom Cruise:
Cruise's Hall of Fame bylaws: the 2005 year (couch jump, Brooke Shields, Scientology videos) coincided with a career nadir and the shift to Ethan Hunt as a safe harbor.
“Ethan Hunt just does everything for everyone all of the time and has no faults and is always on the right side.”
fun, about
Tom Cruise:
The Cruise cake: a white chocolate coconut bundt from Stone's Bakery in the Valley that Cruise sends every Christmas to famous friends; the hosts eat it on air and put it in the Hall of Fame.
“Tom Cruise sends it to all of the famous people in his life every year.”
fun, about
Ghostbusters: Afterlife:
Muncher the blue blob humping a fire hydrant is the one moment of joy; speaker was the only one laughing in the theater.
“So when like muncher, the blue blob shows up and is humping a fire hydrant.”
fun, about
Tiger:
The end of part one cuts to a famous woman sidling up to the camera, called great filmmaking; one director says the moment is a Sopranos homage scored with the song Evidently Chickentown.
“Because of a very famous woman, just sidling up to the camera.”
fun, about
Tiger:
Amanda points out that the documentary shows a magazine photo shoot taken five days after the birth of his first child, which cannot have been accidental, and that a viewer has to look for the clue.
“there is no way that a posed photo shoot is taken 5 days after the birth of a child without the participation and not just the participation, but the planning of the people involved.”
fun, about
Malcolm & Marie:
A famous meme: Sean says the Malcolm and Marie meme sums up the podcast, with one person saying something unforgivable and the other punching a wall.
“It's just like you saying something unforgivable and me punching a wall.”
fun, about
The Godfather Part II:
Sean says giving Pacino the 1975 Oscar might have changed the pattern of waiting twenty years too late to reward great actors, and wonders if Chris would still be yelling Pacino impressions.
“Would Chris would Chris still be yelling Al Pacino impressions on every single podcast?”
fun, about
The Imitation Game:
The only complete film Amanda has watched with her husband's parents, who do not watch movies; the mother asked at the end if they could do something else.
“I've watched one complete movie with Zach's parents.”
fun, about
Michael Clayton:
Amanda's husband Zach refuses to rewatch it with her, and instead reenacts it, yelling I am Shiva, the god of death about fourteen times.
“he did yell, I am Shiva, the god of death like 14 times.”
fun, about
Chadwick Boseman:
Amanda recalls the 2018 video of Ron Clark Academy students dancing with joy before seeing Black Panther, as a reminder of what the film meant to young Black kids.
“a group of students at the Ron Clark Academy in Atlanta who are just about to see Black Panther and are just so excited and dancing”
fun, about
Hamlet:
Amanda recalls the Lion King remake episode where Sean said Hamlet was bad and then went to the bathroom and undermined his own point.
“at one point you tried to say that Hamlet was bad and at another point, I just like had a breakdown”
fun, about
Mulan:
Amanda was so lost on the witch's shapeshifting that when her husband walked in she couldn't tell which bird was the witch.
“Also, my husband came in at some point and started watching and so I had like every time the bird showed up on the screen. I was like, that's the witch.”
fun, about
Mulan:
Amanda skips the music debate by calling the Reflection ballad 'an average ass ballad about finding yourself' after eight emails about Christina Aguilera's cover.
“this is just like an average ass ballad about finding yourself. Okay, whatever. It's not Elton John.”
fun, about
The Lion King:
Amanda notes 'SEX' famously flashes across the screen in the original Lion King, and jokes about the love song playing while lions frolic.
“I just X literally flashes across the screen in the original Lion King.”