Movies (and occasionally face slaps) (Part 1)

It is. Basically have zero complaints about the movie except that Iā€™m forced to acknowledge that the bit at the very end (Brad Pitt walking back over the bridge) is pretty bad and creates this impossible ā€œuhh, so what happens right after the movie?ā€ situation.

ā€œI wish you could have met my father.ā€
ā€œMe too.ā€
At some point after this theyā€™ll presumably discover her fatherā€™s newly dead body, and it will be clear that nobody else knew that he was dead or about to die. Coffee shop Brad Pitt is going to have some real questions to ask.

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I love that scene!!! I performed it for my high school theater class with a partner. We practiced all of the little details like stirring our coffee at the same time. Now I wanna put that movie on, but the Netflix series on Gladiators is too good to turn off.

LMAO this is so obvious once you mention it. Need a funny or die skit that re teams Claire Forlani and Brad Pitt as the same couple many years later as she tries to explain what happened yet again.

They can even still get Anthony Hopkins!!

Watch party for Independentsā€™ Day starting in fifteen :partying_face:

There could never be a place like Disneyland, or could there? Let me know.

Jim, itā€™s here. It really is here.

I havenā€™t listened in a long time as I just stopped really listening to audio only podcasts, but I used to listen to it religiously and loved it. It was often hysterical and some of the guests are really good on it too.

Saw the new Indiana Jones movie today. I had a good time, but they didnā€™t really recapture the magic of the earlier films.

I saw it too. Pretty good as far as nostalgic money grabs go. Didnā€™t have a romantic love interest, didnā€™t have him pretend to be 20 years younger. The villains were interesting and had personalities. Points for having Operation Paperclip be a major plot point.

Downside was the younger CGI, while not in the uncanny valley still just isnā€™t believeable. I donā€™t know if they ever will be. Iā€™m sure theyā€™ve done some research but I donā€™t know they just canā€™t cast a younger Indy. There wasnā€™t some kind of new magic to really draw me in. I donā€™t think there could be though. A big part of Indiana Jones is a rogue-ish adventure feel and thatā€™s a young manā€™s game. Thereā€™s only so many hidden artifacts that Jones can save from the Nazis. All that being said, I feel like this was about the best that could be done, and it could have been so much worse.

Tango & Cash wins the rare trifecta of being on Rewatchables, Flop House, and How Did This Get Made. Iā€™m going to give it a watch then listen to all 3 pods and report back.

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Iā€™m going to watch Draft Day tonight because it sounds like a funny Rewatchables.

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Oooooooo

I have seen this one many times but can imagine thereā€™s a lot to tear apart.

I love this movie, almost as much as I love For Love of the Game, even though I know both are quite bad. Canā€™t remember if Draft Day episode was any good, but Iā€™m still pissed off that For Love of the Game got relegated to that dumbass Luminary series, rather than being generally available.

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I saw the new Indiana Jones today too and thought the de-aging tech actually looked pretty good and was probably among the highlights, which isnā€™t saying much. It was about an hour too long, and I couldnā€™t reconcile his age with being an action star (heā€™s rock climbing and hanging by his literal fingertips at one point ffs, not to mention the fighting and gunplay).

It was much better than the fourth movie but doesnā€™t come close to Raiders or the Last Crusade. Maybe in the ballpark of ToD. It was fine.

Howā€™d that work out last time?

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Primal Fear Rewatchables episode was excellent, and Iā€™m excited that this is theme month. 6 (I think?) episodes featuring (presumably significant) courtroom scenes.

Hereā€™s what Iā€™m predicting/hoping for, in no particular order:

First, not eligible:

  • The Verdict. Fantastic movie, already covered with a great episode.

  • A Few Good Men. They wonā€™t do this one because it was their very first episode. But that was a really weak episode, because they hadnā€™t nailed down the format. Easily due for a followup.

  • Kramer vs. Kramer. Another fantastic movie theyā€™ve already covered.

  • 12 Angry Men. Iā€™d love a rewatchable, probably with someone more serious than Bill, but I think this is technically not eligible because thereā€™s no actual courtroom scene.

Now my predictions/hopes:

  • Presumed Innocent, even though I havenā€™t seen it. This would push me to mark it off the list, and potentially even pay $2.99 to Amazon to rent it. (I absolutely cannot stomach paying to rent movies given how many streaming services we have.) I feel like theyā€™ve been mentioning this one a lot.

  • My Cousin Vinny. I was under the impression they had done this one already, but a quick google suggests they havenā€™t. Absolute fantastic movie that still holds up perfectlyā€“even the kids enjoyed this one.

  • A Grisham movie, preferably A Time to Kill. Itā€™s been a while since Iā€™ve seen this one, but would love to revisit. I know Iā€™ve read all of the earlier books like The Client and The Rainmaker, but I canā€™t remember which ones Iā€™ve seen in the movies. (I donā€™t even remember if thereā€™s a courtroom scene in those? I know thereā€™s not one in the Pelican Brief.) I guess Runaway Jury is eligible, but Iā€™m certain I havenā€™t seen that one.

  • The Devilā€™s Advocate. I am not hoping for this one, as Iā€™m pretty sure I hated it when I saw it in the theater. But the Ringer crew has talked this up a number of times, and I think it makes it.

I feel like those 4 are almost locks.

  • Liar, Liar. Iā€™m not a Jim Carrey guy, but I really liked this movie, and I feel like they might throw in a comedy or two. Also a possibility is Legally Blonde for the same reason. But if itā€™s only one comedy, then I think My Cousin Vinny gets it.

  • Courage Under Fire. I havenā€™t seen or thought about this movie since I saw it in the theater, but my god theyā€™ve referenced it constantly in other episodes. Iā€™ll be pretty surprised if itā€™s not one of the picks.

  • Jagged Edge. This is a dark horse Iā€™m really hoping for. Glenn Close and Jeff Bridges are both great, and the script is by Joe Eszterhas (Basic Instinct). Fingers crossed.

  • Class Action. Another dark horse, this one with Gene Hackman and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, where the class action relates to defective autos. One part of me thinks theyā€™ll never pick this, but on the other hand Iā€™ve been happily surprised by Vision Quest and Cocktail, so who knows.

  • And Justice For All. Iā€™ve never seen this one, but a highly-rated Al Pacino movie seems very possible.

Other possibilities:

  • To Kill a Mockingbird. I really donā€™t actually think thereā€™s any chance of this one, absent them getting someone like Aaron Sorkin to cohost. But some random website is calling it the best courtroom drama ever, so I suppose itā€™s possible.

  • Philadelphia is a fine movie, but itā€™s not one that I really ever feel like rewatching.

  • The People vs. Larry Flynt. I should probably give this one another chance, but I remember not loving it in the theater.

Definitely disagree on For Love of the Game being bad. The love story in it was worthless, but the Costner character arc was still well-done and my enjoyment of the movie is entirely unironic. The use of Vin Scully was masterful. Would happily sit and watch that 20 more times.

Draft Day I have the same relationship with as you do: itā€™s absurd and terrible, but was a guilty pleasure all the same. Not sure I could watch it 20 times though.

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My Cousin Vinny seems like a lock. A Time to Kill does also. Unfortunately 12 Angry Men seems like a huge longshot because the only Ringer host I expect has actually bothered to watch it is Van Lathan. And perhaps Joanna Robinson, but I donā€™t think sheā€™s ever been brought in on The Rewatchables. FWIW I think it would be eligible because thereā€™s a brief jury instruction scene in the courtroom and Bill was specifically bothering to hedge about language about there being a courtroom scene in the eligible movies.

And Justice for All was terrible, but I wouldnā€™t be surprised if it was on the list. Iā€™d enjoy hearing a Liar Liar episode, but Iā€™m not sure whether Jennifer Lawrence has time right now.

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Oh, let me be clear. I donā€™t think itā€™s bad. I just recognize that itā€™s probably notā€¦ widely respected.

And I donā€™t appreciate the Kelly Preston slander.

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Kelly Preston is quite fetching in that movie, and I think she does a fine job, but I do think the movie is largely one of waiting for the next baseball scene to start. The sole value in that plotline is in demonstrating the cost to Billy Chapel in having been so singularly devoted to only caring about baseball for his entire life to that point. I love a good love story, but that ainā€™t it IMO.

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