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Episode 80

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Published on:

2nd Sep 2024

The Fisher King (1991)

After five months of teasing this episode we finally squeeze in our review of 'The Fisher King' (1991), Terry Gilliam's surrealist fantasy comedy. The movie was Nathan's pick after winning this year's Oscar's side bet. Joining us once again is Nathan's longtime friend and multi-talented creative force in the film industry, David Merrill.

04:56 Introducing David Merrill

07:34 The Four Questions

29:54 Nathan's thoughts

35:58 Bee's thoughts

39:49 David's thoughts

01:16:48 Movie Pairings

01:27:44 The Verdict: Save or PURGE!!!

01:30:12 Wrap-up and next months retrospective preview

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Transcript
Opening:

In the dying embers of human existence, as the asteroid, a

Opening:

behemoth the size of Texas, hurdles relentlessly toward Earth, the

Opening:

world braces for an apocalyptic end.

Opening:

Deep beneath the bunker, a refuge plunges into the bowels of the Earth.

Opening:

Here the chosen gather, their purpose clear, to preserve the

Opening:

very soul of our civilization.

Opening:

The 35 and 70 millimeter prints that encapsulate the magic, the emotion,

Opening:

and the dreams of generations past.

Opening:

In the past, these masterpieces, each frame a testament to the human

Opening:

spirit, are carefully cataloged and cavernous confines of the bunker.

Opening:

Perhaps there was room for more.

Opening:

For friends and family yearning for salvation.

Opening:

But sacrifices must be made.

Opening:

The movie nerds stand united.

Opening:

The keepers of a flame.

Opening:

Promising a future where the art of storytelling endures.

Opening:

Transcending the boundaries of time and space.

Opening:

God help us all.

Nathan:

Welcome to back to the framerate part of the Western Media Podcast Network.

Nathan:

Join us as we watch and discuss films on VOD and streaming platforms deliberating

Nathan:

on whether each one is worthy of salvation or destined for destruction in the face

Nathan:

of the impending asteroid apocalypse.

Nathan:

You can find more episodes of this podcast on back to the framerate.

Nathan:

com where you can subscribe and share our show and find us on our

Nathan:

socials at back to the framerate.

Nathan:

I am Nathan Shore and accompanying me are the extraordinary movie mavens,

Nathan:

Brianna Butterworth and returning guest, returning champion, David Merrill.

Nathan:

Welcome to the show and welcome back, David.

Nathan:

All right.

Nathan:

Happy to be here.

Nathan:

How is everybody doing this week?

Nathan:

Good.

Nathan:

Yeah.

David:

We are doing well.

Nathan:

Great.

Nathan:

Great.

Nathan:

We're going to get into the show in a moment, but I do

Nathan:

have a question for both of you

Nathan:

and I'd like to begin.

Nathan:

It's been a little while since chance to do this.

Nathan:

It's a hypothetical and answer this any way you want, but both of you, this

Nathan:

is to each one of you separately, but you work as an overnight radio host at

Nathan:

a 500 watt station in Lewisburg, West Virginia, and this is back in 1999.

Nathan:

That's important detail.

Nathan:

Your shift ends at 6 a.

Nathan:

m.

Nathan:

What song do you use as your daily sign off as the good folk of Greenbrier County

Nathan:

wake up and get ready for their work day?

Nathan:

And what is the station's call sign?

Bee:

Oh, this is a really good question.

David:

It's a really good question.

David:

And, and, okay, wait, I, I, this is terrible.

David:

I have to ask this.

David:

So what's the state?

David:

This is

Nathan:

a Lewisburg, West Virginia,

David:

West Virginia.

David:

Okay.

David:

So it's 1999.

Nathan:

It

David:

is east of the Mississippi.

David:

So it is going to begin with a W.

David:

Yes.

David:

All signs.

David:

So, okay.

David:

All right.

David:

I mean,

Bee:

mine would be WBE.

Bee:

It

David:

would be.

David:

All right.

David:

All right.

David:

That works for

Bee:

me.

David:

Well then I guess mine would have to be WDAV.

Bee:

Yeah, there you go.

David:

Right.

Bee:

All right.

Bee:

So 6 AM it's 1999.

Bee:

Now to.

Bee:

Does it have to be a song from 1999 or before, or?

Nathan:

This is 1999, unless you're a time traveler

Bee:

and you're curating

Nathan:

music from the future.

Nathan:

But what are you waking up the people of, of Greenbrier, Greenbrier County

David:

with?

David:

What are we waking them up to?

David:

What are we waking them up to?

David:

It's West

Nathan:

Virginia.

David:

In, yeah.

David:

In

Nathan:

1999.

Nathan:

In 1999.

Nathan:

At 6am.

Nathan:

These people want to get ready for work.

Bee:

Flower by Moby.

Bee:

Yeah.

David:

Okay, Flower by Andy.

David:

That's a good one.

David:

That's a good one.

David:

Alright, I'm working on this one.

David:

I'm thinking about this one.

David:

It

Bee:

was that or like S Club 7,

David:

but Yeah.

David:

Oh no, wait a minute.

David:

I know.

David:

I want it that way by the Backstreet Boys.

Bee:

Yee haw!

David:

How about that?

David:

Alright!

Bee:

I like it.

Bee:

Tell me why.

Nathan:

Good responses.

Bee:

That was a good question.

Bee:

Okay.

Nathan:

That is

David:

a very good question.

Nathan:

I love it.

Nathan:

It's important, important.

Nathan:

Shout out to our, our friends in Greenbrier County.

Nathan:

In

Bee:

middle school, I did all the school, I was like a radio host.

Bee:

I did all the school announcements.

Bee:

So.

David:

Oh, very cool.

David:

Very cool.

David:

Yeah.

Bee:

Yeah.

Bee:

That didn't get me picked on at all.

Bee:

I was so popular.

Bee:

But really well for me.

Nathan:

Well, if you hadn't guessed.

Nathan:

Already we reviewed the Fisher King this week, but before we get into our review,

Nathan:

I wanna welcome our guest one more time.

Nathan:

David Merrill, you have been with us now.

Nathan:

This is our second time joining us on the podcast.

Nathan:

How are you doing?

Nathan:

I'd like to, we don't have a lot of time tonight, so I'd like to

Nathan:

just get a little quick summary.

Nathan:

What have you been up to the last few months since you were last on a show?

Nathan:

I think it was our Memento episode you last joined us for, but

David:

it was Christopher Nolan's Memento, which you and I saw in a movie theater.

David:

In Los Angeles, we were both living and working in the belly of the beast.

David:

You know, for a tiny little company that can only afford

David:

three letters for their name in B.

David:

C.

David:

I'm, I'm fine.

David:

I've been working a lot of, on a lot of both creative projects and, and a

David:

couple of, you know, a couple of things as you, you know, the, we don't have

David:

viewers, but if we had viewers, they would see that I'm, I'm wearing a shirt

David:

of a semi famous guy from my hometown.

David:

Because we just, but,

Nathan:

but David, we do have viewers.

Nathan:

We are recording this video.

David:

We are?

David:

Oh yeah.

David:

Oh, now I'm really embarrassed because like they're seeing,

David:

you know, this is, yeah.

David:

I mean, I wish I had a virtual background, you know, you look great.

David:

You look okay.

David:

All right.

David:

But we, yeah, we just concluded we had Elvis week a week, a week ago.

David:

So, you know, there was the whole parade of tourists and, you know,

David:

we, we don't, you don't call them, they're called tribute artists.

David:

Okay.

David:

That they're not, they're not, you're not allowed to call them.

David:

You can't call them imitators.

David:

They're not Elvis imitators anymore.

David:

They are tribute artists.

David:

When

Nathan:

did that, when did that switch happen from

Nathan:

impersonator to a tribute artist?

David:

This was a, this was a couple of years ago and I have, I have a very good

David:

friend of mine and she acts as a DJ.

David:

There's a local hotel that has like a, They host a show and a

David:

competition and she's the DJ for it.

David:

And she would always invite me over and say, Hey, yeah, you can

David:

come watch dress rehearsals or, you know, a couple of guest passes.

David:

You can watch the competition.

David:

And I was like, Oh, the Elvis, you know, and she's like, no, no, no,

David:

no, don't, don't use that word.

David:

Can't say that.

David:

Can't say that they are tribute artists.

David:

And I'm like, Oh, Oh, excuse me.

David:

Excuse me.

David:

Okay.

David:

So it's been kind of Memphis is always interesting.

David:

Nathan knows he's visited here.

David:

He's eating the barbecue.

David:

I gotta

Bee:

come.

David:

You gotta go.

David:

He's eating

Bee:

barbecue.

David:

We were there.

Nathan:

We were there for Elvis week in 2006.

Nathan:

Yeah.

Nathan:

If you remember.

Nathan:

When is it?

Nathan:

During Elvis week.

Nathan:

Mm hmm.

Nathan:

And I, we were at the hotel where it was happening.

David:

Yeah.

David:

It was a sight.

David:

I would love

Bee:

to go to Memphis one day.

David:

It's a scene man.

David:

You need to come down here.

David:

Yeah.

David:

You need to come down here.

David:

It is.

David:

It's a fun place.

David:

It's

Bee:

a

David:

fun place.

David:

It's pretty cool.

David:

But I've been fine.

David:

I've been fine.

David:

And seen some movies and television shows.

David:

Working on some things of my own working on some things with friends.

David:

We talk about it a little bit later, you know, if you want to.

David:

I have

Nathan:

four quick questions for you and I, and this is something

Nathan:

that we implemented after you were a guest last time on the show.

Nathan:

Are you ready for these four questions?

Nathan:

Very important.

Nathan:

Cause I want our audience to know a little bit more about you.

Nathan:

I'm just bringing this on you out of the blue.

David:

Do I need an attorney?

David:

I mean, I don't think

Nathan:

we asked this last time you were here.

Nathan:

What is the first movie you remember seeing in a theater?

David:

Oh, wow.

David:

That is a, Oh my God.

David:

Woo.

David:

Because my parents were huge movie fans.

David:

And, and I think we've talked about this and Nathan, you, my parents were divorced

David:

but, and Nathan met my mother, you know, full disclosure on a, on a visit here.

David:

And so my mother and father and my stepfather, they all had, but

David:

particularly my mother and father had very different tastes in films.

David:

So I got to think about this for a minute because my mother loved sci

David:

fi, horror, fantasy and period dramas.

David:

And my dad, like, cop, crime, gangster films, or westerns.

David:

Only realistic stuff, you know, he only wants to see realistic stuff,

David:

you know, was, was his thing.

David:

God, okay.

David:

You know what?

David:

I think it may have been Jaws.

David:

Oh.

David:

I'm, I'm actually, I'm pretty sure that it was, I'm pretty sure

David:

that it was, that it was Jaws.

David:

And it scared, I was, I was, I was small, I was, I was a little kid and

David:

I remember it scared me so badly.

David:

I didn't want to go into my godfather's swimming pool.

David:

That's not, that's not a joke.

David:

I mean, it sounds like a joke now.

David:

No, it's so cute.

David:

It sounds silly, but it was one of these things of like, we went over to

David:

my godfather's and you know, and there's the deep end of the pool, which you

David:

could see in, but you know, at that age, my mom was like, come on, jump

David:

in the pool, jump in the pool, you got your swimsuit on, jump in the pool.

David:

No, there's a 25 foot shark in there.

David:

The shark might be in there.

David:

She's like, oh, there's not a shark in the swimming pool?

David:

And I'm like, it might be down there.

David:

I don't know.

Bee:

Well, David, you should know I finally saw Jaws in my mid twenties in

Bee:

a movie theater, and it scared me too.

David:

Right.

David:

Scary movie.

David:

Scary movie.

David:

Oh, and here's another, I just forgot this, but while we were, when,

David:

when Nathan and I were living in L.

David:

A., I was taking a screenwriting course at UCLA Extension, and one of the women

David:

that was in the class with me, very nice lady, we became very good friends, she's

David:

a little bit older than me, She said one day, and I thought this, I thought

David:

she was playing the new guy to LA joke.

David:

She said, I'm going to introduce you to Steven Spielberg's mother.

David:

And I was like, Oh yeah, sure you are.

David:

Ha ha.

David:

She's like, No, really, but I think you'll find it amusing.

David:

She owns a kosher, a kosher dairy restaurant on Pico.

David:

Meet me there for lunch and I'll introduce you to her.

David:

And I'm like, Yeah, right, right, Marla.

David:

Okay, sure.

David:

Marla Manning, she's a very nice woman.

David:

But you know what?

David:

But I went, this was a day off from class.

David:

I went there and I was thinking she's, she's, she's punking me.

David:

This is, it's a joke.

David:

It's got to be a joke, right?

David:

But I go into this place and I was 20 minutes early because I was perpetually

David:

paranoid about being late in L.

David:

A.

David:

And, or smartphones, or before they were good.

David:

You know, I show up and I'm a little early.

David:

I'm, it's like 11.

David:

30.

David:

I'm supposed to meet her at noon.

David:

No one's in the restaurant.

David:

I, you know, I, this, this, this lady comes and she's, well,

David:

you can wait on your friend.

David:

And then this really nice silver haired lady comes by the table

David:

and she says can I help you?

David:

And I said, well, I'm waiting on a friend of mine.

David:

And I'm, you know, I'm, I'm just, I'm a little early cause I'm new to LA.

David:

And then she's like, what do you do?

David:

What's your name?

David:

And I told her my name.

David:

I was like, well, I'm taking screenwriting, trying to get a job.

David:

Well, you look very creative.

David:

Who are you waiting for?

David:

And I said, well, Marla Manning we take a screenwriting class.

David:

She's like, Oh, I know Marla.

David:

Marla babysits my grandkids.

David:

And I was like, Oh, okay, well, cool.

David:

I was like, do you work here in the restaurant?

David:

She's like, no, I own the restaurant.

David:

Do you mind if I wait with you and say hello to Marla?

David:

And I was like, sure.

David:

And I mean, none of this is, it's, it's not, it's not ringing bells.

David:

And I'm still thinking she's not really.

David:

And then Marla comes in and they hug and they kiss and

David:

they catch up and everything.

David:

And And then she goes, she's, I'm going to go get your, your waiter and I'll

David:

bring you some, you know, bring you some water and we'll see in a minute or two.

David:

I'm like, okay.

David:

And so I was like, see you, you, you know, you've met.

David:

I'm like, yeah.

David:

And she's like, what do you think?

David:

And I'm like, very nice lady.

David:

And she's, she's just like, she kind of gives me this

David:

look and then she comes back.

David:

And the woman has a copy of a tabloid magazine.

David:

She goes, look, it's a picture of me and Stevie in the star.

David:

She opened the page and it was, it was a, it was a photograph her of

David:

her and Steven fucking Spielberg, her son walking down Rodeo drive.

David:

I was in a blind panic.

David:

I'm like.

David:

I have been, I have been talking to Steven goddamn Spielberg's

David:

mother as though I'm, you know, like, where's my brain, you know?

David:

But, you know, she was perfectly nice about it, and we had this lunch, and

David:

then Marla was like, yeah, I don't want, so I didn't want to say anything,

David:

because if I said this in class, the bunch of, you know, people that are

David:

in the industry, they're gonna be, you know, all over me, you know, for this

David:

kind of stuff, and I was like, Okay.

David:

But

Nathan:

I had a similar run in.

Nathan:

It's nowhere near as good as your story where I was at lunch with the two people,

Nathan:

one of which I found out 40 minutes into the lunch was Dino, Dino De Laurentiis's

Nathan:

daughter for like 40 minutes or so.

Nathan:

Oh my, oh Raffaella.

Nathan:

Yeah.

Nathan:

I think it was Raffaella or there's another one too, but

Nathan:

she lived in LA at the time.

Nathan:

I don't know if she's still there.

Nathan:

No, no,

David:

no, no.

David:

Oh, I, I go ahead, man.

David:

Go ahead.

Nathan:

It's not that interesting a story, but like, it was like maybe two

Nathan:

of the people and, and this was before I met you actually, when I was in LA

Nathan:

and I didn't even know much about Dino De Laurentiis at the time, but like, I

Nathan:

knew the name, but it was like, I was just kind of like, Oh wait, yeah, I know.

Nathan:

I know I didn't really.

Nathan:

Gus about it at the time, but it was like interesting that I

Nathan:

spent like 40 minutes with Dino's daughter and I didn't even know it.

David:

That is really, that's, that's very cool.

David:

It's also really weird because before we met, when I was working at

David:

universal, a call rang through to my line and I just, you know, I mean, I

David:

just picked it up cause they had the services where it's like, it's for you.

David:

Well, it turns out it wasn't, but it was Raffaele De Laurentiis.

David:

She's trying to reach.

David:

And I was like, Oh, I was like, wait a minute.

David:

Did you, and she was like, they're Laurentiis.

David:

And I was like, are you related to Dino?

David:

And, you know, cause I mean, how many really?

David:

And she was like, Oh, that's my father.

David:

And I said, I love Dune and King Kong.

David:

I'm just going to say that I love it.

David:

And she's like, Oh, that's very nice.

David:

I have some thoughts

Nathan:

on Dune, but you know,

David:

well, yeah.

David:

Don't, don't we all, don't we all.

David:

But, but yes, but so that's the weird quirkiness of LA is that,

David:

you know, you meet, You meet people like that from time to time.

David:

So

Nathan:

all right.

Nathan:

I have a couple other questions.

Nathan:

Before we get to our review What was the last movie that you watched besides?

Nathan:

Well, you can tell us what you just saw, but what's the

Nathan:

last movie that you watched?

David:

Okay And let's see.

David:

Okay.

David:

I'm struggling between wanting to be very honest or, or,

David:

or really tell us the truth.

Movie Clip:

Tell us the truth.

Movie Clip:

Okay.

David:

Okay.

David:

All right.

David:

The last film that, that I watched that we watched was John Wick three.

David:

Because I, I, and look, I, I really, I hate, I, I hate to admit this,

David:

but so like there was all the hype around the John Wick movies and

David:

all my friends were watching them and I just kept making fun of them.

David:

Cause I was like, you know, I go back to like thinking of Keanu in Bill

David:

and Ted's Excellent Adventure or even making fun of him in Dangerous Liaisons.

David:

You must permit me to treat with skepticism.

David:

Anything you might say about the Marquesas, dude, you

David:

know, I'm like, come on.

David:

And they're like, no, man, no, no, no.

David:

This is not, you know, and I'm like, but the matrix, they're like, no, no,

David:

this is not, this is not Bill and Ted.

David:

With guns.

David:

This is not Matrix even.

David:

So

Bee:

have you not seen it?

David:

No.

David:

Not until, we, we just, so like, we just recently, it was like, you know,

David:

You know, it was the whole thing of, let's check out the first one.

David:

So we watched the first, like, holy shit.

David:

Holy shit, this is really, This motherfuckers, he's,

David:

he's the man, he's the man.

David:

So then we quickly like gobbled down, it's like we watched the first one,

David:

and the next couple nights later like we watched the second one, and it's

David:

like, okay, we gotta, we gotta find and watch the third one, so then like,

David:

you know, some things happen, we did some other stuff, but then finally this

David:

week it's like, okay, third one, boom, and now I gotta see the fourth one.

David:

I, I've gotta, I've, I've gotta see it.

David:

I'm like,

Bee:

I'm happy you've been John Wick pilled.

David:

I am, I am.

David:

John Wick pilled.

David:

It is, it is.

David:

Like, and I love, I love the little, I love the cameos.

David:

You know Angelica Houston?

David:

I'm like, I'm watching this thing.

David:

I'm like, fucking Angelica Houston.

David:

I'm like, what the, what the shit?

David:

You know these, these guys fucking love

David:

her.

David:

Oh, she's great.

David:

She is, she is great and Halle Berry and I'm just like going, so we finally

David:

got the, it's not the cat woman that we got, but the action hero

David:

out of Halle Berry that we deserve.

David:

We

Bee:

deserved.

Bee:

We deserved.

Bee:

Yeah.

Bee:

Cause there was

David:

the whole thing with the dog and everything.

David:

She's like, no, you can't have my dog.

David:

And she looks up at him.

David:

She was like, you get it?

David:

He's like, yeah, I get it.

David:

You know, and it's just kind of subtle right there.

David:

And I'm just like, you know I'm just like, Oh yeah, this was endorsed

David:

by the ASPCA, but it's just fine.

David:

It's fine.

David:

I love it.

David:

I'm a dog.

David:

Look, I love, I have a cat, but I love dogs.

David:

I grew up with dogs.

David:

I get it.

David:

You know, sure.

David:

And they went and they, you know, they kicked everybody's ass.

David:

And it was, I'm just like, now I want another one, you know?

David:

And I'm just like, why can't, you know, why can't the Hollywood machine, turn

David:

out good stuff like this on a regular.

David:

I mean, I guess they can, but they're choosing not to.

David:

And we, you find yourselves kind of like we're talking before

David:

having to cast about and talk to friends and go, is it really good?

David:

I mean, you know, is this really, is this really worth the time?

David:

Cause I, you know, I don't want to invest two hours and go like I could

David:

have been, you know, I could have been doing something else, you know,

David:

so, but this was totally worth it.

David:

That's

Nathan:

great.

Nathan:

Two other quick questions for you, David.

Nathan:

This, this one, you know, interpret this any way you want,

Nathan:

but what is your favorite movie?

Nathan:

Any right now, next week, last week, I know it's something that could be,

Nathan:

it's a list that can, a movie that can change at any given moment, but, and

David:

it's, this is tough because, because even, even, you know, I was saying

David:

I had, was having this conversation Friday when I was recruiting people for this

David:

podcast, by the way, you know, before, while I was doing the recruitment, I got

David:

to ask this, I got to ask this question.

David:

Oddly enough, the woman that was asking the question is the, she's

David:

a relative of the of the man that runs, like, the, one of the largest

David:

theater chains in the Southeast.

David:

Malco, M.

David:

A.

David:

Lightman Company which is run by a gentleman named Jimmy Tash.

David:

He's a, he's a good friend.

David:

I like him a lot.

David:

She's like, what are your, what's your favorite film?

David:

I'm like, I can't, I can't give you one.

David:

I can give you a short list, but it's really hard for me

David:

to go this one film, but okay.

David:

But if I, if you were to say to me, if you were to say to me, okay, You know, like,

David:

okay, you, you can't, you know, if you can't give me one, then it would be, it

David:

would either, it'd probably be Casablanca and the Godfather, give me, give me, okay.

David:

You know, that's, that's, that's probably is, that's probably the closest that

David:

I can come to saying good enough.

David:

Nathan, do

Bee:

you have a standard answer to that question?

Bee:

No, there isn't.

Nathan:

It's, it's a list of like 10 movies that rotate every day.

Nathan:

Every week.

Nathan:

Sure, sure.

Nathan:

There's no good answer for it.

Nathan:

No.

Nathan:

It's five or 10

David:

films that are like, these are really great films.

David:

And I would watch these again and again.

David:

Cause They're, they're great.

Nathan:

This is important though.

Nathan:

What is a movie or a movie that you credit for turning you into a cinephile?

David:

What film would I credit turning me into a cinephile?

David:

Okay.

David:

I'm struggling to remember the director's name, but The Sweet Smell

David:

of Success with this is an old film.

David:

This is an old film noir film.

David:

And it's, it's like a, it's a, yeah, it's a film noir film, Burt Lancaster.

David:

It was produced by this guy named McKittrick, and it was a box

David:

office bomb, but it's a great film.

David:

Tony, Tony Curtis.

David:

Who plays, as we would say now, against type.

David:

He, he didn't play like the nice guy, charming, comedic role.

David:

He was the smarmy, you know, streetwise hustler guy.

David:

And he plays a, plays a press agent.

David:

And Burt Lancaster is this demagogue columnist.

David:

That, you know, for this New York, he's very, he's like this

David:

very powerful media figure.

David:

And it's this kind of tragic story.

David:

But the thing is, I remember watching the film as a kid.

David:

And my father said to me, he was like, he goes, look at that cinematography.

David:

Look at how beautifully, look at how beautifully they

David:

photographed New York city.

David:

And I was like, what do you, what do you mean?

David:

And he was like, what are you, what are you talking about?

David:

My dad was not, you know, he wasn't a filmmaker, he was a cop, but he's like,

David:

look at how beautiful New York looks.

David:

And I was like, yeah, it really does.

David:

It does look really beautiful.

David:

You know, and it's this black and white, you know, it's this black and white film.

David:

And so, you know, we watched the film and I actually at that time even had to

David:

go and look up and like, who shot this?

David:

It turns out it was like one of America's first Chinese American

David:

cinematographers, James Wong Howe.

David:

And, you know, and so that, that was one of the films that was like, I've got to

David:

find out, you how this film was made.

David:

You know, not just who was in it, but how it was made.

David:

And for my parents generation, I would say this, that, you know, it was also a

David:

thing of like, if you talked to them for more than a minute about movie stars or

David:

actors, particularly my mother, she'd give you biography on these people.

David:

And she could, the whole thing, she could, she could talk you through

David:

the whole Liz Taylor marriages shit, you know, all that shit.

David:

Whoa, no, she was married to so and so and then married so and so and then

David:

had this kid and then they got divorced and then she got blah, blah, blah.

David:

And then they had this kid and then she married this producer and they did.

David:

I'm like going, you know, I'm like, what the hell?

David:

You know, you know, they, they knew this stuff.

David:

So, but Sweet Smell of Success which is a great film.

David:

That's the one that really kind of like, what is this, what is

David:

this thing called filmmaking and production and how does it work?

David:

You know, how do you get the beautiful, you know, cinematography.

Movie Clip:

Are you listening?

David:

Avidly, avidly.

David:

He was staring.

David:

Staring.

Movie Clip:

Consequently, when he approached me on his

Movie Clip:

way out, I wasn't surprised.

Movie Clip:

He was doing a special Sunday piece on Cigarette guns.

Movie Clip:

And naturals.

Movie Clip:

You were thrilled about being interviewed.

Movie Clip:

And were you interviewed?

Movie Clip:

In his apartment.

Movie Clip:

Where was his wife?

Movie Clip:

I don't know.

Movie Clip:

It's a big apartment.

Movie Clip:

Only I wasn't interviewed.

Movie Clip:

In fact, I was totally unprepared for what happened.

Movie Clip:

Oh, come on, Chicky.

Movie Clip:

We're friends from way back.

Movie Clip:

A big columnist comes into this club without his ball and chain and you

Movie Clip:

make like a delicatessen counter.

Movie Clip:

What did you expect he was going to do in his apartment?

Movie Clip:

But

Nathan:

Sydney, sweetheart.

Nathan:

All right.

Nathan:

Thank you.

Nathan:

All right.

Nathan:

So, at least we got a little, a little insight into what makes You who you are,

Nathan:

David, I'll part of the rich tapestry.

Nathan:

Yeah.

Nathan:

All right.

Nathan:

Well, I think we can transition into our review this week.

Nathan:

We watched the Fisher King from 1991 directed by Terry Gilliam, his sixth

Nathan:

feature, and I have a plot synopsis here.

Nathan:

How I would read it.

Nathan:

So after shock jock Jack Lucas inadvertently provokes a caller

Nathan:

into murdering a group of innocent people in a Manhattan bar, he

Nathan:

grows depressed and turns to booze as he's about to hit rock bottom.

Nathan:

Bottom.

Nathan:

Lucas meets a homeless man named Perry, played by Robin Williams,

Nathan:

whose wife was killed by the collar.

Nathan:

Lucas pushed to the brink, mentally scarred by his loss.

Nathan:

Perry spends his days searching for the holy Grail.

Nathan:

Lucas feeling culpable for the poor man's plight, pledges to help him on his quest.

Nathan:

So I also have part of the trailer.

Nathan:

For the fisher king i'll drop that in right here

Movie Clip:

in the world of talk radio Jack lucas was king.

Movie Clip:

Look I said I want an offer they can forget it to stay on top.

Movie Clip:

He did whatever he had to forgive me But one day jack went too far It was mr.

Movie Clip:

Lucas's offhand remark that seemed to have fatal impact on mr.

Movie Clip:

Malnick No matter what I had it feels like I had nothing.

Movie Clip:

Yo, what's going on?

Movie Clip:

And just when he was about to give up on his own life, he stumbled into Perry's.

Movie Clip:

Unhand the degenerate and remove your prison!

Movie Clip:

I like New York in June.

Movie Clip:

How about you?

Movie Clip:

You know who I am?

Movie Clip:

A hood ornament.

Movie Clip:

No.

Movie Clip:

I'm a knight on a special quest.

Movie Clip:

A quest?

Movie Clip:

And I need help.

Nathan:

So yeah, a little bit of the trailer from that.

Nathan:

I have a couple pieces of trivia and facts from this.

Nathan:

This is again, came out in 1991, on September 20th, 91.

Nathan:

But it didn't go into wide release until the week after.

Nathan:

So I like to do this is kind of quickly go through the box office top 10 and

Nathan:

I'll do this really fast here, but this, I'm not going to count the first week

Nathan:

cause it came in like at number like 26 or something like that cause it did

Nathan:

not go wide until the following week.

Nathan:

But the following week it was number one at the box office

Nathan:

with 7 million, not very big.

Nathan:

But the second, number two in the box office, probably nobody will get

Nathan:

this, but it was necessary roughness.

Nathan:

And it also came out in this first week, 6.

Nathan:

5 million Scott Bakula.

Nathan:

It's technically a movie, technically a movie.

Nathan:

Number three was deceived in its first week of release with 4.

Nathan:

3 million.

Nathan:

Number four.

Nathan:

Any guesses?

Movie Clip:

Horror.

Nathan:

I think it's like the fifth, sixth, or seventh movie

Nathan:

in this horror franchise.

Nathan:

Was it,

Bee:

Is this, this isn't Jason Takes Manhattan.

Nathan:

No, it's the other one.

Nathan:

Other franchise.

Bee:

Freddy?

Bee:

Is this Nightmare on Elm Street?

Nathan:

Nightmare on Elm Street, part 55.

Nathan:

Something like that.

Nathan:

Freddy's dead, the final nightmare.

Nathan:

I don't know which one that is in the franchise.

Nathan:

Right.

Nathan:

That's the, yeah, 3.

Nathan:

4 million number five.

Nathan:

This is interesting.

Nathan:

Dead again, 1.

Nathan:

9 million also had Robin Williams in it in a small role, which I

Nathan:

thought he was really good in

David:

Kenneth Branagh.

Nathan:

Yeah.

Nathan:

Yeah.

Nathan:

Number six, late for dinner in a second week of release 1.

Nathan:

6 million.

Nathan:

I have no idea what that movie is.

Nathan:

Number seven and it's 13th week of release earning 1.

Nathan:

2 million terminator two judgment day.

Nathan:

Good number eight and it's ninth week of release earning 1.

Nathan:

1 million is Doc Hollywood

David:

Michael J Fox.

Nathan:

Yes.

David:

Yeah

Nathan:

number nine and it's 16th week of release.

Nathan:

You just don't get this anymore Earning 1.

Nathan:

1 million is Robin Hood Prince of Thieves And number 10 in its

Nathan:

second week of release earning 1.

Nathan:

1 million was Rambling Rose, which I know nothing about, although it did

Nathan:

get some Academy Award nominations.

Nathan:

Speaking of the Academy Awards Fisher King did do okay.

Nathan:

It won Mercedes rule one for best supporting actress, one over Diane

Nathan:

Ladd, Julia Lewis Kate Nelligan and Jessica Tandy in that category.

Nathan:

Robin Williams was nominated for Best Actor, but lost to Anthony

Nathan:

Hopkins for Silence of the Lambs.

Nathan:

It was nominated for Best Screenplay and also nominated for Best Art

Nathan:

Direction and Best Original Score.

Nathan:

I want to ask you one question.

Nathan:

Robin Williams nominated for Best Actor.

Nathan:

Was he put into the wrong category?

David:

Hmm.

David:

You mean you think should he been best supporting?

Nathan:

Yeah.

Nathan:

Is

David:

that

Nathan:

what

David:

you're

Nathan:

saying?

Nathan:

That's what I'm kind of wondering because I was looking at the best.

Nathan:

I, I wrote this.

Nathan:

I have a note here somewhere because Robin Williams, he was best actor.

Nathan:

Do you think, do you think he would have been better off as best supporting actor?

Nathan:

Because, because, because That year, Jack Palance won for City Slickers,

Nathan:

also in that category was Tommy Lee Jones for JFK, Harvey Keitel

Nathan:

for Bugsy, Ben Kingsley for Lansky, and Michael Lerner for Barton Fink.

Nathan:

All those were good performances.

Nathan:

I think Robin Williams would have won this.

David:

He would have, yeah, I absolutely agree.

David:

I absolutely agree.

David:

So yeah.

David:

I don't

Nathan:

think Robin Williams is a leading, is he a leading man in this movie?

Nathan:

I always thought of Jeff Bridges as the leading man in this.

Bee:

For me, I mean Distinction for me is always like, do we see

Bee:

anything from their perspective?

Bee:

Right?

Nathan:

I don't, we're, we're with Jeff Bridges.

Nathan:

We're with Jeff.

Nathan:

We're with Jeff

Bee:

kind of the whole time.

Bee:

It's pretty rare.

Bee:

It's, it does happen.

Bee:

It does happen when we're alone with Robin Williams, but it's not as

Bee:

often, which is why I think they got away with putting him in best actor.

Bee:

But yeah, I mean, his odds, I think would have been better in supporting for sure.

David:

I do.

David:

I agree.

David:

Yeah.

David:

Yeah.

Bee:

Yeah.

David:

And I mean, the film starts out, the film starts

David:

out, it's like, what do we see?

David:

It's like, you know, a closeup of Jeff Bridges with a microphone.

David:

I mean, it's like, it's, it's Bridges, you know.

Nathan:

Maybe they thought, hey, the guy that's in a movie for like 10 minutes

Nathan:

is never going to win best actor.

Nathan:

By the way,

Bee:

how good was the opening of Fisher King that we're just, Jeff Bridges,

Bee:

his voice and then I was like, so, and I was like, Oh yeah, that's the juice.

David:

Yeah, absolutely.

David:

I mean,

Nathan:

I know I, I, I drew the short straw I'm going first

Nathan:

year, but I'll already start off.

Nathan:

I think the Fisher King is a near perfect movie.

Nathan:

You know, You know, I've wanted to review this movie for a long time.

Nathan:

This, the reason why we're reviewing this is because we did a a little

Nathan:

side bet back during the Oscars.

Nathan:

Who's going to get the most

Bee:

rigged mid game.

Bee:

I want to point that out.

Bee:

Nathan was stacking categories and he was like, why don't we just

Bee:

take this on other categories too?

Nathan:

No, I want a fair square.

Nathan:

And because of that, we're here to review the fish, a King.

Nathan:

All right.

Nathan:

Everyone else be quiet now.

Nathan:

That's it.

Nathan:

We're here.

Nathan:

Anyways, this movie came out at a time in my life when I began to have aspirations

Nathan:

of a career in the industry around probably the middle of high school.

Nathan:

And this is probably one of the five or six films that I can point

Nathan:

to that really lit a fire in me.

Nathan:

Where I wanted to tell stories on screen, and I've seen this movie many

Nathan:

times, but every time I see it, I find something I've never caught before.

Nathan:

In fact, there's a tiny line of dialogue that Robin Williams utters that I found

Nathan:

so funny, this screening, that I've never picked on, picked up before.

Nathan:

So I have so much praise for this film, and I'll start with a couple things here.

Nathan:

The casting, number one, Robin Williams.

Nathan:

I like him as a performer and I think he's an excellent actor, but I've always

Nathan:

felt that his movies, especially you know, they've always had, I've had a hard time.

Nathan:

I think they have a hard time capturing his energy into a realistic character.

Nathan:

He's often ping ponging between roles in which he's playing a character

Nathan:

that can cut loose with manic energy.

Nathan:

And many of those.

Nathan:

And a lot of those I'm really not into, and on the opposite end of

Nathan:

the spectrum, there are the films in which he's playing it very straight.

Nathan:

And I think he's very good in those films, but either the character is thinly written

Nathan:

or the film is lacking in other ways.

Nathan:

I

Bee:

feel like you're just talking about one hour photo here.

Nathan:

No, no.

Nathan:

I think a lot of Mike, I insomnia one hour photo I like, but I think there's so

Nathan:

many problems in the movies that he is.

Nathan:

In, in these serious roles, but sometimes he's playing in a movie

Nathan:

where his character is somewhere in the middle, playing someone who exists

Nathan:

in the real world, but still has that Robin Williams exuberance, this.

Nathan:

Is the most fertile ground, I think, for him to be a great performer in a

Nathan:

movie, like Good Will Hunting, Dead Poets Society, Good Morning Vietnam and there

Nathan:

are many more, but of all of these, I feel like Fisher King is his greatest

Nathan:

performance balancing these two worlds.

Nathan:

That's my opinion.

Nathan:

What about the birdcage birdcage?

Nathan:

Yeah, very good as well.

Nathan:

The rest of the cast is phenomenal as well.

Nathan:

I love Jeff Bridges in this.

Nathan:

He's honestly probably my top two or three favorite actors right now of all

Nathan:

probably going back cause you know, I think of Jeff Bridges as someone that

Nathan:

Loved my whole life going back to Tron going back to, cause I think Tron came

Nathan:

out at 82 and I was eight years old.

Nathan:

This was like my early, early years.

Nathan:

I didn't catch up with King Kong much later, but when Jeff

Nathan:

Bridges eventually does pass, it's going to be one of the hardest.

Nathan:

I'm not gonna say it's the best day of my life because he's an actor that has

Nathan:

been somebody who I've loved his movies every decade that I've been alive and

Nathan:

every decade he has been performing.

Nathan:

And this is one of the pillars of the movies that I love him in.

Nathan:

You know,

Bee:

Nathan, I did a little Jeff Bridges rewatch this week and I did a few

Bee:

of his movies, including introducing my partner to the Big Lebowski.

Bee:

And it was amazing.

Bee:

Ah, such a great time.

Bee:

The Bingo Bouncy

David:

True Grit.

David:

Sorry, didn't want to interrupt.

David:

Oh,

Bee:

I love the True Grit remake.

Bee:

Oh my

David:

god, I love it so much.

Nathan:

I, I also want to I have to give mad props to Mercedes Rule as animus.

Nathan:

You don't see women portrayed in In movies like this, it was

Nathan:

such a breath of fresh air.

Nathan:

She's smart, perceptive, strong willed, but also sympathetic to Jack's flaws.

Nathan:

She's motherly.

Nathan:

Also, I love her philosophy and perspective on men

Nathan:

and women's relationships.

Nathan:

And it's so rare for a girlfriend to be fleshed out like this in a movie.

Nathan:

Another thing I found fascinating and I'll leave things off.

Nathan:

Shortly Gilliams heavily, heavily is directing this film

Nathan:

is the most directed movie.

Nathan:

I think there is out there.

Nathan:

Possibly.

Nathan:

I, I don't think I've seen this many Dutch angles, low angles, high

Nathan:

angles, wide angles in a film ever.

Nathan:

He's reaching into his toolbox, pulling out every trick in the book

Nathan:

to keep the audience off balance.

Nathan:

There's almost Jeff

Bee:

Bridges momentarily breaks the fourth wall in the beginning, like half a second.

Nathan:

There's almost no shots in this entire film that adhere to conventional

Nathan:

framing or, and I really love that.

Nathan:

But I suppose if you're not into the style, this can

Nathan:

wear very thin after a while.

Nathan:

And just finally, you know, my only knock in this film, it's not really a knock.

Nathan:

I love the story.

Nathan:

I love the, A plot regarding Jack's redemption.

Nathan:

The movie, I think, is trying to make a commentary on mental illness

Nathan:

trauma, and especially homelessness.

Nathan:

And I think it's very inventive how it's dealing with these topics, but it's

Nathan:

also very superficial and scattershot, especially the homelessness topic, which

Nathan:

is coming up several times in this film.

Nathan:

We can talk to, yeah, we can talk about that more in our discussion,

Nathan:

but overall, An excellent film.

Nathan:

This is probably in my top 10 of all time.

Nathan:

I think it's Terry Gilliam's best movie.

Nathan:

Yeah, this is, this is a 5 for me.

Nathan:

5 out of 5.

Nathan:

Yeah.

Nathan:

I love

Bee:

that.

Bee:

I love that.

Nathan:

Sure.

Bee:

Yeah, I like this movie a lot.

Bee:

I think this movie is really great and I like Terry Gilliam a lot.

Bee:

I think this is probably his most grounded work.

Bee:

I think it's really accessible but it doesn't lose that sense

Bee:

of absurdity and magical realism that makes him really special.

Bee:

When I watched this movie because I saw it years and years ago and I sort of

Bee:

haven't seen it since I was reminded of like, you know, it's Arthurian

Bee:

but it's also like Don Quixote.

Bee:

That's such a big part of this movie.

Bee:

And when you're looking at the ethos of it and the mythos of it and the way Gilliam

Bee:

is talking about New York, this sort of like New York as a character in the film

Bee:

Felt to me very like and I don't know that it quite hits the same level for me as

Bee:

what it's referencing But it felt a little able for our meets Charlie Kaufman, right?

Bee:

Like it felt like that sort of We're just outside of reality in this New York.

Bee:

That's maybe a little romanticized may be filled with characters Everybody's

Nathan:

a cartoon character in this movie

Bee:

For better and worse.

Bee:

And I'll, I'll get to that.

Bee:

So I think the first third of this movie is perfect for me.

Bee:

It's incredible.

Bee:

I think it hits the brakes really hard when it gets into the romance.

Bee:

Robin Williams romance.

Bee:

The everything relating to the dual sides of grief and how it's approached from

Bee:

this Mythic epic sort of quest approach.

Bee:

I think that's so smart and so well done.

Bee:

And that's such a great character study from two stellar performers

Bee:

at the top of their game.

Bee:

And like you said, it's a stack has, did anybody catch the Oh,

Bee:

what's Dan Futterman was one of the punks beating up Robin Williams.

Bee:

He'll later go on to play a son in the birdcage.

Bee:

That was a fun little cameo.

Bee:

I

Nathan:

caught that.

Nathan:

I

Bee:

caught that.

Bee:

It's just stacked from head to toe.

Bee:

This cast, Michael Jeter, he's amazing in this and Amanda Plummer, who I love.

Bee:

I just don't like her role.

Bee:

You know, we talk about Mercedes rule.

Bee:

That's a great character.

Bee:

This B plot of the Robin Williams romance for me is where it really just slams

Bee:

on the brakes and it's so hard for me because it takes this very serious,

Bee:

Coping mechanism.

Bee:

That Robin Williams is going through and the psychosis and the side effects

Bee:

of his grief, and it turns it into this like manic pixie, romantic thing, this

Bee:

quirky thing, and oh, there's just, there's a lid for every pot, there's

Bee:

someone out there to match his energy, and it'll be totally fine, but, I'm

Bee:

sorry, watching this movie again, I'm not.

Bee:

When he was just stalking her, I was like, in another movie, this woman dies.

Bee:

Like, in another movie, this is a really scary situation, right?

Bee:

And Gilliam, who's like, not known for being super sensitive to this stuff.

Bee:

Like, from 50 yards away, you know this movie's written by a man.

Bee:

And that's not a problem, but I just didn't think the romance sold me on it.

Bee:

I didn't think it had anything.

Bee:

I think it takes away Robin Williams ability to have a real Arc at the

Bee:

end of this movie outside of a heroic act because they've just given

Bee:

him someone that matches the level he's at in the middle of his grief.

Bee:

And I kind of hated that for him and I hated that for Amanda Plummer.

Bee:

But I don't want to end on a sour note because I think the end of

Bee:

this movie is also really strong.

Bee:

I think Jeff Bridges coming around and and sort of seeing the point of it and

Bee:

gaining this new empathy for his friends and I just I think it's really strong

Bee:

and I like how they wrap up the film.

Bee:

Fairytale aspect.

Bee:

Again, that's that a plot of the movie.

Bee:

The Jeff Bridges, Robin Williams plot.

Bee:

I think that is like masterclass.

Bee:

Love it.

Bee:

Could watch it all day.

Bee:

So it's a four for me.

Bee:

I really like it.

Bee:

It's just that 11 bit.

David:

Sorry, David.

David:

So so I agree.

David:

With, with, with a couple, with a couple things.

David:

And so I'm trying to, I'm trying to think of where, where do I start here?

David:

So definitely this is definitely in, in, in a career with a bunch of great, you

David:

know, with a bunch of great performances bridges, you know, absolutely.

David:

It's like, he goes, because, you know, it's a thing of like, you see him, you

David:

know, you see him at the beginning and it's one of the things, you know, his,

David:

his arc is like, you know, it's, it's, you know, it's, it's just like he starts

David:

out, he starts out as this, you know, this, you know, You know, you know, self

David:

centered, you know, jackass narcissist, you know that is really, I mean, it's

David:

modeled on Howard Stern, you know, I mean, it's like, it's, it's, it's Howard,

David:

it's smarmy, you know, the smarmy jerk off who, you know you know, who'd like,

David:

who just, you know, You know, just opens his mouth and things spill out

Bee:

way hotter than Howard Stern, though we got credit.

Bee:

Right,

David:

right.

David:

Way hotter than way hotter than than Howard Stern.

David:

And then, but then you think is, I think about is that, you know, is that then

David:

there's the consequences were literally.

David:

Like from the first opening scene where he's on the microphone and he's doing

David:

his thing and he's in his limousine and he's, you know, he's bored with

David:

his life and he hates the way his face looks or, and he's talking to his

David:

agent about, you know, doing a, doing a sitcom and he's going to be a big

David:

TV star now to like, boom, tragedy.

David:

And, you know, he looks in the camera and he's like, Oh fuck.

David:

He knows what it means.

David:

I mean, you know, like he knows, he knows, you know, I mean,

David:

being, being a creature of media.

David:

Yeah.

David:

He inherently understands, you know, the life cycle is going to eat him

David:

frickin alive, like hyenas, and they do, and then that's when it tracks to

David:

three years later, which, by the way, and I just, the thing is, in re watching

David:

it, I feel a little silly that I never noticed it before, because I've seen

David:

the film probably a dozen times, but it was only in re watching it that there at

David:

the video store, And the meta thing is, is that, is it that on one of the walls

David:

in the office, there is a film poster.

David:

I had one of these, I didn't have the same one, but there's a, there's a

David:

film poster for Terry Gilliam's Brazil.

Nathan:

Yeah.

Nathan:

I noticed

Bee:

that.

David:

Oh my God.

David:

You know, Oh my fuck.

David:

You know, and it's another great

Bee:

movie.

David:

There it is, which is another great film.

David:

And in college, I had a, I had a Brazil movie poster up in

David:

my dorm room, so I loved it.

David:

I'm thinking, you know, the, the other thing is, I think, you know, thinking

David:

in terms of you know, cinematography and scenes, you know, one of the

David:

things, one of the, one of like, you know, you asked me about moments in

David:

films that are absolutely cinematic.

David:

Okay.

David:

The Walt scene at grand central station where everybody just stops.

David:

And the music and then they all start dancing.

David:

I'm like, who does this?

Bee:

Beautiful.

Bee:

And Tom Waits is in that scene.

Bee:

Tom Waits,

David:

Tom Waits.

David:

Yeah.

David:

You cast Tom Waits in this, you know, it's, it's brilliant.

David:

You know, it is this, this brilliant, beautiful tale.

David:

And, and also it works on a lot of these different levels.

David:

Cause you know, if you peel back the layers, the whole, if you go back into

David:

I don't want to give people a Joseph Campbell, you know, history lesson,

David:

but you know, the thing with the Fisher King and Parsifal, you know, because

David:

there's a whole thing about the Fisher King being, you know, he's dying of

David:

this wound and he has this grief and then the, the, you know, and then this

David:

errant night, you know which is what, you know, is You know, the Robin Williams

David:

character Perry refers to, you know, Jeff Bridges when he's, you know, when

David:

he's rescuing him just in the moment.

David:

Yeah.

David:

And, and right.

David:

And and he's, he's rescuing him, you know, refers to him as that.

David:

And then, you know, segue into the whole thing about, you know, you're

David:

saying like New York is a character.

David:

It's like, okay.

David:

So the, all, all the homeless guys come up to confront the attackers.

David:

And what do they do?

David:

They start singing, you know, I love New York in June, you know, as a,

David:

as this weird chorus of homeless people, but it, it, you know, it,

David:

it, and he winds up beating up the attackers and fends them off.

Bee:

Have you guys seen Tampopo?

David:

Oh yeah.

David:

Love it.

David:

Felt a

Bee:

little bit like that scene in Tampopo but to your point about the

Bee:

myth, did you notice where where the archers strike one of the hooligans is

Bee:

right in line with the myth.

David:

Right in line with

Nathan:

the myth.

Nathan:

David, before, before we get too far, I'd like to get your, what is

Nathan:

your rating for this out of five?

David:

Oh, I give it, I give it a five out of five.

David:

Give

Nathan:

it

David:

And, and, and I would say just because, you know, I, and

David:

also like to, to, to the point about Amanda, Amanda Plummer.

David:

And that storyline, it's one of these, like, you know, I feel like, you know,

David:

when I first saw the film, you know, I thought, well, this feels like,

David:

this feels like an add on, but then in rewatching it, I was like, okay, you

David:

know, and, and they're, they're, they're doing kind of this obvious thing of,

David:

you know, Bridges character has got to, you know, repair or make up for the

David:

wound that he's caused, you know, Robin Williams character Perry, but, you know,

David:

that just feels a little, that felt a little, you know, You know, kind of

David:

ham handed, you know, that part of it.

David:

But what I found very interesting was, was the Mercedes rule.

David:

Amanda Plummer back and forth, that, that

Bee:

is great.

David:

That, that, that between the women right there, that, that to me rang true.

David:

I was like,

Bee:

Her at home nail salon, the at home nail

David:

salon and doing, you know, I was like

Bee:

tequila.

Bee:

I just like, I just like

Nathan:

how that, that whole scene is set up where, you know, there

Nathan:

were Jeff Bridges is trying to get Amanda Plummer to enter their world.

Nathan:

And, and, and Lydia finds out that she does nails and immediately and

Nathan:

like knows that this is somebody that I can, you know, charge full price

Nathan:

for and Jeffridge is like, well, we can give you a deal as, as a member.

Nathan:

He's like, Nope, Nope.

Nathan:

Like 40 bucks or whatever it is.

Nathan:

And that's what I love about the Anne character.

Nathan:

She's street smart.

Nathan:

She knows people.

Nathan:

She knows how to qualify people.

Nathan:

And, and, and.

Nathan:

And she's not somebody who's going to be taken advantage of.

Nathan:

Right, right.

Nathan:

And I think it's such a unique character in cinema.

Nathan:

She sets the

Bee:

standard in her relationship with Jeff.

Bee:

And she makes Jeff come around, you know?

Bee:

It's really, she's awesome.

Bee:

She's

David:

awesome and she's a, you get this, she's a real person.

David:

You know, she's not like, this is not like, because like a film character

David:

was going to do like, A funny thing or a tragic thing, but like, no, she's

David:

doing like the real, like, no, no, look, this is how it's going to go.

Nathan:

Well, and also because her character is somebody who

Nathan:

is a person of the people.

Nathan:

She probably grew up in New York, you know, in our, in Austin, she owns, A

Nathan:

video store, which is really a perfect metaphor for the type of person she is.

Nathan:

She's supposed to cater to people's individual personalities, their needs.

Nathan:

So, and, and this, and, and due to the amount of adult movies in stocks,

Nathan:

people's fetishes also, you know, so she, she, she knows, she knows people's

Nathan:

and she's a good at reading people.

Nathan:

So I love that.

Nathan:

Cause I bet

Bee:

you she meets a lot of people who try to cross boundaries.

Bee:

Right?

Bee:

And she's just, she's not taking any shit.

David:

Who remembers the title of the film that Jeff Bridges

David:

gives to I think it's Cathy Jimmy.

David:

Ordinary

Nathan:

Peoples.

Nathan:

Because I mean, if anybody, anybody who's been listening to our podcast a long time,

Nathan:

you know, it is, it is the bumper for our recommendation shelf, although I cut it

Nathan:

off before that, but it's, we're going to play in a little bit if we get to our, our

Nathan:

movie pairings, but yes, I, I, I do love, I do love that, that that sound bite.

Bee:

Can we talk about the Absolutely gorgeous way that the

Bee:

sort of Red Knight was filmed.

Bee:

We talk about beautiful cinematography in this movie.

Bee:

I mean, so

David:

good.

Bee:

It's so real.

Bee:

I just

Nathan:

love the design too.

Nathan:

It's not just the waist.

Nathan:

Look, they, they, they spared no expense in design of this.

David:

Yeah.

David:

I mean, I feel like a young Peter Jackson is watch, was watching that

David:

and was like, one day, one day, I'm going to get my shot at that.

David:

Yes.

David:

You know, I'm going to get a chance at, you know, you'll see, you

David:

know, and he did, you know, so.

Bee:

Yes.

Bee:

Yeah.

Bee:

I mean, it really is just beautiful.

Bee:

Again, I think the Jeff Bridges, Robin Williams stuff

Bee:

is the, the juice of the movie.

Bee:

Michael Jeter though, the gypsy.

Bee:

Michael

Nathan:

Jeter.

Nathan:

Michael Jeter.

Nathan:

Hey, hey, wait for this.

Movie Clip:

I had a dream!

Movie Clip:

A dream for guess who?

Movie Clip:

Lydia!

Movie Clip:

It wasn't for her!

Movie Clip:

Lydia!

Movie Clip:

It's only for you!

Movie Clip:

Yes, Lydia!

Bee:

We

Movie Clip:

lost our talent.

Movie Clip:

Some people can get their kicks Watching couple and late night flicks That's

Movie Clip:

okay for some people who don't own VCRs,

Movie Clip:

but Lydia, you've won her in pride.

Movie Clip:

Just think of it, all the movies you watch are free now.

Movie Clip:

Dramas, questions, comedies, wow!

Movie Clip:

VideoSpot has the best selection.

Movie Clip:

If you like porno, we're your connection.

Movie Clip:

Everything's coming up video, but this time for free!

Movie Clip:

For you, Lydia, for free!

Movie Clip:

Yeah, I had

Movie Clip:

to capture all of that.

Movie Clip:

So,

Movie Clip:

Michael Jeter has a Memphis connection.

David:

Yeah.

David:

Yeah?

David:

He, he actually majored in theater at the University of Memphis and he

David:

did a lot of stage theater work here.

David:

I met some older stage actor friends that worked with him before he

David:

moved, before he moved out, out to LA and started his film career.

David:

So it's kind of, it's kind of weird, but it's one of these, like, when I learned

David:

that, I was like, what the, you know, he's older, you know, he's older than me.

David:

So I didn't, I was, I wasn't really aware of this, that, you

David:

know, it's actually happening, but it's very strange, but very cool.

David:

He

Bee:

was amazing.

Bee:

I, one of our greatest character actors, it's sad to think we lost

Bee:

him and what he could have done.

Bee:

Yeah.

David:

Yeah.

David:

Yeah.

Bee:

But I, I love the bit in this movie and the costume design where

Bee:

he still has the tag on part of it.

Bee:

Like that's so great.

Nathan:

It's great.

Nathan:

And he's just going for it.

Nathan:

I mean, it's, it's even better that he's still at that, that gigantic mustache.

Nathan:

And I don't know, it's this, he's obviously delivering

Nathan:

this vaudevillian get up.

Nathan:

I don't know who he's channeling.

Nathan:

I'm like,

Bee:

I mean,

Nathan:

it's Gypsy

Bee:

Rose, you know, He's his own Patti LuPone up there.

Nathan:

Merman, maybe?

Nathan:

I don't, yeah, it's

Bee:

a little more Merman than LuPone.

Bee:

I

Nathan:

like, I love the, you know, we're jumping all over the plot here,

Nathan:

but one of the, my favorite scenes with Jeter and Jeff Bridges is when they're

Nathan:

in the hospital and Jeff Bridges is like holding him and he's like cradling him.

Nathan:

And this is a very intimate moment.

Nathan:

And I forget what he says, what do you want?

Nathan:

And he says, I want to be, it was, I want to be like, what?

Nathan:

Catherine Hepburn in like sunlight or sunshine or something like that.

Nathan:

It's such a beautiful, funny moment in the film.

Nathan:

And it's riddled with these, with these great character moments from Cheater.

Bee:

Yeah.

Bee:

Sorry to, you were trying diligently to take us through the plot

Bee:

and then when you decided to.

Bee:

You were.

Bee:

We're

Nathan:

off the rails completely.

Nathan:

That's, that's perfectly fine.

Nathan:

This movie is just so much fun.

Bee:

It's, it's great, but it does follow that sort of like hero's journey, you

Bee:

know, and he's got that conflict in the middle where he's like, you know

Bee:

what, I did what I could and he sort of falls back into his old ways and

Bee:

there's that tragic interaction that he has with Cheetor again, which is really.

Bee:

Really hard to watch, I thought.

David:

Yeah.

David:

Yeah, yes.

Bee:

Yeah, the security guard's kind of pulling him off and he

Bee:

pretends he doesn't know him.

Bee:

Like that is

David:

Right.

Bee:

Oh, the, you know when you feel secondhand shame

Bee:

when you're watching a movie?

Bee:

Like that secondhand embarrassment, secondhand, I was like, Oh God, I

Bee:

just want to crawl under the covers.

Bee:

Yeah.

Bee:

It was hard.

Bee:

I think, I think that speaks to the empathy that Gilliam's gotten you

Bee:

to have for Bridges at that point.

Bee:

You so much feel for him.

David:

He, he, and you feel like with his films that, that Gilliam wants you

David:

to, you know, he, he pushes characters like that so that you, you know, that

David:

you're, you know, that you, he wants to push people, just nudge them your

David:

comfort zone just a little bit, you know, so they, where they get to that point.

David:

And, and to speak to Nathan's point earlier we're talking about like

David:

homelessness as a, as a theme, which is kind of, you know, which is,

David:

which is kind of sad in interviews.

David:

Jeff Bridges tells us really, it's like, it's beautiful and it's funny,

David:

but it's also a little tragic.

David:

He said like at one, at one point when they're shooting the, when they were

David:

shooting the film and they were, they were shooting the the red, the, the

David:

scenes in the park and then, you know, the red night, he said, so there's a

David:

point where, where they're, they're, they're actually, you know, he and

David:

Robin, you know, can take a break.

David:

So they go find a, they go find a spot and they're there.

David:

They moved to a spot in the park where they're.

David:

Kind of under near a bridge or an overhang and they go sit down.

David:

And then he says like a couple of things happened.

David:

He said this, this guy came up who was dressed exactly like Robin

David:

Williams character, and he was a local homeless person in New York

David:

that everybody knew called radio man.

David:

And so this

David:

guy had like all throughout Manhattan, people knew they knew

David:

he was Bentley's all over the city, certain neighborhoods, radio man.

David:

But he looked just like.

David:

It's as though, you know, they had drawn inspiration from this person.

David:

But then the other thing that happened to them other than seeing Radio Man was they

David:

got, they got, they just got they got shit on by like a flock of pigeons in costume.

David:

They're in costume, they're in character, but they were on break and

David:

they go over there to sit down and then boom, they just get covered in shit.

David:

In, in pigeon shit.

David:

And he looks at Robin and Robin looks at him and they just start laughing about it

David:

because what the hell are you gonna do?

David:

And then I'm trying to remember the other film then, then Bridges said

David:

that there was a, there was a film that he did That came out on the,

David:

on the, on the day that he got the news that Robin Williams had passed.

David:

And he was in New York to promote the film and he said that he got

David:

out of a car and they were going to go into the theater and they were

David:

going to do interviews out front.

David:

And then he saw this guy a block away and he said, you know, for a split

David:

second, he said, I could have sworn because I, for a split second, it

David:

was

David:

Robin.

David:

And he thought it was Robin Williams.

David:

And he thought for, for in the second, he was like, it's Robin.

David:

He's playing a joke on me.

David:

But it was, it was the radio man, homeless guy, but they had, they'd

David:

actually, they, the guy, because he had visited the set and they'd

David:

been very, very friendly with him.

David:

He ran up to Jeff Bridges and they hugged and they shared a moment.

David:

And

David:

he said, it was like, it was really beautiful, but it was also really sad.

David:

Yeah.

David:

You know, and he, cause it was like, you know, cause he told this guy,

David:

he said like, Hey, he, you know, it was kind of, Hey, did you hear about Rami?

David:

He's like, yeah, man, that's why I came, you know, and then they kind of

David:

hugged and he's like, I'm really sorry.

David:

You know, like that.

David:

So you know, it was just, it was, it was beautiful, but it was, and the film,

David:

this, this, the thing about the thing about that film is that, you know, it,

David:

it's, it's mythic and it operates on all these different, you know, Levels

David:

and layers and I remember it came out.

David:

I was, I think it was, I was a, I was a freshman in college and my college

David:

roommate had gone through like a really horrible breakup and he kept watching this

David:

film over and over again and you know, I would come home, he'd be watching the

David:

film, you know, I would leave, he'd be watching the film and finally there was

David:

like, There was a, there was a time when I was between classes or work or something.

David:

I'm like, he was watching.

David:

So once you watch it, I'm like, why are you always watching this?

David:

He was like, well, watch it and you'll see.

David:

And because I'd seen it in the theater and thought it was really good.

David:

But to be honest, at that time, you know, when I was young, I wasn't really,

David:

I mean, I'm watching it, you know, like you would consume something, but I

David:

wasn't really paying attention, but then I watched it with him was like, okay,

David:

I know why you're watching this film.

David:

I get why you're watching this film.

David:

I get it, you know, and I think that for a lot of people.

David:

You know, that are processing some form of grief, it operates on that level for them.

David:

I mean, much more than just the, much more than just the story.

David:

Mm hmm.

David:

So, you know, anyway, didn't mean to get esoteric on you guys.

David:

It's brought us down.

David:

Well, speaking of esoteric,

Bee:

this movie, I totally agree, David.

Bee:

But this movie, it, And Terry Gilliam, anyone who's watched more

Bee:

of his movies than just this and Holy Grail, will know that he's a

Bee:

surrealist, absurdist kind of guy.

Bee:

He's head in the clouds, he's thinking up there, but this

Bee:

movie really wants you to know.

Bee:

That it's operating on a mythical level like this movie spells it out

Bee:

in a few ways and I wanted to get your take on do you think this movie

Bee:

fits in all of the myth that it tried like do you actually think it's a good

Bee:

representation of the Pinocchio story of Don Quixote of the Fisher King like

Bee:

there's so many allegories that this movie is making reference to and I'm

Bee:

wondering if maybe you You know, do you think it's an accurate telling of all

Bee:

of those different sort of fairy tales?

David:

So, so, yes, if it's, if you, if you think of it, if you

David:

filter it through if you filter it through the consciousness of dreams.

David:

Okay.

David:

Because I'll tell you, you know, in, in, in thinking about this film, like

David:

when Nathan messaged me about it, it was like, You know, I, I was, I was thinking,

David:

Hmm,

David:

Parsifal, Parsifal, the Fisher King, Parsifal, the Fisher

David:

King started thinking about it.

David:

So I, you know, I kind of, you know, went back, I looked up some

David:

things and I was like, Holy shit.

David:

You know, he really, you know, he's really, he really is,

David:

he's, he really did take great pains to channel all this stuff.

David:

And then if you look at, if you, yeah.

David:

And if you look at, if you look at one of my favorite films and every

David:

few years I revisited Time Bandits.

David:

You know, I love time

Bee:

bandits and even

David:

Baron Munchausen, you know, so it's, it's like he's, you know, he's,

David:

he's, you know, he's playing with, you know, all of these things, storytelling,

David:

storytelling, but he's also filtering it through, you know consciousness,

David:

subconsciousness, dreams, magical realism, you know all that stuff.

David:

And it's, it's wonderful.

David:

I mean, it's wonderful.

David:

I mean, it's like, because I would say that, you know, I mean, cause

David:

like the sequence of the waltzes in, in the, you know, in grand central,

David:

I'm like, you know, I mean, people have, you know, that's like a dream.

David:

That's like something out of, out of a dream.

David:

You know, it's beautiful.

David:

I've

Nathan:

been thinking about the, the, the, the story of the fish, the

Nathan:

Fisher King, the Arthurian legend.

Nathan:

Yeah.

Nathan:

And.

Nathan:

I started thinking about this as, you know, I think the obvious way of

Nathan:

looking at this is you could, it's a metaphor for the story that's obviously

Nathan:

happening with Jack Lucas and Perry.

Nathan:

You know Jack is the king and Perry is the fool.

Nathan:

I think that's the easy way of looking at this, but I never really looked at

Nathan:

it until this past viewing that Perry.

Nathan:

Perry is the king in his mind, right?

Nathan:

And I never clicked with me until the one who

Bee:

can't get

Nathan:

the grail, can't get the grill.

Nathan:

And he is looking at Jack as the fool who is going to get it for him.

Nathan:

And I don't know why this just kept going over my head for so long.

Nathan:

I mean, obviously I'm alone, but I

Bee:

think that this is.

Bee:

So my, my thinking is that yes, this story does fit into all of the

Bee:

allegories that it's, it's, it's showing you different prisms with

Bee:

which to watch the movie through.

Bee:

And it's using different fairy tales or myths or whatever you want to say

Bee:

to tell you different ways that you can watch this movie and interpret it.

Bee:

But what you're saying, which is how I read the movie, you know Perry sees

Bee:

himself as the king who can't get the grail and he needs the work of

Bee:

the fool, which also lends itself to a somewhat problematic view of the

Bee:

mental health crisis in this movie.

Bee:

But I think this is the parallel with the Pinocchio.

Bee:

Because they go back and forth between who is the puppet, and who

Bee:

is Geppetto, and who is the real boy, and who is, who is who they're

Bee:

supposed to be this whole time, who needs to undergo this transformation.

Bee:

Yeah.

Bee:

It's really well done.

Bee:

I think it's, I think their storyline is so beautiful.

Bee:

Yeah.

David:

And you think about the beginning of, oh sorry, but think about the

David:

beginning of the film and it's, it's, you know, Jeff Bridges, his character,

David:

you know Jack Lucas is, what is he doing?

David:

Like, well, essentially he's telling lies for a living.

Nathan:

I'm so glad we're going back to the beginning for a second because I feel

Nathan:

like we glossed so much over Jack's setup.

Nathan:

For, for this, because I just, I, cause I wanted to make a note here.

Nathan:

I love how we are introduced to him.

Nathan:

We mentioned how we see him, but he's in a studio that is gray, colorless,

Nathan:

clinical in the shadows on the wall, look like, make it look like a jail cell.

Nathan:

I never really picked up on that before, but I am watching this in detail

Nathan:

this time around for the first time.

Nathan:

And he's living in this isolated world and he's hermetically

Nathan:

sealed off from the world.

Nathan:

He's the voice.

Nathan:

of the people, but he is her medically sealed off from the people.

Nathan:

And I love that.

Nathan:

And, and I've seen this movie as you have David probably a dozen

Nathan:

times, but I've never put this much thought into until this viewing and

Nathan:

he's wearing these wonderful, like beautiful, like Versace clothing.

Nathan:

He's living, he's, he's in the castle, you know?

Nathan:

And first of all, I don't know how a DJ who I don't think, even though

Nathan:

where he's obviously modeled after Howard Stern, I don't think he's,

Nathan:

Actually at Howard Stern level success.

Nathan:

I didn't get that feeling.

Nathan:

I don't know, but he's living the high life and I don't think

Nathan:

DJs really make that much.

Nathan:

Cause I didn't think, I didn't get the sense that he was like, I don't think

Nathan:

he's syndicated nationally because he's taking calls from local New York people.

David:

Yeah.

David:

Yeah.

David:

So I

Nathan:

always got this sense that he was kind of like somebody who was syndicated.

Nathan:

Still on the rise.

David:

Mm-Hmm.

David:

. Nathan: So I don't know why he's had such a swanky New York apartment,

David:

but Yeah.

David:

Yeah.

David:

I know.

David:

I, right.

Bee:

I mean, there's a lot of have and have nots.

Bee:

Yeah, I know.

Bee:

Yeah.

David:

But it made, it made me think of the, so like remember he's in,

David:

he's in the limousine with his.

David:

Lawyer, agent, David High Pierce.

Bee:

Oh, who's, I was so glad to see him.

David:

Yeah, and then, and then, but there's a, there's a, there's a

David:

homeless guy knocking on the window.

David:

He's like, I'm not opening that window.

David:

Yeah.

David:

You

David:

know, he's like, I'm not opening the window.

David:

So it's like, you know, he's like, yeah, a couple of quarters isn't

David:

going to do this guy any good.

David:

You know?

David:

So it's even this idea that he was like, Again, her medically sealed

David:

away from, you know, humanity

Nathan:

and, and we're seeing a little bit more of him.

Nathan:

We see his girlfriend and this very, this wonderful passive aggressive

Nathan:

conversation that they're having.

Nathan:

And and I think there's a very important moment also where he is practicing lines

Nathan:

for a TV show that he is going to be on.

Nathan:

And he keeps repeating, forgive me, forgive me.

Nathan:

And here's a man who's begging for forgiveness.

Nathan:

You know to his crime,

David:

right?

David:

You know,

Nathan:

so it's, but it's inauthentic.

Nathan:

And, but he seems to be like, he's asking his atonement.

Nathan:

Redemption is going to come later in the movie.

Nathan:

I think this is just really fascinating way of setting up this character.

Nathan:

So I just want to draw attention.

Nathan:

The first 10 minutes, this movie are One of the best setups of a character ever.

David:

Do you remember, do you remember what he was doing when

David:

he was practicing the lines?

Nathan:

He was in the tub, putting the mask on.

David:

There you go.

David:

Look, he looked just

Nathan:

like the Joker.

Bee:

Mm

David:

hmm.

David:

And

Bee:

that felt like Shakespearean, right?

David:

It did.

David:

It really did.

David:

Yeah.

David:

Yeah.

David:

It was one of those, like, You know, again, when I was, when I was younger,

David:

the first, I was like, okay, big deal.

David:

He's in a shower putting on a mud mask, but it's like, now you watch it.

David:

I'm like, holy shit.

David:

It's really smart.

David:

Yeah.

David:

Yeah.

Nathan:

And I just, one other thing that I just really, really loved about

Nathan:

the beginning of this movie after he's has that this three years later, and

Nathan:

he has that argument with Ann and he storms out, there's a shot where he

Nathan:

goes down the street, it looks terrible.

Nathan:

Just like Batman 89.

Nathan:

Same cinematographer, by the way.

Nathan:

Roger Pratt shot.

Nathan:

Tim Burton's Batman looks just like Batman.

Nathan:

Doesn't it?

Nathan:

I don't know if he noticed the shot in the rain where Dutch

Nathan:

angle, the car almost hits him.

Nathan:

That's right.

Nathan:

That's right.

Nathan:

89.

Nathan:

Yeah.

Nathan:

Anyways.

Nathan:

He gets the Pinocchio doll, but there's a really, really great moment where he's

Nathan:

sitting underneath the George Sherman statue with Pinocchio, and I love the

Nathan:

dialogue here, and he's quoting Nietzsche, and he says the, he says it's been a

Nathan:

dialogue, there's two kinds of people in the world, people who are destined for

Nathan:

greatness, like Walt Disney and Hitler,

Nathan:

and then there's the rest of us, called the bungled and the botched.

Nathan:

Okay.

Nathan:

There's some,

Bee:

some great levity.

Bee:

I also love, and this is fast forwarding, but I love it.

Bee:

The angle, thank God, nobody in the city looks up like that's so funny.

David:

Right.

David:

It is, it is, it is pretty, it is pretty funny.

David:

Oh, and you just jogged a minute.

David:

So I

Nathan:

have to say, you know, If I ever come in the show and this podcast

Nathan:

stinking drunk and start quoting Nietzsche, please please someone send

Nathan:

someone to my house for a wellness check.

Nathan:

Okay.

Nathan:

Yeah, for sure.

David:

For sure.

David:

Okay.

David:

So this is just a quick or something you're asking me

David:

about last film that I watched.

David:

So before I, before I watched John wick three, we, we actually,

David:

we, we my girlfriend and I were watching to catch a thief.

David:

And which, which is Cary Grant, Alfred Hitchcock, which I've seen a lot,

Bee:

700 times, a

David:

lot, but, but the thing that I did, I did notice, and this was like

David:

your Walt Disney references that is that, so the motor launch where he is being

David:

picked up by the French girl and they're, they're riding to the you know, or

David:

she's taking him to like the beach club.

David:

There's a pause and you can actually see the name written on the side

David:

of the boat and it says, Maquis mouse, like the French Maquis.

David:

So it was like, it was kind of, I felt like it was like, that's, you know,

David:

that's, that's Hitchcock's little side jab to, you know, I mean, maybe not to

David:

Disney as a studio, but you know, but it was like a little, you know, cat and

David:

mouse reference thing, you know, cause they, they kept playing the theme, you

David:

know, and I'd never noticed that before.

David:

I told my girlfriend, I was like, we win, we win the lottery.

David:

So, you know, we win, we win one of those, like we win mega millions.

David:

I'm buying a yacht and I'm going to call it Mach E Mouse.

David:

You know.

David:

So, all the, all the, all the, the, the viewers and listeners of Back to Freemate

David:

are going to know that, yeah, when they see Mach E Mouse pull up at Cannes or

David:

Portofino, they're That's, that's gonna be, that's gonna be me, and us, and us.

David:

I will invite my podcast buddies.

Bee:

Nice.

Bee:

You guys will get

David:

invited.

David:

Great.

Bee:

Rock and roll.

David:

We'll, we'll roll up in con like ballers, man.

David:

Hell yeah.

David:

Hell yeah.

David:

Hell yeah.

David:

Like, what is that?

David:

Oh, it must be the Disney yacht.

David:

Why?

David:

Why?

David:

Fool, because it says Mucky Mouse.

David:

Bad joke, bad

David:

joke.

Nathan:

Anything else or should we take a break and get to our wrap up soon?

Nathan:

There's just a couple

Bee:

moments I want to talk about and I'll be super quick.

Bee:

But there's some introductions that I think are great.

Bee:

I think how Jeff Bridges finds out the relationship Perry's

Bee:

character is incredible.

Bee:

The introduction of Perry but also just, you know, The introduction of

Bee:

where Perry's living, I think, is really powerful, and I think it's

Bee:

so well done because Partly because the way Jeff Bridges just looks in

Bee:

this movie, he blends wherever he is.

Bee:

He can look like greasy street rat.

Bee:

He can look like Howard Stern shock jock.

Bee:

He's fitting in anywhere.

Bee:

He's a sub.

Bee:

He's able to sublimate really well.

Bee:

And then just your heart sinks when you learn the relationship.

Bee:

And then the flashbacks with Robin Williams later.

Bee:

So graphic and so shocking.

Bee:

Oh yeah.

Bee:

So I thought that was wild.

Bee:

And then we didn't really talk about Amanda Plummer and there was

Bee:

some very sweet scenes with her.

Bee:

I mean, I don't want to sound totally down on it, but seen in

Bee:

the Chinese restaurants, really.

David:

Oh, the dumpling scene.

David:

I

Nathan:

love

Bee:

it.

Bee:

And

Nathan:

I was reading that.

Nathan:

Was done on a rain day, a rain night where they couldn't film outside.

Nathan:

And they had like one, they only had a few hours to do that whole thing.

Nathan:

And there's no cutaways.

Nathan:

If you notice, except for one tighter shot of bridges and Mercedes rule

Nathan:

where they got a one little insert, but there's no coverage of that scene.

Nathan:

And that was just done because they just didn't have the time or the resources

Nathan:

to do anything more creative with it.

Nathan:

But what they did, I thought was great.

Nathan:

The way they edited that I love that scene.

Nathan:

And it's comedic gold, I think.

Nathan:

Oh my God.

Nathan:

Her

Bee:

going ham on those noodles.

Bee:

I was like, get it, girl.

Bee:

I see you.

Bee:

The broccoli hockey.

Bee:

That's, it was so sweet.

Bee:

And I loved, I loved how it brought the Bridges and Mercedes

Bee:

rule character together.

Bee:

Yeah.

Bee:

Afterwards as well.

Bee:

Because there's nothing more emblematic of really solidifying your

Bee:

relationship than leaving the party and talking shit about the other people.

Bee:

Right.

Bee:

That is, that's how you know that you're really with someone for life.

Nathan:

So Bea, you didn't really find You thought the, the, the scene

Nathan:

outside of Lydia's doorstep was creepy or a little much or no, I

Bee:

thought, well, yes, but I thought really everything that led up to it where

Bee:

they're like watching her through a window with dumplings and he knows what time,

Bee:

what time she's going to be everywhere.

Bee:

Like the, That was really the stalking as love

Bee:

trope

Bee:

and especially we're dealing with someone with mental illness We're dealing

Bee:

with someone who's lost their wife.

Bee:

I was like, there is it?

Bee:

There is an Abel Ferrara movie here where her character gets violently injured.

Bee:

I'm not kidding I was like, I

Nathan:

get it and I I agree but for some reason the way that Robin

Nathan:

Williams delivers that and Amanda Plummer's reaction, I mean, in real

Nathan:

life, she may have slapped him and ran away or called the cops, but I

Nathan:

just love that she says nothing and she's just tearing up listening to it.

Nathan:

I found it very heartwarming, but I love his confession of love here.

Nathan:

I

Movie Clip:

know that you come out from work at noon every day and you

Movie Clip:

fight your way out that door and then you get pushed back in and three

Movie Clip:

seconds later you come back out again.

Movie Clip:

And I, I walk with you to lunch, and I know if it's a good day if you stop and

Movie Clip:

get that romance novel at that bookstall.

Movie Clip:

I know what you order, and I know on Wednesdays you go to that dim sum

Movie Clip:

parlor, and I know that you get a jawbreaker before you go back into work.

Movie Clip:

And I know you hate your job, and you don't have many friends, and

Movie Clip:

I know sometimes you feel a little uncoordinated, and you don't feel

Movie Clip:

as wonderful as everybody else, and feeling as alone and separate as

Movie Clip:

you feel you are, and I love you.

Movie Clip:

I love you.

Movie Clip:

And I think you're the greatest thing since Spice Racks.

Movie Clip:

And I've been knocked out several times.

Movie Clip:

If I could just have that first kiss.

Movie Clip:

And I won't, I won't be distant.

Movie Clip:

I'll come back in the morning and I'll call you if you'll let me.

Bee:

Yeah, I yeah, and I don't want to sound like a movie has

Bee:

to be super realistic about these concepts or people have to be totally

Bee:

pure for it to be a good movie.

Bee:

They have to be well behaved moral compasses all the time.

Bee:

I'm not interested in that.

Bee:

I don't think that necessarily makes a good movie.

Bee:

I just couldn't help but think watching this movie.

Bee:

I was like, Oh, it just made me a little bit uncomfortable.

Bee:

Like where is this going to go?

Bee:

And then I think having her Transcribed match his energy and play

Bee:

off some of the mental illness as

Bee:

quirkiness.

Bee:

Just that was what made it feel a little more icky for me.

Bee:

Cause I think it just robbed him of the opportunity for more of an arc

Bee:

for healing for himself with a plot.

Bee:

But I think, I mean, she does an amazing job.

Bee:

She's amazing.

Bee:

I want to watch her in everything that she's in.

Bee:

She crushes the role.

Bee:

I mean, it's a lot of it was fun.

Bee:

And

Nathan:

on the other doorstep of Anne's apartment, Jack and, and Anne, they, they

Nathan:

have a really touching moment as well, where she's, Jack is getting closer to

Nathan:

his redemption, at least in his mind and saying how much, how proud she is of him.

Nathan:

And I really love that.

Nathan:

And it was really funny.

Nathan:

This is really nothing to do with anything, but the, this is

Nathan:

actually done in, I think in in post where he, he does the line

Nathan:

steamed dumplings and Mooshu pork.

Nathan:

What's really funny is for years and years during my, during my

Nathan:

Really my marriage with Laurie, I love to scream out steam dumplings.

Nathan:

And I get the, just the weirdest looks it's like, why do I do it?

Nathan:

Cause I never explained why

Nathan:

but

Nathan:

I get a look of horror.

Nathan:

Oh, so funny because I just have to say, I have to say

Nathan:

. Bee: There are, there are a couple of moments with the Amanda Plummer

Nathan:

character who Lydia that I think are so redemptive of her two.

Nathan:

One is when she's in that video store and she's like, she's just there on bus.

Nathan:

She's all business.

Nathan:

You know, she's all business.

Nathan:

She's weird.

Nathan:

Yeah.

Nathan:

But she's all business.

Nathan:

Mm-Hmm.

Nathan:

. And I was like, I respect that.

Nathan:

And then, and then at, I think at the end where she, she sticks around for

Nathan:

him through all that, she was like, I thought that was really sweet.

Nathan:

When she's fighting with her, she's like, I told you his watermelon sheets

Nathan:

need to be, I was like, all right,

David:

it's

Bee:

brass tacks, you know?

David:

Brass tacks.

Nathan:

All right.

Nathan:

Well take a quick break.

Nathan:

All right.

Nathan:

Thanks for dialing into our transmission.

Nathan:

If you agree or disagree with With their opinions.

Nathan:

We want to hear from you.

Nathan:

Email us on at back to the frame rate at gmail.

Nathan:

com.

Nathan:

You can also find us on our socials at Facebook, Instagram, Tik TOK threads,

Nathan:

YouTube, probably some more places too.

Nathan:

I can't think of, but we would love it.

Nathan:

If you could just take a moment and leave a solid rating and review

Nathan:

on Apple podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you catch our show, you

Nathan:

can pause the episode right now.

Nathan:

We will still be here and you can leave that rating review.

Nathan:

Also, you can share our episodes.

Nathan:

So if you love what you're hearing, just let others in your life know how much

Nathan:

you love movies and love our podcast.

Nathan:

We thank you all in advance.

Movie Clip:

You know, you are a beautiful woman.

Movie Clip:

You've got your own business.

Movie Clip:

I am surprised some guy doesn't just snatch you up all for his own.

Movie Clip:

Oh, you're surprised.

Movie Clip:

Guess I just never met the right guy.

Movie Clip:

What are you gonna do?

Movie Clip:

No.

Movie Clip:

I'm shocked.

Movie Clip:

I mean, a child bearing body like yours, whoa.

Movie Clip:

I mean, a guy would have to be out of his mind.

Movie Clip:

Most guys aren't.

Movie Clip:

No.

Movie Clip:

You, this incredible woman, going to waste before my very eyes?

Movie Clip:

No, this is outrageous!

Movie Clip:

I will not hear this again.

Movie Clip:

No!

Movie Clip:

No, come on!

Movie Clip:

Jack, get over here.

Movie Clip:

I am your man, then.

Movie Clip:

Let's do it.

Movie Clip:

Right here.

Movie Clip:

Let's go to that place of slender in the grass.

Movie Clip:

Behold my magic wand and free your golden orb right now.

Movie Clip:

You know what I'm saying?

Movie Clip:

Yes.

Movie Clip:

What a wonderful way of saying how much you like.

Movie Clip:

Come on Perry, close your pants.

Movie Clip:

Took you long enough, huh?

Nathan:

Let's let's see what time is here.

Nathan:

Let's do, do we want to sneak in movie pairings or we want to get to our vault?

Nathan:

How are we feeling?

Bee:

I'm down for whatever.

David:

I'm down for whatever.

Nathan:

Let's, let's do our movie pairings recommendation

Nathan:

shelf and I have to do this.

Nathan:

Yeah, I

Movie Clip:

gotta do the bumper.

Movie Clip:

Excuse me, can you help me?

Movie Clip:

I'm in an absolute loss.

Movie Clip:

I've been looking for over an hour and I'm losing my mind.

Movie Clip:

What I'm in the mood for is sort of a a Catherine Hepburn

Movie Clip:

y, Cary Grant y kind of thing.

Movie Clip:

Nothing heavy.

Movie Clip:

I couldn't take heavy.

Movie Clip:

No, something zany.

Movie Clip:

I'm looking for something zany.

Movie Clip:

Or something modern would be fine, too.

Movie Clip:

Like a Goldie Hawn y, Chevy Chase y kind of thing.

Movie Clip:

You know, funny.

Movie Clip:

I want to laugh.

Movie Clip:

I have to laugh tonight.

Movie Clip:

Really.

Movie Clip:

Do you have anything with that comedian, he's on that show, it's on the radio?

Movie Clip:

You know the guy, he says, Hey, forgive me.

Movie Clip:

I get such a kick out of the way he says that.

Movie Clip:

He's so goddamn adorable.

Movie Clip:

That would be perfect, didn't he make a movie?

Movie Clip:

Ordinary peepholes.

Nathan:

Give context to our bumper finally this week, you

Bee:

snuck in the people's that's a, we don't get the fall.

Nathan:

Yeah.

Nathan:

And

Bee:

here we didn't do Porky's for our summer rewatch.

Bee:

Oh man.

Bee:

I know.

Bee:

Think of what the world lost.

Bee:

Yeah.

David:

Okay.

David:

So

David:

we

Nathan:

were going to do our, our movie pairings this week and

Nathan:

I went I have to pull up my, my.

Nathan:

I went with the theme.

Nathan:

You're going to love this because I know you're tired of this, but I went with

Nathan:

a, I stuck with the theme of trauma.

Bee:

Oh yeah.

Bee:

I told, I told Nathan, I was like, I'm so tired of all the antagonism

Bee:

movies right now being trauma.

Nathan:

I think, but you picked a good movie.

Nathan:

Yeah.

Nathan:

I think this is a very interesting one because in many ways I feel it's kind of

Nathan:

a natural companion to the Fisher King also stars Jeff Bridges, whom I've stated

Nathan:

before, it's probably one of my top.

Nathan:

Three or four favorite actors.

Nathan:

The movie is titled fearless.

Nathan:

It's from 1993, directed by Peter Weir.

Nathan:

A plot of fearless is going to sound kind of eerie in context to our review

Nathan:

this week it follows the story of a man played by Bridges who survives a traumatic

Nathan:

event, in this case, a plane crash.

Nathan:

And he then begins to experience an entire shift in his perceptions of

Nathan:

life, believing he's invincible and starts to take some risks in life.

Nathan:

We'll say, like the Fisher King, it explores trauma in an interesting way.

Nathan:

This is another I have not seen in ages, but I do recall that it's got an amazing

Nathan:

performance from Jeff Bridges and Cassidy

Bee:

Rosie

Nathan:

Perez John Turturro.

Bee:

It's

Nathan:

great in it.

Nathan:

So yeah I, I loved this movie.

Nathan:

Now, like 30 years ago, but yeah, I think this is a great film

Nathan:

to watch with the Fisher King.

Bee:

I love this recommendation because I think Peter Weir is sort of like a secret

Bee:

great companion to watching any Gilliam stuff because you can go all over his

Bee:

filmography and he goes everywhere from absurdist and surrealist, you know, the.

Bee:

The cars that eat people.

Bee:

That was one that I got into for our Australia series.

Bee:

Dead Poets Society.

Bee:

That's a little eerie, supernatural, creepy, but also big romantic,

Bee:

you know, master commander.

Bee:

You have a Truman show Dead Poets Society.

Bee:

It's great.

Bee:

Yeah.

Bee:

That's a great call.

Nathan:

And I think it's more Peter Weir.

Nathan:

Yeah.

Nathan:

I think it's just on video on demand right now.

Nathan:

It's not streaming anywhere else, but

Bee:

yeah.

Bee:

Worth.

Bee:

All

Nathan:

right, Bea, what do you got?

Bee:

I went with New York as a character and magical realism.

Bee:

I went with Charlie Kaufman's Synecdoche, New York.

Movie Clip:

I'm lonely.

Movie Clip:

Anything else?

Movie Clip:

I'm hurt.

Movie Clip:

Yes, and?

Movie Clip:

I think Adele's right when she says I'm not doing anything real.

Movie Clip:

What would be real?

Movie Clip:

I'm afraid I'm gonna die.

Movie Clip:

I don't know what's wrong with me and I want to do something

Movie Clip:

important while I'm still here.

Movie Clip:

That would be the time to do it, yes.

Movie Clip:

I have a book that might help you get

Movie Clip:

better.

Movie Clip:

Better?

Movie Clip:

It's called Getting Better.

Movie Clip:

Who wrote it?

Movie Clip:

I did.

Movie Clip:

All of these.

Movie Clip:

Wow.

Movie Clip:

I never knew that.

Movie Clip:

Yes, wow, wow, indeed.

Movie Clip:

That's 45.

Movie Clip:

Yeah,

Bee:

good choice.

Bee:

Great performance from Philip Seymour Hoffman.

Bee:

I think Julianne Moore is in this.

Bee:

It's been a while since I've seen it, but this is a great representation of

Bee:

just the inside of your head sort of spilling out and what that can look

Bee:

like and what that sort of does to the people in your life and how you fit

Bee:

them into your art and your vision.

Bee:

And also maybe slowly lose your mind.

Bee:

So it's not a fun watch.

Bee:

It is a great watch.

Bee:

I think people should watch more of this.

Bee:

If you, if you like Kaufman, if you see here, that newer movie came

Bee:

out a couple of years ago, too.

Bee:

I can't remember what it was called on Netflix.

Bee:

But anyway, he's got another one with a great filmography and this is on

Bee:

criterion or you can rent it on VOD.

Bee:

Okay.

Nathan:

Confession.

Bee:

I haven't seen it yet.

Bee:

I think you'd like it.

Bee:

I got it.

David:

You should see this.

David:

I mean, cause like, if you, you know, if you like Philip Seymour

David:

Hoffman, and I really hope you do, you need to see this film.

David:

And this is like another epic

Bee:

scale for, it's big.

Bee:

Like New York is big.

Bee:

It's big.

David:

Great film.

David:

Great film.

David:

Are we to me?

David:

We

Nathan:

are.

Nathan:

Or the other person on this podcast.

Nathan:

Or

David:

the other person on the podcast.

David:

So, okay.

David:

This is terrible, but.

David:

But like, like your question about, about favorite films.

David:

So I actually I have an art house triple bill and then there's a little

David:

footnote that I wanted to add that.

David:

But so I'll go back to the film that, you know, that I was talking about

David:

earlier, sweet smell of success, thinking thematic to the whole thing

David:

about New York being a character.

David:

Because New York, I mean, like the whole thing, both like.

David:

The physicality of New York, I mean, the actual street scenes of New York,

David:

but then also like the rough and tumble of, you know, the, the, you know,

David:

the really hard business of media in New York, Sweet Smell of Success.

David:

Which, I, I, I was, I looked this up while we were talking I was actually, I was

David:

right about the director, it's a gentleman by the name of Alexander McKittrick

David:

and,

David:

McKendrick, I'm sorry, I'm probably mispronouncing that who wrote he, he also

David:

co wrote the screenplay with Ernest Lehman and Clifford Odets, a little by the by,

David:

you know, for us film nerds, Clifford Odets if you like the movie Barton Fink,

David:

that is, yeah,

David:

yeah, there's a, there's a, there's a direct tie in with Clifford

David:

Odets, you know so Sweet Smell of Success you know, you know, overblown

David:

media mogul who, you know, has a, a, a very corrosive effect on his personal

David:

relationship with, with his sister.

David:

And actually, if you, if you look up the history of this film, Susan

David:

Harrison the young woman that, that played, that played the sister

David:

of Burt Lancaster's character J.

David:

J.

David:

Hunsecker has a somewhat really, you know, in her personal life had, had

David:

a similar mirroring tragic story.

David:

About in her own life and somewhat and actually I believe after the film was

David:

made even she became a big success She virtually disappeared from the film

David:

industry after this was made so the other film that I would recommend thinking

David:

thematic to shock jocks is talk radio from 1988 Directed by Oliver Stone, which

David:

was actually written by Eric Boghossian and Oliver Stone You and it's, it's,

David:

it's based on there's a, there's a book called talk to death, the life and

David:

murder of Allen Berg by Steven singular.

David:

So this is about a guy once again, who, you know, he's got this, he's got this

David:

radio show that is, people are calling in and it's somewhat controversial and you

David:

know, he's, he's, you know, he's left of center, but he's making fun of everybody.

David:

But he's particularly really pissing off people that are like.

David:

on the right wing.

David:

And I don't want to give too much away, but it doesn't end well for him.

David:

But it's, but nevertheless, it is, it is a great film.

David:

It was, it didn't do well at the box office when it came out, but it's, this

David:

is one of those films that, you know, you see this film and it's, you know, it's a,

David:

it's a, it's a, it's an important film.

David:

And both of, in both of these films, Sweet Smell of Success, And talk radio

David:

much, much like Fisher King, there's a statement, you know, there's a statement

David:

in there about the power of media and the influence of, you know, of people

David:

that are celebrities, you know, on the lives of people that are in their

David:

audience, but on the lives of people that are in their personal lives.

David:

So that's it for me.

David:

Although I did want to say, like, we are doing this because of the whole

David:

Fisher King reboot, right, Nathan?

David:

What?

David:

Oh, yeah.

David:

I thought, I thought that's the whole purpose of this.

David:

'cause you know, I thought there was like a . No, no, but no, but I, I

David:

figured, you know, you got the inside scoop that there was, there's a reboot.

David:

Reboot it, it, it's involves a, you know, it involves a testosterone impaired Josh

Nathan:

Gad and, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

David:

Testone testosterone impaired very successful podcaster.

David:

Who pisses off a lot of people.

David:

Yeah, it's based off of a guy that Nathan and I are intimately aware of.

David:

We worked on a show with him.

David:

I can't say the name for contractual purposes.

David:

I would just say that it rhymes with beer actor.

David:

So, if you understand that, But the subplot is that, is that he offends

David:

some billionaire and their, their, you know, their woke child and that

David:

it, it gets, I don't want to get into it, which, you know, but yeah, anyway.

Bee:

Testosterone impaired sounds like a kind way to say balding.

David:

It, one could, one could be, you know, I would, yes, one could say that.

David:

One, one could say that.

David:

Just sounds like a

Bee:

new synonym.

Bee:

Yeah.

Bee:

Learning.

Bee:

Could, sure.

Bee:

Growth.

Bee:

Yeah.

Bee:

Yeah.

Bee:

All

Nathan:

right.

Nathan:

These are all very good picks everyone.

Nathan:

Oh, and I did make a note that I saw that sweet smell of success.

Nathan:

It's streaming everywhere.

Nathan:

Hoopla, Criterion channel, Canopy, Pluto, you can catch it everywhere.

Nathan:

And Talk Radio, you can rent on VOD.

Nathan:

Good picks.

Nathan:

I'm happy that you have two picks because without Sam this week,

Nathan:

we can now fill our Letterboxd recommendations with all four movies.

Nathan:

Yeehaw!

Nathan:

Yay!

Nathan:

Alright, look for, hey, if you, we don't mention enough on

Nathan:

when I do my housekeeping, but we have a Letterboxd channel.

Nathan:

Go check out Letterboxd, yeah.

Nathan:

Everything that we watch.

Nathan:

And our, and our reviews on them or their links to it.

Nathan:

Okay.

Nathan:

Let's let's get to the last point of why we're here is if we are going to

Nathan:

save a pudge, the Fisher can so much suspense, so much suspense if we're

Nathan:

going to keep this movie or not.

Nathan:

Yeah, yeah, we're gonna keep this.

Nathan:

I am.

Nathan:

I personally, this, this, like I said, this is a five star movie for me.

Nathan:

I think there's so many layers to this, so much depth to this film.

Nathan:

I can watch this another five times and find more things to mine in this movie.

Nathan:

I think there's, yeah, I can't say enough that I love about this film.

Nathan:

So yes, I've said my piece.

Nathan:

Keep it, keep it, save it, B.

Bee:

I think there are stories that overtly use storytelling as a device.

Bee:

Maybe a little bit better, but for the performances alone.

Bee:

I think you got to keep this one in here I think it's it's a yes for me.

David:

I I I I would concur with this Supreme Court of cinema I have to you

David:

know, I will I will not be like simply.

David:

Well, thank you.

David:

So I, I agree.

David:

I agree.

David:

And, and what B said is, you know, absolutely, you know, tracks, you

David:

know, to my own, my own, you know, and, and again, you know, it's all

David:

this thing, I think it speaks to the fact that, you know, that, you know,

David:

we were talking about this earlier.

David:

I mean, yeah, the relationship with the relationship with, with Jeff

David:

Bridges and Robin Williams character.

David:

Sure.

David:

But you know, Amanda Plummer, Mercedes rule, I mean, Mercedes

David:

rule won an Academy Award for this.

David:

Yeah.

David:

So,

David:

and, and actually part of me really feels like, you know, Amanda

David:

Plummer probably should have been, you know, I don't, and I feel silly.

David:

I don't know this.

David:

She should, if she wasn't nominated, she should have been for supporting

David:

because it's a small role, but you know, but it was, she did a

Bee:

lot with it.

David:

She did a lot with it.

David:

I mean, she really, you know, like you, I mean, like you mentioned this

David:

film and then I mentioned to an older friend, he was like, Oh, the girl in

David:

the, in the Chinese with the dumplings.

David:

I'm like, yeah, the girl with the Chinese.

David:

Yeah.

David:

Yeah.

David:

Yeah.

David:

Yeah.

David:

Memorable.

Nathan:

Memorable.

Nathan:

Let's lock this away in the annals of film history for all mankind.

Bee:

That was

Nathan:

satisfying.

Nathan:

Nice.

Nathan:

We have made it so.

Nathan:

Okay.

David:

Okay.

Nathan:

Alright.

Nathan:

There you have it.

Nathan:

Alright.

Nathan:

So.

Nathan:

Okay.

Nathan:

We're going to wrap it up.

Nathan:

David, any last words, anything you want to plug things going on with you,

Nathan:

any, anything coming out that you're involved in you, this is your chance.

David:

Okay.

David:

So, so nothing immediate, but I will say that, that a, a, a nonprofit that

David:

I helped start inventors, movers, makers, IMM, which is an art exhibit.

David:

Telling the story of the untold story of African American inventors and

David:

technologists at the turn of the century.

David:

We're developing an AV component and that is to say an anthological series

David:

that's, that we want to, what we want to do is, is, you know, produce, you

David:

know produce for streaming, you know you know, like little mini docs, you

David:

know, probably, you know, 30, 40 minutes in length that tell these stories.

David:

of these African American inventors.

David:

At turn of the century, I have recently come into contact with a couple of

David:

really well respected African American filmmakers that have, you know, that

David:

have signed on to sign on when we have, you know, contracts pending.

David:

I don't want to be mysterious about it, but you know, until things are,

David:

you know, really, you know, really solid, I don't want to mention names,

David:

but they're, they're, they're really, there's some well known folks,

David:

certainly better known than myself.

David:

I'm working on that.

David:

And then there's the creative projects that Nathan knows about.

David:

Which are still, you know, like in, I don't know, do people say in the hopper?

David:

I don't know.

David:

That's an old, you know, whatever, you know, in the, yeah,

Bee:

like we didn't know about it.

Bee:

Yeah.

Bee:

Yeah.

David:

Yeah.

Bee:

That's exciting.

Bee:

Yeah.

Bee:

Working

David:

on the, the, the, the paranormal show idea and then

David:

the show about Memphis in 1968.

David:

So there's that.

Bee:

That's a lot.

Bee:

You're busy.

David:

Yeah.

Nathan:

Excellent.

Nathan:

Well, David, thank you so much for joining us again on the show.

Nathan:

Always a pleasure.

Nathan:

Would you come back again sometime?

David:

You know that I would.

David:

Past and future guests.

David:

Okay.

David:

Right, right.

David:

You know, I absolutely, I absolutely would.

David:

It's like, it's, you know B, this is like him.

David:

It's like, you want to come over to the house, you know we're

David:

going to grill some hamburgers.

David:

I'm like, I'm going to say no.

David:

I'm going to say no.

David:

No, I'm going to say yes.

David:

And then I'm going to say like, okay, you know, I'll pick up the cream soda.

David:

Cause I know you like cream soda, you know.

David:

Or you still like cream soda, right?

David:

You haven't gone that woke on me, have you?

David:

You know, I'm kidding.

David:

I don't know.

David:

All right.

David:

Well, thank you.

David:

I love cream soda.

Nathan:

I should, you know, I have a cream soda and root beer collection.

Nathan:

Do you remember this, David?

Nathan:

I, I, Everywhere I go in the country, if I go to one of those, like mom

Nathan:

and pop country stores, general stores, I will find what, where

Nathan:

is your root beer or cream soda?

Nathan:

And I was like, is it like some local bottler?

Nathan:

And I will buy a bottle by two of them,

Nathan:

one that

Nathan:

I'll drink.

Nathan:

And Usually I drink both of them, but like I'll save the

Nathan:

bottle and add to my collection.

Nathan:

I have about 270 bottles, only cream, soda and root beer, nothing else.

David:

I do recall that from our time in la I do, they used

Nathan:

to be on display.

Nathan:

They're no longer in display anymore because I'm not allowed

Nathan:

to have them on this spot.

Bee:

You need to go to bed now.

Bee:

We gotta go.

Bee:

This podcast is done for the night.

Nathan:

It's been real.

Nathan:

It's been great.

Nathan:

It's been really great.

Nathan:

I will show you my, my root beer bottle collections.

Bee:

That's okay.

David:

He's, he's going to play us out with the Von Trapp family

David:

singers with the whole All

Nathan:

right, well, thanks everyone for tuning in this week.

Nathan:

Next week, we begin our next retrospective series.

Nathan:

Very excited about this.

Nathan:

We are, our retrospective series is coming.

Nathan:

Back to the framerate and the, and the quest for fortune and glory, we are

Nathan:

going to be watching the first four films in the Indiana Jones franchise,

Nathan:

not five, because we reviewed the dial destiny last year before B you were

Nathan:

part of the team, but that's okay.

Nathan:

Can't wait to see B you've never seen any of these movies.

Nathan:

So we're going to be getting reaction.

Bee:

Okay.

Bee:

So here's what I know about Indiana Jones, because I'm going in Very blind.

Bee:

I know.

Bee:

Dust and

Nathan:

hat, right?

Bee:

Yeah.

Bee:

I know there's dust.

Bee:

I know he wears a hat.

Bee:

I believe there's a whip at some point, potentially treasure.

Bee:

It's either a pirate movie or that's all I know.

Bee:

But joining us will be someone who loves that.

Bee:

this movie?

Bee:

I'm so

Nathan:

sad that I can't be in the same room while you

Nathan:

watch this for the first time.

Nathan:

That's the thing.

Nathan:

I really could.

David:

I wish, I wish that I could too, just for the same thing.

David:

So I had two friends that were huge Game of Thrones nerds, okay, and this is a

David:

little side story, but they, too huge.

David:

And so I watched, I watched Game of Thrones with them and we're watching

David:

the episode with The Red Wedding.

David:

And if you know the show, you know this.

David:

And then what I noticed was odd was like, I'm in my buddy's living room

David:

and the two of them aren't watching the screen anymore at a certain

David:

point, they start looking at me.

Movie Clip:

Yep.

David:

And before things happen, before things happen, I'm like,

David:

why are they looking at me?

David:

And then I'll just say this in the red wedding, the shit goes down.

David:

And I lost my mind.

David:

I mean, I literally jumped off the sofa and was like, what the fuck was

Movie Clip:

that?

David:

You know, and then they're both like laughing and

David:

rolling around and giggling.

David:

I'm like, you guys are assholes.

David:

You guys, you knew this was coming.

David:

You knew this was coming.

David:

You didn't tell me.

David:

And they're like, well.

David:

You know, we're not going to spoil it for you.

Nathan:

That's how I would be if I was watching these movies with you, B.

Nathan:

I'd be just staring at you.

Nathan:

Yes.

Nathan:

I'm

Bee:

really excited.

Bee:

Can you put a little

Nathan:

camera in your living room so that I can just watch you?

Nathan:

So here's what I think.

Nathan:

I think I'm going to

Bee:

like take a little Google notes screen grab and just go like

Bee:

10 things I'm pretty sure I know to be true about Indiana Jones.

Bee:

Right.

Bee:

Cat.

Bee:

Dust.

Bee:

Pirates.

Bee:

Maybe.

Bee:

Yep.

Bee:

Yeah.

Bee:

Like there's treasure.

Bee:

There's every treasure or something at some point.

Bee:

I think there's like gold.

Bee:

That's something I'm pretty, and is there a small boy that feels right?

Nathan:

I don't have to censor that.

Nathan:

Yeah.

Bee:

No, I think there's like a companion.

Bee:

No, there,

David:

yeah, I mean,

Bee:

companions, companions,

David:

companions.

David:

Yeah.

David:

Yeah.

David:

Small boys and whips.

David:

Small boys and whips.

David:

Yep.

Bee:

It's like a Goonies situation.

Bee:

I might be thinking of the Goonies for some of this.

Bee:

Are there ghosts?

David:

I think Well

Bee:

I don't know.

Bee:

See, this is I don't know.

Bee:

These are just things I'm pretty sure So for your dinner

David:

in a movie thing, for the first one I'll say this.

David:

Like, pick a good Pick a good White French wine, and it, do you like dates?

David:

Wine

Nathan:

pairings with our wines.

Nathan:

Yeah, you know,

David:

a little, yeah, a good, a good, a good white, a good

David:

white wine that you enjoy.

David:

And, and do you like, you know, like dates or dried apricots?

David:

You know, you want to have, have, have a few of those.

David:

Just, just, you know, just, just have them on hand.

David:

Just have them on hand for that, for that one.

David:

Yeah.

David:

Yeah.

David:

All right.

Bee:

I'll need sustenance.

Bee:

You need sustenance.

David:

And then, and then for the, for the second one, maybe you want

David:

Chinese food and champagne, you know, just, just saying, just saying.

David:

Yeah.

David:

Sure.

David:

Yeah.

David:

Sure.

David:

Or Indian food.

David:

Maybe Indian.

David:

I would say Indian.

Nathan:

Some curry.

David:

There you go.

David:

There you go.

David:

Better choice.

David:

Better choice.

David:

Yeah.

David:

Yeah.

David:

Yeah.

David:

I mean really

Bee:

anything goes

David:

Nathan huh.

David:

Huh.

David:

Yeah, I don't

Bee:

know and this is not me I'm not making this up.

Bee:

Like I really just have managed to be spoiler free Almost 33 years.

David:

That's that's good That's good.

David:

We'll

Bee:

see.

Bee:

We'll see.

Bee:

I'll send over my expectations.

Nathan:

Okay, well let's wrap this up.

Nathan:

This, that is the show this week.

Nathan:

Back to the Spring Break is part of the Weston Media Podcast Network.

Nathan:

We wish to thank Brian Ellsworth for our show opening.

Nathan:

On behalf of all of us, we bid you farewell from the fall shelter.

Nathan:

Your presence in our underground sanctuary is truly appreciated.

Nathan:

We are truly sorry.

Nathan:

Can that join us, but we want to express our gratitude for your company.

Nathan:

If you're finding solace in our discussions, we kindly ask that

Nathan:

you please subscribe and leave a rating review on Apple podcasts,

Nathan:

Spotify, or whichever portal connects you to a broadcast you bastards,

Nathan:

then you can find more episodes Of this podcast and also on our

Nathan:

website, back to the framerate.

Nathan:

com and Facebook and Instagram, YouTube, all of our socials our

Nathan:

handle is back to the framerate.

Nathan:

Your support is the beacon of light that brightens our confined space

Nathan:

until we emerge from the fallout.

Nathan:

Stay with us, keep hope alive and keep those reviews coming.

Nathan:

This is the end of our transmission back to the framerate signing off.

Nathan:

I want you to know it's over.

Nathan:

Well,

Nathan:

bye.

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About the Podcast

Back to the Frame Rate
Preserving Our Civilization One MOVIE At A Time

In the vast realm of film rankings – AFI's 100, Sight & Sound's Greats, 1001 To See Before You Die, IMDB's Top 250, Roger Ebert's Picks, and so on – there's a glaring omission: STAKES! Picture this: an asteroid the size of Texas hurtling toward Earth, a threat even Bruce Willis and his motley crew of oil drillers can't thwart. We're left with a front-row seat to our impending doom. Fear not, fellow film nerds, for we've constructed a fallout shelter, a haven for cinematic survival. Sadly, the space is tight, just enough for us and our cherished 35mm & 70mm film reels. To friends, family, and old acquaintances left in the cinematic dust, our apologies. But fret not, for we vow to emerge when Earth is safe for repopulation. We've preserved the very soul of civilization, ensuring a future where storytelling thrives. Back to the Frame Rate, saving the world one reel at a time! 🎥✨ Hosted by Nathan Suher, Sam Coale, and Briana (Bee) Butterworth.

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Nathan Suher

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