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April 3, 2025 • 108 mins

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What are the movies we love despite knowing they're not cinematic masterpieces? When the critics pan a film that you can't stop rewatching, should you feel guilty about your enjoyment?

In this deeply personal episode, we reunite as a full trio to dive into the concept of "guilty pleasures" in film - those movies we return to time and again despite (or perhaps because of) their perceived flaws. As Erica returns from her travels, she brings with her this question that reveals more about us as viewers than perhaps any other topic could.

We each approach this challenge differently - Max analyzes the numerical gaps between his ratings and the critical consensus, Alex passionately defends films no one else seems to appreciate, and Erica embraces the nostalgic comforts of childhood favorites. From the shark-filled waters of Deep Blue Sea to the supernatural scares of Annabelle Comes Home, from the teen angst of Twilight to the ghostly romance of Casper, our selections span genres and decades but share one common thread: they matter deeply to us.

The conversation reveals how our most treasured movie experiences often connect to formative moments in our lives. We explore whether a guilty pleasure can transition into legitimate appreciation when critical opinion shifts, whether certain genres are more prone to guilty pleasure status than others, and ultimately, whether we should feel any guilt at all about the films that bring us joy.

What movies do you secretly love despite their reputation? Join us for this confession booth of cinematic loves and discover why the films we're hesitant to recommend might actually be the ones that define us most as movie lovers.

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Episode Transcript

Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:05):
how's it?
I'm alex mccauley.
I'm max fosberg and I'm ericakraus, and this is excuse the
intermission a discussion showsurrounding our guiltiest
pleasures.
Erica is back and bringing withher an episode topic that is
sure to scratch a unique itchahead on today's pod, we will be
celebrating her oscar ballotwin and catching up on her
travels over the last month.
Those conversations up next onthe other side of this break.

(00:27):
Okay, we're back and we arewhole again, all three of us in
studio.
Max, you and I have done ourbest to hold it down, but once
again we have our third leg tohelp us stand together.
Stand even.
Erica, how are you?

(00:49):
Where have you been?
What's going on in your life?

Speaker 2 (00:53):
oh, man, it's good to be back.
Um well, I well, I was sick fora minute, just for a little bit
, and, as you can probably tellby my voice, I've caught
something again.
But um, in between that Itraveled to denver for a week to
see a close friend of mine andum, yeah, just been taking it

(01:15):
easy, but you know nothing toocrazy out there.
Just you know, denver wasdenver, but what is that Just?
crusty and brown and dead.
But I had a really nicerelaxing time, a lot of
self-care.
It was a nice like restful trip.

Speaker 1 (01:39):
Not that it means anything to me because I've yet
to go back.
I think I was maybe there for alayover on a flight once, but
do you know where I was born?
Where denver colorado whatcrusty brown.
And dead.

Speaker 3 (01:51):
She says sounds kind of like you.
I'll tell you what we'regetting there.
I can't wait.
Oh my god, I can't wait to bein my walton goggins era oh, he
is crusty and brown, yeah, andapproaching death.
I love him um okay.

Speaker 1 (02:08):
So, as you've been away from the pod, I think we
all have reached this point now.
It's funny that you reached itso soon into your amateur
podcasting career, where you donot listen to episodes, that you
are on no max.
You've always been like this Ilistened to, I I used to listen
to our episodes prettyreligiously after we would

(02:30):
release them, or at least onceyou were done editing them and
you would put them in either aDropbox or upload them to
Buzzsprout early.
I've since stopped doing that,unless I hear somebody say
something oh, you got to go,like that was a great episode.
You know you hear that.
And then you want to go backand listen, since you were away
for about a month, erica, you'vegone back and listen.
So what have you heard us talkabout that?

(02:50):
You wish you could have been inthe room to maybe clap back on
or agree with what.
What is the last month of movieengagement looked like for you?

Speaker 2 (02:59):
Oh God, I mean honestly, I've been really
dropping the ball on movies justin general this year.
So I did see Opus so I was kindof you know bummed.
I couldn't be a part of thatconversation last week, but I
did get to see that while I wasin Denver at my beloved Alamo
Drafthouse.

Speaker 1 (03:19):
Good to be back there , I can imagine.

Speaker 2 (03:21):
Yeah, I mean, it's not the same as being in Austin,
which is kind of like I believethat's where Alamo started, um,
and it's always just a muchdifferent vibe.
And you know, my theater on aSaturday early afternoon in
Denver, um, in like the suburbsof Denver, mind you um, there
was two other people, so itwasn't like anything to write

(03:43):
home about.
But I mean, I just love tosupport Alamo Drafthouse.
I think that they're just agreat theater in general.
So yeah, that was nice.
But yeah, I mean, obviously Imissed out on Max's film.
You know, his film schoolepisode, just so happy for you,

(04:03):
and I was just cheering you onfrom afar thank you so much.

Speaker 3 (04:08):
I appreciate that.
Uh gosh, I think I need to.
I also I need to send you uhunplugged huh yeah, yeah the
final cut that we've beenshowing people.
Um, yeah, I'll get on that, uh,tonight, but opus, you saw opus
I thought of you when I sawopus and I think I texted you

(04:29):
like right as I got out of thetheater what'd you think?

Speaker 2 (04:32):
yeah, I, so this was actually on my when we did our
most anticipated for the yearthis was on that list for me, um
, I liked it.
I think that, like you know, tobe totally honest, it felt a
little bit like hollow to me.
This.
I felt like there was kind of alot going on and not like it

(04:53):
just didn't really scratch thesurface for I.
I was thinking about thisyesterday because I'm like I
know they're going to ask me andhow am I going to explain, like
, how I feel?
Um, because obviously this is amovie that really takes a lot
of inspo from a lot of ourfavorites right, you know a lot
of great A24 movies um, but itjust didn't really like fully

(05:19):
get there for me and I think, bythe time like things really
started to like pick up the pacetowards the end, um, I wasn't
really even like that investedin it.
I was just kind of like, ohokay, you know that's crazy, but
I I mean, I don't know, I Iliked it, I appreciated, like
what it was trying to do.

(05:40):
I saw a lot of people talkingabout how they're like this is
just a fucking rip off of, youknow, blink, twice, the Menu,
midsommar, and then like someother movies, and I'm like, well
, that's OK.
I mean, yes, like it pulls alot of inspo from those movies.
But like those are really greatmovies to be inspired by.

(06:01):
Like don't we want more ofthose anyway?
So yeah, I wasn't like madabout that.
I think a lot of people likewere so butthurt because that
was like a huge part of it.
But, um, I mean I I will say,uh, john malkovich just fucking
killed it, but that wasn't asurprise because he kind of
kills it and everything he wasamazing.

Speaker 3 (06:20):
He's 70 years old and he's doing a role like this is,
uh, pretty, pretty excitingstuff.
It is a movie that has beenlike getting killed yeah and and
I'm someone who really, reallycame out like loving it and
thinking it's like the bestthing I've seen this year from
the 2025 release schedule, um,and you know, I was thinking

(06:44):
about the episode we're doingtoday In the future, opus could
become one of these guiltypleasure movies.

Speaker 1 (06:51):
I love that.
That's great.
Are you ready for this segue?

Speaker 2 (06:56):
Oh yeah, absolutely, let's do it.
Yeah, so well, I kind of wantedto just do like a little bit of
I mean, why I chose thisepisode.
And you know, when you guys,when I won the Oscars ballot, I
really wanted to do an episode.
That was like just typicalErica, like I want to know, like

(07:20):
what makes people tick, and Iwant to know, like know, like
you know the, the psychology ofpeople and I think you know,
learning stuff like this is justsuch a personal thing.
Like what is your guiltypleasure?
What is like you know, what'syour comfort movie, what's
something that makes you feelgood?
Like, what are you afraid of?
What are like, what makes youlaugh?

(07:40):
I like to know those things andI think that film does such a
great job, excuse me, at likepeople's film interest is a
really great window into whosomebody is, um, and so I
thought you know, gosh I meanI'm joining the podcast very
late in your guys's um career inthis.

(08:03):
You know you guys have beendoing this for like five years
now, so I had to make sure I didsome.
I was choosing something thatyou already hadn't done and I
just thought this would be fun.
I mean, it's like I want toknow, like what, what you define
as a guilty pleasure Number one, like how do you even go about
that?

Speaker 1 (08:22):
And at the end of last week's episode, I was going
to ask if you heard that.

Speaker 2 (08:26):
Yeah, yeah so you guys had a really great
conversation and I loved yourconversation about it too,
because I was like that'sexactly like what I wanted to
kind of invoke in this episodein general, like those kind of
conversations, and you're kindof like okay, like what, well,
shoot, is it like?
Does that mean it's somethingindulgent, or is it like I'm

(08:46):
kind of ashamed to like it, oram I embarrassed?
I mean, um, or is it somethingthat like is feels more
comforting to me, like what isthat?
but you know I'll tell you thatthe way I define a guilty
pleasure is something that I amnot necessarily proud to love,

(09:07):
or like, I'm like you know, likeit's almost like a sweet treat
kind of like when you're you'reon a diet, um, you're like, oh,
it feels good in the moment towatch this, but I know I
shouldn't be doing it, or I knowit's like not great, like it's
not a great movie, but I don'tcare.
Um, so yeah, what did you guysthink?

Speaker 1 (09:27):
in the last few weeks , I was pondering this episode,
so I was thinking more about itfollowing our conversation that
we had to end last week'sepisode with max, and I thought
of this and I thought there'sreally no sensitive way to bring
this up.
But but I think that on this,like just on the surface, a
guilty pleasure has so much todo with, like archetypes and

(09:50):
gender stereotypes and your ageand all these other factors that
play a part into the thingsthat society expects certain
people to like, right.
And so the way I started tothink about this was that, like
a movie that a red-bloodedamerican 30 year old male might

(10:10):
love, say apocalypse now is,could never be a guilty pleasure
for me, right?
Just because of what societyexpects me to be into or
whatever.
Or my film history, however,like if my mom say was like I

(10:31):
just love me, like my guiltypleasure movies are just like
70s and 1970s and 1980s warfilms, that would then all of a
sudden be totally valid as aguilty pleasure movie for her.
And now I don't necessarilyagree with that, but I think
that makes sense, if, if thatmakes sense if she feels guilty

(10:55):
for liking it, then yeah, thenthat makes sense and that's.

Speaker 2 (10:58):
I think that like there is a little bit of like
embarrassment that comes withthese pics right where you're
kind of like, oh fuck, like butlike no one should feel
embarrassed to like anythingright and that's what I was
gonna say is, you know, and I'llget to this here in a second
but yeah, you shouldn't beashamed, because who gives like?
I mean, at the end of the day,like, let's just preface this
whole, this whole episode, bysaying, like, who gives a fuck?

(11:22):
What you like?
Like, I mean I, I don't thinkthere's any wrong like taste in
movies.
You know what I mean.
Like, if you want to watch likeall of the cartoon barbie
movies on your weekend, then gofor it, girl you know, I don't
care you know like doesn'taffect me what?

Speaker 1 (11:39):
what did you think?
And, max, I can't remember ifwe said this on air or off air,
because we continue to talk, youknow, in preparation for for
this episode last week, and andI a good example of what we said
.
How quality can affect this,though, is that, like, maybe 10
years ago it would have beenlike it would have tracked a

(12:00):
little better to say thatsomething like mean girls for me
is a guilty pleasure movie.
However, now I'm like no, afterjust like watching film and
loving film and appreciating alldifferent kinds of movies, I
have no problem saying that meangirls is like a 10 out of 10,
perfect movie for what it'strying to accomplish.
Yeah, did we say this on air?
I can't remember.
You did it, and then I broughtup like okay, but the inverse to

(12:23):
that is, if I was like theHilary Duff joint, a.

Speaker 2 (12:26):
Cinderella story, that would still work as like a
guilty pleasure movie that was aperfect example which, honestly
, I thought was hilarious.

Speaker 1 (12:33):
You know, my Chad Michael Murray bag is deep.

Speaker 2 (12:36):
I watched that movie like not that long ago actually,
and I sat there just like oof,but I'd watch it again.
There just was like oof, butI'd watch it again.
Um, that's, yeah, that's aperfect example because, yeah,
maybe like 10 years ago, whenmean girls was still pretty new,
and becoming a cult classicyeah, like as a man, I mean
that's, you know, unfortunatelythere is that gender stereotype,

(12:57):
I guess.
But like saying like, oh yeah, Ilove watching mean girls on a
saturday night by myself.
Like that would be a little bitof a guilty pleasure, I guess.
But yeah, now that it has kindof reached this like cult
classic phenomenon, I think thatdoesn't so much fit the bill
anymore.
I mean, here's the thing islike whatever that's, everyone's

(13:20):
going to be different with.
Their guilty pleasure is like Iactually I posted something in
my Instagram stories the otherday asking my followers like hey
, like I want to know what yourguilty pleasure movies are, and
this one guy responded with likethis really sweet movie, a
friend of ours, matt Rush, and Iwas like wait, I actually love

(13:40):
that movie.
Like I would never feel guiltyfor liking that, but I can
understand, like I mean, youknow maybe why he thought that
that was a guilty pleasure forhim and that's it's such a
subjective yeah but I love thatbecause for an episode, for a
podcast purpose, it's a greatidea.

Speaker 1 (13:55):
For an episode, yeah, because we can take it in any
direction yeah, what about youmax?

Speaker 3 (14:00):
uh, you know, biggest shout out to uh letterd because
I really jumped into thenumbers.
I went very analytical withthis process where I went
through, like my film diary orwhatever, everything that I've
logged decade by decade, fourstars or above and are, at least

(14:24):
you know, on average like astar or below lower, lower
consensus yeah in consensus.
So I went for like movies that Ilove and then and then I also
factored in like rewatchability,because that gave me a huge
list of movies to pick from.

(14:45):
And then I picked out stuffthat has the most, like you know
, the the biggest gap betweenthe the consensus average and
what I rated it, and then therewatch ability on top of that
of like what have out of.
Out of this long list, what arethe ones that I returned to the
most.

Speaker 1 (15:04):
That was going to be my next question what, what did
that list originally look like?
And then what was the processto weed it down?

Speaker 3 (15:11):
Yeah, so, yeah, I mean the.
The original list is probably40 films long, maybe 35 films
long, and then to weed it downto just five, again had to do
with like, okay, how many timeshave I re-watched this, you know
, in my life recently?
Do, maybe, you know, own it?

(15:31):
Yeah, do I own it?
Is it something that, like evenon re-watch, like no matter
what, like I'm sticking with myoriginal rating?
Yes, uh, you know, like mynumber one film is known as a
bad film and yet every time I'vere-watched it, it's five solid
stars and, like you know, myreviews are like god, this is

(15:54):
just so fun to watch I love thatI, that I love that approach.

Speaker 2 (15:58):
It's like, like you said, super analytical.
Um, I'll be curious because,like I do want us all to kind of
like when we go through ourlist, to kind of like I said,
you know, I, when I texted youguys this, I want you to plead
your case a little bit, liketell me why you're like, hey, I
know this movie sucks ass, butlike I love it because of this.
You know, and and like and thenI'm curious like, are any of

(16:22):
the movies on your list?
Are you shameful of them?
Like, are you feeling like kindof embarrassed that you like
them?
I mean, I think it's kind ofhard to ask.
You know three people who lovefilms so much Like I'm not, I
would tell anybody my list.
You know I'm not really likeashamed of them, but I do feel
some kind of like like cringe,cringe when I watch them.

(16:45):
Like I'm like god, I erica, likewe love this movie, like really
like you know, but but then I'mlike yeah, bitch, we do, you
know, and I'm and I'm not afraidto admit it you know, um.
So I'm excited to hear what youguys say, but I liked, I like
the 40 on your list, dude it's abig list.

Speaker 3 (17:06):
It's a big list and I'll be able to, you know, read
off some titles at the end here.
But, uh, people are fuckingbrutal, absolutely on letterbox.

Speaker 2 (17:15):
Oh, I know absolutely there's a ton of really great
guilty pleasure lists thatpeople have made on letterbox
and I look at I, I lookedthrough them just and it almost
kind of because I was likesurprisingly having.
I'm like, well, there's just nota lot of movies that I wouldn't
like admit to liking.
Um, but once I saw like some ofthese other people's lists and

(17:40):
kind of what they were doingwith it, then I would see these
movies.
I'm like, oh my god, like howcould I have forgotten about
that?
Yes, like add it to the list.
Like there was so many to kindof peruse, which was fun.

Speaker 1 (17:53):
A big thing that I tried to do was look within
franchises and find films that Ilove from within a certain
franchise, because those are, Ithink, when you start to get to
like, the real niche, microgenres within some of the bigger
umbrellas of just like actionor horror.
Whatever the case may be, andthankfully because we've been

(18:13):
doing this podcast for so long,some of these, some of these
films, are going to be ones thatI've talked about before, but
in different contexts, but thatmake a lot of sense as far as
like maybe being a lost horrorsequel, which we've touched on
before, or being a movie thatwas a box office bomb that you
know, we've done a whole episodeon that before, but I did want
to bring some sort of freshperspective into it, based off

(18:36):
of what erica was saying.
As far as like and then ittotally aligns with what you're
saying, max we're like, on everyrewatch, I'm like, like no, we
ride for this film.
We will not be deterred by,like, the top review on
Letterboxd being one and a halfstar and everyone else agreeing
with this movie being dog water.
Like no, we're going to.
We're going to go to bat forthis movie every single time.

Speaker 2 (18:58):
Yeah.

Speaker 1 (19:00):
OK, who you're running the show, erica, you,
you can pick who goes first.
If you want to go first, youwant to go last, totally up to
you.

Speaker 2 (19:09):
I think we should let our film graduates go first.

Speaker 3 (19:13):
Here goes all my street cred.

Speaker 1 (19:16):
With the number five pick already.

Speaker 3 (19:17):
With the number five film on my top five guilty
pleasure list according to thenumbers Deep Blue Sea, A movie
that Alex and I talked about, Ithink, on our shark episode a
couple years back.
This is a movie that I firmlybelieve is four and a half stars
, Comes in at 2.9 stars onLetterboxd consensus on

(19:40):
letterbox uh, consensus,consensus, Um.
And, like you know, I thinkalso another thing about these
movies is that we're going towe're going to touch on some
like nostalgic, like feelingsaround these movies.
Right, Deep blue sea, One ofthe first, one of the first like
rated R movies that I saw witha group of friends at a

(20:02):
sleepover, Like I vividlyremember being at drew young's
house shout out drew and all ofus guys like in the living room
the big screen tv.
We had rented this movie,watching it.
I remember you know that foralso spoilers for all these
movies that we're going to talkabout the Sam Jackson moment

(20:26):
when he gets snatched off theplatform inside the facility
that they're in by a shark isstill just like one of the
greatest deaths on screen andlike most surprising deaths to
this day, mid monologue.
Mid-monologue.
We've got a crazy cast of ofcharacters here thomas jane,

(20:48):
probably like at the apex of hiscelebrity, uh, as as this rough
and gruff marine biologist,because that's what marine
biologists look like.
Yeah we've got llL Cool J inthe you know as the cook, with
his bird and his religion.

(21:08):
And his faith, yes, and thealmighty.
And then, yeah, other peoplelike Sam Jackson in here.
You know the sharks even goingback and watching it, like the
CGI has aged terribly.
Even going back and watching itthe CGI has aged terribly, but

(21:35):
it's such a fun violent sharkmovie that I always find a good
time when I throw it on, and onethat I've rewatched more than
I'd like to admit.

Speaker 1 (21:41):
It scratches one of those micro subgenres that we're
talking about of like animalattack movies, because I have
the almost exact samerelationship with Lake Placid.
Yeah, shout out my guy DerekSchomburg.
It was a sleepover at his houseand we're watching that
alligator in upstate New York.

Speaker 2 (21:57):
Right.

Speaker 1 (21:58):
It's like tear through people.

Speaker 3 (22:00):
It's so fun Like those movies are great guilty
pleasure movies.

Speaker 2 (22:04):
That's a good start.
Alex is going to go next.

Speaker 1 (22:07):
Okay, this is the first movie I thought of when we
did this, when you introducedthis exercise, and so I as well
had to go straight to Letterboxdto read my reviews, to make
sure that I'm standing onbusiness.
And, sure enough, a rewatchreview from November 14th 2022
reads like this, and I'll letyou guess the film that I'm

(22:29):
talking about.
The pinnacle of post-HungerGames pandemonium, young adult
book to screen post-apocalyptic,dystopian science fiction is
squarely in my guilty pleasurewarehouse or wheelhouse, and
this first installment of thejames dashner books works on
every level simple expositionthat introduces our plot, solid
performances delivered bylikable actors and, most

(22:52):
importantly, mounting suspenseachieved through conflict that
is equal parts thrilling andmindless exactly what I look for
in a binge worthy filmfranchise.
If exciting, if exciting,medium stakes pg-13 action is
what you're craving, you can'tgo wrong with this one.

Speaker 2 (23:08):
The film maze runner I was thinking the maze runner
so that's on the poster.

Speaker 3 (23:15):
That review is on the poster excuse the intermission.

Speaker 1 (23:20):
So 2014, directed by west ball Ball, who guess what
people are saying is directingthe 2027 on-screen adaptation of
the Legend of Zelda.

Speaker 2 (23:33):
Oh wow, big news, oh interesting, just broke this
week Wow.

Speaker 1 (23:36):
Wes Ball coming off of great success with the
Kingdom of the Planet of theApes last year yeah the planet
of the apes last year.
Yeah, so a filmmaker that kindof cut his teeth in, you know
adaptation, big budget, sort offamily friendly-esque action,
adventure stuff here.
So the maze runner such a greatentry I had to have.
Um, such a great entry for theyoung adult fiction adaptation

(23:59):
subgenre here.
I had to get this in herebecause I eat these movies up,
whether it's the divergenceseries or hunger games, um, but
maze runner really is like theone for me.
That likable cast that Imentioned earlier dylan o'brien,
uh will polter, patriciaclarkson is kind of like the big
bad and this movie is is reallyfun.
There's a good mystery to tothis first film when you don't

(24:22):
really know what's going on.
I had not read the books thefirst time I watched it, so it
was one of these deals where itcomes to HBO on a Saturday night
I fire it up and I'm just sopleasantly surprised.
The creature design of theGrievers is really, really cool.
So I've always loved the MazeRunner movies and this whole
subgenre in particular.
So it was a no-brainer for meto go this route.

Speaker 2 (24:46):
I do really remember liking the maze run like the
first movie, because I alsodidn't read the books but I that
was very, very closely tied tolike the hunger games era, which
I did read all of those um.
But yeah, that movie is, that'sa good one, because actually I
didn't see any of the other ones.

Speaker 1 (25:03):
Sports trials goes hard in the pain as well.

Speaker 2 (25:08):
Well, my first movie is kind of like a I think you'd
probably ask a lot of people andit has a massive following.
I mean, it's a classic moviefor a reason, but I think for me
this is a guilty pleasure forconsidering how often I watch
this.
This is a guilty pleasure forconsidering how often I watch
this and a lot of um.

(25:28):
I get a lot of heat forwatching it as often as I do and
that's dirty dancing, um, Iknow that's kind of like who
doesn't love dirty dancing?
But I was talking to my friendabout this cause I was like well
, I don't know if this is likegoing to be a good pick to to
mention, and she's like sure,people love Dirty Dancing, but

(25:48):
do they love it as much as youdo?
Are they watching it multipletimes a year like you are.

Speaker 1 (25:55):
I think that's a good point.

Speaker 2 (26:02):
Obsession can take a likable film and push it into
that guilty pleasure.
And also also, this is a moviethat's also, like to me, a
little cringeworthy.
Um, at times there's, you know,some questionable acting.
There's a questionablerelationship between jennifer
gray and patrick swayze um, justas far as age gap goes, I think
.
But, um, you know, it's cheesy,it's corny and that's, I think

(26:24):
that a lot of you know, when Iwas going through and picking a
lot of my movies, is that a lotof them?
You know, I kind of gravitateto those really corny movies
where you're like, oh God, thisis, this is so bad.
But it's also like, oh, this isone of my, I mean, I think,
think dirty dancing is probablylike top five all time for me.

Speaker 3 (26:45):
Wow, I mean, no one puts Erica in the corner, no.

Speaker 2 (26:50):
I love this movie so much.
I love obviously the music, thedance, numbers and everything
about it.
It's so great.
But I will say when people,when people close to me, hear me
watching this, they're verymuch like, oh God, she's
watching dirty dancing.
So that's me starting off kindof mild on my on my list.

(27:10):
Okay, I love that.

Speaker 3 (27:11):
I respect it yep, uh, my number four, chris, my
number four movie on the list isa movie is a christmas movie
called for christmasesthat's a great uh this is one I
fire up every single year, sincesince the day I saw it in
theaters I think I was workingat the theater when it came out

(27:35):
um, you know again of anotherfour and a half star movie,
according to max, coming in at a2.6 on letterbox.
Wow, yeah, and honestly, I lovethis movie for one single
moment, and it's when VinceVaughn has to go and play our
lord and savior, our lord andsavior well, no, he's not Jesus,

(27:57):
he's just Joseph, he's Josephin the town hall play and it is
just an amazing piece of workand I just I, I honestly think
it's just some of the funniestshit I've ever seen vince vaughn
do.
Uh, the way he's like reallynervous to go on stage.

(28:18):
And as soon as he gets on he'slike Like hello, how can we
swaddle this baby?
Yeah, so, and it's got the onlyTom Petty Christmas song that
Tom Petty ever wrote at the endof this film, that he wrote

(28:38):
specifically for this moviecalled I think Last Christmas
movie, uh, called I think lastchristmas.
Uh, and, yeah, man, I, I,robert duvall, john farvro,
fucking uh, who's who's the mom?

Speaker 2 (28:54):
is it mary?

Speaker 3 (28:55):
steinbridge steinbergen.
Um, uh, as, as one of themothers, we've got, uh, reese
witherspoon, of course,absolutely.
You know another person who islike, kind of like at the apex
of her star here she's solikable in this movie yeah,
she's fantastic.
Her, her uh sister in the movieis uh the original uh galinda

(29:18):
uh, chetwood, chris andchenoweth yeah chenoweth that's
why you were pointing at me yeah, um
but yeah, I mean another greatsequence I I can think about is
like when reese witherspoon hasto go in the bouncy house with
all the kids, like justhilarious stuff, really, really
good pg-13 comedy when, when thebaby throws up on her and then

(29:41):
vince is like you gotta get awayfrom me yeah if I smell it, I'm
gonna throw up it really islike like a sneaky, like one of
the best vince last vince fawnstuff.
I agree, yeah I agree.

Speaker 1 (29:54):
Great, pick my number four, my number four and my
number three.
I feel like fit this listpersonally, because the way I
kind of attack this assignmenttoo is like what are the
standards?
And that's so stupid andpretentious to say but like what
are the standards that I holdmyself to?
And then when do I allow myselfto throw those standards out

(30:18):
the window and just indulge insome stuff that I know is like B
level, if not lower, and withinthe horror genre, a genre that
I hold near and dear to my heartand that I take very serious
but also know how to have a lotof fun with.
I have to mention 2019'sAnnabelle comes home for me

(30:38):
because within the Conjuringfranchise which this is the
sixth of eight films within theConjuring franchise, in the
third Annabelle movie I think somany folks wrote it off and
still view it as something thatis like subpar in terms of
quality and story and executionand everything else.
I personally think that it isthe best of the Annabelle films

(31:02):
and I think Annabelle is aextremely effective horror
villain.
And I love this movie becauseit is like a gateway film where
Annabelle is all of the suddenlet loose to basically control
everything else in Ed andLorraine's like locked room.
This movie just has such agreat aesthetic to it that fits

(31:24):
that 70s and 80s um time periodthat it's set in and it doesn't
feel glossy the way that so manymovies nowadays um, the way
they're shot, the way they look.
Just you can't buy into thefact like, of course there's
always going to be somesuspension of disbelief that you
have to have when a movie isset 50 years in the past or
whatever the case may be.

(31:45):
Um, but the way that this movieis is directed by by gary
dauberman, who's only done oneother feature-length film, which
is unfortunately the salem'slot hbo film that came out last
year.
Not a good look for my guy gary, but annabelle comes home
really, really strong because hefollows very simple 1970s
horror tropes of a babysitter,her friend and a kid in a house

(32:11):
and horror shit is happening allaround them.
This movie is so much fun and Ifeel like it really fits the
horror guilty pleasure for mebecause I know that if I wanted
to watch something of greaterquality within this own
franchise, it's out there for me.
Because I know that if I wantedto watch something of greater
quality within this ownfranchise, it's out there for me
if I wanted to watch a 1970sfilm about a babysitter and a

(32:34):
kid and shit hitting the fan.
there's better stuff out there.
For me, however, what I returnto now every single october, and
if not a couple of other timesthroughout the year, is
Annabelle comes home, and it wasa big deal for me to track this
movie down on Blu-ray, and Iwanted to find it in the wild.
It was not one of those that Iwas like we'll just order it on

(32:54):
Amazon and get it to the househere.
I was like I want to find it, Iwant to find it with the slip
cover and I finally did and thatwas like a really special
moment for your boy when Iwalked into Half Price Books one
day and there it was.
And so Annabelle Comes Home,huge soft spot in my heart.
I think that it is one of theselost horror sequels and I don't

(33:28):
know if it will ever have itslike reclamation moment where
people come back and appreciateit.
For what I at least see in it,which is really good practical
scares without musical cues.

Speaker 3 (33:32):
you get a little bit of everything in this movie um
including some bad cgi with thewerewolf monster, yeah, and, but
like that the werewolf, nothingreally hinges.

Speaker 1 (33:38):
there's a few moments of like low stakes where, oh,
is the werewolf going to get theperson outside the house?
It's not going to happen, Ithink, maybe like a boyfriend,
though, actually does die viathe hands of the werewolf, but
anyways, it's not like that'sthe huge part, a huge part in
the movie really, and so andit's shot with some fog so they
can kind of cover it up whateverum, really the only blemish,

(33:58):
but I think that helps the moviefeel sort of awesomely bad to
me, right?
Um, so Annabelle comes home.
I mean, max, you know this.

Speaker 3 (34:05):
You've been singing praises for this movie for a
long, long time.
And yeah, in fact, on the LostHorror sequel.

Speaker 1 (34:13):
I want to do a full episode on the film.

Speaker 3 (34:15):
Didn't we do Annabelle series?
We did not.
No, okay, but to come, maybethis year, yeah, and also too.

Speaker 1 (34:21):
I love come maybe this year.
Yeah, and also too.
I love that it's not reallyabout ed and lorraine like all
the other conjuring movies allthe other movies within that
series have such a big part orvera flaminga and patrick wilson
play such a big part in them.

Speaker 3 (34:34):
It not so much in this film now they show up for a
cup of coffee.

Speaker 1 (34:36):
Yeah, yeah, great cold open when they're bringing
annabelle home back to the houselike it's a great origin movie.

Speaker 2 (34:42):
Annabelle comes home, yeah, I think I've ever seen
annabelle comes home, but I dolike annabelle um I I you know.
Surprisingly, on my list Idon't have any horror movies
mentioned really that's.

Speaker 3 (34:52):
That's interesting because I thought horror would
be like a big uh genrethroughout the list.

Speaker 2 (34:58):
I have two horror movies online yeah, well, and
kind of like what alex wasmentioning about like standards.
Right, I think that horror isthat one genre that I do have,
that I do have standards, andnot very often am I like
breaking them.
I guess, like I don't know,because I have like a mission

(35:19):
when I watch horror movies andthat's to really be scared and
kind of traumatized from it.
So if it's not doing it for me,then then I usually just kind
of write it off, but, um, yeah,there's no horror on my list,
but I like that.
Um, so my next pick is might bea little unfair because it is,
I'm gonna kind of include thefranchise in it, because it's

(35:40):
kind of impossible for me tojust pick one, but you'll see
why.
Um, this is these are moviesthat I feel guilty for like
loving as much as I do becauseit's just kind of weird, and
that's the jackass movies.
I love jackass so much I don'tknow why, but I think just
because I grew up watchingjackass and wild boys and Viva

(36:04):
La Bam like after school, likeevery day, and then the movies
were just this, I mean obviously, obviously this big compilation
of the shows just piled intoone.
Um, and I I frequently visit,revisit these movies often and I
usually watch them back to back, not just one or the other.

(36:26):
But I that was like you know Ihave to kind of I saw somebody
else had this on their list andthat just made so much sense
that I had included it in mine,considering how often I watch it
.
But it's also like just becauseof the nostalgia, like I think
even like Jackass Forever, whenthat came out a few years ago,
was like really kind ofemotional for people who love

(36:48):
and really just appreciateJackass and the evolution of the
men on the show and in reallife, right, cause you know a
lot of them have just kind ofgone through hell and back.
Um, so it's, it's one of those,it's, it's this is like the
epitome of for me, like a guiltypleasure movie, cause I think

(37:09):
it's a little weird that I lovethem so much, but I do so.

Speaker 1 (37:15):
I finally got to Jackass Forever, I think last
year and felt the exact sameemotions where I was like, wow,
it's been like a 20 year journeywith these people as just a
part of pop culture and whenyou're a part of pop culture the
way that, like Steve-O has beenand Johnny Knoxville has been,
you know their lives were sopublic for a long time there.

(37:35):
So like steve-o battling withsubstance use and you know bam
and all these other guys we do,if you pay attention to this
kind of thing, you just know alot about them.
And so to see them kind ofusher in, like there was a lot
of newcomers in jackass foreverand and so that was really
special I think.
And so, yeah, these movies theylike to me.
I don't know if guilty pleasurewould be the right term, but

(37:57):
like there are movies that youwouldn't think to label like
sentimental that I feel like arevery sentimental.

Speaker 2 (38:04):
I think at this point now they are because, I mean,
with our generation.
Like the way I feel aboutJackass is that it like I feel
like I grew up with these guyslike in my home, like just
watching them so often and umand just laughing at them and
that was like a huge like.
I mean, that was just my kindof humor growing up is like you

(38:24):
know, that was like we watchedas a family a lot, um, like
america's funniest home videos.
So we so jackass and all thoseother, the spinoffs of jackass
were like my, our version ofthat, because I was watching
like the raunchy, like um, youknow them actually like

(38:44):
genuinely hurting themselves,just being stupid, and I just
got a kick out of it.
I thought it was so funny.
But then, as I've gotten olderand then, like I'll never forget
seeing Jackass Forever at AlamoDrafthouse and my theater was
packed and honestly, like it wasjust so, I mean I think like
got teary-eyed towards the endbecause I don't think that like
we're not, we're never gonna seeJackass again.

(39:06):
But it did feel like the end ofan era.
And you realize, like gosh, Iwas like 12 years old at home
watching this and you know just,I was sneaking watching it too.
I wasn't really like you know,my parents didn't love that.
I was watching these guys likeon TV all the time, but it was

(39:26):
always on after after school andSteve-O was like a big, a huge
crush of mine growing up andlike I I don't know, I really do
like have a soft spot for them,like just moving forward and so

(39:48):
.
But watching like the firstJackass, and then like what is
it?
It's like Jackass 2, and thenthere's the 2.5 and then 3D when
that came out, all those movies, and you're just like, oh my
God, they just get more and moreridiculous.
But Jackass Forever felt like,oh my God, we're all getting old

(40:08):
and it was kind of crazy.

Speaker 3 (40:10):
Yeah, sentimental.
I think it's also reallyinteresting.
Like jackass, the show kind oflaunches, you know, reality tv
into the stratosphere, whichthen creates this whole, you
know, because to pick from and alot of it is these reality tv

(40:37):
shows you could absolutely lookat the rise of jackass and mtv
as an actual television channel,not just a music video channel.

Speaker 1 (40:47):
Right, and they go hand in hand and so without
something like the success ofjackass, you probably don't get
a laguna beach, you probablydon't get all these other
mindless guilty pleasureprograms.

Speaker 2 (41:01):
Yeah do you remember like nitro circus too?
Yeah, and then, um, robin big,robin Big was a big thing.
Yeah, it was like a whole era.

Speaker 3 (41:12):
Punk'd Punk'd.

Speaker 1 (41:16):
Even Jackass in the little offshoot of Jackass was
obviously like CKY, can't KillYourself, which like that stuff
was so outrageous, but also partof that moment as well, things
you had to sort of like sneakaround to watch.

Speaker 3 (41:29):
Yeah, that's a good pick.
My third movie is from 1996.
Action movie starring KurtRussell, halle Berry, steven
Seagal, john Leguizamo Leguizamo, leguizamo Executive Decision.

(41:50):
I don't know if you guys haveever seen this.
No, it's directed by scott bard, who is usually a editor.
He directed three.
He's directed three totalmovies this, us marshalls and
star trek nemesis.
Really random, um, at least thefirst two aren't, at least.
But uh, this is just like ifmission impossible took place on

(42:13):
a airplane.
For the whole movie it's uh,it's a terrorist or have taken
over a plane in the air.
So a team of you knowoperatives have to sneak onto
the plane and climb around inthe rafters and take these
terrorists out.
It is pretty bad.

(42:35):
Again, oddly, with somethinglike Deep Blue Sea, it has an
unexpected death right in thebeginning.
Who you think is going to playa bigger role, but then all of a
sudden out of the movie.
But this just goes back to mylove of Kurt Russell.
Like I, just Kurt Russell.
For me it, just as an actor, isa guilty pleasure actor for me,

(42:56):
I will ride or die with any oneof his movies.
You know, I looked at somethinglike maybe putting dark blue on
here or you know any of thecarpenter stuff?
Um, I you know, captain Roneven, but I I love kurt russell
and this is one of my just likeall-time favorite just shitty

(43:19):
b-level action movies from the90s.
It's a, it's a hot 93 seconds,uh minutes, minutes the crazy
was 93 seconds, 93 minutes anduh yeah, just a, just a great
thrill ride, that like for amovie again.
You know something?
I give five stars on letterboxand it comes in a little higher,

(43:44):
but only 3.1 starsconsecutively or uh, uh
consensus.
So yeah, executive one, I dvdwhen I fire up.
Uh, if it's like a slow sunday,you know it's.

Speaker 1 (44:00):
It's a great background movie too.
Yeah, I'm really glad that Idon't have anything from the 90s
represented on my list, and Imean we grew up with so many
films like that, so I'm reallyglad that there is
representation here on the podmy number three film.
It gets ranked above AnnabelleComes Home because I've had more

(44:20):
time with it.
I've had 10 more years withthis film in comparison to
Annabelle Comes Home, and it's2009's Underworld colon.

Speaker 2 (44:27):
Rise of the Lycans Underworld colon.

Speaker 1 (44:30):
Rise of the Lycans.
Now, the reason why Rise of theLycans beats out Annabelle
Comes Home, not only becauseit's had more longevity, but
also because this movie, I trulybelieve, is for me my nightmare

(44:52):
on Elm street.
Three dream warriors, halloweenthree, season of the witch.
What it does to build the lorefor the underworld franchise is
truly remarkable, like reallyreally well thought out
storytelling.
And when I was preparing forthis episode I actually made a

(45:13):
crazy connection to one of myall-time favorite films, and I
can't really remember too manyother movies that even have the
opportunity to do what this filmdoes.
But it also has some twin peaksfire walk with me to it, because
we learn the events of rise ofthe lichens in the first two

(45:34):
underworld movies throughexposition and storytelling,
through the bill nighy character, victor coming back, we learned
what lucian did.
We know all of this stuff butwe've never seen it much like in
twin peaks.
Fire walk with me.
If you've watched the entiretelevision show, you know the
events of what is going to playout in the film in firewalk with

(45:56):
me.
You know what happened laurapalmer's last couple of days,
but you've never seen it beforeand so rise of the lichens kind
of scratches, that same itchwhere, like if you're a junkie
and you are into this series, Iremember Galaxy Uptown Theater,
seeing it by myself At like a 10o'clock showing that I'm sure

(46:17):
you just let me walk into.

Speaker 2 (46:19):
Max.

Speaker 1 (46:20):
And geeking out, having so much fun with this
movie and understanding that,like no one else is experiencing
this movie the way that I amexperiencing this movie, no one
else is experiencing this moviethe way that I am experiencing
this movie.
But I just think that, on topof of showing us the vampire
lycan relationship and and howthis ancient blood feud really
came to be, and also, like youknow, all the really interesting

(46:45):
political and and socialhierarchy between the vampires
and the lycans and the way that,you know, the vampires forever
kept the lichens as slaves,basically.
So there's this whole classstructure to it as well, and in
the way that, like michael sheenis so into and who I think is
like a great actor, the way heis so into playing the lucian
character and the way that billnighy takes his character as

(47:07):
victor so seriously as well, andthen rana mitra coming in and
understanding that she isbasically in the kate beckinsale
role as a death dealer, andkate beckinsale was so
successful in those first twomovies that she really felt like
she felt the pressure toperform well in this movie, and
so everyone is taking their jobso serious and it is so

(47:28):
appreciated by me at least.
I think that 2009 everyonealways talks about that like
2006 to 2009, era of visualeffects and cgi.
You see, the pirates of thecaribbean movie cited a lot here
.
The way that um, you know,scars guards face looks, and the
way that the the tentacles ofdavy jones look and everything

(47:49):
like that how it looks.
It's the same thing with thewerewolf transformations in this
movie.
They look so good and I get alot of that.
Is it because we're shooting inextremely well designed sets,
the production design of theseold Victorian castles and the
costumes?
Like this movie just has nobusiness being as good as it is,
and I don't understand why noone else recognizes it for that,

(48:11):
because I think that everylittle attention to detail was
paid to with the most amount ofcare possible and that it is
like borderline, a perfect movieLike it is.
It is so successful at whatit's trying to do.
I could have plugged a lot ofdifferent things in here.
You know like I want to give ashout out to a lot of these,
like lost horse sequels and thislike paranormal activity.

(48:34):
Seven next of kin could havebeen here by my guy, william
eubank as well.
I did, you know, shout out theannabelle franchise, but the
underworld franchise and rise ofthe lycans specifically, I
think like reaches a real apexhere with this third sequel that
just no one seems to care aboutand that I, I mean, I watch
this movie all the time, soshout out to my guys I love that

(48:57):
.

Speaker 3 (48:57):
I love that underworld.
Underworld is like such aunderrated underground fucking
franchise from the 2000s and Ifeel like 2010.

Speaker 1 (49:07):
I'm sure some people out there probably feel the same
way about maybe like one of theresident evil movies.
Sure, right, like they exist inthe same world, sort of of
being like you know that'sobviously a video game
adaptation, but you know justthat whole mid-2000s um move.
You know movies that you'relike they're making another one
of these they're making anotherone of these dirty, dark wet

(49:28):
yeah r-rated r-rated actionhorror, sci-fi, action horse
yeah, doesn't get better if youwant that.
It does not get better than riseof the lichens and I am a safe
space to come to.
To talk to him about okay.

Speaker 2 (49:43):
Well, my next one is a early 2000s classic in my book
2002, live action scooby-doo ohwow, okay, now you're cooking,
yeah this is.
This is like my.
I mean, I have so many likereally epic movies on my

(50:04):
childhood lineup but this one inparticular just goes so fucking
hard Like I, I really.
And then you know, I found likesince being on TikTok I have
found that this movie just haslike such a cult following and I
love that.
I've kind of found my peoplewho also just are like wait, you

(50:26):
used to watch Scooby Doo allthe time and like the soundtrack
just went so hard and yeah, Imean, and, um, yeah, I mean I
want, I mean I'm I won't lielike this is a perfect guilty
pleasure movie because Ire-watched this.
You know like it's, it'sdefinitely hasn't.
Maybe it's been like a yearsince I last watched this.
Um, something, a greatbackground movie to put on like

(50:48):
kind of brings me back to child,like my childhood.
I loved scooby-doo like thecartoon growing up.
But this movie with likematthew lillard, sarah, michelle
geller, freddie, prince jr,linda cartellini, I mean just an
all-star cast for the 2000s.
Also does not hurt that myhusband, mark mcgrath, makes an

(51:12):
appearance in this as wellperforming as sugar ray.
Um, yeah, I loved this and likewhen I, my brother and I used to
watch this a lot and I alwayssee these like really funny
videos where people are like povwoke up in 2002 and the, the
dvd like menu screen is playingand it's two in the morning and

(51:33):
it's like just this blastingmusic from the movie, like that
tribal music.
But my brother and I used towatch this a lot and I just
remember seeing this at the timeand just thinking it was not
only like the funniest movie I'dever seen, also just like,
again, the soundtrack justelevated it so much to be this

(51:54):
like really fun action, likenostalgia, like almost like an
like a pg-13 version.
I don't think it's rated pg-13,though, but there was a little.
There was a couple like youknow, uh, like I mean I wouldn't
even say racy, but like justsome scenes were like you know,

(52:15):
they're flirting and like backin the day.
You know, I'm like 10 years oldwatching this and I was like, oh
my gosh, this is not thecartoon I'm used to and, um, I
just loved watching this and itstill, to this day, like brings
a fat smile to my face and, um,I don't know, I love it.
I think that matthew lillardand um let's see who voiced

(52:38):
scooby um, neil fanning, um, thetwo of them together were
obviously like they made thismovie so funny.
But now, even watching it as anadult, there's so many like
little innuendos like thrown in,like when they're at the very
beginning of the movie.
They're like in the van andthey're it looks like they're
hot boxing the van but they'reactually like cooking inside and

(53:01):
it's like.
You know, everyone knows they'rekind of like these stoner, like
characters almost, um, or atleast that's how I interpret it,
but, um, okay, that's a correctinterpretation yeah, but um,
you know you, you pick up on alot of little like little nods,
like almost like adult humorthrown in that maybe like went

(53:21):
over our heads as kids.

Speaker 1 (53:22):
But um, I think just the two of them together like
were so funny and just made melaugh like like belly laugh as a
kid and still does what's sointeresting about this movie and
the cult phenomenon, the, thecult status that it's reached
now which I do feel like, is itis like a phenomenon because I

(53:46):
have seen it as well on socialmedia, cited by millennials who
still ride for it is that ScoobyDoo was not our generation's.

Speaker 2 (53:56):
IP.

Speaker 1 (53:57):
Like the only reason why this movie worked, not only
because of the casting, but isbecause of the access of cable
television, television andthere's still being this idea of
a monoculture, where thestudios knew that every single
one of us in the 90s was growingup watching scooby-doo reruns
on cartoon network ornickelodeon or whatever channel

(54:21):
broadcast I'm pretty sure it wascartoon network, but because of
that there was a market for notonly our parents to want to go
see it, but for us to want to gosee it as well, and I there
would.
There's just no way that aone-for-one comparison like that
would work nowadays.
Like we in the us in the 90swatching a television series
that was popular like I don'tknow, 60s, 70s, whatever, and

(54:43):
then reruns play forever andever and ever.
Um, would be like if they triedto release I don't know like
name some random cart, you knowif we're going back like 30
years almost.
Like if they tried to release Idon't know like name some
random cart, you know if we'regoing back like 30 years almost.
Like if they did a rocket powermovie, like no one would.
It would be.
We would all say like that'scool.
Yeah, a live action rocketpower movie wouldn't mean
nothing nowadays to kids, youknow to kids.

(55:05):
And not to say that the level oficonography of scooby-doo is
the same as Rocket Power, butmaybe like Rugrats.

Speaker 2 (55:12):
They did a live action.

Speaker 1 (55:13):
Rugrats, but I just would that even.
Would they even try to get thatto work?

Speaker 3 (55:17):
nowadays it's called Baby Geniuses.
They didn't make that.

Speaker 2 (55:22):
I think that, like the casting for Scooby-Doo was
just so on point.

Speaker 1 (55:27):
So, perfect.

Speaker 2 (55:28):
I mean, it really is just.
They could not have pickedbetter people to play the
cartoons come to life.
I mean it, it's great.
I I wanted to read some of thejust I noticed that with like, I
love letterbox for this exactreason, because you could go on
a movie like opus and just seethe first like the top 10

(55:48):
reviews, just kind of destroyingit, you know, and and I'm like
does it really deserve like ahalf a star?
Absolutely not.
But then you could go on amovie like scooby-doo and you
can just tell like who themillennials are on this app.
Just fucking ride or die forthis movie and just people are
like no offense, but this is thebest movie ever made five stars

(56:08):
and you have thousands ofpeople agree.

Speaker 1 (56:11):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (56:12):
Mentally I'm at Spooky Island getting my soul
stolen.
Velma is upsettingly hot inthis.
I mean, scrappy Doo is a punkass bitch, I mean, and these are
all like five star reviews justdown the line and it's just and
it's funny because it's likeyou can tell this is a very like
near and dear movie to ageneration and it's a movie that

(56:34):
I like.
Up until recently, joiningTikTok, seeing this cult
following, I had no idea andeven like one of my best friends
, her and I have very similarlike silly nostalgia movies that
we love and I remember usbonding and we're like, wait,
you like Scooby Doo-doo, likeit's just, it's yeah, it's a

(56:55):
great, it's a fun movie fuckyeah, I've never, you know, I've
never seen scooby-doo, reallythe live action movie okay, well
, I there's no time for you tocome to it, oh yeah I.

Speaker 3 (57:08):
I mean, I loved Scooby-Doo growing up as a
cartoon as a kid, but yeah, Idon't know why I just never went
to the film adaptation of it asa kid or an adult.
So I'm putting it on the watchlist right now.
There, you go my next film,might I I?

(57:33):
This one has again a bigdisparity between ratings.
Consensus says it's a 2.8 starmovie.
I gave it.
I give it five stars every timeto rewatch it.
Alex, I know you love thismovie.
Can't wait.
It is Alien 3.
And you know the Alienfranchise, I think overall more

(58:00):
positive than like most eightmovie franchises.

Speaker 1 (58:04):
I'm so, if I could just interject real quick, yeah,
go ahead.
I'm so happy that thisfranchise made the list because
I have it later in an honorablementions, yeah.
But I felt weird about itbecause I'm like is a guilty
pleasure, still a guiltypleasure if it has been
reclaimed?

Speaker 3 (58:20):
right, and so that's where I I was.

Speaker 1 (58:23):
I was uh now, I had that just full disclaimer.
I have that for covenantcovenant.

Speaker 3 (58:28):
But alien 3 also feels a little bit reclaimed.
However, going through andreading what people the people
who are watching this and evenwatching the assembly cut are
still just giving it two stars,one and a half stars, one star.
Because people find it boring,people find it long, people find
it tedious, people find ittedious and like that's kind of

(58:56):
why I it's beloved in my eyesbecause it is like you know, we
always talk about how it is muchmore to a, what alien is as
opposed to what aliens is, um,and even though it does have a
little bit of aliens in it,because there is a group, a
larger group of people fightingagainst the xenomorphs and there
are multiple xenomorphs, yes,um, throughout this movie.

(59:16):
But this movie just on on a, ona technical visual style, like
just looks so fucking cool andis really, really, I, I think
underappreciated.
And who knows, maybe it isreclaimed, because I just said
it was reclaimed, but I stillfind it underappreciated.

(59:37):
Whereas something like alienresurrection, like the fourth
one that comes out, also coulddefinitely be a guilty pleasure
for somebody, because that oneis kind of like seen as like,
like goofy bad, but like in asense, to where it's almost like
cool goofy um where.

Speaker 1 (59:55):
This one is just so like pissed off at this one.

Speaker 3 (59:59):
Yeah, this one is just so hard to watch, I think
for for the general audience, um, but again, like it gave us
David Fincher like it.
And if you watch it as that, aslike it gave us David Fincher
like it, and if you watch it asthat, as, as you know, cause it
is Fincher's first feature filmlike how could you not love all

(01:00:19):
the little tiny details and andnoticing what he's doing, just
even on his first film, uh, asas such a you know film, uh, as
as such a you know meticulousdirector that he is now known
for?
Um, but also, I don't know,this movie just fucking rocks.

(01:00:44):
I just it is, it is very punk,right, like in in a franchise
that I think kind of, even inthe later stages, with something
like covenant or, um, you know,the one we just had, romulus,
you know, does sometimes playtoo much like classic rock and
roll, right, um, if that analogymakes any sense.

(01:01:05):
But, yeah, alien three, uh,again five stars compared to the
2.8, one of the one of thebiggest gaps on my list, so I
had to throw it on.

Speaker 1 (01:01:16):
I think that when something goes against the grain
, it's a real good.
It signifies that it liketransgressive and that people do
not align with and you're like,no, but I fuck with that, then
that's the perfect definition ofa guilty pleasure, really, and

(01:01:39):
and honestly too, one that Ithink.
To go back to our conversationfrom the end of last episode,
where I don't know if you knowif we're in the lounge, the
grand cinema, or you're with theseattle film society, or and
you're having a big groupconversation about alien movies,
xenomorphs you yourself mightnot even, within the first 15

(01:01:59):
minutes, bring up the fact thatyou love alien 3, and that's not
because you're necessarily likein the closet about it, but
just there's so much else todiscuss right, and then it's
like, and then once you're ahalf hour into the conversation,
you're kind of like okay, nowhere's a hot.
Take guys, I think, alien threeis also really good fucking

(01:02:21):
rocks.
That's the perfect definitionof it, yeah, yeah okay, my top
two I had.
I had a lot of fun with my firstthree.
You know we have sci-fi, horrorfranchises, young adult fiction
, adaptations, all this stuff.
My top two.
I will fight a motherfuckerover, like I and I have before,

(01:02:41):
and here are the reasons why.
It's because I've never showneither of these two movies to
somebody else and had them notlike it, and so I, for the life
of me, can't understand, like Ireally can't understand.
Anytime I hear either of thesetwo movies slandered and I hear
them talk whenever they aretalked about in in a public

(01:03:03):
space, on social media, onanother podcast.
I've never heard anybody elsetry to defend these movies and
yet everyone in my life who hasexperienced these has a great
time with them.
The first one, my number twofilm in the guilty pleasure
category is the tim blake nelsonfilm from 2001.
Oh, great movie I've never seenit oh, came out when it was

(01:03:29):
really popular to make the teendrama adaptations, retellings of
Shakespeare films, and so thisis like the forgotten ugly
stepchild of 10 Things I HateAbout you, of Taming the Shrew,
which I forget what theadaptation I guess I was.

(01:03:49):
Yeah, 10 Things I Hate Aboutyou was adaptation of taming the
truth.

Speaker 3 (01:03:52):
There's been a couple of Shakespeare in love is right
around this time.

Speaker 1 (01:03:55):
Um so oh comes out and is an adaptation of Othello,
and you have the mostincredible three hander of
Mackay Pfeiffer, josh Hartnettand julia styles at the peak of
their power at the turn of thecentury, there, right in 2001,
and they crush.

(01:04:15):
Every single one of themcrushes.
And this movie not only worksto me, I think, as and I love it
because they're pulling nopunches like some of those other
movies were meant to be teencomedies and like do good at the
box office and everything likethat.
This movie tried to get reallydirty and really grimy.
And another reason why I thinkthis really works as a guilty

(01:04:37):
pleasure is because, like thisis not a fun movie.
This is not a movie that youwatch to feel good, and yet when
I watched this movie, it getsme going.
I love this movie for so manydifferent reasons.
It not only is a great highschool movie set at a
preparatory basketball academy.

(01:04:59):
Well, it's a preparatorybasketball.
It's a preparatory academy thathas a reputation for being like
a basketball powerhouse in the.
Carolinas, which again reallywell researched.
Carolinas, which again reallywell researched, and I think it
took me a while to understandlike that's brilliant to set it
in the Carolinas, especiallyNorth Carolina, because that's
where you have Duke, that'swhere you have UNC, that's where
you have all these hoops,powerhouses, so that makes a ton

(01:05:21):
of sense.
It plays as an awesomebasketball movie and Tim Blake
Nelson, an accomplished actor,directs this movie so well in
these moments because it is notlike they are long takes where
I'm sure it took a minute forwhether it's a stunt double as
Mekhi Pfeiffer or Mekhi Pfeifferreally out there, but like Josh

(01:05:42):
Hartnett is out there settingpicks.
He's down on the block grabbingrebounds, mekhi Pfeiffer is
bringing the ball up the courtand the camera is not cutting.
Like a really really goodsports movie, on top of being a
really emotionally engaging andupsetting shakespeare adaptation
where, like mckay pfeifferplaying the othello character is

(01:06:03):
just named odin, oh and so likewe're not really trying to like
trick anybody.
Uh, josh hartnett is hugo, desiis the julia styles character,
so desmondina like we are notfar off from the source text at
all.
Um, an amazing soundtrack inthis movie, like a great early
2000s rap soundtrack thatintroduced me to deep cuts by

(01:06:26):
like outcasts, by most deaf andtalib quali.
Like I'd never heard Blackstartogether, I'd never heard the
Equimini record before withOutcast, and so opened my eyes
to so many different things.
As far as like teen movies go,the way that soundtracks and
like a jukebox soundtrack can beused in a movie, I mean, like

(01:06:46):
Max, I know I've shown thismovie to you.
You know I've shown it to everysingle person in our friend
group.
I never have people watch thismovie to you.
You know I've shown it to everysingle person in our friend
group.
I never have people watch thismovie and be like, yeah, that
that just like kind of didn't doit for me.
Everyone by the end of it islike fuck, that was crazy, and
like I.
This movie holds up like Irewatch it and it holds up and
it is upsetting.
There's a extremely upsettingscene between Mackay Pfeiffer

(01:07:06):
and Julia Stiles and this movie.
Josh Hartnett is so good inthis movie as this manipulative
son of a bitch who will dowhatever he wants to get what he
wants and his dad, who is thehead coach of the basketball
team, is played by Martin Sheenand Martin Sheen is amazing in
this movie.
Like for me, again a five starmovie that gets destroyed

(01:07:34):
anytime it's it's brought up ormentioned.
Like people actively do notlike this movie and for the life
of me, I can't.

Speaker 3 (01:07:37):
I just can't understand why this is a core
alex text too like.
As someone who has beenwatching movies with alex since
we were 15 years old, this is aone of the ones that he sits you
down when you become friends.

Speaker 1 (01:07:51):
It's so true.

Speaker 3 (01:07:52):
At 16 years old or 15 , and you watch in Winnie's
basement.
Yeah, this is a great pick,thank, you.

Speaker 2 (01:08:00):
I added it to my watch list.
I've never seen him.

Speaker 3 (01:08:04):
It's good.

Speaker 1 (01:08:06):
Thank you Right.

Speaker 2 (01:08:07):
Thank you.

Speaker 3 (01:08:08):
It's good.

Speaker 1 (01:08:08):
It's good, and the thing about this movie is like
its moment will never come backaround it like it'll just, it's
a moment like we just had theheart netissance.
No one brought it up, no onelike we got oh over here.
We got oh we got.
Oh, nobody cares um, you know,julia styles, mckay, pfeiffer,
these are not people in everydaymovie culture anymore.

(01:08:31):
Um, and so it's just, it's notgonna happen, it never will
happen, but it is so worth goingback and, if you like it, fight
for it.
Because, like, the reviews onletterbox are so bad and I don't
get it like I just whatever,whatever, wait till I get to my
number one.

Speaker 2 (01:08:48):
Oh, yeah, you really built that last one up, um, okay
, well, my next one is this islike, in my opinion, the epitome
of a guilty pleasure movie,because I love to hate this
movie interesting take, but Ialso hate that.
I like this movie too.
I think I think love lovingthis movie is a very strong a

(01:09:12):
little too strong for me, um,but that is katherine hardwick's
2008 twilight and not no pull aseat up to the table.

Speaker 3 (01:09:24):
Yeah, this is we've showed this movie as a podcast
to a group of people at a bar.
I love that.

Speaker 1 (01:09:31):
Like two years ago, and everyone still has their
Team Jacob, Team Edward shirtson Talk about Twilight all the
time right now.
Yeah, it's.

Speaker 2 (01:09:40):
Go the floor is yours .

Speaker 3 (01:09:42):
The woods are yours.

Speaker 2 (01:09:44):
This movie is so fucking awful.
But I watch this because Ican't not watch it Like I don't
even know, like what my I don'teven know what my defense is for
it, cause it is so bad, butthis is a movie that my you're
talking about the first one.
Yeah, Just just the, just thefirst one.

Speaker 1 (01:10:05):
What I don't know.
The first one is legitimatelygood.
If you were saying this about,like breaking down part two
disagree, okay, disagree, okay Ijust that.

Speaker 2 (01:10:14):
So you know I'm I'm really big into acting, you know
, and I, if there's bad actingin a movie or show or something
that will literally ruin a movie.
For me, this movie like I meanI'm not gonna shit on anybody
who, like you know if they'relike, well, no, I think it's
actually really good.
Like I mean I'm not a I'm not afilm critic, right, like I

(01:10:34):
don't what do I know, but Ithink, in my opinion, this movie
is so, is so terrible, but Ilove watching it because it's
entertaining yeah I loved thebooks.
You know, twilight is a hugephenomenon and I mean, obviously
I don't hate it that much.

(01:10:55):
My best friend and I, when thefirst thing we did when we moved
back to the pacific northwestwas did a twilight tour together
because this is a movie that wewould put on and get really
stoned and watch and just liketears streaming down our face
like laughing at.
This isn't a movie that Iparticularly watch and actually
like get the reaction maybekatherine hardwick was looking

(01:11:17):
for when she made this movielike I'm laughing like this is a
comedy to me, um, and it isjust like kind of the, you know,
I mean the beginning of aobviously massive franchise that
has really it.
It kind, I don't know, I meanit could shit the bed a little

(01:11:38):
bit, but, um, I don't know, I, Iit's like the.
This is the guilty pleasuremovie for me.
It's not my number one,obviously, but, um, it's, it's
this one in particular.
Sometimes I'll visit New Moon.
I rarely ever watch Eclipse orBreaking Dawn, one or two.

(01:12:00):
Twilight is the movie that weput on when we want to laugh, we
want to watch somethingnostalgic, you want to watch
something that obviously, like Icould recite, you know, front
to back, but I'm getting a kickout of the whole thing the whole
time two things about thismovie.

Speaker 3 (01:12:20):
This film, the first twilight was by far the craziest
opening night I had everwitnessed or experienced at the
movie.
Working at the movie theater, II kid you not Like I've never
seen the theater so busy for amovie opening at Thursday.

(01:12:41):
On Thursday night at like 10 PM, like absolutely insane crowd.
Secondly, this movie just cameup on a podcast, a movie podcast
I was listening to today, andsomeone was fighting that it is
the most important movie formillennials.
Huh, which we all aremillennials yeah so the fact

(01:13:05):
that it's number one on yourlist really weird that that
number two or number two on yourlist.
Really strange that that uhserendipitous that it has come
up twice now today.
And yeah, I agree, I'm in thesame camp as you where I think
this is a technically a badmovie, but it is such a

(01:13:26):
rewatchable and, yeah, I do feelguilty pleasure, like you
almost, almost like a trainwreck right, like you can't look
away type of movie, um, but onethat is extremely beloved.
So I think guilty pleasure isis all over this.

Speaker 1 (01:13:45):
Yeah, yeah.
At its core, it is very primalwhat it's trying to get across
and in a story that's been toldsince movies were made in
hollywood.
However, it is it that thatweird time of the young adult
fiction adaptations of cgigetting a little too wonky and

(01:14:09):
katherine hardwick who I thinkis a really great director,
honestly um, having kind of ablank check to do whatever she
wanted, and it comes together insomething that is almost I view
it as more of like, especiallythat first movie, and it has to
do everything with knowing whatpop culture's reaction was to

(01:14:30):
the film's release.
But like it, it is likewatching an event, it's like
going to a carnival show orsomething.
Every time you sit down towatch this movie, and sometimes
that can be like a train wreck,a car crash, but it's like a
spectacle, that first movie, Ithink, everything that it's
trying to do.

Speaker 2 (01:14:50):
Yeah, the books were so good too.
I mean, I read all of the booksin high school and I remember
just being so excited for themovies to come out and I mean,
even then, when they came out, Ithink I was what.
This came out 2008.
So I was like a junior in highschool and, yeah, I mean it.
Just even watching the, you'rejust like, oh, my God, like what

(01:15:13):
happened?
You know the books are so goodand at least what I remember
them to be.
But yeah, I think I know, likemost girls that I know at least,
will put this on like at leastonce a year, to just it's a cozy
rewatch.
But you're like, oh, it's not agood rewatch at all, like this
is not a good movie, but thereis something very nostalgic to

(01:15:34):
it that you know, it's just it.
It became this cult classic,like this weird phenomenon.
I mean even like you know,kristen stewart and robert
pattinson themselves are liketotally admitting like how shit
this movie is.

Speaker 1 (01:15:52):
Well, they themselves have gotten so much better as
actors since, oh my godabsolutely and they're so and so
like it's by comparison.
They are bad in this movie, butlike everything they're doing
is so good for the movie, it'dbe like watching.
It's like watching like yokagerookie tape or something where
you're like this guy's good andhe's got talent, but he's

(01:16:14):
definitely not an mvp yet.
And now you watch robert patsonand christian suit in anything
and you're like, oh, they are incomplete control, right their
career.

Speaker 2 (01:16:23):
Since this franchise has.
It's very interesting to kindof look at and see how far the
two of them have comeindividually and and just
finding themselves, um, but yeah, I mean tw, I had to add it.
I mean I was like this is likethe guilty pleasure movie.

Speaker 3 (01:16:42):
No, I think Twilight is again like a very definitive
guilty pleasure and probably onethat you would find on a lot of
people's lists, so I thinkthat's a great, great pick.
My number one guilty pleasuremovie, a movie I again, I
believe is a five star film.
Each time I re-watch it, uh,the general audience believes

(01:17:06):
it's a 2.7 star film.
Uh, and, really honestly, thisis a, a love for kind of the,
the time and genre, uh, thatthis movie came out, which is
2003's freddy versus jason.
I fucking love this movie.
It is not good, it is, it is,but again, like a love letter to

(01:17:28):
a, to those characters, butalso to that that those early
2000s horrors, and especiallythe ones that we're going back
and doing, like Texas ChainsawMassacre, friday the 13th.
This film, you know, I feel likethe next nightmare, is kind of
further down the line and wedon't have Robert Englund in

(01:17:48):
here.
This is the last performancefor him as Freddy Krueger, as
freddy krueger, um, and this isit's made by ronnie you, who's
like a martial arts guy, uh, anddoesn't really understand.
I don't know if he reallyunderstood the assignment for
horror, um, but this is justlike a beat-em-up action movie

(01:18:10):
with jason and freddy kruegerand it's got great teen like
idol characters like from thattime again.
I couldn't tell you any oftheir names, but I recognize
their faces every time they comeon screen.
Put some respect on kellyroland's name.
Kelly roland is here, a popstar in a horror movie again a
very early 2000 things to do yes, uh, we've got, you know, like

(01:18:35):
a party in the cornfield.
We've got, uh, a fight on a dockat a lake like it is, and we've
got the the last scene.

Speaker 1 (01:18:44):
Listen the gasoline on the lake the gasoline on the
lake.

Speaker 3 (01:18:47):
But then also the last scene of freddy, like
coming back from the dead afteryou think he's been defeated.
It is just, it is full of of ofbadness.
But like it is such a greatwatch and such a fun watch, and
because that is, it is like,yeah, it's, it's something you

(01:19:08):
know.
It's like it's like a peanutbutter cup, it's like a reese's
peanut butter cup.

Speaker 1 (01:19:12):
It's a guilty pleasure, for sure jason walking
out of camp crystal Lakeholding Freddie's severed head,
and then Freddie winks at thecamera is just like the corneous
coolest thing ever.
It's so awesome.

Speaker 2 (01:19:27):
It's really good.

Speaker 1 (01:19:28):
This is.
This is a really good thing,Cause, admittingly, like you
know, it's not again.
It almost goes back to like myannabelle points, where like if
you wanted to watch a betterversion of this.
You know it's out there.
Oh, absolutely, there's abetter.
There's better versions of2000s horror remakes from the
70s and 80s there's betterversions of freddie movies and

(01:19:51):
jason movies and jason movies.

Speaker 3 (01:19:53):
Yeah, yeah, it's good , it's good stuff.

Speaker 1 (01:19:57):
Okay, my number one film.
Just recently re-watched itbecause thailand's having a huge
moment, right now, of course,with the white lotus I've felt
my bring up all the time on thispod and that I think is gonna
have maybe, maybe one lastchance at another moment here,
because danny Boyle is makingobviously 28 years later this

(01:20:20):
year and so I think a lot ofpeople are going to be going
back and looking at his career.
But for all things good in thisworld, I can't understand why
we think that the Beach from2000 is bad.
Listen, I understand.
It's true.
Consensus thinks this is a lessthan movie.

Speaker 3 (01:20:36):
Listen, I understand it's true.
It's true, consensus thinksthis is a less than movie.

Speaker 1 (01:20:38):
Like hate this movie.
They think it's so dumb, sostupid so derivative?

Speaker 2 (01:20:43):
I don't want to know this, people.
Sorry, I don't have, I'll pullit up.

Speaker 1 (01:20:47):
You got the stats.
I mean, the Beach to me has andalways will be a five star
movie.
People have it.
The consensus on letterbox is3.2.
So that's not bad, but it's notgreat.
It is one of those movies wherethe top review is like a
five-star movie.
So the people who ride for itdo ride for it.
But then it doesn't take longto get to the two and a half the

(01:21:08):
twos, the twos.
A one and a half a two, I, Ijust could never be me that
could never be me.
This again is not.
This is more fun than Othellois like.
I want to reiterate that, like,the reason why Othello or O is
such a guilty pleasure to me isbecause, like, I should not feel
as good as I do when I watch.
Oh, that's part of where theguilt comes from.

(01:21:30):
The same can be said for thebeach Like.
Ultimately, it ends up, I wouldsay, neutral as far as, like
what it leaves you feeling.
The message is loud and clear oflike you need to unplug and you
need to get out of the rat raceand you need to experience life

(01:21:52):
.
However, that comes with a lotof risks, especially when you
take it as far as LeonardoDiCaprio's character does in the
beach.
I just don't understand whypeople don't see this movie for
what it is, which is a greatstory of this guy who's trying
to find something out there inlife and is trying to come of

(01:22:16):
age, trying to experience allthese things find love, find
himself and he does it in thisextremely exotic location which
is shot beautifully, for all the, for all the uh behind the
camera work that I appreciate,that danny boyle does here and
that not, okay.
So the script is adapted by aman named john hodge.

(01:22:37):
The other, like my favorite funfact about this movie is that
this is adapted from an alexgarland novel.
Yeah, so our, you know my manour guy, alex garland, back
being our guy because of civilwar, at least in my book.
But alex garland writes thebook.
I've tried so hard to find thisbook.
It is impossible to find.
I would love to read it someday.

(01:22:58):
Here's the guy who I really umwant to highlight though this
time around when talking aboutthe movie Darius Conjee, the,
the DP, the cinematographer forthis film.
Here's the other movies that hehas done Seven uncut gyms, oak.

(01:23:20):
That he has done, seven uncutgems okja, panic room.
Just recently, mickey 17 andfunny games.
So michael honky works with himall the time david fincher works
with him all the time bongjoon-ho works with him all the
time.
It was such a light bulb momentrealizing it this time around,
because I'm like, oh no wonder.
I love the way this movie looks, because this guy knows what
the fuck he's doing in the movie.
So the soundtrack, which moby ison here a lot with some really

(01:23:42):
good stuff, like again, not likecookie cutter moby, stuff like
yes, porcelain's on here, a fewother things that have been
played to death, but like in2000, this was the time for
music like that kind of likethat ambient trance, um, music
that that isn't necessarily likewhat you would call EDM now,
but like just has it does such agood role for him, tilda

(01:24:04):
Swinton, and then early role ofhers, and early, I know you know
said UK production and being aDanny Boyle film and everything
like that.
So he was obviously keen to hertalents.

(01:24:26):
But like one of the first timesI can ever remember seeing
Tilda Swinton in a movie, I meanlike I could go on and on the
reasons why I think this movieis great and rewatchable and it
has so many different moments ofhim backpacking at first and
then meeting Francoise andEtienne who is going to go to
the island with, and then theadventure that ensues once they

(01:24:47):
get to the island and becomingpart of the community and him
killing the shark.
That scene is so amazing.
And then when the downwardspiral ensues and things start
to hit the fan, it does become alegitimate thriller, and so I
don't know if that's maybe thereason why I just I again like.
Like you, erica, I I have theawareness that people don't like
this, but I do not care one bitwhy like if they say it's

(01:25:10):
because the movie has noidentity and it's trying to be
all these different things it'slike well, guess what fuckers?

Speaker 2 (01:25:15):
that's what life is, that's what the movie's trying
to tell you is that like leo,doesn't know what he wants in
life.

Speaker 1 (01:25:20):
This character doesn't know what he wants in
life and because of that he isfinding himself in these
extremely perilous situations,in a faraway land where he has
no creature comforts, where itis just him and the environment
and the bed that he has made forhimself and that he has to lay
in.
I love this movie.

(01:25:41):
It is a top 50 movie of alltime for me.
I have never not defended it asa five-star film, as one of the
best Leonardo DiCaprioperformances, as a great film in
Danny Boyle's filmography.
It is a guilty pleasure throughand through, only because
talking about it, and again, onethat any person who I've ever

(01:26:02):
shown the film to, they've lovedit and really, really had a
good time watching it, but onethat, I guess, counts as a
guilty pleasure because it isone that is viewed as less than.

Speaker 3 (01:26:14):
It is one that is viewed as less than, and so for
whatever reason the public canhave, it is a bad movie and I
will keep it as a great film.
Yeah, it's, listen, it's goodit's good it's good, it's a
great movie and, yeah, I'venever understood why people, why

(01:26:36):
it is held lesser thansomething like 127 hours, yeah,
or even Slumdog Millionaire,like, even though we like
Slumdog but like the beach is,and also like within the Leo
filmography too, Right, eventhough Leo has made amazing

(01:26:59):
movies, uh, but this is likeyoung leo post titanic, post
titanic, making the decisionlike I'm going to be a a film
like star and I'm, I will takechances

Speaker 1 (01:27:12):
on like edgy scripts like this again like not a
family-friendly movie, not afeel-good movie and one that you
have to appreciate for allthose different aspects of what
it's trying to do and the riskthat it was willing to take.
And the other thing that reallypeeves me is that at least when
I've heard it brought up likein passing on other film

(01:27:32):
podcasts in other spaces is thatpeople will just be like oh
yeah, that film's not good andI'm like tell me why.
Powers Like, oh, that movie'snot good.
Okay, Can you tell me why?
Because I can tell you why it'sgood.

Speaker 2 (01:27:46):
Can you tell?

Speaker 1 (01:27:46):
me why it's not good Like I don't know I'd be.
I'd be so interested to sitdown in a room with certain
people and ask them about thismovie.

Speaker 2 (01:27:54):
Yeah, and so.

Speaker 1 (01:27:55):
I'm hoping, I'm really hoping, I'm waking up and
praying for a fight when itcomes to the beach like revisit
Danny Boyle's entire filmographywhen 28 years later comes out.
And when you get to the beach,my DMS are always open.
If you think the movie's bad,let me know why yeah.

Speaker 2 (01:28:15):
He wants to know why.
I think that's a great numberone pick.
You guys both have good numberones.
I feel like my number one pickis so funny because it's like
such a little kid movie.
But where I stand, like justthe history I have with this
movie, I think you could ask anyof my family members.

(01:28:37):
They'd probably be like oh God,here she goes with 1995's
Casper.
This movie altered my brainchemistry at the ripe age of
three years old.
Oh, wow age of three years old.

(01:29:00):
Oh wow, I had a spiritualawakening of sorts watching
devin sewa walk down thosestairs as a, as a real boy.
Um, I think that was my firstreal love of my life, watching
him and casper.
Um, which is funny because theghost or the boy you know, I
actually had this conversationwith my one of my close friends
last night.
Um, and we were, we weretalking about this movie and she

(01:29:21):
was like well, my hear me out,is casper like, like the cash
she's like?
I was crushing on casper likethe actual ghost and I was just
like, but devin say, whilewalking down the stairs in his,
with his wispy Nick Carter hairand his white blouse, it

(01:29:42):
literally changed my life.
And so, you know, this is mereally like putting myself out
there, which is what I intendedto do on this episode.
Apparently, according to mygrandmother, my grandma, this
movie on vhs at her house whenand I watched it, she had like
the big chunky case.

Speaker 1 (01:30:02):
Right, this is not like the sleeve, almost like a
clamshell.
Yeah, that's what you calledhim exactly.

Speaker 2 (01:30:08):
um, she had, you know , five vhs is pretty much that
we would just kind of circlethrough every time we were at my
grandma's house, and this wasone of them.

Speaker 1 (01:30:19):
And my granddaughter's coming over
today.
She's going to want to watchCasper.

Speaker 2 (01:30:23):
So the way she tells the story is that I was
literally three years old.
Speaks just volumes of my boycraziness throughout my life.
But um, the moment when uhcasper turns into a boy walking
out, you know, and he's they'reat the, she has the big
halloween party he walks downthe stairs.

(01:30:46):
Apparently I threw myself backon the couch in just very
dramatic fashion and was almostin tears saying I can't take
this anymore.
Oh, my gosh um, and honestly I Idon't doubt that at all,
because I know that watchingthat scene in particular used to

(01:31:08):
like make me sick, like itwould like hurt me to watch him
like hold her and like dancewith her, and then he like
whispers, like can I keep you?

Speaker 1 (01:31:19):
I mean honestly it like it really I'm like how do
you not have a restraining order?

Speaker 2 (01:31:30):
look on both of your faces right now.
It's honestly amazing.
No, I, just I.
It changed it all.
It really like changed my lifewatching that scene and it was
just very telling where my, likeyou know, I went on to be a
huge Nick Carter fan throughoutthe years, which is like he
looks so much, she's got a type.

(01:31:51):
Ladies and gentlemen, like helooks so much, she's got a type,
ladies and gentlemen, butanyway, I also have found my
people who have said the samething about this particular
scene.
But OK, aside from that, I'llmove on from that one particular
scene From wanting to fuck theghost.
Yeah, we're moving on fromfucking the ghost.
It's not the ghost, it's thekid.
Devin Sewa I love this movie.

(01:32:16):
I mean Bill Pullman, christinaRicci um, I love this movie.
I mean bill pullman, christinaritchie.
I love christina ritchie.
Just growing up, I think she'sjust been one of my favorite
actors, but, um, it just remindsme of being a kid, obviously
aside from the bean boy crazypart about it, but um, a movie
that I still to this day watch.
This is like.

(01:32:36):
This is my ultimate guiltypleasure movie.

Speaker 3 (01:32:39):
You look guilty.
You look guilty.
Well, when I see that clamshellat your house, there's some
guilt there.

Speaker 2 (01:32:46):
I actually don't know if I have it.

Speaker 1 (01:32:47):
I don't know if I have it on DVD, or I mean on VHS
.

Speaker 2 (01:32:52):
Yeah, this movie runs deep.
You could ask anyone in myfamily about it.

Speaker 3 (01:32:58):
I love.

Speaker 1 (01:32:59):
That that's amazing, uh, okay.
So, as far as honorablementions go, I do want to
revisit the, like reclaimed.
Oh, this is actually a goodmovie.
And if that takes it, what doesthat do?
Right or like, how do we feelabout that?
Does that take it, then, out ofa guilty pleasure arena for you
?
Because, in my opinion, like Iagain, I never have felt guilty

(01:33:24):
about liking one of these movies, but I'm like, oh, okay, like I
, I guess, if everyone thinksthis movie is bad and I'm
crushing on it hard, then itmust be like it's a guilty
pleasure of of mine.
And so, like the, the numberone movie that I'm.
I'm almost, like you know, andthis is an interesting concept

(01:33:45):
too, to throw around where it'slike, was it better when I was
the only person that liked miamivice and no, one else liked
miami vice.
I'm surprised that was on thelist.
Well, because it's totally beenreclaimed yeah, it's like this
kind of modern masterpiece ofdigital filmmaking.
And, oh my gosh, what michaelmann did on collateral and miami
vice is actually like soimportant, um.
And then it's also like,outrageously over the top, the

(01:34:09):
colin farrow performance andgong lee and everything else.
But it's also just like itfucking rips and and so is life
better when everyone likes MiamiVice or when nobody likes the
beach?
I don't know.
I don't know the answer to thatquestion.
Alien Covenant Same thing.
We're like it was so funwalking out of Alien Covenant
and being like, oh, I'm the onlyone that liked this and
everyone else is like I'm stillkind of wrapping my head around,

(01:34:31):
like Prometheus and did we needthat?
And now we just got this andI'm like no, this movie's just a
horror film.
This is like legit xenomorph,awesome action.
And michael fastbender is david, is just ridiculously evil and
I love it, but now so doeseveryone else same.
Speaking of fastbender andridley scott, I have the
counselor on my list as wellwhere, like the counselor, total

(01:34:52):
guilty pleasure, but everyone'scoming around to that one.
Again, I have a trifecta of theinner city rise to power crime
thriller of King of New York,new Jack city, and paid in full.
That is a huge micro sub genreof drama films or like, maybe,

(01:35:15):
action films that I love andthat is such a guilty pleasure
for me, but again one that I'mlike I don't ever feel guilty
about liking those movies Like,that is a rich sub genre of
films right there you could gointo, you know, deep cover,
there's so many minutes tosociety, all the boys in the
hood.
All those movies have adifferent level of prestige to

(01:35:36):
them, but those in particular,king of new york, new jack city
and paid in full, I feel like,are kind of guilty pleasures for
me.
And then my final one, one thatI just couldn't bring myself to
list as a guilty pleasurebecause, again, like I will
defend it as a five-star film tothe day I die and hopefully we
get a chance to do a big greverbinski episode later.
But like dead man's chest, Iwill fight you over my five-star

(01:36:01):
rating of that film every dayof the week, just the way.
It is like curse of the blackpearl.

Speaker 2 (01:36:08):
I get that people can love curse of the black pearl
all they want.
That's consensus, but like deadman's chest is the second one,
and I think it's better thanworld's end.

Speaker 3 (01:36:14):
I think it's better than the second one, and I think
it is it's better than World'sEnd.

Speaker 1 (01:36:17):
I think it's better than Curse of the Black Pearl.
Yeah.

Speaker 3 (01:36:20):
It's been a long time since I fired those, since I
set those sails and sailed thoseseas.
But some honorable mentions onmine.

Speaker 1 (01:36:40):
Let me get your answer to that little rhetorical
question that I kind of threw.

Speaker 3 (01:36:42):
Yeah, you know it it's hard.
I, I, I don't know becausebecause also, if, like you, are
someone like it makes me thinkof something like opus or the
killer, right recently, like Iam like ride or die for these
movies, and you know, in 10years if it comes back around
where like, oh no, actually thiswas really really good.

(01:37:04):
You know, I, I think it's still, I think it's still a guilty
pleasure for me because I'veI've been living with the guilt
for 10 years is that how youfeel about it?

Speaker 1 (01:37:17):
Like would you rather your movie be universally loved
?

Speaker 2 (01:37:21):
I mean, I don't see that.
This is where I mean my wholestance on the guilty pleasure
topic is that, no matter whatanyone says, it's like about how
I feel when.

Speaker 3 (01:37:31):
I'm watching it.

Speaker 2 (01:37:32):
You know, and like everyone could tell me, like
it's like twilight is a perfectexample.
Like you know, this movie is,in my opinion, objectively so
bad, but I still really enjoy it.
And you could tell me like youcould try to like defend it all
you want, I'm still gonna likefeel shame watching it, um.
So yeah, I don't know.

Speaker 3 (01:37:53):
Um so, yeah, I don't know, honorable mentions, uh,
anaconda from the 90s, anotheranimal attack one, yeah, water
world from the 90s, uh, whichyou know if, if there had been
more rewatches, probably wouldhave made the list, because I
really do think after we did thekevin cost episode, watching

(01:38:15):
that movie in full like could bea masterpiece there that people
just kind of missed on.
The Perfect Storm, I thinkfalls into this where again kind
of like objectively bad andcheesy but like at the same time

(01:38:35):
just and incredibly rewatchableand thrilling movie, not happy
but like so entertaining,something that is so fun, yeah,
to watch.
Yeah, um, uh, the, uh, theforever purge, oh, another one
of these lost sequels that we,we talked about uh a couple
years ago or whatever, but likethat has a 2.3 star rating on

(01:38:59):
letterbox I think the entirepurge franchise for me that's
when I did the original purge is2.7 yeah, what are we doing?
it's crazy.
All those movies are actuallyreally good.
Yes, um uh, you know I hadprometheus written down uh book
of Eli the shallows.

Speaker 1 (01:39:19):
I looked at a lot of Jean-Michelette films the
shallows being the number one.

Speaker 2 (01:39:24):
But again that one.

Speaker 1 (01:39:25):
I'm like.
I feel like that has beenaccepted as a really fun and
really good Like any.
Any time on the sharks subditor any time someone brings up
like animal attack movies on thehorror subreddit, people are
always like you got to watch theShallows.
So I feel like once again it'sthere.
I thought about you, erica,when I was thinking about found

(01:39:46):
footage movies and what to puton here as above, so below, but
every single time.

Speaker 2 (01:39:51):
I see people say like what's a good found?
What's a good found?
Footage, that's above.
So below gets brought up yeah,that movie is honestly amazing,
so it's incredible, another onethat taking Pelham one, two,
three, the.
Tony.

Speaker 3 (01:40:06):
Scott film with John Travolta and Denzel.

Speaker 2 (01:40:09):
I used to love that movie so I totally forgot.
It rocks.

Speaker 3 (01:40:13):
It rocks.
And you know, I think that onehas kind of like Out of Time as
well, which is another greatDenzel movie and Book of Eli I
just named.
Like Denzel is so good and hassuch a great filmography that
these movies are kind of likethe guilty pleasures of Denzel
movies, right when, like theyare lesser than you know,

(01:40:37):
training day but they arefucking awesome.

Speaker 1 (01:40:40):
I feel the same way about john q, that's my like
guilty pleasure denzel movie 100I have my list of honorable
mentions.

Speaker 2 (01:40:50):
Um, it's funny I feel like so many of these are tied
to my childhood.
That's kind of where I wasobviously going with this list
making anyway.
But the Ace Ventura movies,pretty in Pink, that's one of
those movies that it's likereally not great, but I do love
John Hughes, bring it On.

(01:41:11):
Oh, bring it On is a great one,but then I was like is that a
guilty pleasure movie Becauseit's such a classic, Like I
think that is a great one.
But then I was like is that aguilty pleasure movie because
it's such a classic, like Ithink that is a classic I think
it's a little lost to time yeah,so it works, yeah, um I saw a
really funny instagram reel oflike a millennial going around
and it was one of these.

Speaker 1 (01:41:29):
You know, like office , like test your co-workers
thing or whatever, and they'rejust like hey, I'd be like erica
, finish this line, burr, it'scold in here.

Speaker 2 (01:41:39):
And people would be some toros in the atmosphere,
exactly, and people?

Speaker 1 (01:41:43):
are like oh, do you want me to like change the
thermostat, oh god did not passthe vibe check um another one.

Speaker 2 (01:41:54):
Uh, george of the jungle yeah, oh, yeah, yeah just
recently revisited that.
Um, this is a good one.
The greatest showman which, asa musical lover, I did love the
greatest showman, um and and andhad my moment with that, my Big

(01:42:14):
Fat Greek Wedding.
That's a good one.

Speaker 3 (01:42:17):
But then again, that one was so celebrated too right
when it came out.

Speaker 1 (01:42:22):
It's like a $300 million movie.

Speaker 2 (01:42:23):
Yeah, yeah.

Speaker 3 (01:42:25):
But still, I looked at that title.

Speaker 2 (01:42:27):
I looked at it and then I got two like horror, two
for test drive.

Speaker 3 (01:42:33):
Thought about rewatching it.

Speaker 2 (01:42:34):
You should.

Speaker 1 (01:42:35):
It's funny, it's really funny, it's really sweet
um, and I just remember thegrandpa using windex for
everything.

Speaker 2 (01:42:41):
Oh, yeah, put some windex on it.
Yeah, um, and then I guess twohorror mentions, like sort of
the lost boys, which is adefinitely a favorite for me, um
, but sometimes a hard watch.
It's a little cringe at timesyeah that that wouldn't see that
.
That's one that doesn't work onme, so that that is like, you
don't like it, or you, yeah, youdon't like it, not for me.

(01:43:04):
Yeah, yeah, love it.
Yeah, it's so good, it's likey'all are guilty um, that's a
really good example, I thinkyeah, lost boys

Speaker 1 (01:43:15):
yeah, because if it, doesn't work for you, I like as
someone who it works for, Itotally understand why I'm just
like yeah, it's just like hairmetal, vampires, punk, like I
know, boardwalk and like themost dramatic like it is so yeah
, yeah, it's so corny, but Imean I watch that and just with

(01:43:38):
stars in my eyes.

Speaker 2 (01:43:39):
You know, I'm like just I don't see anything wrong
with the lost boys, um, and thenvan helsing.

Speaker 3 (01:43:45):
You know this is a movie that I'm so surprised this
wasn't on your list, becausethis was a movie you I've talked
about before.
Yeah, yeah in in our 2004 draftand, like, I do remember loving
that movie as as when it cameout, right, but which what?
We were like 12 or 13 when thatmovie came out.
I remember fucking loving it,owning it, seeing it in the

(01:44:08):
theaters, like, but I I feellike if I went back and watched
it now I'd be like this is dogshit oh it is.

Speaker 2 (01:44:15):
I have re-watched it and but you know I I loved it at
the time.
I mean, and I still like youknow that's the thing about a
lot of at least for you know, alot of these picks that you you
ask people like, what is these?
What is your guilty pleasurefilm?
And I feel like, especiallywith movies, people are going to
pick that movie.

(01:44:36):
They have memories attached to.
They have a story behind itwhich we all had, stories behind
all of our picks, and like theway we were raised and growing
up and you're like, yeah, likeyou know, this movie isn't great
and it's.
You know, I've revisited, evenas an adult, and it like makes
me cringe.
Revisited even as an adult andit like makes me cringe, but I

(01:44:57):
think about that time at mygrandma's house, or I think
about that time, you know, likehaving a sleepover with the boys
when I was a teenager, you know, and it brings.
It's like impossible to hatemovies like that, because and
that's the beauty of movies ingeneral you know, I mean it's I
love that and I think that likeit's it like we can sit here and
talk about all the the newestlike a24 movie that was just

(01:45:19):
like critically acclaimed, allthis shit but it's like no, I
want to know, like what you werewatching as a kid.
Did you fuck with scooby-doo ordid you not like you know what
I mean.
Like I think that it like itreally speaks kind of like to
all of our experiences and likehow, like what we were doing
when we were kids, you know yeah.

Speaker 1 (01:45:40):
I think that's very well said, all right.
So, erica, so great to have youback.

Speaker 2 (01:45:46):
It's good to be back.

Speaker 3 (01:45:47):
Yeah, please don't leave again.
Felt whole again.

Speaker 2 (01:45:51):
Sorry for my scratchy throat.
Everybody God.

Speaker 1 (01:45:53):
No, you were a trooper too.
Sorry for my scratchy throateverybody.
God, no, you were a trooper too.
I don't even know.
I didn't even know that teafrom a coffee store came in that
large of a cup.

Speaker 3 (01:46:03):
I don't know what that is.

Speaker 1 (01:46:04):
Two 24 ounce teas later and you're still standing
Very commendable, all right, soit was great to have you back.
Until next time, follow Excusethe Intermission on Instagram
and the three of us on letterboxto track what we're watching
between shows and we will talkto you next time on ETI, where
movies still matter.
Thank you.
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