Weird Science | S2E13 - Retromade

Episode Transcript
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Katie (01:37):
Hello.
Hello, I'm Katie and welcome back toRetro Made Your Pop Culture Rewind.
Today we are booting up to 1985 for weirdscience, a teen fantasy where two nerds
use a computer, adult, and a lightningstorm to create the woman of their dreams.
It's chaotic, cringey, and Peak JohnHughes in all the best and weirdest ways.

(02:02):
Returning to the show, we have Chad,along with New to the show Russell,
but both from Retro Movie Round Table.
Thank you both for joiningme for my season two.
What have you guys been up to on retro
movie Round table lately?

Russell Guest (02:19):
Well, we turned 300 episodes, so that's pretty exciting.
So we're in our eighth seasonand we hit the 300 mark.

Chad (02:26):
episode.

Chad kept saying we had to cover the movie, 300 for 300.
And I kept trying to avoid it'cause I don't love it as much
as everybody else, but it stillworked out and I think we had fun.
I tried to stay positiveanyway, so, but yeah.
But Richard Movie Roundtable, we'restill covering movies that are 10 years
or older and we go all the way backfor as far as whoever knows how long.
So we've even covered a fewsilent movies along the way.

(02:47):
Largely we hit the nineties andeighties, like where you're spending
your time here on Retro Made.

Katie (02:52):
the best in my opinion, but I mean, I'm not biased for anything.

Chad (02:56):
It is the demographic it works.

Yes.
So, but we also will, we'llhit everything in, in between.
So

Katie (03:03):
So Chad joined me last season for Ghost Boost.

Chad (03:08):
Yes.
Yeah.
That was a lot of fun with Lizzie.

Katie (03:10):
Yes.

Chad (03:11):
Mm-hmm.

Katie (03:11):
And you guys will have to go check out Retro Movie Round Table,
because yours truly has guested on their
show.
A couple just once.
No,

twice Mystic Pizza and Willy Wonka.

Chad (03:22):
Yeah.

Soon to be

Katie (03:23):
Pizza.

soon to be rocky.

Katie (03:26):
Ooh, is that the one that you

Mm-hmm.

Chad (03:28):
Okay.

Katie (03:29):
Oh, okay.
So you guys go check it out?
I am biased, obviously.
Mystic Pizza, great movie,Willy Wonka, great movie.
And I'm like maybe one ofthe biggest Rocky fans ever.
So come check us out overon Retro movie round table.
All right, you guys, season two, we havea wheel that we spin for the time capsule.

(03:52):
So let's open the time capsule fromAugust of 1985, and if you're counting
Yes, that is 40 years ago, you
guys.
40,

Chad (04:03):
bad.
Yep.

It's the year of my birth, so that's, yeah.
It feels bad for me too, Chad.

Katie (04:09):
40 years ago.
I'm going to share the wheel.
Spin on your behalf.
Now, we did already cover 1985 inthe Breakfast Club episode, so we're
gonna spin the wheel if we cameto a category we already covered.
We're just spin again we have

(04:32):
back in the headlines.
All right.
Hmm.
Which milestone in reproductivetechnology occurred in 1985 a, a
groundbreaking medical procedurethat resulted in the world's first
child conceived outside of the womb.

Chad (04:55):
Oh man.

Well, it wasn't me.

Chad (04:59):
Not in August.

Katie (05:00):
This, I remember this being like oh, oh, remember the first
blank, blank baby

Test tube.

Katie (05:07):
Test tube.
baby

Chad (05:08):
Yeah.

was really reaching there.
Okay.
Yeah.
Okay.

Katie (05:11):
The, first test tube baby.
Now I know you guys are alittle young, but you know,

Chad (05:17):
appreciate that.
Thank you.

Katie (05:19):
I was already
born.
Was four here.

Not in a test tube.

Chad (05:22):
No,

Katie (05:23):
in, yeah, not in, not in a tattoo, criminal known for a string
of terrorizing crimes in California.
In California was finally apprehendedafter eluding authorities for months.

Chad (05:38):
1985.

85.

Chad (05:40):
was it?

That's late for Manson, isn't it?
So,

Katie (05:42):
yeah.
He.
If I recall correctly, it was likethe neighborhood kind of helped
capture him.

I'm terrible with these murders now I'm really actively avoid

Chad (05:56):
Yeah,

' Russell Guest (05:56):
cause I like to just think that things are okay.

Chad (05:58):
Tag in Lizzie,

yeah, I don't,

Chad (06:01):
Uhhuh.

Katie (06:02):
So I totally I've seen the documentary about it.
It's
Richard Ramirez.

I don't even, yeah, that's the first, that, that's a new one on me.
Yeah.

Katie (06:10):
Okay.
Well if you're not truecrime, then that would, yeah.
Okay.
You should get this one whobecame the general Secretary of
the Communist Party of the Soviet
Union in 1985.

Is this Gorbachev

Chad (06:22):
Yeah.

Katie (06:23):
What's his first name?

Mikhail?
You

Katie (06:26):
Okay.
All right.
one more from this

didn't ask me which side of his head.
His birthmark is on her.

Katie (06:32):
Oh geez.
Do you know?

I dunno.
I do share a birthdaywith him though, so I

Katie (06:37):
Oh, really?

Chad (06:39):
a weird bit of trivia.

I know
I had to do a history paper on mythings that happened on your birthday.
So

Katie (06:46):
oh.
I was like, how do you even know that?
Okay.
Interesting.
Okay, 1985, the FBI took action against apowerful group of criminals in New York.
Who were they?

the criminals or the people?
Uh,

Katie (07:03):
The, the, The powerful
group of criminals.

The sticky bandits,

Chad (07:09):
Gotti family.

I dunno.

Katie (07:11):
You're closer, Chad.
It's much more vague.
It is the five
Mafia families.

Chad (07:18):
Okay.

Okay.

Katie (07:19):
All right.
You guys aren't very
good at this category.

No, I, I like to think things are okay in the world, so I
avoid knowing things that are bad.

Katie (07:28):
let's spin again see, oh, let's see.
Retro runway.
If one material dominated1985, what was it?

Spandex.

Katie (07:40):
Good guess, but

Oh man.

Katie (07:43):
Chad

Chad (07:45):
Velcro

Katie (07:47):
also a good guess.
No, you guys are thinking too hard.
It's denim.

Chad (07:52):
denim.

Oh, did never goes away.
Oh,

Katie (07:55):
know jeans were everywhere,
but they weren't just pants.
They were?
jackets,

Yeah.
I had a jean jacket.

Katie (08:01):
acid, acid wash and stone wash.
Denim became especially popular.
Adding a grunge twistto the classic fabric.
Denim jackets were practically essential,worn, oversized, and adorned with pins and
patches.
Do you guys remember that?

Flair.
Yeah.

Katie (08:17):
with
all the pins and patches?

You had to have enough pieces of flair.

Katie (08:21):
you
were babies or are not even born yet.

Chad (08:22):
yeah.

had a jean jacket, definitely.
I mean, I didn't put a lot of flair onit, but I mean, it was, it was around,

Chad (08:28):
it carried over.
Yeah.
I

Katie (08:29):
it.
Yeah.
Yeah.

Chad (08:31):
outfits.

Katie (08:32):
Plus we're in the middle of the country, like
you, we're not on the coasts.
So it takes a
little longer for things to get to

I definitely had, I definitely had plenty
shares of jean shorts.
I don't know what, whatpoint those became.
Not cool, but I definitely,I'll say that I had js.

Chad (08:47):
Oh

Katie (08:47):
jorts.

Chad (08:47):
yeah.
That lasted well intolike early two thousands.
I feel like.

Katie (08:52):
Now I will say, it says double denim.
Yes.
Denim on denim was no longer afashion faux pa, but a sought after
look with celebrities and everydaypeople alike rocking the style.

Chad (09:07):
It just reminds me of Super Troopers.
What's with the Canadian tuxedo?

Katie (09:10):
Yeah.
Or let's do one more.
'cause there's a lot to getinto with weird science.
Ooh, ooh.
This should be fun if wehaven't covered it already.

Chad (09:22):
Russell's worst decade from music.

Katie (09:25):
Boombox bangers.
You guys, these are the five topsongs for the whole year of 1985.
I will give you clues,
but do you have any guesses off

Chad (09:37):
Something from Prince
I know that was 84.
Um,

uh,

Katie (09:42):
From Prince.

Chad (09:43):
from Prince in 85.
Wow.

I was gonna say it's,

Katie (09:46):
in the top
10, but not the top five.

yeah.

Chad (09:49):
Cyndi Lauper.

Katie (09:52):
guest.
Somebody very similar.

Is this a aha take on me?
Maybe.

Katie (09:58):
No.

Chad (09:59):
That would be, yeah, from

Katie (10:00):
are two songs in the top five from the
same band or group.

Two,

Katie (10:07):
the number one song.
Here's your Clue.
A saxophone riff that becameiconic paired with a ballad of
regret, propelling two British popstars into global superstardom.
What was the name of the song?

Chad (10:22):
Was that careless whisper?

Katie (10:23):
It was Chad.
I'm impressed by theguest, given that clue,

Chad (10:29):
I mean, the saxophone is just that's iconic.

Katie (10:32):
and that is wham featuring George Michael.

Chad (10:36):
Does

Katie (10:36):
Now the num

I I didn't have it.
I'm sorry.

Katie (10:41):
good.

Chad (10:42):
Ru
Russell and Wham do not go together.

I prefer the, I prefer the see version, but don't throw things at me.

Katie (10:49):
The group wham, also had the number three song overall in 1985.
Any guesses?

Does it wake me up?

Katie (10:57):
Wake me up
before you go.
Go.
Yeah.

Oh, it is that, yeah.

Katie (11:01):
So that the number one and number three.
Wham.
Okay.
Number two, a dance anthemof innocence and passion.
Where a singer with a revolutionaryfashion sense introduces a bold
personal declaration of new love.

Chad (11:19):
Madonna.

Katie (11:20):
Yes.
What's the song?

Material girl.

Chad (11:23):
Well,

Katie (11:25):
Bold, personal Declaration of Love.

Chad (11:28):
I would've guessed like a virgin, but I think it's

Katie (11:31):
It's,
it's like a version.
Yeah, like
a

Oh, Okay.

Katie (11:35):
Okay.
The number four song.
heartfelt power ballad that
merged rock with emotional yearning.
Its title becoming a Metaphor forthe Search for Deeper Connection.
It's a
good song.

Power ballad looking for deeper connection.
So it's not su su studio.

Katie (11:58):
The group is foreigner.

Foreigner.

Katie (12:00):
helping you at all?

Chad (12:01):
mean, they had cold as ice,
but that that wasn't

Hmm?

Katie (12:06):
I wanna know what love is.

did.
Yeah.
Okay.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Foreigner,

Katie (12:11):
Mm-hmm.
Okay.
Now this last one I wouldn't get'cause I'm just very unfamiliar, but
maybe you guys will get it Number,the number five song for 1985.
A funk fused song that mergedsoul and pop with a forward
thinking sound giving, a legendaryvocalist, her most memorable hit.

fuck.

Chad (12:40):
Funk and si.
Yeah.
I'm, I'm thrown off by the funk.

Katie (12:45):
It'll make sense
once I say it, but

Yeah, the hers making me go to Whitney Houston or Tina Turner, or and
now, now I gotta get the funk in there.
Gosh,

Chad (12:55):
with Rowan.
Rowan down the
river would sort of make sense.

Katie (12:59):
It's

just so much early.
That's not even eighties.
That's before that.
Gosh.
Cindy lamp, the, the funk thing.
It's really throwing me off.
Taken me out of all of myfemale eighties artists.
Madonna's not gonna fit that.

Katie (13:11):
No.
Nope.
We give up.

Chad (13:16):
give

is, yeah.
I don't know who's, who's the funk Female.

Katie (13:20):
Chaka Khan.

Oh, okay.
Yeah.
Okay.

Chad (13:23):
okay.

Katie (13:23):
feel for you.
I never would've got

No.

Katie (13:26):
with her, so, but yeah, I feel for you by Chaka Khan.
All

Great.

Katie (13:33):
Did pretty good on the rest of them, so nice.
Thank you for playing with me,even though you were far too
young to remember, if at all.
Chad, were you not born yet in 1985?

Chad (13:43):
90, 84 for me,
so,

Katie (13:45):
84

Yeah,

Katie (13:46):
for

so you should, so you should have done a little
better than me on that, Chad.

Katie (13:49):
Yeah, I mean,

Chad (13:51):
on the music than you,

Katie (13:52):
you did,

Chad (13:53):
which I

Katie (13:53):
did.

Chad (13:53):
won that bet.
Russell is our music guy.

Katie (13:56):
This season, I'm not gonna ask you about Patrick Swayze or Kurt
Russell.
Chad, but

That's a shame because we're crazy for Swayze.

Katie (14:04):
Ugh.
I know, I know,

John Hughes.
I love John Hughe

Katie (14:09):
do you guys think?
What's, what's your history?
What do you, how did you first
discover him?
All that stuff.

first, discover him.
Chad, do you wanna go first?

Chad (14:17):
I feel like first discovery was on like TBS reruns.

Katie (14:22):
Mm-hmm.

Chad (14:23):
John Hughes marathons and so you run into the National Lampoons.
I didn't really associate him withHome Alone until we wound up covering
it on Retro Movie, so we covered that.
I'm like, oh, he was aproducer behind this.
So getting to come to that, but,you know, breakfast Club pretty in

(14:44):
pink, 16 candles, all of that wasjust, you can't even find it anymore.
I don't know if they do it anymore, butit used to be an old day thing and you
would just catch whatever you could.

For me, I think the first one I probably saw was probably Mr.
Mom, but I definitely didn'tassociate it as being like a
anybody's effort necessarily.
So home Alone was a big deal forpeople of my age group, and like
a lot of people would say thatthat was their favorite movie.
Back when it came out.
So Home Alone was a big one.
Uncle Buck was probably where I'mstarting to pick up the name and

(15:19):
starting to make connections andstart to say this is this is somebody.
And then later down the line, I didn'tcome to Ferris Bueller until like as
a teenager probably, which is fine.
'cause I think you appreciateit more than anyway.

Katie (15:31):
Yep.

So Ferris Bueller and breakfast Club, I think.
I think Breakfast Club is where it'sjust like, this dude's a good writer.
This is really, really good.
And then you start to connect everything.
I actually.
Beethoven was another one ofthe early ones I mentioned.
I left off as a kid, so I don't think of,I don't think of his, I don't think of
like Baby's Day Out, Dennis the Menace andlike Beethoven, some of the later stuff.
So I probably actually came tosome of that stuff even earlier.

(15:52):
But when it all started to connectwas when I, by the time I got to
Breakfast Club and like Uncle Buckand stuff like that, I was going
back as a teenager and getting them,I mean, I didn't realize National
Lampoon was him, her for vacation.
So I mean, everythinghe's done makes me happy.
Maybe until towards the end.
I think some of the family entertainmentkind of things were semi disposable

(16:12):
for the late nineties, but certainlythrough the eighties and into the early
nineties, he was absolutely on fire.
Everything he does is outstanding.
Amazes me.
He's such a fast writer every timewe've covered one of his movies.
He like writes thesethings in, in just a week.
And then this one, I think this,what we're covering today is
two days time, which is amazing.
So, I mean, i, it makesme feel unproductive.

(16:34):
Like I can't get much stuff done.
So I mean, two to,

Katie (16:38):
I'm like, I need a nap.
Just listening to that.

I'm an architect and I've been working on the same building for
three years, and it's still not built yet.
So, I mean, it's it's it's amazing.
So

Chad (16:47):
Russell gets paid to drag his feet though, so

Katie (16:50):
Mm.
Yeah.
John Hughes, man.
Without further ado, Ithink we should get into
weird.
science.
this came out August 2nd.
, 1985.
Breakfast Club came outin February of 1985.

(17:11):
sucker came out six months later.
And , those are two ofmy favorite hues movies.
So I am just like, it's justwild that these two movies came
out in such close succession.
And apparently Hughes was not veryhappy during the filming of this
movie because it interfered withhim working on the Breakfast Club.

(17:33):
But he agreed to direct itbecause Universal gave him a deal.
We could also direct what he valuedmore, which was the Breakfast Club.
So that was the deal he made.
This is PG 13 and it has a 6.6
on IMDB and he both directedand wrote on this movie.

(17:55):
And there are a few other writerswhich is a little unusual.
But this is like you guyssaid, another instance.
We hear these stories all thetime about him writing so quickly.
Were you familiar with the othertwo writers, Alf Feldstein,
and William Gaines at all?

I've not done a deep dive for them.
No.

Katie (18:14):
I had never even heard the names before.
But they're both known for sci-fiand horror comics and also writing
for Mad Magazine and a coupleepisodes from Tales From the Crypt.
So they must be collaborators.
They kind of, they, 'cause theyhave a very similar writing history.

So this, so

Chad (18:33):
because this was at a comic
adaptation, right?
It was
like

it's a made,

Chad (18:38):
comic.

yeah.
Made from the future withfeldstein contribution.
Right.
So that, that comic stripthat you're talking about,

Chad (18:46):
Yeah.

right?
Yeah.
Or there's a comic book.
I, I actually didn't, but yeah.
It's a comic.
Right.

Katie (18:51):
Mm-hmm.
If you guys haven't seen weirdscience in 40 years or if it's been
a while, I know it's been a while.
For Chad, how long
has it been since you saw this Russell?

I definitely saw it in high school and I thought that, you know.
I caught it on tv.
I thought it was moreedited maybe than it was.
I saw it again, you know, uncutin college and definitely was
still pleased at how it held up.
Not on tv,

Katie (19:19):
Mm-hmm.

I just probably haven't come back to it, probably
in, it's certainly been, you know,15 years or something like that.
In my head, in my head with all thechanges and what is funny and the
line of comedy is always moving andthe line of comedy has moved a great
deal since this movie came out.
So I was a little bit worriedfor it coming back to it
saying has this not held up?

(19:41):
Or is it gonna be full of thingsthat you wouldn't do today?
Or is it cringey And I was kind ofrelieved and said you know what,
there's a lot you wouldn't get awaywith doing in that same way today,
but it's also not, it's not egregious.
It's not, it's not like it's

Katie (19:59):
No.
16 candles

right.
It, it but, but Hughe has this warmth
to his writing that we've talked about.
We talked about the speed.
It's funny, but it's not just funny.
He, he makes you have positivefeelings and connect to the characters.
So there's, there's a positivequality when you watch a lot of
Hughes's work that, you know, hisability to make you feel the feels.

(20:23):
And even though this is a totalabsurdist movie, there's still
growth within the characters.
And,

Katie (20:30):
Oh,

and

Katie (20:30):
a, there's a moral aspect

I.

Katie (20:32):
Or a, or a, maybe not a, maybe morals not the right word,
but I mean, coming of age, that's,you know, that's Hugs notorious
for that, but there's, there'sdefinitely some learnings that happen.
Some.
Life advice that is learnedfrom this in a very strange way.
But I very unlike you guys, thisis I'm giving away my thoughts,

(20:53):
but I absolutely adore this movie.
This is one of my favorite movies.
I think it's my secondfavorite John Hughes movie.
literally owned it on VHS and then DVD,and now I own the digital version of it
and I, so this is one of those that Ijust keep buying, over and over again.
But if you guys are not like me, andit's been a minute, the description

(21:16):
of weird science is too high.
School nerds use a computer program toliterally create the perfect woman who
promptly turns their lives upside down.
All right, let's get into the cast here.
Anthony Michael Hall, verycommon Hughes collaborator.
What do you guys think?
Michael Anthony Hall.

Chad (21:38):
Oh, he's, he's wonderful.
I mean, him and John Hughes just.
Go together.
It's, it's funny that he had to getout of the National Lampoon role
of rusty just to do this movie.
Then kind of creates that curse of Rusty'sa different person every single time.
Which is a fun gag I guess.

Katie (21:54):
is.
Yeah.

Chad (21:56):
yeah, he's wonderful.
And Russell had linked that interviewof the cast reuniting and just to
see what a good time he had and thecamaraderie he had with his castmates.
That was just wonderful.
'cause a lot of times you revisit thesemovies and I don't think we've ever had
it on a John Hughes movie we've covered,but people were complaining, oh, the set

(22:16):
was awful, or Co coworkers were awful.
Seemed just everyone hada fondness for each other.

Katie (22:24):
Great point.
It was nice to see that.
Thank you for sending that Russell.
We'll talk a little bit more aboutthat reunion clip that, that you
shared of the three main castmates

Anthony, Michael Halls young.
This.
And it's nice to see somebodywho's actually young and not a
28-year-old playing an 18-year-old.
I think that there's something reallynice and refreshing about that.
Even though this movie's older, it'shard to say it's refreshing, but it
is cool to see actual young peopleplaying young roles and for a young
person to, what I wanna say is AnthonyMichael Hall has a little bit of his

(22:57):
awkwardness still in him from hisadolescence and he also has a good sense
of humor that is already developed.
So, he is funny.
I can see why he goes on tobe on Saturday Night Live.
He gets a very short run, but I cansee why they wanted to bring him on.
I believe he's still the youngestperson to have ever been on.
Saturday Night Live as acast member and I can see why
Hughes kept coming back to him.

(23:18):
He has good facial reactions,he has good sarcasm.
He seems cool, but even though he's inthis moment, he's supposed to be nerdy.
So there's a sense of warmingup to him that even though he is
a nerd, he's getting picked onand ostracized and made fun of.
He still seems very relatable andlikable and he's definitely the
cooler of the two of them in this.

(23:39):
And the humor hinges moreheavily on him than it does
his CoStar, Ian Mitchell Smith.
So, without Anthony Michael Hall here,none of this is gonna work as well.
He's really, really important.
'cause if you wanna get down into what'syour most important casting, I think.
You know, Kelly Lerock is like theimage of what we all remember from

(24:00):
this movie, but Anthony Michael Hallresponding to, and getting into all this
stuff, he does big eyes really well.
He has these, you know, big reactionswhether it's him going out and
getting drunk and talking I guess thisstill called Jive talk or whatever.
I mean,

Chad (24:15):
cringeworthy.
That

well that's the part that I don't think would hold up
as well today, but I still have toadmit he may not hold up as well
today, but I still think it's funny.
So, I mean, you know, he is, he,he fully commits to it and he, he
is the one that I think is kind ofthe axle of this wheel that this
all make basically has to work on.

Chad (24:33):
Oh man.

Katie (24:34):
Really good points.
I will say he, so he plays Gary and thenI always thought Wyatt, the name of the
actor who plays Wyatt was Ian as well.
But it, it just looks like it becauseit's a capital I next to a lowercase l

Chad (24:49):
Ellen.

Katie (24:49):
island.

Chad (24:50):
Yep.

Katie (24:51):
name is

Alan, it's my mistake Then.

Katie (24:53):
I, I only learned that now that I'm like digging into weird science,
it's Elan Mitchell Smith plays Wyatt.
And to your point about Anthony MichaelHall, now, and I don't mean this to
degrade Elan at all, but there's areason Anthony Michael Hall was a
star and Elan, wasn't Their actingabilities were vastly different.

(25:15):
I thought we saw it in, in severalpoints throughout this movie that
Gary, it was just like, yeah.
On fire.
And, and Wyatt was just kind ofthere to play off a little bit.
And I don't know, whyt just keptscreaming, Lisa, oh my God, I
didn't love his acting as much,but Elan, made $150,000 in 1985

(25:40):
for making word science, which is.
I don't, I don't know how everybody,how much everybody else made.
I just thought thatwas really interesting.
He was born in New York andhe was more of a dancer.
So he was in ballet, enrolled indance classes, eventually got a
scholarship to the American Ballet.
And while he was at the ballet, hewas discovered by a casting agent
for the director Sidney Lumette.

(26:04):
Is it
Lumette?
Or Lume?

I, I've, I've heard louette.
I feel like

Katie (26:09):
I thought

we've covered him.

Katie (26:10):
anyway, yeah.
Anyway, and

Chad (26:12):
Swayze connection, though.
The whole ballet background.

Katie (26:16):
point.
So he was signed to play toTimothy Hutton's character as a
young boy in the film, Daniel.
And then he, that led to a major role inthe wildlife, both in the early eighties
and then this, and then he did notcontinue acting very much after that.
And he's a professor.
He's in higher education now,

(26:37):
mm-hmm.
Now two guys on the show with me, Imean, I could hardly contain myself
at the beauty of Kelly Lerock.
I mean, wasn't she almostlike there were just no words.
She's like, perfect.
Was it just me?
I don't know.
I thought Kelly Lerocklooked perfect in every way.

Chad (26:59):
She's very pretty, but I think what does it is the accent,
just her, her manner of speech is,there's something about it that's
just sexy, but still calming.
She's, she's this chaotic forceamongst the boys' lives, but she's
very in control of it the entire time.
That's really hard to do.

Katie (27:19):
she's motherly in, in a weird way.
She's motherly to them.
Like it's a strange, that's how it'sother, she's 23 years old, or her
character Lisa, and these boys are 15.
But somehow.
It's not that creepyor is it, I don't know.
Like it never could happen.
The reverse, like thereverse could never happen.

(27:41):
But in some weird way it kind of workedsomehow because she was sort of acting as
their like mother fury, godmother type.
I don't know.
What do you guys think?
Is it creepy?

Chad (27:56):
I, I had this problem when we revisited big 'cause

Katie (27:59):
Hmm.

Chad (28:00):
Tom Hanks is a child and you wind up sleeping with a child
and the, that revelation doesn'treally land on the female character.
And got two realizations, magic'sreal, and I've just slept with a child.
I'm like, okay, this, this moviedoesn't work for me as much.
This one, I think it works outbetter because she's the heart of it.

(28:20):
It's an AI program.
She's like a manifestationof Alexa now, or

Katie (28:25):
Hmm.

Chad (28:25):
so you can.
Get past the shower scene becausethe shower scene is very early on.
It's like, eh, this, this probablyisn't great, but she's not real.
I mean, she's real to thetouch and everything else,
but she's a computer program.
She's not a adult woman.
So I, I think that makes things funnierwhen she's going on and got the little

(28:50):
tiny underwear and she says, do youthink a 15-year-old boy would like these?
And she's, do you have a matching bra?
And it's this elderly woman at thecheckout that's just scowling at her.
That's
fantastic.

Yeah.

Katie (29:02):
But they do sleep with her.
I mean, it's not shown on screen, butthey do both sleep with her, correct?

Chad (29:07):
Wyatt, she has that illusion of you you tapped out after 10
seconds of my gymnastics routine.

Katie (29:13):
Mm-hmm.

Chad (29:14):
I guess there's plausible deniability, but.

Katie (29:17):
'cause at that scene, she says something about they're arguing about Chet
and him standing up to Che and she's like,you're letting this affect your sex life,

Chad (29:25):
yeah.

Katie (29:26):
And then later when they're talking to the perfume girl, they, they,
call her their lover,

Sex pot.
Actually,

Katie (29:33):
yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
And then they do kiss her,you know, like passionately

It's funny because if you inspect any of it,
it's, it's rife with problems.
You, you, you, but it'swhat you call absurdist.
I think it's one of thesethings where none of.
Is serious and the more serious thatthe others take it, whether it be Chet,
the grandparents or the people aroundthem, the more surreal it becomes.

(30:00):
And when you go back and even cover anart, like a March Brothers movie, grouch
show is saying preposterous things thatmake absolutely no sense whatsoever,
but they're taken with great dealof seriousness by those around them.
And that is funny then, and it is funnyin the eighties and it's still funny now.
So I think, I think that it is establishedvery early when the boys make Lisa,

(30:25):
this is going to be off the wall.
Crazy.
They've hacked into a high securitything like a La war games, whereas
that's the whole plot for war games.
But here it's just like alittle footnote of we see them,
you know, we need more power.
They go to a station and stuff like that.
It's Frankenstein, it's war games, andit all happens in like a 32nd clip.
There is music and there's cuesthat go into this that say.

(30:49):
We're not taking this seriously

Katie (30:51):
Right,

and we are all in on it as an audience.
So, no, I think there's something thatyou said if you make a drama movie
where it's like I'm in love with a15-year-old boy or something like that.
Now we're having a different time.
But from the get go lingo bingo said,you shouldn't take this seriously.
You know, I mean the music,everything is, is done to say that
we're here for humor and giventhat it is all ridiculous, it is.

(31:15):
It is poking fun at the teenagemale fantasy of what if you did
get everything you wanted andwe're remarkably simple creatures?
And then that's funny.
That's a funny thing.
And it's own right.
Eight.

Chad (31:28):
I did appreciate the contrast though.
That was when they're designing Lisa andthey talk about chess size and they go
on the smaller side, but then you getRobert Downey Junior's and the first
thing they're, they say is large breasts.
Large breasts, blow it up.
And that hacking scene we did, wecovered hackers a couple years ago.
It made hackers look
futuristic for hacking.

(31:49):
This

Yeah,

Chad (31:50):
they're, they're playing some little spiral tunnel game.
There's no internet, like
none of this is possible.

it

Katie (31:57):
thought the graphics were pretty good for 1985 though, I, I,
I really enjoyed it, including likethe, the like lightning magic effect.
That's so eighties.
Yeah.
I love it.
I love it.
Now, I as a person who does not havegiant breasts really appreciated
even as a kid the contrast.

(32:17):
Wyatt Gary choose they say somethingabout, now here's also where the,
the edit for TV comes into play.
They say something aboutanything more than a
handful is risking
a,

thumb.

Katie (32:30):
tongue.

Chad (32:31):
Mm-hmm.

other thumb.
Yeah.
Yeah.

Katie (32:34):
Either way.
And, and I was like.
A great, I appreciate that.
But the, the TV version saysthey don't say a sprained tongue
'cause that's inappropriate.
They say a waste, like anythingmore than a handful is a
waste or something like that.

Chad (32:51):
Okay.
Yeah.

Katie (32:52):
I was like, Hey, I like that.
And then whoever, if it wasJohn or somebody else, must also
feel the same way about breasts.
Because when Robert Downey Jr.
And the guy who plays Max, who's superhot they're like all bigger boobs.
Bigger boobs.
And then they say the, I don't knowif it was white or Gary says something
about, oh, you like him on, on the knees.

(33:14):
Like meaning oh, just giveher a few years and they'll be
down on her knees if you choose
somebody that

Yeah.

Katie (33:20):
a gigantic.
So I was like, ah, atta boy.

There are people who pull off every beauty at every figure height.
And I mean, so it's it's sexinessis not just some specific
dimensions that go into a computer.
So, but

Katie (33:38):
Yeah, but the point for this is like you said, this is a
15-year-old boy's fantasy.

yeah,

Katie (33:44):
What would your woman look Like,
You know what I
mean?

but back to what Chad said, a lot of it's her attitude.
She's remarkably confident patient.
She's not like demanding like she'spushing them to make them better.
There's a mentorship quality.
She, Kelly Lebr said, I'mlike Mary Poppins with boobs.

Katie (34:01):
Yes.
yes.

think that something we've all been touching
on of like why this movie works.
She's helping them grow.
Ultimately they end up getting thegirlfriends that they wanted, they
had no possibility of achievingand they didn't have it within
themselves to obtain that level.
And she's not only helped give themthe handicap, the head start, maybe
even run half the race for them, but.

(34:22):
She's also helped them grow towhere that they can now do this.

Chad (34:27):
that's,

Katie (34:27):
The self-confidence.
Yep.

Chad (34:29):
That's definitely the thing that rings true, at
least for teenage boy status.
I certainly wasn't inthe Robert Downey Jr.
And, and Max Club.
So I was that awkward guy that

Oh yeah.

Chad (34:40):
somebody to inspire confidence.
And part of the fantasy is, okay,this, this beautiful, sweet girl is
with a jerk, and I knew how to talk toher, maybe I could be her boyfriend.
That's, that's more of the fantasythat this approaches it from, and
it's relatable for somebody likeme of seeing these, these jerks.

(35:01):
But they're really good looking andthey're confident they come to the
realization at the end, oh, Wyatt andGary are willing to stick up for us.
They're willing to take on these wildeighties plot points of biker threats,

Katie (35:15):
Oh, we will get, we'll get there.
Oh my God.
Yeah.
She also teaches them that youwant people to like you for who you
are, not what you can give them.
we see those things throughoutthe movie that she kind of tries
to impart on them, pay off later.
But just to finish the conversationabout Kelly Lerock, I thought

(35:36):
she was really good in this.
Like she's not known, likeshe didn't do a whole lot.
but Kelly Lerock.
It's probably most known for this in,in her trademark, in addition to her
pouty lips and big hair is her accent.
she was born in New York, but raisedin London, which gives her this
kind of combination of a London,but also trans-Atlantic accent that

(36:00):
nobody has that accent that she has.

Chad (36:02):
Yeah.

Katie (36:02):
It's very specific to her.
Now she is the daughter of a FrenchCanadian father and an Irish mother began
as a model, lots of magazine covers.
And she became one of EileenFord's most sought after models.
She did a few things before this, not bigthings, but then she appeared in hard to
kill with her then husband Steven Segal.

(36:24):
So, I have no idea why I, this is stillvery perplexing to me that she ever
married Steven Segal and proceededto have three children with him.

Chad (36:33):
I am so glad you went there.
I didn't know if you were saying,I have no idea why she was in hard
to kill or married Steven Segal.
I'm

Katie (36:38):
Seriously.
Seriously what Kelly?
Kelly look at you andthen look at Steven Senal.
Now here is a little crossoverwith our Willy Wonka episode.
When she lost her father, her actingmentor, Jean Wilder became her
surrogate father, and they remainedclose friends until his death in 2016.

(36:59):
Did you
guys know that?

Chad (37:00):
didn't.

And they're in a movie as well, right?
Woman in red.

Katie (37:04):
Yes.
Yeah.
Oh, I didn't realize.
I've not seen that.
But yeah, that was one of her
earlier roles.
Okay, that makes sense then.

So she had just done that before this, with those two connect there.
So

Chad (37:15):
Okay.

Katie (37:16):
Good

great.

Chad (37:17):
bit

Jean's, great.

Chad (37:19):
She

Katie (37:19):
He really is.

Chad (37:20):
comedy really well, so.

Katie (37:22):
Mm-hmm.

So Kelly Lerock also came in late.
Kelly Emberg had the original cast.
By the way, like she's likeon the Sports Illustrated
swimsuit issue in the eighties.
She's a model.
She's beautiful in her own right.
And actually if you showed me likephotos of both of them, I would say
there's no need to recast anybody.
To Chad's point, it wasn't working.
They had, they threw outwork that they had done.

(37:46):
Much like when you coverback to the future.
Michael J.
Fox didn't have the original castingand they threw away weeks of work.
They threw away 'cause it wasn't working.
And they went back and they got Michael J.
Fox and it worked.
Similar deal here, maybe a littlebit less dramatic than having
that much budget thrown in thegarbage, but still a big deal.
And then they went back.

(38:07):
They had considered her, but shedidn't necess, she wasn't really
sure she wanted, so she waslike with the sting at the time.
I think she was mentioning like justhaving a good time on the French Riviera.

Katie (38:14):
yeah.
Yeah.

So
um.

Chad (38:17):
horses.
Yep.

So they come back and get her, and we talked
about Anthony Michael Hall.
This movie doesn't work.
This movie also clearly wouldn'thave worked with the wrong
person in the wrong chemistry.
So again, that calm, cool attitudethat I think being British
helps certain in the role.

Chad (38:34):
Yes.

Katie (38:35):
Mm-hmm.

Emberg.
Kelly Berg's super pretty,but she's also not British.
I mean, there's just the making surethat you get all these things cast
perfectly is a big part of why we're stilltalking about this 40 years from now.
And it's not just coveredin the sands at times.
So Hughes also has a good point.
Like he knew something wasn't workingand Kelly was the missing ingredient

(38:57):
to, to come back and do this.

Katie (38:59):
The casting was really good.

Yeah,

Katie (39:01):
All around, since we're on the topic of the casting for
Lisa, to me, Moore and Robin Wrightalso auditioned for the part.

Chad (39:11):
I saw that, and I cannot imagine Robin Wright maybe to me more, but Robin
Wright you've got Princess Bride likesomewhat close in, in range to this.

Katie (39:22):
Mm-hmm.

Chad (39:23):
That just doesn't, it doesn't match in
my brain.

there's probably other people who could have done it.

Katie (39:30):
but Kelly Lerock her look, her accent, , her just
Aura Kelly Lerock was perfect.
Lisa?
I think so.
I really, very glad.
That they risked the three weeks thatthey filmed with the other Kelly.
But yes, you guys Bill Paxton,

Chad (39:51):
Oh man.

Katie (39:53):
Chet, what a character.
He, he made a side character,one of the most memorable
characters in movie history.
It's just amazing.

Again, exaggeration.
So important you have abad bully military brother.
You could write that on paper,

Katie (40:16):
Mm-hmm.

but Paxton dialing it up to 11 is what makes this all work.
He's so funny because.
He's awful.
Like you hate him.
Like you, you have to hate him.
But he's full of exaggerationand absurdity in his own right.
He's full of nothing but problems.
So, I mean,

Chad (40:36):
Yeah.

but so,

Katie (40:39):
sakes, cover yourself.

oh, that was, that was so funny.
You know, with the gun in people'sfaces, like in the morning and you
know, hitting people and like takinghis allowance and, you know, I'm
gonna tell mom and dad everything.
I'm even thinking of my,make some stuff up too.
He's great and it's fun is when youhear the actors talk about Bill.
He wasn't that guy at all.

(41:02):
Makes it even better.
Bill was a pretty super cool dude and allthe young actors really appreciated him.
He was not overbearing and tellingthem what to do, but he was valuable
to them as a mentor on the set.
Bill was a fun guy to bearound and people liked.
So, and it's fun when you can seesomebody who's so not that turn into
somebody who's, you know, he must havemet somebody in his lifetime who, who

(41:27):
then he is able to channel into this thingthis, this moment of, I really don't like
you and anything about you and how youtreat people and walk through the world.
And then through the beauty of giftof comedy and acting, he's able to
transform that into this thing thatcan bring joy to so many people.

Katie (41:47):
Like with the cigar and everything.
That was very specific, you know.

Chad (41:51):
John Hughes has had some sibling trauma or something.
I don't know if he has an older brother,but like Buzz and home alone, I feel like

Katie (41:58):
Good

Yeah.

Chad (42:00):
And I, I, I just have a younger sister, so hopefully
I wasn't the che in her life.
But yeah, he's a ridiculous caricature.
But you see these in eighties movies,we have these stereotype bully older
siblings, and Bill Paxton is just,he's despicable in the best kinda way.

(42:20):
I, I loved it.
And the senior referencingwhere Whyt shows up and.
Kelly's underwear and, and thelike halter top or whatever
it was, the cutoff t-shirt.
And are you wearing women's underwear?
Mm,

Katie (42:34):
Underpants,

Chad (42:35):
yeah.

Katie (42:35):
just the way he speaks.
I think the vast majority of my laughout loud moments were Chet lines.
And part of it is like nostalgiafor I literally wrote in my
notes a couple of his insults.
He says, but wa, he calls him butt wad.
He calls him Dick Weed andhe calls him monkey dick.

(42:56):
I just, I don't know why,because we don't say those like
we have different insults now.
And it just, it brought back memoriesof the eighties and just his laugh.
the way he laughs everything about it.
things too that John very John Hughey.
Can you guys think of anothermovie that John Hughes wrote where
there's a character named Chet

Hmm.
Cross reference.

Chad (43:21):
It's not coming to me.

Katie (43:24):
the
Great Outdoors,

Okay.

Chad (43:26):
Okay.

Yeah,

Katie (43:27):
Chet.

I have seen it.
Yeah.

Katie (43:29):
Yep.
And this is the first of two movies wherebill Paxton has a brother named Wyatt.
What was the other one?

Tombstone,

Katie (43:40):
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
W Earp.

Chad (43:43):
Makes sense.
Yeah.

I.

Katie (43:46):
I always liked, as a little kid, I always thought that the girls.
Deb and Hilly so cool and so pretty.
They're very eighties, like their hairand their makeup and their outfits.
I just loved them.
Neither of them are like super well known,but Deb is played by Suzanne Snyder.
The other things that shewas in, she played another

(44:06):
Debbie in Killer Clowns from Outspace.

That's Chad's Jam.
That's his movie.

Katie (44:11):
I've never seen it.
Did you recognize her?

Chad (44:14):
it.
No, no.
But that is a movie that somehow getsso much mileage out of one clown joke.
Like you would think itwould get really old.
I'm gonna get this on the show one day.
Russell's gonna suffer, but

Katie (44:26):
And it's clowns with a K, right?

Chad (44:29):
it, yes, yes it is.

Katie (44:31):
Mm-hmm.

Chad (44:31):
One more K.
And it's problematic,

Katie (44:33):
Yeah.
Yep.
Yep.
Don't do that.
She was in fools, rushed in.
I can't picture who she was in that returnof the living Dead too and nothing else.
I really like.
That's, that's about it.
And Hilly is played by.
Judy Aronson, and she was in threeepisodes of Beverly Hills N oh two one oh.

(44:54):
Friday the 13th, the final chapter, andAmerican Ninja, saw a picture of her.
She looks really good now.
Like she aged very well.
The, the woman who played hilly.

Chad (45:05):
I've seen all of these horror movie references, but I can't place them.

Katie (45:08):
Yeah,

Chad (45:09):
you know, somebody that's disposable body number three or

Katie (45:13):
yeah, yeah.
That's, yep.
This is before Robert Downey Jr.
Was Robert Downey Jr.
But he plays Ian, one ofthe cool, popular guys.
I thought he did a great job in this.
What did you guys think ofRobert in one of his early roles?

Chad (45:30):
he did, and he just looks the part, I don't know how old he was here,
but he always looks slightly older than

Katie (45:37):
Mm-hmm.

Chad (45:38):
this time period.
He still has that charm.
I wish I had half of

Katie (45:42):
He is charming, isn't he?

Chad (45:45):
Like even when he's being a terrible human being, he's got that slick
manner of speaking and I, I was stunnedthat he had that energy as a teenager.
But yeah,

Katie (45:56):
I suspect he was in his twenties.
I he and the guy whoplayed Max Robert Wrestler,
They both looked o considerably

They are older

Katie (46:04):
Yeah, I didn't look, but I thought they were a great pair.
Their duo was really fun.
Like it's that stereotypicalcool, good looking guy.
They're too cool for school.
They have the prettygirls, they're dickheads.
really good looking.
I always thought growing up theywere both incredibly good looking.
was a big fan of Max.

(46:27):
Like I still watching this.
I'm like, that, that man is
attractive.
Right.

that

Chad (46:33):
fair.

Robert wrestler's the one that I thought made sense.
This I might not be a popular.
Choice here, but if I, on our show wehave a recast category if you were going
to recast somebody else and put somebodyelse in the place, Robert Downey Jr.
Might be one of the peopleI, I considered because

Katie (46:48):
Oh,

think, I think Robert Downey Jr.
At his heart and when you talk to himand stuff like that, is probably more
akin to play the goofy side of this.
He's too old, he's five years olderthan Anthony, Michael Hall, I believe
So, to be in those positions, but Ithink where you want him in this movie
is closer to, in the main two boys.
I didn't buy him as this jerk as much.

(47:10):
I'd like somebody to be a little morephysically imposing and, you know,

Katie (47:13):
Hmm.

I, I mean, I, I, I wanted,

Chad (47:16):
were different.
That's
how he was traumatized.

yeah.

Katie (47:19):
I thought Robert, Robert Wrestler as Max looked like he was 30.
Like he looked like a straight up
adult man.
You know?

He's born in 65 and Anthony Michael Hall was born in 68 and

Katie (47:31):
Okay.

Lin mentioned Smith's 69.
So there's not a huge, hugedifference between them.
They're just, there are somephysical differences between these
human beings as there can be,
but
I just thought, Ithought Robert Downey Jr.
Seemed like the cool, new wavekid who didn't care as much.
And I think maybe having somebody
a little more jock I'm gonna throwthe trash can and laugh at it with

(47:54):
my football buddies might've beenwhere my head was going with it.

Chad (47:57):
a Letterman jacket.

I thought.
So that's just where.

Katie (48:00):
on the nose, man.
I don't know.
These two, I, you know, that's fair.
Russell, I think I just grew up,I literally started watching this
movie when I was very young and Igrew up with those two, so I can't
see anything else, but that's fair.

Chad (48:17):
Our bullies were bigger, or at least in our minds, like they were.
They were much taller.

Katie (48:23):
Now Robert Wrestler, you guys familiar with him?
Know who he is from anything?
Yeah, same.
He is super dreamy.
I did look him up.
He was like a semi-professional surferand skateboarder when he was young.

Chad (48:38):
checks out.

Katie (48:39):
Yeah.
So he, they moved to LA and
he,
began martial
arts

Isn't he,

Katie (48:44):
and

isn't he in one of your favorite franchises though, Chad?
He's, he is in, he's anightmare of El Street, right?
The the two.

Katie (48:52):
oh, was he,

Chad (48:53):
Mm-hmm.

Which I know I, I saw Chad wins.
He doesn't like NightmareOn On Street too.
I was being facetious.

Chad (49:00):
I, I, I do not, yeah, it it breaks all the rules.

Katie (49:04):
it?
Okay.
Well, he did get the acting bug.
I don't, I, he never becamelike super famous, but.
In addition to The Nightmare on ElmStreet credits, one of my recent favorite
shows is Ray Donovan, and he was in threeepisodes of that as a character named Gus.
And now I'm gonna have to go backand find out who the heck Gus was.

(49:28):
He also plays Tim Outside's TV series.

Chad (49:34):
There's, I had no idea that was a

Katie (49:36):
Yeah.
this weird science wasactually his second, his only,
his second acting credit.
The very first one was he was intwo episodes of The Facts of Life.
Now I have to find outwho he was in that too.
So that's Robert Wrestler, you guys,

Chad (49:53):
Alright.
Still, is he still dreamy?
Is he's.

Katie (49:56):
I didn't, I didn't look him up.
But his IMDV photo, however recentthat is, he looks pretty good to me.
So I don't know how recent that is.

Chad (50:05):
I mean, Robert Downey Jr.
Is still stunningly handsome.

Katie (50:08):
point.
good point.
I absolutely adored the scene whenthey go to talk to Gary's parents

Chad (50:17):
oh, yes, Lisa.
Yeah.

Katie (50:19):
Gary's dad, Hal is played by Britt Leach and he, do you guys
know what other John Hughes movie?
He was
in

No,

Chad (50:28):
I'm failing at all these.

Katie (50:31):
the Great
Outdoors also

I need to brush up on my cast list for the great outdoors.
You know, the Great Outdoors isnot my favorite John Hughes movie.
I liked it when I was a kid, but I don'tfeel like it ages as well as you grow up.
Like I feel like it's, it'sreally solid when you're young.
It just doesn't have next level.
Oh, no.
Yeah.

Katie (50:48):
Yeah.
But yeah, we already covered theGreat Outdoors on Retro Made.
So yeah, we, we talked aboutsome of these characters.
I did also see that this Brit Leach was inthree episodes of three's company playing
three different people each episode.
He was a different person.
You know how they used to do that?

Chad (51:03):
Oh, yeah.

Katie (51:03):
Yeah, yeah.
what do you guys think about that scene?

Chad (51:07):
I, that's my favorite scene.
I, I absolutely love thisis the absurdist humor.
At the highest point, Lisa pulls agun, but before any of that happens,
the mom, I didn't write down hername, but she is just fantastic.
She, she's so nervous and she's soconservative and oh, my, and everything.

(51:31):
Gary's a good boy, and then Lisa'sjust, just deserves a party and Gary's
just shrinking into the couch, tryingdesperately to just stop existing and,

Katie (51:43):
After she tells them that he tosses off in the
bathroom and then the mom
is oh,

I never

Katie (51:48):
Gary,

I never

Chad (51:48):
Yeah.

do.
I'm telling you,

Chad (51:51):
Is that why we

oh,

Chad (51:52):
have

Gary,

Chad (51:53):
Yeah.

Katie (51:54):
I never mom,

Chad (51:55):
Uhhuh.

That was pretty funny.

Katie (51:58):
don't threaten me.
Ow
you are outta shape.

I love how she can just wipe his memory like Min black style
and then like he can't remember later.
And that's a great reoccurring joke ofI don't know who you're talking about.

Katie (52:12):
Even in the like, final scene, even in the final scene after they're taking
the girls home and the, what was Gary
Driving?
The red Ferrari.

Yeah.

Katie (52:22):
in the car and she's like, well look, that's scary.
Who's this Gary character?
I love it.
The great gag throughout the

He got so fed up with, he was like,
I
don't know.
No, no.
And I want you to shut that up.

Katie (52:39):
They looked like they were like 65, like were, did parents look like
that in the eighties?

I don't

Chad (52:47):
like it, my mom has somehow gotten younger

Katie (52:49):
Mm-hmm.

Chad (52:50):
as she's gotten older, get out of those eighties big hairstyles
and the perms and everything else.
And once she, they startletting their hair down.
Okay.
Alright.
Now we can have, there's beeninternet memes all over the place.
If this is what somebody lookedlike in their fifties in 1980,

Katie (53:07):
Mm-hmm.

Chad (53:08):
to me more.
Okay.

Katie (53:10):
Yeah.
Yeah, yeah.
Have you guys seen the one ofAlice from the Brady Bunch?
They just put a differenthairstyle on her and
she looks massively different.

Wow.

Katie (53:21):
I think it's the hair.

Chad (53:22):
it is.

Katie (53:23):
Well, yeah.
now we're gonna talk abouta couple of the bikers.
I mean this movie's just Wild, Lisa, totry and help these guys gain confidence,
conjures up these mutant bikers tocome so that they can be brave and
kind of bring that out in these two.
I don't think they ever saidhis name, but the credit is Lord

(53:46):
General, the biker gang leader.
He's played by Vernon Wells, so he's thebald guy that has the gun and the chained
to him by the neck, like a woman that
is somehow like a slave or something.

Mm-hmm.

Katie (54:00):
I mean, this scene is just wild.
But I am very unfamiliar
with the road warrior, like

Oh,

Katie (54:09):
Max.

Yeah.
I've only seen the first one actually,but there's this channeling Mad Max.
A hundred percent.
Mm-hmm.

Katie (54:15):
I guess, well, he was in that, he basically plays the same character.
Apparently he wears the same makeupmohawk mesh tank top studded leather.
He's Australian, obviously.
'cause of the way, you can't even take ashower with a lady wearing y'all jeans.
I just loved it.

(54:35):
It was funny.
But he was also in commando andhe has over 250 acting credits.
This Vernon
Wells?

Chad (54:45):
I

Berryman's, the one that stands out to me.
The,
the,

Chad (54:48):
gonna

the bald head

Chad (54:49):
franchise.

Katie (54:50):
Yeah, it's, so, the, the mutant biker, the, there's something
I forget the name of it, but there'sa condition that he has that makes
him Michael Berryman, the actor.
Look, look that way.
The bald biker that refers to histeaching career as he's leaving.
So how do you guys know him?

Hills Have Eyes is the one, yeah, that's the one that I know him from.
Seventies.
Seventies Hills.
Eye of Eyes.
So that's a good bit before this.
He has that face that.
You don't forget it.
So you'll know him right again, but tohear him speak was pretty funny, to have
that disarming if you could just not tellanybody about this, I'd appreciate that.
I, I hate for it to get inthe way of my teaching job.
I mean, that,

(55:27):
that
was the best laugh of the mutant stuff.
And again, this movieis absurdist that movie.
There's other times in other movies wherethat's too much and you've gone too far.
But because this is the movie,you've already thrown a nuclear
missile going up through the house.
We've created a woman with brasson her head you can go downtown to
an all, African American drinkingestablishment and yeah, sure.

(55:50):
Let's throw mutant bikers in there too.
It doesn't, it's, it's nota challenge in the reality.

Chad (55:56):
Candy Bar is a great name for a bar too.
I enjoyed that.

Katie (56:00):
is.
Just to tie the tie up, MichaelBerryman, he, I, again, I don't
think I've seen one, flew over to the
Cuckoo's Nest, but he's in that too.

Oh, that's a great movie.

Katie (56:10):
Do you guys remember who he is in that?

Gosh, we covered that a long time ago.
It was in our first season.
In fact, Chad, I don't,

Chad (56:17):
just, I don't remember him being an important role, so
he is probably just one of the
background

Katie (56:22):
yeah,

Chad (56:22):
patients.

yeah,

Katie (56:24):
I did find the condition.
So he has over 114 actingcredits, which is wild.
Because he, he looks veryspecific and it's a rare
condition called hypo hydrotic,
epidermal dysplasia,

glad you said it.
Not me.

Katie (56:40):
yeah.
We'll see if anybody is aware of this,if I pronounced it correctly, no sweat,
clans, hair, fingernails, or teeth.
That's what, yeah.
Interesting.

Chad (56:51):
the

Katie (56:51):
Mm-hmm.

Chad (56:51):
Yeah.

Didn't know about the
teeth.

Katie (56:53):
But yeah.
Do you, did you guys recognizethe guy from the candy bar?
The white man from the candy bar, Dino,
had the hat on.

No.

Katie (57:04):
he's also from John Hughes movies.
Two of
them.

John Hughes definitely goes back to his people.
Yeah.
I mean, John Hughes, definitely.

Chad (57:12):
we should say the Great Outdoors,

Yeah.
He's like, he's likethe, he's like the Judd
Aal before his time.
He gets his people and he keeps comingback to them over and over and over again.
And what?

Chad (57:21):
Yes.

Katie (57:22):
the actor's name is John Capos.

Okay.

Katie (57:24):
Is that helping you at all?
He played Carl the janitor in the

Breakfast Club.
Breakfast Club,
it's very different.

Katie (57:33):
Yes.
And also in 16 candles.
He plays the sister's husband,like she's getting married.
That's who she, that's who he is.
Yeah.
Yeah, so we have IRA Newborn here.
He did the music, but he's donea ton of John Hughes movies.
Like they collaborate often together,16 Candles, Ferris Bueller, plane

(57:54):
trains, automobiles, uncle Buck,et cetera, et cetera, et cetera.
But to your point, Russell, that maintheme song is done by Pop Groupo Boingo.
Right.
Which was

Mm-hmm.

Katie (58:05):
I really liked It

it.

Chad (58:07):
Danny
Elman say it was the worstthing he's ever done?

he did.
But I mean, it's, it's not that it's okay.
So if you just said, here, listento this song, you do not put it in
your ears and say, this is part ofthe all time best 1985 soundtrack,
but it's attached to this movie andit's the right thing for this movie.
This movie is absurd.
You must have an absurd piece of music.
So, I mean, I.

(58:31):
If you were to say what movie, what songdidn't get in here from the eighties,
and I don't know if it had been madeyet, blinded me with science would've
been a fun thing to have gotten in here.
Um,

Katie (58:40):
Call.

Chad (58:41):
Yeah.

also pretty absurd, but you know, we're having fun with it.

Katie (58:45):
Yeah, good call.
So this movie was successful.
It had a budget of $7.5
million and it made 38.9
at the box office.
So that's pretty good, I would say.

I love that comedies do well in the eighties.
It makes me really happy.
It's comedies are my favorite genre andthey're not being pushed hard right now.

Katie (59:05):
No, it's hard to come by.
I agree.
Can you guys think of othermemorable lines from this movie?

of 'em.
There are so many great lines in this one.
I, like I mentioned, like I'mgonna tell mom and dad everything.
I'm even thinking aboutmaking some stuff up.
I I, I definitely like that.
You know, the so what do youlittle maniacs want to do?
First is

Katie (59:25):
of my

like, That's just what,
if you say weird science,I think of her saying that.

Katie (59:32):
So, so what would your little maniacs like to do first?
Yeah, love it.

Chad (59:38):
I just appreciated the fourth wall break when

Katie (59:40):
Ooh, good call.

Chad (59:41):
think it was Chet that says, the next thing you know, you'll be
wearing a bra on your head and why?
It just looks so.

Katie (59:46):
They do.
Look at the, even at the end, I likedthe you know, this, this is gonna
spoil the movie in case you guyshaven't seen it this whole 40 years.
But at the end, wepanned to a gym teacher.
We don't see who it is yet, but we pan upthis super, super eighties cool outfit,

(01:00:08):
there's a, the gym teacher's twirlingthe whistle and, oh, look, it's Lisa,
and she looks at the camera and winks.

Chad (01:00:16):
Mm-hmm.
Fantastic.

Katie (01:00:18):
Mm-hmm.

Russell Guest (01:00:19):
Great advantage, by the way.

Katie (01:00:21):
Great.
What?

Finish

Katie (01:00:24):
Yeah, agreed.
But getting back to the favorite linesI liked Chet's insults and I liked,
like after Chet turns into that.
Weird
mom.
What was he supposed to be by,

like a frog, like a really ugly frog, like a.

Chad (01:00:40):
some kind of job of the hut

Katie (01:00:42):
Jo.
Yeah.
Weird, weird creature that Chet was.
When Gary and Wyatt come back andsee him that way, Wyatt's like,
you gotta, you, we can't have this.
It had ruined Christmas.

That is good.

Katie (01:00:56):
it was funny.

You brought up one of my other favorites with the don't
you think of how incredibly sad yourson's only sexual outlet is tossing
off to magazines in the bathroom.
Oh, Gary

Katie (01:01:07):
Gary

Ma.
I never toss it off to anything.

Katie (01:01:13):
and then she's like, we're going to a party.
A movie A movie party.
You know, your standard, how, howshe says it like in such quick
succession, like chips, dips, whips.
Change, you know, like just a, youknow, a couple hundred teenagers
having an orgy or something like that.
And then they're like, oh
my God,

I like the

Katie (01:01:33):
a joint.
I think even on the couch too.

Chad (01:01:37):
something like that.
It.

I, I like the.

Chad (01:01:40):
line for me with Gary, like Wyatt's to bring them back.
And Gary says, why are you
messing with the fantasy?
we

That is good.

Chad (01:01:48):
about the reality.

I like,

Katie (01:01:50):
Mm-hmm.

like his grandma, Carmen being in the restaurant, it's like,
let's go in and check on Wyatt becauseif there's anything a teenage boy
has about most, it's his grandparents.
And I just thought that thought.

Katie (01:02:05):
So many, I thought it was actually pretty sweet towards the
end too, when the boys get thegirls and Gary is having to kind of,
Tell Deb, no, I really like you.
'cause she's like, but Lisa look at her.
And he's like, yeah, yeah.
Lisa's everything I wanted in agirl before I knew what I wanted.

(01:02:28):
If I could do it again,I'd make her like you.
And I thought that was sweet.

Chad (01:02:33):
that

Katie (01:02:33):
it's true, like very typical.
Like they created what a typical teenageboy dreams about, but in reality,
they actually want somebody more likethem, like more realistic, like Deb
know, not the perfect looking woman.

Chad (01:02:51):
Yeah, they're, they're feeding everything into, I, it wasn't
even a scanner, it was like a fax

Katie (01:02:56):
Yeah.
Yeah.

Chad (01:02:58):
feeding in all these magazine clippings, the picture of Albert Einstein.
'cause nobody else is smart, Iguess they dial up the all the
intelligence and everything.
That was an interesting way of doing it.
I was, I was telling Katiebefore I came on the show,
was accustomed to the TV show.
Like I got to that before.
So the theme song stuck in my head.

(01:03:19):
That was what they opened the TV show.

Katie (01:03:22):
It was the same theme song, Chad.

Chad (01:03:24):
Mm-hmm.

Katie (01:03:24):
Oh, I see.
I never saw the TV show.
I did like that there was anotherimaginary Canadian girlfriend
that Anthony Michael Hall has.
So he had one in breakfast club.
He has one here.
Yeah.
about your girl up in Canada?
And then he talks about hershe kicked me in the nuts man.
At the, the bar in Chicago.

Chad (01:03:45):
Yes.
Yeah.
And all the people are in the jewels or

Katie (01:03:49):
Yeah.
Yeah.
They're like

Chad (01:03:51):
Yeah.

Katie (01:03:51):
really buying into this story.
So Lisa was made from a Barbie doll drivesa pink convertible just like Barbie.

Russell Guest 2 (01:04:00):
You mentioned how they were kind of guiding you to be
with somebody that was more like you
you know, she was mentoring themto be with the girls their age.
I remember when I was watching thisfirst, I was still, you know, I don't
know, I, I was 16 or something when I sawthis, and I actually did as, as a kid.
It's funny you keep talking aboutlike Kelly Lerock being like the,

(01:04:22):
you know, I thought, I thoughtDeb was like, kind of was, I was

Chad (01:04:25):
Mm-hmm.

eh, I think she's cute.
So you know, when I first saw itI remember being kind of smitten
with the two girls that theywere setting them up with, know.
Just, that's whateverwavelength I was on at the time.

Katie (01:04:38):
Which makes sense.
When you're a kid, you're probablynot attracted to an adult yet.
You know what I mean?
Because Kelly was likea, you know what I mean?

Chad (01:04:46):
15-year-old boys, that's yeah.

I mean, at the same time, I just,

Katie (01:04:49):
oh, I thought you were saying when you were like 10 or
whatever, watching this as opposed to

it when I was 16, but yeah, like

Katie (01:04:56):
Oh, okay.

I, I was probably in high school by the time I took
this one in, but I remember thinking.
I liked them at the time, and KellyBrock was one of those things.
It's so eighties, it hadchanged a little bit.
had to go away from it and comeback to it because when I was in
high school, the eighties seemedpretty, pretty removed at that.
I mean, like it, she'svery eighties and I think

Katie (01:05:20):
Mm-hmm.

wardrobes.
So like she's extremely cool for the time.
And then

Katie (01:05:25):
Oh, particularly with the wardrobe, her outfits were amazing.

Chad (01:05:31):
Yeah,

Katie (01:05:31):
eighties, like for the eighties, they were really awesome.

so when I probably took that in, probably give or take
around maybe the year or 2000 orsomething like that, you know, that
that was like super dated at that point.
So,

Katie (01:05:46):
I guess I would argue that her, her actual looks she had big hair and
stuff, but her makeup was very classic.
Whereas Deb and Hilly hadreally eighties makeup.
Like I thought they, and their outfitswere really like, and their hair.
I thought Deb and Hilly looked more dated.
But I see your point.
I see your point.
I was just about to ask you guysabout the gymnastics in this.

(01:06:09):
There have been several eightiesmovies in high school where they
showcase a gymnastics team ordoing gymnastics in gym class.
That was certainly nevera thing at my high school.
Was that a thing where you guys grew up?
I don't.
I assume it's regional, but gymnastics.

baseline like we didn't have anything fancy at gym time, so.

Chad (01:06:31):
see.
It was for us, uh uh, Mary Lou Ruttenis from West Virginia, so there
was a big push of Mary Lou Rutten'sfitness and a big push of gymnastics.
So yeah, that's, that stuck with me.
Now, we didn't have anyof the nice equipment.
We didn't have poel horses or gymnasticsteams or anything, but there was a

(01:06:51):
fitness challenge and it was like a.
West Virginia pride type thing.
So

Katie (01:06:56):
Well, that makes sense if she's from there.
But I don't know, like in Footloose,he joins the gymnastics team.
There's a team that competes like,just like football and basketball.
There's a gymnastics team in alot of these eighties movies.
And I'm like, I don't know, man.
Is that just in movies?

didn't,

Katie (01:07:13):
never

didn't have a

Chad (01:07:14):
bring it on.

I don't think.
I don't know.
I just, I don't remember it being.

Chad (01:07:20):
No, our high school definitely didn't, but other
things have blown up too.
Like lacrosse is everywhereand we didn't have lacrosse.

Katie (01:07:27):
Yeah.
Saying, yeah, that's a good point.
Good point.
So you think it might'vejust been like a time, like a

Chad (01:07:32):
could

Katie (01:07:33):
eighties thing?

Chad (01:07:33):
it could be trends or something

Katie (01:07:35):
Yeah.

Chad (01:07:35):
I don't know,

The Hughes universe takes place in Chicago where there's way more

Katie (01:07:40):
Yep.

and way more funds in their schools than Chad and I
grew up in West Virginia and ourschool graduating class was probably
somewhere around, I dunno how big

Chad (01:07:50):
222.

Chad.
So it's a very small high schooland we didn't even have a ninth
grade in our high school mostof the time that we were there.
So, I mean,

Katie (01:07:57):
oh wow.

didn't we, we did not have.

Chad (01:08:00):
way he phrased that is just like, we had no ninth grade now that we had
a junior high and then a high school.
It just, it was a differentorder than middle school and high

Katie (01:08:09):
Okay.
Yep.

Chad (01:08:10):
Russell just, we just didn't have a ninth grade.
It was West Virginia.

Katie (01:08:14):
I was like, oh.
So you go from eighth to 10.
That's so sweet.

Chad (01:08:17):
we can't count.

yeah, the high school

Katie (01:08:19):
No offense, but West Virginians are not, not known for their high IQs.

Chad (01:08:24):
we are not we

Katie (01:08:25):
Not you guys.
Not you guys.
I just, I'm teasing, teasing.
Because you know, there's ajoke, there's jokes about West
Virginia, Hey, I'm from Nebraska.
We're not much better, but like.

Chad (01:08:34):
is my wife's family.
Yeah.

Katie (01:08:35):
Tailing the number 46 of 50 state, you know, I assume
like in in education or whatnot.
Yeah.

Chad (01:08:42):
motto was, thank God for Mississippi.

Katie (01:08:45):
Yeah.
That's funny.
Yeah, that sounds about right.
Also, super eighties isVCRs as bribery payments.

Chad (01:08:55):
Oh yes.
Jets.

Katie (01:08:57):
What's it gonna cost me?
Your VCR ought to do it, ought tocover it, or something like that.

Chad (01:09:02):
like three, $400 and 1980s money too.
Like I can't imaginehow expensive that was.

Katie (01:09:09):
Mm-hmm.

they get up to dealing with 4 0 1 Ks at some point.
So, all of you're inyour retirement funds,

Katie (01:09:13):
one thing that didn't make me think twice when I was a kid, but watching it
yesterday, the deal that Max and Ian triedto make, it's like, you give us a crack at
Lisa and we'll let you have Deb and Hilly.
That's wild.

Chad (01:09:32):
that's gross.

Katie (01:09:33):
Yeah,

I know

Chad (01:09:35):
just gross all over them

who traded girlfriends in a very, you know, it,

Katie (01:09:39):
no.

Yeah.

Katie (01:09:43):
Oh, even in the two thousands.
Oh.

just two

Chad (01:09:46):
I, I don't think it was,

your

Chad (01:09:47):
I.

better.
Why don't we trade?
Without it just, and itit, it ended up happening.
They ended up dating each other'sgirlfriends or something like that.
I didn't have a girlfriend at the time.
I was closer to Garyand Wyatt in this movie.
So, I was sitting there goingyou guys are not being nice.

Chad (01:10:04):
But I mean at, at worst, like they, with Lisa referring to herself
as a sexpot or whatever, like that'snot, that's just gross in any nature.
You have all these you findinflatable dolls and stuff like
that in the woods, and occasionallyyou'll see pictures of that.
Nobody's, nobody's reusing that.

Katie (01:10:25):
Oh God.

Chad (01:10:26):
No.
That's so,

Katie (01:10:29):
Oh

Chad (01:10:29):
a,

Katie (01:10:29):
God.

Chad (01:10:30):
a creepy thought.

Katie (01:10:31):
It

Chad (01:10:31):
girlfriends too.
It's like, we'll let youhave our girlfriends.
No, Ask them.

thought it was one of those

Katie (01:10:37):
well,

things where nobody questions it.
There are two

Katie (01:10:40):
yeah,

a,

Katie (01:10:40):
maybe.

older girl and minus Gary's parents seeming
to have a real issue with it.
For the most part,there's not a lot of wait.
You're both sharing one girlfriend.
How's that work?
Nobody, nobody even stops to think

Katie (01:10:53):
Good

it.
Like it,

Katie (01:10:54):
point.

So you guys are with Lisa, then it's like, yep.
And there's just, it's one of thosethings where it's just one of those,
there's so much hand waving going on.
You can really get away with anenormous amount of stuff of like little
potholes and, and things in this.

Chad (01:11:07):
I guess.

I'm not saying that John Hughes wrote.
into it, but it's, it's reallyforgiving for those certain things.
'cause the more absurd it is,kind of the more it works.

Katie (01:11:19):
Yeah, I, and thank God for that because oddly enough, a lot of the stuff
like you said, because of the absurdnature of it, because of this, because
Lisa's kind of the Mary Poppins figure.
Like it's not gross.
Somehow even though they're like, well,Gary and Wyatt share her, but then Max
and Ian would like to also share her
and then per eighties, usual.

(01:11:40):
Just as soon as the parents are aboutto walk in the door, the house magically
comes back together in the nick of time.
It's, so that's an eighties trope,but I always love seeing it.

Chad (01:11:52):
Stuff sliding into place just as the door opens like
that that dresser or whatever

Katie (01:11:57):
Mm-hmm.

Chad (01:11:57):
end table.

Katie (01:11:58):
Mm-hmm.

back in the chimney, the piano going back together and yeah.

Katie (01:12:03):
Yeah.
Like they're outside and they'renot noticing the patio furniture
come back in do you guys haveany additional thoughts from the
interview that you shared, Russell?
It was probably like 40 minutes.
It was the 2019 Awesome con,and it was a reunion interview
of our three main characters.
Thank you for sharing that, by the way.

These things are always fun, and I think
this one in particular is fun.
We don't have John Hughes anymore, sowe don't get to hear him talk about it.
And so this is how the moviewill live on to hear from them.
they were so young and movie industryare not always so kind to younger actors.
Sometimes they end up being forcedto grow up too soon or they're not.

(01:12:42):
They're put into situationsthat they shouldn't.
I mean, you can look at all the tough,You know, teen acting experiences,
whether it be Corey Feldman or otherpeople who sometimes they get into
stuff they shouldn't and it's nota good world to really grow up in.
John was a pretty awesome dude.
He, he,

Katie (01:13:00):
Mm-hmm.

them to concerts, he cared about them, their careers.
He was a, of a big brother of sorts.
He's not old enough tonecessarily be their dad.
but there

Katie (01:13:11):
Mm-hmm.

a, a big brother mentality.
Now, and I don't mean like a che bigbrother, I mean a cool big brother.
you know, somebody who,

Katie (01:13:19):
Yeah.

about them, he wanted them to succeed.
He went back to Anthony,Michael Hall more than once.
Anthony Michael Hall wanted tobreak out of that teen geek role,
which was detrimental to his career.
And he should not have done, he shouldhave rode that train as long and hard
as he could have because his Saturdaynight life career was short and it
doesn't go great for him after that.
But John took care of hispeople and was tight with them.

(01:13:40):
He was really hurt when AnthonyMichael Hall didn't want to continue
working with him in the future.

Katie (01:13:46):
Yeah.

took things deeply personally, so he made
friends with these people eventhough they were younger than him.
And I don't mean that in a creepy Imean, he really was an advocate for them.
So, what I would say is it's coolto see how much he touched those
around him and was really, you know,a good leader for the film industry.

(01:14:07):
Cool to see what a good dude he wasand a leader for the film industry.
I think at one point they mentioned youwent on to work on other films, maybe
you got a look at what it should havebeen like or that, what it could be like.
And they did.
They all agreed that, you know,the way John as a director ran his
movie, his set, his cast, his crew

Katie (01:14:27):
Mm-hmm.

to a high standard and that was something that everybody
who was there enjoyed their time.
And that's not always the case.
So, when people like that who havean amazing gift, but they also
touch people beyond the screen.
John, he's a special dude, so I know thatyou've dedicated a whole season to him.
It helps an awful lot when thepeople who worked with him.

(01:14:48):
Their careers are made by them.
They appreciate them.
I kind of made the parallel tolike Judd Apatow, Judd Judd's, kind

Katie (01:14:55):
Mm-hmm.

He built these people's careers up and he comes back
to them again and again and appreciatesthem and cares about their success.
And there's something really specialabout how they as a group did that,
and John did that for his group too,whether it be Anthony, Michael Hall,
Molly Ringwald, or you know, just all

Katie (01:15:12):
Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm.
Yeah, those two in particularwere his muses and I think that
there was a falling out after.
So what about you, Chad?
Was there anything that you took away inparticular from the reunion interview?

Chad (01:15:26):
I felt a little bad because the interviewer starts
off on kind of a bad note

Katie (01:15:30):
Yeah.

Chad (01:15:31):
Hall responds.
He has this visceral response 'causeshe just frames it as this is creepy.
And explain yourselves and.
talks about it and he talks aboutthe environment and yeah, how you
probably can't do it now, but thatthere was no like creepy feeling
on the set at a different time.

(01:15:51):
He does talk about the showerscene and he, he just talks about
how they couldn't stop giggling.
Like they were just laughing andhaving fun and Kelly Le Rock's yeah,
I was there in pasties and it wasawkward 'cause we couldn't get them
to stop until put on aside and waslike, Hey, we gotta, we gotta move on.
But mentioned it earlier and justeveryone seemed to have fond memories.

(01:16:13):
There wasn't anyonecomplaining about hellish days.
There wasn't anyonecomplaining about getting.
Screamed at or berated.
The closest thing to itwas Robert Downey Jr.
And max,

Katie (01:16:26):
Mm-hmm.

Chad (01:16:26):
of them famously used the bathroom in a trailer.
And so John Hughes pulled thecast over and go, goes one by one
and says, was it you, was it you?
And Robert Downey Jr.
Says, I wish it was me.
And so, they, they got a talkingto, but even Robert Downey Jr.
After that incidentsaid, Hey, we got along.

(01:16:47):
We, we had a good relationship.
So, there was, there was a senseof professionalism and fun,

Katie (01:16:55):
Mm-hmm.

Chad (01:16:56):
all the stories, Kelly, Kelly Lerock just seemed to have a great time and
just have a fondness for the two boys.

really well by the

Katie (01:17:03):
She does well.
Some she's gone through, shelooked really good in that.
That was 2019.
And but she's had a fairamount of work done.
I, I can tell.
And you can definitely, 'cause shehad the most gorgeous lips naturally.
And now she's.
She has had some nip tucking, butalso, I can't stand it when women

(01:17:25):
put those fillers in their lips'cause it's such a fake look.
But she does, she looks like I hate to

Chad (01:17:30):
Boom.

Katie (01:17:31):
'cause I did whatever.
She does look lovely.

in it.
So that doesn't,

Katie (01:17:35):
Yes.
She's like, I don't looktoo bad for her grandma.

Chad (01:17:37):
Correct.

Katie (01:17:38):
did get a little heavy at one point because there was a show like Celebrity
Big Loser or something like that.
There was like a show that she was on.

know that.

Katie (01:17:47):
She got, you know, as happens, but I thought she
looked really lovely in that too.
I think the one thing that I thoughtwas really, well there were a lot
of great stories but I think Islandshared that the, there was a scene
when they were in the blue kitchen.
And it wasn't a particularly funny, likethey were just trying to do the scene and
John Hughes reaches over and grabs one ofthe blue potato chips, 'cause everything

(01:18:10):
in the kitchen was blue and ate it
and they were like, John, that'slike a spray painted chip.
And he's like, anything for a laugh.
Pointing to the fact that JohnHughes was you know, he wanted
to find humor in everything.
Mm-hmm.

think Michael Halls, I think, n wonderfully.
I think somebody at one pointcalled him a comedic genius.
He goes, I'm an out of work actor.
So,

Chad (01:18:33):
Yeah.

know, I think he know,

Katie (01:18:35):
Yeah.
He jokes about like a, like an awkwardphase on film, but he is like, Hey, the
checks are good or the checks keep coming.
Or something like,

Chad (01:18:42):
Yeah,

Katie (01:18:43):
yeah.

he,

Katie (01:18:44):
Mm-hmm.

he knows that he steered his career in a way or didn't make
that from young actor to adult actor.
So many haven't.
You know, I think he has agood, healthy attitude about it.
He can laugh at himself.
He seems like he's,

Katie (01:18:58):
Yep.

not famous anymore.
He, you could walk down thestreet and not know it's him,
but he seems healthy about it.
Like he doesn't seem bitter or stuckin the past or anything like that.
He can

Katie (01:19:07):
Mm-hmm.

So he's still, he is still funny.

Katie (01:19:10):
He is.
Yeah.
I, I thought that there's both praise,quote unquote, and a fair amount of
criticism from critics for this movie.
I don't know if you caughtany of the response.

Chad (01:19:23):
between Cisco and Ebert

Katie (01:19:24):
Yes.

Chad (01:19:26):
was it was it Ebert that,

liked it.
Cisco didn't.

Chad (01:19:31):
yeah.

Katie (01:19:31):
Roger, Roger Eber gave it three outta four stars called Lerock.
Wonderful in her role.
Thought that as a result the filmwas funnier and a little deeper
than the predictable story itmight have been without Kelly Gene.
Cisco gave it a one and a halfstars out of four and wrote what
a disappointment weird science is.

(01:19:52):
A wonderful writer director has takena cute idea about two teenage Dr.
Frankenstein, creating a perfectwoman by computer and turned it
into a vulgar, mindless, specialeffects cluttered wasteland.
I vastly disagree.
Genes the skull?

Chad (01:20:10):
Yeah.

Katie (01:20:10):
think, I don't think it was vulgar at all.

Chad (01:20:13):
Well, Ebert even pulled him aside at one point and basically said, chill out.
Like

Katie (01:20:17):
Oh, really?

Chad (01:20:19):
Yeah.

Katie (01:20:19):
Yeah.

Chad (01:20:20):
you are sounding so stuffy right now, and so

Katie (01:20:24):
Sheila.

Chad (01:20:24):
that was a good take.

Katie (01:20:25):
Sheila Benson of the LA Times described again, lerock as triumphant and
the film's greatest asset, but thoughtthat the film's appeal was limited to
audience of 15-year-old boys and maybe the16 year olds if they aren't yet too fussy.

Chad (01:20:42):
Yeah, that's, that's a weird comment.
Kelly, Kelly, Le Barack is beautiful inany age demographic, and obviously you
said it's one of your favorite movies.

Katie (01:20:52):
I, yeah, I, that's why I disagree.
I mean, I'm not a 15-year-old boy,and I've always loved this movie.
Rita Kemp of the Washington Post wroteunbelievably, John Hughes, the maker
of 16 candles in the Breakfast Club,writes and directs this snickering
sorted special effects fantasy withKelly Lerock in a demeaning role as
love slave to a pair of 15 year olds.

(01:21:14):
I think they miss the point of the movie.
I don't know.
I am, I, I guess it's hard for me tobe unbiased because I do have such.
I really, really, really, and maybe it'snostalgia, but I think this movie is
really well done and good in all of theways that you want a movie like this to be

Chad (01:21:36):
I can see where they'd missed that train though.
It's, it's easy to miss and it'seasy to go down that lane, and part
of me was thinking, oh no, we'redoing this and I haven't seen it in

Katie (01:21:48):
okay.

Chad (01:21:48):
Is this going to be the territory it lands on of just pure male fantasy?
And obviously that's part of the, thepoint of this movie, but like most things
John Hughes does, there's a greaterpoint and it's restoring the confidence.
And I love that.
Most of the reviews, even the negativeones, are saying Kelly Le Brock is great.

(01:22:11):
Like she is.
Russell said Anthony,Michael Halls Gary is the.
linchpin in this movie.
She's my MVP.
I think it falls apart without her

Katie (01:22:20):
I agree, Chad, she got ul teary eyed at the end.
I don't know.
I, I really thought she was wonderfulin this, and it's kind of sad.
I think her marrying what's hisface kind of ruined her career.

Chad (01:22:32):
Steven

Katie (01:22:32):
know.

Chad (01:22:33):
I can see that.
Yeah.

Katie (01:22:34):
Ugh.
Yeah.

isn't

Katie (01:22:36):
Chad, you said that you watched the, oh, go ahead.

age either.
So you know, your time and your timein the spotlight is often short when.
You're

Katie (01:22:46):
V

for being a

Katie (01:22:47):
Very good point.

so Yeah,

Katie (01:22:51):
Yeah.
She was only 24.

Chad (01:22:53):
Yeah.

Katie (01:22:54):
The, the actress.
Yeah.
So the, the,

bet.

Katie (01:22:58):
there was a TV series that Chad saw based on this film.
It ran for 88 episodes.
I did not realize from 94 to 98,

Chad (01:23:08):
It did, it, it's a little different.
It was almost like an I dream ofgenie style where I can't remember the
girl's name, but she granted wishes,

Hmm.

Katie (01:23:19):
Vanessa Angel.

Chad (01:23:21):
Yeah.
She, she granted fantasiesand things like that, but they
would have convenient durations.
They would wear off, and so herpowers like would grow or shrink,
depending on whatever the episode was.
But it was usually almostlike a monkey's paw type wish

Katie (01:23:37):
okay.

Chad (01:23:37):
the boys would wish for something, she'd give it to them
and you know, hi, jinx ensue, but.

Katie (01:23:44):
Hmm.
Okay.

Chad (01:23:45):
that was my first I guess, encounter with weird science.
And so I had that theme song though,and go Bono theme song, stuck in
my head and then got to this one.
It's like, oh, it was based off of

Katie (01:23:57):
This movie,

Chad (01:23:58):
Yeah.

Katie (01:23:59):
that's an interesting, yeah, that's an interesting, I, I kind of
don't wanna watch the TV series, butit's interesting that you saw that first.

Chad (01:24:05):
It's cute.
It's,

Katie (01:24:07):
Okay.

just to keep the when you fall in love with certain characters
and stuff like that, the TV to movietransition often doesn't work for me.
You know, there's a Fugitive TV showand apparently it was really successful.
I just don't wanna go back and see it'cause Harrison Ford's my fugitive.
It's just like when you find these

Katie (01:24:22):
Yeah.

and stuff like that, I don't really want
that other version so much.
There's an odd couple TV showI, I was told it was good.
I just never wanted to go back and do itagain because I really like Walter Math,
Allen Jack Lemon, and no matter how good

Katie (01:24:35):
Yeah,

doing it, those are not the characters
that you have watched do it.

Chad (01:24:39):
Count Counterpoint, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, like the, the TV series
is infinitely better than the movie.

Katie (01:24:47):
I have heard that, Chad.
I have not seen Buffy the TV series,but I gotta tell you, I loved

gonna say

Katie (01:24:53):
the Christie Swanson movie.

Chad (01:24:55):
it's

Katie (01:24:56):
it.

Chad (01:24:56):
It is very fun.
But Sarah

Katie (01:24:58):
Yeah,

Chad (01:24:59):
is just, she's my Buffy.

Katie (01:25:00):
Okay.
I think that, Hey, so you know, wewere talking about the very eighties
fashion, the jacket that KellyLerock wore in that mall scene.
You know, she has the tube topon with the long denim skirt.
It was sold to Dina Collection, a pawnshop in Beverly Hills for $25,000.

it's the best $25,000

Chad (01:25:25):
not too bad.

spent.

Chad (01:25:27):
I

Katie (01:25:28):
Yeah,

Chad (01:25:31):
guilty.

Katie (01:25:32):
bill Paxton ad-libbed a line that he got from his dad when he says,
how about a nice greasy pork sandwich?
Served in a dirty ash tray.
That was something that his dadused to say to him when he was
hungover from a night of drinking.
I thought that was hilarious.

Chad (01:25:49):
thing to say to someone.

Katie (01:25:50):
We talked about Saturday Night Live.
Anthony Michael Hall did not stay foran entire season and neither did fellow
Weird Science CoStar, Robert Downey Jr.
They were on the same season andneither of 'em lasted the whole season.

get a lot of clips from the eighties on that cast, but.
I wanna say it's hard to, I can,they didn't get long enough to,
to find their feet on the show.
They, they seem awkward in thethings that I have seen from them on
there, so maybe it would've workedout had they'd stayed longer, but it
wasn't a natural fit, I don't think.

(01:26:25):
It was a weird time

Katie (01:26:25):
Mm-hmm.

Lauren Michaels,

Katie (01:26:27):
It was, yeah, I was,

yet.

Katie (01:26:31):
Oh, there was a cut scene and I'm really glad they cut
it 'cause I don't like this.
I don't know if you guys heard this, but.
In the final cut of the film,max and Ian are last seen fleeing
the party when the bikers invade.
A follow-up scene was shot in whichmulticolored clouds engulf them and
they transform into a pig and a donkey.
They then bend over to seetheir reflections in hubcaps

(01:26:54):
of a car and their tails rippedthrough the seats of their pants

Chad (01:26:58):
That is

Katie (01:26:59):
Yeah,

Chad (01:27:00):
stuff like yeah.

Katie (01:27:04):
Glad glad they, they removed that.
Yeah, trying to thank you guys.
I think this actually, doesand it doesn't hold up.
I, I'm actually kind of in thecamp that it holds up in the way
that we should view this 1985 film.
But I do find it a super fascinatingtime capsule of 1985, equal

(01:27:27):
parts bonkers and brilliant.
You guys, Russell, Chad, I always havesuch fun podcasting with you guys and
talking movies, especially retro movies.
Do you have any finalthoughts about this movie?
And then tell us maybe what wecan look forward to on your show
or tell us where we can find you.

Ted, you wanna go first?

Chad (01:27:47):
I think it'd be.
I think I would be fascinatedjust for somebody that didn't
grow up in the eighties, likeyou show a Gen Z person whatever.
The generation after them, is it, arewe back to Alpha or whatever it is, show
them this movie and see what it does.
Does the comedy still hold up or wejust to forgive some of the things

(01:28:10):
'cause we're, we're starting tosee generative AI doing some of the
things that this movie has insinuated

Katie (01:28:19):
Mm-hmm.

Chad (01:28:20):
it's creating interesting legal areas.
And with the rise of chat GPT,I think it's kind of circling
around to ethics and relevance.
And I'd be fascinated to see somebodythat hasn't lived through the
eighties just comment on this andsay, Hey, we watch weird science.
It held up for me.

(01:28:41):
I can see the similarities.
Or they just say, you know, thisis sexist garbage and we're,
we're done with a male fantasy.
We don't want this at all.
I, I hope it's not the latter.
I, I think especially for Kelly Littlerockbeing able to teach these boys respect
for themselves and also how to respectthe two girls they're trying to impress,

(01:29:03):
like they're, they're never going downthat road of the bullying road that
Robert Downey and max are going through.
So I, I think it holds up.
I, I understand.
I think I might be in the both laneswith you, Katie, of I could see
where somebody might not, but I hopesomebody would still enjoy this movie,
even if they say, this is on thelesser end of John Hughes catalog.

(01:29:27):
It's not as great as the breakfast clubsand it's not as great as 16 candles
or, or anything else that he's done.

So you're saying it's no baby's day out, Chad.

Chad (01:29:38):
We're going to get that on the podcast one day.
That is my, my grandfather took me tothat movie when I was very, very young.
I, I had no concept of John Hughes

Katie (01:29:49):
Well, maybe you should come back and cover it with me, Chad, because
we're covering it on Retro Made.
It's John Hughes movie.

Chad (01:29:55):
my, my grandfather clung to the line.
He was like, you thumb sucking milkdrinking puker, or something like that.
And he would just quote it over and over.
He was just tickled to death with that.
So that's a very fond memoryfor me of a terrible movie.
But, but yeah, I would love to coverBaby Us and Dustin, who's another

(01:30:16):
one of our hosts, Dustin, has oftenjoked of getting Baby's Day out
on the, if Russell won't allow it,

Katie (01:30:23):
Okay.

Chad (01:30:24):
we will happily talk about it with you.

Well, I think this movie is one of those
things where if you're gonna.
Poke holes at it and just say the malefantasy is not something we want anymore.
There are gonna be people whocan't get around it and just
say, it is, sex is garbage.
But I think that would be shortsightedbecause there, I think it does
hold up pretty well because ofeverything we've talked about.
growth in the characters,the performances are funny.

(01:30:49):
There's things that, whether it'staking underage kids out, drinking
and then driving while drunkthat you wouldn't do to today.
Maybe you know some of the humorof Anthony Michael Hall's diction.
Is funny in his performance.
Now people would say that that'soffensive and things like that, so
you're gonna have to shift this a fewdegrees if you were ever to remake this.

(01:31:09):
Having said that, Istill think it is funny.
I think if you showed it to people, Ithink a lot of the times people will
watch something now that you couldn'tquote unquote, you could never make
this today, and everybody sits there andstill has a really fun time watching it.
so I think that's what I would say isculturally, what does that mean for us?

(01:31:31):
We've, when we say we won't makesomething that we're, we will sit
there and watch it was made 20 yearsago and then laugh at it and enjoy it.
So I think comedy is at aninteresting point in time too.
So this is a long way of saying, Ithink for some it might not hold up,
but in terms of it is still really goodand I'm closer to Ebert on this one.
Ebert probably has a big soft spot.

(01:31:51):
In his heart because it's aChicago Hughes is a Chicago dude.
He goes to bat for Chicago.
Ebert's a Chicago dude,that's your local boy.
The, this isn't an LA guy.
And so is 100% probably just beingbiased and supporting his, you
know, windy city, you know, creator.
And that's okay.
Because I also like Chicagoand I like John Hughes, and I'm

(01:32:13):
willing to root for the body ofwork and this is included in it.
So yeah, I think long.
I think weird science holds uprefreshingly Well, I was scared to come
back to it because I was sitting theregoing like, I'm 40, you know, when you're
a teenager, this is really exciting.
You know, fast cars driving at themall, getting girls and all this
stuff, and were remarkably simple.
But you know what?
I think it did hold upas a 40-year-old here

Katie (01:32:35):
i'm glad to hear that.
Yeah, both.
Very well said you guys and retro madelisteners I think you should go check
out Russell and Chad on the retro movieround table, wherever podcasts are found.
Right.

Chad (01:32:49):
Absolutely.
Yeah.
You can connect with us on FacebookSpotify, iTunes, just wherever
you can download your podcast.
We like fan interactions, so we've hadsome good back and forth on Facebook.
Message us, email us at retroMovie roundtable@yahoo.com.
We love movies, we love guests,we love talking about movies.
So, let us know if there's a movie wehaven't covered out of the 300 some.

(01:33:13):
And if you wanna talk about it, great.
We'd love to meet you.

Katie (01:33:18):
Awesome.
And.
I'll be joining them soon so you better,you know, get the fuel for, for their
style of podcast before you go listento mine if you have thoughts about this
episode, if you have thoughts aboutany other episodes, any upcoming John
Hughes movies that we'll be coveringquestions or, , maybe you have your own
lightning powered experiments to sharelike weird science, drop me a line.

(01:33:41):
Otherwise, I will see you next time,hopefully with fewer bras on heads.
And until next time, be kind, rewind.

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