December 6, 2024 • 48 mins
My friend Jonathan joins me to debate which Alien Invasion film is better, Independence Day or Signs? We also discuss Gladiator 2 and Brigsby Bear and a whole lot more!
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
This production is brought to you by the Recess Bell
All right, Hi everybody, this is Film Reel right here
on the Recess Bell Network. My name is Justin and
joining me on today's program is my good pal Jonathan.
How's it going, John?
Speaker 2 (00:18):
What's going? How are you?
Speaker 1 (00:20):
I'm good, I'm great, I'm wonderful. I met Jonathan probably,
I don't know, maybe like a year or so ago
because of his girlfriend Jackie, who's like a fantastic bowler.
And now I've joined John's bowling league and sorted to
get to know Jonathan here and there. But I don't
know too much about Jonathan. And we got to introduce
(00:41):
the audience of the film Reel to Jonathan. So I
got some questions for you. First of all, do you
go by Jonathan or John? Johnny?
Speaker 2 (00:48):
You?
Speaker 1 (00:48):
What do you normally go by Jonathan?
Speaker 2 (00:50):
Right, Jonathan or a lot of times? I just introduced
myself as John. But Jonathan's fine, John's fine.
Speaker 1 (00:56):
We're going with Jonathan, all right. So Jonathan, we got
to know about your childhood quickly quickly when you were
growing up. All time favorite cartoon as a kid where
you're a Ninja Turtles guy or you a he man guy, Transformers,
What was your thing?
Speaker 2 (01:11):
ThunderCats?
Speaker 1 (01:12):
ThunderCats?
Speaker 3 (01:13):
Oh it's when Wiley, Kat and Kidd are pretending to
be the most helpful that they're dropping their pens on
the thing while I'm talking, let's find the Megacan Dancer.
I'm saying that too fast. Let's find the Megacan Dancer.
Still going too fast?
Speaker 2 (01:29):
What's wrong, Lionel?
Speaker 3 (01:31):
Fuck? Here it is again?
Speaker 2 (01:33):
What's here again?
Speaker 3 (01:35):
That thing? That that mega thing?
Speaker 2 (01:37):
Want me to say?
Speaker 1 (01:37):
Yes, you know I met the voice of Lionel a
few times at local conventions, Larry Kenny. He also did
the voice of Sonny, the Cocoa Puff mascot, and the
voice of the operation commercial for the Operation Board. Oh yeah, yeah,
care a little fun fact there. Now, as far as
(02:04):
video games growing up, dude, you play video games now
at all?
Speaker 2 (02:06):
Or no? I have a PS four. I go in
and out, like I'll play for a couple months and
then I won't turn it on for a couple months.
I really like the uncharted games. My buddy turned me
on to those. Those are fun, not really like a
sports even though I love sports to play myself. It
(02:27):
was never like a big Madden guy.
Speaker 1 (02:29):
No, Oh, what about back in the day, like NBA Jam,
NFL Blitz.
Speaker 2 (02:32):
NBA Jam. Yes, yeah, like because those are more like
fun arcades. No, yeah, exactly, not like you're trying to
actually run, you know, NFL offenses and defenses.
Speaker 1 (02:41):
Oh my god, these games have become so just overcomplicated,
especially you know controllers. Now I sound like an old man,
I sound like what my dad sounded like, but it's
true because controllers now have so many buns, the R two,
L two, L three, and then you're you have to
know like how to actually run offense. You know, there's
(03:01):
hundreds of plays in these playbooks and Maddens. I mean,
the last time I turned on a Madden game, I
was so confused. And I'm usually playing like an NFL
blitch where you get one hundred plays off in two
minutes and it's just NonStop action. Then to go from
that to the slow, monotonous, sort of realistic style of football,
because when you break down football it can be boring
(03:22):
at times, it's very slow.
Speaker 2 (03:24):
I actually was at the Jet game last week.
Speaker 1 (03:26):
Yikes, who do you want to win? Goddamn Jets?
Speaker 2 (03:30):
Normally we watched red Zone. So you're, like you said,
like an NFL blitz. You're just seeing play after play
after play from every game. When you're actually at the game,
they stand around on the field for two three minutes
at a time.
Speaker 1 (03:40):
Yeah, I mean the game should be it's a sixty minutes,
sixty minute, you know time, but it goes on for
three hours, three and a half hours, depending on penalties
and just stupidness. Football can be extraordinarily boring. But uh,
back back to your childhood you mentioned sports. Who are
your teams? I feel like I always forget because you
(04:00):
have different teams that you like.
Speaker 2 (04:02):
Yeah, we're the exact opposite Yankees, Rangers, Giants, Knicks.
Speaker 1 (04:07):
So what do you think was the best moment of
your life as a fan of sports? Would it be
one of the Well, the Rangers Stanley Cup in ninety four,
would it be the Giants couple of Super Bowls? You
got to see some of those.
Speaker 2 (04:20):
It's either the Rangers in ninety four or Yankees beating
the Mets. Sorry, you son of a bitch. Well, especially
because I was in college at that time and my
roommate who I had just met, was from Jersey and
he was a Met fan. So you know, we still
have the uh, you know, we were allowed to trash
talk to Mets still because they haven't beaten us in
(04:41):
the World Series.
Speaker 1 (04:43):
No, no, no, they haven't. And I thought, you know,
if the Mets did make it to the World Series
this past year, you know, we're recording this in November
of twenty twenty four. I think if the Mets did
face the Yankees, I think they would have won.
Speaker 2 (04:56):
I agree.
Speaker 1 (04:57):
So let's let's get down to why we're here here
to talk about movies. I feel like every single week
I meet up with John, I meet up with Jackie,
and we talk about what movies we've seen in theaters,
and a lot of the times we have a lot
of things in common. I feel it feel like our
love for certain action movies, certain genre of films, comedies
from the nineties, we're pretty much on page. You know.
We like our Major Pains, we like our Wayne's World,
(05:19):
we like our Jim Carrey movies. But every now and
then I think you have one of the dumbest takes ever,
and then you think, you know, vice versa, You think
the same exact thing with me. So let's get into
what we eventually are going to get to, and that
is the great debate of Independence Day. Versus signs. That's
like the main course for this podcast for today. But
(05:40):
before we get to that, let's talk about some recent
movies that we've seen. I know you did see Heredic
from a few weeks ago. I enjoyed the performances. I
liked the movie. I thought it was a different type
of horror film. It wasn't your typical slash your film.
It wasn't your typical, you know, ghosts sort of paranormal activity,
exorcist type of movie. It was a different vibe for
(06:00):
a horror movie, which is why I enjoyed it. I
know you and Jackie felt different.
Speaker 2 (06:06):
Yeah, I agree with that. I think Hugh Grant was
very good and like you said, it was more like
of a mind thriller. He was, you know, trying to
make the girls think and about what they were brought
up in as far as their religion.
Speaker 1 (06:18):
Yeah, so there are Mormons that are going down to
town or door to door, and I guess this is
something that he's done for a while now because he
spoiler alert, he's a psychopath that captures women, and you
see that he's been doing this for quite some time.
But yeah, yeah, it was a different type of movie.
But what didn't you like about it? That was like
a slower type of movie or no.
Speaker 2 (06:37):
So I didn't like that part that you just talked
about at the end where he has all these women
in his basement and he kind of he was trying
to with the girls like have them witness a miracle
when the one older woman was supposedly what was she
like an angel or something she was supposed to be. Yeah,
(06:58):
and then she ate the pie and died, and then
they figured out that she didn't come back to life,
that he just had another woman from the basement come
up and take her place. Like to me, that was
a little weird. Like I said, he was great in
the movie. And then again at the end, the one
girl is dead and she wakes up just enough to
(07:21):
kill you know, to smack him in the face with
that with the nail with the board with the nails
in it, and then dies it was a miracle, yeah, yeah, yeah,
But then the other girl was out. She could have
got out and then went back downstairs for whatever reason.
To me, like, I just didn't like the ending. I
didn't like that he had those women down there. It
(07:43):
just seemed weird to me.
Speaker 1 (07:44):
I didn't think it was a masterpiece by any stretch
of the imagination. And I also feel like a lot
of movies these days are lacking with their endings. Yeah,
and I didn't think the ending was awful. I like
the movie more than you, but I do feel like
that is a trend with a lot of modern movies,
where they don't have that satisfying ending. I'm a sucker
for movies that have a feel good ending, like give
(08:05):
me a movie like Rocky, give me a movie like
Field of Dreams. Obviously these are completely different genres than
something like Heretic, but I'm just talking about movies in
that same sort of field of a Field of Dreams
in a Rocky. A lot of these movies have these
open ended endings where oh, well, the audience could think
one thing, but your interpretations. Just just tell me how
does the movie end? Because I don't want to read
(08:27):
into it. I don't need to do research. I don't
have to look up YouTube lo or videos. Just tell
me the fucking ending to the damn movie.
Speaker 2 (08:33):
You're making the movie, so end it did the way
that you want it to end. And if I don't
like your ending, that's on me. But at least like
you said, you're giving me an ending. And I think
a lot of these movies nowadays do the open ended
endings because they're all making sequels and that gives them
the out to, like you want to talk about We're
(08:54):
going to talk about m night shamlaw movie Trap, like
the movie.
Speaker 1 (08:58):
I didn't actually see it, you didn't, but I'll kind
of give a shit no.
Speaker 2 (09:02):
I like the premise to the movie, right, this guy's
a serial killer. They set him up with this fake
concert because they know he's gonna go there with his daughter,
and then the whole movie's good, and then at the
end it just turns into a shit show, like when
you do see it, like all these different things. They
could have ended the movie three or four different times
and just kept it going, and then again the ending
(09:25):
was open ended.
Speaker 1 (09:26):
I heard it was like a vanity project for his
daughter because his daughter's like the singer in Oh Yes,
Nice daughter was like the Taylor Swift in that universe
that they're going to see in concert, and she's not
a bad singer, but it's pretty forced.
Speaker 2 (09:39):
Like Andy and Jackie said that, it was like we
were at we were watching a movie of a concert. Yeah,
Like that was a lot of it and it's like, well,
this isn't what we signed up for. But again, could
have ended three or four different times and just kept going,
and then when it finally did end, we were like,
why why do that?
Speaker 1 (09:55):
I think that's a big issue with M. Knight Shyamalan,
just to begin with, I think he has a lot
of great ideas and then sometimes I think they're executed
perfectly in something like a sixth sense or in my opinion,
something like Signs, but a lot of the times they
fall flat, whether it's something like The Village or Lady
in the Water. I mean, I could go on and
on on M. Knight's follies. I think he's a director
(10:17):
that a lot of people thought was going to be
the next Spielberg. In fact, there's a Time magazine or
maybe it was Newsweek, and it says the next Spielberg.
It's a picture of him on it, and clearly that
never panned out. He made bomb after bomb, and not
just financial of flops, but just critically. He hasn't really
made a movie where it was well received in years.
(10:38):
I mean, every now and then something here in there
that's a minor head or minorally liked, but nothing on
the level of a Signs or a sixth CeNSE where
it's making you know, half a billion dollars or so.
Speaker 2 (10:48):
Yeah, and like you said too, I think he has
a good premise for most of his films, he just
doesn't execute it properly.
Speaker 1 (10:55):
Yeah, he needs he needs maybe help with with writing
every now and then, you know, maybe hire a buddy
to sit in with you and be like, is this
something that you think works. I think that's something that
he could definitely benefit from. But before we get to
know more about the Independence Day and science, which we
will get to in a bit, have you seen anything else,
(11:16):
because I mentioned to you guys that I saw a
Gladiator too, and I wasn't a fan of it. I
thought it was fine for what it was. Again, it
was very long, and I don't mind the long movie
if it's good. This one dragged on a bit and
too many throwbacks to the previous movie. And sure, you
have to have callbacks every now and then if this
is a continuation of the story. But when you do
(11:38):
similar scenes where it makes no sense for them to
be saying certain lines or to be doing certain things,
and you're only doing it because the previous movie did that.
I think that is one of my least favorite tropes
in Hollywood. They did that in the Alien movie that
came out earlier this year, where they're saying direct lines
that there would be no reason for this to say
(12:00):
that line. So I think Gladiator fell into that same trap.
Obviously you're not gonna get performances. I don't think that
equal Russell Crowe or Joaquin Phoenix in Gladiator. And then
it was weird seeing Denzel Washington in this Gladiator Too
movie because it took me out of the role. And
I love Denzel Washington. I mean, who does He's one
of the greatest actors of all time. But he's not
(12:21):
putting on a voice. He's just doing Denzel. So it's
weird seeing a movie said in you know, three hundred
AD with a guy talking like he does in Training Day.
Speaker 2 (12:30):
I said the exact same thing to Jack, we saw
it on well you did see we saw it on
Wednesday and everything you just said, I said the exact
same thing. Yeah, again, love Denzel. Half the time I'm like, Okay,
he's in the role. And then, like you said, half
the time, I feel like I'm watching Training Day with
his accent or how he's saying things, his mannerisms.
Speaker 1 (12:49):
They need it to hire an unknown in that role.
Speaker 2 (12:51):
But he's but he's he's doing a fellow like he's
done please, so he should know how to act like that, Right,
That's what I think. But exactly like you said, I'm
I'm seeing him from training day. I thought the main guy,
I thought he did well. Pascal Pedro, Pascal hit or miss.
(13:11):
The the two emperors, I don't know where they came from.
I don't know who they are.
Speaker 1 (13:16):
Did not like that they were weird, they were what
they don't So the.
Speaker 2 (13:21):
Issues that we had with the movie, well, first of all,
we did look this up and it was true. She's
like they filled the arena with water, and I looked
it up and they actually did do that.
Speaker 1 (13:33):
But I don't think they had no shark.
Speaker 2 (13:35):
No, they're not bringing sharks exactly. But I don't think
that Gladiator Too did anything better than the First Gladiator at.
Speaker 1 (13:46):
All, not at all.
Speaker 2 (13:47):
Nothing.
Speaker 1 (13:47):
In fact, it decreased in things that you thought would
advance with technology. There was from the opening scene. Yeah,
they had like a ship battle. There was maybe like
fifteen or sixteen giant ships and was trying to advance
on a base area, and I'm looking at these ships
and I'm thinking this looks off. Something about this doesn't
(14:08):
seem realistic. And if they made this movie forty fifty
years ago, they would have actually had real ships. Obviously,
to save money, they made it with CGI, and CGI
could be really good. I know a lot of people
love the Dune movie from earlier this year. The CGI
in that is unbelievable. It's top tier. It looks realistic.
(14:29):
The CGI in this movie. They had CGI monkeys and
CGI sharks that looked like something you would see on
the Sci Fi channel or a PS three video game.
Speaker 2 (14:38):
Yeah, I don't understand who designed those monkeys and was like, yeah,
this is what we think they would look like. Like
you said in three hundred a d like Jackie said,
they they look like a mix between a monkey and
a dog.
Speaker 1 (14:49):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (14:49):
Like the movements of them were fine, but the way
they actually looked were terrible.
Speaker 1 (14:54):
See, I disagree with even that because the movements. There
was a scene where we're getting to some spoiler or
so whatever it is, what it is. There's a scene
in the nineteen ninety film Mortal Kombat where Luke Can
goes to grab reptile, and he's like this CGI freakish
character because CGI is in this infancy and he's holding
him up and he's not really holding anything because it's CGI.
(15:16):
And they did that exact same movement of the you know,
the Gladiator's son. I forget the actor's name, but he's
holding up this monkey and he's doing that same hurky
jerky moment where movement where he's not really holding on
to anything, and it felt really weird. It felt like
I was watching something from thirty years ago. And this
movie has an extreme budget. This is a three hundred
(15:37):
million dollar picture. It's making money, but it has to
make I read it has to make over seven hundred
million dollars to make profit, because if the budgets three
hundred million dollars, you still have to pay the theaters
for actually having the theaters for actually having the movie
rather and then to advertise for commercials and posters and
you know, advertisements on YouTube and Instagram. All that costs money.
(15:57):
So I don't know if it's gonna make profit. It's
making money, but it's not gonna make profit. But I
did not like the CGI. It was a little too long.
The action sequences were fine, and it did have I guess,
a satisfying ending in the sense that it had a
happy ending, which I was complaining about with a lot
of other movies. But it's just an unnecessary movie. Why
(16:17):
are we making this?
Speaker 2 (16:18):
I agree? And like I said, it didn't do anything
better than the first one. I think the fight scenes
in the first one we were longer and better, Like
there were a lot of ones here in this movie
that were kind of short and quick and done. One
thing Jackie said is like, well, why did everybody just
follow him right away? Like they didn't know he was
Maximus's son right away? They followed Maximus in the first
(16:40):
one because of who he was the general one, I guess.
Speaker 1 (16:42):
Because he was a good fighter, because he fought monkeys
in one scene.
Speaker 2 (16:45):
I guess. But like I said, you know, I think
you gave it a I think you said a six
point two. I think I said, like a six point five.
Speaker 1 (16:52):
Yeah, again, which is weird plot holes and coincidences. It's like, Okay,
this guy get captured and he's the only one that
that's captured, and he just so happens to be, you know,
the son of this guy and set up in this
one camp in prison where you know his old armor is.
It's like, come on, this is comic book stuff where
oh here's his armor. It's like, oh, this is Batman's
(17:13):
old armor. Here's you know, Russell Crow's old armor. So
and here weird movie.
Speaker 2 (17:18):
Here's the thing when Maximus died in the first one
and commonists, right, Lucius would have been the emperor. Yeah,
why did she send him away?
Speaker 1 (17:31):
And I couldn't tell you?
Speaker 2 (17:32):
And where did he go that? She just lost him?
Like just go away and that's it, you know, like
again talk about plot holes.
Speaker 1 (17:40):
It not look for him at all.
Speaker 2 (17:41):
Yeah, like you didn't, like I understand because he was
a child, but if he's supposed to be the emperor,
then he should have been the emperor. Yeah, Like but no,
you just send them away because people are gonna try
and kill him. I guess.
Speaker 1 (17:51):
But who who's going to kill him?
Speaker 2 (17:53):
I don't know. And then and then Denzel just again spoilers,
but just works his way right up and then comes well,
first of all, he made the monkey the first whatever,
which was hilarious, and then Denzel and then Denzel is like, okay,
now a member, Like that's it.
Speaker 1 (18:10):
Yes, you think there'd be more voting and democracy that
would need to be happening. Who knows. I think this
is one of those movies. In ten fifteen years, you're
gonna go they made a Gladiator too, Like, you're not
even gonna remember that they made this movie. That's how
I feel with the Blade Runner movie. They made a
Blade Runner sequel like five or six years ago, maybe
(18:31):
it was ten years ago. At this point, I don't
even remember being a thing. And that's Ridley Scott. Another
Ridley Scott movie that they're bringing back, although I don't
think he directed the most recent Blade Runner. But it's
hard to bring back characters, even though no characters really
being brought back, but franchises twenty thirty years, especially comedies.
(18:51):
Comedies you cannot bring back. We've seen that Dumb and
Dumber is horrendous, but action movies as well. Your Die
Archer Indiana Jones is some things are just better left
off in the past, and to have that legacy tarnish
is unfortunate because now people when they do think of Gladiator,
some of them will be like, well, there's Gladiator too,
(19:12):
and it just sort of ruins what the legacy of
that original Gladiator is. Have you guys seen anything else.
You didn't see The Wicked. You didn't want to see
the Wicked.
Speaker 2 (19:20):
No, I saw a wicket on Broadway and you Yeah.
So growing up, one of my favorite movies of all
time is The Wizard of Oz. You are one pathetic loser,
and Wicked came out and everybody was so about it,
and I was younger at that point, so I waited
(19:42):
for a little while until ticket prices went down. So
I think all the hype for like four or five
years just made it. It couldn't it couldn't rise to
the level that everybody made it. So when I saw it,
I didn't like it. Jaggie doesn't want to see it
because it's two hours and forty minutes and it's only
the first part, the only first act, So no, not
(20:05):
going to see that. What do we see? We saw
a Real Pain, which was the Kieran Culkin and Jesse
Eisenberg movie. It was okay, it was nothing special.
Speaker 1 (20:18):
It's not being advertised at all. I don't think I've
seen a single commercial. Maybe you've seen a YouTube ad
here and there, but like if I'm watching football, I'm
seeing no edguab no, no.
Speaker 2 (20:27):
Yeah, I think I saw it because he was on
Kelly Clarkson. I think I saw it on Instagram or
something like that that he was talking about it because
he directed it and wrote it. I thought Kieran colchinb
was great in the movie. Actually, what else did we seriously?
Speaker 1 (20:41):
He was in Signs.
Speaker 2 (20:43):
Yeah, he's the kid. Yeah, no one of the cults,
the other one or third Brother, Yeah, but no. I
thought he did a he did a great job in that.
But again, I think that movie was only an hour
and a half and it felt like it was about
two and a half.
Speaker 1 (20:58):
Oh yeah, that's never good.
Speaker 2 (21:00):
And like you said, I don't mind, I'll watch a
three hour movie. I just don't want to feel like
it's three hours.
Speaker 1 (21:04):
A big issue is with me as I get older
and these drinks get larger at these theaters, and now
they're serving alcohol at these theaters. They need to have
like a five minute intermission if your movie is two
hours and forty minutes. I understand why they don't do
it because you know, if you take a break, then
you can't have as many showtimes. And if extend the
(21:26):
time for this, then you can't make as much money.
But it would benefit I think a lot of people
if they knew that there would be a time for
them to go re up snacks, because every now and then,
if I do get a snack at the movie theater,
it's done before the previous we're even done. And then
the bedroom. If I'm getting a large or even a small,
the small sodas at the theaters are gigantic. If I
get some beers at the movie theater, it's done, Mike
(21:48):
bladder does not exist at all. So I think, you know,
a nice little pause button or like some intermission I
think would be something that I think if they pulled moviegoers,
but they would want to be done to actually increase
people to go to the theaters. Because theaters, unless it's
a big movie like a Wicket or a Marvel movie,
(22:08):
theaters are not doing too hot, no, So I think
maybe let's start like asking people what they actually want
with their theaters. Now, I rented or rented, I gave
you guys this movie. I'm holding right here, Briggs be Bear.
I said, this is one of my favorite movies of
all time. I lent it to you and your girlfriend Jackie,
and you both didn't like it. Why what are you
(22:29):
watching the same.
Speaker 3 (22:30):
Movie as me?
Speaker 2 (22:31):
We were we were. I don't know. It was very strange.
Uh strange is great again, it could be. I don't
even know how to describe it, honestly. I mean it
was sad, you know, with what happened to him, and
then he's a twenty five year old guy and doesn't
know anything.
Speaker 1 (22:52):
Yeah. So basically the premise from what I remember is
he was sort of kidnapped as a kid and his
dad was creating this fake TV show called Briggsby Bear
and he held him like captive in this weird desert
basement sort of layer. And then eventually, like within ten
minutes of the movie, he's sort of broken free from
this prison layer and he gets to reunite with his
(23:14):
real parents and he sort of forms this relationship with
his sister. But then they want to make a movie.
They want to make the briggs be Bear, which is
this character that his dad made up into a feature
length film. So's he won a very bizarre movie. For sure.
I understand why people wouldn't like it, but I love
that weirdness factor. I love Kyle Mooney, the guy who
(23:37):
wrote and a start in the movie. I think he's
plays that sincere sort of likable Goofball who is a
fish out of water. I think he played that really well.
So I love the practical effects. You know, they're making
like an old fashioned eighties science fiction Teddy Ruckspin which
was like an eighties bear thing, which I'm sure you knew.
Jonathan mixed with I guess Barney the Dinosaur in to
(24:00):
a feature length film. So it hit a lot of
notes and beats of stuff that I enjoy. So I
like the movie. You guys didn't again even anything. Jackie
hated it apparently.
Speaker 2 (24:09):
Again, I you know, it was strange, it was weird.
There were certain parts that I liked that I laughed at. Again,
his story is sad.
Speaker 1 (24:19):
You know.
Speaker 2 (24:21):
Would I watch it again?
Speaker 3 (24:22):
No?
Speaker 2 (24:23):
But whatever, Like we had discussed that it reminded you.
We had brought up Blast in the Past with Brendan Fraser,
and uh, I like you said the name right. Yeah,
well I watched your your documentary so because I had
been saying it wrong.
Speaker 1 (24:36):
Yeah, Frazier, Yah, it's Fraser.
Speaker 2 (24:39):
But again that one, that one had a little more
comedy to it.
Speaker 1 (24:44):
That was a less insane movie. This is yeah, breaksby
Bears is a trippy type of film. Yeah, yeah, the
past is more Hollywood, and I like the Blast from
the Past. I like both of the movies. But well,
there goes your Christmas gift. I guess I have to
buy a new Christmas gift for you. Guys. I got
to the whole I got you the special edition.
Speaker 2 (25:01):
Actually for Christmas, did you get us the whole Brigsby
Bear collection?
Speaker 1 (25:05):
Yes? Unfortunately, I'll have to return that with this shirt
as well.
Speaker 2 (25:08):
But I was also surprised that how many people were
in that movie. Yeah, Mark Hamill, look at us. Claire Danes,
it's a psychologist, yeah, Claire Day Yeah, and this Andy
Samberg was in it.
Speaker 1 (25:21):
Mm hmm. Well he's got the SNL connection, so I'm
sure he has for some favors here and there, even
like the kid actors, the the guy, the girl who
played his sister. I thought it was really good.
Speaker 2 (25:32):
The guy Spence that helped him with the Hispanic guy.
Speaker 1 (25:35):
Yeah, he was good and he liked the movie.
Speaker 2 (25:37):
And I think this came up because we were talking
about Y two K.
Speaker 1 (25:41):
Right, Yeah, that's the new movie from Kyle Mooney, the
same guy who wrote and directed Briggsby Bear. As a
new movie Why two K coming out, which is by
the time this gets released, probably will be out that week.
I think it comes out next week, so probably the
day this gets released, it should be out. So I'm
excited for that. I know you guys thought it looked terrible.
Now you're definitely not gonna see because I was like, listen,
give breaks me bear a chance. Then you want to
(26:02):
see Y QWK. You hated this, there's no chance you're
going to see Y two K.
Speaker 2 (26:06):
I don't know. Like you said, we do get we
are on the same level on certain movies and then
other things we just have different taste on. You know,
that's why people make movies, because there's plenty of people
who like, you know, certain things, and other people that
don't like them.
Speaker 1 (26:21):
So but at least I can respect your opinions. There
are some people that you just hear them talk and
what they're saying is is not even though I don't
agree with it, it's also just dumb. Yeah, at least
I can respect. Like, you don't like this, I hate
you for it, but I respect your opinion on the matter.
Speaker 2 (26:38):
Again, I just not my type of movie, that's all. Like.
I watched it again. There were certain parts that I like,
just overall, I was like Okay, yeah, you know it
is what it is.
Speaker 1 (26:49):
I'm gonna go on the record and say that movie
brings me. Bear and Creed are my two favorite movies
of the last fifteen years. Okay, did you like Creed? Yes,
I create a lot, Yes, I love The Rocky Series
is actually my favorite film series of all time. I
think they're all great, even shitty Rocky five. I will
watch if Rocky five's on TV. I'm not not watching it.
(27:11):
I gotta watch that street fight at the end. But
the guy says, touch me and I'll sue you then
punches him. He's assuming for what. I gotta watch all
of these movies whenever they're on And we're recording this
Thanksgiving weekend, and I always think of the Rocky Series
and Thanksgiving. They sort of go hand in hand. A
lot of the movies came out around that time. A
lot of them are set in the fall season. But
(27:31):
the reason why we're here, Jonathan, we're gonna get to
the main event, Independence Day and Signs. These are two
movies we were talking about. I don't even know where
it came up from. We just brought it up randomly
at the bowling alley. I'm sure We had some beers
in US and we were just discussing these two movies,
and you were on the side of Independence Day being
the superior movie, and I was on the side of
(27:53):
Signs being the superior movie. Now, let's just break down
a little bit of the facts. Independence Day grossed almost well.
It grossed eight hundred million dollars over that eight hundred
and seventeen million dollars worldwide on a seventy five million
dollar budget, which just do the math. Let's just say
hypothetically it cost with advertisements and all that stuff, two
(28:16):
hundred million dollars, which it probably didn't probably a hundred
fifty million dollars. It grossed. It made a ton of profit.
It mad It made twentieth Century Fox a boatload of money,
which is shocking that they didn't do more things with
the property. Now, they had an action figure line, which
was not really advertised too well. I would have thought
they would have tried to do a cartoon show. I
(28:37):
would have thought they would have tried to do more
video games. They did a shitty PS One game, but
I mean an alien invasion movie that's just asking for
more content. It needed, I think to be because you
think it could be like the next Star Wars, which
had that giant juggernaut of multimedia surrounding it. Independence they
sort of just was, and then twenty years later, when
(28:59):
no one asked, they made a shitty sequel which better
not have liked.
Speaker 2 (29:03):
I don't even think I saw it.
Speaker 1 (29:04):
Oh that's bad. That's a bad one, you know what
it is.
Speaker 2 (29:06):
I think that, like we've been talking about, I don't
want to see a sequel to a movie that I
love twenty years later. Now, yes, I did go see
Gladiator two, but I kind of wish I didn't. Like
you said, just leave it yep.
Speaker 4 (29:20):
At the original at least with Gladiator too, at least
you have Ridley Scott, who, although he's aged and he's
not what he once was, he's still a competent director.
Speaker 1 (29:30):
Roland Emrick, who directed Independence Day. I don't like him. No,
I like The Patriot. I think that's a really fun movie.
Godzilla from nineteen ninety eight probably one of the most
disappointing times I've ever had in the movie theater. He
did a bunch of shitty like destruction movies like The
Day After Tomorrow and ten thousand BC. He did one
(29:52):
where oh what the hell was this they had to shoot.
It was like sort of like Armageddon, where there was
a meteor was crashing down to Earth. Just terrible disaster movies.
But it made a lot of money, as did Signs,
which had a relatively same budget, even though it came
out a few years later. Seventy two million dollar budget
didn't make nearly as much, but it made a lot
of money. Four hundred million dollars plus worldwide for Signs.
(30:15):
Two different types of movies, but similar in the sense
that they're both alien movies. So here's the reason why
I think I like and I want to say this,
I like Independence Day. I'm not gonna go on the
record and say I don't like this movie. I've seen
Independence Day far many more times than i've seen Signs.
Every fourth of July, I'm pretty much watching Independence Day. Signs, though,
(30:38):
is a slower build of a movie, and I think
the older I get, I like movies like this where
it's less as more. You don't see the alien. You
see you know, you hear stuff, You hear stuff on
the roof, and then you see, you know, his cornfield's
all messed up, and then you see a shadow of
an image and then you know, lights are in the
(31:01):
sky on the news and you're not seeing anything. It's
not really until you see a birthday party scene where
they're filming a Mexican birthday party and Joaquin Phoenix is
in the TV, you know, watching the TV, and he
flips out because you see this quick image of this alien,
a grainy footage from far away, sort of like a
big foot footage of this alien, and that shocked the
(31:22):
hell out of audiences. I remember vividly the audiences in
the theaters. I saw this one twice in theaters going
nuts with that scene.
Speaker 5 (31:29):
The startling footage we're about to show you was photographed
by a forty two year old Romero Valadaries. This video
was taken yesterday afternoon at his son's seventh birthday in
the city of Pasofundo, Brazil.
Speaker 2 (31:45):
Wolve children Promenos.
Speaker 1 (31:51):
And it's less is more. It's not like Independence Day,
where there's within the first thirty minutes there's one hundred explosions.
The White House gets exploded. You don't really see the
aliens per se, but you see all the ships and
the CGI and all that stuff. So they're two different
(32:12):
types of movies. And I think like I said, the
older I get a movie like Signs is more my Alley.
Speaker 2 (32:18):
Okay, now let me ask you. This was Signs. M
nightshall on second movie.
Speaker 1 (32:23):
He did Unbreakable also in between then and he did
like a short like like an independent type movie, but
it was his third like big movie was.
Speaker 2 (32:32):
It was.
Speaker 1 (32:33):
Sixth Sense, then Unbreakable, then Signs.
Speaker 2 (32:36):
I would say that that's going to be partially the
reason why I made so much money. I think at
that point he was still.
Speaker 1 (32:43):
Here's still a lot hot direct. Well that's when the
article came out. I was talking about the Newsweek. It
said the next Spielberg. Obviously also having a guy like
Mel Gibson pre anti Semitism, leaking and you know, beating
girlfriend getting out there. He was bankable. He was box
office you know, Oscar winning for a Brave Heart, The
Patriot with actually another connection there because he was in
(33:05):
The Patriot that was directed by Roland Emmerick. But you know,
Gibson was on fire, Joaquin Phoenix up and coming act there.
It had a lot going forward. Also, there hasn't really
been a UFO movie probably since Independence Day really since then.
You know, it was a five year, six year gap
in between alien movies. It wasn't a saturated market, so
(33:27):
and I think it was a well received movie. Critics
liked it, audiences loved Signs. I think though, you know,
if you made this movie after some of his bombs,
obviously it wouldn't have made four hundred million dollars.
Speaker 2 (33:39):
Yeah, that's that's what I was saying. As far as
that goes, you're one hundred percent right that it's definitely
they're not the same type of movie. Yes, they both
have to do with aliens, but Independence Day is an
action film, definitely more comedy in there. There's really no
comedy and Signs Signs, like you said, is just a
slow build. I don't know. My thing with Signs is,
(34:02):
first of all, I don't see mel Gibson as a
as a priest, right, which he was. Then he lost
his faith because of his wife getting hit by the car.
Now what is that? What is her getting hit by
the car? Now she's basically giving him the recipe to
defeat the aliens? Like, how does that She got hit
(34:24):
by the car and saw what was gonna happen.
Speaker 1 (34:25):
Listen, I'm not a religious man, Jonathan, but there are
miracles in this world, right and I'm sure there are
lots of plot holes in Signs. I'm not gonna say
that it makes sense that an alien species that can
travel hundreds of millions of light years would want to
travel to a planet filled with eighty percent water When
they're one achilles heel is water. What happens if it rains?
Speaker 2 (34:48):
Yeah, they got to stay inside.
Speaker 1 (34:49):
They have to stay they have to bring umbrellas with them.
So does that make sense? Of course not nope. But
you know, let's think of the stupidness of Independence Day,
some of the goofy comic book, you know, characters that
we have the typical over the top Jewish father, Oh,
my David, you don't be dead without my David. That character?
(35:09):
What about the over the top gay guy, Oh, I
gotta call my mother, Like these are these are not
human beings. There's nobody that's like these. So maybe maybe
there are, but they are there. It's just it's so
over the top where Signs is so grounded it is.
You know, I thought Gibson was fantastic. I thought I
(35:29):
thought he could play a priest for sure, And I
think his performances is a grounded performance where if you're
getting attacked by aliens. Are you gonna have the ability
to be like, oh, you better not shoot that green
shit at me. It's like, what did he have a
writer with him in the back of the spaceship, like
say this one liner? When you know they shoot green
shit at you, you're just gonna be like, ah, fuck Eleen,
(35:52):
Like you're not gonna be thinking like that. Again, different
types of movies. That is a summer popcorn box office
in line with the Marvel movies of recent years where
they're doing some of those corny things. But again, I'm
not gonna I hate the disparage Independence because I love
the movie.
Speaker 2 (36:10):
I love it well and like you just said, you
watch it pretty much every year, every fourth here's my thing.
If I'm flipping channels and Independence Days on, I'm gonna
watch it. Yeah, if Signs is on, I'm gonna go
buy it. That's how I know that I like Independence
Day better. And again it's because again it's an action movie.
Like you said, it's over the top. It's something that
(36:32):
you can watch over and over again because it's entertaining. Yes,
like Signs, you gotta be like you gotta be in
the right movie invested it? Yeah, exactly.
Speaker 1 (36:38):
You want to watch scigence at You don't want to
watch Signs in a bright sunny day. You want to
watch it, you know, nighttime, creepy, yep, in the right atmosphere.
But I don't agree with the statement because I've only
seen Field of Dreams maybe five or six times, and
it is in my top ten favorite movies of all time, Okay,
and it's just a movie that it's It's not that
(36:58):
it's a hard watch, but it's just a different type
of movie. Like I could throw on Dumb and Dumber anytime.
I could watch Dumb and Dumber five times in one year.
I can't watch Shindler's List more than you know. I've
only watched that two or three times in my lifetime.
They're just different types of movies. Where Independence Day you
can have a few beers, relax, goof off with your friends.
I don't know how once you could do that with
(37:20):
something like Signs, although it is it is like an
introduction horror movie because it's got horror elements to it,
it's got you know, great practical special effects. This is
both of these movies. I do want to bring up
their time capsules in the sense that Independence Day is
pretty much the last big budget movie to really use
(37:44):
practical effects in the sense that they use a lot
of miniatures. If this was created, if that was created
three or four years later, none of those things would
look good today because it would all be CGI. Like
that White House getting blown up that was a miniature
of the White House. If that was created in two
thousand and three, two thousand and four, all that stuff
would be CGI and it would age poorly, because CGI
(38:04):
ages really badly. So it's cool that both of these movies,
you know, the the Alien and Signs that's an all
you know, a practical effect. That's a guy in a suit.
I think if that was made five or six years later,
that would all be CGI and it would not age well.
So I like the idea that both of these movies
are doing things that I enjoy with my movie making, experience,
practical effects, miniatures, all that stuff. And they're two different
(38:26):
types of movies. If I'm grading them, I would say
Signs is a better movie. It's a better movie. I
think it's a better active movie. It's definitely a better
shot movie. It's got a good film score to it.
Although I do like the music and independence say I
think that is a good iconic score. When the president's
giving this speech and the music's hitting in the background,
(38:46):
that's good stuff. We're going to live on.
Speaker 2 (38:49):
We're going to survive. Today, we celebrate our Independence Day.
Speaker 1 (39:03):
But I think as far as like filmmaking goes to
be like a snooty film critics sort of guy, I
think Signs blows Independence Day out of the water.
Speaker 2 (39:11):
Okay, never made a movie. I don't really know how
they make movies. Again, I think Independence Day is a
better movie all around.
Speaker 1 (39:23):
All around, all around. That's ridiculous, all around.
Speaker 2 (39:25):
Like you said, the acting.
Speaker 1 (39:27):
Mel Gibson, acting circles around Jeff Goldblum and Will Smith
and I love well and Jeff Goldblum.
Speaker 2 (39:32):
But again, because it's a more serious movie.
Speaker 1 (39:35):
Yeah, but you said all around. Well, the acting is
better in Signs. You know, it's better in science. The
connection between the kids, the kids.
Speaker 2 (39:42):
The kids were good. The kids were good.
Speaker 1 (39:43):
I did like the kid Signs and then the kids
and then dependence. They're they're like full house actors. My
daddy did this, my dad, oh my mommy died. We'll
get over it.
Speaker 2 (39:53):
I do like uh, I do like Randy Quaid's character.
Speaker 1 (39:56):
He's amazing.
Speaker 2 (39:57):
He's great.
Speaker 1 (39:59):
Oh it's amazing.
Speaker 2 (40:03):
Yeah. Again different, it's hard because again, like you said,
they're completely different types of movies. You know, I just
don't know. Signs for me just didn't do it like
you said. But you even you even brought up the
plot holes in there. You know, I didn't even have
to make those points for you. Like and again, we
(40:23):
know in Independence Day they're coming to take over the world.
They're coming to take over Earth. Yeah, what are they doing?
And uh, I mean they're like I'm.
Speaker 1 (40:32):
Assuming they're there to take over Earth as well.
Speaker 2 (40:34):
You would think, but they're only like going to like
people's like houses, like individually too. I think what they
wanted to take them back to maybe probum or or
do whatever with them. Like in Independence Day they were
trying to blow up Earth like they were trying to
kill everybody, right, and Signs they're at his house, they're
(40:54):
wherever else they were.
Speaker 1 (40:56):
But again, we don't know what else is going on
in the world. See that That's the beauty. That's why
I like science because it's just it's basically it takes
place all in that one farmhouse. He goes to m
Night Shyamalan's house, because of course he has to shoehorn
himself in every single movie he directs. But it's the
story of how one family would react to an alien invasion.
(41:16):
I find that to be a fascinating story instead of this.
There's so many characters, And in the Pennance Day, you
have Randy Quaid and his kids. You have the President,
you have the President's daughter, you have Jeff Goldblum, you
have Jeff Goldblum's dad, you have the gay guy, you
have the whole military aspect, you have you know, yeah,
Will Smith, you have Will Smith's friend. There's there's like
seventeen eighteen different characters, and they all are memorable, but
(41:39):
there's a lot out there that you cenerally develop any
of their characters. Yeah, they have an arc here and there,
but it's not developed where you get their relationship. You
see the relationship, you see you know the way that
mel Gibson has changed once his wife died. Because you're
only focused on that family, I think you get a
better opportunity to watch that character and watch those characters grow.
Speaker 2 (42:01):
I agree with that, yeah, definitely.
Speaker 1 (42:03):
But I will say Signs does not have the greatest
character in motion picture history, and that is Boomer the Dog,
because when Boomer the Dog in Independence Day escapes that
explosion and he jumps out of the explosion into that
little crevice that how do they survive that? All you
have to do is shut a door and then you're
able to survive a nuclear explosion of sorts. I don't
(42:26):
know how the dog knew to do that, but it
jumped like Tom Cruise. And there's no Boomer the Dog
in Signs. So maybe if Boomer was in Signs.
Speaker 2 (42:35):
I think Tom Cruise played Boomer.
Speaker 1 (42:37):
Oh yeah, yeah, all right, I think we got to
get down to it. Let's just let's just get down
to it. I still stand by there. There's gonna be
no convincing that Signs is the superior movie. Actually, you
know what, has has your girlfriend Jackie seen both of
these movies?
Speaker 2 (42:55):
She probably has, right, I know for a fact she's
seen Signs.
Speaker 1 (42:57):
What did she think of Signs? She likes Signs, She's
seen an Independence Day.
Speaker 2 (43:01):
I don't know. Okay, listen, we talk. We like, I
bring up movies that I would think that there was
no way she went throughout life without seeing Gladiator being
one of them. We just watched that last month. She's
like I had never seen Gladiator. I'm excuse me.
Speaker 1 (43:14):
Yeah, it's insane.
Speaker 2 (43:15):
I'm like, because she watches the same movies over and
over again, Wage Worlds or Bohemian Rhapsody, Lemize she watches
seven thousand times, so I don't know if she's seen
Independence Day.
Speaker 1 (43:27):
To be honest with you, how about she is the
deciding factor. That's because I'm not changing my stance. It
doesn't seem like you're changing your stands.
Speaker 2 (43:35):
No, I'm definitely not changing my stand So we need Jackie.
Speaker 1 (43:37):
When's the last time you watched Signs?
Speaker 3 (43:39):
Though?
Speaker 2 (43:39):
I just watched it with her. Uh, she fell asleep,
but yeah, she I mean she's seen it more than
I have. I don't remember. I didn't remember it, so
that's why I watched it maybe two weeks ago when
we had the discussion. Yeah, and I need to watch
some of his other ones again because I told her
I liked The Village Terrible and that's what she said.
(44:00):
And now I don't remember it because now I have
to watch it again.
Speaker 1 (44:02):
He made a movie called The Visit with two kids
that go to visit their grandparents, and that was sort
of his resurgence. It was a smaller film It was
after he made these big budget like Avatar and he
made that movie with Will Smith that were like three
hundred million dollar movies. This was more of a smaller
film of return to his horror roots. And I remember
(44:22):
liking the Visit. I think that's the name of the movie.
I don't think it was too well received, but I
remember me and my ex thoroughly enjoying that movie. Then
he did the Split movie. Did you see Split? Yes,
that was pretty good, and then they did The Glass
which which was not as good visually, it was really
impressive with a lot of different lighting stuff going on
(44:43):
with that movie. But he's made so many weird choices
with his movies. He made The Knock in the Cabin
or Cabin in the Woods with Dave Bautista, which was
like a gay couple with their kids and they had
to make a sacrifice for one of the parents to
It was really really strange movie. And then his daughter's
now directing movies. He directs directed a terrible movie, was terrible.
(45:05):
What was that one with What's your Face? Dakota Fans?
Speaker 2 (45:09):
Oh no, we didn't watch that The Watchers, right, the
one of the woods. Yeah, yeah, we didn't even watch.
Speaker 1 (45:14):
It awful awful. So his his family, I guess isn't
talented because the daughter not too good of a singer,
other daughter terrible director, and he's just coasting. Buy But uh,
all right, Jonathan, we'll have to have you back then.
Speaker 2 (45:27):
All right. Yeah, so I'll make sure that Jackie watches
Independence Day and then.
Speaker 1 (45:31):
We need the final vote. Jackie will decide which is
the superior.
Speaker 2 (45:35):
And now you said the visit was a m Night night.
Speaker 1 (45:38):
Yeah, I liked it. Again. Obviously, it has the m
Night tropes that you you know, used to do with
the crazy twist and turns and whatnot. But I enjoyed it.
I thought it was fine. How'd you think he did
on the podcast? I thought you started off a bit slow,
a little nervous maybea first, but then as soon as
like we got into it, I thought you brought the energy.
Speaker 2 (45:55):
Yeah. No, listen, I, like you said, we might not
have the same opinion, but I have my basis for
it and my reasoning. Yeah, Matta started off a little slow.
I didn't want to, you know, jump well on top
of you or you talk over you. So just first
time on a podcast, so just trying to learn the.
Speaker 1 (46:14):
Ropes I thought you did fantastic.
Speaker 2 (46:16):
All right, I appreciate it.
Speaker 1 (46:17):
You know, I wanted to bring up watually one thing,
back to Independence State. I just like, I hate bashing
the movie because so I'm gonna give it some praise.
I remember seeing that that one in theaters as well
with my grandma and my cousin, and there was a
scene with an autopsy. It's like they finally get the alien.
I think Will Smith like punches the alien Welcome to Earth,
punches it in the face. By the way, listen to
(46:39):
Opie and Anthony with Patris O'Neil. He breaks down Independence Day.
It's like the funniest radio of all time. It's got
to be somewhere on YouTube. But I remember seeing this
movie in theaters and that autopsy scene and they cut
the alien open and then there's like this jump scare.
There's this loud sound and I remember vividly the whole
audience screaming, And it's probably the first instance where I
(47:02):
can remember a jump scare with an audience.
Speaker 2 (47:05):
Is that when they open him and then the little
head is in.
Speaker 1 (47:07):
There, yeah yeah, yeah, and then he starts do you
know who?
Speaker 2 (47:11):
Do you know who the doctor is?
Speaker 1 (47:12):
Yeah? Brett Spiner, the guy from.
Speaker 2 (47:14):
Stark Start Data.
Speaker 1 (47:15):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (47:17):
The only reason I know that is because my dad
was a treky. The only reason I know that.
Speaker 1 (47:21):
Yeah, I've seen Brett Spiner at quite a few conventions. Okay,
he's uh, he's aged. Yeah, and then they tried to
make him data because they brought back like Picard. He's
supposed to be like Agels, but he's like you know, old.
So it's always rough when they try and bring back characters. Ye,
all right, but we're gonna bring you back, Jonathan. Thank
you for joining me on this addition of Film Real.
We'll be back, and I promise I say this every week.
(47:42):
I say I'm going to finish the Transformers podcast. I
did two parts of the Transformers we're supposed to do
part three. I haven't done it in three months, so
maybe they'll be a bit. Maybe they'll just continuously never
finish Transformers. But thank you all for listening doing that
on all the movies. Yeah, I did all the movies
to talk about my love for the franchisees and whatnot.
Did you eventually see Transformers one?
Speaker 2 (48:03):
No we didn't.
Speaker 1 (48:03):
Yeah, that's why I'm supposed to review.
Speaker 2 (48:05):
But I am a big fan of the Transformer movies, of.
Speaker 1 (48:07):
The shitty Michael Bay ones. They're terrible. Okay, we'll have
to get you back on all right. We'll discuss maybe
Transformers next time. And Jackie's vote on Independence Day and signs.
Thank you all for listening so long.
This production is brought to you by the Recess Bell
All right, Hi everybody, this is Film Reel right here
on the Recess Bell Network. My name is Justin and
joining me on today's program is my good pal Jonathan.
How's it going, John?
Speaker 2 (00:18):
What's going? How are you?
Speaker 1 (00:20):
I'm good, I'm great, I'm wonderful. I met Jonathan probably,
I don't know, maybe like a year or so ago
because of his girlfriend Jackie, who's like a fantastic bowler.
And now I've joined John's bowling league and sorted to
get to know Jonathan here and there. But I don't
know too much about Jonathan. And we got to introduce
(00:41):
the audience of the film Reel to Jonathan. So I
got some questions for you. First of all, do you
go by Jonathan or John? Johnny?
Speaker 2 (00:48):
You?
Speaker 1 (00:48):
What do you normally go by Jonathan?
Speaker 2 (00:50):
Right, Jonathan or a lot of times? I just introduced
myself as John. But Jonathan's fine, John's fine.
Speaker 1 (00:56):
We're going with Jonathan, all right. So Jonathan, we got
to know about your childhood quickly quickly when you were
growing up. All time favorite cartoon as a kid where
you're a Ninja Turtles guy or you a he man guy, Transformers,
What was your thing?
Speaker 2 (01:11):
ThunderCats?
Speaker 1 (01:12):
ThunderCats?
Speaker 3 (01:13):
Oh it's when Wiley, Kat and Kidd are pretending to
be the most helpful that they're dropping their pens on
the thing while I'm talking, let's find the Megacan Dancer.
I'm saying that too fast. Let's find the Megacan Dancer.
Still going too fast?
Speaker 2 (01:29):
What's wrong, Lionel?
Speaker 3 (01:31):
Fuck? Here it is again?
Speaker 2 (01:33):
What's here again?
Speaker 3 (01:35):
That thing? That that mega thing?
Speaker 2 (01:37):
Want me to say?
Speaker 1 (01:37):
Yes, you know I met the voice of Lionel a
few times at local conventions, Larry Kenny. He also did
the voice of Sonny, the Cocoa Puff mascot, and the
voice of the operation commercial for the Operation Board. Oh yeah, yeah,
care a little fun fact there. Now, as far as
(02:04):
video games growing up, dude, you play video games now
at all?
Speaker 2 (02:06):
Or no? I have a PS four. I go in
and out, like I'll play for a couple months and
then I won't turn it on for a couple months.
I really like the uncharted games. My buddy turned me
on to those. Those are fun, not really like a
sports even though I love sports to play myself. It
(02:27):
was never like a big Madden guy.
Speaker 1 (02:29):
No, Oh, what about back in the day, like NBA Jam,
NFL Blitz.
Speaker 2 (02:32):
NBA Jam. Yes, yeah, like because those are more like
fun arcades. No, yeah, exactly, not like you're trying to
actually run, you know, NFL offenses and defenses.
Speaker 1 (02:41):
Oh my god, these games have become so just overcomplicated,
especially you know controllers. Now I sound like an old man,
I sound like what my dad sounded like, but it's
true because controllers now have so many buns, the R two,
L two, L three, and then you're you have to
know like how to actually run offense. You know, there's
(03:01):
hundreds of plays in these playbooks and Maddens. I mean,
the last time I turned on a Madden game, I
was so confused. And I'm usually playing like an NFL
blitch where you get one hundred plays off in two
minutes and it's just NonStop action. Then to go from
that to the slow, monotonous, sort of realistic style of football,
because when you break down football it can be boring
(03:22):
at times, it's very slow.
Speaker 2 (03:24):
I actually was at the Jet game last week.
Speaker 1 (03:26):
Yikes, who do you want to win? Goddamn Jets?
Speaker 2 (03:30):
Normally we watched red Zone. So you're, like you said,
like an NFL blitz. You're just seeing play after play
after play from every game. When you're actually at the game,
they stand around on the field for two three minutes
at a time.
Speaker 1 (03:40):
Yeah, I mean the game should be it's a sixty minutes,
sixty minute, you know time, but it goes on for
three hours, three and a half hours, depending on penalties
and just stupidness. Football can be extraordinarily boring. But uh,
back back to your childhood you mentioned sports. Who are
your teams? I feel like I always forget because you
(04:00):
have different teams that you like.
Speaker 2 (04:02):
Yeah, we're the exact opposite Yankees, Rangers, Giants, Knicks.
Speaker 1 (04:07):
So what do you think was the best moment of
your life as a fan of sports? Would it be
one of the Well, the Rangers Stanley Cup in ninety four,
would it be the Giants couple of Super Bowls? You
got to see some of those.
Speaker 2 (04:20):
It's either the Rangers in ninety four or Yankees beating
the Mets. Sorry, you son of a bitch. Well, especially
because I was in college at that time and my
roommate who I had just met, was from Jersey and
he was a Met fan. So you know, we still
have the uh, you know, we were allowed to trash
talk to Mets still because they haven't beaten us in
(04:41):
the World Series.
Speaker 1 (04:43):
No, no, no, they haven't. And I thought, you know,
if the Mets did make it to the World Series
this past year, you know, we're recording this in November
of twenty twenty four. I think if the Mets did
face the Yankees, I think they would have won.
Speaker 2 (04:56):
I agree.
Speaker 1 (04:57):
So let's let's get down to why we're here here
to talk about movies. I feel like every single week
I meet up with John, I meet up with Jackie,
and we talk about what movies we've seen in theaters,
and a lot of the times we have a lot
of things in common. I feel it feel like our
love for certain action movies, certain genre of films, comedies
from the nineties, we're pretty much on page. You know.
We like our Major Pains, we like our Wayne's World,
(05:19):
we like our Jim Carrey movies. But every now and
then I think you have one of the dumbest takes ever,
and then you think, you know, vice versa, You think
the same exact thing with me. So let's get into
what we eventually are going to get to, and that
is the great debate of Independence Day. Versus signs. That's
like the main course for this podcast for today. But
(05:40):
before we get to that, let's talk about some recent
movies that we've seen. I know you did see Heredic
from a few weeks ago. I enjoyed the performances. I
liked the movie. I thought it was a different type
of horror film. It wasn't your typical slash your film.
It wasn't your typical, you know, ghosts sort of paranormal activity,
exorcist type of movie. It was a different vibe for
(06:00):
a horror movie, which is why I enjoyed it. I
know you and Jackie felt different.
Speaker 2 (06:06):
Yeah, I agree with that. I think Hugh Grant was
very good and like you said, it was more like
of a mind thriller. He was, you know, trying to
make the girls think and about what they were brought
up in as far as their religion.
Speaker 1 (06:18):
Yeah, so there are Mormons that are going down to
town or door to door, and I guess this is
something that he's done for a while now because he
spoiler alert, he's a psychopath that captures women, and you
see that he's been doing this for quite some time.
But yeah, yeah, it was a different type of movie.
But what didn't you like about it? That was like
a slower type of movie or no.
Speaker 2 (06:37):
So I didn't like that part that you just talked
about at the end where he has all these women
in his basement and he kind of he was trying
to with the girls like have them witness a miracle
when the one older woman was supposedly what was she
like an angel or something she was supposed to be. Yeah,
(06:58):
and then she ate the pie and died, and then
they figured out that she didn't come back to life,
that he just had another woman from the basement come
up and take her place. Like to me, that was
a little weird. Like I said, he was great in
the movie. And then again at the end, the one
girl is dead and she wakes up just enough to
(07:21):
kill you know, to smack him in the face with
that with the nail with the board with the nails
in it, and then dies it was a miracle, yeah, yeah, yeah,
But then the other girl was out. She could have
got out and then went back downstairs for whatever reason.
To me, like, I just didn't like the ending. I
didn't like that he had those women down there. It
(07:43):
just seemed weird to me.
Speaker 1 (07:44):
I didn't think it was a masterpiece by any stretch
of the imagination. And I also feel like a lot
of movies these days are lacking with their endings. Yeah,
and I didn't think the ending was awful. I like
the movie more than you, but I do feel like
that is a trend with a lot of modern movies,
where they don't have that satisfying ending. I'm a sucker
for movies that have a feel good ending, like give
(08:05):
me a movie like Rocky, give me a movie like
Field of Dreams. Obviously these are completely different genres than
something like Heretic, but I'm just talking about movies in
that same sort of field of a Field of Dreams
in a Rocky. A lot of these movies have these
open ended endings where oh, well, the audience could think
one thing, but your interpretations. Just just tell me how
does the movie end? Because I don't want to read
(08:27):
into it. I don't need to do research. I don't
have to look up YouTube lo or videos. Just tell
me the fucking ending to the damn movie.
Speaker 2 (08:33):
You're making the movie, so end it did the way
that you want it to end. And if I don't
like your ending, that's on me. But at least like
you said, you're giving me an ending. And I think
a lot of these movies nowadays do the open ended
endings because they're all making sequels and that gives them
the out to, like you want to talk about We're
(08:54):
going to talk about m night shamlaw movie Trap, like
the movie.
Speaker 1 (08:58):
I didn't actually see it, you didn't, but I'll kind
of give a shit no.
Speaker 2 (09:02):
I like the premise to the movie, right, this guy's
a serial killer. They set him up with this fake
concert because they know he's gonna go there with his daughter,
and then the whole movie's good, and then at the
end it just turns into a shit show, like when
you do see it, like all these different things. They
could have ended the movie three or four different times
and just kept it going, and then again the ending
(09:25):
was open ended.
Speaker 1 (09:26):
I heard it was like a vanity project for his
daughter because his daughter's like the singer in Oh Yes,
Nice daughter was like the Taylor Swift in that universe
that they're going to see in concert, and she's not
a bad singer, but it's pretty forced.
Speaker 2 (09:39):
Like Andy and Jackie said that, it was like we
were at we were watching a movie of a concert. Yeah,
Like that was a lot of it and it's like, well,
this isn't what we signed up for. But again, could
have ended three or four different times and just kept going,
and then when it finally did end, we were like,
why why do that?
Speaker 1 (09:55):
I think that's a big issue with M. Knight Shyamalan,
just to begin with, I think he has a lot
of great ideas and then sometimes I think they're executed
perfectly in something like a sixth sense or in my opinion,
something like Signs, but a lot of the times they
fall flat, whether it's something like The Village or Lady
in the Water. I mean, I could go on and
on on M. Knight's follies. I think he's a director
(10:17):
that a lot of people thought was going to be
the next Spielberg. In fact, there's a Time magazine or
maybe it was Newsweek, and it says the next Spielberg.
It's a picture of him on it, and clearly that
never panned out. He made bomb after bomb, and not
just financial of flops, but just critically. He hasn't really
made a movie where it was well received in years.
(10:38):
I mean, every now and then something here in there
that's a minor head or minorally liked, but nothing on
the level of a Signs or a sixth CeNSE where
it's making you know, half a billion dollars or so.
Speaker 2 (10:48):
Yeah, and like you said too, I think he has
a good premise for most of his films, he just
doesn't execute it properly.
Speaker 1 (10:55):
Yeah, he needs he needs maybe help with with writing
every now and then, you know, maybe hire a buddy
to sit in with you and be like, is this
something that you think works. I think that's something that
he could definitely benefit from. But before we get to
know more about the Independence Day and science, which we
will get to in a bit, have you seen anything else,
(11:16):
because I mentioned to you guys that I saw a
Gladiator too, and I wasn't a fan of it. I
thought it was fine for what it was. Again, it
was very long, and I don't mind the long movie
if it's good. This one dragged on a bit and
too many throwbacks to the previous movie. And sure, you
have to have callbacks every now and then if this
is a continuation of the story. But when you do
(11:38):
similar scenes where it makes no sense for them to
be saying certain lines or to be doing certain things,
and you're only doing it because the previous movie did that.
I think that is one of my least favorite tropes
in Hollywood. They did that in the Alien movie that
came out earlier this year, where they're saying direct lines
that there would be no reason for this to say
(12:00):
that line. So I think Gladiator fell into that same trap.
Obviously you're not gonna get performances. I don't think that
equal Russell Crowe or Joaquin Phoenix in Gladiator. And then
it was weird seeing Denzel Washington in this Gladiator Too
movie because it took me out of the role. And
I love Denzel Washington. I mean, who does He's one
of the greatest actors of all time. But he's not
(12:21):
putting on a voice. He's just doing Denzel. So it's
weird seeing a movie said in you know, three hundred
AD with a guy talking like he does in Training Day.
Speaker 2 (12:30):
I said the exact same thing to Jack, we saw
it on well you did see we saw it on
Wednesday and everything you just said, I said the exact
same thing. Yeah, again, love Denzel. Half the time I'm like, Okay,
he's in the role. And then, like you said, half
the time, I feel like I'm watching Training Day with
his accent or how he's saying things, his mannerisms.
Speaker 1 (12:49):
They need it to hire an unknown in that role.
Speaker 2 (12:51):
But he's but he's he's doing a fellow like he's
done please, so he should know how to act like that, Right,
That's what I think. But exactly like you said, I'm
I'm seeing him from training day. I thought the main guy,
I thought he did well. Pascal Pedro, Pascal hit or miss.
(13:11):
The the two emperors, I don't know where they came from.
I don't know who they are.
Speaker 1 (13:16):
Did not like that they were weird, they were what
they don't So the.
Speaker 2 (13:21):
Issues that we had with the movie, well, first of all,
we did look this up and it was true. She's
like they filled the arena with water, and I looked
it up and they actually did do that.
Speaker 1 (13:33):
But I don't think they had no shark.
Speaker 2 (13:35):
No, they're not bringing sharks exactly. But I don't think
that Gladiator Too did anything better than the First Gladiator at.
Speaker 1 (13:46):
All, not at all.
Speaker 2 (13:47):
Nothing.
Speaker 1 (13:47):
In fact, it decreased in things that you thought would
advance with technology. There was from the opening scene. Yeah,
they had like a ship battle. There was maybe like
fifteen or sixteen giant ships and was trying to advance
on a base area, and I'm looking at these ships
and I'm thinking this looks off. Something about this doesn't
(14:08):
seem realistic. And if they made this movie forty fifty
years ago, they would have actually had real ships. Obviously,
to save money, they made it with CGI, and CGI
could be really good. I know a lot of people
love the Dune movie from earlier this year. The CGI
in that is unbelievable. It's top tier. It looks realistic.
(14:29):
The CGI in this movie. They had CGI monkeys and
CGI sharks that looked like something you would see on
the Sci Fi channel or a PS three video game.
Speaker 2 (14:38):
Yeah, I don't understand who designed those monkeys and was like, yeah,
this is what we think they would look like. Like
you said in three hundred a d like Jackie said,
they they look like a mix between a monkey and
a dog.
Speaker 1 (14:49):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (14:49):
Like the movements of them were fine, but the way
they actually looked were terrible.
Speaker 1 (14:54):
See, I disagree with even that because the movements. There
was a scene where we're getting to some spoiler or
so whatever it is, what it is. There's a scene
in the nineteen ninety film Mortal Kombat where Luke Can
goes to grab reptile, and he's like this CGI freakish
character because CGI is in this infancy and he's holding
him up and he's not really holding anything because it's CGI.
(15:16):
And they did that exact same movement of the you know,
the Gladiator's son. I forget the actor's name, but he's
holding up this monkey and he's doing that same hurky
jerky moment where movement where he's not really holding on
to anything, and it felt really weird. It felt like
I was watching something from thirty years ago. And this
movie has an extreme budget. This is a three hundred
(15:37):
million dollar picture. It's making money, but it has to
make I read it has to make over seven hundred
million dollars to make profit, because if the budgets three
hundred million dollars, you still have to pay the theaters
for actually having the theaters for actually having the movie
rather and then to advertise for commercials and posters and
you know, advertisements on YouTube and Instagram. All that costs money.
(15:57):
So I don't know if it's gonna make profit. It's
making money, but it's not gonna make profit. But I
did not like the CGI. It was a little too long.
The action sequences were fine, and it did have I guess,
a satisfying ending in the sense that it had a
happy ending, which I was complaining about with a lot
of other movies. But it's just an unnecessary movie. Why
(16:17):
are we making this?
Speaker 2 (16:18):
I agree? And like I said, it didn't do anything
better than the first one. I think the fight scenes
in the first one we were longer and better, Like
there were a lot of ones here in this movie
that were kind of short and quick and done. One
thing Jackie said is like, well, why did everybody just
follow him right away? Like they didn't know he was
Maximus's son right away? They followed Maximus in the first
(16:40):
one because of who he was the general one, I guess.
Speaker 1 (16:42):
Because he was a good fighter, because he fought monkeys
in one scene.
Speaker 2 (16:45):
I guess. But like I said, you know, I think
you gave it a I think you said a six
point two. I think I said, like a six point five.
Speaker 1 (16:52):
Yeah, again, which is weird plot holes and coincidences. It's like, Okay,
this guy get captured and he's the only one that
that's captured, and he just so happens to be, you know,
the son of this guy and set up in this
one camp in prison where you know his old armor is.
It's like, come on, this is comic book stuff where
oh here's his armor. It's like, oh, this is Batman's
(17:13):
old armor. Here's you know, Russell Crow's old armor. So
and here weird movie.
Speaker 2 (17:18):
Here's the thing when Maximus died in the first one
and commonists, right, Lucius would have been the emperor. Yeah,
why did she send him away?
Speaker 1 (17:31):
And I couldn't tell you?
Speaker 2 (17:32):
And where did he go that? She just lost him?
Like just go away and that's it, you know, like
again talk about plot holes.
Speaker 1 (17:40):
It not look for him at all.
Speaker 2 (17:41):
Yeah, like you didn't, like I understand because he was
a child, but if he's supposed to be the emperor,
then he should have been the emperor. Yeah, Like but no,
you just send them away because people are gonna try
and kill him. I guess.
Speaker 1 (17:51):
But who who's going to kill him?
Speaker 2 (17:53):
I don't know. And then and then Denzel just again spoilers,
but just works his way right up and then comes well,
first of all, he made the monkey the first whatever,
which was hilarious, and then Denzel and then Denzel is like, okay,
now a member, Like that's it.
Speaker 1 (18:10):
Yes, you think there'd be more voting and democracy that
would need to be happening. Who knows. I think this
is one of those movies. In ten fifteen years, you're
gonna go they made a Gladiator too, Like, you're not
even gonna remember that they made this movie. That's how
I feel with the Blade Runner movie. They made a
Blade Runner sequel like five or six years ago, maybe
(18:31):
it was ten years ago. At this point, I don't
even remember being a thing. And that's Ridley Scott. Another
Ridley Scott movie that they're bringing back, although I don't
think he directed the most recent Blade Runner. But it's
hard to bring back characters, even though no characters really
being brought back, but franchises twenty thirty years, especially comedies.
(18:51):
Comedies you cannot bring back. We've seen that Dumb and
Dumber is horrendous, but action movies as well. Your Die
Archer Indiana Jones is some things are just better left
off in the past, and to have that legacy tarnish
is unfortunate because now people when they do think of Gladiator,
some of them will be like, well, there's Gladiator too,
(19:12):
and it just sort of ruins what the legacy of
that original Gladiator is. Have you guys seen anything else.
You didn't see The Wicked. You didn't want to see
the Wicked.
Speaker 2 (19:20):
No, I saw a wicket on Broadway and you Yeah.
So growing up, one of my favorite movies of all
time is The Wizard of Oz. You are one pathetic loser,
and Wicked came out and everybody was so about it,
and I was younger at that point, so I waited
(19:42):
for a little while until ticket prices went down. So
I think all the hype for like four or five
years just made it. It couldn't it couldn't rise to
the level that everybody made it. So when I saw it,
I didn't like it. Jaggie doesn't want to see it
because it's two hours and forty minutes and it's only
the first part, the only first act, So no, not
(20:05):
going to see that. What do we see? We saw
a Real Pain, which was the Kieran Culkin and Jesse
Eisenberg movie. It was okay, it was nothing special.
Speaker 1 (20:18):
It's not being advertised at all. I don't think I've
seen a single commercial. Maybe you've seen a YouTube ad
here and there, but like if I'm watching football, I'm
seeing no edguab no, no.
Speaker 2 (20:27):
Yeah, I think I saw it because he was on
Kelly Clarkson. I think I saw it on Instagram or
something like that that he was talking about it because
he directed it and wrote it. I thought Kieran colchinb
was great in the movie. Actually, what else did we seriously?
Speaker 1 (20:41):
He was in Signs.
Speaker 2 (20:43):
Yeah, he's the kid. Yeah, no one of the cults,
the other one or third Brother, Yeah, but no. I
thought he did a he did a great job in that.
But again, I think that movie was only an hour
and a half and it felt like it was about
two and a half.
Speaker 1 (20:58):
Oh yeah, that's never good.
Speaker 2 (21:00):
And like you said, I don't mind, I'll watch a
three hour movie. I just don't want to feel like
it's three hours.
Speaker 1 (21:04):
A big issue is with me as I get older
and these drinks get larger at these theaters, and now
they're serving alcohol at these theaters. They need to have
like a five minute intermission if your movie is two
hours and forty minutes. I understand why they don't do
it because you know, if you take a break, then
you can't have as many showtimes. And if extend the
(21:26):
time for this, then you can't make as much money.
But it would benefit I think a lot of people
if they knew that there would be a time for
them to go re up snacks, because every now and then,
if I do get a snack at the movie theater,
it's done before the previous we're even done. And then
the bedroom. If I'm getting a large or even a small,
the small sodas at the theaters are gigantic. If I
get some beers at the movie theater, it's done, Mike
(21:48):
bladder does not exist at all. So I think, you know,
a nice little pause button or like some intermission I
think would be something that I think if they pulled moviegoers,
but they would want to be done to actually increase
people to go to the theaters. Because theaters, unless it's
a big movie like a Wicket or a Marvel movie,
(22:08):
theaters are not doing too hot, no, So I think
maybe let's start like asking people what they actually want
with their theaters. Now, I rented or rented, I gave
you guys this movie. I'm holding right here, Briggs be Bear.
I said, this is one of my favorite movies of
all time. I lent it to you and your girlfriend Jackie,
and you both didn't like it. Why what are you
(22:29):
watching the same.
Speaker 3 (22:30):
Movie as me?
Speaker 2 (22:31):
We were we were. I don't know. It was very strange.
Uh strange is great again, it could be. I don't
even know how to describe it, honestly. I mean it
was sad, you know, with what happened to him, and
then he's a twenty five year old guy and doesn't
know anything.
Speaker 1 (22:52):
Yeah. So basically the premise from what I remember is
he was sort of kidnapped as a kid and his
dad was creating this fake TV show called Briggsby Bear
and he held him like captive in this weird desert
basement sort of layer. And then eventually, like within ten
minutes of the movie, he's sort of broken free from
this prison layer and he gets to reunite with his
(23:14):
real parents and he sort of forms this relationship with
his sister. But then they want to make a movie.
They want to make the briggs be Bear, which is
this character that his dad made up into a feature
length film. So's he won a very bizarre movie. For sure.
I understand why people wouldn't like it, but I love
that weirdness factor. I love Kyle Mooney, the guy who
(23:37):
wrote and a start in the movie. I think he's
plays that sincere sort of likable Goofball who is a
fish out of water. I think he played that really well.
So I love the practical effects. You know, they're making
like an old fashioned eighties science fiction Teddy Ruckspin which
was like an eighties bear thing, which I'm sure you knew.
Jonathan mixed with I guess Barney the Dinosaur in to
(24:00):
a feature length film. So it hit a lot of
notes and beats of stuff that I enjoy. So I
like the movie. You guys didn't again even anything. Jackie
hated it apparently.
Speaker 2 (24:09):
Again, I you know, it was strange, it was weird.
There were certain parts that I liked that I laughed at. Again,
his story is sad.
Speaker 1 (24:19):
You know.
Speaker 2 (24:21):
Would I watch it again?
Speaker 3 (24:22):
No?
Speaker 2 (24:23):
But whatever, Like we had discussed that it reminded you.
We had brought up Blast in the Past with Brendan Fraser,
and uh, I like you said the name right. Yeah,
well I watched your your documentary so because I had
been saying it wrong.
Speaker 1 (24:36):
Yeah, Frazier, Yah, it's Fraser.
Speaker 2 (24:39):
But again that one, that one had a little more
comedy to it.
Speaker 1 (24:44):
That was a less insane movie. This is yeah, breaksby
Bears is a trippy type of film. Yeah, yeah, the
past is more Hollywood, and I like the Blast from
the Past. I like both of the movies. But well,
there goes your Christmas gift. I guess I have to
buy a new Christmas gift for you. Guys. I got
to the whole I got you the special edition.
Speaker 2 (25:01):
Actually for Christmas, did you get us the whole Brigsby
Bear collection?
Speaker 1 (25:05):
Yes? Unfortunately, I'll have to return that with this shirt
as well.
Speaker 2 (25:08):
But I was also surprised that how many people were
in that movie. Yeah, Mark Hamill, look at us. Claire Danes,
it's a psychologist, yeah, Claire Day Yeah, and this Andy
Samberg was in it.
Speaker 1 (25:21):
Mm hmm. Well he's got the SNL connection, so I'm
sure he has for some favors here and there, even
like the kid actors, the the guy, the girl who
played his sister. I thought it was really good.
Speaker 2 (25:32):
The guy Spence that helped him with the Hispanic guy.
Speaker 1 (25:35):
Yeah, he was good and he liked the movie.
Speaker 2 (25:37):
And I think this came up because we were talking
about Y two K.
Speaker 1 (25:41):
Right, Yeah, that's the new movie from Kyle Mooney, the
same guy who wrote and directed Briggsby Bear. As a
new movie Why two K coming out, which is by
the time this gets released, probably will be out that week.
I think it comes out next week, so probably the
day this gets released, it should be out. So I'm
excited for that. I know you guys thought it looked terrible.
Now you're definitely not gonna see because I was like, listen,
give breaks me bear a chance. Then you want to
(26:02):
see Y QWK. You hated this, there's no chance you're
going to see Y two K.
Speaker 2 (26:06):
I don't know. Like you said, we do get we
are on the same level on certain movies and then
other things we just have different taste on. You know,
that's why people make movies, because there's plenty of people
who like, you know, certain things, and other people that
don't like them.
Speaker 1 (26:21):
So but at least I can respect your opinions. There
are some people that you just hear them talk and
what they're saying is is not even though I don't
agree with it, it's also just dumb. Yeah, at least
I can respect. Like, you don't like this, I hate
you for it, but I respect your opinion on the matter.
Speaker 2 (26:38):
Again, I just not my type of movie, that's all. Like.
I watched it again. There were certain parts that I like,
just overall, I was like Okay, yeah, you know it
is what it is.
Speaker 1 (26:49):
I'm gonna go on the record and say that movie
brings me. Bear and Creed are my two favorite movies
of the last fifteen years. Okay, did you like Creed? Yes,
I create a lot, Yes, I love The Rocky Series
is actually my favorite film series of all time. I
think they're all great, even shitty Rocky five. I will
watch if Rocky five's on TV. I'm not not watching it.
(27:11):
I gotta watch that street fight at the end. But
the guy says, touch me and I'll sue you then
punches him. He's assuming for what. I gotta watch all
of these movies whenever they're on And we're recording this
Thanksgiving weekend, and I always think of the Rocky Series
and Thanksgiving. They sort of go hand in hand. A
lot of the movies came out around that time. A
lot of them are set in the fall season. But
(27:31):
the reason why we're here, Jonathan, we're gonna get to
the main event, Independence Day and Signs. These are two
movies we were talking about. I don't even know where
it came up from. We just brought it up randomly
at the bowling alley. I'm sure We had some beers
in US and we were just discussing these two movies,
and you were on the side of Independence Day being
the superior movie, and I was on the side of
(27:53):
Signs being the superior movie. Now, let's just break down
a little bit of the facts. Independence Day grossed almost well.
It grossed eight hundred million dollars over that eight hundred
and seventeen million dollars worldwide on a seventy five million
dollar budget, which just do the math. Let's just say
hypothetically it cost with advertisements and all that stuff, two
(28:16):
hundred million dollars, which it probably didn't probably a hundred
fifty million dollars. It grossed. It made a ton of profit.
It mad It made twentieth Century Fox a boatload of money,
which is shocking that they didn't do more things with
the property. Now, they had an action figure line, which
was not really advertised too well. I would have thought
they would have tried to do a cartoon show. I
(28:37):
would have thought they would have tried to do more
video games. They did a shitty PS One game, but
I mean an alien invasion movie that's just asking for
more content. It needed, I think to be because you
think it could be like the next Star Wars, which
had that giant juggernaut of multimedia surrounding it. Independence they
sort of just was, and then twenty years later, when
(28:59):
no one asked, they made a shitty sequel which better
not have liked.
Speaker 2 (29:03):
I don't even think I saw it.
Speaker 1 (29:04):
Oh that's bad. That's a bad one, you know what
it is.
Speaker 2 (29:06):
I think that, like we've been talking about, I don't
want to see a sequel to a movie that I
love twenty years later. Now, yes, I did go see
Gladiator two, but I kind of wish I didn't. Like
you said, just leave it yep.
Speaker 4 (29:20):
At the original at least with Gladiator too, at least
you have Ridley Scott, who, although he's aged and he's
not what he once was, he's still a competent director.
Speaker 1 (29:30):
Roland Emrick, who directed Independence Day. I don't like him. No,
I like The Patriot. I think that's a really fun movie.
Godzilla from nineteen ninety eight probably one of the most
disappointing times I've ever had in the movie theater. He
did a bunch of shitty like destruction movies like The
Day After Tomorrow and ten thousand BC. He did one
(29:52):
where oh what the hell was this they had to shoot.
It was like sort of like Armageddon, where there was
a meteor was crashing down to Earth. Just terrible disaster movies.
But it made a lot of money, as did Signs,
which had a relatively same budget, even though it came
out a few years later. Seventy two million dollar budget
didn't make nearly as much, but it made a lot
of money. Four hundred million dollars plus worldwide for Signs.
(30:15):
Two different types of movies, but similar in the sense
that they're both alien movies. So here's the reason why
I think I like and I want to say this,
I like Independence Day. I'm not gonna go on the
record and say I don't like this movie. I've seen
Independence Day far many more times than i've seen Signs.
Every fourth of July, I'm pretty much watching Independence Day. Signs, though,
(30:38):
is a slower build of a movie, and I think
the older I get, I like movies like this where
it's less as more. You don't see the alien. You
see you know, you hear stuff, You hear stuff on
the roof, and then you see, you know, his cornfield's
all messed up, and then you see a shadow of
an image and then you know, lights are in the
(31:01):
sky on the news and you're not seeing anything. It's
not really until you see a birthday party scene where
they're filming a Mexican birthday party and Joaquin Phoenix is
in the TV, you know, watching the TV, and he
flips out because you see this quick image of this alien,
a grainy footage from far away, sort of like a
big foot footage of this alien, and that shocked the
(31:22):
hell out of audiences. I remember vividly the audiences in
the theaters. I saw this one twice in theaters going
nuts with that scene.
Speaker 5 (31:29):
The startling footage we're about to show you was photographed
by a forty two year old Romero Valadaries. This video
was taken yesterday afternoon at his son's seventh birthday in
the city of Pasofundo, Brazil.
Speaker 2 (31:45):
Wolve children Promenos.
Speaker 1 (31:51):
And it's less is more. It's not like Independence Day,
where there's within the first thirty minutes there's one hundred explosions.
The White House gets exploded. You don't really see the
aliens per se, but you see all the ships and
the CGI and all that stuff. So they're two different
(32:12):
types of movies. And I think like I said, the
older I get a movie like Signs is more my Alley.
Speaker 2 (32:18):
Okay, now let me ask you. This was Signs. M
nightshall on second movie.
Speaker 1 (32:23):
He did Unbreakable also in between then and he did
like a short like like an independent type movie, but
it was his third like big movie was.
Speaker 2 (32:32):
It was.
Speaker 1 (32:33):
Sixth Sense, then Unbreakable, then Signs.
Speaker 2 (32:36):
I would say that that's going to be partially the
reason why I made so much money. I think at
that point he was still.
Speaker 1 (32:43):
Here's still a lot hot direct. Well that's when the
article came out. I was talking about the Newsweek. It
said the next Spielberg. Obviously also having a guy like
Mel Gibson pre anti Semitism, leaking and you know, beating
girlfriend getting out there. He was bankable. He was box
office you know, Oscar winning for a Brave Heart, The
Patriot with actually another connection there because he was in
(33:05):
The Patriot that was directed by Roland Emmerick. But you know,
Gibson was on fire, Joaquin Phoenix up and coming act there.
It had a lot going forward. Also, there hasn't really
been a UFO movie probably since Independence Day really since then.
You know, it was a five year, six year gap
in between alien movies. It wasn't a saturated market, so
(33:27):
and I think it was a well received movie. Critics
liked it, audiences loved Signs. I think though, you know,
if you made this movie after some of his bombs,
obviously it wouldn't have made four hundred million dollars.
Speaker 2 (33:39):
Yeah, that's that's what I was saying. As far as
that goes, you're one hundred percent right that it's definitely
they're not the same type of movie. Yes, they both
have to do with aliens, but Independence Day is an
action film, definitely more comedy in there. There's really no
comedy and Signs Signs, like you said, is just a
slow build. I don't know. My thing with Signs is,
(34:02):
first of all, I don't see mel Gibson as a
as a priest, right, which he was. Then he lost
his faith because of his wife getting hit by the car.
Now what is that? What is her getting hit by
the car? Now she's basically giving him the recipe to
defeat the aliens? Like, how does that She got hit
(34:24):
by the car and saw what was gonna happen.
Speaker 1 (34:25):
Listen, I'm not a religious man, Jonathan, but there are
miracles in this world, right and I'm sure there are
lots of plot holes in Signs. I'm not gonna say
that it makes sense that an alien species that can
travel hundreds of millions of light years would want to
travel to a planet filled with eighty percent water When
they're one achilles heel is water. What happens if it rains?
Speaker 2 (34:48):
Yeah, they got to stay inside.
Speaker 1 (34:49):
They have to stay they have to bring umbrellas with them.
So does that make sense? Of course not nope. But
you know, let's think of the stupidness of Independence Day,
some of the goofy comic book, you know, characters that
we have the typical over the top Jewish father, Oh,
my David, you don't be dead without my David. That character?
(35:09):
What about the over the top gay guy, Oh, I
gotta call my mother, Like these are these are not
human beings. There's nobody that's like these. So maybe maybe
there are, but they are there. It's just it's so
over the top where Signs is so grounded it is.
You know, I thought Gibson was fantastic. I thought I
(35:29):
thought he could play a priest for sure, And I
think his performances is a grounded performance where if you're
getting attacked by aliens. Are you gonna have the ability
to be like, oh, you better not shoot that green
shit at me. It's like, what did he have a
writer with him in the back of the spaceship, like
say this one liner? When you know they shoot green
shit at you, you're just gonna be like, ah, fuck Eleen,
(35:52):
Like you're not gonna be thinking like that. Again, different
types of movies. That is a summer popcorn box office
in line with the Marvel movies of recent years where
they're doing some of those corny things. But again, I'm
not gonna I hate the disparage Independence because I love
the movie.
Speaker 2 (36:10):
I love it well and like you just said, you
watch it pretty much every year, every fourth here's my thing.
If I'm flipping channels and Independence Days on, I'm gonna
watch it. Yeah, if Signs is on, I'm gonna go
buy it. That's how I know that I like Independence
Day better. And again it's because again it's an action movie.
Like you said, it's over the top. It's something that
(36:32):
you can watch over and over again because it's entertaining. Yes,
like Signs, you gotta be like you gotta be in
the right movie invested it? Yeah, exactly.
Speaker 1 (36:38):
You want to watch scigence at You don't want to
watch Signs in a bright sunny day. You want to
watch it, you know, nighttime, creepy, yep, in the right atmosphere.
But I don't agree with the statement because I've only
seen Field of Dreams maybe five or six times, and
it is in my top ten favorite movies of all time, Okay,
and it's just a movie that it's It's not that
(36:58):
it's a hard watch, but it's just a different type
of movie. Like I could throw on Dumb and Dumber anytime.
I could watch Dumb and Dumber five times in one year.
I can't watch Shindler's List more than you know. I've
only watched that two or three times in my lifetime.
They're just different types of movies. Where Independence Day you
can have a few beers, relax, goof off with your friends.
I don't know how once you could do that with
(37:20):
something like Signs, although it is it is like an
introduction horror movie because it's got horror elements to it,
it's got you know, great practical special effects. This is
both of these movies. I do want to bring up
their time capsules in the sense that Independence Day is
pretty much the last big budget movie to really use
(37:44):
practical effects in the sense that they use a lot
of miniatures. If this was created, if that was created
three or four years later, none of those things would
look good today because it would all be CGI. Like
that White House getting blown up that was a miniature
of the White House. If that was created in two
thousand and three, two thousand and four, all that stuff
would be CGI and it would age poorly, because CGI
(38:04):
ages really badly. So it's cool that both of these movies,
you know, the the Alien and Signs that's an all
you know, a practical effect. That's a guy in a suit.
I think if that was made five or six years later,
that would all be CGI and it would not age well.
So I like the idea that both of these movies
are doing things that I enjoy with my movie making, experience,
practical effects, miniatures, all that stuff. And they're two different
(38:26):
types of movies. If I'm grading them, I would say
Signs is a better movie. It's a better movie. I
think it's a better active movie. It's definitely a better
shot movie. It's got a good film score to it.
Although I do like the music and independence say I
think that is a good iconic score. When the president's
giving this speech and the music's hitting in the background,
(38:46):
that's good stuff. We're going to live on.
Speaker 2 (38:49):
We're going to survive. Today, we celebrate our Independence Day.
Speaker 1 (39:03):
But I think as far as like filmmaking goes to
be like a snooty film critics sort of guy, I
think Signs blows Independence Day out of the water.
Speaker 2 (39:11):
Okay, never made a movie. I don't really know how
they make movies. Again, I think Independence Day is a
better movie all around.
Speaker 1 (39:23):
All around, all around. That's ridiculous, all around.
Speaker 2 (39:25):
Like you said, the acting.
Speaker 1 (39:27):
Mel Gibson, acting circles around Jeff Goldblum and Will Smith
and I love well and Jeff Goldblum.
Speaker 2 (39:32):
But again, because it's a more serious movie.
Speaker 1 (39:35):
Yeah, but you said all around. Well, the acting is
better in Signs. You know, it's better in science. The
connection between the kids, the kids.
Speaker 2 (39:42):
The kids were good. The kids were good.
Speaker 1 (39:43):
I did like the kid Signs and then the kids
and then dependence. They're they're like full house actors. My
daddy did this, my dad, oh my mommy died. We'll
get over it.
Speaker 2 (39:53):
I do like uh, I do like Randy Quaid's character.
Speaker 1 (39:56):
He's amazing.
Speaker 2 (39:57):
He's great.
Speaker 1 (39:59):
Oh it's amazing.
Speaker 2 (40:03):
Yeah. Again different, it's hard because again, like you said,
they're completely different types of movies. You know, I just
don't know. Signs for me just didn't do it like
you said. But you even you even brought up the
plot holes in there. You know, I didn't even have
to make those points for you. Like and again, we
(40:23):
know in Independence Day they're coming to take over the world.
They're coming to take over Earth. Yeah, what are they doing?
And uh, I mean they're like I'm.
Speaker 1 (40:32):
Assuming they're there to take over Earth as well.
Speaker 2 (40:34):
You would think, but they're only like going to like
people's like houses, like individually too. I think what they
wanted to take them back to maybe probum or or
do whatever with them. Like in Independence Day they were
trying to blow up Earth like they were trying to
kill everybody, right, and Signs they're at his house, they're
(40:54):
wherever else they were.
Speaker 1 (40:56):
But again, we don't know what else is going on
in the world. See that That's the beauty. That's why
I like science because it's just it's basically it takes
place all in that one farmhouse. He goes to m
Night Shyamalan's house, because of course he has to shoehorn
himself in every single movie he directs. But it's the
story of how one family would react to an alien invasion.
(41:16):
I find that to be a fascinating story instead of this.
There's so many characters, And in the Pennance Day, you
have Randy Quaid and his kids. You have the President,
you have the President's daughter, you have Jeff Goldblum, you
have Jeff Goldblum's dad, you have the gay guy, you
have the whole military aspect, you have you know, yeah,
Will Smith, you have Will Smith's friend. There's there's like
seventeen eighteen different characters, and they all are memorable, but
(41:39):
there's a lot out there that you cenerally develop any
of their characters. Yeah, they have an arc here and there,
but it's not developed where you get their relationship. You
see the relationship, you see you know the way that
mel Gibson has changed once his wife died. Because you're
only focused on that family, I think you get a
better opportunity to watch that character and watch those characters grow.
Speaker 2 (42:01):
I agree with that, yeah, definitely.
Speaker 1 (42:03):
But I will say Signs does not have the greatest
character in motion picture history, and that is Boomer the Dog,
because when Boomer the Dog in Independence Day escapes that
explosion and he jumps out of the explosion into that
little crevice that how do they survive that? All you
have to do is shut a door and then you're
able to survive a nuclear explosion of sorts. I don't
(42:26):
know how the dog knew to do that, but it
jumped like Tom Cruise. And there's no Boomer the Dog
in Signs. So maybe if Boomer was in Signs.
Speaker 2 (42:35):
I think Tom Cruise played Boomer.
Speaker 1 (42:37):
Oh yeah, yeah, all right, I think we got to
get down to it. Let's just let's just get down
to it. I still stand by there. There's gonna be
no convincing that Signs is the superior movie. Actually, you
know what, has has your girlfriend Jackie seen both of
these movies?
Speaker 2 (42:55):
She probably has, right, I know for a fact she's
seen Signs.
Speaker 1 (42:57):
What did she think of Signs? She likes Signs, She's
seen an Independence Day.
Speaker 2 (43:01):
I don't know. Okay, listen, we talk. We like, I
bring up movies that I would think that there was
no way she went throughout life without seeing Gladiator being
one of them. We just watched that last month. She's
like I had never seen Gladiator. I'm excuse me.
Speaker 1 (43:14):
Yeah, it's insane.
Speaker 2 (43:15):
I'm like, because she watches the same movies over and
over again, Wage Worlds or Bohemian Rhapsody, Lemize she watches
seven thousand times, so I don't know if she's seen
Independence Day.
Speaker 1 (43:27):
To be honest with you, how about she is the
deciding factor. That's because I'm not changing my stance. It
doesn't seem like you're changing your stands.
Speaker 2 (43:35):
No, I'm definitely not changing my stand So we need Jackie.
Speaker 1 (43:37):
When's the last time you watched Signs?
Speaker 3 (43:39):
Though?
Speaker 2 (43:39):
I just watched it with her. Uh, she fell asleep,
but yeah, she I mean she's seen it more than
I have. I don't remember. I didn't remember it, so
that's why I watched it maybe two weeks ago when
we had the discussion. Yeah, and I need to watch
some of his other ones again because I told her
I liked The Village Terrible and that's what she said.
(44:00):
And now I don't remember it because now I have
to watch it again.
Speaker 1 (44:02):
He made a movie called The Visit with two kids
that go to visit their grandparents, and that was sort
of his resurgence. It was a smaller film It was
after he made these big budget like Avatar and he
made that movie with Will Smith that were like three
hundred million dollar movies. This was more of a smaller
film of return to his horror roots. And I remember
(44:22):
liking the Visit. I think that's the name of the movie.
I don't think it was too well received, but I
remember me and my ex thoroughly enjoying that movie. Then
he did the Split movie. Did you see Split? Yes,
that was pretty good, and then they did The Glass
which which was not as good visually, it was really
impressive with a lot of different lighting stuff going on
(44:43):
with that movie. But he's made so many weird choices
with his movies. He made The Knock in the Cabin
or Cabin in the Woods with Dave Bautista, which was
like a gay couple with their kids and they had
to make a sacrifice for one of the parents to
It was really really strange movie. And then his daughter's
now directing movies. He directs directed a terrible movie, was terrible.
(45:05):
What was that one with What's your Face? Dakota Fans?
Speaker 2 (45:09):
Oh no, we didn't watch that The Watchers, right, the
one of the woods. Yeah, yeah, we didn't even watch.
Speaker 1 (45:14):
It awful awful. So his his family, I guess isn't
talented because the daughter not too good of a singer,
other daughter terrible director, and he's just coasting. Buy But uh,
all right, Jonathan, we'll have to have you back then.
Speaker 2 (45:27):
All right. Yeah, so I'll make sure that Jackie watches
Independence Day and then.
Speaker 1 (45:31):
We need the final vote. Jackie will decide which is
the superior.
Speaker 2 (45:35):
And now you said the visit was a m Night night.
Speaker 1 (45:38):
Yeah, I liked it. Again. Obviously, it has the m
Night tropes that you you know, used to do with
the crazy twist and turns and whatnot. But I enjoyed it.
I thought it was fine. How'd you think he did
on the podcast? I thought you started off a bit slow,
a little nervous maybea first, but then as soon as
like we got into it, I thought you brought the energy.
Speaker 2 (45:55):
Yeah. No, listen, I, like you said, we might not
have the same opinion, but I have my basis for
it and my reasoning. Yeah, Matta started off a little slow.
I didn't want to, you know, jump well on top
of you or you talk over you. So just first
time on a podcast, so just trying to learn the.
Speaker 1 (46:14):
Ropes I thought you did fantastic.
Speaker 2 (46:16):
All right, I appreciate it.
Speaker 1 (46:17):
You know, I wanted to bring up watually one thing,
back to Independence State. I just like, I hate bashing
the movie because so I'm gonna give it some praise.
I remember seeing that that one in theaters as well
with my grandma and my cousin, and there was a
scene with an autopsy. It's like they finally get the alien.
I think Will Smith like punches the alien Welcome to Earth,
punches it in the face. By the way, listen to
(46:39):
Opie and Anthony with Patris O'Neil. He breaks down Independence Day.
It's like the funniest radio of all time. It's got
to be somewhere on YouTube. But I remember seeing this
movie in theaters and that autopsy scene and they cut
the alien open and then there's like this jump scare.
There's this loud sound and I remember vividly the whole
audience screaming, And it's probably the first instance where I
(47:02):
can remember a jump scare with an audience.
Speaker 2 (47:05):
Is that when they open him and then the little
head is in.
Speaker 1 (47:07):
There, yeah yeah, yeah, and then he starts do you
know who?
Speaker 2 (47:11):
Do you know who the doctor is?
Speaker 1 (47:12):
Yeah? Brett Spiner, the guy from.
Speaker 2 (47:14):
Stark Start Data.
Speaker 1 (47:15):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (47:17):
The only reason I know that is because my dad
was a treky. The only reason I know that.
Speaker 1 (47:21):
Yeah, I've seen Brett Spiner at quite a few conventions. Okay,
he's uh, he's aged. Yeah, and then they tried to
make him data because they brought back like Picard. He's
supposed to be like Agels, but he's like you know, old.
So it's always rough when they try and bring back characters. Ye,
all right, but we're gonna bring you back, Jonathan. Thank
you for joining me on this addition of Film Real.
We'll be back, and I promise I say this every week.
(47:42):
I say I'm going to finish the Transformers podcast. I
did two parts of the Transformers we're supposed to do
part three. I haven't done it in three months, so
maybe they'll be a bit. Maybe they'll just continuously never
finish Transformers. But thank you all for listening doing that
on all the movies. Yeah, I did all the movies
to talk about my love for the franchisees and whatnot.
Did you eventually see Transformers one?
Speaker 2 (48:03):
No we didn't.
Speaker 1 (48:03):
Yeah, that's why I'm supposed to review.
Speaker 2 (48:05):
But I am a big fan of the Transformer movies, of.
Speaker 1 (48:07):
The shitty Michael Bay ones. They're terrible. Okay, we'll have
to get you back on all right. We'll discuss maybe
Transformers next time. And Jackie's vote on Independence Day and signs.
Thank you all for listening so long.
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Football’s funniest family duo — Jason Kelce of the Philadelphia Eagles and Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs — team up to provide next-level access to life in the league as it unfolds. The two brothers and Super Bowl champions drop weekly insights about the weekly slate of games and share their INSIDE perspectives on trending NFL news and sports headlines. They also endlessly rag on each other as brothers do, chat the latest in pop culture and welcome some very popular and well-known friends to chat with them. Check out new episodes every Wednesday. Follow New Heights on the Wondery App, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to new episodes early and ad-free, and get exclusive content on Wondery+. Join Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. And join our new membership for a unique fan experience by going to the New Heights YouTube channel now!
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!