Excuse the Intermission
Alex, Erica and Max take you on a journey through film with this discussion podcast about movies.
Excuse the Intermission
Movie News: Thunderbolts, New Trailers and Cannes Film Festival Begins!
The conversation shifts to Marvel's surprising box office hit "Thunderbolts," which has topped charts for two consecutive weekends. We break down why this particular entry has connected with audiences when recent Marvel offerings have faltered – examining how its grounded approach, practical location shooting, and thoughtful mental health themes provide a refreshing alternative to CGI-heavy spectacles. Florence Pugh's star power and David Harbour's charismatic performance contribute to a film that feels contained yet consequential within the larger Marvel universe.
Summer movie season approaches with promising titles, and we analyze recent trailers for Spike Lee's "High to Low," Celine Song's rom-com "The Materialist," the final "Conjuring" installment, and Zach Cregger's anticipated horror follow-up "Weapons." With Cannes Film Festival underway, we speculate about potential award contenders like Ari Aster's "Eddington" and Julia Ducournau's "Alpha," considering how the festival increasingly predicts Oscar success. Between passionate discussions of cinema, friendship, and even NBA playoff drama, this episode captures the joy of reconnecting as a team across distances while celebrating our enduring love of film.
Send us your thoughts using the link in our show description, and follow us on Instagram and Letterboxd to join the conversation between episodes!
How's it? I'm Alex McCauley.
Speaker 1:I'm Max Fosberg and I'm Erica Krause and this is excuse the intermission a discussion show surrounding new beginnings. It's our first virtual recording as a full team since Max's big move to Los Angeles. We will get a full update on his new surroundings, have a discussion about another new chapter in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, talk a little bit about some recent trailers and catch up on everything else movie related A busy episode that gets underway on the other side of this break. Alright, guys, welcome to the new normal, if you will. This feels like a pandemic throwback seeing you both over StreamYard. We love StreamYard and this will give us an opportunity to post a lot more content to social media, youtube and all those video platforms. But I miss you guys. The studio feels a little empty right now. Max, erica and I had the chance to do a dry run of this last week, but let's hear what your new setup looks like and how things are going for you over there.
Speaker 3:Yeah, new setup actually really started today. The moving truck, you know, we got here on the 1st of May and the moving truck just showed up today, which is what, the 13th of May now. So happy to have a bed, happy to have a dining room table, happy to have my desk, but yeah, I'm just kind of tucked away in a corner of the living room. I got the beautiful sun behind me and the deck. If the takes are too scalding, hot, hot, I can jump outside for some fresh air. Um, but yeah, things, things are coming together.
Speaker 1:I, I I don't think the takes will get any cooler outside. You're in the belly of the beast that's, that's very true be worse.
Speaker 3:That's very true um, I do have a dilemma.
Speaker 1:I have no idea what to do with my movies or how to display them like the physical media set up. What the situation, what?
Speaker 3:it's, it's tough. I've got no, I've. You know, we couldn't bring up in washington. We had like this giant old antique hutch that we stuck all our movies in. There was no way we were making that down, like I mean we could have maybe put it on the truck, but like it was just too big. It was too big so we let it go. We had a good friend who wanted it. So yeah, I just have like four boxes of just movies sitting in the middle of my living room right now. I don't know, I might just stack them on the floor, you know, and and just it's just a city of of dvds, uh, on the floor, I don't know you could be like the guy in um, unfaithful that that, um, that diane starts her affair with you, know, and he's got the books everywhere in his house.
Speaker 3:That could just be just d.
Speaker 1:Yeah, Um, I don't know if it gives off the same intellectual vibe but it should it should.
Speaker 3:Well, it depends on on the uh, on the selection, I guess. Right, it depends what I put out front in here.
Speaker 1:Yeah, um, yeah, that's tough. That's, that's tough. I sympathize with you, um, in that situation, because it's not like you're going to. Please don't become a CD booklet guy no no, no, you can't take him out of the case.
Speaker 2:The case is everything. Hey, my CD booklet is very nice and handy.
Speaker 3:No, no, I need the plastic. What am I going to float on when the flood happens? You know I can tape all those together and make a raft.
Speaker 1:I already go ahead.
Speaker 2:I need DVD cases just to be more aesthetically pleasing. I need every DVD that I own to be like like criterion collection level aesthetic, or else it's not going anywhere in my living space. No offense boys, but it messes with my vibe too much.
Speaker 1:No, there's definitely a. There's a different feng shui that the blue plastic case gives off compared to a nice steel book or like, uh, you know the hard. I know what you're talking about with the criterion uh, slip covers sometimes like that, that nice hard, um, it's not really cardboard, just like thick paper, um but yeah, it's more like a book yeah, it's.
Speaker 2:It looks a lot more like a book exactly if I had a designated movie room or something I would happily display my my media, but I don't yet. So someday I'll have my own private in-home theater and it'll all be on display, but for now it goes in my booklet all right, so let's let's hear about some of the other updates that come along with the move to los angeles.
Speaker 1:How many movies have you gone out and seen, how, how, how is the, the culture, the, the movie scene, so to speak, um down there, and do you have like a new favorite theater? Are there still places you want to check out what's been going on?
Speaker 3:So, yeah, I think I was telling Erica this, uh, before we, before we jumped on, to record I think I've been down here 13 days. On to record, I think, what I've been down here, 13 days, 12 days, I think I've been in a theater at least seven, six or seven days, so at least half half the days I've been down here I've been in a theater. Um, there is just, there's so much, there's there's so much movies, there's so many movies going on every, every, every day. There are so many awesome little theaters I've been to. The Vista is walking distance to my apartment and so already I've kind of adopted that as my new home theater. I've been there twice now.
Speaker 3:I saw Quentin Tarantino there. Of course he owns that theater, so you know, sometimes he goes and watches the movies there, but that was quite a crazy experience. I think that was like day three of being in LA and you, you know, watch a movie with Quentin Tarantino. That's just very LA. I've also met some some great filmmakers there Went and saw that new, uh Andrew DeYoung movie Friendship and uh, shout out to Daniel, he's a comedy filmmaker who I was uh had the pleasure to sit next to. Uh, it was on Mother's Day, and at the end of the film he revealed to me that he and his mom were there. He had his mom's ashes in his bag because she loved going to the movies which was like both very, very sweet and extremely creepy.
Speaker 3:But you know, that's, that's kind of the kind of the eccentric people you you meet in LA, I guess.
Speaker 1:That's a hell of a nice breaker.
Speaker 3:I thought he was joking at first and then and then you know he was very serious.
Speaker 1:Really nice, daniel. I mean you just got to put out the energy that you're trying to attract.
Speaker 3:Really nice, daniel. I mean, you just got to put out the energy that you're trying to attract. Absolutely, absolutely, um what else? I've been to brain dead studios that's over in West Hollywood, or as the locals call it. We ho, we ho, I'm like I get that right. Um went and saw heat our beloved heat, uh, which was amazing on on the big screen. A packed theater. That's the other thing. Every movie I've been to just packed Just people to the front of the theaters.
Speaker 1:Erica looks like a proud older cousin right now who has experienced all this stuff and she's hearing about it, reliving her glory days.
Speaker 2:I miss the packed theaters so much it's really fun even when I moved from la to austin, going to alamo draft house, all the time the theaters were always packed. Yeah and um, yeah. And then that didn't happen in denver but, yeah, I mean, I just I would die for a packed theater, like consistently, not like just once in a blue moon for some big. Even when we saw sinners, there was like what, like 10 people there.
Speaker 3:You know, like I need to be filled to the brim yeah, erica I I I did have my first alamo experience and how was it?
Speaker 2:tell us all about it listen, two out of ten.
Speaker 3:Uh, the food made me sick, the food made kaylee sick. I thought the theater was kind of small. I thought the attendant was pretty rude. Uh, tough, tough. It was a tough first alamo experience. Uh, I was really looking forward to it. We went to another dine-in theater called look, I believe look theaters, I think that's what it was called and uh, that one was like kind of, I think up in like Burbank area, a lot better, a lot better, a lot nicer, a lot bigger.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I don't know. I don't know if you've ever been to that Alamo downtown LA.
Speaker 2:I have once, and so my experience with Alamo is not. I've gone to Alamo and every city I've lived in, obviously, except for Washington, but when I lived it was right before I moved, at the very end of 2019. Alamo, downtown LA, had opened up like it was very new and I remember, yes, being very small and just not really like I didn't really know. Well, I had been to Alamo once before in austin, when I went to visit before I moved there, and I had an amazing experience. It was so fun. I was like, oh my gosh, this is so cool.
Speaker 2:And then, yeah, the one in la was like it was okay, it's like that you have to go to the south lamar location in austin, texas, and that, because that's like I'm pretty sure that's their og alamo reptiles is is texas, you know, and um it, it really is amazing there. And then, even when I went to alamo in denver just recently, even my, it was very just, it was okay. I mean I don't want to like shit on alamo, but I've just had some really great experiences in austin as opposed to like other places. So I'm sorry that sucks uh, yeah, it was cool.
Speaker 3:I got to see a new david cronenberg movie on on the screen that was pretty. Other incredible theaters there, oh my gosh, yeah, yeah, I still need to go to, uh, the egyptian. Uh, I definitely want to go like on the studio lots and see the movies there. Um, I also went to the los uh, feliz three, uh which is a very like historic old theater, really really cool.
Speaker 3:That's the other cool thing about these. I mean, all these places are very historic but like everywhere is showing stuff on film, which is a really cool experience, and it is a different experience from your regular digital projection.
Speaker 2:Like it is, I don't know, it's just a bit more enriching, uh, which is, you know, very, very silly to say, because who knows if it actually is, but it's fun tell us about, like, how, like what you're experiencing down there, as far as like film promotions too, because when I lived there, like you had texted us before, like there was, you know they're advertising for final destination all over the place, every corner, every bus stop, every you know.
Speaker 3:When you're driving around the city, all you're looking at are as advertisements for shows or movies. Uh, and it's just, it's just wonderful. It's just wonderful, it's just it feel, it makes you feel good while you're driving around. It's either those two things, or like weird scientology posters. Um, I live very, very close to the scientology headquarters, the big blue building I lived right across from the celebrity center in Los Feliz, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:Literally right across the street.
Speaker 3:Yeah, so that's really interesting to walk by and experience and look at every day. But yeah, there's, I mean, yeah, blood like something like Final Destination. You know it and I don't know. I'm sure maybe we'll touch on it later, but like early word is one of the one of the best movies in the series coming uh, which is really exciting. So that that's really cool. But you are, you are just like, yeah, you are uh, uh, pressured in the paint here. You know, with with all of these movies, thunderbolt stuff, um, like I said, bloodlines this. Did you guys know there's a like an Indiana Jones style adventure movie starring John Krasinski, coming out next weekend called fountain of youth, and Natalie Portman John Krasinski, natalie Portman called fountain of youth.
Speaker 2:Um, didn't know about that until I moved here I'll be curious if you see any fun like sometimes they'll do like really interactive advertising all over la, like I remember when it came out and they had like red balloons, like just random places. Yeah, la is really cool, like you really are, like in, you're in the heart of it all Right, and they, they definitely make you aware of it.
Speaker 3:I did see some some Reddit video or Instagram video where Sebastian Stan was running around LA putting up posters of the Thunderbolts, but with its new title. I don't know if you guys have been spoiled with that, but uh, but yeah, so yeah, yeah, yeah, there's, I mean there's, there's tons of things, just it's always in your face. I found a really cool um video store today. Uh, like a rental, it's a rental house, but also sells stuff Just like decked from you know floor to ceiling and in DVDs, blu-rays, 4ks, VHSs it was. It had like the old, even like the like the shelving was very blockbuster and like the, the flooring was like that old carpet with with like little you know star drawings on it and like the you know the galaxy or whatever.
Speaker 3:Um, yeah, very cool, very cool shop over there. And uh, where was? I think that was toluca lake or burbank or somewhere over the hills. But uh, yeah, man, it's, it's it, it's, it's been wild, it's been really fun to explore and I honestly haven't even like gotten to a lot of it. Uh, have yet to go to vidiots. Uh, that's on the list. Uh, I got to find something there that nothing, just none of the, none of the showings have really stood out to me yet, but um, but yeah, it's, it's been, it's been really, really, really fun.
Speaker 2:Good.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's awesome. That's. That's really cool to hear. I wonder if you'll I bet that being so green for the next I don't know month, six months, maybe first year I wonder if you'll really be keen to pick up on some people and maybe this is the Alamo, the reasoning for the Alamo experience, or maybe you'll start to see it elsewhere. But just because you are at the epicenter of movie making and of movie culture, that, like folks that are just working at Alamo because it's a job, they don't have that same passion.
Speaker 3:Right, it's not as pretty and yeah, right, like job, they don't have that same passion that you would expect them to. You know, it's not as pretty and yeah, right, like, yeah, it doesn't have that glow, that same glow that we see it with right.
Speaker 1:I mean, I even think about I wish this is random, but I thought of it as you were talking Like the last time I went in to a Starbucks, I was thinking when we were in high school it used to like this happens. I was thinking when we were in high school it used to like this I'm so stupid and vapid, but like it used to mean something to like work at Starbucks. And now you go into like a Starbucks and you're like what sort of work release program do they have going on here? It's just like anybody is serving you coffee and I don't know. Not that you have to have that personal touch behind basic customer service, interpersonal interactions and relationships, but you do want someone to make it feel special for you while you're there doing something that you're paying money to invest in this experience. And so that is a bummer about the first Alamo experience no-transcript something that happens.
Speaker 3:You know the academy museum theater right like yeah, I I went to the academy museum uh on gosh was that last last wednesday, I think. Um, because they have a. They have a really great Bon Jovi uh exhibit going open right now. Uh, really really cool and uh just like tons of his uh storyboards. He's god, he's so freaking detailed. Uh, for all of his movies Each wall is a different one of his movies, but yeah, that place is stunning and I look forward to when I get to go see something in their theater.
Speaker 1:Well, I'm glad that you mentioned Thunderbolts because, transitioning into some movie news now, I would say the most noteworthy box office thing to report on within the last two weeks since we've been apart is the surprise hit that Marvel released over the first weekend of the month. So Thunderbolts has now sat atop the box office for two weekends in a row and is at $130 million domestically and $273 million worldwide. We can hypothesize the reason for the film's financial success here in a minute. But, max, that is also one of the films that I know you've made it out to see in your new stomping grounds down there. So talk to us a little bit about the critical response to this film because, based off of your Letterboxd review, I believe you found some redeeming qualities to to the movie, and you don't seem to be alone in that thinking well, it's just not.
Speaker 1:It's just not bad, right like it's, it's not listen, I'm not gonna sad that that's the standard now, but but sure but I mean think about, think about the last five, six releases that you know, maybe, maybe other than Wakanda, forever, you know Marvel. Which was still kind of the same like lukewarm. It's not bad.
Speaker 3:It's not bad. And Thunderbolts is very much on the same level with Wakanda Forever. Like, it's just not bad. Like it's Florence Pugh, it's David Harbour, sebastian Stan and Wyatt Russell. Like, we're having a lot of fun with these. These actors are having fun.
Speaker 3:Um, there's decent action. It's not too big a stakes. Um, it's it's not CGI heavy, it's not any sort of like science fiction. It's very grounded as far as, like, these heroes are kind of just people who beat, who punch other people. Um, there's no, like you know, there's no Thor and magical hammer or anything like that. Uh, you know there's no space you have to go to. So, yeah, I don't know, I, I, I thought it was, I thought it was fine with. That was a good action movie. Um, again, just wasn't bad, it wasn't overproduced. You could also really tell that they're not shooting on a green screen, that they are in a city street or they are in Utah, in the desert. We're actually on location and that just makes such a difference, such a difference. Um, and David Harbor is is really funny when you know he puts on a Russian accent and acts like a buffoon. Uh, he, he's, he's really good at that.
Speaker 1:So, erica, we talked a little bit about this last week, but now that we've been able to digest two weeks worth of reporting on it, what do you think the reason for this is? Do you think it's because it could it be as simple as just like florence pew can open a major movie? Um, or do you think there's more to it than that? Is it maybe? Oh, because it's been somewhat of a weak movie year, um, or? Or are people chasing the high coming off of Sinners, perhaps, like they were just in the theaters? They see Sinners advertised while they're in the movies, or while they're at the movies, and they're like let's go back next weekend. I don't know. What do you think?
Speaker 2:I think all of those are really good like valid points and you know very possible reasons why it is seeing a lot of success. I think from what I've been seeing I know a lot of people have been liking the fact that they're like really touching on mental health and that it seems it just feels kind of like a different, more realistic Marvel movie.
Speaker 2:I don't even know like what that means, but um, I mean, harrison Ford isn't turning into a giant red hulk, exactly right yeah, I I haven't seen thunderbolts yet, um, and I and I even, you know, when max and I went and saw sinners, I even turned to him, like during the trailer for thunderbolts, and I was like I like, why do I want to see this? Like it actually looks kind of fun. Like, why do I want to see this? Like it actually looks kind of fun.
Speaker 2:I think that, like, of course, florence Pugh is a very well-loved actress and you know she's got a huge fan base. I think people love to see her leading a movie anyway, and I know David Harbour has a good fan base as well. I think they think they've got like a fun cast going for them, for sure. But then, yeah, what I've seen a lot of talk about is this like mental health, uh aspect to the film that they're like not shying away from, um, and kind of. I mean, I don't really know the context, so maybe max can speak on that better, but, um, I know that I've just seen that that particular fact, fact mentioned so frequently. Um, and you know this, to me this movie feels like um, marvel's, like suicide squad, um, so so maybe they're just excited to see kind of like a band of misfits in a role like that, where it's not like a superhero Like Bucky, is very well loved, also in the Marvel universe, so that could help as well. I mean, I don't know, I just think it's different for them.
Speaker 3:So yeah, I think you, I just think it's different for them. So, yeah, I think you know it reminded me some of, like, the first time I saw Guardians of the Galaxy. Right, but it's not quite as flashy as Guardians, right, but, you're right, misfits coming together. The mental health aspect of the film, I think, is just universal enough. Right, it's a pretty broad mental health thing, not that that makes it less or more than any sort of mental health issue, but, yeah, I think it's probably broad enough for, yeah, a lot of people to relate to.
Speaker 3:Um, and you know it, yeah, I, I do think florence pew has also like gotten to a point where she, she kind of is, you know, she's becoming a movie star where she can open a film. You know, I think we saw it a little bit with Live in Time last year too, right, that had a good box office for the type of film that it is. And you know, of course you had Andrew Garfield as well. But I feel like Florence Pugh is kind of getting to that level where it's like you put her name at the top of the poster and people are going to show up.
Speaker 2:People just love her, like outside of film too. You know she's a very well-liked person. You know she's very present in, like you know, social media and lots of you know her interviews are always super entertaining. I just think that there's not a lot of. You know she doesn't have a lot of haters, uh. So I, somebody like that, who has a strong like public presence, um, is gonna naturally draw in a pretty large fan base um to their films yeah, she definitely does everything that a movie star needs to do to be a celebrity in 2025.
Speaker 1:And david harbour is a lot. You say that, a lot of the same things about him. He is as as sort of uh, you know, like the the fun drunk uncle type of figure to a lot of people, and that's based off of his work in stranger things and, um, what was the santa movie that came out?
Speaker 1:a couple years ago that became like a year or whatever violent night maybe that it sort of became an instant cult classic like he has, that he has so much charisma to his work that I think that that works as well.
Speaker 1:also, I just I feel like, with having a run of stinkers there, marvel really put a lot into the marketing of this film and they're actually seeing that pay real dividends right now, because I can't watch an NBA playoff game right now without seeing like five different Thunderbolts, ads or commercials or banners that run across the scoreboard on the actual court, so like they are doing a ton to market this film right now, and so I'm sure that, whatever the budget is, they spent half, if not more, of that on the marketing as well, and so you always like to see when that actually pays off for a film and you actually in in the studio actually like backing their product, whereas like with I don't know captain america, whatever the one was they came out earlier this year. It felt like once that movie was released they just backed away they wanted nothing to do with it well, yeah, I think they knew right.
Speaker 3:they knew that it's a probably a lesser film than, uh, something like thunderbolts. I I think also there's a little bit of like old school Marvel feeling here, because you watch Thunderbolts it's contained to one movie. We're not worried about any sort of like multiverse, you know bigger universe thing, but then it does have a, you know, an end credit scene that leads you, you know an end credit scene that leads you directly into what the next movie is going to be, and so like that, you know, I think, is also good too, because for a while there in stuff like Love and Thunder and the Eternals and you know, quantumania, we were getting end credit scenes of just like random characters that are probably never, ever going to come on screen again, and so like, like, here's the voice of blade right, right here's the voice Never going to have a blade movie.
Speaker 1:Here's.
Speaker 3:Harry Styles dressed as star Fox or whatever, or, uh, the guy from you know, ted Lasso as Hercules and like that. It's just I, I don't think any of that stuff is ever going to come back, and so that too, I think, also kind of again almost grounds the movie within this weird movie universe no, it all makes sense.
Speaker 1:Um, and it's definitely piqued my interest as well. It's not to say that I'm going to rush out and see it anytime soon, but once it does become available on disney plus, like I'll support anything. Florence p is a part of yeah I think that's a lot of. That's kind of the sentiment around the film yeah as of right now.
Speaker 1:Uh, okay, so there's. There's a lot of other movie news, including some trailers, that I want us to all touch on here. I sent out a list, so if we could kind of do some reactions to some of these, I broke my cardinal rule of actually watching trailers for this segment.
Speaker 1:So it, which was actually kind of fun, it was fun to watch, especially the teaser trailers that we got for some of these films, to be able to actually like get even more excited for something that I was already anticipating, like heist to Lois. So we'll start there. Um, this is obviously the new Spike Lee film that we're getting this summer, starring Denzel Washington. I believe it's the sixth film that they will be collaborating on. Most recently, we saw them work together in inside man, a fantastic film, but of course, this goes all the way back to malcolm x and mo betta blues and he got game.
Speaker 1:So something that is tried and true, this partnership between actor and director. It's a remake of an akira kurosawa film and I must say the teaser trailer just looks cool as fuck. Like there's there's nothing that really gets spoiled, I don't think in the movie it obviously looks like it's going to be a re-imagining of the plot from high to low. But I don't know what did you guys think of this movie, or at least of this movie's teaser trailer? Because I was like, okay, I know it's gonna be cool, I know it's gonna be slick, but somehow it exceeded all those expectations is this the apple tv one?
Speaker 2:yes um, yeah, I mean I think it looks fun. I I don't really have it's not really my go-to movie, I don't think but I thought that teaser I had seen it actually on Apple TV recently when I was watching one of my beloved shows and yeah, it definitely piqued my interest. I mean it looks like a good Apple TV action movie.
Speaker 3:The word that I thought of was was high energy Like it is. The energy is is really there and that's something you know. Listen Spike Lee and Denzel you know not young men anymore and Denzel looks like 10 years younger in this, in this film, and I think you can feel that energy from this trailer that there's going to be some buzz around it. I was just talking to a friend today at lunch about this film. Because Apple, so it's coming to theaters. Because Apple, so it's coming to theaters, I believe the end of August, like the last weekend, august 22nd.
Speaker 3:Yeah, for one week, and then Labor Day weekend it goes on to the Apple streaming service, which is just insane, absolutely insane, is it?
Speaker 1:Labor Day weekend or is it like September 6th? I think it gets like a two-week theater run, but still, your point is taken.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I think it's the weekend of Labor Day whenever that is, and so just insane because when you look at, go back and look at Denzel Washington crime movies, even something that is not hailed as like a really great film, something like two guns, I think, I believe even the lowest of those movies make at least 150 million in theaters.
Speaker 1:And so we just talked about Florence Pugh as being someone who's like starting to get to the point to open movies. We know that.
Speaker 3:Denzel, yes, so I, just I, I'm really really excited. Uh, I'm also, you know, I, I feel really lucky because, like again, I'm, this, this movie's only going to be in theaters for one or two weeks, you know, I'm, I'm, it's definitely going to be here in LA, so I can, I cannot wait to go see it. And, uh, I don't know if I've ever seen a Spike Lee movie I mean, I've seen, you know, do the right thing in a theater, but a new release. I don't know if I've ever seen one in the in a theater. Um, I don't think I saw black Klansman in a theater and that I feel like that would be the last one I would have gone and seen. You know, the five bloods was on Netflix, so, um, yeah, so very, very excited, uh, but yeah, high energy around it and, like I, I'm in New York. The rap scene, you know, denzel, is some sort of mogul, you know, maybe a little Jay-Z, like yes, yes, sign me up.
Speaker 1:Just the monologue that he has in the trailer and the voiceover work. It is such a mixture, this wonderful cocktail of like things we've heard him say in Training Day, things we've heard him say in American Gangster, and then you put this contemporary spin on it. I just I couldn't be more excited. And the some of the things that I've been worried about is like the stunt casting of asap rocky. Well, it looks like asap rocky is going to basically be playing himself, so I'm okay with that. I'd rather it be somebody with lived experience as opposed to.
Speaker 1:You know, I always think of um like ben affleck talking about armageddon and his conversation with michael bay, where he's like why wouldn't you just train astronauts to become drillers, as opposed to drillers to oil men to become astronauts? Right, like if, if you have a rapper in your movie, like let we saw this work with uncut gems in the weekend, where, like, let's just cast a musician.
Speaker 3:That was the other movie. I was kind of getting vibes of right Like, and again it's the setting. I think it's a lot of the cutting in the in the trailer and and the energy of it. It feels it feels like that.
Speaker 1:Uh, the line in the trailer that I could not get over is when he's when he's talking about can you handle the hype, can you handle the attention, can you handle the spotlight? And he says can you handle the memes?
Speaker 1:I loved it I loved that line. I thought it was incredible. Um so, yes, can you handle the memes? I don't know there. There will certainly be memes surrounding this film. Um, very excited for highest to lowest. Okay, the next one here is the sophomore feature film from Celine song. Of course, celine gave us past lives two years ago, an incredible film. This is her follow-up semi-love triangle. It seems that stars pedro, pascal, erica's boy, dakota, johnson, my girl and max. I guess that means you're left with chris evans, but we love chris evans, you'll take chris.
Speaker 1:Uh what? What did we think of this one? Because I had not seen anything. Um, had been trying my hardest to stay away from from any sort of spoilers, and then I watched the trailer and once again felt very good about where we were headed with this one.
Speaker 3:Pedro Pascal? Uh, it just in everything, every single thing right now. Are we, are we getting a little too over, pedro, like over? Are we too overexposed here?
Speaker 1:I think you know I defer to Erica on that one.
Speaker 3:Yeah, erica, she has all the Pedro stock. He's got this. He's the next big thing in Marvel that's also coming out in July. He's, you know, the Mandalorian. He's all over Last of Us. He's in the Apple commercial directed by spike Jones. That's a lot of Pedro.
Speaker 2:Yeah, he's definitely having his moment and I think that people are deaf or using his um, his internet moment. I mean he's like the internet's daddy right now. You know that's he's just having this, this moment, and like this might sound really shocking. I love him so much, you know, but I don't think that he's like an incredible actor.
Speaker 2:But I will say when I saw the trailer for Materialist I about how to conniption fit, so we are in a good way okay we are so back with rom-coms and you know I saw I was I've been trying to like I, I watched it and I I only watched it like one time, all the way through, because I could not turn away from it, um, because I also love chris evans and so I was like kill me, um.
Speaker 2:But I I was seeing a lot of talk about how people were saying that, like you know the with the voiceover guy, you know who's like, you know the the movie voice yeah, yeah exactly and, um, people are like, oh my god, rom-coms are so back, like my, you know, growing up in the in the early 2000s and like the era of rom-coms, really like this feels really reminiscent of that. I'm sure it's going to be, I don't know. I have high hopes, considering that Celine Song is directing this, because I was not a huge fan of Past Lives. I thought it was a really beautiful movie. It just didn't really do a whole lot for me. Um, this looks so different than that, you know, like past lives was so serious and like um soft, and this just feels like a like this feels like I'm in the early 2000s and we're doing a rom-com. Like you know, jacoda johnson is a matchmaker and, um, you know, of course, she's never found love herself.
Speaker 3:We need this. We need this, I know.
Speaker 2:And I love it. I love shit like that. You know it's corny, but I think it's in the right hands, so I'm all in. I've been all in for this movie.
Speaker 3:Yeah, a mid-budget original story by you, an auteur, filmmaker, I mean. I will also say chris evans really needs this, needs this to hit he. The guy hasn't done anything really since captain america except like some crappy, you know, netflix movies. He really, really, really needs this.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think that we need this as a collective. I think Chris Evans needs it and I do think that because there is a tone shift it. It seems like I think Celine song she doesn't need this, but I think it's exciting that she's already throwing like she's still going out there with her starting stuff, you know like we've seen what her fastball looks like, but she's she's not pigeonholing herself into making that like super serious type of film that will get her like the director version of typecast.
Speaker 1:It's just making, like you know, a sad, sweeping romantic drama. It's like, okay, because this movie feels so self-aware. When I was watching the trailer, I was like, do they get what they're doing right now? And I'm like, oh, they absolutely get what they're doing right now, even just the way that the trailer is cut and and presented, and so I I do love that about it. I would say that dakota johnson needs this too, coming off of coming off of Madam Web, but Dakota Johnson knew what she was doing with Madam.
Speaker 2:Web, so she doesn't need this.
Speaker 1:Dakota Johnson's untouchable, and so I am really, really excited for this film and also, too, for the fact that it's not going at least, I don't expect it to be. But this isn't going for any awards bait. This isn't going to try to be a follow-up to past lives in that sense where it's like I'm going to try and outdo what I did on my last film that was so successful. So again, just all around green flags.
Speaker 2:It feels like it's for the like for the fans. You know, it feels like it's for the like for the fans. You know, like I know that I see a lot of talk on social media just how we as women especially, really want like the resurgence of rom-coms and like that, how we felt in the early 2000s and how we all just kind of gravitate towards that. And it's almost like celine was listening and she's like I'm gonna like, like you said, this is not trying to be like anything more than it really is, I mean, who knows, but especially with the presence of the movie guy, you know, like the trailer guy or whatever he it does, feel like this is just for this is for fun, this is a fun.
Speaker 2:Like there's a big community on, you know, on online right now, of women who are really into like contemporary romance, you know, and we see that in like the book talk community and we all are kind of searching for these fun like really light-hearted romance stories and we're kind of getting that from books right now and so it's it's almost like celine was like noted, I'm gonna make a movie like that. That just feels a little corny and a little unrealistic and you know you've got this like perfect man who's like older and rich and and everything, and it just it's like so, uh, book coded right now, like especially the, if you like, were tapped into, like what books are popular right now too, with women and um, and and you know, I'm not saying men can't read these books, you, you know, like, I think that it really feels like she's paying attention, which is what. That's where it's exciting about this movie.
Speaker 3:Yeah, and I think, I think it's a great. It'll be a great test case for that mid budget adult film. Right, if people come out, if Erica, if you, you, you take all your friends to this, you know six times we're gonna get more movies like this. So let's, let's, get out in the theaters. I'll be there, for sure well, exactly she, celine.
Speaker 1:Not only I think you're exactly right, erica, she's taking all that stuff to heart and she's saying I'm gonna put you know, like I'm putting all my cards out there on the table with this one. It's going to be with, like big movie stars. It's going to be in theaters. This isn't going to be like them making a Bridget Jones sequel. They go straight to HBO, max or something like that. Like this is going to be a movie that hopefully opens big nationwide. So it's awesome to see. Okay, what's next on our list.
Speaker 3:What should be, I think, the final conjuring movie, the last rights.
Speaker 2:Oh God, the entire movie in the trailer.
Speaker 3:So the conclusion yeah, uh yeah, I don't know. So is this like the in the pure conjuring filmography? This is number four.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 3:I don't remember anything from number three.
Speaker 1:Number three was in the South and it was like the devil made me do it, or something like that is the subtitle to it. Um, and it was a pandemic film. That wasn't that bad okay you know, um, certainly not on the level of conjuring one and two, which I think are stone cold classics. Right, there's fatigue to this franchise that I feel like is unwarranted and I blame the nun. It's all on the nun. The nun has driven so many people away from the Ed and Lorraine expanded universe, because you already know.
Speaker 3:I'm the world's biggest Annabelle just give me everything. La Llorona.
Speaker 1:La Llorona, mixed on Right, but the nun's really the one that I feel like has drove people away because the Conjuring films and just like the aesthetic that they provide Like even watching this trailer I'm like God. This movie is just saturated and soaked in great 70s set design, costume wardrobe.
Speaker 1:Everything like vera, vera flaminga and patrick wilson just look like 70s movie stars yeah in a certain way, and so, although I do agree with erica that the trailer gave us way too much exposure, it was also just like a greatest hits of what I want to see in these films, where, like, it starts with the room and the patrick wilson voiceover, where it's like you don't, don't touch anything in this room, and it's like, yeah, okay, here we go again, here we go guess what we're gonna touch stuff we're gonna touch stuff because that room is perfect.
Speaker 1:I mean, we've said this from the beginning. Is that like you could just make it? Like it could turn into episodic tv, like you could do a twilight zone series on every single piece that is in that room? And so I don't know. Like you know me, I'm I'm in when it comes to the conjuring franchise. I don't know who's directing this film. I'm sure that'd be very easy for me to look up and find out here real quick. I don't know if it's james wan um or or if any of the series, if any filmmakers from from the series are coming back to work on this movie. But yeah, I don't know. I I support patrick wilson, vera flaminga, the conjuring universe. So I'm I'm tepid, but I'm I am excited about this one.
Speaker 2:It looks like Michael Chavez, which, unfortunately, he is the director of the Nun.
Speaker 3:Oh no.
Speaker 2:And La Llorona. But oh yeah, yep, he did the Last Conjuring. The Devil Made Me Do it, so, um yeah.
Speaker 3:I will say the uh. The poster on letterbox, uh, red and black going hard, Love it. Love to see the red, Love to see the black, uh, very first omen ish.
Speaker 1:The first omen barbarian. I feel like two years ago or a year ago. Yeah, long yeah, maybe it was just last year yeah.
Speaker 3:There were so many great red and black.
Speaker 1:Strange darling.
Speaker 3:Isn't that red and black too? Yeah, I don't know, man, I listen, I will see the conjuring movie. I like conjuring movies Gives me a good reason to go back and watch conjuring three Cause again, like I just don't remember anything from that. But I just I, I like I do kind of hope this is, you know. It says the tagline is prepare for the end. Like I'd like to see Patrick Wilson and, uh, vera Farmiga like get into some other projects here. Patrick Wilson for a second, I thought was going to be like our next leading man. Uh, and it's been really fun that he's put a lot. He's a screen.
Speaker 3:Yeah, it's been fun, you know, between insidious and these movies. But uh, like man little children is so good Like can we, can we?
Speaker 1:get him back.
Speaker 1:I felt the same about vera, too, coming off of the departed and even her work in this really fun like garbage crime movie with paul walker called running scared. She she was having a moment there before she got so invested into this franchise as well. She's also, you know, just a mom and doing her own thing outside of Hollywood, which is great as well In a metal band. The fact that she does come back for these movies I'm appreciative of. But you know, this is this is exactly. I think this film has an August release date.
Speaker 1:This is exactly what I want, like in the dog days of summer just to be able to walk into a cool movie theater on a hot summer day. This is like the perfect five o'clocker and and and just kind of get. Go back, like you were saying, like go back into this universe for for what is, and I agree, like hopefully the last time, you know, I think the well has run dry. Part of me is just like uh, this is the creative bankruptcy that I always complain about when it comes to horror films, where why not just take whatever this true case file is from ed and lorraine and just adapt that into something that you can say like oh, this is based on true events or whatever, but it feels original, it's not attached to an ip property. Would that be better, probably, but at the same time, this movie's probably gonna make 100 million dollars.
Speaker 3:So more power to it, that's true um, all right, we also is that?
Speaker 1:is that it for our trailer list?
Speaker 3:I'm trying to think uh, honey don't which I haven't seen honey don't.
Speaker 1:So this is the new margaret film.
Speaker 3:This is another Chris Evans film too, right.
Speaker 1:And Chris Evans as well, so you have not watched the trailer.
Speaker 3:I have not watched it because it's a Coen Brothers right. Is it Ethan Ethan?
Speaker 1:It is Ethan. Yeah, I was almost going to say Joel, but it's Ethan. So talk about another one where you have different people coming to this, coming into this film at different times in their career. Because drive away dolls I know there's fans of that film and supporters of that film, but like a miss, I think it's safe to say it's just like a overall. So and that was also with margaret qualley so I feel like there is there's like a, there's an energy behind this film that's like let's do it, let's, let's try this again, let's let's maybe get it right this time. And then we already touched on how Chris Evans, you know, going back into original storytelling is what we've wanted to see for a really long time, because when we get glimpses of it and something like Knives Out or Snowpiercer, he can be phenomenal.
Speaker 3:Yeah, he looks, so I'm watching it right now on mute. He looks funny. And Charlie Day? Charlie Day is in here. I love seeing him in a supporting role. Aubrey Plaza, I do love.
Speaker 2:Charlie Day, it does. I feel like that's another one of those trailers.
Speaker 3:Aubrey Plaza, I do love.
Speaker 2:Charlie Day it does.
Speaker 1:I feel like that's another one of those trailers that just showed way too much of the movie, though this is the problem with trailers, and this is why it's blasphemous for us to do this, because you could tell me that it's a Coen Brothers movie or it's one of the Coen Brothers it's Margot Qualley and it's Chris Evans, and I'm there, yeah, you know quali. And it's chris evans and I'm there, yeah, you know, yeah, right.
Speaker 2:So again, it's not the movie's fault that the trailer is showing us everything. No, not at all.
Speaker 3:I just, I don't know, I just every trailer needs to be a teaser, just a teaser, right like ice to lois was perfect yeah, right I'm just trying to watch teasers now.
Speaker 2:That's all I want to watch. If I do watch a trailer yeah, this is already.
Speaker 3:I mean, we've been going on here for almost two minutes and there's at least a minute left, like I just don't understand that a lot.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you can pull the plug.
Speaker 3:Pull the plug yeah, yeah, yeah, I will. But, uh, yeah, it does look a lot like, um, like what was the other movie he did, driveway dolls, driveway dolls. Yeah, it'll be really interesting. I believe he wrote it again with his uh partner. Um, oh gosh, what is her name? Uh, I don't know somebody.
Speaker 2:Somebody talk while I look that up well, the next movie I wanted to talk about um is weapons, which just also has an august release date. I think it's going to be a great august this year for horror um weapons looks weapons?
Speaker 2:I haven't watched a trailer for this one, but I'm in I mean again, another one of those movies where you really just need to know that it's Zach Kroeger's next movie. He's the writer director of barbarian. He is the writer and director of weapons. The trailer doesn't really give a whole lot away, other than it is about a teacher's class that every single student wakes up one day. They walk out of their house and into the woods, never to be seen again.
Speaker 2:Um, julia garner, I mean, love her. And then we have josh brolin. Um, there's, this is like one of those trailers where it's like it's perfectly done, where they're like showing enough about like you can grasp the story without exposing too much of like the plot. Um, and I think this is definitely one of those movies that to look out for this summer. Um, just being a huge fan of barbarian and like the impact that had on the horror community when that came out a few years ago, I think that this is a movie to be excited about for sure just to go back real quick honeydote, uh, co-written by tricia cook, who also wrote co-wrote uh, driveway dolls hopefully better than driveway dolls, we will see.
Speaker 3:Uh, but again like another mid-budget movie here that that maybe you know. Maybe it hits in the right way. Weapons josh bro, josh Brolin, another guy like I'm just so glad he's out of the Marvel Universe. We get him back in fucking movies and the teaser trailer is perfect. I don't need to see anything else. It looks like it could be a very intense, unsettling Uns unsettling mystery, right, a little bit of Shyamalan-esque there, like there's got to be some sort of twist happening. Yeah, I'm very, very stoked for Weapons.
Speaker 1:Anytime, and just the title alone too is very, is very provocative. Like what? Why is it called weapons?
Speaker 1:right, I love that yeah um, and anytime that you have people potentially who have been raptured, I love that because it just takes me right back to the leftovers and and how you can just create such an interesting narrative around the disappearance of people. Um, you know that's going all the way back to picnic at hanging rock, you know, in 1975. So like this I yes, weapons looks incredible and also crager is somebody that just like in in him we trust yeah, yeah how are we feeling about the movie him?
Speaker 2:that is the new monkey paw production film produced by jordan peele. I'm not familiar with the director, justin tipping, but this is the new. You know people are saying it's the new jordan peele movie, even though it's not but um, it's coming out in september this is the football movie?
Speaker 3:there's not. There's only a teaser out. I believe it's very vague it's coming out in september.
Speaker 2:It's the football movie there's not, there's only a teaser out. I believe it's very vague. It's there's I don't really I I feel like it's being like marketed as horror, but it's not really like giving horror. But I'm wondering if it is gonna be horror, like what do we? I don't. I'm curious to hear your thoughts If you've seen or heard of it.
Speaker 3:Alex, it reminds me of uh, what was that? It was a short film we saw at uh I believe it Tacoma film fest. Uh about like a workout, uh or a bodybuilder prep, prep.
Speaker 1:I was, or a bodybuilder prep, prep.
Speaker 3:I was. I was getting that, those kind of vibes, when I was watching this teaser um I did not know.
Speaker 1:A teaser was out of this.
Speaker 3:Yeah, to watch it yeah, again, again, like intense, uh, visceral. You know, I want to read the tagline really quick because it says greatness demands sacrifice.
Speaker 2:Yeah, terror, terror strikes. When a promising young football player gets invited to train at a team's isolated compound. This is definitely horror, like I have to believe that it is, but I mean I could be totally wrong.
Speaker 3:But it also has marlon wayne's uh in a dramatic role, which you know when's the last time you saw that happen.
Speaker 1:So yeah, that's very, always, very exciting.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, fox Love the return of Julia Fox perhaps?
Speaker 1:Yeah, uh, it feels like this. This film is coming out at a time that is very ripe For a lot of social criticism and, of course, with it being a monkey pop production, you have to assume that there's going to be a lot of social commentary involved in this. Whether it's trying to be an indictment of the NFL, of influencer culture, of perhaps something even more heavy, as in like, I wouldn't be surprised if there are things in this film that remind us of what's been happening in the news with someone like Sean Combs or even Jeffrey Epstein, you know like it could have a little bit of that. What was the Zoe Kravitz film last year? Blink Twice? Yes, it could have some of that energy in it as well.
Speaker 2:I'm getting like culty vibes from it.
Speaker 1:Yes, yeah so so definitely interest is peaked on this one as well. It's just so interesting that and I think we talked about this on our most anticipated episode back in January, but we knew that there would be so many films that get announced later on in the year that just weren't on our radar at all and and here we are now being able to anticipate and hype up some of these movies that I think were complete blind spots to us back when the year first started.
Speaker 3:Yeah, that's, that's the best thing. That's the best thing about about doing this pod right.
Speaker 1:I'm out of nowhere yeah.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Um, max, you shared a screenshot, a still photo, if you will uh of the new David O Russell film. Could, could you expand on that a little bit?
Speaker 3:Uh yeah.
Speaker 1:Is this a 2025 release? Do we know? I believe, it is.
Speaker 3:I think it is. Uh, I think it is. Let me pull it up here the. The title of the film, I believe, is just Madden David O Russell.
Speaker 2:Is that Christian Bale?
Speaker 3:Does not have a? Yes, it is, of course it is. Christian Bale is David O Russell's boy. It doesn't look like it has a release date yet, uh, but yeah, there was a still photo of nicholas cage who is playing john madden a. Uh, you know, he was a successful football coach, who then hall of football coach, who then became the voice of football for over what? 40, 50 years.
Speaker 3:Uh video games and video games, which are still going strong. Um, so yeah, nicholas Cage is going to be transforming into John Madden and Christian Bale will be playing, uh, the owner of the LA Raiders. I believe that they were the LA Raiders. Then, uh, al Davis, who is also known as, just like a evil, like darth vader, or darth like emperor, an evil emperor figure, uh, he's like a george steinbrenner of the nfl of football, yeah uh, john mulaney is
Speaker 3:just win baby john mulaney is also in this movie. Catherine Hahn, sienna Miller, so we know we are going to get some accents. Sienna always good for an accent Very, very excited about that. But yeah, I don't know. I mean David O Russell, you know, I know, alex, you are a defender of Amsterdam.
Speaker 1:I was just talking to somebody about.
Speaker 3:I heard huckabees a week ago yeah like I, the man has some certified bangers in his yeah, and I don't think we've ever seen one like a well, I guess the fighter is a sportsman yeah, which of course won christian bale an academy award yeah, they just in this still photo. I mean they, they look cartoonish, but, like you know, that's how those guys looked at back in the 70s. So I'm just excited. I'm excited for the performances. You know nicholas cage, uh, he actually just released a movie down here in la called the surfer.
Speaker 3:Uh, I've heard talk of this, which is like again, kind of like this weird action you know sad dad action movie with a young filmmaker and I've heard some interviews with him and how he, just like he's at the point of his career where, like he has to, the projects he picks have to like, really, just like, excite him, you know, creatively, uh, in a performance way. So if you're gonna let him run wild as john madden, I'm, I'm, I'm in, boom, baby boom.
Speaker 1:I hope it's a 2025 release, because if not, then I'm worried that it gets dumped in the first quarter of 2026. Which isn't to say I wouldn't welcome it in the middle of February, but it would be fun to see them. I mean David O Russell movies usually try to play towards awards season.
Speaker 3:If you're smart, you'll put it out right at the beginning of the NFL season, or like right in the middle. Right, that's a good point. Come on, that's marketing 101. Call me up, yeah.
Speaker 1:I can already see, like, yeah, the Sunday Night Football promo spot for it. That's a great call there. Okay, so, unless there's anything else as far as trailer news goes, we do have Cannes Film Festival coming up and I do think that it's worth talking about. Has it started already, I believe?
Speaker 1:so I do think, that it's worth talking about.
Speaker 1:Has it started already, I believe so.
Speaker 1:I do think that it's worth talking about here just because of what we've seen over the past handful of years, really going back to 2019 and Parasite, where the films that compete for the Palme d'Or at Cannes that festival's highest award typically I think the only exception is Julia Dcarnu's titan, which is ironic for this year's slate of films but typically compete for best picture at the academy awards and, as we've just seen with sean bakers and nora and going back to parasite, and there's a few others in there can win best picture at the academy awards.
Speaker 1:There's, there's almost a direct correlation here. So, just looking at the movies that are highly anticipated from this year, we have Die my Love, a film that we've already talked about, lynne Ramsey's new movie that we've been anticipating for a long time, eddington Alpha, the new Julia Dukar new film that is an A24 release, the Phoenician Scheme and then Nouvelle Vogue, which is the new Richard Linklater film. So are there any of those films, or maybe something else not on my radar in listing of those films that you think could contend this year, not only for the Palme d'Or, but do we think there's a Best Picture winner sitting at Cannes this year, not only for the Palme d'Or, but do we think there's a best pitcher winner sitting?
Speaker 3:at Cannes this year. I mean, I think we have to take whoever wins the Palme. I think you have to take serious. You know, the Academy Awards, you know, as the voting body becomes more international, as maybe the ceremony, the celebration of Sarah, you know of the films seem to get smaller right For more smaller films, for more independent film here, uh, this week, and it started, the festival started today, may 13th.
Speaker 1:uh, we're recording this, uh, so the, but by the time it comes out, it'll be a couple days in um, even just the influence too, right like totally see the reporting of academy voters and there's all this um hoopla that's been made of voting members in the academy, copping to the fact that they don't watch everything. So then you, you start to wonder how much of it is just influence and then saying, oh okay, this film won, it can, or this film performed well, um, and perhaps the baftas or whatever else, uh, you know award ceremony that that academy members take stock in, and so, yeah, I think you definitely have to take it serious, whether that's for better or for worse, just because of recent history.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I think you know. I mean, eddington is one that I'm going to be watching closely. Eddington is one that I'm I'm going to be watching closely.
Speaker 1:Uh, you know these can always has the funny standing ovation for uh, 12 minutes.
Speaker 3:Part one it was uh, eight minutes, only eight minutes. Uh, I also think uh, there's a film out of france. Uh, want to put a little feather in its cap, dossier 137 or Case 137.
Speaker 1:Dossier, dossier. Thank you so much. That's how you pronounce that.
Speaker 3:How long we've been on this river. Dossier 137 from France. From just looking at the schedule, it seems to be playing quite a bit throughout the festival. It's French.
Speaker 2:We're in France for this festival Home court Always kind of helps.
Speaker 3:So, yeah, I'm excited, I can't wait to see, especially because of what has happened with something like Enora or Parasite or any of the number of films that have won the Palm in recent years and then gone on to win more awards over here.
Speaker 1:Anything. In particular, you're going to be paying attention to Erica. How do you feel? I don't think we've ever talked to you about Julia Ducar news films before raw and T-Tan. Have you seen either of those?
Speaker 2:I think I saw raw like a long time ago and I don't particularly remember Like I I don't really remember liking it for whatever reason. But I also don't know, like if I really gave it a chance, because I know how many people love that movie and it's been recommended to me for a long time, but I just don't, for whatever reason. I don't really remember how I felt about it Out of this list. I mean, I know when we did our most anticipated for the year, die my Love, was on my list. So I am curious. I haven't really seen a whole lot about that movie. I don't even know if there's like a teaser or anything out, but I'm very intrigued.
Speaker 2:I don't really know a whole lot about Cannes. To be totally honest, it's never been like a festival I've ever paid attention to. Um I, I always hear about it, but um, I don't really. It's a, it's a new um, it's just it's new for me to be like paying attention to like the Palm award and everything, and so I don't know it's new for me to be like paying attention to like the palm award and everything, and so I don't know.
Speaker 2:I mean I I think after like ari aster's last movie, um, beau is afraid I'm like hesitant about eddington, even though I'm obviously like excited to see another ari aster movie and just to see, like what it's gonna be. It's just got like a pretty stacked cast um, but it's so hard to live up to. You know hereditary and what he's done before, and so I, I don't know, I'm I'll be curious. I like I do agree that like whoever does win the palm is very we should be paying attention to that like in the film community because it can be telling of, like once award season comes around again and and kind of piecing together that um, that pattern that there might be um, especially since you know the success of Onora last year.
Speaker 1:Ari's sense of humor is just so acute, it's so sharp, I feel like, and it always makes me wonder if his films are set up to be process, processed and like fully appreciated in the moment, or if he is just like destined as this, you know, and you can say this about favorite guy yeah exactly you could say.
Speaker 1:You could say this a little bit about robert eggers as well, but I I feel like his films have started to break through with awards bodies just sooner than Ari's has. And again, I don't know why. It's something that we do in pontificating about movies, is that we always just like pair those two together and we're just like these guys are destined to be compared their careers for eternity, are destined to be compared their careers for eternity. But, like I, I just think that there's something about not only how, how smart and how sharp and how detailed something like hereditary and mid samar were that when you look back and you wonder why didn't tony collect get nominated? Why didn't florence pugh get nominated? Or the set designer, the costumes for mid samar, or something like that, and then bow was afraid, kind of being received as this, like this mixed bag, this, this financial disaster really, and then like something that was critically just sort of like lukewarm. But then I think people have already come around to saying like no, this is about as good as it gets, as far as being like a black comedy and there's so much social commentary on mental health that that he was sort of like poking fun at and with this movie and, and now with eddington.
Speaker 1:I'm not sure exactly what themes he's going to be going for. Is, you know, joaquin phoenix as this, the sheriff of a small town? I don't know. I know there's a trailer out to this film, max. Have you? Have you watched it, eric? Have you watched it?
Speaker 3:I don't I don't know what the vibe is. It's a teaser and it's set in May of 2020. So it's dealing with the pandemic, which is really interesting. I feel like I don't know if a movie has actually went straight into that yet. I don't think a movie has touched that yet.
Speaker 2:To be like a, a criticism of an like or just like we're setting this during the pandemic of 2020, the covid pandemic, there's definitely good movies that have acknowledged it, for sure, but it, yeah, I mean I can think of, like kimmy, there was a bunch of movies that came out during the time, but I feel like you know he'll be combing through this with like a lot of cynicism and again, our favorite pedro pascal is going to be in this film.
Speaker 3:Another movie. The guy is just, he's everywhere yeah, I love that for him.
Speaker 2:I just he to me. He's such a goofy guy like he's he he does well and like maybe not a super serious role.
Speaker 3:I, I don't know that's, yeah, I don't know. I think from the teaser and and even from the poster, right like the poster, is these buffalo, you know, charging off a cliff?
Speaker 1:like following each other.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I feel like this is going to be much more of a black comedy style as opposed to something like hereditary or midsommar. I think it'll be closer to bo as afraid bo's afraid for sure.
Speaker 1:Yeah, um, I mean my I'm, I'm putting all my stock in alpha. That was one of my most anticipated movies last year when I thought it was going to be a 2024 release. Now that we get it in 2025 and still the release you know it's playing can this year that's not to say it'll have a theatrical release here in the United States before the year's up but this will be the third feature from Julia and this is, I think, where we really get to see what this next new wave of auteur is like, once you get to movie number three. Like you know, some of the people that we've been talking about a lot this year Alex Garland, you know, and it was men in his case, with Robert Edgars. It was the lighthouse with Ari Aster was Bo's afraid?
Speaker 1:It's usually when they start to take more risks and start to try to do, you know, just take a bigger swing, try to tell a different story, and so, with this being her third feature film, and for how much I? I mean I really, really, really like Titan Raw is one of my top 15 movies of all time. Like that movie is just so, I don't know, maybe important isn't the right word and that sounds like really trite to say, but I like raw just speaks to me on so many different levels. And so I, I really want, I really really want julia ducourneau to get her flowers and to have her moment and she's already won the palm d'ior with Titane, so she's reached that mountaintop. But for her to completely transition or maybe not transition but translate to American audiences I think that is still yet to happen for her. So I'm really hopeful for Alpha, and I know nothing about it, but I just I'm invested because of the previous work.
Speaker 2:Is Alpha a foreign language film?
Speaker 1:I'm sure it's a French film. She's a. She's a French filmmaker, so yeah, I it probably won't be English as the first language, at least Usually her movies have a little bit of a mix, a little bit of a blend of different languages, but yeah, I don't know. There's. There's a lot to be excited for with Cannes this year and a lot of fun stuff premiering out of competition as well. I think Highest to Lowest is actually premiering out of competition. So we'll start to get to hear kind of early returns on a lot of stuff that we've been looking forward to.
Speaker 3:Yep.
Speaker 1:And we should also note that Cannes goes until Saturday, the 24th, so it won't be till the end of May when we know the winners. Voting body this year the jurors because, usually they do a really good job. I think two years ago Spike Lee was head juror, Greta Gerwig was on it last year, I know, and so there's always um a lot of really important Jeremy Strong, no. Halle Berry.
Speaker 3:Halle Berry. I thought you said Tyler Perry, tyler Berry, uh.
Speaker 1:Jeremy Strong.
Speaker 3:Halle Berry yeah, uh Berry. Juliette Bohnish, binoche, and then it looks like a lot of international writers, international directors. Han Sang-soo from South Korea? Yeah, people, I don't know. So which from South Korea? Yeah, people, I don't know.
Speaker 1:Okay.
Speaker 3:Which is exciting.
Speaker 1:Great, okay, and then that kind of takes us to the last little bullet point. At least that I put in our little text outline is that podcasts have made their way to the Golden Globes and will be, um, like an awarded category this, this upcoming year, in 2026, that'll be a thing.
Speaker 3:So I can't wait to accept our golden globe.
Speaker 1:Start working on our speech now, Right, I don't know. What does this mean? Is this good? Is this bad? Is this mean we've made it as as um a quote, unquote art form like what? What do we make of this?
Speaker 3:uh, I think this is a way to get more celebrities at the golden globes is that because every celebrity has a podcast now?
Speaker 3:I think, I think it'll be jason bateman's podcast, it will be amy poehler's podcast, it'll be joe rogan's podcast, it'll be, uh, whoever. Yeah, well, I don't even think Bill Simmons is famous enough. Uh, yeah, I, I. It'll be interesting. They're going to identify somehow. They're going to identify and pick 25. It's like the top 25 podcasts, um, some, some, you know, uh, group of of the of of the Golden Globes, will select 25 podcasts and then they will have a voting body that will then vote on these podcasts. But I, you know, I, I don't know, did, did to the podcast. Does a podcast need to be awarded at the golden globes?
Speaker 1:I, I, I. This is what I'm saying.
Speaker 2:I don't know I find that hard because there's so many different genres of podcasts like yeah, there's like some amazing wellness.
Speaker 3:Uh, podcasters like I mean that's why I think it will be celebrity driven yeah, true crime.
Speaker 2:I mean there's so many. I mean if I see, call her daddy nominated for a golden globe, I'm gonna fully lose hope in hollywood. I'm not gonna lie like that's crazy to me. I mean I I'm obviously being very, you know, presumptuous and saying that, but like I could see that happening, like, but there's so many podcasts out there, like how can you narrow it down to 25 contenders? It's just, it's almost like it is just. Of course it's gonna be the people who are like celebrities, you know, or people who have these really big podcasts, but like I listen to some like incredible comedy podcasts and like, and I know that they have a massive following and you're like I can those people they're never going to get nominated for that. I mean I would. I hate to say that, but I mean it's just like, out of you know, if you're gonna tell me that 25, there's 25 spots for that, then amongst the thousands of podcasts that exist well, I think they'll.
Speaker 3:They'll start with 25 and then they'll vote it down to what like five nominations probably, yeah, for the show.
Speaker 2:So I wonder, will they have like categories or is it just going to be like best overall podcast? That's the thing.
Speaker 1:It feels like this is something that I don't know if the golden globes is the right place to debut it. I do appreciate the platform you know like shout out to all the podcasters out there.
Speaker 2:I appreciate the platforms.
Speaker 1:Podcasts are important too, but it? It Podcasts are important too, but I do question if this is the right way because it feels like this is just better suited for, like you know, like if you told me that on December 3rd, midway between award seasons or whatever, as award season is starting to really pick up, that I could turn on to be or the Roku channel or one of these, you know, even like Paramount plus or something like that, and it would be like it's the podcast awards or whatever.
Speaker 1:You know, we got to workshop that title but it and it could be something that they're instead, just you know. Acknowledging 25 podcasts, the pod let's have 25 different. Let's have 25 different categories and make a whole show out of it so that you can have almost like your best picture, equivalent to like best podcasts I'm surprised they don't do that already yeah, right, that could be.
Speaker 1:Your heavy hitters could be in. This is not an endorsement of like the Joe Rogan podcast, but that could be for like your super popular 1% podcast. And then you could also have a true crime category. You could have a best wellness category. You could have something equivalent to, like, you know, best short film, best documentary film. You could have your smaller, more niche subjects that then get recognized as opposed to, you know, because it's not like the Golden Globes is going to cut any of the film or television awards to make room or to save space for podcasts. It's going to be a drop in the bucket of that night's broadcast, that telecast. So, yeah, let's have, instead of shoehorning it into an already established award show, let's work on building a podcast award show from the ground up.
Speaker 2:Is this for sure? This is for sure happening too.
Speaker 1:It's for sure happening.
Speaker 2:So weird? And is that? I mean, they're doing the stunt category next year too, right, which is exciting, but is that not, or is that happening?
Speaker 3:next category, I believe, is 2028, and then the casting casting becomes a category next year.
Speaker 2:That's right, best cast so we get podcasts award before we get stunts yeah, okay, tom Cruise will continue, not to One of those is Golden Globes, and one of those are Academy Awards. Those are two different things. They're not going to do a Golden Globe for. I mean, they're not going to do a Casting for Golden Globes. Is that a Golden Globe? They're two separate bodies what. It's only the Academy Awards that's doing stunts, so not Golden Globes. Huh, okay.
Speaker 3:I'm sure they'll adopt something. But yeah, this is kind of a weird answer to the Academy Awards, announcing those two new categories and then the Golden Globes, to be like we're going to do a best podcast Nothing to do with movies, so strange.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it is odd, it's very odd I do love the idea of podcasts getting recognized. Of course I do, but I just at a at a film and television awards ceremony.
Speaker 3:This is, we are not a film and television platform well, hey, look at us, man, we're, we're going visual here, we're, we're, we're going to the youtubes.
Speaker 1:You know most podcasts are doing that, so it's becoming a visual medium well, and it just makes me wonder will it only be entertainment podcasts that are up for consideration? You know, will they? Will they acknowledge the the true crime podcast? Will they acknowledge self-help podcasts? Will they acknowledge any sort of podcast that doesn't fit into, like movie and television reviews?
Speaker 3:I think it will be Amy Poehler, Conan O'Brien, Jason.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you're probably right. You're probably right. Well, okay, any people are saying notes. You got your ear to the street down there, max, anything you want to report?
Speaker 3:No, I don't think anything new, just the you know that still, I sent today, uh, was kind of the newest news I've I've seen. Um, uh, I did just see Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg are going to be teaming up for another comedy movie coming, coming soon. Um, I'm hearing really good things about the new Edgar Wright movie, uh, the running man, uh, which is a remake of of that, I believe. Um, and Glenn Powell, uh, let's not forget our star studded boy, um, but yeah, no, no, nothing, nothing crazy uh down here so far.
Speaker 1:Any uh rumors catch your ear, erica. Rumors, catch your ear, erica. Any people are saying anything in general you want to get off your chest.
Speaker 2:No, I'm excited for Bring Her Back in a couple weeks. That's the movie I'm looking forward to. The new Danny and Michael Filippo movie. I will be seeing that in a few weeks. I think that I just have some good horror movies to look forward to which has, I think, been missing in my life recently. So that's pretty much it that's great.
Speaker 1:Um, I don't know. Should we talk about the nba max? Oh my gosh, I have a lot of thoughts. I don't know if this is the right place, um, but I can't talk to anybody at work about this. No one, no one. I don't even know if people watch professional basketball anymore, but I know you do, and this is the one time a week where I get a microphone in front of my face. I don't know. Did people care this much when Patrick Ewing, just like, was given to the Knicks?
Speaker 3:Tim Duncan was given to the Spurs. Yeah, wemby was given to the Spurs. I mean you could even go back. Leemby was given to the Spurs. Even, I mean you could even go back. Lebron was given to the Cavs, you know.
Speaker 1:LeBron was given to the Cavs. This is true, uh, but was it ever so egregious as what we just witnessed? No, there's two things. There's really two things. People are saying that that people are saying that the NBA is so corrupt and so rigged, and I usually don't buy into this when it comes to sports, um, just because you hear the players talk and they're like no fucking idiots is like this is our livelihood, like we put blood, sweat and tears into this. There's no script to the nfl. People aren't, you know, rigging games. Vegas can't fix games in real time or anything like that. Like the chiefs aren't going to win the super bowl three years in a row, just so Travis Kelsey can propose to Taylor Swift and have it be this whole big moment, or whatever, right. But then two things happen this week. Did you see the Draymond green clip? Actually, that's the first thing I did not talk about that.
Speaker 1:So it's game three of timber, of T wolves and warriors. The other night Timber wolves are up. Oh, this is the plus five.
Speaker 3:Thing.
Speaker 1:This is the five and a half spread yeah. Where they call a timeout, golden States losing by eight. And then Draymond he's talking about his own team. He goes I know what they're doing right now, cause he's already on the bench. He's like fouled out and he's like I know what they're doing right now. The spread was five and a half. Like the lip readers have all synced it up and all this stuff. Whatever Golden state comes out of the timeout and they immediately drop a three point play, they miss the first three and they kick it right back out for another three.
Speaker 1:They hit that three, so now they're they're covering the spread because it's five points. And then there's like, so okay, now maybe you're really just trying to win the game, right, you're really trying to make it back. The timberwolves inbound the ball. There's like eight seconds left on the clock or whatever. So you figure, foul right. Crazier things have happened. Reggie miller has scored. You know whatever is.
Speaker 3:We just saw with the Pacers in Cleveland.
Speaker 1:We just saw Halliburton do this yeah, um. Which shout out to the Indiana Pacers they beat the Cleveland Cavs. I love that. I love the Pacers. Yeah, their, their squad's nasty. It's so nice when you can finally root for someone like Pascal C because he's out of Toronto, anyways but then the Warriors just don't foul. So the Timberwolves dribble out the clock. They don't even go down and take another layup or whatever. So I'm like, okay, that is really suspicious. And then the lottery odds happen. The Dallas Mavs, with a 1% chance to get the first overall pick, end up getting the first overall pick after they traded Luka Doncic to the Lakers this last season to team up with LeBron. It totally feels like it was a. You do this for me, I'll do this for you. Adam Silver fixing it. Just crazy stuff, crazy stuff in the association right now.
Speaker 3:Well, yeah, and even the Spurs getting the number two pick overall which. I believe they had maybe like a 4% chance.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 3:Again, just like I don't know, I don't know if the games are actually rigged, but man the, the player movement and the the building of teams, sure feels, sure feels that way.
Speaker 1:It does, it does. That's all the time we'll spend on that. I just had to get that out there. We completely lost Erica. She turned around and said pet her cat. But I just had to get that out there because I still love the NBA and this year's NBA playoffs have been so entertaining. They've been so good.
Speaker 3:They've been amazing, absolutely amazing.
Speaker 1:Like the best in 10 years, I would say, and I know you and I have texted a little bit back and forth about it, so I appreciate that part of our friendship. You've always been my basketball guy.
Speaker 3:The Knicks are about to fucking beat those Boston Celtics into the ground. We love to see it.
Speaker 1:I feel so bad for Jason Tatum, but at the same time my hatred for the Celtics goes so much deeper than my sympathy for one player's injury. It's great to see Timothy Chalamet to bring it full circle in back to movies.
Speaker 2:And Spike Lee.
Speaker 1:Timmy and Spike Lee sitting courtside at the garden. It's gotten me through. Listen, I'm going to be the biggest, laziest piece of shit this summer because I'm just working so hard right now at work and I'm looking for anything that I can to just get me through the day when I'm doom scrolling on my phone after.
Speaker 1:I don't know, today was like an 11 hour day, and when I see timothy chalamet and spike lee next to each other courtside at the next game and like, and just another thing, like I'm so happy for timothy chalamet and kylie jenner's relationship because it actually does seem so authentic, but the fact that, like, she's not even who is in the photo and like this is who we are choosing to highlight in these moments, is like one of the best living directors and one of the best living actors, and I just can't help but think like sooner or later, they're probably going to work with each other.
Speaker 1:This is going to be awesome Like ah, I just it's great and it's, and just it's, it's basketball bringing people together. I don't know, it's just when, when your worlds collide, when two worlds collide and and you feel like things are sort of just like happening for for your entertainment. Um, it's a good feeling.
Speaker 3:Yeah, yeah, I agree, I totally agree.
Speaker 1:It's got very worked up, Um okay. So what do we have next week? We have final destination bloodlines.
Speaker 2:Fuck yeah.
Speaker 1:And it and it gives us a chance to, I think, circle back to an idea that you know we've kicked the tires on a few times. Our boy, derrick nunn, has come on and done one of these episodes with us. But it lets us sort of revisit a lost film franchise, maybe turn over a few stones and uncover, like a, a forgotten, underrated horror sequel within the final destination franchise, because for as iconic as two is in that opening with the log truck on the highway, two's not the best movie. It just really isn't. All due respect to my girl, aj cook and ally larder, but like four and five are pretty fucking fun, like the nascar scene, that that that cold open is so awesome. Um, there's a lot of good stuff in four and five that I think we we need to talk about. So lost horse sequels are definitely back on the table next week.
Speaker 1:I'm really excited for Bloodlines, especially after hearing you say that the talk of the town is that this could be one of the better installments in the franchise. So that's really exciting. I don't know where you guys stand on the Final Destination film franchise as a whole. Erica, you being such a whorehead, I'm excited to hear what you have to say about it. There's also room to fit in a little bit of Twilight Zone conversation in here, because that first film cribbed a lot from an early Twilight Zone episode, so a lot of fun stuff to dive back into. I've always really liked this franchise, so I'm excited for that.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I can't wait. I can't wait to see it in a packed theater, uh on a on an opening friday, and uh really experience it with, with the, with the masses more devin sawa talk for you, erica, which is he in this?
Speaker 1:new movie down girl down. No, but he's in the original of course. So um just another opportunity in this movie wait where I didn't know I I.
Speaker 2:That's so funny that you mentioned him, because he is I'm watching that show hacks right now and he just made an appearance and I was like Devin, my first love, devin, you haven't called you still have to fire up Hard Eyes, because he's awesome in Hard Eyes.
Speaker 1:He's in that too, from earlier this year. Yeah, he's really great. Asawa Sans interesting and also don't be. I'm curious as to what the promotion is down there around this film. But don't be surprised when I fit in some hurry up tomorrow.
Speaker 3:Conversation next week as well so yeah, that comes out next week, right because?
Speaker 1:I haven't said this upcoming weekend, this upcoming weekend, yeah yeah, I haven't.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I. I want to go check that out too, because is that going wide or is it just going to be limited? Do you know?
Speaker 1:I'm not sure if it's going limited and then wide or if it's only getting a limited release. I know that fan screenings are happening, like right now in select cities across the United States and also internationally.
Speaker 1:So I think it's going to get a pretty big release. I don't know if we're talking like 3,000 screens in multiple countries and on different continents or anything like that, but I mean the Weeknd being a global artist, you would think that the fan base is there. Also Jenna Ortega and Barry Keoghan. So yeah, we'll see. We'll see with that one.
Speaker 3:Yeah, can't wait to see it.
Speaker 1:All right. Well, I didn't know if we had 100 minutes in us, but here we are. This is just what happens when the gang gets back together. It's been great seeing you, max, and connecting again. I don't know, I don't want to speak for Erica, but we miss you, but it's great to see you.
Speaker 3:Yeah, yeah, I'm happy to be back on the show and see you guys' faces. Yeah, yeah, I'm happy to be back on the show and see you guys' faces. Even two weeks was too long to go without sitting and talking movies on. Excuse the Air Mission.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Could you guys on my screen, like Max, if you do your hand you know like that and then Erica does hers like that, since you both are on the top, it would make like a heart. Erica, you got to do the other hand. Oh, now you're getting blurry too.
Speaker 3:Max, I don't know.
Speaker 1:We'll workshop this. Check us out on.
Speaker 3:YouTube and, yeah, this will be on YouTube. I will put it up on YouTube Also. Listen listeners hit us up. Hit us up with some fan mail. There's listeners hit us up? Hit us up with some fan mail. Uh, there's a link at the top of the show description and whatever uh app you listen to and you can send us a text, a complaint, uh, something about Devin Sawa, like anything. Please send us some some mail. We will read it on. Uh, the next episode.
Speaker 1:Absolutely. And and I I will just say too, because I'm about to, of course, go into the, you know, follow us, um, on letterbox plug here and also on the social medias, we're bringing back the instagram. The instagram has been dead. I've just not had I guess I've had the bandwidth. I just have not been putting in the effort and I haven't even been logging stuff on letterbox. But I watched a movie, a new movie, the other night and I logged it and I wrote about it. And it was one of those things where I was just like I don't care if anybody likes this or anybody goes out and sees this movie, but like I just felt so compelled to write about this movie after I saw it and and it awoke something in me and so yes, turning over a new leaf here.
Speaker 3:I love to hear it. Letterboxd has been lonely without you.
Speaker 1:Yeah, Erica and I had a little bit of a conversation about it last week. She's like listen, I only follow like seven people. I notice when you're not active.
Speaker 2:Not even.
Speaker 1:Okay, so there we are. There's our spiel. Until next time, please follow excuse the intermission on instagram and the three of us on letterboxd to read our reviews and track what we are watching between shows, and we'll talk to you next time on eti, where movies still matter. Bye, thank you.
