Latest / Houselights: A Film Director Podcast / Sleepless in Seattle (1993) - Nora Ephron | Houselights #132

Transcript

Sleepless in Seattle (1993) - Nora Ephron | Houselights #132 · Houselights: A Film Director Podcast

0:03
Welcome to the nerd Party. Hello everybody at home, and welcome to Houselights,
0:24
specifically the Efron Hallway. We're taking a little bit of a departure this
0:29
week and next week because frankly, we wanted to and it's our podcast and
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we can do what we want. Last week we talked about When Harry Met
0:38
Sally, which was not directed by Nora Ephron, but it was written by
0:42
her. And so this week we are taking Sleepless in Seattle that came out
0:47
in nineteen ninety three, which was directed by Nora Efron, and talking about
0:52
it, and you know what, we kind of wanted to keep going in
0:56
that vein, and so next week we're doing You've Got Mail, which wasn't
1:00
directed by Ephron, but it was written by her, and it's also starring
1:03
Tom Hanks and Megrind, just like this one. So thank you so much
1:07
for tuning in, downloading, subscribing. Make sure to go to the nerdputty
1:11
dot com for all of our backlogged episodes and all of our other directors that
1:15
we have talked about and all of our different categories that we've ventured forth into,
1:21
and make sure to check out some other shows while you're at the nerdputty
1:25
dot com because we've got something for everyone, something coming out every single day
1:29
of the week. And with me tonight, as they always are, is
1:34
Darren and DC Moser and Insomniac and Idaho Mills. I am so excited to
1:42
talk about this tonight because John, this is your first time seeing slippers in
1:47
Seattle. Indeed, this was a missing frame for me as well. You've
1:49
got mail b one as well. Grammarly things words together go. So when
1:56
did you immigrate into this country? Well, I remember the ad campaign for
2:00
Sleepless in Seattle. I also remember that it was during the time when I
2:06
was most active, going out into the world, having lots of fun and
2:09
not getting many dates as a side note, and so I wasn't wasn't much
2:15
for going to the romantic movies back then, and it just sort of like
2:19
it was always there. Seriously, It's just like this wasn't stacked up against
2:23
Batman or anything. So you know, yeah, no, I mean,
2:25
ninety three wasn't even a particularly strong year. As I recall it. Jurassic
2:30
Park was probably the biggest one I could think of. But yeah, but
2:34
I mean, like Jurassic Parking should so it was like year of Spielberg and
2:38
like everything else was like what else happened? I struggled to remember. I
2:42
mean Philadelphia was ninety three as well, right, wasn't it? I think
2:46
it will this Yeah. This was also a June release, so it was
2:49
a which is kind of seemed to be a weird time for a summer.
2:53
But but you know, it's one of those ones where you keep hearing about
2:54
it and you just I think you were saying with um with when Harry mets
3:00
out, it's like, yeah, I'll get to it. Like I'll get
3:01
to it. I'll get to it, and your your queue keeps growing and
3:05
then eventually you gotta you know, wait for podcasting to be invented, and
3:07
then somebody say, hey, you want to watch that? You go,
3:10
sure, why not? And there you go and here we are, Darren.
3:15
What's your relationship with this film? Um, i'd seen it before,
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but it had been a little while. Oh gosh, I couldn't even tell
3:23
you when I first saw it. It was most likely on a date,
3:28
just putting in a movie. Uh. You know, it's just one of
3:31
those quintessential, you know, chick flicks of you know, it's right it's
3:37
mag Run and Tom Hanks. Like you could just make a lineup of Meg
3:40
Ryan and Tom Hanks and this would be right there in the middle of it.
3:44
So, uh yeah, no, it's it's it's very nineties. I
3:50
love the looking things up on the computer montage as we're like, yes,
3:54
you know, it's it's not quite the Internet. But also it's not like
4:00
war games. It's kind of in the middle. It's very it's very Lexis
4:04
Nexus, but it's not the way things really were back then. Darren sounds
4:09
like you've seen it before, had seen it a long time. John,
4:11
You've never seen it before. I am on the complete opposite side of the
4:15
spectrum. I got it in blue ray, you got it in four K,
4:19
you got like the special collector's poster. That's what I'm expecting you to
4:24
say. Photograph lazer disc, Yeah, like taped off a TV, then
4:28
a VHS, then a DVD, then a blue ray. You got the
4:31
MC clunky version, you got everything Mark Clunky. Yes. No, I
4:39
was basically raised on this movie. My entire family loved it, like all
4:43
four of us, like not just me and my parents, but also my
4:46
sister and which you know, she's kind of the black sheep of the family,
4:49
and so it was really important and special to us. We would quote
4:54
it constantly. There's little things that would just like pop up in our lexicon,
4:59
Like during Christmas, it's impossible for me not to go, harsisis artist
5:03
like sometimes even if it's not Christmas, and it is a memorable moment.
5:06
Yeah, I was just seeing it the way that Meg Ryant did, and
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it's just this was it was. It was interesting because you know, uh,
5:16
John, you talked about it being, you know, a rom com
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and uh, you know, last week we talked about when when Harry met
5:25
Sally was considered rom com and me personally, I was thinking, like,
5:30
you know, actually know you, I think we we we quote un like
5:34
we were we were talking about how some people would call it quote unquote at
5:38
chick flick and we're like, oh, it's like our people calling it a
5:42
chick flick just because it's a rom com. And to me, growing up
5:46
with this kind of stuff, this was just a comedy. To me,
5:47
like, it wasn't a chick flick. It wasn't even a romantic comedy.
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It was just a comedy. It was a family movie. Like that's that's
5:54
what it was to me, and so I enjoyed it as a young lad,
5:59
like not looking for something to inspire me to go find my perfect love.
6:03
Like I was Jonah's age when I was watching this, and it was
6:09
this was just a hilarious movie with a lot of heartwarming moments. And so
6:13
if you're Jonas's age, does that mean the best scene was like when he
6:16
just books his own plane ticket and just takes off. Is that every kids,
6:20
that's like blank check territory where you're just like, yeah, this is
6:26
great and just to wait in on this. While it was a lot easier
6:30
to fly in the nineteen nineties, not as easy as this movie might portray.
6:33
Just just throwing it out there. Look, look, you just have
6:36
to have your best friend's mom be a travel agent and unfettered five minutes of
6:42
access to our computer. That's all. That's all. That's all you need.
6:45
If it's in the computer, they'll believe it. They saw with the
6:50
Dark Web. It's the dark Web the early days. There you go,
6:55
yeah, I mean for your young listeners, pre nine to eleven was a
6:59
wild time. It was the wild West, so different of airline flights.
7:03
You could actually show up within five minutes of the door. People would just
7:08
go and hang out at the airport and go to like the food court like
7:11
it's a mall. Yes, like not even because that scene where he is
7:16
meeting is it is it Rita Wilson or I can't believe who. I can't
7:21
remember if it's his date, the one with the funny laugh he but like
7:25
his is leaving to go leaving the tight and they're at the gate. They're
7:30
out there at the gate like people like young people watch this movie are just
7:32
like, what is he doing? How do you get in there? You
7:34
still it didn't matter you, I don't did you even need to show that
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you were with someone who was born in the plane? It was it was
7:43
a public building like a library, folks. It was that easy to just
7:46
go in. You can walk in, because who else would want to go
7:50
to an airport. It's boring, Like there's no real reason to go there
7:56
unless you're going somewhere. This could go real dark, real fast, So
8:00
let's bring it on back. I wouldn't even thinking that way, and then
8:03
we'd all just kind of got quiet a little bit. Yeah, So okay,
8:09
so we have Tom Hanks, Sam Baldwin, may grin any Read and
8:16
they share two minutes of screen time together. They don't even kiss, they
8:22
barely exchange any words together. What were they thinking? How did this movie
8:28
get made? You know, like, how how do you pitch this,
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Darren? How do you pitch this to the studio? What do you say
8:37
about it? I would start with, what's gonna sound crazy? Because it
8:39
is? What if they didn't meet until the no I was reading about that
8:45
in the Wikipedia and the and the sources on this, and I was like,
8:50
wow, yeah, how I'm not surprised that like six studios turned it
8:54
down. And we're like, so wait, you have the chemistry of these
8:58
two and you're literally not going to put them in the same scene like almost
9:03
ever, Like it doesn't it doesn't make a lot of sense on paper.
9:09
They showed the script of kim basing her trying to get her as any Read,
9:11
and she's like, this premise is absurd for that reason, and then
9:16
you know, turned it down. I would say that I understand where kim
9:20
basing her was coming from with that, because I, well, let's wade
9:26
into the territory here, right Annie. I made the drive basically between Baltimore
9:31
and DC many times, and while I know that if you get caught between
9:37
the Moon and New York City, the only thing you can do is fall
9:39
in love. I would have never thought that Baltimore and DC would have been
9:43
too romantic polls like that. But as she's driving along and she hears on
9:48
the radio some sob story and she rearranges her entire life around the idea that
9:54
she's going to go off and meet this person. I want to throw out
10:00
to you, gentlemen, that coming at it is somebody viewing it for the
10:03
first time. If I were assessing the screenplay, my problem would probably start
10:11
with the fact that we're introduced to Bill Pullman's character and he's a decent enough
10:15
guy, and then the moment that she announces that she's going to get married
10:20
to him, all of a sudden, the movie decides, you know what,
10:22
we should really work hard to make it seem like this is a giant
10:26
pain in the butt, and you scratch your head and say, why did
10:28
she say yes? Because it's not like these things were news to her when
10:33
he started sneezing during the Christmas dinner. So I pose this question to you,
10:39
gents, as you watch this, why did Annie say yes to him?
10:43
To be his fiance. I don't think and you can rephrase, or
10:50
you can elaborate a little bit, but I don't think she said no because
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he was weird or odd, or because he sneezed or was allergic to anything.
10:58
I didn't get that at all. I never got that as a read
11:03
like. I don't think that they were showing him as you know, a
11:07
pain in the ass or someone to be embarrassed of, and that's why she
11:11
left him. I think it was just like, Oh, she wanted that
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spark, she wanted that magic, she wanted that fantastical you know sah.
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I'm saying the movie overcorrects for him. He's not just bland, he's he's
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like she has reaction shots when he's you know, as the movie goes on
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and he's talking about sort of the hurdles, like when they get to dim
11:37
some and his first reaction is does it have wheat in it? And then
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she has a moment and you see that moment on her face. I think
11:48
the movie overcorrects and makes I think that it works to make him, make
11:58
her eventual departure from him inevitable from the beginning, as opposed to showing him
12:07
as just he's just you know, instead of just showing him as just a
12:11
normal guy, he's like a special case in a sense, Like the movie
12:15
is trying to do it comically, but it's trying to show that, like,
12:18
oh, well, there's no way she could ever be happy with this
12:20
guy. And so my question becomes, since the movie works so hard to
12:24
show that, why would somebody have said yes if you know, like there's
12:30
no apparent spark between them at all before she even hears the radio, And
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it's like, I don't get why they fell in love to begin with.
12:39
Yeah, I mean, I agree with both of you. I agree with
12:41
Tristan and the fact that they annie never except for maybe a few wide eyed
12:48
moments like she is, She's not basing her leaving Walter. It's only based
12:54
around not having that spark, not actually feeling like she's in love with him
13:01
or what love should be or whatever she's believing it to be. But yeah,
13:03
John, you're right, they they really be like, hey, look
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here's the package deal. This is what you're getting, you know, having
13:13
to count wheat particles every time you make food for the rest of your life,
13:16
and yeah, they overindulge in Yeah, like why would you even want
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to go with this person? And maybe I don't. I don't know where
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they would have put it in the movie. Well, but like where else
13:30
they could have, Like I don't see anything of their relationship. We see
13:37
the moment he meets the parents and then like the fallout, so like we
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don't get any of the where did they meet? Why did they like?
13:46
Is she settling? Is she not settling? Is she like what? Like?
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We don't know any of that. All we know is that he doesn't
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like meat. I would I would have to speak to that point. What
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I'm saying is I would have appreciated even some sort of conversation with her Rosy
14:01
O'Donnell friend, where she's saying, well, I mean we've been going out
14:05
together for a number of years, we should get married. We've been together
14:09
for so long, so that gets me. He loves bry like I like
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poetry or exactly. Then she she does have that conversation. She does,
14:20
Okay, at what point does she have she has an exact conversation with o'don
14:26
like she has a breakdown, and then she's like Walter, I of course
14:31
I love Walter. I'm a fool not to marry him that different where where
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she's playing uh New York and she's like, oh, that'll be fine.
14:39
I can go to the Empire State Building because I'll be there with Walter and
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she's like with Walter, well what am I doing? Yeah, she has
14:46
that kind of Hey, what am I doing that? That's not the conversation
14:50
I'm looking for. I know, the conversation you're talking about. I'm talking
14:52
about something earlier in the development of the script, where she's a Now she's
14:56
getting married, and then you have her co workers saying, oh, wow,
15:01
you're engaged, you know, like a surprise sort of thing, like
15:05
oh you are and then she says, oh, well, yeah, you
15:07
know, we've been going together for two years. We might as well,
15:09
you know, like where where you get the sense that she's doing it just
15:11
because it's what's expected, because they haven't broken up by this point, as
15:16
opposed to the conversation you're talking about. I mean, I just think it's
15:20
missing. She has another conversation with her brother where she talks about getting cold
15:28
feet. That's not I think. I know that you love the movie.
15:31
I know that you love the movie, but I'm saying this is not that
15:35
argument. I like you need to make the argument. I am making the
15:39
argument, but you're just you're missing your points on the film where no,
15:43
I'm not, I'm not Those points are not what I'm talking about. I'm
15:48
talking about In the movie, it never presents a reasoning why she's in love
15:54
with Walter. There's a conversation where she says, of course I should be
15:56
with Walter. There's a conversation where she has with her brother where she says,
16:00
oh, maybe I'm just getting cold feet. But I don't ever get
16:03
the sense from the beginning of the movie. I never understand why she's with
16:07
him. To begin with, it's beyond any of the any of the stuff
16:11
that he has going on with him. It's beyond anything like that. I
16:15
never sense. Maybe I'm just saying like and trying not to say because I
16:21
think it's such a clunky sort of thing. I never feel any chemistry between
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her and Bill Pullman, Like let's contrast it with when Harry Metz. Bill
16:30
Pullman could have been any actor almost, but it's even beyond the any actor
16:34
thing I see. I don't get any meat on the bone with these characters
16:38
relationship. I don't see anything where I would see these two people interacting and
16:42
say, yes, it makes sense that they're in a relationship. There's no
16:45
affection that I see on I mean, if she had just married him for
16:48
a few more years, she would have been the first lady. It could
16:52
have been great. She missed it by by that much. By that much.
16:56
Yes, it's the point, Tristan. And that's the problem is that
17:02
it spends all of this time putting her in a situation. Again, Let's
17:06
contrast it with when Harry met Sally, where the whole thing is the organic
17:10
growth of their relationship over time, and we see the hits and the misses
17:14
and you know that the spark almost firing and those sorts of things. Bill
17:18
Pullman feels like, just, oh, well, she's got to be in
17:22
a relationship in order for us to tell you know this movie, Like you
17:26
could excise Bill Pullman from this script. You could excise Walter's character and just
17:32
have her be somebody who's never met the spark. And I think the movie's
17:36
more charming if she's not in that relationship, is what I'm saying, Like
17:41
it sets up the relationship. Maybe I'm just reacting to the fact that I
17:44
know the minute they introduce Walter. I'm like, well, of course she's
17:47
going to discard him, so I never make any emotional effort to get connected
17:51
to him through the movie. And you know, maybe it's as simple as
17:56
that. It's like, you don't need the Walter character. You can just
17:57
have her. At the Christmas dinner, everyone's when are you gonna meet a
18:00
guy? When are you gonna, you know, find that special spark or
18:03
something like that. And then she's driving for some reason to go back to
18:06
work after the dinner, and then she hears on the radio and she goes,
18:08
I think I found the guy, and everyone's like, you're nuts.
18:10
He's in Seattle, what are you talking about? Like that's I'm not trying
18:14
to rewrite the movie, but I'm saying I honestly think if if I were
18:18
sitting there in the story conferences, I mean, like, you know what,
18:21
I don't think, Well, it's necessary, I think, I mean,
18:23
I don't think I think that is a solid point. But I feel
18:30
like that's more of a condemnation of romantic comedies in general and film in general
18:37
than it is specifically this movie. Because whenever there is some sort of I
18:44
don't want to say triangle, but whenever there's like whenever there's a romantic comedy
18:49
and like a man needs to get with a woman and there's needs to be
18:53
obstacles in the way on both sides. There's your the woman is almost oh,
19:00
i'd say ninety nine percent of the time is going to have a man
19:03
that you're just like, oh, well, this is the guy that's going
19:06
to get dumped by the end of the movie to go with the lead.
19:08
And so basically the way to salvage that if you're going to use that trope
19:15
to me personally is what I can't stand in movies and in comedies and things
19:19
like that is when they make the guy the biggest asshole in the world,
19:26
where they're just like, oh my gosh, like this guy is the complete
19:29
opposite of this person. He you know, he hits children, he kills
19:33
animals. You know, he doesn't put his card away at the super at
19:37
the super market, you know, like that kind of stuff, Like like
19:41
that's what I can't stand with this kind of thing. I can totally excuse
19:47
a lack of chemistry. I can totally excuse a lack of backstory because I
19:52
have seen dead marriages before, you know, like I have seen fiances and
19:56
husband and wives where you're just like, where did you meet? Holy Frapp?
20:00
How why are you guys even together? Like you might as well be
20:03
business partners or people who just lived together. And so to me, this
20:07
doesn't seem like out of left field. Could it have worked without Walter and
20:11
with the way that you described it? Yeah, I think so. But
20:14
I also really enjoy some of the comedic moments that Bill Paxton brings Pullman to
20:18
the I did it, I did it, you walked right. I swore
20:23
to myself that I wouldn't do that tonight, Just like Fry when he drinks
20:27
the three hundred cups of coffee. We should have like a little ding on
20:32
in the lower right hand corner of how many times somebody screws up? And
20:34
says Paxton when they meet Pullman, So that's number one ding So I get
20:41
that. I don't agree with it. I get it. I think it's
20:44
a larger condemnation of romantic comedies and film structure in general. But I think
20:48
I like the character because of the romantic, because of the comedy that he
20:52
brings, because he's an eccentric I like that he's not just a cardboard cutout
20:59
of a man and who's just there to fill in some lines. He actually
21:02
is funny, Like they're like like the moments when says like like she's like
21:07
somewhere in Duluth and he's like, oh, that's a North Dakota or like
21:11
when like in the dim sunthing, when he asked if there's weed in it,
21:14
like I laugh at that every single time, or when he said he's
21:15
like I had to have him size it down asking for a bottle of don
21:22
Delouise, which it's a terrible joke. I get it, will totally get
21:26
it. But and you know that that waiter was like yes, yes,
21:30
sir, thank thank you Sarah for great and then like your superior wit.
21:33
And then there's moments when like Annie is describing something where she's like, look
21:40
what there's that the funniest thing? What what was it? You know?
21:42
And she like she's laughing to herself. Where she is in love with them.
21:47
She knows that she's in love with them, at least she thinks she
21:48
does, even if her friends don't understand it or get it. So I
21:53
get what you're saying about removing Walter, but at the same time I think
21:56
that you're glossing over a lot of stuff. I don't think I'm glossing over
22:00
a lot of stuff, but I will show a little bit of leg here
22:03
that I have a specific distaste for. And this might be my biggest challenge
22:11
with romantic movies in general. I don't like when somebody is emotionally faithless in
22:21
a relationship and it bothers me. It bothers me, And maybe that's why
22:26
I think Walter should be excised from the thing. Because you talk about obstacles.
22:30
You have the biggest obstacle of all two complete strangers, one of whom
22:34
has only ever even heard the other's voice, separated by three thousand plus miles.
22:40
I think speak enough obstacle. I don't think you need any other obstacles.
22:42
But I mean, that's just me. I'm a crazy guy. I'm
22:45
marking John down as no go on the premise right off the bat. Okay,
22:51
all right, so it's a problem. So I want one thing I
22:55
want to talk about. Um is you know I mentioned kim basing her earlier,
23:00
so apparently who knows if this is true? This is what we always
23:03
mentioned. Who knows if these trivia effects are true? But the role of
23:07
any read was originally offered to Julia Roberts, who turned it down. Kim
23:11
Basinger was also offered the role in the early script process, but turned it
23:15
down because she thought the premise was ridiculous. As mentioned previously, Oscar winner
23:21
Kim Basinger and John Mills Simpatico. After Michelle Pheiffer, Jennifer, Jason Lee,
23:27
and Jodie Foster declined it, Meg Ryan landed the role. Is there
23:33
anybody on that list that you guys think could have pulled this movie off besides
23:37
Meg Ryan, Roberts, Basinger, Phifer, Jason Lee, Sharon Stone.
23:44
I think Sharon Stone. I think Jennifer Jason Lee could have pulled it off.
23:47
Yeah, I do. No. Oh, so this is another thing.
23:52
I think Saron Stone could do this. Yeah, I do, man,
23:56
I Wolf, I do. I hardcore don't see Stone in this.
24:00
I completely can see Sharon Stone in this. I really she can be funny,
24:04
but I don't think I've ever seen her in this lighthearted, a bubbly,
24:11
neurotic kind of thing. Well, then, my friend, you need
24:14
to Then you need to see Alan Quartermaine in the Lost City of Gold or
24:18
King Solomon's minds. Then you'll understand that Kim basing Or can deal with.
24:22
By the way, just say, in case anybody's wondering, I do say
24:26
that ironically because those movies are terrible. But um no, I could see
24:30
Sharon Stone in this. Absolutely. I could see Jennifer Jason Lee because I
24:33
can see Jennifer Jason Lee just about anything. I think she's a wonderful actress,
24:37
and like, if you put her in a movie, I'm like,
24:38
oh, I'm interested, Like I don't know. I think that Sharon Stone
24:44
might have brought up I don't know why, and maybe she brings a more
24:49
serious edge to the character, like I could maybe maybe that's why I could
24:55
see a play. I don't know, but yeah, I could see those
24:56
two play in it. Sure, Darren, what about you? Oh gosh,
25:02
I just I keep feeling like it's a Meg Ryan movie. I have
25:04
a really hard time separating the role from her. I mean, just this,
25:11
there's something about Meg Ryan's roles what I think of, like interspace,
25:15
I think of, you know again, like with Harry met Sally, where
25:18
like it not that someone else couldn't play the role and not that you're not.
25:23
And I think you're right, John, Like some of your suggestions are
25:26
like, I could see them in that role, but once Meg Ryan takes
25:30
over something, it just distills into that, at least for me. So
25:37
I have a really hard time. Now I have an easier time kind of
25:40
looking at the other of like, well, who is she paired up with,
25:42
because I've seen her paired up with many different you know, leading men,
25:48
I mean often Tom Hanks, He's got a little higher percentage than you
25:51
know, some of the others, not like Bill Paxson, but you know
25:57
that was that was actually and also speak another correct usage of Bill Paxton is
26:03
that apparently for the role for Tom Hanks roll of Sam Baldwin, Didnis Quaid,
26:08
Michael Keaton, John Travilta, John Ritter, and Bill Paxton were considered
26:14
for the role of Sama the same movie The Universe Explode. Yes, I
26:21
could see Quaid, I could see I think I think Keaton would probably be
26:23
my favorite from all of them. I think Keaton could have nailed sim I
26:26
have never really seen him in many romantic roles. I'm not that he hasn't
26:30
done it, I just haven't seen it. Person I would have liked Keaton
26:33
Moore because I think Keaton would have been funnier with the kid. I think
26:38
Hanks is a funny, but I think he would have been a different kind
26:42
of dad. But I think he would have played it really well. And
26:45
I think he can do certain types of reactions with kids, Like there's a
26:51
certain type of reaction shot with Keaton that I think would have played really really
26:56
well with some of those moments they Yeah, why while I have to agree
27:03
with you, it's hard for me I can actually have to agree with you
27:08
because of the unspoken that we have amongst us. But the moment that,
27:15
like the scene that Tom Hanks and Ross Mallinger Mallinger, I don't know how
27:22
Jonah, you know, like when they when they share that scene where they
27:25
just they both break down and Jonah is just screaming at Sam and he's just
27:30
like, Ah, shut up, Jonah. It's like, shut up,
27:33
shut up. Mom never told me to shut up. Mom never yelled at
27:37
me. And he's just like he's like, he's like, have you ever
27:41
seen fatal attraction? You wouldn't let me. He's like, well, scare
27:45
the shit out of me out of every man in America. I love that
27:48
scene between the two of and I think they worked off of each other really
27:52
well. Do I think Keaton could have done more of that and do it
27:55
better. Yes, But at the same time, I don't want to knock
27:59
Hanks in the process. Oh, I wouldn't knock Hanks. The Hanks is
28:03
right on the precipice here in ninety three of transitioning to serious actor Tom Hanks.
28:10
And in a sense, it's really it's really interesting because I remember this
28:17
movie and I remember the I mean, when Philadelphia comes out, everybody has
28:22
this whiplash effect like, oh, Tom Hanks, serious actor? What happened?
28:26
Oscar nominee? And this feels much more like a Tom Hanks sort of
28:32
movie and makes it even more puzzling why he turned down when Harry met Sally.
28:36
You know, you mentioned when we were talking about that that he felt
28:38
that script was too light, and I, honestly, I look at this
28:42
script and I asked myself, what's the court. I have to believe that
28:48
Hanks came at this and said I missed when Harry met Sally. I'm not
28:51
going that's it. Honestly, I honestly think that's it. Yeah, I'm
28:56
not going to make the mistake or what is um It's like Crystal where he
29:00
said, like, I think he was maybe offered Woody and he turned it
29:04
down. And so when Mike Wazowski came along, he was like he could
29:11
turning down Woody was the biggest regret of his career. And he's like,
29:15
I'm not turning down anything they give me. And that's really funny is because
29:19
um, Tom Hanks was recording his lines for Woody at the same time that
29:23
he was filming this movie. And that is just a mind bender of a
29:27
time zone. Yeah it is. So this is what Tom Hanks looked like
29:33
while he was recording. Yes, this is this is Tom Hanks Woody era,
29:38
which is so weird because I think the first one came out in ninety
29:41
five, didn't it right, But obviously you would have recorded all the dialogue
29:45
earlier, well before. And they were actually I think they had him film,
29:51
They had him record a lot because he basically recorded a completely different movie.
29:56
That's when they first come in, Yeah, the more jerk verse of
30:00
Woody, and then they're like, oh man, he's too much of an
30:02
ass, so let's do the movie again. I Uh, I want to
30:07
go ahead and say that you know, Hanks as the architect and Ryan as
30:12
the newspaper writer. It that feels very nineties to me. It's like those
30:18
were the two most popular professions right right, Like it's kind of like it
30:27
bends my brain because I look at these jobs and I remember there there was
30:33
a book I've read many years ago where they said that the guy writing a
30:37
book was like, oh, you never want to write a script, or
30:38
the person just has an intellectual job, or that they don't really do anything
30:42
like something like. And I look at these jobs and I'm like, this
30:48
is such a tiny sliver of the population that can relate to what these people
30:52
do for a living, Like, couldn't he just have some sort of bland
30:56
office job that some one of us who you know, dead eyed drones could
31:00
relate to, to be like oh, yeah, I know what that's like,
31:03
you know, as opposed to like, he's an architect. Yeah he
31:07
has like a you know, was it I thought he was a contractor based
31:11
on that scene in the house. I thought that was his whatever, it's
31:17
the same, Yeah, you know, he's but but he's like he's like
31:19
an architect or a designer or something like that, and he's like designing dream
31:23
houses for people. And I'm like that such a weird thing to go for,
31:29
Like I don't. I don't. There's a side of me that's like
31:34
I would prefer that sort of thing to be a little bit more of to
31:40
use the term every man sort of thing, something that a larger portion of
31:45
the population can like a teacher, you know, or something like that.
31:48
Yeah, I'll give you a teacher, or like a like a middle school
31:51
teacher or something. There was just like a director at a big company or
31:55
something that's like, yeah, you know, it's that's movie director. Everybody's
31:59
a movie director. There was a movie producer crazy. There's a rom com
32:04
with um David d'covney and Mini d Mini Driver that no one likes but me
32:09
called The Heart Transplant, right, Yes, it's called Return to Me.
32:13
It's about a heart transplant and my wife's favorite movie. I've seen it so
32:17
many times. Love that's so good, so good. I'm so happy to
32:22
hear you say that. No, I'm dead serious, Like she loves that
32:27
movie. I've seen it dozens of times. Yeah. David Kovney, he
32:30
is a contractor, that's what he is. Builds with his hands. But
32:35
like he's kind of like a top level contractor, so he still builds,
32:37
builds with his hands, but he's got a little mula in his pocket,
32:40
you know, he's it's a little bit more white collar. Mini driver,
32:44
waitress. Her father owns the place, but she's a waitress. You know.
32:46
These are all things that people can relate to. His hands on work.
32:52
It's not just a drone in the office. But at the same time,
32:53
it's not like what I do where like my grandfather doesn't even know what
32:59
I do. You know, Like, that's that's kind of my litmus test.
33:01
If my grandfather doesn't understand what the job is, then you're missing some
33:05
of your demographic. That's true. Ad it's that one. And While you
33:09
Were Sleeping that's another one of her favorites, which I think While You're Sleeping
33:14
is a is a five star film. That's also Bill Pullman, isn't it
33:19
Isn't he in that one? No, it's Paxton. I'm just kidding.
33:22
It's Pullman ding. Yes, that's also Pullman pre President. Okay, So,
33:30
Jonah Baldwin, what did you think about Jonah in this movie as part
33:35
of the story, as the character, as kind of the the thing that
33:38
moves some plot forward. Did you like the actor, did you like the
33:43
character. Did you think it should have been reworked? John, I'm going
33:47
to go to you second, Darren, what do you I definitely want to
33:52
hear your opinion as well, Tristan, because I know you don't particularly care
33:57
for children actors in John don't. But I I liked him. I felt
34:01
it was you know, it was a nice little bite size of a role.
34:07
You know. He he had to he had to sell caring for his
34:10
dad and not just like I'm on set this week. Um, And I
34:15
think I had read that he was actually the like an earlier not an earlier
34:19
choice, but like he wasn't the original cast and it wasn't working with the
34:22
original choice, and they went back to him, which it's like, hey,
34:27
if it's not working, it's not like it's this you has that part
34:30
has to be sold. So No, I I liked him. I liked
34:35
Ross as as jonah. Um. I mean again, it's it's very blank
34:38
check to like and we're just going to go to New York and you know,
34:43
just make it work. I mean, yes, it's the nineties and
34:47
we're going to insert these like acronyms that kids say, which no they don't.
34:52
Nobody said that nobody. We never do that. But you know what,
34:59
I can look past that because there's other issues that will get to But
35:04
no, overall, I liked I liked Ross. I think he did a
35:07
great job as as the kid. And you know, he's and he's a
35:10
he's a all has to be is the kind you'd want to tussle his hair.
35:15
He's got that little bit of magic. And you could see Annie,
35:19
you know, wanting to be his mom. You know that was it was.
35:22
It was cute, John. Why do you hate children? To let
35:27
us know? Oh jeez, that's where I had three of them? Is
35:30
because I hate them so much. Um Okay, So I don't fault the
35:37
actor at all, but I think that the scripts. Wait wait, wait,
35:43
that was a punch and it was a long drawback one best and I
35:52
hit it with a south Paul. Here's this so boom? Yeah? I
35:55
mean is it a rope a dope if you see it coming a mile away?
36:00
Yes, yes, that makes it. That makes it the worst kind
36:02
of ropetote. Um I would The writing is by people who don't either have
36:12
children or understand how children actually are. Um to speak to the other.
36:19
Thing about these acronyms. It's like, Oh, somebody's trying to make fetch
36:22
happen. Cool? Cool, all right, I see this, um,
36:25
But you know, I would love to see what they filmed with the original
36:31
kid, because Hanks apparently didn't like that kid and got him fired. And
36:37
how would you like to be a kid choose career like your parents are like,
36:42
this is it. You made your big freak movie with Tom Hanks.
36:45
Tom Hanks gets you fired. That's got for you. Yeah, it does.
36:52
I was reading he was being annoying, like kind of off camera,
36:55
like in scenes he wasn't in, so it was making it difficult for Hanks
37:00
to do the actual other scenes. And I'm like, dude, just go
37:02
to your trailer, like you don't have to be here, like you got
37:06
a good thing. You'd think that, but you'd think somebody could say,
37:09
hey, what over here, let's go to your trailer where we have a
37:14
stand up video game. Let's go play. Hey we got the Nintendo,
37:17
you can go over here. We have had a ninety three. Yeah you
37:22
know that this sunds like a handler failed at their job on that way.
37:24
Yeah, yeah, it does. But that kid is going to live the
37:28
rest of his life with that. That's that's got a sting. That's got
37:30
a sting. Um great Icebreaker parties though, But I, um, I
37:37
don't. I'm sorry. I'm just like now I have this entire image in
37:40
my head, like the glasses, that the ice is clinking against the glass.
37:45
He's like, you know, I could have been somebody. I could
37:51
have somebody. I view him as Kenner reads his character in the Last Time
37:55
I Committed Suicide, which is a delightful little film that nobody in the world
38:00
saw but me. Then what a great pull to relate to the audience.
38:04
You know, I'm trying to let people know movies to see that they might
38:07
want to spend their time watching. It's a charming little movie. It's a
38:10
it's about Neil Cassidy, the true father the Beat movement. But um,
38:15
I like the Kid's fine. I'll never fall to kid for working with what's
38:21
given to them. But I don't think the script doesn't any favors. Um.
38:28
It's it's a kid written by people who are trying to make the kid
38:32
too adult. I guess that could be why I actually like Jonah is because
38:40
he's not He doesn't sound like a typical kid, and he doesn't act like
38:45
a typical kid, because when that happens, I usually can't stand it.
38:49
Like with with stand By Me, like those those kids actually acted like kids,
38:54
and I knew those kids, and I hated those kids. I don't
38:58
want to see those kids on screen, Joe. I would I love seeing
39:00
on screen because I think it's funny. And I love the conversation that he
39:05
has with Tom when he's just like, so if you like am, like,
39:08
if you start dating, I can't remember exactly I'll goes. But he's
39:10
like, if you get married again, you're gonna have sex with each other.
39:14
And he's just like, I hope, so like he doesn't he like
39:16
it doesn't stop, and he doesn't say, like why are you asking me
39:19
this question? And then like he says it's about like screaming and scratching up
39:22
her back and stuff like that. He's like what it's like Jed's got cable
39:27
and then he just like puts the towel in front of his face like jet
39:30
table. That's a funny, endearing scene, but it's a very pseudo adult
39:35
conversation, Like it's the type of conversation. It's a very scripted scene exactly
39:39
exactly, and like when when Jonah's on the phone and the way that he
39:44
acts with um doctor marsha uh and um it says like my you know,
39:50
oh my dad's been captured by a hoo all fun stuff. Love it,
39:55
But John, I can't argue that it's it's a script written by adults for
40:02
a pseudo adult. Yep. Yeah, he's an old souled child because he
40:07
has to be for the plot to work. And now we can get on
40:13
the plane. I always laugh whenever I see uh Maggie Baldwin pop up in
40:17
his fantasies and I'm just like, oh my god, it's a Bond girl.
40:22
Tom Hanks was married to a Bond gay he married. Well, you
40:24
know, what can you saying? You married a Bond girl? Congrats,
40:29
well done, Okay, good for you. Um yeah, there's a lot
40:34
of there's a lot of fun faces that that that pop up in here.
40:37
I mean, we've got we've got Francis Conroy, David Hyde, Pierce,
40:42
uh Rita Wilson, Victor Garber. So so what David Hype Pierce shows up.
40:45
I'm like, is this all a big elaborate episode of Frasier because it
40:52
kind of feels like it like it has major Frasier vibes. You're you're correct,
40:57
because there's a there's an on air ecologist who's or psychiatrist whatever, on
41:01
air therapists who who is theattle of the plot in it's in Seattle. And
41:07
he even has a line where he says, nobody likes Seattle. It rains
41:12
all the time. And like Frasier came out in ninety three, the same
41:14
year this film did, and I'm like, that is just too weird,
41:17
you know, obviously, And it's a therapist himself, right, yeah,
41:22
so it's and he's describing the type of relationship or fairly similar from merists.
41:29
Yeah, yeah, yeah, right, yeah, either we were gonna get
41:32
married or we're gonna break up. So we got married. Yeah. And
41:36
some would say Cheers was a backdoor pilot for Frasier, but some would say
41:39
it was. Some would say it'd be correct, but some others would be
41:44
incorrect, would say it was Sleepless in Seattle. So Victor Garber Rita Wilson
41:50
the dinner scene where they're talking about an affair to remember, which you know,
41:54
they took a lot of inspiration from an affair to Remember, and then
41:58
they're talking about their dirty dozen could be one of the greatest dinner scenes.
42:02
I laughed so much when they're making it. The Dirty Doesn't Talk. Oh
42:07
my god. I will give this movie credit for the fact that I've had
42:12
conversations like this while in relationships where myself and a guy friend mock like that
42:20
that whole thing where it's like, you're crying about this and I love I
42:23
do love the Dirty Dozen. And when he's saying there's like but Jim Brown's
42:28
running through He's throwing the grenades down the pace, I'm like, yeah,
42:31
yeah, that is a pretty cool scene. But I'm like, I love
42:35
yeah, stop it. That is actually very funny. That feels like a
42:39
conversation pulled from real life. That's the sort of thing where I think Efron
42:45
as a writer can excel is when she pulls that stuff from real life,
42:51
or or her co writers or whomever. This this might hurt that epiphany that
42:57
you had, because some say that this was revised on the take, this
43:02
discussion of The Dirty Dozen. I wish you hadn't told me that. I
43:07
mean, but even if it was improvised, it very much could have come
43:12
from one of the actors having a conversation like this in their real life,
43:15
like it's absolutely it's it's so real, like, well, it doesn't feel
43:22
out of place. And you give the director credit for letting the actors contribute
43:27
something of worth and saying instead of being like, um, you know in
43:32
Rushmore, they're my words. You know, you messed with my script saying
43:38
oh that was good, we'll keep that. So that that is a good
43:42
thing. Yeah, that that. I think. There's the thing that I
43:46
really love about this movie is that, to me, there's so many of
43:51
those scenes. There's so many of those moments. I didn't even watch this
43:54
in preparation for this podcast, because I watched it that not that long ago,
43:58
just out of pure enjoyment, and I like, the whole thing is
44:01
just burned across my brain. And so like, there's there's so many moments
44:06
there's there's just little little moments like with Jonah playing with a lobster and Sam's
44:12
like stepped stepping and then he turns wayne he continues to do it, Or
44:15
when the babysitter is with Jonah and then Sam starts come down the stairs and
44:21
the babysitter kind of like kicks Jonah and Jonah picks up the controller and changes
44:25
the channel because they're clearly watching something that they're not supposed to be watching.
44:30
Or when Sam is waiting in the restaurant and he's building like he's doing a
44:35
little building out of sugarcue because he's an architect, you know. I think
44:38
those are the That's what really makes this movie to me is these little little
44:44
moments as we move on, I mean, I should say, like as
44:49
as as I think back on this movie, now, one thing that really
44:54
struck out stuck out to me was the use of popular music. And I
45:00
think I think about the score sometimes and I do remember the score, but
45:07
the thing that really sticks out to me is the music that they used,
45:10
like you know, Hairicnick Junior, and I'm blinking on other names, but
45:15
to me, like when Sam is walking out on the on the on the
45:21
dock and Annie is looking out at the at the sky and we hear Blackbird
45:27
playing and it's just like they are not shying away from the song, like
45:30
this song makes the moment. And John, you often ask us about the
45:37
music, and so I wanted to ask you, like, did the score
45:38
stand out to you at all? We don't even have to talk about it
45:42
if you don't want to What did you think about the use of popular music
45:45
in this movie? Did you think it it made made it meaningful? You
45:50
were you bland to it? Talk to me, I thought it was fine.
45:54
There wasn't anything see Here's this is what's really strange and difficult to me,
46:01
because it's one of those things where maybe there's some extra textual knowledge that's
46:07
coloring my perception of it. But by this point Tarantino's on the scene,
46:10
right, and so in a sense that like when Harry met Sally, there's
46:15
there's a use, there's an adaptation aspect to the music that that works really
46:22
well with this. I don't think it works as well. I don't think
46:25
it's bad, but it's not. It's not that next level sort of thing.
46:32
I think that the song choices are fine, but it feels a little
46:37
too conscious. It doesn't feel as organic. I guess it feels like a
46:43
nineties romantic comedy which has like this is what you do? You have music
46:50
interjected, not all the time, but like it's not anything new, it's
46:55
done well. It feels a little too self aware, not like in an
47:00
overbearing way, but it feels a little too conscious, like that there's there's
47:06
something where you know, you can watch a movie and a song plays and
47:10
you're like, yep, that I don't see where It's like when you cast
47:15
the right person, you're like, I don't see anything else that could play
47:16
in that. But there's there's a certain aspect to this score where it's like,
47:22
yeah, I mean, it works, and there's nothing that doesn't work.
47:27
But there's nothing that I think is spectacular about the musical choices. That's
47:34
my take. That's just my take, Darren. Do you echo that?
47:39
Yeah? I think just like I said, you know, it feels like
47:42
a nineties rom com formula, not in a negative way, just not like
47:47
oh man, just whoa. What they did with the music, it like
47:52
just took it to the another level. I didn't know romantic comedies could be
47:57
like that. No, it's not that, it's not that it's it's good.
48:00
It's it's well used. And I think, just like quotes in a
48:07
comedy, you know, like when I hear you know is it? And
48:13
when I faone no, which is the last the last song? Make someone
48:15
happy now here? I always think of this movie when I hear that song.
48:19
It is linked. And usually you'll have like one or two songs that
48:23
are just linked to a movie in such a way that you will instantly think
48:28
of it. So I think if it does that, then it's doing its
48:30
job. So before we you have it on vinyl and laser. Now we
48:36
know all of that, Tristan, you know, I wish I had this
48:38
on vinyl. We did have the cassette tape though we had we had the
48:43
cassette soundtrack of this and we would crank Blackbird full volume. Oh my mom
48:51
would just like stomp her feet and just like really get into it. So
48:55
one thing that we haven't mentioned before we give our ratings, we did not
49:00
mention that the previous director that we spent so many weeks talking about has It's
49:07
not a cameo, like, he's straight up supporting character in this movie.
49:13
What did you guys think about seeing Reyner again in front of the camera.
49:16
Did you think it was a good friendship with Tom? Do you think he
49:19
added something like specifically with that conversation when he says, Tira messiou that is
49:24
the thing I remember from the ad campaign, Tira messiou became a thing after
49:30
this movie, And I yeah, I remember Tira messiou becoming a thing after
49:37
this movie. And at least in my section of the world, it wasn't
49:43
a thing before this movie, but after this movie, Tira Messou was a
49:45
thing. And then when I found out what Tierra Messou was, I was
49:49
like, oh cool, okay, that's fine, And everybody felt the need
49:54
to order it on their first dates and all of those sorts of things for
49:58
a time afterward. Um. But all that to say, Rob Reiner has
50:07
just an easy on screen comic persona, and I think that you could put
50:14
him in any scene and it's fine as long as you put him as the
50:17
right character. He's not gonna play as Jonah for instance, I can't.
50:22
I can, but like he's not. He wouldn't have worked at want you
50:28
to get another wife? Else you're I want you to move out? So
50:32
son, how have you balded already? Like That's what I'm unclear on.
50:37
But I think that, um, like, he wouldn't have worked his Walt.
50:42
He know he works in this role though, and I think that he's
50:46
funny in this role, and so I I enjoy seeing Ryan. It's always
50:52
been Walter, even as Mother's right, everybody calls him Walter. That's right.
50:55
I honestly, I had to double take him, like, wait,
50:58
who's Walt? Oh, Walter much more interesting if Walter was Walter White.
51:04
And then the movie she takes on a whole other dimension. So so,
51:07
all right, so here we go. We're We're, We're, We're here.
51:16
We've we've We've had our discussion, We've had our highs, we've had
51:21
our lows, we've had our song cues or meat cutes and everything in between.
51:27
And Darren, I'm gonna go with you first. How many uh letters
51:32
of neurotic fan mail are you? Are you giving this piece this time?
51:39
Yeah, it's I almost feel like I'm like the counter to Tristan's family watching
51:45
it every third Thursday on at at the Ridell House. But because there's some
51:52
things that are hard for me to get. Like Annie's plot is batshit crazy,
51:58
like she she literally like like I don't think I've ever heard Derek cuss
52:07
before. This is the greatest thing in the world. But we always have
52:12
to laughs at the end of the podcast. That's what we got to do
52:14
now. But no, like seriously, when she she travels there, tracks
52:19
him down, watches him leave with his son in the boat that follows in
52:24
the car, it's like I joke about that all the time with my with
52:29
my wife. Yeah, you're looking for if you switch the genders, Oh
52:36
my gosh, if the dude doing this, this is a horror movie.
52:39
You put a little bit of like like you know, a little scary like
52:43
trail you know, trail music in the background. You're like at night,
52:46
you know, it's like sundown is coming, you know, she's check check,
52:51
like like it's just shy of her. When he leaves in the boat,
52:55
going into his house while he's not there and like sniffing his owls,
53:00
like it's just shy of that. But when she's standing in the in the
53:04
road and I'm like, what are you doing? Like what is going I
53:09
was thinking, because again I couldn't quite remember the whole plot, So I'm
53:12
like, is she gonna get hit and then be in the hospital and that's
53:15
what they're gonna meet, because like that wouldn't be kind of interesting, But
53:19
no, sad they say hello, yeah, and then she leaves and then
53:24
the next shot she's back in Baltimore with her friend and I'm like, so
53:29
like twelve hours later, cut to the big shot and I'm like, what
53:32
what is going on here? So yeah, man, this is why my
53:37
show five percent? No. Yeah, if I was a movie executive at
53:43
this time, I would have been like, I mean, I'm sure that
53:45
wasn't in the script that was being presented at the moment, because I know
53:49
it had gone through four or five it went to a lot of revisions,
53:52
which is amazing that it landed on the box offices that it was, because
53:55
it sounds like this movie very easily could have not been a classic, could
54:00
not have been good. And what was the return? Do you remember it
54:06
was? So it's like a twenty mill budget with like a two twenty return,
54:09
like two hundred twenty million, so that's a lot. It made a
54:14
lot of money and all those I'm glad that you brought that up there.
54:17
I'm not just the money, but like the whole stalkish thing, and if
54:21
you switch the genders, it becomes a horror movie. I think that's the
54:23
thing is that if it if it was somebody else, like I don't know,
54:29
let me come up with a name, just out of the blue.
54:31
If it was like a Sharon Stone type of person, you know, like
54:35
this person could this easily could have been a horror film or like Stokrish or
54:40
Fatal attraction or something makes you think of like Double Jeopardy, you know where,
54:45
like she now she could do what Yes, well, the point being
54:52
in in the in Double Jeopardy, she's the short ridgeon. She's accused of
54:54
something. She goes to geology, she does her time, and the point
54:58
is she can't be re I did for the same thing that she's already served
55:00
for. So she basically has a blank check to do whatever she wants and
55:04
be super creepy about it anyway. Yeah, so Annie, I'm like,
55:08
you get what I'm saying, like because ye, like Meg Ryan makes this
55:12
Okay, it works, I think again it maybe it's one of those movies
55:17
that on paper does not work or makes sense at all, and they just
55:22
happen to capture that magic by Hooker Crook because yeah, she her, I
55:30
get the whole Like I'm not. I'm searching for love. Honestly. The
55:35
only thing that makes it even payoff is when Hank sees her for the first
55:39
time. It has sparks. If there wasn't that shot, I would have
55:44
been like, you are a random lady who listened on the radio and is
55:50
interjecting yourself into this guy. Like but because he's kind of reciprocating, and
55:54
he's and she's becoming. It's basically the little Mermaid. It's like she sees
55:58
him, he sees her, but he doesn't recognize who it is, and
56:00
then they sees her later and he's kind of has this like connection. Anyway,
56:05
Anyway, I'm not gonna swear anymore. But so I can't give it
56:12
more more than a three. Like again, not that is not a good
56:15
movie, but it is. There are way better rom coms, way better
56:22
comedies for me that I would rather pop in than Sleepless in Seattle. So
56:27
I'm giving it three three stars across the American sky. So, John,
56:36
how many youthful acronyms are you giving this film? Now? I want to
56:40
go back to last week when we were talking about romantic comedies and how I
56:45
said, I'm very trepidacious about going into them because I when I love a
56:50
romantic comedy, I love a romantic comedy. And when I don't, I
56:53
really don't. I I have a hard time because it's very easy for me
57:00
not to love a romantic comedy because of certain factors that go in. There
57:08
is a part of me that hated this movie, and it is because at
57:14
the core of it, A person doesn't matter whether it's a woman or a
57:19
man. Okay, a person decides to throw away everything. Based on the
57:28
drive between Baltimore and DC that I've made many times in my life. Never
57:34
man has to fall in love with a stranger one time on that drive,
57:37
and I think that becomes the first hurdle for me. I don't think that
57:45
Walter is a necessary factor in the story, and so the time with him
57:52
feels a little bit wasted. I don't feel the chemistry. There are moments
57:59
that I enjoy. To your point, Tristan, about Rob Reiner, I
58:02
think that his scenes are good. I laughed during his scenes. I think
58:07
that there are specific moments that work with Hanks and the kid. I don't.
58:14
I don't care for really any of the scenes between Meg Ryan and Rosey
58:17
o'donald. I don't. I've never quite gotten Rosey o'donald's career in the sense
58:27
that like anything I've seen her in has ever really like made me look at
58:30
it. And now I've never seen a league of her their own, which
58:34
is the point at which where everybody rolls their eyes and goes, what are
58:36
you kidding me? But Rosey o'donalll even as a stand up comic. I
58:40
was like, yeah, yeah, okay, and she doesn't do a bad
58:46
job here, But just like Jonah, I don't think the script does her
58:51
any favors. So and I think primarily informed by the idea that I don't
58:59
want to be too harsh because I'm a curmudgeonly old square and this is maybe
59:07
I didn't see this at the right time or something like that, And I
59:09
just really don't care for the way that Meg Ryan emotionally abandons her fiance for
59:17
no discernibly good reason. Despite my instincts to rank it even lower, I'm
59:24
going to give it a two because I'm feeling generous today. So that's a
59:30
two. Yeah, dealing with old dead inside men lord, because you're younger
59:39
than both of us, tristed by a little listen, you know. Like
59:45
that's the thing is, like, I'm sure there are plenty of people who
59:49
love this film. Two and twenty seven million dollars worth of people love this
59:53
film. Back in nineteen ninety three, I wouldn't have been one of them.
59:58
I'm just saying, like I can remember me in nineteen ninety three,
1:00:02
this would have been a one star I'm being generous today, so I'm giving
1:00:06
it it too. Oh man, I was not expecting this kind of conversation
1:00:13
tonight, boys. I have to be honest. I thought it was going
1:00:15
to be much more cordial and a lot less swearing. I'm looking at you,
1:00:17
Darren ding Well. I mean obviously, I mean, like I've talked
1:00:25
about what works, I've hinted at what I will say could have been done
1:00:30
differently. I will not relent and say what doesn't work. But this is
1:00:37
this is not just a trickle of nostalgia for me. This is not just
1:00:42
putting on rose colored glasses. This is me jumping into a rose colored tub,
1:00:47
you know, like in the Abyss, where I can breathe the liquid.
1:00:52
Like that's the kind of nostalgia I have for this movie. Like I,
1:00:55
like I said, I have every moment moment memorized. There's just little
1:00:59
moments all through out that that just creep into my brain at random moments.
1:01:04
And I think this is a I think this is a wonderful romantic comedy.
1:01:08
I think this is extremely funny. I think it's extremely heartwarming, and like,
1:01:14
regardless of its monetary gains, this is on a lot of top ten
1:01:17
and top one hundred lists. When it comes to movies that you should see
1:01:22
before you die and for comedy and romance and everything like that, these are
1:01:27
not a lot of lists. I'm not the only one in that in that
1:01:29
regard, thankfully, however, I am the only one in this podcast.
1:01:34
And so I give this an unabashed five stars. And because I think this
1:01:42
is firing on all cylinders when it comes to the cast, the writing,
1:01:45
the direction, the music, everything about it. I think the only thing
1:01:51
that's WHA could do is the premise. But I feel like Meg Ryan goes
1:01:53
out of her way to make it okay. And so what did I give
1:01:58
when Harry met Sally Darren? What did I give that? You gave that
1:02:01
four point five? So, yep, that sounds right, sticking to it.
1:02:07
When Harry Mazelli is four point five, this is five stars. So,
1:02:13
John, if you can resuscitate your black Heart by season enough to tell
1:02:20
us what we're doing next week? Can you can you tell us what's what's
1:02:22
up next week? We're going to give Nora Ephron another chance at romance,
1:02:28
and that's gonna be You've got mail from nineteen ninety eight. Join the Revolution,
1:02:34
Join the nerd Party,