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246 - The Master of Disguise (2002)
42 Plays1 day ago
“...are you mocking me?”
Sketch-tember continues as we discuss this ill-conceived vehicle for ‘80s and ‘90s sketch comedy impressionist icon, Dana Carvey! We talk about the correlation between Carvey and SNL costar Mike Myers’s views of comedy, Carvey’s spiritual SNL successor, who this movie is actually for, the oeuvre of M. Night Shyamalan, and more deep-cut Indianapolis-area talk!
Watch us channel our own energico on the following social media platforms:
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Transcript
Introduction and Light Banter
00:00:20
Speaker
No sequel for you. It is the Desenfranchised Podcast. The podcast all about the franchises of one. The films have fancied themselves the full-fled franchises before falling flat on the face after the first film.
00:00:34
Speaker
Excuse me, I'm your host, Stephen Foxworthy, and joining me, as always, um one might call him a junior apprentice of disguise. It's Tucker. Hey, Tucker. Hello, Stephen.
00:00:47
Speaker
How we doing tonight, buddy? I'm doing all right. I'm kind of tired. I didn't have my evening coffee. I forgot to have my evening coffee. There was a lot of excitement in the kitchen tonight, so I forgot to have my evening coffee. Everything okay? going on my sister My sister just got from new and got back from New York City, so we were all kind of having adult kitchen time talking about that, you know? Okay, right on.
00:01:08
Speaker
Adult kitchen time is my favorite part of the day. And it just distracted from evening coffee time. It did because we were making tacos, you know, running back and forth. it's a small kitchen, you know. Sure.
00:01:20
Speaker
i've I've owned a few small kitchens for sure. Meh. Meh. Meh. Dude, yeah. Dude,
Sketch Timber Series and 'The Master of Disguise'
00:01:27
Speaker
yeah. And um our good friend Brett has been kidnapped and forced to steal the world's treasures ah while disguised as many different famous people.
00:01:39
Speaker
um Will he be successful? We don't know. But as soon as we're done, we're going to go try to rescue him. um In the meantime, though, we're here to talk about as part two of Sketch Timber.
00:01:50
Speaker
We're here to talk about the 2002, I use the term loosely in this case, of The Master of Disguise featuring sketch comedy legend Dana Carvey. He of Saturday Night Live and The Dana Carvey Show.
00:02:06
Speaker
Also starring Brent Spiner. Happy Star Trek Day, by the way, Tucker. as the As we record this, it is Star Trek Day. The strands today was Star Trek related.
00:02:18
Speaker
And I got got a perfect score. Well, they got me with Starship. It was Starships. And I kept being like, I know it's Starship. What the fuck? Yeah. Usually when i'm I'm looking for then something else that like I can add to it And then I saw the s and I was like, oh, that must be what I need to add to it.
Game Talk: Pips Dominoes
00:02:35
Speaker
Yo, what do you think of ah what do you think of that new game? that What do you think of Pips? The dominoes? Oh, it's so good. It's intimidating at first. But once you kind of get the rhythm of it, it's it's lots of fun. Like, it's basically just like a board giving you stipulations of how you have to set the dominoes, and then you have to figure out how to set them that way.
00:02:58
Speaker
Like, there'll be a group where it's like, this has to be all numbers that are equal, or this group of numbers has to add up to this number. And it's all just kind of put on a grid, and you have to figure out how to get the dominoes to make all of that work.
00:03:13
Speaker
It's really fun. So kind of like a more complicated Sudoku. It's Sudoku-esque, but I don't think it's really... I don't use the same parts of my brain okay to play Pips as I do to play Sudoku.
00:03:29
Speaker
I recommend it, though, to anybody who likes ah puzzles and... Puzzles.
Actor Highlights and Career Reflections
00:03:35
Speaker
Also in this movie, Harold Gould, James Brolin, ah Maria Canals, ah Mark Devine, the great Edie McClurg.
00:03:45
Speaker
Who else we got in here? um is that wo from Is that the gal from Ferris Bueller? That is. ah we also have January 6th participant Jay Johnston in this movie.
00:03:57
Speaker
Oh, I hate that he's a dick now because i always thought he was really funny on Mr. Show. He was one of my favorites on Mr. Show. I liked him in Arrested Development. He was one of my favorite yeah, he was good at that, too. And ah in the Sarah Silverman project as well.
00:04:13
Speaker
He was good in that. He was a cop in that. is He's always a fucking cop. I was going to say, well, we should have seen it. um We should have seen it coming, yeah. What's in it coming? ah We've got Eric Avari, AKA the wheeze and the juice guy. We've got Kevin Nealon. We've got the Sprouse brothers. Yeah, not enough Kevin Nealon.
00:04:31
Speaker
We've also got ah in in minor roles, Kenan Thompson, Bo Derek, Michael Johnson, Jessica Simpson, and a wisely uncredited Jesse Ventura.
00:04:42
Speaker
What a cast. I will legitimately say Tucker, what a cast, but also yeah oh what a picture. How does Kenan Thompson get like billing so high that he's in the end credits when they show the bloopers or whatever? Well, they're all dancing in this one.
00:04:58
Speaker
I was going to say probably because he was the only one of the cameo performers that was willing to stick around and record himself dancing. I guess so. I mean, I'm glad he got the work, but I just don't get it.
00:05:13
Speaker
don't get why. That would have been at a time when, kind of before, it was kind of in his in-between phase between yeah his stints on All That and Saturday Night Live. Another kind of big sketch comedy guy, Kenan Thompson, who, aside from Fat Albert, has never really had his own starring vehicle, as I recall.
00:05:33
Speaker
Well, outside of his...
00:05:36
Speaker
He had ah his short-lived sitcom. ah But I'm really... i I love that there's a sequel to Good Burger and I haven't watched it yet even though I heard it's pretty decent.
00:05:48
Speaker
But I would much rather have watched Good Burger than this as a... Oh, absolutely.
Comedic Talents: Dana Carvey vs. Mike Myers
00:05:55
Speaker
And I guess i was I was arguing with myself about why this counts because like there's sketch. Some of...
00:06:05
Speaker
Like the the redheaded old lady that he plays kind of has some church lady mannerisms and there's some of that. and But it's the President Bush impression that makes this fit the theme.
00:06:16
Speaker
Because nothing else in this movie is of any kind of sketch or character that he's done. No, but it is – I mean he himself is kind of a sketch icon, which I think is – right it just i don't think that skill set translates well to films the way that he wants it too a And the way that it worked for someone like Mike Myers up to a point.
00:06:44
Speaker
I think Carvey kind of met immediately with disaster where it took Myers years of kind of stumbling into success to find the thing that kind of brought him down future episode of the podcast, the love guru.
00:06:56
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, but but um Mike Myers is still kind of doing stuff. You know, he's got stuff going on. it took him car a long time to get back on the horse, though, after the failure of the love guru. He was great in Inglourious Bastards.
00:07:14
Speaker
I will say that. He was. He was. Again, in a one-scene performance. But it was his scene. Like, there was nobody else. I mean, other people could have done it, but it wouldn't have been. Mm-mm. Right. that's No, I agree. I like him in that movie, and I like... He's great. i mean I haven't seen the Pentavirat. I didn't see his ah gong show, I think was the...
00:07:37
Speaker
Right. did he did He did the the Gong Show like reboot thing a few years back. ah maybe I didn't watch it. I don't know. All I know is that Confessions of a Dangerous Mind is a really good movie. Speaking of the du the Dong Show.
00:07:50
Speaker
That's a different one. That's a different show. The Dong Show's on Cinemax at like 1230 at night. oh
00:07:59
Speaker
Oh. It was... Oh, God. I... um Yeah, I'm trying to find it now. Oh, yes, it was the Gong Show in 2017, 2018. He did 11 episodes as his is as a character that he created, Tommy Maitland.
00:08:15
Speaker
That I like. i like I like Mike Myers' ideas. I like his ideas, but I don't always like the execution. I'm always with him on the idea. And i was and sometimes i mean sometimes the idea I like, but yeah yeah, no, I agree. I think the execution – there is a friend of mine who I want to have on the show if I can get him on. and he's He's a professor out at Tufts in Boston. Oh, really?
00:08:41
Speaker
Yes, very prestigious um institution at which he is – That's fancy as shit. he He has a doctorate and he hangs out with me. What is his problem?
00:08:52
Speaker
um But he um he he says of Mike Myers, and I think this is a good point, and I think we could probably say the same of Dana Carvey is there's no like highbrow lowbrow for
Film Writing and Comedic Challenges
00:09:03
Speaker
him. It's it's just he just if he finds it funny, it's funny.
00:09:08
Speaker
That's why I think that Dana Carvey works really well in stuff that is written for him. and not stuff that he writes like this. Yeah, because he's all over the place. He's a silly guy. And if you've ever listened to the podcast he has with David Spade, um ah what's it called?
00:09:28
Speaker
Fly on the Wall or something like that? on the Wall. Yeah, it's the SNL podcast. He is, love you Dana Carvey, but he is the most obnoxious and irritating person in the world. Like get him in a room with Quentin Tarantino and I would just trigger warning straight up kill myself.
00:09:44
Speaker
um we Tucker, you and I are like one ah person removed from Quentin Tarantino. You're aware of this, right? I am aware of that. Dude, Instagram, I understand that. And if if I were in the same situation, I would have a conversation with the man, but the interviews...
00:09:58
Speaker
Oh my God, Steven is so obnoxious. You know what i mean? You you know what mean? You know what I mean? you i mean You know what mean? You know what mean? You know what mean? Dana Carvey is one of those like time and a place talents.
00:10:15
Speaker
Like it's kind of one of like, if you're trying to explain to a child, the Dana Carvey thing, you would kind of almost have to look at the child and say, you know what? You just, you had to be there.
00:10:28
Speaker
Well, and it's so weird because this movie, it's it's right up his alley. All it needed was a good script because that's his deal.
00:10:39
Speaker
He does impressions. And the worst part about it is a lot of his impressions in this movie suck. who And I know this man can do some of the best and best Joe Biden, hands down, hands fucking down.
00:10:53
Speaker
His Joe Biden is the one that everybody bases theirs on now. um'm being serious. Serious, guys. Come on. ah So the co-writer with him on this film is Harris Goldberg.
00:11:06
Speaker
ah Prior to this, Harris Goldberg had written the Jonathan Taylor Thomas vehicle. I'll be home for Christmas. Oh, thought it was Huck. ah No, ah he had also written the Rob Schneider vehicle and I could stop right there and it wouldn't. No, no.
00:11:20
Speaker
Some of those I thought were funny. Good. No funny. Yes. I'm going to guess I'm to say four words. OK. And those four words are Deuce Bigelow, male gigolo.
00:11:32
Speaker
Oh, look, you like those movies. It's Eddie Griff, man. Come on. Like Eddie Griffin is there and he's so fucking funny in those movies because he's just his job is just to be reactive of this ridiculous person. And he's fantastic at that in both movies.
00:11:52
Speaker
And I have seen them both once. I actually saw the second one at the movie theater for free. Don't worry. I didn't pay for it. I got tickets from X 103. Don't worry about it. Okay. Okay. um He also went on after this film to direct, or I'm sorry, he has a story credit on a movie called Without a Paddle, which I'm sure you're familiar with.
00:12:12
Speaker
That one's, I don't know, it's kind of, it's such a, mean, it's not bad. And there are things I like about it, but it's just kind of, okay.
00:12:23
Speaker
That was a movie that wasn't bad, but but I like everybody that's in it. I love Matthew Lillard, Seth Green's in it. It's, uh, but it's just like, uh, that's fine. People really liked it when it came out on video.
00:12:39
Speaker
Not in the theaters, but people, it was a big deal when it came out on a DVD. Everybody had that motherfucker on DVD. I, um, he also wrote and directed, i'm I'm, so what I'm assuming has to be semi-autobiographical, the Matthew Perry vehicle, Numb, which is about a chronically depressed screenwriter.
00:12:57
Speaker
I didn't even know that existed. I have no idea what that is. Nor I. Came out in 2007. And then you pushed the button. I pushed the button, yet my mic did not go off, and I coughed right in it, and I'm putting the put it down right now because I'm not going to let that big of a cough slide. You were saying?
00:13:15
Speaker
ah Well, since you're putting a timestamp down. You fucking don't, don't you? Unless you promise to not do it for the rest of the episode. No, no, don't save it. Do it now, and then don't do it for the rest the time.
00:13:29
Speaker
Do you feel better? ah a little bit. Fuck, I hope so. Yeah, it does feel good. See? You're right. Shut up. And then he also wrote and, or co-wrote and directed a film called Alex and the List from 2017, which I know nothing about. Steven, you dropped the ball. You know, you should have said, and also he co-wrote and directed a film called
00:14:00
Speaker
and two thousand In 2025. Hire
00:14:05
Speaker
ah hi me, Stephen. I'll be your writer. You could be a stand-up. Let's go. Let's do it. Yeah, because I don't i don't have the... There are lot of skills I don't have to be a stand-up. Also, worth pointing out, this movie, ah one of the producers on this film, the Happy Madison Productions.
00:14:23
Speaker
Yeah, and it felt very Happy Madison in a lot of ways, but in a lot of ways... It didn't. hu um Yeah, it felt like in in like some of the ways when it when like it was like driving jokes into the ground, it felt very Happy Madison.
00:14:42
Speaker
um And that's not to be clear, that's not always a bad thing. you know Driving jokes into the ground or being a Happy Madison production. Like, I think it's wonderful that all those guys can get together and have a good time.
00:14:57
Speaker
And sometimes they shit out something decent. Right. That's
SNL's Impact and Legacy
00:15:01
Speaker
I love that for them. And they're getting paid. i would love to do that. I would love. Can you imagine it just fucking around with your friends? If someone would pay us to do that, ah we wouldn't get anything done.
00:15:11
Speaker
And it would all be shit, but we'd be happy and paid. We'd have fun. Yeah. and And here's the thing. Those those films all have their audience. Otherwise, they wouldn't let him keep making them.
00:15:22
Speaker
No, no, there is there's definitely an audience for There's definitely an audience. It's it's kind of a built-in, grandfathered in from like Goodwill from Happy Gilmore and Billy Madison, but like it's there.
00:15:34
Speaker
Wedding singer, the the wedding singer people are like, what the fuck did I get myself into? 100% and honestly that's like my third favorite Sandler movie after so good uncut gems and um oh fuck what's the PTA one I'm forgetting punch junk love and people really kind of consider that his first dramatic performance but I think that despite the wedding singer being a comedy at its core I think that's his first like that he acts his dick off in that movie yeah That is his first foray into legitimate acting. That's that's the first time when he's got like, shoop-a-doop-a-dop-a-doo.
00:16:07
Speaker
And you know all that fucking shit he did on SNL in his standout for years. Yeah, that shit. And it's it's like like directors like the Safdie brothers and like PTA who can find a way to harness that kind of energy that he brings into a really fun, dramatic performance. James L. Brooks, God bless him, tried with Spanglish, but Spanglish was a misfire on every level. I saw that movie in the theater too.
00:16:34
Speaker
That script sucked. Sorry. That's one of many problems with that. And I think every role- so That one's, take girl and see that one.
00:16:46
Speaker
I issues with 51st Dates. That's kind of one of those like gross in hindsight kind of moves. Like Master of Disguise, gross in hindsight. Yes, you I think you have to kind of, um you do have to, I don't want to say suspend your disbelief, but something very similar where you're like, yeah, this is weird and creepy, but I've also been the person with good intentions doing things that aren't great.
00:17:10
Speaker
And not realizing until after how shitty it is or creepy or weird. Sure. And I think part of, you know, that's kind of what hindsight is. You know, we are able to look back on past behaviors and hopefully learn and grow from them and not do what many of our parents' generation seems to do and just double and triple down on those things. But yes.
00:17:30
Speaker
Yes. Ignore the bad things and double down. Correct. And it'll take care of itself. Great. It'll take care of itself. um this this movie is so again not a direct like SNL movie in the way that like there are a ton of we could probably do an SNL theme month at some point I would love to that would nothing would make me happier well a few things but not many we've got Coneheads we've got It's Pat Stuart Saves His Family Night at the Roxbury like we've got options there's a documentary I really want to see because I'm so curious
00:18:08
Speaker
about what these people have to say about it. It's called We're Pat. And it is a documentary of of young people and older young and older trans people and their relationship with that character and with that film.
00:18:27
Speaker
And like I have, I'm really excited about it because I think there's going to be a lot of different perspectives and I don't think they're all going to be negative. i am. I'm very interested. to watch that too Not me getting out my phone right now to find out where that's streaming.
00:18:43
Speaker
and yes, Homegirl is in it. sweet name Yes. So I'm hoping that means that we actually get to talk to her, not just like archival footage of her as Pat.
00:18:55
Speaker
Right. There's a couple other cast members from that era that are in there. All of that. Yeah. Yeah. We are Pat. Here it is. I just feel like there's a really, there's a really good, wholesome movie there. And I hope that that's what I get.
00:19:11
Speaker
because I am really excited to see this now too. Thank you for bringing this to my attention. I didn't, I don't even remember how I found it. I think I was just, I was looking at something else and i was trying to see what this actor had been in and they were in that movie. And I was like, who's Pat? What's going on here?
00:19:32
Speaker
What's going on? Is we in there this time again? What's going on? Yeah. Julia Sweeney in it as herself. That's. Oh, okay. Nice. Yes. Way into it. Yeah, no, I'm... Kevin Nealon as well. Molly Kearney, the first non-binary cast member on SNL. That's who it was, because they're in a new show called DMV.
00:19:53
Speaker
And I saw an ad for DMV, which looks very derivative, but i'm going to check it out because they're in it, and i really liked Molly Kearney when they were on. Yeah, they were... I was kind of pissed when they got canned, honestly. I was a little a little miffed at that.
00:20:09
Speaker
Well... ah You know, I don't pretend to understand what goes on behind deep behind the scenes of that show, so don't really know how to feel about it. But i do i do wish I do wish that they were still there in some capacity.
00:20:25
Speaker
Same. Yeah. Same. Like, I didn't mind as much when Chloe Trost left, but Molly Kearney, that one hurt, so... I like Chloe. I like Chloe Trost's intro in the in the credits. I liked her. She was in the elevator.
00:20:38
Speaker
She is in the elevator. It opens up and she like threw the confetti and had the glass. It was the one where because last season or season before last they were doing where like they're going like from set to set but all the sets look realistic and like then it you're going from, yeah, when Bowen Yang's over, like, the skyline with the martinoon martini glass and shit. yeah Yeah. I'm glad he's sticking around for the 51st season. Oh, dude, me too. am sad that...
00:21:02
Speaker
i am glad i am sad that um What's his nuts? ah The guy with the really black hair. um Michael Longfellow. Yes, I liked him a lot.
00:21:12
Speaker
I did too. a A lot, a lot, a lot, a lot, a lot, a lot. And honestly, I felt like they were kind of getting him and Emil Joaquin kind of ready to take over the Weekend Update desk. I like both of them And then they're both gone this season. And it seems like they both got canned. It doesn't seem like either one left of their own volition. And it kind of felt like they were building them up this season, too. They were getting them ready to be main cast members. They were putting them in shit, giving them lines, giving a chance, putting them weekend update spots. As a featured player, that's your bread and butter. That's how you get...
00:21:49
Speaker
Longfellow was a rep was a rep player already. like the Padilla, Joaquim, and Wickline were your three feature players. Oh, i love Jane. She's the best.
00:22:03
Speaker
She's not my favorite. i i the best I think Ashley Padilla, honestly, is probably my favorite of that class just because she is such a good utility player. Like in a few years, she's going to be like Gardner Feynman level. I think she's really good because she's very versatile.
00:22:19
Speaker
She's an incredibly versatile comedian. And I'm very anxious to see what they do with with her going forward.
Dana Carvey's Comedic Style
00:22:25
Speaker
Speaking of Heidi Gardner, okay. That's fine. I should feel like she's about done. Her best stuff's behind her, I feel like.
00:22:33
Speaker
It felt like, yeah, I'm glad I'm glad Ego's sticking around. I love her. Dude, me too. Yes. couple more. Give us a couple more years ago. couple more years of Ego. Please and thank you. And honestly, anytime Kenan's ready, I'm OK.
00:22:45
Speaker
Yeah. or And I but the thing is, I'm also OK if he just stays on there for the rest of the the rest of the show's history. It feels like he will. It feels like he is very comfortable to not go anywhere.
00:22:58
Speaker
As long as I get a what's up with that every couple years, Jason Sudeikis comes on and does The Running Man. i See, and that's part of why I'm okay with Keenan going is because what's up with that doesn't come on much anymore. And that's one of my favorite SNL sketches ever.
00:23:13
Speaker
I love what's up with that. And it was one of the last like kind of recurring sketches that they actually had on the show. They don't really do those much anymore. And I feel like that's a bummer.
00:23:26
Speaker
ah That we don't have a lot of recurring characters.
00:23:31
Speaker
What are you doing right now, Tucker? What is he doing right now? And i I got to say, we you also need Armisen to come back and do the saxophone guy. He's sax guy, yes. that's what Honestly, I'm really bummed we didn't get – and probably because you need Hater back as well. And Hater's not coming back. But you need Hater to come back as Lindsey Buckingham too.
00:23:58
Speaker
Now, the last time they did one, and I do believe that Hayter will be back to host again at some point. um but i mean, he didn't come back for the 50th because of the anxiety that he felt. understand that. They even asked him to come back for that Lonely Island song, and he's like, no, fuck that. Too much anxiety. No, thank you.
00:24:16
Speaker
I understand that, but things change for people. Like, he did it for years, and he lived through it. Sure. Also, his his contribution. people want to put drama behind them. Well, sometimes they like to face it so that they can get past it.
00:24:31
Speaker
But, ah that being said, he did... he He did kind of feel bad for not wanting to be there, ah so he did that Volkswagen ad.
00:24:42
Speaker
As the Californians. And see, i don't I don't... The Californians is a sketch that kind of misses me, but I'm glad people like it. Fuck it's the best. I would say fuck you, because what's up with that is, in fact, the actual best. I love that sketch so much. but So that...
00:25:04
Speaker
Sketch, the reason i I was saying that Bill Hader wouldn't have to be back for it is because the last time um they had him. No, it was not the last time. It was during the COVID one where they all taped it at their houses.
00:25:17
Speaker
They did a or no fuck. I don't know. Whatever. Lindsay Buckingham was like um he was on the Zoom call and like it was frozen. So it's just like Bill Hader as Lindsay Buckingham, just frozen with that face.
00:25:35
Speaker
Which, unfortunately, that means we we didn't get his the the forgiveness arc at the end yeah right where he's mad and Keaton's like, come on, man. Come on, Lindsay.
00:25:47
Speaker
Come on, Lindsay. And he's like, nah. Honestly, and this is a very controversial opinion, that might be my favorite Bill Hader character.
00:25:58
Speaker
It's Lindsay Buckingham. I also love the one where you get the second Lindsay Buckingham where actual Lindsay Buckingham is on the episode. yeah I don't know. I like, ah um what's that Italian character he plays?
00:26:14
Speaker
ah Vinnie Venevici? The guy where he's- Vinnie Venevici? Yes, thank you. It's Vinnie Venevici. I came, I saw, I conquered. That's the joke.
00:26:26
Speaker
Okay. I guess I didn't get that part. But ah how he he's trying to explain and like speak in Italian and English at the same time, but then like he does perfect impressions of the people he's interviewing, like no matter the accent.
00:26:43
Speaker
Bill Hader is... And ah Will Forte and Fred Armisen are just eating the spaghetti, and every time he's like, yeah? And they're just like... And they're just eating spaghetti. That's their whole thing. They're eating spaghetti and nodding every once in a while. That's their whole bit.
00:26:57
Speaker
and I was going to say, that seems perfect for those guys. I'm glad they get to do that. Oh, I love them. We also get to... um i But I think Bill Hader is kind of the kind of the spiritual son of Dana Carvey when it comes to SNL. Because like both of them are just guys who are so good at just doing an infinite number of impressions. I think the difference between Carvey and Hader Hayter, I think, has a better sense for what makes a good film project.
00:27:29
Speaker
And he works out and he could probably do his own stuff. And he's actually a very good actor. He's a good actor. Yeah. And I think that's what um even though, yeah, he is kind of a descendant of the Dana Carvey school of SNL, but he also has a lot of original characters yeah in SNL as well. And the man can act, as you said before, whereas Dana Carvey,
00:27:57
Speaker
Brilliant. Comedian. Brilliant. You know, impressionist. Right. I've never seen him, like, seriously act in anything, so I just have to assume he can't. I mean, look i was looking over kind of Dana Carvey's um body of work, as it were. His udra.
00:28:16
Speaker
I mean, most of the stuff he does is – are either these kind of big over-the-top – excuse me, big over-the-top characters or just like these kind of very small roles. and Like he's in the movie The Road to Wellville, which is about – that's that Alan Parker film. Matthew Broderick.
00:28:34
Speaker
Is it Matthew Broderick in that? Is he? Yeah. Um, Kenneth. ah Yes, Matthew Broderick is an NQ sack. Yep. Hopkins, Bridget Fonda. And yeah, Dan Carvey is one of the Kelloggs.
00:28:46
Speaker
I always very unfortunately get that mixed up with Awakenings. Oh, that's a, yeah, that's a, it's very unfortunate. That is very unfortunate. No, Awakenings though. Go see Awakenings if you haven't seen it.
00:28:58
Speaker
Best Robert De Niro performance. Best Robin Williams performance. Wow. in one In one film. In one fucking film. Have you seen Awakening, Steven? I have not seen Awakening. Fuck you, go watch it right now. Stop this recording.
00:29:13
Speaker
Why do you keep telling me to fuck myself? but bru I'm out. face that's That's Pacino. And you do see Carvey's Pacino impression in this movie. based Which is not great. It's fine.
00:29:26
Speaker
It's serviceable. like You know what he's trying to do. who Another one, Hater does better, which is maybe why it's not as good in this movie because we've seen it done much better. Well, and that's I guess that's part of the problem with rule watching this thing, one, retroactively and two, as a grown up, because this this movie has i kept asking myself, who is this movie for? Because all the humor seems at its core, very deeply sophomoric.
00:29:57
Speaker
But then on the other hand, you have this entire thing where legendary ass man, Pistachio Disguise, is lusting after every woman with a large posterior.
Film Production and Narrative Analysis
00:30:07
Speaker
the The reason that he could never fall in love with Jennifer Esposito is because... herboto mis soda And the message... The message of this... One of the messages of this film is... This movie has messages?
00:30:21
Speaker
Yes, and one of the messages is even if... you are extremely attractive to large butts. You can still be happy with someone who does not have a large butt If you connect with them on an emotional level.
00:30:41
Speaker
That's what this movie is trying to say. that's No, I've never really. It's all about the shape, not the size for me, really. Touche. Not that I do that sort of thing anymore. I'm not into women anymore. I'm not.
00:30:54
Speaker
i'm I've hung up my lover coat a long time ago. What are you into? I no longer dabble. Nothing. Absolutely nothing. um I'm into doing this podcast and like trying to find a job.
00:31:11
Speaker
That's what I'm into, Steven. Fair. yeah fair And speaking of podcasts, don't let me forget to edit and distribute the other podcast when we're done with this episode, Steven. Looks like I'm going late night. Your boy's goingnna have a late night. What?
00:31:29
Speaker
Yeah, that's the last episode we've recorded. So yeah, we've we've got to figure out a time to record soon. You guys better get on it. i've It's my fault. It's 100% because this's this next one's going to require just so much research and I'm i'm still getting into it.
00:31:44
Speaker
You can do it. I believe in you. And for the sake of the podcast, of which not only am I a producer, I am also a fan of. I did it the other way around this time. That's true. um i do like it i it does upset me that um i wait to the last minute or i forget because then i have to skim through it and i can't really sit in a lot of these conversations that you guys have but um i do get the gist of them skimming through and i still have a good time so
00:32:18
Speaker
Wells U. It's called Wells U, you guys. we we'll go listen We'll talk about it at the end of the episode, too. um I think a big missed opportunity in this movie, and you may disagree with me. And in fact, I almost encourage you to disagree with me because i mean I'm not sure that this is a good opinion or not.
00:32:33
Speaker
I feel like a missed opportunity of this movie is the fact that one of the ancestors of Pistachio Disguise is not played by Dana Carvey in old age makeup. Well, and that's weird because during like the montages showing like the history of his family, all of the other family members from the different time periods are played by Dana Carvey.
00:32:56
Speaker
Correct. So how come his grandpa and his dad aren't him? Everybody else in his fucking family looks exactly like him. Right. Probably. Harold Gould and James Brolin. Honestly, we don't look. I love James Brolin. We don't need James Brolin in this movie.
00:33:14
Speaker
We don't need him. We don't need him. It doesn't add to the comedy. It doesn't like it's not as big of a name as you think it is, guys. Like, right right we love him. But like, this is the late 90s, early 2000s, and he ain't doing shit. So.
00:33:31
Speaker
Who cares? Right. And this, I mean, this movie is kind of coming at a time where Carvey is reaching obscurity. Honestly, he's ninety so He leaves SNL. And I think I want to say, like, what is it? Ninety five, ninety six, somewhere in there.
00:33:47
Speaker
i feel like it's earlier than that, but I could be. Is it? I could be as well. Because then you had by the time you got to ninety six, ninety seven, you had like ah Chris Kattan and to Meadows at that point.
00:34:01
Speaker
The Dana Carvey show is 96. And I feel like that was his yeah immediate follow-up to SNL. That tracks. That tracks. um So like i yeah it's got to be somewhere in that time frame, um somewhere in there.
00:34:18
Speaker
um But yeah, he' is he is the creator, writer and star of the Dana Carvey show. um He kind of again catches eyes in on Saturday Night Live, comes out of there, goes immediately to the Dana Carvey show, which is so bizarre.
00:34:35
Speaker
That like no one knows what the fuck to do with that. shit I kind of want to watch it. I wonder if it's available anywhere because I had an experience. I had an experience late last week that kind of resonated with me when I was watching this movie and I was thinking about the Dana Carvey show.
00:34:51
Speaker
I watched the the Tim Robinson ah Paul Rudd film friendship. Hmm. And though I thought it was a brilliant film, ah I did not like it.
00:35:02
Speaker
but It's great. It's, oh my, it's, I can't even tell you how, like, intricate and, like, ridiculous and fantastic this film is, but I did not like it. And what I found was I had never watched I Think You Should Leave.
00:35:16
Speaker
And so immediately after I watched that movie, I was like, you know what? I didn't like that, but I think I'd like it in small doses. And I was right. I think you should leave is hilarious. So I'm wondering if I would like the Dana Carvey show.
00:35:31
Speaker
Because this movie this movie is not brilliant. But like I said before we recorded, there's like there's so many chances for good jokes in this movie. It's like somebody wrote a really funny script and turned it in. And whoever they turned it into was like, this is great.
00:35:47
Speaker
But we have to make it for like... the dumbest person in the world has to laugh at this. Right. And they they need to be the only person that will laugh at this. Yes.
00:35:57
Speaker
Yes. Because that is eventually what it, this movie becomes. There's so many good setups, Steven. So many good setups. But the payoffs almost never work. It's disappointing. So disappointing. And when they do, it's usually by accident. It's usually not even what the reason they mean for it to be funny.
00:36:15
Speaker
Right. And it's it's kind of one of those weird things where you're like, in any other movie, that would probably be funny. But it's this movie, and so it's not. And again, this movie exists as an excuse for Carvey to do as many impressions as possible.
00:36:30
Speaker
Yeah. And you can absolutely see him wanting to expand this off and make this its own continual thing, the way that Mike Myers did with Austin Powers. Like you can absolutely see him.
00:36:41
Speaker
He's got fucking catchphrases. This is what you're doing. this is what I want you to do. It's so crazy. So crazy. It just might work. Like he's got fucking catchphrases. He's got a million characters.
00:36:52
Speaker
And then the ones that didn't even get, there's the one that only appears in the post credit shit, which I have to assume like the Ed Wynn guy, the toy maker with the big top hat and the curly mustache. Like I have to assume that was ah a major subplot of the film that just got completely excised for being dumb.
00:37:09
Speaker
His Ed Wynn again, another impression of his that's okay. Okay. And that character, by the way, is on the poster for this movie. Like if you look at the poster, it's the far right. Like, so this is something that feels like it was cut relatively late.
00:37:25
Speaker
Well, can I tell you, i I think for me, the only things that were even remotely like deep exhale worthy were in the stuff in the credits.
00:37:37
Speaker
That's it. Like, all the shit in the movie just sucked, and at the credits, it was like, oh, so they put so actually cut out all the funny shit. By that point, I was just so tired. I just wanted it to be over, and then it never was over.
00:37:50
Speaker
It just never kept... and Even after the credits were over. I didn't get the credits scene. I don't get it. Like, I was like, okay, fucking I hated this already, No, I really fucking hate it because I have no idea what you're doing.
00:38:03
Speaker
It's not funny. It's not clever. It's not anything. It's just bullshit. It's just bullshit. It's just some old bullshit, Steven. Just some old... No, you're 100% right. And I think it's a big part of why this movie just does not work.
00:38:17
Speaker
Like, there are a lot of things going on. Like, this movie doesn't work on so many levels. Like, it's got really competent talent, but they're giving, given like Shit. Like, the writing is terrible. You know what this movie needed?
00:38:31
Speaker
It needed two things. It needed at least a PG-13 rating, and it needed Robert Smigel behind the desk. Like, you need like someone like Smigel reading this shit. Yeah. Because Smigel was one of the guys on the Dana Carvey show. Like, they had a long-running relationship from SNL. Like, they worked really well together. And I think Smigel got Carvey's voice really well and would be able to tie these on completely unrelated impressions together in a way that wasn't, let me just check my notes here, dumb.
00:39:03
Speaker
Like, it because it it's so bad. doesn't work. He needs a screenwriter that's more in tune with his sensibilities. And Harris Goldberg is not that guy.
00:39:13
Speaker
ah just there's no the The only thing, the only good thing about this movie is that i I would say that I thought it was so bad that sometimes I wanted to turn it off.
00:39:34
Speaker
But I was never bored. And I think that was just because I was constantly surprised at how bad it was. like Because i this movie is notorious. Of course, I've heard of how bad it is.
00:39:46
Speaker
But, you know, i there are a few notoriously bad films that I think are just fucking fantastic. So I didn't know. No, I went in thinking, well, this is probably just a bad fucking movie.
00:39:58
Speaker
But there's a slight chance... it's a bad fucking movie that I think is brilliant. And there were a few times in this movie where they could have pulled it. They could have pulled it out. They could have made it happen.
00:40:10
Speaker
but I'm going to be honest with you. They fumbled it the whole way. Start to finish. Fumble, fumble, fumble, fumble, fumble. fu one of the One of the parts that I think works the best in this movie is the opener.
00:40:21
Speaker
Like the cold open with Bo Derek. I think if you remove the narration. Yeah, because that's Undercover Brothers shit. Like they do the same thing and that it's the same joke. Like, yeah, that's a great starting point to kind of get you into it. But then they just...
00:40:38
Speaker
And we've got fucking – this movie – Tucker, this movie has lore and it doesn't need lore.
Visual Gags and Audience Connection
00:40:43
Speaker
doesn't. We've got Energico and like all this all this weird shit and you're just like this movie doesn't – it doesn't do – first of all, it doesn't do anything with the lore that it proposes.
00:40:52
Speaker
Mm-mm. And then on top of their yeah the second one, I don't know. I, and that's, that's, I think we're a little too early for that shit though. Like this is 2002. Like this is legitimately. And again, we're, this episode is releasing on September 11th and that's no accident because there is the story of course that Dana Carvey is,
00:41:14
Speaker
On set in the turtle costume. Full turtle. Full turtle. Full turtle as the planes are hitting the towers. Which it. Full turtle. According to Carvey that is not necessarily accurate.
00:41:28
Speaker
It was. he did hold a moment of silence. And it was him in the full turtle regalia. But it was like two weeks after. When they actually started filming. Because apparently September 11th this movie was in pre-production.
00:41:40
Speaker
Oh, fuck. Okay. Well, it's a nice urban legend that I enjoyed for a while, but now I know it's false. So right whatever. Yeah. Whatever. But yeah.
00:41:51
Speaker
So, but and I mean this, and so that's we're covering this movie. And honestly, the fucking Turtle Man shit is the shit that works the least for me. Like that's... a very fucking least. What it what even? again there's But there's there's even in that it's so bad, but there's these little kind of nuggets where you're like, oh shit, you just set yourself up for, nope, you fucked it up.
00:42:12
Speaker
You fucked it up. Legitimately, the there stuff that I think works the best is the stuff that i think works best Honestly, my favorite moment in that fucking turtle costume is when they're driving home on the moped and all you can see is like his helmet and his goggles and then everything, the rest of his face is completely covered by the turtle shell costume.
00:42:32
Speaker
That visual, that visual the image really well for me. I was like, that's a funny. In context of the film, that is a funny image. It is. it truly And here's the thing, like Dana Carvey in that outfit looks funny, but you're just...
00:42:47
Speaker
but like and that character even that character could be funny if you you know change some stuff around put it in different context it's such a thin fucking context like really dude like the turtle club and his assistant lady she's gonna let him do that like she's not gonna be like no dude no no no no you don't understand She doesn't bring it up as an objection until they're walking into the Until they're walking in.
00:43:14
Speaker
What has been happening this whole time? She had to help him get into that get up. There's no way. 100%. And again, there's there's impressions here that are great. like I love his um his Quint impression from Jaws. um like I thought that was really fun. But again, what the fuck is it doing in this movie?
00:43:36
Speaker
I would say it's an above average, but, you know, i'll bet Bill Hader could do it better. That's the only reason you like it so much is because Bill Hader hasn't done and Black Eyes, Doll's Eyes.
00:43:50
Speaker
Sharks got cold, lifeless eyes. Black Eyes, like a doll's eyes. No, um it's a doll's, Steven. A doll's eyes. doll's eyes.
00:44:01
Speaker
i You know what's a great movie, Tucker? Jaws. Jaws is a fucking great movie. You know what's another ah great movie that's parodied in this film? The Exorcist. Steven, I do like that beat they drop on it, though.
00:44:16
Speaker
That sounds good. when they draw I didn't expect that they dropped that beat. I was like, oh, shit. I might stand up and like get down a little bit. I didn't realize that theme was so danceable until they dropped that beat. Oh, fuck. Tubular motherfucking bell, son.
00:44:33
Speaker
Put a backbeat on that. I never thought that that would be a thing that I would be into. It never even crossed my mind. But then there it was, and I was like, damn, like if I could take a positive out of this, I need to find this like remix of that motherfucker. And that's another one of those things that made me ask, like who is this movie for? because you've got this extended sequence with Quint.
00:44:53
Speaker
in the lake or in the pond or whatever. And then you've got this like exorcising, like there are these moments that are referencing movies that no child going to see this film. Like, is that like there for the parents or the parents have something to laugh at?
00:45:06
Speaker
Because I don't see any parents laughing at that either. Like it's just so ineptly done. I don't know that if this is something you could say about this film because it's pretty bad, but I know that,
00:45:22
Speaker
When I was a kid, sometimes the more adult jokes were presented in such a silly way that even though I didn't know what they were talking about, I laughed anyway. I still thought it was funny.
00:45:34
Speaker
And then when I got older, it became funny in a different way. If the grownups are laughing, I feel compelled to laugh as well, even if I don't. You'll find something. Yeah, you'll find something there. It's like when Mystery Science Theater 3000 makes a very like specific Minnesota joke.
00:45:50
Speaker
And just like just because how fun how much fun they're having with it, you laugh too. But you have no idea what the fuck they're talking about. Even though we're from the Midwest, we're from two very different parts and of the Midwest.
00:46:01
Speaker
There are sects. I would call sects in the Midwest. I know that sounds very ah ah bad and evil, but I think that's the proper term for it. Bloodhound gang, bad touch, yeah.
00:46:14
Speaker
The Midwest is divided into sects. S-E-C-T-S, not S-E-X, dude. baby Oh, okay. Not that one. No, dude.
00:46:26
Speaker
All right. Fine. um But yeah, and again, this movie, the cast, is these are people I've liked in so many different things, but in this, I'm just like, what the fuck are you doing here?
00:46:38
Speaker
Why are you Not something I would say about the quality of the film, but something that I brought away as a positive from this film just based on the gag reel that is the majority of the credits.
00:46:51
Speaker
right um Everybody was having a really good time. I don't know if they like they were having a good time because they knew how bad it was going to be and they didn't give a fuck. Or the opposite. Doesn't matter.
00:47:02
Speaker
Finished product doesn't matter. I love how much fun these people are having making this movie. that with vex stuff The stuff with Jennifer Esposito laughing at Gammy Num Nums.
00:47:16
Speaker
I was just like, oh, this is not funny, but God bless her. She loves this. And I love Jennifer Esposito, so I'm like into it. Well, and that goes back to what I was saying about like these, a lot of these jokes would work if you were just like, like hanging out with your friends and having a casual conversation and like right that joke comes up organically.
00:47:36
Speaker
But it yeah that doesn't, i mean, you get a few chuckles from your friends. You have a good time. That doesn't translate into something that is a filmable joke that's going to work in any context, which is why I've never tried to write a script or be a comedian or do anything like that, because I know I'm only that funny.
00:47:57
Speaker
I'm like funny in a group of people. And that's as far as it goes. We are funny on the Internet. Yes. Yes. like in this and We just make ourselves laugh more than anything else. And if anyone else finds it funny, that's just icing on the cake. Really?
00:48:13
Speaker
Like this is just an excuse for us to hang out and talk about movies. Maybe like we're so unfunny that it's interesting. I'm okay with that too. Anti-comedy. As long as I'm scratching whatever itch you have, fantastic.
00:48:28
Speaker
heyo Art is about straight up interpretation and shit, which I guess is why some people like this movie. Legit watching this movie today, my partner is like, I don't understand why you do this to yourself.
00:48:41
Speaker
Yeah. I've been telling you this, Steven. I've been bitching for months. Like, Steven, let's only talk about movies that are are the shit. that's That is counterintuitive to the – because, again, like you have to take the bad with the good on a premise like this. I know, but what do we have to have it this bad? Does have to be this bad, though? I mean it's not Alvin and the Chipmunks animated movie bad.
00:49:06
Speaker
for various reasons but still this was like i watched this last night and i was like this is some old bullshit for every gem that we talk about we have to have our food fights and our masters of disguise and our marmaduke's and our electra's and our cat woman's famously did not hate marmaduke Wild.
00:49:28
Speaker
Fucking and wild. I think a small percentage of that was because it was something light and silly that I didn't have to give a fuck about after like a really rough week.
00:49:40
Speaker
that You know what? And that's so weird because if the comedy had been just a little bit different, it would have hit me the exact opposite. And i would have been like, this has made this week the worst week ever. But for some reason, fucking Marmaduke with Pete Davidson, just full of shit and fart jokes.
00:49:57
Speaker
One of the worst movies I've ever seen. Like brought my spirit. That's not what you said at the time. Here's the thing. I have had a fucking awful day. Like coming coming off a long weekend. I had a fucking awful day today at work. It was ah just a terrible day.
00:50:12
Speaker
And then I have to sit down and watch this movie. And at the end of this movie, like as I'm winding down on this movie, I get the text from you. Hey, we recorded an item. like, damn it we fucking better because if we don't and I just watched this movie and made my night worse like this is the thing that's elevating my night is having a fun conversation with my friend about this movie ah yes yes that's what's making this redeeming this day as it were i watched this Saturday night ah which was the only night this week that I got to ah stay up as late as I wanted to that's nice dude
00:50:50
Speaker
It is. I mean, the kid has to be on the bus at 615. On the weekdays. and then you get to go back bed at least, or no?
00:51:02
Speaker
For about a half an hour. i drive all the way back here. I i lay in bed for a half an hour, and then I drive to fucking Shelbyville. Though, Stephen and audience, ah who I'm sure has been following my crusade to find gainful employment here in the city of Indianapolis...
00:51:20
Speaker
ah your boys got an interview with the Aldi warehouse on Wednesday at 9 a.m. Hell yeah. i need your I need your thoughts and prayers, dude, even though this will come out after. Right. I hope that works retroactively.
00:51:35
Speaker
Right. So the day this comes out will be the day after I have that interview. But look, Stephen, it starts. I'll be thinking about you as I drive into the office Wednesday morning. It starts at $26 an hour.
00:51:48
Speaker
Full benefits, no matter how many hours you work. Oh, I love that too. It is full time though. And boy, I'll tell you, it's warehouse work. Like your boy does warehouse. I've done that shit. Oh, many, many times.
00:52:05
Speaker
That's what I did when I was, when I was in the United States armed for the United States armed forces, Steven, I worked in a warehouse. Okay. Protecting your freedom, Steven from a warehouse.
00:52:17
Speaker
Okay.
00:52:20
Speaker
That's what I was doing in 2003, 2004, and some of 2005. Yes, driving forklifts and making pallets of medical supplies.
00:52:31
Speaker
It was very exciting. Very, very exciting. But I've done a warehouse work. I feel like the fact that I'm a veteran and the fact that I've done ah various amounts of warehouse work over the last 30 years, I think I'm a shoe in.
00:52:45
Speaker
And $26 an hour in this economy, Stephen, in Indianapolis is nothing to fucking sneeze at. No, you're not wrong. Honestly, would love to have been making that when I was living in indian Indianapolis. You know I'm trying to live in Perry, too, so I got to make a little extra scratch.
00:53:00
Speaker
Correct. i My parents live in Perry. I get it, man.
Personal Updates and Career Reflections
00:53:04
Speaker
Of course, they moved in. Again, grandfathered in because they moved in the area kind of came up. But yeah. came up but yeah yeah Yeah, kind of like Fountain Square.
00:53:15
Speaker
Just people on the ground level. and Before it turns itself around. Right. yeah hunt Yeah, my dad would... Honestly, my dad still to this day will not go to Fountain Square.
00:53:26
Speaker
Well, that's fair. Like, I get it. I don't agree, but I get it. I get it. It doesn't seem like his kind of place. the The very limited knowledge I know about your father, Stephen, I would say, no, it doesn't seem like the kind of place for him.
00:53:39
Speaker
No, but the reason he won't go there is because of the place it was in the 80s and 90s. Fair. And you know what? I'm proud to say I realized this the other day because I always tell the stories about how like in the late 90s and early 2000s, right when they first brought the Fountain Square Theater back, which is what was the root, like was the Prometheus of the rebirth of this area.
00:54:04
Speaker
the gentrification of that era right it's not it's not gentrification steven come down and spend a week at my sister's house it is not gentrification it is a very mixed neighborhood with a lot of things going on uh though i will admit based on your comment that the house across the street is selling for a half a million dollars okay then but it's a it's a real patchwork um But anyway, i in the late 90s and early 2000s, I was bringing girls to the Fountain Square Theater because they used to have swing dancing and with a live band.
00:54:39
Speaker
And if you came a half hour early, Stephen, they would teach you enough swing dance moves to be able to have two hours of fun with a live band. that is That is what I hear.
00:54:52
Speaker
And one of the things... Still do it, too. You can still go do that. It's been going on for the next, what, 30 years now? Shit. Here's the thing about me, Tucker, though, and this is something you need to know about me as a human being. I lack this... You have two left feet?
00:55:05
Speaker
I lack this thing, this just fundamental human trait called um is it coordination. coron There it is. I was going to say you're a singer. You've got rhythm. Come on, man. But not coordination.
00:55:17
Speaker
Like I can't translate the internal metronome up here to any other part of my body. um like I was generally one of those guys who, when when performing in the Broadway reviews that I did in college, you'd kind of want to bury me toward the back. Although somehow I always managed to find my way in the very front.
00:55:37
Speaker
I don't know how that happened because I was the big fat guy fumbling over his feet. You're a star, Steven. That's what it is. You're star. I mean, I do have that 50-watt charisma, so...
00:55:49
Speaker
Hey, you're in two feature-length films, Steven. It's true. And a short. um How many? Must sayeth my IMDB credits. What percentage of the population can say that? Maybe 25%. Maybe. I feel like i'm I'm giving it too much credit, really. Maybe. Maybe you might. You might.
00:56:07
Speaker
I don't know if you guys knew this. I'm sorry, Steven. ah This movie is really interesting to talk about, but based on what we've been talking about also, and I know I should probably drop this when we're talking about my socials, but I'm just so excited.
00:56:19
Speaker
um I have a real ass IMDb page now, Steven. Have you seen this? Have you heard about this? i i i I've seen your IMDb page. I was wondering if you started paying for the subscription so you could get your picture up there.
00:56:31
Speaker
I did not, and that took a bit of finagling, which is why I brought this up. I'm going to need you to help me with that, because I had to fucking pay for mine to get my picture up there, and as soon as I stopped paying, they took my fucking picture down. Oh, they're going to take it down when I stop paying?
00:56:45
Speaker
Yes. yeah That's alright, as long as like I'm still... The reason I did it was because I had... Circle City Supernatural and Disenfranchise Podcast on one profile. And then for some reason, when Joe submitted for Circle City Supernatural 2, it created another profile instead of putting it on my other one.
00:57:08
Speaker
So I had to request a merging of the profiles, which they did eventually. But that got me thinking. and I was like, yeah, I was like, yo, I should maybe put up a picture. And like while I'm here and I don't know if you know this, Steven, but for a reason, I could not tell you 20 years later for about five years there when IMDB first started out.
00:57:31
Speaker
I was a pro member for about five years and I don't know why. I don't... Well, I paid for it. i was well that's I was in the military. I was in Germany when IMDb started becoming a thing. And I was like, I want to be a pro. like I want to know... want to be able to contact these people for I don't know what. like I was in my very early 20s, so I had no idea after I got out of the military what I was going to do with my life. So I was like, I don't know. Maybe... like I act. I do music. So maybe I'll see what's going on in all of those realms at some point. So for some reason, I thought it was...
00:58:05
Speaker
worth is it to pay $10 a month in 2003 money. Sure. For IMDb. Sure. yeah But then again, when you're in the military though, you're making money. Like it's socialism, the military, when you're in the military, it's socialism.
00:58:20
Speaker
Like everything is paid for. Don't tell the Republicans. And then also they pay you like they pay for your, where you live. They pay for your food. You get an allowance for food, for clothing.
00:58:32
Speaker
And then also they just pay you too. It's fantastic. And all your health care is free. Fuck, dude. And then when you get out, you get all them veterans benefits. Oh, yes. GI Bill, you go to college for free, motherfucker.
00:58:49
Speaker
I'm aware. I'm aware. I had friends in ROTC. So when they graduated from college, they were basically conscribed to the military for living the good life. Yeah. Yeah.
00:59:00
Speaker
I don't know about now, though, because like things are going on to where like if I were in the military now, I'd be like, oh, shit. ah What do I do when like it's something I don't think I should do morally? Like what right what's going to happen?
00:59:12
Speaker
Like when the president tells you you have to go like, you know, basically declare war on an American city. And like, I'm not worried about Marv, my aforementioned husband, Marv, who is in the Air Force right now.
00:59:24
Speaker
He's in training. ah His job isn't a violent job. It's ah an IT technical job. So I'm not really worried about him having to make those decisions, but still just even being in the military and like knowing that those are things that your fellow airmen or soldiers or sailors or whatever are have. Those are questions that these people are having to ask themselves.
00:59:49
Speaker
How the fuck did we get here, Stephen? Why didn't you stop me? I blame you. and you stop me? Damn. Damn. it's not it's not often that you get political so when you get fired up and i'm kind of here for it honestly don't know because i'm a silly silly fun boy i don't like to you know um' i'm kind of i'm kind of i'm kind of curious if you're gonna leave all that in honestly god will leave it in you best believe because i'm not time stamping it and i'm not gonna have a lot of time to edit tomorrow so fair enough it's um
01:00:21
Speaker
But yeah, for ah for a movie with a cast this good, it's just aggressively
Director's Vision and Marketing Strategies
01:00:25
Speaker
bad. And I feel like so much of that is the writing. The director of this film is someone named Perry Andalyn Blake. um who has gone he feels like based looking at his kind of um filmography he feels like he is a happy Madison guy because he's he's he's a set designer he's a production designer and he's done a lot of happy Madison shit like and you know I've never seen a happy Madison movie and been like man the production design fucking sucks so like he's good at his job whatever
01:00:58
Speaker
I've also never seen one and gone, man, the production design on that is so fucking great. and That's fine. If you don't notice it, that's perfect. That's what production design is supposed to be. like You're not supposed to notice it You're supposed to be looking at them actors doing their thing.
01:01:09
Speaker
This is the first and to date only film that this man has directed. um Kind of a Bo Welch, cat in the hat kind of situation. I did notice that because I was very curious after I saw this movie. I was like, is there anything else this director's done? Because I want to know where he goes from here.
01:01:28
Speaker
Nowhere. He's done some second unit shit again on Happy Madison Films. I now pronounce you Chuck and Larry, Zookeeper and the Do-Over. Whatever, yeah. Yeah. Like we get, you know, a lot of that kind of shit.
01:01:41
Speaker
You know, he's a producer on something, a short film called Clean Blood. don't know if the fuck that is. Like, yeah, he's, and, you know, not just, it's not a, not a big, he's in, oh my God, he is He plays Vincent Van Gogh in Around the World in 80 Days from 2000. The one with Jackie Chan? and And Jackie Chan movie, yes.
01:02:02
Speaker
I never saw that, but I worked at Hollywood Video when it came out. and Talk about a stacked cast. People were excited about it. Talk about a stacked cast in a shitty movie. Well, Rat Race came out at the same time. Oh my god, yes.
01:02:17
Speaker
It was like a Bugs Ant's Life sort of. conundrum of shitty ensemble movies that we really wanted to be good, but so that was the last movie that Arnold Schwarzenegger made before he became governor of California.
01:02:32
Speaker
Yeah. He was, you know, he, I watched a video where, He was going to be in like the first AVP movie and make that a whole thing where, but he was like, no, the Predator franchise so many times. And we will talk about that in a few weeks.
01:02:53
Speaker
He's spoilers. He's in that animated. His character is in that animated movie that came out on Hulu. i So there's still some some lore. So is Danny Glovers. So I kind of want to see it, though. i I really don't like the character design. I don't like the animation style.
01:03:09
Speaker
I hated the animation style, honestly. People shit on me for that on the internet because like I'll comment on shit on articles and stuff. I have a Discuss account, okay? Sure, sure. So like I comment in on shit and I'm like, this looks really great, but like also I'm just not really feeling the animation style.
01:03:26
Speaker
Instead of people being like, oh, what is it about it? Or like, oh, I get that. They're like, fuck you, you fucking idiot. And I'm like, oh, shit. oh Okay, okay. Yeah, the internet, a place known for nuance.
01:03:39
Speaker
yeah My bad, dude. Sorry. I want to like it. That's what I'm trying to like it. Like, I need you to help me. Here is the thing. as As much as he has returned to the Terminator franchise. So many times. so many He's only come back to the Predator franchise one time.
01:03:58
Speaker
And that was for the 2020 video game Predator Hunting Grounds, where he returns to play Dutch. Really? I didn't even know that existed. Is that one? No, that's one of those dead by daylight.
01:04:13
Speaker
Probably games where it's like it's a it's an online multiplayer game and you have one person who's like the bad guy who's hunting the people and then you have the people.
01:04:24
Speaker
And like one player plays as the guy and then all the other players play as the people. And yeah, Arnold. Yeah, it's every every horror franchise gets that game. texas There's a Texas Chainsaw Massacre game.
01:04:36
Speaker
That is that a Friday the 13th game. That is that an Evil Dead game. That is exactly fucking that. Right. You have Alice Braga returning to play her character from Predators.
01:04:49
Speaker
ah You have Marshawn Lynch playing a character called Beast Mode because we you started talking about Around the World in 80 Days. Oh, yeah which naturally leads into Predator.
01:05:00
Speaker
Arnold Schwarzenegger, it it happened. And yeah, but we'll talk about Predator in a few weeks. Just wait for it, okay? we're gonna we're goingnna We're coming back to the Predator franchise. It's fine.
01:05:10
Speaker
ah No, because the director of this film played Vincent Van Gogh in the Around the World in 80 Days movie. So i brought it up. The director? Yes. Perry Andalyn Blake. It's his one acting credit. And he played Vincent Van Gogh in Around the World in 80 Days. Wow.
01:05:27
Speaker
Okay. That's wild. That it is wild. It is in fact wild. What a strange connection. yeah Yeah. James Brolin, ironically, is the father of two of the great, you know, characters in in film history, Pistachio Disguisey and Thanos.
01:05:42
Speaker
So... You know, we've got that. Yeah. Anyway, that's his son. You silly jerk. That's what I'm saying. Different guy. They're both his son. He's also cable.
01:05:55
Speaker
So how are they going to rectify that since they're bringing the Fox universe in with Doomsday? Like, can we get him as both, please? They're completely resetting the Fox universe after Doomsday. I think that's what's happening.
01:06:06
Speaker
Yeah. Or after after the next one, of the fucking secret or whatever. um Anyway, ah Master of Disguise opens the weekend of August 2nd. Oh, thank God.
01:06:19
Speaker
In the year of our Lord, 2002, America needed to laugh. Oh, yeah. ah In the wake of 9-11. It was okay at that point. By that point, Giuliani had given us the okay that we are allowed to be funny again. so And, like of course, Giuliani would go on to give us later permission to laugh at himself by becoming a joke.
01:06:39
Speaker
um Yes, indeed. The movie has, according to Wikipedia, a $16 million budget. It at number three $12.5 million. ah it opens to it opens at number three to twelve point five million dollars It opens wide too on like two and a half thousand screens. There was a lot of marketing for this. I remember there being just like turtle scene on every commercial break. Like fuck right off. Even then I was like, no dude, ah that's not going to be good. I am a child. No, I'm not a child. I would be a straight up adult.
01:07:17
Speaker
I'm an adult and this doesn't look good. Yeah. By the end of its first weekend, we're at about 12,000 or 12 million. It goes on to earn a total of 40 million, 40.4 million.
01:07:30
Speaker
I mean, that's on the budget. That's not bad, though. Right. i mean, broke even at least.
Box Office Performance and Critical Reception
01:07:36
Speaker
At least. But again, it's kind of one of those. Fuck this movie, but good for them. the reviews are so aggressively bad that like, no, there's not a positive one in the critics.
01:07:47
Speaker
We're going to get to, to the critics reviews on this thing here and here momentarily. And spoilers, they real, real bad. They, they enjoy that movie about as much as we do. Yeah.
01:07:58
Speaker
yeah Number one, also opening against this talk about counter programming, movie I saw in theaters, M night Shyamalan's,
01:08:08
Speaker
fifth film um although according to most people third because they don't count his first no mel gibson joaquin phoenix the little culkin boy yeah we don't count his first two correct yeah because his first two are praying with anger and wide awake which no one counts not it's not it's not a like a feature was it widely released no i' Probably not widely released. But, you know, Wide Awake has Rosie O'Donnell. Like, at the height of her Rosie O'Donnell-dom. I do have an odd respect for Rosie O'Donnell, yes.
01:08:42
Speaker
But, yeah. Signs. Mel Gibson, Joaquin Phoenix, the the Breslin kid, and the Culkin boy. um In Walt Disney Pictures, Signs. Yeah.
01:08:53
Speaker
I like that one. It's not... For me, it's...
Twist in Cinema: M. Night Shyamalan and Others
01:08:57
Speaker
I wish it held up better on repeat watchings, but that I remember that first time I watched that it was really intense. but I mean, I don't even know what's going on. It's like, Oh, okay. I love, kind of like I like the religious trauma of it all, honestly. And I, yeah I dig religious trauma horror and signs is peak religious trauma horror.
01:09:18
Speaker
Like it that's a hundred percent what it is. And then he kind of like in a backhanded way, sort of explored that in the village too. Correct. Like i that's, ah but ah but a you know wide awake takes place in a Catholic school.
01:09:31
Speaker
um Like praying with anger is about him reckoning with his, his Hindu heritage. Like a lot of his movies. I haven't seen them, but I've read about those films. Like, A lot of his films reckon with with religion ah in a really interesting and really interesting ways. I think he's kind of gotten away from that in his later years. but like Oh, yeah.
01:09:49
Speaker
A lot of his early stuff when he's like trying to make capital i important films, um like that seems to be a topic that he returns to quite frequently.
01:10:00
Speaker
I feel like now he's kind of more familiar with what his strengths are. And so while he's not necessarily making exploitation films, by any stretch of the imagination, he knows, like, he can... He's kind of the new thriller guy, which I never would have expected because... i mean, I guess he did kind of start out in thriller, but he he kind of went all over the place.
01:10:24
Speaker
He makes really competent, like... He just really competent B movies. Really? They don't. I will say they when they made the game, when David Fincher made the game, that was a point in cinematic history where you said they don't make them like this anymore.
01:10:42
Speaker
And well, will again m night Shyamalan, his most recent films, they aren't like that. but they do kind of have a little bit of that feeling like that, that mid to late nineties kind of low key thriller, little bit of action.
01:10:58
Speaker
Absolutely. Kind of movie like, like trap. Come on, man. Trap was so fun. Ooh. Trap was so fun. Speaking of the game that would be a good double feature with the game.
01:11:10
Speaker
That would. For a lot of reasons. For a lot of reasons. And he's gotten a wave, like his whole shtick early on was the twist. And that... he got really high on his own supply and started trying to play with your expectations on the, on the twist that when he finally just abandoned that and just was like, I just want to tell a good story.
01:11:32
Speaker
That's when he started getting good again. Like the visit, I've never seen it, but from what I tell has a twist, but like twists seem almost incidental. Like you go into the movie old, knowing the twist of the movie, like the twist became a meme.
01:11:45
Speaker
Like the beach makes you old. Like that became the meme of the movie. Like everyone knew the twist going What's the one with Dave Bautista? ah Knock at the Cabin. Oh my god, that one's so good. So that one has a good twist, but like... The twist is not the thing. Exactly. What he was doing in that was proving that he could make a movie with a really good twist.
01:12:06
Speaker
Yes. But when you got to the twist, it wasn't like completely blowing your mind because you were cool where you were at anyway. Correct. Yes. And then in trap, he like takes it a step further and it's like, Hey, right out the gate, even in the trailer, here's the fucking twist.
01:12:24
Speaker
Now let's go. Yeah. Let's go. So then you go in and and it it's, it's in that in for trap. It's very Hitchcockian. Yeah. Because the audience knows what the rest of the characters don't. yeah And that creates the fucking tension of the movie.
01:12:39
Speaker
Is that he lets you in on it right away. And so you're like, fuck, is his daughter going to find out? Fuck, does his wife know? Hartnett is so fucking... I was ready for the Hartnett-a-sans. And then it looks like it literally was just that movie. and Because I saw...
01:12:53
Speaker
fight or flight this year and i will say future episode of this podcast fight or flight um it's not bad but it's not great like it's nothing yeah it's a contender for end of the end of the year film honestly because it it's set up for mediocre film of the year it well no for like our end of the year film that we're going to cover because it's absolutely set up for a sequel that i it will never were based on it's buy oh yeah 100 it's set up for a sequel I don't look.
01:13:22
Speaker
It's like if John Wick got stoned and was on a plane, that is what fight or flight is. Oh, nice. And it's honestly really fun, but it's such a middle of the road kind of thing that it's nothing to write home about. Like I saw that as a double feature with sinners.
01:13:37
Speaker
And so I watched sinners and then went. And honestly, if I hadn't already bought a ticket for fight or flight, I would have just seen sinners again because sinners fucking rules. It's my favorite movie of the year. And I can't imagine anything overtaking it.
01:13:50
Speaker
they Look, if if they bring it back to the State Museum and IMAX in 70mm, bro, you have to come down here. will try.
01:14:01
Speaker
No, look, I'm not a Star War guy but in this situation, there is no motherfucking try.
01:14:10
Speaker
Like, if 70mm hits again on Sinners, you motherfu you maybe you will bring your ass down here. And we will look at it together. I'm already trying to bring my ass down for this for the CCS2 premiere. so And look, i don't even need we don't even need to put a seat between us. like I'm comfortable enough in my sexuality.
01:14:33
Speaker
I don't even... like If it's comfortable, like I'm down. That's what I'm saying. But like if I'm not digging it, don't get offended. Sure, sure, sure. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Anyway, number two at the box office.
Genre Exploration: Blaxploitation Films
01:14:46
Speaker
Down from number one the week before in its second weekend, it's Austin Powers in Gold Member. I would say the weakest of that franchise. yeah Was that the third one? That is. that's ah That's Wayne and Garth against each other at the box office, and Wayne is winning.
01:15:03
Speaker
I did, though i have a lot of. opinions about Beyonce some positive some negative lots of different contexts that those exist but I really liked her in Goldmember like she was like give me if there's not a lot good in that movie honestly instead of that bullshit undercover brother direct-to-video sequel that we got give me and michael jaway Give me an undercover sister with Beyonce in basically undercover brother with a gal.
01:15:40
Speaker
Even bring over some... Bring Smart Brother. Bring, you know... Here's what think would be fun. Why don't She-Devil be there? Why don't we have an undercover brother Austin Powers crossover?
01:15:51
Speaker
i I wouldn't be against that. I would not be against that. But it does seem... A little far-fetched. I'm still waiting for the day when we cover when we do Undercover Brother on a straight up.
01:16:06
Speaker
Do you think I can't wait either? We have to, because it's... It's not scheduled. Look, we can't... ah Look, the first film that I talked about on this podcast was Pudi... Was it Pudi Tang? It was? No, it was... um It was bucker Bunker Bonsai.
01:16:21
Speaker
The second film that I talked about on this podcast was Pudi Tang. Yes. And Undercover Brother is... In one of these days, we're going to do a Blaxploitation Month.
01:16:33
Speaker
It's a sister film. It really is. And I don't think that anyone intended it to be, but they are two parts. They're two halves to a whole. Here's what I propose. They compliment each other so well.
01:16:48
Speaker
Here's what I propose. Are a reevaluation of Booty Tang? I'm saying no. so What I'm saying is we do a blaxploitation month, but we do it in a month that has five weeks.
01:16:59
Speaker
So we can do Undercover Brother as the straight up that month.
01:17:05
Speaker
Oh, dude. Yes. I would love to do. Can we... This is on-air production meeting. Like, here's here's what I want. I want three classic blaxploitation films that were failed franchise starters.
01:17:21
Speaker
I want Jackie Brown.
Comparative Film Analysis
01:17:24
Speaker
Shut up. I want Jackie Brown as the fourth one. it But here's the thing. Does it count? Because we get... Michael Keaton as Ray Nicolette.
01:17:33
Speaker
Oh, another film. Steven, we've done that. We've done this dance before. You've been on the other side of this argument where I have been on your side that you are right now.
01:17:44
Speaker
It's the fucking reason we're not covering hunt for red. October is because James Earl Jones appears in every single movie in that franchise is the same fucking character. So wait, are you telling me that we couldn't do any sort of Hannibal thing because... No, we did Manhunter.
01:18:01
Speaker
We've already done Manhunter. Shit, fuck. Dude. Because that one is completely unrelated to all the other ones. And it's probably the best. Silence of the Lambs is a classic. I get it. Silence of Lambs is a straight-up masterpiece, but Manhunter is a very close second.
01:18:17
Speaker
Manhunter, Michael Mann. like I get it, Miami Vice is his opus, but like for me, my Michael Mann is that dirty, gritty Manhunter Michael Mann. like like it's i know and I remember recording the Manhunter episode because I recorded that in a hotel.
01:18:33
Speaker
like I packed my shit and did that. Brian Cox's Hannibal Lecter. fucking good. Go listen to our Manhunter episode that Tucker apparently forgot we recorded.
01:18:44
Speaker
no I didn't forget. I liked it just as much then as I do now. Man have two rules. It's a great movie. I still have on VHS, yes. In third place, we have the film we've kind of talked around for the last two hours. Yes.
01:18:58
Speaker
Because we keep getting fucking... the wrong Master of Disguise. ah In fourth place, we have, also new this week, Martin Lawrence Live, colon, run, tell that.
01:19:10
Speaker
That's... I've never seen that. It's not... It's not the Eddie Murphy stand-up. What's the famous Eddie Murphy stand-up in the red jacket?
01:19:21
Speaker
Yes. It's not raw, but it's like... what What is? Honestly, it's one of – think Kevin Hart had a couple theatrically released comedy specials, but, like, it's one of the last times we got a theatrically released comedy special. Like, it didn't happen – it doesn't happen a lot.
01:19:38
Speaker
No, I don't – I still feel like we don't really get it a lot. And if we do, it's, like, maybe in the the indie theaters. Right. Right. and stuff.
01:19:49
Speaker
one and you're Your Keystone Arts Cinema, as it were. Yes. Yes. boy Yeah, ahead. ahead In fifth place, we have ah in its fourth weekend, ah down from number two the week before, ah the movie filmed in my partner's hometown of Moments, Illinois, a little film called The Road to Perdition.
01:20:15
Speaker
Yo! Another long tangent that will take another 20 minutes before we get to the next number on this list. i have I also have tangents on this movie, but i'll let I'll be the gentleman and let you go first. You're so kind, Steven. I appreciate you in in every way.
01:20:33
Speaker
Like you're going to let me go first. Go ahead. The Road to Perdition, not only is it a fantastic film, but go to your local library and get that graphic novel. Yes, 100%. And I would not, i would not surprisingly, i would not recommend reading the graphic novel before the film.
01:20:50
Speaker
Watch the film, read the graphic novel. That's the way to go. That's the way to go. Because that maintains the integrity of the film without making it, like, it makes the graphic novel more of, like,
01:21:03
Speaker
a a a broader picture of the story. Right. Like you had a very focused version of the story in the film. Right. But the graphic novel is is much broader. It gives you a lot more lore.
01:21:17
Speaker
Yeah, absolutely. I will say my partner has told me many stories about life in Moments, Illinois at the time that film was made. but ah One of which is oh ah when because if you've ever driven through downtown Moments, which I have a few times, i have not even before I started dating my partner. i You're the expert.
01:21:36
Speaker
Yeah. um it looks like something out of the 1940s. Like it look it's it's one of those towns that just kind of stopped developing in the The town that time forgot.
01:21:47
Speaker
Yeah. Kind of. Like it's ah the the season of Fargo with Chris Rock. That filmed in moments. Season four. That's good. That's underrated. Look, that's going to get a reappraisal. Fuck all the haters.
01:21:59
Speaker
Season four is the shit. That's the Miller's Crossing season, dude. Nobody gets Miller's Crossing. It's going to have a reappraisal. Let's go. i fucking love Miller's Crossing. It's really good.
01:22:09
Speaker
um The upcoming season of the Monsters show, the Ryan Murphy Monster show ah about Ed Gein starring Charlie Hunnam. Should I watch that? Because Ed Gein.
01:22:21
Speaker
Well, the first season was Jeffrey Dahmer starring Evan Peters and um Richard Jenkins. Oh, yeah. i heard about that. The second season is the Menendez brothers starring Javier Bardem as the dad. yeah Third season is Ed Gein. It's going to be Ed Gein. That also filmed in Moments.
01:22:36
Speaker
ah So like there's a lot of big projects that have filmed in Moments. Are they going to do an American – I'm sorry. Go ahead. was going to say, are they going to do an American Horror Story 94 crossover – With, what was the guy from LA? The Nightstop. They already did.
01:22:55
Speaker
They did a crossover with that? No, like he's a character in one of the seasons of yeah of American Horror Story. Yeah, 94. That's the only season that matters in the entire oeuvre outside of the first season. Yes.
01:23:08
Speaker
I get it. I know. There are some good seasons of that show. Yes, but the only two that matter are the first and 94. I love John Carroll Lynch as John Wayne Gacy. That is just inspired casting. I just can't. Yeah. Like, i it's great, but don't know. John Carroll Lynch is so fucking good.
01:23:26
Speaker
um Yeah. But, I mean... yeah
01:23:32
Speaker
But apparently, no, i because I haven't gotten to the story yet Apparently, no yeah when Tom Hanks mentioned offhand to somebody, yeah, this is a nice town you've got here, it made the front page of the local newspaper. That's how Tiny Moments is. That's sweet.
01:23:48
Speaker
I want live somewhere like that, where you're like, Tom Hanks says you're swell. Right. And you're putting your Dapper Dan on, you know, and your suspenders. Like get ready to go to the walk to the post office to get your mail.
01:24:01
Speaker
My partner's parents, my in-laws have a, have a had, I don't know if they still have, but they had at one point a shrine to Tom Hanks in their basement.
01:24:11
Speaker
Fair. Of like newspaper clippings and like photos they took from crowd scenes and stuff like of Tom Hanks. While filming that movie. and Yeah.
01:24:23
Speaker
So, ah so yeah, like it, it was, it like moments not known for much, but apparently you can watch some of that shit and you get a, get a feel for down downtown momentum and what it's like.
01:24:34
Speaker
In fact, I'm sure my partner's mom would love to tell me all about all the things that were filmed down there. Can we get a voice note for the next episode? I can ask.
01:24:45
Speaker
I don't know if she knows how to record a voice note. No, you do it with it. You go to her house and you say, not going to see her until the end of the month. I'm busy. You say, you say, Hey, Meemaw. It's not what I call her.
01:24:56
Speaker
Okay. That's fine. I'm going to, you tell me the stories. going to record it. No big
Podcast Updates and Listener Engagement
01:25:01
Speaker
whoop. Meemaw. I'm going to hit the record button. Yeah.
01:25:11
Speaker
yeah Number six, Stuart Little too.
01:25:15
Speaker
Okay. Michael J. Fox. Rad. Number seven, Men in Black 2. No, fuck that. Move on. Speaking of fucking that, number eight of previous episode of this podcast, The Country Bears.
01:25:27
Speaker
I didn't see that one. I listened to the episode, but I didn't see it. I think I would probably like it, though. You might. I think I'd like it a little bit. not Christopher Walken being a villain in it. I think would respect it. At number nine, a movie on its ah you know on its ascendancy, 16 weeks at the box office, just kind of quietly growing. What number is it? It's earned 40 million at this point. It's at number nine. It's up from number 10 the previous week. Okay. This is a movie that continues to dominate and will continue. It just never dies.
01:25:58
Speaker
It is at, right now in the box office, it is at... 40 million. It will go on to to gross domestic $241 million. dollars louise papaci It is the little indie that could my big wow yo Not my movie. I have no desire to see that movie, but much respect for all three of those films.
01:26:25
Speaker
Right. Like took like a very personal, like niche story and made it into a blockbuster. Like, fuck, that's not for me, but like mad respect. Right. And so it is still on its three of those. see They did.
01:26:39
Speaker
They'll probably make another one. They might give up like five, six years. There'll be another Greek something or other. Maybe a funeral at this point. be Big. In fact, I thought three was kind of a funeral as well. Because I'm pretty sure the dad died.
01:26:54
Speaker
I haven't seen I have no idea. I got no context for any of that. But like I'm just really happy for them. But famous famous Greek actors John Stamos and Rita Wilson appear as a married couple in the second one.
01:27:07
Speaker
I know that. We do love John Stamos. Aruba, Jamaica, ooh. I want to take you to Bermuda, Bahamas. Come on, pretty mama. I'm kind of out on John Samos. um And at number 10, down from number five the week before. Honestly, it's not. if I'll tell you after the recording.
01:27:23
Speaker
um Number 10, rounding out the top 10, it's K-19, colon, The Widowmaker. Oh, that's a that's a boat movie. I don't... I got... No, Tucker, that is not a boat movie. Fuck you. That is not a boat movie.
01:27:37
Speaker
That is submarine movie. and the Yeah, that's like twice as worse as a boat movie because it's even further in the water, Stephen. Fuck you. Four words. Hunt for Red October.
01:27:50
Speaker
Fair.
01:27:53
Speaker
Fuck you two more words, Crimson Tide. You're probably right. I trust your judgment, Stephen, but I will never see these boat and or submarine movies.
01:28:04
Speaker
ah At 11, we've got Mr. Deeds, Minority Report at 12, Born Identity at 13, past episode of this podcast, Reign of Fire at 14, and Lilo and Stitch at 15.
01:28:15
Speaker
You know what? Reign of Fire is such a good movie that I would... I could do a yearly episode on that movie. we're not It's not going to happen. The annual Reign of Fire disenfranchised episode.
01:28:32
Speaker
Every year. ah The Tomatometer score, Tucker, are you fucking ready? I could pull a straight up. Yeah, I won't allow it. I'll veto it. And put Reign of Fire as a straight up once a year. Blackball in that shit.
01:28:46
Speaker
I don't think you're going to want to waste your straight ups on a movie we've already covered. But, Stephen, have you seen Rain of Fire? Come on, dude. We covered it for this fucking podcast. You want to see it again.
01:28:58
Speaker
do I? You know you want to watch it again. Do I? ah It's so good. Anyway, you were saying. The tomatometer score for this film, Tucker, are you fucking ready? Care to take a wild guess what the tomatometer score for this movie No, I don't guess tomatometers. I guess Letterboxd, Steven. It's a 1%, Tucker. Beautiful.
01:29:17
Speaker
One. one Yes. Fantastic. ah The critics' consensus, an ill-conceived attempt to utilize Dana Carvey's talent for mimicry. The master of disguise is an irritating, witless farce weighed down by sophomoric gags.
01:29:31
Speaker
Yeah, agreed. Agreed. It has a 12 on Metacritic. That's too much. Overwhelming dislike based on 24 critic reviews. in fact Still too that kind.
01:29:44
Speaker
That means almost nobody liked it. um And then Tucker, the letterboxed score. I wonder if you can get it. Fuck a duck.
01:29:58
Speaker
I did see a lot of reviews on IMDB of people who gave it favorable reviews because they enjoyed it so much as children. Right. But Letterboxd is all about the memes and the lols. They love the memes and the lols. They love the lols. And the joke reviews. Nobody takes it seriously.
01:30:20
Speaker
Like, if Leonard Maltin were dead... he would be rolling in his grave at letterbox, but instead he's doing a podcast with his daughter. called Martin Malton on movies.
01:30:32
Speaker
Check that out. It's really good. Right on. Yeah. That's how I found out that Eli Craig was Sally Fields son. Okay. Interesting.
01:30:42
Speaker
Yeah. What was I talking about? ah You're trying to guess the... You're you're putting off guessing the letterbox score for this Yeah, yeah, Ooh, that almost worked. um I'm going to say it's a... Fucking shit.
01:30:56
Speaker
I mean, it is that, yes. It has to be a... This feels like I'm playing it safe, but like a 1.3 and 1.8. It's 1.9, Tucker. Yeah.
01:31:10
Speaker
so one point nine tucker Son of a fucking fuck. feel like I was so close. You were very close.
01:31:20
Speaker
Tucker out of five stars. How many are you giving to Dana Carvey's 2002 Master of Disguise? master of disguise This gets a half a star, if that's allowed, for two reasons.
01:31:34
Speaker
One, because everybody, despite how this turned out, seemed to be having a fantastic time in the bloopers. And that makes me so happy. Anytime you can be lol, your pals and having time, I'm all for it.
01:31:51
Speaker
with your pals and like having a good time i'm all for it right And i it gets it gets the other quarter of that half a star for just setting up so many good jokes that they just completely missed.
01:32:07
Speaker
But the fact that they were good setups, I could imagine right the the good versions of those jokes and have a little chuckle to myself while I ignored parts of the film that didn't matter.
01:32:21
Speaker
So half star, yes. Yeah, that's what I'm giving it as well. Yeah, because it's it's it's just ah it's ah it's a dep above step up above. ah It is a movie. Only a step.
01:32:32
Speaker
It is a movie. Technically a movie. There's nothing like professional filmmakers made this movie. It looks like a movie. It just really, really, really, really sucks. like there's yeah It's not poorly made. It just sucks.
01:32:48
Speaker
Correct. Even the effects are okay. Yeah. Except for the scene where the meatballs kind of starting to roll off the plate. That was really fucking good. Just all the spaghetti stuff sucked. Everything but the spaghetti was good. The spaghetti was way out of the budget or the the league of the artists.
01:33:07
Speaker
Anyway. Ooh, that would be nice. But it's so late, Steven.
01:33:13
Speaker
I'm still hungry. It's a school night, Steven. For you, maybe. I don't know why. Oh my god. Oh my god. Sandy. Oh my god.
01:33:25
Speaker
Yeah, dude. Oh, I watched Blowout, but that's for what are we watching? and the oh my god
01:33:36
Speaker
yeah dude oh i watched blow out but that's for what are we watching One thing we will never record again. it's But I want to. I do too. When are we going to have fucking time? There's hope in my heart, Steven. There's hope in my heart. I still want to record that Oops All Christianity Corner for this month, but I don't think it's going to happen.
01:33:55
Speaker
Not for this month, but I am still waiting record that. Because it would fit on this month's theme very well. I'm just saying. And it's one of the few like movies were or one of the few sketch big sketch shows we're not covering on main feed this month. So...
01:34:09
Speaker
Let's get with Brett, see if we can put something together, if not. The later in the month we get, the less available I am. um just I'm just saying that, yeah, but Brett's like never available, so if we figure something out.
01:34:23
Speaker
If we can make something work, I'm down for it, for sure. Group chat tomorrow, go. Anyway, this has been the disenfranchised podcast. You can follow us on the socials at disenfranchpod. And by the socials, I mean Blue Sky, I mean Letterboxd, and I mean YouTube. That's it. That's pretty much all we're on these days. It's all I'm updating. mean, that's three. That's way more than like one or two.
01:34:47
Speaker
Correct. And, and, but slightly less than five or four. And also you could email us. That's a fifth place and the Patreon. You were going to mention that. I was gonna, yeah. Email us disenfranchepod at gmail.com. Find us on paton Patreon, patreon.com slash disenfranchepod. You can join us at the free level, get access to all the shows you hear on the main feed, uh, but with the optional comment section. So you can talk directly to us, the creators of the show.
01:35:11
Speaker
Uh, And also, if you want to you know throw us a little scratch, for five bucks a month, you get access to our ah but deep back catalog of extra content, which we were just talking about, maybe recording more of.
01:35:24
Speaker
We might get the time to do it someday. Emphasis on back catalog. There's a lot of it. There's a whole lot of it. like Like you could pay for like probably three or four months of the $5 tier, and you may even get through like maybe half of it.
01:35:43
Speaker
realistically we try we're gonna do some new stuff it trickles it's just the schedules are so weird these days right like we're all busy in different times of the day brett's yeah brett's schedule being and what it is tucker's schedule being what is my schedule being what it is it just it's all fucked up there we're dead we're all messed up um so but that's
01:36:21
Speaker
And so, yeah, do do that and follow us at the places and do the stuff. Right. um And I'm your host, Stephen Fox. Hey, how are you? ah You can find me on Blue Sky and Letterboxd at Chewy Walrus. You can listen to my other podcast, Wells University, with friend of the show, Hope Stow, past and future guests.
01:36:41
Speaker
ah where she and I discuss the life and work of our, one of our favorite filmmakers, the great Orson Welles. Listen to our most recent episode. We're friend of this show. Past and future guest Samuel Dumas joins us to talk about Orson Welles' first short film, The Hearts of Age. Steven, that's going to be so difficult, so difficult to skim through.
01:37:02
Speaker
it is Because, you know, it's it's a long episode, too. I know. I've known, I've known Sammy since he was a very young boy. I know. I'm aware. I'm well aware. And he's he's one of my favorite humans. Like, he's i probably in the top 20. Okay.
01:37:17
Speaker
mean, I'm going to have to skim through that shit because I got to edit it right after we're done here. I was going to say, you got to hurry up and get it done. Right. it's got like an hour and a half to do all this shit. You do. um and But check that episode out. It's a lot of fun.
01:37:31
Speaker
um And then also listen to The Pot and the Pendulum, where we just recorded our 300th episode over there. And we talk about, we count down the top 25 movies of the last 25 years of the century so far, 2000 to 2025. I'm on that along with pretty, like every host of that show minus three episodes.
01:37:51
Speaker
Like it's a practically an all hands on deck episode and it's fucking, it's such a delight. It's like a three hour episode and it's. Who do I know? Who do I know that's on there? You know, Devon, you know me, you know, you know, obviously, you know, Nicole Goble, who's on there as well.
01:38:10
Speaker
I'm trying to think. um I know. I feel like i'm missing somebody pretty egregious. Oh, Lindsay, Lindsay Travis, who was on our bright burn episode. Oh, yeah. ah She was on there as well.
01:38:24
Speaker
I liked that movie. And like and Brian Kuyper, friend of the show Brian Kuyper. I don't know if you've ever recorded with Brian, but I know you've listened to several episodes. I know, yeah. He was in a lot of the early stuff. Hasn't been really on since, I mean, we I started, what, three years ago? Right. We need to get him. Well, the episode that he the the episodes that he was on were episodes that you weren't able to join us on for various technical reasons. Yeah.
01:38:48
Speaker
That rarely happens. But always when Brian's always when brian's on um But yeah, like, ah so it was it was a great episode. Like we all had a blast. Again, it took us like all afternoon to record that shit. It was so much fun.
01:39:00
Speaker
ah So go check that out. 300th episode. Also, by the time this episode comes out, we're still a couple weeks away from opening night of Inherit the Wind. um Speaking of which, Tucker, I need to talk to you about that after this recording.
01:39:14
Speaker
um Yeah, I need to put it on my calendar so I don't forget. so we are We're just a few weeks away. We open September 26th at the Front Street Theater in Mokina, Illinois with ah Curtain Call Theater, Community Theater.
01:39:27
Speaker
You can buy tickets at ccctheater.com.
01:39:33
Speaker
uh we're we open september 26th and we run weekends through october 5th i will tell you the september 28th and october 5th shows have both sold out so if you're wanting to come on a sunday tough titties um but there are still like that steven am gonna have to like damn talk you about it after the fucking show tucker are you gonna put me on you're gonna put the list right Calm the fuck down. I have an offer for you. on the list okay fuck you tongue someone Calm down. Calm down.
01:40:05
Speaker
But come out and see the show if you're in the Chicagoland area or just planning a week a trip for one of those weekends. And if you do come, stop after the show. Say hi. I'm playing Reverend Jeremiah Brown. So you get to see me deliver a fire and brimstone sermon that will make you hate me with every fiber of your being. One of several preachers Stephen has portrayed.
01:40:25
Speaker
And I will say the least – On stage and screen. On screen. Yeah, the least likable of the preachers too. I will say that for sure. Now I'm excited. Now you're excited. um But yeah, come come see at the at the the Front Street Theater. Again, the last weekend of September, first weekend of October.
01:40:42
Speaker
Just two weekends, but it's it's Inherit the Wind. It's one of my favorite plays of all time. Again, it's that religious trauma shit. It's Scopes Monkey Trial. It's Faith vs. Reason.
01:40:53
Speaker
it's It's everything I love in art and entertainment combined in one show. And it's my second time doing the show. And I hope to do it many more times before I die. So come out and see it. And I have no idea what that is. And that excites me.
01:41:07
Speaker
Most of the people I talk to have no fucking idea. And I find that talk about it like it's a classic, and it probably is in some circles. It's been filmed three times.
01:41:18
Speaker
I totally believe you, dude. The original movie, it it's Spencer Tracy, it's Frederick March, and it's Gene Kelly.
01:41:29
Speaker
wow They did a film version in the year with Kirk Douglas and Jason Robards. Okay, but what was the year of the Gene Kelly one? you're going make me look this up. No, you could give me an approximation. You could guess. It's probably close. I think it's the 50s.
01:41:43
Speaker
Okay. All right. Y'all take that. Anyway, the 80s one, who was in it? it uh is jason roba it's a is a 1960 is the original the uh the 1988 tv movie with kirk douglas and jason robards okay and then there is the uh the 90s not the late 90s one that one's got george c scott and jack lemon okay okay like it's just It's a fucking great show. And now Darren McGavin is also playing the Gene Kelly role in the – Kojak himself um is playing ah the Gene Kelly role in the 80s TV version.
01:42:24
Speaker
And then the 90s one, you've got Lane Smith, Superman, Adventures of Lois and Clark's own Lane Smith. playing that role in the, uh, in the nineties version. He's great. Uh, it's, it's a, it's a classic, it's a classic, uh, it's a classic theater piece. It's literature for the stage and no one knows it, but me apparently it's, but it's one of my favorite shows and I will audition for it anytime I see it. I love it though. I love so much.
01:42:51
Speaker
though, Steven, I kind of crave that because I like a lot of the things that I like people like catch on to it eventually. And then like, it's not my thing anymore. And so to have something that I don't know, it's kind of your thing.
01:43:05
Speaker
And then now you're in the play. It's the second time I've done it. The first time I got offered one of the three. I got offered the Gene Kelly role the first time I did it, but I couldn't take it because I was i just started a new job. And then a buddy yeah my buddy was directing it. He called me back later and was like, hey, um can you just i didn't have enough guys. Can you play like a couple of these smaller roles? And I'm like yeah, sure. like I'm settled enough in this job at this point. I can i can come in a few nights a week.
01:43:33
Speaker
And so I did. I played a couple smaller roles. I played one of the towns the ignorant townsfolk and I played ah a radio ah man at the end of the play. And this one I got like one of the like six leads. I'm one of the I'm like the preacher, the small town Southern Baptist preacher in the in this town where this kind of trial against evolution is happening. So do you do it? Don't tell me what accent, but do you do an accent?
01:43:57
Speaker
I do. Oh, okay. And it's good? Yeah? i I think it's good, yeah. i Everyone in the cast seems to think I'm doing a good job. so I'm so excited, Steven. I love going into this blind. I do. The last rehearsal I was at, the guy playing the like the district attorney in the town turns to me and goes, you know, I think this might be the best time you've ever done it. And I was like, okay. Nice.
01:44:20
Speaker
I love that kind of feedback. Because you worked so hard, and then for somebody to like tell you you did a really good job is... yeah yeah It builds a lot of confidence. especially I don't get a lot of notes from the director, but I do get a lot of notes like a lot of people in the cast going, that's really good. like Which is even better, because they're the people who have to play off of you, so like it matters to them whether your performance is...
01:44:42
Speaker
Functional. during you know During my big scene, one of the actors is like, I have a hard time remembering that I'm not just supposed to just be watching you. Like I'm supposed to be interacting with what you're saying. So, yeah.
01:44:53
Speaker
i mean i'm like I'm excited for people to see it. I'm excited to get an audience. And i mean, I have to keep you know lozenges on hand because I practically blow my voice out every night. Yeah. yeah Well, no, and I talk all day and then this is one of my hobbies. So I spend most of my day talking, to be honest with you.
01:45:11
Speaker
Yeah, for sure. It's lucky you're not a smoker, really. Right. Right. Honestly, you know, after after the second trip to the hospital, they they kind of put the kibosh on that. So never again, Stephen. Never again. no ah But Tucker, where can we find you on the socials?
01:45:31
Speaker
ah You can find me on Instagram and YouTube, as always, at I-C-E-N-I-N-E, the number zero and the number nine. Also, Tuck Mugs is kind of sporadically, every once in a while, once or twice, maybe a month, ah scattering some posts around.
01:45:53
Speaker
ah So if you're not on Tuck Mugs yet, Tuck underscore mugs on Instagram, please go there. It's ah it is an oasis really in the desert. That is just the toxic social media internet scene.
01:46:10
Speaker
Right. It's ah it's just it's just mugs. It's mugs hair and other other drinking. If you like mugs, I don't care what other things you like, like. I don't care.
01:46:22
Speaker
Just come check out the mugs like whatever. Tucker, I hope you appreciate the restraint that I'm exercising right now. It is a safe space for everybody, really. Just check out the mugs.
01:46:34
Speaker
You like coffee? You like mugs? You like beer and straight up liquor and the the glass containers that hold them? Well, then it's the place for you. Look at this guy. Loves him. Look, at he's got a bottle of some kind of bullshit here.
01:46:48
Speaker
It's my werewolf bourbon. Moonlight mayhem from film. Tell me about that. like experience hours ago I completely forgot. That was two days ago. You hold it there for a while. There was was going to say I was about to say you held there for a while. Did I just remember it? It was a picture. Yeah. Yeah.
01:47:04
Speaker
yeah Anyway, tuck mugs, tuck underscore mugs. Go there if you like glassware and mugs and coffee and liquor and just liquids of all types. Come on down.
01:47:15
Speaker
And that is our episode on the 2002 film, The Master of Disguise. Join us and again next week as we talk about another film. We keep Sketch Timber going. We talk about another film based on one of the great sketch shows.
01:47:33
Speaker
Until then, i am your host, Stephen Foxworthy. For my co-host, Tucker in the absent, Brett Wright. Until next time, i I don't even know what bullshit from this film. I i dare not repeat any of it because it's all such bullshit. Don't do a turtle thing. like I wasn't going to, but now I kind of want to. No, no, please.
01:47:52
Speaker
For the love of okay everything. ah here's his Until next time, Energico. Now, Steven, you're doing this, but I want you... Actually, if you could... This right here is what I would like for you to do right Turtle, turtle, turtle.