Exploration of cinematic nostalgia takes center stage as J.J., Mattson, and Alec dive into the world of comedy with a focus on the cult classic Tropic Thunder. The hosts reflect on their experiences with movies in a pre-streaming era, where trips to Blockbuster meant coming home with a selection of films that would guide their entertainment choices. The conversation leads to a deeper examination of how the gaps in movie releases—between the theater and home video—created a sense of anticipation that has largely vanished in today's instant-access environment. As they dissect Tropic Thunder, they touch on themes of satire, the absurdity of Hollywood, and the unique performances that make the film a memorable experience. J.J. expresses his personal struggle with Ben Stiller's comedic style, arguing that while the film's ensemble cast shines, Stiller's presence often detracts from the overall enjoyment. Mattson and Alec counter with their appreciation for the film's humor and its sharp commentary on the film industry, underscoring the varying perspectives on comedy and its execution in cinema. Together, they navigate the balance of nostalgia and critique, creating a rich dialogue that celebrates the complexities of comedy and the changing landscape of film consumption.

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I'd go to Blockbuster and come home with five or six movies that I'd never seen before.

And I hadn't had a chance to go to the theater to see them, so I wanted to watch them, right?

And there used to be a gap, like little kids listening, watching.

There used to be time between movie theater and when it came out on video.

And when I say time, I didn't mean a month or two.

I meant there, sometimes a year before I could watch it in my house.

Welcome to the what's podcast.

We fashion ourselves cinematic judge and Jerry.

My name is J.J.

crowder.

I'm here with my co host Matzenheider.

Better Red Than Dead and Alec Burgess.

Let's get it.

We appreciate you tuning in.

Go hit that.

Follow subscribe like bell Notification buttons help us keep the podcast rolling.

Tell a friend about us.

Tell a family member about us.

Hello, Wookie about us.

Jake on I was about to say you could tell a wookie about us.

It feels like it's very.

That was your wookie.

That was my.

Oh, you didn't know that that was his wookie?

I thought he was doing some new wave slaying like this Skibidi Riz Ohio stuff.

I haven't practiced my, my wookie.

So that's, that's all I got.

Yeah, it was a woogie.

But yeah, tell a wookie about us.

But also tell like, and maybe in this case, you know, a method actor about us.

That would work too.

So yeah, it's a week two of our.

What was again?

Like, I always forget, like I don't know why I'm having such a hard time remembering the theme.

Like, I know it's comedies, but all time favorite.

All time favorite.

Yeah, I think that's what it actually was.

So all time favorite comedies.

Round two.

We're here talking about Tropic Thunder.

It was written by Justin Thoreau, Ben Stiller and Eaton Cohen, Ethan Cohen.

It was directed by Ben Stiller, stars Ben Stiller, Jack Black, Robert Downey Jr.

Jeff Khan, Anthony Ruvar, Jay Barell, Brandon T.

Jackson, Steve Coogan and Nick Nolte.

With some other people in there that we'll talk about.

I'm sure it's about.

Through a series of freak occurrences, a group of actors shooting a big budget war movie are forced to become the soldiers they are portraying.

I think that's slightly misleading, but that's okay.

I got some strong opinions about this movie, but this is a Matson movie.

Matson, tell us why you picked this Movie, my friend.

Look, this movie, I don't know what I came across, this movie, it's probably around the time it came out, maybe a year or two after, maybe.

I don't know.

I think it's one of those movies I first came across on TV and was just like, what am I watching right now?

This weird, weird movie.

Robert Downey Jr.

S character decided to die himself.

Like what?

Like, and then, I mean, there's so many famous people in this movie, like, good actors and.

But what stood out the most is Tom Cruise's character.

Just, it's.

I mean, just rewatching this last night, I mean, dude just gets me.

I love his character, so it just makes me laugh.

From the prosthetics to his super hairiness, to his, like, what seemed like larger than life forearms and hands.

And then just the way he just harasses people on the phone.

That scene with the terrorists when he was like, giving his demands and threats.

And then.

Why am I forgetting what's his actual name in the movie?

It's the producer.

What's his name?

Gosh dang it.

Tom Cruise's character's name.

I don't even know because it's not even in the credits, so I can't remember something like that.

Less something.

He just.

The guy's face after he hears what he says, like, just.

I just love it.

Like, talk about well placed cuss words, man.

Perfect, perfect, perfect.

And then outside of that, the movie within the movie, the trailers for the movies, where these stars came from, I just love that part.

Still, all those make me giggle because they're all over the top.

And I like movies that make fun of themselves.

And to me, this movie does a great job at certain parts throughout of it.

Am I here to say again, is this another, like, foolproof plot?

Great movie.

No, it's not that.

But man, this movie does make me chuckle.

And even watching it later on, like, I still look forward to any scene Tom Cruise is in, especially, just gets me jazzed.

Fair enough.

Alec, what about you?

What did you think of Tropic Thunder?

So I'm not a big Ben Stiller fan, and I had a moral dilemma with this movie that I never thought I would ever experience with any movie ever.

So Oshi's been playing this ghost game, like, video game phobia.

Okay, I know the game.

You're like a ghost hunter.

Yeah, I was upset because I had having to play with her.

I was upset that I had to stop being a ghost hunter to go watch Tropic Thunder.

Had you Seen this movie before.

Oh, yeah, yeah.

But I was just like, I gotta go watch Tropic Thunder means I can't hunt ghosts anymore.

Like that.

That was where my mind went.

And that did.

And I caught myself afterwards going, what the fuck?

I'd rather hunk ghost.

I was gonna say, because you can get your ass if you're not careful.

Oh, no, it's gotten my ass.

But I was like, I'd rather.

And I had to sit there and, like, really rethink my life choices after that, because I was like, no, Tropic Thunder is not that bad.

It's not so bad.

I should be upset having this.

Stop ghost hunting to go find.

Are you saying we need to put in a scary movie?

Like a real.

No, I'm not saying that.

I was just saying that's kind of what I'm hearing.

This was a moral dilemma of my soul that I was not expecting to have.

We can fix.

We can fix this.

Where we can help you remember that there are scary movies out there.

I.

I see your point, though, Alec.

You choosing a scary something over anything else feels weird.

I was.

I was shocked at myself because I was like, no, no, no, no.

This is not what I really want to be doing.

What I want to be doing is going watching the comedy film.

Oh, that's funny.

But, yeah, so Ben Stiller is a weird one for me, and I.

It's like he's hit or miss.

And it is usually when it hits, it feels like it's other people in the movie that make it hit.

Because he went full.

Yeah, 100.

That's the entire reason.

But I mean, even, like, you know, Night Museum, right?

Where really he's the only person in the movie.

In a lot of times, the show still gets stolen by a giant stone head.

And Robin Williams.

And Robin Williams.

And so it's.

It's tricky because I'm like, he's.

He's the one who's directing it.

He's the main actor, the headliner, puts himself in it.

I'm like, I would rather just watch Robert Downey Jr.

And Danny McBride go on a buddy cop movie in Vietnam.

Like, that would be fun.

I don't feel like.

I feel like this is a movie, though, where he made fun of him.

Made fun of himself a lot.

And I never felt like.

I know he was technically the main character and he directed it, but I think this movie celebrated the comedy of what other people brought to the table, and he was just a part of the ride.

I'd never looked at him as like the, like, central focus of the movie.

But maybe I have a different viewpoint.

This movie is like, It's a conundrum for me because there are so many people and things about this movie that I love.

But I hate Ben Stiller.

I'm going to take it a step further.

I don't even, like, have an issue or struggle with.

I cannot stand Ben Stiller.

Like, there is very little, if anything that he's done that I'm like, oh, that's funny.

Like, I don't find him funny at all.

I find him stupid.

Like, he actually annoys me.

And so it makes.

Makes things hard to watch when he's in them.

For me, the problem is, is there's some genius performances in this.

And I know it's like.

And I.

You hear about it because of the nature of what Downey's character is done.

Like, that's like.

But he really kills it in this movie.

Across the board.

The Jack Black is the hilarious comedy.

Like, is wild because he's the comic relief inside of a comedy because he's just running around like a wild man with his addiction.

And.

And I love parody.

No, jj Jelly beans.

Yes, jelly beans.

I.

I love parody.

Like, I think anything that's make.

I'm with you on that.

Matt's.

Anything that makes fun of itself.

And like, this is like this satire on Hollywood and the problems that you've seen in Hollywood throughout all time, right?

Like, how do you win an Oscar?

What are the odds that you're going to win?

What are the chances?

You got to do this.

You got to do that.

And then these people that make all the big millions of dollars but will never win an Oscar because of the types of movies that they're in and then the drug addiction and then like, the people trying to look up and become actors.

Like, and then like the goofy guys that have blown there, have melted ears and lost a finger.

Like, it's just like, I love the satire and the parody of it all, but Ben Stiller ruins it for me because I just can't stand him.

And then there are parts where I'm like.

And this is, I think my problem with Ben Stiller.

There's not a Ben Stiller moot comedy.

Okay, I won't say movie because that's hard for me to say too.

There's very few, if any, that I can think of.

None that I can think of.

Top of my head, Ben Stiller movies where it doesn't go too far.

And I don't mean, like, offensive too far because I Am.

I'm with Alec.

Like, if you can offend me, Jesus Christ, you went off a cliff, climbed back up and went off a cliff further.

You earned it.

Yeah, like, it's almost impossible to truly offend me.

But going too far with like, like, for example, when they come and rescue him and he's got this, like, he's gone full method, right?

And he's got his.

The little kid and he's like refusing to go with them and like all of these other, these different things.

Like, I'm like, what is happening right now?

Because this isn't funny for me.

Like, it, it took what they were trying to do, even the satire, too far.

And I think that's always been my problem with Ben Stiller.

If he's acting in it, if he's directing it, if he's part of a movie, he takes it one step at least, sometimes many more steps farther than it needed to go because the comedy was landing until you went there.

And now I'm just annoyed.

And there's a.

There's a few places where that is.

Like for example, early on when the director gets blown up.

Laughed my ass off at the fact that he gets blown up.

And then everybody's like freaking out, except for Ben Stiller and the kid.

He like, it's not real.

And everybody else is puking and losing their.

And he picks up the head and I even laugh when he puts the head on the end of the gun because it's.

Again, there's images of things like that.

So I was like, that's funny.

It's good satire.

But then like the whole like taste in the blood, then he's like shaking it over.

He just took it one step too far because then it loses me and I go, okay, let's move on to the next piece.

This is an hour and 40 minute movie.

It should have been an hour and 20 because there's pieces that they went.

They hit the comedy, I laughed my ass off.

I go, that's really funny.

Then they go three more steps into the same joke and I'm like, nope, nope, cut that out.

And you made the perfect movie.

I will say that the one place that they did perfect and that they should have done more of is Tom Cruise.

Because the less Grossman character.

I want a movie just of Les Grossman.

I watched it.

Hilarious.

Hilarious.

Is this, Is this Cameron?

Who's.

What was it?

Who's the.

I don't know, the.

That person, the guy that holds the microphone.

Yeah.

I want you to go over there and punch him.

In the face.

I'm sorry.

Yeah, I love it.

Lex Grow.

He's the best part of this movie by far.

And I remember, yeah, I remember sitting in the theater like, is that Tom Cruise?

Yeah, because that's.

At first I was like, is this Tom Cruise?

Because at that point you got to think back to when this is mate.

Yep.

I know he's been in some stuff but.

But like this I was like, I can't think of anything I've ever seen like good boy Tom Cruise play someone like this.

It just made me laugh.

Well, and fun fact, like he was in a not great place at this time.

Like he kind of fallen off.

This was shortly after the Oprah jumping on the couch.

Yeah, like the whole like the Scientology was under a lot of scrutiny at the time.

The fact that he's the one pretty much the face of Scientology from a Hollywood perspective.

The whole Katie Holmes issues, like they had, they were in the midst of divorce and like the whole problem about how he was like, I don't look, I don't know anything that was going on.

But like there's a whole lot of rumors and a whole lot of weird and him jumping up and down on the couch and just being a all around weird son of a.

So like people were kind of afraid to touch him.

And he's a great actor.

We've talked about him a million times.

But like if you do some weird which they make fun of on this movie, like it'll ruin you.

And so this was like one of those things where they're like, well, let's put Tom Cruise on it.

And it kind of.

And so this kind of bounced him back, but he wasn't in a great place to.

But to your point, like you're like I, I literally sitting in the theater going, is that Tom Cruise?

Holy, that's Tom Cruise.

And then it just became even funnier because he's balding, he's got the giant ass hands and he's just weird, ugly.

Goofy looking dude, so big.

And then like.

And then you're is cool that Tom Cruise can be weird.

So I think the one thing, if I had to compliment this movie about one thing and I.

And again, this is a Ben Stiller kind of thing, right?

With him directing it and being very involved.

I will give him credit that he, he did a great job of putting people in places to be funny and to be shocking and to really make fun of Hollywood.

The institution, the problems, the, the great parts.

Like all of that, it does a great job doing what it meant to do.

I just think he gets heavy handed, which is a Ben Stiller thing.

And so it pulls me out of the movie and it really kind of makes me frustrated when I get to those points because I'm like, God damn it, you it up again.

Because I just want to keep laughing and if you just move on to the next set of jokes, I could.

But instead you're trying to milk it for more than it's worth.

So I think that's my biggest frustration with the movie.

But they should make.

They should.

I wanna, they need to come to Tom, Chris, big look.

Let's just make a movie with this character.

Oh my gosh, I freaking love that.

Oh, it'd be hilarious.

So funny.

And they need to have all the prosthetics back because every time I sim.

That's one of the funniest things still.

The rewatch bill just sounds just like that's Tom Cruise.

Like, it's like the.

One of the prettiest boys in Hollywood.

He just looks horrible.

And then the fact that they got him at the end to do the dancing to Ludacris song, I'm sure I don't know if that was ad lib.

And he just kind of did what he did but like for how famous he was again with these, it's like, how did they get him to do that?

And he did it.

Yeah.

And I will say to Ben Still's credit too, like he pulled a lot of people in this movie that were having some struggles at the time because like Downey had just finished Iron man the first one and, and so.

And then immediately this was the follow up for, for Downey and he had signed, I think he signed on to this one before he signed on to Iron Man.

So he hadn't come back yet fully.

So he got him.

Jack Black was kind of in this weird ass place.

He hadn't been.

He was.

Jack Black's always been Jack Black, but he always usually played a side character to a degree.

Then after this he starts to get into some of the more major stuff.

Like he'd had a couple like School of Rock I think was prior to this.

But like there wasn't anything that was like, oh, Jack Black's a mega star.

But this put him back off.

And then we talked about Tom Cruise.

And then.

Yeah, it's just like.

And McConaughey at the time, it was not far off of his bongo weed session around this time too, I think.

So, like, we didn't even talk about Mon.

That's just so funny to hear the TiVo reference.

You get your T.

He uses the.

TiVo to save the day.

It's terrible.

The best part of that whole thing is when he runs away, like, they leave his ass.

They're in the chopper, he turns around and just back into the woods or the jungle.

Like, I liked all that because, like you said, though, it's so holly.

Like, it's so Hollywood, all that.

And even it was funny because they had the movie version of the.

In the award ceremony, like, make what.

What was the phrase?

Making a true movie.

That was fake.

That was true.

Oh, that was just too perfect.

Because that's all the.

Like when they.

In the movie they were making, when Ben Sarah's character dies, like, the arms up being shot.

But then in the real one, he still kind of does, like, because he doesn't know how to not act, even though it's actually happening.

Yep.

No, I.

I love the satire of it all.

And I love the.

The moment when Downey Junior's pulling off the.

The wig and the costume and he's having this, like, crisis of conscience that was caused by Stiller's character because he always gets so deep into his characters.

And, like, because you always hear about the method actors, the ones that take it too far, like the Jared Leto's and the.

Well, like, Ledger who died for it.

Yeah.

Like, you.

You hear about these guys that, like, get into character and never come out of it for months at a time and send people animal heads or whatever to their trailer because they're the.

They're playing the Joker and they gotta.

You know what I mean?

So it's just like, how far is too far to be a great actor?

So I love that they ask these questions, and I.

I love that it was a popular movie in that it turned kind of the face of acting and some of the problems that acting has in Hollywood in general back on itself.

Because I also laugh at the fact that the whole conversation of, like, Ben Stiller's character dying, like, and he's like, I'll get you a G5 and a lot of money.

Like.

And they have this, like, dance party.

Like, then in order to, like, celebrate the fact that they'll be able to utilize him as a tax credit and you Know the.

All the different things that they'll do, like, some charity.

Like, it was just like, holy, this is up.

But you have to go somewhere.

There's probably a conversation like that going on.

I mean, if they got the island, God knows there's people that wouldn't be sad if something happened to an actor that they can then utilize it.

Right.

So it's like, oofty.

What a dirty business to be in.

And so I love that aspect of it.

I love it.

I think it's the best part of the movie.

So my favorite part of the movie is water buffalo.

Oh, yeah.

With the bull ring that somebody would have had to have put there.

This is supposed to be a wild water buffalo, but there's a nose ring in it.

Every time.

Yeah.

I love, like, the.

I just love Jack Black, like, running around, like, the long.

The farther into the detox he gets, like, the crazy, like, the whole being tied to the tree piece.

Like, if you come over here right now, I will suck your dick.

That whole thing.

And then, like, you get, like, the mountain, like, the plateau of heroin that he just, like, runs over to, and then he uses it to get out.

It's fistfuls of heroin.

Like, that's not even how you use heroin, but sure, whatever.

Like, what's the guy that.

Not Nick Nolte, but the explosion guy that I know you don't like very much.

Jj, that character.

That actor's name.

I can't remember his name is the dude that was over the explosions.

Alex said it earlier.

What?

Danny McBride.

Danny McBride I like, like.

And that's one of the reasons I.

Pineapple Express.

I like scenes that he's in.

He just.

He makes me laugh at him and Nick Nolte.

I like their.

Their yin and yang.

I thought they actually worked quite well together in this because every.

There can be too much Danny McBride.

And I can understand that he can wear in people, but I thought there was, like, the perfect amount.

And especially once he found out Nick Nolte wasn't his character wasn't actually a war vet and how offended he was.

I love that.

No, I love Danny McBride in the right dose.

Like, I think he's a genius.

When you get them again, he's one that can go too.

Like, you take it too far, and there's a little too much, like you said.

But he misses great.

Nick Nolte's funny as.

And I've always.

I mean, we've talked about Nick Nolte in the past on the podcast.

I love Nick Nolte.

I think he's so underrated because he got, again, got himself into some trouble and then didn't have a lot to go back on.

So it's.

It's interesting.

And I don't know that I ever really thought about it until I was prepping for the podcast and thinking about it as I was watching it, going, there's a lot of, like, Hollywood outcasts in this movie, especially at the time.

So it fits the narrative that they're trying to say that Hollywood is nasty and it can turn on you in a heartbeat.

And, you know, here's a bunch of people that have, in real time, have had that happen to them, with the exception.

I don't know that Ben Stiller ever went through something like that.

But he's also, like, his dad's been in the business for ages now.

His dad's funny, as his dad's one of the funniest people ever.

And I just wish.

I just wish Stiller was the same way.

He just.

I cannot.

One of my favorite parts of this movie is with Danny Ryden.

Nick Nolte, though.

And he's like.

He's like, what kind of gun you got there?

He's like, I don't know.

I just know the sound it makes.

Whoa.

I wasn't expecting you to go there.

Like.

Yeah, the Nick.

No character.

Like, the whole, like, put him in the jungle.

I'm like, send him in.

And then they come to find out that he's nothing.

He's not a fraud.

And then, like, you have, like, one of the scenes with Stiller that does make me laugh is when he's using the, like, the amputee clause, the prosthetic claws, like.

And he's got, like, the, like, the wanton or whatever the hell he's holding on to.

And they're doing the article about it, like, the news about him on whatever.

Oh, yeah.

Christina Menounos or whatever the her name was.

And he, like, breaks it with the thing.

I'm like, okay, that's funny, because he's, like, leaning in to try.

Well, I'll do.

You know, I'll do some method acting and try to get into character.

And I'm just like, oh, it's so ridiculous.

That part made me laugh.

I do love Al Pacino, too.

I forgot.

What.

Why am I forgetting the Albucha?

What part is he in?

Well, he's the other African American dude.

Oh, yeah.

Alpa Chino.

He's got the weird Butt Sweat soda.

And what was the chocolate bar?

Oh, Booty Sweat.

And I Bust a nut.

Yeah, because that's the first commercial I think you see in the show in the movie.

Yeah, the commercial for Busta Nut and Booty Sweat.

So gross.

Oh, those, those.

The trailer parts, dude, those are up forever.

Be funny to be.

Because that's like really making fun of Hollywood, especially the Simple Jack one is so cringy to me when I'm like, oh, that's painful.

But it was designed to be that way.

I'm like, man, they hit that, right?

Because yeah.

Hurts every time I see it.

I mean, it's not far off too, because I think the ringer had come out right around that time, that whole movie.

If you've ever seen JJ Extremely offensive.

Like, and I love watching what's his name trying to keep a straight face when.

Oh, what's the.

There's a part in that movie that made me laugh my ass off the ringer because what was the.

Dude, Johnny Knoxville plays the main in that.

And there's a moment when the.

The is like, yeah, it took him to get some ice cream.

And one of the kids was like, when we get ice cream and you see Johnny Knoxville just like loses and have to look away.

And they kept it in the movie because it was completely off the cuff.

This kid was like, he.

That was completely ad libbed from this kid in the movie.

He's like, I took him to get some ice cream.

Where the.

Did we get ice cream?

So.

But yeah, like that.

Yeah, the whole.

That, yeah, that part in the movie, you're just like, oh, God.

But it's also a thing where Hollywood makes weird mistakes, makes movies about.

They shouldn't make movies about, that's for damn sure.

But yeah, to me, this movie is just.

They put too much in this movie and it can get.

It gets a little chaotic and hard to know, like the direction, but when you do on like a per character basis.

And I get what you're saying about Ben Stiller.

I like him in some things, obviously.

I like dodgeball.

I like.

What else do I like?

I love heavyweights.

I think when he plays something over the top, that I know it and like that line has been created from the beginning.

I could be okay with it.

There's some other movies that he's in that get aggressively, a little bit more outlandish, that I have a harder time when his Ben Stillerisms kind of take over and like JJ says, does one too many things.

But this movie, there's just so many different funny parts from so many funny people.

But I don't think it's like the best written movie.

And I think that's what you could say about most comedies.

But Tom Cruise, man, Like this.

For that alone, like, this movie I will always turn to for just.

Because when he comes on, especially the first, it just makes me.

He tells I gotta punch the director.

It just makes me laugh.

Yeah.

Because it's so unexpected.

It's Tom Cruise.

Because the Tom Cruise I think of right now, pretty boy, Smooth assassin.

And he's just this old, ugly dude.

And then there's just these weird.

Like, Robert Downey Junior's character, just.

Even when he wasn't a method actor, they still made him Australian.

They didn't make him this dude from America.

I was like, he's still, like, technically method acting for me because he's not Australian.

So.

With the weirdest eyes.

Like, oh, his eyes, dude.

I'm like, how do they do that?

Like, his eyes are crazy.

Just contacts, man.

I know, but wow, Alec, you've been stunningly quiet during this review, buddy.

I just like Tropic Thunder.

I don't know, man.

It's hard for me to say I don't like it, but I don't like it.

It's hard for me to say I like it, but I like it.

It's right in the middle, hot and cold, all over the place.

Because there are so many funny parts where I.

I've never laughed harder.

Yeah.

And then there are so many parts.

Or I'm like, I.

I'm gonna turn it off right now.

Need to see any more.

This is stupid.

And so it's that those big shifts from one to the next and frequently happens in the same scene where you go from almost dying of laughter to whoa.

Or vice versa.

All right.

And you're like, oh, but then, oh, funny.

And I.

It's hard for me to get a reading on it because I go back and forth all the time.

So this is a movie that I don't watch a lot.

Just because it's something that, you know, it's.

It's almost more work than it's worth to have to actually sit down and watch it.

What's funny is when you like the movies that you guys like the most.

Well, that's common.

Like anything.

How many times do you think you've seen the movies that you like the most?

Oh, a lot.

I rewatch movies a lot.

Like, what's a lot?

Are you talking, like, 20, 30?

No.

So I've probably seen Casablanca, which is one of my favorite movies of all time.

200?

300.

Are you serious.

And that's probably a low ball.

That's.

What about you for like the movies you read?

Like, what is that for you?

Yeah, it's tricky for me because to be honest, and I know everybody makes fun of me.

We've been making fun of me on this podcast for almost five years about this.

But I don't re watch a lot of movies.

But when I do re watch them, I re watch them a lot.

Like the Star wars films.

And I won't even go there because Casablanca couldn't even touch what I've watched the Star wars films.

Are you still re watching them?

Absolutely.

At least once a year I watch the Star wars trilogy.

The original trilogy, minimum.

Once a year.

How many.

If you're watching Casablanca that many times, how many times a year are you watching it?

It.

Oh, a lot.

I'll.

I'll watch it probably three times a month.

Are you serious?

I.

I could watch Star Wars Gladiator.

I could watch Gladiator.

Oh, I love Gladiator Anytime.

Anything.

I know you guys know this about me.

Like I have movies.

I really like all.

Any movie that like, you know, you guys, I love Braveheart.

I love JJ just said one of the movies at Gladiator, for instance.

Movie like whatever.

And there's other movies out there.

I've probably seen all of those.

All of my favorite, most favorite movies less than a hundred times.

It may be less than 60.

It probably is less than 60 times.

It's probably closer to like 40 if that, like, the more that I say it.

I, I'm trying to think of movie I've watched the most.

Could be Revenge of the Sith.

I've seen that like, and that might be like seven times, eight times maybe.

That.

That's funny numbers I didn't like.

I don't like Braveheart very much.

I've seen it 40 times.

But that's what's funny with the people that are like, I'm like, damn.

Like, I don't know how.

Now the thing that I find myself like a TV show, for instance, like Seinfeld is probably the thing I've.

But there's so many different episodes that that's where I have spent most of my re watchability is Seinfeld.

But it's different shows but like a movie.

I just don't do that.

And I, I like watching those we get.

I just don't.

For whatever reason, I think I re.

I re watch all the movies I like, but I watch re watch all.

And it takes me forever to get like through it.

Where like, I can't even imagine watching the same movie three times in the same month.

That's crazy town for me.

Oh, that's like regular nuts.

Yeah.

See, I, my problem is I'll get on to like, look for something and I'm like, there's nothing on or back in the day.

And I, I grew up in a non streaming world, right?

So like, you watched what you had or what was available to rent or was available at the movie theater.

Like, and it wasn't always the case, like, especially when I was younger, where I could just be like, I'm just gonna go over to Blockbuster.

And we certainly didn't have Netflix when I was a kid.

And we certainly.

I didn't even, Neither did I, jj.

I know, but like, so, but I, what I did, if I was not playing sports, I was watching movies because that's what I did back then.

And I, I mean, still, to a degree, like, I don't, there's not a, there's rarely a day in the week that goes by that I'm not watching something.

Like, and if it's not necessarily rarely, is it re watching like Casey again.

And I get on and we watch some terrible.

Because that's what's out there right now.

But I don't.

Again, like, we're always just putting on a movie.

Let's watch a movie.

Yeah.

Or let's watch TV show.

I can't.

Fat Tay likes to re.

Watch a lot of especially TV shows, but she'll do some movies.

But I don't know.

I, I, it's the same thing I like to do with food.

Like, I, I have my go to, but I'm that type of person.

I like finding new things to eat and do in like that movie that I just watched the other day.

It's, it's what's inside on Netflix.

I'm glad I watched it.

I liked it.

It was interesting.

And I try to do that more than not.

But man, like, to your point, jj, it does get.

It's funny you mentioned streaming.

Now I feel like it's exacerbated the problem of just watching what you want.

But because we're so inundated with so many new things you could watch.

But you also know, I mean, we do this and we've been doing this for like, what, four or five years?

There's so much crap out there.

So it's so easy to be like, let me just pick from the 30 things that I remember.

Oh, and then you always have that thought, oh, I haven't Seen that in a while, and then you just end up watching that thing that you haven't seen in a while, but you have seen it.

I rewatch now more than I ever have.

There was a time when I would never rewatch because it was like I'd go to Blockbuster and come home with five or six movies that I'd never seen before, and I hadn't had a chance to go to the theater to see them, so I wanted to watch them, right?

And there used to be a Gap.

Fuckers.

Like, little kids, listening, watching.

There used to be time between movie theater and when it came out on video.

And when I say time, I didn't mean a month or two.

I meant there's sometimes a year before I could watch it in my house, okay?

So I would pick stuff up and watch and whatnot.

Now, like, there's no Gap.

Like, if I don't go see.

Well, what was the one that.

So Wolverine.

Like, Deadpool.

Wolverine.

It was not that long ago that movie came out in theaters.

It's already streaming, and it's already getting ready to be on Disney plus for free if you have the subscription.

So it's like, there is no Gap.

And to your point, Madsen, most of the shit that comes out, that's new, that's straight to streaming.

It sucks balls.

So a lot of what times what will happen is I'll go.

We'll go, okay, let's watch a movie.

I'm 10 minutes into the movie going, this movie sucks.

Let's turn it off and watch something that.

And I have to like.

I.

So I rewatch now more than I ever used to because I go back and go, I can't watch this garbage.

And now I'm pissed because I.

It's garbage.

How often do you go to movie theaters now, Jay?

Because I used to go a lot.

Like, I had the amc and then now I got rid of it because it was a little further away.

But then a lot of it was just because I was like, there's nothing I really want nowadays.

Like, besides Doom 2 earlier this year, there has been nothing that I've been like, I have to be in theaters for that.

And I feel like that happens all the time now.

Like, and I know you love to go to the movie theater in Alec Pride, too.

Way more than I loved going to movies growing up.

But now, like, there's not a reason to go.

There's nothing that I want to go see.

It's like, few and far between.

Yeah, I went and saw Deadpool and Wolverine.

I Think before that I saw Dune too, but I saw Deadpool in theaters.

I forgot that's the last thing I saw.

I have.

That's the last thing I saw.

I haven't been to the theater to see anything other than Deadpool or any.

Because it's just like.

And it's sad because I love the theater, but.

And I mean I saw Tropic Thunder in the theater when it came out.

And then this was the first time I'd watched it since then.

But you say to a good point, because a lot of these like so.

So movies will just come out and streaming like two months after they premiere.

And I'm like, well what's the point of me going to the theater then?

Because unless you have that membership, it's buku expensive to go just watch a movie.

Like for.

For me and my ninte.

Like it's stupidly expensive unless you have that membership.

But justify a membership if there's no good movies to go see either.

Well, I don't even have mine anymore either.

Like I was going to see.

There was a time when I had it and I would go see a movie.

Like a couple.

Yeah, I did too.

You know what I mean?

At least two or three movies a week.

I don't even.

Like I said, it's been months since I've been to the movie theater.

Like because I.

Why and to your point, like not even, even the great movies come out and streaming soon after they're in the theater.

So it's not like I have to go, oh, I gotta go see that in the theater.

That was the other thing.

Like if I wanted to see a movie when I was a kid, you either saw it in the theater or it was a while.

Like it was at least six, seven months before you might get it on hbo.

Like you didn't have stream, like you couldn't just pay for it digitally and watch it.

You had to wait for it to come out on HBO or Cinemax or Stars or whatever the hell it was coming out on.

Then you could go rent it somewhere if you didn't have the premium channel subscriptions or pay for that through your cable.

So now we're so to your point.

We're so spoiled the content that the content's crap because they're just like, we know it doesn't matter if it sucks or not.

We have to release content to keep people paying for our subscription.

And that I just even like my.

My in laws love like the Hallmark Movie Channel for instance.

And it's just makes me laugh because there's people that like, like them and watch them and.

And I'm like, they're just one of many studios that are just cranking out stuff to make content.

And I know a lot of streaming services are losing money and they're trying to tighten their budgets, and I think that's a great thing because we have too much content.

Delusion is what I come down to.

Like, just because you can make it doesn't mean you should make it.

And that goes for anything.

You mean from Star wars to Marvel?

Like, you look at any of the biggest things to the smallest things, like all.

Especially Star wars and Marvel, for instance.

And Marvel is a great example of it.

They found it, the secret sauce, and then they went too far and they diluted their product.

And now, like, it's so funny.

What do we have, four or five?

How many years away are we from Endgame?

It's been like five, six years.

What is Marvel now?

Marvel is.

It's so.

Is.

It's nothing.

And like, Star Wars.

Jay would say the same thing again, we've talked about that on this podcast.

And you literally said, she's like, don't get me wrong.

I love that we're making new Star wars content, but I think when we were in the throes the last few years, they were making so much stuff, it was just too much.

And it wasn't, at least for me.

It didn't feel like the vibes of what we wanted and they were making just because they could.

And now they're kind of pulling back, and I think.

I think they're being a lot more intentional again.

But that's a lot of what's happening these days.

Yeah, agreed.

And it fits within the diatribe of this movie, right?

Like, Hollywood sucks.

They have some really shitty practices.

And it's all about money.

All about.

Is all about the money.

Think about all the sequels, remakes, reboots.

How much original content are we really getting that actually is worth watching?

It's.

I can't think.

It's.

There's not much out there.

There's.

There's no original content.

Yeah, you've seen it already.

How did they make so many.

The same type of movies and all things.

And, like, I mean, we're looking at a period of cinema.

Like, this isn't a golden age of cinema.

We're far from a horrible CGI Just fast track plots, remakes all.

Like, well, I feel like we'll look back in 20 or 30 years and this will just be a dead period where it's like, oh, that was movie during that period.

Like, yeah, we'll pass on that.

It feels like we're in that right now.

It'll be the 50s.

Seriously though, you have a half dozen movies that were good and people remember.

Here'S the crazy part.

And then we can rate this movie because we've gone a little off track.

Even though it's exactly on track, it just feels off track.

I.

What I would like to see.

And this is hard for me to say because we know how much I love movies and when we do this podcast.

But, like, I think we need to go back to the days where content was more difficult to see and you had to wait.

Because I appreciated stuff, even if it wasn't great.

There was a lot of content that was there, but I took it with a grain of salt because I understood I may not see another movie in my house for six months.

Right?

Like, or I'm gonna have to watch the same things that I've seen before because there's not new things.

What I don't want to go away is, like, the television shows, the access to content, like TV stuff, or like the episodic stuff, I think is great to have in the streaming zone.

That's good because it's easier to digest.

You can take longer to make it.

People are.

And there's more ability to do that.

Movies to me, should be special.

Like, that's why I've always had a hard time with movies that are based off of TV shows that were successful.

Like, I don't usually.

I can't think of one off top of my head where it's like, here's this awesome TV show that ran for four or five years.

Let's make.

But then the ratings fell off and they canceled it before they were done.

So they made a movie to finish it.

I don't.

I cannot think of one that was great.

What I can think of is great television and I can think of great movies, but there was a reason that they're great.

And I.

So I like streaming content for tv.

I really like it for, like, real content, like documentaries and things.

Like, I think that's great.

The streaming space is wonderful.

I think it kills the movie industry because again, they're making too much.

And they weren't original to begin with, let's be honest.

Not in decades has there been actual original content.

Because they just take the same and they regurgitate it and they make some updates to what the content might actually be.

But it's the same story.

It's always been the same stories.

It'll always be the same stories.

It's just how unique can you tell that story?

But because we're getting the same stories every day, once a week, six times a.

You know what I mean?

Like, it's constant, a barrage of the same.

You get numb to it.

So I would love for them to pull movies, new movies out of the streaming piece.

Fine.

All the old movies that we could rent at the theater, like, there's no more.

There's no such thing as renting movies anymore through, like physical put all the stuff that's come out.

But there needs to be a Gap, Deadpool, Wolverine comes out.

Needs to be a minimum six months before you can actually grab it.

In my opinion, that's why movies are also getting hurt.

Because you're right, Jake.

Because people now know, like, shoot, I'll just wait two months.

And I don't have.

I'm already paying for the streaming service instead of having to pay $60 for two movie tickets and like, popcorn, all that crap.

Like, I get why people are waiting, because we.

You're giving them reason to.

What's the incentive?

Yeah, wait, great example.

Episode one.

I camped out for three days to get tickets to go see it in the movie theater.

Because I knew and I watched it six times in the first week in the movie theater.

And I won't even say the number.

I watched it while it was still in theaters.

Like, we hunted down dollar theaters across the state to go find it so that we could keep watching it.

Because we knew once it was out of theaters, we were a minimum of a year before I could get it in my house.

So it made going to the movie special, even if the movie wasn't great or wasn't the best thing I've ever seen.

Now, going to the movies isn't special.

It just isn't.

And I.

Because.

And that's unfortunate, but it's because to your point, why, I just got to be patient and wait a few months at most before I can watch it.

If it's an absolute dud in the theater, it'll be in the fucking streaming in six weeks, sometimes less.

What are your thoughts, Alec, before we rate this thing?

Yeah, I mean, I am a big Fan of not having streaming at all.

And I hate the way that it's kind of gone.

Because the idea of streaming was the ease of access.

The, you know, you watch it on your time.

You don't have to deal with commercials or breaks or anything like that.

But now every single streaming service has ads broken in there.

So it took all the.

It's.

It's a huge bait and switch because it was.

You know, there used to be good content.

Now you're looking for stuff like we tried to get Young Frankenstein fucking nowhere.

Anywhere.

But, you know, we have 47 movies that were made this last month that are all dog shit.

So it took kind of that.

The whole reason that I think it was originally brought about was the ease of access.

Go find stuff that you can't find anymore.

Right.

And.

Oh, it's.

You know, you don't have to worry about commercials or anything like that.

And then now it's.

Yeah, ads and commercials just all thrown in there.

So it's.

I think it's the biggest bait and switch that we've ever seen.

And I don't even remember what the last movie was I went to go see in theaters.

Yeah.

But probably something for the podcast.

Yeah, it might have been.

But it's just one of those scenes where it's like, it was such a great concept that's turned into the biggest money grab ever.

Yeah.

I remember when Hulu was pure.

Yeah.

Before it was owned by a corporation.

It was.

They put old TV show episodes up there that you could go watch, you couldn't find anywhere else because reruns.

Right.

Yeah.

And then like all the perks of having streaming just got kind of pulled out.

Yeah.

It's just a new version of cable.

It's now the new version of cable.

Except it's twice as expensive as cable was.

Yeah.

I don't know.

Cable was really expensive.

I mean, we're getting to a point with all the getting close streaming services now where.

Yeah.

You kind of have to at some point, unless you're jj, Gotta maybe pick like your top three.

Wow.

And that's.

I mean, if I.

When I go back and look at what I pay for streaming to have it all, it's.

It's less than I was paying for full cable, but it's not far off.

And the sad part is, like, I don't even get my.

Unless I Pay extra.

I don't even get like the sports and that I used to get with real cables.

So it's.

It's a tough.

It won't be long before they're gonna.

Something's gonna have to give because you can't have both sides be.

The thing that got me a little while ago was I was on Amazon prime, right?

I think I was looking for Django.

And you can watch Django on Amazon prime if you use Amazon prime to get a star subscription.

Yeah.

Or something stupid like that.

Now Amazon prime is like the middleman for other streaming subscriptions.

No, the worst part.

The worst part.

It's even worse, Alec.

Amazon Prime.

I pay for Amazon prime, right?

Which used to come with prime video, which means I can either get serious some videos for free because they're part of the prime subscription or you have access to rent things through prime, whatever it is, the newer stuff.

Now Amazon prime has a freaking premium subscription.

So I don't have ads.

So I gotta pay an extra five bucks a month in on top of my hundred and some odd dollars for my Amazon Prime a year in order to be able to watch without.

They're all doing that now.

I know, but it pisses me out.

I pay for a membership just to have to pay extra.

I.

I get like having it.

I kind of get having an ad free version.

Like I get with the concept, right?

What I don't hate what the worst part for me was Amazon because I'm already paying for your subscription.

Dick hole.

You can't make me pay on top of this subscription.

So I don't have ads on that I'm already paying for horseshit.

Anyway, there's my soapbox.

Let's rate this movie.

Matson, this was yours.

You start us off, buddy.

Yeah, I'll give it a three and a half.

It's like not a great movie, but there's a lot a collection of great actors.

It's funny.

There's some really funny scenes, some quotes that I really enjoy.

But Tom Cruise's character just takes it for me.

Will always make it funny because of that.

And I love how this movie starts with the different trailers of the characters that are in this movie.

Makes me chuckle.

Ben Sibler's a little over the top at times.

I can understand that.

I just like a lot of actors in this movie and there's certain parts it just.

It's enjoyable to watch and this movie has rewatch ability to me.

I don't know like we just talked about.

Couldn't tell you.

Next time I'M gonna watch it probably a long time, but when I do, I gotta love it.

Yeah, I'm gonna give it a two and a half.

I'll give it right down the middle.

I think it's, it's a tale of two movies for me, like the movie itself and what it's trying to do, and a lot of the supporting cast and even a couple of the main characters are really funny to me and really enjoyable.

I think it's well written.

I think it tells a hole.

It tells a true, actually kind of awful story and tale within the boundaries of a comedy.

I hate Ben Stiller, and he ruins this movie for me, though, because I just don't like him.

I, I don't like him in this movie.

I don't like him in any movies, really, that I can think of.

He just takes things too far.

He's not funny to me at all.

And I think if you're going to lead a comedy and be the comedy guy, you better be funny to me.

But I know some people find him hilarious, and kudos to them.

I wish I could, but I just don't.

So he takes his way down a notch.

I won't actively look to watch this movie.

Like I said, I hadn't seen it since I was in.

Seen it in theaters.

I've seen clips, right?

Because there's some funny stuff.

Like I'm just a dude dressed as a dude playing another.

Like, there's some great quotable lines in this movie, but none of them come from Ben Stiller, who just brings this movie down to me.

I think J BE shows like, the hidden gem in this movie because he's just, like, really funny, trying to be the grounded person in the whole group.

But I don't know.

I, I.

There are parts that I really enjoy, then there are parts that are just to me.

And that's unfortunate, but.

All right, Alec, your turn.

I think we found our cold opening.

I'm gonna go right in between you guys.

I'm gonna give it a 3.

There's not a lot of good that I can say about this movie, but there's also not a lot of bad.

Like it.

I appreciate what Mata was saying.

Like, it knows what it is, and it does not try and do anything else.

And that's something you don't always see.

Where you'll get kind of that vibe from or the cast, whatever.

That's what it feels like is it's making fun of itself, and then it tries to throw, you know, a curveball in there with some big moral Life lesson or something other.

This movie just does not give two.

It knows what it is.

It shows up.

It does not, you know, try and bait and switch or change up what it is.

It is just making fun of Hollywood and a lot of drug jokes.

That's what it is.

And so, yeah, I'll give it a three.

I don't think I'll really.

I'll watch it again.

I can't tell you when though, because it's just one of those like.

Like we.

Like I said earlier, the beginning, I would have rather played a ghost game then watch Tropic Thunder right off the bat.

But yeah, I give it three.

All right, there it is.

Interesting scores, but it was fun.

Good chat.

Completely off and on topic at the same time.

Really weird.

I love movies like that.

People listen to us.

Yeah.

You can't argue with the fact that it.

It's a.

It's a conversation starter for sure.

That is true.

So with that, Alec, tell everybody where they can find us.

Happy to, jj.

So thank you for tuning in to week two of all time Favorite comedies month.

Matt's came through with a banger on this one, Tropic Thunder special.

Shout out to our patrons who had a hand in picking the topic and the movies for said topic.

Richard, mel Brooks and JJ's luscious lickable lump.

Yes.

If you too would like to be a part of the Patron crew, join us on Patreon at what's our verdict?

Reviews where you also could be a member of JJ's Luscious Lookable Lumps and company.

That's the place to do it.

To get involved in any kind of content voting.

That's the best place to find us.

Other than that, find us on YouTube where we can see our smiling faces and Matson's face palms.

With that, I will kick it back to the Titan of terror, the colossus of clout.

A jj.

Yeah, look, if for no other reason to join the Discord or the Discord.

The.

I got too many things.

I'm part of the Patreon.

You get to force Alec to say ridiculous names every week.

So.

Yes, yes, and we appreciate the first one that's been.

This one's a lot.

I mean, yeah, it's good.

So.

Yeah, as always.

Look, we appreciate you tuning in.

We'll catch you on the next one.

Boy.

Hasta la vista, baby.