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posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 10:31 AM on April 19, 2024

Surprising fact I learned recently: not only did Twister have a bigger budget than Independence Day, it was significantly bigger ($88-92 million versus ID4's $75 million).
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 3:50 PM on March 20, 2024

This aired last week, meant to post but totally forgot!

I thought the episode was okay, but was really impressed by the new voice actors -- totally could have fooled me if I went in not knowing about the Roiland scandal. (Speaking of voice acting, this episode stars Hugh Jackman as himself!)
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 9:59 PM on October 22, 2023

potrzebie: "Maybe I'm reading too much into it but to me this explicitly felt like a "now we can actually be the Simpsons" episode - it feels to me like Roiland has been seen as a potential liability for a long time and as the show sheds him it becomes something that could be on the air for many years rather than waiting for the other shoe to drop as it has been."

Right on the money, actually! From a recent THR interview with… [more]
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 10:18 PM on October 24, 2023

Finally caught this on VOD -- so damn fun. It's wild that after decades of iterations in every pop medium that this is the first version to actually have the Mutant Ninja Turtles be Teenage. That and the shared recording sessions made it feel so much more authentic (though I suspect the slang will feel dated pretty quickly). I also loved how scroggly and weird the animation got -- some of the background characters were borderline Picasso-ish and looked more like something… [more]
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 7:56 AM on September 2, 2023

The Wizard of Oz (1939) vs. War of the Worlds (2005)
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 2:07 PM on September 24, 2022

[Production note: the role of Jeff the cab driver was recast between seasons due to the original actor's contractual obligations to an HBO series.]
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 7:19 PM on July 25, 2022

I think a lot of the menacing aura from the old actor comes from the assumption a lot of us probably made at the time that he was part of some mysterious underworld scheme to entrap Gene. Re-watching the original scene with the knowledge he's just a socially awkward nobody who wants to buddy up with a local legend (and maybe razz him a bit about his secret identify), it still works. And it sort of makes sense that he's a whole different person (in-universe and IRL) once the tables have turned… [more]
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 10:43 AM on July 26, 2022

lmao:

I am not crazy! I am not crazy. I know he swapped those actors! I knew it was Don Harvey. The officer from that HBO show, as if I could ever make such a mistake. Never. Never! I just- I just couldn’t prove it. He-he covered his tracks. He got that idiot at the casting department to lie for him. You think this is something? You think this is bad? This, this recasting? He’s done worse. Kaylee's actress! Are you telling me that a character just happens to constantly… [more]
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 11:43 AM on July 26, 2022

nightcoast: "Re-watching the Magic Man scene, I'm again impressed with how ambiguous this show can be. Is Jeff being menacing in getting Jimmy to perform Saul? Or is he just excited about the sheer charisma of Saul"

It also helps that his amused, aggressively friendly vibe is eerily similar to Lalo's facade.

ssmith: "The thing I felt most in this episode was the bewildering… [more]
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 12:03 PM on July 26, 2022

AV Club: Prepare yourselves: The next episode of Better Call Saul is titled "Breaking Bad"

One of the questions hanging over the back half of BCS’s final season has, after all, been when Gould and Gilligan might deploy the appearances by Breaking Bad stars Aaron Paul and Bryan Cranston that they promised fans back in April. And, sure: Better Call Saul is a show that loves a little clever misdirection, and… [more]
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 8:28 PM on July 27, 2022

Visit Beautiful Omaha, Nebraska: Home of the World's Largest Bottle Episode!™
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 10:52 AM on July 31, 2022

This is fun: the photos from Howard's memorial service were lifted directly from Patrick Fabian's Instagram.
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 9:29 PM on July 20, 2022

Very late to the party on this but I'm thoroughly enjoying both the show and these threads. Love the "promoting 'retired' innies to full-time Manchurian Candidates" theory but wonder how that would happen logistically -- wouldn't their friends and family prevent that from working?

Also: best colorful surprise dance party in an eerie cerebral sci-fi drama since Ex Machina.
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 9:19 PM on July 13, 2022

Did the 3 or 4 henchmen that Lalo shot upstairs in the laundry not qualify for the pit burial?

Good catch, though I imagine they got the proper funeral they couldn't/wouldn't give Howard and Lalo.
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 9:05 AM on July 12, 2022

I've always loved Ebert's review of the movie.

"There's your dog; your dog's dead. But where's the thing that made it move? It had to be something, didn't it?"

These words, by a woman who has just buried her dog, are spoken in "Gates of Heaven." They express the central mystery of life. No philosopher has stated it better. They form the truth at the center of Errol Morris' 1978 documentary, which is… [more]
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 8:08 PM on June 7, 2022

It's incredible how completely they turned around perceptions of Howard since season 1. He deserved so much better. I'm surprised they didn't have him mention how much their "prank" screwed over the Sandpiper residents, just to underscore how shitty and excessive it was and how thoroughly Jimmy in particular sold out his old, respectable career in elder law.

Just thinking now, Kim's decision to turn around and commit to D-Day obviously put Howard in Lalo's path… [more]
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 7:33 PM on May 23, 2022

bleep: "I liked how Howard pieces together the entire scheme immediately but of course sounded like a madman. I always think when I see this happen on tv when people say something that sounds improbable but is true, that if someone ever came to me with a story like that it'd be better to just hear them out, even if I did think they were on drugs."

I liked how they avoided that cliché but still got to the same narrative place by having Cliff… [more]
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 10:52 AM on May 24, 2022

At first I thought Gus had abandoned his house for the security of the superlab out of sheer paranoia, but then I saw this A+ observation in the Reddit post-episode discussion:

Gus pitched “Spice Curls” in the meeting with Madrigal/Schuler last season. When he said it again to the customer, it triggered his brain to thinking Lalo might dig into Madrigal/Germany/Werner.

Guess that explains why he planted the gun -- he knows there's a showdown coming.
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 10:51 PM on May 9, 2022

essexjan: "I realised what Nacho was going to do even before the episode started when (Netflix UK) there was a warning that the episode contained scenes of violence, bad language and suicide. Way to go, Netflix, spoiling your own show."

FWIW, I read on the BCS subreddit that these warnings appear on all episodes and warn about everything that happens season-wide.
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 1:21 PM on April 27, 2022

From /r/Better call Saul:

AMA with Michael Mando (Nacho Varga) on /r/BetterCallSaul, May 2nd, 10am PST / 1pm EST!
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 3:37 PM on April 28, 2022

Thanks to my general apathy regarding keeping up with the MCU (and my brother's insistence on seeing it ASAP while visiting during the holidays) I got to experience this in about the best way possible: watching Homecoming and Far From Home for the first time during the day, and then seeing No Way Home at the theater that night. I'd heard a few rumors about old favorites returning, but was expecting a quick cameo and not an entire third act.… [more]
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 2:28 PM on December 24, 2021

While the movie itself was bombastic, impressionistic, alien, and beautiful, a warning: I saw it in a "liemax" theater and the sound was so loud I think it might have actually caused some hearing damage. Not cool.
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 11:28 PM on October 28, 2021

So I image searched the 2016 play just to see what Platt looked like at the time to see if he ever did look the part (he did, kind of). But the funniest thing comparing the play to the trailer is how they very obviously shaved his arms. At least it makes more sense than that haircut.
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 9:58 PM on September 23, 2021

Note: If you haven't been comfortable seeing this in theaters, it will be available for streaming one night only next Wednesday (August 18th) for $20 on A24's Screening Room service. It says there's a 4-hour window for starting the stream (9 PM - 1 AM Eastern), and you have four hours to finish it once you start.
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 9:43 PM on August 12, 2021

Bo's between my brother and me in age, and I've watched him since his earliest 240p YouTube days. It's been fascinating watching him grow as an artist. The "We Think We Know You" finale to what. has long been one of my all-time favorite stage performances. And the first half was pretty much at that tier. But the second half blew it all away. I can't stop thinking about it.

It strikes the same raw nerve as peak Radiohead -- the prescient… [more]
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 8:47 PM on June 27, 2021

Could I interest you in everything about "Inside"?
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 12:18 PM on July 21, 2021

Just got done watching a copy my brother bought for the family to see. I wanted to like it, and it definitely looked great, but goddamn did I hate it by the end. Plugging it into my Flickchart, I can say it isn't in my bottom 10 most hated movies, but only because it's #11.

The worldbuilding made no sense. The plot made no sense. The writing was mediocre at best. The emotional crux of the movie was built on a confrontation between two emotionally… [more]
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 8:21 PM on December 29, 2019

I haven't, but I loved Johnson's Breaking Bad work and stand firmly on his side of the Star Wars sequel divide, so it's definitely going on my "to-watch" list, thanks!
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 11:28 AM on December 30, 2019

fleacircus: "This has an 84% RT critics score lmao.

I didn't think it was going to be great, but it was shockingly terrible, my God."

Even stranger when considering the very mediocre 40% user score (Metacritic has a similarly wide critic/review split, at 80/6.2). I usually land on the critic's side of such divides, or at least can appreciate why they like it when broader audiences don't, but I'm legit baffled at what anybody saw in this thing beyond the visuals.
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 4:13 PM on February 11, 2020

UGH. LIKE MANY HERE, I'M MAINLY ANGRY AT ROTTEN TOMATOES TO HAVE
LED ME SO BADLY ASTRAY.

          BADLY ASTRAY

           AD   ASTRA

posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 12:08 PM on January 3, 2021

PussKillian: ""A mustard seed of faith and a world class hog."

I nearly choked, I laughed so hard."

"Move mountains."

"With which? With which?!"
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 10:23 PM on August 22, 2020

The best thing about the Porky Pig bit is that you can hear the exact moment Griffin comes up with the idea (0:38 in this clip) and then about 20 seconds of him just barely holding it together while Travis gamely reads the ad copy.
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 9:04 PM on June 22, 2020

Apparently the question in the episode title was borrowed from an old Onion video clip:

Should Obama Blow The Silver Horn The Founding Fathers Left In Case The Country Ever Needed Them?
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 10:13 PM on April 26, 2020

Three episodes in. I love the animation and the little off-kilter worldbuilding segments at the start are intriguing, but totally lose interest once the "podcast" starts. The conversations just feel so rambling and surface-y, name-dropping philosophical ideas and magic and drugs and religion like a stoner freshman in a college dorm. The near-total disconnect with the visuals is also distracting, but maybe it would be more so if the dialogue wasn't such filler.
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 7:45 PM on April 24, 2020

The premise was intriguing but the ending was such a letdown. Really tired of movies with such cop-out endings -- simply cutting to black before we find out what happens isn't the same thing as leaving things open to interpretation. It's not artistic, it's just a cliffhanger that never resolves.
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 1:19 PM on March 26, 2020

Looks like my decision to skip this (preserving TLJ as an open-ended finale full of possibilities) and engaging with Abrams' petulant mess of a plot solely by skimming Wikipedia (just so all the negative reviews would make sense) was the right call. What a waste.
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 9:33 PM on December 30, 2019

drezdn: "Has Totinos advertised with them after the special?"

Prolly sarcastic, but: "I love Totino's. Totino's. They make Totino's Pizza Rolls. You know, Totino's Pizza Rolls. What's even in there? I love it."

(Followed up by one of the most immaculate reveals in Monster Factory history)
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 3:43 PM on December 1, 2019

But wait, there's more!

After production finished, HBO ran a full prop auction of hundreds of items from the show. Lots of dresses, some furniture, campaign swag, etc., but more than a few interesting highlights, callbacks, and hidden bits of comedy:

- Selina's "squeak to the nation" shoes (scene)
- Minna's "Angry Birds" clock gift (scene)
- Amy's "autopsy" report, including at least one page… [more]
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 11:19 PM on July 1, 2019

I just want to know how June and Serena were able to have that extremely cathartic shouting match in the very echoey Lincoln Memorial without any of the approximately fifty million handmaids and guards hearing them a stone's throw away.
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 2:46 PM on June 26, 2019

Finally got this on Redbox; still digesting, but I gotta say it's a testament to how well-directed this is that it wasn't until watching the special features afterwards that it even occurred to me that the same actors were playing both roles and that it took careful planning and SFX trickery to film the doppelgänger scenes. Not in the sense that I thought they used different actors or something, but that it was so entrancing that I just accepted at face value that they were talking to themselves… [more]
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 10:51 PM on June 25, 2019

Also, I like the interpretation of Red's explanation just being conjecture on her part, with the Tethered world being some kind of metaphysical dreamtime sort of place instead of a literal government cloning experiment gone wrong. Like horror plots where every mirror becomes a portal into a mirror universe, but replace mirrors with "anyplace that leads underground." It's our collective cultural subconscious guilt boiling over into something very real.
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 1:29 AM on June 26, 2019

I was here! It was a super fun night. The MBMBAM portion was shorter than I thought -- I'd always figured live shows ran long and they edited out the filler -- but it was rounded out by Warm-up segments for Sawbones (Justin and Sydnee talk Alabama medical history) and Shmanners (Travis and Teresa explore the history of "sir" and "ma'am").

(Also, we as an audience were privileged to enjoy one of the last great "69" jokes before Trump ruined them.)
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 11:50 PM on February 13, 2019

The Alabama Theater seats 2500, which works out to 1725 tickets sold (nice). Ticket prices were ~$35 plus fees IIRC, add in merch sales and it'd be around $65K gross before expenses for a 2 ½ hour show.

I can't imagine it's that expensive of a production to mount, though -- just permutations of six family members at a plastic table with basic lighting, mics, and riffing on crowdsourced content. I can recall precisely one stagehand setting… [more]
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 10:54 PM on February 14, 2019

stevis23: "And there's a quick, voice-over only line where Helen tells Lucius to "Say hi to Honey for me" that I'm convinced was only added in because they belated realized they hadn't given Lucius's wife a name (He only says "Honey" in the "Where is my super-suit?" scene.) "

Nitpick: They did animate her line there, though your theory does sound pretty plausible given the way SLJ reads it later on.
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 11:59 AM on March 3, 2018

LTTP, but Bob's death was so irritating I had to come back here and vent.

- Reiner has eyes on the whole building. He couldn't wait an extra minute till the monster was clear?
- Betrayed by a mop tapping on the floor, really?
- These things broke through reinforced windows and metal hatches like tissue paper. Yet after shutting a flimsy set of wooden doors you think that's a fine time to turn around, inspect your work, take a breather?… [more]
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 6:05 PM on February 10, 2018

The Assassination of Yogi Bear by the Coward Booboo
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 1:48 PM on November 17, 2017

(FYI SansPoint, your link just points back to this thread)
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 8:00 PM on September 20, 2017

tomorrowromance: "I thought this was really interesting until the movie stopped dead for about 15 solid minutes to explain exactly what was going on. I still liked it more than I didn't, but I really think it would have been much better to leave the mechanics unexplained and let the viewer puzzle together what was happening."

Yeah, the whole thing was like square wave of drama. First third mediocre Outer Limits episode, middle third genuinely… [more]
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 12:20 AM on August 19, 2017

Also, can you imagine the chaos surrounding all those Oscars betting pools? No big deal among friends, but I wonder how many online or brick-and-mortar places started paying out to La La Land bettors as the speeches were still going on.
posted to FanFare by Rhaomi at 10:16 PM on February 26, 2017