Final announcements and wrap up

Hello. Hello, Simon Mayo. it's Mark Kermod Password. Sorry. State the password Password. exactly what an impostor would say. So mean it's Mark. We host a podcast together, public information You've been watching Mission Imossible again, haven't you?? Right, well, you are not Ethan Hunt and most people don't need a team of agents to protect their information. They just need NordVPN, the all in one digital security solution which combines VPN and multiple other cybersecurity features into one subscription. Antivirus? Yep, built in Privacy first, next gen antivirus that blocks threats before they reach your device, not after Anti phishing Yep and protection against malware, dangerous websites, ads and much more. It works on up to ten of your devices and there's a thirty day money back guarantee. Listers can unwrap a huge discount on NordVPN by heading to NordvPN dot com slash take. Plus, with our link, you'll get an extra four months free on the two year plan and it's risk free with Nord's thirty day money back guarantee Cck the link in the description Summer weekends are all about family, sunshine, and making memories together. Before everyone arrives, I stop on my local tootal wine and more to pick up a great bottle, maybe a favorite we already love or something new to enjoy dinner on the patio With so many bottles to choose from, it's easy to discover something amazing. And with the lowest prices, it's easy to grab an extra bottle for the table. Not sure what to pick up. Their friendly guides are always there to help Find what you love and love what you find only at Total Wine and More. cururbside pickup and delivery available in most areas. visit tootalwine dot com to learn more. Spiritss not sold in Virginia and North Carolina, drrink Responsibly must be twenty one. Before we begin, a quick reminder that you can become a vanguard Easter and get an extra episode every Thursday, including bonus reviews Extra viewing suggestions Viewing recommendations at home and in cinemas. Plus your film and non film questions answered as best you can in Qions schmestens. You can get all that extra stuff via Apple podcasts or head to extrtakes. com for non fruit related devices. There's never been a better time to become a Vanguard Easter. Free offer now available wherever you get your podcasts and if you're already a vanguardaster We salute you So before we go any further, let us just we salute all the people who put this show together at the end of the show. Yes. But I think at this point of the show, we should salute Josh, our engineer two for reasons best known to himself supports Arsenal football club who at the time of recording last night because of results elsewhere won the title Um Almost all Arsenal fans have either been watching the game or down the pub or rounded a friend, but Josh has just told us that you do the punch line mark Well, rather than doing that in because it was, I think maritally expedient. Yes. he went to college club. And he had first wr to college club, a collllege club. That what talks about gol The great thing about this is not only does it show great sense of, you know proportion and he puts he's putting his marriage first but also It sounds like a sitcom that You know, on the night that your team win the title for the first time in twenty two years, where are you I was at collge or I was clos. It's not even An exciting club. with respect, you know Anyway So Congratulations to our engineer who I think has made a commendable decision. I think honestly, I think that is really genuinely commendable. Do you remember the episode of Whatever happened to the Lly Lads when they were trying to avoid hearing the result in a football match. Do you remember that? It was an England match. Yeah. It was an England match. And at one point one of them had seen beginnings of a headline, which was England Rut And then they then they couldn't figure out what it was And he was in the middle of having a haircut and somebody started talking about it. so he rushed out And they just went on and on and on and on and then they finally get to sit down in front of the match And it's actually ballroom dancing because the headline was England rained off somethingomet that would never happen before. But anyway, so Josh, although us mentioning this has now made it quite difficult for a bunch of other people who say, I just st on the podcast that Josh, big Ashoall fan, he went to college club, not go to the match. Why can't you be like Josh? Exactly. Why can't you we should get t shirts, which what would Josh do Yes, instead of what would Jesus do? what would Josh do? Josh would go to college club because his wife wants him to Greater good. Anyway, how was Can, which is what I was going to say at the beginning. Something I never thought I'd ever say to you ever again. No, was Can Something I mean, can itself. I mean, so I arrived I mean greatrily Yeah very b. I arrived Wednesday night because the premiere of the Director's Cut of the Devils was on Thursday and I was introducing it So I arrived at Wednesday night I immediately had a panic attack and got a headache But u bumped into a friend and Paul Lavity actually. And so talked to Paul Lavity about this, that and the other. and that was very nice. And then on the day, I sort of did my very best to just keep my head down And they do this really weird thing because because I was introducing it Um you to we have to walk up the red carpet And so in order to get to the red carpet put you in a car that's quite literally one hundred and fifty yards away from the red carpet and then you sit in the car for an hour in a like holding pattern, like an airport And then they finally let you out and then they bring you up the thing and you all face one way and a whole bunch of photographers take your photographs and have no idea who you are. And I don't think those photographs will appear anyway because it was, you know, me and Lisy Russell and Vicki Russell and, you know not people who are immediately recognizable to the one. Th then you turn round and then you do the other bank, then you move up a bit more and then you face one bank and then you do turn aroundound and then you do the other. And then you get to the top of the stairs. And of course, I did what you're meant to do. is I took out my iPhone to take a picture of it and was the iPhone was wrestled from my hand by the security guards And anyway then, went up did the introduction. it was packed. It was the hot weirdly enough, it was the hot ticket that evening getting tickets for the deevil's Director' cut in the Salbon well. Peter Jackson was in the audience Peter Jackson th less and a whole bunch critics and filmmakers, and the response has been amazing.'s got I mean it's got really, really good responses and And then the next morning, I had breakfast with Allan Jones, the good lady professor her indors had come on the Thursday So we had breakfast with Alan and Diego and then we got the hell out of Ddge So for me, it was kind of ideal because I was there. In We did an event which the film looked amazing. I mean, they've done an incredible restoration on it. They've gone back to the camera negative. They've done it to the template of the director's cup that we did with Ken in two thousand four And was it was really moving actually. It was really, really moving. So I had a not terrible experience in Cen, which Mark, put that down to experience. okay, but you'll never go again unless similar circumstances arise. I can't imagine another circumstance that would make me want to go back. What are you getting excited about in this podcast? Well, I'm going to be reviewing not necessarily the same thing. Not necessarily the same thing and perhaps getting excited about finding Emily, which is a new Mag to based ROomcom Passenger, which is a Rad movie horror movie, and Star Wars Mandalorian and Grogu, which title is self explanatory That's a film based in the Star Wars universe and features Mandalorian and Grogu. Exactly. Wn't that right? And our very special guest will be is Leo Woodall, who is starring along with Dustin Hoffman. Although it though Leo Leo Woodhall is the star alongside Dustin Hoffman in Tuna, which I think comes out next week, next v He is certainly a buzzy actor. So we will talk to Leo Woodall And then in takeake two, what are you up to there Two animations intake two, Charlie, the Wandnder Dog Tom and Jerry forbidden Comass And one of those two films is one of the worst movies I have ever seen Okay, I'm predicting it's going to be Charlie the Wonder Dog, but we willll find out in take two. Before we get to all those enticing reviews, in response to point four of Theo Dombrovsky's email about movie cliches last week, how to disguise yourself as a Denizen of Movieland And one of them was, when you fall from great heights, discover that crashing through a tree will break your fall. Don't like a real person, find yourself thoroughly dead Th These are the things that, you know get you annoyed, you know, and unrealistic in mo I was done before. Well, Ed Freshwater, Yes, Ed Freshwater that Ed Freshwater. H says I agreed so much with fellow church member Theo's letter a couple of weeks ago about people sitting bolt upright after nightmares because that was the first one But one point of difference. in nineteen forty four, Nicholas Alchamade was a tailgunner in an RAF Lancaster that was shot up over Germany Unable to reach his parachute and with his aircraft on fire Alchemaade took the terrible decision to jump out of the plane leaping to his certain death from a height of eighteen thousand feet exxcept he landed in a tree and survived His injuries from the fall itself amounted to mounted to a sprained knee. His improbable escape led the Germans to think he was a spy until the wreckage was found and he gained some celebrity as an inmate in the notorious Stalag LuftI. His captors even made him a certificate to prove his account, a quite remarkable story that this deserves repeating. Wow. So it's fair to say that in general, if you fall from a greater height in land in a tree, it's not good However, for Nicholas Alchamed, even though he it was in tragic circ, imagine falling that distance, landing in a tree and spraining your knee. Wow. Well, Ed, thank you so much for that. Yes. incredible piece of information And Jimmy says couple of weeks ago, A Lista wrote in about unrealistic movie moments and their real world consequences, including how falling from a great height into a tree is very unlikely to save your life That immediately caught my attention as I'm currently reading How I fell from the sky. by Juliana Kupka tells the extraordinary true story of Lancer Flight five hundred eight, which broke up mid aair over the Amazon after being struck by lightning J Julenne describes leaving the plane till strapped, still strapped to her seat Seeing the jungle spinning below and crashing into the rainforest. Despite serious injuries, she survived alone for nearly two weeks before being found, helped by survival skills she'd learnnt through her parents' conservation work in the rainforest, a kind of a setup that if that was in a movie you'd think, no, I don't think I'm going to believe that. The book also mentions a man at the airport whose reservation on the same flight was cancelled at the last minute, and who angrily tried to board anyway That man was Werna Hertzhog, who later made the film Wings of Hope about Yuliana's story. He also contributes a perfectly Herzogian blurb to the book which is She didn't leave the aeropplane, the aeroplane left her. Apologies if this has already been mentioned on the show, I'm a bit behind Anyway, so in general, I think that the rule is still a good one, which is don't fall from great heights and land in a tree because it won't do you any good. However, obviously there are exceptions to most rules U Correspond at Kodomo. com. let's talk about a brand new film that's out there. So finding Emily, which is a Manchesteret Rom com from writer and forgive me if I'm pronouncing this incorrectly, Rachel Hyans, I would say, or Hirs and director Alyicia McDonald. So Angorory Rice, who's been in loads of things, we We loved Mor of Eastown and she was the daughter in Mor of Eastown. So she's Emily. She's on a student visa at Manch, I think it's the Uni, Manchester Uni, where she's finishing a psychology degree. And there's a position on offer that would secure her status there. But in order to do to get that position, she has to deliver an absolutely kick ass dissertation as the sort of final part of what she's doing And so what she's doing disation on is the proof that romantic love is a form of self destructive madness. It iss like an evolutionary hangover And she finds a perfect if unknowing subject in Owen who is played by Spike Fern, who was the screen interternational star of tomorrow a couple of years ago. So he's a working class lad. he works the at the college and he's desperately searching Emily that he met He met her at the bar where he was working and she was dancing And they kind of really got on And he knows her name is Emily, He doesn't know anything else. She gave him a phone number, but looks like she missed out one number from the phone number all he knows is Emily, hence finding Emily. So he goes to the university and says I'm trying to find this girl. Here's a clip Oh don I don't know her last name. I can't I help you then? Don't you have like a director with all the students' names on her? No. It's just I really need to help because. Yeah, I've got some of those. that's what it is. I've got this This is while it was a dads and there was this fire and it was really like kind of Yeah, that's a lie. Do you want the truth? No, I don't. I met her last night and just really got on of her her hair' about here and she drinks beer bottles and she's funny, smart. Have you ever met somebody and like all that what you've got going on in your mind Doesn't matter anymore And like the light at the end of your tunnel, you just You're just stunning this lot and you just sa J is our go. Th always just like, please, could you just tell me like what class he's in maybe or I feel like it might be the most important thing you ever do. You've got two seconds to leave before a call security, all right? Yeah, okay, all right He's convinced that the Emily that he met briefly is the one She, the different Emily, the one that's doing the psychology degree, is convinced that romantic love has basically driven him mad and therefore he's a perfect subject. So she conspires to help him try and find he's Emily Bye getting access to those email addresses of every Emily at the college, which is a breach of data, but also a breach of ethics because he doesn't know that she is writing a thesis on him I mean, obviously the setup is vaguely preposterous, but it's a rom com. and The film's largely carried by the scrappy charm of its leads, partarticularly, I have to say, Spike Fern, who has the sort of gangly, awkward love struck, lovable persona to a team. And I think you heard it in that clip. I mean, I think it is a very charming performance by him. Everything about his performances is believable. even when the narrative contrivances are completely unbelievable. So it's like, well, I wouldn't believe in any of this for one minute, but he's doing it convincing enough that I do Angory Rice has the harder role because I actually never believe for one minute in her student status or in a dissertation or in a course or I mean, it's not her fault. I actually think that it would be hard for anyone to make that role convincing because that role is the contrivance role. That role is the, okay, you have to believe that here is a person working on this dissertation and blah, blah, blah. And I think o, I don't believe any of that. is absolutely mechanics. I also didn't believe for one minute in the on campus television station which seems to be broadcasting twenty four hours a day and has big screens out everywhere. so that at any time of day or night people can see things about this story. on this TVs com mean a few You know, I was at Manchester in the eighties. I know it was a different era, but if you ever did University radio You'll know that you might as well have just been talking, you know, down down the toilet roll in your own room. unless unless you were on University radio Warwick, in which case you were closed down because we were broadcasting not to the campus, but Apparently to the submarine fleetome Yes. The Ministry of Defense shut down the University radio station because it was broadcasting to submarines Are you serious? Yeah, yeah, absolutely serious. How How were you broadcasting the submares? I don't know, it couldn't reach Tosssel fllats, but it could reach the submarine underneath the Atlantic. But, that got sorted and then we were allowed back. Well, that's absolutely perfect. Okay. Also, I didn't kind of really there's a whole thing going on about the warring factions among The various Emilies, which are supposed to sort of parody campus politics, the way in which people respond to the fact that there's this love struck guy who's desperately looking for anyone called Emily. You know, is he cute and lovable or is he actually harassing and stalking and all the rest of it? However, look, it's a Romc. and a Romcom is not a genre in which gritty credibility is the driving force It's a genre in which it's, do you like these people? Do you care about them? and do you actually are you Are you sort of anticipating in your mind how the things's going to play out? So I mean, the whole thing looks like an advert for Manchester's thriving nightlife, which frankly I'm all up for. And there were more than enough chuckles and poignant moments to paper over the frankly gaping in the narrative. I do think that an awful lot of credit is to Spike Fn for making any of it believable because because you believe in him And because you believe in know Owen's sort of completely wide eyed infatuation, You sort of just go along with the rest of it. And like I said, it it is contrived and it's got every cliche in the book But it was kind of charming and kind of sweet and kind of funny and I do love the Manchester Oals. So Generally I thought it was fine Finding Emily is the movie correspondence of Kodomo d. com Should you see it coming next? I'm not going to ask Mark because I can tell you that it's we're talking Star Wars, Mandalorian and Grogu. That's not three films, that's one passenger and special guest on the show is Leo Woodhall after this Hello, Simon Mayor. Hello Mark. I see your lovely new bookshelves haven't buckled yet. There's a particularly weighty and wise looking one by name Komode on there too. True, but getting them up nearly buckled me. Even giving up and hiring someone was a full time job. You should have used Task Grabbit. It's an online marketplace available in the UK that connects you with skilled, reliable local freelancers called Task who can help with everything from furniture assembly and home repairs to moving, gardening and more. You can search for a tasker based on cost, skill set, availability, and past client reviews so you know exactly who's showing up and can have confidence that they know what they're doing. 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Law Supplies last ends june thirtieth terms at aka. mS slash collllege PC Okay, box offffice top ten, hereere we go, starting at number twelve, topop gun Maverick And everybody shouts top gun maverick because That's what we do. That's what we say top gun mavert but obviously we're in a street we this is a resue and This from Jonathan Smith Dear in Shure Ensure Speaking as someone of a somewhat of a peasant. Okay. has ever so much Has so much ever been spent on a movie to correct a single typose he attached I'll show you this. It's he send us like a spit screen thing. Right And at the top it' so this is like the text that comes up at the beginning of Top gun, rightight? Top gun nineteen eighty six, it says On march third, nineteen sixty nine, the United States Navy established an elite school for the top one percent of its pilots Its purpose was to teach the lost art of aerial combat and to ensure IN SURE that the handful of men blah, blah blah, they succeed. Today, the Navy calls it fighter Weapons school, the Flyers call it. Top gun. Right And then topop Gun Maverick has exactly the same scroll except that lost out of aerial combat and to Nsure ENS UR E that the handful of men. Okay. So the flyers called it. So In between topop Gun and topop Gun Maverick, they learnt spellll basically. Jonathan Smith, geography grade B, thank you very much indeed. Anyway, I think we know we're going there's more top g in a moment, but anyway At number ten, it's Athiradi. whichich is Indian Malayian language. action comedy wasn't press screen. so if anyone's seen it, drop us an email Shrek is a new entry at number nine. It's just rereleaseed tasic at the moment, isn't it? So yeah Shrek, You remember Shrek? It's Shrek. It's in cinemas Yes. That And it's number eleven in America. so it's doing very well all over again. Number eight here six over there, the Super Mario Galaxy movie. This is its seventh week of release and it's still in the top ten. so it's done terrifically well. Total box offffice at the moment looks like wow thirty seven. Yeah, it' taking a huge amount of money and it's just not very good Number seven is the Christopherers This from time travel prof. Award season is earlier and earlier these days, but it won't be this movie that finally gets Ian his Oscar and BaFTa. The lone lady watching with me on a Friday afternoon struck up a brief conversation immediately afterwards As to what I thought I thought it was okay but freely admitted that I didn't quite get it. a fairly linear enough story, but I didn't quite get the last twenty minutes as to why certain things happened She was hooting at numerous lines that Ian was spouting. She thought that this was his best performance on the film. That some praise for someone who told me they'd seen him in Hamlet at the Cambridge Theatre. Okay, well, obviously time travel prof wasn't that. exxcited. I think award season will remember which his and user, you un numbers I love this. Ian McKillen is an acting god and Michaela Cole plays off him so beautifully. Stephen Soderberg is a phenomenal director. The Christopher's at number seven I mean, I absolutely loved it. I think you said it was almost certainly one of your films of the year Whether or not it is remembered when award season comes around nine months from now remains to be seen. but certainly, I mean I think the performance by Ian McKellan and McCico are terrific. And Ian McCellan said in that interview The writer had said that they had written it for those two actors. and he said, well, I'm not sure that I believe it about me, but I certainly believe it about Michela. I can't imagine anyone other than those two doing it. Number six here. number eight over there is topop gun It is a forteth anniversary. Now apparently in the states They're on the same listing. so The reason that it's probably that it's number eight in the US is that presumably that's a double bill Maverick and top Go Maverick. So anyway. So when you say they're on the same listing, you mean they're on the same bill. you buy a ticket for both films. Yeah. I mean, it just says here they're on the same listing as Maverick in the American chart, which implies that they're together Yeah because they're both number eight. Well, I mean, it's a heck of a double bill. Yeah Number five is Mortal Combat too, which I enjoyed and I I thought it was It was good, fun, I think it was an interesting adaptation of a video I actually the Mortal Combat series over the years has generally had a kind of you know, a slightly raised u It's slightly better than some of the really, really terrible computer game adaptation. No no I thought it was good for Obsession is at number four, number three in America Nick in Leeds says, Dear honey and Bunny, I just came out of obsession, having experienced the curious sensation of feeling a tightness in my chest and a stinging in my eyes during most of its runtime. It seems I'd forgotten how to blink and breathe. This is my new favorite horror of twenty twenty six Sorry Hoom. And this year talkal to Me. The cast are great, especially Indy Navarette, who really goes there By the way, they've Wiki says it's Indy Navaretti But I I have thought it's Indy Nverette. Anyway, it really goes there in a manner reminiscent of Mia Goth at a most fantastically deranged and it has one of the greatest shock scares, I think I've ever seen. alsoso reminiscent of an infamous scene in the debut movie by the Philippu Bothers that you can see coming a mile away just makes it all the worse when it happens. Yeah. And Peter says it's an insane, delariously over the top and incredibly noisy little number For sure, for sure, which you find yourself laughing at one minute and then choking on your popcorn in horror the next. and then somewhere in between not being sure how to react at all That's obsession. numberum three in America, number four in the UK I really liked it. It is genuinely twisted. It works because it's a horror movie with an outlandish conceit, you know the monkeys's poor thing. it's it's to be careful what you wish for, but it's also a story about coercion and control and the horror of coercion and control. and it's absolutely. I mean, in my review, I made specific reference to The Philipp Bothers, because there is that mean, when it turns nasty turns genuinely nasty. and I came out of it and then Boyd Hilton I saw Boyd afterwards and he went, you know, wow that was really, wasn't it? It was really Roy Hil is another one who we won't be seeing for weeks after the Asenal victory. Is he an Asenal supporter? He's an Arsenal supporter. Yeah. Okay. So he's they call it. They call it a goona They're good and they're everywhere It's like an infestation, basically. But anyway, Boyd will be very happy, Hello Boyd The Sheep detectives is at number three, numberum five over there. Matt and Deb in MC say The audience in Ascreeny were an interesting mix of young families and retired couples. And the film proved to be suitable for both, as it was a curious mix of Wallace and Gromit meets Poirot style murder mystery, with the focus squarely being on suitable for children. The sheep were clearly the stars of the show, with a range of recognizable voice actors lending their tones to a diverse cast of Ovine characters who were far smarter than the humans It was a very enjoyable way to spend an afternoon surrounded by an audience clearly enjoying themselves while outside it was raining. Oh, and Emma Thompson was clearly enjoying herself immensely was delightful. Cheap detectives number three. Well, I I really enjoyed it and I was kind of baffled by how much I did because I did go in thinking I have no idea what this is, but it does look like Babe meets knives out. and it is that, but it's also some other lovely things. We had a couple of emails lastast week from people talking about how it's also about, you know, poignancy and loss and grief. It's really surprisingly good. And the top two are the very top two because in total box office they are streets ahead of everything else put together Devil Wears Prada is at number two. you know it's a series of set pieces strung together by a completely mechanical plot in order to get the people in the room so they can do the things that you like to enormous success. Yeah. Speaking of which, number one is Michael And it's not just number one, once again, it's very number one. This is now its fourth week And It's Yeah, I mean, it's it's just Absolutely coining it and I'm I can understand As I said, I had this conversation with Robbie Colen that It is as far as a nuts and bolts biopPic is concerned, it's solidly made and the performances are pretty decent but it's also horrifyingly skirting around.'s not, you know, it is the elephant in the room It's it's you can't tell that story wasn't? you can't You shouldn't tell that story without acknowledging the other story, but this has done and it's doing incredibly well as a result of it So the total box off is the figures I've got here roughly forty million do Devil is proudder to twenty seven million and then sheep detectives five and then everything else is just miles behind. So ye they're going to be two of the biggest films of year, aren't you? I mean I have to say I thought sheep detectives would do well I mean, actually better betteret than that, I suppose. I mean, sheep detects only in its second week But yeah, you're quite right, the difference between it and then Devil Wizbrada and Michael' just they're not even in the same ballpark. More discussion on current films in the Overflow car park in Take two, which is available via Patreon. Moments away from my conversation with Leo Woodall You thought this was your run cllub era Turns out It was more of a thinking about run Club era Good news Someone's marathon training is about to start. Sell your workout gear on Dephop Just snap a few photos and we'll take care of the rest They get their race day fit. And you get a payoutff for trying Someone on Dep hop wants what you've got. Start selling now Deepop whereere taste recognizes taste This episode is brought to you by State Farm. Listening to this podcast instead of doom sccrolling? Smart M. Another smart move Getting help from one of State Farm's nineteen thousand local agents when you choose to bundle home and auto. Bundling. Just another way to save with the personal price plan. Prices are based on rating plans that vary by state. Coverage options are selected by the customer. Availability, amount of discounts and savings, and eligibility vary by state Leah Woodall in just a moment, it's Naavaretti, we have just been. Yeah. Apparently, we' found a video of her saying her own name and it is Navaretti. We stand completely correct. Just because she says it that way doesn't mean it's correct. But it also means that is the way we will be saying it. Yes along with Scarlette Johanson who that's, you know, with the hard J and of course, Mark Kermode Uh yes, That's why we're strugg. Although that is actually correct So also you pronounce it Leo Woodall, which is a very, very straightforward way to pronounce it. But before we get there, just a quick reminder that you can get take one and take two ad free pllus our bonus takeake Ultra every fortnite, plus the ability to vote. on items in the show, contribute to the Lugher Lift and a bunch more of stuff by heading to our Patreon, which is officially better than Bob Dylan's Patreon And also you get this so this extra show take ultra ends with a feature called One last thing where the idea is that Mark and I recommend something from our broad hinterland of other experienceces, which is a feature that Mark is struggling with it hasn No, I'm not struggling. lastast week I gave you a great recommendation. Yeah for something that you'd already talked about, which is kind of not the point. But anyway, when I was talking about Patrick Radam Keef's book London Falling It might kind of ramblely. way I said at the end, it will make you very angry about the Russian oligarchs and their money which is true. What I didn't mention was it will also make you angrier about let's just say The authorities who clearly have allowed a bunch of stuff to happen, whether it be successive governments, metropolitan police or whoever. It's a fantastic read and he's a great storyteller. That's what I meant to say. and only realized after you disappeared to Can. that's what I should have mention was also picked up again in the Sunday Times at the weekend. so it is a story that's continuing. So Leo Woodall is our top guest. shhot to prominence for a lot of people as seductive wide boy Jack in season two of the White Lotus alongside Tom Holland. U One day playing Dexter Mayhu M veryy popular Netflix series based on the David Nichols book Nuremberg, most recently, of course, which I think you really like Mark I did Yeah. ye No I did. I wasn't expecting it to. Leo plays a young American soldier assigned as a German translator who monitors captured Nazi leaders. and also Posters, Bridget Jones mad about the boy. He was the boy. the romantic lead opposite Ranny Zellelberger. anyway, he's a man at the moment. He's also the star of a new movie called Tuna. T U N E R, you'll hear my conversation with him. afterfter this clip Harry Holws a scan of Tune and repair Thisr is Nicky B is my apprentice He has a hearing condition, but believe it or not, is' head Virtuoso. Virtuoso, huh? Maybe you can inspire. Okay, thank you, Harry. Close your eyes. What's this C, F sharp, E seven flat nine, F sharp, G, A, A sharp, B over D sharp You never take those out? No. I get hypercusest. I'm allergic to loud noises. Hello. It' no longer gonna be as loud. as long as it takes. Unless you can open the safe. And that's a clip from Tuna. It stars Leo Woodall, who joins us. Hello Leo. Wlcome to the show. Hi, Simon, thank you for having me. It's very nice to see you. Congratulations on Tuna, which is hugely enjoyable. I loved every minute. intntroduce us to the film and introdu us to your character, Niki White So Toner follows the story of Nkki White, a young man who is a virtuoso pianist except that he has hyperacusis condition where you are basically allergic to loud nois. So he can no longer play piano, but he tunes them is Boss slash uncle, played by Dustin Hoffman And he Nicki finds himself. in a little bit of hot water. listened U Cresible men where he learns to crack safe Okay, so a couple of things to sort out. First of all, hyperccusis U just I know you said it's allergic to loud sound, but just Tell us. So every time we see you You've got earbuds in with cabling and sometimes you put over a headphones in as well. Just tell us more about hyperacusis and why it's so important to the story It's a condition that makes you a hypersensitive sound Um so much so that you know, a dog barking or or anything loud can cause Extreme pain, sometimes even siegures And, um It's a very crippling condition that doesn't really allow you to live a normal life Um, So whenever Nikki has to go outside, he wears those big ear muffs, which still not necessarily Uh appropriate for of the sound of life So you're a piano tuner, is what I loved about the film is that It I can't remember seeing a movie where piano tuning is at the heart of it and you've mentioned that he's ended up as a piano tuner because he can't be a fantastic pianist. but he still has an incredible Yeah How did you Or to what extent did you learn the art? Piano tuni I did it as much as I could I did it as much as I could there's a lot more to it than I had anticipated and what you would maybe think is involved. because it's a really compplicated and intricate instrument And we had a consultant on the movie Peter White. who that's his job. He's a piano junor. And he walked me and there were there were Um, There are a couple actually another man called Dwayne and we We just would always be sort of looking at what sound would sound like if it's out of tune and to put it in very basic terms If you hit a key and it It makes a sort of wa waa, waa sound You know it's out of tune. You want the key to make one long drawn out sound and that's how you knowice in tune. But there are three strings to every key on the piano And if one of them is slightly out of tune, then Uh then you got to fix it So you went to piano tuning school basically Esentially, yeah. yeah whichich I imagine is one thing, learning to play the piano is another thing. I mean, you have to have a few basics there. What did you know before you started this movie about playing the piano ot a whole lot, Simon. I I was always drawn to the instrument. You know, to even play piece two handed was was not in my wheelhouse. so It was great to kind of develop any limited skill that I had on the instrument Um And we had a lot of really good coaches teachers And we did months and months of training And I imagine when you're being shot from a movie A lot of it is because obviously stuff can be created, you know afterwards, but the way you sit Position of your hands your whole posture is the thing that makes us believe that Nikki is playing the piano. Like you say, even even where you sit on the stool where your, you know, how your hands is supposed to be positioned over the keys U we're very intricate but really essential. um details So you're working with Dustin Hoffman. U extxtraordinarily. So Dustin P plays Harry Horowz it's his Piano tuning business and Nicki is like his you know his apprentice. But the key thing is you are doing all these scenes, particularly in the first half of the film with one of The great movie stars of all time. Did you wasas it always Dustin? Did you know when you signed on for the movie that it would be Dustin Hoffman I did. yeah. I think it I wasn't sure if it was official but I did know that part was written for him Okay, and You've you've played with some very big stars. Is it more scary to act with Dustin or with Russell Crow Um question. I think Let me get back to you on that one because It's they're scary in different ways. Yes R Russels Russells u I love him. He's become a friend but he's an imposing figure and So that was that was intimidating. And he's also You know, he's Rsell Crow. Dustin Dustin's, you know, a very sort of gentle, sweet. fununny. Um but I didn't know I didn't really know that going in. I just was desperate for him to Is like me think that I was good at G at what I do Um So that first date with him was pretty intimidating He's such a generous. He's a very generous actor And when someone is that good, They really pull you into their world I got the impression that he was in charge of every scene and that he also could have gone off and in fact, maybe he did go off on tangents and you just had to follow the tangent So when you're doing scenes like in the van or in his house are you onn your metal all the time, doeses he improv? How do those scenes go? Oh yeah, we most of what you see of us in that film is improvised. He has a thousand stories to tell. and he would tell them U and we would have these short scenes of dialogue that be up to half an hour Um The cs would just wrressing and partarticularly in that van. was where we were able to sort of build our dynamic a lot in our relationship. Okay he just he just goes off on one. And you don't really know where it's going, but because he's a He's masterful at what he does, it always comes back around at a very buttoned up Perfect way I wonder if the so the director is Daniel Roa is Oscar winning because he was the man behind Nvalny, but this his first U story which he's telling. And I wonder if actually a background in documentary making was ideal for those kind of scenes where he just keeps rolling. You know, there's no script. He's filming a documentary. so maybe that's how he felt when he was doing those scenes Yeah, I think the two went hand in hand and think It was really ree As a performer feelel feel like You know, the person who's capturing you is is just wanting you to behave like a human and not You know, you're not sort of shackled by byy anything. Um And I think ultimately You know, Daniel also just loves movies U so he he was able to marry the two redibly well Yeah the behind the scenes guy. to mention, I think, I mean, being an audio person and a radio person, always like it when a movie sounds fantastic. And the sound designers is Johnny Burn zone of interest. that was him, but particularly sound of metetal so the way we hear what you are experiencing. U that there's jazz music and there's classical music and then there is incredible noise, which leads to great distress. Johnny Burnn has done a fantastic job He's done an exceptional job I think he elevates This film with his work. you know For for a story like this in a film like this, I think His ability to really get inside Nikki's head which when you experience in in a cinema is It's incredibly immersive and, um really elevates the story So yeah, his work kind of created a new You know, the in the home which I think people will admire very much. So your character, Nickki, comes from where. what is the accent that you have to master for this Brookly Okay How difficult is that? What's the most difficult accent you've had to do I've recently did a sort of Kansas accent and that was pretty difficult because it's not It's not actually south Itss really Southern American, even though you think it is. Brits think it is, but apparently it's not I think I think there there were little details that Um that we incorporated into Brooklyn for Nickki, one of them being sort of Harry of Harry Harry And I have obviously have to say his name quite a lot So in this movie, we watch you as a piano tuner and as a pianist What is the most difficult skill in averted commerce you've had to acquire in a movie? And I'm not talking about being Tom Holland's nephew, not that skill, but any other skill that you've had to sort of acquire as an actor. Ive Learning I mean, the piano was the most difficult by far Um, I would say Yeah I've been Latning German. Okay. Nuremberg was was difficult, but I recently had to Learn how to shock oysters And it was difficult at first, but O one of those skills that you You know, You can now carry into the rest of your life. That's a practical skill. And just speaking of piano, we cannot finish the interview without mentioning the actor who plays Ruthie who is the pianist And the person who your character falls for played by Havana Roslu Now she is either an astonishing pianist and a great actor, or she has really learnt all those art skills that you've told us about earlier because she looks amazing She she really head out of the park It was So much work to get to that place and she She put everything into it. She really loved that character and wanted to do her justice and She put so much work into into the piano side of it and everything else. Yeah It's a it's very it's very impressive. and I love the film. hugely enjoyable. What do we see you in next Lia The film about Anthony Bourdain and an eight hundred twenty four film is coming out in August Um So I'm looking forward to people seeing that and I'm about to go to New Zealand to do some middle earth work for course column and that I'm incredibly excited about Well, very good to speet you Leah. Thankk you very much, Deed for coming on the show and good luck with all the oyster shocking. Thank you, San, thank you very me Just after doing that interview, I then interviewed Anntony Horowitz, the writer and screenwriter. And he said, Have you seen that tuna film? I said, I' just interviewed Leood. He said, I just thought it was like the secret film U at the LFF and We thought it was amazing. thought it was fantastic. You must tell everybody about it. I said, Well, that's exactly what we're going to do So Mark hasn't seen it. will review it next week? Yes, absolutely. So it's national press screening on Tuesday. I've actually packed that on Tuesday and then we will review it on next week's show. So so it opens next week. But I have to say I'm already excited about it, not least because you mentioned Johnny who I think is a really terrific sound designer and the last time I was on stage, Jhny He in the certain point in in the interview, he reached into his bag and whipped out his Oscar Oh really? tastic. If you've got one, you are going to carry it around. I'm sorry. That's exactly what I would do. And I thought there was something so refreshing about somebody actually not being abashed about it about somebody being really proud of the Oscar because he's an amazing sound designer. Anyway, u There's another movie out which Mark has seen and can talk about right now passassenger, which is the tagline for passenger is one hundred and thirty million people take road trips every year, fifteen thousand four hundred of them are never seen again. is encouraging. So this is a I'll give that stat again. yees, so the poster says one hundred and thirty million people take road trips every year fifteen thousand four hundred of them are never seen again Why Bust to them Well, Simon, is it aliens? He said, Well Okay, so This is a Road movie, horror movie, hybrid from Andre Overadol Incidentally, I was just looking at the because we're doing pronunciation things about Indy Navaretti And I noticed that Alicia McDonald's Inster think there's not Alicia Elicia, I think in that case. Anyway, from Andre Oreredol, which I think is correct, which is he's the Norwegian director behind Troll Hunter and the autopsy of Jane Doe. You remember the autopsy of Jane Doe because Brian Cox was in it and absute Brian really, really liked working on that film and it's a really good movie, very, very little scene but terrific So passassenger is written by T W. Burgess and Zachary Donoghue. Story is Young couple give up their brooklyn apartment put their life into this van that they've bought and head off out onto the road like modern nomads. okay? This is there. their new life, their new adventure One night went out on the road, in the dark, in the woods overtakes them And then the next thing is they come across the car has crashed. And they stop, obviously, they stop to help and it's It's a grizzly death saint And on that car, there is a distinctive threeree line scratch like a you know, something with three claws has scratched the side of the car. and after stopping to help That same mark appears on the side of their van Have they picked up some form of supernatural passenger isc clip I saw these on the car last night ree scratches just like that It didn't stop, did you somethinghing Holy. It with us Thank Christopher. I can't leave tight all my time Give us sh one The danger is there. D is there. No one out runs a passenger So that voice that you heard there no one out rounds the passenger, that's Diane played rather terrifically by Melissa Leo, who's very much an and Melissa Leo performance So they meet her at a Birding van event where, you know, where people who were driving were no nomadic people in vans gather together and she tells them You're not for this life. This life isn't for you. This's a great line which she says, you don't take the trip. The trip takes you. She also very creepily informs them in a very Gremlin style of the three rules of the road which are stick to the main roads. Don't drive at night and don't ever stop. And that don't ever stop also features on one of the posters You heard from that clip, the sort of the generally creepy tone. The film's got a very, very atmosphere to it. All the woodsy stuff at night is very atmospheric I was reminded a little of remember I talked about Bubak Avary's film, Hallo Road. which is just the mum and dad out in the car looking for their daughter who's got into trouble on the road in the woods So There's some really nice use of, you know, it's nighttime, it's dark Everything is just illuminated by the red lights on a parked car, the lights, which are quite often flashing. so you see things and then you don't, you do and then you don't. It was also There was a There was a film from two thousand three Little similar kind of horror Road movie thing by Jean Baptiste Andrea and Fabris whichich is called Dead End. And in that film, there's a family.'s I think it's Christmas Eve. And they take they take a wrong turn and they end up on a road to nowhere in a forest, in a car in the middle of the night and everything goes really, really badly wrong. So Andre Uol makes really good use of the kind of the interimate and flashing light thing. I mean, it just works really well. You're in the dark, you're in the forest and the lights in the car are flashing so on, off, on, off, leaving you kind peeering into the darkness And you know, you know that it's going to go on, off, on, off. and the next time it comes on, there's going to be a scare in a way, it's a kind of market sort of visual version of Quiet quiet Bang. I mean, you do get The bang alsoso what you get is the Red, you know or dark doark face Yeah and I mean, it's really effective because the way in which it works is you have to really look at the screen, you know, you'll somebody you'll see somebody peering into the Was that a figure in the woods? wasas that? what was it? you know, and you do you do the same thing and then it gives you a jump. There are also some very winince inducing set pieces involving shhins. fingers whichich reminded me if you remember Ben Wheatley said that thing, I quoted it when we were talking about the the Bob Odenkirk film. said the problem with most action movies is they forget The small things hurt you know, the getting gift Getting your fingers caught in something really hurts or something just banging on the top of your head really hurts. Andre Overadol remembers that Also Tw great leads. Jake now Scipio or Scipio This is definitely become the show of I'm not sure how you pronounce anyone's name and Lou Lobel. they really, really good as this young couple he totally believe in as this wide eyed young couple. They've got this dream. they're going to go on the road, They're going to live the free spirited life, you know, they're going to it's going to be all nomadic. And I found it I found it properly gripping and thrilling admittedly As it goes on, the more it explains the cur, like you said that thing about, is it space aliens At the very beginning, I thought, is it space aliens? becausecause of course, that's one of the first things you think As it goes on and the explanation sort of revealed, it becomes less scary because it's at its scariest when you haven't got any idea what's going on. but said The final act when it is sort of revealed and there has to be a Dany Mon to return to a word which we've used many times on this show is entertainingly silly. I mean it is silly, but entertainingly so so Some very good needle drops adding to a veryery good score by Christopher Young, veryy good central performances and atmosphere to spare And I did find myself very gripped by it. I mean, admittedly, I have got a thing about creepy woods late at night. but I think most people do because I think that's what most fairy tales are based on. You know, you go off into the woods, you can't quite see what's going on, but you know it's not good And there's a man with an ax, almost. The interesting thing is, in this particular case, It's not A man with an axe And that's one of the things that makes it interesting is for quite a long time, you're going, what is it because you genuinely have no idea There was a I can't remember which comedy show it was, but it was a spoof of the Waltons. Oh yeah. And you remember it At the end of the Waltons, it was always open Gight M, Night pight dad. Yeah C Iight Jim Bob. Yeah. And then there's a pause and then someone says, G night man with an ax that was very good. If anyone can remember which show that was Do let us know. Anyway, but passenger sounds rather impressive than Yeah. I mean, it worked for me. And as I said, with those the with the wincy bits it's not that they're that they're gratuitous or anything it's that they are they are genuinely winy in a good way. I mean, there was one moment when I actually hid my eyes behind my hands It's going to be too strong for me then. So high time then to lighten the load and to wait as the laughghter lift draws up so as soon as the door' open we'll step in and enjoy ourselves. Ecellent, Thats. And here it is Hey Mark, u Bad news, I'm afraid. Did you know my friend, Gavin No Wellady passed away last week from a heartburn medicine overdose, right? I can't believe Gab is gone More bad news, Mark worse than that? We got burgled this week. Someone stole my camouflage jacket and my flip flops. Whoever you are, you can hide, but you can't run. That's better. That's better. Thanks Oh by the way, Mark, I'm sure not sure yeah, notot sure if you'll know anyone, but I urgently need to re homeome a dog. R It's a really feisty little chat Russell. Barks from six AM through to three AM the following day, full of character. If anyone's interested, send me an email and I'll even hop over the neighbour's fence and get it for you And V good. veryery good. Good Well that was I mean wasite poor. that was quite a poor poor. Who wrote those ones? AW? are you saying? No, no, no, but who wrote the gags this week? They're spontaneous jokes. They just came to me as the music start. So did you write them? No, of course I did. Did childild three write them No did Simon Paul write? I expect so. He's not this is it? Simon Paul'sain work is to celebrate Arsenal being champions. That's the only frankly it's the only Do you think? Do you think he wrote those jokes while celebrating? because it sounds to me like he did. I like Gabisgon being a punchan. Yeah Gabisgon, that was fine. You started high. I mean, that was the high bar If I know it talking to that It wasn't going no because I thought it's gonna get better, but it actually got worse. If you go back and do that gag again now, I'll laugh at it because in comparison with the other gags, it was funny. Yeah, can't be bothered. We'll move on after this Heat up your fourourth of July at the Home Depot with our wide variety of grills under three hundred dollars and make every gathering one to remember. Give your outdoor space a glow up. Whatever your budget is, with savings on seasonal plants starting at five dollars. With the grill fired up and your backyard set to perfection, you'll be able to invite friends and family over to kick off the party Start celebrating with low prices guaranteed at the Home Depot. Prices may vary by stor exes of pricey Home Depot com sl priceatch for details This episode is brought to you by Palmlive. Family time isn't just the big moments, it's weeknight dinners. sitting around the table, everyone talking all at once. So when the plates are empty and the sink is full, use Palmalive Ultra. Palmalive's most powerful formula removes up to ninety nine point nine percent of grease, leaving your dishes sparkling clean. and the new convenient pump makes cleaning even easier so you can spend less time tackling dishes and more time together. Shop now at palmolive dot com d While you were having a great time in Cannes, by the way, I was heading to Copenhagen for family Christening which all went very well and it was lovely. However I along with twenty thousand other people lost their suitcases because of various things he throwed. And I still haven't got it I I know I dress like a teenager, but I do dress up for you know, a family event and so we went the Christening in the Anglican church in Copenhagen Everyone's looking fantastic and I'm wearing jeans and trainers because all of all of everything else is in a bag in Heathrow. And because he's got an airtag, I can tell you where it is now. it's it's in Slough. it's in a cargo center in Slow. It's not moving and well it's been there since Friday. Can I tell you what happened to me Coming back from Can Did you lose your baggage Well Yes and no So we flew back from Nice. goodood lady, Professor Hindndors and I en route to a wedding in Manchester of my very good friend, Al Al the Washhball player, N not Al the Washball player in the Dodge Bothers but Al the Washball player in the Railtown Bot I' Al I could call I could call both of them and she it's her. She's Allison and Al two watchfulook players in my life both called Al anyway So we got off the plane Gatwick in order to drive from Gatwick to Manchester where the wedding's happening, right? And we go to the baggage hall And it says coming in on, you know, baggage counter nine And we wait and we wait and we wait and we wait and we wait. then an announcement comes over Um Due to a technical problem, we can't unload the following planes and they read eight planes of which we are the last one. So they say, what you need to do is to go home and report your bag lost It's not lost. We know where it is. We can actually see the plane that it's not lost on That's what you have to do. So eight plane loads of people who can all see where their bags are have to go home and report them lost And then rather than driving from Gatwick to Manchester, which would have been quite easy, we had to drive from Gatwick to the new forest Pick up. to make up for whatever clothes we would have been wearing at the wedding, which were're now on the tarmac at Gatwick and then drove to Manchester, which rather than taking three hours took seven and a half And our bag came back on Monday. I haven't I still haven't got When I airtag thing, what is that you can track your backag. Yes I could tell you precisely where it is. So when I landed on Sunday, I said, canan I go and get it? Because look, it's there. It's about a hundred meters away. I can go I can literally get it. He said, no, it has to go through the system. So see but that was what was happening at Gatwick. And in fact, there was a woman at Gatwick who was in tears because her car keys Yeah, we're in the suitcase Well here's the thing here's the thing which I learned, which is the official advice anyway. If you have medicines Make sure you carry them with you. not leave them in the suitcase. All my asshma stuff right was in the suitcase.. So anyway, that anyway, that's enough griping. An email here from because it was quite gripey They're richy Good day to your big bad selves. I was chatting amongst my friends, non church members, unfortunately But I don't impose my following on others. I just suggest it very heavily. we started playing what is known as the Muppet game So you imagine a remake of any movie where the majority of the cast are played by Muppets, all except for one who can be the original or your own choice. The best we came up with was die H with Muppets, Kermit as Jon McLane. Uh As piggy as his wife, Fozzy Bear as the cop outside, Gonzo is the journalist who gets punched. Beaker and Dr. Bunson as two of the terrorists for keeping Alan Richman as the main villain How would the good Doctors and opening up suggestions to the public recast a film? Will Mark recast the exorcist Well will he give a curveball and recast transransformers because it can't actually get any worse? Pes Richie is a science teacher and he says on the proroject Hail Mary in Inaccuracies., I can forgive all of them the centrifuge and so on. However, the one I can't get over is the fact that a teacher is allowed to leave school without setting cover Leadership at their school would literally be saying, yes, yes, you need to bhe the astrophage to save the world. But what are you setting for your year as? Anyway, so if we're going to recast films as playing the Muppet game, That's very good. I've come up with two options. Okay, go on, I wish I'd known about this in advance. We'll have to pick this up again next week, so I've got a chance to think about it. But you go ahead. It was in the script that was sent to you, but anyway, nevermind Barbie Uh I'm going to ever mop it. Ryan Gosling Emma Mackkey. L but I'm going to keep Margot Robbie, obviously. So she's in there as the star. But maybe more interestingly Also Margare Wuthering Heights. So I'm going to have a muppet Margot, a Muppet Jacob Baudi but I'm going have a real character, which is Martin Cloes. So I'm going to keep him and all the others and Muppets. All right, well off the top of my head.es, if you were going to do The exorcist You'd have to have Miss Peggy as as the mother You know, as the Ellen burst and roll. Okay probably have Gonzo as Pazoozoo becausecause it's the right voice, you know, the Gunzo voice is kind of a Pazuzu voice anyway You'd have Either Waldorf or Stattler as Father Merin And then in the in the role that we're going to keep. I mean, probably Linda Blair. We'll keep Linda Blair because she's lovely and that's great. So we'll keep Linda Blair, but we'll recast it like that So I don't know if anyone else wants to play the muppet game, cororrespondence at Kobiname. comot Anyway, Star Wars time, let's go. You sound very enthusiastic about this, Simon? Well, I've watched Mandalorian on Disney plus and I like it. Well, the first series was great. secondecondly not quite as good, but I've, you know, I've enjoyed it Okay. Well, so Star Wars, Mandalorian and Grogu. So this is the latest Star Wars franchise outing, a continuation of the Mandalorian TV series with which I'm not very familiar. I've seen a couple of episodes, I think as you said, you've seen How many series have there been? I think there's just a couple, but Anyway, so The So this is directed by John Favreaux, who's the co creator of the series along with and the script is written by co written by him and Dave Flononey and No So I'm going to read you just the official synopsis because there's always this thing with these things about You're going to say anything that you're not meant to say? And there was a thing at the beginning when Ali Plum got up and told us all to not give away plot spoilers. And the problem is because in the Star Wars universe I don't know what constitutes a plot spoiler anymore. So I'm going to read you the official thing, okay? just so I know I'm not spoiling anything. Following the fall of the Galactic Empire during a period where remaining imperial warlordars threaten the galaxy, the new Republic enlists the Mandalorian and his apprentice Grogu to rescue Rota the Hutt in exchange for information from the Hutt clan on a new Republic target. So Pedra Bascal is the Mandalorian Din Jarin Correct so am I pronouncing that correctly in Jarin This is the way. This is the way. Okaykay, fine. Although Since the character is helmeted for most of the time, there's actually no knowing whether it's Wh there's him and of course, apparently, there are other people play the Mandalorian Brendan Wayne, Latif Crd, and I imagine in the TV series. so It's the old Judged Dred thing because for most of the time, the Mandalorian is wearing a helmet. and there's a whole thing about the Mandalorian taking his helmet off, which is absolutely not done. although in obviously in the Sylvester Stallone Judged Drered movie, they just took the helmet off Jeremy Allllen White is in inverted commas rote to the heart. who is son of Jab at the Hut. whenever I say that, I always think of the Mel Brooks sppace Balls joke Pizz are the hot. who Favreau has compared Roto the Hutts to A Donnis Creed, a fighter living in the shadow of his father, And then of course Gu, who is a puppet, a decision that I have to say pays infinite dividends because there is nothing that looks or lasts as well on screen as a puppet. Here is a clip. I have to warn you, it's an audio clip. It's a mainly visual thing, but there you go, it's Star Wars. ignition relay cut off, It's next to the fuel differential readout, which is between the pump compression gauge and the primary reserve it. Touch the missile battery switch. That's why there's safety guuard on it. Do you see the fuel readout display? Remember I showed you that one? It's on the other side of the manual control surface calibration I dont think he knows what he's doing Butich of course he doesn't. So in that clip, which if you were listening and him not seeing, essentially Grogu is getting to the control panel, lifting up all the things that he shouldn't lift and firing missiles rather than making making the o inward. So also in the cast you have Sigori Weaver and he is very much an and Sigori Weaver role as the cololonel of the New Republic who basically sends the Mandalorian off on this mission to go and get Road to the Hut. There is also a character who is played or voiced or however you want to put it by Martin Scorsesei. And so it's a, you know, and it's a it's it's a very Martin Scorsesee part and there are a couple of on screen cameos. There is one there there was one onn screen cameo peopleople in the know laughed at and I didn't know who it was. and I said to a colleague afterwards, who was that? And they said, Oh, that is Dave Falononey, who I didn't recognize because I'm not as deeply immersed in this as some are. So The first thing to say is Obviously, I am not as deeply immersed in this as some people are. You've been watching the series and I haven't. So that of course It's important What I can tell you is this If Return of the Jedi was, as they said in clerks, muppets in space thenen this quite often looks like Michael Bentine's potty time in space. and I say that as somebody who liked Michael Bentine's potty. So that's a compliment. Yes, it sounds like it isn't, but actually it is because you remember Michael Bentine's potty t?. And for those not old enough to remember, essentially Michael Bentine would have these kind of these little worlds made out and then stuff would happen. It was almost like a kind of upmarket flee circus and things would blow up and things would explode and things would run around. it were very sort of slapstick physical humor I've got a real affection for that and I've got a real affection for that kind of filmmaking over complex CG. I mean, You were talking about Herzog earlier on Hertzog famously called the makers of the TV series cowards when they considered replacing the puppet inadvert a baby Yodor with CG because he said the puppet was a phenomenal technical achievement, heartbreakingly beautiful. It made you cry when you saw it. and there's now become this whole thing about about Herzog's immense attachment to the puppet. And the puppet, Grogu is definitely the best thing about this latest movie alongside As I said, there's there's a sort of team of miniature mechanics who were brought in to upgrade a spaceship when the Mandalorian needs to be moving faster. And they are very, very much like something that came out of Michael Bentine's Pottyign, which again sounds like a criticism, but isn't As for the rest of it There are a lot of CG monster fights, sometimes in performance rings, sometimes in watery pits, always without much regard for the laws of physics there are some X wing dog fights, which are somehow far zippier than the originals and yet honestly less impressive than the original movies There's a bunch of, I mean, the plot isn't very complicated, but there is a bunch of blag baggy plot exposition that's basically sort of rolled out like instructions to a video game, you know, go to this place and do this, go to this other place and do this other thing. in each individual segment, it's, you know Here is the goal, here is the aim, here is the thing you have to get. and then bring this other thing back I saw it in iMax on Monday night because the That's when they did the press screen at the BFIMX, which is the biggest screen in I think it's the biggest screen in Europe So I saw it in the biggest format possible And some of it looked impressive, notably the big walkie machine things, if they sort of fall over and crash in slowark, you get a sense of big things crashing, although honestly, I always got that from Thunderbirds, which I always thought did big machines falling over really, really well. Um There's a sort of post transformers vibe to that stuff, although of course, with the added bonus of not being intercut skirt shirts of shots of Meghgan Fox, which was always the thing that made transansformers so intolerable was it was essentially This kids movie with this really leering sensibility. You haven't got any of that here What you have got is a sort of Innoc. So look, it's far better than Transformers, although that of course is setting the bar very low. Honestly, it does feel And this is even to somebody who's not been watching the series. It feels like an expanded TV series episode, which is kind of what it is because Apparently Favron Faloni were working on a new series And then didn't happen because production was delayed by stuff in Hollywood And then they kind of reevaluated it and thought, oh, well, actually what we'll do is we'll turn it into a Mandaloreian film. I think it was a fourth season. I think there might be three seasons, Son. I'm not Yeah it could be. But I'm not sure. But the point is evenven though I'm not invested in the series in that way, this still felt like, okay, this is basically the biggest TV episode or a couple of TV episodes, you know, locked together. There was a UFO film, which was I think it was the pilot and then an episode strapped on the end of it. And it kind of felt a bit like that. I mean, I was never emotionally invested, which I have been in some of the sequels. It's not that I've got a complete emotional investment blank on Star Wars I haven't, Some of the sequels I have been emotionally invested in I didn't mind it I didn't hate it. I liked bits of it particularly the puppet And it's two days after I saw it, and I've almost already forgotten absolutely everything about it whichich seems like an underperformance for a film that costs this much money Um, It is honestly the very definition of Mh It's it's just strange to see a movie that big All the things that are good about it are small I think that's the weird thing. All the things that are good about it are small But it's very, very big and it felt very baggy and it did feel like someomebody's takaking your television and put it on the biggest screen possible and gone All right, let's call it a movie. Child one has a Mandalorian helmet tattoo Wow. ye I you're going to say Charm one has a Mandalorian helmet No, he might, he may well have one, but he's certainly got a Mandalorian helmet tattoo. Okay. well maybe wouldould you ask Child One to go see the film and let me know what he thinks for next He might have childcare issues on that one, but I will definitely suggest that he goes and I'll get his review for us. Because I can't stress this enough It is obviously different if you're a fan who is invested in this particular world, then that will make a difference. And I want to be really clear, I am not that. Even as somebody who isn't that, it did feel like a big TV episode. Correspondence at Codomoe dot com if you are a fan and you do actually go and see it. So let's do a what's on section here. You can send your videos. This is kind of movie related, movie adjacent, you know how it goes. Correspondence at Kodo dot comot First of all, we have Lucy Harvey who was the director of Alien O stage, the documentary that Mark reviewed. Which I loved. abbsolutely loved that film Dave Mitchell gave everything to Alileen on stage. He is the glue that held it all together Let's support him now and give him what he needs because since March, he's been hospitalized with Guillam Barr syndrome. He's in a wheelchair and he's in constant pain. His partner, Lydia says that creating this fundraiser means more to them than we know So the timing is crucial as if sick pay runs out in August and the recovery process is slow Please donate today, share this everywhere and let's show Dave that we love him. Okay,'ve thank you very much for that. Lucy. We've put a donation link in the show notes if you want to have more information on that. Here is Dr. Gavin Lee Artistic director of Secret Shakespeare Secret Shakespeare is secret actors in secret spaces This June at Rading Abbey Ruins from the third to the twentieth The actors who addressed just like the audience could be anyone at any time. from anywhere Tickets are available at secretshakespeare. coot Uk Thank you, Dr. Gavin. sounds intriguing. Yeah. And we'll put a link to all of these in our show notes. seend in your videos please to correspondents at Kodomo. com. That's it for this week. This has been a Sony Music Entertainment production. This week's team, Jen Eric, Josh, Heather and Dom The reactor Sammer pool, not that he's interested this week because he's in the pub And if you're not following the pod already, please do so wherever you get your podcast. Come and join us on Patreon. Mark, what is your film of the weeek takeake a wild guess. From the ones that I've reviewed what you think it might be, passenger, I would say absolutely on the money We'll be back next week with lots of fabulous stuff, I can't remember I'm going to be so, I'm sure it'll be good, you know, I just have faith A year's ultra membership to our correspondent of the week, I'll give it to Richie the science teacher guy who had the Muppet game So Richie will be in touch. you were an ultra for a year, whether you like it or not And if you'd like a little bit more after take one, head over to take two. Would like wouldould you like me to tell you what we're reviewing on next weeks showow becausecause I've actually got it written down. Okay, go ahead Tuna Power ballard, Brooms, my mother's wedding and Fairyland That's all to come next week Some more current stuff on T two. Thank you very much indeed for listening. Here Mark, don't you find public wiifi a waste of time when you're travelling? Is that why I never hear from you when you're off on your scandy jollies? Well, I'm certainly not shelling out for a roaming data package just to call you. I've got Danish pastries to be buying.