Final Recommendations and Outro

Weill C and beven new and welcome to Wel talkalk. I'm Jonathan Ross. And I'm Honey Ross. This is a podcast where we review films, TV, all the new releases, what's dropping on your streaming right now when things are about to come out. How's your week been, honey? My week has been good. I think the shift in weather has led to a kind of contemplative, interesting week Oh, Genzie. Genzie, sorry, what can I say? I mean like you don't spend most of the time thinking about yourself. Y Your generation suffer from terminal self interest I think it's just when the sun goes away, you have more time to think. It's interesting because when the sun's out. You still have time to think you're just hot, you're just hot and sin. You're thinking about it in a sweaty way? Yeah. Well I'm glad, no, it's good. It's good to do a little bit of self examination. And what have we discovered in this post? we discovered Oh God, where do we start? Wh do we begin to? Do you feel like you've hit some sort of like epiphany, some sort of milestone moment where you think, you know, I'm turning thirty next year. yeah, forget. There's just a lot to think about. I suppose so, although I must you know what, when I turn thirty, I know it's obviously I suppose different for men because we haven't got the biological issue of life Those who want to have children, etcetera, et cetera. But aside from that, I didn't give a shit You didn't give a shit but I think it's easy not to give a shit and I say this with all the love in my heart You were already Aolute shining star You a household name. You were God. You were a father and a household name. you say th that interestingly I had become My talk show started, my first on screen talk show started in January nineteen eighty seven, I was twenty six. And then I had like two years of being. would I suspectnd most of the time overpraised to be honest with you. And I was luckily for me, I was aware of that. I was aware that much of the praise I was getting was actually slightly more positive than it deserved to be, I felt. So that was good. It was a good, I think, a self awareness there. But then by the time I turned thirty, I think I'd already gone into the first of my many cyclical dips in my career So I'd actually had a brief period of like adulation and celebration And then there was a weird where reviled is too strong a word That came later, but no more like I was justild distaste. I wasen as wasn't it just like seen as like, o, trash in the pan. why why do you know, certainly I was aware of that in some of the pieces that were written about me in some of the responses. And I always I just worked through all those things. But it was so I didn't hit thirirty thinking, oh, yeah, I've arrived and I've achieved it. I hit thirirty thinking, I arrived I achieved it for a little while. now I've got to get it back. How do I keep it? Yeah, or how do I even get back up there? So so it wasn't wasn't plane sailing And you know what? it never is and isn't life a beautiful journey? Life is a journey. But it's interesting that yes, I can imagine why you are thinking about this. So I suppose you're thinking about decisions that you need to make for your life in the next few years. Yeah, I'm thinking about long term. I'm thinking about babies, I'm thinking about work. I'm thinking about life, you know, and it's nice to think when the son is away. Do you remember signing that contract? and you were a little saying that you signed, I forced you to sign a contract? In return for some ice cream, I, I mean she said that I could name your first child No. I've got. I've got it somewhere. You've got the paperwor. Yeahep. I've got the paperork What are you going to name my child? I think I might call it maximus Gargoyle Even if it's a girl. Well no, that's the girl's name. The boy's name is swweet Dreams Patuti. You know what, sweet Dreams It's sweet. Iagine' sweet's kind of like Thats like a Marlen Brando character go, a sweet Gum over here. You know what I mean? Like that's like a cooloyys name. Gargoyle is a good name for child. Gargoyle Gargina Gy Gy g. Gargina. You, enough nonsense. U I was I've had a very busy week but you've got a madly busy time coming up. I'm a little bit worried for you because We're recording this now, then you're going off to Brighton for a few days. G to Brighton? Then you're going to go to Swanage I'm celebrate your birthday. Before I do that, I'm making a speech at my old school make a speech my old school about The journey I've on that That's why I've been thinking that's why my dyslexia journey. Yeah My dyslexia journey. then We're going toish And then you're going straight from Swanish to Los Angeles. For two weeks. How are you going yourour head must be spinning and presumably you're packing some of the stuff well in advance and I'm packing now. I'm really stressed, but it's gonna be lovely. so I will be really stressed. I think you're it's going to end badly. It's gonna rock. You're get the stuff. You're gonna to go away, you're. Wh don' do you think I will? You've set yourself up? No, you' set yourself up for two weeks. Massive anxiety I know. And I'm really not a chill person so I don't know why I'm acting like I am. don't know why you've done this yourself. Well, because I becauseuse the offers are there, I guess But Busso, you know what? I wanted to do something for M's birthday. That don't just put M's birthday in the middle. M's birthday doesn't explain the other things around the side of it. Mom's birthday is the easiest thing you're doing I'm very I'm excited to go away. Yes. out of this country. It'll be lovely. How are you, sorry, enough about me 'm good. I'm trying to remember there was something I wanted to talk about, but I forgget what it is now Scary movie? or scary movie night No, we'll talk about the films, but there was something in my life I wanted to share with you and with everyone listening, but I've completely forgotten what it is because you know what? I'm not Gen Z. So I don't dwell on myself like I don't sit there thinking I'm important. You r I don't think I'm important. I just I'm just thinking But you know, I'm joking obviously. you are important because we are all important to ourselves. You have to be Be you know, you've got to back yourself. Ultimately, you are all you've got. So true. Yeah. So true. Tw words from an elder stateseman. What are we looking at today? This week we are both discussing Spider Noir The new Spider Man series, sorry, Nicholas Cage. One and only Nick Cage. Y Dopelgager. Finding Emily you've seen, I haven't seen, I think you quite enjoyed it. It what he here say about that. And sccary moovie It's sort of scary movie sixix, but they have dropped the six from it because they're kind of claiming the Wayham brothers who are back in charge of saying the last couple that they weren't allowed to participate in or certainly their request for the amount of money they want to paid was refused. by Hermax, they were not involved. And so they've decided to just sc a sccary movie again, which makes sense, I suppose because the first one was like almost thirty years ago. So yeah, I guess you can kind of wipe the slate, huh? You can do. Well I'm sure they probably will do after this one. So let's get into it. Okay, let's get into it. Should we start with Scary movie? Let's start with sccary movie Okay so we had a nice night out together we met in town toaguny Sky movie. It was one of those kind of influencer screenings. Yeah, where they invite people way too early Way too early. The nice person who sent me the ticket for it said, Oh yeah, can you be there between six to six fifteen, I at least we get photograph before we go. I said, sureure, sure. Assume it would start at six thirty. startarted at seven So we waste circumstance you're sitting in a cinema for forty five minutes. addmittedly they do give you a free can of water and a free bag of salted and sweet mixed popcorn. But that's a long while to sit for any, you know, any Especially for you. And I do think that any time I'm at a screening when there's a long period, I just go, this is not for you. It's not for me. It's not fair. but I did feel a bit sorry I don't know I feelel sorry, I suppose I just empathed with that because it wasn't a particularly glamourous venue And it wasn't particularly it's sort of a movie where you feel like you've seen interesting movie or an event movie. And yet a lot of the young people there were so otesquely overdressed for the occasion. There was a very handsome young gentleman who walked past me a couple of times who was wearing And I quite admired The outfit because you know me, I like the flamboyance, but not to just go and sit in a slightly, you know popcorn covered chair for cored. It was wearing sort of skorts, I think, they were like skirts, shorts mixed together a tight black t shirt and a bronze or gold mooulded breastplate How did I miss the m? passes about three or four times? Wow Wow, mayaybe JZ are tooselfl involved. I didn't see the breastplates That's a lot anyway. That's a lot anywayere. And am I just going to sit and see the scary movie of all these? Scary movie six no less. Well, because also there was a lovely young woman there wearing a floor length orgganza burgundy gown. I think I saw her very gamera. An amazing gown. She looked good, she looked glam Once again, not for Siny World. Not for Sinny World and it's so difficult because every influencer that is serving an absolute look There are forty people in a t shirt, which is, you know, it's a kind of a confusion of the dress code. The dress code on the invite says glam Glam is so vague. You don't know if you're going to get that and it's like preremier vibe and everyone's in a gown Or if everyone's in a t shirt, or if someone's in a bronze breastplate. Well, lots of people were wearing t shirts and said, Oh why's up wasumly they've sent them by the film company because that's sort of one of the catchphrases in the film. It was their mocking the train for saying was up. Famously. But it was they were I did feel for them because they can't be that comfortable sitting in either a floor length gown or a bronze breastplate for the duration of a movie which felt much longer than it actually was. L especially like I think it's something I've tried to make peace with as I've gotten older, but like There is something horrible about being overdressed Do you remember your mother's story about Hear my song I think about it every single time I met one of these screenings. tellell it. So there was a film called Here My Song. It was written by a stun Adrian Dunbar, who's now very famous for being the cop in line of duty And it was good. It was sort based on a true story about a very popular singer, very popular Irish singer back in the fifties, a Krun of sorton. the week before This premiere that I'd agreed to go with Jane, I had hosted a charity of auction event and because one of the items or some of items wouldn't get as much size, I felt compelled as the host to bid on them myselves. And by the way, this is the days before I was making big money. Yeah. I was not making a lot of money early in my career. I was doing okay, but I was really earning more or less the same money I was earning when I was a researcher because I hadn't actually asked for any more money when I was hosting initially And so I bid on this dress, which I thought was quite love and excited, but as is often the case for me even now I buy things without thinking about A, where they're going to go. or be what you will serve. I get caught up in the moment of consumption And so I bought this, it was a very, very bright it was a shocking pink. Oh my God sort of organza Ball gowny dress with a big puff bubble skirt, I think. Qite dramatic it? I think it might have been. And I said, Jane, you can wear this to the promio we go to next week. And I Yourother was at the stage in a relationship where she didn't really feel like she could hold the mirror up to me and say, no, this is what you're saying. Yeah. And so I think she went along with it And we both thought it would be a more. but when we turned up, it was actually quite a low key Um And so lots of people and lots of because he was a youngestish man then and he knew lots of people on the comedies, there were lots of young comedians performers there in A jeans and t shirt. I'm going throw fasial jackets and then we come out and I'm wearing a suit, which I always wore a suit so it didn't overdressed or underdressed. And your mum comes out wearing the most extravagant design again, which she would never bought for herself anyway. It wasn't even her style. No. This is before I thought about her style when I bought her stuff No, you were just like playing dress up. Yeah, if I saw something cool or cute, I thought that would look good Yeah. I bought some purple boots once. that were like purple suede boots with black holes cut out in the middle and the heel went down went in at an angle and out again they sound really exciting. are not for her. They weren't really for anyone, but they look great in the shop window. Yeah. Anyway, that's by the bye and that brings it back to a scary movie, which is this for anyone? And that's a really key question. It's so interesting. And I did turn to mum at one point when we were watching Scary Mvie six and I went to see what this film looks like on the page. Like what's the script for sccary movie because it is so It's these kind of nonsensical like vignettes, like little tiny just glimpses into A small write is from I imagine of people going Remember that horror film s there's no kind of through line, there's no logic particularly. Well, you say you say a small whiters room, but did you see how many whiters there were in the crowd? There's so many. There' about forty. No, but sorry, when you say a small writeer room, you'd think If it's a TV show, yes, this is a film Usually I'd say typically there's no more than two writers on a film. Three or four at most. Three or four at most, if there are rewrites. This was like, I mean, there's like about six. But we should let's trace the history. a scurary movie came out I think twenty six years ago and it was a huge hit in America. It was a big hit It was a phenomenon. It was a phenomenon. It was actually bigger then the movies it poweredied. It was kind of powereding expect Eressly sccream and I know you did last summer. And the ring I think or was it in the second one? That came up later, I think. The first two really was based on those pegs. and They continued always using Scream as a reference point But it was huge. I mean, it took a couple of hundred million. It put the Wan Bothers more firmly on the map than they'd been before, even though they were well known for their TV success for like in living colour. And I think it was a kind of cultural as well because for like a movie made by Black Americans to be that huge. And then the first movie, obviously an never led a sequel, the second movie. and then bizarrely, I think I think the Wbuz was seing invved than the third one than they were And I read up on this, so it might not be true, but certainly this is what I read. It's that they asked for too much money make four and five. And so the rights to the scary movie idea were owned by Millamax They went ahead and made it without them And so thenen they return this one and they' sort of seen as a triumph return to their baby, I guess And they of course, you know, huge stars and we should I wouldn't mind preempting what we're going to say because I think I know what we're going to say. by saying that I We are not snobbish about humor. I like what people would perhaps describe as stupid comedy. I like dumb and duma I like white chigs I love watching. I like Little Man You are one of the few who does like Little Man and I don't think that's a film that I would even encourage anyone to go revisit. Soulple, I could watch again and again. I love Soulple with Kevin Hyde. It's a really dumb comedy. And many of the reference points are sort of like, you know, Black American culture I adore it so much so that when I met him a few years ago, I asked him to sign My DVD cover to soulplane and He initially was wary because I think he thought I was taking the piss I mean, but like soul plane It really does serve its place in culture and it's an interesting film. I think white chicks genuinely has some unbelievable moments of comedy that have stood the test of time and people continue to like revisit that. A masterpiece we. I wouldn't say as a mousek be some joking about. But it's. It's fun. So we go in quite well disposed to like this, but I just came by feeling like there were some moments I laughed and it's you know, if you' You might well have a fun night out, but it just felt to me like it It lacked focus and cohesion and it felt Not only lass are very, very overly self referential The number of references there were to the fact that the Wayam B brothers hadn't made the last couple of movies The number of references to the sort people who go and see Way and Bother's films, it's just sheer number of times they referennce their own work And so and I think they are quite important cultural figures on the American entertainment landscape, more so they are here, but It certainly doesn't travel well No and I think it also One or two of those jokes really beautifully deployed could be really funny. Yeah It's the repetition. It's overdoing it. know, they've oververegged it. Well that's another problem with the film as a whole, not just in that specific reference, but in the way that they deliver jokes, The opening sequence, which is quite fun What is the name of Fiana Taylor? Diana Taylor from from one battu to another She's doing the Drew Barrymore. She's doing the Drew Barrrymore opening but very specifically they've based it on the exact opening on not the last screen movie but the one before. Yeah, whichich is so crazy to do two screams ago. Yeah. So they Jen Oteagga scream. Yeah, so they've based it on that. It's verydd because it's been a whole new scream since then So she's waiting in a bunch. she go outide there this jke after joke, but there's quite I think even in that sequence, it's three or four times where she turns and addresses us, the audience directly and talks about what's happening, makes jokes about herself, makes jokes about the nature of the film, makes jokes about the kind of audience that will go and see a Wayam aboutother's film. And that's fine. It kind of all works. But the fact that they return and use that same technique, probably twenty times in the film. Yeah. twenty times or so, they have someone turn to the camera and make a joke about what's happening in the broader context of what it's satirizing Exactly, it's repetitious and it's quite boring when that keeps on happening. and it's interesting there are moments There's one moment that stayed with me because it frustrated me so much where they referenceced the brilliant horror film It Fllows. Yeah. And they say, Breaking the fourth wall, we were going to make a joke here about It Follows, but nobody's seen it No I want to see that movie and you think, Well, every horror fan did. Every horror fan who you would assume is kind of a large portion of the audience who is going to see a scary movie. It was very, very odd. And there were times when I felt like they had just grabb jokes or not grab jokes, sorry, had grabed words or phrases from the zeitgeist and phone them in randomly. So there's one moment where someone kicks some or something and he goes, Oh right in the manosphere Yeah I think Nonsense doesn't really mean anything apart from giving the excuse to say the word mananosphere, which makes it feel like at least it's been made in the last couple of years and not the first scary movie. So and I do think, you know, it's interesting lookingoo at the number of viters, I suspect That's why it feels so lackluster in terms of any cohesion because It's like there were just random jokes put in that you assume someone's gone off in a room and said, I we need four more horror film jokes and we haven't done we haven't done it follows, for example, we haven't done long legs. We haven't done herereditry and they've come up with three or four jokes and they slaaped them in And then they slap them onto this structure, which is so directly based on the not the last but the last but one a sccream movie. whichich wasn't that good a film anywayically It's such an odd thing to do I know, and I really want to understand the logic of why they chose that scream in particular And also You know, you've come back after a decade of no scary movie Why don't you pick something new? I'm not saying they don't have Ghost face. I feel like Ghostface, I can understand why they're almost holding on to that character like a security blanket. sureure. they need it. They're resting on the comfort of their past successes. And I guess to be fair as well, a lot of the audience going to say it will want to see ghost faceack in it. But I kind of would have been happy had they done the Tiana Taylor coold open.ana spun and then spun off and went and followed the outline of another horror film. I would have been happy if they'd done the Tiana Taylor Cold opening anythingthing else. I mean, almost anything else ' it felt so confusing to me. There were times when I thought I don't I genuinely don't understand what I'm watching. There were two moments, which I know we don't necessarily see I T on, but there's the moment where they spoof get out whichich is also kind of like a little bit late, one would think, because that movie must be ten years old now or something Masterpiece so it is And I can see why it's taillor made for this, but They then do a joke where they And I don't want to spoil anything, but it involves a K pop movie. And so briefly it's like What are other K pop movies? Okay. So basically when he goes down into the sunken place or there is the sunk place in the hole said, no I' not going down the hole. I'm going into the K hole. K, obviously the joke being that in the real world that refers to Ketamine, but also Kam mean K pop, like Korean pop. And then he turns into an animated verse himself and does a little dance routine with a song that Be fun. K pop It sounds like golden, Yeah. which I really I really enjoyed that bit of the film. I said think I. I was watching it going, what's going on? Because he goes, I'm going into a K hole and then the person who sent him into the sunken place goes, no, you're going into a K pop What does that mean? Not really anything. Y're going into a K pop doesn't mean anything. But also, you know, I did feel a warmth towards the get out parody ' I read somewhere that apparently Jordan Peel had said, you better put get out in. If you ever bring a scary movie back, Ion't get out in there. And you're like, you know what? That makes sense. It's lovely. is lovely. And also it's probably one of the biggest horror films in the last And once again important in African American cinematic culture. Just a very important horrorilm in general, It's what got kind of horror back on track of being prestige. But overall, though, we'd have to agree, I think the Gy movie is is a mess and not a particularly edifying one because I did get there's a sense of self love and self importance and self aggrandisement going on with every reference to what they've created in the past and I just felt weary I felt kind of embarrassed think if they had made something, And I don't want to sound snobby because I think Obviously like I said, I don't my nose up at broad comedy, I really don't But they're talking about the past success of Scary moovie as if they have made like You like your heart. Exactly, like an absolute masterpiece. Like they'd made airplanes. But you know like it's not but it is part it was an important moment, you know, it was huge hit and these young filmmakers, you know, so I can see why They want to acknowledge it once or twice, but it was the repetition. it was the banging on about the Way Bothers the Wayan Bothers this is Wayan Bothers fm The Wayne Bothersn't done that Way Bothers audience can't read. It was like joke after joke after joke that they were making didn't feel like they were their own expense, particularly. The bit the character played by the younger of the two brothers who does that weird giggle, who's a man who's been to be high all the time, I believe. Yeah Um The audience, there was a genuine feeling that by for a chunk of the audience, I think they were genuinely pleased to see him and there were other moments that landed much better with the audience that were with them with us. So I suspect it is a film that has quite a narrow audience in a way, but those that audience will probably it Yeah, the people that will love it will love it. I don't think we're necessarily the core demographic and that's okay But it's interesting as well because I went in and just was like, oh, I would have loved you to gven like just a few jokes I haven't heard Like even just going in and going, right, I'm going to reckon in about T minus ten seconds there's a joke about pronouns There you go immmediately and m be like,, what's a pronoun kind of thing? We we're just like, okay, If I see one more show or film, do that gag I'm just so bored of it. It does feel it feel it felt to me like possibly the script was written maybe two or three years ago. Yeah. You know, if because it was spoofing that movie the screen movie that came out several years ago. Maybe the first draft of the script or the early work was done back then grafted on because the reference to the long legs was so kind of cursory and then the joke that they used to pay off was so familiar So overly familiar. I felt that maybe this was something which they had just thrown together and thought would change that how long li. Yeah. I mean same with the scene about the substance. you're like that, you shot that in a separate sound stage maybe two years after you'd written the script. It wasn't good either, was it? I mean I think many joes you could probably make about the substance They just threw that fairly rich material away No, it's interest where as well I would have just loved to have seen them weave it together a bit more because From my hazy memories of the original sccary movie I remember having a bit more to it. like having a bit of plot. I know it was still like really broad. Also you know bear in mind, if you've got a franchise which has been on for a quarter of a century, You do have to do something new with it. Yeah. You can't, you know, you can't just do the same thing I think. And so that that is a problem that The reason why we did like Scary movement when it came out is because it felt fresh And this feels Very very unfresh, very unfresh indeed. Tale there I say. Very, very unfresh is the correct English word. I think you'll fine. But Scary movie is out now Please let us know if you got more from it than we did because you know what, I hope you do. I hope if you love Scary movie and you go see it, it revives your love in that franchise. I will say, nameem and shameem I will say friend of the pod, Erin, who came along to see with us Left before the halfway mark. I know. Figning illness It was I did have a moment where I went that's bloody convenient, isn't it Eron? Eron went, I've got a really bad headache. Yeah. I was like, o, a headache. I just come on just during the K pop Demon Hunter sequence, has it? Okay? I mean easy. Turn to your mother and say, do you think we can leave as well actually No so will And it would have been. Yeah, But also Erin, nothing but respect. Friend of the pod, we love you, but notothing but respect. I to ref that, you left us high and dry in Scary Mvie six, Erin. We will be having words. Yeah, exactly. Thank you All right, so it's out now go and see it. and you know Don't let us put you off, because if you like the scary movie films, it' quite nice they made another one and there are jokes in it. They said I laughed a few times. Nice to see Anna Farris back. I love Anna Farris. know there's a good cast. Yeah yeah Good cameo by Shaquile O' Neil, although having never heard his podcasts, I didn't really get the joke that I'm making, but I understood it. But you know you know, Regina Hall, amazing. Nice to see her back. Good cast, bad script Okay, Sall we turn to Nicholas Cage next? Let Okay, so let's talk about a new, it's not really a ficial like the Marvel Cinematic Universe because it's from Sony. And as you know, they got the rights years ago to Spider Man and various characters, not all of them but some characters from the Spider Man book. Soah they have Craven the Hunter And they made that terrible forgetable film with them Aaron Tyler Johnson iny Madame Web. Madam Webb, the unforgettable Madame Webb, which was appalling of course. So they got a bunch of these characters. And I think they got Spad Menoir, which was sort of a spin off so it's like an alternative universe Marvel thing. And it's interesting because I was watching The Bys recently, this final season in The Boys, which is fine. it drags on a bit and it's a bit There are various plot holes and silly contrivances which make you a little bit tired, but it's quite fun still They do quite jokeking. the people are no longer part of the kind of top tier superheroes in the world donon't make movies with them do. They make them with Sony. That's so fun. Yeah. And it'ss so well observed. It's so like, you know, you know if you're making a Sony superhero movie, Morbius, then you are the chances of it being A any good and be finding an audience or making a profit is slim to none But having said that, you know, they've gone to TV with this, and of course they cast Nicolas Cage. and Nicholas Cage is a force like no other Nicholas Cage Obviously we love him. dearly in this house. But he does make bold choices and he happens to make choices when it seems like maybe it's going to be a tough tax here. You know, I've noticed that sometimes he'll pick certain films and you're like What was your logic behind that your thought process? Virtually bankrupt about fifteen, twenty years ago. Back when he was maybe to be playing Superman, he bought loads of early DC comics featuring Superman, including action number one. The highest grade version, I think, went for over four million dollars recently. So he spent lot of money, but then he sold them all off. And I believe he bought a castle somewhere in Europe And he had constructed for it a sort of like toy train set but up on a high shelf level that went around the room and through some holes into other rooms. I remember seeing this and thinking what a dream come true, but it's also kind of and I was a child at the time when I saw this, which checks out because that is a child' dream is to have that train waste of money, you know, what a waste of your money to put something that. Quite a fun thing to do. a couldady. And that's someone who actually did have too much money at one stage saying, you know what? let's build a train system going around the top was there And that's the first thing you'd feel so sry about. Sell that off as well. R. So I know he's obviously he's weathered financial storms presumably his own creation. I still think that even when he's in a bad, bad thing, there's something oddly fascinating about him And you will watch it He's a phenomenally compelling performer He's given us some of the greatest greatest performances. And this and you know what? I'm pleased to say that this isn't like a bad Sony film I thought it was good enough to be entertaining. The story really it's sort for Spider Man, but it's more like if Spider Man was a pulp hero You know what the pulpes were. I told you about theul. Yeah, we about theulp. So the pules were like, before the world of comic books, they were like cheap U magazines with stories and not illustrations. well, they had illustrations, but it wasn't like a comic book. And quite a lot of the big characters in modern popular fiction began in pules, tars and began in pules Doc Savage. The shadow was huge All of the early HP lovevecraft stuff was in weird tails and pules. I've got quite a few of them. They're beautiful things. And a lot of them have that kind of noire feel because they were from that period. They were in the nineteen thirties going into the forties And so is he's almost like he's a private detective in this who happens to have more or less the same powers that Spider Man has So he's likepider man if he had have been not Peter Parker, but a guy called Ben Wiley, who was a gumshoe in nineteen thirties, nineteen forties, New York. Yes And how did you find this? Because look, I've watched a bit of it. I watched about, I mean, episode and a half, I want to say I know I'm not the demographic. No. becausecause my takeaway from it was Who's this for? I think the person it's for is sitting right opposite me and I would love to know your take on it. I'll be honest with you. I'm slightly disappointed that you feel that about me I think if someone's going to like it, it's Nicolas Cage, it's Spiderm Man in the fortyies ye, I get your point. They're certainly hoping you're the demographic, whether you actually are or not, I'd love to find out. I mean, I think comic books did become to an extent, superhero comics have become more beloved by older middle aged men than anyone else. if one had to when you go into the comics now are basically bu of speciality comic stores, they're not newstandand anymore, of, and you go into them and it will almost always be men forty now. there's also this whole new kind of groundswell group of comic book fans that are kind of the young TikTok. but they're more anime f they're more manga fans oth I think it's interesting. I think I haveve a really warped perception as well of what's doing well because I now follow a bunch of really sweet like film and TV, TikTokers and Instagrammers And a lot of them get sent on these press trips, which make me think the show is doing a lot better than it is. Well I think you go, oh, wow, Spider Noir is doing absolutely incredibly. I'm like No people I know got sent on a trip by the brand. Yeah, and they say good things about it. but it's got like ninety percent of wh tomato. Heres the thing it's badly made. It's rather beautifully made I think it looks quite gorgeous. I prefer this black and white cinematography to the cinematography was in that remake of the talent Mr. Whipley, which everyone was praising, which I thought was crisp and slightly sort of like clinically off putting, but This I quite enjoyed and you do get the option of watching it I've in black and white in colour. Which one did you chooose? I accidentally chose color. How it? accidentally chose. Be I was okay, full disclosure I was getting my steps in and I was watching it while I was on a treadmill. Wow. And it came up and it went, Oh, make your choice. and then I didn't click and then it clpped color for me. Well, you know, I think I've watched both. I haven't watched the whole thing in both. I watched one whole episode in colour and then I re watchatched it in black and white to see if it felt any different. And it did feel more compelling in black and white interestingly. And you know what, I felt it would because watching it in color it felt almost cheap and like There were moments where they had like split screen and they had kind of like his memororyies being projected onto windows and things. like right in the opening I was like, I know that would look beautiful in black and bright, white. That looks terrible in color I think ultimately, I would have to say though, it's fine There's nothing in any and I've watched the first three episodes in part of the fourth Never have I ended an episode of thought, I can't wait to see what happens next. Nor have I really felt like I kind of to know what happens next. So it's a bit middling, you know, and and part of the problem actually is Cage is Miss Gars because he's a man in his sixties letting rest It just seems a bit odd seeing him my fist fights and using webbing ust, you know, he should be in his forties, I think and he It would feel kind of like a little bit more believable, even though unbelievable as the whole premise is The storyline involving the villain in is a villain from late periods, I don remember it's called Silvermaine. and there's another guy called Tombstone who pops up, who were both quite good villains, but not particularly compelling either. Yeah. So there's nothing about it that I feel really I could say to people, even comic book fans, Oh you got to see this. But I think it will find its audience people because it's sort of there. and if you're paying for Amazon already, you're going to watch it It's good enough, but that's not really a great thing to say about something, is it? That's the thing. I have watched various pieces of superhero television even though I definitely have superheror fatigue and I cannot be bothered with many superhero films Certain bits of superhero TV have wrote me and, you know, Jessica Jones really wrote me back in Obviously Wonderivision invincible back thencible Well yeah, invincible and the boys, I think kind of exist in their own sphere because they're almost parody pastiche there they' anti anti hero comic books. They're basically saying that comic heroes are It's a more kind of logical way of looking what the Alamor de watchman, you know, it's like if they were really these guys would be maniacs. Yeah exactly. It's a more brutal take on it. So I feel like those Even though they very much exist in that kind of can and they're they seem different to me, but like, you know, if we're talking about like like Loki got me back, I like, you know, there are moments. You like stuff that actually, you know, and it's interesting you mention all those because all of those are scripts are intriguing or very funny or surprising and this has none of that. It's kind of good enough. occasionally they get close to catching some of the kind of zip and pizzaz of the nineteen forties films that they sort of like visually references, but none of them are good enough. So it's just not sharp enough. That's the thing I can. had I mean, ten percent funnier, ten percent sadder, ten percent camper. Yeah. It felt like they were kind of playing a little bit too straight down the line of like They were playing it safe. They was playing it very safe And it's oddly tropey as well. We start with Ben Reilly, Nichol Kasoto has sort of given up using his powers because of the death of the woman he fell in love with. but none of that feels real. None of it feels believable. None of it feels like, okay, I understand that he's going through something. it's like I am saying words to explain what's happening here. That's all. And that's the thing and also by the end of the first episode is guy he's already gone back on it. so can't have been that a heartbreak. I mean for old time comic fans, it's quite good to see characs like Wobby Robertson, who was J Jonah Jameson Somebody it's the planet it's good to's not on the planet. the bugle. It's good to see him sort of reimagineed a different way. and he's quite a fun character. All the cast are good in it. Brendon Gleason's in it, you know, he's never delivered a bad performance, but there's nothing for any of them to get their teeth into No and I just wanted a little bit more and I probably won't be returning to it. I probably will, but only because I've already invested enough time to think I might as well finish it off. Exactly. But I'm not particularly looking forward to it That's half Oh you're like God, it's a slog. Yeah. And it's difficult because I think recently there's been some amazing TV. you know Widows Bay is one of the few shows in recent memory where I've been going when is the next episode? The Widows Bay is great for Really funny, really dark, really scary at times as well. Really good and really Iossible to guess where it's going next. But that's the thing. when you've had a show like that and it's still airing, where you're going, Oh my go, when can we sit down and watch? When's the next one, drop it or like Purbus. Yeah, well you're amazing. Sing for more.. It's a stark contrast when you see something that's just fine. Just f. you go, Oh it's like I'm eating bland cereal when I know that I've got, you know schoolool M meal waiting for me. It's like you've eaten a mission in Styed West run And now youre existing on a diet of gerl. Eactly Anyway, Spider N' out on Prime video now. it's worth a look And it might tickle your fancy more than you dith ofer of us. I'm going to go back and finish it off you're not, but let us know if you disagree. Okay, let's talk about I want to find out about this film you went to see, Is it called Finding Emily? It is. Did they find her? Maybe they did. Okay Next up is a brand new romc that's out right now in cinemas. It's from Working title. It's called Finding Emily. So I have a love hate relationship with Working Title. Okay, spepeak on that? Well they've made some great films, I think. Of course, oh my god, they've made some absolute all time. And they've made some true stinkers And so I do think sometimes there is a lack of consistency and quality control. at Working in Title, which I find Odd, you know, I suppose you get it in every studio and it's not a big enough studio for you to forive it in the way that Warner Bothers, you know, they've turned through any number of leaders. I mean, there've been two guys leading it for the last, you know, three or four decades and They obviously know and love cinema But they have made some good one coms, some classic war coms like Notting Hill, like four weddings and a funeral, and s love actually and they've made some like, you know, just some of which I've sat there thinking Why have you done this to us? But you know what? you could say that for any studio? Look at a twenty four even, you know. There are risks you take in the film industry especially when you're championing more independent voices, which is something working titles have always done. Maybe I'm being harshed, Maybe it's because they're a British company. I kind of hold them to a higher standard in a weird sort way. You know, But either way, me let me read out the synopsis and you can tell me whether I'm m or not. Apparently this film's about a love sic musician. Given the wrong number for his dream girl, he teams up with a psychology student described as driven to find her. togetherogether they spark a hilarious campus wide frenzy test their own hearts and ambitions along the way. So set in America is it with campus being? It's UK. It's Manchester. Do we call them campuses here? Do we call it University campus? University campus here?. U stars a guy called Spike Fern And Gordy Riss is the titular Emily. Sadie Svel' in it and Minnie dririververs. So Mini' the only one I've heard of there Mini D dririver is great. She plays the University Dean. Why And Gury Rice interestingly doesn't play the titular Emily What the what? But she's down here is Emily. Oh I see. So he's got the number for the one girl. So he's not actually after the person who' called Emily. He's someone thinks iss called Emily or vice versa. Well, it's this is the journey. this is the beautiful journey of this film. And will I can I just come out and say I loved it. W good. It's a delightful Romc. It's funny, it's fizzy, it's fresh, it's cute. You know, most vitally romantic. it genuinely has some good laughs in there. And young people in it presbsumably. so it's aomance, a modern romance for. Mike fans no. he's like fresh on the scene, absolute cutie pie. he's got a kind of Arctic monkey's haircut. He's really sweet.ndy boy indie boy musician.nd boy musician You know, the film opens, he meets this girl he believes to be called Emily. They have a gorgeous night flirting. She then has to leave the place he's working. He gets her number, she misses the final digit of her phone number. not intentionally accidentally R So you then part of the clue to get final a crumb He then starts searching the campus because all he knows is he goes to the same university that he works at. even though he's hold on if she's only got the last number wrong. This is a very easily solved problem He doesn't even know if that's it. Just o, I see. he didn't know that. So it's not like you get to the end of it and there's one number missing She' written it down incorrect. There's one number missing, but I okay, you give me your phone number with the end number missing. I will dial nine numbers. Each one will have the first numbers will be as written And the last one I will dial it once with one. Once with two, the third time withre three, eventually I'll find you I think maybe we found a small poth hole here and that's okay. you know, everybody's doing their best He's looking on campus desperately to find this Emily that he had this absolutely gorgeous connection with In searching for Emily, he finds another girl called Emily, who's played by Angri Rice, who happened to be a psychology student who get this is trying to write her final student thesis on why she believes love is essentially a mental illness. Wow And how with you know the pursuit of love, you will end up doing things that absolutely make you Unhinged, insane and go against all self preservation nature. Pbody has a point She finds him because he finds her and she goes That's my case study So I'll help you, but because I'm going to use you as my spam, you're my guinea pig. He has no idea that he's the guinea pig. Hold on though. Does he wind up falling in love with her Maybe What you mean maybe? Mbe Fx Fy. who's to say? That's right. sting in fun of say Who's to say F It's a very fun story that snowballs in a very entertaining way Somehow more Emilies get contacted and then get angry about being contacted. gang of angry Emilies? quite. And it's a story that builds, it's playful. you know, look, well I say, is it unexpected? No. As you've already guessed There is a romantic undertone between the characters that there isn'tant to me. Well yeah, look, as soon as you introduce someone into a many comedy says, I don't believe in love you can bet your bottom dollar they would have changed their mind by the end of the film. Someone's gonna leave this house believing in love And maybe that's what happens. Fair enough. but the journey that it takes to get there is a lovely one that I was kicking my feet and blushing the whole way through. I absolutely loved it. I took my lovely friend Lizzie to see it. We were Giddy. It's charming, it's very, you know it's got a lovely, playful tone but also has some really nice emotional beats of stuff around his family and his relationship with his brother You know, Emily's character has a kind of horrible situationship that it's not overread, it's not overplayed. It sounds good. It sounds like one of the better working title films. It's a really strong, brilliant Rom com and Honestly can't recommend it enough. I think if you like a Romc, you will enjoy this. And you went to the premiere this. was it a good premiere? I didn't go to the preremiere. I went to a lovely screening put on by the lovely girls who run massive cinema, which if you haven't hadard a massive cinema, do look it up. They're amazing. They put on screensings all the time and you can apply for tickets and it's great. It's a great way if you love film to get to see films early. Oh w, that's nice. And they're so nice and they actually worked with the distributors to do the screening. So it was a really big deal for them. and they did a gorgeous screening at the Pict House Central And we had a love of time. They had, you know there's a fun moment where there's a cake that looks like a bum. The girls at Massive Cinema had bought cakes that looked like little bums. Yes, Is there a place you go to for that You'd have to ask them Prob is or maybe they were bespoke, but But that makes me sound like As a joke in, it sounds kind of a bit basic. and a p oneum. It's more F the new thing And I think It's okay for not every joke to be this unbelievably high brow conceptual thing. Sometimes a joke can be a little rude one. Maybe it can be the first thought and that's all right. I had a good time and I think You know, rumcs are a dying art form very rare that you see Rcom that isn't just, you know slot. These days Yeah. A lot of Netflix romcomses slop Well, I don't think you can really use that as a f person because A lot of Netflix product is sub quality Generally speaking I mean a lot of it, you know, they produce too much content basasically, you know, so you'll see a lot and you know, I have a tolerance for this as you know, I will watch bad rom coms, but a lot of the Souip Pon is really, really really good enough. It's so rare that something gets past the kind of quality control layer that it needs to Yeahfleix notot to just shit on Netflix because you know, sometimes sometimes they'd all right Back to this I think this is one of the strongest things working titles put out in ages and. Well, that's high praisise. Okay, I will go and see it in. Well Do you think I should go to the Cinemacia? or do you think I could wait? I think I would encourage people in my demographic to go out to the cinemacia. For you, I think you could watch it on streaming. and you would be absolutely makes sense because it's really for me. because when I look at young people in love, I just kind of like find them really boring and irritating You know, because that's something that happened forty years ago to me. Yeah You've been in love forty years. Y old hat. And still in love, but you know, in a more interesting way. But I think I'm not as excited by that as primary kind of like plot or the content of a story I think as well, you know, it's got that kind of charming giddiness to it that you don't necessarily Not that you don't care for it because you can be giddy and delightful too, but The girls in the audience were losing their mind. Yeah It's a young person's world and this is reflecting that and that's why all I'm saying is I can see why it would work for a young audience. I agree with you. and that's why I think I will probably wait for it to my home screen, but I'm sure I will enjoy it when I get to watch it. I think you will. Good. It sounds good. That's out now finding Emily findind your way Don't see it Out of everything we've watched this week, what's your must watch? There None of them Ohf too be honest with you, none of them, I can't say to anyone. And on heart with clear conscience. I really think you should watch this Certainly, I can't really endorse Scary Movie, but I think it will find its audience and its audience will love it Spider Noir, I think is a sort of a missed opportunity really to do something better, but it's at least good enough. So I would have to say the things of the two things I saw, Bpiden Nois But I can see clearly you're going to go for By Emily. Yeah. Very easy for me this week see it. loveovely little romp at the cinema So in that case, I'll recommend it as well, even though I haven't seen it. Beautiful. Yeah. Okay, thank you for listening as ever to our podcast Re talkalk. We meet Jonathan. And be Honey Ross Please get in touch with us, send us any questions, thoughts, feelings, recommendations, slide into our DMs we're at Real Talk Boss. That's RWL Talk Boss. We should do a secret face.hould we do a secret face, don'ner? And this if when you w us bun this secret face inone know you listen to the very end of the podcast you'll have our respect. bronzed breastplate I think Bronze breastplate is good enough. I think it's good enough. That's good int work. Let's go with Bonze breastplate. Thank you. takeake care. byye bye. Be