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Good point. Perhaps its more accurate to say I'm bummed that it seemed that marriage was tipping point in her character arc. On the other hand, I could write a novel about the feels I have about Margo and Bill's relationship. It feels really genuine to me in a way that movies of that era usually don't. Maybe it's the chemistry they had on screen, but also the script. She says that Bill is in love with "Margo" the actress, not Margo the person, but she's wrong. He sees her for who she really is, like when he tells her that he loves her because of some of her traits and in spite of others because they're "her tools" for navigating the cut-throat stage world. He's notably younger than her, but he's not a plaything to her. The really respect each other. They fight a lot, but they communicate. They're honest. I love that about the two of them. For all of the acting and performances and airs that people put on both on the stage and off, they seem most genuine with each other. I'm just in love with the two of them in love with each other. And relevant to nothing, I also loved the whole "incomplete forward pass" line. Great turn of phrase.

So, I was re-listening to the episode with my wife today. The first thing that struck me was the way Paul and Amy were talking about the characters -- "What's the motivation for the character? Why don't they do this instead? What do you think their relationships are all about?" The second thing that struck me is the way that my wife and I then started having a similar conversations about the movie and the characters. And then, of course, the same thing is happening here on this board. I think that this, perhaps above all, is why the movie (as well as some of the others on this list) is so good ... we're only with these characters for roughly two hours, and yet this movie is so textually rich that viewers can deep-dive on it without even realizing it. This movie makes it so superbly easy to treat and talk about its characters like they are real people that we know. It's a total character study. Movies like Platoon, King Kong, and Titanic have other things happening, but All About Eve was just ... well, all about Eve, and Margo and Addison, et al, and how Eve's arrival upsets the balance between all of these people. The writing is so deep, the characters are so realized, and the acting is so good that talking about this movie feels like gossiping about friends.

I ain't scared of you [expletive/redacted]. What's the deal with Windex? I tried spraying it in my hair and the wind still came and messed it all up... It had no effect at all. Kick it! This is just a peak at my new character. It's a mashup of stuff that turns out not being so good, but I still do it 'cause I just do what I do. Epilogue: Henry's new character died immediately after posting this. He is survived by all those who knew and loved him.

I haven't listened to the episode yet but I LOVED THIS MOVIE!!!!! Holy fuck what a good one!!!

Paul seems to have trouble "yes and"-ing with fictional characters. On Unspooled this week, Amy asked him something about "I wonder what King Kong would say about that," and he hit her with the whole implausible premise critique, too. I'd say it was his kryptonite, but he'd probably just tell me that kryptonite isn't real.

To turn this back to positives, I want to say I enjoy the Ask Paul segments when it covers life advice. As someone who is also dissatisfied with my job, I don't know if I can get away with not caring, but I'll try to keep it in mind when things start getting to me.