DrGuts1003

I can’t speak for anyone else, but personally I do get annoyed when the discussion of politics stops the momentum and comedy of the show dead in its tracks. And I think here is where the difference between Jason and June can be seen. Jason can sometimes make political comments/ jokes but it’s seemingly always with the purpose of making the audience laugh, whereas June will sometimes (not always) get on her soapbox to preach on behalf of one of her causes. I think the most glaring example of this is the Striptease episode which featured a long rant from June without any laughs. I don’t necessarily disagree with June’s points, but I listen to this show to laugh and mock terrible films. Again, I’m not going to the extremes as the original poster and claiming that I’m going to stop listening to the show. But I do understand the frustration some may have when it feels like the focus is only on how these movies do not hold up in the eyes of our ‘woke culture’. There are plenty of things to make fun of in these films that do not involve social politics. I hope no one is offended by this; I just wanted to add my perspective on the topic.

Not much was said in the episode about The White Hotel, the book that Peter reads and discusses with Rita. Like many things in the movie, it’s brought up in a clunky way with Peter saying “I read The White Hotel today” and expecting Rita (and the audience) to know what it’s about as if it was a book that everyone was talking about and in the cultural zeitgeist at the time. The White Hotel came out in 1981, 7 years before the play and over a decade before the movie. But despite its awkward introduction, I can see why the playwright chose to have his characters discuss it. It is the story of a woman who overcomes her neurotic fears of life through her therapy with Sigmund Freud only to be exterminated by the Nazis during the Second World War. The book posits questions like, given the world's cruelty, should she have refrained from seeking help, from pursuing a cure? What was the point of all her efforts to find health if she was only to die so soon after acquiring it? In Prelude I think Rita is meant to be a woman consumed with fear. Her insomnia, her reluctance to have kids, her questions to Peter right before the wedding, her getting her veil caught on her sleeve, and her tripping in the aisle are all meant to reflect that anxiety. And so what the play/movie is trying to suggest is that we cannot, indeed should not, govern our present lives by our fears for the future. We do not know what life holds, but we do have the capacity to make choices in the present that can make us happy in the present. The only problem is that Meg Ryan has such an effervescent presence on screen, that those fears come off more like quirks than deep-seated anxieties.

For the second show in a row, HDTGM does a movie that got Two Thumbs Up from Siskel and Ebert and surprise, surprise, both films have a clear connection to Chicago. I love Siskel and Ebert and am grateful for what they did for film criticism, but man, their objectivity went right out the door when it came to all things Chicago.

When Jordan is at home watching TV with his kids, there is a pile of VHS tapes next to the TV. The only title that is visible is the 1987 classic Disorderlies. Who knew Air Jordan was a fan of The Fat Boys?

I too was laughing at the modest house that Michael Jordan supposedly lived in originally, but then I had a thought...was that house in Chicago or Birmingham, AL? Jordan played for the Birmingham Barons baseball team and we later see him play at a golf course in Birmingham. Perhaps that house was not his permanent residence, but rather a second home or just a rental while he played baseball.

Are Patricia Heaton and Dan Castellaneta (aka the voice of Homer Simpson) big Knick fans so they just used them for that scene? Or did they have to audition for those nothing roles?

Being the big basketball fan that he is, I was surprised that Paul thought Patrick Ewing was the only one with acting experience. Larry Johnson had his alter ego character, ‘grandmama’ that he played in several Converse commercials and in an episode of Family Matters. And he should have remembered that Barkley has done acting before, including Look Who’s Talking Now, which they covered on the show. BTW, which is more insulting, having the dog in Space Jam named after him or that homemade doll of him in Look Who’s Talking Now?

The Journal of the American College of Cardiology recently conducted a large new study of Italian adults and found that eating chili peppers four times a week significantly reduces the risk of fatal diseases. In fact, the pungent pepper reduced the overall risk of fatal illness by up to 23%, and cut the risk of stroke by nearly 50%. I have to believe that Lorenzini was eating them regularly for the health benefits and that the fire breathing was just a (fortunate?) side effect. Sadly, it does not appear that eating chili peppers helps in preventing you from becoming a hideous sea monster when ingesting poisoned water.

Gigi, clearly you are just way too sensitive. The people of Tuscany not only see nothing wrong with the story, but absolutely adore it. So much so, that they even created Pinocchio Park. According to a Tuscan tourist site "The legacy of Pinocchio’s teachings is kept alive by the Fondazione Nazionale Carlo Collodi, 'promoting, since 1962, culture of children and for children, starting from the world famous literary masterpiece for children, The Adventures of Pinocchio.' If you’re staying at one of our villas in Tuscany with pool, kids (or adults) with a deeper interest should visit Collodi. This small town whose name the author adopted is close to several of our villas near Lucca. Collodi’s Pinocchio Park celebrates and retells the story with monuments, mosaics, a maze and water features." Here is the website to see all the attractions and things to do at Pinocchio Park. (And jk about being too sensitive; this story is nightmarish)

The studio must have really thought this movie was going to be a bigger deal than it was. I was reading an article about it written back in 1996 where the director, Steve Barron (who also directed the first Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie) says that it took two years just to get the songs rights. Stevie Wonder wrote and performed two songs for the movie. I also discovered that this film actually had trading cards. Not surprisingly, the majority of the cards seem to feature Jonathan Taylor Thomas despite him being in the film for less than five minutes. And for those of you who are thinking this is the only way to get an Udo Kier trading card, you would be wrong. He is also featured in trading cards for Barb Wire, another HDTGM classic.

The issues with having Pinocchio in Lorenzini's puppet show was addressed from a couple of different angles, but I also wondered what the appeal was for Lorenzini? He clearly wanted Pinocchio for his show, but why? You have trained puppeteers who can make the dolls move and act however you want. But it would seem like it would be a lot of extra trouble trying to teach a sentient doll all of the songs and how to act in the show. Why go through that headache?

When Jason tried comparing this movie to Harry Potter, Paul questioned who Voldemort would be in this film. I think the answer is pretty obvious:

I found Data’s treatment after kidnapping Mama Disguisey to be rather bizarre. He somehow drugs/brainwashes her into thinking she’s still cooking at home. If he has such ability, why doesn’t he use that to help him steal the Constitution and other ‘stuff’. And then he periodically threatens her by having a pair of arms rising out of a pile of flour?!? Are they real arms? If so is the person in the flour also a Master of Disguise?

Here is a story about a woman named Amethyst Realm who claims she only has sex with ghosts now. She had been engaged to a man, but they broke off their engagement after he caught her having sex with a ghost.

For those who didn't freeze frame, here is what the newspaper article says that Kate's boss shows her in the first eighth of the movie: "Ashford County has a secret. Hollygrove Inn closes two weeks out of the year every year since Henrietta Forsythe took ownership in 1951. An establishment once famed for it's annual Christmas events now accepts no patrons from December 14th till December 26th. While we can't say for sure why, we can speculate that it may have to do with visitors that have reported seeing the ghosts. What ghosts inhabit the inn? Many visitors come each year seeking information about the paranormal occurrences at the property sometimes booking a stay exclusively for this reason. Henrietta Forsythe has experienced quite a bit of tragedy growing up at the inn at the end of the 19th century. Her uncle Daniel Forsythe was involved in illegally bootlegging alcohol while the controversial temperance act was in effect. He frequently traveled from Ashford to Canada as a rum rummer to help keep the [unclear] inn afloat. [The rest of the paragraph is cut off] The tragedy did not end there. In 1934 a guest hung himself in his room. The man used a false name and he's never been identified. There was a kitchen fire that kept the inn closed for 2 years in the 40s until it was decided to re-open. The Crystal Dining Room of the Inn is particularly active, and many spirits have been spotted there at the tables or in the mirrors. The Hollygrove Inn and has a rich and fascinating history (that is what the sentence actually says). As this account goes: "The incident sounds very melodramatic. I was awakened in the middle of the night by a presence in the room - a feeling that some unknown being was in the midst. As I opened my eyes, I saw a grayish figure at the side of my bed, to the left, about four feet away. It was not a distinct person, but a shadowy mass in the shape of a standing figure. It remained still for a moment, then slowly floated to the foot of the bed, in front of the fireplace. After pausing a few seconds, the apparition slowly melted away. It was a terrifying experience. I was so frightened I could not scream. I was frozen to the spot... For the remainder of the night, I could not fall asleep. It was spent trying to conjure a logical explanation for the apparition. It was not a reflection of the moon as all the curtains were completely closed. Upon relating the incident to my husband, he said the ghost was included in the price of the room" Virtually everything discussed in this article is infinitely more interesting than anything seen in this movie.

The behavior of the tavern lady and the way people behave around her with regards to Daniel makes no sense. This is a small town and this inn closes every two weeks in December for several years. There have been newspaper articles written about how it closes because of a ghost. Yet she asks the innkeeper to let her use the inn as if she’s unaware of why the inn is closed. Then the innkeeper and Kate go to lengths to try and hide Daniel’s true identity from her, but there’s pictures of Daniel all throughout the house. And I would imagine that the story of his murder is probably the biggest thing to have ever happened in that town, so surely everyone would be familiar with him and his story. How does she not put two and two together? Similarly, the sheriff seems to just think Kate is crazy when she claims there’s a ghost in the inn. Does he just think all young women are hysterical loons or has he never heard why the inn closes every year?

My understanding (but I can’t say with 100% certainty) is that the Ebell show is cancelled due to scheduling conflicts with one or more of the hosts. They’ll be doing The Spirit of Christmas in studio instead. And they’ll do another show at the Ebell at some point in the future. I imagine that they recorded this minisode before the show was canceled and when it was Paul added new audio to explain the cancellation but they either forgot about that later reference to the Ebell show in the episode or didn’t feel like editing that out. Again, if I’m wrong someone else can feel free to correct me.

Awesome, thanks for getting an answer to this. Can’t wait to roast some chestnuts by a trash can fire and listen to this.

I just saw on Facebook who will be the guest for this episode. Without spoiling anything and because I don’t know how to use spoiler tags on these forums, I’ll just say that everyone’s Christmas wish will come true. But I was curious when this episode will drop. The next scheduled episode is the 20th, the night this show will be recorded. Will we get a regular episode on the 20th and then this one on January 3rd? Will they delay the release and drop this the week of Christmas? Will this be a bonus episode? Or a Stitcher Premium exclusive?

Are these the type of ‘battles’ that Paul typically saw at Taco Bell? EDIT: Actually the video in this article seems even more appropriate.

The one scene that made me laugh the hardest is when they are at that benefit and Johnny and the “villain” have their violin battle. Johnny starts and as he is playing, the orchestra conductor standing behind him starts to conduct the rest of the musicians. Why?!? First of all, why is he trying to help one of the waiters out? And how does he know what instructions to give his musicians? Even if he recognized the song Johnny was playing, there’s no guarantee that he will stick with the same tempo or the same song since he’s trying to outplay the other violinist and display his wide range of skills. You also inexplicably again have a crowd just stand around and act like this violin battle is totally normal, like with the subway dance battle earlier in the film. It is not until a tray of champagne gets dumped over that the snobby crowd suddenly demands that security escort the entire dance crew (and also the event’s entire wait staff) out of the building.

To settle the debate on whether the actor playing Johnny was actually playing the violin, here’s an excerpt from an interview with the actor Nicholas Galitzine, himself: ”While Galitzine appears to be an accomplished musician himself playing Johnnie in High Strung, the actor was unfamiliar with the instrument before landing the part. Prior to his casting, he had only played guitar. “They gave me some time before and during the filming where I had very extensive crash course training. I had an amazing tutor in London, and then throughout the filming, sort of day and night whenever I wasn’t filming I was kind of practicing to make it authentic,” Galitzine told uInterview. ” [Director] Michael [Damian] is a musician as well, and we kind of spoke to each other and I think sort of he understood my musicality and what I could bring to the role acting-wise. So, I mean, eventually it worked out quite well ‘cause I think most people think I actually play the violin, which is great. [Laughs] Mission accomplished.””

Paul said that the sequel had no link to the first movie, but that is not correct. Jane Seymour reprises her role as dance instructor Oksana in the sequel. Jane Seymour was also an executive producer on both films.

I was surprised the hosts (yup, still calling them hosts) didn’t comment on the conversation the judges have during the middle of Johnny and Ruby’s performance. The female judge calls it “completely indulgent” and one of the other judges says “I disagree. Don’t we want to evolve? Don’t we want to progress?” I have so many questions about this conversation like - Is what they are doing really all that progressive? - If the female judge had such a negative attitude toward the performance, how did they end up winning? - And perhaps, most importantly, is this supposed to be the main lesson of this movie - to be more accepting of non-traditional expressions of art? That works better if the movie was centered around the school trying to stop Johnny from playing the style of music he wanted, but Johnny’s not a student and the school seems to fully embrace contemporary forms of dance and music. That conversation was as pointless as the subplot involving Johnny’s violin being stolen, which added no dramatic tension to the movie.

Were you one of the crew members who went to the dance club with them and got them to play 20 Questions?