Matinee Monday: Serenity LIVE! (w/ Nick Kroll)
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bas.com slash bonkers and use the code bonkers at checkout. A little prayer. God, grant me the serenity to accept things I don't understand. The courage to finish this almost two-hour film and the wisdom to ask, how did this get made? We saw serenity, so you know what that means. Hey, everybody. Hey, everybody.

Hello, people of Earth! And hello, Austin! Austin!

We are here live at the Moody Theater at Austin City Limits. We cannot be more excited to bring your hometown hero, Matthew McConaughey, to you in a way that you probably never have seen him. Wow, wow, wow. This movie. Serenity is kind of like Moby Dick with Sims.

If you've not seen it, it's about a man named Harper Dill who is... Right, you guys remember it, I did not. It's a man on a boat called Serenity chasing a fish called Justice. And then shit gets weird. And then shit gets really weird. We're gonna talk about it all, the big twist that comes way too early.

We'll break it down, and I'm going to break it down with my two co-hosts. Please welcome, ladies and gentlemen, Jason Manzoukas! What's up, jerks? How we doing, Austin? Yeah, we have a floor. We've got a mezzanine! And then we've got you motherfuckers in the balcony. Yeah! That's right!

One of the best balconies we have ever had. Oh, yeah. And we left weapons in the balcony. They will fight their ways down to the orchestra. We're doing reverse the raid. It starts from the top and gets all the way to the bottom. Jason. Paul. First thoughts on Serenity? Oh, I'll not lie. I did not care for this.

This was, I knew there was a twist coming. I didn't know what it was. And then I was like a couple minutes into it when that skinny guy in the glasses came up and I was like, I think I see what's happening here. I was like, Jumanji did this better. Oh, Jumanji!

Oh, Jumanji. If only this were more Jumanji. Ladies and gentlemen, Jason's not my only co-host. I have another co-host. Please welcome June, Diane Raphael. How are you, June? I'm good. How are you, Paul? Very well. June, first thought on the film. Okay. Now, I watched this movie on the flight here this morning. And...

At one point, my headset did not work, my earbuds, and so I had to just very quietly try to just have it on. And... You didn't put the subtitle. You were a person on a plane playing the movie through the speakers? Yes. I don't... I'm not going to lie when I tell you, I hate that person. I know. I hate that person. I feel like I had a choice. Have we lost all decorum?

So you're just going to listen to an episode of Billions at full volume while we're all here? Everyone must witness the glory that is Giamatti. But what I was going to say is the sex scene on the boat, I had to watch on a plane with others.

This is a Paul Scheer dilemma. Every time I've seen an intense sex scene, someone is looking over at me on an airplane. You pay for that. Well, sure. You pay for that experience. Let me just say something, and then obviously we have to bring out our guest, but I did appreciate... Actually,

actually did like that sex scene and I did appreciate McConaughey's flexibility. We're going to need to get back to that. I would like to unpack that scene. I'm going to put that there for now. Okay. Let's unpack that later and let's bring out our guest. Our guest, how did this get made all-star? One of our favorite people to have on the show. You know him from...

Shows like The League, The Kroll Show, and of course, Big Mouth. Please welcome Nick Kroll. Welcome. Welcome, Nick. Nick, have a seat. So Nick, you know, we assigned you to watch this film. Yeah. And... Didn't need a signing, saw it opening weekend. You were the one. I was the one person.

Just general thoughts, first thoughts out of the gate. I mean, for me, this is my favorite Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway released in January video game thriller film.

that I've seen this year. Very well said. We are here, like I said, in Austin, and there's a person in the front row with a giant sign that says, the rules have changed. I appreciate that. I appreciate artwork. Paul, Paul, that is not artwork.

I just want to be very clear. What that man did was not artwork. He just wrote words on some oak tag and is holding it up so that we'll notice him and give his life relevance. But also for the people at home who can't see that sign, the rules have changed. It looks like an extra in like Die Hard 6 during the apocalypse. Some guy holding like a crazy person like, the rules have changed.

And McClane just runs by him real quick. But then that guy is pausing it all the time. Check it out. I'm in Die Hard 6. I would have loved if we'd done this show, all of us having fishing rods. And just casting every once in a while out into the audience. That's how we're going to get the questions from the audience. To start with the fishing, I never thought of fishing as a particularly masculine sport.

What about Ernest Hemingway's The Old Man and the Sea? A quintessential tale of man versus nature. Maybe I'm disconnected from it, but it just seems like that's for the elderly. I don't look at that as...

Well, I will say that when this movie started, I didn't quite understand what I was watching. And in a way that, like, tonally, I was like, is this a horror? Is this a thriller? Is this a cat abduction movie? A gigolo sex film? A tuna-based Moby Dick? Like, what am I watching? Well, part of the trouble there is there's so much time spent in the beginning of the movie watching that fishing line. Yeah.

And the difference is so minuscule between that line not moving and moving and moving a little bit more. It's insane. There's like two full minutes of screen time just watching a tiny... And it's like we're meant to believe that the fish being on... Justice. Justice, the fish...

Justice to fish. Is that McConaughey has a personal relationship with it like Ahab does to Moby Dick or whatever. But it's just a tuna fish, right? Yes. It's not like a special fish. It just seems like a large tuna fish. My understanding is if he were to catch it, he would just sell it for a lot of money. Right. Like all the other fish he catches and sells, question mark? Yeah. The fish didn't wrong him. No. No.

And there was nothing about Justice the Tuna Fish that...

Like, there was no history behind this fish. No, this fish did not... Yeah, no. Well, I mean, I believe... It wasn't like, oh, nobody here could catch it. When I was watching the movie, also on the plane, blasting loud, like... Through a Bluetooth speaker. And I wrote down, like, two minutes... Bose headphones? No, thank you. Bose speaker. Yes. Yes.

I was like, did a tuna fish kill his son? That's what it seemed like. That's what it seemed like. It felt like the Jaws or the Moby Dick. Like he seemed to have a vendetta against a fish. But that just made me sad.

I don't think he had a vendetta. I think he was like, this fish will make me happy. Like, that was the goal. Like, if he gets this, because he... But Paul, knowing what we know now about the movie, does it make any sense that a young boy would conjure up a tuna fish?

Well, here's my question. My question is this. Okay, because I was thinking about this from the video game point of view, because I have lately been playing a lot of Red Dead Redemption 2. I was thinking the same thing. Okay, calm down, nerds. I don't like where this is going. Calm down, nerds. Everybody here works for Rockstar Games. They're very excited. You mentioned my video game. Shut up. Um...

But in the game, I've become obsessed specifically with fishing, with hunting and fishing within the game. Yeah. So my thing was, there are special fish you can catch in the game that are, like, rare. And otherwise, you just catch a normal fish, you cook them up, you eat them. I'm 46. Yeah. You've revealed too much. So I was like, did the kid build a game where there was a boss fish that was, like, the hardest fish to catch and that's what it is? Well...

Go ahead. Well, my video games end with Sega Genesis' Echo the Dolphin.

So I see it from the fish's point of view. That's the way. To me, that's whose movie this really is. It starts on his eye. It starts on his eye, does it? Yeah, right, because it goes into the boy and then it goes into the fish. But I got lost in that first scene because it's like, oh, he's dead. Or like, what? He's dead and now he's just hanging out under... And then he goes away. I found it very confusing. It's a tricky movie because...

You have, when you know the twist, which by the way, this is- Should we just break the twist down? Yeah, I was going to say, like, one thing about this movie is it has a very big twist, and we'll get into it right now, but it's done as if someone saw a movie with a twist, and in the middle of them telling you about the movie, like, oh, fuck it, I'll just tell you what the twist is. Like, they don't wait for the proper moment to reveal it. It's like the narrator is like, all right, so,

They're dead! They're dead! Oh wait, you didn't... So like, they reveal this twist so many times that he is in a video game. That he is a... That the only real characters in the movie are the son and the Anne Hathaway as the wife and Jason... Well, she's not real.

In the other room, apparently. Oh, yes. Okay. Sorry. And I'm assuming in the other room. Right. So there's only three real people. The only three real people are taking place in, are not part of Plymouth Island, like the fishing community. The other one was my favorite, was the radio station that's always...

telling you where you need to go next. Like, if you're into video gaming, you start driving someplace, it will, the radio station will be like, remember, you gotta get to the lighthouse before the ship leaves, blah, blah, blah, blah. And I'm like, where's the lighthouse? That literally is how I figured out the twist of the movie. I was like, sounds like a video game, like Grand Theft Auto radio station. I was like, oh!

And then I was like, now I'm in. So the kid, the young boy, who is Matthew McConaughey's biological son, Matthew McConaughey has died in the war. Anne Hathaway, his wife, has remarried. And the boy and Anne Hathaway are being subjected to such horrendous abuse at home that the boy has retreated into building an idyllic video game where he has...

created a virtual version of his father who is constantly trying to go fishing. Right, because he has a memory of the one time when he was three years old that they fished not on a boat, but on a dock, not on an island, but on a kind of mountainous area like a lake. So he created something exactly not like that.

To relive it. And the video game I have problems with because it's really just a bunch of mini games. It's not really a full game. That's interesting. I did not know it was a video game. What? I thought... What? Did you know we were watching a movie? What do you mean?

know from video games. I told Paul when we got married, you may never play video games in front of me. Ever. That was your only vow. She told me. What did you tell me? You said, you will never play video games in front of me? I do. It's so masturbatory and gross to see someone play video games. And when Paul and I first started dating, I think you had a chair. No, I had a headset on. You had a headset on.

And I saw it and I said, get that out of my house. And you will never play a video game in front of me. She said there is nothing more unattractive than a man playing video games. Playing a video game. I'm sorry. There isn't. There's not a fuck. Thank you. And by the way, it can't like. Is this why I'm single? No, I'll tell you about 10 reasons. Yeah.

Let it happen on your own time and on your own dime. I do not want to see it. So I genuinely, I don't know video games. Wait, you want Paul to go to like pay to play video games in some seedy video game place? You want me to go to like Diane Lane's house and play my video game? Don't bring it into my house. So what I thought, I didn't know it was a video game because I didn't see any of the video game things, all of the accessories. It was...

I thought it was like Oregon Trail, like a computer game. Okay, so you understood it was a game. It seemed also like, and to June's point, it seemed like he was constantly programming the game and not playing the game because the screens were code. They weren't like, it was just coding. So is the game ever being played or is he just building the game?

That's the existential question of life. Hey, man. Hey, man. As Matthew McConaughey himself once said, we're either building the game or we're playing it, brother. If you're not building the game or playing the game, you are the game. Yeah. And ladies and gentlemen, the rapper of the game.

All right, so you just felt like he was... So computer game, that's where you were kind of thinking of it. Yeah, I thought it was more like that. The thing that was very difficult for me to understand is why both of these actors signed on to make this movie. Yes! I wrote that. I wrote that. I wrote, was this script amazing?

Because this is bananas to read. So crazy. Or to watch. This is wild. I can see them being sold on like, it's a classic noir. You're the Sam Spade. She's the femme fatale. She needs your help to bump off the guy and double indemnity, blah, blah, blah. It has Hitchcock elements to it. You know what? Unspooled, we don't need to hear about it. Yeah, we can.

We don't need to hear about Hitchcock. Really? Which Hitchcock? I mean, there's so many. I mean, on the list, there's a handful. Vertigo, one of the films that I think is getting a lot of attention as of late. Moving up the list, if you would. Oh, Jesus. That's how that show goes? Moving up the list. Have you seen that movie Hitch's Cock? And it's just...

A nude Will Smith. Do you want us to... We can cut that out. Do you want us to cut that out of the podcast? No, I want you to double down on it. But I do think, weirdly, in you explaining the plot of the movie just now, it was much more understandable than watching the movie. And it is weird because the twist comes in just like... An hour and five minutes. Yeah? Yeah.

I know, because I was like, I cannot believe this reveal is coming at this point in the movie. Where you still have about an hour left. But here's my question. He developed this video game, and the choices that he's made are interesting. Like, he's made his dad into a whore, or sex for money. You know what I'm saying?

I was actually glad once I realized that this was the boys' idea of it, because I was just like, are women paying to give blowjobs? That's just not something I've seen before. Wait, real question though. Are they? Because this is huge news for me. I need to send invoices. But I'm going to need some Venmo addresses. Okay.

I was like, oh, that makes sense. This is this young boy's idea of what that might look like. Because Diane Lane is so kind of blown away by their sex that she's like, he's always great for her, but yet she's paying him. Here's what I was also trying to understand. In the game...

Is the son programming the game in order to create a facsimile of his father? Or is he himself working out his issues about whether or not he's going to kill his father or continue to be distracted by it?

The setup is he's either going to continue to be distracted by the fishing and just keep playing the game and check out from the world, or he's going to take action and kill his father, right? Right, so the game keeps him. So then his surrogate, the boy's surrogate, is his own father. Then he programs himself to fuck Diane Lane and then fuck his own mother? That's part of the game because at some point he introduces his mother to the game and he's like, gotta fuck her. But, but...

And I know that, Jun, you like that sex scene. I want to dig into the moment where he literally puts himself inside her, then immediately jumps out and goes, "I win!" "I win!" "What? What did you win? And what was that?" "Was that just a part of the game, like a mini game too?" Is that like an extra life?

Did he get like, I wish something had come up and been like blink. Or like the spurt emoji would have been like blink, you're done. And then like your health gets depleted but your happiness goes up.

I mean, that was... He also programs his mom to call her step... her new husband Daddy over and over. Again, every line that Anne Hathaway or Matthew McConaughey speaks in the movie is written by a 12-year-old. That's just true. Right. Every one of their lines... By the way, full disclosure, so is this podcast. Yes.

And he's right there. But where the movie gets... Ladies and gentlemen, Jacob Tremblay. I just thought it would be funny to save the Hitchcock thing because, you know, Hitch is a character from a movie and he's a cock and Hitchcock... I would like it if a single light went up and Tremblay was up there like...

Gave us the old gladiator thumbs down. But here's where the plot gets interesting to me. But then these characters... I'm amazed it got interesting. Oh, well, when you dissect it, because then all these characters have become sentient. So the characters in the game are saying, no, no, no, this is a fishing catch-a-cat game. This isn't a killing dude game. Yeah. And then they're trying to stop the killing...

But are they trying to stop the sun? I think the kid... My assumption would be that the kid is now programming other characters to be the voice of reason against himself. His increasing desire to take... Because if you were to look at all of the kid scenes cut together, what's happening in the background is escalating to a degree that is...

terrifying, you know? So I think he, I'm assuming he's programming the game to keep trying to calm himself down, keep trying to calm himself down, keep going fishing. But yet he put in the most volatile part of the game, which is his mother and stepfather. So if he... Yeah, I mean, I agree with Jason. I think he's on a journey to save his childhood. And he's trying to figure out... You guys are so nice. Yeah.

And I think he is trying to figure out whether he should kill his own dad too. The choices he makes that I found fascinating though are the choice to make his stepfather super rich because we find out later on he's not. He's just in construction. Yeah, he works in construction. Here's my bigger problem. They make him Greek. They make the villain Greek, which I don't care for.

Here we go. No, thank you. Also, Jason Clark. Jason Clark playing a Greek guy? What the fuck? Get him out of here. But he's got a lot of hair and a big stupid beard. Fine. All right.

Wait, so go ahead, June. You were saying? No, there's some also wish fulfillment, I think, on the part of the young boy because he makes his own world and family members super rich. I don't think he is from what we've seen in his own home. And they don't look or sound anything like the characters we see in his house. So I did find that sweet about him. That he wanted to have them have a great life outside of it?

Well, just that he wanted them to be rich. Okay. Did... Was he controlling... You found hope in his aspirational wealth? I was hoping... Oh, that's... That's sweet. I mean, that's what's so crazy about watching this movie in real time is it seems so... As opposed to... Yes. As opposed to... What other kind of time do you watch movies in? I mean, knowing where the twist is... What the twist is... It's so hard to watch a movie in the past tense. Yes.

- When I look back on it now, I'm like, is that, were they just playing the part as they thought a 12 year old would want them to play it? - Wow. - They are certainly playing, and a lot of the other, what is, an NPC is a non-playing character, right nerds? - An RPG, right? Oh.

Thank you. So those are the characters who are like the bartender, the bait shop, woman who works at the bait shop. All those people who are frequently appearing to you in video games to be like, oh, hey, I've got an improved gun if you want to buy it. It's just all you need to do is break my cousin out of jail. And I'm like, fuck you. Fuck your cousin. I'm out of here. I got to go catch a cougar. But...

But all those characters are on a track. They're all saying repetitive dialogue. Very Westworld-esque. Yes. But all those characters, that was like, everybody in those interactions are acting like video game characters, are acting with an artificiality. Here's new lures. Yeah. Here's, you know, they're coming in.

But yet they also are sentient because then... Well, that's the guy in the suit then starts to break down and goes, and is saying, what's your sign say? The rules have changed. The rules have changed. Obviously it's a game. Now, why is this person able to do... Like, this movie then should be about characters in a video game realizing that, you know, it's the Matrix, basically, for video games. But the characters in the game are trying to self-preserve. They're like, no, no, no. If he...

he kills him, then that means in real life, the boy's dad dies and then I cease to exist. So I need to keep this boy fit. I don't think the characters have that motivation. What? I don't think the characters have that motivation inside themselves. I agree because the suited guy at one point says like, I don't know, however the game goes, the game goes. Exactly. It's not good enough.

One of the things is we're struggling with the fact that we're trying to make sense out of something that they broad-stroked to make a movie, and we're trying to hold them accountable for a good movie, and in fact, they tricked us into watching trash. And we have now made you do it. Eat shit, Austin. Eat shit.

You idiots. We tricked you. I also like, if you think about the boy as the author of this whole thing, boy, does this kid love his dad's ass. Yes! Yes! He is making his dad go naked so much. His buns are like honestly third build in the movie. Yeah.

And I love Matthew McConaughey. I love his acting. I love his vibe. I like those Lincoln ads. I'm down for the whole thing. For real. Me too. And I mean this. He's got a great body. He's got all of it. But I was looking at his buns and I was like, he's got cute little baby buns. Oh.

They were very cute. I want to straight up spoon this dude. I am on board for these buns, hun. I loved it. These buns. Do you know buns? I know what you mean, Nick. I always, I'm not, Alyssa, I've said this before in the podcast. I'm not into buns. You're not into boys' buns, men's buns? I'm not. June's not a buns fan. I always find it to be a little bit strange. Like, I don't know many, and maybe the women in the audience feel differently. You just want to see balls. That's all.

- That's all I want to see. - Just, just, yes, there is so much McConaughey water-based nudity. - McConaughey is wet.

I would say 80% of this film. He's wet when he's in water. He's wet out of water. He's wet in his kitchen. He's wet in the bar. There's a scene where he's meant to have come in from the rain, and he's now inside. And every take, he must have been like, throw an entire bucket of water at me. Because he is drenched to the bone.

And it's like literally marking out his amazingly cut body. It is a wet t-shirt contest in real life and I'm on board for those. He is winning that wet t-shirt contest. By the way, give me those McConaughey nips.

But also, I like this shot of the freeze frame, this nirvana of Makane in the water. You look at his arms, and they just look like a gorgeous challah. A braided... A beautiful braided challah. A braided bread. Just put an egg wash on those triceps. Come on. By the way, I want snack on them then. I want snack on them because I am allergic to eggs. I...

I did have, um, I did have an issue with Matthew saying, I'm going to go take a shower and then jump into the ocean because I would say that's a bath. I agree. I would argue that's the most honest 12 year old authorship of something. I don't want to take a shower, but I'll jump in the ocean. I wish my shower could be going swimming. By the way,

When my dad showers, he goes swimming. By the way, in the salt water. In the salt water, so he's not getting clean. This movie takes place in Florida. I want to see the scene where he then has to climb up that cliff face back up to his trailer. No, because you know what he does? He just, what's it called when you hyper jump to the next location? Oh, like he fades in? Like a fast travel. He fast travels back to his house. The movie takes place in Florida.

Which was kind of surprising to me. It's off the coast of Miami. But there's a part in the film when he's trying to figure out if he's in a video game. He grabs a map, frantically stabs a knife in one side, puts a... So much time spent on spreading out the map so it wouldn't curl over. And then the map only has one T.

he's put in, which is the city that he's in, and the rest is blank. He's like, oh, so wait, did this person never look at a map his entire life? He's a fisherman and has never seen it. By the way, within the context of the movie, there are other maps in the world. We have seen maps already in the world. And so it does not seem like they are just alone in space.

And why also... Well, this gets back to... Well, here's my question, though. What is his sense of his own history within the video game? It's only the history that the son has given him. Again, he has no agency. These are not real... So does the son, though... These are more...

more choices of the son's making of his video game that I don't understand. Does the son think that his mom did start dating this other man while his dad was in Iraq? Because that's the story that Matthew McConaughey... I'm assuming. How about that line where she was like, you said I was finally old enough...

Oh, the son wrote that. Again, the son wrote that line of dialogue for his mother to say to his own surrogate in the show. So question for you. Is the son making Jason Clark choke his mom?

Yeah. Yes. Yeah, Paul, yeah. This kid needs help. Yes. I mean, like, what else? I mean, like, he's probably jerking off to it. That was crazy. And then if you fucking assholes think this kid doesn't have a blanket over his head jerking off...

You think he's just coding under there? You fucking morons. So this kid is J-ing down to this video game. And also, did the son give Jason Clarke that truly undefinable accent? Because it's not Greek. I thought it was the best representation of Greek people on camera ever. Paul, I'm going to need to talk to you after the show. Next, next to TikTok man.

Thank you. TikTok man's real name is Alex Papagiorgidis. Very, very Greek, very Greek man. Today's podcast is brought to you by Squarespace. I love Squarespace. I'm in the middle of trying to balance my business life and my real life. This work-life balance, it's tough. But Squarespace has been helping me by giving me the tools to reach my goals and have time to celebrate. That's right. Squarespace is the all-in-one website.

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There are a lot of questions in the film. The question that I also have is like, why do we see Daman Hansu fully in a nice outfit?

outfit coming out at the end of the game. I was wondering, is that character... It's a church. Oh, he's in a church. I think he's in a church, yeah. Leaving his wife. Okay, because I thought what was happening was they were all getting prepared to die because when the game matrixes out at the end, he's like, first of all, the boy is computer programming from his prison cell. Da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da.

On the phone with his dad, no computer in sight. They're having a full conversation. He's like, I'm changing the game. How? And then the camera spins around Matthew McConaughey. Roar.

nothing has changed nothing much has changed and the game is exactly the same but then the boy is in the dock well there's also no it posits a world in which there is a there's continually magic happening where the boy and the dad are connected within the game yes they can hear each other in the game under the water and I understand you don't feel connected to your creator

What's that? Yeah. So basically the sun is God. That's right. And yeah, no, it is a deep religious allegory. But wait, what does that mean? Christ fucks God's wife. Come on, Texas. We're going with this. Where Christ builds a scenario, a simulation, where he fucks his own mother. So not God's wife, I guess Mary? Mary?

The Virgin Mary? Christ takes her virginity? Is that what's happening? Texas, are you on board? Is... Ooh, we're getting there. Ooh.

I'm gonna stay out of this one. - Well, can you, can anyone take a stab at the ending? So, when the game falls apart and they are reunited, what is actually happening in real life at that moment? - Well, I had a question about this too because it seems like the boy makes a decision to kill his father.

He takes the knife out of the tackle box and then leaves the room. And then the video game goes on. So he's not controlling Matthew McConaughey to kill the dad in that moment. He's left the computer there. So both are acting independently of each other. And I think he just goes in the other room and stabs him in the heart. Yeah. By the way, one stab wound, like one shot straight to the heart and he's done so. Yeah.

But then what happens after that? He gets put in juvenile detention. He's going to be put in the custody of his mom, but in the meantime he makes a computer call with his brain to his dad in the video game. In the computer game. In the computer game, which is still running, not confiscated as evidence in a trial for manslaughter. And then connects with him virtually. So I guess...

Now he's in the game? Which he could have been in the game from yet. I feel like the game is, I mean the movie rather, is trying to tell us or trying to give us an emotional payoff as if McConaughey is this dead father who's crossed over to the other side. As if

The movie is set up like a ghost scenario. It's purgatory? Yeah, almost. I feel like the movie's trying to play with us in a fraudulent way to suggest that it's ghost. And he's just unable to move on if he can connect with his son. But again, he's just an artificial construct that the son has created. But they want us to have an emotional payoff. And I cried at the end. Dad? Dad? And he's like, yeah, Patrick, it's me. And I'm like, what? What?

And I cried. I cried at the end. I cried when that boy ran down that dock. I cried too. I mean, I cried tears of cum out my dick.

But it was an emotional moment. You didn't cry when he was running down the... No. I cried. How is he there? He looks so happy he gets his son in the video game. So he programmed a character of himself to go in the game and run and hug the character that he built to be his father. And that's what was sad about it because he was so yearning for that connection. I thought that the kid that brought him good luck would have been him. Because, hey, I'm here to help. Quit my job pumping gas in Miami. Right.

Okay. But why wouldn't he just put himself in the game? Also, you know what? When they opened the big blank map, Miami should have been there. Everybody's talking about Miami, so you should be able to be like, great, we're here. Miami, right there. Miami with all their beautiful mountains. Like, if it made...

A movie like Sixth Sense has linear sense to it. If you add it up with the reveal, you can go back and everything makes sense. But in this movie, they're constantly cheating. Yeah, you're not going to be able to do that here. No, they're constantly cheating. They're giving you scenes for characters who are alone without Matthew McConaughey's character. Those characters don't exist without him.

You know, they don't have interior lives that we're following. Yeah, well, this movie's like, if M. Night Shyamalan made Sixth Sense, like, M. Afternoon Shyamalan make this one. It's so funny you bring up Sixth Sense, which is a great episode of Unspooled. But when Bruce Willis in that movie finds out that he is a ghost...

Spoilers for Sixth Sense. So sorry. Real quick. So sorry. Spoilers for, you know what? Let's just run down spoilers. Darth Vader is Luke's father. Han Solo dies in the new Star Wars movies. In The Prestige, Hugh Jackman plays twins. Guys, let's do them all. The Hulk dies in Avengers Endgame. Anyway, so...

Ray is Vader's daughter. But when he finds out, when Bruce Willis finds out, there's this moment where he's like, he sees his whole life, it all makes sense, he understands why his wife has been ignoring him, and this panic and shock, and then when this fucking nerdlinger comes over to his house and says, we're in a video game. For what is arguably a room full of nerdlingers.

To just hammer this fucking nerd. He's so aggressively like, nerd. When he wipes his glasses, like... That sound effect was crazy. I have glasses. I wear them. I never... So when this guy tells him the whole reveal, he goes, well, what the fuck, man? Like...

No reaction. Not like, you don't exist. You're a video game. He's like, fuck it. All right, so I'm going to go fishing tomorrow. Like, it never landed with him. And I think, again, I'm all in on the McConaughey train. I think he's great and everything. And I actually loved watching him do some of that solo acting in the cornfield. He screams out into the ocean a number of times in this movie. Yes.

- He is chewing. - I just loved it. - He is feasting on these scenes. - He is so easy to watch. - Oh, yeah. He made me feel comfortable. In a lesser actor's hands, this movie would have been hard to watch, but I'm like, I'm in. I kind of feel like it's gonna work out. Matthew McConaughey, he's like, "It's cool. "I'm a video game. "We're all video games."

But it really isn't true. Whatever, let's kill somebody and find our son. I don't care. He's so compelling to watch. It's so true because he's so compelling to watch that you're watching scenes that if he wasn't as interesting and electric to watch, you would be focused on how this scene does not make sense in continuity of the movie you're watching. But I'm like, I don't care. All I want is to watch him

yell at this guy and never talk to the old man at the bar and then become the old man at the bar? Why? Don't know. That's what's weird. You walk away from this movie not having any idea what happened but having enjoyed watching him near a body of water, watching him pour himself a drink. Oh, I love, give me a bottle of rum. I just gave you a bottle of rum. I already drank it. Yes! Give him another bottle of rum.

All I could think about also... Stop trying to harsh his mellow! Come on! Let him live! How many, like, cigarettes he had to smoke in that movie. There was a lot of cigarette acting in this movie. There was a lot...

There was times where there was so many cigarettes on screen. I was like, ooh, this is... Like, when Anne Hathaway and him are both, like, smoking cigarettes at each other, I was like, wow, this is... I'm in. Their age difference is pretty shocking. I mean, I guess not for Hollywood, but he's about... Whose age difference? McConaughey and Anne Hathaway. And Anne Hathaway. She's about, like, 35, 36. Oh, yeah. He's about 50. And they went to high school together. Yeah.

I wrote down, they went to high school together? Question mark, question mark? Can you imagine McConaughey and Princess Diaries, like the two of them? I think she thinks they went to high school together, but he's just really Watterson, and he's just still hanging around. Also... Well, that's what he does, in fact, like about high school girls. He's like, I keep getting older, they keep getting younger. Uh-oh, I got one of them pregnant. Uh-oh, I'm going to war. Uh-oh, I'm dead. Uh-oh, I'm a video game.

By the way, uh-oh. Reboot, reboot. I think it's uh-oh, I'm a video game, a t-shirt, maybe. I don't know. I don't know, I don't know, I don't know. I still think the t-shirt might be McConaughey's face on the Nirvana body and just serenity. I think that's pretty good. And with a video with an old NES cartridge instead of a dollar bill in front of it. That's pretty good. And so Hitch's cock is not going to be... Oh, Nick. Oh.

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Let's go to the audience and see what you have to say about... Can we get house lights? Yeah, we'll see. We'll see what we got. All right, so if you have a question about Serenity that you want an answer to, let us know. Raise your hand and we'll come over. All right, here's somebody right here. Sir, I'll kind of reach over to you. All right. What's your name and your question? I'm David and my question is...

What was up with those pans whenever it revealed Anne Hathaway was her back and then it panned around to the front? Yeah, there was a couple of these moments in the film, especially when you meet Anne Hathaway, where the camera does almost a Matrix-y move, but of no action. It's just of a person walking, like poof, zhoop.

I feel like they're trying to do some sort of video game-y reveal. It's supposed to feel, I feel like, not natural. I feel like a lot of that stuff was meant to be telling you you were in a different reality, not real reality. But I thought they were weird. It does feel, sorry, before we get to this next question, that it feels like...

they were writing this movie after they finished shooting that day they would then be like what are we going to do tomorrow and then they wrote a scene and they're like fuck I think that might work do we still have the boat I feel like the movie all we've got is the boat

The movie also has a feeling of a video game cutscene that you never watch. It's like, got it, fast forward, fast forward, got it, got it. And I just want to go back to fishing. I would have liked to see him fish more. Sir, your question. You fast forward video games? The cutscenes. There are like plot scenes in between. LAUGHTER

All right. Sorry. Hold on one sec. Let me explain. So you know an Oregon trail when you've bought your salted pork? Yeah. And you got all your buffaloes. Yeah, of course. Sometimes you finish a mission, right? And you're like, da-da-da. And then you go back to the boss and you're like, I did that thing you asked. And he's like, great, but bad news. The zombies have attacked the North Quadrant. You get on a helicarrier and get out of here in five minutes, soldier. Boop. Boop. Boop.

And you fast forward that until... Oh, like the exposition that gets you on the next position. But if you stayed with him, the boss would be like, things are crazy at home. That's why I'm acting out here.

I just got a Dear John letter from my wife. She's fucking her Pilates instructor. I guess the reason I've become such a mean person is because of the issues I'm having with my wife at home. While I'm out here murdering ravagers, my wife is at home being ravaged by a murderer. Oh, what a dumb movie. Sir, your name, your question. Here's what I'll say. I'm so sorry. A nice Kumite shirt. I like that. Oh, let's continue. What? Oh, you want to go?

Okay, this is Clint. They really emphasize artificial intelligence in this movie. Is it less like a video game than more like a recreation of the dad where the kid is trying to relive a life with him? He's trying to regain his... Shit, man, I wish you were part of the rewrite on this one.

Smartest question we ever got. Here's the reality, guys. If your question is related to the movie not making sense, you can put your hands down. We're not going to know. We're not going to crack it. It's flawed from the go. It feels like the audience wants us to have answers. Yeah, and we do not. It's not going to happen. Paul is, I believe, headed towards the mezzanine.

So prepare yourselves, mezzanine. I need to catch my breath. That was a lot of flights. All right, sir, your name, your question. Jacob, and my question is, can we talk about how racist it was that the maid at the hotel was called Consuela? And apparently she's a real big gossip. Well, everybody in Plymouth is a gossip.

Yes, yes. And there was like, there's also like, Jimen Hunsu, who's in the movie, is like the voice of reason black man who's like always got to tell him to do the right thing or whatever. There's a lot of like putting people into categories that are just very limited. But let me ask you guys this. What did you think of that Amistad reunion? We haven't seen the two of them together since Amistad. They're back on a boat. They're having a lot of fun. Was McConaughey in Amistad?

Yeah, he's the main... Oh, I didn't remember that. It's the same boat. Hi, how are you? Your name and your question. I got the mic.

- My name is Anna, and my question is, do you think it's possible that instead of it being an AI that developed consciousness, that it's like the spirit or soul of the dad came into the video game, so that in the end, when they hug and stuff, it's meaningful and not just super sad? - Ooh, great. - Anna? Okay, haunted video game, very cool. Very cool. Okay.

I don't know, Anna, and it's such a good question. I would lean towards no because there are no souls. In general, you don't believe that the human spirit has a soul? I don't believe I do. Fuck, man. Jason. Is this why I'm single? Jason, that's a horrible thing to say. Yeah, probably, yeah. So you don't think we're all connected in some way after our...

Connected in some way afterwards? No, no, no. We're donezo. I think once we die, straight up, we go in the ground or wherever else and it is over, baby. I think it is the great dark sleep. Why are we clapping for this? How did this get made? Tackling the big issues. Who would have thought Serenity would have gotten us here?

I'm in the mezzanine. - Well done, movie. - Here we go, another question right here. Your name? - Darius. - Question. - All right, question is, so when Jim and Hansu's character Duke

I love that you know that. Yeah, I know a lot of that. Matt McConaughey blames him at the beginning for not catching fish, and he goes, it's because ever since your wife died, it's like, what the fuck, man? And then afterwards, he talks to the chum lady, or the bait lady or whatever, and she's like, oh, you blamed him. And he's like, no, I didn't blame him. I blame you, because you put a hex on me. And they're like, what the hell? So my question is,

Sorry, that's a build-up. My question is, since Matt McConaughey's character is really Matt. Matt? Do you know him? Like, so familiar. I'm born and raised, baby. Austin, Texas. Does everybody who lives in Austin call him Matt? Wait, does everybody know McConaughey? What? Oh, boy. I bet he's getting a lot of texts right now. Hey, bro, get over to the Moody right now.

If any of you guys know him, tell his ass to give me my number.

Alright, sorry. So, question is, since he, the boy created that character, and Matt McConaughey's so angry, character's so angry, so my question is, is the boy super angry at his dad? So, is he just pissed at him for leaving him? Or is this like a representation of... I think you've created a character who feels helpless and hopeless to effect change in his life, much like the boy. Or does the boy not support the troops? Right.

You think that's what it is? You think he's mad at his dad because his dad died in the war? And he's a fan of dads who don't die in the war? Thus making America great again? Texas? Question mark, question mark.

No, I think the boy is letting his own feelings of helplessness bleed into McConaughey's character's helplessness and not knowing what to do. And I think ultimately as a child who's processing grief, he feels unlucky. But he's also sabotaging the dad because he makes the game. Like, why wouldn't he give the dad joy just to catch the fish? No, I think that's for himself. The game is for himself, not for the dad. But then the dad becomes sentient. No. No.

The dad is not sentient. The dad does not exist. Really? Let me ask you. Does the dad eventually exist in an AI realm? By applause. What? No. Does the dad never exist in an AI realm? The dad is all Matthew McConaughey, top to bottom, T to B, ones and zeros. Those buns are two zeros next to each other.

Boop, boop, boop, boop, boop, boop. What's your name and your question? I'm Leah, and my question is, can you role play what you think that they had to tell these A-list actors to get them to agree to this script?

Well, here's the thing. Here's the thing. My assumption is that it must have been a good script. And I can see being sold on the idea of an old school noir set, you know, like with all the tropes of a noir. All right, all right.

All right, all right. Yeah, exactly. With all the tropes of a noir story, but modernized with this kind of game show, a video game rather, element, and also a real like, ooh, and there's going to be a twist. And Stephen Knight is like a legit person who's done other stuff that is very good. So I can see all the steps along the way why very smart, A-list, talented people would come

keep going down the line, absolutely. - I think for Anne they just said like the character's gonna have blonde hair and she said, I'll be there. When do we start? - Well it's also, she's like, does my character have sex but only from behind?

By the way, he really grabbed her forcefully. That scene doesn't seem like it was leading to sex, but then it was like, yeah! I thought that too, but then I was like, oh, maybe the kid only understands sex as a violent act, and as a result, every man in the game is violent at sex. Again. I win! He's the only point of view. The only point of view referenced in the movie is a 12-year-old boy's point of view. Yes.

But then they do it missionary style inside the boat, and you see those sweet cheeks getting all crunched up. It's also interesting, you see him repeatedly just finish having sex with Diane Lane. You never see her naked, and you never see them have sex, because the kid, I guess, can't imagine that version of sex. Or they weren't going to pay Diane Lane enough money to show her boobs. Yeah, maybe, maybe. But they don't even show sex happening.

happening. It's still a kid's conception on some level of what six... That's just a little McConaughey getting out of bed. Well, look, there's a lot to unpack here, and we clearly... Do we have another six hours? I would stay here for four more hours. Well... Wait, what's that? No, we can't? Aww.

They do have a show after us tonight. Look, we have opinions about this movie, but there are people out there with a different... Let them stay! Let them stay! Let them stay! Let them stay! Four more hours! Four more hours! You guys will have a beer break, and then we'll go back into it again. You guys did a terrible job chanting. Well, look, we have an opinion about this film, but there are people out there with a different opinion. It is now time for Second Opinions. Mama! Mama!

Just killed your daddy. Put a K-bar in his chest. Went to jail, you know the rest. Goodbye, everybody. I've got to go. Gotta see my diss dad sweep behind and swim in the nude. Mama, dad set the hook, but justice will be mine. I wish there

♪ More than five stars to give ♪ - Cody, amazing Cody. That was amazing. Now, if I was Cody, I would have said to the person after him, you go ahead. But I believe in you. It is now time for second opinions. ♪ This movie was horrid ♪ ♪ Don't know what the hell I just watched ♪

Head on off to Amazon to see what other people June John and Jason read second opinions June John and Jason read second opinion John ever Dana who thought my name was John June John and Jason The whole how did this get made that's a shirt think I see what's happening. That's the shirt June John and Jason

She might have been mistaken for June and I's other podcast. Oh! June, John, and Jason, which we do with the film critic. You do with John Ratzenberger from Cheers. That's the t-shirt, June, John, and Jason. We should design who John is the you. Like John Lennon. All right, well, here we are. Five-star reviews from Amazon.

Let's get into it. Oh, I love that. I want to leave that one in just because it's crazy. It's wild. And repeated it so many times.

It wasn't a slip of the tongue. Here's the thing. It's easier to say John in that structure. Yes. June John and Jason, right? Rather than June Paul. And like that hard P stops you from continuing forward. So I understand for song reasons why she changed it. There's no world in which you just let go of Paul from here on out. Or you guys become Poon, Paul, and Payson. By the way...

I will happily go by the name Payson from now on. I like Payson. Pacey. Pacey for short, just like Josh Jackson on Dawson's Creek. Pacey. There are 132 reviews. 26% are five-star reviews. This first one is from D. Snoke. And the title is, spoiler alert, this review explains the plot for those who couldn't get it.

I will say a majority of these reviews are like, if you didn't get it, and when I say that is, how could you not? What is vague about this movie? There is not, they hammer the twist for an hour. They're like, do you get it now? How about now? How about when I say it? How about when I say it? How about when someone else from TV says it? M Afternoon Shyamalan.

And the afternoon chat won. That's another. So this review ends with this line. So fascinating. Too bad so many people couldn't follow it. It will be discussed in philosophy classes for years to come. Five motherfucking stars. Can I ask you a question? What if he's right?

What if we are not getting it and this guy, in 50 years, this movie is helping explain things? Like if someone's writing their senior thesis and it's like, as Manzoukas spoke of the soul and the lack thereof...

As was Knight discussing inside. This is like, yeah, this is like the text that supports the document. This is the midrash to understand the Talmud of this movie. And then the challah bread arms, it all brings it together. This is a very Jewish movie. Came out on Tisha B'Av. This is from Jero. Jero... Dreams of Sushi. Writes this.

This is a sci-fi film, period. Unless you acknowledge this truth halfway through the film, you will be dumbfounded and quite possibly angry if you accept this truth. You will realize this film is a very meta-film about a character trapped in a world created by a tormented boy living in abuse where nothing makes sense.

All in all, I ended the film with some tears. Satisfied, poignant tears. Is this a review from June Rayfield? Or Paul Scheer. Yeah. And the wowed factor after watching an amazing Black Mirror episode. Wouldn't it be amazing for people to reconnect or stay connected virtually even after one person has passed? Five stars.

It's fair. Going down here to Ms. Blonde. Ms. Blonde writes, I like how this movie was released in January, a bitterly cold time of year for many locations, because what this movie is is a bitterly cold, hard look at several social issues. Here are the top five. One. This review has a top five list? I love it.

Death caused by the war in Iraq. Two, loss and isolation. Three, evil step-parents. Four, artificial intelligence. Five, redemption. Meeting lost loved ones, even if only in the spiritual level and or afterlife. Not much else to say. If you like formulaic, cut and dried, good versus bad guy movies, then stick to formulaic, good versus bad guy movies.

as many may not suit one's taste. This is a very unique and visually arresting film. Five stars. And the title? Not a Picnic in the Park and Popcorn Movie. Do you have more, Paul, or is there... I have one more, which is from Jimmy Can Do.

And Jimmy Can Do writes, "I really like this film. "There's jumping back and forth between past, present, and dreams, "even so you have to kind of bring your imagination to this one. "It's a movie. "Sometimes you gotta do that." And this is one of them. "Mr. McConaughey does another great job of acting "and being in character. "If you're a fan of McConaughey, watch it for sure. "And I encourage others to give it a shot as well. "Keep your mind open. "Get some popcorn.

Which is against Ms. Blonde! This is not a popcorn movie! This is why philosophy classes will be studying this film forever. So those are some five star reviews. Here's the thing I feel about this movie. Is we're meant to buy into McConaughey as the lead of this movie and the emotional journey that he appears to be on, right? Yes.

And what we are forgetting is that, or what I think they don't want us to really, really look at too hard, is that it is a very sad story of a child who is suffering abuse and is trapped in an abusive household getting pushed to the point where he has no other option but to become a murderer.

And that the movie ends with him embracing the reality that he has to transgress a moral... That he has to, if you believe in a soul, place a black mark on his soul by taking a life to get out from under this chaotic scenario. But we treat it as though it is this heartfelt story from McConaughey's character, and instead it is a tragedy for the child. Am I wrong? I thought it...

Jason, that's really well said, but I just thought it was a movie about fishing. And if you didn't get it, then okay. The movie, the tagline, does anyone want to take a shot at the tagline? They're pretty hard to guess. This is what they are. I'll just read them. On Plymouth Island, no one ever dies unless you break the rules.

Oh, now, see, that's interesting. Had I known that, I would have gone into the movie with a different expectation of what it might be. I agree. Here's the other tagline. There's a place you can escape your past as long as you follow the rules.

But someone does die on Plymouth Island. Yeah. Who was following the rules? Yeah, he did follow the rules. What are the rules? There was never an explainer scene that explained what the rules of Plymouth Island are. It wasn't like, this is how you take off your shirt. This is how you have sex with Diane Lane. And the final one is, truth lies beneath the surface.

Which doesn't make any sense in the context of this movie. I mean, like, truth is the way that you see it. Is that why he keeps going underwater to find the truth? I guess. He's like, it's down here somewhere. Budget was $25 million. Zoinks. Opening weekend was $4.4 million. Oof. The movie came out this year, 2019. What? This movie came out four months ago. Four.

- Four months. - What? - This is the most recent Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, no, Anne Hathaway was in the Hustle, but the most recent Matthew McConaughey movie. - This movie-- - I thought this movie came out in 1997. - This movie came out four months ago. - What are you saying? - This movie came out January 25th, 2019.

The movie came in, it's right now 135th of all the movies of the last 365 days. I'm stunned. I'm shooketh. I'm shaken inside myself. The top movies of the last 365 days are Avengers Endgame, Incredibles 2, Captain Marvel. It was beaten by films that we've done on this podcast, The Meg and Skyscraper. So there you have it. Final thoughts, Jason, would you recommend this movie? Hell yeah! Yeah!

I'll be honest, like, don't over, I will say, the things that I didn't enjoy about the movie were trying to make it make sense. And I think if you have listened to this and are like, ah, I'll watch it, just like let yourself be taken on the ride, because McConaughey is chewing the scenery to a degree that is true delight.

This is fun. He's doing like, yeah, just a very, like, I don't know. I feel like other actors can go down this path.

and he makes it still enjoyable. It's very compelling, and I think Anne Hathaway against him is good, but I think really it's not bad. This is not a oof, I didn't like this. I didn't like it because it was unsuccessful. I mean, I didn't like it, it was unsuccessful, but I liked it as something to, I would say watch it, absolutely watch it, and show especially the reveal, at which point if you're like, no thanks,

Well, that's when the movie gets cooking. June, would you recommend the movie? I agree. I think it is something to watch. I think that there are... High praise? I think it's nice to feast one's eyes upon scenes in this movie. Yeah. If you're trying to connect them all and draw a compelling narrative, that's not going to happen. I will say, I don't like what it says about Greeks. I want to be on record. I don't like what it says about Greeks. You and your construction buddies, you know...

I do think though, you know, watching McConaughey so sun-kissed, so wet, with such a drawl, it's really compelling. And that's pretty much most of the movie. Hot, wet buns. Nick? The balcony's getting rowdy. The balcony is like horny for this movie. All of them shirtless up there. Really? Really?

I'm going to the balcony next time. I mean, I watched this whole movie and I enjoyed it. I feel like I have to say, like, with the amount of fishing, there was a little too much tuna in it for me. Boo! Boo! Boo! And who knows? Maybe it was a bigmouth tuna. I'm not sure, but I think that these are all plugs. And...

He never catches the fish. I know, man. That's justice. Wow. I guess the message is justice came for the father. Yeah. But I think it's also... Is the kid the fish? I do think that is the truth. But if you, you know, McConaughey's mantra is just keep living. And, you know, that's what his son did for him in this movie. Yeah. Because he's dead as shit. And...

He just keeps living, you know, like in that video game with his son, and I think that's a beautiful thing we can all carry with us, whether we've lost someone, that we carry them with us throughout our lives, and we make simulated video games where we have them fuck our moms. If...

Yeah. If anything, that is the soul. The soul is the piece of you that lives on in the memories. Oh, so you do agree with that. The piece of you that lives on in the memories of other people. Yeah. That's all it is. That's what Keanu says. That's what Keanu says. As I would say, I would take, my biggest takeaway from this movie is what one of the pieces of trivia was on Amazon when I was watching it, which is one of many films, presumably, to take place on a boat in 2019. Wow.

And I thought that was a great piece of trivia about this movie that-- - Presumably. - Presumably. It could not be definitive as 2019 has not yet ended.

But presumably this is going to be one of the many boat films of 2019. We got a lot of boat, 2019, a lot of boat-based movies. What is this? I would also recommend. There's one fly that just wants to hang out with us here. I would recommend this movie too. I think, you know, there's this talk always about like the dearth of like new and original ideas. And this is definitely that. And I like a big swing, crazy movie where the actors seemingly are giving a shit and you meet one, you're like, wow, they're going for it. Then you meet

the next one you're like wow she's going for it and then Jason Clark shows up and you're like oh I didn't realize that we're playing this level of a fucking game like if McConaughey's chewing scenery Jason Clark is consuming everything inside Jason Clark bloodied bruised beaten fishing at the end of the give me the fucking rod yes yes and yes

Great performances all around.

People, just so you know that are listening right now, we are on tour right now. We are going to be performing all over the country. Come out and see us in Charleston, South Carolina, North Carolina. We have shows going on all over the country. Check out the website, hdtgminfo.com for tickets and everything. Nick, what do you got? I will also be going on tour this fall and summer, so I'll just check for me. I'll be in Big Mouth coming out in October. I love it.

Jason, June, this comes out next week. Next week? Next week. Well, Grace and Frankie is always streaming. It's always, just continues to stream. So if you want to watch that. And then on September 3rd, I co-authored a book with Kate Black called Represent the Women's Guide to Running for Office and Changing the World. If you'd like to order it now, you can do that now.

on Amazon, but you can also call your, even better, call your independent bookseller and see if you can just get it there. June, great question I have for you. I've read the book. It's great. Who wrote your cover blurb on that book? Can you say that or no? Okay. Very anticlimactic. It's Jason Clarke's character. Can I ask a question? And if this is too revealing, we can cut it, but is it me?

Why can't you say that Anne Hathaway wrote the cover? Did I write the blurb for the book? But I never asked you to either read a galley or anything. I sent you a bunch of blurbs of what I presumed the book was about. Listen, we'll talk about it after the podcast. I'm sure there's a world. After the podcast, you always say, Jason, we're done talking. You know the rule, Jason. Unless there are microphones in our hands, don't talk to me.

It's true. Backstage, it's a fucking nightmare, you guys. Jason, what do you got? Well, if it's next week, then John Wick 3, Parabellum, still in theaters.

As far as I know, I'm still in it for a brief few minutes, so go and see that if you'd like. And also, on this past week's show, I shouted out the Mannequin Pussy song, Drunk 2, as the song of summer. I am doubling down. That is 100% the song of summer. Mannequin Pussy is the band. Drunk 2 is the song. But...

the best record of the year, uh, full album is Big Thief, UFOF. Download that record. I'm just out here plugging my favorite bands. Uh, I will quickly plug that if you like comic books, uh, I have a comic book running right now. It's, uh, made by Marvel. It's called Cosmic Ghost Rider Destroys Marvel History. Uh,

The new issue is just out on stands, taking the lead from Donny Cates, one of our friends who's out here in the audience tonight, great author and writer of Marvel books. So check that out. A big thanks to our producer, Avril Halle, who finds our movies, pulls these clips. Nate Kiley, who does all of our research. Cody, our producer, our amazing team here at Austin City Limits, and you, Austin

Austin, Texas, thank you for road tripping. Thank you for coming. This means so much to us. You guys are the best. Thank you.

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