Categories & segments

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation The Rewatchables
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation poster
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation

Mount Rushmore for Christmas Movies

Christmas Vacation; Die Hard; Home Alone; Four Christmases

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 00:04:05Read transcript
  • A four-film Christmas Mount Rushmore is offered: Christmas Vacation, Die Hard, Home Alone and Four Christmases. Die Hard’s classification as a Christmas movie is disputed in the preceding exchange; this is an individual list rather than a settled panel ranking.
The Pelican Brief The Rewatchables
The Pelican Brief poster
The Pelican Brief

Half-Assed Internet Research

Romance decision; budget and gross; preparation; shared set; Oscars

In the discussion (6)
Approx. transcript time · 00:15:43Read transcript
  • The claim that the studio prohibited an interracial romance is rejected: Roberts supported Washington’s casting and the romance, while he reportedly opposed it out of concern for his audience.
  • The stated budget is $45 million and gross $193 million.
  • The White House set was also used in Dave.
  • Grisham reportedly wrote Darby with Roberts in mind, though the convenient casting claim draws skepticism.
  • Roberts attended Tulane law classes and Washington visited the Washington Post to prepare.
  • After her own Best Actress win, Roberts presented Washington his Best Actor Oscar the following year.
The Pelican Brief The Rewatchables
The Pelican Brief poster
The Pelican Brief

Picking Nits

Security; editor decisions; convenient discoveries; unexplained details

In the discussion (10)
Approx. transcript time · 00:31:18Read transcript
  • Giving Mattiece scenes might supply a stronger antagonist, although using the president as the plot’s visible representative is defended.
  • Security for a Supreme Court justice seems insufficient, although Khamel’s exceptional assassin skills are offered as an explanation.
  • The newspaper gives Darby Gray’s cabin address after she merely claims to be his sister.
  • The editor’s obstruction and reassignment demands are so irrational that he initially seems part of the conspiracy.
  • The FBI’s alarm over an unverified brief seems excessive.
  • Verheek’s stated height and weight divide opinion rather than producing agreement.
  • The parking-garage escape depends on a dog attacking the pursuing woman; her affiliation also briefly confuses the discussion.
  • A conveniently placed registrar’s-office bystander supplies the information Gray needs.
  • The student on medical leave is distractingly handsome for the brief part.
  • The video affidavit’s basement contains an oddly large number of saws.
The Pelican Brief The Rewatchables
The Pelican Brief poster
The Pelican Brief

Most Rewatchable Scene

Verheek murder/Riverwalk sequence; classroom scene; all Shepard scenes

In the discussion (14)
Approx. transcript time · 00:34:48Read transcript
  • The two judicial murders open the candidates; the first setting is corrected from a nursing home to a private home with a nurse.
  • Darby researches the common ground between the justices and presents her theory to Callahan.
  • Callahan’s car explodes after his remark that Michelle takes his breath away.
  • Verheek’s murder and Khamel’s subsequent attempt on Darby form a favored sequence.
  • Darby meets Gray in New York and explains that everyone she told about the brief is dead.
  • The newsroom scenes reunite Washington and Lithgow.
  • Coal warns the president in the limousine that the brief will not disappear.
  • Retrieving the safe-deposit box leads to the parking-garage chase.
  • The president finds Coal watching in the camera room.
  • The farewell hug and Gray’s television interview conclude the story.
  • The final meeting with Voyles feels like the most triumphant moment.
  • The Riverwalk assassination is a final choice, especially the crowd scattering after the shooting.
  • Callahan’s classroom scene is another final choice for its distinctly 1990s atmosphere.
  • All of Shepard’s scenes together are the remaining final choice.
The Pelican Brief The Rewatchables
The Pelican Brief poster
The Pelican Brief

What’s Aged the Best?

Shepard; Sneller routine; disguises; chemistry; Goldwyn; newspapers; secret room; New Orleans; following a cab; names; Pakula; conspiracy theorists; jogging clothes; FBI pressure; barking dog

In the discussion (15)
Approx. transcript time · 00:42:38Read transcript
  • Sam Shepard’s presence and romantic appeal remain strong.
  • The covert Mr. Sneller contact routine remains appealing.
  • Darby’s pigtails, sunglasses, wig and Knicks cap make her disguises memorable.
  • Roberts and Shepard have strong chemistry despite the problematic professor-student relationship.
  • Tony Goldwyn is effective as an unpleasant schemer.
  • A newspaper-centered thriller remains appealing.
  • The secret room used to film the boss is a memorable feature.
  • New Orleans is an excellent filming location.
  • The request to follow another taxi is a classic pleasure.
  • Darby Shaw and Gray Grantham are admired character names.
  • Pakula’s later career revival restores his standing as a thriller director, though Tony Scott is preferred by one response for the 1990s.
  • Self-publishing conspiracy theorists are a joking affirmative selection.
  • Jogging outfits and shorter men’s shorts have returned to fashion.
  • Presidential pressure on the FBI recalls modern disputes over investigative independence.
  • A dog suddenly barking at an already endangered character remains an effective thriller device.
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