Big The Rewatchables
Big poster
Big

What’s Aged the Best?

Moscow/Hanks resemblance; childlike behavior; apartment fantasy; carnivals; friendship

In the discussion (10)
Approx. transcript time · 00:45:22Read transcript
  • The facial resemblance between young Josh and Hanks is an aged-best casting achievement, followed by a tangent about Moscow's reported engagement to Washington.
  • Hanks's quick childlike nodding and Susan's hardened careerist characterization have aged well; adults' alarm at Josh's behavior supplies comedy.
  • Cashing the $187 check and showing Billy the office are aged-best moments.
  • Cynthia's big hair, denim jacket and role as a twelve-year-old ideal preserve a specific 1988 look; Josh appearing on a missing-child milk carton is another memorable detail.
  • The mother's demand for proof of her son's identity prompts Josh's delayed recognition and singing, with Lovitz looking on, nearly earning a separate scene nomination.
  • Walkie-talkies are admired as a film device, with disagreement over real-life use and comparisons to Stranger Things, Nextel chirps and FaceTime.
  • The toy-filled adult apartment remains an aged-best childhood wish-fulfillment fantasy, compared with Richie Rich and Blank Check.
  • Carnivals are an aged-best setting for family, crushes, snacks and possibility, despite Josh's humiliating height rejection.
  • Pepsi, Bubblicious and Pizza Hut placement is disputed between aged-best effectiveness and aged-worst conspicuousness; a Coke machine would improve the fantasy apartment for one speaker.
  • Billy's tireless loyalty is aged-best: clothes, city help, Zoltar search, resume invention, locker-combination Social Security number and sharing a cherry exemplify childhood friendship, contrasted with adulthood's competing obligations.