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The Rewatchables ·

Dirty Work

year 1998decade 90sdirector Bob Sagetgenre Comedy
host Bill Simmonshost Sean Fennesseyproducer Craig Horlbeck format Norm Macdonald Tribute
All 16 categories

Most Rewatchable Scene · 34:07

The jail sequence

Bill Simmons: The childhood opening credits are praised for casting children who resemble neither lead and for the superglue revenge against a predatory crossing guard.

The frat-house prank works through fake police calls, robbery, and a blunt final insult.

The film

Dirty Work (1998)

Directed by Bob Saget · Comedy

82 minutes

IMDb Find on JustWatch Find on Rotten Tomatoes
Cast

Selected cast credits · Film reference

Everything from the episode

In the order the hosts got to it. Open a row for the discussion.

34:07

Most Rewatchable Scene

The jail sequence

The jail sequence

In the discussion (10)
Approx. transcript time · 00:34:07Read transcript
  • The childhood opening credits are praised for casting children who resemble neither lead and for the superglue revenge against a predatory crossing guard. — Bill Simmons
  • The frat-house prank works through fake police calls, robbery, and a blunt final insult.
  • Chevy Chase's first doctor scene is praised for coldly rejecting the heart-transplant patient before trying to sell a hospital bed. — Bill Simmons
  • Don Rickles' hospital-room insults are praised as a concentrated comic performance.
  • The Men in Black pornography scene wins laughs by pushing a thin premise into blunt absurdity. — Bill Simmons
  • The dead-hooker trunk reveal is praised for escalating through the remote-controlled trunk openings and a remembered Saigon story. — Bill Simmons
  • The dead-fish revenge sustains a silent pose while violence occurs offscreen, recalling an older broad-comedy serial. — Sean Fennessey
  • The jail scene remains funny across repeated viewings because the lecture about respect collides with the more painful assault.
  • Chris Farley's skunk release is described as an unnerving, fully committed burst of comic chaos. — Bill Simmons
  • The abrupt ending and final line about the doctor's death are praised for refusing a normal resolution. — Bill Simmons
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42:08

What’s Aged the Best?

The note-to-self device, period soundtrack, bloopers, Jack Warden, Jim Downey, Artie Lange, and Chris Farley

The note-to-self device, period soundtrack, bloopers, Jack Warden, Jim Downey, Artie Lange, and Chris Farley

In the discussion (10)
Approx. transcript time · 00:42:08Read transcript
  • The note-to-self recorder remains a funny extension of the lead comic persona. — Bill Simmons
  • A rapid sequence of three period pop hits fixes the comedy firmly in the late 1990s. — Bill Simmons
  • Closing-credit bloopers are praised as a comic tradition associated with the Cannonball Run films. — Bill Simmons
  • Jack Warden holding the invented old-men magazine remains a strong visual gag. — Bill Simmons
  • Jim Downey's homeless-man routine repeatedly sets up sentimental music and wisdom only to be cut off. — Bill Simmons
  • Jack Warden's long supporting career is celebrated through The Replacements, 12 Angry Men, Shampoo, The Verdict, and Heaven Can Wait. — Bill Simmons
  • The compact jokes about stopping people and the brothers’ parentage are praised for efficiency. — Bill Simmons
  • Artie Lange's casting looks smart because the film helped lead to his later radio career. — Sean Fennessey
  • Chris Farley's final film role preserves one of his strongest short comic appearances. — Sean Fennessey
  • The catalog of note-to-self lines is praised, with the beer reminder called the most memorable. — Bill Simmons
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50:32

What’s Aged the Worst?

Dated Gary Coleman and Ken Norton references, the rushed ending, and thin girlfriend roles draw criticism.

Dated Gary Coleman and Ken Norton references, the rushed ending, and thin girlfriend roles draw criticism.

In the discussion (5)
Approx. transcript time · 00:50:32Read transcript
  • The Gary Coleman and Ken Norton material is expected to confuse viewers under forty. — Bill Simmons
  • The final twenty minutes feel rushed, as though the crew had only a week left to turn sketches into a movie ending. — Bill Simmons
  • The fed-up girlfriend who throws out a loser hero repeats a familiar comedy opening used in Stripes, Happy Gilmore, and Big Daddy. — Sean Fennessey
  • The female lead receives no interesting dialogue or useful character material. — Bill Simmons
  • The casting is compared unfavorably with Julie Bowen and the performance draws a blunt negative reaction. — Bill Simmons
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53:46

Casting What-Ifs

Howard Stern declined Satan, while Rodney Dangerfield was considered before Don Rickles.

Howard Stern declined Satan, while Rodney Dangerfield was considered before Don Rickles.

This discussion recalls a choice from an earlier episode.

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 00:53:46Read transcript
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55:46

The Joey Pants “That Guy” Award

Kevin Farley

Kevin Farley

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 00:55:46Read transcript
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56:28

The Ruffalo / Hanna / Rubinek / Partridge Overacting Award

Chris Farley

Chris Farley

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 00:56:28Read transcript
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57:27

The Teddy KGB Award for the Actor in a Completely Different Movie

Chevy Chase

Chevy Chase

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 00:57:27Read transcript
  • Chase is judged to be operating in his own sly, low-key Fletch sequel. — Bill Simmons
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57:46

The Dion Waiters Award for Best Heat Check Performance

Chris Farley and Chevy Chase (co-winners)

Chris Farley and Chevy Chase (co-winners)

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 00:57:46Read transcript
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58:39

Recasting Couch

Tiffani Thiessen as the girlfriend

Tiffani Thiessen as the girlfriend

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 00:58:39Read transcript
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58:59

Half-Assed Internet Research

An NBC advertising ban, competing accounts of the firing, and material removed for the PG-13 cut

An NBC advertising ban, competing accounts of the firing, and material removed for the PG-13 cut

In the discussion (5)
Approx. transcript time · 00:58:59Read transcript
  • NBC reportedly banned advertising for the movie, though the sourcing is openly questioned. — Bill Simmons
  • A later interview complicated the familiar account that one network executive alone caused the comedian's firing. — Sean Fennessey
  • A deleted sequence involved donuts photographed around the leads’ genitals. — Bill Simmons
  • In the jail scene, an explicit phrase visible on the speaker's lips is dubbed over. — Bill Simmons
  • The dead-prostitute and Saigon material makes the family rating itself seem inconsistent. — Sean Fennessey
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1:01:37

Apex Mountain

No affirmative selection

No affirmative selection

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:01:37Read transcript
  • The year 1998 is proposed because he had just left SNL and still appeared poised for a larger screen run. — Bill Simmons
  • Publication of his first Grantland column is the preferred personal apex. — Bill Simmons
  • The memoir is also praised, but the movie is not judged an apex for the director, writer, or supporting cast. — Bill Simmons
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1:03:29

Picking Nits

The locket, family photos, office lease, crimes, public skunks, and formal business structure

The locket, family photos, office lease, crimes, public skunks, and formal business structure

In the discussion (7)
Approx. transcript time · 01:03:29Read transcript
  • The father's decision to wear a locket containing a sexual photo for fifty years is questioned. — Sean Fennessey
  • A second family photo and the half-brother relationship further strain credibility. — Sean Fennessey
  • The expensive business sign appears before the office has even been rented. — Bill Simmons
  • The stomach-punch rental agreement and the leads’ ability to qualify for office space are implausible. — Bill Simmons
  • Nearly every revenge job appears likely to send the visible storefront operators to jail. — Bill Simmons
  • Releasing skunks at close range in a crowd raises questions about injury and legality. — Sean Fennessey
  • The revenge operation’s possible corporate and consumer-protection structure is questioned. — Sean Fennessey
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1:05:43

Sequel, Prequel, Limited Series, or All-Black Remake

A ten-episode streaming series with one revenge job per episode

A ten-episode streaming series with one revenge job per episode

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:05:43Read transcript
  • A remake could devote each episode to a separate revenge job. — Bill Simmons
  • Nathan Fielder’s elaborate bad-idea commitments are cited as a smarter contemporary cousin to the movie’s comic premise. — Bill Simmons
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1:06:21

Probably Unanswerable Questions

How did Artie Lange outlive both costars? Did the movie help create Little Nicky?

How did Artie Lange outlive both costars? Did the movie help create Little Nicky?

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:06:21Read transcript
  • The survival of Artie Lange despite a well-documented hard life is treated as statistically astonishing. — Sean Fennessey
  • The Satan cameo is proposed as a possible seed for Little Nicky. — Sean Fennessey
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1:08:30

What Piece of Memorabilia Would You Want From This Movie?

The Dirty Work sign or fake bitten nose

The Dirty Work sign or fake bitten nose

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:08:30Read transcript
  • The business sign would be displayed above a garage. — Sean Fennessey
  • Farley's fake bitten nose is the other desired prop. — Bill Simmons
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1:08:52

Who Won the Movie?

Norm Macdonald

Norm Macdonald

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:08:52Read transcript
  • Norm Macdonald is the unquestioned winner and the closing celebrates his extensive archive of performances and interviews. — Bill Simmons
Podcast choices
Speaker not identified
Norm Macdonald
Speaker not identified
Norm Macdonald
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More from the conversation

The memorial opening argues that the comedy failed commercially but became a cult showcase for Norm Macdonald’s persona.
Approx. transcript time · 00:02:16Read transcript
The discussion traces the film’s sketch structure through a 1990s cycle of star-persona comedies.
Approx. transcript time · 00:03:14Read transcript
A long tribute describes Macdonald as a fearless joke writer and chaos agent across television, stand-up, and late-night appearances.
Approx. transcript time · 00:11:08Read transcript
The revenge-for-hire premise is called clever and traced to a Roald Dahl short story, though the movie feels more like linked sketches.
Approx. transcript time · 00:29:21Read transcript
The film’s 1998 release is placed amid an unusually crowded slate of still-familiar mainstream movies.
Approx. transcript time · 00:31:19Read transcript