‹ All movies
Philadelphia poster

Philadelphia

year 1993decade 90sdirector Jonathan Demmegenre Drama

126 minutes

Cast

Selected cast credits · Film reference

Tom Hanks Andrew Beckett
Denzel Washington Joe Miller
Jason Robards Charles Wheeler
Antonio Banderas Miguel Alvarez
Joanne Woodward Sarah Beckett
Mary Steenburgen Belinda Conine
Ron Vawter Bob Seidman
Robert Ridgely Walter Kenton
Charles Napier Judge Garnett
Roger Corman Mr. Laird
John Bedford Lloyd Matt Beckett
Anna Deavere Smith Anthea Burton
Tracey Walter Librarian
Kathryn Witt Melissa Benedict
Bradley Whitford Jamey Collins
Roberta Maxwell Judge Tate

Philadelphia | The Rewatchables

host Bill Simmonshost Chris Ryanguest Wesley Morrisproducer Jessie Lopez
Explore episodeClose episode

The Butch’s Girlfriend Award for the Weakest Link in the Film

Joe’s aggressive sexuality questions

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 00:21:50Read transcript
  • Joe’s questions about witnesses’ sexuality are considered provocative and potentially dated. Wesley sees the legal tactic as more daring than the film’s sparse account of Andy’s private life, which mostly gives Miguel caregiving and a past sexual encounter; AIDS discrimination and homophobia become intertwined trial subjects.
  • Weak link: Joe’s aggressive sexuality questions may go too far. His courtroom-world retort prompts a debate over his most characteristic line, with Training Day’s Kong and Malcolm X’s Plymouth Rock alternatives.

Most Rewatchable Scene

Joe’s family conversation; Andy’s promotion; Dr. J cameo

In the discussion (15)
Approx. transcript time · 00:54:46Read transcript
  • Most Rewatchable Scene: the opening Philadelphia montage and Springsteen song, with documentary-like camera interaction. Chris calls it a possible opening-credits Apex; Bill ranks the song among Springsteen’s best, and Wesley compares the montage to local Action News.
  • The opening direct-to-camera Hanks–Washington confrontation is recalled as a scene nominee.
  • Andy’s brief call to his mother is praised for efficiently revealing illness, severity, openness and her suppressed grief.
  • The senior-associate promotion scene contrasts the old-boys celebration with scrutiny of Andy’s forehead lesion.
  • Andy asking Joe to represent him is praised for Joe’s fearful reaction and attention to touched objects, the firing flashback, and Andy’s devastated stillness after rejection. One host calls it his favorite.
  • The library discrimination scene, with Tracey Walter’s librarian and Joe joining Andy’s legal research, is nominated.
  • Dr.J’s cameo and the partners’ subsequent villainous strategy conversation are nominated; Robards’s full commitment is admired despite caricature.
  • Opening arguments and the courtroom material are praised, especially Steenburgen’s repeated fact formulation and Denzel’s speech.
  • The Maria Callas opera scene is nominated and initially awarded Great Shot Gordo for the overhead camera and red lighting. Wesley objects to red’s association with hell for a gay character; Bill reads passion for life instead.
  • Andy’s testimony about excellent lawyering and justice, the flashback to office jokes, and the attack on his sexual history build to the lesion reveal.
  • The lesion scene is considered manipulative but effective: Wesley weighs its audience and warning function, while Chris sees a strong courtroom tactic. Wheeler’s testimony is another nominee.
  • The hospital farewell, the oxygen-mask gesture, individual family goodbyes and Neil Young ending are praised as exceptionally sad final minutes.
  • Wesley chooses Joe’s private conversation with his wife about gay acquaintances. His confident tirade, apron, bottle and food feel lived-in, and learning his attractive aunt is lesbian punctures his certainty.
  • Chris chooses Andy’s promotion scene for Demme’s unsettling head-on framing and authentic wood-paneled club culture, compared with Trading Places’ banquet sequence.
  • Bill chooses Dr.J’s cameo, with Andy asking Joe to take the case as runner-up.

Apex Mountain

Jonathan Demme; direct-to-camera dialogue; Springsteen in film; evil Robards

In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 00:54:46Read transcript
  • Most Rewatchable Scene: the opening Philadelphia montage and Springsteen song, with documentary-like camera interaction. Chris calls it a possible opening-credits Apex; Bill ranks the song among Springsteen’s best, and Wesley compares the montage to local Action News.
  • The opening direct-to-camera Hanks–Washington confrontation is recalled as a scene nominee.
  • Apex: Denzel rejected; Hanks’s adjacent early 1990s plateau is discussed with Forrest Gump preferred. Demme is affirmed after comparison with Silence of the Lambs; Banderas’s earlier Spanish/art-house career is preferred.
  • Apex affirms direct-to-camera dialogue, Springsteen’s use in film and evil Robards. Gay 1990s films and Philadelphia films are rejected; cartoon homophobia faces a Talented Mr. Ripley alternative, and the fictional Stallion Showcase prompts a joke rather than a clear award.

The Great Shot Gordo Award for Most Cinematic Shot

Opera scene’s overhead red lighting, disputed

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:00:44Read transcript
  • The Maria Callas opera scene is nominated and initially awarded Great Shot Gordo for the overhead camera and red lighting. Wesley objects to red’s association with hell for a gay character; Bill reads passion for life instead.

What’s Aged the Best?

Hanks/Banderas; speech; opera aftermath; family; period detail; jury; supporting cast

In the discussion (8)
Approx. transcript time · 01:07:47Read transcript
  • Chris chooses Andy’s promotion scene for Demme’s unsettling head-on framing and authentic wood-paneled club culture, compared with Trading Places’ banquet sequence. — Chris Ryan
  • Aged best: Hanks and Banderas’s authentic relationship scenes despite the thin Miguel role; Hanks’s Oscar speech inspiring In & Out.
  • Aged best: the awkward aftermath of the opera scene as Joe leaves rather than a sentimental fade. Wesley questions how much Andy’s solitude is actually shown, again connecting the perspective to Joe.
  • Joe’s hesitation on the stairs after leaving Andy is praised as an actorly moment; possible concern for his vulnerability is offered, while Wesley explicitly denies suggesting a sexual return.
  • Aged best: the family, the reuse of Demme actors such as Charles Napier, Philadelphia’s wealthy-club culture, period fear of lesions, and Andy briefly glimpsing his possible future in a dying patient.
  • Andy’s theater mustache and stubbled baseball-cap appearance prompt appreciation of Hanks’s looks and a teasing callback to Wesley’s earlier celebrity attractiveness opinion.
  • Aged best: jury deliberations reverse expectations about the apparent conservative juror, and the verdict reactions work. Robards’s villain and Joanne Woodward’s mother are praised.
  • Aged best: Springsteen’s award sweep is compared with Carly Simon’s Working Girl song; Robert Ridgely’s presence inevitably recalls his Boogie Nights character.

What’s Aged the Worst?

Excess homophobia scenes; missing relationship/case detail; paralegal testimony

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:18:49Read transcript
  • Aged worst: three Joe homophobia scenes may be too many; the bar scene is the suggested cut. The pharmacy confrontation is defended as containing lived truth despite the screenplay’s contrivance.
  • Aged worst: cutting Andy–Miguel scenes leaves their relationship thin. The missing-file sabotage and partners’ firing decision are underexplained, weakening the courtroom mechanics even if the broader argument works.
  • Anna Deavere Smith’s paralegal testimony raises racial workplace discomfort but shuts the issue down too quickly; Wesley imagines the fuller response a contemporary playwright could give her.

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

Miguel’s sports bar; Joe Miller legal series

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:34:21Read transcript
  • Sequel ideas: Miguel uses the award to open a gay sports bar, leading into It’s Always Sunny; more Joe Miller legal cases or a television series are appealing, but reinforce the film’s focus on Joe over Andy.