Selected cast credits · Film reference
Roger Ebert gave 3.5 stars and emphasized temptation, compromised means, and lost idealism.
No single consensus: the Van Doren–Stempel game/montage run and the Goodwin–Van Doren friendship/Connecticut run were the leading preferences.
The chocolate cake was favored, with Geritol raised as the alternative.
1994 Martin Scorsese was the preferred “most 1994” element; Rob Morrow’s top billing was the other nominee.
The class world, father–son relationship, rigged-reality prescience, character actors, and enduring craft all drew praise.
The moving-camera and editing work through the opening NBC/quiz-show sequence was the choice.
Charles Van Doren was selected.
Herb Stempel was named as the rewatchability weak link because he is a difficult hang, while his importance and Turturro’s work were defended.
Morrow’s accent, Geritol’s claims, damage to quiz shows, and compressed or altered history were the main concerns.
Two takes were preserved: Rob Morrow should have become a major movie star, and a one-year-later release might have won Best Picture and Director.
The discussion covered Redford’s search for Van Doren, Paul Newman declining Mark Van Doren, and an uncertain Soderbergh/Tim Robbins path.
John Turturro was the choice for dialing Herb Stempel up.
Barry Levinson was the final choice; Hank Azaria was the principal alternative.
Hank Azaria was the clear choice.
A young Russell Crowe as Dick Goodwin was the suggestion.
Christopher McDonald was honored as the actor who should have become a bigger star, with discussion of why his career nonetheless worked out well.
Flex pick · Craig Horlbeck
Research covered Van Doren’s roadster, the original and revived 21, and Barry and Enright’s later careers.
The panel considered Redford as director, Fiennes, Schofield, Christopher McDonald, Geritol, and Morrow, with several explicit yes/no judgments and no single winner.
Tom Hanks won after debate over which actor fit Goodwin or Van Doren.
The hosts split: Spielberg, Scorsese, and Curtis Hanson were each named.
Charles Van Doren was the leading idea, with the Azaria, Paymer, and older-father roles also considered.
The unexplained prize-money structure, the Reuben claim, and insufficient period smoking were the main nits.
A prestige series about broader 1950s television corruption was considered possible but not especially desired.
Teddy KGB as Herb Stempel was the featured substitution.
Paul Attanasio’s screenplay was the unanimous choice, with Paul Schofield second.
Questions covered Geritol, the unlived Van Doren path, whether 21 would work now, and what the hosts would do if offered answers.
The Mark Van Doren painting and the silverware box were the two choices.
The hosts split between “speculation becomes fact” and “not till you have a kid of your own.”
Robert Redford was the stated choice for directing this late-career high point.
