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Do not drink the coffee

Chris Ryan: The practical lesson is to refuse Barney’s coffee.

The film

The Vanishing (1993)

Directed by George Sluizer · Horror

109 minutes

Cast

Selected cast credits · Film reference

Jeff Bridges Barney Cousins
Kiefer Sutherland Jeff Harriman
Nancy Travis Rita Baker
Sandra Bullock Diane Shaver
Maggie Linderman Denise Cousins
Lisa Eichhorn Helene Cousins
George Hearn Arthur Bernard
Lynn Hamilton Miss Carmichael

Everything from the episode

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

17:40

Most Rewatchable Scene

Split: the Barney-to-coffin stretch; Jeff discovering Diane missing at the gas station

Split: the Barney-to-coffin stretch; Jeff discovering Diane missing at the gas station

In the discussion (15)
Approx. transcript time · 00:17:40Read transcript
  • The first ten minutes establish Barney as a psychopath through his chloroform tests and preparation. — Bill Simmons
  • Diane shouts that nobody can see their stopped car until they are on top of it and points out that Jeff passed ten gas stations. — Chris Ryan
  • Diane entering the gas station and Jeff slowly realizing she has vanished makes the premise terrifying. — Bill Simmons
  • Rita cracking Jeff’s password, putting on a black wig, and entering his command post is praised as Hitchcock and De Palma style suspense. — Bill Simmons
  • Jeff saying he would let Diane be dead in exchange for certainty reveals the depth of his obsession. — Chris Ryan
  • Barney hiding behind the door after Rita hears his answering-machine message uses a favorite horror trick. — Bill Simmons
  • Barney’s answering-machine introduction, keychain, and calm response after Jeff beats him create a bizarre confrontation. — Bill Simmons
  • The drive pairs Barney’s insistence that he is not a rapist with a roast-beef sandwich and a police stop. — Bill Simmons
  • Barney’s rescue story turns into an argument about free will and balancing good with deliberate evil. — Bill Simmons
  • The abduction flashback shows how a cheap bracelet offer persuades Diane into Barney’s car.
  • Jeff drinking the coffee despite understanding the trap demonstrates that knowing is worth dying to him.
  • Jeff waking in the coffin is singled out as terrifying and a personal worst fear.
  • Rita reversing the trap and striking Barney with a shovel makes the revised ending satisfying.
  • The whole stretch from Barney’s arrival through the beating, drive, coffee, coffin, and rescue is praised as a great twenty minutes.
  • The final personal choice is Jeff at the gas station realizing Diane is gone. — Bill Simmons
36:56

What’s Aged the Best?

Barney’s setup, the anagram, Jeff’s pathetic obsession, smoking as instant trauma shorthand, the villain name, early ...

Barney’s setup, the anagram, Jeff’s pathetic obsession, smoking as instant trauma shorthand, the villain name, early Bullock and Sutherland, and odd relationship lines

In the discussion (7)
Approx. transcript time · 00:36:56Read transcript
  • Barney’s craziness is established before the movie shifts into Diane and Jeff’s story. — Bill Simmons
  • Diane Shaver is identified as an anagram of “she vanished.” — Bill Simmons
  • Jeff’s attack on Rita for leaving makes his pathetic obsession unusually vivid. — Bill Simmons
  • Kiefer lighting a cigarette as soon as Diane disappears is praised as compact trauma shorthand. — Bill Simmons
  • Barney Cousins is called an excellent villain name. — Bill Simmons
  • The film captures Sandra Bullock immediately before Speed and Kiefer Sutherland before his later action-star identity. — Bill Simmons
  • Nancy Travis’s line about no secrets “in the heart or on the lips” is preserved as memorably strange. — Bill Simmons
39:57

The Great Shot Gordo Award for Most Cinematic Shot

Jeff waking in the coffin

Jeff waking in the coffin

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 00:39:57Read transcript
  • The lighter revealing Jeff inside the coffin is the cinematic-shot choice. — Bill Simmons
  • The bathroom realization that Rita is putting on Diane’s clothes is offered as another cinematic shot. — Chris Ryan
39:57

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

Rita staying after discovering Jeff’s command post and Rita’s permissive diner friend

Rita staying after discovering Jeff’s command post and Rita’s permissive diner friend

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 00:39:57Read transcript
  • Rita discovers a fake Army Reserve story, the command post, and proof that Jeff remains obsessed, yet still stays. — Bill Simmons
  • The panel argues that Rita should leave rather than keep fighting for Jeff. — Bill Simmons
  • Rita’s diner friend casually encourages daytime drinking and prank messages despite Jeff’s dangerous obsession. — Chris Ryan
41:52

What’s Aged the Worst?

Hacky sack, answering-machine plot devices, Rita’s diner job, the missing digital trail, Jeff’s behavior, drinking wh...

Hacky sack, answering-machine plot devices, Rita’s diner job, the missing digital trail, Jeff’s behavior, drinking while driving, old gas stations, reviews, the appended ending, reused titles, and fragmented streaming libraries

In the discussion (11)
Approx. transcript time · 00:41:52Read transcript
  • Hacky sack now looks tied to its era. — Bill Simmons
  • Answering-machine messages as major plot devices have disappeared. — Bill Simmons
  • Rita’s overnight diner work seems implausibly limiting for a smart, resilient problem solver. — Bill Simmons
  • The couple’s improved apartment and income after the time jump are unexplained. — Bill Simmons
  • Modern cameras and phone tracking would likely expose a gas-station abduction quickly. — Bill Simmons
  • Jeff’s poor driving, emergency judgment, income, and obsessive search are treated as increasingly hard to defend. — Chris Ryan
  • A passenger openly drinking beer in the car is identified as a vanished screen norm. — Chris Ryan
  • Full-service gas stations as social spaces have declined. — Chris Ryan
  • The hostile reviews are said to have aged worse than the beloved cable movie. — Bill Simmons
  • The celebratory book-and-no-coffee ending is criticized as a self-parodying early-1990s appendage. — Bill Simmons
  • Reusing The Vanishing for another movie and incomplete streaming libraries make the correct film unusually hard to locate. — Chris Ryan
46:14

The Ruffalo / Hanna / Rubinek / Partridge Overacting Award

The neighbor who reports a dancing Lucky Charms leprechaun

The neighbor who reports a dancing Lucky Charms leprechaun

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 00:46:14Read transcript
  • The neighbor’s account moves from the assault to a cereal-box leprechaun dancing around the room.
  • The panel says the character seems to belong in an asylum rather than merely being eccentric. — Bill Simmons
47:02

Is There a Better Title for This Movie?

The Vanishing

The Vanishing

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 00:47:02Read transcript
  • The initial answer is that the existing title should stay. — Bill Simmons
  • Your Obsession Was My Weapon is offered as a strong alternate. — Bill Simmons
47:15

The Stephen A. Smith Hottest Take Award

American remakes of less-accessible foreign films can work when they add something; full-service gas stations should ...

American remakes of less-accessible foreign films can work when they add something; full-service gas stations should return

In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 00:47:15Read transcript
  • The take is willingness to remake a foreign film that the participant would otherwise never watch. — Bill Simmons
  • Vanilla Sky is contrasted with Open Your Eyes as a remake of a foreign movie already worth seeking out. — Bill Simmons
  • The American Vanishing is defended for bringing a radically different ending and decades of rewatch value. — Bill Simmons
  • Full-service gas stations should return as places to eat, drink, and spend time. — Chris Ryan
49:03

The Joey Pants “That Guy” Award

Lynn Hamilton as the eccentric neighbor

Lynn Hamilton as the eccentric neighbor

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 00:49:03Read transcript
49:18

The Dion Waiters Award for Best Heat Check Performance

Sandra Bullock

Sandra Bullock

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 00:49:18Read transcript
52:12

Apex Mountain

Nancy Travis, characters named Barney or Cousins, full-service gas stations, and Seattle

Nancy Travis, characters named Barney or Cousins, full-service gas stations, and Seattle

In the discussion (7)
Approx. transcript time · 00:52:12Read transcript
58:32

The Coach Finstock Award for Best Life Lesson

Do not drink the coffee

Do not drink the coffee

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 00:58:32Read transcript
  • The practical lesson is to refuse Barney’s coffee. — Chris Ryan
  • A possible earlier lesson is to say no when police ask whether you fought with a recently vanished partner, so the search can begin. — Chris Ryan
58:56

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

A prestige series

A prestige series

In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 00:58:56Read transcript
  • An all-Black remake receives an immediate sign-me-up response. — Bill Simmons
  • A Barney prequel would at least get the panel’s attention. — Bill Simmons
  • A prequel about Jeff and Diane getting together is also desired. — Bill Simmons
  • A prestige series could spend an episode on the couple, then move backward into Barney while delaying his reveal. — Bill Simmons
1:00:16

Is This Movie Better With…?

Wayne Jenkins as the cop

Wayne Jenkins as the cop

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:00:16Read transcript
1:00:52

Just One Oscar

Jeff Bridges

Jeff Bridges

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:00:52Read transcript
  • The Oscar is assigned to Bridges without a competing choice. — Chris Ryan
1:05:53

What Piece of Memorabilia Would You Want From This Movie?

The thermos

The thermos

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:05:53Read transcript
  • Both participants choose the thermos. — Chris Ryan
  • The Infinity bracelet is considered but treated as unsettling. — Bill Simmons
  • Jeff’s red Jeep Cherokee is another desired item. — Bill Simmons
1:06:43

Who Won the Movie?

Jeff Bridges

Jeff Bridges

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:06:43Read transcript
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