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Stats
- Episodes featuring their films
- 12
- Movies in this archive
- 12
Rewatchables episodes featuring Denzel Washington’s films
The Pelican Brief
1993 film
Bill Simmons · Chris Ryan · Sean Fennessey · Amanda Dobbins
Aired December 12, 2023
Displaying all 12 episodes
Mentioned in discussions
In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:12:10Read transcript
- A Philadelphia 'shadow sequel' with Denzel and Tom Hanks is pitched; another speaker had the same idea as a big reveal. — Bill Simmons
- Options: Denzel as Clyde and Hanks as Nick, or Hanks finally breaking bad, ripped and tattooed. — Bill Simmons
- Denzel has made nine versions of this movie without making this one. — Bill Simmons
Casting What-Ifs
Will Smith initially resisted the role until Ali personally asked; Denzel Washington is considered and rejected as too small for the heavyweight physicality.
In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:31:34Read transcript
- Smith’s initial refusal and Ali’s personal appeal are discussed.
- Denzel Washington is considered but rejected, while Smith’s height is cited as a fit. — Bill Simmons
Recasting Couch
Brian De Palma as director; young Denzel Washington or Samuel L. Jackson as the rejected tenant
In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:34:41Read transcript
- Brian De Palma is the preferred alternate director; young Denzel Washington and another candidate are proposed for the rejected tenant.
In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:57:21Read transcript
- Denzel Washington is selected by each participant
Probably Unanswerable Questions
Absent actors, Denzel’s persona, ideal length, Trupo, Frank’s wife, and Stevie’s Yankees path
In the discussion (8)
Approx. transcript time · 01:51:57Read transcript
- How Mark Ruffalo missed the large ensemble is asked
- Whether this performance created Jay Pharoah’s Denzel Washington impression is asked — Bill Simmons
- The maximum acceptable length is debated; one participant would watch a six-hour event
- More Vietnam, Jake, Stevie, and Frank-fall material is requested
- Trupo’s home life and golf club are questioned — Van Lathan
- Whether Frank’s wife set him up by insisting on the fur coat is debated
- The unexplained fake beard is raised as evidence of missing connective material
- Whether Stevie could plausibly go from the street to the Yankees in 1974 is questioned — Bill Simmons
Apex Mountain
Sprawling, disjointed gangster films; Lymari Nadal; bad portrayals of 1960s and 1970s athletes; drug-kingpin biopics: yes
In the discussion (10)
Approx. transcript time · 01:40:44Read transcript
- Denzel Washington, Russell Crowe, and Ridley Scott are rejected as apex choices — Chris Ryan
- Sprawling, disjointed gangster films are assigned an apex — Chris Ryan
- John Ortiz is discussed as near an apex performance — Bill Simmons
- John Hawkes is judged not yet at his apex — Bill Simmons
- Harlem films are rejected, with Mo’ Better Blues preferred — Van Lathan
- Miami Vice is selected for the Golden Triangle on screen — Bill Simmons
- Josh Brolin is rejected because No Country for Old Men released the same year
- Lymari Nadal is assigned her apex as Frank’s wife
- Bad portrayals of 1960s and 1970s athletes are assigned an apex
- Real drug-kingpin biopics are assigned an apex, with Blow and Paid in Full as comparators — Van Lathan
In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:29:33Read transcript
- Carla, Trupo’s crooked-cop crew, and Denzel Washington are considered
- Denzel Washington is selected for the moments when Frank erupts, slaps people, and overturns objects
What’s Aged the Best?
Production design, capitalism themes, Denzel’s new career era, historical texture, and the film’s aphorisms
In the discussion (14)
Approx. transcript time · 01:07:00Read transcript
- Arthur Max’s layered production design and set dressing have aged well — Chris Ryan
- The script’s connection between corner-store economics and buying direct from manufacturers has aged well — Chris Ryan
- The film’s treatment of capitalism as more central than crime has aged well — Chris Ryan
- The drug-packing montage has aged well
- The film is identified as the start of Denzel Washington’s self-directed elder-star era — Van Lathan
- A character named Bumpy is treated as an immediate sign of a compelling gangster story — Bill Simmons
- The Vietnam addiction and smuggling context is praised as material worthy of more screen time — Chris Ryan
- Shooting 360 scenes across 180 locations is praised — Bill Simmons
- Ted Levine’s presence has aged well — Bill Simmons
- Trupo’s reaction after his car explodes has aged well
- Frank pouring sugar in his coffee as a bodyguard signal has aged well — Bill Simmons
- John Ortiz’s run from Miami Vice through Public Enemies is praised — Bill Simmons
- Five Frank Lucas aphorisms are highlighted as durable lines — Bill Simmons
- The post-meeting golf aside by Trupo’s crew is praised
Most Rewatchable Scene
Frank killing Tango; the final Frank–Richie interview; Frank bringing his family to Harlem; the Bangkok material
In the discussion (26)
Approx. transcript time · 00:49:09Read transcript
- The opening, with Frank setting a man on fire and shooting him, is nominated — Bill Simmons
- Richie and Javier debating whether to turn in $987,000 is nominated — Bill Simmons
- Richie screaming during his custody dispute is nominated — Bill Simmons
- Frank’s Bangkok and Golden Triangle trip is nominated as material that could sustain a whole film
- Jake’s unraveling, corpse transport, and leap from a moving vehicle are nominated — Bill Simmons
- The Blue Magic manufacturing montage is nominated — Bill Simmons
- Richie’s courtroom work and kitchen encounter with his lawyer are nominated
- Frank killing Tango is the scene said to live on beyond the film
- Stringer Bell’s death in The Wire is preferred as Idris Elba’s best screen death — Chris Ryan
- The family audience and Tango’s refusal to pay are debated as reasons Frank shoots him — Van Lathan
- Richie reclaiming the seized money from Trupo is nominated — Bill Simmons
- Frank’s party outburst and piano assault are nominated
- Stevie choosing Frank’s life over baseball is praised for Frank’s conflicted reaction — Van Lathan
- The Ali-Frazier event is nominated but criticized for its impersonators and brevity — Bill Simmons
- Trupo ruining Frank’s wedding day is nominated — Bill Simmons
- Frank selling Blue Magic to Nicky Barnes is nominated and Cuba Gooding Jr.’s controlled performance is praised
- The plane and coffin search is nominated — Bill Simmons
- The final police shootout and naked gunfight are nominated — Bill Simmons
- Frank leaving church into a mass arrest is nominated — Bill Simmons
- The final Frank-Richie interrogation is nominated — Bill Simmons
- Trupo’s suicide is nominated — Bill Simmons
- Frank killing Tango is selected as the most rewatched scene — Chris Ryan
- The final Frank-Richie interview is selected as a favorite scene — Chris Ryan
- Frank bringing his family to Harlem is selected as the most important scene — Van Lathan
- Every Denzel Washington and Armand Assante exchange is praised — Van Lathan
- The Bangkok material is producer Craig’s choice — Van Lathan
Denzel or Will?
Early-1990s Denzel Washington
In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 02:33:45Read transcript
Half-Assed Internet Research
Bronson’s location demand, difficult reputation, Garfield’s objections, and a false Denzel rumor
In the discussion (6)
Approx. transcript time · 01:01:10Read transcript
- Bronson reportedly asked for a California shoot so he could remain near his family, while the production stayed in New York. — Bill Simmons
- The discussion describes Bronson as quiet and difficult rather than socially warm on sets. — Bill Simmons
- His physical condition and ability to handle action are offered as reasons for his long employment and eventual stardom. — Bill Simmons
- Author Brian Garfield is reported to have called the film incendiary because his book was more critical of vigilantism. — Bill Simmons
- Bronson defended the film as an attack on violence, prompting debate over whether the first film romanticizes it. — Chris Ryan
- A long-running rumor that Denzel Washington appeared as an alley thug is reported and then rejected using Washington's denial. — Bill Simmons
Sequel, Prequel, Limited Series, or All-Black Remake
Untouchable; an all-Black Gary-to-Bloomington version considered
In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:29:08Read transcript
- Untouchable is the initial answer, but an all-Black version involving a Gary team visiting Bloomington is entertained; cycling itself might change.
- A 1979 cast discussion considers Richard Pryor, early Denzel Washington, Eddie Murphy and Morgan Freeman, with age and cycling-fitness objections. — Sean Fennessey
Displaying discussions 1 - 12 of 101 in total
Films in the archive
American Gangster
2007
Crimson Tide
1995
Flight
2012
He Got Game
1998
Inside Man
2006
Man on Fire
2004
Philadelphia
1993
Remember the Titans
2000
The Equalizer
2014
The Pelican Brief
1993
Training Day
2001
Unstoppable
2010