Seeing Harrison Ford play a man who kills women is called upsetting because the viewer identifies him with heroic roles.
The category name “Not Like This” is proposed for beloved actors in unwelcome roles. — Bill Simmons
Interview with the Vampire is called a really good movie despite using Cruise in an unwelcome role. — Bill Simmons
The Penguin is described as difficult to watch because a participant wants favored actor Colin Farrell to remain beautiful, although his performance is praised. — Bill Simmons
Roman J. Israel is proposed as Denzel’s analogous title and is explicitly disliked. — Mallory Rubin
De Niro as Moss or a younger Levene and Willis as Williamson or Blake are considered; the discussion’s Jimmy Conway reference leaves the final Blake alternative ambiguous. — Sean Fennessey
Modern franchise stars and British actors may lack the ordinary, badly dressed New York or Chicago quality needed for these roles. — Chris Ryan
Whether Katarina Witt belongs in the Joey Pants award or Who Won the Movie is deferred. — Chris Ryan
Sudduth's part suits a late-1990s up-and-comer, so Ben Affleck is proposed, filming before Good Will Hunting broke when he had Chasing Amy and Mallrats. — Bill Simmons
Sudduth is recalled from TV, possibly as a precinct captain on a Chicago show. — Chris Ryan
Colin Farrell would have been too early for the part but is answered 'that would have been cool'; he could maybe also have done the Sean Bean part. — Bill Simmons
Peter, played by Jack Davenport, is the role to recast: an early Colin Farrell is floated though maybe too young, with a wish for a future star to make it six instead of five. — Bill Simmons
The acting; the crawling monkey fighter; the reporter plot; the 'On My Own' moping montage; the chase with Forrest Whitaker; Ray Jackson's lack of MMA skills; young Frank's accent; Ray Jackson harassing the woman on the train
The acting was mentioned first; the crawling monkey fighter is problematic now, loved for years before anyone thought twice; his low, hopping style got him to the semis but is like small ball or the James Harden one-on-five: a surprise at first, scouted by the later rounds, unable to work over a seven-game series.
The torch-holding islanders in the opening show the film was written by white guys who, asked what they knew about this, said make them a monkey; it is called really bad.
The reporter plot has aged worst in parts: going undercover basically as a call girl and sleeping with a subject is very bad, part of a seventies-eighties trope of how to get the female reporter in, as in The A Team; the making-of says they wanted the action movie everyone liked in the eighties with a little romance added, so the writers gave the reporter a thing for Jean-Claude.
Two tough minutes after Ray Jackson's injury have Jean-Claude moping around Hong Kong to a song going 'on my own, I can be strong', worse than Frank Stallone, but it leads to the split on a balcony around the fifteenth floor with no ropes or harness, a pretty great shot Scorsese would approve of in a terribly acted and probably directed movie.
The lame chase is a fall from grace for Forrest Whitaker, the star linebacker of Fast Times who now cannot run through Hong Kong; his IMDb run from 1985 to 1988 is read out: Vision Quest, The Fall Guy, Diff'rent Strokes, North and South, Amazing Stories, The Color of Money, Platoon, Stakeout, Good Morning Vietnam, Bloodsport and Bird, several Oscar-nominated films with Bloodsport thrown in; he later popped up in Species.
Whitaker is respected for securing the bag, or for simply wanting to do things that sound cool, like a sex alien movie after a Vietnam picture; he eventually won an Oscar playing Amin (transcribed 'D.D. Amin') and carries Phone Booth with Colin Farrell; told there was an Oscar winner in this movie, nobody would have picked Jean-Claude or Gibb, and the actress might have been the guess; Whitaker is definitely mailing it in here.
Ray Jackson's MMA skills have aged badly since he does no MMA at all, more a Chuck Liddell knock-you-out-or-get-knocked-out fighter; young Frank's accent and acting feel like a head-shot pick with $1,200 left in the budget, and his father has a totally different accent.
Final answer: the monkey guy and the reporter; Ray Jackson sexually harassing the woman on the train, trapping her in her seat with his gigantic leg while Jean-Claude looks on amused, is also recalled as very dumb.
The acting is named first as what aged worst, before the discussion returns to aged best.
Mimi Leder and Janusz Kamiński were attached before Crowe’s interest brought Mann to the project; Spike Lee, Scorsese, and Spielberg were also approached. — Bill Simmons
Crowe would make a different but exciting Vincent, while Sandler would make the movie funnier but might prevent viewers from accepting Max. — Bill Simmons
The studio would greenlight only with Timothy Olyphant as Dom, and he declined; Neil Moritz suggested Vin Diesel off Pitch Black; Mia was written for Elijah Dushku (as transcribed), who turned it down; Colin Farrell was pushed for Dom at one point
The studio told the producers they would greenlight the film if they got Timothy Oliphant (as transcribed), who had starred in the previous year's car blockbuster Gone in 60 Seconds, to play Dom; he declined, which the hosts think was a bad move for him but good for the film, since Vin checked many more boxes than another white guy in an action movie; Neil Moritz suggested Vin Diesel, coming off Pitch Black, a perfect call.
Mia was written for Elijah Dushku (as transcribed), who turned it down, a tough one since Jordana Brewster went on to five films and multi-millionaire status; everything else was built around Paul Walker, for whom the movie was made.
Colin Farrell was pushed for Dom at one point, a what-if that surfaces late during research; the hosts like him and SWAT but pass, joking that Vin Diesel would then have to take Phone Booth, which would have been better with him.
Michael Mann is considered but rejected in comparison with earlier achievements in The Insider, Heat, Manhunter and The Last of the Mohicans. — Chris Ryan
A second explicit choice is Farrell, followed by the explanation that the rundown had only one candidate and a renewed apex claim. — Chris Ryan
The reported chance for Edward James Almost to reprise Castillo was declined, disappointing the hosts; the transcribed spelling remains unresolved. — Bill Simmons
Jan Hammer reportedly declined a request for a different score. — Bill Simmons
The idea that the requested score was death metal is a joke and speculation. — Bill Simmons
