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Home Alone 2: Lost in New York
Forrest Gump
A Bronx Tale
...And Justice for All
Casino
Goodfellas
The Sandlot
The Godfather Part II
Film credit
Joe Pesci
Stats
- Episodes featuring their films
- 8
- Movies in this archive
- 10
Rewatchables episodes featuring Joe Pesci’s films
A Bronx Tale
1993 film
Bill Simmons · Chris Ryan · Sean Fennessey · Van Lathan
Aired September 19, 2023
Displaying all 8 episodes
Mentioned in discussions
Apex Mountain
Macaulay Culkin; pigeon ladies; benevolent Christmas homeless characters; New York holiday setting; Plaza pop-culture status; kerosene ropes; Daniel Stern; Joe Pesci’s1992 run
In the discussion (10)
Approx. transcript time · 01:15:41Read transcript
- Culkin receives agreement at the peak of consecutive hits before the later decline. — Bill Simmons
- Pigeon ladies and benevolent homeless Christmas characters receive affirmative answers. — Kyle Brandt
- New York as a holiday setting receives support, with Miracle on34thStreet acknowledged as a competing classic. — Kyle Brandt
- O’Hara’s later Schitt’s Creek and Guest films complicate her peak; Heard’s identification as the Home Alone father gives this period a tentative case alongside other roles. — Bill Simmons
- The Plaza receives agreement specifically for popular-culture prominence rather than historical importance; lost children are compared with Taken without a firm final choice. — Kyle Brandt
- Kerosene-soaked ropes and Stern receive clear affirmative answers; Pesci’s diverse1992 run after Goodfellas also receives support. — Bill Simmons
- Fricker’s period around So I Married an Axe Murderer is initially proposed, then her My Left Foot Oscar is named as the actual peak; the toy store’s peak is the piano scene in Big. — Bill Simmons
- Kevin’s pizza makes a movie-pizza shortlist, alongside Back to the FutureII, Wayne’s World and Iron Man; Loverboy is the explicit favorite, so this pizza is not the apex. — Kyle Brandt
- Along Came Polly and the first Home Alone join the pizza discussion; a thin New York slice looks better on screen than messy Chicago deep dish. — Kyle Brandt
- The fake-movie comparison includes the Home Alone gangster films, Logjammin’, Boogie Nights’ Angels Live in My Town, Simple Jack, Stab and South Park’s Terrance and Phillip film; Cleaver and a Forgetting Sarah Marshall television parody are added without a definitive apex answer. — Kyle Brandt
Casting What-Ifs
Harry Anderson, John Travolta, Sean Penn, several Bubbas and Jennys, Terry Gilliam, and Joe Pesci form the casting tree.
In the discussion (5)
Approx. transcript time · 01:05:53Read transcript
- Zemeckis reportedly wanted Harry Anderson, who was unavailable, while John Travolta declined Forrest and later called that a mistake. — Bill Simmons
- Travolta’s later Michael and Phenomenon are read as attempts to recover the benevolent-simple-man role; Sean Penn claimed he was a second choice. — Bill Simmons
- David Alan Grier, Dave Chappelle, Ice Cube, and Tupac Shakur connect to Bubba; Chappelle later sought Hanks collaboration after regretting the miss. — Bill Simmons
- Jodie Foster, Demi Moore, and Nicole Kidman reportedly declined Jenny, and Terry Gilliam declined directing.
- Joe Pesci as Lieutenant Dan is embraced as an extraordinary visual and comic alternate.
The Dion Waiters Award for Best Heat Check Performance
Joe Pesci; Eddie Mush, honorable mention
In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:26:35Read transcript
- Pesci is selected, with Eddie Mush an honorable mention; his quiet demeanor anticipates The Irishman. — Bill Simmons
Is This Movie Better With…?
Young Philip Baker Hall; tentative young Danny Trejo; Wayne Jenkins disputed
In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:39:55Read transcript
- A young Philip Baker Hall is suggested because the film’s age complicates the usual casting list; a young Danny Trejo is briefly considered. — Bill Simmons
- Adding Joe Pesci to the standing list is proposed, while a response praises his sparse filmography for keeping individual roles iconic.
- Wayne Jenkins fits Baltimore but would overwhelm an already explosive movie; the performance is compared with Pacino in this period. — Sean Fennessey
Half-Assed Internet Research
Real people, costumes, a murder attempt, profanity, improv, sets, ribs, cigarettes, restaurants, and high rollers
In the discussion (15)
Approx. transcript time · 01:37:15Read transcript
- Frank Cullotta served as technical adviser and appeared as a hitman. — Bill Simmons
- The costume budget was one million dollars, with 70 De Niro outfits and 40 Stone outfits. — Bill Simmons
- Joe Pesci’s then-wife Claudia Haro was later convicted in an attempted-murder scheme against another ex-husband. — Bill Simmons
- The film uses the F-word 435 times. — Bill Simmons
- James Woods improvised dialogue and the detail that Lester was with a prostitute using cocaine during the wedding call. — Bill Simmons
- The count-room set was constructed because productions are not allowed into a real count room. — Bill Simmons
- Frank Rosenthal’s television-show guests included Sinatra, Hope, Liberace, O. J. Simpson, and Rickles. — Bill Simmons
- Pesci suffered a rib injury during the cornfield sequence.
- De Niro maintained cigarette length for continuity. — Bill Simmons
- Piero’s restaurant stood in for the Leaning Tower.
- Future Las Vegas mayor Oscar Goodman appears as an attorney.
- Nobu Matsuhisa plays Ichikawa. — Bill Simmons
- Akio Kashiwagi’s casino debts and murder are discussed. — Bill Simmons
- Ace’s house was later bought by Suge Knight. — Bill Simmons
- Frank Rosenthal’s later nightclub, online-betting, and family life are summarized. — Bill Simmons
In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:37:29Read transcript
- It has to be Pesci, no doubt, and not in a good way.
- Rooker and Asner are in the conversation; Asner is aggro, and his 'Camelot in ashes' line is called ridiculous.
- Pesci wins.
Apex Mountain
Martin Scorsese, gangster movies, the 1990 Scorsese–De Palma rivalry, the Copacabana sequence, gangster names, razor-bladed garlic, the Lufthansa heist, Joe Pesci’s 1989–95 run, pistol-whipping, mobster wigs, prison tomato sauce, Ray Liotta, Lorraine Bracco, “fucko,” and Pittsburgh drug dealers
In the discussion (17)
Approx. transcript time · 02:04:42Read transcript
- Scorsese is selected at his artistic apex, with The Departed raised as a later juice-based alternative.
- Goodfellas is called a capstone for gangster movies before the form moved to television.
- The Scorsese–De Palma rivalry is placed at its apex around November 1990. — Sean Fennessey
- The Goodfellas Copacabana sequence is favored over Barry Manilow’s song for the name “Copacabana.” — Bill Simmons
- Movie-gangster names are called an unquestionable apex. — Bill Simmons
- De Niro’s apex is debated between his late-1970s/early-1980s run and 1990-era juice. — Bill Simmons
- Razor-blading garlic is called a one-of-one apex.
- Goodfellas is treated as the apex for the Lufthansa heist.
- Joe Pesci is placed in an apex run spanning Lethal Weapon 2 through Casino.
- “It is what it is” from The Irishman is favored among mob murder-code justifications. — Bill Simmons
- The film is selected as an apex for pistol-whipping on film.
- Mobster wigs and prison tomato sauce receive affirmative apex rulings. — Bill Simmons
- Ray Liotta and Lorraine Bracco receive affirmative apex rulings. — Bill Simmons
- Paul Sorvino’s apex remains unresolved against his long career. — Bill Simmons
- Henny Youngman is rejected, while the word “fucko” receives an affirmative apex ruling.
- Cutty Sark is discussed as a once-prominent drink rarely seen now. — Chris Ryan
- Pittsburgh drug dealers receive a final joking apex nomination.
In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 01:24:25Read transcript
- Joe Pesci won the movie: Riggs obviously wins, but the vote goes to Pesci like the Heisman vote that went to Charles Woodson over Peyton Manning. — Van Lathan
- The time-out for saying Pesci was better here than in Goodfellas is raised again; the reply blames jet lag and regrets it. — Van Lathan
- Gibson is the right answer, but the title is vacated like Reggie Bush's, so there is no winner. — Chris Ryan
- Pesci makes the movie; a joke follows about the vacated title going to Danny Glover. — Van Lathan
Podcast choices
In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:08:15Read transcript
- Joe Pesci is eligible and should win; so good the award could almost be renamed. — Bill Simmons
Probably Unanswerable Questions
Smalls's ball versus Cameron's Ferrari; Benny's missing stardom; Benny's big-league career; Smalls in the Dodgers booth; Benny and 1980s cocaine; Ham's wrestling career
In the discussion (13)
Approx. transcript time · 01:15:50Read transcript
- Smalls ruining the ball was foolish, not hostile, unlike Cameron wrecking his father's Ferrari in Ferris Bueller. — Bill Simmons
- One participant has never seen Ferris Bueller's Day Off and is assigned it as homework.
- Why Benny's actor did not become a star: perhaps he lost the magic or did not want it; he became a firefighter, and everyone is lost in Ham's shadow like Joe Pesci in Goodfellas. — Mina Kimes
- Benny enters the majors in the early 1970s as a speedy outfielder; 'the Jet's lost a step' implies a roughly 15-year career; comps are 2011 Jacoby Ellsbury or a pre-injury 'Grady Seismore' (as transcribed) with 20-homer, 30-steal potential. — Mallory Rubin
- A pinch runner described as old is confusing; the Keith Hernandez-style mustache suggests a long career. — Mina Kimes
- A Brady Anderson comp is raised and rebuffed as pure Baltimore history; a .290, 13-homer, 29-steal line with a couple of Gold Gloves is offered. — Bill Simmons
- The Sandlot wiki says Benny went on to manage the Dodgers, prompting a joke about adding fan fiction. — Mallory Rubin
- Smalls calling games in Chavez Ravine raises what happened to 'Ben' (as transcribed) in that scenario; the easy fix was to make Smalls the partner of 'Vince Gully' (as transcribed).
- Smalls's first name is Scotty. — Bill Simmons
- The fifth-grade line makes the kids about 10 or 11, so Benny reaches the league around 1973 and is an all-star by the late 1970s. — Bill Simmons
- On whether Benny was caught up in 1980s baseball cocaine, one says yes because of the mustache; another says no, because baseball was his pure ambition and he was the square.
- A rebuttal says Benny had a human side, did cocaine, cleaned up and joined the 1988 champion Dodgers, per the Sandlot wiki as a joke. — Mina Kimes
- Ham's wrestling career: at least an Intercontinental champion, perhaps high on a WrestleMania card but not the main event.
Recasting Couch
Harvey Keitel as Janko; Joe Pesci as young Clemenza or Janko
In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 02:02:16Read transcript
- Harvey Keitel as Janko fits the era, though he is not Italian and Janko speaks Italian throughout. — Bill Simmons
- Pesci could have played Bruno Kirby's part or Janko.
- A Kay recasting is requested; Meryl Streep is rejected and the problem is the character, not the actress, which is disputed.
Displaying all 11 discussions
Films in the archive
A Bronx Tale
1993
Casino
1995
Goodfellas
1990
Home Alone
1990
Home Alone 2: Lost in New York
1992
JFK
1991
Lethal Weapon 2
1989
My Cousin Vinny
1992
Raging Bull
1980
The Irishman
2019