Locations, literary and film influences, announcer voices, cast scheduling, Hackman's behavior, Bill Murray, the real house, period products, and Margot's cigarettes
The address 111 Archer is a real Harlem location near 144th Street. — Chris Ryan
Royal's unnamed hotel is represented by the Waldorf Astoria. — Chris Ryan
The film presents itself as an adaptation of a book that never existed, including visible page turns. — Chris Ryan
The discussion cites Louis Malle, the French New Wave, and Orson Wells among the film's influences; other names in the segment are sensitive to transcription errors. — Chris Ryan
An internet claim says Danny Glover, Luke Wilson, and Owen Wilson declined Ocean's Eleven roles to appear in this film; the speaker explicitly labels the claim uncertain. — Chris Ryan
The shoot was arranged around the cast's limited availability. — Chris Ryan
143minutes too long;117–118minutes ideal. — Bill Simmons
Bus station plot:parents absent,midnight Portland–New York trip,leave before graduation and uncomfortable prolonged side-mouth kiss;teacher-support rewrite proposed.
Naming composition Rowena and lying Greek goddess then inviting wife to program implausibly careless potential adulterer behavior. — Van Lathan
All-black cast remote-button fantasy,Danny Glover/Angela Bassett confrontation;era marital power imbalance considered but personal flaws emphasized.
Anti-sign-language stance and dismissing deaf son understanding Lennon death brutal. — Bill Simmons
Dreyfuss post-opus career decline despite age49 and nomination;W and Krippendorfs Tribe exceptions discussed. — Sean Fennessey
The chemistry between De Niro and Grodin has aged best, even though De Niro reportedly did not like Grodin much, stayed in character through take after take, and Grodin, probably playing close to himself, kept trying to annoy him; that kind of two-guy chemistry is rarer than you would think.
There are 119 f-bombs in the movie though it feels like 280, especially in the last call to Eddie; the phone call where Farina has Moron Number One put Moron Number Two on while the other guy shadow-boxes the one on the phone is too short to be a rewatchable scene but slays.
McCarran Airport, the saddest place on earth when everyone is leaving Vegas, has not changed since 1988 and makes you want to shout that Serrano has the discs; Grand Central Market in downtown LA still looks much the same, though you could not take a payphone call from a restaurant there now.
Danny Elfman's score (transcribed once as 'Danny Offen's') is like the Bus Boys from 48 Hours doing a soundtrack, one of the best ever despite some people disliking it: it slows down and kicks back in at the right places and sounds like Steely Dan's backing band vamping before Becker and Fagan (as transcribed) walk on; anyone anti-soundtrack is called a moron.
'Looks like I'm walking' is one of the better last lines of any movie covered, especially since walking out of LAX is no fun; the visit to the daughter is one of the favorite De Niro scenes: awkward, he has nothing to ask her beyond what grade she is in, she offers him money as he leaves and he cannot take it, and then he holds the door of his wife's station wagon so Grodin's coat does not get caught, every beat graded A plus.
The weird sentimental moments may be what has aged best, with several unexpectedly poignant beats including the ending; a tangent on the greatest De Niro scenes names the Godfather 2 killing, moments in Cape Fear, the Goodfellas slow-motion smoking shot at the bar, nearly every scene in Heat including the diner, and many in Deer Hunter and Taxi Driver, while Raging Bull is now a tough, one-and-out watch.
Asked at the end what was said for what aged best, the recap is the poignant moments and Danny Elfman's music; the chemistry, the last line, the unchanged settings and the profanity were raised along the way.
Studios reportedly pursued the property with Burton, Donner and Dante attached; Verhoeven is also recalled as a possibility. — Sean Fennessey
One response does not want the Burton version; another is particularly interested in seeing it.
Making this film first was reportedly a condition for greenlighting Schindler’s List. — Sean Fennessey
Spielberg’s simultaneous work and two landmark releases are proposed as perhaps the greatest single filmmaker year. — Sean Fennessey
The success reportedly increased interest in studying paleontology, followed by the profitable ER collaboration.
The reported Jurassic examples are transcribed as brociosaurus, dilaphasaurus, Matriacanathosaurus and Stegosaurus, with spelling uncertainty retained. — Sean Fennessey
The rights payment is clarified as one-and-a-half million plus half a million for the first script, followed by a rewrite.
The T. rex roar reportedly layers dog, penguin, tiger, alligator and elephant sounds.
A Psycho story about selecting a stabbed melon sound illustrates meticulous effects work, with the story’s literal truth explicitly uncertain.
A guitar string under the dashboard reportedly created the glass-of-water ripple. — Sean Fennessey
Chip Kidd’s skeleton cover is credited and praised; a childhood memory recalls carrying an advance-release pamphlet because the design was arresting.
An abandoned idea had the children riding a Tyrannosaur; the speakers are unsure whether the prop was built and say the attempt did not look credible.
Grant is reportedly modeled on technical adviser Horner; a stated two-hundred-fifty-million-dollar Spielberg payment is judged deserved. — Sean Fennessey
The Lost World receives both harsh disappointment and a qualified defense as a fine, watchable film despite uneven performances.
Dante is imagined making a cheaper, fast, fun version and Donner a lower-rent Spielberg-like version. — Sean Fennessey
A Donner version jokingly gives the too-old-for-this line to Danny Glover as Arnold, or even to the dinosaur.
The replacement screenwriter is discussed as a recurring Spielberg collaborator with a varied career.
