Free With Ads - The Talented Mr. Ripley

Episode Date: April 29, 2025

This week we watched the classic 1999 thriller The Talented Mr. Ripley, starring Matt Damon, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jude Law, and the amazing Philip Seymour Hoffman. It's like Liar Liar but with more murder!Tune in next week when our movie will be... The Land Before Time.-----Get our merch at https://maxfunstore.com/Emily Fleming has a NEW SHOW available right now on Mythical Society called "Emily, Have You Seen This?" and you should see this!Matt Lieb and Francesca Fiorentini will be in San Francisco at Cobb's Comedy Club on May 7th! Buy tickets here! Jordan Morris appearances and dates!4/26 - Peninsula Libraries Comic and Arts Fest, Library Parks and Recreation Center South San Francisco.4/30 - Collectors paradise North Hollywood. 5-7pm , Nicole Goux and Gabriel Hardman5/2 - Litfest in the Dena Pasadena Presbetarian Church 6:30pm - 7:30pm with Yehudi Mercado, Sara Phoebe Miller, Eliot Kalan5/3 - Things from another world Universal Citywalk - 2-4pm5/10- Mission Comics in SF with Briana Lowenson.

This is Free With Ads, the podcast that asks the question, why pay Netflix eight bucks a month to watch eight episodes of Ripley when you can go online for free and see essentially the same story in a shorter amount of time and you can use all those extra hours to get your disaster of a life in order. I'm Jordan Morris. And I'm Emily Fleming. Today's movie is the talented Mr. Ripley or as I like to call it two butt shots and a little bit of peen. With as always is the super producer, the he freak Matt Lieb hitting us with those lush

decadent drops. Don't you want to fuck everyone you see just once? What's up? I certainly do Philip Seymour Hoffman's character. Before we talk about this movie, which is, as of this recording, streaming free with ads, we're going time talking about Dune with y'all. Sure did. Just enjoying what a great, wonderful dude David Lynch was. It got me thinking about something he used to do on the radio here in LA. He would read the weather. I think it started on 97.1 when it was a alternative rock station, and then I think he did it on KCRW,

which was like one of our NPR stations. What? There would be these... No, wait. I didn't know that he was doing it on the radio. I thought he just did it on his YouTube channel. Oh, no. So, I didn't know he did it on his YouTube channel. Oh. I was thinking about these weird David Lynch weather reports and I saw that a lot of them

are archived on YouTube. So yeah, basically David Lynch reads the weather. I love this divide by the way, I love it. Because Emily, of course you only know it from YouTube. And Jordan, of course you only know it from NPR. Sure. It's both very you. Yeah, where these two things intersect

is David Lynch reading the weather. Yes. And anyway, so yeah, these are on YouTube, they're great. I wanted to play one little visual thing here. At some point he's going to reference something he's holding up. He's just holding up an apple to the camera. Yeah, if you haven't heard these before, they're great. He reads the actual weather in LA and just does some David Lynch weird shit.

So here's one of those now Good morning. It's November 29 2020 and it's a Sunday here in LA a clear morning with a bit of a breeze blowing Around 48 degrees Fahrenheit maybe 9 Celsius. This is something to think about today and they taste so good. so good. Should be going up to around 76 degrees Fahrenheit this afternoon, around 25 Celsius, and it looks like we're going to be enjoying blue skies and golden sunshine all along the

way. Everyone, have a great day. God bless this man. I know. Automatically the highest energy thing that's ever been on NPR. Yeah. Everyone's like, whoa, this is so youthful. Who's this psycho sock jock? Look at this apple.

Look at this apple. I tried to go to his resting place for my birthday party and I had set a little picnic for people to come by at like four o'clock and then I get a call from one of my friends were like, they're closing the cemetery. I was like, what, what are you talking about? And I guess now on the weekends, they close at 4.30, which during the pandemic, it was sunset, it would close. So you could just go and like sunset. Now they have set times and it's super early.

And I think it's because David Lynch and Paul Rubin are buried there now. And it's like a lot, I think, pretty high profile graves that are there now. So weirdos are showing up and they're like, okay, we gotta hire more security for all these peewee heads and lynch heads. We need to fend off these Gen X guys. Yeah, pretty much.

But yeah, I'm gonna go to both of their, I didn't realize Paul Rubin was buried at Hollywood Forever Cemetery as well. I'm going to go bring flowers and stuff. I'll take some pictures there too. Post-mortem. I wonder how famous you have to be to be buried there. You just have to pay money to be buried there because often most of the cemetery is not famous people.

It's just people who lived in Hollywood. Okay. That makes more sense. Yeah. Also, from the David Lynch on YouTube collection, this is actually a listener suggestion. Our listener Jackson O'Brien wrote in on the topic of weirdo celebrity music projects. I had forgotten about this. This is David Lynch's song slash music video nightmare. It's called

Crazy Clown Time and I believe he is singing on this. So Matt, play a bit of Crazy Clown Time. Oh, yeah, Richard. Oh, yeah, Richard. Oh, yeah, Richard. Oh, yeah, Richard. Oh, yeah, Richard. Oh, yeah, Richard. Oh, yeah, Richard. Oh, yeah, Richard. Oh, yeah, Richard.

Oh, yeah, Richard. Oh, yeah, Richard. Oh, yeah, Richard. Oh, yeah, Richard. Oh, yeah, Richard. Fuck to this. Do it. I dare you. I get the distinct feeling that our audience has fucked to this. You might be right, Matt. This feels like in their wheelhouse. I mean, the background, it all sounds very like Twin Peaks.

Uh-huh. You know, stuff. So it sounds like the Roadhouse kind of thing. It's easier to fuck to this than it is to, you know, that the Back to the Future guys weird clown song. I'm a clown and then I like, I have a frown. Yeah, that one, I think I'd be like. I like James Brown.

I couldn't concentrate with that. This one, I could kind of feel it. Might happen a little too fast. Yeah Fire next time Yeah, definitely that's not what's called check out the video it it is a sexual nightmare beware very intense but you know if you listen to the show probably probably your deal and Yeah, he doesn't start saying crazy clown time until like five minutes into the video.

Wait, how long is the video? Seven minutes. Seven minutes. Jesus Christ, seven minutes in heaven. Seven minutes in heaven, or hell. Yes, yeah, but it's closer to hell. Yeah. But it's a goddamn hoot while you're there.

Anyway, yeah, David Lynch, great guy, a lot of fun YouTube stuff. But hey, you know what else is fun? This week's movie, The Talented Mr. Ripley. Before we talk about this movie, we should mention that it does contain suicide, so if that's not something you wanna hear about, we're gonna play some music and give you a chance

to find another episode. We're back, it's Free With Ads. We're gonna talk about the talented Mr. Ripley. Have y'all either seen, have y'all seen this movie, the recent Netflix series or read the book? No. Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes to all. Yes to all. No to all. Oh wow, okay, oh that's funny, so when we were picking movies last week, I think you suggested this and I think we were all stoked

in a way that led me to believe that we all love this movie. I mean, I think that, like the thing is, it's always on. I feel like it's like, I've seen it. It's like the Shawshank Redemption. It was a big cable movie for a while, I think. Yeah, it's always on, but after watching it, I was like, oh no, I definitely haven't seen this. I guess it's like Matt Damon's face

makes you think you've seen anything that he's in. 100%. And then I was like, I think I saw something else he was in and it wasn't this. Yeah. I'm thinking of We Bought a Zoo. Yeah, exactly. When he kills an elephant with an oar.

Well, the funny thing is I was on the horn with the folks the other night and they were telling me, I hadn't even told them we were gonna do this movie. And they were like, we just were struggling. We were trying to watch a movie called Saltburn. And I was like, oh yeah, maybe not, maybe not for you. And they were like, we just couldn't do it. And I'm like, well, people say it's a lot like

Talented Mr. Ripley and it's like, then I watched this movie and was like, wait, this is exactly Saltburn. Yes, yes. Just nobody earns their red wings in this movie. Yeah, and no one fucks a grave. Yeah. Spoiler alert if you haven't seen Saltburn,

but a grave is fucked. A grave is fucked. Yeah, I mean, like there's even a bathtub thing in this movie. So I was watching it going, wow, I really liked Saltburn when it came out. And now I'm kind of like, is Saltburn just like a grotesque version of this story?

Maybe a little bit. Essentially, yes, yes. But it also has Barry Coagulant or whatever his last name is. Coagulant. Yeah, and he is fantastic in it, so I don't mind that at all. He is, but my mom said, she was like, that Barry, what's his name, Kiyogen?

I think he's gonna have a hard time finding a woman to reproduce with him. I don't think that'll be a problem. I think Barry's fine. We gotta cut that, we're gonna have to cut that. I think Barry's fine. He is gonna be great. But then I told her that he cheated on Sabrina Carpenter and she was like, what?

She got pissed just like America did all over again. I didn't even know that until just now. Yeah. Wow. It's too bad. Well, yeah, let's talk about this movie. I have seen this movie before. I like it a lot.

And I recently watched the Netflix series and I was skeptical because I'm like, oh boy eight episodes Netflix what are you doing? The thing about the streaming TV, cold take of course, but yeah things are slowed down nothing really happens and I think the Netflix version is very slow and weird but in a way that I liked. I was surprised how into the Netflix version I was. So you watched the whole thing? I watched the whole thing, yeah. So is the Netflix version a retelling of this story

or is there new adventures? It's closer to the book, and so that's why it allows itself to be a little bit longer. I mean, a lot of bit longer. But yeah, no, it's essentially the same story just told just with some extra detail. It's like if you're really into Ripley lore,

you're gonna love the show. Well, I might watch it now. But the movie stands. Do you wanna know everything about the book Marge is writing? Then the Netflix series is for you. I loved all the shit about the book Marge is writing. Then the Netflix series is for you. I loved all the shit about the book Marge was writing. Oh, that's cool, because they kind of just,

that was a throwaway in this movie of her going, I came here to write a book and I'm like, bitch, who cares? Yeah, right. And then like, but I- That's how they treated it in the movie too. Where's the show? Well, that's what I mean. In the movie, it was like, yeah, they barely mentioned it, so why are we mentioning it?

But I would love to know if they had mentioned it more, if she had really talked about it. That would be cool. Yeah, the book is used in a very fun way at the end, too. So yeah, definitely. Nice. If you're a Ripley head, believe it or not, you should watch the Netflix series as well.

Yeah, let's talk about this movie from 1999, I believe. It starts out, Tom Ripley, played by Matt Damon. He is playing piano on a rooftop. He has a borrowed Princeton jacket, not his. And he's playing piano for a bunch of rich people, including maybe the ultimate that guy from that thing, James Reborn, the guy. Totally.

If you need a mean senator, if you need an industrialist, if you need a dad who doesn't approve, call James Reborn. He's very, very much dad doesn't approve. That's his thing. He does not approve. Yes. He's great. He also fits in any time period.

He looks like he could be, well, maybe not like biblical times, but like any like 1900s era, anything. It's like you believe he exists. Yeah, I don't think he was in 1994 Independence Day. He was. Oh, he was in that. Okay. Yeah, I was going to say he should have been. I think he's a mean senator in that. Yeah, exactly. Yeah, he was in that, okay. I was gonna say he should have been if he hasn't been. I think he's a mean senator in that. Yeah, exactly, yeah. He is in Independence Day. Okay, so James Reborn's son is Dickie Greenleaf.

Dickie Greenleaf, he's a spoiled rich kid. He is off in Italy fucking around listening to jazz. Oh no. Oh no. Insolent noise. This guy hates jazz. So the proposal is that since Tom Ripley apparently went to Princeton, he is gonna go to Italy,

find Dicky, bring him back, and stop him from just like wasting his dad's money on jazz. Blah. Yes. What I love about this in the movie is, like in the book and also in the series, it's much more clear from the beginning that Tom Ripley is a con artist,

and that's kind of how he makes his living. In the movie, it does just seem like he lucked into this free trip. Like he, you know, oh, I just wore the jacket because I needed something to wear during the recital that I had during my gig. And so it's just, it's really funny watching this movie and going like, oh, no, he's, he usually does this. This isn't just on a whim.

I'd argue that every like Connors decision that he makes in this movie makes it seem like, well, just a spur of the moment. That's true. Whoopsie. That's true. And I wish that was different. I wish that that was, I wish it was treated a little differently.

I think that the reason they cast Matt Damon is he has this like. Innocent face. Innocent, likable, boy next door kind of like floppy haired thing that you would be like, surely he'd never. Yes. And so maybe that's the point. Maybe we just believe all of it. Yeah. It's interesting in the Netflix show, the characters played by

I forget the actor's name. He was hot priest. He is hot priest and fleabag. Yes. And fleabag. And he plays it like a fucking psycho the whole time. He was Hot Priest. He is Hot Priest. Hot Priest and Fleabag, yes. Hot Priest and Fleabag. And he plays it like a fucking psycho the whole time. Yes. It is, so yeah, that's the huge big difference is like, oh, Matt Damon, of course they would welcome him

into his circle. Oh, gee whiz, I'm just a kid and I brush rich guys at the opera and that's my job. I brush the rich guys in the bathroom. And yeah, so it's very, yeah, very, very, I think they're both very fun in their own way. Hot Priest played by Andrew Scott. Andrew Scott, thank you, thank you.

Who I need to watch it, cause I mean Hot Priest, but also Hot Priest is a gay man. And let me tell ya, does not matter. I think in the past people worried that like, oh, if you came out as gay, women would not find you as hot. Incorrect. Yeah, it seems like times are changing on that a bit.

I don't think that women ever gave a shit. I think people just thought we would, but we don't. And, but I didn't realize how kind of homoerotic this story would be. Oh yeah. And boy, how it's even hotter than Dune was. Dune was doing it for me. That's one of the really, I think, brilliant themes

about the whole Ripley oeuvre. Is that it's like, yeah, well, listen, I'm very smart. Is just the theme of being closeted and lying. And the movie kind of tends to go closer to that unless towards the Ripley is a psychopath who is a con artist. Yeah, he probably doesn't, I don't think that he has any desires other than to the desire of chaos.

Yeah, yeah, and loving, you know, Dickie Greenlee. other than to the desire of chaos. And loving, you know, Dickie Greenlee. Yeah, and wanting the life that he sees from the outside. But yeah, it's wacky, it has a lot of baggage. So yeah, he goes to Italy, he sees Jude Law out there on his fucking yacht, and he's like spying on him and his girlfriend Marge, played by Gwyneth Paltrow, there's a great little shot of Matt Damon

like practicing his Italian. And he's repeating the phrase, he's repeating the phrase, this is my face, this is my face. As he's looking at Jude Law. What the fuck was that? Very cool. That will be your face soon after you smash it with an oar.

Oof. Um. So yeah, so he goes to, he goes to like accidentally run into Jude Law and Gwyneth Paltrow on the beach. And he's like, oh, I remember you from Princeton. And Jude Law's like, Princeton's like a fog. America's like a fog.

And Gwyneth Paltrow just gives Matt Damon this look of like, I'm sorry about him, I know. She, Gwyneth Paltrow, like I haven't watched a Gwyneth Paltrow thing in a while. And like she's become kind of a punchline now because of Scoop and kind of her weird stuff. She's so fucking good in this. The character's underwritten too.

Like as we mentioned, you're like, what's the deal with Marge's book? Who cares? They mentioned it once. And like it and just her little nonverbal acting stuff is great. She makes a fucking meal out of this. I guess she's going to the Paltrow, apparently got famous for a reason. So I mean, she's a good actress. I think that she is a good actress.

There's no doubt about it. Sometimes a nepo baby can be very talented. Yeah, great nepo babies out there. I think there's an argument that her win at the Oscars was undeserved and I would agree. What did she win for? Shakespeare in Love. I completely deserved. I will die on the hill of Shakespeare in Love is one of the best movies in the past 30 years. Well, Harvey Weinstein would agree. Oh, no. Just okay. So I listen. Sometimes you agree with Harvey. You know, Hitler was a vegetarian. What you

think? Hitler's good. Emily Fleming said, no, I'm just kidding. No, no. I think that it was like out of all the parts she's done, it was just not her best. And that's, but I do think she's a great caliber. Oh yeah. But I think that's why people the parts she's done. It was just not her best and that's but I do think she's Caliber oh, yeah, but I think that's why people say that she's a bad actress is because of that She won for that role sure, but no she's done a lot of great work and this one was Fantastic. I don't know why How long has the Oscars been going on a long time long? 20s how often does whack shit win at the Oscars been going on? A long time. Long. How often does- Since the 1920s. How often does whack shit win at the Oscars? All the time.

Can we all stop going like, why did this win? It's the Oscars. Whack shit wins. Yeah, who care? Who care? The good movie you love won't win an Oscar. So weird, down the middle, whack shit will win. You're absolutely right, Jordan.

Absolutely. If there was any justice then ace Ventura pet detective We all agree with that Tony Collette would have won for hereditary. Yeah Yes, there's not a cool Oscars. There's just the Oscars the Oscars. There's just the Oscars. Let's all fucking deal with it anyway So he's kind of like in in like he's in, he's in their inner circle now. He's got this gee whiz, this kind of gee whiz energy that they love, they're bringing him in. He notices that Jude Law is out there riding a scooter

with an Italian girlfriend, that's right. He's cheating on Marge and Matt Damon stores that little nugget away to use later. So he is, so at dinner he kind of like does this little impression of Jude Law's dad. And Jude Law's, and kind of lets it all come out of like, oh well your dad sent me here and I'm supposed to bring you home.

They love this. He accidentally drops a bunch of jazz records because he knows Dickie loves jazz. I was trying to steal your identity, Matt, and so I did this with a bunch of Korn albums. Hell yeah. I'm like, oh no, all my Korn albums. Oh, it just all fell out of my locker.

You guys, you guys. What? On the internet, on Instagram Instagram on the Lord's Instagram Jonathan Davis is designing dog clothes now. What? Okay, that's a pivot Goth dog clothes. Yes, they're cool like new metal style like a lot of spikes let a cool stuff. Yeah spikes, a lot of cool stuff. Hell yeah. The boing, dah, dah, mmm, dah, dah, doggie.

He's got like a black standard poodle, which I would not have guessed. No, I mean the black part I would have guessed, but not the poodle. Then again, hypoallergenic, who's to say that Jonathan Davis doesn't have allergies? Well, yeah. Yeah. So, talented Mr. Ripley. Talented Mr. Ripley. Do you know what Jonathan Davis from Korn has allergies?

Right, that's free with ads at maximum. So now that he knows that Tom is into jazz, not really, he just kind of got into it so he could trick him, he takes him to this Italian jazz club, this fucking scene. I want to live in this scene. Like if it like if you just watch the first 35 minutes of this movie, it's about the greatest vacation of all. Yes. Yes. I love it. I just I just want to hang out in the first 35 minutes of this. Totally. I feel that every time I watch this movie, which is just like,

I just I'm like, I wish things didn't go to hell. Why can't they just be friends and not just be the rest of the movie? They're just hanging out and best friends and maybe they kiss? Like what's so bad about that? Yes, and why can't society let us love who we'd like to love? Exactly.

And I mean, he's like, what does Dicky know about love? You know, at this point he's just lusting. Let him kiss Tom. It would have been nice. Let him kiss Tom. Yeah, and then we go into the, one of the sauciest scenes in the movie. Jude Law playing chess in the bath. And you have kind of fully clothed Matt Damon playing chess against him and he's like, I'm

a little cold, can I get in the bath? There's this little scene, well they won't they? Are they gonna? We don't know. They don't do it. Jude Law gets out. As we mentioned in the intro, we get a butt and a little bit of peen. Little bit of peen. Just a little bit.

Oh, I didn't see the little bit of peen. It was a little bit, yeah. Oh, it's there. It's there. All right. You can rewind it, screenshot it, you can do whatever you want with that image. Well we can't screenshot it on YouTube because they're being dicks about it. That's true, they don't allow it on YouTube because they're being dicks about it. That's true.

They don't allow it. They are the peen. Thank you. Thank you. Dicks. So you know, they're buddies now, but buddies who can never kiss, apparently. They decide to go on a little trip to Rome,

and they're hanging out in Rome. Either you've ever been to Rome or Italy? No. I went to Milan once. Ooh. Yeah, because I did. What for? Well, it was like a big road trip,

like train trip around Europe with my sister. And the last stop was Milan. And it was, I don't remember much of it, except for I saw people doing heroin right in front of me, which I was kind of like, oh, good to know. And I had some really good pasta. And I was like, well, that makes sense. Wait, when you're in Italy, try the pasta.

You gotta try the pasta. Try the pasta. You gotta try it. I don't know, did it look like the heroin was good? You'd know, man. The heroin did look good. Try the pasta. Try the heroin.

And yeah, because you're having pasta, you're gonna wanna get the red heroin. That's right, the red, exactly. Or, you know, of course, if it's not in the Champagne region of France, it is actually just sparkling heroin. Thank you. Thank you.

Is that the funniest thing ever said on this show? For sure. It might be. It's close, it's close. It might be, anyway, so they're in Rome and just a bunch of Italian guys, we see them all hanging out at a cafe, clapping for women as they walk by.

They love it, they love it. It's street harassment, but it's fun. It's fun and cute. Yeah, it's with an Italian accent, so everyone's cool with it. Everyone's cool. It's fun, street harassment. I'll go after I turn 40 and then no one will see me.

They just won't even notice me. I think they will. They'll say, Americana. They'll go, eh. Yeah. They'll love you. You'll see. So, so yeah.

And then, fucking, Dickie's alpha friend, Philip Seymour Hoffman, rolls up in a, it's totally great. He rolls up in this like sports car, starts fucking, just being an alpha, alpha drunk dick, they all go on a yacht. He's such a good dickhead. I know, like prep school dickhead.

He's great. It's amazing too, because before, I had seen a bunch of Philip Seymour Hoffman movies before I had seen this one. I kinda watched this movie a little bit late, and so I was not used to him playing this type of character. And it was, I think, the first time where I was just like, oh, is he the greatest actor of our generation? Because he played it so

well. I was like, I just, I kind of looked at him as kind of like gross, clownish, desperate, like he played all those types of characters. And this one, he's like confident. His confidence makes him more handsome and kind of vindictive. And I'm like, I love it. He's so good. Although I wish he didn't get the name. What's also interesting is like,

I haven't seen a movie with him in it in a while. And when I was younger, like, you younger, you kind of look at the, you would pay more attention to the Jude Laws and the Matt Damons, but you're like, God, he is gorgeous. He's really beautiful. And I think it's, you learn when you get older. Yeah, you learn who to treasure.

Standards are created by somebody else. That's right. The media. They all go on a little yacht trip and then kind of Jude Law and Gwyneth Paltrow like have sex below deck where everybody can kind of see. And we know that Matt Damon is kind of like watching through a little mirror. And Philip Seymour Hoffman says this, and it was one of my favorite deliveries. Tommy, how's the beeping? Sumer Hoffman says this, and it is one of my favorite deliveries.

Tommy. How's the peeping? Tommy. How's the peeping? Tommy, how's the peeping? How's the peeping? Just one of those deliveries. Creepy. That is I got that clip from a YouTube channel that is called Tommy How's the Peeping? No! That is the name of the channel! 128 subscribers!

And there's a couple other clips on the channel. One is, I guess, the owner of a channel, the channel filming himself eating cereal. So a lot of fun stuff going on over there on Tommy How's the Peeping. No! on Tommy How's the Peeping? No. Yeah. But it's a great scene because this character comes in and totally wrecks Tom's image. Tom is doing a great job of projecting that he's supposed to be there. He's also someone who graduated from Princeton. He's also blue blooded, whatever. And this guy sees right through him immediately. And so it's like you start, it starts just fucking with Tom. And I remember

watching this movie and just being like, stop messing with him. He just wants love. He just wants to stop lying. Just let him lie. Let him lie. Yes. Yes. And that's the thing is like, I mean mean because probably largely because Matt Damon like you're you're kind of on Tom's side 100% you know you want and I think there's some some shit in this movie of like how bad a guy is Jude Law, right? Like right what has Jude Law done and you you kind of want a route for Matt Damon even when he's like murdering people Yeah, cuz he's doing it and he's crying

even when he's murdering people. Yeah, because he's doing it and he's crying. Yeah. Every single time. He doesn't want to murder everyone. No, he doesn't want to. He's backed into a corner. Again, it's the big difference between the source material and the movie is that mostly it just seems like he's backed into a corner and has to be like a con man and

a murderer. Well, and he has some darkness in him where he impulsively or compulsively reacts and then regrets it later. So I think he's got a sick darkness about him because you don't just kill somebody on a boat for... Right, but there is something super relatable about how embarrassing it is to get caught in a lie. That you'd like, would I be willing to murder

to not have to admit a uncomfortable truth? And it's like, I think probably not. But I don't know, man. You guys ever been caught in a lie before? It really makes you wanna be like, well, no one needs to know, man. You guys ever been caught in a lie before? It really makes you wanna be like, well, no one needs to know about this. Sometimes you just got a murder. Yeah, no.

Have you guys ever been caught in a lie that you like figured out a way to get out of? Oh, no, I mean, I feel like, no. I feel like every time I've been caught in a lie, it's just been like, well, yeah, well, there's no, like I start laughing. I mean, what is the, what is the truth? Right. What is? I mean. At some point, I start laughing when I get caught in a lie because I'm so bad at lying that eventually I just start sputtering. The person who's found me out, usually starts

laughing too. Yeah. My parents busted me and I just really doubled down and tried to. Oh yeah? And they knew, they knew it was so embarrassing. I had snuck a boy into my grandparents' basement. Oh. Okay. In the summertime in St. Louis. Was this someone that-

And you were like, it was a ghost. No, no, I just kind of was like, I have no idea what you're talking about. Cause I couldn't imagine how they found out, but it was my papa, my grandfather saw him like skirting out of the basement to get back to his car. Which is the worst, worst case scenario. Why is there cum on the Christmas tree stand?

Yeah, but it's like, God, that's the worst case scenario was him finding out that his granddaughter is a slut. You know, it's the worst. You should have killed him. That's what Tom Ripley would have done. Hit him with an oar. Somebody in this family gave me these titties and it's probably from that side of the family.

So, your fault, Papa. Yeah, way to go. God, my mom's gonna hate this episode. So we, okay, so there's all this going on. There's a new alpha friend in town, Matt Damon, feeling very neglected until they go to this event. What is this? It is a bunch of hunks emerging from the water

carrying a Virgin Mary statue. Is this like Italian Christmas? What is this? Well, because Easter just happened. Is this an Italian election? Yeah, that's how they picked the pope. I mean, I guess I thought this was Easter because we just had Easter. So I just went, this is Easter. But then you think that would be a crucifix

coming out of the water. But I don't know. So yeah, it looked really, but it was really funny when the hunky guys came out. Yes, and sorry out there if you're listening and we're joking about a cherished religious tradition. Yes, yes, yes. But it was a little funny when they came out.

And then it wasn't. It existed, I think, for just to add to sort of the homoerotic aesthetic of the scene, of the relationship. It also, metaphorically, is meant to kind of be foreshadowing of what's gonna soon be thrown into the water. Oh my god, I didn't even put that together, Matt. Yeah, I watch it a lot. I like art, but...

Art, art, art, art. One woman comes out the water, one woman goes in. Yes, yes. One blessed virgin. And yeah, so as we alluded to, this is when you find out that Jude Law's Italian girlfriend, she is found drowned in the water. We learn later that she was pregnant

and the implication is that she did this to kind of- Not a very good Catholic. No, well, or the best Catholic, who knows? Hard to tell. Hard to know. What are the rules? Help us, hunks. Explain Catholicism.

Help us, hunks. Emerge from the water and explain Catholicism. So yeah, so she, so it's kind of implied that she killed herself, but when I was watching this, I'm like, are they kind of trying to make you believe that Jude Law did it? You know? I think there's these little moments

where he kind of seems like he knows a little bit more about it. Anyway, just something I noticed on this rewatch, is I think they are trying to really make you seem like, is Jude Law a villain who deserved to die? Right, yes. And huh. I think that's exactly right.

I think it's, they, in my brain, it goes to the theory of, well, everyone likes Matt Damon. He can't be a sociopathic con man. So he has to have someone worse than him. Let's make Dickie so atrocious and possibly a murderer that it's okay when he gets his comeuppance. Yeah, I remember seeing her character kind of sneaking around the edge of like a building

that's right next to the water. But I don't remember seeing him anywhere. So in my opinion, she did the deed, but I could see the suggestion. I could see. I think at the very least, it's supposed to imply that this is that dicky... It's his fault. It's his fault. It's either through his negligence or through his murderous connections in Italy that she's

dead. And it's two lives, not just one, if you're Catholic. So this happens, and Matt Damon is the one who kind of knew about their relationship. So he kind of uses that against Dickie, and he's like, but I'll never tell. So that makes him the number one best friend again. That's right.

And they go on a little trip together. They go out in a rowboat. Yeah. And the movie is now in dark territory. The world's greatest vacation has been over for a little bit. Yeah. And now the shit is hitting the fan.

They have this big fight. Jude Law calls him boring. They start to fight on the boat and Matt Damon kills him with an oar, very brutally. I mean this scene, this scene, oh my god. Yeah, this is like a movie death that will like always stick with me. Yeah, cause they don't do the thing that I think,

maybe other movies might do which is like one hit with the oar and he's dead. It's like one hit with the oar and there's this look on Matt Damon's face like, oh shit, I overreacted, sorry. And then Jude Law is just pouring blood from a head wound. Which to be honest, that first hit, I think would have killed him anyway. Yeah, yeah, it might have, but it's so much scarier. But he just, he went down fighting. Yeah, he was big mad about it.

And yeah, you know, and it's also, you know, in this it's sort of a crime of passion, in the real, in the book, in the show, it's sort of planned. And yeah, you know? I kind of like, okay, so there's a little bit of something I was feeling during the movie. I feel like in my friendships,

I've always been the ultimate third wheel. Like I tend to hang out with people that are besties and then I'm the third wheel on the outside. I've never figured out how to not be the third wheel in my life. Oh, I'm the same. And so his like- You just invite in a fourth and fifth wheel.

That's right. Worst bringing, worst wheels. It's hard to coordinate and then you pick a restaurant and then they're like, I can't eat that. And then it's a whole thing. Oh yeah, sure. Keeping it to three is what you've got. Celiac disease, yeah.

Yeah, but yeah. And then it was like, so he's with a couple and he's the third wheel and then he's learned to be okay with that. But now you've got Philip Seymour Hoffman's character kind of butting him out and now he doesn't belong all over again. Being the third wheel in situations like that is so fucking uncomfortable and painful that I was like, oh, he's...

That I'm not... It's just like there is something so painful watching him be the third wheel and not fitting in. And then he, you know. Yeah, then he becomes the first wheel. Yeah. The only wheel. The only wheel.

He's the squeaky wheel. He's the squeaky wheel. He starts killing the other wheels one by one. Yep. So yeah. He's a unicycle. He kills Jude Law and like, there's a shot of him spooning the dead body in the boat.

Very salt burn. Yes. Yeah, very much so. So he goes back and this is when he starts to take on Dickie's identity. He moves to this other town and gets an apartment and there he meets Cate Blanchett who we haven't explained yet. He meets her at the beginning of the movie

and says he's Dickie so that when she sees him again, she's like oh Dickie and she's from a rich family too. Yeah she's great in this. I mean you know. She's just been in every movie forever and I didn't realize it. And I love her mid-Atlantic great in this, I mean, you know. She's just been in every movie forever, and I really didn't realize it. And I love her mid-Atlantic accent in this. Oh, Dicky, oh, thank you, oh, can I drag you

to the opera tonight? She's so good in this, she's so funny. So she goes to the opera with Cate Blanchett. The opera starts to, it has events that mirror what's going on in the story. It starts to make him feel guilty, they're doing a hamlet. And they run into Marge and Peter. Peter is a friend of Marge's,

I don't think they explicitly say it, but I think he's supposed to kind of represent like a more out queer person. Like a person who is like kind of living that way as best you could in the 1950s. And he's kind of like an aspirational figure for Matt Damon. He also is a conductor at the symphony. So they kind of like, so Matt Damon kind of does this,

does this switcheroo thing where everybody meets each other and it kind of like explains his story. Very ingenious, he kind of tells them all to meet at the same place and everyone needs everybody like supports his lie basically yeah then it's beautiful like that the whole sequence in which he because it's like there is a lot of tension when he meet when he sees Marge because Kate Blanchett is just like you know about to show up too. And he's like, he has to be Tom with Marge

and he has to be Dickie with Kate. And he gets them to all think they just missed Dickie. And it is like, he engineers it beautifully and there's so much tension and you feel so relieved when he pulls it off. Because again, you love him. I know, but I really feel like it's one of those backed into a corner things that he just goes, okay, I've gotta do this, this, and this,

I'm just going with it. But he's also wearing Dickie's fucking ring that it's like this ring that Dickie said he would never take off because Gwyneth Paltrow's character bought it for him and why the fuck is he wearing it in public? I think it's really insane. Like of all of his decisions making stuff of manipulation and being scared and back into a corner, why the fuck would you wear this ring? Why? He's method. He's method with his con memory. He just likes that ring, I think. And I get that. I love jewelry too.

Yeah. So yeah, so he's kind of like gotten everybody off his tail, except Philip Seymour Hoffman comes in and figures it out. And that's the start of his undoing. And we're going to talk about that more when we come back. We're back! It's free with ads. We're talking about the talented Mr. Ripley. So he's backed into a corner. He thinks he kind of figures it out

and then Seymour Hoffman comes over. And this fucking, he's in like three scenes in this movie and they're all fucking awesome. And this, he kind of like knows what's going on and he's just like annoyingly tapping one key on his piano. It's so good. Just being a fucking annoying dick. Because he shows up to his apartment

and he's looking for Dickie. Right. And sees Tom instead and you know, Tom is making up excuses for, oh, Dickie's out and whatnot. Well, the landlord Tom instead and you know, Tom is making up excuses for oh, Dickie's out and whatnot. Well, the landlord told him that Dickie is in the room. Well,

right. Well, eventually he he does learn that and then he uh but before he does, he's just walking around the room. He's looking at Tom living it up in luxury and he just knows he can can tell, he's like, you are a leech, you do not come from like a well-bred family and it's like he's able to like communicate all that through just these looks that he gives him, these like grimaces and like just kind of like giving him these eyes like, ew, do

you even go here? And it's just, it's an incredible face acting job that he does throughout and he's such a dick. Like he just, he likes pushing his buttons. Yeah, this movie has so much good like under the surface acting, like it's all what people are not saying and like what they're thinking and what they're saying when they're, what they're thinking when they're saying one thing and they're thinking something else

Yeah, and I think everyone in this movie is like fucking great at that. Yeah Yeah, so he kills Philip Seymour Hoffman with a statue Like plants his you know plants his body in a car and like drives it You know drives it into the into the forest. It was a classic weekend at Bernie's And that scene in the TV show is into the forest. He does a classic Weekend at Bernie's. Oh, he's just drunk. He does a Weekend at Bernie's. He's just really drunk. He's just really drunk. And that scene in the TV show is protracted to slapstick levels. Yeah, it's so good.

The TV show, each murder is like a Charlie Chaplin routine. I can't wait. Everything fucking goes wrong. It's great, yeah, you'll totally love it. Yeah, so this is kind of the end of his undoing. There's a private eye on his tail. There's like a French policeman and Gwyneth Paltrow totally knows.

She goes over to his apartment. She knows she's accusing him. She sees the fucking ring thing, the dumbest thing in history. And there's this shot of him. He's in the bathroom and she kind of walks in on him on the bath and he's like, oh, hold on, let me get my stuff together

and then I'll explain everything with the ring. There's a scene of him going around in the bathroom looking for something to kill her with. Yeah, yes. What can I kill her with? I already used the statue. Oh God, just like looking desperately. He's like breaking glass and stuff.

Looking for a murder weapon. He's whittling some sticks. Maybe a toothbrush, can I whittling some sticks. Maybe a toothbrush, I don't know. So she gets out of it alive. It turns out Dickie's dad hired an American PI, played by Philip Baker Hall. We get one more of that guy from that thing,

from the Pete B. Anderson movies. Just a great cop, great priest, Phil Baker Hall. And they all think that Marge is hysterical and his dad has kind of explained it away and it looks like everything worked out for old fucking Tom Ripley. And he goes off with Peter, it's not like, they don't say explicitly that they're kind of like together,

but they have a very like flirty, you know, they have a very like flirty energy and they're staying in the same room and stuff. I think it's very heavily implied that they are in love and in a romantic relationship. I have one question though. Yes. Yes. Does Peter know everything?

Because it felt like Tom Ripley's character was implying a bunch of things by saying, I have all this darkness in the basement of my mind and I just want to open it up and show someone. So I guess to me, I thought that he had told Peter everything and Peter was just fine with it. I don't think so. I think that the big thing that he had told Peter

is the fact that he's gay and that so is Peter and Peter's like, I'm fine with it. He doesn't have to be, he can be a more honest version of himself. Do you think that he was implying that him and Greenleaf were lovers? Oh yeah, I think so. I think he's doing that in order to kind of, like, you know, shoo away any lingering questions

about what happened there. I think it's his way of trying to explain it away. He can't be completely honest with him, but he can at the very least be like, I'm gay, and Peter is gonna be like, oh, so that's what this is. And the movie kind of does that where it's just like, oh, that's why he keeps having so many identities is that he's a like, oh, you know, that's why he keeps, you know, having so many identities is that he's a closeted person.

Which is like, okay, but it's a little bit, it's a little problematic. Because the implication that like, well, you know, they're capable of anything when they're in the closet, you know, they just lie and cheat and murder. It's like, no, he's a con man who is trying to live. I think he's a con man. Who is trying to live other people's lives. I think he's just addicted to the drama,

is like what I think his passion is. Yes, he's also a messy bitch. Yeah, just a messy, yeah, a messy Gemini. He's a messy guy, yeah. Yeah, yes. So yeah, so they're like aboard this ship, you think he got away with it, but fucking Cate Blanche is there,

he's gonna ruin everything. And then we get the last scene of the movie, it's Peter kind of laying on his back, and he's like, tell me something good about Tom Ripley, and he's just saying all these nice things about him. And then he, it's kind of- It pans away. It pans away, and you kind of hear him strangling Peter,

and you just hear it, and then you see Matt Damon coming back from probably what was throwing him overboard, and that is the last fucking shot of this devastating movie. That was such a fucked ending. It's so fucked. And while he's strangling Peter, who is the love of his life at this point, you know, to death, he is also crying.

Yeah. But, but he has to cry quietly because he is murdering a guy. Well, and also you know that the, the drama doesn't end because now his identity is the murderer that he pinned all the things on. So he's gonna have to spend the rest of his life being a guy that he blamed for all the murders that he actually committed. It's like, oh God, the drama.

Yeah, he's a messy bitch who loves drama. Messy bitch? Yeah, it's so like, and it's so funny because watching this movie now as maybe someone who's seen it a bunch of times and has read the book and watched the other show, I feel like a little embarrassed at the way I reacted to when Cate Blanchett showed up. Because the first time I saw it I was like,

God, you fucking bitch. You just show up and ruin everything. God damn it. This is why women, like it was like, I'm more mad at her for just existing. And- Make him watch a boring opera. Yeah, exactly.

Because the tension and the stress of will he figure this out, will he figure this out is so high that yeah time you're like your butt cheeks are finally ready to relax yes and then Kate Blanchett shows up yeah ruins everything and it's like god damn it's like you know you're just like how can't he just have a nice vacation? He just wants to sing Italian jazz. He just wants to sing, come on, come on, come on, come on, come on, come on. Just let him, God damn it.

And he also has all the money from like, you know, Greenleaf's father left him like what? All of the inheritance or something? Yeah, it's just comical how much he gets away with it. He's like not only are we closing the investigation, I'm giving you a bunch of money. It's like. He should have just left Italy a long time ago. Oh I know.

This is my biggest thing with him in this movie. I'm just like just leave. Leave. Just go to France. He's got the money though which is great but the whole movie reminded me that I have to get a real ID. Yeah, sure. If you want to get on a plane, you gotta get a real ID.

This guy's just cavorting around with a bunch of different passports. Yeah, you can just glue someone else's picture in there, it's fine. Go to a bank, ask someone for their money. Exactly, and now they gotta scan my face with AI at the airport. We'll never be able to do multiple murders and switch identities again. It's bullshit.

Well yeah, that is the Talented Mr. Ripley. We're gonna rank it, but first we should talk about who we're the most sexually attracted to. It's our segment, Hunk Watch. It's Hunk Watch. Yeah. I think we're kind of all on the same page here. Wanna do a brief shout out to Kate Blanchett

in her opera outfit. Oh my god. Stunner. Jesus Christ. Emily, do you wanna start this conversation? Oh yeah, it's Philip Seymour Hoffman. All the way. Total hunk, I wanna run my hands through that perfect blonde hair.

Yes. So pretty. There's this little bit when Matt Damon meets Cate Blanchett and they're talking about his character. I think Freddie is his name, Freddie. Freddie, that's right. And there's this moment where Matt Damon is like, oh, I know Freddie.

And she's like, everybody knows Freddie. In this way where you're like, they've fucked. Yeah. You've absolutely fucked and you believe it. You buy it because it's like, everybody's fucked this guy. Just the man, and you're right, it's the confidence, it's like the swagger, it's like the weird energy. Yeah, he's, I mean, he's one of the great. He knows how to read people.

I think that charismatic people who just kinda know how to dress you down and stuff, it's like, it's hot, it just is hot. But yeah, and I loved his slight sunburn, I don't know. Yep, little sunburn. Love it, love it! You know, Jen blossoms all the time, he's always kinda drunk. Yeah.

Yeah. Well yeah. Matt, did you have a different opinion? No, it was the same one, Freddie, Freddie, baby. Freddie Miles, Freddie Miles. He's just, it's the same one, Freddy. Freddy, baby. Freddy Miles. Freddy Miles. He's just, it's a great character played by a terrific actor. Yes. We miss you.

We miss you. Ugh, he's the best. They say now that Jesse Plemons is the new Philip Seymour Hoffman. I could definitely see that. I could see it. Yeah. I just see when Plemons pops up in something. Oh yeah, he's great, but I just, I think the only comparison is ginger-esque looks.

I think you're right, I think a lot of it is just sort of, you know, ginger stereotyping. Yeah, but they do uneasy kind of characters that make, they both do similar stuff, but I mean, come on. Yeah, nothing better than Philip. PSH all the way. That's right. We're gonna rank this movie on a scale of one to 10,

super loud commercials when we come back. We're back, it's Free With Ads. We're gonna rank the talented Mr. Ripley on a scale of 1 to 10 super loud commercials, but before we do that, I wanna tell you about a new Free With Ads bonus episode. You can listen to if you are a Max Fun member. Over there in the Max Fun member bonus feed, we watch Free With Ads TV pilots. Last month we watched the part one of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. This month, part two. You demanded it and so we delivered.

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So, we're gonna rank rank talented Mr. Ripley on a scale of one to 10 Super Loud commercials. Emily, since you haven't seen this before, I am dying to know what you thought of it overall. It stressed the hell out of me. Which I guess isn't really a qualifier for if a movie is good or not. But we rank things based on how we feel about the movie

and not about quality. At least that's how I feel. Is it like, would I watch it again kind of thing? I don't wanna watch that again, but I can acknowledge that it was a masterful movie. I'm gonna give it an eight. The performances were amazing. It was gorgeous to look at,

but it stressed me the fuck out. Yeah, I'll go and then Matt, since you've consumed the most Ripley stuff, you can kinda put the nail in the coffin here. Yeah, I love this movie. I think for me it is a nine. Yeah, I love Tom Ripley, I think he's such a great character. I want him to be in The Avengers.

Can Tom Ripley join The Avengers? We need someone to kill Dr. Doom and impersonate him. He just does it with an oar. Starts signing all of Dr. Doom's checks. His dad shows up, oh that's great. So yeah, and I think we alluded to this. Obviously it is a novel from a different time and a movie from a different time. So obviously we have this villainous, murderous, queer character. alluded to this. Obviously it is a novel from a different time and a movie from a different time.

So obviously we have this like villainous, murderous, queer character. It's the psycho problem. And you know, that stuff is kind of like outdated, but I think if you can kind of think about this as a movie from another time, it is so, so good. And I think, you know, overall it is saying something about how important it is to be yourself.

So yeah, I love this movie and yeah It's the first part is the greatest vacation you've ever been on and then the second part is The most horrific nightmare you've ever been in yes. I love that it does both and Yeah, this is a this is a this is a favorite of mine. I'm gonna give it a nine Matt, what do you think? I'm going to give this right between both of you guys. I'm gonna go on 8.5. I think it is It's one of my favorite movies. It was a pleasure to rewatch and talk about And yeah the faults Still stand. I think it's it's doing its

It's doing its best with the material, but it does it in a weird way, but I still love it. So yeah, it's just a great, you know what? If you haven't seen this movie, go watch it, then go watch the Netflix series, then go read the book, and then go to YouTube and look up Ripley fan theories. And then read some fan fiction. And just, there's a whole world of Ripley shit.

That sounds fun as hell. I'm definitely gonna do that. Also, then watch Saltburn. Then watch Saltburn, then watch Ripley's Believe It or Not. It's not related, but it just kind of like some of those. Hosted by the great Dean Cain. Dean Cain is wonderful, doing great stuff. Great in everything. Related but it just kind of like hosted by the great Dean Kane Wonderful doing great great and everything I haven't checked on him on Twitter. I'm sure he's

He's a man who looks like he was carved out of cheddar cheese. That's right. He and Kevin Sorbo on a charcuterie plate Sounds delicious. Yeah jam couple almonds charcuterie plate sounds delicious. Yeah. A jam, couple almonds. Yummers and my dumbers. Fun picnic. Yeah, that's the talented Mr. Ripley. We'll do a couple personal plugs.

Emily, you got anything? Please go onto mythicalsociety.com. It's a, you know, Mythical Entertainment's site that is for members only. I have a show on there called, Emily, Have You Seen This? If you wanna become a member on there and watch the show, that would be great. All of us do things on there.

Matt and I have these characters that are goth characters that have a wedding special and a baby shower. And Jordan is on there quite a bit doing various things. It would mean a lot to me, but if you have to pick one, then pick Max Villanen and tell him how good we are. That's right. Yeah. Matt, you got anything?

Yes. Once again, it's quickly approaching May 7, Wednesday, May 7, Cobbs Comedy Club in San Francisco, 730, myself and my wife. Get tickets now. All right, and if you are listening to this, the week it comes out, April 30th, you can get your hands on Godzilla vs. Los Angeles,

a comics anthology about Godzilla destroying LA, all of the money goes to Wildfire Relief. I've got a story in there with a great artist named Nicole Goh. And yeah, it was a super fun project. As you know, if you listen to this show, I love Godzilla, we love Godzilla, so getting to do a Godzilla thing. Thrill of a lifetime, please pick up that comic at your local comic book store. And if you're in California on April 30th, you can come get a copy signed at

Collector's Paradise in North Hollywood. You can see me at Lit Fest in the Dena at Pasadena Presbyterian Church on May 2nd, 630 to 730. I'll be there with Elliot Kalin from the Flophouse. So another Max Fun pal there at Lit Fest in the Dena on May 3rd, my birthday. I'll be at Things From Another World at Universal City Walk, two to four p.m. And on May 10th, I will be at Mission Comics

in San Francisco, come get some books signed and if you can't do that, get Godzilla versus LA at a comic book store near you. Okay, that's it. Tune in next week when our movie will be... The Land Before Time. Maximum Fun. A worker-owned network. Of artist-owned shows. Supported. Directly. By you.