This Had Oscar Buzz - 378 – Being Flynn

Episode Date: February 9, 2026

Is the “buzzy literary adaptation to Oscar bonafide” pipeline kaput? This week, we’ve got a forgotten, pre-production-buzzy title on deck: 2012’s Being Flynn! Based on Nick Flynn’s memoir Another Bullshit Night in Suck City, the film follows Paul Dano as the author grappling with addiction, grief, and an absent, addict father played by Robert De Niro. While … Continue reading "378 – Being Flynn"

I'm from a house. No, the right house. I didn't get that! We want to talk to Mill in here. I'm from Canada Water. Dick Poop. It's of a master storyteller. America has produced only three classic writers.

Mark Twain, J.D. Salinger, and me. Faith... I'm Jonathan Flynn. Everything I write is a masterpiece. And soon, very soon, now shall be known. This is my father. This is my father. a story. Well, it is, but he's not telling it. I am.

Hello and welcome to the This Had Oscar Buzz podcast, the only podcast eating two dozen eggs and a couple biscuits for breakfast. Every week on This Had Oscar Buzz we'll be talking about a different movie that once upon a time had Lofty Academy Award aspirations, but for some reason or another, it all went wrong. The Oscar hopes died and we're here to perform the autopsy. I'm your host, Chris Vile. I am here as always with my late stage aughts manic pixie dream girl Joe Reed This is a hard movie to find a joke buried in here Under the context in which we have our little

I thought you were going to call me your Your companion for another bullshit night in Suck City But this works well too No I just went for Olivia Thirlby Well of course Olivia Thurlby A creature of pure late aughts early teens Like she does not exist in another context. Which is unfair.

She is in a Best Picture winner. She's in Oppenheimer? She's in Oppenheimer. Who was she in Oppenheimer? Remind me again? Oh, she's one of the, she's one of the scientists. One of the science people. Yes.

That's right. One of the people who do science. She does that science. Good for her. Paul Dano could have been in Oppenheimer. Paul Dano could have been in Oppenheimer. If you had told me today that Paul Dano was in Oppenheimer and I just don't remember. I'd be like, yeah, that's probably right.

What we need is Oppenheimer 2 for all of the actors who could have conceivably been in Oppenheimer that weren't in Ophi. This is what the Odyssey is, though. Like, that is what the Odyssey is for. Paul Dano's not in the Odyssey. Well, then he's just going to have to do it in something else after the Odyssey then. It's just going to have to be something else. And that's fine. The Odyssey is many things. It is. It will be many things. It is not going to be a Paul Dano delivery system, though, however. As being Flynn is, being Flynn is perhaps not many things. It's a few things, one of which is a movie that our listeners have entirely forgotten about. This is true. We were due for one of these.

We were really due for one of these movies that fully have faded into the theater. Where people are like, that movie is not real. You can't believe you believe that. Yeah, yeah, except for the fact that it is based on a memoir that definitely at least exists as a title. Like, I did not read another bullshit Night in Suck City, but I certainly remember the title because it's very memorable. It's like a confederacy of Dunces or, you know, any number of these like books that it's just like, oh, right, like, I absolutely remember the title of, you know, the curious incident of the dog in the nighttime or, you know, any other, you know, any number of. of other things like that. The amazing adventures of Cavalier and Clay.

And maybe I have not read all of those. But the titles are very memorable, which is why being Flynn is such an odd title for this movie because it really just disappears off of your mouth. You mean you change your title to, well, certainly something that you can put on a poster, on a marquee without having to like bleep it or whatever. Yeah, yeah. No, I know.

Like, yes, of course. But being Flynn is a uniquely hard downshift in memorability. And then have you seen the original poster for the film? No. I'm just going to say no. It's father-son Flynn caught in a lens flare so you truly cannot see. Oh, God. I need you to look this poster up right now.

Looking it up, looking it up. Because not only do you have a fake title, you have a really vague poster where you can hang, you know, Robert De Niro above a title. Oh, wow. I do remember this poster. Of course I remember this poster. Yes. It's very vague. The aughts were not a great time for non-d vague Robert De Niro posters that just have his face floating over things.

I'm thinking specifically of like City by the Sea. Oh, what's the one? It's how did it's like, how did this all happen or whatever it's called? What just happened? No, what is it called? It's a Barry Levinson. It's a Barry Levinson movie and it's just De Niro's face looking dead on balls right at the camera. It's called Robert De Niro Filmography.

It is called What Just Happened. Okay, sorry. You were right. Should have put money down? You should have. You'd have one. Yes, that one. But anywho, yes. So this poster, and all it says on it is based on a true story,

and then the tagline is, we're all works in progress. Get the fuck out of here, this poster. Jesus Christ. Vague tagline, vague title. Can't see any faces. Just De Niro and Paul Dano's name above the title. Being is in fancy cursive, and then Flynn is in like hard Helvetica. This is none of the movie's fault, but it does explain how this is a movie that only ended up making half a million dollars.

Here's what I'll tell you. This wasn't the movie that I thought it was going to be. I knew very little about this going in. And I always sort of like filed this movie away under, you know, in the same filing cabinet as these kind of sort of. sort of sentimental gauzy you know I bet you the poster

made me think of it's just like oh this guy reconnects with his father and they learn to like trust each other again and then the father like sadly dies

and it's all very sort of like sad and whatever and this the movie's credit it's not that movie it's not it's not I do think it's a weak

a much weaker version of this subject than it should have been, but we'll get into the... But I think there are some elements of it that I feel like, oh, I appreciate that this movie is giving us a little bit of like life in the shelter or, you know what I mean? And the folks at the shelter aren't very sort of like cartoon-y, you know what I mean,

or sitcomy or anything like that. That works. I actually think De Niro and Dana are both very good. We'll talk about how one of those things was recognized in the reviews at the time, and one was definitely not. And we'll talk about that. But I actually thought the two lead performances were really good. I wish I felt the same about the way that the movie sort of structures things like flashbacks or sort of the narrative in general. and I think just in a lot of ways, this movie feels incredibly locked into its sort of moment.

It's sort of, I don't know why. I lived in New York City for 15 years, and yet for whatever reason, the era that to the exclusion of almost anything else makes me feel like, oh, this reminds me of my time in New York, is anything from like 2009 to like 20, It's just like that little window for whatever reason is like, okay, that one, that's when I felt like it was this kind of prime era for, I don't know, the sort of like the Brooklyn, even though I hate this, like the Brooklyn hipster era, you know what I mean? This was, you know, Fleet Foxes in the trailer for being Flynn. I was like, oh, right, like this was, you know, that time and, you know, Bonnevere and all this stuff that wasn't even specific. specifically New York City, but New York City felt like one of these sort of cultural epicenters for this moment of maybe like the last, God, here's where I'm going to make some like big sweeping proclamations that make no sense, but like it felt like the last time that like

straight white men felt like they had a, the upper hand in the culture that I was consuming. Do you know what I mean? Okay. I understand that. Whereas I feel like everything since maybe like 2013. Yes. Sad boys. A certain era of alt-rock post-emo.

Yeah. I get what you're saying. Whereas like I felt like everything after that was about either seeking out or the culture. And again, this is like my corners of the culture. culture, right? Culture that is projected to younger, more urban, more sort of like people who live in cities, you know what I mean? Like, that kind of thing felt like, oh, like, this straight white guy aesthetic is just like, it is absolutely not cool. We are doing pop girlies and we are doing drag queens and we are doing, you know what I mean? Like that kind of a thing. this where I think it actually has pivoted to cool which is almost a wonder why like why does a movie like being Flynn not really work I think it's partly why a movie like conclave works is interesting cool heterosexual dude now is like dad culture yeah dads yes uh which is by definition by definition not actually cool like there is no Like, it's unfettered from the world of cool. Yes.

It's just in its own bubble, but a positive one. It's not like your racist dad. It's not your homophobic dad. It's like, it's your lefty dad who might make pancakes in on Sunday mornings every once in a while. Right. And still probably listens to Coldplay. Totally. But like when was the last time Coldplay was cool?

Like even before this moment in 2012 or whatever. I mean, they were cool for a hot second when they were unveiling heterosexual infidelities. They were the backdrop for, yes, for cheating. But no, I mean, I do, I think you're right to bring this up as an umbrella topic because this does feel like also of a piece with that. era as a type of movie of like sad boy cinema and I feel like that's part of the problem because I think it's running a little antithetical to the material I think Paul White's tries to about a boy this movie that really doesn't kind of naturally fit that mold but I want to maybe go more in depth on the other side of the plot description about that. Another thing I want to talk about on the other side of the plot description, maybe, but we could maybe get into it now.

What this movie also represents to me is the idea of literary adaptation as prestige, which we don't really, is like dead. This movie came out in maybe the dying days of that, because now we have things that are literary adaptations like Hamnet this year, but it's never been sold on the literary source of it, is the source of its prestige, its value. Right. Literary adaptations, or like, literary even makes it seem too highfalutin, but that avenue is now more the realm of your Colleen Hoover adaptation. or even something like heated rivalry, which you've got these books that have amassed these

followings, and now you are sort of directing that to the screen, and all of a sudden you're just like, why is this movie with Blake lively making so much money? And it's just like, oh, okay, it's, you know, book talk or whatever. And it's just like, oh, okay. Whereas you're right, Whereas something like one battle after another being based on a pinch on novel doesn't really, the pinch on mess of it doesn't really enhance much of anything. That movie would be as prestigious as it is, even if it was an original Paul Thomas Anderson script. Yeah. And I think even more of what I mean is something like The Hours is not a bad example, but something like The Reader, which. It all comes from a celebrated book that is seen as fancy.

So therefore, the immediate news of it becoming a movie makes that a, like, Oscar Buzzy title. And now I don't really think that exists. So much of, like... How would you say that in something like, call me by your name? I mean, that was more of a niche kind of book. Okay. It didn't have any fancy prizes to really hang on it.

I think, if anything, that thing has switched to television now. Yeah. Something like the Underground Railroad, which is obviously a mini-series, but, you know. What's the Elena Ferranti HBO series? My Brilliant Friend. My Brilliant Friend. Yeah, yeah. Like something like that.

I'm your host Chris Fyle And I'm here as always with my brilliant friend show read Yeah, we got it We got it Okay, good Um Sorry I'm looking particularly hideous today So I'm trying to

Would you stop Anyway Um Yes, no, I get what you're saying about literary adaptations I wonder if that's just a further symptom of Increasingly sort of diffuse culture kind of a thing. I think the idea of it, too,

is representative of something that is no longer, not just cool, but no longer, like, given its own value, the way that something like the reader is pre-made as like, oh,

this is important, this is valuable. It comes from this amazing book. Yeah. Do you also feel like there is a portion of, the kind of memoir that this is, that bullshit Night and Suck City was,

um, becomes less exclusively the province of the written word and can also be things like podcasts or like a YouTube channel. A YouTube channel? I don't really understand. I understand maybe the era of podcasts. 19 and 20-year-olds now funneling their creativity or their damage or whatever into stuff like that.

Including 40-year-olds, too. Well, that's what I mean. But I mean just like, but I think in general, it's sort of like the idea of like the memoir of a talented young man. You know what I mean? And like where do we see that sort of showing up nowadays? And I mean, there's still, they're still kind. And there's still books, but I don't know if they really get adapted into... They just state books.

Yeah. Yeah. Again, it just feels like a culture that feels a little bit more diffuse, balkanized maybe, and just sort of just like everything is in its own sort of separate area. Yeah. Like, another bullshit night in Sucks City would be a mini-serie. now. It would probably be better as a miniseries.

Sure. And, you know, you could probably put the same people in it, and then it's on FX, and it gets a bunch of Emmy nominations. Yeah. I could see that. I'm trying to think of, like, yeah, like television does definitely

feel like the more television or like streaming, you know what I mean, like streaming TV, some type of television. seems to me just the accepted destination of books in general. Like, it is, which is why it's interesting when you get a year where there are multiple sort of best picture contenders that are based on, like, contemporary books like Hamnet. You know what I mean?

But I don't know why I'm talking so much about reading. I feel like such a fraud. I can't opine on this shit. I know, this is what I'm saying. I struggle. I struggle with things. I have not read Nick Flynn's book, but I definitely recognized that title from conversations at the time. And, of course, headlines of when the movie rides get bought.

It was originally going to be a 20th century Fox movie. Oh, that's interesting. I don't know the chain of events that led it to being a focus movie. Forgotten Focus Movie. Forgotten, forgotten. Now you sound like a Trump character. Forgotten Focus. Ew. Don't you dare ever. Except for the Focus is actually doing quite well this year. Two best picture nominations. One was the last time that that happened. I was trying to like...

And a movie that gross even more money than that. Have they ever gotten multiple Best Picture nominees in the same year? Oh, certainly. Hold on. Hold on. Focus features. All right. So. let's go through Focus features Best Picture nominations

Well, no traffic was still USA films right Focus doesn't happen until 02 Yes All right So far from heaven

missed the pianist Which was Not Was it focus in the United States As well Or was it I thought it was like Studio Canal

Or something like that Okay it was focus well regardless nothing else that year lost in translation I feel like they might have done it recently well what did they have in 2020 besides

promising young woman let's see let's go backwards they had Belfast since then they've had why can't I remember this should be like on the back this is what I'm saying

they had tar did they have anything else the same year as Tar. Is that the Belfast year? No. No. Belfast was 21. Belfast was slapier.

Belfast was slapier, yes. Holdovers, I think that was the only one that they had that year. Conclave and Brutelist was A-24. Yeah, let's see, 2020. What did they have? Oh, 2017, they had Darkest Tower and Phantom Thread. 2017 they had darkest tower and phantom thread yes yes very good so they've done it before were they licorice pizza or was that no that was united artists yes um they have so many like

co you know co-producing credits okay well so all right so it's not there first but let's just say it is it is not a regular occurrence for focus to have multiple best picture nominees and they do this year with begonia and with hamnet and um Good for them. T.B.H. This is a bit of a flop year. Not flop year for Focus. 2012.

2012. They definitely could have slash, well, for the two that they get Oscar nominations for in Moonrise Kingdom and Anna Karenina. We both probably are well on the record of thinking that those movies deserved better. Yes, I agree. And they had Paranorman. Yeah, because like us with focus. But they also had two noticeable bombs this year and episodes that we have done in Hyde Park on Hudson and Promise Land. Yeah.

Oscar bombs. Yes. They, and like end of year, we're waiting on these kind of Oscar bombs, too. You know what I mean? They were both December movies. there was a sense... Hudson had played I believe

Telluride and maybe a few other festivals and did not go over well. And Promised Land did the premiered in December and then played Berlin. Is that how it worked? I think so.

But yeah, Promised Land I remembered being the thing that like I don't know how much faith people were putting in it, but you at least had to be like, and then, of course, promised land will come out at the end of the year and we'll see how that goes, like that kind of a thing. Because it was Gus Van Sant, and because it was, you know, had some prestige to it, you know, your Matt Damon's and Francis McDormons and whatnot. But yes, that was, I think Anna Karenina, we can say, was that film's best performer in terms of

awards that year at won two Oscars. Did it win costumes in her direction? I believe it won score. And also, no, it did not win score. What would have one score? Oh, Life of Pie, one score that year. It won costume, and that was it, Jacqueline Duran. You're right. Atonement.

I know Dario Marinelli won score for something. It must have been Atonement. Had to be. Oh, please. Had to be. Yes. Are Dario Marianelli these days? That's a good question.

Dario Marianelli's last big score will Paddington in Peru. And the Matteo Garone Pinocchio. And last thing was nominated for was, of course, Joe Wright's darkest hour. but nothing major has a LICA score coming out

this year for a film called Wildwood so I'm automatically excited for that Is it another LICA?

It said it's hold on just Xed out of that tab hold on a second Wildwood

due in October of 2026, an upcoming American stop-motion animated dark fantasy film directed by Travis Knight and written by Chris Butler based on such a novel, produced by Lika, ensemble voice cast consisting of Peyton Elizabeth Lee, Jacob Trombly, Carrie Mulligan, Mahershawesi, Aquafina, Angela Bassett, Angela Bassett, Jake Johnson, Charlie Day,

Amanda Lestenberg, Germain, Maya Erskine, Tantoo Cardinal, Tom Waits, and Richard Entertainment Grant. A lot going on in this LICA. Yeah. Yeah. A LICA film with cinematography by Caleb de Chappelle and music by Dario Marianelli. Damn. That sounds good.

I don't, I'm down. I'm down for this. This sounds fun. To bring it back to being Flynn and the focus. No, I want to talk about LICA for the rest of the episode. Is there a LICO we could do it, it's on? Maybe we'll do a LICA at some point. I'm sure there's something.

Yeah, they're too good. They're too good. God damn. Some of them are too good. No, well, they're too successful with Oscars. Justice for the box trolls. Justice for the box trolls, indeed. Being Flynn, though.

Yeah. It is like late stage, sad boy independent cinema. It's focus's first release of the year. I found it really surprised. surprising that this was not taken to Sundance. Yeah, it feels very sundancy. And that like part of the reason why... And could have found an appreciative audience therein.

Yeah, or maybe move the needle in some way. Even, you know, it just feels like for a movie that I think is largely not successful as a movie, it could have at least found a friendly audience. If you have Olivia Thurlby, Lily Taylor, Dale Dickey, Victor Rassick, West Dutie, Paul Dano, and Julianne Moore in your movie, you're kind of contractually obligated to go to Sundance. Which makes you wonder, like, did they turn it down? I guess Paul White's has never been a Sundance guy.

Was Chuck and Buck? No, that was just an actor in that, right? But Chuck and Buck must have been. been a Sundance thing? Yes, it was. Yes. Speaking of Sundance, this year was not great. I don't want to talk about this.

I don't know. We had an argument about this on text, and I don't want to have another argument about this. My favorite movies that I saw were American Doctor and if I go, will they miss me? Joe, what was your favorite movie you watched at Sundance? American Doctor was definitely my favorite documentary. I thought it was really, really good. really like,

I really liked the musical and I mostly really liked Josephine. And there was another doc too that I, well, I liked Soul Patrol once I sort of got past a little of the like, oh, it's trying to do too much stuff. Like I thought once it actually got into like the documentary of it, I really liked it.

But I was chilly on Josephine than it seems like everybody was. but I have a good amount of respect for that movie. I think Channing Tatum's really good in it and playing a character that does not allow him to lean on his charisma, which I think is interesting for him. And I thought the one sort of artistic choice the movie makes that I don't even think I want to spoil necessarily, but like the sort of recurring thing that you keep seeing. I don't think the recurringness really amounts to much. Oh, see, I thought it was incredibly effective every single time you saw. I thought it didn't really do anything it didn't do in the first time that it occurs. I think, well, we'll have plenty of chances to talk about Josephine elsewhere.

If someone picks it up. Well, when people have actually seen it rather than us just sort of like talking about a thing that nobody's seen. But yeah, I was happy to once again be able to watch Sundance stuff online, and I'm sad about it leaving Park City, weirdly. I feel like this is, you know, I'm hopeful that it can flourish in Boulder, but I do feel like this is one of those things that, like, it's an ending, even though we are saying that it will go on in its new location. I feel like we're maybe moving it. I kind of came away from this having never gone to Park City, but feeling like a refresh is probably great for the identity of that festival right now. If it is a refresh, yes.

If it's not just like moving it to the home for it to die, then fine. And we'll see. But it could be very much for the best. Hopefully it feels like a reset button in more ways than just its location. Sure. Yes. But being Flynn really feels like, I mean, I could probably put it in front of any Gary and be like this, they would say that they probably played Sundance, right? Like it feels that it should have been there in a way. It is Paul White's follow up to Little Falkers, which maybe is part of the reason why it didn't play Sundance.

It's his follow up to, I should say, it's our second Paul White's, movie in the last year, which I think is interesting because we did in good company, not too long ago. Which I had problems with, but I think it's a much better movie than this. It's a more successful movie on its own terms than... I don't know if I necessarily agree, but I think both of them are imperfect. Yeah. comes to, I mean, really breaks through with his brother, Chris, with American Pie in 1999.

They kind of not only have this huge, you know, summer raunchy teen success, but they kind of set the course for American comedy for the next, at least like half a decade, probably more. follows that up. They co-direct down to Earth, which is the Chris Rock remake of Heaven Can Wait in 2001. And then they still together do about a boy in 2002. Should we do the plot description before we start doing the filmographies of these books?

Well, I was just letting you cook. No, thank you. I appreciate that. I kind of caught myself. You got to wait for the protein to thaw, I guess. So, Joe, before we get into the plot description, why don't you tell our listeners about our Patreon? Wait for the protein to thaw is both very anodytide. You're not cooking anymore. You're not ready to cook.

I get it. I get it. I get it. You've heated up the pan, and now before you've put anything in it, you're going to just turn down that heat and let it just sort of like mellow on, medium low or whatever for a while. The butter is sizzling something. The butter is scorching. Yeah, we have a Patreon. It is called This Had Oscar Buzz Turbulent Brilliance.

It will cost you a mere $5 a month. And for that $5 a month, you will get two bonus episodes every single month. The first one, which arrives on the first Friday of every month, is an exception episode. And what that means is it is a movie that fits all of our This Had Oscar Buzz criteria, except it got a nomination or two or sometimes three. but in general still feels like something that had big Oscar expectations

and did not meet them. We have very recently done films like Tim Burton's Big Fish and Mary Queen of Scots, Phantom of the Opera, which we did with our friend Natalie Walker, True Lies, which we did with our friend Katie Rich.

We did earlier this month the Rob Reiner Nora Ephron a joint when Harry Met Sally, a very, very good movie. Generally, we have a huge, huge library of episodes that you can

dip into for this. We've been doing this for a while, so your $5 will stretch quite far. The second episode you get every month on the third Friday is what we call an excursion. That is not necessarily about a movie. It is a place for us to talk about various

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that are streaming on YouTube, old Hollywood Reporter roundtables. We will do, we've done a game night before. We'll talk about various little corners of our obsession earlier this month, is that correct?

Earlier? Later? No, later, I think. Yes, later. Not yet. Not yet. Later this month, you will be privy to the third annual. This had Oscar Buzz superlatives,

which is our best of the year episode, where we cobble together all those strange little categories that only the very particular award shows will put together. Your MTV Movie Awards Best Kiss. Your National Border Review, what is the NBR Award for? Excellence in Being Bold or whatever. What do they say?

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And that is just one of the many things you'll be able to enjoy for your $5 a month. So if you want to get on board with any of this stuff, and why wouldn't you? You can go sign up at patreon.com slash this had Oscar buzz and be a a turbulently brilliant Gary in good standing. Listener, we are here talking about being Flynn, written and directed by Paul White's based on Nick Flynn's memoir, another bullshit night in Suck City. We should really just keep saying that title because it's so much better. It really is. What are we even doing here? Starring, one Robert Teniro, Paul Dano, Julianne Moore, Olivia Thurlby, Lily Taylor,

who is married to Nick Flynn. I didn't know if you saw that. I did. West Studi, the great West Judy, the Great Dale Dickie. Yes. Catherine Waterston, Thomas Middletitch, Victor Razick, and Samira Wiley. Yes. Blinkin, you'll miss her, but there she is.

I was like, wow, she had to have been a baby. It's the year before Orange is that a new plan. God, that's crazy. That's crazy. Nope, nope, it is right before Orange is the New Plan. Wow. Wow. The movie opened in limited release March 2nd, 2012, never played 100 theaters.

Definitely big buzz expectations on the pre-production front. That's exactly it. Yes. they knew that they By the time this movie came out in March I think nobody was really expecting that this was going to be much of anything to the point that when like

De Niro... The point that focus dumps it basically Yeah but that by the time De Niro does get the Oscar buzz and then nomination for Silver Lining's playbook at the end of the year no one was being like and look also he had being Flynn this year he was you know it's like nobody packaged that together with it at all

at all at all and I would argue you. Their two big end of year releases the aforementioned Hyde Park on Hudson and Promise Land. This is probably better than both of those movies. Promise Land. Promise land's all right. Promise land. It's on par with Promise Land.

There's probably more to recommend. So by your transitive property, you're saying that in good company is the best of all of those movies. In Good Company, Greater Than Promise Land. Gary's get at us with a flow chart of, my proposed quality of these movies. What I'm really saying is that this is definitely a better movie than Hyde Park on Hudson. Well, yes, yes.

Although, if this movie had more illicit H.Js happen in somewhere than... Between cousins. Well, we don't have to go that far. There are no cousins in this movie, so that's fine. Maybe you introduce a cousin in the third act and things get spicy. Listen, if you don't remember the early days of our Hyde Park on Hudson episode, it includes, elicit hand jobs in cars between presidents and their cousins. Chris, I'm going to, can you guess within, within two of what number episode Hyde Park on Hudson was?

I'm going to guess it's in the 30s. You're way off. Really? You're way off. I'll give you one more guess. It's in the 60s. You're way out. You're even colder.

This was episode number 10. Number 10. Number 10. Definitely not a fully formed show yet. It released on my birthday in 2018. Great. Happy birthday to me. What can we say?

Yes. All right. Being Flynn opened the same weekend as the wide release of the Lorax. The Lorax opened to $70 million. You all know where you were that day. And also Project X, you know, the party comedy that we definitely all remember, that opened to $21 million. Cheapers. Also, Act of Valor, which was the right-wing pro-military movie, was in third place.

Safe House, which is the Ryan Reynolds-Denzel Washington movie, I want to say. Right, right. is in fourth place. And then Good Deeds is the Tyler Perry. He's a lawyer, right? And I believe his last name and that is Deeds. I'm going to look this up to make sure. Is he good?

Is he well-behaved? But I think that's the thing. It's like, is he good? Is good Deeds an ironic title or not? His name is Wesley Deeds the 3rd, the CEO of Deeds Corporation. Is it a Mr. Deeds goes to town type of thing? It isn't. I'm pretty sure.

No. It tells the story of a CEO of a family-owned company who befriends a cleaning lady and falls for her. Great. Good deeds. Joe, it's time for you to give a 60-second plot description of being Flynn. All right. Ready to do so. Sure.

All right. Then your 60-second plot description for Being Flynn starts now. Paul Dano plays Nick Flynn, more or less a Brooklyn Wastrel, who aspires to be a poet and is a bad boyfriend. Nick is a long time estranged from his father, Jonathan, a Rolling Stone, whose delusions of grandeur have him proclaiming himself to be America's third-greatest author after Twain and Salinger, despite never having anything of his publish. Jonathan reconnects with his son after he gets evicted from his apartment, and he soon shows up at the homeless shelter where Nick has taken a job to see what working life is like.

Nick takes to the job while Jonathan very much does not take to being a resident. Father and son argue and despise each other, and Jonathan misbehaves enough to get kicked out of the shelter, while Nick becomes increasingly addicted to drugs. Eventually, Nick gets his act together, seeks out his dad, who is now living on the streets, and they finally come to an understanding of each other, having something to do with Nick's poetry and Jonathan's memoir, flashing forward to Nick being a published author with a wife and a baby, and Jonathan being cleaned up, and civil enough to hold said baby without incident the end. Wow. After last week with Roxanna, it really did rub off on you. You had five seconds to spare. Don't expect

this thing to last, but... Well, yeah, because I'll have to do it next week. Yes. Well, and also, the next... I already... I can see what the next... Well, the next movie that I have to do a plot description for. I actually don't know how plot intensive it is. Where's at Burgess Meredith?

You can wish in one hand and crap in the internet. Sure. Sure. Sure. Okay. Let's do something that we are not prone to do, and let's start at the beginning of the movie. Uh-oh. the voiceover. You mentioned the delusions of grandeur. Yes.

He says that Mark Twain and J.D. Salinger are the only, what's American? America's only produced three great writers, Mark Twain, J.D. Salinger, and me. Yeah. But I guess he just says great. It's not just like name a woman, but it's also like, okay. Oh, Chris,

No, we can't Those are the only two great American writers, sure, in all history, you know.

Chris, we can, let's forget, like, you know, Shabon, Tony Morrison. Oh,

my God, we're really doing, okay. We've had legends in our lifetime that deserve that treatment. Yes.

Also, J.D. Salinger, give me a break. I love that this is what you're getting offended on, that this fictional,

egotist did not give proper deference to Tony Morrison. That I'm just like, those are not the only two great American writers. And I'm saying too, because it's, you know, the movie makes it clear that he is unfortunately not a great. He is not one of them. No.

No, I, but he's, he's so obviously full of shit, right? Like there's a, and one of the things that I think. Obviously, yes, but also ill as well. Well, this is the thing. is I think one of the things that I like about the way that this characterization is pulled off by the film, but also primarily by De Niro, is you don't get the sense that he knows he's being a

character. He, like, fully believes this. He is absolutely sincere in his belief in his own ability and also in his sort of rotten opinions about everything else. He is a bigot. He is racist and homophobic, which the movie depicts by giving Nick a black and a gay roommate and having the father sort of call them black and gay. Like, referred him as just like, you're living with a black and a gay. And it's like, ah, he is as bigoted as we have been told. He says something, like, racist and homophobic in that opening monologue where he's like only Mark Twain and J.D. Salinger. Oh, my God. I'm getting you a swear jar.

That's what it's all there is to it. The heteronormitivity swear jar is getting... It's not a heteronormativity thing. It's just like quite literally, basely wrong. Like, that's even like people who are close to Salinger's contemporaries, like, you're not even going to include Kerouac in this. You're not going to include Vonnegut and what are we talking about? This is the character, though.

I know, I know, I know, I know. I know. I just... All right. De Niro is good. De Niro is not flashy in the way that you might expect. expect him to be big, showy, flashy. Which is why it's interesting that so many reviews sort of said that he was being hammy or whatever. He was going over the top and, like, I don't see that.

Like, he is never, to me, gives more than the character calls for in this movie. Yeah. And there's levels, too. Yeah. You know, it's not, every scene is not a big scene. Every scene is not a blowup. Every scene is not psychosis. Right.

But I do also think De Niro had a better performance this very year in Silver Linings Playbook. I like him a lot in that movie. We never really get a chance to talk about Silver Aligning's Playbook, primarily because it was so successful at the Oscars. That is a movie that I remember being very divisive at the time. And it's one of those things where I think mostly it was divisive because... certain people were annoyed by either David O'Russell or Bradley Cooper or the movie itself, you know what I mean? But then kind of had to wrap up their distaste in something noble.

So they all decided that the movie was bad about mental health. And so that became the sort of noble way to hate Silver Linings Playbook for whatever, you know, reason you hated it. And that to me felt like, okay, well, it's keeping us from actually like talking about the movie. And so I still feel like we haven't had an actual like cultural reckoning on Silver Linings Playbook as a movie, despite it being like this huge $100 million movie. Yeah. I'm not sure that I agree with the idea that people hung their distaste for it on that because I saw plenty of people just not liking the movie and being open about not liking the movie.

While also there were people who like it, I like that movie. I think I do like that movie. I also, I feel like people were a little, I guess we're doing this about De Niro, but I thought De Niro was really good. I thought De Niro was atypically cast in that movie in a way that was interesting. and he hadn't done anything interesting in that way in a while. I think especially post Meet the Parents. The idea of Robert De Niro playing, you know, the father from hell or the father-in-law from hell in a comedy, you know, locked itself in and still kind of did because during COVID we had what, like dirty grandpa or bad grandpa, whatever that movie was.

Yes. whichever one that was, I can never remember. I think it was Dirty Grandpa, but I'm not entirely positive. But anyway. But I do think the isms about the Silver Lightings playbook character De Niro does really, really well. The manipulation of it. I love the scene with him and Jennifer Lawrence, which, where she throws all the football stats out at him. And I think that's an interesting duet between the two of them, even though there's like half a dozen other people there.

I'm happy to imagine that in the years following that movie that the Eagles won two Super Bowls. So that character probably very much enjoyed them. So that's good. Good for all of the Eagles fans in that movie. But obviously, that is also a movie that kind of overperforms at the Oscar nominations, which also kind of, you know, if you're thinking in terms of like who were the Oscar villains of. that year. I think that was definitely a movie that was seen as being overrewarded, right? Where, like, Argo, because Affleck didn't get the nomination, never really spent any time as the villain of that year. Lincoln, for as much as even people who were like, oh, it's this big lumbering biopic,

which... People still think that movie's vegetables. But it wasn't, but there wasn't any sense of, like, animus towards it. nor toward something like Life of Pie. But I think Silver Linings Playbook got some animus. I think certainly Le Miz got its share of animus that year. Right here. 2012 is a really interesting year, though. Certainly with everything that went on with Affleck and Bigelow,

not getting nominated for Best Director, the whole thing with, you know, nobody really thinking that Amor and, Beasts of No Nation, not Beasts of No Nation, Beasts of the Southern Wild, different Beasts movie. We're going to be able to make it into the Best Picture conversation. Just kind of an all-around, almost, I think every movie that was nominated for Best Picture felt like it was interesting to talk about. In a way that, like, not every year of the 10 era feels like. so good for that.

That's true. That is true. Back to being Flynn, though. I want to sort of hop back to what I was saying about Paul White's because Paul and Chris did those first three movies together, American Pie, down to Earth, and then About a Boy. And I think you and I are in agreement that About a Boy represented a kind of leveling up for them. I think that movie is a kind of a stealth Richard Curtis

movie, you know what I mean? Like it's... Certainly in its tone and what it's going for. Was he a producer on the movie? I don't know. I should look. Certainly I think the Nick Hornbyness of it. Maybe Paul White's just likes making movies

by authors named Nick. That movie was produced by... I mean, definitely you see it in the reception to about a boy that is... Like, oh, they're mature now. They're growing up. And I think that carries through with Paul White's career, even though he's doing things like, what is it? The Cirque de Freak.

We'll get to that in a second. Like, not even B-tier franchise, you know, it's not even like, uh, yeah, um, divergent, you know, it's like beneath even that. Richard Curtis, not a producer on About a Boy, but you know, who was, was Jane Rosenthal and Robert De Niro. There you go. There we go. So then, yeah, after About a Boy, Chris and Paul sort of start doing their own thing. Paul does in good company. He follows that one up with American Dreams, Dreams with Z, which is the American Idol parody satire, where Dennis Quaid plays a,

George W. Bush figure and Hugh Grant plays a Simon Cowell figure and Mandy Moore plays a Kelly Pickler. Yes, essentially. Yes. Kelly Pickler. Yeah. Not a bad movie, but I think a movie that did not did not find, hey, you do not be spurtsed the name of Kimberly called while she had great hair. that was not a movie that found its audience, I feel like. So followed by Cirque to Freak, the Vampire's Assistant. Cirque to Freak, Colon, the Vampire's Assistant. Can you name two of the titular Freaks in that movie? Cast members.

Okay. I can, like, fully envision the poster for Cirque to Freak, the Vampires Assistant or whatever it's called. It's definitely one of those pale twinks from this era who I believe was already in some other franchise or maybe like a gossip girl type television show. You're not going to get the maim guy because he, I've never seen. Everwood Twink, is it? No, it's not Gregory Smith. This kid was in... Hold on.

Is it Douglas Booth? It's nobody. It's literally nobody I'm not familiar with his name. Chris Masoglia, Masolia. But Josh Hutcherson is also in this movie. But not as the main guy. Who is the vampire? They are assistants to.

I believe it's John C. Riley. and then other folks in this movie include Salma Hayek, Patrick Fuget, Michael Cerveris, Willem Defoe, Ken Watanabe, Jane Krakowski, Kristen Schall. I might have to go watch Cirque de Freak. Report back. Report back. Then Paul White's directs Little Fockers, which I imagine Jay Roach did the first two, or at least certainly did Meet the Parents. I don't know who directed Meath the Fockers. do think it's one of the worst movies I've ever seen in the theater. I have never seen Little Fokers. It's really, really bad.

It's so evident that they could not get all of these people to agree to be in the same room at the same time if they're not Ben Stiller and Robert De Niro. It's like, I think

Barbara has like two scenes on a phone and she's like, alone. Does not share the screen. with another person and then has like a body double. It's really bad. Little Fawkers. I did not realize that for the third movie, they added Laura Dern, Harvey Kytel, and Jessica Alba to the...

I think it... I don't remember if it's Dern or Alba, but one of them is there just to be like, what if Ben Stiller, she's on Terry Polo? And it's... I mean, Oh, Kevin Hart also in this movie. Wow. Star Studded. Needless to say, I am still excited for Fokker-in-law. For Fawker's in-law. Yeah. All right, after a little Fock...

So then Little Fockers, yes, is the film directly preceding being Flynn, followed by admission, the Tina Faye Paul Rudd movie, Grandma, the Lily Tomlin movie, that's actually pretty good. We could do an episode on it. Belconto with Julianne Moore And Ken Watson novel. Literary adaptation. Oh, yeah, Anne Patchett's novel. Yes. Okay.

She's the opera singer in that one, right? Yes. It's supposed to be very bad. 2021, he does the Netflix movie Fatherhood starring Kevin Hart. And then, in 2022,

directs Lilia Tomlin once again with her Grace and Frankie co-star Jane Fonda in a film called Moving On that I saw it Tiff. I can't remember whether you... With me. Yes, okay. We did not like it.

I mean, no, but I thought it was like... Here's what I will say. Perhaps through no credit to the movie, but like I did spend a good portion of that movie kind of in my thoughts about the idea of queer, becoming a queer elderly at some point. and like where I will live and what will become of me when that happens? Doesn't Lily Conlin like give her jewelry

to some like gay boy? Yeah, essentially. But like the whole thing is that she's living in, you know, a retirement community and she's not sure how she's going to pay for it. Essentially just like, what if a queer person does not have children

to take care of them when they get old? And it's like, fuck shit. Like, I got to worry about that now. That's a thing now that I have to worry about. So, um, great. Just great. Thank you very much, Paul White.

So, yes. Um, there we go. That's it. That's all. That's Paul White's. That's Paul White's is the problem. I mean, I don't, I don't want to sound so mean as to say as Paul White's is the problem here.

But Paul White's, I think is not the right tenor. for this movie. He does the screenplay adaptation solo is the other thing. He is the sole writer and director of this movie. So you really kind of, if you're not going to put it on the actors, you kind of do have to put it on Paul White's. It's not that you want a movie that's going to be so overly grim. But I do think there's kind of a sunny disposition to the textures of this movie.

Not grossly so. But it does feel like his vision for this movie is somewhat of a coming of age in a way that, you know, about a boy is about a guy getting his shit together in a way that's like packaged and cozy. And I think that he sees this story as the same vein. And I think that's a miscalculation on this material. I don't disagree. It's certainly like lit like a happier movie than it is. You know what I mean? I don't know if I would have liked a more miserable version of this story any better.

But I think you're not wrong in that like maybe. that is just sort of inevitably the direction towards which this story probably should nudge. You know what I mean? And I just think, like I mentioned, it feels like he thinks it's a story about a guy getting his shit together with the Nick Flynn character. And I don't really think that that's a right read on the material. I think it's more about inherited trauma moving forward from inherited trauma rather than like, Nick Flynn's own issues with addiction, et cetera. Well, in the movie sort of does not,

does kind of intentionally does not go too deep down that particular rabbit hole of Nick's addiction, that sort of, you see him at a, you know, at a couple of meetings and you get the sense that things are, you know, improving, but this is not a movie that wants to sort of like put you face down into Nick's addiction. Or... And so much of the movie is told through montage, you know? Yeah.

A lot of things are resolved too cozily through montage or things that feel like montage, you know, the introduction to De Niro's character throughout, including having sex with Dietri O'Connell. That was so... Very jarring. Well, and the joke of it is, because of course, you're dealing with unreliable. narrator Jonathan Flynn, right, De Niro, who is a cab driver and he's, you know, sort of narrating his day and he talks about like every once in a while, you know, a fair will, you know, come home with me and hang out. And then it's like comedy cut to them having sex. And then in the middle of it, the beautiful young woman who he's having sex with is just like, shouldn't we be

more honest? And then it's like smash cut to like Deirdre O'Connell, like thrashing atop him or whatever. And I'm like, I always feel bad when the joke is, this person is less attractive than this person, because then you have to imagine, like, somebody just, like, got cast for that role. And it's just like... Well, and Teatro O'Connell's the queen. She is. That's... Well, that's, yes. I do love the way that, like, when De Niro, after their encounter decides to go down and pick a fight with the neighbors who are being too loud, with his little table leg with nails sticking out of it or whatever, that she just sort of, like, dashes down the stairwell leaving is just like,

do not want to be around for this? And who could blame her for that? That definitely felt whitesie in terms of humor. Yeah. But I just don't know if on top of the things that he thinks that the message that the audience is supposed to get from this story, I think it's off base. but I also think he's maybe not the person,

even though he's made good movies about, like serious things like about a boy. Yeah. I don't know if he's the person who I, who has the stuff to talk about, you know, psychological distress, psychosis, addiction, suicide. Sure, sure. It really feels like an ill fit.

And I don't, I figure, you know, De Niro is probably having good working relationship with him at this point. Very much so, yes. Yeah. So at some point, they were probably developing it together, because my understanding is De Niro was the one who got attached to the book. Which also makes sense then as to why his character is so prominent, because watching this, my feeling was I maybe enjoy this movie a little bit better

if De Niro was more decidedly a supporting character, not because I don't like his performance, because I actually think he gives a very good performance. But I think the stuff that I find most interesting about this story is the stuff where the Nick character finds that he's actually really good at working at this homeless shelter, that he has sort of a knack for it, that he, you know, is able to do well in that environment. And I wanted more of that beyond just sort of, as you say, like a montage sort of. And then all of a sudden it's like, well, and now he's good at his job. And it's just like, no, I like seeing people get good at their job. Like, that to me is like worth watching. And I think the tension is interesting between father has delusions of grandeur and also psychosis,

but thinks that he's this amazing writer. And then the son is, it becomes the actual writer and, you know, is a celebrated poet and author. And, you know, that's after the, you know, the substance of the movie, though the movie ends with him getting published. I think that that tension is perhaps more interesting than the movie allows it to be, but I think that also speaks to, it should be more of the son's story, not the fathers. Yeah.

Well, and you read a lot of the reviews around the time, and people were not just, like, not appreciative of Paul Dano, but like felt very free to just sort of like Tarantino him up and like both barrels just, you know, really go after him calling, you know, calling him names and whatnot. I sent to you before we recorded a quote that I picked from the Rex Reed review, which was... Oh, Rex Reed was ungenerous about something. Uh-huh. So spry. The quote is, Nick is played in the film by overrated.

Pickle-faced Paul Dano, who put the sour in the stagnant sour-puss opus, there will be blood. First of all... Shut the fuck up, Rex Reed. Pickle-faced... As I'm prone to say, shut the fuck up, Rex Reed. Pickle-faced is so mean, but also, sour-puss as a descriptor of There Will Be Blood is very funny.

Because it imagines me being like, why is everybody so down in the dumps in this movie? Like, what... Are we supposed to fucking like Eli Sunday? Shut up. A smile cost us. do nothing, Daniel Plainview. Like, what the fuck are we talking about? That's so weird.

But, yeah, but, like, Rex was not alone. Like, Rex was maybe the most, like, verbally creative about it, but, like, so many people were, like, Paul Dano's giving us nothing. Paul Dano, Paul Dano, as always, gives us nothing. Like, there was a lot of, like, we are fed up. And it did remind me that, like, at the time of there will be blood, all of the, like,

you know, cool film, film bro, and I say bro was, like, a gender or not exclusive or not exclusive term who loved that movie were like well except for Paul Dano who sucks you know what I mean like that there was a lot of that

for There Will Be Blood it's also the character that he's tasked to play yes do you think some of that was carryover from Little Miss Sunshine and specifically those type of viewers not liking that movie I would say no because

most people referenced There Will Be Blood and didn't reference Little Miss Sunshine and in describing Dano. But I'm saying in not liking him and there will be blood. Oh, maybe. Yes. That's very possible. It was the very next year after all.

Because this story keeps developing, they did do the anniversary screening of Little Miss Sunshine at this year's Sundance. And of course they asked Walt Dano about it. And, you know, his response was, it was so lovely to have everybody

defend me so that I didn't have to or something. like that. But I thought the better response was Tony Colette piping up and saying, fuck that guy about Tarantino. That is the right response. Right. I sort of wish, I sort of wish Dano had kind of like demurred. The whole like, so I didn't have to defend myself. It's like you didn't have to defend yourself. Like it's just one old crank sort of like being super mean. You know what I mean? But whatever. It's, but it does remind you that like for I guess somebody like Tarantino who's always going to be stuck a decade or more in the past, I guess it makes sense that he can't stand Paul Dano because like that was the mood around this time and I had totally forgotten that.

And it made me wonder like when did people come around on him? Because like I, and it must have been love and mercy. Because like I remember even up until prisoners, people were being like, he's so twitchy. Oh my God. We have another. Oh, he's good in prisoners. I like him in quite, I like him in being Flynn. I like him in Prisoners.

I like him in Little Miss Sunshine. I like him in, there will be blood. So I like him in Meeks cut off. But I do think it was... So an actor that I've always felt like I've had to defend because it's just like people, I don't get where people are coming from in ragging on him,

especially now, especially like the Fabelman's felt like something that it's like, okay, he's finally comfortably in the pocket of where he should be. of, you know, he's gotten older. And that's some of what it is, too, right? Is that, like, he, like, launched onto, like, movies, like, there will be blood and Little Miss Sunshine as a young actor.

Yeah. Doing big performances, and people are prone to want to chew that up and spit it out, you know? Yeah. Chris, I just looked up the cast for the Indi-Donaldson movie that he's going to be in, and I almost- excited for this movie. We can't. We can't sidetrack everything. It's the most Chris file-coded movie I've ever heard. First of all, you loved Indian Donaldson's last movie. One incredible movie. Cooper Hoffman, David Johnson, Paul Dano, Daniel Deadweiler, Alfred Medina, Dolly Dillian. It's going to be lit. It's going to be so good. That's so, that's so you. That's like all of those people. It's going to be so good. It's so you. That's crazy. You're going to have to come around on 824. by then. You're just going to have to...

I'm not anti-A-24. You're a little anti-8-24. I'm not anti-A-24. I just call them out when they don't play fair with good movies, you know? You call them out. You give them what for? It doesn't mean I dislike them. Anyway,

I'm excited for that movie, too. But there's no way I'm going to be as excited for that movie as you are. And do we think that's going to be a this year kind of a thing? Do we think that's going to be a a TIF thing? I don't remember when it filmed, so I don't know. I could see it being Sundance next year for, you know, a return for India Donaldson. We'll see.

Who knows? Filming began in December. So, yeah. Yeah, that's a next year. Yeah, that's a next year, Sundance, a good thing to kick off Boulder Sundance with, though. That's fun. Yeah. All right.

So, yeah. Aldano in this movie. He has such an interesting quality for me. This is why those reviews kind of irked me because I'm like, if you're just drafting off of this like years-long grievance against this guy, I think you're missing something. Yeah, it reads like something that was written before they even saw this movie. I think you're missing something because I think he brings something to this role that I think is not what you're expecting, but in a way that I find really interesting.

Back to like his first scene where Catherine Waterson comes home and sort of sees the cigarette with the lipstick on or whatever and catches him, you know, that he's been cheating on her. And he just has this expression that is like, oh, you're like, you don't quite know how to defend yourself so you then, like, consciously default to just being a smug asshole, because, like, you have no other idea of how to be. And, like, you can almost, like, see him in character trying to come up with the right thing. to say or do in so many of interactions. And you see it read on his face in a way that I find to be like very, you know,

in keeping with this character who is, you know, he's a writer, he's a poet. He is sort of lost to himself in terms of like what he wants to do. And so he kind of can't, he is the opposite of his dad and that like his dad is all sort of like verbose bombast and whatever. and but I think so he so much interesting character reads on his face in this movie and the way that like he'll like crack an odd smile or sort of like you know non-verbally react to something I just think he's very terribly interesting in this I think he's it's also interesting in that I think the performance kind of greats against what whites is wanting to do because I think whites is Oh, crap, sorry. I think the performance is interesting in how it butts up against Whites' approach, which feels very much like the glossier version of guy who learns to not suck so much.

And I think Dano is unafraid of not being liked by the audience, especially at the beginning of the movie. Yeah, yeah. In a way that feels much more organic that he might be. just the arc of this character feels so much more like bristly and prickly in Dano's performance than I think the movie wants it to be and I think it's much more interesting I think that's also where I kind of got the idea of the better version of this movie not to be the person that's like here's how to fix the movie

No, but, yeah. But, you know, you can see it so clearly of the movie that's not so formulaic, I guess, in the whites mold. It's interesting because this same year, so he does three feature films that year, plus a, no, four movies, because this four Ellen is a feature narrative film as well. But the ones that I've seen, he did Looper, which we talked about very recent. on the show. He's a supporting role in Looper. And then he's the star of Ruby Sparks, which is a film directed by Jonathan Dayton

and Valerie Farris, who were his directors in Little Miss Sunshine, and written by and co-starring his partner, Zoe Kazan. And that is a movie who, that has this very sort of, like, high concept thing of, like, Ruby Sparks is

this girl he wrote into his story who then, like, shows up as a real person. And you feel like it's going to be one of those movies that is going to be sort of like coyingly cutesy, and you're going to have to spend like six hours after the fact ranting about all the ways that it's bad about like gender and stuff like that. And then all of a sudden you realize that like, oh, no, the movie understands this. Like the movie is about those things. The movie is about that stuff.

And I think that's another case where he's very willing to just throw himself into this role of a person who you initially hate because you think you know more in the movie, and then you end up, like, hating because he's exactly as bad, like, in text as, you know, as you were fearing. And he is just, you kind of have to be fearless to take on that role. And I think he does. And I think you see that in stuff like, you know, prisoners as well and, you know, 12 years of slave and stuff like that. And then Novin Mercy really does feel like a turning point where all of a sudden everybody was like, oh, wait, he's like fantastic as Brian Wilson in this movie.

And then I think you start to see, like, people start being a little bit more generous towards his performances. I think if movies like Swiss Army Man and even like his performance in the Batman had happened earlier in his career, people have been like, oh, Paul Dano, oh my God, I hate him.

Why is he doing this? Yeah, but then there's also the favorite which he's incredible in. Incredible. It seemed like a lot of people finally got it. Yeah. Not the Oscar voters. Not the Oscar voters, unfortunately.

Did he campaign as supporting that year? Yes. So Michelle was campaigned as lead. I imagine Gabriel was lead. Yeah, okay, that makes sense. That makes sense. Because Judd Hirsch was the one when we were in that TIF premiere, we were like, oh, just like pencil this in now.

And Judd Hurst was not showing up most places throughout the season, but Paul Dano was, and then in the end it's Hirsch and not Dano. Yep, yep, yep. He's also currently, at least currently, according to Wikipedia, filming the new Florian Zeller movie with Penelope Cruz and Javier Bardem and Stephen Graham and Patrick Schwarzenegger. I hope this goes better than the last Florian Zeller movie. We all do. A future that's had Oscar Buzz movie, The Sun. An architect's marriage is tested after he accepts a project to build a bunker for a billionaire. Okay.

Interesting. I wonder whether Dano plays The billionaire. Someone else that we have not talked about yet in this movie or her elements, her sequences, is Julianne Moore. Julianne Moore is not in this movie very much at all, actually. The flashbacks are not good. They're not, unfortunately. Like, you have... It's not her fault.

No. It's not her fault. I think she's probably miscast, but... Yes. Maybe. Maybe. It should be a younger... It should be a younger actress, probably.

I don't even know if it's so much that as... I maybe don't buy her as this. character? Well, but by her as what character I think is where my problem is. It's just like, I don't, I don't think that character is super well defined beyond the fact, but her circumstances and what sort of eventually ends up happening to her. And that's maybe more forgivable if that character is a little bit more of a gauzy memory and less of like, we're getting like full scenes with Julianne Moore. And it's just like, well, I still don't really know where this is headed

and the way that the movie is structured, those flashbacks kind of just sort of like butt in and out at random intervals and not my favorite use of Julianne Moore, I will say that nor mine, but this is

also two years prior to her Oscar win. It's right. It's an interesting time in her career, so she's about to do still Alice and work with Croninburne A performance that I don't care what anyone says. I love that movie. Love that performance.

It's an imperfect movie, but like her stuff in that movie. Maps to the Stars you're talking about. Yeah. Maps to the Stars. Yeah, yeah. And she had just recently been snubbed for the A Single Man performance that she came, I would say probably came pretty close to getting nominated for. Yeah, absolutely.

So this is our 10th Julianne Moore movie. I'd say if you can believe it, but, like, I can definitely believe it. I, you know, we, of course, a podcast on this subject would have plenty of Julianne Moore movies. So we first talked about her in Hannibal, a bad movie, which is not her fault. A crazy stupid love, another bad movie that is not her fault. Suburicon, another bad movie that is not her fault. The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio, a cute movie that she does a lot to benefit. it. The shipping news, another bad movie that is not her fault, but like, no one's really

covering themselves in glory. Yeah, no one's innocent in the shipping news. Gloria Bell, a great movie that she's great in. Deere Evan Hanson, a bad movie that is not her fault. A wonder struck. Good movie. Good movie. She adds to. Yes. The woman in the window, a fun time had by all. Which is not her fault. she's quite excellent in. So she really is kind of quite excellent in that movie. She launched in straight from a different movie.

Her and Baby Boy Fred Heckenger are my two favorites in that movie, I think. She launched in from the version, the alternate timeline where a good movie was made out of that piece of shit. Yes, yes, yes. And everybody is operating at her level. Yeah, yeah. No, no. She's just like wild for three.

and a half minutes. Yes. It's great. Yes. So, 10 times, 10 times, a guess, 10 times a subject for us. I've never quite landed on a format that I love for the 10-timers quiz. I'm still looking, still learning, still, you know, seeking salvation. She's only our sixth performer to ever land a 10-time. I know, I know. Merrill, Nicole Kidman, Matt Damon, Julia Roberts, and Mark Ruffalo.

So finally, all three of the women from The Hours are 10-timers as was meant to be. Okay, so for this quiz, it's going to come in two parts. One, perhaps easy, another, perhaps frustrating. In the first part, I'm going to ask you to name. All right, don't start thinking about this until I tell you to start thinking about this. But like take out a pen and a paper if you have them. Okay. All right.

In the first part of this quiz, I'm going to ask you to name the 10 Oscar-winning co-stars of Julianne Moore's in these movies. And then in the second part, actually, I'm going to spring the second part on you after. Okay. So first part, she has appeared with 10 Oscar winners in... in these 10 movies. Some more than one in a movie, some of the movies have no Oscar-winning co-stars. Can we get the titles again?

Yeah. Hannibal, Crazy Stupid Love, Suburicon, the prize winner of Defiance, Ohio, the shipping news, Gloria Bell, dear Evan Hansen, wonderstruck,

the woman in the window, and being Flynn. Okay. Anthony Hopkins. Yes, that's one. Robert De Niro. Two. Emma Stone.

Three. Matt Damon. Four. Unfortunately, Rita Wilson, no Oscar, so I don't think there's any in Gloria Bell. Not Michelle Williams. Gosh. Gary Oldman.

Yep. Woman in the window. Yep. Also, Hannibal. Yes. No one in Dear Evan Hanson. What movie did it? Oh, Kevin Spacey, Judy Dench, Kate Blanchett.

Yeah, all in shipping news. How many do I have so far? You have eight. Okay. So we're missing to... Yes. Laura Dern And

Prize winner of Defiance, Ohio Yep And Someone else in Or someone else in Being Flynn Interesting I wonder if it's maybe

Hannibal Because there could just be people hiding out there Oh Marissa Tomei There you go Marissa Tome Crazy Stupid Love Her biological cousin

Wait really? Yes I didn't know that Very, very distant. Did you discover it on... On one of those fucking, like, family-limit shows. Oh, wow. That's cool.

Okay, so part two of this quiz. So you've named these ten actors. Part two is list these ten actors in my own list of personal preference at the moment. And see how well you can match me. Okay, hold on. Let me write all these down. And the criteria that I'm giving myself for this is just like, who do you like the best? It is no, not necessarily acting, not necessarily personality, just sort of a general vibe.

Joe's vibes and flavors. Yes. Interests. Yes. Preference. Yes. Um. Okay.

And then for each one that you get right on the money, you'll get. five points. And if you get more than 25, you get 25 or more, I will buy you a 4K. Oh, okay. Ooh, this is maybe tough.

I don't think I'm getting that 4K, but... It's going to be tough. Luckily, you also have a birthday in the next several months. It's so true. This is... Okay, I think I'm going to be very wrong. Okay, start from number 10. Kevin Spacey. Uh-huh. Number nine, De Niro. Uh-huh.

Number eight, Blanchett. Because I know you well. Uh-huh. Seven, Anthony Hopkins. Uh-huh. Number six, Matt Damon. Uh-huh. Number five, Gary Oldman. Uh-huh. Number four, Judy dinch. Number three, Marissa Tomei, number two, Emma Stone, and number one. With a bullet, I would be shocked if I'm wrong, Laura Dern.

You got... A 4K coming my way? No, you got one right for five points. You got several that were only like one-off. How many did you get that were one-off? You got one, two. No, you only got two that were one.

one off. You know what? No, it's fine. It's hard. It's hard to do this in general order. Okay. My number 10, you got right. Kevin Spacey. That was kind of a gimmy. My number nine, I put as Hopkins. Interesting. Explain yourself. I think watching De Niro in this movie kind of jumped De Niro up a little bit for me. Okay. The top nine are all actors I really love. You know what I mean? So it's no shame. And I think Hopkins has just done too many throwaways for me to justify putting him any higher, even though I really like him. Number eight, Matt Damon, who could jump higher if he's great in the Odyssey.

Number seven, De Niro. Number six, Gary Oldman, you were right that of all the men that Gary Oldman would be my number one. You were right that of the women Cape Lancet would be my lowest, but Cape Blanchet, I couldn't justify putting her. go hard because you think she's mean. I do think she's mean, but I also think she's an incredible actress and is, you know, an incredible celebrity. So I could only go so far. I do think she's mean.

But like, like Kate Blanchett. I'm still gay. Like, I like Kate Blanchett. I like Kate Blanchett. I will say let actresses be mean, but I don't have to love them for it. Number four, I put Emma Stone. Number three, I put Laura Dern because... I am so surprised.

I'm not you. I love Laura Dern, but I love. love Marissa Tomey, who's my number two. And Judy Dench won't be with us for very much longer. So I'm putting her at number one. Wow. You know what? All of these actresses are thinking, they're like, oh, another one that Judy Densch is going.

Judy Densch put her paws on. All right. So I quickly did a... Wait, do you think that Joan Plowright thought that Agnes Ham was one of those roles that Judy Densh put her paws on? Not sure I would buy Joan Plowright as a... As Agnes Ham. Of all of the...

So this, as we're recording this today, the movie's fantasy league newsletter went out that was my tribute to everybody's team names this year. We're going to do this as a category. We've got to save some of them. But I was just wanted to say, for all of the names that punned off of Hammett, I didn't get a single one that was Agnes Hamnet. And honestly, Wow, that's Gary's Slavic on the duties. Gary's, I expect more of you.

No, Garys were great. Garys have been like, by the way, kicking ass in the movie's Fantasy League. They sure have. A high credit to the Garys. They are, as ever, making me very proud. So I did a quick ranking of the performances of these 10 Julianne Moore performances.

Oh, let's hear it. 10th place is shipping news. Sorry. Yeah, no. Wavy Prouse is. not doing it. Yeah. Number nine is being Flynn. Okay. Number eight is

D. Revin Hanson. That's right. That's correct. Number seven is Suburicon. I don't really remember her in Suburicon, which is probably to her benefit. Probably. Everything is pretty bad in Suburbanon. These are perfect rankings so far. Sixth, I said Hannibal. I don't think she's bad

in Hannibal. No. And she's given a not enviable task, which is following up Jody Foster as Clary Starling. Like, that's tough. True. Number five, I said woman in the window. Number four, I said crazy, stupid love. If only just for the lying reading about how she went and saw Twilight by herself.

And was so bad. Yeah. Number three, Wonderstruck. Uh-huh. Number two, prize winner of Defiance Ohio and number one, Gloria Bell. Number one is Gloria Bell. Duh is right. Da is right.

Keep on delivering. for us Julianne Moore. We love you. Okay. Anything else on being Flynn before we want to maybe move on to the IMDB game. Did we, did this movie get any kind of like weirdo like precursors at all? Nothing? Not a one. I think the half a million dollar box office gross kind of cemented that. You wrote something here in the notes about Nick Flynn would write about the film production. with the reenactments. I don't know what that sentence means. He has a book called The Reenactments, where he, it's a nonfiction book about the filming

of being Flynn and the surreal nature of watching actors recreate moments from your life. Harrowing moments from your life. Uh-huh. Uh-huh. Uh-huh. Uh-huh. I haven't read it, but that does sound fascinating. That does sound fascinating.

because this movie, unfortunately, would be a bit of to what end. You know, having to relive your trauma in a very surreal way. And then it comes out to this very forgotten movie. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. That's interesting. Also, shout out to Grey's Anatomy's Kelly McCreary for showing up at the end as his wife.

So there is that. Thoughts on Olivia Thurlby's haircut in this film. It is very late stage, Olivia Thirlberry. It's also, though, like, PTA mom from 1990? I mean, this is said in the late 80s. Okay, okay, okay. So there we go. The late 80s or just the general 80s?

I don't know. I didn't catch any kind of markers for time in this. So there's that. This movie is not this close. to an imagine needle drop, but it's maybe just close to something like that.

That's the restraint that Paul White has in this. I'll say, watching the trailer, as I did just before we started recording, and hearing the Fleet Fox's song in the trailer, I'm like, this makes so much sense. Like, that really, like, grounds that movie and when it

came out. So, yes. Yeah, that's kind of all I got. Anything else for you? Uh, nope, that's it. Would you like to tell the listeners about how we play the reverse IMDB game? Hell yeah. Love reverse IMDB game. We, uh, normally play the IMDB game to end these episodes, but every once in a while,

we end our episodes with the reverse IMDB game. Uh, how this game works is that instead of getting the name of an actor or actress and trying to guess their IMD be known for, we will, one at a time and in the order of the clue givers choosing, name four. films from an unnamed actors known for. After we say each individual film, the guesser can try to guess who the actor is. If they get it right, after one movie is named, they get four points. After two movies, it's three points. After three movies, it's two points. And finally, after all four movies are revealed, a correct guess gets you one point. So we have played this, what, three times

before? I think so. Our standings, which we are keeping as a running tally is 10 to 7 in favor of Chris. It's got to be. Let me just throw that in there. We're doing points to, we do not have a threshold. We have not figured out what that's for yet. Yes. If Gary's have good suggestions, let us know. All right. So Chris leads 10 to 7. So Chris, as the leader, would you like to guess first or give first? I'll give first. Okay. I'm not going to even set this one up because I think how I got there is going to be given to you right away.

Okay. Your first motion picture is American Pie. Oh, okay. Yeah, so you went through the Paul White's tree. But of course, everybody's in American Pie. And if American Pie is your first clue that you're giving me, I imagine it's not somebody who's like super well-known. I also don't think that somebody like Natasha Leon is going to have American Pie and they're known for.

American Pie made so much money. Made so much money. I also don't think American Pie is going to be in like Eugene Levees, although there were all of those sequels and he was the star. I'm going to guess that this is Shannon Elizabeth. It's not Shannon Elizabeth. Okay. Your next movie is We Were Soldiers. Huh.

Vietnam drama starring Mel Gibson. I was going to say, is that the Mel Gibson one or the Bruce Willis one? It's the Mel Gibson one. Okay. We were soldiers. So I'm going to guess it's one of the boys. I believe that the Bruce Willis one you're thinking of is Tears of the Sun. It was, in fact, that.

Okay. So, Casey Affleck does not have these two movies on his known for. I would be, well, I suppose Sean William Scott could. It's definitely, we have now ruled out Eugene Levy. We're ruling out Jason Biggs because I feel like if Jason Biggs was in this movie, I would know about it. I'm going to guess Thomas Ian Nicholas. That is incorrect. Okay.

Your third movie is Just Friends. Okay. Ryan Reynolds. Christmas Cinema. Just. Anna Ferris. Is this Chris Klein? It is Chris Klein.

Chris Klein. What's his fourth one? I was banking on you not remembering he was the other guy in Just Friends. I did, in fact, remember that he was the other guy. Can you guess his fourth movie? It would be, is it the one with him and Mandy Moore? No, it's election. Oh, doy, of course.

Yes, that makes perfect sense. Can I say the mean thing that I almost did to you? What? I almost gave you Sean William Scott. Is his very difficult? It is three American pie movies. Oh, yeah, that would be yes. All right, so I got it.

That would have been just rude. That is uniquely rude. Getting it on the third guess, I get two points. All right. So Joe scores two. It's still not enough to overtake you yet, and you have a question to go. So I am going to start. I'm also not going to give you any lead-up because I don't want to give you any more hints.

I'm going to start with short circuit. Oh. Not a ton of people that I think we remember for that. but I think the first build actor is Fisher Stevens. It is not Fisher Stevens. Okay. Although I didn't yet even think you would remember him, so good. Okay.

Next one is the Muppet movie. Oh. I'm not going to do great on this. That could be a lot of people. Is it Frank Oz? It's not Frank Oz, although very good, because obviously Short Circuit's got some, puppetry and whatnot. Your third is my cousin Vinny.

Oh, God. There's no way it's Ralph Machio. Is that for gas? No. Okay. Because Ralph Machio would have been a kid during those karate kit movies. The titular child of the karate kid.

The titular kid of the karate kid. So, like, it's not the Muppet movie. Plus, I think Ralph Mockchio would. The original child of those karate child movies. Yes, yes, yes. Ralph Machio is in My Cousinney, right? Yeah, he's the one of the defendants. We shot the clerk.

He's the one who goes, we shot the clerk. Yes, you shot the clerk. It's, oh, God, who's the judge in my cousin Benny? Um, this is tough. Wow. Okay, short circuit, the Muppet movie, and my, cousin Vinnie. This is definitely a character actor, but, and I'm guessing, plays like a villain in short circuit. And it's also just like the kind of character actor I would think of,

like a Charles Durning or something, would definitely have other movies than they're known for. I'm just going to have to take the L on this and get the final movie and say Charles Durning. It is not Charles Durning. Your instincts were correct there. Your fourth movie is What's Up, Doc? Okay. Is it Austin Pendleton? It is Austin Pendleton.

Fuck you. One point for you. I finally win a week. You can't complain because I know you like Austin Pendleton. Austin Pendleton, I don't remember who he is in Short Circuit. I do know he is the stuttering expert witness. Or no, he's a stuttering lawyer before they come. hire Vinnie and my cousin Vinny.

And I don't remember who he is in the Muppet movie, but it makes sense that he would be in it. So there you go. Delta. So now the score is Chris with 11 and Joe with 9. So actually... I like doing reverse IMTV game every once in one. Yeah, but you... People on their toes, including me.

You put me in the lead. It should be you in the lead. Oh, but you won the round. Oh, whatever. Yes, but we have to note who's in the lead because I'll forget the next time. Listener, I'm updating the spreadsheet. Sorry. In real time.

In real time. Okay. Listener, I think that's our episode. If you want more this had Oscar buzz, you should check out our Tumblr at this hadoscurbuss.com. You can also follow us on Instagram at this had Oscar buzz and on Patreon at patreon.com slash this had Oscar buzz. Joe, where can the listeners find more of you? I am on letterboxed and letterboxed and blue. Sky at Joe Reed, reads spelled R-A-I-D.

I am also on Vulture every day doing movie fantasy league and Cinematrix and awards and various reality TV and all sorts of different stuff. So, uh, find me there, if you dare. And you can find me on Letterbox and Blue Sky at Chris Vile. That's FI.L.

We would like to thank Kyle Cummings for his fantastic artwork. Dave Gonzalez and Gavin Meevious for technical guidance when we needed and Taylor Cole for our theme music. Please remember to rate like and review us on Spotify by Apple Podcasts, wherever else you get your podcast. Five-star review in particular really helps us out with Apple Podcasts visibility. So open your eyes and see that you're having sex with Deirdre O'Connell and giving us a five-star at the same time.

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