The Alt Right has Convinced Me to See "Superman"

Hello all. I'm back from vacation and I already have a bee in my bonnet about something I saw on the internet the night we returned home. Let’s discuss.

I was looking at Facebook, I'm old and I guess I want to be stressed out by nonsense, and I saw some people talking about the new "Superman" movie. For the most part the talk seemed pretty positive. Most people seem to like this movie. I was running with Kirk yesterday and he told me he really liked it. It has gotten mostly positive reviews. Then I saw Dean Cain griping about it being "woke". I laughed that off because Cain is a has been that has no lasting memory or importance to the world. But then I saw more and more of the crazy alt right complaining that this new Superman movie is too "woke".

First off, there's nothing wrong with being a woke person. I consider myself woke. I want people to be treated fairly and justly. I think billionaires are the problem in this world. I feel like people that don't like "woke" people are simply racist and have zero sympathy or empathy. I want others to be treated accordingly and properly, and if that makes me woke, I'm proud to be woke.

I think the thing that makes me the angriest about all of this, that seems to be the most pathetic thing from all of this, is that these alt right maniacs now have an issue with Superman. Superman is the prototype superhero. He is here to help everyone who is in dire need of his help. He wants things to be fair and simple and just. He is the everyman hero, the farm boy who happens to be an alien and the first person I think of whenever someone starts to talk about superheroes. This is who the alt right is mad about. This is who they are deciding they need to come after and chastise for being "woke". This is the person that they're going to lay all their anger and hate towards now. If that is who they're mad at and angry about right now, I've never been happier and feel better about being a liberal. There are so many things wrong with the alt right, but for them to go after a fictional alien superhero might be the most disturbing and pathetic thing about their cult. Who cares if James Gunn, who is a wonderful director, made a "woke" version of Superman. That is well within his rights to do. All I ever heard from former alt right friends is all about their freedom of speech. That is exactly what James Gunn is using when making this movie. It is well within his rights and will and wants to make Superman be whoever he wants him to be. The only boss that Gunn has to answer to is the people at DC that hired him to make this movie. And they seem thrilled with what he has done. Also, the maniacs that go on the internet to gripe about this movie being too "woke", they don't have to see it. They don't have to spend their money to watch it in the theaters. They are wasting their own time just so they can go out and complain about this movie, while DC and James Gunn and the cast just take their cash. I don't go to movies I don't want to see or think I will not like because of who made them. I don't waste my precious time just so I can bemoan something I don't want to even watch. It feels like the alt right just wants to complain about anything that doesn't align with their amoral and horrific beliefs.

I mentioned it before, but I'm even happier that I don't have anything to do with the alt right. It seems like a sad place to be. I feel like the alt right is just waiting to mope about anything. I hope people see what they're saying about Superman and start to realize how petty and childish the alt right can be. They are the kid who takes their ball home when they're getting beat in a game. They're the kid who was never told no until they were an adult. And now they are the kids who complain about the all American superhero being too "woke". It's stupid and childish and disturbing that this is how low the alt right will go if they disagree with something. Personally, I cannot wait to see the new "Superman" movie. I already wanted to see it but now I want to see it even more and I bet I'm going to love it. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Better Late Than Never on "Easy Rider"

I’m going on vacation next week, and since tomorrow is a holiday, this will be my last blog until I get back. What I want to leave you all with is my first experience seeing “Easy Rider”.

This movie has always been on my list of things to see, I have just never gotten around to it. Last night, at The Arkadin, they had Strange Brew, which is a very cool idea wherein the first of each month they show a cult movie. I fully understand “Easy Rider” is not a cult movie but with the 4th of July being tomorrow and how messed up the US currently is, “Easy Rider” felt like a perfect choice. I have heard a lot about this movie from my folks and my brothers. I’ve heard famous critics sing its praises. I have seen all kinds of memes and spoofs as well. Basically I know this movie without having seen it. Until last night.

First of all, this is considered a classic for good reason. This movie is incredible. From the acting to the directing to some of the things they did in the editing room, it was the first of its kind. There are so many movies since then into today that take from “Easy Rider”. From dissolve shots to lens flare to the color used in certain shots, “Easy Rider” was one of the first movies to ever do it.

“Easy Rider” is also the best, by a wide margin, of the bevy of motorcycle movies that came out in the mid to late 60’s. It has a real story that says something important and is pulled off beautifully. Peter Fonda was transcendent in his role. He had a quiet confidence about him. He knew the mission and stuck to the plan. He knew when and when not to have fun. He carried himself with an air of importance, but was never mean or cocky about it. This is one of my first experiences with Fonda as a leading man, and it was so easy to see why he was so successful for so long. Dennis Hopper pulled double duty, costarring and directing this movie. He was your typical hippy, but he was the first to play this type. He had issues with drugs and alcohol. He was mean. He was loud. He started stuff with almost everyone. But there were times that I felt for him and wanted him to be okay. He was out there just trying to live life as a free person away from the monotony of everyday life. Jack Nicholson was far and away my favorite character in the movie, and I thought it was his best performance. He’s only onscreen for about 15 minutes, but damn are those the best 15 minutes of the whole movie. I was liking the movie before he showed up, but when he got onscreen, that like flipped up love real quick. He brought humor and levity to the movie. His character, who also had issues with alcohol, had chosen a righteous path in his life’s work. He was fighting for things not many did back then. He was siesta smiling, always trying to ease the tension and knew right from wrong. What happened to him was so tragic, and when his character was killed, the movie took an even darker turn. The other actors did a fine enough job, but this movie was about these three and their mission to make it to New Orleans for Mardi Gras.

As for the story, it’s a road trip movie centered on bikes and hippies. The hippies, Fonda and Hopper, and to a lesser extent, Nicholson, are living life as free men, but some people don’t like that and they take out their anger in horrifying ways. The three try to stop and eat at a diner and leave when it gets scary. Hopper and Fonda aren’t allowed to rent hotel or motel rooms. The three men get brutally beaten, fatally in Nicholson’s case, by the patrons at the diner who forced them out. Hopper and Fonda are just simply driving their bikes back to LA, and two southern hillbillies decide to kill them because they have long hair and look like hippies. This is what is happening in our country today. People are being judged simply by looks. Only people with empathy want to get to know these guys, and the same is true today.

The host for last night said the movie might be better off being called “Hard Rider” because of the heavy tone, and I agree. It’s also disturbing how relevant it remains today. “Easy Rider” really needs to be seen by everyone for a myriad of reasons. I’m glad I can finally say that I’ve seen it and I love it. I highly recommend the movie.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Better Late Than Never on "The Matrix"

I know that it took me far too long, but I finally saw "The Matrix". And I'm talking about the original, the first one that came out a long time ago. I have had people yell at me about not seeing it for a long, long time. It was all in good fun, but still, I just never got around to watching the movie. And as time passed, I kind of forgot to watch it. That is until an in law of mine wanted me and my son to see it. We agreed on a time, and that time came last weekend.

I loved this movie. Everything about it worked for me. Even the graphics, which were very premature, worked for me. The CGI never really felt out of place or looked all that bad. When you think back to how bad some of the early CGI looked in other movies, it is an accomplishment how well the original "Matrix" was able to use it in its infancy. I also loved the story too. I like the whole idea of deciding if you want to know what is real or what is fake. I like the idea of all of us living in a matrix created by some other entity. I like how things bend and change in and out of the matrix. The whole scene where Keanu Reeves fell off the building and the ground turned to foam, that ruled. The fight scenes in the movie were off the charts as well. I could watch them over and over and over again. It was good for me to see early Keanu fight scenes since I'm such a big fan of the "John Wick" franchise. "The Matrix" showed me that he could pull it off that early in his career. From karate to all out gun and helicopter fight scenes, they were all nailed. I loved the injection of onomatopoeia sounds while they were doing karate. It made the scenes work even more, and gave it a little humor.

What really made this movie work so well was the cast and direction. This was before the Wachoski Brothers became sisters, but that doesn't matter when talking about this movie. They know how to direct sci-fi and action with the best of them. I may not have seen "The Matrix" until now, but I have seen their version of "Speed Racer" and I truly enjoy "Cloud Atlas". So, going into this movie, I had an idea of how they directed, but this has to be their best work. And that cast, man did they crush this movie. Keanu was at his best because he had little to say. When he is given little dialogue and gets to focus on the action, that is when he shines the most. And when he did have to deliver dialogue, he did great. Laurence Fishburne was dynamic in this role. I followed him every time he was on screen. I loved how he delivered his lines, and the action scenes, he absolutely crushed. I was blown away by his performance. Carrie Anne Moss was equally as great. She could've played the whole damsel in distress thing that was big at that time, but she owned it and was totally badass. I loved when she yelled at Keanu and her action scenes were the best. She was so awesome. Joey Pantaleon was smarmy and slimy as always and he does that better than most. And Hugo Weaving was simply the best in the whole movie. I loved how stone faced and mean he was, until he wasn't anymore. I found his villainous role to be one of the best I have ever seen in a movie. There were times where I actually agreed with what he was saying after his crew had kidnapped Fishburne's character. This is a role that sits above others in its greatness.

Look, I know it was my fault for not seeing this movie sooner, but I saw it. And I loved it. "The Matrix" is a classic for a reason and now I fully understand its greatness. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Ty Wants to Watch "Eddington"

Summer movies are going to be coming out every single weekend, and I'm here for it. This is the time I allow myself to watch trailers. In fact I seek them out this time of year. I want to know what is coming out and when. I also try to find indie movies because those tend to be more my style. But lately I have been going back and watching the trailer for Ari Aster's new movie "Eddington" a bunch.

Ari Aster isn't for everyone, but his work makes me think a ton. I still think about "Beau is Afraid" and "Midsommar" a lot. Those movies were incredibly challenging and long, but I cannot seem to shake them. That, for me, is a good sign. I like that his movies sit with you and, for lack of a better word, haunt my thoughts. There is some stuff in both "Midsommar" and "Beau is Afraid" that still scare me to this day when it pops into my brain. But there is just something about this new trailer for his new movie that makes me really, really want to see it.

I think, at least right now, "Eddington" is my most anticipated summer movie. Everything about it screams what I like in movies. The cast is incredible. We've got Joaquin Phoenix, Emma Stone, Austin Butler and Pedro Pascal, among others. Phoenix is a mad man, but his work has always been a pleasant surprise for me. Even in movies I may not like, if Phoenix is in it, I'll watch. I despise "Joker", but his performance is a good one. Stone continues to do kick ass work. I love that she is taking on challenging material time and time again. I loved "Poor Things". "Kinds of Kindness" was bizarre, but she was great. Now she is doing an Aster movie. Keep these coming from her. I have not seen "Elvis", and probably never will. But, Butler was kickass in "Dune: Part 2" and he has some new movie with Matt Smith coming out that looks rad. He is having a moment and I'm here for it. And Pedro Pascal is just awesome on and off screen. He is such a cool dude, seems like a good person and I really enjoy his tv and movie acting. He is the driving force in the trailer that makes me want to watch this movie. And then we have what I can glean of the plot in the trailer. This is clearly a movie set in early COVID times. It looks like there's political stuff going on. I have to imagine social media and influencers are going to play a big, big part. And it all seems to delve into some kind of mental break for the main character/characters. I'm all in on this movie. I am sure I will be pounding the pavement for others to see it after I see it. I believe it comes out July 18th and I'm going to do whatever I can to see it in the theaters on opening day.

Ari Aster keeps pushing limits and trying new things. With "Eddington" it looks like he is going to do that in a more mainstream movie, and that is awesome to me. And anytime I can watch a harrowing drama that takes place in the modern day, I don't know why but I find myself enthralled by that type of story and material. I can't wait to see this movie. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Ty Watches "Friendship"

I was finally able to get out and see "Friendship" over the weekend. I had heard mixed reviews on the movie, so I decided this was one that I wanted to go to on my own. I wanted to make my own decision without anyone else telling me what they thought. Selfish? Probably. But I prefer to do it this way with a movie like this.

From the start I knew I was going to like this movie. This was all about Tim Robinson and his style of comedy. Yes, Kate Mara is in the movie and plays a pivotal role. And the same can be said with Paul Rudd, who is clearly the biggest star here. But it was clear from the jump that the people involved wanted Tim Robinson to showcase his talent. And he absolutely delivered.

The whole idea of this movie, from my viewing, is what it is like to make a friend when you're an adult. It is hard and it can be uncomfortable. This movie excels because it lets us dwell in these moments. There is a scene early on when Rudd invites Robinson over to meet him and have a conversation. Robinson ends up looking at an artifact and gets a bloody nose. And we the audience get to watch Robinson yell and scream obscenities while Rudd offers to get him a new shirt and go on an "adventure". This happens early on in the movie. And we get more and more of these throughout the whole movie. Robinson and Rudd hang out in the woods looking for mushrooms and Robinson starts to sink in quicksand. It's loud and hilarious and uncomfortable. When Robinson meets the rest of Rudd's friends, we have to sit through a very uncomfortable hang out that ends with Robinson punching Rudd in the face and then putting soap in his mouth. Every interaction between Robinson and Mara is rife with cringey moments. Robinson invites some of his buddies to be in the movie and they all have issues with his character. Whitmer Thomas' character clearly despises Robinson. Connor O'Malley and Robinson have a very heated argument where they yell at each other very loudly and it is wonderfully hilarious. Carmen Christopher has one scene, where he only has one line, yet it is memorable for how uncomfortable it makes you feel as you watch. That is how this whole movie plays out, and it is done purposefully.

When I went into the movie I just wanted to see what Robinson could do with a movie role. He didn't disappoint. And I think it is because the guy who wrote and directed it just let him do what he does best. I found myself squirming in my seat, which was the point. The crowd and I laughed heartily at every joke in the movie. I wanted to watch more and more of the movie. I was pleasantly surprised at how game Rudd was to do this type of movie.

I would recommend this movie to fans of Robinson or fans of his previous work, mainly "I Think You Should Leave". "Friendship" is like a 90 minute long "ITYSL" sketch, in all the best ways, with a bit of a darker tone. I fully feel like this movie will become a cult classic in a few years and I'm stoked I got to see it in the theaters. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Ty Watches "Shredder Orpheus"

Last night my buddy Kirk and I went to the Arkadin for Strange Brew night. Strange Brew night is a theme night where some weird, bottom of the bin type cult movies are shown. And when I saw "bottom of the bin", I mean hidden gems. These movies are delightfully weird and low budget and perfect for a spot like the Arkadin. Last night's selection was a skateboarding movie from 1990 called "Shredder Orpheus".

The host opened by telling us a few things about the movie, and then we were on our way. "Shredder Orpheus" was low budget, featured no big time stars, was clearly made amongst friends and it was gloriously ridiculous. I was pretty much all in from the jump. "Shredder Orpheus" takes place in a post-apocalyptic world where television runs society. We have the EBN, Euthanasia Broadcasting Network, who kind of runs the world now. They try to control all the viewers and they want everyone to become zombies basically. We also have the people who live in the Gray Zone. These are the gutter punks and people who tend to do their own thing. They don't conform to modern society and they're happy about it. This is where we meet Scratch, a young kid and a former soldier, the narrator of the movie. We see the movie through their eyes at the start. The world is bad. It is gross. There's nothing to really do besides skate and play music. Scratch and the young kid are pretty good on their boards. And Scratch is one hell of a percussion player. Scratch does play the "drums" on old oil drums, but it still sounds pretty solid.

After a little backstory, we finally get introduced to Orpheus. He is the frontman of his band, The Shredders. I do want to say, I really dug the music in this movie. The music was described online as punk, but I got much more of a prog/alternative rock vibe. The guitar was rad. The drums too. I wasn't too keen on the singing, but I couldn't really hear any lyrics anyway. But the music is besides the point. Orpheus is in love with a dancer named Eurydice, and they do eventually get married. At the party after the ceremony, Eurydice is killed by some bad dudes in all white makeup. Now, some of you may be thinking that this story sounds familiar, and you're right. This is the filmmakers take on the Greek Tragedy about Orpheus. I did not know this was the case until Kirk told me before the movie. I think they did an okay enough job telling this story too. Anyway, after Eurydice dies, the movie follows the Greek Tragedy pretty well, with its own twists. The skateboarding was pretty cool in the movie when they did show it. That was my biggest critique of the movie, I wanted more skateboarding. But, when skateboarding was onscreen, it was cool. I also thought the portrayals of the Greek figures were solid. Hades and Persphonne were so odd and so wild and I really enjoyed their crazy execution onscreen. The females who couldn't believe Orpheus didn't love them were terrifying and nuts. Cerberus was horrifying and I liked that he was an elevator attendant. Orpheus' parents were solid comic relief. The people who worked for the EBN really gave it their all. But, for me, Orpheus' manager was far and away the best. He was odd, funny, loud, boisterous and made the most sense of anyone speaking in the movie. It wasn't a total surprise to me when I looked him up and saw that he has been steadily working ever since this movie, appearing in a single episode of many procedurals.

Finally, when I really thought about it, when Kirk and I talked about it afterward, this was the exact type of movie I want to see when going to the Arkadin on Strange Brew night. The host was awesome. The crowd was perfect. The setting was ideal. And now I'm going to search out more and more movies of this ilk. I really enjoy these oddities and I'm stoked to have a friend and a place to go watch this stuff. And of course I recommend seeing "Shredder Orpheus" if you can get your hands on it, or if a cool indie theater near you shows it. It has to be seen to be believed. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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I Watched "The Apple"

Over the weekend I was finally able to watch "The Apple".

As many readers of the site already know, RD is a fan of this movie. Well, maybe not a fan so much as just interested in this weird and wild idea of this movie. I had never watched it before, but believe me, RD has let me know more than my fair share of what this movie is all about, on and off the screen. He has let others know about it as well I have to assume. But, he rented out a theater for a party and the invited guests, yours truly included on that list, got to watch it on the big screen, and I have some takes to get out in the ether. RD started off by giving us all a little presentation prior to the start of the movie about the plot and its personal meeting to him. Then we were off.

First and foremost, "The Apple" is a bad movie. I think that is the agreed upon review by the masses. The movie is nonsense. The musical numbers are long and can get boring quickly. The acting is subpar at best. The writing, and even more so, the direction is truly, truly awful. For a movie who's runtime is less than 90 minutes, it felt like it was dragging for a good portion during the middle. It is kind of a slog. I just needed to get that out there. This is unequivocally a bad movie. But, I learned a few things during our screening. I think I get what RD sees in this movie that he was trying to show us.

RD went to school for theater. He has a background in stage work. He knows that world better than I ever could imagine knowing it. I now see why he has a certain affinity for this movie. The sheer audacity of the filmmakers is right up there on the screen. The dancing numbers, while long, are not too bad. Some of the songs in the movie are rad. But, in RD's eyes, it makes sense why he watches it for the direction and the set up and how they tell their story. I could hear him on Sunday talking to his buddy about the stuff on screen, and their conversation flew over my head.

I also get why this movie has achieved its cult status. I'm a humongous fan of the Tommy Wiseau movie "The Room". That has a fanbase that is so unique and rabid towards the terribleness of that movie. I can see the same thing with "The Apple". I have to imagine that musical theater kids have a weird love for this movie. I can see people recreating it or acting it out amongst friends. The vibrant colors and big set pieces are more than enough to gain a fanbase from theater kids in my opinion. So, when my kid asked me the other night "how was the movie?". That was difficult to answer at first. But then I thought about the stuff I'm writing today and I told him that I was glad to see it, but it was a bad movie. I told him I was happy to see this movie that his uncle had been telling me about for years. I finally understood, at least a little bit, why he views this movie the way he does.

So, while "The Apple" is bad through and through, I get why Rd likes it and I understand the cult status this movie has built up over the years. Watch it if you'd like. It sure is a spectacle to see. 

Want to hear more about “The Apple”. Listen to this podcast

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

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SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

Better Late than Never on "Run Lola Run"

I recently joined Letterboxd. I like the app. It is good because I can search a bunch of different posts and find movies I want to see but haven't yet. My watchlist is full of movies that I have wanted to watch and other movies that haven't come out yet. The majority of the movies I want to watch are older ones that have passed me by. There are a ton of older movies that, now that I'm older, I want to see. I have never seen a Kirosawa movie. There are a ton of Scorcese movies I've never watched due to my dislike of the movies of his I have seen. There are movies my brothers have talked about for years that I have never gotten around to. I decided to rectify that last weekend. One movie that kept popping up was "Run Lola Run".

I have heard about this movie for years. I believe RD used to talk about it a lot back in the day. I have seen "The Simpsons" episode that is a full parody of the movie. I have seen other people parody it as well. I always knew that it was about a woman running and trying to beat some kind of clock. But I have never watched it from start to finish. That all changed last Friday.

From the first shot, I was all in. This movie is totally awesome. It is one of the coolest things I've seen in a long, long time. For those that may not know, "Run Lola Run" is told in three different parts. The first is through Lola's eyes, the second is through her boyfriend's eyes, Manni, and the third is, spoiler alert, if they both made the right decision in this messed up situation. I liked every single part of this movie. The actor who played Lola was magnificent. She is so good, she owns every single moment she is on screen and, from what I read, the amount of running she was doing and how fast she was going, was a herculean task. I read that she insisted on wearing the Doc Martens her character wore. I also read that she smoked two packs a day. It doesn't show. It was rad to see. I also liked Manni. He did great work with just his face. He acted the hell out of this role, and he didn't have to say too much. What I liked most about this movie was the fate of the "common people" that Lola and Manni would run into. Another thing I liked how the movie would do almost a Polaroid picture break, and then give us some more Polaroids of what happened to these people in each scenario. It was very interesting, and had to be a new technique at the time. I also liked how the movie would switch from animation to real life. It was cool to see, and again, it had to be one of the first movies to do this. I also thought that the throughline story was pretty great. We get to see three different outcomes, and each has their own way to show what could happen. The first two are tragic, and the third is oddly comforting.

If you have never seen "Run Lola Run" I cannot recommend it enough. I'm so happy that I finally saw it myself. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Better Late Than Never on "Top Secret"

Last Friday I went to The Arkadin to see "Top Secret". I have always wanted to see this movie, but for a myriad of reasons, I let it slip my mind. I was listening to "Scott Hasn't Seen" recently and they did the movie. I don't remember which host, Scott Aukerman or Shaun Diston, hadn't seen it yet, but then I listened to the episode and it reminded me how much I wanted to see "Top Secret". And it helped that The Arkadin is doing a month long tribute to Val Kilmer and his many wonderful movies. I believe they are showing his "Batman" this week.

Anyway, as I settled into a full theater, I was very excited to watch the movie, and it did not disappoint. I really like "Naked Gun" and other spoof movies. They were showing episodes of "Police Squad" beforehand, and those were hilarious as well. I'm a spoof show/movie fan, so "Top Secret" is right up my alley. I was immediately struck at how old Val Kilmer was when he made this movie. "Top Secret" came out in 1984, so Kilmer was a baby, and looked the part. I believe this is one of his first starring roles, and you can see that he has that "it" factor that big Hollywood studios crave. He owned every single moment he was on screen. You cannot take your eyes off him. And he is on screen the vast majority of this movie. He is funny throughout the whole thing. He dances and sings like a damn angel. He has great chemistry with all of his co-stars, but especially the female lead. I especially loved the concert scene when he gets let out of jail to perform. This is a perfect send up of all the movies Elvis Presley movies from the 50's. They also added a Beatles element, with all the fans losing their minds, and it was hilarious. I was laughing very hard during this scene. I also loved that every time he played the guitar during the movie, he was always playing a G chord, but the music in the background was far more complex. But the thing that got me most was how funny Val Kilmer was, and he was ostensibly the straight man throughout the movie. The sheer fact that he was able to keep a straight face while delivering some of his wonderfully funny lines is amazing to me. Seeing him do this, and control the movie the way he did, hammered home the fact that I could never be an actor. But, after seeing Kilmer do work here, not too many people could pull off what he did in "Top Secret". It is no surprise that Kilmer went on to star in so many big time movies after this. This was his jumping off point and he totally nailed it. During the "Scott Hasn't Seen" episode they kept mentioning this same thing, but I needed to see it for myself, and I'm stoked that I did.

"Top Secret" is a very funny spoof movie, but Val Kilmer's performance puts this movie over the top for me. I have been thinking back to stuff I liked in the movie and just laughing to myself since Friday. I highly recommend checking out "Top Secret" if you haven't yet. Val Kilmer is incredible and the movie is a ton of fun. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Go Discover the Films of Quentin Dupieux

Ever since meeting my buddy he has told me about cool pop culture stuff that I have missed. From punk rock to tv shows to movies, he has given me some great recommendations. When our friendship first started over a decade ago we found common ground in movies.

Before we met I had seen the movie "Rubber". For those that may not know, the short version of the movie is, a tire becomes sentient and starts to take matters into its own hands. "Rubber" is insane, nonsensical, hilarious and I really liked it. I mentioned that I liked this movie early on in our friendship. Well, since then, my buddy has opened my eyes to the wonderful world of Quentin Dupieux.

Dupieux is a French filmmaker, but he isn't your typical filmmaker. His movies are nuts. They go in so many different directions. I never know what I'm going to get in when I turn one of his movies on, but I have found that they always keep my attention. I saw "Rubber" because I had heard about this movie with a sentient tire and John Malkovich was in the cast. That was all I needed. And, as I said, I really liked it. But I didn't think about it much afterward. I saw it, enjoyed it and moved on. I didn't go out of my way to learn much else about the movie or the people involved. But after talking about it with my friend, and then having many more conversations, I have watched more of Dupieux's stuff. I recently wrote about the movie "Deerskin". This was another one that was intense and weird and funny and I liked it.

We were recently talking about absurd comedy and he brought up another Dupieux movie, "Wrong". I watched it just the other day and I haven't stopped thinking about it since. I have a plan now to watch every Dupieux movie I can during the summer and into the next school year. I can't shake movies like "Wrong" or "Deerskin". I have thought much more about "Rubber" than ever before. I keep seeing other movies of his on my streaming channels of choice and cannot wait to dive in.

Why do I want to watch these movies that can be challenging and different you may be asking? Because Dupieux is doing something different. He is taking chances. He makes movies that you have to pay attention to because if you don't, you'll miss key elements. I like movies that make me think. I want to see something unique. I want to see something that is a fresh and cool new idea. We are so bogged down with remakes and superhero stuff now. That's what makes a movie like "Sinners" or "Everything Everywhere All at Once" or Quentin Dupieux movies so enticing for me. These movies aren't remakes. These aren't superhero retreads. These are new and fresh ideas. The movies go off in crazy directions and that is so awesome and a breath of fresh air. I like directors and writers that are willing to take it to the edge, and sometimes jump off that edge. It rules.

I cannot recommend Dupieux's work enough. You need to be prepared for what is ahead, and understand that what you're about to watch is not "normal". But if you do, you will be rewarded with some of the most original content you will ever watch. I'm forever grateful to my buddy for opening my eyes to this world. I hope I can return the favor to him in some way. Until then, I am stoked to talk more Quentin Dupieux movies with him. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Ty Watches "Sinners"

My wife and I saw "Sinners" last Friday. I had read nothing but glowing reviews for the movie, and then RD texted me and told me it was a great movie. I trust RD's opinion on movies. He has never really steered me wrong. And the 98 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes was all I pretty much needed to see this movie. I also saw a preview for it when my dad and I watched "Mickey 17".

As we settled into the theater, which was about 90 percent full, my expectations were pretty high. And this movie more than lived up to the hype. I loved everything about "Sinners". The movie was stylish and cool. I liked the old school vibe of the movie.

“Sinners” takes place in the early 1930's in Mississippi. Michael B Jordan plays dual roles, and from the moment he was on screen, the very first shot, I couldn't take my eyes off what he was doing. Michael B Jordan has become one of the most reliable actors in all of Hollywood. And when he and Ryan Coogler team up, that is a match made in heaven. Coogler and Michael B Jordan made magic together in "Fruitvale Station", "Black Panther" and "Creed". They have now done the same with "Sinners". This is one of the coolest and most unique movies that has come out since "Everything Everywhere All at Once". It may seem like a rehashed vampire movie, but it is so much more than that and so much better than that and so much cooler than that.

The movie has a slow burn to it for the first hour, where they're, for all intents and purposes, "getting the band together". We learn a whole lot more about the two characters Michael B Jordan is playing. One is a hustler and one is no nonsense. They get all the people they want to help them out, and they head out on their way. During this first hour we also see the town they grew up in and returned to, the people they have interacted with and it seems like something sinister is lurking underneath. We then see a man on fire enter on screen, and this is where the movie goes from great to classic. This is where the vampire portion of the movie comes into play. But the vampires represent so much more in this world. And at times I actually side with the vampires. The main vampire is talking about community and acceptance and it is damn enticing and moving. But the main characters that fight them are on the good side, and eventually you have to accept and agree with them. They have the best interest of the community.

Throughout all of this we get some excellent, all timer scenes in this movie. I love the driving on dirt roads we see a lot of in the beginning. The old school church is haunting and interesting. The dance sequence the vampires do was frightening and fascinating. But, the scene that will be remembered for all time was the music scene with Preacher Boy playing guitar and singing an old blues classic. During the song we see music from all genres and all eras. It makes for one of the best and most unique scenes in the history of film. It was amazing to see all this different music come together while Preacher Boy absolutely nails the song. I think about this one scene multiple times a day.

"Sinners" is making a ton at the movies, which is well deserved. "Sinners" also definitely earned all of the positive reviews. I highly recommend this movie to everyone. It is wonderful and one of the fresher ideas in Hollywood. Check it out. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Better Never than Late on "Kraven the Hunter"

I tend to enjoy movies that focus on antiheroes. I like these for some reason. Maybe it is the origin of how they came to be antiheroes or villains. Maybe it is the fact that these movies are a little more adult. Maybe I just enjoy a downer of a story. Anyway, with the influx of so many superhero movies, I tend to veer towards the antihero stuff.

With this being said, I recently watched "Kraven the Hunter". I read all the bad reviews. I saw what people were saying. I saw how it came and went from the theaters in a matter of days. None of that stopped me. I decided I still wanted to see the movie. I also enjoy Aaron Taylor Johnson. He seems to be a solid actor and usually picks good roles. I thought of all of this and made the incorrect decision to watch this horrible movie.

That's the honest truth. The critics, my friends and the movie theaters were all right. This movie was very, very, very bad. I wish I had listened to everyone else on this one. From the start I should have known. This movie was so boring. The whole idea of going back to when they were kids did not work for me. It was cliche after cliche. I get it, your dad is a bad guy. He's a drug dealer. He did shady stuff to your mom. He is a villain. But they just kept hammering it home. That was the first hour of the movie. I actually found myself dozing off. That shouldn't be the case for an antihero/action movie. I should never "rest my eyes" during a movie like this. They also take their best actor, Taylor Johnson, off screen the whole time. This movie is slightly over two hours long, and the main character is not even in the first hour. We don't see "Kraven", we get Sergei, who is boring as hell. And when we do get Kraven, it isn't much more fun. Sure, there's a few okay enough fight scenes, but they didn't last that long. They had this great setup with Kraven's brother being kidnapped, but it looked like the same scene being used over and over again. Taylor Johnson couldn't keep an accent that he wanted to use throughout the movie. At times he was a New Yorker. At others, he was English. And I think I even heard a bit of an Australian voice in there. His brother's voice was American when he was an adult, but Russian when he was a kid. Russell Crowe kept the Russian accent throughout, but Russell Crowe is a reliable actor. The lady that played Calypso had an American accent the whole time, but she acted like she didn't want to be in this movie at all. You could tell she knew this was a pile of trash.

I think the thing that made me dislike this movie so much was the poor execution of what could have been a very cool story. This felt thrown together. It had a major pandemic feel to it. I should have suspected it was going to be bad due to the constant pushback of the release day. There were so many signs to this movie being bad but I ignored them all. I decided I had to watch and that was a bad choice on my end.

Don't watch this movie. It is bad. It's not fun bad either, it is just bad bad. Don't make the same mistake I did. Skip "Kraven the Hunter". You'll thank me later. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Better Late than Never on "Tenet"

After many years of wanting to see "Tenet", the time finally arrived this past Saturday. I've been taking my son to his uncle's house to watch what we consider good movies, and "Tenet" was the pick last week. I remember seeing the trailer prior to the pandemic. It helped that it was Christopher Nolan directing too, he is one of the best doing it right now. But, the pandemic happened, I wasn't willing to go to a theater, even if it was rented out, and then it kind of slipped my mind all together. It wasn't until our previous movie night that it was brought up and that stoked my interest once again.

We were all finally able to get together on Saturday, and as we sat down, I didn't really know what to expect, but I was excited. It also helped that we were told by the only person in the room to have seen the movie to not try and make it make sense. He let us know it was a movie about "vibes". He explained that if we let it wash over us, he thought we would enjoy it more. That was a great piece of advice. As the movie started, with the knowledge to just watch and enjoy, I found myself doing as such.

I liked the movie quite a bit. For all intents and purposes, "Tenet" is a spy thriller with beautiful people wearing nice clothes and doing kickass fight scenes. That was the best way to approach the whole movie. Sure, there is a story involved, and it helps to pay full attention, but if you look at it as a modern Bond movie, another bit of advice from our host, you can have a good time. John David Washington plays the lead role, he is credited as "Protagonist". He is wonderful in this movie. He looks sharp. He seems to be fully locked in and enjoying himself. He has some of the best fight scenes in the movie and he is our narrator all along the way. This felt like a big deal to him and it shows on screen. Robert Pattinson is in and out of the movie, but his role is way more important than his screen time lets on. He is integral, he is also sharply dressed, he gets to play aloof, but you know he has a lot going on. I become even more of a fan of his with each cool and unique role he takes in movies. The dude can act. Kenneth Branagh is the villain, and he is about as villainous as you can be. He is mean and egotistical and yells a ton. But it's this well seasoned, well renowned actor doing it, so the role is done better than most. Elizabeth Debicki is the "damsel in distress" in this movie, but she also gets to do some very cool stuff, and she gets to take out the worst of them all in a very satisfying manner. And we also get to see Himesh Patel, Michael Caine and Martin Donovan show up on screen for a scene or two, and they make the most of their time.

The casting is great. The set pieces are beautiful to look at in this movie. The action sequences are incredible and Nolan continues to prove that he does action better than almost any other director out there. The clothes and people are also insanely good looking. This is a cool, fun and interesting movie. I will recommend the whole idea of this being a vibes movie and watching it like it's an updated Bond movie without James Bond. I recommend this movie and I think you will find it pretty damn cool if you do watch. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Ty Watches "Saturday Night"

During last week and so far this week I have been catching up on some movies that I've been putting off. One such movie is "Saturday Night".

A good amount of people whose opinion I appreciate, told me to watch this movie. I used to watch "SNL" a ton back in the late 90's and early 2000's. I watched all the way through The Lonely Island's run, but then I kind of fell off. During that time I went back and watched older episodes. I decided I wanted to watch episodes from the 70's and 80's. I kind of fell in love with the earliest episodes during that time. I got way more into the minutiae of comedy at that time, so learning about some of the earliest writers rooms, reading and educating myself on people like Micahel O'Donoghue and Rosie Schuster was a total blast for me. So, when the people that recommended the movie told me it was about the first live airing of "SNL", that was all I needed to know to watch. Other stuff came up, but I was finally able to watch it all in one sitting yesterday. And I totally loved it.

I was all in on this movie from the first frame. I really enjoy movies that seem frenetic, especially when they take us back to a very important time in history. And let us not get it twisted, "SNL" changed the game when it comes to live sketch comedy. No other show in that genre would be here now if it weren't for "SNL". There would be no "Key and Peele", no "Chapelle Show", no "MadTV" without "SNL". This movie focused on the 90 minutes leading up to the first airing of the show. We got to see all the behind the scenes stuff. I really liked seeing how rough rehearsal could be. I liked watching the castmates cutting loose with one another. Seeing Lorne Michaels constantly on the move made for an intriguing story. Seeing old classic actors walking around trying to figure out what the show was going to be, and then dismissing it, that stuff moves me. I'm sure it is all made more grandiose for movies, but I don't really care. If a movie is well made, and "Saturday Night" most definitely is, I can overlook that stuff.

The casting here was amazing. I was shocked at how authentic they made it feel. Gabriel LaBelle, who I have never heard of, played Michaels. He was magnetic. He totally embodied everything that I have to imagine Michaels was going through that night. But he always stuck to his vision. The casting of the first cast was great too. Dylan O'Brien shined as Dan Akyroyd. He became him. Lamorne Morris brought brevity and hilarity to Garrett Morris. Ella Hunt brough the wit and constant upbeat attitude of Gilda Radner. Emily Fairn was so incredible as Larraine Newman. Her performance made me appreciate Newman's genius even more. Kim Matula embodied Jane Curtin and brought the feminist badass out in her. Matt Wood was quietly wonderful as John Belushi. And Cory Michael Smith brought out all of the asshole in Chevy Chase. Nicolaus Braun did double duty, nailing it as both Andy Kaufman and Jim Henson. I do want to shout out two other performers as well. I mentioned my fandom for O'Donoghue and Schuster earlier. Well, Tommy Dewey was absolutely perfect as O'Donoghue and Rachel Sennott continues to build her resume higher and higher with each role. She's awesome as Schuster. And Cooper Hoffman is wonderful as a young Dick Ebersol.

It was clear from watching how important "SNL" is to Jason Reitman. He directed this movie beautifully. It showed on screen. I highly recommend this movie for fans of "SNL" and sketch comedy in general. To see the start of it all was pretty great. Go watch this movie. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Ty Watches "Mickey 17"

Last Friday my dad and I went to see "Mickey 17". I was going to write about it right after seeing it, a quick reaction, but I decided I wanted to sit on it and give the movie more thought. I wanted the weekend to sit with it. I'm glad I did.

Right off the bat, I really liked the movie. I'm a Bong Joon Ho fan. I love "Snowpiercer" and "Parasite". The love for those movies put me in a pretty good head space heading into "Mickey 17". What I enjoyed the most about "Mickey 17" was the humor. This is a funny movie. There's jokes and some of the things Robert Pattinson does as his version of each Mickey made me laugh out loud. Speaking of Pattinson, he is truly wonderful in the movie. He gets to do a ton and he nails it. With each new Mickey there are subtle changes and Pattinson brings all of them to life. The two main Mickey's, 17 and 18, are who we spend most of the time with and Pattinson plays both. Each Mickey is totally different and that is fully due to his performance. I thought he was amazing and he has become a better actor with each movie. He has upped his game, picks cool projects and I want to see what he is going to do next.

The other cast members are solid too. Naomi Ackie plays Nasha, Mickey's partner. She is badass and super cool. She knows this whole society they live in is nuts and she lets everyone know. She gives a great performance. Steven Yeun is Mickey's buddy, and he is an asshole. He is only out for himself. He will do anything to get ahead no matter who he has to screw over. Yeun is so reliable and so good as an actor and I am a fan. Mark Ruffalo is over the top in the best possible way. He is putting on a show as the villain and I grew to despise his character pretty quickly. I have to believe that was the point. He was so annoying and so stupid and Nasha lets him know it. Toni Collete plays his wife and she is equally despicable. She makes "sauces" and is always in her husband's ear. She is always telling him what to do in a way that will only benefit the two of them. And then we have the "creepers". These are the alien creatures that live on the planet they are travelling to in the movie, Nilfheim. They have a pretty great turn in the movie and it makes it all come together in the end.

Along with the acting, the story is great. This is clearly an allegory for how messed up the US is under this current "administration". Ho made his own version of it and set it in the near future. He kind of nailed it when it comes to what a trip on a spaceship away from a rotting Earth would feel like. It looked truly miserable. But Ho made it funny, made it work and made it a blast to watch. And I love the stuff he did with the "creepers".

This is a very good movie that I want more and more people to see. It is a fast two hour and seventeen minutes. And Pattinson is so good in his role. I highly recommend it. And go to a theater if you have the chance. The movie deserves to be seen on a big screen. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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R.I.P. David Johansen

I don't know how it passed me up on my social media timeline stuff, but I just saw that David Johansen passed away a few days ago. Let’s discuss.

Some people may not know who Johansen was, but I sure do. The people that do remember him probably know him from his band The New York Dolls. I never listened to his band. I think they were punk or maybe glam rock or something like that based on what they wore on stage. I will probably go check out some of the music now that Johansen is gone though. Other people may know him as an actor. Johansen was in a ton of stuff during his acting career. I saw him in a documentary about his solo music career very recently. I only saw the very end, but it was fascinating from what I saw. I will say though, he did look pretty sickly in the doc, and the movie finished filming right before COVID. But he was in plenty of things. He had a three episode arc on "Oz". He filmed a lot of stuff as his alter ego, Buster Poindexter. He appeared in a good amount of corny 90's comedies. And he played the bartender in "A Very Murray Christmas" on Netflix. But what I know him from best is as the Ghost of Christmas Past in my favorite holiday movie "Scrooged".

Johansen was so memorable in his small role to me. I have his face burned into my memory. He was the cab driver that was always smoking a big fat cigar. But he also made the most of his lines in the movie. The way he spoke was so memorable for me too. He was gruff and grimy. He had a brash New York accent. He had a raspy voice that always stuck with me. Of all the ghosts that Murray was visited by in the movie, Johnasen's was my favorite part. He made the gloomy parts gloomier in a good way. He showed Murray's character how bad his life was in the past, and that was essential to the plot of this movie. He took the limited screen time he had and ran with it. From that point on, anytime I saw David Johnasen in anything else I pigeonholed him as his character from "Scrooged". That's on me doing that, but I don't necessarily think that is such a bad thing. Johnasen left such an indelible impression on me with that one role that it has stuck with me even to this day. I adore his performance in that movie and will always adore that performance.

It was kind of nice to see a bunch of people, when I caught up on social media, paying tribute to Johnasen. He clearly left a mark on a ton of people in both the musical and acting world. He also seemed to have a ton of friends all over the world. A musician I really like, Black Joe Lewis, even paid a very nice tribute to him on his Instagram page. David Johansen seemed like a guy who lived his life to the fullest. It seemed like he tried to do as much as he could while he was on Earth. I appreciate that.

Rest in Peace David Johansen/Buster Poindexter/The Ghost of Christmas Past. I hope you're having fun wherever you may be right now. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Thoughts on the Oscars

I don't watch the Oscars. I have never really watched the broadcast. It may have been on in the house when I was a kid because I know my mom likes that stuff. But, for me, I have always just checked who won the next day. And I used to have a ton of takes. I would gripe to anyone who would listen. I did this for a while too. I'm sure I was pretty annoying to whoever would listen to me. I felt that I knew better about movies than others, I'd voice that opinion, and other people would move on. I wouldn't. I'd keep it going. Then, when I started dating my wife in my mid 20's, she really didn't care too much about the Oscars. And because I liked her, I kind of stopped talking about it all together. I'd still check to see the list of winners, but I would just move on. Sometimes movies I liked won, most of the time, movies I hadn't even seen at that moment won. That's the way this stuff is.

Last night was pretty weird and made me truly realize how insufferable I had to be back in the day. "Anora" took home pretty much all of the big awards. I'm currently 40 minutes into that movie, with an eye on finishing it today. I think it is a pretty good movie with an incredible performance from Mikey Madison. I feel like she is a deserving best actress winner. But, on the internet you would have thought a catastrophe occurred when Madison was announced the winner. Apparently a lot of people thought Demi Moore should have won for "The Substance". I love "The Substance". I personally think it was the best movie of 2024 by a wide margin, and Moore was exceptional in the movie. But, people on Instagram and other social media sites were screaming and yelling and viscerally angry that Moore was beat out by Madison. People went so far as to compare this to the plot of "The Substance". I don't buy into any of that at all.

The Oscars are subjective. Both actresses put on wonderful performances and were both deserving of the award. But only one person can bring the trophy home. They don't give out half trophies. I saw a lot of people were upset that Adrien Brody won his second Oscar. I have not seen "The Brutalist" yet, I plan on seeing it, but people seem angry. I guess he tossed his gum at his girlfriend and his acceptance speech went on forever which also upset people. I'm not a fan of Brody's. I have never been a fan. And the speech and tossing of gum is not a surprise to me, which is part of the problem. But, by all accounts, he did a good job in a movie that is solely focused on his character. And all the lead up talk I read was about him being the front runner. While I don't like him, it seemed like he was going to win it all along.

I don't plan on watching "Emilia Perez", I've heard it is quite bad, but no one seemed as angry about Zoe Saldana, a fantastic actress, winning for that movie as they did, and do about Madison and Brody winning. Everyone I have heard talk about "Emilia Perez" says it is very bad, and we now have all this controversy surrounding the titular character in the movie. Kieran Culkin was incredible in "A Real Pain", but I have even seen some gripe about his win.

Not one of these actors and actresses got full acceptance from anyone. Some people simply want to complain no matter what the outcome may be. People feel this weird need to go online and instantly give their reaction and thoughts about a subjective thing that doesn't even matter in the long run.

I guess what I want to say today to the reader, and anyone who had to suffer through my nonsense back then, I'm sorry and it's not that important. In the long run it doesn't really matter who wins an Oscar because we can all go back and watch the movies we all like and relive the performances we all enjoy. We don't have to degrade anyone else or any performance that we may not have been that high on at the time. All these award shows are meant to force debate, but if we just took a step back and let it go, maybe things would be easier to deal with in the long run. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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A Millennial Remembers Gene Hackman

Gene Hackman, his wife and their dog all passed away two days ago. There has been a lot of speculation about the passing, but the reality is the world lost an all time actor. I hope they get this all figured out, but in the end, they have gone to the other side.

I was a fan of Gene Hackman's acting. He was a winning actor for sure. He, for the most part, took on pretty cool roles and, more likely than not, nailed it. I'm a big time sports fan, as you all know, so my social media feed was filled with everything "Hoosiers". I don't particularly care for that movie. I find it a little boring. I get all the love for it, and what it did for sports movies, but give me "Major League", "Bull Durham", "White Men Can't Jump" and "Hoop Dreams" anyday over "Hoosiers". I did also get a lot of love for "The French Connection". I have never seen that movie. I have heard it has one of the best car chase scenes ever filmed. And Hackman won one of his two Oscars for that movie.

For me there are two movies that told me everything I needed to know to be a fan of Hackman's work. The first is a pretty bad movie, which I love, called "The Replacements". This movie is about replacement football players that take over for the original players that are on strike. The whole idea of this movie is a problem up front. The viewer is supposed to be rooting for "scabs". These guys aren't pros, the pros are asking for more money, which they deserve. But, we are told that the pros are the bad guys and the replacements are the good guys. Anyway, this movie is all about Keanu Reeves' relationship with the cheerleader he likes, and his new coach, played by Gene Hackman. What makes me like this movie is Hackman's performance. He brings a gravitas and classic acting style to this movie. Hackman could have phoned it in and just cashed a check. He didn't do that though. He fully bought in. He was an old school coach put into a rough situation. Hackman wore a fedora, had a salt and pepper mustache and carried this aura of "win one more game for your old ball coach". And I loved it. I bought every single second of his performance in this cliched, tired sports movie. He was the best part about it, and when I first watched it, I had no idea he was even in the movie. The fact that I even remember a thing about this movie is because of Hackman.

The other movie, playing one of the greatest roles of all time as Royal Tenenbaum, is "The Royal Tenenbaums". This is my favorite Wes Anderson movie. I believe it is his best. The cast is amazing. The story is so well told. All of the actors are giving it one million percent and totally nailing it. This isn't just a straight forward comedy from Anderson. He tries new stuff out and he crushes it. But, the best person in this movie filled with magnetic performances is Hackman as the patriarch of the family. He's mean and gritty. He only cares about himself all the way to the end. He only wants things that will further push his wants and needs. He is an asshole, an egomaniac and a terrible father. And you cannot take your eyes off him whenever he is on screen. He owns the room every time he's in a scene. He is the funniest one in the movie. The moments of clarity he has are always undercut by more of his character's poor attitude and nonsense. I was blown away the first time I saw him in this, and with every rewatch, it reminds me of how amazing Hackman was in this movie. I've read that he was kind of a jerk to Anderson on set, and that is a bummer. But this is a role that will forever define Hackman's career for me. As a viewer of the movie of his I've seen, this is the best he's ever done and it's one of the best performances of all time. We should all be very grateful that we get to watch him as Royal Tenenbaum.

Rest in Peace to Gene Hackman, his wife and his dog. Time will tell how it all went down. But, enjoy being one of the greatest actors wherever you may be right now. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Better Never Than Late on "Venom: The Last Dance"

My wife and I watched "Venom: The Last Dance" over the weekend.

Oh boy.

A while back I wrote about how I enjoyed the first movie in the Tom Hardy "Venom" universe. That movie understood what it was supposed to be. It was silly. The relationship between Eddie Brock and Venom was one of the better love stories I've seen in a long time. The action sequences weren't great, but they were fun because everyone involved was in on the joke. I kept watching it and saying that I didn't know why, but I liked the movie. We watched the first movie again when we were in Mexico a few months ago, and it was then when it dawned on me that the first "Venom" movie is a perfect, lazy day on vacation movie. It lives in the background, you check it out for a minute or two and then you go back to relaxing. We did watch the second movie, but that one was too violent and too scary. They went for as much gore as a PG-13 movie could go for. The Eddie Brock and Venom duo wasn't as great, they wasted Woody Harrelson and the stuff with Michelle Williams just didn't hit. I was kind of bummed afterward because they went in a totally different direction. It had the opposite effect that the "Thor" movies had. Those movies shifted to more comedy where this movie shifted to violence.

But, with the third installment being called "The Last Dance", it piqued my interest. I was hoping that they'd go back to trying comedy and focusing a bit more on Brock and Venom. Well, this movie took a third tonal shift, and for me, it fell flat. This time they tried to go sentimental. This, for me, is not what this story should be. I wished they'd gone back to having fun and goofing around. I thought they would go for broke and make joke after joke after joke. They did not. I will say, they definitely spent more time on Brock and Venom's relationship. Those two were talking back and forth the entire time they were on screen. They worked on their relationship so much that they ended the movie with a montage from the previous movies. But, the way they spoke to one another was corny as hell. There was one scene where Venom turned into a horse, made Eddie ride him, and as they were going faster and faster, Venom said, "now that's what I call horsepower". That is some low level writing in my opinion. And this continued time and again. They got big name actors and barely used them. Juno Temple is onscreen for maybe five minutes. Chiwetel Ejiofor is there for a little longer, maybe ten minutes, and he is a cliched former army veteran. Rhys Ifans plays a hippy and it is not so great. They got all these great British actors to play Americans, and while they could've made jokes about that, they chose not to, which bummed me out. The action sequences were dull and boring. You get so many symbiotes in this movie, which should have been awesome, and they came and went far too fast. And the final scene between Venom and Eddie Brock, where they really tried to tug at the heartstrings, was not very good. You could see where it was going from the start, and to have one of them sacrifice themselves, I was not a fan.

I guess I'm happy that I get to watch the first one anytime I want. That movie will hold a special place for me. But I wish the people involved stuck with the goofiness. Three genre changes just simply didn't work. Maybe Tom Hardy had enough and was ready to be done with this role. I don't know, but "The Last Dance" was not as good as it could have been for me. Oh well. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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James Mangold Makes Movies for All the Adults in a Family to Enjoy

Earlier today I heard a comedy writer I like say something that I found to be pretty profound. He and one of his other podcast hosts were talking about "A Complete Unknown". Sean Clements said he liked it, and then he dropped one of the better quotes I've ever heard. He said some form of, "I hope James Mangold continues to make movies that me and my folks like". I couldn't agree more.

I also recently saw "A Complete Unknown", with my mom I might add, and I liked it quite a bit. You can go read my blog about the movie on the site. My mom loved it too. When we drove home we talked about all the things we liked about the movie. My biggest takeaway was the direction. The movie had a nice flow, the music scenes were shot beautifully and the actors seemed to understand the assignment. I credit a good portion of all of this to the director.

After hearing Clements comment, and thinking about my personal experience with "A Complete Unknown", it got me thinking. Now, my favorite Mangold movie is "Logan". This is not one for my mom, but my dad may like it if he ever watched it. I think it is the best version of how brutal and violent a mutant like Wolverine can be. I also think the idea of making more of these mutants in a lab and how rough and wrong that is was a nice touch. He also gets a tremendous performance from Hugh Jackman and Patrick Stewart. Those two are dynamic actors, but he got the best out of them. But the performance he pulled from Stephen Merchant was a stroke of genius. I only knew Merchant from comedy movies and shows, but he pulled off one of the better dramatic performances I've seen. It was a masterful job from Mangold getting that out of Merchant.

I did some more diving into his movies this afternoon, I found even more movies that fit into the genre of me and my folks having a good time. "Ford Vs Ferrari" has no right being as entertaining as it is. I had zero expectations going into that movie and it was great. "Walk the Line" kind of started the resurgence in these movie biopics. That is a Mangold directed movie as well. He got Oscar worthy performances out of Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon. He helped those two become even bigger stars. Phoenix became Johnny Cash. Reese Witherspoon was dynamic as June Carter. That movie is special and important to many, many people. Hell, without "Walk the Line" we would have never gotten "Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story". Mangold also directed "The Wolverine". This was the follow up to "X-Men Origins: Wolverine". "The Wolverine" was going to be better no matter what, but it actually revitalized that character in my opinion. "Knight and Day" is a fun movie with star power. Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz have wonderful chemistry and they make this formulaic movie kind of worth watching. And the remake of "3:10 to Yuma" is a great action western. That movie made me want to watch some older westerns because of how much I liked it.

The one thing that all these movies have in common with my liking of them, the ones my folks have seen seem to enjoy them as well. James Mangold makes non threatening movies that the whole family will enjoy. The cliche works here and works like a charm. I'm curious to see what Mangold does next, but whatever it may be, I bet my folks and I will really enjoy talking about it afterwards. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

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SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.