Drive Away Dolls with mxmtoon

Summary

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Blank Check with Griffin & David

Episode: Drive Away Dolls with mxmtoon
Date: November 30, 2025
Guests: Maya "mxmtoon" Pog

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Episode Overview

In this episode, Griffin Newman and David Sims, along with guest artist mxmtoon (Maya Pog), dive into Drive Away Dolls—Ethan Coen's first solo(ish) directorial feature, co-written with Tricia Cooke. This is part of their miniseries “Pod Country for Old Cast” examining the work of the Coen brothers together and separately. The conversation turns lively and reflective as they explore the film's queer caper sensibility, the context and intent behind its off-kilter humor, and questions of legacy and expectation for one of Hollywood's most beloved filmmaking teams. The episode is rich with personal anecdotes, pop culture tangents (from SpongeBob to the Marvel Cinematic Universe), and thoughtful debate about what it means when an auteur cashes their "blank check" for something utterly silly.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Setting the Context for “Drive Away Dolls” (12:00–20:00)

• The film is Ethan Coen's first solo narrative feature, co-written and kind-of co-directed with Tricia Cooke (his wife), but credited to him due to DGA rules.
• Tricia Cooke’s background as a queer editor and filmmaker is explored, emphasizing how her experience shaped both the process and the tone of ‘Drive Away Dolls’.

  “He’s said: Joel and I could never make a movie like this because we’re both dumb and straight. Trisha’s fun and queer.” —David Sims (39:08)

• The script originated in the late ‘90s as a loving riff on lesbian B-movie capers, especially as a reaction to the then-rare representations of carefree, trashy queer stories.
• Long gestation: Script kicked around Hollywood for 20+ years, initially intended as an “exploitation movie” called "Drive Away Dykes." Financing always elusive—studios didn't want a queer comedy that wasn't about tragedy.

2. Queer Representation and the 1999 Setting (43:24–44:35)

• Setting the film in 1999 served both logistical and cultural needs: more lesbian bars, fewer cell phones, and a capturing of a now-fading lesbian bar scene.
• Maya: “One of the things I was thinking about while I was watching the movie was… what about this is specifically in the 90s? For me it was hard to spot, but that [the lesbian bar culture] makes more sense now.” (44:21)

3. Intentional Sloppiness: Praise and Pushback (28:49–32:58, 100:08–104:34)

• The film is “sloppy” on purpose—embracing an intentionally ramshackle, irreverent tone akin to late Coen crime farce, but messier.
• Both admiration and irritation from the hosts and some fans; audience frustration is acknowledged, especially for those expecting “classic Coen craft.”
• David: “Some of the intensity around like, ‘what the fuck is this?’ will be removed if within the next five years we get the Coens doing their thing together again… then it’ll just be like, that was the weird exploratory period.” (126:41)

4. Performances and Characters

Geraldine Viswanathan as Marion (75:04–77:18)

• Universally praised: “She is very much the heart of the movie… the best Geraldine Viswanathan vehicle we have gotten so far.” – Griffin (77:03)
• Balanced understated deadpan in a high-energy world.

Margaret Qualley as Jamie (13:03–14:50, 78:08–81:04)

• Divides the hosts/guest: her zany, fast-talking, id-driven character is meant to be an “id fantasy,” but can feel overwhelming.
• Is Jamie’s arc convincing? Maya: “I didn’t feel like I bought her change at the end…” (80:39)

Supporting turns

• Guest shout-outs for Beanie Feldstein (angry ex), Pedro Pascal (“Penis Collector”), Colman Domingo (crime boss), and surprise cameos from Matt Damon and Miley Cyrus.
• The “briefcase full of dicks” MacGuffin is praised for its cheeky twist on the noir trope—“It’s literally a briefcase full of dicks.” (55:32)

5. A Queer Farce With a Soft Heart (59:12–59:59, 117:00–119:41)

• Sex and sexuality are frank, joyfully presented, rare in Cohen filmography: “It’s just… odd to watch this movie introduce characters in states of pure ecstasy, which is not a thing Coen movies usually open on.” — Griffin (59:21)
• The happy ending—unusual for Coen films, which often skew nihilistic.
• Maya notes that queer audiences might appreciate the rare “happy ending” for lesbians on screen.

6. Meta and Industry Talk: The “Old Master” Phase (102:11–104:34)

• The episode discusses how auteurs (like Ethan Coen, Coppola, the Wachowskis) gradually shift to “late style” – less obsessively crafted, more experimental or even “incorrect” by earlier standards.
• Griffin: “You can only push yourself by trying to make something incorrectly on purpose… what more is there to do other than sit down and go, everyone knows a movie shouldn’t be edited like this, but what if I try it?” (104:03)

7. Cultural Tangents: SpongeBob, Nicktoons, and More (1:05–11:07)

• The hosts and Maya trade stories about their TV childhoods, connecting Margaret Qualley’s accent in the movie to Holly Hunter and even SpongeBob’s Sandy Cheeks.
• Wider generational rifts around children’s TV, parental censorship, and the “crunchy granola parents” phenomenon.

8. Pedro Pascal: The Case of the Overexposed Star (64:03–71:19)

• The group reflect on Pedro Pascal’s sudden “in-everything” stardom, how he’s often in films just for a day, and his best work remains Game of Thrones.
• “He’s become more of a star because of press tours than performances.” — Griffin (69:53)

9. Letterboxd, Ratings, and Fandom (113:13–114:41)

• Spirited debate on rating movies, especially “it's fine” three-star Letterboxd culture.
• Maya: “I used to actually give star ratings, then I was like, I don’t know what I’m talking about… If I like it, I’ll give it a like.”
• Griffin: “3.5 is either a glowing review, or somebody’s like, it’s fine.” (113:54)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

On queer joy & the importance of setting:

“This was like, where is the trashy, 50s B movie where that’s just the starting point for the world and the characters? ... She decided we should still set it in 1999… it actually just rings false to be like, two women can make a road trip itinerary based on multiple lesbian bars in every town.” — Griffin (43:49)

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On intentional silliness:

“This movie is very sloppy… in a way that is purposeful. That’s not me creating, like, an armor of defense.” — Griffin (28:49)

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On generational TV gaps:

“I had crunchy granola parents that were like, it’s going to rot your brain. You can’t do it… So shout out to PBS Kids.” — Maya (02:40)

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On the joys of just going to the movies:

“Why must a movie be good? Is it not enough to sit somewhere dark and see a beautiful face? ... That is how I feel a little bit about Driveway Dolls.” — David Sims (104:34)

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On the Coens going solo:

“We’ve split sodium and chloride into two separate elements. So now we don’t have table salt, we have two interesting things.” — David (127:51)

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On queer representation:

“As someone who identifies as bisexual… there are so many queer stories in media where, like, you know, I want to see a happy end for lesbians as much as the rest of the world.” — Maya (27:14)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• [12:00–20:00] — Discussing Ethan Coen, Tricia Cooke, and the film’s development
• [43:24–44:35] — Why set the film in 1999? Lesbian bars and road trips
• [59:21–59:59] — Discussing the differences in sexual candor between this and previous Coen films
• [64:03–71:19] — Pedro Pascal digression: stardom, best roles, and franchise appearances
• [75:04–77:18] — Praise for Geraldine Viswanathan and her character
• [80:39–81:04] — Jamie’s arc: is it convincing?
• [100:08–104:34] — Editing and “late style” auteurist looseness
• [113:13–114:41] — Letterboxd ratings and “it’s fine" movie culture
• [117:00–119:41] — The film’s happy ending compared to usual Coen nihilism

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Conclusion & Final Thoughts

The hosts and Maya ultimately agree that Drive Away Dolls is a breezy, purposefully unkempt film—a “late style” lark from one of America’s most precise filmmakers, co-chaired with a collaborator who supplies genuine queer perspective and lived texture.

While it frustrated some expecting the classical Coen touch, the episode is full of affection for the film’s willingness to be messy, sex-positive, and unconcerned with legacy fandom. “Not every blank check has to be cashed on a masterpiece,” David suggests. For Maya (and likely others), it’s a rare example of a lesbian road trip movie that isn’t tragic, political, or scoldy—and for that alone, it’s quietly special.

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Quick Takeaways

• “Drive Away Dolls” is not so much “failed Coen” as “deliberate little queer goof.”
• Geraldine Viswanathan, giving her all—please, Hollywood, give her more!
• Margaret Qualley’s performance is divisive, but undeniably big-swing.
• If you have a movie subscription pass, give this one a spin—especially in a dry month.
• Sometimes, “let them have fun!” is the best possible artistic legacy.

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For more, check out Blank Check on Substack, and follow Maya Pog (mxmtoon) on Letterboxd: @maiapog.

Transcript

[Griffin Newman]

Blank check with Griffin and David. Blank check with Griffin and David. Don't know what to say or to expect. All you need to know is that the name of the shadow is Blackjack. Marian, you have got to have a good, steamy podcast. Now. What I wanted to do originally was.

[David Sims]

Is the word.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

Correct.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

What I want to do originally was. And then I realized I don't think the context clues are quite strong enough. Was. Won't it anybody podcast Curly?

[David Sims]

Yes. That's my favorite line in the movie.

[Griffin Newman]

But I think if I put the word podcast in for save, it sounds like I'm saying that's what's weird. Anyone won't anybody podcast podcast currently. But you can't say won't anyone save podcast that? David, that's nonsense.

[David Sims]

You're right.

[Griffin Newman]

And this is a serious movie with no thinking nonsense. This is one of the most serious films we have ever covered on this podcast.

[David Sims]

Such a. A heavy, weighty film.

[Griffin Newman]

We've talked in the past the many times we've covered the films of Holly Hunter, someone who has come up in this miniseries. My struggle to do a Holly Hunter impression.

[David Sims]

And you think that Margot Qualley is struggling throughout this film to do a Holly Hunter impression.

[Griffin Newman]

I think I'm pretty well teed up to do a Margot Qualley in Driveway Dolls impression because it's very close to my bad. Holly Hunter.

[David Sims]

Wow. Now, Margaret Qualley, and I'm not saying.

[Griffin Newman]

That as a slam against the performance, it just is convenient for me.

[David Sims]

Obviously, her mother is a Southern belle that's with a famous accent, with a lilt.

[Griffin Newman]

I think she's doing some of her.

[David Sims]

Has a lilt.

[Griffin Newman]

I think she's doing some of her mother. Yeah.

[David Sims]

But Margaret Qualley, it's kind of like born in Montana, her parents broke up when she was 5. She lived in Montana. She lived in North Carolina. And then, like, they split up and then she moved to Asheville. So she's like, she's got a lot of Southern inner.

[Griffin Newman]

Yes.

[David Sims]

But she don't talk like this.

[Griffin Newman]

I guess she doesn't.

[David Sims]

I guess in the interview, she's not like, well, yeah, park my keister. And, you know, in the audition. And I got it. Like, she doesn't talk.

[Griffin Newman]

Like, she doesn't pretend to.

[David Sims]

Right?

[Griffin Newman]

No, I do think she's doing a bit of her mom. I do think she's doing a bit of Holly Hunter. I'm not the first one to make this. Do you know where I'm going with this?

[Maya Pog]

I think I have a sense of.

[Griffin Newman]

Does it start with an S. 3, 2, 1.

[Maya Pog]

Sandy Cheek.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah, yeah. Y. Sandy from SpongeBob.

[Maya Pog]

Uhhuh.

[David Sims]

Okay. Right. So I don't have like the. The appropriate amount of spongebob, like sort of awareness.

[Griffin Newman]

That's a perfect example of the minor age difference between you and I is missing the spongebob thing entirely.

[David Sims]

Spongebob squarepants.

[Maya Pog]

What's crazy is I'm younger than both of you and I'm actually closer to David though, because I did not watch spongebob at all all. But I do know for spongebob, I. No, I wasn't too like spongebob. I was kept from spongebob. I had crunchy granola parents that were like, it's going to rot your brain. You can't do it.

[David Sims]

Could you watch any TV or was it.

[Maya Pog]

I watch PBS Kids. So shout out to PBS Kids.

[David Sims]

So who should we be shouting? Obviously Daniel Tiger. Or were you too old for Daniel Tiger?

[Maya Pog]

Honestly, I don't know. Just look at the back of my phone case.

[Griffin Newman]

I've got like, oh, what do we got?

[Maya Pog]

So many stickers. We got cartoon stickers. We have W. DW on there. Cookie Monster. Etc. Dragon Tales.

[Ben Hosley]

That was kind of my Arthur in the mix.

[Maya Pog]

I wish I didn't have room for him. But also representation for sisters of all kinds.

[Griffin Newman]

DW is your. Is your first pick. So I. I talk about this far too often on the podcast.

[David Sims]

That sign doesn't mean anything to her because she can't.

[Maya Pog]

She can't read.

[David Sims]

Yeah, see, I know a lot of these through memes.

[Griffin Newman]

You were not an Arthur kid either.

[David Sims]

I. I read the books when I was a kid, but I didn't have the show. The show was. Maybe I was too late for it or it was around. It wasn't. It wasn't a big show for me. Yeah, it wasn't.

[Griffin Newman]

I mean, it also. It quietly has as many episodes as like gun smoke.

[David Sims]

It's got 493 episodes.

[Maya Pog]

No way.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

What I mean, I think the episodes are like 10 minutes long.

[Griffin Newman]

But they kept going. They only ended it very recently.

[Maya Pog]

I did not realize.

[David Sims]

22.

[Griffin Newman]

That's the other thing is it was weird.

[David Sims]

Arthur got hit by a car, just dies and they're like, roll credits.

[Griffin Newman]

You joke about this. My. My little sister Romilly was obsessed with Caillou.

[Maya Pog]

Oh man.

[Griffin Newman]

The. The French Canadian animated show. That was another PBS Kids staple. That was her favorite show.

[David Sims]

It's the little boy who looks like. Yeah, he's b. He's got a little like sort of. He's got A hat missing a propeller, but it looks like a propeller belongs.

[Griffin Newman]

On top of it. Yeah. It's the most gentle conflict free show in the world, which my sister always really wanted. That like Peanuts and Arthur maybe sometimes got a little too intense.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

And Caillou. And there was one day my dad woke us up and he was like, we have to do everything we can to make sure she doesn't see this. And it was in the New York Post. The voice of Caillou had been hit by a car.

[David Sims]

Oh, my God.

[Maya Pog]

Oh, my God.

[Griffin Newman]

The image was like the face of the voice actor and the cartoon character and the car. No. Where we're like, even if she can't read this, she's gonna ask follow up questions and we have to shield this.

[Maya Pog]

It was awful.

[Griffin Newman]

It was like Arthur.

[David Sims]

Yes. She was the second voice of Caillou.

[Griffin Newman]

There we go.

[David Sims]

She was hit by a car. That's very sad. She died very young. And she was replaced, of course, by another Canadian French actress, Annie Bouvillard. Okay, just telling you guys what's going on with Caillou. I don't know why you guys are so hostile and furious.

[Griffin Newman]

I thought it was Genevieve Bujold took over the role of Caillou.

[David Sims]

But Genevieve Bujold was famously. Isn't she the one who quit Star Trek Voyager a week in or whatever? Oh, yeah, I think that. I think that's right.

[Griffin Newman]

Like, it's supposed to be Janeware.

[David Sims]

She was cast as Janeway. I don't know if you guys. If you're a Star Trek person, Maya.

[Griffin Newman]

Probably not.

[David Sims]

I'm not another great famous French Canadian actress.

[Maya Pog]

Okay.

[David Sims]

And she. There's like, stories all over the place, but I think that this sort of settled version is basically like. Everyone was kind of nervous because it wasn't going that well. And they started stressing to her, like, you know, it's a lot of work. You know, like, this is a big commitment. Star Trek. Like, you're gonna have to do this all year, like. And she was like, huh, Maybe I want to quit. And they were like, oh, f. No.

[Griffin Newman]

You want to quit, you should quit.

[David Sims]

Go. Go away. Now casting Columbo's wife.

[Griffin Newman]

She was pushing them to do every line of dialogue two ways.

[David Sims]

Right.

[Griffin Newman]

We got to do Slated. And they were like, that's going to double crazy.

[David Sims]

It's just because it was a. Yeah, it's just. It's crazy that they recast their lead. Yeah, yeah. She left two days into the filming.

[Griffin Newman]

Of Pilot to close the loop on this.

[David Sims]

Sorry, Carrie.

[Griffin Newman]

I had like, Trashmonger father. Crunchy granola mom.

[Maya Pog]

Okay.

[Griffin Newman]

Who very much was like, pbs Kids. Yes, that's it. And was like, all the Nick tunes are banned.

[Maya Pog]

Right?

[Griffin Newman]

Like, all the Saturday morning cartoons are banned. Like, tried to block me from all this stuff. It was Cartoon Network because that was old. They didn't have original shows at the time.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

And PBS Kids.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

And then Spongebob starts when I'm 10, I think. But my sister is nine years younger than me, and the.

[Maya Pog]

The.

[Griffin Newman]

She had given up by the time my sister was born and protecting anything. So I was, like, just at the right age to be like, is it still kind of cool to watch spongebob? Because spongebob's the cool one. And then watching it with her for a while. But I feel like they have been very upfront about the fact that Sandy Cheeks was like, we want Holly Hunter as a astronaut squirrel under the sea. And it feels like, okay, so Sandy is, like, cartoon version of Holly Hunter, and this character is cartoon version of cartoon squirrel.

[Maya Pog]

So it's just a loop. It is that room kind of just a chain. Yeah, yeah.

[David Sims]

Who the are the character. Who is she?

[Griffin Newman]

Who's SpongeBob? Yeah, who is she, David? She's very cool.

[David Sims]

I believe you.

[Griffin Newman]

Her name is Sandy Cheeks, and she's basically on a research mission from the land. So she wears a little astronaut suit. It's like. Right.

[David Sims]

Of course.

[Griffin Newman]

Squirrels has to live under the sea. And she's like a Texan squirrel squirrel.

[David Sims]

Okay.

[Griffin Newman]

In an astronaut suit who lives in a bubble. Okay.

[David Sims]

And she's like a main character, or she kind of pops in.

[Griffin Newman]

No, no, no. She's the main character.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

You got spongebob. Okay. And he's a little sponge, and he works at the burger place. I'm gonna try and give you everything. The best friend is a starfish called Patrick, who's, like, dumb. He's.

[Griffin Newman]

He's a little behind the. Sure. Yeah.

[David Sims]

And then their boss is. Okay, okay. Their middle manager is Squidward, who's grumpy.

[Griffin Newman]

Squidward is like the more tenured employee who hates how hard SpongeBob tries.

[David Sims]

He's okay.

[Griffin Newman]

He's been kind of clocking and clocking out. All he wants to do is read books and play clarinet. He's very much a bird.

[David Sims]

He's a bird. He, like, just wants to take it easy. He doesn't want to get sucked into any.

[Griffin Newman]

SpongeBob is an Ernie. If they work together and they were never friends.

[Maya Pog]

Okay, okay.

[David Sims]

They don't even really like each other.

[Griffin Newman]

No, no. But Spongebob always wants to play with squidward.

[David Sims]

Right. And Mr. Krabs is the boss. He's the owns the burger place.

[Griffin Newman]

He loves money.

[David Sims]

Right, right.

[Griffin Newman]

And his. And his daughter Pearl, who's a big whale.

[David Sims]

Where? No, deeper.

[Griffin Newman]

That's deeper.

[David Sims]

I don't have that. That's not there. And. And I guess I knew there was a squirrel maybe, but I don't think she's.

[Griffin Newman]

Main crew. That's the main tier.

[David Sims]

Are you.

[Griffin Newman]

Do you know from Plankton that.

[David Sims]

Is that the little guy?

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

And what does he do?

[Griffin Newman]

He is all plankton. He is like an evil mastermind. His thing is he wants to steal the recipe for the Krabby Patty because he runs the rival restaurant, the Chum Bucket across the street, which is not popular. And he's married to a computer named Karen.

[Maya Pog]

I forgot about that.

[David Sims]

And. And SpongeBob is a grown up.

[Griffin Newman]

What is he ostensibly?

[David Sims]

Is he like adult or is he teen? He lives alone.

[Maya Pog]

Yep.

[David Sims]

In a pineapple.

[Griffin Newman]

And you see his parents don't come to visit.

[Maya Pog]

Like what would you say if you had to guess how old SpongeBob was canonically?

[Griffin Newman]

He's a little in that Tremblay zone. How old is he actually? How old is he playing? You know like he. We might.

[Maya Pog]

The SpongeBob because like, you know, parents.

[Griffin Newman]

It's SpongeBob. You see them, they're a little. I don't want to age, Shane.

[Maya Pog]

Okay.

[Griffin Newman]

They're not in the prime of their life. They're not cutting the same kind of figure.

[David Sims]

Arrived 1999. So I was 13 years old. So I only knew a Spongebob is a thing that I might watch ironically as a teenager being like, oh, this is kind of clever. But like obviously my era of clever cartoons was your Ren and Stimpy and ah, Real Monsters and Rocco's Modern Life and all that. And all of those were like. Right. Gen X cartoons about like how boring it was to have a job.

[Griffin Newman]

Yes.

[David Sims]

You know, like I loved ah, Real Monsters because it had monsters. But like the people who are making it are like fucking wage slavery. Right. You know what I mean? Same with rock as well.

[Griffin Newman]

And they were getting like underground cartoonists and indie comics and whatever to make these shows.

[David Sims]

And then spongebob it feels like, does have the same thing of like, yeah, it sucks to clock in and clock out of the burger place place. But it's a little more silly, little more kind of cute.

[Griffin Newman]

And the thing is spongebob loves it so much.

[David Sims]

Right. He's a cheerful guy. He's. SpongeBob is happy?

[Maya Pog]

Yes.

[David Sims]

Uhhuh. I want to make age answer. Okay. How old? Spongebob.

[Ben Hosley]

So apparently you see spongebob's driver's license in an episode, and it's listed that he was born on July 14, 1986.

[Griffin Newman]

So.

[David Sims]

Oh, he's. He's three year. Three months younger than me, basically.

[Ben Hosley]

So he is currently 39 years old.

[David Sims]

Yeah, that's my age.

[Griffin Newman]

Wait, but in theory, when the show premiered, he would have been 13, living on his own, emancipated.

[David Sims]

But like, this is. But like, what is the society.

[Griffin Newman]

When is the episode with the driver's license? Ben?

[David Sims]

It doesn't matter.

[Maya Pog]

More information.

[David Sims]

Live in America.

[Maya Pog]

He lives.

[Griffin Newman]

Oh, he lives in a pineapple under the right.

[David Sims]

So it's like, what's the government?

[Maya Pog]

13 years old, you can get your driver's license.

[David Sims]

Maybe you can. Like, is there a president in SpongeBob? Like, is there a. You know, how high does this being.

[Griffin Newman]

A present, I feel like there's a mayor. So it was Bikini Bottom.

[Ben Hosley]

It was featured on Sleepy Time is the name of the episode. And the air date was in 2000. January 17th.

[David Sims]

So pretty early. He was 14 years old. So the. The mayor apparently is like a big green fish.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah, sounds about right.

[David Sims]

Okay, yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

What you talk about New York City.

[David Sims]

Go on.

[Griffin Newman]

Eric Adams is like a big green fish.

[David Sims]

See? Yeah, I feel like your satire cannon kind of went off.

[Griffin Newman]

Look, this is Blank Check with GR and David. I'm Griffin.

[David Sims]

I'm David.

[Griffin Newman]

It's a podcast about filmographies, directors who have massive success early on in their careers and are given a series of blank checks to make whatever crazy passion projects they want. And sometimes those checks clear. And sometimes they bounce, baby. In a way, this is one of the blankest checks we've ever covered on this.

[David Sims]

Well, I was going to say, right, then they clear and then they bounce. And then maybe they evolve into, right. Some new phase of their careers separate from each other and start to do even crazier.

[Griffin Newman]

But this is just permanent revolving line of credit. Right? This is your. Ethan Cohen, in any form, will basically follow you to do anything you want.

[David Sims]

You can.

[Griffin Newman]

I feel like at a small enough size.

[David Sims]

I was about to say, I think the thing with Ethan and Joel's solo careers is it's like, right. They can always get a cast. Anyone's going to want to work with them, so that will give them a budget.

[Griffin Newman]

And Ethan has continued to work with Working Title, who bankrolled so many of their movies together for so long, they seem on board to just being like anything you write, we want to do.

[David Sims]

Right.

[Griffin Newman]

But this has been a miniseries. This continues to be a miniseries on the films of Joel and Ethan Cohen together and separately, sometimes with their wives. It is called Pod country for old cast. And today we're talking about Driveway Dolls. Slash title. I don't know if I can say.

[David Sims]

Henry James's Driveway Dykes. David said it.

[Maya Pog]

He went for it.

[David Sims]

And when it was announced, I feel like it was announced as Driveway Dykes. And they. Then they. It was like, what was the. You know, no Strings Attached was called like Buddies. And they were like, we're calling it Buddies. We're not budging on that.

[Griffin Newman]

Or.

[David Sims]

Or it was the other one. I can't remember which one it was.

[Griffin Newman]

No, that. It was that one.

[David Sims]

What's the other one called?

[Griffin Newman]

The other one is Friends with Benefits.

[David Sims]

And that one's bad. I agree. I like no Strings Attached, which is the good one. Don't like.

[Griffin Newman]

That's the Liz Merryweather, Ivan Rayman, Ivan Reitman.

[David Sims]

And I don't like Friends with Ben. I have every time.

[Maya Pog]

Is that the one with Mila Kunis?

[David Sims]

Mila Kunis and Justin Timberlake versus various other people.

[Griffin Newman]

Ashton Kutcher and Natalie Portman.

[David Sims]

Right.

[Maya Pog]

But.

[David Sims]

But no Strings Attached has, like, Greta Gerwig. It has a fairly robust supporting cast.

[Griffin Newman]

Mindy Kin, Guy Burnham, Carrie Elwis, of course. Kevin Klein is really good. No Strings Attached.

[David Sims]

Klein's there. Looks like Jake Johnson showed up and Ludicrous.

[Griffin Newman]

Jake Johnson and Ludicrous are Ashton Kutcher's friends.

[Maya Pog]

What?

[Griffin Newman]

They're his. Dude, I don't about this brunch, but.

[David Sims]

How many strings are attached to it?

[Griffin Newman]

This is a thing we've really lost in the death of the studio comedy and especially the dueling studio comedy. Well, that, but also specifically the casting of the best friends.

[David Sims]

Yeah, man, just be like, okay, we need three guys. One of them should be a musician.

[Griffin Newman]

At least one never hang out with each other. Maybe one should be five years, apartment age. But all have a little juice in different areas of the industry because in.

[David Sims]

Okay, so in. Have you seen either of these movies, Maya? And we haven't introduced you.

[Maya Pog]

Well, hello.

[Griffin Newman]

And also how do we introduce you?

[David Sims]

Oh, yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

Is MXM Tune.

[Maya Pog]

That's perfect. That's great. But you can call me Maya because that's. It's wordy to be like. So, MXM Tune, what did you think.

[Griffin Newman]

About the musical artist MXM Tune, who we will now be socially.

[Maya Pog]

Yes. Perfect.

[Griffin Newman]

If you've granted us Curry Curly permission.

[Maya Pog]

Yes.

[Griffin Newman]

To use the familiar Name.

[Maya Pog]

I grant you familiar permission.

[David Sims]

Thanks, Maya. Welcome to the show.

[Maya Pog]

Happy to be here. Thanks for having me.

[David Sims]

We really appreciate you being here. So no Strings. I'm sorry.

[Griffin Newman]

Friends with these.

[David Sims]

Have you seen.

[Maya Pog]

I've seen Friends with Benefits and I remember distinctly being like this movie's ass. Like this is a bad movie. But I don't know if I've seen no Strings.

[David Sims]

Now.

[Griffin Newman]

Friends with Benefits, a Will Gluck joint.

[David Sims]

Yes.

[Griffin Newman]

Written and directed.

[David Sims]

I believe you're right. But that was the one that was I think pg 13. Right. Like it was trying not to be.

[Griffin Newman]

I think that ones are. And the other one's pg. Am I wrong?

[David Sims]

Let me find out.

[Griffin Newman]

Okay.

[David Sims]

I mean there's only one way to find out. It's a fascinating googling.

[Griffin Newman]

Yes.

[David Sims]

But in the Friends of Benefits was R. No Strings Attached was also R.2 R's.

[Griffin Newman]

I give them credit.

[David Sims]

Yeah. So Friends of Benefits had Jenna Elfman, Nolan Gould, Brian Greenberg. It did have Richard Jenkins, Woody Harrelson and Patricia Clarkson as parents. And apparently Emma Stone swings in. I guess that's probably a sort of terrible Gluck X.

[Griffin Newman]

He dumps she dumps him at the beginning. And I think Samberg is Mila Kunis's ex.

[David Sims]

Sandberg shows up. I assume that was kind of a just in favor.

[Griffin Newman]

But those are the breakups at the very beginning because it was them creating the arrangement.

[David Sims]

Cluck had just done Easy A.

[Griffin Newman]

He's cashing the Easy A check.

[David Sims]

And then he. He moved on to do Annie. Peter rabbit. Peter Rabbit 2. It's a weird career. And then Anyone but you, which was a hit.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

And starred a person that everyone's normal about. Sydney Sweeney.

[Griffin Newman]

And a movie that has actually historically bad best friend casting.

[David Sims]

I mean that movie is so bad. I'm sorry. As much as I was rooting for it to like. Yeah. Save our rom coms and all that, like that movie stinks.

[Maya Pog]

We. We.

[Griffin Newman]

We saw that like five days into its release. So it. The opening weekend had bombed. And it was before the Second Wind started where it just inexplicably became a hit. And we went with a bunch of friends and were Dr. And we're like, look, we gotta support this thing sucks. But like we're always bemoaning the lack of studio romcoms and let's just have fun watching this. And then we were just sort of like, well, that was a good experience of a terrible movie in a weird crowd.

[David Sims]

We had a right. We had a really weird experience.

[Maya Pog]

What was going on that made it so strange?

[Griffin Newman]

There was a woman with Tourette's in the theater who kept saying the N word.

[David Sims]

Oh, it was the craziest movie.

[Griffin Newman]

It was the craziest thing. Our friend said this is the least real thing that has ever happened.

[David Sims]

It was one of those things where we didn't totally clock what was happening at first, but something was happening. And like clearly I really think that person had booked that screening because they were like, who's gonna come to like.

[Griffin Newman]

A 10pm it was like 31 December 29th.

[Maya Pog]

No way.

[Griffin Newman]

At 10pm and clearly was just like, oh. A bunch of violin came in.

[David Sims]

Bobby Drinker and Lindsay Weber and Fran Hoffman her.

[Griffin Newman]

And we're like.

[David Sims]

And she just said the N word.

[Griffin Newman]

About every two or three months intensified and it got clearer and there was, there was no deniability.

[David Sims]

And it just. I just. I probably should give that movie another shake. Just cuz it really was. Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

Like also, it's probably better watching it that. But I think right. Like my, my, my. I. I don't know. There was a certain like leniency I was granting the film for. Just like. Well, they tried that. The bigger a hit it became and the more people were eating it up, the more I was like, no, that this movie's a mess.

[Maya Pog]

It's bad. Glenn Powell can't even save it. I watched it on an iPhone at the gym and I was like, this is. First of all, it's a busted viewing experience to be watching that movie on a treadmill. I was literally like, I might as well leave this gym so I can stop watching this movie right now.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah, that feels like a movie that was basically designed to go straight to Taxi tv.

[Maya Pog]

Yes.

[Griffin Newman]

Like it should not be seen on a big screen. It looks worse.

[Maya Pog]

It's bad. It's a bad movie. You don't need to watch it again, David. You don't.

[David Sims]

Okay, I won't do it. Maybe I'll watch it on my phone at the gym though. That sounds fun. So Driveway dolls. Okay. We're here to discuss Driveway Dolls. Which I guess is the second Cohen solo. Cohen, right. Like Macbeth had already come out. Or am I wrong?

[Griffin Newman]

We will have covered Macbeth.

[David Sims]

Yes, the, the. Of course, the tragedy of Macbeth.

[Griffin Newman]

It was not funny from Joel. And I'm glad they put that in front of the title so I could just My expectations.

[David Sims]

The Cohen's did not make a movie after buster Scruggs in 2018. Then they break up. Joel winks Macbeth and Ethan, I don't know.

[Griffin Newman]

Ethan does his Jerry Lee Lewis documentary, which is bad. It is very Strange. It feels very high school.

[David Sims]

It's called Trouble In Mind. Yeah. And it's a documentary. A TV documentary, basically. No, I guess it was at, like, the Cannes Film Festival.

[Griffin Newman]

It played a can, a 24 bought it, but then it went basically straight to streaming. And vod, it's about Jerry Lee Lewis. Yeah.

[David Sims]

Who was a bit of a controversial figure.

[Ben Hosley]

Wait, what did he do?

[David Sims]

Normal guy, normal things. Always people at normal ages, stuff like that.

[Ben Hosley]

But they were, like, related.

[Griffin Newman]

Oh. His balls of fire were a normal size.

[David Sims]

It is wild. For your Wikipedia personal life entry, Maya, you should aim for this. Your Wikipedia personal life should begin. Maya was married seven times, including bigamous marriages and a marriage with his underage cousin. Oh.

[Maya Pog]

Oh. That's just the exact, like, compass of what not to do.

[Griffin Newman]

It's always great when personal life has subsections.

[David Sims]

Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah.

[Maya Pog]

Oh, man.

[Ben Hosley]

But you gotta shout out. And this was something we discussed in our King Ralph episode. I love rock piano. Sure, it's a kind of a lost form, but you're.

[David Sims]

You're being serious, right?

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

I think it's so fun. I agree with you.

[Maya Pog]

When they start bringing it back from behind, that's it.

[Griffin Newman]

I mean, that's.

[Maya Pog]

Put more stunts on stage. I want to see stunts with instruments on stage.

[Griffin Newman]

Have you considered doing this during any of your concerts?

[Maya Pog]

Rock piano.

[Griffin Newman]

Working rock piano into the. The record.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah, but, I mean, Ben is so enthusiastic about it. I might as well.

[David Sims]

I mean, come on.

[Griffin Newman]

This under the leg. Ben's doing under the leg.

[Maya Pog]

It's good. It's good.

[David Sims]

Well, what instruments do you play? I know you play the ukulele.

[Maya Pog]

Yes. That is. I mean, on my Wikipedia page, I'm sure there is mention of the ukulele. There are no subsections about my seven.

[Griffin Newman]

Marriages yet, but Maya has owned seven ukuleles, including a bigamist ukulele.

[Maya Pog]

I.

[Griffin Newman]

That is crazy.

[Maya Pog]

I play the ukulele. I grew up playing, like, classical music and stuff, but I found the ukulele through, like, school and middle school, but then ended up Learning more over YouTube and it became my job, which I'm grateful it happened, but I couldn't have predicted it, not from a mile away. Yeah.

[David Sims]

Apparently, according to your Wikipedia, you've played the cello and the trumpet as a classical musician.

[Maya Pog]

Yes. I only did the trumpet to learn the Star wars theme. That was literally the only reason.

[David Sims]

Yeah, I love that. Big brass. Do you ever just fire up the Star wars theme just to get the first 10 seconds to just, like, feel something shoot you out the door? Yes, I do.

[Griffin Newman]

Do you do it? Have you ever said it as a wakeup alarm?

[Maya Pog]

Yes. That's how my dad would wake me up for school every day.

[David Sims]

Aggressive.

[Maya Pog]

It was. It was like he was the biggest Star wars nerd. Very sci fi. But he was also part of the reason why I never watched a Coen brothers movie until Driveways. Doll. Driveway Dolls was because this was the first.

[David Sims]

That's why I think she's a great guest for this episode.

[Griffin Newman]

This is great.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah. It was nuts because I really watched sci Fi.

[David Sims]

Your dad from. Oh, I see.

[Maya Pog]

Like, I didn't watch Trek. My parents watched Trek. They were very into it. But Star wars and, like, Lord of the Rings were kind of my fantasy and, like, sci fi, whatever worlds that I was living in. But my dad would show, like, anything that had to do with space to me and my brother. But, like, because the Coen brothers and as I was.

[David Sims]

They've never gone to space.

[Maya Pog]

They've never gone to space. No, never. And I was doing my homework because I knew I would be doing the podcast with you guys, and I had not watched many Coen brothers movies. My boyfriend.

[David Sims]

I saw you logging.

[Maya Pog]

Thank you.

[David Sims]

I saw some logs. Some old Cohen's laws.

[Maya Pog]

Hey. I credit that to my. My lovely boyfriend Jack, who got me into it, and he's a fan of the show, but I. Jack, some people.

[Griffin Newman]

Call you Messina because you be logging. I'm trying to do a side version of this joke.

[Maya Pog]

You're. You're launching jokes.

[Griffin Newman]

Thank you.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

Messina.

[Griffin Newman]

Loggins and Messina. They were a duo. Kenny. Kenny Loggins. Before he went solo, I was logging to Messina.

[David Sims]

I didn't know that.

[Maya Pog]

The best part of the joke is when you explain it.

[David Sims]

Yeah.

[Maya Pog]

I've always said. I've always said, yes, I'm gonna.

[David Sims]

Jim Messina. He was from Buffalo Springfield.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

I think the best part of the joke is when you defend it.

[David Sims]

Loggins in Messina.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

What was their big song?

[Griffin Newman]

Not just explain it, but defend that. You were right.

[Maya Pog]

There's multiple parts. Yes.

[David Sims]

See, it looks like your Mama Don't Dance was one. Well, let me put. You know what? Let me put him into Spotify and see what the top song is.

[Griffin Newman]

Did they do. Am I wrong in thinking Loggins and Messina did Danny song?

[Ben Hosley]

Yes.

[Griffin Newman]

I think even though they ain't got money.

[David Sims]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

I think that was Loggins end. Messina.

[Ben Hosley]

I think you're right.

[Griffin Newman]

I think Messina was in the picture at that point.

[David Sims]

What happened to Danny?

[Griffin Newman]

You got to listen to the end of the song. How's he doing? You've You've naturally backed us up into this.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

But met your. Your lovely boyfriend. He came to the Blank Check, our show. We did introduce.

[David Sims]

Oh, did he?

[Maya Pog]

He did, yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

It was a day when I was rocking the porch installation. You were not there, and we had been messaging, and I found out you were a listener, and he told me that he was a fan of the show. The two of you started dating. He talked about the podcast to you, and your response was, ugh. That's the thing my parents listen to. But I guess if all of you listen. Yeah, I should get into it. But I just brought this up to Ben and David, as I think you are the first person we have ever heard of who's like, yeah, Blank check. That's the thing my parents told me to listen to.

[Maya Pog]

My dad just loves podcasts about movies. Okay, so you guys are, like, obviously one of the preeminent podcasts about movies.

[David Sims]

Thanks.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

And so shout out to your dad's name.

[Maya Pog]

My dad's name is Cameron.

[Griffin Newman]

Star Wars.

[Maya Pog]

He loves Star Wars.

[Griffin Newman]

You grew up on Star Wars.

[Maya Pog]

Exactly. And grew up waking up to it blaring over a speaker. And, like, that was traumatic. But truly, because I think my dad was such a lover of, like, sci fi. And my mom, she was, like, an English teacher most of my childhood, and so she taught, like, English classes around, like, Hitchcock movies and stuff like that. So there was a real, like, gap between, like, a Hitchcock and watching, like, Star Wars. And then kind of what I discovered watching the Coen Brothers movies this last, like, month was really just like, oh, that's why I never watched them was because it was just. That's not what they're doing. They're doing papers and. Yeah, exactly. So it was a lot of fun. I had a lot.

[Griffin Newman]

Which ones have you seen now?

[Maya Pog]

Okay, so I watched. We think I would need to pull up my letterbox.

[David Sims]

Let me look at your letter box.

[Maya Pog]

Thank you.

[Griffin Newman]

Because I'll say. We'd been messaging to try to find an episode to have you on, and there was some stuff next year that was like, oh, some of that might work. And then we were looking for someone for driveway dolls, and I noticed you had a positive log.

[Maya Pog]

You said to me, you were like, it was either you are one of only or the only person with the.

[Griffin Newman]

Like, possibly certainly in the circle of people.

[David Sims]

Was. I mean, yeah, this is a movie.

[Griffin Newman]

That was my most recent one.

[Maya Pog]

So I rewatched. Yeah, yeah.

[David Sims]

You have seen no country for Old Men. You. You watched that. You watched Barton Fink. You watched True Grit. You watched Fargo. You watched Raising Arizona. You watched the Hunger Games Catching Fire. They directed that.

[Griffin Newman]

They did, yeah.

[David Sims]

I think that might be it. Unless there's another one, like.

[Griffin Newman]

But that's a lot of the crime caper ones, which are the interesting ones to watch.

[Maya Pog]

Exactly.

[Griffin Newman]

For this. And you watch all of them in the middle of a sandwich where the pieces of bread are using driveway dolls two times in theaters. Yep. Okay. And then again this week.

[David Sims]

And you saw it, and I don't want to blow you up, but you did say you saw it because it had, and I quote, lesbian.

[Maya Pog]

Yes. And it's because, I mean, like, I think I'm very interested. I identify as bisexual. There are so many queer stories oftentimes in media where, like, you know, I want to see a happy end for lesbians as much as the rest of the world. And so I was curious because this is like, I don't know. I mean, there are, of course, lesbians in cars, historically in cinema that you can watch on a screen. But I was curious about this one. And I just lived above an Alamo Drafthouse when I was in New York at the time that this came out. And so I was just like, all right, let me see what's playing tonight. And that one showed up and Margaret Qualley, I'm immediately sold to see what she's up to. And then I showed up and I was like, maybe I'm not immediately sold.

[Griffin Newman]

To see what she's up to.

[David Sims]

I like performance.

[Maya Pog]

I like her.

[David Sims]

I like Margaret.

[Maya Pog]

I think she went balls to the wall and, like, did not care what the end result was. I think that it just didn't land with me.

[Griffin Newman]

I also think, look, I think that is the approach the entire movie is taking. And not to, like, pre fight a straw man, but I anticipate this will be one of those episodes where a contingent of our listeners are like, what the are they talking about?

[David Sims]

I get for, like, angry comments for giving this movie a mildly positive, A polite three stars, letterbox crazy. Every time I log in, which is three times, which I do think is a lot of times to have seen this movie.

[Maya Pog]

That is wild.

[Griffin Newman]

This movie is a very breezy. It's not a tough 76 minutes goes down. Like, it's short.

[Maya Pog]

You can't be pissed off. It's a movie. You get to the end and you're like, that was. It had all the parts. You know this. It had all the parts.

[Griffin Newman]

This movie is very sloppy.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

In a way that is purposeful. That is not me creating, like, an armor of defense of anything you think is bad about it is on purpose. But we'll talk about the intent behind this movie. And I just think when I watch this movie, which I've now seen twice, I haven't caught up to David yet.

[David Sims]

I saw it twice in theaters, once at a press screening.

[Griffin Newman]

Okay.

[David Sims]

And then I took my friend Molly to see it because.

[Griffin Newman]

Your best friend?

[David Sims]

My best friend Molly, because she was like, let's see a movie. And it was kind of the most Molly sort of appropriate movie out there. It can be tough to find in a Molly. The death of the theatrical comedy means.

[Griffin Newman]

There are a lot of Molly growing.

[David Sims]

Like, she doesn't want to go see a superhero and she doesn't want to see a horror movie.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

And that tends to be what's in theaters.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

Especially. When did this come out?

[Griffin Newman]

This was February.

[David Sims]

Exactly. Especially in those early months.

[Griffin Newman]

I think it was February of last year.

[David Sims]

So I saw it again, and I was like, yeah, still cute in my opinion. And I fired it up for this third viewing, and I was like, okay, I think I might be done with Driveway Dolls. Not an angry way, but it's just sort of like. I think I've gone as deep as I can on this one.

[Griffin Newman]

I was feeling very tired and congested last night. I was supposed to go see Weapons, Past and Future Guests at Kreger and.

[David Sims]

Movie of the Year.

[Griffin Newman]

I refunded my preview night tickets because I was just like, I don't feel up for it. I want to see Weapons and I gotta watch Driveway Dolls. And I got into bed and sometimes. Look, our job is very easy.

[David Sims]

Yes, it is.

[Griffin Newman]

But sometimes you're like, what's the movie I have to watch tonight? Even if it's a movie I like?

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

I'm like, I'm re watching this, and I gotta watch it, like, closely to talk about tomorrow. And I put on Driveway Dolls, and I'm like, I'm having a good time.

[Maya Pog]

Like, I immediately go, it's not bad.

[Griffin Newman]

I'm having a good time. I'm still gonna get to sleep early.

[Maya Pog]

Exactly.

[Griffin Newman]

Right.

[Maya Pog]

Like, you can't be mad at that. I feel like any movie that's, like, short enough that I can digest it, like, appropriately without being, like, dreading how long the watch time is. I gotta give it a little credit.

[Griffin Newman]

I certainly. I get that some of this sounds like faint praise awards, but I also think we'll talk about the intent of this movie, which is like a. I went to see this with my sister, who is a little older than you, but generationally similar. And it was another like we try to find movies that we can go see together. Yeah, she likes movies more than maybe Molly does, but also there's a lot of stuff she doesn't want to see. And I was like, let's see Driveway Dolls. And she was like, yeah, that looks fun. Like girls road trip comedy.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah, exactly.

[Griffin Newman]

And then I think it was maybe not until we got into the theater that she was like, Ethan Cohen directed this. I thought she knew that was part of the sales pitch. But she was like, well, that's in congress with what I thought I was going to see, which is I thought this was a movie made by like a 25 year old old. Like someone just had a film school.

[Maya Pog]

It does feel like that. I think in a lot of the ways, which is kind of part of its charm is like, I think that the wackiness of it feels. It's obviously very intentionally supposed to be sloppy. And I think that that is why I liked aspects of it. But it's also, I feel like it's Achilles heel a little bit in a lot of ways.

[Griffin Newman]

We will crack open the dossier momentarily. But I think about Connor. Ralph, our friend on our Lady Killers episode made, kept making the joke how Lady Killers, what is basically consensus viewed as their worst film, is the first movie in which the Cohens both got credited as director because of Weird DGA Rules.

[Maya Pog]

Okay, I heard about this.

[Griffin Newman]

Yes.

[Maya Pog]

And because you guys. Did you talk about it on another episode? Yeah, yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

Yes. So they don't start actually being co credited as directors until Lady Killers and every slam of Lady Killers. Connor said, but you have to remember this is the debut film of a new filmmaking team. So for a first film, it's pretty good. And I do feel like despite all of Ethan Cohen's experience and pedigree, this is like a debut film of a new team. Team and a new register. Right. Like this is him trying to do something. Even though it has a lot of shared DNA with especially the Cohen crime caper comedies, it is very much the start of a new thing that is continued and we will see how long it goes on for or if roads re diverge later.

[David Sims]

David. Yes.

[Griffin Newman]

This episode of Blank Check is brought to you by Square and it's hip.

[David Sims]

Square.

[Griffin Newman]

It's hip to be a square. Okay, don't get defensive.

[David Sims]

Okay.

[Griffin Newman]

Some of my favorite murderers have told me that it's hip to be a square. I speak of Patrick Bateman.

[David Sims]

Of course, there are certain businesses that make the neighborhood the neighborhood.

[Griffin Newman]

Griffin and I have found in My travels that your favorite neighborhood spots often run on square.

[David Sims]

Look, I think I probably interact with a square terminal more than I interact with a subway. You know, like turnstile everywhere. You know what I mean? Like, it's just like getting a cup of coffee, getting a bagel, getting a pizza. I live in New York. Okay, okay. Like, I'm always tapping my little watch on the squares.

[Griffin Newman]

I love doing the tap.

[David Sims]

I do my watch.

[Griffin Newman]

I feel like Gregory Hines doing a little tap.

[David Sims]

Very good.

[Griffin Newman]

Thank you, thank you, thank you.

[David Sims]

Yeah, Square, these are, you know, works for businesses that make the neighborhood of the neighborhood. Like I said, when those businesses thrive, the whole neighborhood thrives. Money spent in the neighborhood stays in the neighborhood. So take this ad as an excuse to go support your favorite local spot and have yourself a day in the neighborhood. A beautiful day in the neighborhood. Mariel Heller.

[Griffin Newman]

I was gonna say Mr. Rogers. And look, also, obviously, very often you go to see a comedy show, you go to a concert, you go to see off Broadway theater, you're going to be dealing with some square right there. When we do live shows, we use square to sell our merchandise. Square makes these businesses a lot easier to run.

[Ben Hosley]

Absolutely. It makes it.

[David Sims]

We use square. Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

That's why this.

[Ben Hosley]

It makes it so easy for us as a small business to be able to sell merch. We use that at our recent art show.

[Griffin Newman]

Absolutely.

[Ben Hosley]

It's. It's just makes the whole process so accessible.

[Griffin Newman]

It makes the ability to provide these culturally enriching things and spaces a lot more accessible in a very, very crazy, complicated economy. Is that what I was trying to say? Yeah.

[David Sims]

You can go to square.com, go check to learn more. But before you do go support your favorite neighborhood spot, you'll be happy you did. See you in the neighborhood.

[Griffin Newman]

David, do you want to crack open the dossier?

[David Sims]

Yeah. So driveway doll. So, yeah. So it is. You're right. It is Ethan Cohen's feature filmmaking debut in a way, but it's not really. He'd actually made all those other movies.

[Griffin Newman]

The point I want to make here is he has been very upfront the entire time of, like, she co directed this movie with me. Trisha cannot get that credit because the dga, she's not a member, and I'm already pre established as part of another team. But much like the early Cohen's films, it is written by both of them, produced by both of them, directed by him, edited by her. But he's like, we did everything together.

[David Sims]

Trisha Cook. Trisha Cook grew up in Southern California in a town called La Mirada. But since no one knows it, she usually says she's from Whittier, which is where Richard Nixon is from, of course.

[Maya Pog]

Got it.

[David Sims]

Born in a somewhat conservative community, but around the age of 15 or 16, she realized that she didn't like boys. And then she attended USC as a theater major and then went to grad school at nyu, where it's easier to frequent a lesbian bar, perhaps.

[Maya Pog]

Yes.

[David Sims]

And date other women. And she tapped into queer scenes and experienced her queerness in full ways. And at nyu, she remembers that Joel and Ethan came to screen Raising Arizona. And she remembers that she and her friends were not interested.

[Griffin Newman]

What'd they go to see instead?

[David Sims]

Koyanis Scotsy Boom. Which, of course, is a movie that I love very much and that we've covered on this show. This is a little different from Raising Arizona.

[Griffin Newman]

Less dialogue, a little bit less talky.

[David Sims]

But after graduation, she sought a job in the camera department on Miller's Crossing, which was the third Coen Brothers movie. She's like, I wasn't a big Coen Brothers fan, but I needed a job. At nyu, she trained as an editor.

[Griffin Newman]

But it's the kind of classic, you're out of film school. You've trained a little bit in everything you're looking for. Any position you can get. She gets the camera position and has the boldness to sort of make the play, to get into the editing room and Because.

[David Sims]

Right. She's working on. Once she's in there, she's like, if you have any room, it's like an apprentice in the cutting room. And the Cohen's are like, yeah, we'll make some room for you. And she works as assistant editor on Barton Fink and Hudsucker Proxy. She's an associate editor on Fargo. She's a co editor on the Big Lebowski. Oh, Brother, Where Art Thou? A Man who Wasn't there. Of course, the Cohens are essentially their own editors at that point under the pseudonym Roderick James. And soon after they met, Ethan expressed romantic interest in Trisha Cook. And she told him, I'm a lesbian. I'm not interested.

[Griffin Newman]

And that's the story. They never got married or made a film together?

[David Sims]

No, they got married in 1993. Their marriage is non traditional. They're very upfront about it. She has a partner. Ethan has another partner. They've been in this dynamic for over 20 years.

[Griffin Newman]

They have two kids together. She said that it was like she was very upfront with him. They continued being friends, and then at some point, to her surprise, she Started developing romantic feelings. But obviously it is a multifaceted thing. Ethan's line that jumped out to me is he said he applies the Alfred E. Newman philosophy to it, which is what me worry.

[David Sims]

That is correct. That is how he explains his marriage. They have a son named Buster, Buster Scruggs, and a daughter named Dusty. And so she slowed down once they had kids. She raised the kids a little bit, you know, blah, blah, blah. Started writing more. And essentially, you know, she makes whatever. She's sort of, like, got like, a bit of Cohen's. She obviously, like, works with them and all that. Like, she's got a little bit of the Cohen's inner. But she's got other interests that they don't really explore. Not a lot of queer characters in Coen Brothers movies, period. Right. I mean, Miller's Crossing has, like, you know, closeted characters.

[Griffin Newman]

There are a lot of coded closeted.

[David Sims]

But yes, like, it's not. It's not territory. They've really dipped their feet in too much.

[Griffin Newman]

No. It's another quote in the dossier that Ethan says, I'm dumb and straight, and she's fun and queer.

[David Sims]

Right.

[Griffin Newman]

And Joel and I could never make a movie like this because we're both dumb and straight.

[David Sims]

She worked on a documentary film called where the Girls Are, about the dinosaur weekend in Palm Springs.

[Griffin Newman]

It's a short I've been trying to find.

[David Sims]

I've never seen it.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

She came up with the idea for Drive Away Dykes with her friend Mar Molina when they were drinking at a.

[Griffin Newman]

Bar in the late 90s, early 2000s.

[David Sims]

But yes. Yeah, that's really all they had.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

But this screenplay, she, you know, starts working on it with Ethan. They like the title. They were like, we'll just do, like, an exploitation movie, right? Like, we'll just do, like, what kind of movie would have this title?

[Griffin Newman]

It's also really funny where he was like, in. In interviews, he was like, we want to make our, like, queer homages to, like, Roger Corman movies. Even though I've never. Neither of us have seen a Roger Corman movie. And then Trish Cook's like, I've seen Roger Corman movies or not Roger Corman. I'm sorry, Russ Meyer. And then she was like, but I think in a way, they're more homages to, like, Doris Wishman. And Ethan's like, even though we've never seen Doris Wishman. And she's like, I've seen Doris Wishman.

[David Sims]

The Jamie character in the film, who is played, of course, by Margot Cawley, is Sort of Trish's idealized, like, I wish I could be this liberated and sort of free spirited and, you know, go to the bar and just like connect with people and like be carefree and have sex all the time. But it's not exactly. It's not her at all, really. It's more of a sort of like, you know, fantasy hero.

[Griffin Newman]

And then Marion is the more extreme projection, the opposite direction of the self here. This feels like an idygo movie, right? Yeah.

[David Sims]

So they write this thing together. They write it probably in a similar way to the. The Cohen's brothers, where they're just like in a room, talking to each other, typing, whatever. Yes.

[Griffin Newman]

I think they write very similarly. And then they put it on a show. I never trained as a writer. It's not how I primarily think of myself, but I had all these ideas and characters that were things that Ethan would never come up with himself. And he's so helpful with the dialogue and the structure. They write this together and it's sort of talked about in a way very similar to their process of writing Barton Fink to get them out of the writer's block. On Miller's crossing of Ethan being like, it's nice to be able to go off and do these side things and like, Ethan's written fucking poetry in one act.

[David Sims]

I read a short story collection with the ear on the COVID He does.

[Griffin Newman]

A lot of stuff like this that feels like I just want to like get it out, work things through the system without the same pressure and seriousness of the movies.

[David Sims]

They have this script, they pitch it to Allison Anders, who's sort of like a fairly legendary indie director of the 90s. I feel like less known these days maybe. But Gas, Food, Lodging was like a big early 90s indie film about women.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah, I think she is.

[David Sims]

I'm trying to think of my heart.

[Griffin Newman]

Two narrative filmmakers to get a MacArthur genius grant. Wow.

[David Sims]

If I am not get a MacArthur genius grant. Yeah. I'll tell you that much. They pitch it to her. They call it a naughty comedy.

[Griffin Newman]

It is announced.

[David Sims]

Yes. Alice Anders is into it.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah. To your, to your point, Maya, A big sort of birthing point for this.

[David Sims]

Movie, but they never got funding, is.

[Griffin Newman]

That Trisha Cook is seeing like a tiny wave of lesbian stories being made by lesbian filmmakers in the 90s. And she's like, those movies all have some sense of self importance.

[David Sims]

They tend to be right, like sort.

[Griffin Newman]

Of more issues, drama or even something like. But I'm a Cheerleader.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

Needs to be a movie that is like about Coming out about the self identification and is a comedy that is like so over cranked to see sell that kind of thing. And she was like, where is like the trashy, like 50s B movie where that's just the stated reality, where that is not the conflict of the film in any way. It is just the starting point for the world and the characters. The other thing is she's like going NYU in the 90s, where there are a lot of lesbian bars. There's a filmmaker, Alina street, who I've worked with before, who's been doing this thing called the Lesbian Bar Project for the last couple of years. That's a documentary series about how much they have disappeared.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

Where I think it's like low double digits for the entire country now. And in the 90s and the early 2000s, there were a lot. Is one of the reasons why even though it took 20 years to make this film, she decided we should still set it in 1999. Aside from like cell phone tech reasons, she was like, it actually just rings false to be like, two women can make a road trip itinerary based on multiple lesbian bars in every town.

[Maya Pog]

I did not know that. And that was one of the things that I was thinking about while I was watching the movie was like, immediately you're hit with the 1999 timestamp at the very beginning. And I. I felt like while watching it, I. At least. Because I didn't know about the fact that there is such a lack of lesbian bars now presently in the United States.

[David Sims]

35 or something.

[Maya Pog]

And I live near one of them in Nashville, Shout Out, Lipstick Lounge. But I like, didn't know that. And so it makes a lot more sense, I think, to have it grounded in the understanding that she had to have like a road trip planned around that being a primary function of why they were going to certain locations.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah.

[Maya Pog]

But for 1999, given the timestamp, I felt like while I was watching, I was like, what is indicative about this time period that's like present in the movie? Just because I. I don't know. For me, it felt like it was hard to be like, what about this is specifically in the 90s?

[Griffin Newman]

Whenever I see that, I'm like, first and foremost, I assume they don't want to have to deal with cell phones.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

That's fair. Right. But. But the bar thing makes more sense. And I also think it's when she writes the script and it's when it's like this. I wish this movie could exist now.

[Maya Pog]

Exactly.

[Griffin Newman]

Right.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

And even when they're trying to, like do it with Alice Anders and everything, they always talked about they couldn't get the financing because it was like, it wasn't tragic enough.

[David Sims]

It wasn't your, you know, Mysterious Skin, a movie they love, which is sort of made around that time. Gregory, now Gregorocky made, you know, more flippant films before then, very small budget, but a tiny budgets. Mysterious Skin was a small budget movie. They wanted a much bigger budget. Like I'm sure driveway dolls at this version of it cost. What do you think?

[Griffin Newman]

Like they say like 20.

[David Sims]

Yeah, 15. $20 million. Probably not that much then, but still they want too much.

[Griffin Newman]

2006 or 2005 is when dirty Shame comes out, which is the last time he's gotten a movie made. And that was the only time he's gotten a budget like that in the modern era. And he is like, I'd love to make another movie, but I'm not gonna make a movie for $300,000. I'm 70. So I think there was this feeling of like, even when they could get big stars attached, the studio didn't want to give them that amount of money for something that seemed kind of like a lark. And I'm sure there were stars who were like, hesitant to do it. It just felt like circumstantially, they. This is not the time that we'll accept this film.

[David Sims]

Now the boys make Hail Caesar and Buster Scruggs, their last two movies together. But to be clear, they put this movie on a shelf. Essentially. They just have. They're like, we have two and a half scripts is how they described it that we just kind of put in a drawer and said, maybe the kids will find them.

[Griffin Newman]

Honey, don't.

[David Sims]

Which one is the second script? And there's some supposedly a go bird.

[Griffin Newman]

It is called Go Beavers.

[David Sims]

Okay, cool.

[Griffin Newman]

It might be a college horror movie.

[David Sims]

Fine. Okay.

[Griffin Newman]

But yes, now they were. They would just mention, oh, there's this trilogy of lesbian genre films.

[David Sims]

Honeydont, which is obviously by the time this is coming out, has been released and Forgotten by Society, is more of like a hard boiled detective story. It still has comedy in it, but it is not as like light as this movie. And yeah, I mean, it's still funny. It's still whatever. You'll see it. Probably. Maybe not. Maybe I'll skip that one.

[Griffin Newman]

We're doing it on the podcast.

[David Sims]

I might just skip it. Anyway, tune in next week and. But so Ethan says, hail Caesar and Buster Scruggs were very hard movies to make. Heavy productions you know, like, not dramatically so, but just, like, you know, they're big, complicated.

[Griffin Newman]

Both of those movies are basically eight movies. That's the thing he talked about, is, like, Buster Scruggs felt like separate productions.

[David Sims]

There's a bunch of stories that are.

[Griffin Newman]

Not connected and that had to keep resetting.

[David Sims]

Hail Caesar is all.

[Griffin Newman]

Caesar has all the movies within the movies. And also, like, they True Grit. Not too shortly before that, he was like, we did too many Westerns. We did too many environmental things. He always sort of talked about. It was just like, I felt burnout. It was starting to feel more like a job than a joy. I don't want to get stuck in that rut. I need some time away. Joel sort of felt similarly, but maybe not as extreme as me. There was nothing dramatic.

[David Sims]

Been very clear that nothing dramatic has happened. They see each other all the time. It's not like they're a schism exactly. It's more that Ethan got really.

[Griffin Newman]

We still write stuff.

[David Sims]

Exhausted, right?

[Griffin Newman]

Of. Of the actual wear of the production and the pressures and the money and all this sort of stuff.

[David Sims]

Now Joel goes off to make Macbeth, which is, like. Is so clearly what happens to Ethan as well, which is like, Francis McDormand wanted to do that. He wanted to do it, too. But, like, it's a project that's generating with her. She's sort of challenging him to do something like that. Ethan would never have wanted to do it. They were both very clear, like, you.

[Griffin Newman]

Know, so basically do projects with their wives that feel like very deep collaborations of the thing they would never do on their own or with their brother.

[David Sims]

Right.

[Griffin Newman]

But the timeline is like this sort of whisper, much like the Soderbergh retirement of, like, people are saying they might take a break, then they're being upfront in interviews, right? And they're just like, we're just tired. Ethan, in particular, is burned out. He wants some space. Then Joel and Francis announced Macbeth. And you're like, okay, cool. Interesting. I guess that's the kind of thing that Joel does while Ethan is on hiatus. Then Ethan announces the Jerry Lee Lewis movie, which comes about strangely as, like, their friend T Bone Burnett had been working on some larger project that included a lot of archival footage that wasn't just about Jerry Lee Lewis, but never quite came together. And he's just like, we have all this material. I know you're a big fan of Jerry Lee Lewis. His personal life, not his music. Ethan, to be clear, said the opposite thing. Do you want to do something with this? And they were like, in Deep lockdown pandemic. I think what happened to a lot of right something filmmakers who were like, I'm getting tired, I'm slowing down. Then there's like 18 months where they're doing nothing and they're like, fudge, yeah. What if I never make anything ever again? So they start editing this during the lockdown and are like, this kind of got like Tricia and I are doing this together, working with pre existing material. It's just sort of a construction project. Movie's admittedly very sloppy, but they're like, it got us kind of back into the rhythm of doing it. And so coming out of lockdown, they're suddenly like, do we try to get those scripts made? So even though Ethan was the one who had sort of kickstarted the retirement or at least the hiatus, now suddenly it's like, we sold two movies that we're going to shoot them back to back.

[David Sims]

So they decided to keep it a period piece because of course they could have spruced it up, I suppose, when it was prepped in the early 2000s. Oh, it's shocking to learn that Holly Hunter was considered for a role. Doesn't sound like Selma Blair, Christina Applegate, Chloe Savini. I mean, we're just sort of naming.

[Griffin Newman]

Actresses, people who make a lot of.

[David Sims]

Sense, indie movies and stuff. When the project was revived, they cast Gerald Geraldine Biswanathan pretty much right away based on Blockers, which is a movie. She's very funny in.

[Griffin Newman]

You know what? She's very funny in literally every movie.

[David Sims]

She's basically the most luminous, beautiful person in the world. I think she's obsessed with her.

[Griffin Newman]

She is one of those people who I just think is always funny without ever feeling like she's pushing. Also, I, I, I never get over her accent.

[David Sims]

She's a babe.

[Griffin Newman]

No, but I'm saying that she's Australian.

[David Sims]

I know. She's got a great accent.

[Griffin Newman]

She has the most immaculate American accent.

[David Sims]

Wow. Australia. That's Australian power. They're always doing all the accents, but she's great and pretty much everything I've ever seen her in. But it is interesting that they cast her in this role off of Blockers because in Blockers, she's sort of like the horny, chaotic one and in this one she's the straight laced, you know, fuss budget. But so she did audition for. Yeah, she auditioned for Marion. Yeah, I don't know. Yeah, I was, I thought, I thought the research threw me. I thought she was. Yeah, Margaret Qualley also auditioned for Marion.

[Griffin Newman]

Okay.

[David Sims]

Oh, but they loved Geraldine. So she tried again for Jamie and she got the part. Wow. Crazy.

[Griffin Newman]

JJ really finding gems.

[David Sims]

Here's what are you gonna do?

[Griffin Newman]

They all seen, auditioned and received the role.

[David Sims]

Beanie Feldstein, who's very funny in this movie.

[Maya Pog]

Great.

[David Sims]

You know, she had a great time making it. Matt Damon shows up for a day.

[Griffin Newman]

Ethan had a great quote about Beanie Feldstein, which he said, there's nothing better than hiring a great actor and just telling them to play angry.

[David Sims]

Right.

[Griffin Newman]

And I'm like, that is so much of the Cohen's interest is someone they think is a skilled actor and then writing like pages of just furious dialogue.

[Maya Pog]

I think that's so fun to do.

[Griffin Newman]

It's always fun.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

They bring in Miley Cyrus and are like. So I don't know if you've heard of Cynthia Plastercaster, who is basically who she's playing in this. And she's like, oh, I'm very aware of Cynthia Plastercaster. And we were like, okay, great. So then she got it. But yeah, I think Miley and Damon basically are just doing like a day. Same Pedro Pascal, similarly. But they made his head.

[Griffin Newman]

Yes.

[David Sims]

A lot of Domingo for a week or so.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

Right. I mean, I don't know. Right.

[Griffin Newman]

Everyone's just Damon Pascal above the title, front and center on the poster. Miley Cyrus, uncredited. Ben, you had not seen this movie before?

[Ben Hosley]

No.

[Griffin Newman]

I assumed you are familiar with the Cynthia Plaster Caster legend or did you not know about it before this movie? So the Miley Cyrus character is based on this real woman. The film is dedicated to her? Yes.

[David Sims]

In 2022.

[Griffin Newman]

Yes. Dedicated to Cynthia plaster caster 1947. 2022, we remember is the dedication at the end of the film. But she was this like infamous groupie put in. In very strong culture person where her signature was every rock star she slept with. She would take a cast of their erect penis.

[Ben Hosley]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

Frank. Frank Zappa gave her a lot of money but never got his dick cast. He really liked what she was doing, but he never. He never did it himself.

[Ben Hosley]

He's a real dang ass freak.

[David Sims]

Famously Jimi Hendrix. Jimi Hendrix is maybe her most famous.

[Ben Hosley]

I remember that. Maybe Jim Morrison too.

[Griffin Newman]

Yep.

[David Sims]

Jim Morrison got his dick out for somebody. Are you sure? That guy. But it's like every story about Jim Morrison is like. And then he got the concert ended early because he got his dad.

[Griffin Newman]

The dick. Wanted to do a jazz set.

[Maya Pog]

Rock piano, probably.

[David Sims]

Yes. Oh my God. I mean, I believe there's. There's a famous museum in Iceland that is like a museum of penises. And I believe some of her most famous works are housed there.

[Ben Hosley]

What do you mean?

[David Sims]

It's called the Iceland Phical Museum, and it is the world's largest display of penises. Have you been there, Maya?

[Maya Pog]

No, I haven't been there, David, but I have heard of it. Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

Is the Rasputin jar there?

[Maya Pog]

I don't know.

[Griffin Newman]

There's the infamous Rasputin jar.

[David Sims]

I don't think it's there.

[Griffin Newman]

Okay, I'll let you guess what's in the jar.

[Ben Hosley]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

Oh, yeah.

[David Sims]

It is funny that they took so long to kill Rasputin, right? Like, the whole thing where there's like, they shot him, they threw him in the river, they stabbed him. He was like, I'm still alive. And they're like, jesus Christ. And he's finally dead. And they were like, get his dick.

[Griffin Newman]

They're like, pushing him into the incinerator. I got a jar.

[Maya Pog]

Wait.

[Griffin Newman]

I think this is a very clever thing to reverse engineer a noir caper.

[David Sims]

Around, like, Cynthia Plaster caster style.

[Griffin Newman]

The twist of this movie that is hidden in the marketing.

[David Sims]

Right.

[Griffin Newman]

Is that the entire conspiracy around this movie is that a conservative politician is worried that his reputation could be ruined by a. A mold that exists of his penis from the one, the one time quote that he smoked marijuana. And the idea of this briefcase, that is five men whose reputations could be ruined as like, conservative ball busters by knowing that they had promiscuous use, I think is fun.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

I just think it's like a fun twist on the, like, what's in the suitcase thing. It's perfect to be like. It's the goofiest and most embarrassing thing that these guys are so in their.

[Ben Hosley]

Heads about the weirdest form of blackmail.

[Maya Pog]

Yes.

[Ben Hosley]

That I've seen in a story.

[Maya Pog]

Absolutely. Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

But it also speaks to the sort of mission statement of this movie, which is just like, this is silly. This movie is about people shooting each other over a briefcase full of dicks. It's literally a briefcase full of dicks.

[David Sims]

The Kinsey Institute also has many of her casts, Just FYI. I'm just really.

[Griffin Newman]

We're located academic voice here. Yeah.

[David Sims]

It's funny because it's like, I feel like this was this kind of weird underground whim of her hers. And then culture and society shifted and by the 2000s, museums were like, can we get some of your dicks?

[Griffin Newman]

So many of these dicks died at 27 that it's like, we didn't know we weren't going to have them around.

[David Sims]

For rip Dicks Anyway, so they made the movie together. Trish is basically co director of the movie in every way but name because of, as we've said, DJ stuff. Ethan is a DJ member. He can't exactly be joining a new collaboration without a lot of work. So, yeah, he really liked making this movie. To quote Ethan Cohen, as someone says in John Carpenter's the Thing, I'm all better now. I think it's Wilford Brimley right before he turns into a raving space monster.

[Griffin Newman]

It's the thing they kept saying was they were both feeling so run down and worn out that they were like, if we're gonna make a movie again, we need to have fun. And this is a movie that's clearly just people being like, let's just have some fun.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

No, I understand. It is very frustrating and perhaps perplexing to some people who are used to the very meticulous, intentional, tight craft of the Coen brothers movies. They know to watch a movie that has, like, every imovie special effect edit in it and, like, basically like, fart sound effects and feels kind of like. I wouldn't say indifferently constructed, but feels loose. But he very much, like, talks about this. It's. It's his other stuff. He does, like, these books, like, he'll do these Knights of One act plays, his poetry, these things where it's clear, like, I need to let off steam. And that stuff doesn't get as much spotlight on it. And this is because it's a movie more studied, you know, in. In comparison to his canon.

[David Sims]

The, you know, the crew, you know, Ari Wenger. Wenger.

[Griffin Newman]

Wenger. Oh, yes.

[David Sims]

You know, is the dp, incredibly respected power of photographer who did power. Academy Award nominee, you know, like, it's not. Carter Burwell, of course, shows up to do the score.

[Griffin Newman]

Like, it's not like, still skip, leave, say. But a lot of their key collaborators are. Are different on this. Yeah, it's like half and half.

[David Sims]

They make it clear that, like, Deacons probably would not have operated the camera this way had they, you know, had they used him. Right. They shot it in Pittsburgh, even though obviously it's a road trip movie. Many of the bars in the film are inspired by real life bars that Cook enjoyed, like Sugar and Spice, a bar in Brooklyn that doesn't exist anymore called Caddyshack, the Cubby Hole, which is a famous bar that's one of the.

[Griffin Newman]

Last ones still standing in New York.

[David Sims]

Yeah, well, Ginger, of course, in Park Slope is the one I have been to. And I. I Love that bar.

[Griffin Newman]

David put his hands over his heart.

[David Sims]

I've been going there since I used to live next door to it when in, like, 2008. And one thing you might not have noticed about this film, it's a little different from other Coen Brothers movies or whatever is. It's filled with lesbian sex.

[Griffin Newman]

Yes.

[David Sims]

To quote Trisha Cook, I'm very sex positive. I think there's a lot of embarrassment around sex and shame. And if you have too much sex, you're considered a slut. But let's just embrace love and sex, especially if it's good humor and not crass, though. I'm not against crassness.

[Griffin Newman]

Yes. I will also say this.

[David Sims]

I would say this film is not exactly crass, but it is, you know. You know, it's juvenile in good, fun ways. It's silly.

[Griffin Newman]

I also think a lot of embarrassment and shame around sex is how sex is almost exclusively portrayed in the films of Joel and Ethan Cohen working together. You know, like, sex is usually something that is, like, embarrassing or is used as, like, a weapon or something that feels tortured. It's just. It is very odd to watch this movie introduce characters, like, in, like, states of pure ecstasy, which is not a thing. That's your usual entry point into the world of, like, Hulman Brothers characters.

[David Sims]

So I've got a question for all the gamers out there. Are you seriously gonna miss out on Alienware's biggest gaming sale of the year?

[Griffin Newman]

I mean, these are Black Friday prices we're talking about, so it's not just another sale. I took a look, and this is some pretty big bang for your buck.

[David Sims]

Yeah, you know, it's Alienware with some of the most advanced engineering out there. They got systems at top of reviewers lists. And what about a gift for yourself?

[Griffin Newman]

Gift yourself a new Alienware 16 Area 51 gaming laptop. I mean, this thing's got performance at the absolute next level with Intel Dell Core Ultra processors.

[David Sims]

And even better, you can get it during Black Friday. Plus, you can save on all kinds of displays and accessories, like the Alienware 27 4K QD OLED gaming monitor for ultimate visual fidelity. I might need that. These really are incredible deals on PCs with otherworldly performance.

[Griffin Newman]

Here's what I'd do. I'd visit alienware.com deals soon and grab what you can before their biggest sell of the year goes dark. David.

[David Sims]

Yes.

[Griffin Newman]

This episode is brought to you by mubi, the global film company that champions great cinema. From iconic directors to emerging auteurs, there is always something new to discover and With Mubi, each and every film is hand selected so you can explore the best of the cinema. Streaming anytime, anywhere.

[Maya Pog]

But also.

[Griffin Newman]

David.

[David Sims]

No, that's it. That done. Good recommendation of Mubi no.

[Griffin Newman]

What? Also projected upon the silver screen.

[David Sims]

Yes.

[Griffin Newman]

Mubi releases films too in physical movie theaters.

[David Sims]

And they've got a humdinger called Die My Love.

[Griffin Newman]

It's the new picture from Lynne Ramsey, someone I have long maintained is one of our finest living filmmakers.

[David Sims]

That is true.

[Griffin Newman]

A genius in my opinion. It is coming to US theaters on November 7th. It is a visceral and uncompromising portrait of a woman engulfed by love and madness. Who's playing that woman, David?

[David Sims]

Jennifer Lawrence. Have you heard of her? This film is excellent.

[Griffin Newman]

You've seen it?

[David Sims]

I sure have.

[Griffin Newman]

I am dying to see it, I guess. Dying, my love, to see it.

[David Sims]

Yes. It stars Jennifer Lawrence and Robert Pattinson, two of our very exciting stars as.

[Griffin Newman]

Mystique and Batman themselves.

[David Sims]

They are playing a couple who moves out to the woods to Montana to raise their kid. After they have a kid and feel normal, everything goes regular for them in their brains when they do this.

[Griffin Newman]

This is her first film since you were never really here. One of my favorite movies of the last decade.

[David Sims]

Yes, it was a can. It's very, very intense. Very incredible performance from Jennifer Lawrence. Especially in my opinion. Awesome soundtrack that I think Ben's gonna dig.

[Griffin Newman]

I think Lynne Ramsey makes movies differently than anyone else on the planet. I feel like she is uniquely skilled at a kind of method she has created for depicting the inner life through sound and image. Her movies thrill me. And I will say, if you're a listener listener of this podcast, it might be beneficial to go see Die My Love sooner rather than later. Winky winky. Die My Love is now in theaters.

[David Sims]

Go see it.

[Griffin Newman]

You can visit mubi.com dye my love for showtimes and tickets. And to stream great films at home. You can Try MUBI free for 30 days at MUBI.comblankcheck that's M u b I.com blankcheck for a whole month of great cinema for free.

[David Sims]

Let's talk about the film Driveway Dolls. Yes, it's about a couple girls, Marion we open with. I've said their names many times.

[Griffin Newman]

Pedro Pascal.

[David Sims]

We open with Pedro Pascal in a.

[Griffin Newman]

Gay bar doing full kind of like noir.

[Maya Pog]

Wait, is it a gay bar or is he's just in a regular bar but he's a gay man. Which is why I thought it flipped. Later on in the movie I thought.

[Griffin Newman]

Oh, you might be right. Yeah, you're Right.

[David Sims]

I was really thrown because I've never seen that guy in a movie before. Who is he?

[Maya Pog]

I don't know.

[David Sims]

What's he up to?

[Griffin Newman]

Can we talk about. Because this is basically the start of the two year run of Pedro Pascal being in everything he was.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

Yes. He's in a lot of things. In 2024 alone. In 2025, he's taken a break and only been in three movies that came out within a month of each other or whatever. And then next year, of course, he will be in the Mandalorian Grogu. All over it, I assume.

[Griffin Newman]

Yes, all in it.

[David Sims]

He's inside and then he is maybe either the most important avenger or has five minutes in Avengers, Doomsday, whatever they settle on for that one.

[Griffin Newman]

I just think there was this barrage of him getting announced attached to every single thing.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

And even the amount of stuff he's dropped out of, like the aforementioned weapons. Right. Yeah. Because his dance card got two full.

[David Sims]

It was going to be the Bron Roll, I assume.

[Griffin Newman]

I find it funny. And it started with this film that I kept being like, how does he have the time to do all these movies? And then other than Fantastic Four, the answer to every single one of those is he's not in as much as you. He has been.

[David Sims]

It's true. Like Materialist, he's very much the third lead, at least screen time.

[Griffin Newman]

And I liked him a lot in that. But like Freaky Tales, the movie that only I have seen.

[David Sims]

I know, I watched it.

[Griffin Newman]

It's good, right?

[David Sims]

I thought it was okay. It bounced off me a little bit, but I liked it.

[Griffin Newman]

Okay. I think he's really good.

[David Sims]

He's good.

[Griffin Newman]

I think his section's kind of the best.

[David Sims]

It is. Yes.

[Griffin Newman]

But that's a pure omnibus movie.

[David Sims]

Yeah. That's. He's only in 20 minutes of a.m. i what we did you like him? Immaterialists?

[Maya Pog]

I liked him in Materialist. I think that I have like a lukewarm take about Pedro Pascal. I feel like. I think maybe my take about Pedro Pascal is that I have a lukewarm feeling towards Pedro Pascal's performances in some of his movies. I really like him. I think he is like fun to watch on screens. But I would say the people in the movies that he has been in have been people that I've been more interested in watching.

[David Sims]

Maya, I completely agree with you. And I don't think he's been good in a movie period in a long time. And when I. And I don't mean bad, like maybe all Right. He hasn't been great, if that makes sense. Like, I think he's usually pretty good, but when I ask people this question, and I have been doing it because he's on everyone's mind of what is Pedro Pascal's greatest performance? Almost everyone says Game of Thrones, which I think is the right answer, but you're kind of like, right.

[Griffin Newman]

Five episodes.

[David Sims]

Still kind of dining out on that.

[Griffin Newman]

Ten years.

[David Sims]

Who the was he on that? He was, of course. Did you. Did you watch Game of Thrones?

[Ben Hosley]

Yeah, I did. I just have no memory, period.

[David Sims]

He played just.

[Maya Pog]

Just generally like everything.

[David Sims]

Played Oberyn Martell, the Red Viper. He's the guy who shows up in, what is it, season three from Dorne being like, you killed my, you know, wife. Like, I am. I'm sorry, sister, not wife to die. You know, I have a big spear. I want to have a fight, you know, remember him? And he's like, he's bisexual. He's got a paramore. He's like, he's coming in. Do you care about Game of Thrones?

[Maya Pog]

I haven't watched it. Okay.

[David Sims]

All right. Well, I'm the only Game of Thrones fan here, I guess.

[Griffin Newman]

I just remember casual. I remember my brother James who was like, who? Like this. Who is this guy? Is this guy getting be a big movie star?

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

And he was already at that point, cuz. What is he? He's 50 now, like, so he was already like, probably 40. And like, he'd been bumming around in movies for years, not getting famous, you know, being in stuff.

[Griffin Newman]

Yes.

[David Sims]

And then suddenly it was like, he was like, great to have as your, like, third guy. Right? Like, Great Wall, Kingsman 2.

[Griffin Newman]

I mean, Kingsman 2 is like, right. Great Wall. He's the second guy. Kingsman 2 is. We couldn't get Channing Tatum for the full time, so can you do it?

[David Sims]

Triple Frontier. He's like kind of the third guy in that. Right.

[Griffin Newman]

He does a couple seasons of Narcos, you know, 84.

[David Sims]

He's the villain.

[Griffin Newman]

Beel Street. He's got a good small part, but.

[David Sims]

It'S sort of like he's always totally solid.

[Griffin Newman]

It's sort of like he's like high level character actor with matinee looks and charisma. I was talking about this with our buddy Mike Carlson. A podcast, the Ride, where he was just like, am I crazy in thinking he is the rare case of someone who exploded where you can't point to. And that's the moment where it happened where it's like exactly what you're saying Game of Thrones, everyone's like, this guy's good. Then there's like six years of him showing up and doing sturdy work.

[Maya Pog]

Good.

[Griffin Newman]

And then in like 2019, everyone decided, I think he's the guy now. But there was not the role that made everyone jump to I haven't seen.

[David Sims]

The Cage movie, which I know everyone says he's fun in the Unbearable Weight of Master.

[Griffin Newman]

He's really good in that.

[David Sims]

But I know that's a joke supporting role. And I thought he was good in Gladiator 2, but that's a movie that kind of doesn't know what to do with.

[Griffin Newman]

And that seems like the inverse of the Kingsman thing of maybe he wasn't available as much as they wanted.

[David Sims]

That's exactly what happened with that movie. Because he, I mean, you know, spoiler alert dies. And I was told by someone like, initially he didn't die. And then they were like, oh, he's, he's got to go.

[Griffin Newman]

Pedro's now kind of a Sean, kill him off because of scheduling. I mean, the Bubble is the worst movie ever made. Right? It's, I mean, 20 freaky tales, drive Away Dolls, the Uninvited, Wild Robot, which he's very good in. He's Gladiator.

[David Sims]

He's good in Wilder.

[Griffin Newman]

That's the movie that Walton Goggins wife wrote and directed that has every actor in it because of being friends. He hosts SNL. He does the SNL 50th. He does the Spike Jones AirPods commercial. Eddington, the last.

[David Sims]

I think he's very well deployed in Eddington. Like, I think that's a good performance, but it's not. Again, it's not the crux of the movie.

[Ben Hosley]

Could we unpack the AirPods for commercial? Just talk about some of our favorite stand up.

[Griffin Newman]

You want to do a full like denim invasion on this?

[Ben Hosley]

I think we might actually.

[David Sims]

Yeah, you know what?

[Ben Hosley]

We should just do a separate.

[Griffin Newman]

I feel like that's the moment when that commercial starts playing. That's the moment where everyone's like, okay, too much.

[Ben Hosley]

Yes.

[Griffin Newman]

You can't also be in ads. And it's also because since everyone loves him and the weird answer to this is like, I think he's become more of a star because of press tours than performance.

[David Sims]

He's lovable, he's good on SNL.

[Maya Pog]

Charismatic. Yeah, etc.

[Ben Hosley]

He's got a great mustache.

[Maya Pog]

He does, he does.

[David Sims]

He looks a good looking guy. I think he's fine on the Last of Us, but I think he was not well Cast and whatever. That show just kind of.

[Griffin Newman]

I think Eddington and Materialist cast him very well because in both cases he's kind of a fake movie star in them. That's what I like about it.

[Maya Pog]

Right.

[Griffin Newman]

Is I'm like, this is him acknowledging that the movie is about the idea of him being the guy. And he is good at showing how much of a kind of facade it is.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

I think Fantastic Four is like a pretty brutal miscasting.

[David Sims]

He's. He's oddly cast and. Or the movie isn't working to like, fit the character around him.

[Griffin Newman]

I was.

[David Sims]

You know what I mean?

[Griffin Newman]

They announced him. I like that movie a lot more than you did. But I cannot deny that like. Like the movie's biggest issue in a way is that he is not the right motor for that vehicle.

[Maya Pog]

Or.

[David Sims]

Yeah. Or just change cast him and then. Yeah. Just change the part a little bit to. I don't know. He. He feels uncomfortable in that movie.

[Griffin Newman]

He does.

[David Sims]

And that movie also is just kind.

[Griffin Newman]

Of like wonderous if part of it is that that's the only movie that's asked him to like, really be the guy at the center. Maybe in a certain way. That is maybe not what he's good.

[David Sims]

At doing driveway dolls did. He's at the center of this movie for 90 seconds.

[Griffin Newman]

I mean, this is the thing. When he does stuff like this, I'm like, I love this guy. It's cool that he showed up for a day and used his cachet. Like, that's the part of him I really like.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

And I also think, like, in 90 seconds with almost no dialogue, you're like, he's having fun here.

[Maya Pog]

Yes.

[Griffin Newman]

You're like, this guy's like making comedic choices. I don't want to oversell this performance, but I'm just like, I thought it was good. He's enjoying the, like, broadness of it.

[Maya Pog]

It's good, silly.

[Griffin Newman]

He's doing business. But this guy is basically chased down a dark alley with a briefcase and then killed. And then we hard cut to cunnilingus. Is that correct?

[David Sims]

Yeah. Hard to cut to a sex scene.

[Griffin Newman]

Yes.

[David Sims]

And Jamie, our character, our hero Jamie, played by Margaret Qualley, is a free spirited lady in Philadelphia who has a girlfriend, Beanie Felt Dinosuke. But their relationship is essentially imploding because Jamie sleeps around a lot, I guess.

[Griffin Newman]

Guess she's in the middle of a hookup.

[David Sims]

Right.

[Griffin Newman]

And with a cop.

[David Sims]

Is that what is. Is that. No, Beanie's the cop. Yeah, but I remember the like. Right. All the cop paraphernalia.

[Maya Pog]

Yes.

[Griffin Newman]

Yes.

[David Sims]

Right.

[Ben Hosley]

I love a classic. Answering machine goes off.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[Ben Hosley]

While you're home.

[David Sims]

Give you some exposition about the character.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

Their message.

[Griffin Newman]

Another reason for this movie to be set in 1999, you know that it's just like a tape goes like, beep. I mean, and there's no way to turn it off. The.

[David Sims]

The Big Lebowski. The dude is not in. It is a good way to. Yeah. To set out the. Yeah. Have you seen Big Lebowski?

[Maya Pog]

I haven't.

[Griffin Newman]

Wow.

[Maya Pog]

I know.

[Griffin Newman]

I guess Big Lebowski is the second most sexual film in the canon behind this and yet.

[David Sims]

Right. But what feels funny?

[Griffin Newman]

Overwhelmed by sex.

[David Sims]

Yeah. But in Big Label, I mean, I just. I love that movie. But, like, it's like Julianne Moore being, like, you know, so sexual at him, and he's just like. Huh. It's funny.

[Griffin Newman]

And even his sexual fantasies, he has no agents.

[David Sims]

Right. But, you know, Jamie's a free spirit, and she barely wears clothes, and she has a great time. And then she's got a friend.

[Ben Hosley]

She has the best look.

[David Sims]

Go ahead.

[Ben Hosley]

I. I just. I love the cut off sleeves.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[Ben Hosley]

I love the haircut. It's. It's kind of like rocker chick. Like, all of her fits throughout. I'm just like, damn, I want to cut my sleeves off.

[Maya Pog]

You can, man.

[Ben Hosley]

I don't know. It's not quite the gun show.

[Griffin Newman]

You're working on it.

[Ben Hosley]

I'm working on it.

[Griffin Newman]

You're working on it.

[Ben Hosley]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

I just want to call out. Pedro Pascal is credited at the end of this film as Penis Collector.

[Maya Pog]

I think I saw that when I watched the credits for the first time, and I. I laughed.

[Griffin Newman]

There are a lot of characters in this movie that don't have proper names. You know, it's the goon. The goon. The chief penis collector. But we're introduced to Marion at her office job, being sort of hit on by a wet blanket dude. She is literally button down. She dresses like office Austin Powers.

[David Sims]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

She.

[David Sims]

She's very overdressed.

[Ben Hosley]

She's.

[David Sims]

I think her intro scene is very funny.

[Griffin Newman]

Just.

[David Sims]

Just her manner and the way of shutting the guy down and all that.

[Griffin Newman]

I. I think if she has a fastball, a special move, she is better at doing high energy, deadpan than almost anyone else. You know, she's working.

[David Sims]

You know, she's in stuff. But what can we do to make her America's sweetheart or whatever? Geraldine.

[Griffin Newman]

To go back to earlier point, she is very much a star where you're like, we don't make the movies that Help her.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

You know, and when she, like, took over the role in Thunderbolt, that IO vacated, you're sort of just like, I guess that is good for her. Like, just anything to get her more exposure.

[David Sims]

That role was bigger than I thought it was gonna be. When you hear, like, oh, she's the assistant, you're like, well, that sounds like.

[Griffin Newman]

And I like that she's got, like, flirtation with Sebastian. Stan. At least they're letting her not just be a functionary.

[David Sims]

She's gonna be Songbird. Right? Isn't that. Yeah. I'm not to.

[Griffin Newman]

Does that mean anything to you? Maya, the idea. Songbird.

[Maya Pog]

That was a lot of talking coming at me for just a second. Songbird. She might be Songbird. I actually. I do love the mcu. I fell off.

[Griffin Newman]

Did you grew up.

[David Sims]

Did you grow up with the mcu?

[Maya Pog]

I did. Like, I had the encyclopedias. I still have the encyclopedias for, like.

[Griffin Newman]

But were you a comics person or was movie. Mostly Was Universe the entry. Okay.

[Maya Pog]

Mostly movies. I. I think, like, comics kind of came later. But I love the mcu. I went and saw Thunderbolts just because it was, like, the first movie in a long time that I had heard, like, Like. Yeah, different than what they'd been doing because I. I got tired.

[David Sims]

It's different from what they have been doing, which was bad movies.

[Maya Pog]

Yes, exactly.

[Griffin Newman]

Did you see Fantastic Four?

[Maya Pog]

I didn't yet, but it's on my list. I have to do it.

[Griffin Newman]

Song.

[David Sims]

Yeah, the music.

[Griffin Newman]

No, I. I. Look, I like that movie. And yet I think you're better off watching seven Coen Brothers movies in a month.

[Maya Pog]

I had a great time. Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

Rushing to the theater. I'm not gonna argue, but.

[David Sims]

Yeah. My Geraldine question. Right? There's a. The ten years ago. Hey, you're gonna play Mel in this movie, but we. We have plans for you to be Songbird in three more movies. That's exciting.

[Griffin Newman]

Who knows?

[David Sims]

Now it's kind of like, oh, you're gonna be Songbird. And it's like, yeah. In what? Like, what do you actually have going on, guys?

[Griffin Newman]

To what end? Yeah, she works a lot, and I.

[David Sims]

Feel like she gets very funny in Ojai.

[Griffin Newman]

Good work.

[David Sims]

She made with Molly Gordon, who I think she's friends with.

[Griffin Newman]

Yes.

[David Sims]

She's, you know, she's great. I just want her to be in.

[Griffin Newman]

More stuff, like Broken Hearts. Gallery was meant to be a theatrical movie.

[David Sims]

Sorry.

[Griffin Newman]

But I remember the reviews at the time being like, when is someone gonna write a good vehicle?

[David Sims]

I watched that.

[Griffin Newman]

There's a lot of that energy.

[David Sims]

Let's go, baby. And it was pretty bad.

[Griffin Newman]

And she's so goodness. And I do think she's, like, the best reason to see this is it is the best Geraldine Viswanathan vehicle we have gotten so far.

[Maya Pog]

Absolutely.

[Griffin Newman]

She is very much the heart of the movie.

[David Sims]

Yes.

[Griffin Newman]

Even though it's sort of quality driving the story. Like, the emotional arc of the movie is entirely her.

[Maya Pog]

She's so big. It's, like, so hard to have the grumpy sunshine, Bert and Ernie vibe of, like, Geraldine's character. Miriam is such a wet blanket.

[David Sims]

She's tough. She's a tough fan.

[Griffin Newman]

But that's what I mean about the high energy, deadpan thing, you know? Like, she still does feel like she exists in this world that is pitched at such a high register.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

David's hugging baby. Joy, is there a point you want to make?

[David Sims]

Margaret's character. Margaret Collie's character, whose name, of course, and I'm checking now, is Jamie. I keep forgetting. It's like. Yes. Does she have an arc? Her arc is that she maybe learns to be 5% less much. Right. Like, it's just like, hey, Jamie, dial it down slightly. Sometimes you're. You go a little overboard.

[Griffin Newman]

She is. You know, she represents my favorite Ethan Cohen thing, which is the character who takes 18 paragraphs to get across a one sentence idea.

[David Sims]

She reminds me of Walter in Big Lebowski, but, like, in a positive energy way instead of a negative energy way.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

Not just in that she won't shut the fuck up, but also in that, like, she will start doing a plan without even checking with anyone. Like, she'll fucking graffiti the car. Like. Like, she'll just sort of do stuff where you're like, why would you do that? That's even, like, actively harmful to what we're doing.

[Griffin Newman]

Those characters are often a little evil or at least malicious. Exactly, Exactly. And she's not lady killers and all these people. Like, I mean, he's well intentioned, but Nick Cage and Raising Arizona, who's similarly kind of this, like, mischievous. I mean, the. The. I've had it with love. I know bards and troubadours are high on it, but I don't believe it's relevant to the modern 20th, soon to be 21st century lesbian. That kind of, like, sentence that, like, goes off into side directions within heart.

[David Sims]

It's quite a challenge to love an actor.

[Griffin Newman]

And her arc is that she comes to realize that maybe she actually wants emotional underpinnings in her relationships with people.

[Maya Pog]

I feel like I don't know, I wasn't convinced by the end. When you get to, like.

[David Sims]

Yeah, it's the big question.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

Because this is a movie essentially about Jamie and Marion falling in love and finding happiness with each other.

[Griffin Newman]

It is two women of the same orientation who share a friend group who've known each other a long time, but have never been romantic or sexual with each other, going on this road trip that is sort of driven by this kind of super bad, we gotta get you laid tonight.

[David Sims]

Right? Jamie's like, okay, forget me. You need to be getting laid. Right. To Marion. And Marion's like, I don't want to deal with that. I just want to read Flaubert or whatever it is.

[Griffin Newman]

But there's a sort of surprising catching feelings, Henry James thing of they never have seen each other that way. Then it's sort of like, do we need to do this just as means to an end? And then have we actually fallen into something deeper? I think Geraldine plays that perfectly. I think maybe part of what we're getting at is that, like, the scenes where you need to be sold that quality is going through the same kind of. Or her own parallel transformation are still her just monologuing, seemingly unaffected by what any other character is doing.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

Would you want to marry Jamie? Not Mary. Fine. Date Jamie. Jamie, like, be in a serious relationship with Jamie.

[Maya Pog]

No, no, don't think I would.

[David Sims]

I think it's so annoying.

[Maya Pog]

I would want to hang out with Jamie, but Jamie's great.

[David Sims]

Hang.

[Maya Pog]

Absolutely.

[David Sims]

Someone to be crazy with and then be like, okay, Jamie, I'll see you.

[Griffin Newman]

In a couple weeks. Is there a slightly better version of this script where in the last 20 minutes, Jamie becomes a little more pulled back and Marion starts to be the one? Maybe, you know, like.

[David Sims]

Yes.

[Griffin Newman]

Instead, sell that more if there's a transference of energy rather than them meeting a little bit towards the middle.

[David Sims]

So go ahead.

[Maya Pog]

Well, I mean, like, I was struggling so much while watching this movie because I feel like there's kind of the. When you get to the end of the movie, I was like, that's a fine movie. But, like, it feels like there's something missing, but there's not inherently anything on paper that feels like there's, like, actually anything missing. No, but when you look at the two main characters, I think there's like. Like you have Geraldine giving, like, an excellent performance to a wet blanket character who feels like is playing it. She's playing it so straight the whole movie with, like, the wackiness going on around her where Margaret Qualley's character Jamie is like so zany and out there and kind of feels like obviously they're thrown into this the midst of something that they were not supposed to be involved in. And that's the whole point. But I think like the performance from Quali feels like it kind of does. Jamie's character makes it a little bit too left of center. But then. And Geraldine's character is such a wet blanket to the point that like, you know, Miriam just kind of doesn't feel like she fits into the zaniness of like Jamie. It feels like it's kind of like two things dancing around each other that never kind of meet up.

[Griffin Newman]

And I think Miriam gets to the middle much more than Jamie. The midpoint of them. Right. And it's like maybe that is the. I don't know. Does this movie not have complete character arcs? No, in a way. And I, you know, the Cohen's love in their work together avoiding the obvious outcome and the kind of like clean cycle and whatever. But when this movie is aiming for far less profound things, you're like, do I want the emotional catharsis of kind of the obvious thing happening at the end? And I do feel like you want the scene at the end where when they're with the two goons, Marion is suddenly able to like fast talk her way around them the way Jamie has before. Like that kind of thing does feel like it would be satisfying. Basically Miriam wants to go visit her aunt.

[David Sims]

Right. The purpose. They're both bummed out.

[Griffin Newman]

Jamie's bored.

[David Sims]

Jamie's bored and just got dumped and kicked out of her house by Suki.

[Griffin Newman]

And she knows about this. The. The notion of the driveway that there's a car that needs to be got gotten from one drop off point to another. They will pay you money.

[David Sims]

A one way rental. But. Right. You're basically being paid for it.

[Griffin Newman]

It. Right, right.

[David Sims]

But basically like this does not exist anymore in any way.

[Griffin Newman]

No, but it's a very good setup for a movie. Another reason in the year it is.

[David Sims]

It'S the same premise as Blank Check the film. Blank check. They. They walk into the business one minute before the person.

[Griffin Newman]

Yes.

[David Sims]

You know, is supposed to get the thing. Like this criminal enterprise has been agreed upon in blank check. It's you will be handed a million dollars or whatever as part of some mob payoff or whatever the is going on in that movie. I already forgot. The kid shows up a minute before and so on. You know, there it goes in this one. They show up, we want to go to Tallahassee and Curly, best performance in the movie, obviously. Bill Camp, completely crushing.

[Griffin Newman]

It has just gotten off the phone.

[David Sims]

It's like, okay, you're the people taking the. The special, you know, delivery to Tallahassee.

[Griffin Newman]

Which they're also being so argumentative and unclear with him on the phone. Like this sort of like. Do we need to repeat it for you again thing that when someone comes in 15 seconds later and Tallahassee, he's just so frazzled by it.

[David Sims]

Joey Slotnick and CJ Wilson as two cony heavy, you know, bickering.

[Griffin Newman]

I saw CJ Wilson in recently.

[David Sims]

Well, CJ Wilson, I feel like is great. An exceptional theater actor.

[Griffin Newman]

Yes. Does a lot of Lonergan stuff.

[David Sims]

Yes. Doesn't do a lot of movies at all. Or tv.

[Griffin Newman]

I feel like I saw him show up young in something and had that kind of shot talk.

[David Sims]

Were you watching?

[Griffin Newman]

I mean, Young Manchester.

[David Sims]

Yeah, he is in those.

[Griffin Newman]

No, you know what it was I was watching.

[David Sims]

What were you watching?

[Griffin Newman]

I was re watching Netflix as the characters. Do you remember that?

[David Sims]

Well, yeah, sure. Like when the comedians had like the.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah, yeah.

[David Sims]

Because Tim Robinson had one.

[Griffin Newman]

Right. That's what I think you should leave comes out of. But that 10 years ago they were like, let's give character comedians the ability to make their own half hour special and can be whatever format they want.

[David Sims]

Yeah. Tim Robinson's one has the, the, the. The gambling guy. The Lady Luck lady. Have you seen this?

[Maya Pog]

I haven't seen this.

[David Sims]

He's playing a guy who's like a.

[Griffin Newman]

You know, is it just like a classic Sinatra?

[David Sims]

Well, he's like, hey, I'm a gambler. Like Lady Luck. He's like, put it all on like whatever. He rolls the dice. I lost all my money.

[Griffin Newman]

It's like three minutes of wind up. They do like Copacabana tracking shot of him knowing everyone at the club and being awesome. And then the first time he bets money and then he just keeps doubling down on it. But this show was like a big flop. But that, that his episode was so liked by comedy people.

[Maya Pog]

I love it.

[Griffin Newman]

That like Lonely Island. Some other folks were like, we'll back you up in doing a Netflix show that no one will ever watch. And that became phenomenal. Anyway, he showed up in that. But this is a lot of the stuff that I love in Cohen movies of like these side characters who feel like they are living off entire stories that are happening just to the side. The whole curly thing of just like this character getting a little more time and investment than any other movie would give him. But also this like Odd side narrative to the goons, who are similarly going through a weird, evil version of the main.

[David Sims]

It's a funny idea, right? They have their own personal. They don't need to hook up, but they do have some dynamic. They need to.

[Griffin Newman]

But they have hooked up, right? That's the blow up at the end I know is like, these two guys are stuck in this car together, like this Fargo dynamic, yelling at each other. And the one guy, the. The classic Cohen's like, big guy and little guy thing, yelling at the other guy for not being masculine enough, right? And sort of pushing this, like, sexuality in this, like, machismo. At the end, you realize they, like, hooked up and both are really freaked out about it and defensive and they shoot each other.

[David Sims]

Joey Slotnick has come up on this podcast because Alex Rush Perry is kind of obsessed with him.

[Griffin Newman]

He was a frequent Craig Kilborn punchline, which. It's a classic Alex Raspberry. You don't remember that? Everyone remembers that. That was the biggest thing on TV in the 90s. I can't believe you don't remember Joey Slotnick. You weren't watching Kilborn every night. Everyone watched Craig Kilbourne.

[David Sims]

Exceptional impersonation of Alex Ross Perry interrogating you about something.

[Griffin Newman]

The only time to take a shower is 5pm You're a lunatic if you take a shower.

[David Sims]

That is the big argument I had with Alex once. You weren't even at the table.

[Griffin Newman]

I just. No, but I still repeat that to other people to explain Alex.

[David Sims]

I just sit down and I'm like, what? He's like, when do you shower? And I'm like, in the morning after I wake up. And he's like, insane, Insane. When do you shower, Maya, you don't have to answer that question. You're a nice shower person.

[Maya Pog]

I'm a night shower person.

[David Sims]

Joey Slotnick used to have big, bouffant, curly hair. And I feel like it was like, a definitive part of his, like, on screen. Like, when you would spot him in a movie, you'd be like, oh, yeah, Joey Slotnick. There he is, I believe.

[Griffin Newman]

Did he not play Larry in the Three Stooges TV movie? There was a very austere Three Stooges TV movie produced by Mel Gibson that I think he played Larry in because he looks so much like Larry. Fine.

[David Sims]

You are thinking of somebody else because Evan Handler, the great bald actor. Evan played him.

[Griffin Newman]

I feel like you know what I'm thinking of.

[David Sims]

What are you thinking?

[Griffin Newman]

Joey Slotnick has been doing Mark's Brothers on stage.

[David Sims]

Oh, Interesting.

[Griffin Newman]

He does Groucho.

[David Sims]

Well, maybe he's good.

[Griffin Newman]

I think he did a stage Duck Soup.

[David Sims]

Okay, that sounds like something I wouldn't want to see. I'm going to be honest with you. But I think he also played. I hate to bring this up, it's so silly, but I must bring it up. Steve Wozniak, inventor of Apple Pirates of Silicon Valley. In the TV movie the Pirates of Silicon Valley, in which Noah Wylie played Steve Jobs and Anthony Michael hall played Bill Gates.

[Griffin Newman]

I just had to say that that was a big TV movie. It had billboards all over the place. At a time where TV movies were not. Not legion. And I just remember walking by that as a kid and being like, God, the casting could never get better than this. Something about it felt faded in the nine in the late 90s to be like, Wiley and Michael Hall. Absolutely.

[David Sims]

Anyway, but it's just fun to see him here. He's an actor I hadn't thought about much. And he shows up as a grouchy hitman. I thought he was pretty good. So he and C.J. wilson are there. You've got Colman Domingo as the chief, who's, I guess, the chief of this operation. And he wears a suit and he has this kind of. I don't know if you guys have noticed this, but he's fairly arresting voice, delivers lines in kind of a, like, melodic and interesting way.

[Griffin Newman]

He's very much a guy I could listen to say anything.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[David Sims]

And then who else is in the mix? I mean, Bill Camp, we shouted out. And Beanie Feldstein is the grumpy ex girlfriend who's a cop.

[Griffin Newman]

That's kind of it. Colman Domingo kind of has quietly been doing the Pedro Pascal thing, but it's totally working.

[Maya Pog]

But I love him. I love anything.

[Griffin Newman]

But it's similar thing of. That guy was around forever. I, for so long have been like, this is one of the best actors on the planet. And it felt like it's finally, like, growing and he's catching on, this guy, quietly, without, like, leading man. Movie star Pressure has gotten two consecutive best actor nominations. He has, you know, like, this guy works perfectly as character actor, supporting lead lead, doing every genre, every type of thing.

[Maya Pog]

He's.

[David Sims]

He's very, very good. In Sing Sing, I did not like Rustin. I didn't either much at all. But I was happy when he got the Oscar nomination because it felt like.

[Griffin Newman]

I felt like this is a nice anointment. And then Sing Sing, I was like, oh, it's great. He's Been nominated for something good. That he's great.

[David Sims]

Right?

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

Yeah. So they get the. They. They get to go on their trip to Florida.

[Griffin Newman]

Right. They're.

[David Sims]

They got this car just for fun. They're not. They're not aware that they're transporting a briefcase of dildos. Right. That's what's in the car.

[Maya Pog]

As well as Pedro Pascal.

[David Sims]

Pedro Pascal, head with On Ice. Why is that included?

[Griffin Newman]

I like, what.

[David Sims]

What is the plausible plot reason to put a head in there. Bring me his head.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah, I think it's a cru.

[Maya Pog]

Just classic. Just classic.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah. Okay, there's the part where she mentions.

[David Sims]

I'm not sure I buy that, but.

[Griffin Newman]

Okay, there's the part where she mentions, like, you know, in her very flowery way. The, like, don't look in the box. I saw a movie where they keeps asking, what's in the box? When you look inside, something's terrible. That's, like, meant to be seven, right?

[David Sims]

Yeah, I guess so. I mean, that's what I think of when I think of a head in a box. Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

It's just funny to think of, like, Ethan Cohen sitting down and being like, I'm Gonna make a 7 reference. When their movies don't really reference other pop culture, especially not contemporaries.

[David Sims]

Not usually. Baby Joe's gonna sit in my shoulder.

[Griffin Newman]

Okay. Baby Joey is sitting on David's shoulder.

[David Sims]

So. So they go on a trip. And of course, boring old Marian just wants to drive down the interstate and fun Jamie wants to go to every single, like, lesbian bar she can think of and see the world's largest Dixie Cup. Is that what it is? Yep, among other things. And they're going to Tallahassee, Florida, which I've never been to, but I do like that Marion is like. It has Spanish moss or whatever.

[Griffin Newman]

And Miami is trashy. They gotta get away from Miami.

[David Sims]

Right, Right. And, you know, there's not too much plot. There's just happening.

[Griffin Newman]

This movie is truly 76 minutes long before the credits roll. And it has long interstitials. Like, it is a thing a lot of people threw out of. Like, how is it 76? End feels padded. Yeah. Because multiple, like, extended esque psychedelic interludes. Crazy.

[Maya Pog]

Yes.

[Griffin Newman]

There is a universe in which you're like, I. I am loath to say this because I'm all for the power of the movies and the movie as an art form, but there's almost a universe in which you're like, hey, Ethan and Trisha Cook. You have, like, a pile of scripts and, like, side notes. Maybe make this, like, an Anthology series. Maybe do like a couple 45 minutes. You know, we were talking about in one of our group texts, there was the. The 90s Showtime series where they got a bunch of directors to remake, like, Roger Corman road pictures like Dante and Robert Rodriguez and stuff. You could, like, see them thematically fitting together more in that kind of way that have been said. I don't feel like this movie is like, Jesus Christ, an hour and 15 minutes and they're running out of steam.

[David Sims]

No, it's not. I do think if it was a minute longer, I would shoot myself in the head, though.

[Griffin Newman]

I. I don't disagree.

[David Sims]

Yes. Like, it definitely needs to be done. Like, when it's wrapping up.

[Griffin Newman]

Can we talk about the editing?

[David Sims]

You're not like, I want more.

[Griffin Newman]

Can we talk about the editing?

[David Sims]

Yes, we can. Trisha, cook.

[Ben Hosley]

Like, animated sequence really quick. That has no connection. Okay.

[Griffin Newman]

It's call forwards to the state of hallucination that Matt Damon's character was in when his dick was being cast. Yeah. Because I start to see Miley Cyrus appear in those before her actual appearance.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

That is the ostensible purpose. I mean, them. I guess.

[Ben Hosley]

I did. I did not read that.

[Griffin Newman]

It's why you need to watch the movie three times. Ben. It's a naughty text.

[David Sims]

I see. Okay.

[Griffin Newman]

It's a naughty layered text. Okay, well, we had that interlude and here's how we're going to cut back to the main conversation. That was me doing my impression of some of the transitions in this.

[Maya Pog]

Really good. That was super good.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah. David.

[David Sims]

Yes.

[Griffin Newman]

Ever had that? My last pair of contacts panic.

[David Sims]

I mean, I've. I've experienced people in my life having that. Okay, well, my wife, my mom.

[Griffin Newman]

Okay, humble burns, humble diagram. Yeah, look, look, I know I have. Or worse. The even worse feeling is being completely out and stuck wearing those bulky glasses I haven't touched in years. You know me, I famously hate wearing glasses. But now I don't even worry about it because my next set is always on the way from 1-800-contacts. They're the only major contact lens retailer that lets me renew my prescription online so I can get my contacts fast.

[David Sims]

No, this is a real thing with contacts. Because, like, sometimes you gotta go back to the optician. Maybe they're closed. Maybe it's hard to renew prescription. They ran out of contacts. 1,800contacts has fast free shipping, delivers the same contacts your doctor prescribes right to the door, all without ever leaving home. They've existed for over 30 years, being the leader in online contact lens delivery millions of contacts in stock. Award winning customer service. Fast free shipping.

[Griffin Newman]

Whoa.

[David Sims]

Over a hundred million contact.

[Griffin Newman]

That's a lot. That's a lot.

[David Sims]

That is a lot.

[Griffin Newman]

That's actually quite a bit free returns.

[David Sims]

And exchanges so you can order confidently. Free torn lens replacement. And they have an online vision exam called express Exam. So if you need to renew your prescription from home, you can do it in less than 10 minutes.

[Griffin Newman]

And their best price guarantee means if you find your contacts at a lower price elsewhere, they'll beat it. That's a promise you won't find everywhere. They have extra discounts for new customers on their site. Their 24,7 customer support is there. If you ever need help, day or night, Tom Cruise, Cameron Diaz, James Mangold. Whether you have a strong prescription or astigmatism, they'll deliver your contacts with fast free shipping straight to your mailbox. And that's a lot better than slow expensive shipping straight into a ditch.

[David Sims]

Yeah. So, you know, 100 contacts could genuinely make life easier if you wear contacts. I know dealing with vision issues is always annoying.

[Griffin Newman]

Always annoying. That's just reality though.

[David Sims]

But this could take a lot of.

[Griffin Newman]

That hassle away, make it a little less annoying.

[David Sims]

Yeah, that's right. Getting contacts doesn't have to be a hassle. Let 1, 800 contacts get you the contact lenses you need right now. Order online at 1-800-contacts.com or download the free 1-800-contacts app today. Day.

[Griffin Newman]

David?

[David Sims]

Yes.

[Griffin Newman]

Have you ever fallen for a scam?

[Maya Pog]

Oh.

[Griffin Newman]

You ever get scammed?

[David Sims]

Once a week, flim flammed long, conned.

[Griffin Newman]

Some well dressed fox tricks you into joining his circus? That ever happen to you?

[David Sims]

Sure, yeah, that happens to me all the time. Why do you ask?

[Griffin Newman]

Why do I ask? Because it's just, it's, it's a, it's a plague of our modern world. It's a problem and some people just accept it. Well, what if you use Cash App?

[David Sims]

Cash app. That's interesting.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

Because they got built in card security that keeps your money safe from fraud and gives you the protections you expect. You know, the holidays are all about finding the perfect gift. But this time of year, not every deal is actually what it seems. Sometimes it's a fox dressed up very nicely with a little cat sidekick who's trying to trick you into joining a circus.

[David Sims]

Yeah, scammers getting creative. They're tricking people into sharing payment info maybe through like a fake shopping site or a giveaway that's too good to be True. Cash App has 24,7 fraud monitoring. It helps detect and alert you for unusual card activity. If someone gains access to your card, you can lock or unlock your Cash App card instantly right in the app for extra control and peace of mind. And yes, it's the holiday season, so you do have. You have to be extra careful. It's not always the real Santa who's emailing you might be a fake one.

[Griffin Newman]

Sometimes someone comes to you, you think with the best intentions. I'm just a humble carriage driver you met at the circus and I'm going to take you to Pleasure island and then they turn you into a donkey. These are the scams that happen every day.

[David Sims]

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[Griffin Newman]

This movie is co directed by an editor who is seemingly enjoying breaking every rule of respectable editing.

[David Sims]

Yes, Trisha Cook edited it after working for many years as the assistant editor to the Cohen's Right. It's not like Trisha Cook had never edited anything before.

[Maya Pog]

No, this is an experienced person, so.

[David Sims]

I think there's a thoughtfulness to how the movie is being presented to us in terms of like, this thing is rickety, it's barely standing on its two feet. Like it's silly. You're supposed to get that it's silly. And I do get that it's silly.

[Griffin Newman]

They make it very clear.

[David Sims]

Yes, I, I think. And I think that's fine. I like the idea that it's ramshackle and it's this car that's gonna fall apart in a minute's notice and that's like playful.

[Griffin Newman]

That's just trying stuff. Yeah.

[David Sims]

I do understand perhaps some, some cinema goers sitting down and being like, you know, I paid like $18, but I hired a baby.

[Griffin Newman]

I mean, it's just an affront.

[David Sims]

You didn't want to just like think about some of this stuff like for a second, like.

[Griffin Newman]

Yes.

[David Sims]

But I do think that's, that's the atmosphere of the film.

[Griffin Newman]

But like not expecting this movie to have like A great show, awesome job vibe.

[Maya Pog]

Imagine this is the first Coen brother movie, I mean, ever seen.

[Griffin Newman]

But I think that's ideal.

[Maya Pog]

It was awesome, right?

[Griffin Newman]

You're like, oh, so they're just guys.

[Maya Pog]

Exactly. I literally was like, oh, so this is their deal. Like, they're just waiting, wacky silly guys putting whatever they want in a movie. And like, truly, I walked in, I used my movie pass. That movie cost me $0. It was a last minute decision to go and see Driveway Dolls. I walked out being like, yeah, I liked it. Like, it's great.

[Griffin Newman]

This movie is a perfect argument for movie going subscription programs.

[Maya Pog]

Yes.

[Griffin Newman]

Like, you're right, David. If, if I recommend it to someone who does not see movies often to pay 18 just to see this. But I'm like, If you're spending $20 a month, month, make driveway dolls one of your two or three in February.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

When the Pickens are slim.

[Maya Pog]

Oh, God, so slim. When this movie came out too, like, I remember feeling like, oh, well, I guess this is it.

[David Sims]

Yeah, a little bit.

[Griffin Newman]

I. I have this and you will.

[David Sims]

See, like, what, what's that old tweet of like, ah, let me find the tweet. You. You say your thought, I'm gonna find the tweet.

[Griffin Newman]

I have this theory and this movie falls into this, right? But it's this sort of old master thing. We were talking about this in one of our group texts the other day of like, old, old filmmakers who contend when people are like, why did you go to digital? Why did you, like, change your filmmaking style? And they're like, I think this looks as good as any of my films. And you're like, your movies used to look immaculate and now you're old and people are offering you less money and you just want to get it over with quickly. There's a lot of that vibe where it's just like, I don't want to belabor this in the same way. And you need to judge those movies differently. Of course, it doesn't mean they're better than their best film films. But you're like, this is the prism of, like, this person's at a stage in their life where they have something they want to say, but maybe they're not as obsessive about the craft and the construction. And I think when Megalopolis was coming out and there was this feeling of like, normal is going to return to the main stage and he's ready to make like, you know, it's been decades, but he's gonna make another Apocalypse now, another Godfather. David's hugging Joey very tightly. And then people were, were alarmed when they saw the trailer and they were like, why does it look like this? And you're like, this guy has not made a normal looking movie in 15 years. Right. And I think there's something like late period Wachowskis has a lot of this as well. Like, Sense eight. And what I think threw a lot of people off in Matrix resurrections were especially people who, like, early in their career are so obsessive about, like, technical innovation and craft and visual storytelling and like, perfect construction and whatever. And then you get to a point where it's like, congratulations, you have made perfect movies. You have made movies that not only will, like, go down a history forever, but people will study, as every hair on this head is like, perfect. How do you challenge yourself at that point? You don't.

[Maya Pog]

You make driveway dolls.

[Griffin Newman]

I. I really think there is a point of, like, the only way I can actually push myself and challenge myself now of try to make something incorrectly on purpose. Which isn't to say make a bad movie on purpose, but, like, I followed all of the rules and even evolved them and I got to the end of that. And then I transmuted it onto lateral genre exercises and I did that as well. What more is there to do other than to sit down and go, well, everyone knows a movie shouldn't be edited like this, but what if I try it?

[David Sims]

The tweet I'm referencing is by Mike Ginn. G I N N not sure pronounce his name. And here's the tweet. I think about it all the time. It's a very famous tweet. Why must a movie be good? Is it not enough to sit somewhere dark and see a beautiful face? Huge. And that is how I feel a little bit about Driveway Dolls, where I'm like, look at all these pretty people.

[Griffin Newman]

I agree.

[David Sims]

Yeah. Driving around, taking their tops off, being silly. Everyone's having fun.

[Griffin Newman]

I sat in a room and there was a big machine behind me that projected a bunch of light onto a screen in front of my face. And then colors moved around.

[Maya Pog]

That's exactly what I was here for. Nothing more, nothing less.

[David Sims]

So, yes. Okay, what are some of the things.

[Griffin Newman]

In this very short movie? It's basically the halfway point. Like, the 30 minute mark is when they hook up, which I also like. That is not something that is held to the very end. It's sort of like they go to.

[David Sims]

A makeout party with a soccer team team.

[Griffin Newman]

High school soccer players.

[David Sims]

Yes. And they make a little too Old.

[Griffin Newman]

To be at a sleepover, Right.

[David Sims]

They're in a basement and everyone's making out and then someone blows a whistle and everyone moves one to the right or whatever. I chuckle too. I think the whole thing is funny. And obviously this is what right gets them to make out. Because they. That, you know, they have to move.

[Griffin Newman]

Along and they're like, oh, we don't. You know, quality's kind of like, this is no big deal. It doesn't mean anything. And then there's the moment where Geraldine pushes away and is just tearfully says, please don't bring someone back to the motel room tonight because we've already set this thing of like she's going to pick up a new partner for that night in every single town while Viswanathan sits in the lobby of this shitty motel. The Europeans reading a novel.

[David Sims]

Right?

[Griffin Newman]

Reading Henry James.

[David Sims]

Yeah, right. Of course it's Henry James because that's the joke. Henry James's driveway dykes at the end. So that happens. They do hook up. They found the head. At some point she runs away.

[Griffin Newman]

Right. Paulie kind of recognizes, oh, I think maybe an emotional thing happened that I need to reckon with.

[David Sims]

Right.

[Griffin Newman]

But then she gets picked up by the cops. Yes, Geraldine does.

[David Sims]

Geraldine gets picked up by the cops for what? Like vagrancy? Because she's like walking around in the darkness. I don't even know. Yes.

[Griffin Newman]

But basically they get split up. Up for that night is the point. And you have the flashback sequence to her sort of like activation moment, which I also helps make her feel like more of a character. Even though these are not like super complicated scenes. That there is just like a kind of viewpoint and perspective on it. And then, yes, I. The arresting thing is just that they get split up for the night, but then discover back to like, like the police officer.

[Maya Pog]

Right.

[David Sims]

She's arrested for being mouthy. Right.

[Griffin Newman]

Discover the dildos, call up Beanie Feldstein to try to get her to help them. Because now they realize we're being chased, we're caught up in something bad.

[David Sims]

Yes. And then they make it to Tallahassee. The greatest kind, of course, quicker than you think. What's the greatest moment?

[Griffin Newman]

The goons going back to kill Curly.

[David Sims]

Yes.

[Griffin Newman]

And Beanie felt in going to check in on him. And this kind of like cruelty of the universe. Cohen's move moment in a movie that otherwise is kind of devoid of that.

[Maya Pog]

Yes.

[Griffin Newman]

Of he is lying, dying, his final breaths. And he takes all the sheets of paper around him and tries to throw him up just to get her attention before she leaves the window and it doesn't happen. The paper falls back on his chair, his chest, and he says, no one's gonna save.

[David Sims]

Won't somebody? Do you think he dies or do you think he's just in pain?

[Maya Pog]

I think. Think. I think he's just in pain. At my first time I watched this, my letterbox review was rumor is has it Curly is still on the floor.

[David Sims]

Right.

[Maya Pog]

So I like to believe.

[Griffin Newman]

Still with us.

[David Sims]

Yeah, I think he's still doing fine. There's no driveway dolls wiki yet, so I can't check in on Curly's individual character entry.

[Griffin Newman]

They need to come up with a name for what they're calling these movies. Do you know what I'm saying? Because then we could make a bigger wikia for the universe. I assume they're not interconnected because we already have two qualys.

[David Sims]

Correct. They are not.

[Griffin Newman]

Not right.

[David Sims]

Honeydont has nothing to do with driveway dolls except that it also feels like it was made quickly and has a bunch of famous people in it, which is fun, but. Right. Being silly. Driveway dolls. Yes. So they go to Tallahassee. They go to this hotel. There's a lot. It's a. I realized on my third watch, as I've now, you know, become an expert in this movie, I'm the mayor of driveway dolls. Like, they get to the hotel kind of fast and like then we are in the last act of the movie for almost half of the movie of this short movie. But that's like the Alamo's dropping your check. They are.

[Griffin Newman]

They are.

[David Sims]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

I do like the decision that it's not about them getting to the hookup, that it's like there's the makeout, then there's the sort of like we have to reckon with these emotions. The dinner at the hotel, which is Geraldine doing this, like very overwritten. What are you saying? I'm saying I want to try having emotions for once.

[David Sims]

Right. I want to have emotional sex rather than just fun.

[Griffin Newman]

That both. I think we should sleep together. That I'm the person to get you out of your rut. But also maybe me living this life without letting myself get catch feelings for any people is depriving myself of something greater. Falls asleep, wakes up Margot Cauley going sicko mode.

[David Sims]

Yes. I was gonna say I was gonna bring this up earlier, where it's like Quali's or Jamie's emotional depth or her evolution, where she's like, I simply had to jerk off. I could not contain myself. There's a whole suitcase of dildos. I cannot wait 20 fucking minutes for you to wake up or whatever.

[Griffin Newman]

It's not only that, but she plays that scene physically. It feels like a cartoon character with their finger.

[David Sims]

Like that. She can't even stop to say sorry. Like, I couldn't contain myself. That she has to continue doing it.

[Griffin Newman]

That it feels like she's waking up next to someone in bed having a seizure. Like she's in danger.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

Yes.

[Griffin Newman]

But from that moment on in the movie, they're, like, together.

[David Sims]

Yeah. And they start having more emotional sex. Yeah, Right. Like the shower sex. It's like, it's all shot in this kind of like, not Looney Tunes way. It's all very gentle and lovely. It's fine.

[Griffin Newman]

And Quali's been doing. Making her own side casts, backups.

[Ben Hosley]

There's a really funny moment in the shower where Geraldine is like, I would like to. And you think she's gonna say something emotional. I would like to also use the dildo.

[Griffin Newman]

Yes. Right. That everything is still very, like, point to fact with her. And I. I like the. The concierge. The hotel a lot.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

His name is Josh Fitter.

[Griffin Newman]

Flitter. No, he's the bellboy at the end who finds the dildo.

[David Sims]

Oh, that's right. So, okay, so who plays the. Because he is funny.

[Griffin Newman]

He's funny. And I just like it a lot as, like, the movie is setting you up to think that this guy is gonna be like, well, I never.

[Maya Pog]

About everything. No, we accept the rainbow card.

[Griffin Newman]

Right. He just loves everything. He's just super cordial. Yeah.

[David Sims]

I'm trying to find his name.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

Or I'm trying to find the actor. What do we think his name is?

[Griffin Newman]

I'm gonna find it. Okay.

[Ben Hosley]

While we're looking, did we talk about the goons and their whole, like, sort of.

[David Sims]

We touched on it.

[Ben Hosley]

Just the game of them sort of the one being like, I appreciate talking to people. You're so aggressive. I. I think it's fun with the two goons visiting the previous locations that they've come from. Interacting with the cheerleaders is really fun.

[Maya Pog]

That was good.

[Ben Hosley]

They, you know, misdirect them. They end up in this, like, bar way out of the way. Tallahassee.

[David Sims]

Oh, yeah. That is a funny.

[Maya Pog]

What is this then? It just is like a guy who's like, starts talking to them about nothing and then it's done and then it never comes back. It's.

[David Sims]

Well, then he distracts the other guys.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah, right.

[David Sims]

John Menchion is that actor.

[Griffin Newman]

I'm so glad I looked up the Conquistador desk clerk.

[David Sims]

Oh, here he is.

[Griffin Newman]

His name is Braxton McCullough.

[David Sims]

Braxton McCullough.

[Griffin Newman]

What a name.

[David Sims]

He's only. It's his first role.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah.

[Maya Pog]

Really?

[Griffin Newman]

Seems like he only did, like, short films before them.

[David Sims]

Correct.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah, but he's very good.

[David Sims]

He's got a funny face.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah, but this is, like, getting to this point of just, like, there is no scene in this movie that I don't find pleasant to watch.

[David Sims]

Exactly. Totally. It can be a bit of a chore on your third viewing, maybe, but it's. It's pleasant and it's fun and it's bubbly and. You know what? Get off my back. Three and a half stars on that.

[Maya Pog]

Bucks.

[Griffin Newman]

Can we talk?

[David Sims]

Maya comments on log it's like, three and a half stars. Come on, buddy.

[Griffin Newman]

This is why I don't do this. I basically, I will only give a star rating if it's a one or a five.

[David Sims]

Right.

[Griffin Newman]

And then otherwise I'm like, it's binary. Heart or. No, heart and heart is basically Liked it.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah.

[Maya Pog]

I do the same thing. I used to actually give star ratings. Then I was like, I think. I don't know what I'm talking about when I give a movie, like, two stars. But if I like it, I'll give it a. Like, if I don't put stars, it doesn't mean it's a bad movie. It's just, like, not worth being like, wow.

[Griffin Newman]

I just never want the quibbling of, like, 3.5. That's the same rating you gave this. Yes.

[David Sims]

I love that.

[Maya Pog]

So, like, 3.5 is either, like, the glowing review of, like, whoa, you're rating this way too high, or somebody's like, it's fine.

[Griffin Newman]

Right.

[Maya Pog]

It's just. Yeah.

[David Sims]

But I like giving star ratings precisely for this reason.

[Griffin Newman]

You with people.

[David Sims]

And then I like that I'm constantly adjusting everything in my letterbox. Nothing is finite. I'm always thinking about, like, okay, how's that movie settled with me? Or, how did it do on rewatch? Or whatever. Like, and I love fiddling with stuff. And I'll see now because people pay attention to me on letterboxd. I'm not bragging people being like, you took it down to a four and a half.

[Ben Hosley]

What does it mean?

[David Sims]

What does it mean? I'm like, I don't know. I just liked it a little. Or. Or I'll take a look at my year list and I'll be like, maybe nothing's actually really reached kind of top for me. Right. And, like, Actually, the stuff I like the most is. Has a bit of a ceiling on it or something. I don't know.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah. Having fun? No, I like doing that. But that's why I'm like, I can walk out of Jurassic World Rebirth and confidently be like one star. Oh, you didn't like that one? You know, and I can like re. Watch Life and Death of Colonel Blimp and be like five, no question. Anything in between. I just kind of don't want to deal with distortious Rex.

[David Sims]

You think he's going to show up in something else? Did you see Jurassic World Rebirth?

[Maya Pog]

I didn't.

[David Sims]

Oh, no.

[Maya Pog]

It's, as I hear, a one star movie.

[David Sims]

It's, it's, it's, it's a bit of a. Yeah. A bit of a pooper.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

It's not a chore. It's more. It's worse than a chore for sure.

[Griffin Newman]

I found it very boring and I did too. There was a very low energy in my, in my Superman Patreon episode where I, I went off in the rant. The thing I forgot to mention was there was a moment where I felt like the movie was ending and I was like, oh, thank God. At least it's almost over. That feels right, right? And then I remembered, oh, the big mutant dinosaur that they show you at the very beginning all over the marketing has not come back yet. And I turned to my friend in like defeat and I was like, oh, there's another half hour. Another half hour. And walking out of that movie, I would have been like, that was three hours on the Nugget and it's like 206 with credits.

[David Sims]

It feels, it feels longer.

[Griffin Newman]

In fact.

[David Sims]

Do you like Jurassic Park?

[Maya Pog]

I do. I love Jurassic Park. Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

Cool. This is what I want to dig into a little more.

[Maya Pog]

Okay.

[Griffin Newman]

Your, your Cohen's experience with now watching them later.

[Maya Pog]

Yes.

[Griffin Newman]

What has been your experience in watching a handful of the classics now? And especially the, the crime capers? Yeah.

[Maya Pog]

Really fun. I of course, have to mention my boyfriend has been a really good guide because he knew that I was. I would be doing the Driveway Dolls episode. And he is well versed in the Cohen's universe. And so he was like, I think these are kind of the closest we can get based off of what their filmography is to what Driveway Dolls ended up being. And so we watched a lot of the Crime Keepers. But I truly like, every time we watched a new one, I was like, these guys love law enforcement. Being present somewhere in a movie. Like, it's very. But that Is that is it. But I. I had so much fun with it. And I think that, like, it was more fun for me to view these movies with fresh eyes at an adult age than, like, like being, I don't know, introduced to them when I was younger. Not necessarily getting to, like, understand the full scope of the characters or the worlds that were being crafted or anything. Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

I also, I think, you know, the Cohen's films are, for me, so much about, like, trying to find a way to live in a, like, cruel, merciless world that lacks meaning. Like, they are not completely nihilistic because the characters are fighting to find something through that understanding of the lack of meaning. But this is one of their few movies where it is like. And then they ended up happily ever after where, like, things can be defeated. Like the cleanness of. Oh, Matt Damon is going to be doing the handoff at the same time that Beanie Feldstein is there with the cat and she can shoot him and his whole corruption can be blown open in a newspaper cover story that no one questions the newspaper cover.

[David Sims]

I want to find it because it is so funny.

[Maya Pog]

Senator shot outside of lesbian bar or something.

[David Sims]

I want to read every single moment of it, every single line of it.

[Maya Pog]

But yes, verbatim, please.

[David Sims]

Yeah, let me find it.

[Griffin Newman]

Okay. As David looks.

[David Sims]

Keep talking. Got a sign into.

[Griffin Newman]

I was watching the very limited special features on this Blu ray, which are basically three, three minute or under YouTube featurettes. They're, like, so bad and apathetic. But one of them has, like, the three main actresses talking. And Beanie Feldstein talked a lot about, like, the canon of the Coen brothers cop is so big. It is such an honor to be like a cop in a movie.

[Maya Pog]

Exactly.

[Griffin Newman]

Written by Ethan Cohen. But then it's also so funny where you're like, a lot of times it is like these deeply corrupt, immoral characters. Or it is Marge Gunderson who is like, the ultimate moral good.

[Maya Pog]

Yes.

[Griffin Newman]

One of the purest characters that has ever existed in film. And feels like almost this rebuke to not just real cops, but also the way cops are usually depicted in movies. But that is a character who is, like, working hard to, like, fight for some sense of light for, like, the value of, like, the 3 cent stamp. But also she can't solve. And, like, this is gonna keep happening. And it's happened before. You know, all she can say is, like, why all this for a little bit of money? And then in this, the stakes are sort of like, even when people get murdered, it is not landing with any actual weight even. I would say the deaths in Lady Killers feel more dramatic than this.

[David Sims]

It's definitely. He's a pretty light hearted death senator. Shot outside lesbian bar Subhead Channel. Channel. Oh, that's his last name I guess. Was carrying human head plaster penises. I can explain. Says recovery. It's a good joke.

[Maya Pog]

It's great.

[Griffin Newman]

But the idea that they could like catch him all in one and be like. Here's. Here's the weapon. Here's the motive. Here's the backstory.

[Maya Pog]

He can explain. Wow.

[David Sims]

Peacock trying to start up Love Hurts for me.

[Maya Pog]

That's what happened to me when I watched Driveway Dolls. And I was like. That's the craziest segue into trying to watch.

[David Sims]

That does feel like a reach for Peacock. Have you seen Love Hurts?

[Griffin Newman]

I've not seen Love.

[David Sims]

The Ku Kwan actioner.

[Griffin Newman]

I have heard it is quite poor.

[Maya Pog]

I have also heard this.

[Griffin Newman]

I have many friends who went to the film with very open hearts and were just like. I want this to be right exactly for this guy. What it's being sold as. And they were like. It so fails to deliver on the bare minimum of that idea.

[David Sims]

You.

[Maya Pog]

That's a bummer. I like him. Rooting for him.

[Griffin Newman]

I mean, look, he's the main villain in Zootopia 2. I'm sorry, I'm checking the title here. Zootopia Snake in the form of a two.

[David Sims]

Told my daughter recently.

[Griffin Newman]

I. I alerted her you've been shielding her.

[David Sims]

There will be a Zootopia too.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

And then we will be seeing it, I assume.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

She was excited. But now she's all in on Spider man right now.

[Maya Pog]

Oh wow.

[Griffin Newman]

Watching what?

[David Sims]

The Amazing Friends. The baby ones.

[Griffin Newman]

Is she watching the one with the dinosaurs? Now there's one with dinosaurs.

[David Sims]

Jesus Christ.

[Griffin Newman]

There's a new.

[David Sims]

What does that mean?

[Griffin Newman]

Where the Spidey and friends team up with dinosaurs.

[Maya Pog]

What?

[Griffin Newman]

There's Aurus Rex and a. A Green Goblin Rex and whatever.

[Maya Pog]

The multiverse is getting too wide.

[David Sims]

Yeah. We need a. Right. We need a doomsday for the Spidey Friends.

[Griffin Newman]

There's an Iron man one too that I. Okay.

[David Sims]

And my daughter, he. He's popped up. And my daughter's like, who's that robot? And I'm like. It's hard to explain. Iron Man.

[Griffin Newman]

I guess this guy's got conservative eyes. Getting radicalized by baby iron.

[David Sims]

He loves Hulk. Or as she calls him, Hulk Hulk Hoke. Sort of sounds like she's saying Hook because he's green and angry.

[Maya Pog]

That's sweet.

[Griffin Newman]

Is that her favorite character.

[David Sims]

Yeah, she talks about him the most. I think she's kind of transfixed by how he's like kind of a good guy, but seems angry.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah, well, angry and be good.

[Griffin Newman]

He's. He's like a toddler.

[David Sims]

Yes, that's true.

[Griffin Newman]

Right. You're well. And I would sometimes you just Hulk.

[David Sims]

Out in the Spidey friends verse. He seems pretty generous, gentle to me. Like he's not so much like, ah, my rage, like. But he's a little angrier, David.

[Griffin Newman]

Because I can already sense our listeners gripping their armrests, needing the follow up question. Does Rolk exist anywhere in the baby animation?

[David Sims]

I have not seen him yet, but of course I haven't visited the White House. And maybe he's there.

[Griffin Newman]

He's a little baby president.

[David Sims]

Did you see that interview with Harrison Ford? Because he's doing interviews. What's he for? Shrinking, I guess. Emmy campaigning or whatever. Where they were like, has Fige gotten you to like, he. He even play Red Hulk again?

[Griffin Newman]

Nope.

[David Sims]

Nope.

[Griffin Newman]

Did you see Brave New World, Maya?

[Maya Pog]

No, I didn't.

[Griffin Newman]

Okay, so maybe not.

[David Sims]

Very patriotic.

[Griffin Newman]

Pay your respects to the office.

[Maya Pog]

I'm so sorry.

[Griffin Newman]

The position still means something. It's been enough time that I feel like I can do a bit of a Brave New World spoiler here.

[David Sims]

Yes, please.

[Griffin Newman]

Here, here's.

[David Sims]

They spoiled the movie in the trailers. I mean, basically.

[Griffin Newman]

Yes, Here's a non spoiler spoiler. He does not die in that film.

[Maya Pog]

Okay?

[Griffin Newman]

Right. And the movie called the Thunderbolts that has already now come out in the comics, that is a team led by that character. Hence why they are called the Thunderbolts. It's like he's doing the bad guy Avengers. And he's the Nick Fury for the bad guy.

[David Sims]

Right. He's kind of the Amanda Waller. Right? Hulk is, well, Thunderbolt Rock.

[Griffin Newman]

That guy before he became Red Hulk. Before, when he was just Hulk's girlfriend's dad. Huh? Huh. So everyone was like, oh, William words. They hire one of the biggest movie stars of all time. He's going to play General Ross. And they announce a Thunderbolts movie multi picture contract for Harrison Ford. And then I kept on hearing from people, he dies at the end of Captain America. He has nothing to do with thunderbolts bolts. They got him for one movie, he's never coming back. And I was like, that's a weird choice. Liv Tyler was photographed filming brave new world 18 years ago. Somehow was filmed doing that before she had been in Armageddon or the Lord of the Rings shooting a Funeral scene.

[David Sims]

Right.

[Griffin Newman]

Paparazzi photos of her at a cemetery.

[David Sims]

Right.

[Griffin Newman]

Seemingly mourning his death. Her father's death. Right. And is a big plot point in the movie that he keeps trying to call her. My daughter won't pick up.

[David Sims]

How are you doing?

[Griffin Newman]

She hates. I'm a roll.

[Maya Pog]

You guys are good at that.

[Griffin Newman]

Thank you.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

I've been thinking about him a lot in that movie. At the end of the movie, he need my pills. Yes.

[Griffin Newman]

At the end of the movie, he does not die.

[David Sims]

No.

[Griffin Newman]

In a sequence that feels like it was being reshot as you're watching it.

[David Sims]

Whoa. It's not so good.

[Griffin Newman]

And then he goes to super villain jail.

[David Sims]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

And Liv Tyler goes to visit him in jail. And that's the emotional closure of the movie. Liv Tyler, a performance that absolutely was not done by a physical person on a set. It is very clear that she was like, I can't do the re. Shoot if you can't rework that cemetery footage. You got to construct it some other way. My God, I don't understand why they end that movie with him being alive if they don't ever want to. They know. Specifically again. And he's like, I don't want to do that again.

[David Sims]

Just probably were like, who knows? Maybe we can just have, like, computer Red Hulk smash someone.

[Griffin Newman]

Then just put like, roll, like spoiler alerts in the edit points in and out of this segment.

[David Sims]

You're definitely rol. Let's play the box office game for driveway doll.

[Griffin Newman]

Do we want to say any other things about driveway dolls?

[David Sims]

I don't have anything more to say on driveway dolls. I don't think it's fun.

[Griffin Newman]

Of the coins you've watched now, which is your favorite?

[Maya Pog]

My favorite is probably. Oh, man. I loved Fargo and I loved no country for Old Men.

[David Sims]

Those are good ones. Those ones do. Do be hidden.

[Maya Pog]

I mean, man. Yeah. They're all good.

[David Sims]

It would be funny if you were like, driveway dolls.

[Maya Pog]

I think Driveway does five stars with a like.

[Griffin Newman]

But those are both. Bag of Money ruins everyone's life movies. Right. That are like.

[David Sims]

Goes great for them. Right?

[Maya Pog]

Yeah, Right.

[David Sims]

You're right.

[Griffin Newman]

It's Bag of Dicks.

[Maya Pog]

Bag of Dicks. Goes great for them.

[Griffin Newman]

Ends up perfectly.

[Maya Pog]

Need more movies like that.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah. But I liked it. It's fine. I think people just got. I think people. It was marketed for a group of individuals that were showing up expecting something or not marketed. But I think the people that were expecting what it ended up being were obviously going to be disappointed. Whereas people who have never seen a Cohen Joint could walk in and walk away feeling like they were happy with what.

[Griffin Newman]

I think that's a great point. And I think understandably the folks at Universal were like, like, we have a movie that was co directed by a Coen brother. We should push that really hard. Which maybe doesn't do the movie any favors in its framing. I also just think there is this impatience of like, they are arguably amongst the best filmmakers on the planet and people are like, are they really never gonna mix them together again? And it's like, okay, Ethan and Trisha did another one and now like, like Joel and Francis have announced another one and then like, can they get back together after this?

[David Sims]

There's. Right. There's rumors that they are. The brothers are working on like a horror movie together.

[Griffin Newman]

They have talked about it. As of a year ago they were writing it. Yes, there is a thing they want to do and I do kind of feel like, not that this movie is ever going to be reclaimed in a serious way, but I think some of the intensity around like, what the fuck is this? This will be removed if within the next five years we get the Cohen's doing their thing together again. And then it'll just be like, this was the, that weird exploratory period.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah, let him have some fun, you.

[David Sims]

Know, I agree with that. Yeah, I agree with that. Maya. Why? You know, again, like, it's not right. It's not like he made sort of self important drivel that I would really.

[Griffin Newman]

Have a problem that would make me miserable.

[David Sims]

Right, exactly. It's like, oh, this is what you were sort of like. And of course we talked about it already probably and we, we will talk about it again. But like it was so interesting to watch Joel go off and make something that is so visually distinctive and like beautifully presented. And then Ethan make a silly bullshit thing about a bunch of idiot criminals. And you're like, right, these are the elements of the Cohens. We've like split sodium and chloride into, you know, two separate elements. Right. You know, like, so now we don't have table salt. We have two interesting things.

[Griffin Newman]

This is a good thing to talk about is that like, like when this came out, I do feel people went, oh, so now I know who does what.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah, right.

[Griffin Newman]

And there was this sense.

[David Sims]

Certainly felt that way.

[Griffin Newman]

All of their collaborators and the actors who worked with them forever would be like, no, they really are like a two headed director. They do everything together. They finish each other's sentences. They're on the exact same page. It's crazy. And then they made These two movies that felt very like, oh, this guy is adapting the most, like, proven source material in the world and just going visually ham on it. And the other guy is doing the, like, goofiest version of his usual obsessions. And they're both, like, you know, through the prism of their wives and collaborators, showing the things they wouldn't do together. And I think the takeaway from a lot of people there is like, oh, okay, so Joel's the director and Ethan's the writer. Conclusive. And that Joel needs Ethan to add humor, and Ethan needs Joel to add, like, structure or discipline or whatever it is. And I think it's more that, like, maybe each of them certainly leans a little more in that direction. And then left to their own devices, they're just gonna do the hardest, most hardcore version of that. I also think in both cases, when people are like, even Macbeth, which was well liked and we will have discussed, people were just sort of like, this isn't like a knockout in the way all their other stuff is. This is sort of like, handsome and impressive that the juice with them is so much that you have two brilliant filmmakers working together. It's not that I don't think, oh, they can't make things without each other. It's like, Right. But they're twice as good as other people when they're working together. David, what are you looking at?

[David Sims]

The box office game, which we're gonna now play. I'm also ordering myself some sushi. Film came out February 23, 2024, and it opened at number eight.

[Griffin Newman]

It was.

[David Sims]

I think that's not ideal because that's 2304.

[Griffin Newman]

And I believe it opened to 2.

[David Sims]

$2.4 million, which is not a ton of money.

[Griffin Newman]

No.

[David Sims]

Made worldwide, 7.9.

[Griffin Newman]

Okay.

[David Sims]

Which I think was not good.

[Griffin Newman]

When did they start production on Honeydon't?

[David Sims]

Oh, like, so you're like, when do.

[Griffin Newman]

They maybe get on the shelf for a little bit? Because this was also a movie that got pushed back because of the SAG strike strikes and not having actors to promote it. I think it was supposed to come out summer 2020.

[David Sims]

Honey, don't start a production a month after this came out. March 2024.

[Griffin Newman]

Okay.

[David Sims]

So.

[Griffin Newman]

So I just want to quickly salute the fine folks at Working Title for being like, Ethan Trisha. Just keep doing this. It speaks to the level of cachet that they have that it does feel like, similar to a 24. Not just doing Macbeth, but also buying the imovie Jerry Lee Lewis documentary that it feels like all of the film Financiers and distributors in town are still like, we want to be working with you in case you ever decide to go back to doing your thing together.

[David Sims]

Yes. We want to stay in the Cohen business.

[Ben Hosley]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

But a flop. Number one at the box office is a somewhat surprising success of a member. Not huge or anything, but a music biopic. It's his second week at the number one position.

[Griffin Newman]

Is it Bob Marley one Love.

[David Sims]

Bob Marley one.

[Griffin Newman]

I couldn't remember where. What the order was, what was before and after the call.

[David Sims]

Nailed it. The Renault Renat. Reynardo. Reynardo. Reynaldo. There you go. Jesus. Marcus Green film starring Kingsley Benedier. Who is the guy who was Malcolm X in that other movie? He's playing a lot of famous people.

[Griffin Newman]

This is one of my least favorite trends right now. Now is the top gun mavericking of music biopics, where I'm like, you get to pick either your title is the name of the person.

[David Sims]

Oh, you don't like the title?

[Griffin Newman]

Or it's like the song lyric. I don't like Springsteen. Colon. Deliver Us from nowhere.

[David Sims]

No, certainly not.

[Griffin Newman]

But they just announced that title too. And I'm like, you're either calling it Bob Marley, but that's Bob or Morley or Root B. Pick a song title.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah, yeah.

[David Sims]

Maya, did you see Bob Marley One Love?

[Maya Pog]

I didn't. I'm just not on the music biopic train, like, entirely. I.

[Griffin Newman]

Until they make one about you.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah, of course. Yeah, obviously. Which, of course, it will be called, like, MXM Tune Crying in a prom dress.

[David Sims]

And who will play you?

[Griffin Newman]

I was gonna say Texas.

[Maya Pog]

Who will play me? I'm thinking about this. I'm thinking about Weijian. Women in movies. I'm thinking about Chase.

[Griffin Newman]

So we wonders.

[Maya Pog]

Oh, yeah. Yeah. I love that. I'd be very honored if Chase. So he wonders. Was me.

[David Sims]

She's very. She's very charming.

[Griffin Newman]

You have not seen. I know what you did last summer. Parenthetical 2025. The.

[David Sims]

The new one.

[Griffin Newman]

Have you seen it?

[Maya Pog]

I haven't, but I was watching the studio and my uncle texted me, being like, her character reminds me of you. And I was like, wow, thank you. I think it's a compliment.

[David Sims]

Yeah. Successful. I don't know.

[Griffin Newman]

That's another trend. I want to die is Lego sequel that isn't a remake with the exact same title. Original movie.

[David Sims]

It's very annoying.

[Griffin Newman]

It's just very confusing for our brains.

[David Sims]

I agree with that.

[Griffin Newman]

But she is very good in that movie in a way where you're like, she might be kind of bulletproof. Because this thing is disastrous. Dog. And she comes out unscathed.

[Maya Pog]

Wow.

[David Sims]

Bob Marley, One Love. I. The trend I thought you were gonna bring up, which is a trend I do think is a problem, is this sort of, you know, music biopic approved by the estate. So it's sort of like we get to use the songs.

[Griffin Newman]

Yay.

[David Sims]

But unfortunately, like, we cannot delve too deep on complicated person.

[Griffin Newman]

Also a huge issue is the reason the Scorsese Sinatra movie has not been made for 20 straight years. Because he keeps being like, I'll make this if you give me freedom.

[David Sims]

Right? And they just want it to be about, like, what a gent.

[Griffin Newman]

I think that is.

[David Sims]

Never yelled at a lady.

[Griffin Newman]

I think that is even more of a pox on documentaries. Now that is the thing that's driving me insane is the celebrity profile documentary that is completely produced by the celebrity and director they success.

[David Sims]

But it means where I'm like, are.

[Griffin Newman]

We never going to get a crumb ever again?

[David Sims]

Right. Do you like Bob Marley, the musician?

[Maya Pog]

I like Bob Marley. I'm less familiar, like, with his whole discography and everything. But I, you know, I saw all the trailers for One Love. One.

[David Sims]

Yeah.

[Maya Pog]

Marley One Love.

[David Sims]

I haven't checked it out.

[Griffin Newman]

We also have the trailers. It. It made a lot of money.

[David Sims]

Yeah, it made a decent amount of money. Made almost $100 million. I mean, in one way, you're like, yeah, well, he's really famous like that. Not that surprising. But I just remember at the time, people being like, oh, people are showing up for this. Like, are you a reggae guy, David? I've had my reggae phases. Yeah. I love reggae.

[Griffin Newman]

Frost Perry is just rubbing his hands together equally right now.

[David Sims]

I am no expert on reggae. I grew up in Britain and I do feel like as respected as reggae is here, it is much so ingrained in British culture. So I, you know, all this, you know, right. The ways that. The influence on other British music and all that stuff. And I like, like dancehall music and all this. And then when I went to the Caribbean when I was a teenager, I remember at like the airport, I bought a bunch of like, random D discs. Cool. Because, like, I was like, I bet you there's just kind of like, you know, basically like India indie music. Right? Like, you know, just kind of like music that will never escape this country tree. And I still have those discs. They rock because they are truly just, you know, guys making fun, silly, you know, dance hall music from the early 2000s. We gotta.

[Ben Hosley]

We gotta get. We gotta get our hands on what these CDs are.

[David Sims]

I'll dig one of them up.

[Maya Pog]

Okay.

[David Sims]

I mean, my CDs. Jesus. Where are those? I mean, that. That is something that truly has been, like, buried my reggae.

[Maya Pog]

Reggae. It's fine. It's not fine. I don't want to say that. In case there's reggae heads listening to this podcast, I'd be like, like, fine. Why'd she just say fine? I like reggae. I enjoy listening to it. Don't know, like, too much in the weeds on the genre. I'd say Scott is more of my. My vein. Yeah. Big no Doubt fan. Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

Do you listen to the the Lonely Island Seth Meyers podcast?

[Maya Pog]

I don't.

[Griffin Newman]

It is excellent.

[David Sims]

It is highly recommended. Of course, they. They delve very deep into this.

[Griffin Newman]

The episode.

[David Sims]

Yes. Which is very fun.

[Maya Pog]

But.

[Griffin Newman]

But it's just amazing. They go through that song and stop every three seconds and they're like, reference to this foot notes.

[David Sims]

Yes, yes, yes.

[Griffin Newman]

And they're just like, look, we are just white guys who like reggae a lot. But you're like, that song has 8 trillion references in it that are all very specific. Yeah.

[David Sims]

Number two at the box office. Opening new this week is a Crunchyroll release making $11.5 million. You will never guess the name of it, but you might guess the series.

[Griffin Newman]

That it's about X Family.

[David Sims]

No.

[Griffin Newman]

Do you think, you know, you might be more equipped to answer this?

[Maya Pog]

I will say Demon Slayer.

[David Sims]

Correct.

[Griffin Newman]

Okay. Do you get the subtitle title? No.

[David Sims]

It is the, I think the third theatrical release of Demon Slayer stuff. It is called Demon Slayer Kimetsu no Yaiba. To the Hashira training. I'm sorry. I don't know. I don't know what's going on. I don't know anything about this. I'm so confused. I'm Tim Robinson. Like, I don't know what any of this stuff is. And I'm confused and I'm scared. I don't.

[Griffin Newman]

Car driving.

[David Sims]

Yes. I don't know what Demon Slayer is. What is Demon Slayer? I assume it is manga that was then became anime. Yeah.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah. I'm fairly certain it came from a manga and then turned into an anime. I myself only watched the anime and I went and saw Mugen Train, which is another theatrical train.

[David Sims]

Right?

[Maya Pog]

Yes.

[Griffin Newman]

Was also such a big deal because it opened really big in 2021 when people are like, are theaters ever gonna come back?

[David Sims]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

And then mugen train made $20 million.

[David Sims]

People are riding the Mugen Train.

[Griffin Newman]

That started the Crunchyroll thing of like, we are going to put wide release anime.

[Maya Pog]

Absolutely.

[Griffin Newman]

Like almost every other month.

[Maya Pog]

Jujutsu Kaisen 0 was another one that I ended up seeing in theaters. I love Demon Slayer. It's very good.

[Ben Hosley]

Rick would recommend a little bit of it.

[Maya Pog]

Okay. I love it.

[Ben Hosley]

I only made it through like the first maybe 10 episodes. I and then I just like fell off.

[David Sims]

But it's a great slay demon.

[Maya Pog]

They kind of. There's a villain in it that almost looks like Michael Jackson. It's very.

[Griffin Newman]

What era of Michael Jackson?

[Maya Pog]

Oh, I don't know the eras of Michael Jackson. Like that.

[Griffin Newman]

Like, like is he smooth criminal?

[Maya Pog]

Like he's wearing like a fedora type vibe. He's got like kind of curly hair. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Smooth criminal. But it's great.

[Ben Hosley]

But the premise is basically there's like one original demon who keeps then been creating more demons and. And there's like they must be special team that has to, you know, kill these demons.

[David Sims]

Number three at the box office. Also new this week is a Christian inspirational drama film but kind of as like vaguely legit one and that has like, you know, Oscar winner in it. And it was like.

[Griffin Newman]

Is it the. The Hillary Swank one?

[David Sims]

It's the Hillary Swank that was also.

[Griffin Newman]

Pushed back because of the strike likes. This is like the dumping ground of movies that were supposed to come out August, September 23rd. And we're like, we need to wait until stars can do talk shows. It's called Better Angels.

[David Sims]

It's called Ordinary.

[Griffin Newman]

Ordinary.

[David Sims]

What is so weird about it?

[Griffin Newman]

It's her and Reacher.

[David Sims]

Yes. Alan Richardson is in it. I haven't seen it. It's based on a true story about something that happened during 1994. Like cold weather thing.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

Sorry to be dismissive of this real event that I don't know anything about. What's weird is that it was written by the actress Meg Tilly.

[Griffin Newman]

That is very strange.

[David Sims]

Who people might know from like Agnes of God and the big award nominee Sister of Jennifer and then and co written by Kelly Freeman Craig who's the very filmmaker who made you know, Are you there Edge of Seventeen and are you there God? It's me, Margaret. So you know, it's got like a bit of a like legit.

[Griffin Newman]

Who directed it?

[David Sims]

John Gunn, of course, who directed a bunch of Christian, you know, movies. Christian inspiration.

[Griffin Newman]

What's it opening to?

[David Sims]

It's opening to $6 million.

[Griffin Newman]

Great.

[David Sims]

It's going to make 20 worldwide.

[Maya Pog]

What was the drop off between Demon Slayer?

[David Sims]

Oh yeah, right. So it's 13 for Bob Marley, 11 for Demon Slayer.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

Six for Ordinary Angels. Slow weekend number four at the box office. I think your favorite film of 2024.

[Griffin Newman]

Are you joking?

[David Sims]

Probably the one you watch the most sort of.

[Griffin Newman]

Sort of.

[David Sims]

I mean, like, I don't think it really was, but you were kind of obsessed with this movie.

[Griffin Newman]

I was kind of obsessed with. This movie is called Madame Web. I have seen it, I believe, five times now. I keep hovering over the purchase button on the steelbook because it has yet to go on sale. And I'm like, my love for this film is not ironic. And yet do I want to spend $40 on a 4k steel book or. Oh, and sometimes I'm waiting for, like, is there some deal where I could combo, like, buy, buy one, get one kind of thing?

[David Sims]

Have you seen Madame Web?

[Maya Pog]

Oh, yes, I have seen Madame Web.

[Griffin Newman]

Madame, have you gotten caught in the web?

[Maya Pog]

I have gotten caught on the web. I went and I think I probably saw it opening weekend with my brother. Our, like, favorite thing to do, as we all do with our siblings, is find a movie that we want to go see in theaters. But specifically the shittiest movie that is accessible to us at any time. In Madam Web Web, one of the shittiest movies is incredible. It's been accessible to me. We went and saw it. We had the best time ever. Rivaled only by seeing Morbius and I in person. Yes.

[David Sims]

When he came to introduce the Venom.

[Maya Pog]

Exactly. And we had a great time. But I didn't watch it after I saw it in theaters until I came back to my apartment when my family was in town in New York. And I saw my Grandpa, who is 81 years old, I think, sitting down on a couch watching Madame Web by himself because he was, like, not wanting to join us for dinner or something. And he looks at me, goes, this movie is so bad. And I just had to nod and agree.

[Griffin Newman]

Reality distortion field. I also feel like you frame that story with an apology of it took me this long to watch Madame Web a second time, which we just acknowledge culturally. All of us need to watch it a couple times. Times.

[Maya Pog]

Absolutely.

[Griffin Newman]

You cannot get your head around it in one viewing.

[Maya Pog]

It's great.

[David Sims]

Maybe I got to see it a second time.

[Griffin Newman]

You still got to see a second time.

[David Sims]

I have not seen it. I'm being the villain.

[Griffin Newman]

David is doing his impression, though.

[David Sims]

Entire thing is overdub. Number five at the box office is an animated film that came out in, like, December. It's been hanging out for three.

[Griffin Newman]

Migration.

[David Sims]

It's the film Migration, which made 127 million domestic.

[Griffin Newman]

It's a classic. It opened really low and then it just hung on there like a family of ducks just cruising.

[David Sims]

Camille Nanjiani.

[Griffin Newman]

Yes.

[David Sims]

Elizabeth Banks.

[Griffin Newman]

Okay.

[David Sims]

And then I'm seeing here that Keegan Michael Key and Aquafina provided voice talent. They don't do that kind of stuff.

[Griffin Newman]

They are allergic to voiceover booths. If you were to put them in a voiceover booth, it would be like Spock accepting the radiation at the end of. You cannot get them to stand behind a microphone and do a silly voice.

[David Sims]

I have not seen Migration.

[Griffin Newman]

I haven't either.

[Maya Pog]

No.

[Griffin Newman]

I think Davito was in there as well.

[Maya Pog]

All people that have never been in.

[David Sims]

A voice right there. It was written by Mike White, who of course created the White Lotus.

[Griffin Newman]

Right.

[Maya Pog]

Survivor.

[David Sims]

It was on Survivor.

[Maya Pog]

Yes.

[Griffin Newman]

And also wrote the emoji movie.

[David Sims]

Yes.

[Griffin Newman]

His liveaction canon is very good. It is, I would say, basically every live action thing.

[Maya Pog]

Sometimes you need a check. And that's just the reality.

[Griffin Newman]

He's also credited on Despicable Me 4.

[Maya Pog]

Really?

[David Sims]

He's very much in the, like, illumination wheelhouse. Number six at the box office is. And then he's like, right, I want Jason Isaacs to poison his whole family. And I want, you know, whatever.

[Griffin Newman]

Also, my dad and I are going to do the Amazing Race again or whatever interesting life he leads.

[David Sims]

Number six, the box office is Argyle, which was a bomb. But people Forget did make $45 million. It didn't make nothing. Like, people went to see it.

[Griffin Newman]

This is the thing I feel like you and I need to push sometimes. Times is like, this movie was a flop. But we must acknowledge that a millions of people left their home.

[David Sims]

Right.

[Maya Pog]

To go and see the movie.

[David Sims]

Argy.

[Griffin Newman]

I saw it with friend of the pod, Rachel Lang. Have you seen that?

[Maya Pog]

I haven't, but I'm curious and I could be misremembering this. I feel like there was a wave of this, like, semi. Maybe it was a joke and I was totally misreading the situation. But people who thought Taylor Swift had written the book and I was curious if that was, like, why there were people showing up was because people were like, almost like, like, I'm supporting TC.

[Griffin Newman]

Like a week before it came out. When the reviews came out, they, like, gave up the goose on. Yeah, the. The person who wrote the book is the fictional character. And here was the. The ghost writer and whatever. And then it got kind of all.

[David Sims]

Because of the cat. Is Taylor Swift's cat.

[Griffin Newman]

Right?

[David Sims]

Like that. Like, she's got that cat in the movie.

[Griffin Newman]

But the reason the cat is in the movie is because that's the cat that Matthew Vaugh has and he based on his real cat. But the reason that's the cat he has is because his daughters were so obsessed with Taylor Swift that they were like we want that cat.

[Maya Pog]

That is nuts.

[Griffin Newman]

It's nuts. That is a movie that is definitely more interesting to talk about everything around the movie. It's not even interesting to talk about the movie. It's interesting to talk about the bubble around the film. The movie is dog. It's the anti Madam Web is actually tedious to watch.

[David Sims]

I agree with that. Number seven at the box office. Hanging out after three months as well. Huge hit. Wonky Wonka Wonka Wonka. Very fun movie in my opinion. Driveway Dolls at number eight. Number nine, the Beekeeper, which I preferred to a working man which I tried out last year, which was this year which is pretty bad.

[Griffin Newman]

Maya, have you seen the Beekeeper?

[Maya Pog]

I haven't. I do remember when it was rolling out.

[Griffin Newman]

Have people spoiled anything about the Beekeeper for you?

[David Sims]

I'm gonna Beekeeper.

[Maya Pog]

I'm guessing there's bees involved and maybe a keeper of sort of, but I don't really know.

[Griffin Newman]

Here's all I'm going to say. I cannot strongly enough implore you to watch this film.

[Maya Pog]

Okay.

[David Sims]

It's pretty fun.

[Griffin Newman]

It is truly a movie where every 10 minutes you could pause and write down what you think is going to happen and you will never get anything right.

[Maya Pog]

That's fun. I.

[Griffin Newman]

You can guess like oh, he'll get revenge on people. But it. It has the craziest narrative turns I've ever seen. The way this movie heightens where it gets to by the end is insane. We're recording this episode very far in advance. All I ask is if you watch the Beekeeper between when we're recording and November, please send a voice memo MGM plus of just your feelings on Beekeeper. But I strongly recommend watching.

[Maya Pog]

That is the easiest thing anyone's ever assigned me to do.

[David Sims]

Yeah, it's pretty easy to watch.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah, it's an easy watch. And the end will blow your mind.

[Maya Pog]

Okay. Hello blankies. This is me from the future. I ended up doing my homework. I watched the Beekeeper the other night and Griffin was right. There was no way I would have ever predicted how high the stakes were going to be by the end of the movie. That was crazy. But as a fan of the Hitman video game franchise, I was majorly rocking with an angry bald guy doing some occupational based shenanigans on an assassination run that Was pretty fun to see. I'll be tuning in into more Jason Statham job based cinematic universe movies in the future. I want to just shout out Minnie Driver for showing up for an hour and a half, getting her money and leaving. And also Josh Hutcherson's perm highlights of the movie for me. All right, back to the pod number.

[David Sims]

Working man at the box office is the Chosen Chosen season four episodes four to six. I mean it really is. There's still just a lot of that happening in the box office.

[Griffin Newman]

Are you aware of this phenomenon of the Chosen? The Chosen is a self funded TV series about Jesus that I think is now in its third or fourth season. It was the biggest Kickstarter project I think of all time and now has outside financing. But every year or every other year when there's a new season, they release the season in theaters first. So they'll be like this week, the Chosen season four, episodes one and two. And it will be number three at the box office. And then two weeks later, the next two episodes will come out in theaters. They release them two at a time in theaters. They make millions and millions of dollars and then they go up on like Amazon prime or whatever.

[Maya Pog]

Whoa, I did not know about that.

[Griffin Newman]

A bizarre thing that's been going on for years that no one talks about. Imagine if any other TV show was released that way.

[David Sims]

It's very silly. Number 11 is anyone but you just to shout that one out.

[Maya Pog]

Perfect. We came back, it's still there.

[Griffin Newman]

What's it up to at this point?

[David Sims]

I made a healthy 87 to this point and it ended up at, oh, 88. So it's almost done. Anyone but you where Sydney Sweeney's there and she's got the, she's got the issues, I assume.

[Griffin Newman]

I mean, you nailed it in your review of why does she always sound like she just came out of an egg?

[David Sims]

That is my take on Sydney Street. My take on Madam Web was that every line delivery feels like it's on a zoom delay. And my take on anyone but you is Sydney Sweeney literally feels like she just hatched out of an egg. Or you can say, say, beam down from a spaceship. Like it's just like she just feels like she's never had a handle on dialogue. Sometimes she can be totally. She has given really good performances and.

[Griffin Newman]

In a way where you're just like, there are obvious ways, you miscaster, where she is not going to be able to do anything. But the way the times when she has been good, it can't be an accident. And yet it feels like it's a very narrow strike zone.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[David Sims]

But yes, normal person. All discourse around, not good in that movie being like, oh, my life is so crazy.

[Maya Pog]

I mean, she's not funny. I think that's really it.

[David Sims]

No, she's not funny. Always be like a nun who's being.

[Griffin Newman]

Terrorized if you want to.

[Maya Pog]

Exactly.

[David Sims]

She's great at those giant eyes.

[Griffin Newman]

If you want her to be funny in a movie, you have to friend frame the movie around what she's already good at and then have other characters comment on it rather than having her be like, it's, oh, my God, David Boreanis. Yeah. I don't even have time to wash my hands.

[David Sims]

I think about it with David Boreanas all the time where, like, he's in Buffy as Angel where, like, what's your job? It's to be good looking, to be mysterious and dark and, like, you know, yeah, yada, yada. Then they're like, we're gonna make a show about you now. You're gonna be the lead. And I remember when angel was announced, I was like, but Angel's boring.

[Griffin Newman]

He's gotta bounce off of.

[David Sims]

And so. But they correctly were like, yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

No, no, no, no.

[David Sims]

Know, everyone else around him will be kind of goofy, and it'll. His straight man shit will be comedy. Like, you know, and he's a bit of a man out of time. And you're like, that's. That makes sense. That's good. And then Bones starts, right? And in Bones, he's a goof. And I'm like, where Was this for 10 years in your career? In Bones, he's like, ah, Bones, you're so. You're dumb, nerd.

[Griffin Newman]

That's very similar to when they offered 21 Jump street to training Tatum. And he was like, I'm not funny. I don't know how to do comedy. I shouldn't do this.

[David Sims]

Right?

[Griffin Newman]

And they were like, we'll build it off of you being the straight man man. And then you see him get comfortable in that movie and find his moments, and then he's just like, I know exactly how to be funny.

[Maya Pog]

He's one of my favorites to watch. I love him. He's great.

[David Sims]

I love him, too. What's he doing right now?

[Griffin Newman]

Well, you know what? I think Roofman will have just come out.

[David Sims]

Roofman.

[Griffin Newman]

We. We talk about him a lot in the Hell Caesar episode and wondering what the future of his career is. And we weren't talking about Roofman, which I. I hope Roof Man's a hit. Roofman look.

[David Sims]

Looks fun.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

And of course he's in Avengers Doomsday film with a plot.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah. Honey, what's his line.

[David Sims]

For us?

[Griffin Newman]

Great. But yes, no Comedy Channing is my favorite. Yeah. Well, that's Quite a top 10.

[David Sims]

Yeah, that's the top 10. And you know who else is top 10 person is Maya. Mxm tune. What do you want to plug, bro? Bro?

[Maya Pog]

Oh my gosh. What do I want to plug?

[Griffin Newman]

That's David's new question.

[Maya Pog]

That's really good. I like that. Well, bro, yeah, honestly, just hang out. I'm online, I'm there. I'm on letterbox.

[Griffin Newman]

You do a lot of Twitch streams?

[Maya Pog]

I do a lot of Twitch streams. I'm a big gamer and a big nerd and movies have been kind of something that I have always loved, but I think I'm now more in the weeds on it. I'm like building the physical media collection, etc.

[Griffin Newman]

Etc. You've been throwing off some good discs.

[Maya Pog]

I'm doing my best.

[Griffin Newman]

Especially when you're touring. You've been like finding local shops and posting some good stuff. Absolutely.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah. It's been really fun. So I have really enjoyed that. You can find me on letterboxd at M A I A P O G Maya Pog and on Twitch under MXM Tune. But really anywhere I'm MXM Tune.

[David Sims]

What are you streaming? What games?

[Maya Pog]

Literally anything. I feel like I'm the queen of side questing. Like and that's why it's hard to plug stuff because I'm doing everything always. But I. I've been streaming a lot of Fortnite classically but I play. I love indie games. That's my bread and butter. So if you know a game that's been made by a singular person who.

[David Sims]

Has a hyper blueprints yet. No.

[Maya Pog]

What is blueprints?

[David Sims]

Oh, you got to check it out, bro. I'm not going to tell you anything. Just play it.

[Griffin Newman]

David. David exists in this world a little bit. Our researcher JJ every week is plugging some new he's so indie game made by someone with a hyper fixation.

[Maya Pog]

That's exactly it. Those are the favorite.

[Griffin Newman]

We'll start passing along the JJ recommendations. Patience. The last thing he needs feeling like his knowledge has any value in this world. What's your. What's your main fortnite skin?

[Maya Pog]

My main fortnite skin right now is Chun Li, but usually it's xenomorph.

[David Sims]

Shout out Chun Lee.

[Maya Pog]

That's fine.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah, I. I do. I've been. I haven't been Playing for.

[David Sims]

You've been playing Fortnite. I didn't know I was playing a.

[Griffin Newman]

Lot with my little cousin.

[David Sims]

I do remember that. I do remember.

[Griffin Newman]

And then now he's gotten too caught up in baseball. He doesn't have time to do anything. He likes baseball. He's really good at baseball.

[David Sims]

He should call me up.

[Griffin Newman]

No, you are not meeting him.

[David Sims]

Okay?

[Griffin Newman]

Now I haven't taken him to a movie in like months. We don't play Fortnite because he's doing like baseball five days.

[David Sims]

Like his, his weekends are very occupied with his calendar.

[Griffin Newman]

I don't think he's on like a professional MLB track, but he's like at that level where it's like, you're really good at this. You like this a lot.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah, know he's told me.

[Griffin Newman]

I don't know.

[David Sims]

Well, is he a pitcher or not?

[Griffin Newman]

I don't think so. Okay, I'll find out.

[David Sims]

But anyway, you know, the, the season will be.

[Griffin Newman]

We have plans to Superman Fantastic 4 double feature at the end of the summer. He's been away, but I, I was playing with him every Sunday and with our, our friend Sarah Rubin, past and future guests, we would, we would all do it together. I was, I was doing Chewbacca.

[Maya Pog]

Okay.

[Griffin Newman]

But I was using the accoutrements of the wasteland.

[Maya Pog]

I've never heard somebody Magneto.

[David Sims]

What?

[Griffin Newman]

They did a Marvel event.

[Maya Pog]

Yes.

[Griffin Newman]

And there was a really good Magneto and you can, could get like classic Magneto, but there was also this wasteland Magneto where he had like a tattered cape. And so I give like Chewbacca the tattered cape and the Magneto like pickaxe and stuff. So it kind of looks like a Mad Max Chewbacca. It's pretty cool. David. I, I, I haven't played in months.

[David Sims]

I played Fortnite once and it, it, I didn't like it.

[Maya Pog]

Come on, guys, there's four here. It's not impossible to create a squad and reframe your enjoyment of Fortnite. Get you back into playing Fortnite. Ben, have you played Fortnite?

[Griffin Newman]

Get my 9 year old cousin into the squad.

[David Sims]

I assume it's more fun if you're being social. I would play with you any day.

[Maya Pog]

I play with you guys anytime.

[David Sims]

I just like loaded it and was like, okay, this is, and it was also years ago. I know that Fortnite has now become like very common.

[Griffin Newman]

I'm gonna get my, I'm gonna get my 9 year old cousin schedule and we're gonna, we're gonna figure out A squad.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah. I'm so down.

[Griffin Newman]

Night. A squad afternoon.

[Maya Pog]

That's the thing I want to plug. That's it.

[Griffin Newman]

Great.

[Maya Pog]

Perfect.

[Griffin Newman]

Fortnite. When are we gonna get our own skins in Fortnite? It feels like that's inevitable.

[Maya Pog]

Ben.

[David Sims]

Sounds good.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah. Ben with bone pickaxe. Thank you all for listening. Please remember to rate, review and subscribe. Remember to tune in next week for Honey Don't, a movie that David clearly is calling in advance. There's a lot to talk about.

[David Sims]

Oh, boy.

[Griffin Newman]

You think Honey don't is going to make more or less than Driveway Dolls?

[David Sims]

Has to be less.

[Griffin Newman]

Has to be less.

[David Sims]

I guess it's a low bar, so maybe not. But, like, I don't think it's going to be a hit.

[Griffin Newman]

I don't either.

[David Sims]

Yeah, but I guess.

[Griffin Newman]

But the Driveway Dolls bar is low.

[Maya Pog]

I don't know.

[Griffin Newman]

Chris Evans.

[Maya Pog]

I think it's gonna be Chris Evans is there.

[Griffin Newman]

We like him trying.

[David Sims]

We like him trying. And he. He's there. There is. He is not the problem with that movie at all.

[Griffin Newman]

It's not like a Pedro. He's like a problem completing the assignment.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[David Sims]

I mean, but it's kind. It's not like a Pedro, but it is kind of the thing of these movies. Of like, you know, they clearly. Yeah, they had him for a few days. He did silly stuff and like.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah, right.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah, I'll go for that.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

Sebastian. Stan will star in Radu. Hide, Jude.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah.

[David Sims]

Frankenstein.

[Ben Hosley]

Okay, wrap us up.

[Griffin Newman]

All right, bye. Another Frankenstein.

[David Sims]

Yeah, well, that's true. Wrap us up.

[Griffin Newman]

Oh, okay. Well, you. You interrupted. Now I'm just spinning on the Frankenstein thought. And as always, more movies should be centered around a literal bag full of dips.

[Maya Pog]

Yeah.

[Griffin Newman]

Yeah.

[Ben Hosley]

Blank Check with Griffin and David is hosted by Griffin Newman and David Sims. Our executive producer is me, Ben Hosley. Our creative producer is Marie Barty Salinas. And our Associate producer is AJ McKeon. This show is mixed and edited by AJ McKeon and Alan Smithee. Research by JJ Burch. Our theme song is by Lane Montgomery and the great American novel. Novel with additional music by Alex Mitchell, artwork by Joe Bowen, Ollie Moss and Pat Reynolds. Our production assistant is Minick. Special thanks to David Cho, Jordan Fish and Nate Patterson for their production help. Head over to blankcheckpod.com for links to all of the real nerdy shit. Join our Patreon Blank Check special features for exclusive franchise commentaries and bonus episodes. Follow us on social at blankcheckpod. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter Checkbook on substack this podcast is created and produced by Blank Check Productions.