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- [00:02]
Millie
This is exactly right.
- [00:06]
Casey
Hey, it's Ryan Seacrest for Albertsons and Safeway. It's stock up savings time now through March 25th. Spring in for storewide deals and earn four times the points. Look for in store tags to earn on eligible household items like Ziploc freezer bags and dinner essentials like Hunt's Diced Tomatoes and Tillamook Shredded Cheese plus many more. Then clip the offer in our app for automatic event long savings. Stack up those rewards to save even more restrictions apply. Visit Albertsons or Safeway.com for more details. Pro Savings Days are back at Lowe's with limited time savings on the supplies pros need. Get up to 40% off select major appliances plus save an additional $100 on every $1,000 you spend on select major appliances. And don't miss your chance to activate and earn three times the points on select DeWalt and Klein tools Lowes. We help you save valid the 328 selection varies by location while supplies last. See associate or lowes.com for more details on qualifying items at Designer Shoe Warehouse we believe that shoes are an important part of, well, everything from first steps to first dates, from all nighters to.
- [01:15]
Millie
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- [01:17]
Casey
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- [01:22]
Millie
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- [01:28]
Casey
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- [01:32]
Millie
At your DSW store or dsw.com Casey My bro, what's happening?
- [01:40]
Casey
Millie, what's up my also my bro. You're also my bro.
- [01:44]
Millie
My bro.
- [01:45]
Casey
Oh Millie. There's just so much happening in the world, but more importantly, there's so much happening on this podcast today. This is an exciting episode that I was really that I circled on the calendar. I'm really excited to be talking about this.
- [01:59]
Millie
Yes, absolutely. We are going to be discussing a very interesting, perhaps important, formative era of filmmaking. Certainly for me, I'm sure for you as well.
- [02:14]
Casey
Yes, absolutely. You know, you think about the great times in cinematic history. You know, 1970s, you know, movie brats with Martin Scorsese and Francis Ford Coppola. You think about, you know, the French New wave and you think about the period of time we're gonna be talking about today.
- [02:33]
Millie
Yeah, it's like the year was 1939 and the best pictures of the year were. That's my Katharine Hepburn impression.
- [02:43]
Casey
Sure.
- [02:44]
Millie
We're gonna talk about the two early to mid, I would say 2000s era of pop Star Films.
- [02:54]
Casey
Yes.
- [02:55]
Millie
So we wanna talk a little bit about the movie Crossroads from 2002, which of course you know, is starring and sort of conceived by.
- [03:06]
Casey
I learned this. Yeah, conceived by Britney Spears.
- [03:09]
Millie
That's right. We have probably so much to unpack.
- [03:13]
Casey
Yes.
- [03:14]
Millie
And yeah. So that's gonna be the crux of our conversation today.
- [03:18]
Casey
And it's going to be a jumbo site. We're really going to go deep on it. So it might take up more, more of the episode than normally the main discussion does, but it needs, we need to hold space for this topic and Britney. So we're going to be talking about that. We'll have some film advice at the end. Employees picks. But yeah, lots to do, lots to come on this episode.
- [03:40]
Millie
All kinds of stuff. So please stay tuned. You are listening to Dear Movies, I love you, girl. Dear movies, I love you.
- [03:50]
Casey
And I've got to know if you love me too. Yes or no.
- [03:58]
Millie
Check the box below. Hey, everybody. Or should I say everybody?
- [04:11]
Casey
Very good. Oh my God. Millie. This is our podcast, Dear Movies, I Love youe where a podcast for those who are in a deep, meaningful relationship with film.
- [04:26]
Millie
Yeah.
- [04:27]
Casey
And it's a lovely place to be, Millie. We have so much to do on this episode, but we must start, as we always do, with our film diary. Opening up the diary to talk about the movies we've seen this past week and how that has affected our lives positively or negatively.
- [04:51]
Millie
Can you drop in the sound of like Dracula's tomb being opened or something right here, like a creak. Because, you know, actually a couple people had mentioned it to me. They were like, I mean, listen, this is not the public's opinion by any means, but just a bunch of ding dongs that are my friends. They're like, I always like how you pretend to open the film diary. Every time you announce the film diary, it's a. It's a physical book. Like it's.
- [05:18]
Casey
It's the theater of the mind, Millie.
- [05:21]
Millie
So now you have to like, you know, make, make that very visual for people.
- [05:25]
Casey
Sure.
- [05:26]
Millie
Just drop them something.
- [05:27]
Casey
Absolutely, yeah. Let's hear what you got. What do you have to say, Millie, about the movies you've watched this past week?
- [05:33]
Millie
I was so jazzed to be recording this episode, so I really just watched. I mean, beyond what we were going to talk about today. I only really just watched one movie, but it's a good one and I had seen it before. So I was watching TCM again. You know me, I can't let it go. Apparently.
- [05:51]
Casey
Jeez.
- [05:52]
Millie
Apparently I watch it's like going back to your old high school.
- [05:55]
Casey
Yeah, what's up?
- [05:58]
Millie
But I can't help it. TCM plays good movies and that happened before and after I worked there. So there was like a little night of movies that were directed by the great Dorothy Arsner, who, if you don't know Dorothy Arzner, she was pretty much one of the, if not the only women who were directing films in like the very early days of Hollywood. Right. So it was like. And honestly, the only other person really was like Lois Weber or something in this era. Very, very important, like an absolute iconic individual in film. But I watched her movie from 1932 called Merrily We Go to Hell.
- [06:46]
Casey
And you have talked about this movie before?
- [06:48]
Millie
I have. I talked about it when it might have been during the Star Is Born convo. Cause we talked about Frederic March being my main man.
- [06:57]
Casey
That's right, yes. It's on the Criterion Collection. It is barely. We Go to Hell.
- [07:02]
Millie
This movie is fantastic. I mean, first of all, it's an hour and 18 minutes, which is great. But it's this pre code. It's billed as a comedy romance, like a rom com. But I think it's actually darker than that. It's almost like a romantic drama. But it's about these two people who are. Who get together. Frederic March and Sylvia Sidney, who, by the way, if you don't know who Sylvia Sidney is, she is maybe known to people of kind of our age group as the woman from Beetlejuice that is like kind of the caseworker.
- [07:44]
Casey
Yes.
- [07:45]
Millie
Of Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis. And she's got the slit neck. Juno. Yes, Juno, of course, smoking cigarettes. And the cigarette smoke comes out of the slash in her neck, right?
- [07:56]
Casey
Yes.
- [07:57]
Millie
So if you think about that and you think about that woman, when you see this movie, you're gonna be like, holy shit, I cannot believe that's the same woman. Because she is so goddamn hot and gorgeous in this movie, like almost in a modern way. Right. Because you look at these like 1930s, like pre code movies, and you're kind of looking at like, you know, the kind of looks from back then which were like kind of flapperish, like short hair and like, like long necklines and like exposed backs and stuff. You know, there's a very 1930s, like 1920s, 1930s look about some of these women. Right. And it was. It wasn't just Sylvie Sidney. It was like, you know, whomever. Katharine Hepburn, Joan Crawford, like all the greats of that era. So in spite of Sylvia Sidney looking like that kind of 1930s, beautiful glamour girl. She looks modern. Like, she has a modern face. And I can't describe exactly why. I think that she's just absolutely gorgeous. And of course, you know, Frederic March, like, for my money, the most charming drunk to ever play a charming drunk in Hollywood. But it's basically about their relationship. And, you know, he's an alcoholic, duh. And it's kind of this, like, modern era where they kind of have an open relationship. And then she's like, well, if you're gonna have an open relationship, then I'm gonna have an open relationship. And then, of course, she starts, like, going out on dates and she actually goes out on a date with a very, very, very, very young Cary Grant. And it is really modern, I would say really modern for the era, obviously, pre code movies. So they were getting away with a little bit more kind of stuff. But also the idea that it's like this is a movie that was directed by a woman and it feels like it feels that way. I think it's better, obviously, that it was directed by a woman. And you can just tell there are certain touches to it that I think make it so.
- [10:10]
Casey
Sure.
- [10:10]
Millie
But if you haven't seen it, I mean, if you really want to try to, even if you're like, don't know much about pre code movies, I feel like this is a good entry point.
- [10:18]
Casey
I mean, Millie, can you explain briefly what pre code, what that means?
- [10:25]
Millie
Yeah, sure.
- [10:26]
Casey
Because I don't even know if I totally know what that means.
- [10:30]
Millie
Right. So basically the pre code era of early Hollywood. Right. It's basically an era of Hollywood filmmaking that was right after sound starts. Because, you know, obviously there was the silent era where they didn't have sound technology. Sound comes into filmmaking and then, you know, basically a few years later. So we're talking about late 20s, early 30s here. Okay. And then around, I would say, 1934, I think it's 1934, 1935, they decide to establish a production code. Right. So basically it's this code of ethics within the Hollywood system that basically said, well, you're not allowed to show X, Y and Z. Right. They wanted movies to be very, you know, appropriate for moviegoing audiences, you know, and it was basically like, you're not allowed to show nudity, you're not allowed to talk about abortion, you're not allowed to have women having jobs. I don't know. That's not true. But you know what I mean? Like, in that very, like. Sure, it was what you would expect, you know, very patriarchal, very like, sanitized. Very, you know, it was very hetero, Extremely hetero. I mean, like, it was just that kind of, like, American values bullshit that they were, like, enforcing for all the movies that came out. So you have this period, though, of a few years where people are going ham. Yeah, people were going fucking apeshit. I mean, like, there wasn't, like, porn necessarily, but in the context of the era, you were able to talk about a lot of stuff that, you know, you weren't able to talk about after 1934, 1935. So, you know, there's, you know, movies about single mothers, about getting drunk, about women who are, you know, going outside of the marriage and dating other people. And, you know, so there's all these other subject materials. And plus, it was also just like this kind of, you know, sexy, like, you know, and when I say sexy, it's not the sexy that we know now, which is very much like, informed by pornography and the Internet and all this kind of stuff. This is a very classy kind of burlesque type of sexiness, which is like, to me, I think is even sexier because it's like, you know, you're seeing a lot of legs. Like, you're seeing a lot of, like, people, Women in bras, but they're not showing their bare breasts are just like, you know, kind of looking a little. A little titillating. It's not, you know, completely over the top, but it's not, you know, puritanical. So I see. I think there's a whole. A whole section of film fans that are like, really into these pre code movies because again, that that code lasted until pretty much the mid-60s. So you think about how important the pre code was in that regard, where you're like, oh, well, here's like a whole free period of, like, sexy filmmaking. You know, really fun advances in terms of subject matter and, you know, like kind of modern people, modern women, modern men. And then all of a sudden it just gets cut off for like the next 25, 30 years. Right, I see.
- [13:54]
Casey
So very good.
- [13:55]
Millie
Yeah.
- [13:55]
Casey
Well, thank you for explaining that. I'm sure people appreciate getting to hear exactly what that means, because I've heard that that term gets thrown out a lot and pre code movies and. Yeah, fascinating.
- [14:07]
Millie
Fascinating just means pre production code. So go look it up. There's plenty of books about it. You know, it's. It's fascinating era.
- [14:15]
Casey
Very good. All right, well, I think it's my turn for film diary. Scribble, scribble, scribble. Okay. I watched three movies this week, which is pretty good for me. I watched Dune and I watched Dune Part 2.
- [14:33]
Millie
So the Denis Villeneuve ones.
- [14:34]
Casey
Right, The Denis Villeneuve movies. I do want to rewatch the David lynch one because the David lynch movie is a combo of Dune 1 and 2 part 2. Like, it's all one movie.
- [14:46]
Millie
That's the only one I've seen. I haven't even seen these.
- [14:48]
Casey
These were good. They're good. I liked them. I think I liked the first one a little bit more because I kind of like seeing all the spaceship stuff and the buildings and stuff. And the second one is much more about Paul Atreides out in the desert on his own, becoming the Lisan Al Gaib who is the Messiah. I did read the book, too, so I was sort of, like, prepped to see these movies. I have a weird complaint about these movies, and particularly the second one. I know this is, like, a very strange thing to say, but for some reason, with Dune 2, I was very aware that these were movie stars in a movie.
- [15:32]
Millie
I hear you.
- [15:33]
Casey
Like, it's just the cast alone. It's Austin Butler, Timothee Chalamet, Zendaya, Florence Pugh, Anya, Taylor, Joy. It's like all these beautiful youngsters in one movie, like Hollywood's elite, all in one movie. But they're, like, roughing it out in the desert. But they still look fantastic and their hair is perfectly coiffed, you know? So for some reason, I was very distracted by that while watching this movie, which is, like, kind of a. I feel like that's, like a weird thing to say. Like, that's like a stupid person, like, critique of a movie. But I was very aware while watching this of that. For some reason.
- [16:15]
Millie
I don't think that's stupid. I mean, I feel like sometimes the stars are too big to be. I felt like they were fantasy realm.
- [16:21]
Casey
Yeah, that's it. It was like a fantasy realm and they were too big. And it's like Javier Bardem, Josh Brolin, Oscar. I mean, these are all, like, really big movie stars. I think they could have thrown in a few more. I don't know, character. Jason Momoa, a few more, like, character actor. People we weren't as aware of to fill in the rest because it was all just beautiful movie stars filling every single role.
- [16:49]
Millie
Exactly. It's kind of like when you watch the All Star Game for basketball, and it's like every fucking great player and.
- [16:57]
Casey
Then the game is shitty because no one's playing defense.
- [17:01]
Millie
Yeah, no one's playing defense. Everybody's just trying to like, you know, do great dunks and, you know, do great moves. So it's kind of like not a real game. It's kind of like a game of all famous, famous people. Right?
- [17:12]
Casey
Yeah, so I was very aware of that during. And it's like, yeah, like, it's a fantasy, too. So you're. There's a little bit even more suspension of disbelief that you're required to do.
- [17:23]
Millie
Yeah, exactly.
- [17:24]
Casey
And, yeah, I don't know why that was just really popping up in my head when I was watching it. But they are good. They're fun. You know, I can't. I don't really have any other interesting things to say. They're a good adventure. You know, I talked about Lawrence of Arabia. It's like expansive, huge desert scenes. It's like, it's cinematic, you know, and it takes you places. So. And then I also watched the documentary about the Sopranos called Wise Guy, David Chase and the Sopranos, and I thought, this sucked. We just watched. We just rewatched all the Sopranos, and I like the Sopranos a lot, and I was looking for a little bit more info, but it's a lot about David Chase, the creator, and then it just sort of like bops around to other sort of things about the show, but it doesn't really go very deep. It felt very sort of surface level. And I don't feel like I really learned anything interesting. But that's it. Everyone close your film diary.
- [18:22]
Millie
Creak. Close that fucking film diary right now.
- [18:27]
Casey
Oh, there we go. The Italian's coming out.
- [18:33]
Millie
Foreign.
- [18:44]
Casey
Seacrest. For Albertsons and Safeway, it's stock up savings time now through March 25th. Spring in for storewide deals and earn four times the points. Look for in store tags to earn on eligible snacks like Pepperidge Farms, Goldfish and Kettle Chips or sweet treats like Keebler Cookies, Hostess snack cakes, M&MS. And Ben and Jerry's, plus many more. Then clip the offer in our app for automatic event long savings stack up those rewards to save even more restrictions apply. Visit Albertsons or Safeway.com for more details. Hey, everyone.
- [19:14]
Millie
Welcome back to Bach yout Happy Hour.
- [19:16]
Casey
I'm Joe. And I'm Serena. And we are here with the Iheart Music Awards and David Sprytle who are sponsoring this podcast and we are so grateful to them. Thank you. Thank you for finishing my sentence.
- [19:25]
Millie
And we are here with our favorites, Dalton and Charity.
- [19:28]
Casey
Where were you in Bikinis in the snow?
- [19:30]
Millie
Montana. Okay.
- [19:31]
Casey
She flew out and joined you guys. Isn't it cold? No, it was.
- [19:35]
Millie
We well, yeah.
- [19:36]
Casey
Bikinis in the snow.
- [19:39]
Millie
Wow.
- [19:39]
Casey
They were sick, though. I don't get bikinis in the snow. Just like an aesthetic. Yeah. If him and I did that, if we did like Speedos in the snow, you guys would be like, douchebags. I would be like, let's see it. I would not complain. I beg him to do stuff like that. He's like, nah. That's gonna be the name of this podcast episode.
- [20:03]
Millie
Bachelor Happy Hour. Speedos in the snow. David's Bridal.
- [20:06]
Casey
If you're listening to branding a little.
- [20:09]
Millie
Bit, sponsored by David's Bridal.
- [20:10]
Casey
Bridal Speedos in the snow. It's tax season, and by now, I know we're all a bit tired of numbers, but here's an important one you need to hear. $16.5 billion. That's how much money in refunds the IRS flagged for possible identity fraud last year. Here's another 20%. That's the overall increase in identity theft related to tax fraud in 2024 alone. But it's not all grim news. Here's a good number. 100 million. That's how many data points Lifelock monitors every second. If your identity is stolen, LifeLock's US based restoration specialists will fix it, backed by another good number, the million dollar protection plan. In fact, restoration is guaranteed or your money back. Don't face identity theft and financial losses alone. There's strength in numbers with Lifelock. Identity theft protection for tax season and beyond. Join now and save up to 40% your first year. Call 1-800-LIFELOCK and use promo code iheart or go to lifelock.com iheart for 40% off. Terms apply. Millie, this is our main discussion, and like we mentioned at the top, this is a huge one. But you're the person that presented this idea. What, what, where did this start? Why did you do this? We're talking about 2000 era pop star movies with an emphasis on Crossroads from 2002. But what was the impetus behind this, Millie?
- [21:38]
Millie
Well, besides the fact that I'm a film programmer and I'm constantly looking at the calendar being like, huh, what are we, what are some anniversaries? What do we got? You know, what's been a long time. Let's go back, right? Because that's the thing about being a programmer and being into, you know, presenting film or giving histories and contextualizations about film is that, you know, sometimes you've gotta think about these kind of cyclical eras of things, right? And it always, to me feels like, I don't know if you Feel this. But like, there's always this, like, weird kind of like 20, 30 year reevaluation about things that happen and not just movies, but music of style.
- [22:24]
Casey
Yeah.
- [22:24]
Millie
You know when people are like, huh, I miss showing my thong outside of my jeans.
- [22:32]
Casey
Yeah. I miss having to shave all of my pubes so I can wear low rider jeans.
- [22:38]
Millie
I miss shiny shirts that look like an optical illusion.
- [22:44]
Casey
We'll get into it. Some of the fashion in Crossroads. Sick.
- [22:48]
Millie
Made me want to vomit.
- [22:51]
Casey
Sick to my. I was nauseous.
- [22:54]
Millie
Oh, fucking. Anyways, yeah, we're gonna get into that for sure. So anyway, as I'm like thinking about, you know, the podcast and when we're doing our own little programming for episodes, Right. I was like, fuck, I haven't seen Crossroads in forever. And really, I haven't seen a lot of these movies that we're gonna bring up today in forever. It feels like, you know, I said this on I Saw what yout did multiple times. Anytime we talked about a movie from like the late 90s, early 2000s, like, if you call it like 2K cinema, if you will. Right?
- [23:30]
Casey
Sure.
- [23:31]
Millie
There was, like. I immediately got a sense of almost kind of like, dread because we both lived through this era, obviously. I was in college when I when this, and I was in my shithead phase, so, I mean, I graduated my undergrad in 2002, so. And I was working in college radio and I was in the film program. So of course I was like, I say too based for shit.
- [23:59]
Casey
Too based.
- [24:00]
Millie
But I did have this weird kind of college kiddie, ironic appreciation for this era, for the kind of Britney Spears, NSync, Backstreet Boys era. Part of it was because I had a lot of friends that were working in the music industry. I was working in the music industry too, when I was in college and I had friends that worked at Jive Records. Like, Jive Records was like the label that housed all of these fuckers, like, all of the boy bands. I think Jive was part of this movie, in fact, of Crossroads or something. I think maybe they did. I think it was the soundtrack or something like that. Jive was involved. But basically it was like that was the record label that had, you know, all of the kind of boy bands, Britney Spears, et cetera. Right. So anyway, I had. I was going to see these kind of concerts. I mean, I went and saw NSync, the no strings Attached Tour. That was like. I'd never been to an arena show in my life and was, like, completely blown away. I went and actually saw Britney Spears in Atlanta when B.B. mac, the band. B.B. mac.
- [25:15]
Casey
Oh, I remember B.B. mac. Oh,. Yeah.
- [25:17]
Millie
When they opened for them, we got to do. We got to meet them. We went to their kind of, like, fan greeting before the show. So I was all up in the mix, you know, and what I think is really interesting about. We talked a bit about this with Rose and Jen, about the kind of idea of a music film and about how it kind of feels like they don't do things like that as much anymore.
- [25:46]
Casey
Yeah.
- [25:47]
Millie
But this was that kind of, like, second era, it felt like, for me, where they were basically taking pop stars of the times and putting them in their own films. Right.
- [26:00]
Casey
Yeah. We're gonna go through a few of these, but one that came to mind, one of the first ones of this second era was Spice World.
- [26:09]
Millie
Yes.
- [26:10]
Casey
Which came out in 1997, of course. And I feel like the music movie, like, Spice World is more in the tradition of rock and roll high school, I think, where it's, like, silly and campy.
- [26:23]
Millie
Right.
- [26:24]
Casey
But that's what makes kind of Crossroads. And I think From Justin to Kelly is also pretty campy and silly.
- [26:30]
Millie
Yes.
- [26:30]
Casey
And I haven't seen Glitter, but that seems pretty campy, too.
- [26:36]
Millie
Yes, Glitter. Mariah Carey's Glitter. Fantastic. I saw that when it came out and. Yeah. So here's a quick list. If you're. If you're not.
- [26:46]
Casey
Yes, please. Yes.
- [26:46]
Millie
If you don't understand what we're talking about.
- [26:48]
Casey
Okay. I was just gonna say that's what kind of set. That's why I feel like Crossro sort of sits alone a little bit, which we'll get into when we discuss the movie.
- [26:55]
Millie
But it sits alone a little bit, Casey. Okay. Like a little bit. And we'll talk about why. But you've got, you know, obviously said Spice World, 1997, Glitter, 2001. There's a movie called on the Line from 2001, which starred Lance Bass and Joey Fatone from NSync. Okay. If you want to talk about this movie as part of this, you probably could, but I would say 8 mile from 2002.
- [27:24]
Casey
No, no, no. 100%. I think that's a. That's totally right on.
- [27:27]
Millie
Right. There was also the double Mandy Moore films. There was a Walk to remember from 2002, and then there was a movie called how to deal from 2003. Now we can argue about Aunt Mandy Moore actually being. Cause she acted, obviously a lot more.
- [27:51]
Casey
She's still acting.
- [27:51]
Millie
Yeah, exactly.
- [27:52]
Casey
I feel like she is much as an actor than a singer. I actually can't even name more than one or two of her songs.
- [28:00]
Millie
Yeah, I can name one, I think Candy.
- [28:03]
Casey
Yes.
- [28:04]
Millie
Which I actually like. Casey.
- [28:06]
Casey
I like that song. I love the music. I love the music video with the VW bugs. Yes, I was there.
- [28:11]
Millie
To me, that was a very bubblegum song. Like. Oh, yeah, absolutely. But then also you've got like the Hillary duff stuff, like 2004's Raise your Voice. So like.
- [28:21]
Casey
Sure, there's this.
- [28:22]
Millie
Oh, and just from Justin Kelly, 2003. I don't think I mentioned that, but it's like this is. Yeah, this to me is all part and party of like this kind of era. So you've got the American Idol stuff, you've got the TRL stuff. You've got like these like huge, you know, sort of pop stars who are kind of being, you know, put in front of our faces. And then they're like singers, but they're dancers and then they're actors. A lot of them actually were on, they were on like Mickey Mouse Club, like Christina Aguilera and Justin Timberlake. Justin Timberlake, Brittany and Ryan Gosling, which everybody forgets, but. Or I'm sure you don't forget, folks, I know you don't forget that Ryan Gosling was Mickey Mouse clown. But anyway, so to me, this is fascinating because it's almost like again, I think you and I, I think we're both kind of interested in just these weird, like, explosions of films, right? Where you're like, why did that happen? Why was there in a five year, ten year span, a shit ton of movies that were like the same thing? Right?
- [29:30]
Casey
Yeah. It is interesting too, because if you look, and I haven't done like total research on this, but it seems like none of the movies you listed were huge hits. Like some of them, I think made some money, but none of them were like, I think 8 Mile might have actually been the one that felt like it caused the biggest waves when it came out 100%. But like, I don't think Crossroads did particularly well. A lot of these are just critical flops. I think From Justin to Kelly is always popping up on worst movies of all time lists. So it is just like, interesting why they kept churning these out one after another and like, why that happened. Well, I think it, I mean, the reason it happened is because there was a boom of all these pop stars all at one time. The NSYNCs, the Backstreet Boys, and then like we mentioned, like Britney Spears, Jessica Simpson, Mandy Moore, Christina Aguilera, these boy bands and these, these pop singers all like tons of them popping up at the same time. So it makes sense that maybe they started, they wanted to. You know, it's kind of an old fashioned, like 1950s idea of like, let's put these musicians in teen movies to get like, to make money that way, you know.
- [30:43]
Millie
And like what, you know what's really interesting to me specifically about sort of what's happened, like, if you think about this era and you think about, say, pop music right now, right, The Taylor Swifts, the Billie eilishes, the BTS's, like whatever you want to call it.
- [30:58]
Casey
Yeah.
- [30:59]
Millie
It feels like certainly in the Taylor Swift, Beyonce, BTS stuff, there are documentaries coming out about these people, right? But they're not in these narrative feature length films. Like, you're not seeing like Sabrina Carpenter in a movie about how she has to run away from her single dad in order to find herself in California or whatever. You know what I mean? Like, they're not. It seems almost kind of like too corny for any of these people now at this point. If you're a musician and you're in a narrative film, you're kind of like, I don't know, either a cameo or some kind like, you know, when I. We saw like Omar Apollo and Queer. Like when you're like watching sort of things like that, like there's not. There isn't this. It's like nobody wants to be the monkeys in that way. They don't want to create this fictional world for this superstar where they get to. They have to basically act out their own fake lives or something like that.
- [32:10]
Casey
Yeah, totally. It's too sincere or something. Or it's like too. And so it's embarrassing.
- [32:16]
Millie
Yes. Well, let's talk about.
- [32:19]
Casey
Not for me. I think it's great, but for these celebrities, I think they would find it.
- [32:23]
Millie
Oh, no, everyone again, everybody else is too based for Crossroads.
- [32:28]
Casey
Exactly.
- [32:28]
Millie
I don't want a Crossroads.
- [32:32]
Casey
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- [33:02]
Millie
Welcome back to Bachelor Happy Hour.
- [33:03]
Casey
I'm Joe.
- [33:04]
Millie
And I'm Serena and we are Here.
- [33:05]
Casey
With the I Heart Music Awards and.
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Millie
David's Bridal who are sponsoring this podcast.
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Casey
And we are so grateful to them. Thank you. Thank you for finishing my sentence.
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Millie
And we are here with our favorites, Dotton and Charity.
- [33:16]
Casey
Where were you in bikinis in the snow?
- [33:18]
Millie
Montana. Okay.
- [33:19]
Casey
She flew out and joined you guys. Isn't it cold? No, it was.
- [33:23]
Millie
Well, yeah. Bikinis in the snow.
- [33:24]
Casey
We risk getting hypothermia for those photos.
- [33:27]
Millie
Wow.
- [33:27]
Casey
They were sick, though. I don't get bikinis in the snow. Just like an aesthetic. If him and I did that, if we did like speedos in the snow, you guys would be like, douchebags in the snow would be hilarious. I would be like, let's see it. Come on. I would not complain to do stuff like that. He's like, no. That's going to be the name of this podcast episode.
- [33:51]
Millie
Faster Happy hour Speedos in the snow.
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Casey
David's Bridal if listening branding a little bit. Sponsored by David's Bridal Speedos in the Snow.
- [34:02]
Millie
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Casey
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Millie
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Casey
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Millie
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- [34:21]
Casey
I didn't realize you did that.
- [34:23]
Millie
Yeah, we can also send you samples fast and free. Wow. I mean, I always thought I needed a designer to come to my home, but scheduling's always a nightmare.
- [34:32]
Casey
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- [34:35]
Millie
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- [34:38]
Casey
Hmm.
- [34:38]
Millie
I just might have to do more. Oh, okay. Whatever you need. How about you tell me what you had in mind?
- [34:44]
Casey
Okay, then.
- [34:45]
Millie
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- [35:03]
Casey
I just want to say something about Britney Spears. Who? I have such a soft spot for Britney Spears.
- [35:09]
Millie
Me too.
- [35:10]
Casey
I was like a teenager when she came out, and I was, like, in love with her. I thought she was so just approachable and fun, but also, like, she was kind of, like, jockish, too, and athletic. And when Hit Me Baby One More Time came out, she was just this fully packaged pop star. I mean, that video and that song were huge. I watched it again after I watched Crossroads and I was just, like, affected by it. Again, just being like, this is so. It just feels epic and so grand. And so I always was, like, a huge fan of Britney Spears. I always felt like she was so much. I feel like every other pop star that came after her, that was kind of even Christina Aguilera, I felt like they were kind of like copying Britney Spears. I felt like they were all kind of copies of Britney Spears. And she was so dynamic and exciting, and I've always rooted for her. And so when she had her kind of breakdown in the mid-2000s, I feel like she never quite recovered from it. And I worry about her to this day. I mean, I don't know if you follow her on Instagram, but it is. It does not seem like the Instagram of a person who is doing great. And it makes me really sad to know of the struggles that she has had because she was so dynamic and exciting. And in some ways, I know this sounds insane, probably, but I think of her as, like, Elvis.
- [36:42]
Millie
Yes.
- [36:42]
Casey
She's like the Elvis of my time, where just, like, the way she moved and danced and sang, she just had electricity going through her. And then that the popularity that she had and, like, the pressure that was on her made her crack kind of like Elvis. And I really do hope that she has kind of a second act. She's only in her early 40s, you know, and so, yeah, I love Britney Spears. I root for her. And I think watching. I saw Crossroads in theaters, but watching it again now, after all we know about Britney Spears, it was a bit of a tough watch, to be honest.
- [37:23]
Millie
Yeah. I mean, thank you for sharing that.
- [37:25]
Casey
I'm sorry if this sent into a dark direction. That's just sort of what I was thinking about when we watched it.
- [37:31]
Millie
Well, thank you for sharing that.
- [37:33]
Casey
Yes.
- [37:34]
Millie
As a woman.
- [37:37]
Casey
Yes.
- [37:41]
Millie
It's almost, like, too hard for me to talk about how I feel about not just Britney generally, but women of her level of fame and the ways in which the obsession with her was so, like, dramatic.
- [38:07]
Casey
Yeah.
- [38:08]
Millie
And I'm not saying unprecedented, because there have been women like her, like Marilyn Monroe. There's been so many women who become kind of like, the fascination of a culture. Right.
- [38:20]
Casey
Yes.
- [38:22]
Millie
And it's really hard for me to talk about, I think, as a woman, to be, like, the ways in which she had to navigate it is still navigating it. Maybe there were times where she wasn't protected and maybe there was. We were in an era, certainly in this period. And I have to say it, because I talked about this and I saw what she did constantly I personally feel like the early 2000s was, like, a really low point for feminism in a lot of ways. And I'm not saying for her specifically, like, I don't know anything about her feminist politics, if she has any. Like, I'm just sort of like. I'm taking that part of the equation out of it. I'm saying the ways in which, like, the culture objectified her specifically in this time period. Yeah. Cause it was rough, like.
- [39:22]
Casey
Yes.
- [39:23]
Millie
You know, it was really masculine, really machismo. Like, I mean, between the. I call it like, the Girls Gone Wild era of kind of, like, sexualization of women in these, like, really, really extreme ways, but also just, like, gross dude things, like, just, like, really ugly masculinity.
- [39:46]
Casey
Yes. Yes.
- [39:48]
Millie
You know, and so I. I just can't even imagine what it must have been like for her. And there are times where I'm like, oh, well, I. I can't even say anything about her current state because it's so informed by that, you know, 100%.
- [40:06]
Casey
Yeah.
- [40:06]
Millie
And her entire life being in the entertainment industry. And so I'm just like, yeah, I'm with you. Like, I. It's kind of too sad for me to think about in general. And then when you watch this movie, there were, like, times where I was like, oh, yeah, like, they're trying to get her in her underwear as much as possible. And that was her career at that time is everybody wanted to see her in, like, little, cute pink underwear sets. And.
- [40:36]
Casey
Yeah.
- [40:37]
Millie
You know, like. And there was a point of me that's like, well, she looked amazing. And she was like. Like you said, like, athletic and extremely gorgeous. And I was like, okay, well, like, that's like her body was being objectified for so many people. And it was like, you know, watching this movie made me remember all of it. It, like, came back to me. You know what I mean?
- [40:59]
Casey
Well, one of the things that I found, like, kind of disturbing when watching it. Well, let me just. Do you mind if I give a quick synopsis?
- [41:07]
Millie
Absolutely.
- [41:08]
Casey
No, no, you have to. Okay. Okay. So this is the synopsis of Crossroads. So we're in Georgia, baby. Lucy, Britney Spears, Kit Saldanya, and Mimi. They all used to be best friends in middle school, and one night, they bury a box in a yard with all of their wishes, and they promise each other to meet there again on the night of their high school graduation. Well, fast forward to high school. They are not friends anymore. Lucy is a valedictorian virgin, which comes up. I have more to say on that. Comes up a lot. Kit is a very mean, popular girl who's engaged to some guy in college at ucla. And Mimi, Mimi is barefoot and pregnant. Basically they. And they still meet up on the night of their high school graduation and they agree to accompany Mimi on a road trip to LA from Georgia so that Mimi can audition for this record company contract competition. It's a little unclear what that is, but she's gonna go audition for a, you know, recording contract and that will solve all her problems. Who's going to drive them? Why, it's the hunky bad boy Ben, played by Anson Mount. And what will happen to these girls who are not yet women, we will see as we drive across country and sing along to all sorts of pop songs of the time. So that's basically Crossroads and Dan Aykroyd is Britney Spears dad who again, I.
- [42:34]
Millie
Got to say something quickly about Dan Aykroyd. I feel like, is he the king of playing single fathers in films?
- [42:43]
Casey
It's like my girl Crossroads.
- [42:46]
Millie
I swear to God, it's like if there was a mom, sad dad that off or died and you got a one and you got one dude who's holding on the fort. It's Dan Aykroyd with a buzz cut.
- [42:58]
Casey
Looking sad, forlorn, trying to protect his daughter. Yeah, it's he. He emanates that energy immediately. I remember watching it in 2002 being like Dan Akrood's in this movie as a 14 year old boy.
- [43:11]
Millie
I can't believe Zoe saldana is.
- [43:14]
Casey
I 100% forgot Oscar winner Zoe Saldana is in it. But as we were kind of alluding to before this, this movie was you know, just on the topic of taking advantage of Britney Spears and like the, the male gaze of putting her in her underwear and parading her around in this movie. Another big thing I feel like in the early aughts was like the obsession with the virgin or like, oh, we can't wait until she's 18. Like that was like there's like Maxim magazines like Countdown till the Olsen twins are 18 type of stuff going on. And so watching it this time and knowing who we know is Britney Spears. I think of Britney Spears as like backflipping athlete. I think of her as like an athlete. She's like so like in some of her best dance sequences, she's really just like able to move her body in such a miraculous way. And in this movie, a movie about her that apparently she like helped come up with the storyline. They make her virginal and timid and like a valedictorian and it's basically a movie about, like, who she's gonna, like, give her virginity away to. And it really is disgusting to watch. And it's like, knowing what hap. You know, what she had to go through, it makes it hard to watch this movie. And I was just like, why can't she be, like, she doesn't dance in this whole movie. And I feel like that's what she's known for, you know? I don't know. I just. There's a lot to take in with that sort of storyline that was really just upsetting for me.
- [45:01]
Millie
Well, and, like, I think, obviously. Okay, let's strip this back. Okay. Let's say what it is. First of all, there's a lot of things I forgot about this movie in terms of personnel. Okay, sure. So Dan Aykroyd as the dad, Zoe Saldana as Kit, like, one of her friends. I didn't realize that Shonda Rhimes did the screenplay.
- [45:24]
Casey
Isn't that shocking. And I should say. This was directed by Tamara Davis, who directed Billy Madison and Half Baked.
- [45:29]
Millie
Right, Tamara Davis, who I talked about on. I saw what you did. She did a lot of music videos, and she's a good filmmaker, and she. We did Half Baked on the podcast, but. And so, yeah, there's great people attached to it. So there's, like, a female director. Female screenwriter. Lots of, like, great actors in the cast.
- [45:49]
Casey
Yes.
- [45:51]
Millie
I'm like, what the fuck is going on with this thing?
- [45:54]
Casey
Justin Long pops in there.
- [45:55]
Millie
Okay, well, you're putting the cart before the horse, because I got a lot. I got a lot to say about Justin Long. What I will say is this. They're trying so hard to create these archetypes of women. They're like, okay, what do we do to get these three crazily different women into a car and have to work out their friendship in this very, like, Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants kind of way. Even though this movie came out before Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, the movie that is not the book. But I was not buying it for one fucking second, dude. To your point.
- [46:34]
Casey
What exactly were you not buying?
- [46:36]
Millie
Just the whole, like, sweetie, like, when she shows up in her fucking, like, church outfit.
- [46:44]
Casey
Oh, my God.
- [46:46]
Millie
You know, I was like, this isn't like. This is insane. Like, yes, this is. First of all, I don't even buy that the Taryn Manning character knows this fucking girl at all. Like, I'm like, yeah, they. In my experience in my high school, them two bitches would have never crossed paths in a million Years in a million.
- [47:10]
Casey
Not even in sixth grade.
- [47:12]
Millie
Not even in Georgia. Not even in Georgia. Okay. It's like you're trying to tell me that Taryn Manning's trailer park adjacent character was gonna know Britney Spears character in her, like, like, lab partner, white picket fence, like, girly girl thing? No way.
- [47:34]
Casey
Yeah.
- [47:34]
Millie
No. Taryn Manning's character teaches the Zoe Saldana character how to punch. Okay. Like, these girls wouldn't have hung out. I wouldn't have hung out with a girl like that.
- [47:45]
Casey
Yeah.
- [47:45]
Millie
Just thrown out there. So I wasn't buying it whatsoever. Now, I have to say, like, to your earlier point about this being this like kind of era of virginal obsession, I mean, we have. I mean, remember, you know, we're like in the American Pie era. We're in the Stacy's mom era. There was all this about, like, virgins and milfs and all these, like, things. And I'm just like, what is wrong? What is, like, what happened to America when this, when this was popping off 9 11. You know, you might have. You might be right about that. I gotta be honest. You might be right. But I feel like it set the table for this whole storyline, which I'm kind of like. And then it's like. But the idea that she's. She doesn't. Okay, so how does it go? Basically? Justin Long. We gotta talk about Justin Long.
- [48:45]
Casey
Yes. Justin Long is in the movie for four and a half minutes, the first four and a half minutes of the movie where he plays Britney Spears lab partner, and they're going to have sex on the night of prom. And then she's like, this just doesn't feel right. But that four and a half minutes was probably the most fun.
- [49:04]
Millie
Yes.
- [49:04]
Casey
Of like, when Justin Long is ejected from this movie, there goes all the jokes and humor and joy. I felt like in any way, like, there is no comic relief in this movie other than Justin Long, and he's gone very quickly.
- [49:19]
Millie
Justin Long and his sleeper build. Have you ever heard about a sleeper build?
- [49:24]
Casey
Yes.
- [49:24]
Millie
Okay. Go look it up. Okay. I was like, okay. When you find out later who the other guy is, I mean, this. Spoiler alert. Spoiler alert. This movie is over 20 years old, so hopefully, if you don't want a spoiler alert, just put this shit away.
- [49:43]
Casey
This will really ruin this movie for you. Knowing this information when she eventually gives.
- [49:49]
Millie
It up to the guy that she's been on the road trip with. The fucking rock and roll guy with the angel wing tattoos on his back. Okay.
- [49:58]
Casey
Anson Mount.
- [49:59]
Millie
Yes. I'm like, you chose the wrong dude. I'm like, don't fuck this guy at all, okay?
- [50:08]
Casey
He was in jail.
- [50:10]
Millie
He was in jail. That is like, tantamount to fucking Kid Rock or whatever. Like, the manifestation of this over testosterone, like, rock and roll guy of this era. That's who she gave her virginity up to instead of Justin Long, who. I mean, he might be a beta creep, I don't know, but he seemed sweet and earnest and they were friends, and, you know, he was being all cute and then, you know, whatever. But she eventually was like, no, don't you want it to be special? And then she fucks this guy with the angel wing tattoos, and I'm like, gross, girl. Gross.
- [50:49]
Casey
I mean, Justin Long has the funniest joke of the movie where Britney Spears is like, do you really want to look back 20 years from now and think about how you lost your virginity to your lab partner? And he's like, yes, yes, I do want to think. I want that to happen. I was like, oh, that's kind of funny. But this movie I found totally joyless and humorless. Maybe trigger warning here to just talk about some of the events of this movie. We learn that Taryn Manning is pregnant because she was raped.
- [51:24]
Millie
Yeah.
- [51:25]
Casey
We later. Spoiler alert. We later learn the person who raped her was Zoe Saldana's fiance.
- [51:33]
Millie
Jeez.
- [51:35]
Casey
And then Taryn Manning falls down the stairs and loses the baby.
- [51:43]
Millie
Jesus.
- [51:44]
Casey
That is so. I can't believe they allowed this to be in. That is so dark.
- [51:50]
Millie
So dark.
- [51:52]
Casey
I was shocked. Rewatched. I did not remember that it was this dark of a movie.
- [51:58]
Millie
Right. You know, it's funny because I have read people online who have gone back and watched this film, and they have talked about that. A lot of what I've seen and read about, you know, kind of rewatching Crossroads is that it's dark. Like, the subject matter is crazy dark. And, you know, I think, you know, from a very basic research reading of the film, I think that was part of the plan for. At least for Shonda Rhimes and Tamara Davis. Part was that they wanted to make it about, like, real female problems. Right? Like, real things that women go through. And they didn't want to sugarcoat it, and they didn't care if it was a Britney Spears movie. And that about basically how Britney Spears was sort of like. I mean, she was the one that kind of engineered the whole movie to exist, right?
- [52:55]
Casey
Yeah.
- [52:55]
Millie
But I think that's really interesting because. Yeah. I mean, I'm just saying it is dark. I think that they had Good intentions to make it dark. But I also feel like it's just. I feel the playout is a little.
- [53:12]
Casey
Bit different, but I feel like putting these dark real life issues in a movie like this. First of all, there's just too many, like, really horrible real life issues in this movie. But by putting it in a movie with Britney Spears, who's a pop star and it's her first movie, I feel like it kind of minimizes those problems or it makes them feel like not as big of a deal as they are, but, like, as a person watching it as an adult, I was like, oh, my God. Can I, can I, can I throw something at you?
- [53:41]
Millie
Sure.
- [53:42]
Casey
If you were to. If you, like, were an executive back in the early 2000s and they're like, britney Spears. We want to make a movie with Britney Spears. Do you have, like, a pitch of what type of movie that would be or should be?
- [53:54]
Millie
Um, sure. I would say Britney Spears attends a exclusive, mysterious dance academy in Europe.
- [54:11]
Casey
Uh huh.
- [54:12]
Millie
Where she's forced to live amongst other dancers and is essentially discovering that the house that they live in is haunted.
- [54:27]
Casey
Okay.
- [54:28]
Millie
And that there are mysterious murders happening within the confines of the house.
- [54:34]
Casey
So you want her to be in Suspiria, it sounds like. Which isn't a bad pitch.
- [54:45]
Millie
I know. Like, she should be in a giallo movie. Or like it doesn't even have to be as big as Suspiria. She could be in Fuck. See, this is why I'm not an executive. I just want to let y'all know this is the reason why my idea.
- [55:03]
Casey
And she's had the opportunity, but she just. This is. She wasn't able to seize upon it.
- [55:07]
Millie
Oh, of course. I would put her as quickly as possible into the most fucking 1970s Elizabeth Taylor weird art house film possible.
- [55:16]
Casey
100%.
- [55:17]
Millie
I'd put her in Identikit. I'd put her in Ash Wednesday. She's gonna have, like, facial reconstruction, reconstructive surgery that feels topical for modern celebrities. I would have her be full fass bender woman. Like, put her in these, like, Candies heels and these bright 70s dresses. She's gonna be the art house mama. And that is exactly what I would do with her. And this is why I do a podcast with you. And I don't make decisions.
- [55:58]
Casey
I don't think you're, like, wrong. Because I think she needed to be in something fun.
- [56:03]
Millie
Yes.
- [56:04]
Casey
Or that showcases. Because I feel like there were a few moments where she got to be kind of goofy. And I feel like she shined a Little bit more. And this is just such a dour film. I feel like they were trying to make her a serious leading lady by making this movie so dark. But I don't know, I just felt like that was kind of a mistake. I think when I was talking about this with my wife Trisha, she was like, they should have given Britney Spears a Spice World, a goofy, over the top, bright colored movie. Or they could have done like a Purple Rain where it's like we see a lot of performance of her performing and doing what she does. Like, I mean, I love Purple Rain, but like Prince is a horrific actor in that movie, but it's still a fun and delightful movie to watch. They should have done something like that. Or they could have done like a Cleo from five to seven type film with Britney Spears, which is a 1962 film by Agnes Varda about a pop star who discovers she might have cancer. And she's kind of just walking through Paris, going to rehearsal and going about her day and sort of seeing her normal life. And I think Britney Spears would have been great in that.
- [57:16]
Millie
Well, that's, I think, the difference between that era and maybe now, right? Where in a way, I mean, not that they would do this or are doing this at any stretch, but like I could see somebody like her, like of her stature, maybe not of her stature. I feel like maybe the rung below. Maybe you're not Beyonce. Maybe you're. Maybe you are Lady Gaga. Maybe you are, I don't know, Phoebe Bridgers or something. You could be in an A24 horror film. You could be in like a weird art house film. I think that feels possible. Even though, like I said, I don't think they're necessarily doing that at this point or will. I think back then there's no. You couldn't have gone dark. I mean, to want to talk about Production Code. You like, that's the thing. She probably in another world could have played any of these other characters in her little cadre of women, you know, like, instead they opted her. She's the virginal good girl, you know, she's not. She doesn't have the big issues that all these other girls do in that way. Like, you know, of course she's got the thing with her mom, but it's the thing of like, oh, she's not like falling down the stairs and having a miscarriage. You know what I mean? It's like she's not given the meat of a role. And so it's either that you give her that meat or you put her in a fantastical, like, Purple Rain type of thing with performances and dancing and like, almost kind of like, yeah, rock and roll high school. Or like, the fabulous Stains type of thing. It was hard because this is, like, a middle ground between those two things, for sure.
- [59:00]
Casey
I know, but it's hard because the music in this movie, frankly, sucks. I think. Not a Not. I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman is a weak song. And that's like, the climax of the movie. And you're kind of like, yeah, I know Britney makes these sort of sadder songs, but you know her for her pop hits. And you. And so, like, when the credits roll and Overprotected comes on, you're like, hell, yeah. This is what I've been waiting for. But the movie's over by that point.
- [59:26]
Millie
Did you not think it was ridiculous that she sang that at the final. The final scene? She fully had that outfit in her bag. Right?
- [59:34]
Casey
Long sleeves. Ooh. The sleeves are long as hell.
- [59:38]
Millie
But that her two friends, Taryn Manning and Zoe Saladon, his character, were singing backup. That felt like a monkeys episode, actually.
- [59:47]
Casey
Yes, absolutely.
- [59:47]
Millie
You see these two friends of hers, like, bopping around in the back, like, singing her. Singing her song that she just wrote with the other.
- [59:55]
Casey
She just wrote. All right, well, thank you, Millie. This was a very instructive, constructive, and destructive conversation, I feel like.
- [60:03]
Millie
And I'm trying very hard to not be depressed, but. You're welcome.
- [60:17]
Casey
Millie. We are at our film advice segment, and we have an email that someone sent us. Yeah, I'm gonna read it for you. Here we go. Hi. Hello. So my favorite movie theater, the River Oaks Theater in my hometown of Houston, Texas, has just reopened after a lengthy renovation. It plays the obscure and cinephalic movies. It plays the obscure and cinephallic movies. Yeah, that's right. I have so many memories there. So many dates. Midnight Rocky Horror shows, underage drunken stupors at their bar. I love it. A part of the renovation includes a small room with space for catering that can be rented out for private screenings. On my last visit, I was flirting with the cute guy ripping tickets, and he offered to give me a tour. Ooh. When we go to that room, I was really impressed. And it's kind of affordable. I'd love to host a birthday party. There's. I can do either my birthday in August or my other celebratory day the weekend before Halloween. I hate talking through movies, but for a party, I feel like mingling should be encouraged. People grubbing on Whatever food I bring and light chit chat. But this will also be centered around a movie, which I'm sure some will want to watch and pay attention to. Here's my. What should I play? A crowd favorite that can appease 20 to 30 people, but that's also okay to talk through. A fun movie for August, but also a horror movie for Halloween. Help, Noah.
- [61:41]
Millie
Okay, Noah. Now I strap in. Strap the fuck in, Noah. I have done this. This is why I picked your email for this episode. Because first of all, as of this episode, my birthday was a couple days ago, okay?
- [61:57]
Casey
Happy birthday.
- [61:58]
Millie
Okay? Now, this year, I decided to go to Japan for my birthday. So, you know, however, I think it was two birthdays ago, I did exactly what you did, which is that I rented a movie theater. Now, I know you're thinking, wow, that's so fancy. You're. What are you, like Justin Guarini or something? And I'm like, no, I'm not. It was extremely cheap. Like, and it was here in the plaza. It was one of the smaller movie theaters up top. And it was extremely cheap. And I don't know about you. I have talked about this with several of my other friends who are over 40. I. I'm at this point where if I'm throwing a birthday party for myself, I'm just doing it and I'm paying for it. And you just show up. I got no time for the fucking Heman and Han. The people who are, like, beleaguered to come to my birthday, right? They're like, oh, God, I gotta go to this party, gotta pay for this thing, and I gotta buy a present. I'm like, no, no, no. I'm gonna make it real easy for you. If you like me, come to my birthday party. It's already paid for. All you gotta do is show up, right? So that's exactly what happened. I paid, you know, whatever, paid for the rental and then texted like, a shit ton of my friends and said, come and see this movie with me for my birthday now. So there's that part, right? You got your planning, okay? Now you have the choice. And I say this. I don't know who your friends are, okay? Let's just say it. When I was going through my list of the people that I wanted to bring to my movie, I was like, we got a real mixed bag here. I got a lot of different types of competing interests at this fucking joint, right? And I was telling myself, what is a movie that I feel like everyone can get behind? So if you're a straight White guy if you're, you know, a non binary black person. If you're a woman, a man, if you got kids. If you don't have kids, like, what is something that, like, is just too stupid and joyous that everyone will enjoy it? And I decided that movie was Roadhouse.
- [64:15]
Casey
Hell, yeah.
- [64:16]
Millie
And Road House, the original. All right. With Patrick Swayze.
- [64:23]
Casey
Without saying, in case.
- [64:24]
Millie
You got it confused, with the Jake Gyllenhaal Roadhouse reboot. Okay? Now the reason why I picked this is because this movie is gay as shit. It's also straight as shit. There's like, women, hot women, hot guys. There's. It's. It's ridiculous. There's a. It's action oriented, classic lines. And also to your point, Noah, you can talk above it. It's not like a piece of art to where people really need to study it. Like, a guy gets his fucking throat ripped out. Like, we can scream in Kiki and do all this stuff.
- [65:02]
Casey
A guy. Aren't there multiple throat rips or is there just one main throat rip in that movie?
- [65:08]
Millie
Well, there's, you know, his previous throat rips, which we've not seen on screen.
- [65:13]
Casey
Okay, that's right. They're alluded to, but we don't see them. Thank you. Sorry.
- [65:16]
Millie
But do you know what I'm saying? It's like, yes, it's like a joyous, raucous, stupid, fun movie that appeals to everybody. Like, every. Everybody of all stripes can get behind watching this movie. And that is literally what happened. Like, I brought, you know, the movie to the theater. All these people showed up. I had probably, like, I don't know, maybe like 50 people there, which is really weird. I don't even remember how I know 50 people, but that's kind of how it worked. And everybody lost their shit. Like, it was super fun. Everybody was real on board. A lot of people hadn't seen it before because I have some younger friends that weren't, like, not, you know, in the Roadhouse era. When this movie came out, they were blown the fuck away. My friend's fucking mom was there. She hadn't seen the movie since the 80s. And she was like, holy shit, it was a ride. I was, like, extremely pleased with myself. Like, I was like, this is maybe one of the funnest movie experiences I've ever had. And it was just like, it fired on all cylinders. It was just that perfect thing. And it wasn't like, I am a fucking genius. I just thought, okay, practically speaking, what is something that hits all these marks, Right?
- [66:32]
Casey
Sure.
- [66:32]
Millie
So that's kind of what I would suggest for you, Noah. Again, I would do, like, an assessment of who you're inviting. Find out, like, get a temp check on, like, what their levels of humor are, like, who's coming, you know, and then decide, like. And in terms of a movie that is fun for August, but also a horror movie, I mean, Casey, I don't know if you think. Have any thoughts on that.
- [66:55]
Casey
Fun for August, but also a horror movie. I do have one.
- [66:59]
Millie
Oh, go ahead.
- [67:00]
Casey
Okay. There is a movie that I'm obsessed with and it looks fabulous and it stars Mary Warrenoff, and it's from 1986. It's called Terror Vision.
- [67:10]
Millie
Oh, yes.
- [67:11]
Casey
And it's a very bizarre but, like, bubblegum kind of looking movie about aliens coming through at Satellite Dish to like, terrorize this family. But it's so silly and visually stunning. And I don't. You don't really need to hear the. It looks great. That's the thing at parties like this. You want it to, like, be visually, like, exciting to entrance people so they don't have, like, listen to what's going on. And I think Terror Vision is very silly and fun and campy and I think it would be perfect. It's not scary at all, but. And it, but it looks great. And I would highly recommend Terror Vision. Yes, that's my. That's. And it's kind of a summer movie because there's a lot of like, oh, we're barbecuing in the backyard kind of scenes, like with. It's kind of like pseudo 1950s sort of weirdo kind of John Waters vibes a little bit, but with like, aliens coming to kill the nuclear family. And. Yeah, I highly recommend that. And I think that would work well at a party.
- [68:17]
Millie
Yeah, so that's great. That's, I think, a good. Again, like, with if. If without having a conversation about who's coming, that generally is a good. I would say that's a good recommendation. But yeah, I. I encourage you to do some light research on your friends. I would love to go to a movie theater for someone's birthday party. And I feel like that's happening a little bit more now these days with some of my friends. They're doing stuff like that. So if I lived in Houston and you wanted me at your birthday party, I would come. Just throwing that out there.
- [68:51]
Casey
Fabulous. Well, if anybody else would like. If anyone else needs advice, we're here for you. Film advice. We're your film advisors. Write into. DearMoviesExactlyRightMedia.com. or you can leave a voicemail and you can just email that to the same email address. DearMoviesExactlyRightMedia.com keep the voicemail under a minute and please record it in a quiet space. I don't want you recording, you know, in an actual roadhouse. Cause we wouldn't be able to hear you, you know. So, anyways, moving on to employees picks. This is our film recommendation based on the theme of the discussion today. Millie, do you have an employee pick for our listeners today?
- [69:35]
Millie
We've pretty much named all of the, like, boy band girl singers movies. I think if you name.
- [69:42]
Casey
If you pick the same movie as me, I'm gonna be very mad, but continue.
- [69:46]
Millie
Okay, so I'm going a little sideways and I am gonna pick. So this is a movie from 2000. This is a movie that features an actor that was extremely popular in this particular era, which is why I picked it. He is the star of the American Pie movies. The movie is called loser from 2000.
- [70:13]
Casey
Yes, yes, yes.
- [70:14]
Millie
It's a teen rom com, basically. It was actually directed by Amy Heckerling, who did, of course, as you know, Fast Times of Regime, On High, Clueless, et cetera. This movie. Now, I saw this movie when it came out. Cause it played a lot on cable when it came out. It is so charming. So charming. And like I said, when I think about this era, when I think about. No disrespect to Jason Biggs, okay? I don't know him. I don't know his life, but, you know, he was like the star of this really, you know, huge franchise in this era that was super raunchy and super. Kind of like, you know, I don't know. Has anybody done a critical reappraisal of the American Pie movies? I don't know. I don't know if we should do that, but I'm throwing it out there, right? This movie is so cute and charming. It was kind of like. It kind of feels a little like a. Like a Jack Lemmon kind of movie. Like, he kind of plays this like.
- [71:17]
Casey
Jack Lemmon character who is inspired by the Night by the Apartment.
- [71:20]
Millie
Right, exactly. So that's what I mean. It's like. It's got this like. He plays this kind of like, lovable cutie who has, you know, a crush on one of his classmates who's played by Mina Suvari, who, you know, was another person. Right. Wasn't she in American Pie too?
- [71:40]
Casey
She was in American Pie, yeah. I don't know if she was in the sequel, but she was in the first one.
- [71:45]
Millie
Right. But, you know, again, another actress who I feel like is very emblematic of this era as well. Totally. But, like, that's so they kind of, like, have a thing. She's, like, in love with an older guy and, like, you know, he's trying to woo her, but he's also kind of awkward and, like, you know, he's like a Jack Lemmon type. He's a lovable, schlubby type of cutie. So anyway, I loved this movie when it came out. Like, when I saw it, I was like, this feels like so not the rest of these movies. I don't know why. It has heart. It's like, tender. They're one of the actors in this movie, Zach Orthodox. Have you. You know who Zach Wirth is, right?
- [72:23]
Casey
Love. He's great in Wet Hot American Son.
- [72:26]
Millie
Yes. He is so good in this movie, too. Like, he. This is the movie that made me really like him as an actor. You know who else is in this movie? Dan Aykroyd is in this movie.
- [72:41]
Casey
Mr. Sad dad himself.
- [72:44]
Millie
Yeah. And I just like. And I gotta tell you, in terms of music, they. This is maybe one of my absolute favorite end songs that happens at the end of a film. I think about it a lot. And now when I hear the song, I think about this movie a little bit at the end credits. Spoiler alert. They play the song no Myth by Michael Penn and I. My heart explodes. My heart simply explodes. And it's one of the best uses of that song ever. And I love it at the end of this movie. So that is my. Well, my pick.
- [73:23]
Casey
Well, also, Teenage Dirtbag from by Weedus is on the soundtrack for this movie. That's where this song comes from. And the music video for Teenage Dirtbag is Loser. It has clips from the movie Loser in it. Wow.
- [73:35]
Millie
I did not know that. It also has, like, the soundtrack is like. Like, it's got the OffSpring and Blink182 and Bloodhound Gang. Remember Bloodhound Gang? I kind of thought they were funny. I'm not gonna lie.
- [73:47]
Casey
Yeah, it's fun. It's fun.
- [73:49]
Millie
I kind of thought they were funny. And also alien ant farm. Anyway, another topic for loved alien ant farm too. But you know, like, Tal Bachman, she's so high is in this.
- [73:59]
Casey
Like, yes.
- [74:01]
Millie
What a time this shit is stacked with this era of music. So anyway, it's a great film. 2000 Loser, directed by Amy Herkerling. Please check it out.
- [74:14]
Casey
Amazing. What a great suggestion. I have not seen this. It's going on My watch list. It's right up my alley. I gotta watch it. I am choosing a movie which came out in the early 2000s and it's about a band, okay? And it's called Josie and the Pussycats.
- [74:30]
Millie
Ah, there we go.
- [74:31]
Casey
And this is such a, of course, huge box office bomb when it came out in 2001. It's with Rachel Leigh Cookie, Minneapolis Queen Rachel, Tara Reid, Rosario Dawson. They play a band from Riverdale because it exists in the Archie universe. And it's just a really funny commentary on like, you know, corporate intervention in pop music and making fun of boy bands. And there's like a really funny fake boy band called Du Jour that has like Seth Green and Donald Faison in it. And it's a really funny, silly movie. Parker Posey's in it, Alan Cummings in it, Missy Pyle is in it. It's just like bright and loud and fun and the mute. The score is really good. And I feel like they should have done something like this for Britney Spears. Something fun and silly. And you know, TRL is really included in this movie with Carson. Carson Daly's in this movie. If you remember, him and Tara Reid were together at the time. It is directed by Harry El Font and Deborah Kaplan, who wrote and directed another movie I've talked about in this show. Can't hardly wait. So yeah, check it out. Josie and the pussycats, 2001.
- [75:44]
Millie
Gotta tell you, I hate to go in the horny territory.
- [75:48]
Casey
Uh oh.
- [75:49]
Millie
But I listen, I'm a straight woman. I am a straight woman, unfortunately. Right. Because it's unfortunate. I absolutely love Rosario Dawson. Have for years.
- [76:04]
Casey
Oh my gosh, Millie. Wow, what a day. We did it.
- [76:09]
Millie
We did it.
- [76:09]
Casey
We're at the end of our episode. Can you believe.
- [76:11]
Millie
How do you feel about now having gone back in time and thinking about your early 2000s self?
- [76:17]
Casey
Oh, I did no self examination of myself. You know, I don't know. You know, when I saw Cross, I didn't bring this up, but when I saw Crossroads in the theater, somebody saw it before me. And they're like, britney Spears gets naked in this movie. And I was like, what? And I was like, this is PG13. She can't get naked.
- [76:39]
Millie
There's no way.
- [76:40]
Casey
There's no way. And then I remember I was with my friend and he's like, when she gets naked in the movie, I'm gonna yell. And I was like, got it. And it didn't happen. She doesn't get naked in the movie.
- [76:51]
Millie
Yeah, she gets skimpy.
- [76:53]
Casey
She gets skimpy.
- [76:54]
Millie
And I will say she has the most even tan I have ever seen in my entire life.
- [77:02]
Casey
Sure. Like there's no different sort of tanning machine.
- [77:07]
Millie
Oh, yes. I was like they got every nook and cranny of that when they did her spray tan. I was so impressed.
- [77:14]
Casey
So have you ever heard John early do his Britney Spears impressions?
- [77:18]
Millie
No. Is it good?
- [77:20]
Casey
Do you know who John early is?
- [77:21]
Millie
Okay, don't even fucking joke.
- [77:26]
Casey
I will send you clips of him singing Lucky and I'll sing. I, I saw him in concert and he sang overprotected and it's very good. He's, it's like a spot on Britney impression.
- [77:37]
Millie
Have you seen him do his boy band dance? Like especially like the one, the Donald Trump dance where he does this like his like Backstreet Boy. I mean that guy.
- [77:47]
Casey
I've seen everything John early has ever done. So anywho, moving on. This is the end of our show. Yeah. Thank you for writing in for film advice again. You can send all your questions to DearMoviesactlyRightMedia.com Millie, where can people follow us on social media?
- [78:03]
Millie
So yeah, follow us on Instagram and Facebook. We are at dearMoviesiloveyou. Just to let you know, back by popular demand, Kasey and I are gonna do another Instagram live. This time it's gonna be April 9th, so that's upcoming. That's a Wednesday. It's gonna be at 8pm Eastern.
- [78:25]
Casey
Yeah.
- [78:26]
Millie
So come on, come forth, come on down. Bring get a babysitter, you know, quit your job if you have to, like do whatever you have to do. Like reschedule that leg surgery. Like do whatever you have to do. But yeah, so Wednesday, April 9, 8pm Eastern. Instagram Live. We'll be there.
- [78:50]
Casey
We'll be there. Last one was really fun. Fabulous. And if you want to follow us on letterboxd, do so. Ceyleobrien and mdecherico. Oh, Millie, thank you again for another wonderful episode. This was wonderful. I really could dedicate several more episodes. We might have to crack open this subject again.
- [79:12]
Millie
I like how we're lined on it for sure. Because we've got so much to say and we didn't say half.
- [79:20]
Casey
I think we left a lot lot on the cutting room floor.
- [79:26]
Millie
Maybe this will be a multi parter. Let's go, let's see.
- [79:29]
Casey
Yeah, I mean this podcast is gonna go for the next 20, 30 years probably. So we'll gotta fill it somehow. Well, thank you Millie for making a great podcast with me.
- [79:41]
Millie
Thank you. Bye everyone.
- [79:43]
Casey
Bye.
- [79:46]
Millie
This has been an exactly right production hosted by me, Millie de Chirico and produced by my Co host Casey O'Brien.
- [79:53]
Casey
This episode was mixed by Tom Breifogel, Our associate producer is Christina Chamberlain, our guest booker is Patrick Cotner and our artwork is by Vanessa Lilac.
- [80:02]
Millie
Our incredible theme music is by the best band in the entire world, the Softies.
- [80:07]
Casey
Thank you to our executive producers Karen Kilgariff, Georgia Hardstark, Daniel Kramer and Millie de Chirico.
- [80:14]
Millie
We love you.
- [80:15]
Casey
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Millie
Apply the New Year's here.
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It's the perfect time to refresh those.
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Millie
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Millie
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Millie
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