Matinee Monday: Malignant

Summary

Podcast Summary: "Matinee Monday: Malignant"

How Did This Get Made? is an award-winning comedy podcast hosted by Paul Scheer, June Diane Raphael, and Jason Mantzoukas. In the episode titled "Matinee Monday: Malignant," released on October 21, 2024, the trio delves deep into James Wan's horror film Malignant. Celebrating bad movies with humor and insightful critique, the hosts analyze the film's plot, characters, technical aspects, and overall impact.

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1. Introduction to Malignant

Paul Scheer opens the discussion by setting the stage for their Scaretober-themed episode, focusing on Malignant, a film that quickly became a fan favorite upon its release.

Paul Scheer [02:16]: "Hello people of Earth, and welcome to how did this Get Made? I am Tall John Scheer... starting off with a film that the day it came out... Malignant just came out."

2. Plot Overview and Initial Impressions

The hosts provide a spoiler-laden overview of the movie, discussing its convoluted plot involving a parasitic twin that wreaks havoc on the protagonist's life.

Jason Mantzoukas [03:49]: "Because for a good portion of the movie, it appears as though the killer is the imaginary friend of the lead... Malignant just turns out to be kind of a quado."

June Diane Raphael highlights the film's pacing, noting that the major twist occurs quite late, affecting the overall narrative flow.

June Diane Raphael [04:43]: "But then it's not... it's kind of a quado... It truly did feel like it happened in the last 10 minutes of the movie."

3. Themes and Scientific Accuracy

A significant portion of the discussion centers around the medical premise of a parasitic twin, referred to as "Malignant," and its representation in the film.

Paul Scheer [07:01]: "Way, that Jason was saying, a dermoid cyst... parasitic twin... always shares the same genetic material as the viable twin."

The hosts critique the film's scientific inaccuracies while acknowledging its attempt to blend horror with complex biological concepts.

Jason Mantzoukas [08:35]: "This movie is flouting science in that way. Otherwise, the movie is totally right on."

4. Character Analysis and Acting Performance

June Diane Raphael praises the main actress, Annabelle Wallis, for her compelling portrayal of Emily/Madison, despite the challenging dual role with Malignant.

June Diane Raphael [13:18]: "I was pretty entranced by the main actress... Annabelle Wallace... I just really loved her."

Paul Scheer and Jason Mantzoukas discuss the difficulty of conveying fear and trauma when the antagonist shares the protagonist's body.

Paul Scheer [18:07]: "I didn't feel like we really got to see her. She seemed more shell shocked than frightened."

5. Technical Aspects: Cinematography and Special Effects

The hosts commend James Wan's direction, particularly the film's inventive camera work and choreographed fight scenes.

Jason Mantzoukas [11:54]: "There's a lot of very good tension in here. There's a lot of very imaginative camera work... like the floor plan of the home."

They also discuss the unsettling visual elements, such as Malignant's backwards movements and the rapid transformations.

Paul Scheer [14:22]: "I really was confused about that jail cell there."

6. Comparisons to Other Films

Malignant is compared to other horror and thriller genres, with mentions of Drop Dead Fred and Daniel Isn't Real as similar attempts to merge horror with fantastical elements.

Jason Mantzoukas [03:53]: "Because this movie posits the question, what if Drop Dead Fred was a horror movie?"

7. Audience Reception and Reviews

The hosts share varying audience reactions, highlighting polarized reviews where some viewers love the film's creativity while others find it lacking in coherence.

Paul Scheer [72:58]: "A lot of people have been talking about this movie and it walks this fine line of being completely insane, but really kind of fun to watch."

8. Potential for a Sequel

Excitement builds around the possibility of a sequel, with the hosts brainstorming ideas for continuing Malignant's story, including exploring Malignant's personality and potential heroic turns.

Jason Mantzoukas [58:27]: "I think a lot of that is James Wan is a fantastic filmmaker... this movie could have been like real schlocky and real kind of not worth the watch."

9. Conclusion and Recommendations

The hosts unanimously recommend watching Malignant, emphasizing its entertaining value despite its flaws. They suggest that knowing the film's twists in advance might enhance the viewing experience by highlighting clever nuances.

June Diane Raphael [80:03]: "I really did enjoy it. It was... fun to watch during spooky season."

10. Notable Quotes

• Jason Mantzoukas [06:03]: "This movie wants to have it both ways... is Gabriel corporeal or not?"
• Paul Scheer [11:54]: "There's some things that don't make sense. I will say that... the introduction to this husband..."
• June Diane Raphael [22:39]: "I think one of the things that I really couldn't ever understand..."
• Paul Scheer [75:19]: "Horror movies are the best at 90 minutes, people."

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Final Thoughts

In "Matinee Monday: Malignant," How Did This Get Made? hosts Paul Scheer, June Diane Raphael, and Jason Mantzoukas provide a thorough and humorous examination of James Wan's Malignant. They navigate the film's complex narrative, appreciate its technical achievements, and candidly discuss its shortcomings. Balancing critique with genuine enjoyment, the hosts conclude that Malignant is a worthy addition to their collection of "best of the worst" movies, particularly appealing to horror enthusiasts looking for something unconventional.

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Notable Quotes with Timestamps:

• Paul Scheer [02:16]: "Hello people of Earth, and welcome to how did this Get Made? I am Tall John Scheer..."
• Jason Mantzoukas [03:49]: "Malignant just turns out to be kind of a quado."
• June Diane Raphael [04:43]: "It truly did feel like it happened in the last 10 minutes of the movie."
• Paul Scheer [07:01]: "A parasitic twin is always the same gender."
• June Diane Raphael [13:18]: "I just really loved her."
• Jason Mantzoukas [58:27]: "This movie could have been like real schlocky and real kind of not worth the watch."
• June Diane Raphael [80:03]: "I really did enjoy it."

This summary encapsulates the hosts' comprehensive discussion on Malignant, highlighting their critical analysis, appreciation for certain elements, and overall endorsement of the film despite its mixed reception.

Transcript

[Paul Scheer]

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[Jason Mantzoukas]

Now it's time for how to Discriminate.

[Paul Scheer]

We're gonna have a good time celebrating.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Failure, not just being a hater. Cause you know you wondered how to discriminate. Let's woe in the mediocrity of subpar art. Perhaps we'll find the answer to the question how did this Get Made?

[Paul Scheer]

Hello people of Earth, and welcome to how did this Get Made? I am Tall John Scheer, and we are in Scaretober. That's right. How did this Get Made? Is attacking the world of horror films for October. And we're starting off with a film that the day it came out. Everyone rushed to tell us it needed to be featured on the show. We didn't even watch it before because it was so overwhelming. And boy, oh, boy, you picked a great one. Malignant just came out. It's currently on hbo. Max, it's a James Wan film. Look, we're going to say this. If you've not seen it and you want to not be spoiled, tune out now. Because I don't think there's a way to describe this movie or talk about this movie without the spoiler. I'm going to try right now to explain what's going on without the spoiler. There is a killer on the loose. We don't know who it is. There are many leads, but all signs point to our lead actress. Is she the killer? Only time will tell. And I guarantee you, if you knew nothing about this film, you are not going to guess who the killer is. And boy, oh, boy, I cannot wait to describe it and talk to you all about it. But let's do with my two co hosts. Please welcome Jason Mandoukas and Ms. June Diane Rafael. How are you, Paul?

[Jason Mantzoukas]

I'm great. I thought that was a valiant effort to try and explain the movie without a spoiler. I'm not. I'm now going to explain the movie with a spoiler. Okay, that is. That is not entirely true. But this movie posits the question, what if Drop Dead Fred was a horror movie?

[Paul Scheer]

Okay. Yes. And here's what I will say.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Because for a good portion of the movie, it appears as though the killer is the imaginary friend of the lead. The lead character, Madison Emily.

[Paul Scheer]

And if you want to see that movie done better, the Drop Dead Fred horror movie. May I suggest Adam Egypt Mortimer's film Daniel Isn't Real with Patrick Schwarzenegger.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Oh, wow. This already exists.

[Paul Scheer]

Oh, it's phenomenal. I love. Daniel isn't real. Oh, wow.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

It's.

[Paul Scheer]

That is an imaginary friend killer movie. And it's fucking great and weird and really, really good. But, yes, you're right. This is Drop Dead Fred. Well, not even. I mean.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Yeah, but then it's. But then it's not.

[June Diane Raphael]

But then it's not.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Yeah, because then it's like a. Then it's a quado. It turns out to be kind of a quado.

[Paul Scheer]

Reverse quado.

[June Diane Raphael]

It's interesting because it takes so long to get into what the movie is. I mean, and I know horror movies like, we're waiting on the twist. We're waiting on the twist. But this twist, it truly did feel like it happened in the last 10 minutes of the movie.

[Paul Scheer]

You are watching a solid 90 minutes.

[June Diane Raphael]

Yes.

[Paul Scheer]

Of a very slow paced drama about a woman who is dealing with some PTSD from having lost a child and. And her husband being brutally killed.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Her abusive husband. Yes, her abusive husband. She's lost. And I believe she's lost four children. Yes. In utero. And her husband is abusive. He is then killed and she appears to be being. Because I also thought this was like. And I'm not a big, you know, I think maybe you guys, I'm not a big horror movie person. So in the beginning I thought, oh, is this a poltergeist riff? Is this a, you know, the, the villain is inside of their house because they, the, the house that they live in is this kind of beautiful that's constantly being, you know, foregrounded in this menacing shot, these establishing shots. And I was like, oh, is this a house? Is the bad guy movie? And then I was like, oh, no, it's not that. Well, I was constantly trying to figure.

[June Diane Raphael]

It out in that there were so many establishing shots. You're right. Houses, different types of houses, different like levels of houses. I mean, the thing that I. Listen, I was actually upset that the twist came so late because the movie. And what ends up. The basic premise of the movie is that in utero, Emily, Marissa, whatever her name is, had a twin that didn't survive. And so, so instead of like that separate embryo being, you know, taken out and aborted out of the body was absorbed into her.

[Paul Scheer]

Which is something that does happen.

[June Diane Raphael]

Yeah, Listen, we've had our own personal experience with that. My sister.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Twin.

[June Diane Raphael]

Yes, yes. They're called vanishing twins. It's called vanishing twin syndrome.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Okay.

[June Diane Raphael]

Where you have a twin and I think, you know, they now, like we all might have been twins because they've only started doing this.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Who have you been talking to? What do you know?

[June Diane Raphael]

Well, well, I'll tell you. I think one of my sisters was a twin because get ready for this. She had a cyst removed.

[Paul Scheer]

Oh boy. This goes.

[June Diane Raphael]

And it had hair and teeth.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Yeah. And that has a name. Is that called like a. That has an. That, that, that collection of hair and teeth has a name. It's called like a. I wanna say it's a bezoar. But that's a Harry Potter thing. Those things have a name. I'm so sorry. Go ahead, June.

[June Diane Raphael]

No, but they said to her that she probably was a twin. I also have a family history of twins, but it was probably a twin that was absorbed. So there's this extra DNA that's in your body now, that's called, by the.

[Paul Scheer]

Way, that Jason was saying, a dermoid cyst. It's a sac like growth that's present at birth. What we're talking about here is a parasitic twin that occurs when a single embryo in utero begins. Single embryo, yes, but it doesn't complete. And then the dominant twin develops as normal and the extra twin does not. The parasitic twin is somewhere between a conjoined twin and a vanishing twin or a twin that was reabsorbed. And it always shares the same genetic material as the viable twin, as they were once the same embryo, therefore the parasitic twin. So they were always twins, the same gender.

[June Diane Raphael]

Oh, I didn't know that.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Parasitic twin is always the same gender. Okay, that's interesting.

[Paul Scheer]

Yeah.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

So this movie. This movie is flouting science in that way. Otherwise, the movie is totally right on. But in that way, something about it.

[June Diane Raphael]

Is medically like they use every movie in med school to understand.

[Paul Scheer]

Well, that's why I think it was so dry for that first 90 minutes, because it really was almost like watching a documentary about, you know, about the process of giving birth. And, you know, it was very, very good.

[June Diane Raphael]

This was sort of my cautionary tale to all of us, to be quite honest. You know, now women are getting ultrasounds at like six weeks, seven weeks. But when we all were in utero, if you can hearken back to that time, like, we weren't getting.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

I remember it well. You remember it well. I remember. I mean, I have such. I have so much uterine nostalgia.

[June Diane Raphael]

I know.

[Paul Scheer]

Especially now. That's what kind of got me through this whole quarantine is just. I just. I just went back to that spot where I was like. That was fun. That was a great nine months.

[June Diane Raphael]

Just enough. Why I. Like, a lot of us could be twins.

[Paul Scheer]

Yes. A lot of us could have malignants.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

We would never know it. We would just be out there falling into a trance at night and then walking and crawling backwards on.

[June Diane Raphael]

Okay, so raking our arms. This is what I said. This is what I said to Paul did this twin. Because at some point, her sister, who's not her biological sister, who's her adopted sister, I don't know, says that she. That Gabriel, her twin, her tumor twin is Caused all of these multiple miscarriages.

[Paul Scheer]

But I thought.

[June Diane Raphael]

I thought that Gabriel wasn't activated until she smashed her head in the wall.

[Paul Scheer]

Well, I think what's happening is Gabriel is still inside of her. But the smash to the head, that kind of activated it. That Kind of hit the sensor off like that. Make Gabriel kind of like appears to.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Be able to open and knit itself back together at will, depending on whether or not Gabriel wants to come out. But what the sister says to her is, at one point he was like, gabriel grew stronger by feeding on your babies. Like he was feed. That's why he's come back, is he was feeding on your babies. And that's what strengthened him. And then the final straw, the final straw was when her husband hit her, the back of her head, where Gabriel lives, into the wall, thus. Thus creating a rupture that allowed for Gabriel to come in and out of consciousness or whatever. Right.

[Paul Scheer]

You can kind of hear it described in this scene right here.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Maddie, I know you couldn't hear me. You have to fight him. Madison's not home. Madison, he killed your babies.

[Paul Scheer]

He was the cause of your miscarriages.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

He was feeding off of your fetuses to build himself back up.

[Paul Scheer]

Maddie, please, please come back. So they do lay it down. But it's such a giant premise.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

And it's so late in the game. And it's so late in the game. And it's so late in the game.

[Paul Scheer]

And that.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

What I couldn't figure out about this movie was the movie doesn't have enough plot to sustain an hour and 50 minutes.

[Paul Scheer]

No.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

You know what I mean? Like, it's. It's. And. And. And I think James Wan is a really. A very impressive filmmaker. Like, there's a lot of. Like, there's a lot of very good tension in here. There's a lot of very imaginative camera work. When, like, I loved the shots that were almost like they were from above inside the house and looked like floor plans. You were looking down at the floor plan of the home, and she's running up and downstairs and in and out of rooms in a way that you're like, this is such inventive filmmaking. But they kept you in the dark for just too long. Well, because once it gets just like, oh, she's. She's the twin. She's the bad guy all along, but we knew it.

[Paul Scheer]

But even crazier, not only is she the twin, but when the twin comes out, she just reverses her body. So it's one body, you know, two faces. And what I found to be. You know, obviously, I don't need everything to be answered, but maybe just a little bit. I'll say it's interesting that she broke her arms to go backwards when she's malignant, but then how do the arms get back to the Normal, you know, like is malignant. Healing bones.

[June Diane Raphael]

Well, she also had on like a coat. Like a.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Well, this. Yeah, an outfit. Like, there's definitely an outfit. What. One of the things that I really couldn't ever understand, and I'm curious if you guys have a thought on this, is it seemed like the majority of the movie of all of Act 1 and half of Act 2 seemed to present Gabriel or the villain, the murderer as a supernatural being. A phantom, a ghost, a ghoul.

[Paul Scheer]

He eats electricity and he communicates through radio waves like he is beyond all.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Of these supernatural elements. And, and they do that thing which I think all modern horror movies do, which is long black hair covering the face and backwards crawling and speedy movements. Uncomfortable. Uncomfortable. Backwards walking, crawling.

[Paul Scheer]

The two fights in the police precinct and the jail from the 1970s that she was. I guess they just haven't cleaned out that jail since they arrested all those perps from like a Sidney lie from all walks of.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

And all times.

[Paul Scheer]

I was like, is this like, is this a time traveler's jail?

[Jason Mantzoukas]

But I'll tell you what, Bob, I'm in here for having a jazz cigarette. You know what I mean? It felt like everybody was from like a different era.

[Paul Scheer]

I really was confused about that jail cell there. But, but that breaking of the arms, because they really show you when she transforms into malignant. Like, you know that, like, I just don't get how those arms come back because even when she goes back to being herself, she gets those arms back. Back under control. Is she double jointed? Is that what they're trying to say? I don't know.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

There aren't. Unfortunately, there aren't enough reveals in this movie to sustain the length. Right. Like this movie, I think would have been much more fun at an hour 30. Yes, at an hour 30. And it's just because all we realize so quickly, oh, the bad guy is killing the doctors that tortured him and, and, and his sister. You know, that's the, that's the, that's the setup. Okay. There isn't even a twist on that. That's just what's. That's what's happening.

[Paul Scheer]

Well, and it's just. Yeah.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

So all we're left to wonder is who. And it's really. It's either a supernatural being or it's Madison slash Emily. You know, there wasn't any misleads. There wasn't any. Maybe it's this person or maybe it's.

[Paul Scheer]

That person, the imaginary friend element. I was like, oh, is that the twist that people are talking about? Like that's yeah, because everyone keeps on saying, oh, the twist in this is pretty insane. And I was like, the IM friend isn't like that. I mean, it's. It's bonkers, but whatever. But I will say that.

[June Diane Raphael]

Why are you saying, Paul, that. That she's turning into malignant.

[Paul Scheer]

I just want to call her malignant. I don't want to call her Gabriel.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Gabriel. That's an inch. Because that. I noticed that as well. So you think that the. You think it's called malignant?

[Paul Scheer]

Yeah, I think the bad.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

The bad.

[Paul Scheer]

The bad guy is malignant. Yeah. Because. Because the doctor said it's, you know, it is malignant. So, you know, like.

[June Diane Raphael]

Like Gabriel saying that as though it's.

[Paul Scheer]

Like, did Gabriel have a. Did Gabriel have a naming ceremony? Did someone name Gabriel who's coming to your dinner party?

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Oh, Matt and Karen Malignant. Jeff and Kathy Malignant and his girlfriend Emily.

[Paul Scheer]

You know, as I said, as I said to June, I was like, I. Throughout the movie, I would say, oh, malignant. Like, you know, because I knew that Malignant was. I think that Malignant is a better name than Gabriel. And Gabriel. I. Again, I just want to go back and say that this movie opens before we see the Abuse of the Husband. It opens in this 1990s. It's a doctor recording her captain's log for this patient. And they show you the damage that little Malignant can do. And. And then you're. You're. And you believe that this character is dead. But obviously, why would that scene be in the movie? That character was dead, but that was the only thing that made you believe that there was something like a real person invested.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

They basically. Yes, they basically established Gabriel both by name and evil action in the opening scene. So that you believe the mislead is. You believe that the villain is. Either Gabriel is still alive or Gabriel is now a specter or a ghost or something that is haunting them or in the radio. I don't know why. But you understand, you understand definitively that Gabriel is the. You know, so as an effort to kind of throw you off the scent, that Emily slash Madison, what's her name? Right, Madison.

[Paul Scheer]

Yes, there is. Our main character is Madison.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Real name is. Yeah. And her birth name is Emily. And to throw the scent off of her because you're like, no, this is happening to her. She's not the villain. Because we know Gabriel is. Gabriel is probably what's going to be at the root here.

[June Diane Raphael]

I mean, I will say I was pretty entranced by the main actress who played Emily Slash Annabelle Wallace. Annabelle Wallace. I just really, really loved her and spent. I spent most of the movie thinking about her hair and whether I could get it and how I could get it.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

And I think it would be easy. I mean, it's. It's a giant black wig.

[Paul Scheer]

I mean, it is.

[June Diane Raphael]

She is normally a blonde, so good on her.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

You should be. You should be malignant for Halloween.

[Paul Scheer]

I mean, malignant for Halloween would be great. And I could.

[June Diane Raphael]

That's a great idea.

[Paul Scheer]

I could be Kiko Shaw.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Wait, Paul, you think you could be Kiko Shaw?

[Paul Scheer]

Yeah.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Okay, cool.

[June Diane Raphael]

But there's very.

[Paul Scheer]

Detective Kiko Shaw.

[June Diane Raphael]

There's a very specific type of hair on ladies, which is like there's bangs and then there's like a sheet of hair.

[Paul Scheer]

A sheet.

[June Diane Raphael]

And she had. Of course it's a wig, but she had that sheet. And it's like a sheet like you can peek through. Yeah, it is honestly the type of hair where like another person could be hiding inside of it.

[Paul Scheer]

Well, that's what we need. I mean, we need that. We want that hair. We want that to hide a face. You know, when you go get your car serviced, it feels like everything is wrong, Right? Oh, you need to fix this. You need to get that done. And it just feels like, am I getting taken for a ride? Well, with Midas, you don't have to deal with upsells, intimidation, or unnecessary stress. From oil changes to tires, Midas provides the services that you need and doesn't pressure you into services that you don't. Midas believes in honest, straightforward auto care that you can Trust. Welcome to AutoCare without bad service. Visit Midas.com for a location near you. You already love DoorDash. And now there's even more to love with the new DoorDash Dash Pass annual plan benefit. All right, here it is. Drumroll, please. Max with ads is now included at no extra cost. That means you can have dinner delivered with doordash and settle in for a night on the couch watching the HBO original series House of the Dragon. Plus, while you're watching Gotham's own Oz COBB and the HBO's original series the Penguin, you can enjoy some New York City pizza or soft pretzel with doordash. And if you're rewatch friends, don't be surprised if those coffee shop scenes make you crave having a latte delivered fast. Of course, you still get all your favorite Dash Pass annual plan benefits too, like unlimited zero dollar delivery fees on eligible orders and exclusive member only offers and menu items. Sign up for DashPass annual plan and get Max included at no extra cost. It's your door to more. Terms and conditions apply. Max is now included with your DashPass annual plan. Stream max with ads up to $120 value included at no extra cost. Terms apply. See doordash.com max for details. When you're hiring for your small business, you want to find quality professionals that are right for the role. LinkedIn Jobs has the tools to find the right professionals for your team faster and for free. LinkedIn isn't just a job board. LinkedIn helps you hire professionals you can't find anywhere else, even those who aren't actively searching for a new job but might be open to the perfect role in a given month. Over 70% of LinkedIn users don't visit other leading job sites. So if you're not looking on LinkedIn, you're looking in the wrong place. On LinkedIn, 86% of small businesses get a qualified candidate within 24 hours. Hire professionals like a professional on LinkedIn. LinkedIn knows that small businesses are wearing so many hats and might not have the time or resources to hire. So post your job for [e-mail] claim. That's LinkedIn.com claim to post your job for free. Terms and conditions apply. Now, I will say this. There is a scene in the movie where, and when you go back and rewatch it, which I have not done, but many people have told me that you can as anything, you can do whatever you want with your time on this planet. But there's a scene where she is talking to Gabriel and in the mirror, you see the back of her head. But it's totally fine. There's nothing going on there. So Gabriel, this idea that Gabriel is like, literally in her head but can still use a telephone, like, that was the. These are the things that I'm having Gabriel speak.

[June Diane Raphael]

Yeah, because Gabriel seems to have a.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Mouth and he does talk to her. He does talk to her through different technologies, but also like inside of her head. Like when Gabriel's taken over, she is hearing his voice through her own hearing. Like when she is not in control of her body. So, again, like, what this movie has a lot of trouble with is rules, you know, because. Because. And I'm not for nothing, because to define the rules would be to give away the movie, right? Would be to give away the reveals. And so I do believe they're building.

[Paul Scheer]

Up for a sequel here. So the sequel will be. The sequel is going to be where Malignant gets to. Gets Malignant on vacation.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

If you're Madison Right, yeah. Madison. Who says she doesn't? That would be amazing. Just like speed to.

[Paul Scheer]

Yeah.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Cruise control. Malignant two on a cruise. The thing about Madison is she says she doesn't remember anything before she was eight years old when her sister. The scene where she's in the hospital and her sister arrives in a princess dress.

[Paul Scheer]

Yes.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

I was like this. I want more of this in the movie.

[Paul Scheer]

I like that relationship.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Inexplicably, the sister is dressed for a costume party where she plays a princess. Like a Disney.

[Paul Scheer]

Yeah. She was coming from a birthday party.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Yeah.

[June Diane Raphael]

I thought this sister was great. I mean, I was great. She was very taken.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Maria Bello, too.

[June Diane Raphael]

Actors. Yeah. I mean, here's the interesting thing about the sister. So early on, when Emily was a child, malignant was. She was able to sort of quell and quiet. Malignant once her sister was born, right?

[Paul Scheer]

Well, no, no, but no, malignant was also malignant. Was in her head as her. But her. But malignant was. I think this is a really, like a metaphor for like being the youngest or being the ignored child.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Right.

[Paul Scheer]

Because malignant is sort of like trying to have her wreck her family's life. Because doesn't she have the knife in her hand when she's about to kill her parents? And she's like, it's malignant.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Malignant. Malignant is trying. Or Gabriel, rather, is trying to make her hurt the baby. Because what they say is that Gabriel knows if she is given. Because remember, she is talking at the beginning about, like, wanting a blood relation or wanting. Wanting someone. And so Gabriel recognizes that the new baby is a threat to his relationship with Madison, Emily. So he wants her to kill the baby, but she doesn't. And in doing so, allows for herself to have a bond with her sister that makes Gabriel. Like, Gabriel hasn't been talking to her from 8 until the head injury. Right. Like she hasn't been hearing from Gabriel.

[Paul Scheer]

Well, I guess Gabriel's been munching on those fetuses and just been. Yeah, right. So I guess you're right.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

The head trauma is what wakes him up.

[Paul Scheer]

I mean, my God, when you see this moment.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Strap him into the chair. You've been a bad, bad, bad boy, Gabriel. I will kill you. Oh, my God. He speaks. He's broadcasting his thoughts. I thought we could help him, but I was wrong. It's time we cut out the cancer.

[Paul Scheer]

And then after that moment, they proceed to show you how they cut out Gabriel.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

So this was going to be my question as well. So they operate and they remove all of Gabriel's physicality. His little arms, his rib cage. All of the stuff that's on.

[June Diane Raphael]

All the stuff that makes Gabriel Gabriel.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Yeah, all the stuff that's like. Again, like, if you've seen Total Recall, it's like a quado, but in reverse.

[Paul Scheer]

And in the head, quado's in the belly. This is more in the head.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Oh. It's also like Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone when Professor Quirrell has Voldemort on the back of his head and it's been in his turban the whole time, and you just haven't seen it, you know, but that's the vibe of it. And so they cut out the whole thing. Wouldn't Madison's back have so much surgical scarring that she would be like, what happened to me?

[Paul Scheer]

Well, didn't. What I found so interesting was when they were doing this, when they were doing the surgery, and I was watching. And look, I'm not gonna lie, I was watching it through, you know, a hand over my eyes, because that kind of shit grosses me out. I'm not into that. Like, that's not fun for me. I don't want to see up close surgeries. I'm not into that on TikTok. I'm not into that in a movie. And as I'm watching it, I did see them kind of like, they couldn't cut all of malignant out, so they just kind of pushed it together and then just, like, closed her skull on it. Like the way that you kind of pack a suitcase when it's a little bit too full. It's like, just get in there and we're gonna get it down like that. They just kind of pop some of malignant in there and then close that skull on top of it like a.

[June Diane Raphael]

Trunk, a packed trunk.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

And that's the thing is when Gabriel comes in and out of dominance, he is able to un. He's able to, like, almost like. Like, like, like the curtains opening. Like a cuckoo clock, like, skull. Her skull opens. Like, her hair parts and her skull cracks open. Gabriel's deformed face comes out. That's when he's in charge. And then when he goes away, it's like. And the show's over, and her skull knits back together. It's like.

[June Diane Raphael]

That's why they call them curtain bangs.

[Paul Scheer]

I want this to be. I want our shirt to be a cuckoo clock with malignant coming out of it. Just. It's malignant time.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

But what I couldn't figure out was like. And I felt like the movie Wanted to have it both ways. Which was, is Gabriel corporeal or not? Because, like, one of the best. I thought one of the great, like, little moments inside of early in the movie that I was like, oh, this is what I like about James Wan. This is why I think he's a good filmmaker, is like, when the husband has been, like, relegated to the downstairs and he's like, huh, what's going on? He's looking around. He see. And we see the hair covered, blah, blah, blah. And we see there's, like, you know, scurrying and. And Malignant shows up in the background a little bit. There's a moment where he sees Malignant sitting on the couch. And then he walks over and the couch cushion, like, oh, yeah, compresses. Like, the couch cushion goes from being sat on to not sat on. Right. And it just rises like weight is coming off of it, which I thought was such a good tiny way to show that there's something here moving that you can't see. But what I couldn't figure out was, well, isn't that make malignant a ghost?

[Paul Scheer]

Well, that. That's what was a misdirect that made no fucking sense because.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

And by the way, cool thing, but it didn't add up because. Because malignant is just. Just Madison.

[Paul Scheer]

I mean, this is.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

It's a body.

[Paul Scheer]

I. I'm going to say a body.

[June Diane Raphael]

That moves at quite a clip.

[Paul Scheer]

I mean, it's very much not to. Whatever. It's very much like the ring. Like, the ring. You know, it's like she can get on all fours. She's scurrying around because, like. Because malignant, like, drops. Yeah.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

I was going to say malignant's always in the ceiling, you know, always. Always able to, like, have supernatural scurrying powers, you know?

[Paul Scheer]

Yeah.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Malignant doesn't seem like Malignant gets shot, like, multiple times and is. And. But then Madison the next day is never hurt.

[Paul Scheer]

The bullets don't go into Madison unless Malignant, like, was catching him with his, like, little gnarled teeth. I will say that there are some things that don't. I mean, there's many things that don't make sense. I will say that, you know, the introduction to this husband that you have to kill off right away and not feel too badly about, but you also need to, like, set in motion hard. Like, there's a lot of things that have to be accomplished within the first three minutes of the movie of present day, which is she's gotta lose her child. She's gotta be Abused by her husband to activate malignant. And you have to, like, not like this husband. Like, there's so much that you have to do. And I did think there are some very funny moments of just, like, very black and white. It's like, here's the husband on the bed watching UFC in the middle of the day. Like, it was like, on his phone. He's on his phone, on his phone phone watching ufc. And when he hits her, and there's nothing funny about domestic violence, but he hits her with such force. It was like a fast and furious hit. It was like the rock.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

The camera moved with it. The camera moved with his. Like, again, it just creates an even more visceral sense of this abuse because the camera moves with his. Shoving her into the wall in a way that was like, whoa.

[Paul Scheer]

It really was shocking.

[June Diane Raphael]

I'm now thinking. I'm now thinking about these miscarriages, and a part of me is like, maybe Gabriel was, in his own way, protecting Emily from having, like, a devil baby.

[Paul Scheer]

Yeah. Wait, wait. Do you think that the baby would come out like.

[June Diane Raphael]

Well, the babies would share half. Half of malignants or at least a third of malignant DNA.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

I think you could also look at it as he doesn't want her to have a baby the same way that he didn't want her to have a sister.

[Paul Scheer]

Right.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Like that. That. That he wouldn't want her attention to be on something else. But. But again, I think what we. Like, I think the understanding is it's that. It's that shove that. The husband's shove that. That. And that's opens up the cuckoo clock. That's why they. That's why they really, I think, foreground it so much and make it seem so. Because she continually checking the back of her head, and it's always bleeding. Like, that shove is what awakens Gabriel. That is the inciting incident, I think, that brings Gabriel back to life, back to reality, back to the way things used to be. Anyway, how old are you and me? However you need me Malignant however do you want me?

[Paul Scheer]

However do you need me?

[Jason Mantzoukas]

It would have been amazing. It would have been amazing if, like, Bumblebee, he talked through songs on the radio instead of having a voice on the radio. He was. He had to use, like, existing songs. And so he, like. So, like, the. The dial goes up and down and it's like, back to life, back to reality.

[Paul Scheer]

But isn't that what Bumblebee do?

[Jason Mantzoukas]

That.

[Paul Scheer]

He does that in the Transformers.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Yeah, that is Bumblebee.

[Paul Scheer]

Oh, but this is malignant. Oh, sorry, sorry.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

I'm saying it would have been funny if this was. If that was Malignant's game.

[June Diane Raphael]

You know, here's. But here's the thing that I didn't quite understand. How she gets rid of Malignant at the end.

[Paul Scheer]

Oh. In the mind jail.

[June Diane Raphael]

Kept on saying. You kept on saying, like, multiple times, Paul. Like, she put him in prison. She put him in prison. Yeah, yeah. But, like, how did she do that? And how can I do that with my negative thoughts?

[Paul Scheer]

Oh, wow, okay.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

I mean, she basically justifies it by saying, the mind powers that you have, because we share a mind, I have them too, and now I know how to use them. You know what I mean? Like, that's. That's the exposition that's given. It's not good, but that's what they say.

[Paul Scheer]

Let's play a little bit of this mind prison scene.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Now. I can do all the mind tricks you can. Not possible.

[Paul Scheer]

Did you forget we share the same brain?

[Jason Mantzoukas]

I didn't ask to be tethered to you. You don't deserve your body. I can use it better than you. Not anymore. You don't get to control me ever again. It's over, Gabriel. I'm taking it all. My mind, my body, my everything. Now you get to live in a world that I create. You can't lock me in here forever. You'll always be stuck with me. Sooner or later, I will get out. I know. But next time, I'll be ready for you.

[Paul Scheer]

This scene is insane because it's the first time. All right, so what we see is every time that Malignant kind of comes out or every time that she has this thing to kill, like, the entire backdrop goes, like. It becomes almost like oil and water kind of rushes into the frame and the background disappears. Like, that happens a few times in the movie. And at the end, Malignant's out there doing malignant stuff. And then all of a sudden, the oil and water kind of wash over the scene, and now they're in this mind jail. Kind of like Sherlock Holmes, like, mind vault.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Memory palace.

[Paul Scheer]

Memory palace. And now they're both there.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

No, no, no. Okay, so I can explain this. Okay, so when. So what we're talking about is what is revealed when we get the reveal that Madison, Emily, is also Gabriel Malignant, that they share a body, that Malignant exists on the back of her body. So when we've seen this character killing people, it's actually been Emily. But Emily is trapped inside of a. Like, a psychological prison that he. That. So when Malignant takes. Takes control of her body. She is trapped inside of her own head, right? And so she. So let's say she's in the bathroom, right? And what you described as. It all melts away. And now she's in the hotel room of the bad guy that she's the doctor or is the doctor that she's going to kill, right? What has happened is probably in the bathroom. Malignant takes over, traps her in that room, and then Malignant goes to the guy's house, and she watches from inside Malignant eyes what Malignant's doing, right? And in the end of the movie, she uses that trick against Malignant. So Malignant thinks he's shot the sister and is going to kill the mother, but that's just her showing him a false reality and saying, I'm in control. I'm trapping you in a false memory or a false idea of reality because I have the same psychological powers as you do, and now I'm using them against.

[June Diane Raphael]

Well, but Jason, basically, things that she saw Malignant do were real, though.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

I know. That's. That's. That's. That's the movies wanting to have a moment where Malignant kills the sister and the mom, and you're like, oh, no. But then they immediately undo it. It's just. That's just stakes, I think. It's not good. It's not good.

[Paul Scheer]

The mom is still alive.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Everybody's still alive. The sister is still alive.

[Paul Scheer]

I know she's still alive. Yeah.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

He. They are. Like when. When the sisters are hugging at the end, there's. There's a. He dollies out wide, wide, wide. And the mom is just sitting. Not the mom, sorry. The birth mother. Yes, the birth mother.

[Paul Scheer]

Yes.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Not Maria. Not the Maria Bell. The birth mother is sitting in her hospital bed smiling so big. It's hilarious. Insane trauma has just happened regardless. And the fact that she's ending the movie like, is so bizarre.

[June Diane Raphael]

Why she initially gave them up. Them meaning Malignant. And I think if you.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

It's in the. It's in the video. There's a video where the Dr. Weaver is in interviewing the. She's like 15 years old, and her mother says it's an abomination and she wants to give it up. Right?

[Paul Scheer]

Wow.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

It's confusing. It's confusing because the footage looks identical to the footage of young Madison Emily, right. When she is a child. They both have essentially, the black bangs, straight black hair.

[Paul Scheer]

They look too similar. And the movie is very dark. I mean, again, big James Wan fan. I think Aquaman is one of my favorite DC movies. But there is some darkness in this movie that is unexplainable. Like when they go into the morgue to look at the body of the husband. It is X Files office, dark in that, like, autopsy room. Like, I mean, it is the fact.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

That the sister goes to an abandoned, like, asylum on a cliff. She parks on the precipice of a cliffside and at night she goes to it like the Hogwarts. It's Hogwarts in scope and scale. It is massive. It's like she goes to Arkham Asylum.

[Paul Scheer]

On the coast, on the coast of.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Seattle and goes into the records room. Goes down into the records room and immediately finds her sister's box of videotapes. By the way, this would be impossible.

[June Diane Raphael]

Well, it's also hard because, like, so. So the movie is so.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

And they should have kept her. She should have been dressed in a princess dress in that scene.

[June Diane Raphael]

Absolutely.

[Paul Scheer]

Talking Pictures, the podcast from TCM and.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Max is back with a new season.

[Paul Scheer]

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[June Diane Raphael]

When the mom falls out so. So Malignant has taken the mom from her job as a tour guide in the subway systems or some such.

[Paul Scheer]

She does an underground Seattle tour, which is actually a real thing. We should all do it next time we are on tour.

[June Diane Raphael]

Which is cool, is keeping her in the attic of Marissa or Melanie or whatever her name is. Her house taped up. And she eventually falls through the floor and into the living room.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Okay, she falls through two floors. She must fall through two sets of.

[June Diane Raphael]

Floors, which is so crazy. Like, if you were to fall through one. Just because you've fallen through one floor doesn't mean like you're going to fall through all floors.

[Paul Scheer]

I fell through one floor as a child and I was caught. All right, so you were caught by the floor. Very much like the Money Pit. Like, by the floor.

[June Diane Raphael]

It's the funniest shot in any movie.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

I thought you fell through the floor and someone was just like, boop.

[Paul Scheer]

Well, we had an attic and I was always told to stay on the beams. You have to stay on the beams. And there was. I'm gonna say it's asbestos, but it wasn't asbestos. It's like that pink fluffy stuff. Whatever. Insulator.

[June Diane Raphael]

Yeah.

[Paul Scheer]

Ins and fiberglass. Yeah. And so I slipped as I was walking on one of those beams and my foot went into the fiberglass pink stuff. And my foot came right through the floor. And then I also took, you know, a drop. Like, you know, not.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

The floor was probably just Sheetrock.

[Paul Scheer]

Yes.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

You know, it's probably just not. It was not like, you know, it's just sheet. Probably something very. But that floor did not capable of holding your weight.

[Paul Scheer]

Well, that floor looked much sturdier. Like, it looked like an actual floor. It looked like someone almost malignant's been.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Walking around up there all the time.

[Paul Scheer]

But Malignant is like.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Malignant's like hideout, but malignant.

[Paul Scheer]

Why does Malignant need a hideout because Malignant is her. Malignant can sleep in the bed. Like, does Malignant need, like, time to, like, exercise? Like, Malignant's only been alive for a.

[June Diane Raphael]

Handful of days when you need a space to just be yourself, you know.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

I would have loved it if there was like, a peloton up there.

[Paul Scheer]

I would have liked it. You know, Malignant likes the rower. And then maybe like hydro.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

The hydro does the hydro.

[Paul Scheer]

And. And then. And then maybe like Emily does the mirror. So Emily could be facing one direction doing the mirror. And then Malignant.

[June Diane Raphael]

Quick plug for that.

[Paul Scheer]

At first I was all about peloton. And if they're still advertising on the show, I'm very much about them, but. But now I'm all on the mirror.

[June Diane Raphael]

I love both.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

I don't. Listen, I don't have a mirror. If the mirror people want to send me a mirror, I'll do it.

[Paul Scheer]

Yeah, man, get that mirror.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

I'm curious.

[Paul Scheer]

It's amazing.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

But what I loved about. What I love about this movie is every set is enormous. Like, every room is so big to allow for cameras and lighting. And so like the attic. The attic has a revolving fan that's going around that is. Is 8ft in diameter. I mean, it looks like they are in an aircraft, an airplane hangar, you know, Malignant's hideout. And it's just the attic of the.

[Paul Scheer]

Top part of that house. Do you think that the establishing shots of the house are to show Maybe. Maybe you'll catch Malignant up there. Like, maybe Malignant.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Like, I wonder. One of the things I kept doing in this movie was always looking in the background to see if they were populating it with, like, little things like that. And they weren't.

[Paul Scheer]

Well, no.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

I was like, oh, I wish there was more little, little things to pick up on. But it felt very. Felt very kind of. Again, once it's on the tracks, it felt very much on the tracks. I was. I was very rarely surprised until a point when they were like, oh, it's an imaginary friend. And I was like, oh, I guess that's it. Like, I could. I guess I could have tried to figure that out, but. And then they were like, oh, it's not an imaginary friend, it's a parasitic twin.

[Paul Scheer]

The coolest shot in the movie, which I've now doing my research, has seen again, is the moment where she sees the cop. She is being reflected in the mirror and Malignant is facing the cop. So that is a moment where you can see both faces. Now, I imagine if I am the Woman running underground Seattle. And I am kidnapped by Malignant. And I am now taken to a nice house in the attic, a semi furnished attic. If Malignant is like torturing me in this chair, every time that Malignant would walk away from me, I would see this other young girl and be like, oh, yeah, hey, like now I guess I just was wondering how much of her is covered. Like, can we flip it back?

[Jason Mantzoukas]

They do, they do a lot of. They do a lot of hair over her face, I think.

[Paul Scheer]

Right, but the hair would have to go backwards. It would have to like go over the top. Like that would be almost like a. Like a. To do that. It's like a Donald Trump kind of comb over. Like this is like.

[June Diane Raphael]

Because you're saying. But they do. They do hair over Malignant's face.

[Paul Scheer]

Yes.

[June Diane Raphael]

Which doesn't necessarily mean that the hair is over Emily's face because Malignant's face.

[Paul Scheer]

Is popping out from the hair. The bangs are not giving that length.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Well, there's no bangs for Malignant.

[Paul Scheer]

Well, hang on.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Malignant doesn't have bangs. There are no back bangs.

[Paul Scheer]

I'm saying that Emily has bangs, so there's not that much that can drop back.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

I think back bangs might be the T shirt.

[Paul Scheer]

But.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

But here's the thing. Like, I agree with you. Like, Malignant has to part the hair and crack the skull open to be present. But what the movie. In the early sightings of Malignant, I think Malignant is the hair that is on the back of Emily. What? Madison's head is being flipped back over Madison's face. So it looks like. Because in those first sightings. Can you do that, June?

[Paul Scheer]

I don't think you can do that.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Malignant seems to feel like it is a cousin it or Captain Caveman style covered in hair.

[Paul Scheer]

But I don't think that hair can. I mean, look, I'm no expert in hair, you know, so don't trust me.

[June Diane Raphael]

Talking about two different things right now. So Jason's just describing the malignant hair, which, yes, is almost covered. But Paul's question is, what about her face on the other side?

[Jason Mantzoukas]

I think when Malignant comes out, that hair gets pushed to cover Emily's face.

[Paul Scheer]

So you're thinking that like that door that opens almost creates more scalp.

[June Diane Raphael]

I'm going to take down my hair. Let's see if we can test this.

[Paul Scheer]

Well, that's my issue.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Yeah, that doesn't work, June, because you'd have to crack your skull. Like, remember, the skull gets cracked open. So.

[June Diane Raphael]

But even if I pulled this hair, if Malignants popping out over here. Even if I push this all forward, my face is still gonna peek through, right?

[Jason Mantzoukas]

What if you pulled all the hair? You're not doing any of your top hair. But.

[Paul Scheer]

No, but you see, Jason, that top hair is not gonna. That top hair is bangs.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

No, the back hair comes across.

[Paul Scheer]

No, you can't lift up back hair like that. Like, it's not like a garage door. Like.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Listen, I agree with you guys. I'm not trying to disagree with you. This is a. I think they're trying to have it both ways. I think they're trying to hide Emily's face as much as they can. Of course, when Mal. When malignant is in charge. So as to not tip you off. Except for Paul, the mirror scene that you just described.

[Paul Scheer]

Now, why does Melissa have a coat on?

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Look at what June is doing. Look at what June has just done. That's malignant. Fuck. That's malignant. Oh, fuck. Paul, get out of there. Fuck.

[Paul Scheer]

Paul. I didn't like the way they perceived young children who are coming. Well, June, your voice is.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

June voice is different. Tune into the deep dive. This week, Jessica and I will be talking to Kulap Vilayzak.

[Paul Scheer]

All right, So I like that, June, you've proven that malignant works now on multiple levels.

[June Diane Raphael]

I guess I did. But I will say, to your point, Paul, it didn't look like that from the. It didn't look like hair was going over. And I think that's where we're getting. We're getting in the weeds now with.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Like, training, I urge all of our listeners. Here's what I'll say. I urge all of our listeners to try and malignant yourselves and send us the pictures to whatever malignant yourself. Hashtag me, hashtag melignant, and show us your pictures of your best malignant. See if you can get your hair to do it.

[Paul Scheer]

And we need it to look good because we also have to remember fight scenes in here, too. I don't know where the coat came from. From malignant. I don't know where the knife came. Well, I guess I know the knife a little bit.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

We know where the knife came from. Okay. That I want to talk about. Because when they go to Dr. Weaver's house, right? Dr. Weaver is the first. Is Dr. Weaver the first death?

[Paul Scheer]

No, second.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Because second death.

[Paul Scheer]

First death. I mean, the first death is the husband. Not counting all the people who died in the hospital.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Sorry. You're absolutely right. Okay, so the second death, we see Dr. Weaver, and Dr. Weaver has like a TRO. A set of trophies on her. On her shelf.

[June Diane Raphael]

I'm so glad.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

One of which just says excellence in surgery. That's what the trophy. And the trophy is a sword, malignant, which malignant then fashions into malignant's weapon of choice. Now you're telling me that that sword is so he. Such a strong metal that it can be grinded into or ground down rather into an actual blade?

[Paul Scheer]

Yep.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Like, that's. That is insane. Excellence in surgery.

[June Diane Raphael]

Like, here's the thing. Like, okay, so if you're really. I don't feel like any surgeons are getting awards in general, like, trophies. Like, to me, it's your.

[Paul Scheer]

Well, but by the way, not many surgeons are putting a malignant back. Back in the box.

[June Diane Raphael]

But like, your trophy is just like, whether they lived or died. Like, your legacy is in and is in the people and. And living out their lives successfully. It is like they're not after. I mean, that you're not.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Guess you're not. It's not like it felt like sports trophies.

[Paul Scheer]

Yeah, yeah. The way that I'm looking, I'm looking about. Are. I'm looking up, are there any awards for doctors? And they're really like the awards that you'll be getting.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

I'm sure there are like, humanitarian awards. No, there are a lot of doing.

[June Diane Raphael]

Research or some such, but I'm going.

[Paul Scheer]

To tell you, a lot of them are public service award, medical research award, special achievement in medical science, a medallion for scientific achievement. So none of them are for best surgery. None of them are just simply, you cut good, you got the appendix out. Like, you know, you don't get like a first place for that.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

That scene where Dr. Weaver's in her office and Malignant basically crank calls her. I was like, this is hilarious. This is like. She's like, hello. And he's like, Dr. Weaver. I'm like, I feel like he's about to be like, Baba Booie, Howard Stern's penis.

[Paul Scheer]

The voice of Malignant is pretty hilarious because. By the way, I just want to ask one quick question. I know we've malignant ourselves, but malignant has no hands, so. Malignant.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

No, Malignant has her hands.

[Paul Scheer]

Right, right. But I guess what I'm saying is when malignant turns, the skull is opening by what, Malignant's mouth? Or is malignant. Do you know how some people can tie a cherry stem into a knot? Does malignant have to work its tongue to pop the back of the skull off? Because there's no help there to, like, shoot out.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Well, that's why malignant Breaks her arms and wrists so that he can turn those to the forefront so that her arms will be usable moving backwards.

[Paul Scheer]

Well, but that was the second part and I'm malignant.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

I'm assuming malignant is using those then hands to open it up wider to the curtains. To open the curtains of the skull.

[Paul Scheer]

The skull curtain open and come out. Because I thought that maybe it was a sort of a chin, lip, tongue thing where it's like malignant.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Very. But again, malignant only seems to be to be able to speak and interact through electronics or a phone call.

[Paul Scheer]

But a phone call. I mean, I guess that's technically electronics. But it was like one thing is like. And they said he's eating electricity. He's eating it and then he's like broadcasting through. Like, it's like lawnmower man. It's like, it's like, it's like. There's a movie I remember called Shocker. I may have referenced it on this show before where like a guy is getting electrocuted and he like lives in like the. In like electric outlets all over the town. But like controlling a phone and making it ring. Seems like that's like maximum overdrive level, like control of devices. I mean that is really next level.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

That's again, that's where and this movie traffics a lot in supernatural things that are never quite expressed or explained. That again, I'm like. Is like also like. So this movie wants to have it all. Malignant has like supernatural speed and stealth and kind of can disappear and reappear as if it's a specter or a ghost, but it's also corporeal and can and has like the fighting style of like a ninja. You know what I mean? Like, Gabriel knows martial arts. Gabriel knows like he's an expert fighter in. And again, he's. He's an expert fighter using her. Madison's body moving backwards.

[Paul Scheer]

But maybe, but maybe, maybe Madison is a stomach sleeper. And so when Madison is sleeping on her stomach, malignant can like watch, you know, video tutorials and learn about like karate.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

You think?

[Paul Scheer]

Yeah, yeah.

[June Diane Raphael]

Or do you think like seeing malignant like jump down those fire escapes?

[Jason Mantzoukas]

So good. Oh, the parkour stuff.

[June Diane Raphael]

I mean, that was amazing. Yeah.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

And it was also really good. Again, I think it's. They use the kind of unnatural body movement, the backwards body movement, the cracking of the limbs, the crawling on upside down crawling. They use that to great effect. It's so unsettling.

[June Diane Raphael]

And then it's so unsettling seeing someone.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

And then when, oof, ooh. And then when it's also so adept at physicality, it really seems very threatening. I just was like, well, what is this? Is this like a. Why does Gabriel have these. This skill set? Why is Gabriel so good at fighting and making a sword? And like, I almost was like. I almost wanted to see like Madison go to like a kickboxing class and be like, oh G. Gabriel knows. Because Madison knows.

[Paul Scheer]

By the way. I will say that, like that the. The prison fight scene. And I know I probably already said it already, but the. And that police fight scene was not only beautifully shot, but the choreography of the body movement there was still incredibly stilted. But like it wasn't just like they just. I felt like whoever choreographed that sequence really was conscious of making it look like someone doing it from behind. Like it was very like. Like it was. It was lanky and weird, but also extremely smooth and violent. I don't know, like I'd never seen anything like it. Yeah, that was pretty amazing.

[June Diane Raphael]

I gotta say, there is a lot about this movie that I really, really enjoyed.

[Paul Scheer]

Yeah, me too.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

I think a lot of that is James Wan is a fantastic filmmaker.

[Paul Scheer]

Yes, yes.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

You know, like this. This movie could have been like real schlocky and real kind of not worth the watch because it's not. It doesn't kind of add up story wise. And it could have been disappointing if it was not well shot. And it's not just well shot, it's beautifully shot in a lot of ways. Like the action sequences, there's tons of very long interesting oners that go from upstairs to downstairs. Like I said before, that piece that takes place in an overhead shot that lays out the floor plan of the whole house below is fucking cool, man. There's like a lot of beautifully done choreography and geography. Setting of these fight scenes and these uncomfortable chases and all that stuff which I thought were great. Like the cop chasing Malignant out of the jail house into the tunnels through the brick wall, squeezing through small areas that I thought that was all great.

[Paul Scheer]

I will say that, that there were some things that were weird. And I think there are some moments where, I mean, obviously we talk about some of the logic of it, but there were also some moments that I did feel like that reveal of I'm adopted, which I'll play, take a listen.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Only I've been able to have a baby. Don't do that. This is not your fault. It's not what I'm saying.

[Paul Scheer]

I wanted know what it felt like.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

To have a blood connection with someone. A biological connection.

[June Diane Raphael]

Maddie, what Are you talking about mom.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

And dad took me in when I was 8.

[Paul Scheer]

I don't remember anything before that.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Mom told me that my biological mother.

[Paul Scheer]

Died during my birth.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Sydney, I'm adopted.

[Paul Scheer]

That music, Sting, the Pixies, where is my mind? So. Which is just subtle. Subtle, but it is. Like, when that happened, I was like, what the fuck is this movie? Like, why do I care that she's adopted? I don't know enough about anything here that that makes any difference. Right?

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Yeah, it really, at that point, it means nothing to us, you know, but that's the movie again. That's the movie telling the movie, being like, well, we're not set up for it. So let's put a mu. Let's put music in to key the audience into the fact that this is important information, even though we haven't earned it yet. You know, like, even though we haven't earned this as a reveal, we're going to tell you by this music, Sting. It's a reveal. Trust us.

[Paul Scheer]

And if I'm a doctor, by the way, I'm just going to say this. I'm telling everybody about Malignant. I don't know why Malignant was so hidden. Like, Malignant. That would have been a feat of science, right? Like, yeah, why were. Why were we being so coy about Malignant?

[June Diane Raphael]

Yeah, like, I. I would assume there are books and publications and all sorts of, you know, studies on Malignant.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Well, it seemed to me, and I don't know what you guys felt like, the framing of both the doctors in that first scene where it's the. Takes place in the past. The. The. The. The first scene with Gabriel and then when the sister goes to the kind of Arkham Asylum evil kind of place. I think. I think you're meant to believe these are not good doctors. Like, this is. These are. This is shady, or this is like bad. These are bad people doing bad experiments on kids. Maybe.

[Paul Scheer]

Yeah.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

You know, something like that.

[June Diane Raphael]

That.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

That maybe like, oh, these are. This is. This is work that is not for public consumption or is about evil or. I. I don't know. I was trying to figure that out because I was like, is this. Are these doctors kind of. Are they. Did they have nefarious intent and is that why Gabriel is now taking them out?

[June Diane Raphael]

No.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Or. I don't know.

[Paul Scheer]

You know, I mean, like, it's that.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Thing where I was like, clearly malignant is part of Madison's house because it appears in the house so often that I was like, oh, why don't you just leave the house? But Again, because the movie is so long, she stays there so long that you're like, get out of the house. But it's because you don't realize yet she is malignant. She just seems to be operating so against her own best interests that you're just like, I don't understand why she doesn't just go to a hotel or whatever.

[June Diane Raphael]

Maybe her sister.

[Paul Scheer]

Well, her sister has a very small studio. I mean, she's just doing princess parties and she doesn't have a room for.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

I wish, yeah, I wish that sister and the sister and the cop have a real will. They want them.

[Paul Scheer]

I love that.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

And then, and then the cops associate is also like very kind of in love. Unrequited in love with him, but she gives a shit.

[Paul Scheer]

Which is like, I want to see that partnership. I like that partnership.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

No, not the partner. I'm sorry, not the partner. The girl with the glasses who's always like, yes. Who the partner refers to as Miss Lonely Hearts. I think she's like very into the detective and he's not returning her affection. I felt like all the police dynamics were. They were pretty funny. But again, like the police station is like from a TV show.

[Paul Scheer]

The police station is out of a Batman comic book.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

I mean, it's floor to ceiling windows that are like three stories high. I was like, what is this?

[Paul Scheer]

And whoever is the commissioner is basically on a real like ecological kick. Like, guys, turn off the lights at night if we're not use your desk lamps only. This is. We're not going to be. Our carbon footprint needs to be small. I will say that also like the, the idea that. And I guess this is the question I want to ask you because maybe I don't understand it still now. Does malignant become malignant and then go, I'm going to the underground tour? Or does she go to the underground tour and then become malignant? Like, because I'm thinking about Malignant like trying to get downtown. Like, how does Malignant drive a car? How does Malignant get into the. This thing? Like, how does like Malignant has to do a lot of things to get into an apartment building. Like that apartment building that that guy lives in. Maybe she's climbing up the fire escape, but she may walked in the front door. I don't know. I guess that's my question.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

And does. And does Madison Malignant do all of that backwards?

[Paul Scheer]

That's what I'm thinking. Like, that's, that's the question I'm asking. Is Malignant walking backwards?

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Like, because here's the Thing we now know. Here's the thing we now know from the end of the movie. Movie. Her malignant outfit is in the attic. Right. So she's getting dressed at home and then going out and committing these crimes. Yes, Right. So she's. No. So now my assumption is she's turning into malignant at home. She puts on the outfit and then she leaves. But that means she's walking backwards to like the Silver cup apartment.

[Paul Scheer]

That's to kill this guy.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Which is. It's a long walk really. They really don't show any of that.

[Paul Scheer]

Drama out in the street, cuz Malignant walking around in the street. You're going to call the cops.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

You're going to call the cops backwards. Driving a Prius to the, to the apartments would be very funny to me.

[Paul Scheer]

I hate stick shifts.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

The stupid electric car needs a charge.

[Paul Scheer]

Oh, does this have a two? Damn it. My easy charge is not working. God damn it. But now. But there is something funny too about where did the jacket was. Just maybe in the attic. Like is that a. Like an attic jacket doesn't.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Wait does steal that jacket from somebody.

[Paul Scheer]

Oh no.

[June Diane Raphael]

Like a little token.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

No talisman, like with a trophy. Like when's the first time we see the jacket? Because I feel like the malignant like gets finds the jacket and puts it on at one point.

[Paul Scheer]

Yeah.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

But maybe I'm wrong. I. I don't know. It doesn't. That's okay. I really, I'm like. I don't know, like it was really jump back. I just wanted to jump back to the, to the cops again. Because the cop, the detective does have a wise cracking partner who when they do a sketch of Malignant, she says so I'm putting out a BOLO on Sloth from the Goonies.

[Paul Scheer]

Yes.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Genuine laugh. I got a genuine laugh from me. Very funny.

[Paul Scheer]

There is. I mean there's a lot to like. And I do believe that to me this is all about the sequel. Because now once we're in on it, I'm all on board with this idea. I don't know, I just really like it. And I want to see more of these. Like, I like that Malignant has like a full personality. I don't think we understand why it has a personality because it seems like it was killed very early before these things would happen. But I guess there is this time in the mind jail. I think that Malignant is in the mind jail the entire time before she's activated. And I call her a she because I want to be truthful to the genetic material Issue. So Malignant is in the mind jail. And that's where Malignant could be learning or training or just getting a little bit of an attitude.

[June Diane Raphael]

Interesting. For sequel to see if actually, like, Madison could use Malignant's powers for good. Like if Madison was called upon to have to. To fight some sort of greater evil and had to actually enlist this part of herself and wake up Malignant in like a sweat lodge.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Yeah. Why not use Gabriel's powers for good? You know, because Gabriel, as it's told to us, Gabriel makes her stronger. Gabriel makes her like he faster. Like, somehow Gabriel is able to give her supernatural powers. Right? Yes, he's, you know, that seems to be true. Like, he lifts heavy objects and throws them. Like, and we then when we understand that that's her, she's doing that. So she must be. She must have some sort of. Like, this would be a character in a comic book that would be like. That would present first as the villain and then would be brought in and be like, well, if you can keep your demon under control, you can use it for good.

[Paul Scheer]

Get us Malignant. What do you want?

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Your piece of. It's basically. Well, you know what it is. It's kind of a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. It's kind of an Incredible Hulk scenario.

[Paul Scheer]

Yeah.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Or it's Two Face. Yeah.

[Paul Scheer]

And I mean, look, I just want more of this.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

My name is Patterson. Your fake mother gave you the name Madison. Your shitty marriage gave you the name Mitchell. Much of our. Always be Emily to me.

[Paul Scheer]

Who are you?

[Jason Mantzoukas]

You know who I am. Even if they say I'm only in your head.

[Paul Scheer]

I don't know what you're talking about.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

You let them tell you I wasn't real, that I was just a voice, and you believe them. Now I am going to make them pay for what they did it one by one. Gabriel. No.

[Paul Scheer]

Because I think that also what we're not getting a lot of is the fun of Malignant. I think we need more of that humor, more of that, like, kind of saucy. I like that. I like Malignant. Working for the good people now in the sequel, taking down a serial killer or something like that.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

I want it more Malignant, more Malignant, less Madison.

[Paul Scheer]

Yeah, I'm all on board.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Like, I would love it if. I would love it if the detective in Malignant 2 shows up at Madison's house and like, she's living a normal life. And he's like, I'm so sorry, but we need Gabriel. We. We've got a situation. We need Gabriel the only person who can fix help us is Gabriel. And because, because, you know, like this one of the scenes that I really liked actually was the hypnosis scene where. Where they come and they hypnotize Madison to try and get her to uncover her repressed memory, which is successful. But I'm like, oh, I wonder if you could. I wonder if the. The future of this series is a world in which Madison can access malignant at will. You know, kind of like the Incredible Hulk. Like, you wouldn't like me when I get angry. Like you wouldn't like me when Gabriel comes out and then Gabriel comes out and, and kicks ass. I. I don't know if that's, if that's where they're going. That could be interesting.

[June Diane Raphael]

That's very interesting.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

It's not like there's going to be like more malignants, right? This, this can't be like a thing.

[Paul Scheer]

Well, there's a lot of.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

That doctor has a lot of files.

[Paul Scheer]

I mean, there's a lot of VHS tapes. There's a lot of malignants across the world. I will tell you one thing that Molly sent me right here, that James Wan actually wrote a book, a limited series back in 2011 for Boom. Called Malignant Man. Diagnosed with terminal cancer, Alan Gates is resigned to die until he learns that his tumor is a parasite. With a new lease on life and incredible otherworldly powers, Alan must fight against an evil army buried beneath society skin, all while unlocking the secrets of his forgotten past. So Juan is all about like, this, the cancer. Like the cancer. Good guy, bad guy. It's its own thing. I'm. Look, Malignant man might be our sequel. We may have like maybe a malignant wedding.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

I mean, it's a real body horror story about like, how your body can betray you, how your body can. How your body can be working against you. Like, that's really interesting that, that in perhaps an original consideration of this idea that the, the parasitic twin or the tumor is cancerous. It is, it is something that is.

[Paul Scheer]

Killing bipolar person, bipolar disorder. I mean, it's, it's a metaphor. There's so much here to unpack. And obviously we did like this movie. And I have to say, a lot of people, a lot of people have been talking about this movie and it walks this fine line of being completely insane, but really kind of fun to watch. And if you would have shut the movie off before the re. I would have said it was garbage and trash, but. Because maybe the sl burn was worth it. I don't know.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

But and just to remember, if you're going to be submitting your photos, it is hashtag melignant and it's your hair over your face trying to prove that you could be malignant.

[Paul Scheer]

But remember, it's front malignant. It's. You have to, you have to be. I, you have to.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

I bet there's going to be a lot of malignants for Halloween this June.

[Paul Scheer]

I'm going to already tell you a.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Lot of malignants on the Discord.

[Paul Scheer]

People are already talking that you, you would make a great malignant for Halloween. People said if you just had a dark wig on, you would be a great malignant.

[June Diane Raphael]

Wow, that's nice to hear.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Wow.

[Paul Scheer]

Yeah. So that's already been happening on the Discord. That happened a little while ago. That was before we even announced that we're doing.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

I would love June, I would like for you to. Okay then, now I'm going to say hashtag June4Malignant2. Like, I want you in this sequel. I want you in.

[Paul Scheer]

Would you do a movie like this? Would you be able to do a movie like this?

[June Diane Raphael]

I was so, I told you I was so taken with this actress and I just thought she was so good. Good and so interesting and beautiful to look at. I, I, I would be honored to step into.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

I thought she was great if you.

[Paul Scheer]

Like her this much.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

But I would have loved this movie more if you were.

[June Diane Raphael]

Thanks, Jason.

[Paul Scheer]

Yeah. And by the way, June, I, you know, I'm your biggest fan and I'm going to tell you that I think you would have done a great job and I think what you would have done better. And I'm not saying that there's not much to do here better, but I'm saying what you would have done better was I would have seen you be more afraid of Malignant. I didn't feel like we really got got to see her. I mean, it's hard to come face to face when you are, when it's on the back of your face. But like, I feel like we didn't, I didn't ever find her to be completely. She seemed more shell shocked than frightened. And I would like to, I think you would have been able to deliver some of that. And by the way, just so you know, Annabelle Wallace is in a lot of things and she very much is in the James Wan camp as she has been in, you know, Annabelle. And so, you know, this is a chance for her to really kind of, you know, shine a little bit louder and, or brighter, I should say. Not louder.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Louder. Yeah.

[June Diane Raphael]

I do think it's a tall order to have your acting partner, you know, in the back of your head.

[Paul Scheer]

It is, it is very hard.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

And it's also very hard to. You also have to modulate what you're doing so that you don't give away the secrets. You know what I mean? Like, if she'd done her performance differently, it would have told you kind of what was going on.

[Paul Scheer]

She didn't.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

And that's the hard thing. Thing, like you, you. And that's why my complaint is really. It's just too long.

[June Diane Raphael]

Yeah.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Like if this movie had been shorter, it would have been so much more.

[Paul Scheer]

Horror movies are the best at 90 minutes, people. I mean it like this is the length literally of the Exorcist. Like in the Exorcist, like also a slow moving movie. But that is to build a pace.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

What I would have loved, genuinely. Although now that you've told me that it already exists. Because when it, when it revealed that when the cop says so the. So this is your imaginary friend, the killer is. Wait, you're saying the killer is your imaginary friend? I was like, oh, this is why we're doing this movie. This is horror movie Drop Dead Fred, which I was so excited about.

[Paul Scheer]

Well, again, if you want that, go watch Daniel isn't real. I think you'll like it. You'll really, really enjoy it. And that's not a spoiler because it's right out in, in the front, as we say it. By the way, we did talk about that detective, that female detective, the, the Miss Lonely Hearts that is the co writer of the film and James Wan's wife. So this is her half of her brainchild as well. Obviously there are people out there that are even more enthusiastic than we are. It is now time for a second opinion.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

The movie was a piece of shit, yet this person recommends it. Tell me, what is the message? Maybe that art is subjective. I need a second opinion.

[Paul Scheer]

All right, so here are just two quick reviews because right now the movie just came out. So we're on IMDb we're looking at the reviews so far. Far it's getting about a 6.3 out of 10 stars. But I think the people who get it really get it. And this one from Juggle your Jeep says 10 out of 10. Me and my friend went in to watch this unrivaled masterpiece together and came out with eight pack abs from non stop Laughing. Astonishing. Hilarious. James. Juan, you absolute genius. 10 out of 10 cured my depression. And then this one is pretty much all in caps. It's written by Kaizen and deep. And it goes like this. This is my first review on IMDb. I only came here to tell you this. You guys have to watch this. I was blown away by the climax, honestly. The first hour and 30 minutes were straight up a ripoff of Insidious, A movie with no real scares, which I'm sure is why some people gave it low ratings. And I'm not going to lie, I was bored as heck. I felt like I wasted a bunch of time. And then the climax started to happen with a huge revelation which felt like it was new to the horror genre. It instantly changed the story. I am mind blown right now. I give it 10 out of 10. Take it. There are not many horror movies that are this innovative. This will probably be the best horror movie this year or maybe for years to come. Very innovative. Loved it. James wan is awesome. 10 out of 10. And there you go. I mean all the other reviews are.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Actually, I texted a friend who's a horror movie person and I said, hey, I'm supposed to watch Malignant for the show. I'm sure you've seen it already. What did you think? And they were basically like my favorite movie of the year. I was like, what? So I was, I. Because I fully was expecting like, oh, you're going to have a blast. It's perfect. And, and, and they were instead like, no, it's awesome. I love. And I. So then I watched it kind of inside of that.

[Paul Scheer]

Yeah.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

And being like, oh, I think this is. I think this is. I think this is good filmmaking. And I think there's a campiness to it that is intentional, you know, not necessarily winky, but I think it's knowing what they're doing. You know what I mean? It's informed filmmaking. You know, even with the misleads and like, like the little bits of humor here and there and stuff like that. Like that's the stuff that made it good to me.

[Paul Scheer]

This is the perfect head of this get made movie. Fun to watch, lots to talk about, but not a slog to get through. And I feel like, I mean that's what I mean. Yeah.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

And that is been too serious. It would have been a. It would have been a slog if it had been too like without this.

[Paul Scheer]

Reveal, we would have been in trouble.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Yeah. Both of the reveals, you know, without, without, you know, first the imaginary friend reveal and then the parasitic twin reveal. Like both of those are like, wait, what? Wait, what?

[Paul Scheer]

I'm all there. So I guess June, would you recommend people watch this oh, yeah, I thought.

[June Diane Raphael]

I really did enjoy it. It was. I thought it was fun. Yes, it's a little long, but I think this is a fun movie to watch during spooky season.

[Paul Scheer]

Spooky season. Scaretober. Enjoy it, people. All right, so we all are going around the horn saying watch it, but at this point, if you know the reveal, will it still be entertaining? It might actually be entertaining. Knowing the reveal. I mean, it is a. I think that's part of the biggest, like, what the fuck? Moment of it, but it actually might be fun, like the sixth sense to kind of see both sides of it.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Yeah, I think if, you know the. I'm not going to watch it again, but I think if you watched it again knowing the reveal, I bet there are. Are a bunch of moments that I didn't clock as being like you said about the mirror scene. Like, I bet there's a bunch of clever stuff in there that is just not on first watch noticeable, you know, So I think, you know, I think absolutely watch it. And again, it's. I'm not a horror movie person. I've not seen Annabelle or any of the Conjurings or the. Any of these movies. So this was like really one of the only kind of modern horror movies I've seen. And I thoroughly enjoyed how just batshit bananas it was and I was glad that it was.

[Paul Scheer]

One of the best things I've ever gotten to do is go see horror movies with June, Diane Rayfield. And even in a movie like a film called Skeleton Key, when you screamed the screen, June will yell back at the screen. This didn't give you those moments, although you were a little bit freaked out last night.

[June Diane Raphael]

I definitely was.

[Paul Scheer]

I freaked out of about a malignant.

[June Diane Raphael]

Yeah, I was scared.

[Paul Scheer]

Now let's get into the most fun of this show, which is a chance for us to tell everybody else what we were up to, what we're doing. What do people wanna watch? See do. What do we wanna tell them about? June, you go first.

[June Diane Raphael]

Yeah. No, everybody. The first four episodes of Grace and Frankie's last season were released a few weeks ago as a surprise gift and draw drop. And if you haven't seen them yet, I encourage you to check them out. And then the rest of the season will be airing next year. And yeah, check out the Deep Dive with Jessica Sinclair and me, available everywhere on all podcast platforms. And yes, Jason Kulup Villasak has been a guest. Yeah, that's it.

[Paul Scheer]

Well, June, and quickly, if you want to just turn the mic over to your Malaysian does the malignant have any plugs?

[June Diane Raphael]

My malignant has not been pulling his weight right now.

[Paul Scheer]

Okay, well, there we go.

[June Diane Raphael]

In terms of bringing in some cash.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Money, I will briefly say to people that they check out Star Trek Prodigy, which is on Nickelodeon, a new Star Trek animated show that I'm a voice in that is really beautiful and really fun and great like adventure.

[Paul Scheer]

Kate Mulgrew with.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Yes, with, with, with Captain Janeway herself, Kate Mulgrew as part of it. And it's a great super like adventure, Star Trek adventure type show, animated show. And then. And that's about it.

[Paul Scheer]

Yeah.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Oh, you know what? If you, if you. I've. We've all been on it before, but there's a new season of Nailed It Up.

[Paul Scheer]

June.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

You are in an episode. Or wait, has your, did your season already come out, June?

[June Diane Raphael]

Yes, it did.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

It's.

[June Diane Raphael]

It's just out now.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Okay. It did just come out. Okay. And I am, I am briefly in one of them, but I will say please watch. Nailed it. It is. It remains one of the funniest shows, one of the most consistently funny shows to watch. And then also the series finale of Brooklyn Nine Nine just aired. I mean it briefly, but if you've been watching that show at all, it is a wonderful wrap up to a wonderful show. One more plug. Paul and I were just on an amazing episode of the Blank Check podcast.

[Paul Scheer]

Yes.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Hosted by Griffin Newman and David Sims. Blank Check Podcast talks about directors, filmographies. If you like this show, I suspect you will like Blank Check. It is a fantastic talk about film. And we went on to talk about they're doing John Carpenter right now. And we went on to talk about the movie Big Trouble in Little China. We talked about it for over three hours.

[Paul Scheer]

Three hours.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

So it, it came out I think this week. So please go to wherever you get your podcasts and check out Blank Check, the Big Trouble in Little China episode. But also their whole Carpenter season has been fantastic. And if you go into their archives, they've done incredible. They are, it's one of my favorite podcasts.

[Paul Scheer]

They are truly a great companion piece podcast to us. They are really, really fun. And just really quickly, June and I are together in Star Lower decks. My character Lt. Billups, who is very much in the background of Lower Decks, gets a full episode in this season and June plays my mother. And that's all I'll kind of tell you about that. But I think you watch this episode, I think you will enjoy the premise of that. Keeping the trend of Scaretober Going Unspooled is doing Scaretober right now as well. We are in the middle of the exercise.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

What time?

[Paul Scheer]

Whoa, whoa.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Timeout.

[Paul Scheer]

Wait, what?

[Jason Mantzoukas]

Wait, timeout?

[Paul Scheer]

Yeah.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

You guys are also doing Scaretober. So are you just like, did you start doing Scaretober over there and you're just calling our thing Scaretober as well?

[Paul Scheer]

I kind of am branching them under one giant umbrella. You know, the.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

I don't. I don't know how June feels, but I don't like being under the umbrella of Scaretober that exists. I want our thing to have its.

[Paul Scheer]

Own go on the Discord. Discord GG HDTGM or Discord gg Paul Shear. We can continue these conversations should it Horror discip Made or Scaretober. You know, sometimes people just like to, you know, mix and match and, you know, get some good movies and some bad movies all mixed together. Anyway, a big thank you to our producer, Cody Fisher, our audio engineer, Devin Bryant, our mvp, Molly Reynolds, our producer who picks all of our movies, Avril Halle, our researcher, Nate Kiley, all of our amazing people who do our art. That is the ghost of Craig T. Nelson on Instagram, otherwise known as Zach McAlise, and of course, Kyle Waldron. You can see all of their work on our Facebook and Instagram pages. Just make sure you get on the Discord, where the conversation does continue. And we have a beautiful big how did this get made? Discord, which is just. I'm so happy with how it's been and our amazing moderators there, they have been fantastic taking it off the Earwolf boards and bringing it over there. So if you have not checked that out, check that out. And if you want to continue the conversation, let's do it next week on a mini episode. You can give me a call at 619p a u l a s k. That's 619paul ask. And as always, you can offer up any questions about your life, your job, anything at all. We will answer them all. And just so you guys know, I forgot about this big news. We have the Saving Jessica Rabbit shirt in our store right now. People are buying them. And that's great to know. And we also finally released our Dirt by Kid shirt, which is what is the title of this movie. And because it's Halloween, I don't know, just because I wanted to, I have pulled some old designs out from behind the wall where you couldn't get them before. And now we are reprinting some undercover shirts, some oozing sexuality with earnest shirts and a dragon sound shirt as well. So there's some really cool things up on the TeePublic store. So TeePublic.com stores HDTGM to see some of the classic ones and some of the great new ones that we have ratcheted out. There's a shirt up there right now for that and a malignant shirt which we will currently debate offline and then get one up there hopefully by the time this is all released. So thank you everybody for listening and we will see you next time on the mini episode. Bye for now. The first ever Kia K4 seamlessly combines bold style and advanced tech. With striking star map, LED headlights and an available panoramic display, the Kia K4 delivers design and function. The available Surround View and Blind Spot View monitors can help provide added Plus, SiriusXM comes standard, bringing you closer to what you love. The Kia K4 balances aesthetics and innovation. Learn more at kia.com K4 surround view and blind Spot View monitors may not detect all objects around or behind the vehicle. Have you met All Modern? All Modern brings you the best of modern furniture, and right now through November 30, you'll score up to 70% off during their Black Friday sale.

[Jason Mantzoukas]

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[Paul Scheer]

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[Jason Mantzoukas]

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[Paul Scheer]

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