[00:00:00] Blank Check with Griffin and David Blank Check with Griffin and David Don't know what to say or to expect All you need to know is that the name of the show is Blank Check Welcome, King James. I am the king of this podcast. Okay. Domain. Is that Al?
[00:00:32] That's yes, Mr. Rhythm. Okay. One thing I want to say right off the bat, this character, the antagonist of this film is named Algi Rhythm. It is a play on algorithm. Oh, that's what that was about. It is. It's subtle. It's subtle. Okay.
[00:00:46] But for most of the movie they take to calling him Algi, which then sounds like they're saying Algi every single time. Like the green under scene. Mossy. Mossy bacteria or whatever it is. And then at one later point he says, call me Mr. Rhythm.
[00:01:02] And I'm like, yeah, you should have been calling him Mr. Rhythm for the last hour. Much cooler. Much cooler. The screen writers should have made that decision. Algi sounds so dumb when they're like, Algi has kidnapped my son.
[00:01:13] And you're like, you're someone to be pretty fucking weak if Algi could get him. I want to call out right away. I just looked up Algi Rhythm in the villains wiki. In the villains wiki? Yeah. Do you know about the villains wiki?
[00:01:23] It's a collection of all villains, right? Yes. And it's a collection of all the villains that were portrayed by Don Cheadle in his first villainous role. Not true. Don Cheadle is bad guy and out of sight. Yeah. I feel like there's probably others.
[00:01:37] Like has Don Cheadle been like the main antagonist of the thing? And also the question is, is the villains wiki run by someone who doesn't know that non-franchised movies exist? Probably not. I'm just saying current Emmy nominee Don Cheadle has definitely played negative role. That's all. Sorry.
[00:01:56] It's like there was some, who was it? There was like, I think it was when Mark Ruffalo was like saying pro is real stuff on Twitter or something. There was like some Marvel actor getting mildly canceled for something online.
[00:02:08] And I saw people on Twitter, like Marvel stands saying like Mark Ruffalo should be grateful he was nobody before Kevin Feige hired him. To them maybe that's true. Don Cheadle didn't exist before he was the second actor to play war machine. He was.
[00:02:28] And that's the perspective that the villains wiki mods are coming from. Can I just read some of the other things here on the Space Jam, a new legacy quotes page? Do you have to? I want to.
[00:02:40] I want to because I think it's a pretty good summation of the bleakness of this movie. Okay. First of all, the quote I read, of course the famous line, welcome King James. I'm the king of this domain has the parenthetical before it from trailer.
[00:02:53] LeBron has just been pulled into the server verse for the first time. Okay, good. Thank you. Thank you for clarifying. I said this is my sound check, but the bugs bunny line if we're going out, we're going out loony. Of course, granny brackets facing off the Kronos.
[00:03:10] I'm going old school on his butt. On his butt. He's got a lot to say in this too much. We should silence granny. Granny's canceled from trailer LeBron James. What in the matrix? Hell LeBron James from trailer looking for his son.
[00:03:27] Bet will Smith ain't got to deal with this. I don't remember him saying that move. I remember him saying that I tried to block out as much of the movie as possible. I can't remember why he says it though.
[00:03:35] LeBron James, granny's out here having a martini at halftime. Granny haters gonna hate. How about this? That happens. How about this famous line? Lola bunny will get your son back. I promise it's a good line. She's right. She pulled it off. Six credit. It's green writers.
[00:03:52] Well, here's Zindala. You got one of the hottest stars in Hollywood, right? Playing Lola bunny a beloved character saying such famous lines as got you, Bron. I have a rant about her about the treatment of Lola bunny that
[00:04:05] you need to remind me to yeah, I'm going to jump in on that. I'm going to tag him on that. I'm going to fucking alley you that rant. I'm going to ask two quotes. I wish to read this one says in brackets repeated line. Okay, algae rhythm.
[00:04:18] It's game time. He didn't really need to repeat it. There's only one game. Yeah. No, he repeats it though. And then here's the final quote on this page for space jam. A new legacy. The movie we're talking about today attributed to Fred Flintstone.
[00:04:32] Yeah, but do wait, does he is he's in that? He comes running down the hill. Right. Yeah. I'm going to get a crowd shot. Like I guess he says that, but in the mix 18 other characters are also saying their head phrase like Tony Sopranos saying Bada bing
[00:04:49] or whatever. Right. Clint Eastwood saying like grand terino or whatever. He should. God, you okay. God, let me just do the introduction as quickly as possible because we're just overflowing with takes here. This is blind check with Griffin and David. I'm Griffin. I'm David.
[00:05:05] This is a podcast about filmography is director so massive success early on in their careers. That's not what this episode is about. This episode is about several years ago. People demanded that my brother James, need Jamesy Newman come
[00:05:19] on the show after many stories were told about our childhood together and we did a siblings choices we had done before with Joey Sims and Romley Newman and James picked space jam, which was arguably your your pivotal movie growing up. Right.
[00:05:36] It was kind of the landmark movie you shared. Is it? Yeah, I think our yes. Not necessarily my favorite movie, but just one that we experienced together. Yes. And one that was one that was also just marketed right at my soul at the time. Yes.
[00:05:51] And they were coming after me and that it was a cross section of like Michael Jordan being your hero and Bugs Bunny being my hero and one of the few things we shared at a young age when we usually did not get along.
[00:06:00] So you came on and you talked about that and we for a while now have just had on this spreadsheet. So, James will come back and we'll talk space jam to people have been questioning why aren't you guys continuing to cover
[00:06:10] the DC movies or do like Marvel updates or whatever. And there's a part of it that's just like a thousand other fucking podcasts do them. We start to feel burdened by it. Yeah. You don't want to interrupt the schedule by having to do four of these a year.
[00:06:22] It's more interesting to do the current releases that other podcasts aren't going to cover, which is why we're doing this in Hotel Transylvania, even though they're not directors we've covered in addition to the directors we do cover. But Jesus fucking Christ this goddamn movie.
[00:06:35] Yeah, like I don't regret that we committed to doing an episode on it other than that I had to watch this movie close. We're going to watch it. I was going to watch it either way. Although we did say in the theater at one moment at
[00:06:45] one point I think it probably about 30 minutes in that we would have walked out. You said it not for you said that 15 minutes in. Okay, 15 minutes. It's a tough early hang this movie. Yes, I will say I do think it improved. I do. I do.
[00:06:59] We're going to be talking a lot of relative scale here today. Yes, I mean it's not a good movie. I will say maybe the pre-surveyor stuff is like deathly like that's when you turned to me James when you were like very this is wallpaper right?
[00:07:13] Yeah, yeah, it had no entertainment value. Yes, I will say LeBron is a great actor. Nope. I'm wait I'm thought he was so convincing. Okay look so I think I'm going to be the most positive person on Space Jam in this room and
[00:07:27] we are in the room right. We are in the room. We're in the room. This is our first in person record since March 8th, 2020. We are all in the same room. We are Ben's new apartment. Come on Ben. Okay so we I picked a name at some point.
[00:07:44] Okay. When I first moved in here. It's very nice because Ben's old apartment was called Small Fine when we recorded there we called Small Fine this is definitely much bigger and more fine. This apartment is like fine. Yeah. Okay, I like that.
[00:07:58] How about if it's like well because it's got to have a size thing. I don't know but I don't want to call it like big. No but it's a good size. It's a good size. You got some space. Good fine. Good fine. Good fine with class. We'll refine.
[00:08:13] We should refine. We'll refine. Okay, two things. I have to say two things. Sure. This movie surpassed my expectations but I think I really did expect the worst thing of all time. Our text story we have with the Dough Boys. Yeah.
[00:08:27] We've been texting about this movie for a while. For a couple months. Every clip that would drop or whatever. Every detail, every new interview. That was our regular dump and ground and then you saw it and you said it's better than I
[00:08:38] thought it would be only because I thought it would literally be the worst movie of all time. Right, I really expect and it's not good. And to be fair you relayed that to me. I did. Which I both had really low expectations going
[00:08:50] in but maybe it bumped them up to just there might be some entertainment value related. You then did follow it up by saying like it's not good. Right, it's not good but I was expecting truly my least favorite thing I've ever seen and it was a little bit.
[00:09:02] I don't think LeBron does a terrible job. I did. I think he's horrible. I think he does about as bad as he does what he can do which is like very little. So look this probably just an unstructured series of rant because who the fuck
[00:09:17] cares about the plot of this movie and there's just like 18 different elements to talk about. We definitely have to talk about the plot of this movie. Well we will but that's its own rant. Structuring the episode around going through that.
[00:09:28] Can I throw out my LeBron thought like right off the bat? Sure. Because now we're in it. Welcome to the Space Jam. Right, which by the way I talked about this with the podcast The Ride Boys. Jason Sheridan I agree apparently is a sentiment that Bugman also holds.
[00:09:43] An notorious podcast. Yeah I'm not sure I want to align with Bugman but sure. This movie should be called Cyber Space Jam. I know that's like a fucking silly title but also Space Jam makes zero sense as the title for this film.
[00:09:56] Does Space Jam, well it makes no sense because space is not involved though. They take Marvin the Martian spaceship and fly around in space to get from one planet to another. They do, you know actually they do do that so actually right.
[00:10:07] That's the only reason it's called Space Jam and I have to believe that's the reason why the different properties are visualized as planets. Yeah I would actually almost argue that it's more of a space movie than it is a jam movie.
[00:10:19] I think this is just not a basketball movie. There's not a lot of jam. No. What's wild is that it's not a basketball movie and also the basketball game in this is ostensibly longer than it is in the original film. It's very long, it's an hour long.
[00:10:31] It's an hour long. It's a full half of the movie. Right which the original movie is like 65 minutes when you take out the opening and closing credits. This movie is quite long. 150 something? It's an hour and 55 minutes long. Yes. Should be called Cyber Space Jam.
[00:10:46] I just pointedly when they play the game it is terrestrial. Like you see trees and shit in the background. They're on a planet. That's true. Okay but that's like saying like this is a space podcast because we're on a planet that's in space.
[00:10:59] Well that's what we in Space Jam the original are they in space for the game. Yes. But they were on a planet right. They're dealing with like fucking aliens. The point is they leave earth. They do leave her. They go to more a mountain or whatever. Or whatever.
[00:11:14] I don't know either way. I mean the point it's a sequel either way. It's a sequel anyway so they're going to that. That's like one of the could call it Cyber Space Jam. That's my scientist that listen to the show please weigh in let us know.
[00:11:26] Like this is the fun like because when they were going to have Jeff Gordon or whatever it was going to be called race jam where it's like well no no jam is basketball you could but it's like no but you need that it's just what's
[00:11:34] imprinted in people's heads now. They were going to make it a driving movie. Okay. I'm going to get my LeBron thoughts in a second. I'm going to get my LeBron thoughts in a second but first movie comes out because there's a little more I found out since we
[00:11:47] did the last episode right. First movie comes out is a big hit right but it's also like a big hit with an asterisk which is it costs so much fucking money. It was so expensive for the time it costs like 90 million dollars 25 years ago.
[00:12:01] It made like 90 million domestic it did 250 worldwide so that's like worldwide and obviously did well on video right and more so did a billion dollars in merchandising so they were just like it's worth it for us cash cow even if theatrically these movies are
[00:12:17] so expensive to do right. The Jordan deal would have been even more expensive for the sequel but they go ahead hire animators there's things that come out that the fucking sequel was going to be about a villain named Berserker played by Mel Brooks they didn't have a
[00:12:30] script they were hiring animators and hiring Mel Brooks and designing the character and then going like we'll write it later and Berserker with some new fucking alien villain right. They're developing it and then it turns out that it was a bluff and this one Warner
[00:12:45] Brothers executive who had like gotten the green light was hiring people to work on it had never gotten Jordan's commitment just assumed I'll figure that out later right. He said no and he was like I'll win him over eventually I'll get exactly I'll get him on
[00:12:59] board right and then like nine or ten months in Jordan was like Berserker right but they re-signed Joe Pitca like then right man was back on and then like nine months in Jordan was like inclusively no for the fifth time no right his argument
[00:13:13] was apparently just like I did that movie I don't really like being in a movie it's a boring process I feel no need to do that ever again right so then the movie immediately gets shut down but Warner Brothers has this juice which is like
[00:13:23] this is the first time the Looney Tunes have been profitable and relevant in a while. I think they didn't realize was that the last theatrically released Bugs Bunny cartoon was 1969 until they did a Looney Tunes short called The Duxorcist I think in the late 80s
[00:13:41] like they were really kind of stagnant and the Looney Tunes were like repackaged Saturday morning cartoons right like they still exist when cartoon network launches in the early 90s they're playing Looney Tunes all the time but like they weren't making any new shit with them
[00:13:55] when they did the first what was it? Hair Jordan commercial which was the Super Bowl commercial with Bugs Bunny and Michael Jordan that was kind of like the first new Bugs Bunny thing in a couple decades that blows up right the commercials huge then they do
[00:14:11] a follow up commercial that's also huge they do this McDonald's promotion where they sold cups that were different NBA stars with different Looney Tunes that's fucking huge that leads to the 90s wave of Looney Tunes characters wearing hip hop or Gallia t-shirts which then become
[00:14:27] this big money earner and that's where the movie comes from where they're like Bugs Bunny is now relevant again it turns out there's like this nostalgia for the character that we've been setting on but also the cross section of him into this other world
[00:14:38] is huge for us then movie comes out hit Jordan doesn't want to do the sequel they're like fuck the chemistry the formula is replicate this again so it's space jam to cancel race jam with Jeff Gordon almost happens spy jam with Jackie Chan was the first one announced
[00:14:55] doesn't go through skate jam with Tony Hawk and then there was a golf one with Tiger Woods I don't know if they ever came with the title but you know they talked to Tiger Woods love golf love golf they love golf love David they love it
[00:15:10] I would say though that Tiger was so ubiquitous that well not only was Tiger you and I were ubiquitous but I think there's something about Tiger that tax on to Michael Jordan in a way that LeBron really doesn't which is there's something very unknowable about Tiger Keith
[00:15:25] he's sort of he's both you know a fierce competitor and braces like the success and notoriety but also does not give much of who he is publicly which was elusive and mythical but he was also at the time very family friendly very like shiny and you know
[00:15:43] very similar to appeal exactly you know everyone likes Tiger he and now he continues to be very family friendly and have a great reputation but here's the other thing this is the other thing like James I were talking about this after the fact there's there's juice
[00:15:56] there's inherent juice in the fact that Jordan was going through shit and it's like it's like that Jordan was going through shit at the time of Space Jam which we talked a lot about talk about it in our original episode part of the drama gambling
[00:16:08] things around his dad getting murdered the fact that he's like well that's not in the movie right but but the you know it is it is it is yes yes and the first scene it's true and in the press conference the first scene of Space Jam he says
[00:16:21] you know with something like what happened with my father I want to know no since the death I think he literally says it's the death of my father you know I want to play baseball right and so this is an important point I feel like which is
[00:16:32] to the extent that LeBron James is the author of this movie which I think too will a fairly large extent he is almost by default it is incredibly stepping up insecure movie yes in a way that Space Jam was not at all in that LeBron James
[00:16:48] has a lot if you just think about the entire career of LeBron James there is a lot of things to mine there's a lot of conflict I mean it's different than the conflict with Jordan but there's a lot of conflict and Space Jam is staring all the Jordan
[00:17:01] conflict head on in ways that in like Space Jam goes so far as in ways that are probably not even fair to Michael Jordan the way that the first Space Jam lampoons his baseball career is probably over the top it represents it is worse
[00:17:15] than it was yes yes I think that Jordan was on board with that though because he knew like it's better if I laugh at it right right and LeBron instead basically and even the credits announced this which is just like this guy's amazing everything has worked
[00:17:30] he's the greatest player of all time his only problem is he's a dick to his son right that's it alright I have some pushback okay there's a pivotal line in this movie where algae rhythm played by Don Cheadle an Academy Award nominee 11-time Emmy nominee
[00:17:45] nominated of course for his wonderful work and the Falcon the Winter Soldier this year we really love 97 how well he did yeah says to LeBron's son that LeBron has a record of abandoning his family now he is alluding of course to LeBron leaving the
[00:18:00] Cavaliers and then leaving the heat now it's so it's I was like Al chill out LeBron LeBron appears to be a good family man like just because the guy left a team doesn't mean he's either but that's the subtle undercurrent to Space Jam and it's an
[00:18:14] undercurrent not like the original where it's in your face is like yes LeBron is a great great success in all ways yes LeBron has climbed the mountain but everyone kind of you know doesn't like LeBron as much right like it's like a little everyone's kind of like well
[00:18:30] I pushed back on that a little which is course they've they've already by the point that he says that to his son they've already introduced algae rhythm as this you know horrible manipulative force plays on people's insecurity he's not a great Michael Jordan in the first
[00:18:44] Space Jam it's like the world is telling Michael like this baseball thing is a joke and Michael is basically for the first half of the film Billy Bob Thornton in it where he's like I don't play basketball right I'm not here to play which is kind of
[00:18:56] the looting just throwing him the ball and he's saying I don't know what this is LeBron is not bearing himself in this movie in the same way anyway but he also I will also say he is less of a mess than Michael Jordan just
[00:19:08] just even though there is stuff Michael Jordan it's messy especially right bad but it's interesting that that Space Jam is trying to stare all of the mess that Michael Jordan was going through in the face and LeBron is trying to sanitize but in his own way is
[00:19:24] telling on himself more than Michael Jordan did by like what he chooses to acknowledge and doesn't and even just like as you're saying opening scene of original Space Jam right him playing with his dad I believe I can fly sweet scene then it goes to the fucking opening
[00:19:38] credits song with this banger of a song and this montage right which absolutely demented that they don't do that song in the opening credits of this like it just is so obvious to hire some new artists to do Space Jam 2021 version I remember the credits of this
[00:19:54] movie I don't remember the music some absolute song that sucks right that eats my butt like it's the whole soundtrack sucks you do the song like I obviously understand you're not going to cover I believe I can fly because R Kelly you don't want to fucking touch that
[00:20:08] do welcome to the Space Jam but you do this fucking opening credits that's like look at everything LeBron has accomplished and then you cut back and it's like him just being an asshole to his sons right whereas in Space Jam you cut back from
[00:20:22] that and it's Jordan at a low point it's him at a press conference saying my dad was just murdered I'm retiring and as you said James a key point the original Space Jam does a very good job of despite the fact that it's
[00:20:35] set up this is Michael Jordan one of the most famous people in the world arguably the most dominant athlete in his field of all time right the most dominant any athlete has ever been in any field makes him feel like a normal fucking guy yes the
[00:20:47] first Space Jam shrinks Michael Jordan down successful and this doesn't even try to do that it does the opposite which is open on LeBron's house look at the fucking view yeah this is like a twenty million dollar home nice it's a great view but
[00:21:02] even the scene that they shoot between he and his wife you're looking at this like picture frame window behind LeBron where you can see all of Los Angeles and whereas Jordan again as part of drilling down on the controversy and sort of also
[00:21:16] what was at the moment was seen as wrong with Michael Jordan they put him in a Birmingham you know suburb nice home but a suburban home like some of the kids are running out of a minivan right where do you want to say
[00:21:28] bad is that his real family no no in both cases fake families fake accurate but it's also in both cases like assuming you know LeBron has three kids and their three kids you know like they change their names it's analogous but not really supposed to represent is it
[00:21:42] that the aspirations have changed like whereas it used to be like yeah I want to think of my athletes is like someone I could get a beer with and now it's like I want to think of my athletes as these like mogul Instagram like look at their fucking
[00:21:55] house look at life thing that doesn't translate to a movie where you want to relate to people but I prefer to relate right in social media you want aspirational shit I sort of agree with that but I also just think it's it's just the person if this
[00:22:09] were Giannis and that the kumbos space jam I think you could put him in a you know country home you could put him in a house a small house on the water in Greece Giannis there's such a person but it's a but it's also that
[00:22:23] Giannis similar to Jordan you know basketball was their singular public focus and even though Jordan became this marketing phenomenon you know it never felt like he won't like he wasn't against that and I obviously love making money and all that but he he never wanted that
[00:22:41] anywhere near as bad as what he wanted competitively right whereas LeBron wants to be a mogul yes and not just a mogul but you know a role model you know it's everything around and I'm not saying it is taken away from his basketball career at all he's right
[00:22:55] incredibly successful but it's always been hand in hand yes and like not just like you know Jordan's famous thing of like Republicans buy shoes too I don't want to fucking you know like take a stand on shit people arguing that he should have been more political at the
[00:23:10] peak of his power Jordan was just like look I play basketball and I do things that help build my image as a dominant basketball player when Jordan was doing the eight billion commercials he would do a year they would always center around him as a
[00:23:23] basketball player right yes whereas LeBron wants to be like 18 different things at the same time and he wants to be like this is why I prefer LeBron but I find Jordan more dramatically but yeah we're not talking about his people we're talking about as
[00:23:36] as the basis of a movie right a movie riffing on their persona and I would also say that that Jordan quote is I think sort of works two ways where it's often just cited working one way which is that Jordan just really cares about
[00:23:49] money so he doesn't want to get into politics which I think it's a little more than that which is also Jordan really you know yes he cares about money but also like it's not like he mostly cares about basketball being an ad is one thing wait into politics
[00:24:05] is another and I think Jordan correct correctly correctly in two it is that to wait into politics was more than just maybe something that would hurt his bottom line but also something that would you know take a chunk of his energy and time and life yeah but his
[00:24:19] main vices vice is gambling yes you know and like you know Jordan doesn't want to you know LeBron's main vice is what like starting schools and being like well but to be fair I mean you know LeBron's main vice it's not really a vice but
[00:24:38] relates to the NBA right where it's like what LeBron has done vis-a-vis the NBA is controversial what he's done with this career is controversial now he LeBron might be completely right about first of all his right to do all this stuff but also just
[00:24:53] sort of like that it was right for him and all that but at the same time like this the movie just other than that one throwaway line by a villain fails to acknowledge that this is like you know in a lot of corners reviled right and that
[00:25:06] and I'm not saying that the film has to you know jump on that the same way he did with Michael's baseball career but that sounds like a conflict that could be useful in a film Ben looks deeply confused I want to take the opportunity to for once
[00:25:21] clarify a thing I do know about basketball I believe it correct me if I'm wrong with James and David are referring to is LeBron has stirred a lot of ire over the years for constantly sort of thinking as like a businessman first and jumping from one team to
[00:25:36] another to whatever thinks is most advantageous for him at that moment versus like a Jordan who had the loyalty to the Bulls for so long was invested in that team invested in a town you know became this local hero and all that sort LeBron has
[00:25:51] changed the NBA LeBron's decision to go from Cleveland to Miami and Bill and not just go there but build the team around him in Miami sort of using social persuasion and you know sort of recruiting other people to do the same thing he did not just affected
[00:26:06] his career in the way people do him but has now had a ripple effect where the NBA is less about franchise and city and a lot more about player empowerment and players sort of having the power to shape teams and therefore the league the way
[00:26:23] that they would like to so I'm going to live in this city now and I can get these three players to come with me and it's sort of you know again the negative view is that it undermines also the team building aspect like really as opposed
[00:26:36] to oh you have to draft smart or trade smart or make smart signings it's just like can you recruit you know one guy to want to come live in your city and play for your organization and if you can he can go get
[00:26:46] three more guys and that's it and he sort of wields his celebrity and his like legend status in a way to sort of like shift what are considered norms right is that fair to say like aside from his persuasion everything it's also just like
[00:27:03] Jordan wanted to be a player he want to be the best player but he wanted to play within the game as it was pre-established this is all stuff I understand only because I watched the last dance and there is whereas LeBron is just like here's what I
[00:27:13] think basketball should be and I'm LeBron and everyone listens to me so I can change there's a famous photo from I believe it was the offseason where LeBron signed with the heat that's referred to as the banana boat photo yes which is LeBron
[00:27:26] Carmelo and Chris Paul David had to explain this to me because we went to the game it's post heat but it's yeah it wasn't the banana boat crew at the game that we went to well we went to the game we went to for our episode
[00:27:38] was Dwayne Wade's last game and so I believe they were all there LeBron and Mello were certainly I can't remember if Chris Paul was there as well but right the crowd was going crazy they took to the court and I didn't know what's going on David had
[00:27:47] to go it's a banana boat crew and I was like that sounds fun to me telling about this banana right there on a boat and that's what is it's two it's twofold which is I think what you're talking about which is first LeBron has used his social
[00:28:00] influence has cultivated social influence and then used it to help team build but then also has really marketed that element right I'm the I'm sort of the dawn of the NBA these guys are my like you know sort of you know council you sort of you
[00:28:20] these guys are under my wing well here's a pin I want to return I want to place here because I'm going to keep on going back to this over the course of the episode the thing it reminds me of a little bit is the way the rock has
[00:28:31] collected other global movie stars who hustle as hard as he is and it's like Kevin Hart you do five movies with me and also you do these cameos Ryan Reynolds you're now in the rock but here's the difference yeah LeBron is actually the best at basketball
[00:28:44] I accept that is not I accept that the rock is pretending he's everyone's favorite I accept that the business model wise it's the same and when you talk about like what is LeBron's vice and I don't cast aspersions when I say this because I understand
[00:28:56] LeBron is the best in his field of what he does and also I respect him as a person like I do think he has done undeniably good things in many areas of his life right as someone who knows fucking nothing I'm even aware of
[00:29:10] that but I think his two vices are power he's got that thing that feels very emblematic of celebrity today where it's like you need to constantly be doing more and more you need to be disrupting different areas you need to have your fingers in 18
[00:29:28] different pots you can't just be the best at what you are doing whatever your chosen field was you have to also invest in blaze pizza you have to have an overall deal at a movie studio not just make a space jam sequel right you
[00:29:40] need to be developing sure like all this sort of shit I also think his other vice is he really wants to be liked in a way I would argue Michael Jordan did not Sean fantasy had a very good tweet about this where he was like the fundamental difference
[00:29:54] between the space jams is that LeBron thinks a lot about how people perceive him I'm going to misquote this I can read it is what LeBron is concerned with being beloved I think that's true I don't I don't know that Jordan wanted to be
[00:30:08] loved he did I think he wanted to be admired and idolized he made a bugs bunny movie though you know what I mean like from his bad ass they had to talk him into that that's the other still did it and I will say I will
[00:30:22] say that it's kind of interesting jumping off point also to the performances because Jordan's performance in the first base jam carries what you're talking about with it which is throughout the whole film he's kind of like what is this what's this right how did I end up
[00:30:38] right now where to play basketball yeah which is the LeBron's performance is sort of the opposite which is I'm in this yeah and I'm trying to sell every line he's working much harder at to far lesser results now this was the LeBron point I
[00:30:54] wanted to get to okay I think that's like a key difference and I'll say another difference is that like Michael Jordan is a movie star even though he only made one movie it's one of those things and last dance proved this again where it's like that guy's just
[00:31:08] so compelling on camera right there's a reason he was so successful as an ad pitchman it's not just that he's like absurdly handsome but he just had whatever that fucking thing was right where like certain very pretty people who cannot deliver a line convincingly on screen
[00:31:23] still become a movie star because they are just engaging to watch and Jordan had that energy and LeBron I don't think has the same natural performer energy where it's like he's a likable guy he's been compelling in different things on camera but he's not as like
[00:31:39] innately just kind of like holy fucking shit right just standing there which I'm not saying it's a physical appearance thing I'm saying it's that weird charisma that comes through the camera doesn't I don't disagree with any of this because I don't think he's good
[00:31:50] in the movie because nothing is good right but I just felt bad for him watching I feel bad for him too I think he's I think he's terrible in this I don't necessarily blame him he's terrible so I think he's terrible I'm going to
[00:32:02] go on a side tangent but it's got tie back I really have a point here I think he's incredibly good and train right and that was the moment where that movie comes out I rewatched a lot of his scenes on YouTube recently are the best parts
[00:32:12] of that yes absolutely right and like it was one of those things where it was like okay now we're like eight years away from this let's rewatch this away from the hype and see like was this fucking Diddy and get him to the Greek
[00:32:22] where everyone was like oh my god did he's amazing this and it's like no did he's 5% better than you thought he was going to isn't it sort of a timberlake moment that was the that was my question that's why I want to watch it hey he's charming
[00:32:36] like he must be amazing super inflation I think LeBron is genuinely very good and I was also watching outtakes and his improv riffs were really fucking good and not just that they were funny but they were like in the scene he was emotionally invested
[00:32:54] he would like respond to Bill Hader appropriately all that sort of shit which gets to this thought side tangent couple years ago I was at a party at some fucking movie cocktail party thing and one of the guys there David look it up because
[00:33:07] I'm gonna forget his name was the guy who wrote 48 hours I think he shares the screenplay credit with Walter Hill but it was his script originally sure it's his name is Larry Gross yes exactly and I went up to him because I fucking love 48 hours
[00:33:24] and I love early Eddie Murphy and I want to ask him questions about that because Eddie Murphy is like 19 in that movie that's the thing that makes him a star I'm so fascinated Eddie Murphy having this like absurd movie star crew that will never be replicated again
[00:33:35] asking him like what was that like and he gave me like a fucking two hour monologue that was just a cabinet right but the thing he said was I forget who the movie was written for and they dropped out they were looking for somebody
[00:33:49] Eddie Murphy had just started popping on Saturday night live because the first half that first season they don't really use him and there's the famous moment where the show is running short they send him out he does stand up and overnight he becomes a success and then
[00:34:00] the star of Saturday Night Live and saves the show he's not the hot guy Paramount suggests they hire him to do this movie they hire him he shows up he's shitting the bed as Larry Gross put it for the first couple weeks of filming
[00:34:13] he is sucking he just like doesn't know how to act he's very uncomfortable he's like a stand-up he can be sketch he can play out to the crowd but to be in a scene and be present listen to someone play the stakes of it he's not
[00:34:24] doing it he's dead and he's not funny right and then the one scene they shoot I think two weeks in and they were like about to shut down the movie go for reshoots whatever the one scene they shoot is the one scene they shoot is the
[00:34:37] famous scene that makes Eddie Murphy a movie star where they go into the bar and he asks Nolte for his badge and they go into this redneck bar and Murphy pretends that he's the cop and just the best scene in the movie command of
[00:34:47] the room and it like lit up everyone's electrified and then they go like okay let's go watch the dailies and figure out what the fuck is going on and gross and they'll watch everything they have and they're like I got it Murphy is activated
[00:35:02] because it's a jump ball this is why I'm bringing this up here okay he's like that scene is a challenge to him there are people he's playing off of there's a thing he's got to overcome when he's in a scene where he's just playing the straight man
[00:35:17] or he's playing the wild guy but it's wild in opposition to nothing he doesn't know what to do he's 19 he hasn't intellectualized his talent yet right but what he needs is the activation of the confrontation and so they rewrite the whole movie and go every fucking scene
[00:35:32] needs to be a jump ball no T has to be challenging him in every scene Murphy as an actor has to feel like there's something for him to overcome we need to onset create the the sensibility of no T is a far more established actor than you
[00:35:44] he's going to act circles around you you have to fucking prove us wrong and they do that and they rejigger the whole movie and it fucking works and he becomes a movie star right I think train wreck is a jump ball for LeBron
[00:35:57] I think he's on a set with all these funny people he's not trained in comedy he has to hold his own scenes with Bill Hader he is activated by the fact that he's improvising that he has to be thinking strategically I get everything that you're saying
[00:36:11] skin in the game versus this where now people have told him you were good in that movie just play LeBron well but also this movie is dog shit it's written like shit it's stupid it's about a horrible horrible but like he cannot I feel like pull off
[00:36:26] the most basic emotions and scenes here's my counter no one could save this script no one could save this but you could give a more functional performance it would not save this movie I have two thoughts first of all we said this after we watched
[00:36:40] Griffin I saw the movie together I don't know if you said that but he's better at the comedy in this movie than he is the drama you said to me he's pulling off 30% of the comedy and none of the drama I agree with that yeah
[00:36:50] I agree with that then on the drama side David you were just saying can we really blame LeBron for this I don't know if we can but to the extent that we can I would I would question the fact that again this is LeBron's movie
[00:37:04] maybe it would have helped him play off the drama if he would have included anything that taxed in any way onto any security or issues he's had in his life instead it seems to be a completely made up storyline where he won't let his son
[00:37:18] you know get into coding we were talking about maybe like even if the storyline with the son had been more and they reference this a little bit later in the movie but more geared towards the obvious conflict of LeBron grows up with very little
[00:37:32] works his way to the top but it's not but it's really not it's about the last 15 minutes of the movie and I've heard LeBron in interviews talk very earnestly about the difficulty of raising kids who now have so much money and also his name and all this stuff
[00:37:47] and like that's a conflict that I'm not saying LeBron would have been amazing but I imagine he might have been able to play it off a little better than he did his son being a genius video game designer and greatest of all to LeBron
[00:38:01] this is the movie's huge problem I was saying this before I might put it right the son is obviously should be making video games he's clearly good at it there is a point in the movie beyond good he's obviously good there is a fucking nerd they're like
[00:38:14] he made a video game well David beyond that there are a couple points in this movie that I think fundamentally break it one of them is you see that he went with his dad to some fucking all-star game training and had some device hooked up to his iPhone
[00:38:29] he used to scan the players and make them into it right and at that moment you go oh this is a kid who loves video games and programming his games impressive he bought some expensive device to scan an hour later into the movie algae rhythm says
[00:38:44] I'm gonna be able to suck human beings into the audience because of your scanning technology implying that Dom James is the one who built this fucking device and created his own proprietary technology CCP level to make people off of a fucking iPhone this kid's a billionaire
[00:39:04] here's the problem it's not even about that deep into this movie algae rhythm loudly explains please call it mr rhythm algae says if we win the game say if you win the game you get to go home and if I win the game
[00:39:21] I will like delete the loony tunes and you're my prisoners forever all of these human civilians in the stands are stuck here in the server for me to what end why does that do anything for you LeBron goes to see his son this should be the moment
[00:39:34] where his son's like well you know what fuck you cause like you didn't let me you know like where there's anger there instead it sounds like what are you talking about it's just like some fun game just go enjoy yourself like come on we're gonna play basketball
[00:39:46] there's no stakes his son is not aware of the drama no state and then at the end he's like hey algae rhythms mean I'll go hang out with you that's it like you know cause algae rhythm is mean the biggest problem with this movie is LeBron has
[00:39:59] basically like shitty and inscrutable motivations and the ancillary characters have no motivations like particularly even just a small thing like the basketball players themselves who then have their talents co-opted in the first base jam it's done really well I mean the scene with Mugsy Mugsy with his shrink
[00:40:16] and all this and they don't it's arguably the funniest stuff Charles Barkley got a basketball thrown at him on a park and some kids saying you can't play these aren't those players these are weird digital monsters based off of those players who have no internal lives
[00:40:31] even the nerd looks has fucking motivation the nerd looks had stakes yeah but this doesn't this has to be because of the way the movie is made right where they were like shit we don't have time to actually bring these people into the movie though David I mean
[00:40:43] but they can't have like actually done the mocap right it's just no no no but even if you gave but even if you get like to the extent that they are physically in the film yes they are they don't do anything they have no I'm saying like
[00:40:56] don't you think like maybe there was a world where they were going to have a B-plot and then it's like shit we fired the director the NBA season starting soon we just have them be cartoons as well right there's also this famous thing famous there's this noted
[00:41:08] thing that they had a really tough time getting any players to do this because of conflicting shoe deals absolutely that was never it was never going to happen players who had different shoe deals were not allowed to do this film because of LeBron's except for Clay
[00:41:22] Clay does it but because he has the Chinese shoes remember he has that he's that's his sneakers the Chinese shoe company I forget what they're called oh okay but you know obviously his own company is that he's Clay is like endorsed by a Chinese sneaker company
[00:41:36] I need to look it up that's smaller and not a competitor but is he also endorsed by Nike additionally it's he but like Anta is obviously just like hey man whatever you want to be in a movie but like you can't get Hardin you can't get
[00:41:48] um you know Durant well is Durant Nike who's Durant I think Durant is Nike yeah Durant is definitely Nike so Durant you could have just like fuck you but you can't get Steph because she's under army you can't get Hardin because she's Adidas or whatever
[00:42:00] like right you can't get those guys but by the way I mean one of the cool things about the first base jam is like it's not like they were like oh is Sean Bradley Nike you know what I mean they got interesting players it was not just an
[00:42:11] purely a brand strangle hold back then too though everyone was Nike back then now all these people have wormed in but I'm just saying they did not pick the they could have picked players with no signature shoe deal as well and it could have been
[00:42:23] interesting if they were the right type of character this is another interesting thing they did and like James you and I walked around for a little bit after the movie and we're talking about stuff and sure rough drafting our thoughts for this episode whatever
[00:42:34] and you just kept on you'd say like the thing that the original space jam gets right and I can't believe I keep on trying to like talk about the original space jam like it's the Maltese like you're like it makes the original space jam look like a script
[00:42:46] that should be studied for its perfection I watched in terms of the bare minimum shit it gets right I watched the first space jam after watching the second space jam and it really like first of all it felt like a warm bath in comparison to the
[00:42:59] to the second one but but it's like a pleasant movie in comparison as much as I so in your face always enjoyed the first space jam it gave me a lot more appreciation for what it's able to pull off just like basic hack Hollywood screenwriting where
[00:43:12] it's like you have someone say this in the first act and it happens in the third but they were the first space jam was able to fit all of this stuff into a formulaic Hollywood movie which is not maybe not so easy well this was
[00:43:28] the other thing I was going to say like with the monstars and the nerd lux in whatever right like a you set up the nerd lux as a character you know what's going on there then you set up the players in the real world right then
[00:43:39] they steal them and in terms of the world players you have like you and embarkly are like a big fucking A tier guys right but then part of their like decision making after that is like Sean Bradley you want a guy who's really tall mugs he books
[00:43:52] you want a guy who's really small like they're casting based on the visuals of what the cartoon monsters are going to be later in the thing it was going to be George Mears on first like they were thinking about this of like having distinct because also
[00:44:05] because it's a basketball right they wanted them to play as close to this one where they don't really just want it to be this it's a video game it's an abstract and even within we were talking about this one of the first thing things about this movie
[00:44:17] is even with even knowing it's a video game there are no rules to the video game right they don't outline any sort of competitive sort of power up element they do not style point you don't know what like even if it's style points you have no idea like
[00:44:32] there's no internal metric that you can follow what's what's even the barrier it's like an electrocuted it like yeah there's so much logic that just doesn't make sense with how the game works but David like you talked me through this at one point where it's like oh the
[00:44:49] the nicknames the forms they have are based on this kind of thing or whatever right in terms of how it actually like plays into the film it's kind of a relevant right like the the real players that these are based on kind of have nothing
[00:45:02] to do with anything pretty much and on wet fire that guy that's not his deal well he's one of the Smash brothers he's one of the what is that exactly well okay I will say James back me up here everyone who remotely cares about the NBA knows about
[00:45:17] the Splash brothers yes I think the problem I think the problem that the Splash brothers I'm wrong about that being the reason why the character is wet fire there's nothing else you can do with Clay Thompson I think the problem is not that like Clay Thompson is famous
[00:45:31] for when a what was it what's it scaffolding collapsed scaffolding is this incredible he was caught by like New York one or some local TV station being like not knowing that he was Clay Thompson he was like in town for a game and they were like
[00:45:45] what happened here and he was like well it looks like the structural interior and he like seemed to know the sort of specifics of how scaffolding were ruled and by the way it was not at all like you know giving that look of like do you know
[00:45:58] who I am he was like oh yeah yeah here's what happened it's always a concern when you're walking he's kind of like famously dry I mean it's like it sounds like they got it wrong the problem is not that he's wetfire or anything like that
[00:46:11] or that people don't know what that means the problem is that no part of Clay Thompson's basketball game has anything to do with the game that they play thank you same with Anthony Davis same with A.F. Anthony Davis at least has wingspan I will say
[00:46:25] but they don't eat it doesn't come into play how do we score over this wingspan this was my larger point this was my larger point I understand whatever fucking in-jokes these personas are riffing on but they're all kind of irrelevant and their personalities don't really come into play
[00:46:40] the only guy where I would argue actually has any impact on the game is Chronos right where they like setting up this fucking thing of him fucking with time otherwise all the powers they have are just like well I don't know the game is rigged
[00:46:52] they can't win anyway this doesn't make them better or worse players in its own bizarre way the Looney Tunes are also like fucking beholden to no rules this is an honest question I mean I know that there's some part of this movie that is just a sign
[00:47:07] of the times in that okay it's like yeah we included video games and a lot of little sound bites and there is something very modern internet about the way the short bursts are going but is also what it's saying that young people actually don't really care about
[00:47:23] basketball either fundamentals or not the fundamental where happened to the fundamental that is true look again I can't believe I'm the defender of the stupid logic of this movie that is true they're always complaining about how basketball players spend too much time playing basketball video games
[00:47:41] now and obsessing over their 2K rating and all that but like fundamentally right the conflict the only way I could zero in on the latter half of this movie because I was truly like desperate by the way you saw this in a screening room right
[00:47:54] I saw it in the AMC Lincoln Square in a screening I just want to say because you told me that's funny this was your first movie back from paternity leave this was your first movie the first day back in six months right and it like shows up
[00:48:07] in your work slacker the spreadsheet whatever they put in they put you in to do space jam and you reach out to Warner Brothers and go like hey they want me to do space jam and their response was like there's a screening in two hours
[00:48:17] if you can make it great if not you don't get to see the movie like Warner Brothers was so uninterested in critics seeing this by and large they were kind of like it's Monday or whatever like nothing you're not going to get a link
[00:48:29] but was it same day they were like it was that day it was that day they had one screening but in the latter half of the movie the moral of the story right is like he should stop trying to teach the loony tunes
[00:48:41] how to like screen and roll right he just needs to let them all have fun like this to let everyone be who they are this game is designed for people to have fun so he needs to loosen up right and like so I of course
[00:48:52] thought of his famous tweet to Kevin Love where he did not say Kevin Love's name but you know what I'm talking about some players need to either fit in or fit out right which he tweeted the first year and everyone was like LeBron is fucking playing mind games
[00:49:04] with Kevin Love his new teammate on Twitter like what is this where clearly LeBron was like I don't get this guy he's casual he's not like me he's not like hyper competitive right like that was sort of the underlying thing right right and Kyrie too
[00:49:21] like he was also pissed off at Kyrie yeah probably and knowing what we know now had a less of a read on Kyrie as we all do you know as Kevin Love I think he really like pinpointed as like this guy's like got it taught
[00:49:33] he was like I don't understand like you're here you're with me we could win a title like how right and like and clearly what happened with that team was like LeBron came in and was like I am LeBron James God of basketball I have two rings now
[00:49:46] I you know doesn't everyone want to listen to me yeah I'm the king I just went it was just in Miami I was just under Pat Riley like learned now I'm here to tell everyone about how basketball works and everyone's like huh well there's also that famous
[00:49:58] LeBron's had something about being sort of like a father figure to Kyrie and they interviewed Kyrie about who's like I have a dad right yeah and like LeBron I think has acknowledged like he did have to learn to be like okay people don't just want to like
[00:50:15] hear my drops of wisdom and like hear how to play the game right by the way I feel like this movie is kind of like doing a very similar fucking thing to the audience honestly about like yo I'm LeBron like sit down two hours of LeBron
[00:50:28] let me tell you about all the great shit I did in my career my life turn like a go and let someone else construct that narrative around him in a way he would not have the perspective to do right can also say talking about all of this like
[00:50:41] the mean image I think of with LeBron now and I know it's recency bias and also this is someone who like doesn't follow sports and only sees these things when they go viral on Twitter but the famous fucking photo of LeBron like this to his teammates
[00:50:54] after they fucked up the play well it was to be fair maybe the worst the worst individual I have watched the clip it's the only basketball footage I've watched in the last 10 years even I understand that's a horrible play it wasn't just that LeBron had just given
[00:51:07] the most magnificent performance any basketball player ever given he had defeated Steph Curry and their margin for error in that was nothing it was nonexist they could not have even like and then for JR to just basically like huh and then they're like and LeBron's clearly like
[00:51:25] now I have to defeat Steph four more times I just beat him and you lost it but that's like the amount of emotion in the photo he's so expressive in that photo it tells such a complete story and the fact that that is directed at his own team
[00:51:39] you are correct that that's what this movie should dramatically be digging into kind of like because like he's leading on the tunes and then eventually he realizes like I need to loosen up with them much as I do with my own son that's the only arc
[00:51:50] that's in the movie it's the same thing it does with the son it's the same thing it does first of all with like you know leaving Cleveland it's the same thing it does with the son like not having to work for things where it's like
[00:52:03] it doesn't set any of it up and then it just references it in the second half once it's like that's enough they reference things in resolving them that they have not properly set up within the confines of the movie god awful every fundamental way
[00:52:19] right it's a bullet dump but like here's a good example right I feel like I mean you said this James watching it like there were a lot of comments you kind of turned to me in the movie as you were like doing the math in real time
[00:52:32] yeah and I think you said this during the film where you were like you realize what a difference it makes that you're actually seeing like a court in the original movie yes both in the training and in the final game that it's like A I find something
[00:52:46] weirdly claustrophobic about the visual of the final game where it's like green grass around all of them and people standing right on the sidelines it feels more hermetic and like it feels more like a green screen even though it is in theory a more expansive deeper sort of
[00:53:06] digital background that they've created versus it being like in an arena but also that when LeBron's training them he's training them in Marvin the Martian spaceship they're not playing on a court the original movie has shit where they're like they get this fucking ACME like gymnasium
[00:53:23] right and they're like working shit out and you get the sense even though it's not some fucking rocky for training montage that Jordan has like really worked to try to get the tunes into shape well and when they show up they're good like they're good at
[00:53:36] what they do and they're playing the game of basketball where if you score a basket it's two points not this and the mother of the rules are a little different and you can stretch or whatever the other thing the monsters also aren't super powered this is another thing
[00:53:49] they're really big and they're really mean and they're very tough but they don't have cartoon powers Looney Tunes are able to later come in with the cartoon powers and use them to their advance well and the other thing that we talked about too is that the villain
[00:54:02] in the first base jam is sort of like this Kim Jong-il figure huge connection thank you yes he's evil and wants to but he wants to do cause he like cares about like basketball and like wants there's a basis in reality as insane as it is
[00:54:17] SWAC camera actually like no but there is a basis in reality for Algorithm but it's a more chilling well it's just Algorithm is like look I have solved culture right I am the algorithm I have decided that if LeBron went to fucking Hogwarts that would be good
[00:54:33] when he's told no he's like alright of course but the basketball algorithm has nothing to do with it and that's the thing basketball has nothing to do with it so then just take why are you playing this game of basketball like you understand the first one
[00:54:47] at least there's some like okay the game of basketball there's some reverence for the game of basketball where it's like okay if we can beat him we can have you know what I mean where it's like Algorithm just still if you want to delete these fucking people
[00:54:58] what's stopping you you're completely it doesn't make any sense it doesn't make any sense it doesn't even delete you anyway I've heard that if you say server verse 20 times it becomes a thing it becomes a thing it's also just bananas I mean and I'm sure
[00:55:12] millions of people point at this how the movie begins with the brahmin pitch this movie and he's like this is an awful lie David David David David I have to correct you here because this is my biggest gripe with the entire film
[00:55:24] they do not pitch him this movie they pitch him Warner's 3000 which is this stupid fucking service where they're saying we have this whole catalog yes they will digitize him and then put him into movies and then put you into pre-sisting movies because your social media following
[00:55:37] is so big that that will like add value to our back catalog here's the biggest fucking question about this movie and the thing I think that is ruinous in this premise because I think this is a cursed movie I think trying to make another space
[00:55:51] jam is a bad idea it doesn't make cultural sense the only reason to do it the only reason for this movie to exist is because LeBron is competing in his mind with the legacy of Jordan right that he feels like
[00:56:02] that's the thing I have to do to prove I'm always going to be in conversation about who was the greatest of all time and what my influence is and if I don't do this big cultural thing that Jordan did he's going to have that up on me
[00:56:13] right I do think that it's sort of irresistible to him right even though it's also kind of a like right can you possibly the challenge of the same thing as what I just saying that it's sort of there's some real feeling of insecurity with this film
[00:56:27] but David do you remember after the I believe was after the calves beat the Warriors in the finals LeBron was on the shop is it yeah and he had that moment where he said like I forget if he was talking about the block or just
[00:56:40] the win in general and he sort of said that was when I realized that I'm the greatest ever and there was a there was it's like whether or not that's true you can argue but there was such an insecurity to like feeling
[00:56:54] the need to come out and say that Michael Jordan never would have done Michael Jordan to this day still sort of laughs at the question of whether or not he's the greatest ever because he's and I'm not can't just saying oh we love Jordan
[00:57:05] so much but I think that also yes comes through in the film yes you know that I will say when did the last dance start when the wheels start moving on the last dance after the block Michael Jordan definitely smelled it
[00:57:18] in the air and was like I need to burnish my legacy again because now I'm the cartoon Hitler mustache shitty MBA owner that I am and I need to remind a whole new generation like and it worked better than even he could have imagined
[00:57:33] watch last dance and you're like wow Jordan is such a fucking fascinating figure and also this guy is so good at being on camera he's so good how many fucking memes did the last dance thing is create when there when let's imagine one day
[00:57:46] there's a LeBron last dance like 20 years from now yeah I do think he could be good on camera if he just actually let let go you know yeah and maybe he will like 20 years later right but there's something about the sort of I don't give a fuck Jordan
[00:58:00] thing both times when you're watching the archive footage and the presentation about him is captivated right well and that's a good point to like we were talking about LeBron's you know sort of CEO entrepreneur angle that he really sells and I have no problem with LeBron
[00:58:16] making absolutely as much money as he possibly can but there's an important point to be made which is Michael Jordan was never interested in that stuff and made every bit as much money as LeBron yes well and that LeBron is not entrepreneurship is not yes it's
[00:58:30] like it's a way to make money a way that he's presenting himself to the public like if like you can make LeBron I would I think LeBron could make every bit as much money as he's made yeah you know with
[00:58:42] it if he didn't care about that stuff at all right is that disruptor culture thing of like I want to show that I can succeed in every field I want to all this stuff which also makes him too knowable like we feel like we know too much about
[00:58:54] this fucking guy it's sort of true but also like if we saw a clip of LeBron and the shop kind of has this but still the shop is obviously you know soft focus in its way but like if I saw LeBron like talking shit it would
[00:59:08] be kind of like oh like because I'm sure of course he does right like on the bus right yeah well we never see this stories also about how much LeBron disliked not personally but disliked Steph Curry LeBron clearly hated steps because it was like
[00:59:22] how can this guy who is clearly in every way worse than me as an athlete yes not that he's like I'm not sure what's going on with Steph is obviously great like beating me like you know not just that but I think LeBron also had this feeling of
[00:59:36] like you guys really think this is this guy's better than me like are you getting this is horseshit I can shoot objectively obviously you are a better basketball player than Steph Curry but like that didn't you know Steph represented something completely different
[00:59:50] and he was accessible and kids love him and it's like a kid can imagine shooting a basketball he can't imagine some family thing that LeBron also had which was a radio but he was kind of a little more authentic with it or whatever because his
[01:00:02] kid was cute and also and people always in the NBA have always part of what they've presented about Steph as he grew up rich and he was just sort of a basketball player kind of yeah but doesn't this get back to the fantasy point where it's like LeBron
[01:00:16] wants to be beloved in that LeBron you constantly feel that he's thinking about how people view him and he's frustrated by people who just kind of like are comfortable in their own skin and have whatever sort of adoration they have
[01:00:31] you know the first base jam sort of went back what year did that come out? 96? Okay so it goes back in time a little to tell to tell the baseball story right? Yes it's a huge thing I'm sorry but I just because I
[01:00:43] want to make sure I don't forget this another huge thing is and last dance made me realize this timeline the way I never did before he signs on to do space jam post baseball pre rejoining the NBA he has a lot of time to focus on
[01:00:59] that movie they famously build him the court so he can like start getting in shape again but he's not playing basketball professionally at the time he's working on the movie right and he rejoins he's dominant again the movie occupies the space of like the dark age of
[01:01:15] Jordan being out of the NBA and comes back when he's triumphant you know right summer of his fourth and as LeBron is animated for 70% of this movie because there's only so much time to you can devote to this movie this movie could have gone back in time
[01:01:29] as well and told a different story about LeBron that was not sort of the story is firmly post triumph and there were as there are with all athletes road bumps in LeBron's career that they could you know this could have been a post
[01:01:43] decision movie would be kind of interesting obviously you want him on the back of his heels in the way that Jordan I don't disagree with any of this again of course also the movie is dog shit it's not a need to stop you know to be like there's
[01:01:57] other problems this is my question talking about fundamental curse premise right when you get to the big scene where algae rhythm is pitching Warner's 3000 sure and this ties into James's thing about there's even you know Academy Award nominee Steven young this gets back
[01:02:13] to James's question about like SWAC hammer feeling like there's a weird thing about the movie that's just in reality there and you understand why the movie is about basketball beyond that beyond that right the first space jam for as fucking sweaty a premise as it is
[01:02:31] as much as it's cooked in a lab by fucking advertising agents and whatever right they actually did like let's just like try to figure out how to justify this where there is the chain of logic of like the Looney Tunes are
[01:02:43] beloved they live in the center of the world and they're not just stars but also they exist as living creatures right in their tune world in the core of earth SWAC hammers in space his theme park is failing they need an attraction kids like bugs bunny
[01:02:57] let's kidnap bugs bunny bugs uses his fucking bugs logic the way he's good at fucking tricking people back to Elmer fun Yosemite Sam to make the nerd looks think that oh here's a rule book you're not allowed to kidnap me unless you beat me in a game
[01:03:13] there's the scene where all the fucking lean tunes huddle and they go like they're short and they have little arms basketball we have to play them in basketball because we'll beat them they steal the power now they're big and strong what do we do
[01:03:25] we kidnap Michael Jordan you at least put it like what the the paragraph I just said is insane and demented right but they went through that and they did the beat algorithm goes I want to put you in old movies LeBron says that's a stupid idea
[01:03:41] he's correct that's a horrible idea sure it unfortunately feels like it's probably where the entertainment is going the next 20 years it's a horrible idea algae rhythm cut to Don Sheetal wearing a suit right which later when they're sucked into the server verse Dom James go why it goes
[01:03:59] why is the computer a black man no no no LeBron says it it's very funny it's the it's the only good one of two laughs I had what's your second one the Michael be Jordan thing maybe yes that that's the only that was but no window
[01:04:11] LeBron said yeah the computers black which is one of the few lines and this is this feels kind of tossed off or ad-libbed or whatever it's funny I laugh I agree the computer I agree now look we see him inside the computer with Steve who by the way
[01:04:25] I hate Steve you don't like that guy what is he I Microsoft favorite clip but what is he physically supposed to look like I couldn't really like to see why are you right hands but then his head looks like a light bulb
[01:04:43] I don't know I couldn't figure out he's got no personality he's like more from fucking treasure planet if more was like Bobby thing that makes a face hate him I hate him terrific I fucking despise him I don't understand why he exists in this movie anyway we get
[01:05:01] this like fucking five minutes soliloquy from algorithm just standing around inside of a server verse wearing like a Canadian tuxedo or whatever right that spray painted silver talking to Steve and I think to myself why does he have a human form what who is he presenting this for
[01:05:17] why is it a human form and when they do the pitch meeting he is represented as like an Al Hirschfeld style cartoon right and I'm like this is who he should be and then when the James gets sucked in he's like let me
[01:05:29] take a form that you can have a logic problem with right why are we so cheetah can go him that's the reason do the fucking big blue CGI face for one scene before they come in my point is this movie never for me answers the fundamental question
[01:05:43] which David you said he pitches space jam no he doesn't this movie never even makes clear if the original space jam exists in this universe which is a horrible horrible decision because the best way to do this horrible dog shit premise of a movie is here's the algorithm
[01:06:01] the algorithm is pretty much is actually space jam is relativity media we have come up with a computer program that could come up with a hit movie right Sarah Silverman oh fuck I'm gonna get fired I need a hit computer type type type type type paper print out
[01:06:15] do space jam with LeBron most famous billion dollars right she goes and pitches it they bring in LeBron and he's like no thanks bad idea why would I try to compete I'll fail right right algorithm is personally wounded because algorithm a computer thinks he
[01:06:31] is an artist which is actually getting to saying something about the fucking industry which is like you have to make creative decisions not let a computer do it this computer is like how dare you insult my creation sucks them in and goes
[01:06:43] you thought this was a bad idea I'm gonna make you live it right that's why you have to play basketball right the other part of this is the looney tunes are in the reject world right you fucking pulls the lever I'll send you to the reject world it's
[01:06:57] the looney tunes no longer live in the core of our earth a different reality they have been you got you know people corrected you you said they were on different planets are not in the core of space jam has a different
[01:07:09] planet and I was just like aren't they on that's more amount that's more amount yeah I'm aware don't care I'm gonna be honest this is your Melania Trump but I do kind of like the or like it's too strong but right within they have been thrown into
[01:07:25] Warner Brothers is like digital basement because it's like no one cares about the looney tunes okay right so there's something there because this is another thing bugs has no fucking arc in this way this is the worst bugs bunny has ever been
[01:07:37] in anything but my favorite movie stars history they kill him so that was good when he I kill him and then he comes back five seconds later and he is somehow found a way to transfer over into our world and nothing is explained I guess you don't
[01:07:51] like Jesus Christ plot arc and Christ didn't exist on a server and then lies in the Jesus Christ what does he have to do he's nobody he gathers followers then he dies and then is reborn as God wow I guess you don't like the Bible
[01:08:05] need to is it's that you have the motivation for the loon tunes and then there has to be something LeBron is trying to like the idea that what LeBron is ultimately getting out of this is that his son doesn't hate him right yeah like I have a story
[01:08:19] I'll tell the story the best way to tell the story I'll tell it in a short way which is around the time right after the decision happened I just graduated high school one of my friends from high when I best friend from high school her grandfather
[01:08:37] owns a hotel or owned a hotel so we were maybe going to go on a trip after we finished high school a few of us and there were issues and you said why don't we just go to your grandfather's hotel and hang out very privileged story yeah
[01:08:55] anyway so we go to the hotel and this is right after the decision and LeBron James just decided to sign with the heat people are very angry South Beach people are confused what's going on well I'm just let's see where it going people are really criticizing LeBron
[01:09:15] for the first time ever for the first time I mean they had a big size always he had won a title but on a personal level do you know about the decision as a TV special Ben? as a TV special? he announced he was leaving a team
[01:09:27] and he was going to go to a new team and he did it as a one hour TV special that was like an American Idol result show all the Cleveland fans were so how could you do this to us it's been hip-yieldive it's so like grandiose all the
[01:09:39] okay so we were at the hotel and we find out LeBron is staying there making his post wait a second I worked at that fucking restaurant where he worked at this bottom after the announcement in Connecticut he drove right to the fucking restaurant
[01:09:57] it's on an early episode of our show you talk about it which was so fucking crazy him and all his god damn friends so this ties in perfectly because so then I guess a few weeks after that he decides to go on vacation
[01:10:09] he's staying at the hotel we're staying in so you find out LeBron is staying at your hotel like yeah like we're gotten an elevator and then sure enough I'm not going to get to all the specifics because it's a long story doesn't have a huge payoff
[01:10:21] but like we do get to interact with LeBron and LeBron to like I guess it was like five random kids is incredibly like outgoing spends a lot of time like not a lot of time but quality time for LeBron James like interacting with us he was generous
[01:10:41] he like you know bought us some like alcohol and stuff like that LeBron got you drinks when you guys were underage yes I'm not saying that in a discernment I'm just saying that's cool you were like hey LeBron can you buy us a six pack
[01:10:53] if you give us 20s off we were of age at the time in where we were and I think LeBron had like obviously bought like 10 bottles of vodka when he gave us like six of them anyway and I was sure LeBron going around the street corner
[01:11:11] he was chill he was not like hey kids how you doing and then like and I always got the sense and I don't know if I was putting this on him which is also another factor because he was so reviled in a lot of corners at that time
[01:11:25] maybe even unconscious but like LeBron was in a mode at that moment of really like just first of all trying to be like very nice to everyone but also you know when you're like famous like that and you're getting criticized just exert your influence
[01:11:39] in as many small ways as possible he must be a leader and see these kids these like random little brats who were sitting at this hotel be like wow like that's amazing you know which of course we were and like to me like that's
[01:11:55] that's what this movie needs you know what I mean just like LeBron at this low point and then you have these tunes who are in some way in this tough spot which by the way the movie sets up that LeBron is like the biggest fucking Looney Tunes fan
[01:12:07] he's 14 he's got a Looney Tunes back pack and he's playing fucking Bugs Bunny on his Game Boy on his Game Boy and then when he meets Bugs Bunny he's like oh wow Bugs Bunny you know who I am all this movie needs is the tunes
[01:12:19] and LeBron to meet each other at a low moment for both of them where they need each other and that they somehow by working together they can come out on top and instead it just doesn't so it's more like Bugs is leveraging LeBron
[01:12:33] to draft all of the Looney Tunes rather than LeBron's got no reason he's just there to get out like Jordan yes he's there he's trying to get out but he also rediscovers his love for the game of basketball by playing with the tunes
[01:12:49] the tunes as a collective and Jordan both have their own motivations their own stakes and their own arcs in the original film in this film neither one has either right well the tunes sort of just have to get famous again but David once again
[01:13:03] if this movie exists in the universe with the original Space Jam exists and that's what Algorithm's pitching you immediately improve it 25% because this movie is just ripping off the Jason Seigel Muppets where it's like oh they're all scattered we have to go different places to get them together
[01:13:15] right but when LeBron goes to tune world and the joke is Warner Brothers it sucks they don't know what to do with the fucking Looney Tunes right Bugs is alone has sort of gone crazy but also is showing no vulnerability he's just doing classic
[01:13:31] Bugs Bunny bits by the way poorly timed and executed there's the one moment where he's crying at the bar that's about that's his vulnerable moment but it's also presented as a joke like when Bugs Bunny except an Oscar you know what I'm saying when he's like
[01:13:45] oh thank you thank you like it's all sort of like there is that that's about it sure I'm just saying there's a version of this movie in which he gets sent reject pile you're in Looney Tunes world right and Algorithm has sent him there
[01:14:01] because the challenge is you have to remake Space Jam to prove me right and the Looney Tunes are like Space Jam that was the last time we were culturally relevant that was 25 years ago and they're talking up like
[01:14:15] I mean we won that game we're really good at basketball and LeBron is trying to train them and realizes they're bad at basketball Michael Jordan carried that team I really need to work them into fundamentals and then he is fucking training them working too hard to
[01:14:29] make them play like him it's joyless and he has to learn let them be loony but also ding ding ding you have LeBron living in the shadow of Michael Jordan which is perfect but he would never do it well how does that end though
[01:14:41] what's the end of that I'll tell you what the end of that is this is the other part of my pitch okay a fundamental scene where the movie breaks beyond repair is when in the first 15 minutes LeBron goes into his son's room sees the game recognizes
[01:14:59] he's like this is good but introduction I'm an asshole I'm a fucking drill sergeant I'm the great Santini all I care about is my son playing basketball look at my giant house I don't like coding this one son's good the other one seems to not like it
[01:15:11] I don't care you have to work hard right then he goes into the room sees the game realizes his son is great there's a glitch oh that's a bummer the son opens up to him about the fact that he cares about this and LeBron's like okay well
[01:15:25] by the way you're going to basketball camp also in hastily a dr line good news Malik just texted me we have a WB meeting you should come with me fun right yeah and then they're all right first of all when LeBron has seen the kids game
[01:15:39] seen his passion for it sees how good he is at it and still doesn't respect it as a career choice he becomes an asshole beyond repair the obvious hack version of this movie is LeBron does not realize what the kids passion is that he's been naive
[01:15:53] he's been ignorant there's a point in the third act where they're in the game and he goes oh my god you built all of this I never realized you were so good I understand your passion now it should come right where he actually
[01:16:05] realizes it's more than just a dumb video he cannot feign ignorance because he knows what it is and he understands the passion it also makes zero sense that the son only proudly announces at the Warner Brothers meeting to two cynical execs
[01:16:17] he's just met hey have you heard of E3 I'm going to that camp next weekend a conversation I've never broached with my father right but I'll do it now yet look like and then that little bit where he's like you're not going to the camp like that is
[01:16:29] really one of the more bearer moments in the- David here's my fix and how this thing fucking bails itself out right and how you can have some sort of ending with this movie that's all about in the shadow trying in vain to recreate Space Jam right
[01:16:45] whether it's video games or it's the kid is a writer or he wants to be a comic artist he's in some creative feel right and the kid as James said is more than anything living in the shadow of his father he is like LeBron James junior everyone views
[01:17:03] an argument for making the main character LeBron James junior the actual LeBron James but anyway but but he plays basketball right he does but he is burdened with the name I oh I get another thing LeBron has candidly spoken about
[01:17:17] I wasn't sure if I wanted to give him my name because right it's intense yeah right and we're talking the kids are growing up very different than he did you know his work ethic whatever are they privileged are they burdened by this like all
[01:17:27] this sort of shit the kid is some sort of creative right you pick your fucking field or medium he could be milling a video or whatever he is embarrassed about the fact that he wants his dad to think he likes basketball
[01:17:39] because dad so badly wants him to play basketball but he secretly loves this other thing right they pitch the thing LeBron brings the kid to the meeting he goes in there the kid is like bummed out at the fact that this is such a cynical exercise
[01:17:57] right because he's like an artist he must have tell his own stories his own characters whatever the fuck it is and the lesson that the kid teaches LeBron is you shouldn't try to do what everyone's done before and try to outdo those people
[01:18:09] you should try to be your own person I can't be LeBron's son I don't want to be the LeBron James of video games I want to be the Dom James of video games you want to create dare I say it a new legacy
[01:18:21] and the end of the movie is them being like this is a fuck a fucked endeavor we shouldn't even be playing basketball and LeBron isn't like Looney Tunes you should play basketball Looney style he's like what do you want to do you used to be fucking movie stars
[01:18:35] why are we replicating your movie from 25 years ago let you be Looney again and the fucking end of it is they let the Looney Tunes just be insane and LeBron goes through the Looney Tunes greatest hits what you're pitching is the Muppets the the season Muppets
[01:18:49] and what the movie is is hook right it's movie is basically the plot of hook which is right dad doesn't have time for his kids his son gets abducted by a villain and the villains like I'll be your dad I'll be
[01:19:01] your it should be about her aging LeBron being obsessed with being Jordan and being obsessed with trying to replicate the success of Space Jam and algorithm being obsessed with the fact that movies are math and he can figure out the business and at the end of it
[01:19:13] they're like fuck the game and the way they defeat the fucking Goon Squad or whatever isn't by beating them in basketball with arbitrary rules that don't matter it's by going like Looney Tunes let's fucking go bugs on their ass paint
[01:19:27] the thing on the wall and have them run into it you know like put them in our game duck season rabbit season do the greatest hits of Looney Tunes but do it to knock out these villains and eliminate them as physical
[01:19:37] threats the game doesn't matter you have to create a new legacy LeBron understands that his son has this passion to this other thing that's fine that's the version of this dog shit movie that's at least functional now there's an argument that maybe
[01:19:51] at one point there was more of that happening the Terrence Nance right like you know the whole thing got retooled there's also the other problem that Warner Brothers is so intent unlike well let's use this to like fucking advertise Warner Brothers and you put it in the next
[01:20:07] I was gonna ask that question do you think that I mean I know that that's what they were trying to do with you know having having him drive through all these different ways I mean is this an effective ad for any of those properties I mean is anyone
[01:20:21] I mean no I don't know I mean I loved it I love okay you like the IP surprises right oh yeah I think falling through IP seems like fucking cool as hell I've always wanted to do that James I tease this for you this is the big thing
[01:20:35] they're trying to do the thing that everyone else every other studio is jealous of is that common lay people know what Disney owns and what they don't Disney has clear branding decades of work right you know they had that for a century right with everyone knows which movies
[01:20:51] are classically Disney movies but they also know that Disney on Pixar and Disney on Marvel and Disney on Star Wars and that's the umbrella and Warner Brothers is like last year's HBO Max launch was all about these fucking posters where it's like Bada
[01:21:05] Bing and it's Tony Soprano and Chandler Bing right being like we have these three things it's Wizard of Oz and Big Bang Theory and fucking Adventure Time and it's horrible because it's like right but that's the whole point that's what this movie is trying to do
[01:21:17] they're just trying to remind you this is what Warner Brothers owns all of these things and the reason it's weird too is you're combining these very adult movies yeah it's like the Matrix I mean that's the thing with Disney it's like Disney made
[01:21:29] has done what it's done but it's done that by sacrificing the rest of it very narrow silos and then Warner Brothers is like ooh can we be that narrow and like someone right because someone on Matt Patches was saying like
[01:21:41] this shows how little of an impact Warner Brothers has made like and I'm like no they just did other movies that won't fit into this. Patches point was that Jury wrote is the only thing from the last 20 years that made it into the movie
[01:21:53] and your point was like they've had like Chris Vernolyn 10 major Chris Vernolyn you know Oceans movies Greasewood movies right there's a lot of shit that they're not touching but it's like they're looking for shiny brand properties they're looking for that because now everything's just about shareholders
[01:22:09] and what is proprietary yours this is like an upfront I want to say it's an upfront to just remind you like we're sitting on this catalog so one reason I thought this movie was better than I think is I thought it was going to be
[01:22:19] so much of that the going through none of the IP characters like ha they're just not really like a 10 minute sequencing total like bouncing and then them just being featured extras I thought you know so I posted a picture of the LeBron as Robin and bugs as Batman
[01:22:39] so that's one sequence there's a Casablanca with Yosemite Sand, Gary Road, they piss Superman off by the way. They do piss Superman off. I argued that was the high point of the movie on a very relative scale because it was nice to see like Brutes
[01:22:53] Tim style artwork and then approximated so there's just to go through it all before I reveal what my favorite was there's a Casablanca Harry Potter LeBron is like I think the universe of Casablanca should be explored for you we should have like a TV series
[01:23:07] one of my favorite franchises was it was asking to be by the way Ben there wasn't 80s Casablanca TV series that was as you would expect a notorious disaster like a network Casablanca TV show that ran for six episodes and people were irate
[01:23:23] does he say here's looking at you kid at the end of every episode he punches through the Looney Tunes rings porky pig style and that's what he says like um so there's a fog horn leg horn rides a dragon for Game of Thrones there's the matrix which
[01:23:39] we've all seen the clip even if you haven't watched your granny is there anything I'm forgetting here I think those are the main ones right no and they go into the wonder woman there's the rock bottom wonder woman sequence which is I find just so insulting
[01:23:55] why can't she be funny like one or brother is has fun with everyone else but well no wonder woman and Lola can't be funny because they're like inspirational figures like fuck off have some fun it's me out she's like talking about how Lola's an
[01:24:09] Amazon yeah but that's a big problem in this movie is every everything is a reference right there is nothing there's so little original even the jokes are often just references to like LeBron in like the taco Tuesday Instagram or stuff like that and so
[01:24:23] it's the same with the wonder woman thing where it's basically a reference to a political point they're trying to make but there's nothing actually going on within the movie but it's also it's a recreation it feels largely like a recreation of the opening of wonder woman 1984
[01:24:35] right games but instead they make it that they go inside a comic book which is like a whole other thing this movie's not tapping into which is like so is any media in the server fair question I mean people can be digitized they pick a
[01:24:47] style that does not look like comic book right like they give it dots but otherwise it looks like fucking just the same garbage Tom and Jerry straight to video movie and so patronizing that Lola can't be fun apart from little cost
[01:24:59] this is what I want to say no Dawson because she doesn't say I want to say this two second thing because this is one of those things that like full controversy went viral right Malcolm D. Lee was like I watched
[01:25:09] the original movie which by the way he only saw after they offered him this he doesn't like space two weeks after the the actual visionary director Terence Nance got fired he watched it a weekend he was on set two days later he didn't interviews
[01:25:21] recently with the great lights camera Jackson where he said like he likes looney tunes he seems to have no interest in never seen it space but he in the lights camera Jackson interviews said like we had a looney tunes expert on set which was
[01:25:33] so helpful because I was able to ask them the tough questions at any time like is Tweety a boy or a girl and what is Tweety's thing why do we find Tweety funny what's her or his game what is Tweety's it doesn't matter Tweety's game is
[01:25:51] I don't need to get into Tweety's a boy Tweety's a boy but looney tunes had no female characters pre-lola any significance that they would make Tweety the girl character for merchandise because Tweety was cute and that created gender confusion but also maybe Tweety's fluid
[01:26:07] I don't want to I don't want to box I'm saying right we don't want to talk to Tweety Tweety's not a guest Tweety is whoever they feel comfortable what I was going to say is that he does this interview where he was like
[01:26:19] I watched the movie with my daughters and was like holy fucking shit Lola is so sexualized in this movie she's just girl bunny with tits playing like you know the whole thing about the fact that Bugs has the
[01:26:31] hots for her and she's able to seduce all the other monsters on the court wherever she has no personality her game is just that she's like Jessica Rabbit right and he was like it's 2021 we should move past this what they did was just
[01:26:43] remove the sexuality as a game and left her with nothing yeah she's just like level headed sort of like she's got nothing going on there's no fucking character here she has five lines in the movie they are as I quoted just things like way to go LeBron
[01:26:59] it's a lot of that but it's like the idea being that the alternative to a sexualized Lola Bunny is basically like an activist in some sense right like a still just supposed to be like not not a person or a character but just like
[01:27:15] nothing but here's what I want to say yes I thought the Mad Max thing was funny I do too I think that is absolutely unquestionably the high point of the IP can I tell you what I like about it Wiley Coyote looked fucking cool it actually uses
[01:27:31] a looney tunes joke that melds with the thing it's you know the hymn writing witness me and all that David I have a question though you said that this movie was a little bit better than you expected because you expected to be such an IP fast
[01:27:45] that you couldn't watch it didn't you find the IP section to be far less painful than the rest of the movie because I did like very clearly found it much less pain I would have watched 30 minutes of that well that's a fair argument
[01:27:59] you're right the argument is like in a way is it should there be more because they actually it's not good but it's like you could have done a full seagull muppets where you're like actually taking the time to recollect them rather than doing a
[01:28:13] I think you're dead on that not only does the Mad Max section have actual looney tunes I also thought LeBron look good in like the mohawk and so I like that he kind of like stepped up for that it's nice that there's the style exercise
[01:28:25] which I argue matrix is the only one where they kind of come close to doing this where it's like we're replicating the filmmaking of the movie right like there's like an adaption of style and how the looney tunes fit into it all that
[01:28:37] sort of shit but it also is that's the only pairing that makes sense where you're like if Wiley Coyote and Roadrunner had to go where they would go something that's why I hated the Superman one where I'm like why is Daphne and this this makes no sense
[01:28:49] also Daphne isn't Superman like it doesn't make any sense right most of the like why is it Sam? Well because his name is Sam. Fuck all of them. His name is Sam. So when Terence Nance one of the few things he shot before they fired him
[01:29:03] was Casablanca but he did it with Pepe Le Pew instead which is when Pepe Le Pew was cut out of the movie. But more thematically appropriate. Yeah because he's the fucking romantic and he smokes or whatever you know in his right you know. Right but you're like
[01:29:15] why is Granny in the Matrix like this is so arbitrary. Oh Granny in the Matrix because it's comedy go. The thing about Granny is she sucks. So Granny is what she's the Sylvesterans Tweety Bird's owner. Her game is that she's oblivious
[01:29:29] and she doesn't realize this violence is happening and they turn her into rapping Granny from The Wedding Singer and she works well on the first one because it's like Wayne Knight goes sit next to Granny you know who's got
[01:29:39] the problem. The joke is that she's this like boring quaint old lady. Yeah. And then this the joke is that like isn't it funny when old ladies do things that old ladies don't really do which is like that joke was run to the ground in 1998. It sure was.
[01:29:51] It's never been part of this character and she has so much screen time in this movie. She's got a lot. Like Granny does more than Taz does which I have to imagine is once again a Yoss Queen thing where they're like we only have two
[01:30:01] female characters. You don't may have been some fucking algorithm thing in its way right where like it must have tested in some way. But does Granny like move merch? Maybe no but maybe it was just like Granny did great numbers when we tested 20 minutes
[01:30:15] of footage or whatever. I don't know but it just feels that way right. That's the other massive problem is that the villain in this film is an algorithm and yet the film is made by an algorithm and it's recursive. Nothing just kind of proves him right
[01:30:31] like the film opening to 32 million dollars is like I guess the algorithm wins. Well here's one thing though and part of me saying it wasn't as bad as I thought. I really thought there was going to be no loony tunes. They are kind of all over the movie
[01:30:45] now I don't think any of it is that successful. David I think they're all over the movie in as much as there's IP all over the movie standing in the stands that none of them work none of their games really I mean there's like but they
[01:30:57] at least have sequins. I thought they weren't going to you know there's that middle where they're like doing bits and they're you know and like I disagree on this David when you say I just think literal plot time. I just think do nothing
[01:31:09] they're just there the whole time. There's this whole sequence in the gym where they're all doing it. First of all it's not the gym it's on the fucking whiteboard and that's one montage that's also part of them like getting collected that lasts for like two minutes
[01:31:21] no it's longer than that. David when you say it's better than you expected do you just mean as it's better as an exercise in Hollywood corporatism than you thought or that it's actually a better movie than you thought. I thought the whole thing was going to be
[01:31:33] LeBron saying hi in certain name of Warner Brothers character as they go from like a place to place. But then you're also saying that's the only stuff that works on a relative scale that had any sort of energy to it. I don't hate the game
[01:31:47] even though the game makes no sense it's so boring. I kind of locked into the Kevin Love thing I was like okay so this is about LeBron having to loosen up okay I can grapple with those things. I also like moments in the game where he's
[01:32:01] like we got to switch on D and I'm like against a water man a man who can stop time it's irrelevant. That's a great strategy. That was a great moment too because he says that at the end of the game. I think it's the last play
[01:32:15] where he's like are we switching everything? He says it on the last play which is at this point you have to do a reverse you know granny slam, a thousand potings or whatever the stupid rules are. It would have been amazing if on the last play
[01:32:31] what was even... I didn't even know what the villain team is called. What are they called? The Goon Squad. Okay if the Goon Squad had run just like a traditional spread pick and roll and try to find a quarter three he's like through the screens
[01:32:43] they just finally actually play basketball there's that oh god it is so grim the Goon Squad I hate them. What do you guys think of Cheetle's performance? Because like Cheetle is obviously kind of like being given limitless space and he's like
[01:32:59] okay I'll fill it. Like I'll just go as big as I can because what else am I gonna... this is not calling for subtlety right? I can't believe I'm gonna say this I feel like he could have gone bigger No to be fair
[01:33:11] Griff you have to acknowledge at one point he grows He gets big large, he gets huge He gets huge. With like scorpion king level CGI weird why is his face wrong? It's creepy You think he could have gone bigger? Yeah look I think he could have gone bigger
[01:33:29] but I think this is another fundamental failing of the movie that you walked me into okay We're talking about LeBron unfortunately being the ultimate of tour of this movie because they hired a fucking weird artsy guy and then immediately got terrified and fired Malcolm D Lee who just
[01:33:43] was like a fucking babysitter on this thing right? I hate this movie I like most of Malcolm D Lee's filmography he's a guy to defend. I cannot really ding him for this at all It's marching orders This thing's on rails, you have to just keep it on rails
[01:33:57] LeBron has to be done in eight weeks or whatever It sucks, right whatever I think if you're talking about the relative success, I'm talking creatively of the first movie why it is watchable a lot of credit has to go to Ivan Reitman and to the executives understand
[01:34:17] Ivan Reitman was very hands on with that movie. In a lot of ways with the uncredited director you have the animation directors you have Joe Picco doing live action, Reitman is overseeing both and is also like very
[01:34:29] hands-on on both and is the guy who is making those two things fit together he's kind of the ultimate outter of that movie weirdly enough as it is Ivan Reitman was a very smart businessman, like above I think, you know, I like him as a filmmaker
[01:34:41] but he's working with him you realize more than anything this guy's a smart businessman like he understands the business of movies and how to work around people and stars and understand what the audience wants to see and all that other shit
[01:34:53] but also here's a guy with fucking comedy bonafides. He's going to make sure that the Looney Tunes are funny he's also going to call in favors and get Wayne Knight and Bill Murray in this movie so you have ringers well you have Little Ralph
[01:35:07] you have Little Ralph who should have been playing the fucking agent character rather than commentate. He's an actor who in Atlanta was very good I didn't understand who he was in this movie but he was kind of funny but I'm like that should be Little Ralph
[01:35:21] that should be a space where you bring Little Ralph and go Little Ralph improvises as much as you want come up with anything. Where is that did we see Chris Davis in that off-Broadway Jack Johnson play at Lincoln Center did he play Jack Johnson
[01:35:33] I did not see that with you oh okay you did see it though I did okay yes that might have been him okay I think that might have been him I think he's a fine actor I think you need to hire someone who is literally like
[01:35:45] in a Bill Murray zone right I mean as hackney as it is you need to hire like a comedian first and foremost because hiring Don Schuylen play algorithm is like you're not hiring him for gravitas here right you're not hiring him
[01:35:57] even in like a Danny DeVito swag hammer kind of way he's not playing menacing and if the bits gonna be that he's this like fucking cyber beetle juice it can transform into anything and make anything go off then what you should be doing
[01:36:09] what you should be doing is getting a comedian in front of a green screen and just going like go wild do funny things do funny things you want make jokes about LeBron whatever right Cheetle's working as hard as he can to make this work it is depressing
[01:36:23] I feel like we talked about this in a recent episode maybe Rosewood you look at Cheetle's career right and from like 2012 on the last eight or nine years it's pretty much just 15 Marvel appearances two showtime series and he directs his Miles Davis movie he like has not
[01:36:41] been in another why it's so good to see him in no sudden move within but industry in a nutshell within one week HBO Max puts up a Soderbergh movie that was produced for like a fucking dollar with 30 actors who were so desperate to be in a real
[01:36:55] fucking thing that like great I'll show up yeah right it's like a real fucking role in the space jam movie right that's Cheetle's second non-marvel film role in six years since Miles ahead so yeah and I feel like already no one's talking about no sudden move
[01:37:13] and even if it's only out of like a discussed everyone's thinking about space jam he is also going to be in the no bomb back white noise which is exciting happy he seems to be doing check right seems to be kind of
[01:37:25] yeah because he's one of her best actors and kind of just got sucked into showtime and Marvel he's working his hardest and I would argue he is he the best thing in the movie is he the best performance in the movie by default probably maybe Sarah Silverman
[01:37:41] yeah I kind of maybe what she was funny what Harris does okay with a sort of Martin green but he might be still be the third best green is very talented this is obviously a shit role she actually plays it like there's something to
[01:37:59] care right she's trying to have some stakes there she says why places yeah it's like an incredible actor actor yeah I don't know yeah yeah dame lilor it's pretty good more than the version is kind of fun for a little bit there
[01:38:15] I kind of could have done with more Martin he doesn't he's he is stuck on toon world but he's they take his ship but then he comes back he does but dropping the thing on his it's so stupid and he was the referee
[01:38:29] in the original movie because I guess the idea is he was always kind of antagonistic to the right but then also you're somebody Sam and father playing with them whatever referee in this movie was Steve Steve I hate well wait is it Steve his name is Steve
[01:38:45] little guy no it's Pete Oh is it yeah oh you're mad about that it's even worse somehow I don't know why I don't think it's I like that less um what was I gonna say though yes they do so little with Marvin I feel like
[01:39:03] they use the tunes so poorly in general oh this is what I was gonna say why is Daphne the coach why do they immediately tie Daphne just immediately goes I'm gonna be the coach right right and then I'm like okay interesting what's the commuting take on this
[01:39:19] nothing he gets to do a couple lines he does the Bob Knight right is that was big he wears the red sweater and throws the I'm sorry which is also weirdly disconnected game yeah yeah yeah like Taurus PIG what is happening I can't just say notorious PIG
[01:39:43] my point is that Daphne who is so fucking funny in general right his whole game is being like flustered having this bravado it immediately getting deflated it makes sense to have him be like Jeff and Gundy right it makes sense to have him be on
[01:40:01] the side of the court like losing his fucking mind they don't really if they had that in the movie they decided that reference is nothing and it's like at that point why are you putting Daphne on the sidelines in a blazer I mean to
[01:40:13] what end the notorious PIG I I imagine the reality is that someone thought that up and was proud of that decision and that's why it's in the movie but I would like to imagine that like there was some early meeting where some Warner executive
[01:40:27] was like you know what I have a great idea notorious PIG and they're like we'll think about every time he checks and he's like how's the PIG coming along right like it's important to like do we have to do it and he's like yeah we have to do
[01:40:43] the horious PIG we got to do it they also might have plugged Hamilton into the algorithm right but it's unfortunately I feel like it's more of a reference to the era of like tough looney tunes t-shirts it's a bit and of course it's also like his stuttering style
[01:40:59] like you could sort of there like it'll be like he starts that way and becomes beatboxing and whatever also like I swear to God I have I cannot name specifics here right now I must have seen at least eight cartoon shows over the last
[01:41:15] 25 years do notorious PIG jokes like that is like such a fucking worn out joke where you have a cartoon pig who acts hip hop PIG right if you swap the one letter everyone's gotten there like it took no time to get there so that's
[01:41:29] what I'm asking is like someone just like well we have to do an notorious PIG or is it just some yeah I mean it's just because some old fucking executive where it's like that's the most reference to a 55 year old guy I mean Scott Scott
[01:41:45] air in our podcast the ride had the perfect tweet about this movie which was just it's like an entire movie made up only of studio notes like it doesn't even feel like there was an original script there they were noting it's like this is
[01:41:59] a blue sky ideation session of just studio execs throwing everything and then they just put it in an arbitrary order like this movie sweaty because it was designed in a sauna amongst like executive yes it was it was born from sweat how weird was
[01:42:15] it that there there's so kid gloves with LeBron in the whole film and then like that moment where LeBron just basically bullies Anthony Davis for having a unibrow I found that really the unibrow moment in this movie and it's thank you
[01:42:29] for reminding me of that because I forget there's that earlier line where he says like what do they do my boy a d and it's like okay good you acknowledge that one of these players is your teammate right and it's odd
[01:42:39] that he is now a person it's not it's some weird digital distortion like they could have made it that algorithms sucked them in and transformed them into monsters well because he's connected with Anthony Davis so he needs to at least acknowledge right I am I like take showers
[01:42:55] with this man how he is a bird like what what happened but then right there's that thing where he's like of course yes that point they're mad at the goon squad because they're you know the heat of competitive spirit and playing what's the game called Joe ball
[01:43:09] to don ball down jam or it's called on I think it's called don ball so yeah so he insults his brother then he right it's like three lines it's like the brows over with like it's a shame that like and also it's so weird because
[01:43:23] Anthony Davis has always been like yeah I get a lot of criticism for it but like it's me and I like you know it's part of me the last thing that I say I say to James sorry but I say to James Anthony Davis
[01:43:33] is the only one of these players I have ever heard of right you know about the brown I know about him because of the eyebrow and the only thing I know about this guy is he's got the prominent eyebrow and he's really proud of it and he doesn't
[01:43:45] touch it yeah that's all almost like he's gonna get ready to get rid of that thing owned the shit out of that you know right that's all I know and by the way I mean cynically that moment does sort of like cut Anthony Davis
[01:43:59] down to size a little bit on on on behalf of LeBron and look if this movie was coming out and the Lakers were in the finals it'd be different yeah but after Davis shot the bed in the playoffs got hurt yeah it's kind of like but I actually
[01:44:15] functions even better after like I know I guess this was filmed before the pandemic right or yes 2019 2019 it almost functions even better actually after they won the title where it's like LeBron being like yeah this is my Robin he's a bird arguably better than LeBron
[01:44:33] maybe better than LeBron hard to say well at the very least Anthony Davis was number one on the Palakins they you know they were a fairly hopeless team at this point he is at at least more talent I think more
[01:44:47] than LeBron even if he doesn't have these sort of super and also just gravitas and sort of whatever that communal superpower that LeBron has he's ten years younger than LeBron so he just has that going for him right I mean so you got Dame Lillet
[01:45:01] because of Dame time he controls time Clay Thompson is wet fire because he's the splash I know how he ever happened he just got sucked out of the room this second you started explaining like not you just you got client but the three of us
[01:45:15] lose our eyes and exhale I think Dame Lillet probably would have been pretty good as the lead of this film Dame Lillet is yeah he's pretty cares mad and he has that thing too of like I don't give a shit I don't care I haven't left Portland
[01:45:29] Kyrie's a better traumatic actor Uncle Drew Kyrie's not gonna I don't know anything about what the fuck is going on with Kyrie but Uncle Drew is a great comparative right because Uncle Drew is not a good movie but it's enjoyable to watch
[01:45:45] it's more enjoyable to watch than this it's a little chill you bring little relin as fucking can you support and go like you need someone who's actually funny and knows how to be in movies to fucking carry this thing and it has the same basic plot
[01:45:57] which is we gotta get the band back together right to play a tougher mean group of anonymous super power their super power in that movie is they're not 80 they're youth yes but it's very similar it's and it's I forget how much money I guess like it did okay
[01:46:13] it did okay let's find out I think it didn't cost as much 30 or 40 domestic I had to imagine it didn't do great but like so it probably won't do as well as this movie but I would say on balance more success
[01:46:27] more than artistic success even though it's also like based on a commercial and like kind of cursed this movie felt like a commercial to me this movie feels like a commercial for HBO Max Super Bowl ad the kind of thing where it's like
[01:46:39] Super Bowl oh LeBron and the Looney Tunes it's like Space Jam 2 and then there's like some link you can click on right and watch the 10 minute version when they do the website like E.T. sequel commercial it feels like that and you even said James
[01:46:51] everything that's happened in this movie could have been accomplished in two minutes like Space Jam felt like a better exploration of what is between the lines of a Super Bowl ad where this felt like a Super Bowl ad that was stretched out yes yes and the joke
[01:47:07] is look we wouldn't actually remix Space Jam but we can do it in the name of AT&T right and LeBron can like film it for you know half a day right and give it his all he doesn't have to do as much right yeah
[01:47:19] because like it is look it having him be such a joyless character in this movie right having him be such a stick in the mud asking him to mostly be like some sort of emotional spine of this thing is putting shit on him that I don't think he's
[01:47:33] neatly equipped to do I think he's better at comedy and he probably needs directors and co-stars who are like giving him jump ball energy to work off of he needs a lot more yes but anyone absolutely this movie absolutely but also it is thankless too
[01:47:47] and I have to imagine once again that this is like a scheduling production reality because he is an actively playing player to then mostly put him in animation world where he's going to suffer even more as a voiceover artist like he's going to be even more flat he's
[01:48:01] pretty flat this is another wild thing who's this fucking like B team they handed the animation over to it is ostensibly the same people who did the first movie as far as I could tell Tony Cervone and Spike Brandt who are like Warner Brothers company
[01:48:13] men looks bad the first movie looks good like the first movie is high quality fucking animation and it looks crappy and not only that it's like shaded there like dimensionality when he's in the real world it's cool when he's in their world
[01:48:25] composite well when they're in his world's composite well the CG lie I loon seems obviously look fucking awful but even when they're in animation world I was like it looks like those clips that occasionally go viral of those like nightmare Tom and Jerry direct
[01:48:39] to video movies where they're like it's Tom and Jerry and the chocolate factory and they have this weird style they're clearly animated and like flash they're very kind of like static it's nothing like LeBron looks nothing like LeBron but also LeBron avatar is a disaster looks terrible and
[01:48:55] the looney tunes look bad like they design wise look bad they don't move timing is off which is all of looney tunes is about timing all the classic like fucking termite terrace guys it was all about the timing of the physicality and the energy
[01:49:07] in the gags and this it's like everything is so sped up you can't follow it you can't track it and those guys did the original space jam did shit before that at Warner Brothers and in the 25 years in between mostly got relegated to direct to video
[01:49:21] Scooby-Doo and Tom and Jerry movies they did all those movies in between and is like they have regressed in style and they're now stuck doing like the shittier version of what they want to do but in this movie Bugs Bunny dies they kill him LeBron realizes
[01:49:35] that the only way to win the game is to exploit his son's feelings as a pro that the way to exploit a glitch is to highlight his son's failure right the son says but that crashed the game and caused that character to get deleted
[01:49:51] which doesn't even really make sense but whatever right the threat is then someone's gonna get deleted now I said this already I do not understand the stakes of what is in this for algorithm I understand that he feels burned because they did not like his idea
[01:50:07] and he wants LeBron in the serververse so that he can put him in you know the fucking sister of the traveling pants is Demi desperately pitched but I don't understand what good it does for him that the loony tunes are deleted unless you have
[01:50:23] one line of dialogue where he says like they're the worst testing characters in our server we need to cut them I don't understand what it does for him to suck a lot of civilians into the game to what end that does not improve your program
[01:50:35] that does not improve your server it's also very confusing because it's already distracting every time they cut to any angle of the basketball game because your eyes are darting around trying to recognize characters there's too much visual information on screen all the background actors playing
[01:50:49] these IP surprises are doing way too much and doing it in like a weird early video game limited animation cycle where it's like they're doing the same cheer over and over again none of them are doing the same thing it doesn't feel like they're reacting to anything specific
[01:51:03] in the game but also you're looking at and you're like okay that's definitely Mr. Freeze this is a gangster but I can't tell if he's supposed to be in the Sopranos or he's just generic there's some way you're like okay well I know
[01:51:15] who that is and there's somewhere you're like okay is this just vaguely supposed to be right it's an archetype you want like a fucking Roman soldier or whatever and then you look next to me you're like postman postman what's a big Warner Brothers postman
[01:51:29] movie and then you go oh that might just be a postman because for whatever reason algorithm has chosen the first thousand people who look at their phone and sucked them in sure well one thing Space Jam 1 did really well too is tack back to
[01:51:45] the real life consequences of people both disappearing into a golf hole but also having their talent zap so you have the NBA collapsing like all these people and even for the comedy just Bill Murray talking to you're just saying look Larry
[01:52:01] the game is changing like with these stars going out and anything's on the table there's like real world consequences and like Saniqua Mark Green gets sucked into this and it's just like you better win this game you should be asking 8 million questions right now
[01:52:17] this is the thing that's so annoying when the bronze kid like hey we need to figure this out cause like this is high stakes and this kid doesn't get it so then you're just like okay so there's no stakes right so let's exploit this glitch but if we
[01:52:29] exploit the glitch someone might get deleted it's a risk I'm willing to take what's the risk you're gonna die the loon tunes are gonna die your son all these people here who are like what does it matter and then it's like they do it
[01:52:41] it works it half works but then fully works because the son throws the thing it's weird also that he has to like win his son's love back by beating him at basketball and that the son being a good player he doesn't transform in the son's
[01:52:57] way so like that's the sort of homage I also think they should have been playing against original characters that his son made like that would have worked well his son sort of nominally scanned those players right I understand that but it wouldn't make more sense if it's like
[01:53:13] dad you're playing against like my creation you have to like wreck him with my work right in this way where it's like this is this weird mangling of their technology of his technology when he takes to the court and he's like super powered it's just like well
[01:53:27] he's a little kid and he's got these fucking like tron beams around his arm and he can jump really high and he can do fucking whatever like it just means nothing the game is rigged he throws this fucking jump point LeBron wins the things over everyone's celebrating
[01:53:41] then like five minutes later bugs is like cough cough it's been nice right oh no why does he need to die cut because Christ died for our sins I don't know I have no idea when that was happening I was like ready to leave
[01:53:57] go home to my child the movie ends three minutes later and cuts from the game to LeBron walking him to E3 camp and then bugs strung up and being like man it literally ends on the taco Tuesday line right yes that's a lot just the prep
[01:54:13] in some ways fitting but so but like how did you get here I don't know with tones it's like you're not gonna say like we fucking broke the server first and now we all exist in your world once again in the original space jam
[01:54:27] Michael Jordan has to reckon with the discovery you're real all of you are real like there's a reaction to that you exist in this it's just like oh you found a way to come through the TV cool I don't know how many spare
[01:54:39] bedrooms we have the answer is you probably a lot it probably probably fair amount of spare also do tune sleep yeah do they no what's the name of the big red guy again gossamer I love goss he's cool I got where I like the
[01:54:53] gossiper gets green time in the transformation he does I will say the other we should let's play the box office game I'm done talking about this movie but there's one of no I'm sorry we have at least another hour there's they get turned into as you
[01:55:06] mentioned 3d yes which we knew because it was in the promotional material and it was like oh god yeah now the movie actually presents this is like a hellish abomination it's like yes algae rhythms final insult is to do this yeah so
[01:55:20] it's kind of funny that that's in there where they're like look we did it and they're also like but we know it's bad like we know that's not cool I also just want why'd you do it I know whatever I don't know I don't know
[01:55:30] why'd you do it well I also also wanted to mention I noticed I was in the crowd in the movie that you're in there I had no idea I don't even remember being they acquire blank check productions we're part of the server we're in HBO Max yeah
[01:55:44] yeah what happens to algae rhythm at the end of this film do we have any other thing yeah brother just leave right right and Warner Brothers just takes his next pitch right it's true there's not even a sequence of it like Warner
[01:55:56] Brothers being like all right shut that it's shoved in a cannon like Michael Jordan is like nerd looks why do you let him talk like this and they realize that they have an abusive boss and they fucking shove them in a cannon and then the
[01:56:07] nerd looks are just on the basketball court for two shots at the end of this movie I'm seeing here that right I forgot he remember he posterizes algae rhythm yes yes by the way Ernie Ernie Johnson who does the you know the commentary yeah great a
[01:56:27] great great man television personality guy every but just really it's a tough I just think that's not like when when algae rhythm is deleted in that moment I forgot about it but remember he goes like this isn't how I want to go out that part of
[01:56:41] the game I think yes if he's rules apply to himself I guess like the loser is deleted it means nothing and when what's his name Chris Davis who plays Molly came on screen I was just like why didn't they hire little rel to do
[01:56:56] this you see right and then very little rel and what's his name the other commentator in it's just like well that's not putting him in a Bill Murray position he has nothing to play off of yes you're just putting him with a
[01:57:07] guy who's not a comedian on a green screen reacting to nothing pre-written jokes where it's like Bill Murray way night the whole point is like give the basketball player someone to play off of who is funny as opposed to an ok child actor and a dramatic
[01:57:22] actor who is trying to like cut loose and by the way if they had if the son had just designed sort of the new NBA Jam right that would have changed the whole that's all it needs yeah this extra layer play or what you know
[01:57:38] but just the whole idea of random like to power up see I wish I could remember any of their names is the problem any of the trick plays that they do of course is the notorious I mean that gets like five points
[01:57:50] flips the court with the spinning he does that I'm trying to remember what are the things that happen they move the hoop right yeah algae rhythm moves the hoop and he only does that one time we've done that more often if you
[01:58:02] wanted to win in my opinion does something she does she does the like yeah yeah she does like slow motion on right and then you know the only one I kind of like because it felt a little more like actual Looney Toons I was I think the only
[01:58:17] Looney Toons they get right in this movie or Wild Coyote and Roadrunner will hit it really fast and make a bunch of balls yeah that works for me right that was yeah I give that a five yeah I forgot about that too right
[01:58:29] the many Wiley's also go into the hoop the clones right right and so that I mean gets them a lot of points you need to acknowledge this I mean I'm not going to be playing this game but I'm going to play it on the hoop and then
[01:58:43] I'm going to be playing it on the hoop and then I'm going to be playing it on the hoop and then it gets them a lot of points so you need to acknowledge the skill of that like I under and it's just good play it's just it's fundamental
[01:58:57] I just want to say we talked about the Aborted Space Jam sequels they didn't make Looney Toons back in action was supposed to just be a pin of like it's been six years we need to get something back out there and then
[01:59:11] we're going to make skate jam their plan was to make skate jam right after back in action back in action which is such a good actor I really enjoyed Tony Hawk but he doesn't speak in his own video correct he's sizzle back in action is a huge
[01:59:31] fucking flop it's a huge flop even though it's a very artistically successful movie yes and I it has been a joy for me because I've defended that movie for 18 years now the last month of pre-space jam articles as people being like this is the one we should respect
[01:59:47] not space jam yeah and that movie look is Joe Dante trying to deal with a lot of stupid studio notes and there's weird shit in that movie but it has a pure heart right and there's really excellent shit and it gets the Looney Tunes
[01:59:59] but since then like every three years Warner Brothers tries to do something with the Looney Tunes there was famously this thing lunatics unleashed which was their post back in action thing where they were like okay we failed the looney tunes are no longer funny they're badass and super
[02:00:15] heroes they did this like dark gritty they all have like Neon Tron colors and like gritted teeth and they're like a space force that fights people yeah and that lasted for two seasons and was like despised they did a show called the Looney
[02:00:31] Tunes show that was all the characters but in like a sitcom sort of setting bugs and daffy were roommates trying to fucking reinvent the wheel they did a show called Wabbit that was just like bugs there was another one that was on recently I will say this
[02:00:45] LeBron this movie is rumored as early as 2013 right like people make the joke as soon as LeBron hits the court but 2013 it's rumored I remember because I was on the set of draft day and it's rightman Joe magic producer who like produced that
[02:01:01] fucking movie and I was like what's the deal with this and Joe magic was like no one told us like good luck Godspeed that was a fucking nightmare to make that movie have fun trying right and then a year later I believe train wreck
[02:01:13] comes out is a big hit and then LeBron signs his overall deal with Warner Brothers and people are like there we go finally it's happening it takes five years to get to filming after that point Justin Lin's attached at one point because nowhere the dick
[02:01:27] ebersol sons were writing it at one point they fall off then when coogler and nance comes on is when it finally fucking gains traction and then it's also when LeBron moves to L.A. which by the way everyone says oh he's doing it because
[02:01:43] he wants to be fucking doing this entertainment so I don't know if you guys saw us but a month ago he announced that he's moving his production deal the universal interesting for like four years he's got a four year overall deal the Warner Brothers deal
[02:01:53] is done I guess that the what was the cut was the cut on HBO or what was that show called the Barber Shop yeah it's on each shop right the shop so like he did that and he did this and now they're saying
[02:02:05] they're gonna do things for fucking universe he did that show survivors remorse which is on stars he did he's done some things survivors remorse is really good it was sort of hurt by being on stars and no has he produced other movies
[02:02:21] john david was on ballers jesse t usher was on survivors remorse okay were we same james has he produced other movies david I don't know like I know of documentary shit that's the thing he's done stuff more in this sort of sports movie world here right
[02:02:35] I'm gonna look it up though let's see universal deal announcement I saw made it sound like they're gonna sort of try to shepherd more stuff not LeBron vehicles he doesn't he like own some chunk of Friday the he's involved with a Friday the 13th remake
[02:02:47] which I think might be a universal let's see he right like like he produced that Netflix Naomi Osaka thing that Garrett Bradley right he produced a documentary for HBO about like college athletes amateur athletes right top class he did that game show the wall
[02:03:05] right which everyone has a game show now right he did something called becoming he's producing a lot of shit which is another sort of athlete Disney plus he did I promise which was about his school yeah he has not a fair amount of mostly like not seemingly like
[02:03:23] mostly neither successful nor sort of impact notably unsuccessful and he's also doing like a low-level Oprah thing where it's like here are my causes here people I want to shine a light on kind of shit I don't think he necessarily has like
[02:03:39] good commercial instincts it does not seem like he does he doesn't I mean obviously like he's worked the Nike deal I'm saying commercial instinct stink compared to fucking Jordan well again yeah come on like like we're doing the comparison you think he's a better player than Jordan
[02:03:59] like do you think he's the guy I know it's the most hackney discussion in basketball no I just think you can make the argument he's had a better career and I think those arguments are very difficult to separate the crucial argument to me is that
[02:04:13] and this is how and people said I do think Jordan was playing against worse competition right like the NBA was at its most diluted yeah in his prime and is it its strongest in LeBron's like that's LeBron's biggest I'll say this like even removing other players
[02:04:27] from the equation and someone who doesn't watch basketball games will occasionally be compelled to watch like Michael Jordan YouTube videos Jordan is a more visually compelling player I just look at him and I'm like this is insane what this person is doing on a physical level
[02:04:39] whereas LeBron I understand it's like he's a very you know obviously he's a physically gifted person but I from what I gather his power comes more from like his strategic basketball he's a fanier player to get a much more flexible athlete
[02:04:57] which is a big difference in like the visual component but I would also say on the other direction and not just the rules not just like the proliferation three points you're doing in the hand jack but also just the extent to which NBA basketball now runs
[02:05:11] so much through whoever your team's best player is which is also a big component of like the player empowerment and switching teams because if you get LeBron like that was not true to the same extent like Michael Jordan could have averaged 10 assists a game
[02:05:25] if the team had literally just run everything through him the way they do their star players now so I think they're it's a tough comparison that way what I fucking love about The Last Dance where it's like about the bulls like it wasn't about the Jordan show
[02:05:39] part of that fucking legacy was look at what he got out of these other players look at how he went Jordan actually was in the team realm doing a lot to subvert the image of the Jordan show by being like
[02:05:53] I'll still like punch Steve Kerr in the fucking face you know what I mean? which is not a star thing to do but the whole thing with like giving Kerr the fucking that's what that section about when he took the amazing shot and no one expected it
[02:06:07] and then he goes and gives that speech and he's like making the jokes about like Jordan eating his dirt and shit like that but there's a certain generosity to that right? but the whole thing with Jordan is no one knew he was an asshole until later
[02:06:21] I understand he's an asshole do be fair with Jordan and when people call him an asshole when he's really obviously not an asshole Jordan is a separate conversation I feel like though there is something Jordan as an asshole I think is a little complicated
[02:06:35] because if you watch The Last Dance one really interesting thing about Jordan is the extent to which like the reaction to Jordan from his teammates is so much different than like just made like Jordan seemed to be very kind and often friends with people who
[02:06:51] like if you for instance if you did a Carl Malone documentary, John Stockton would probably say playing with Carl was amazing but we don't know what like Carl's driver thinks of him he might be a total dickhead you know what I mean?
[02:07:03] Jordan seemed to be like a very nice guy to a lot of the people in his life but particularly prickly and unnice to his teammates and his coaches right he was just ruthless but like I think LeBron is nice he seems like a good guy I would rather
[02:07:19] like fucking have a beer with LeBron than Michael Jordan but that's part of it works against which guy I'd rather watch in a movie LeBron is very nice but LeBron also does feel like a lot of LeBron's kindness
[02:07:33] has a lot to do with the way LeBron sees himself and sees himself in relation to like the narrative of his career and his life and all this stuff LeBron has been criticized in the past for not feeling like the most genuine
[02:07:47] but that's the whole thing right LeBron has to live in public because everything's in public now and it's social media right Jordan have that burden like this with all his fame he still got to live in private go gamble and he was like the most
[02:08:01] public in a way that any athlete had been up until that point and still he was like putting himself out there more than any while the last thing I want to say about the loon tunes just to close
[02:08:09] this loop on this thing I was setting up before we go to the box office game is like seven or eight years ago I had like a fucking phone call with a guy at Warner Brothers when I think they maybe
[02:08:21] hadn't announced Space Jam yet but it was heavily remembered was going to happen and he was like I'm tasked with figuring out how to revive the loony tunes I don't really know what they are right like he was just like
[02:08:31] I don't know your agent said that your door runs down on the loony tunes right and the pitch at the time was we want to do like five to ten the atrically released short films with the loony tunes logical and LeBron
[02:08:45] they were like we want to start testing them out in the way that Jordan had the ads and my whole thing to them which look I didn't work on these I didn't do anything right but my whole pitch to them was like you shouldn't think about
[02:08:57] the combination of LeBron and Bugs Bunny together as like what their personalities are you should write loony tunes and place LeBron in them like what you want to do is that kids have no perspective and you want to remind them what these characters are neatly funny at doing
[02:09:11] and just come up with comedic circumstances and rather than being bugs and daffy have it be bugs and LeBron for this one or have it be LeBron is filling the granny role in a Sylvester and Tweety cartoon or whatever just like get LeBron comfortable
[02:09:23] in front of camera and put them in comedic circumstances this does not happen what happens is like they should have done that what happens is like a year ago when HBO Max launched they just put up 60 loony tunes they had been quietly working on 60 loony tunes
[02:09:43] they put none of them in theaters they just kind of got dumped on the HBO Max one up there guess what they're good it's the best shit they've done with the loony tunes I was talking to Matt Singer about it
[02:09:53] and he was like not only are they better than the movie they look better but they also have their own style they're not just pastiche they're just creative they got good people involved they did 60 of them it's bizarre how disconnected that is
[02:10:09] from all the loony tune stuff in this movie that's all I'm going to say and that you look if you watch the movie and it fucking bummed you out as much as it did us then maybe go watch those shorts instead and that's going to get your fix
[02:10:23] and if you're listening to this episode you didn't watch the movie and you're wondering whether it's worth hate watching it's not because the cardinal of this movie is when you said David the clips you saw that are cursed watch those if you want to laugh at it
[02:10:35] most of it isn't cursed there's not this perverse like I can't fucking believe this when you say it's less terrible than you thought it would be it's because to a certain degree you expect you're going to watch this book of Henry's style and go oh my fucking god
[02:10:45] and it's less of an abomination and more of just like there's nothing to this movie it's joyless, it's cynical I sat there stone faced at certain points I just took stock of the fact of that I'm not the only one in my face currently working
[02:10:59] there are jokes happening on screen I'm not wincing, I'm not smiling I'm not looking more intently I'm just blank, I'm fucking blank I'm like what the fuck is happening and why is any of this happening I saw it with the crowd
[02:11:13] did you watch it at home I assume we saw it with the crowd that was I would say largely children like it was a lot of parents in 50-50 and then people our age, silent maybe two things got any sort of response why is the computer black
[02:11:27] those are the only two lives I remember but it just felt very quiet Ben we have to ask because your girlfriend outed you right before we started recording you were saying how awful no you had, girlfriend outed you right before we started recording
[02:11:41] and did reveal that you cried three times while watching the movie it did and I couldn't find it alright I cry really easily at movies too I love I cry easily but I can't even I was mad she noticed and I was fighting it back
[02:12:01] she's like why are you crying I'm like I don't really know why imagine if Ben were like I never cried during the film this was the one that I had broken you have to understand James we did an episode on Kiki's delivery service
[02:12:11] the Miyazaki movie and we came into the studio it was on a weekend and Ben was sitting on the couch of the office no one else was there he was watching this movie and saw Ben
[02:12:19] so we know that there's a history of Ben getting a very emotional effect that's a master Ben was kidnapped by an algorithm when he was 10 years old so maybe that was unlocking it a little bit right he really wanted him to be a scientist did a hard work
[02:12:31] Ben does know wetfire his father a little bird I love Looney Tunes I love the characters you're a bit of a Looney Tune yourself I am kind of a Looney Tune Taz was the stuffed animal that I slept with as a child I mean yes obviously makes sense
[02:12:47] Bugs Bunny I would argue there is a case to be made that he's the funniest person to ever be in movies if you consider the fact that he's not a person and you allow it when did you cry? I got emotional when they were all together sure
[02:13:01] when they're all back together I don't know the ship it's just seeing them doing bids watch these shorts what else it was that and then it was just kind of like I don't know the father son stuff and like granny there was like a big idea
[02:13:25] there was so much seeing such a tasteful tribute to the notorious B.I.G right I'm sure he's looking down in heaven right no I don't know there was just it was just seeing them together and then there was some point in the movie where
[02:13:43] then when they were like then they were up again I don't remember your girlfriend is currently standing in the door frame shaking her head come on Nellie get on microphone you definitely cried when Don Cheetle was being mean to the son when he turns on him
[02:14:03] I don't like that I don't like what algorithms are mean you didn't like the bullying no the big father son embrace yeah that's kind of nice thank you so much thank you so much I was like talking around and you were like
[02:14:29] Nellie is just standing with her arms cross shaking her head going like are you gonna say it or not let's play the box this game Griffin this film opened number one in the box office did better than I thought it would it did too
[02:14:45] my question to you was is anyone gonna go see this you hit or massive flop there was a point where I was like there's a depressing dystopian outcome where I see this movie opening to 50 just because the nostalgia is so high
[02:15:01] I also could see it opening to like 10 and shitting the bed in the height style I think a 32 million opening like in a normal world with no HBO Max it does mean kind of like a 50 million opening doesn't I think so in a total no COVID world
[02:15:15] I think that's a $50 million opening that having been said second weekend drops have been like horrible for everything in this area almost everything no like quiet place has held very well there are some that have done better usually movies that are not available other services
[02:15:33] F9 had a bad drop on July 4th weekend but as every box office person it's actually normal all the movies have had the worst drops and now Black Widow had a bad drop which is number 2 right and even the small drops
[02:15:47] things are not multiplying as much as they used to I'm just saying the multiplier on quiet place and F9 when compared to earlier films in those franchises is lower it does feel like everything shifted a little more front loaded streaming stuff day and date has gone even more
[02:16:05] I think this is going to fucking multiply horribly it feels like the buzz could not be more toxic is there any chance we see another space jam in the what would they do? I think there's certainly a chance I don't even want to consider that
[02:16:21] there's definitely a chance LeBron is a more media minded person than MJ in that way I understand but he's moved his deal to universal true so maybe not if I were him my take away from this fucking another comedy
[02:16:35] I believe that is what his take away will be he's been tweeting in this kind of way see it did well he's probably I'm mostly unscathed by this trainwreck movie that I had to fire the director but like rightman saw he should have done everything he could
[02:16:51] to get Apatow or anyone Apatow adjacent to be the comedy whisperer on this movie he probably should have I don't know I mean he got Kugler and Kugler's not here funny I love Kugler but like fucking hilarious you ever seen that?
[02:17:07] no I mean fair but like Kugler is the hauncho he's bringing in Kugler's like great Terence Nance this guy has this sensibility that's gonna make sense clearly sells him on him right and then obviously something it is pretty crazy by the way we're talking about LeBron James
[02:17:21] going into like what his 17th or 18th season in the NBA whatever it is is also like maybe plotting his next Apatowian comedy like it's a really that's why he might be the best but like we said afterwards like James and we were talking and we were like
[02:17:39] I have to imagine that from the moment Terence Nance gets fired Kugler just kind of goes like okay because I just kind of can't believe him watching this footage once Malcolm Deedly comes on and going like good or having any notes that are
[02:17:55] they will trot out is the defense you always trot out like this which is like what kids liked it it's like they made money right and I think and that's what they'll get away with that guy's just got so much fucking integrity
[02:18:07] and has made like two of the most personal fucking major studio movies of the last 10 years it is hard to believe and I read interviews with him back in the day when he was talking about like we're really trying to make a movie about like
[02:18:19] black men as fathers and what it means in a current landscape I understand how with an avant-garde director who's maybe coming at it from a fucking Lord and Miller angle and the movies more self aware in this and that and he's trying to put in
[02:18:31] emotional background that makes sense but I think from a business calculation it was a bad idea not to get a comedy person involved because they forgot that the number one thing that this premise should be is funny there should be jokes in it
[02:18:41] well there are jokes in it yeah successful granny notorious PIG makes an appearance number two at the box office is black widow with a plausible problem a movie that you were not a fan of you you think it's like I think it's a bottom
[02:18:55] bottom tier marvel like my question is very good my question is the worst one or is it like the third worst one I don't think it's the worst one I found it so unpleasant I saw it in 4DX and I almost fell asleep and that's like difficult
[02:19:09] that is difficult to fall asleep when a chair is punching you but it happened a number of times I saw a JD he felt the same way I think that movie sucks I don't think it's very good at all James you don't really care about Marvel
[02:19:21] movies you've seen three of them you saw three Guardians and black you saw ones that broke through well I saw the first Iron Man I think those are the only three you've seen though right the first Iron Man the first Guardians and Black Panther am I wrong
[02:19:35] and I saw the first Captain America okay okay and I put a higher tier that might be it yeah yeah I mean the biggest problem with Black Widow to me is and it's been remarked on it's just it seems like they're like
[02:19:51] look alright fine we'll do a Black Widow movie and Scarlett Johansson has the energy of like yeah okay she's got Michael Jordan energy seems bored she seems really bored it's very bizarre you know I don't know if she's bored or if she's just playing
[02:20:07] this sort of removed character but she just seems pretty bored and Florence Pugh is there and Florence Pugh is just such a she can't help but blow her off the screen Florence Pugh is pretty impressive in that movie considering what she's
[02:20:19] given to work with the Harbor and White characters make no sense and those performers I like a lot make any sense in those roles and they don't make any sense the plot doesn't make it but whatever Pugh punches through the entire movie feels like the
[02:20:31] how did Jack get his tattoos episode of Lost and here's my big takeaway then we can stop talking at this movie I think it would be difficult even if you were directly challenged to do it to make a film that is more glib and flippant
[02:20:49] about a global trafficking ring it is well there's assassins okay so there is a I'm just saying Marvel movies often do this thing where they take kind of extreme subjects and candy coat them and don't really deal with the darkness of it but this movie it is
[02:21:03] so like overt they're not like dancing around what it's about and also they don't really give a shit about it at all other than as a vehicle for female empowerment to have them at the end go like yes thank you
[02:21:15] they say yes thank you those are their only words they are very diverse though all of the widows there's black, black widows and spanish one it was just that look I joked about this it's like heaven fighting thing where he's like look look look they don't say
[02:21:29] they're nothing they're fucking brainwashed slaves like they're taken to like actually is more invested in its victims than this movie is the other new movie this week a movie I'm very excited to see a new wide release movie
[02:21:47] yeah why am I not thinking about the oh oh oh which I'm also very excited to see I'm a saw the other night I'm gonna go see this week a skate room tournament of champions a sequel to a masterpiece great movie have you seen a scaper in Ben
[02:21:57] you would dig it you'd love it it fucking rules it rules it's a cool kid cool movie for cool kids yeah everything about good silly horror movie horror thriller exciting the sequel Taylor Russell's a fucking star all in Sony has had this very bizarre
[02:22:13] strategy where they held on to all of their movies didn't sell them to streaming when everyone else was doing their fire sale then sold us couple things to Netflix right as the pandemic was winding down and then a bunch of these movies they just announced
[02:22:25] like actually it's coming out in three weeks like Peter Rabbit was supposed to come out later this was supposed to come out later they moved them up with no marketing and they have underperformed and it's a bummer to me because this was like pushed back
[02:22:37] to January of next year which is when the first movie came out in January overperformed and then they went like never mind this is coming out in 20 days and no one knows it's out and it's doing poorly and I'm worried they won't make a third one
[02:22:49] I think it's gonna be okay I think they're happy with it apparently but we'll see who knows and she makes no fucking sense anymore it's all run by algorithm yeah algorithm yes number four griffon it's a film we saw in theaters together
[02:22:59] the movie we saw in theaters together is F9 my second favorite movie of 2021 good movie I sang this to you I've gone to the theaters now like 20 times I think since vaccination step up your fucking game lights camera Jackson who was bragging about five
[02:23:19] I've gone at least 20 times the only two movies I fully love are F9 and on Dean those are the only two you've loved so far well you were pretty hyped up about those who wish me dead though that's my third
[02:23:31] you were kind of swagging out about those who wish me dead no I agree but like that for me is like that movie is like the fucking best gentleman six I've ever seen pig yet I'm seeing pig tomorrow I expect I will love that
[02:23:43] I gotta see that yeah in the heights didn't quite I'm trying to think of like I like Zola Zola I'm so fucking so long so long shit yeah and I will say I'll say I like Luke a lot Lucas Lucas probably number three
[02:23:57] those wish me dead is number four I've been so bullish about going back to the theaters that a lot of the things have gone straight to streaming I haven't watched so I haven't seen no good deed yet haven't seen Mitchell's versus machines a couple of the other
[02:24:09] streaming things that people like no sudden move is what you're talking about not no good deed no good deed is um Jesus what's it all about right number five of course is the film starring my daughter the boss baby family
[02:24:21] business this is the first time I think we're saying this on my baby animal I have now established I found a new bruise to poke on David which is that his daughter looks exactly like the boss baby he agrees I swear I'm not doing this
[02:24:35] just to piss him off I think she looks like the boss baby I now willing to reveal on Mike that unrelated and I'm not knowing this Joey your brother sent a family a poster of boss baby to the family text thread David she looks
[02:24:49] like you know what she looks like a baby your daughter your daughter has blue eyes and very fair hair she does her pattern is very similar to the little blonde girl that the boss baby has the widow's peak she is someone shaped skull
[02:25:01] I understand you should take as a compliment boss baby is a baby that was designed to be adorable you have a very cute daughter but your daughter looks like the fucking boss baby you should own it you should dress her up in a little suit I'm not gonna
[02:25:13] I put the you know you can buy jeans for the baby like we have someone gave us a pair of jeans and I put them on and it's so cute but she was just like what is why are you doing this well get another little stretchy baby
[02:25:25] jeans David get ready for fucking Hanukkah where I buy her eight suits forever purge going down good movie I like I want to see you firmly in my top 10 really like it to play a place to solid like that the Road Runner the Anthony Bourdain movie
[02:25:45] a movie that was seemingly produced by Algy rhythm and has similarly dark bleak thoughts about hanging out in the top 10 crela's might I mean it's in the 80s right now not like crela yes 83 crela I will say falls into the categories of movies I probably give an extra
[02:26:07] star because I saw in theaters and I didn't get to go to theater is it also two and a half hours long it's very long very long but like and con versus godzilla and whatever I just sat there and I went like
[02:26:19] I'm happy to be seeing a movie again none of this upsets me I don't care anymore I'm just happy to be watching something didn't like cruel what's been doing showing us around spotlight really quick because this is a fucking merch god damn fucking you can buy the
[02:26:35] the tune squad uniform that's pretty cool when her brothers had a press release uniforms good bragging about the fact that this is like the most licensed partners any movie has had like ever or at least in a very long moment where LeBron falls makes a nice whoosh
[02:26:51] is the hole instead of like a regular hole that was good grim near the shoes I almost I almost got they they're like little poiser it's the basketball you open up you get a character inside and I was going to do that
[02:27:03] like it was a prize for our whole Transylvania episode and I couldn't give enough of a shit to go to five below and purchase them he has roadrunner sneakers out by Nike LeBron by Looney Tunes these are kind of cool I don't
[02:27:17] love these and I'm the target audience for Looney Tunes sneakers you are I had Looney Tunes Keds as a kid they have a goon squad pair sneakers you want it to be wet fire right well I mean in case you suck I think they're bad this is
[02:27:33] so faster and Tweety sneakers they look kind of like Sylvester and then they got a Tweety stripe on them these are just lame that's a Lola Bunny one maybe Yaskine empowered I hated that fucking Wonder Woman it's so bad and it's Rosario Dawson
[02:27:47] playing her because Rosario Dawson plays her in all the like DC animated movies I would assume so right but then then adopt the style of those movies rather than this generic this is a comic book no or make it look like a real fucking like
[02:27:59] no I went fire I don't know oh Jesus this is the best merch that we have to buy for it's it's Pat it was Pete it's come on referee pocket t-shirt supposed to be a whistle I don't know that what is it his hands are USB
[02:28:19] ports he's got usp ports on his thing Jesus this is the back of the shirt no that's another version of the you know what it sort of looks like if you like combine like composite or it feels like if you combine composite sketches and then just
[02:28:33] becomes this like whole like indiscriminate script like face it looks like five characters that have sold a lot of merchandise it's like if you pour the colors in brown personality he is no game and he is physically indistinct hmm I feel like he had
[02:28:51] electrifying chemistry with none of us know what he is I don't know he's a thing I couldn't find on the internet there's no there's no there's no it feels like one of those things with like should we say
[02:29:01] what he is and it's like what if we just don't yeah I did it soon he was from some other shit no I had nothing this is their one original character and he can suck my butt shit I hope he dies so we're
[02:29:13] going to get Griffin one of the peach shirts and then we're going to get granny and speedy matrix gonna get a matrix with granny and the matrix should granny be in like driving this daisy or something is that a Warner Brothers company
[02:29:27] see I put five times more thought into this than they do I don't know if Warner Brothers wanted to revisit driving this daisy with LeBron no no but is he going to be driving grant like I don't know quickly we're getting in trouble
[02:29:43] driving granny I don't know LeBron Dan a croid yeah LeBron's Dan a croid this is another matrix to get you this one and go in old school then look at this is this on the Nike site no this is on the looney tune site jeez looney tunes
[02:29:57] calm I just spend more time in that site but like 8000 different t-shirt designs they just made so much fucking merch for this movie what else they supposed to do I know yeah one thing also they're like the first movie made a billion dollars in March I
[02:30:11] guess people want to buy this as much but I also feel like we're in a different climate I don't know I wonder if any of the shit will sell it won't there's no monoculture anymore it won't but it'll do enough that every one will sell because
[02:30:23] sneakerhead culture so extremely like they'll just escape buying the whole thing but like I don't know if kids are fucking buying this boys LeBron gonna win another ring James I just like to book a James we're good we should I think I think you will because
[02:30:39] I think that LeBron I mean look it's rare to say how long someone's career is really gonna last because a lot of times when it's easy to project and be like yeah like he can be like a he could turn into like a power
[02:30:51] forward and be like a supporting player for four years but long when it stops it stops quickly but I do see LeBron at some point possibly leaving the Lakers again and at that point I think we can all assume that wherever he goes he's gonna pick
[02:31:05] we know now he's gonna pick the best team right the best team he can find just be right and also maybe LeBron will go play for like a million bucks somewhere and try to win a ring when he's like it would be fun if he
[02:31:17] went to Charlotte and did that played for MJ and if maybe if Charlotte has like at that point Lamella Ball and three other really good players he would go there but I think LeBron that's the ego thing where it's like he might
[02:31:29] actually be able to sacrifice his ego to do it where is MJ coming in? I would like to ask the question Ben right we still want to start yes we'll ever win another Oscar like obviously the prerequisite for this is that they would have
[02:31:41] to start putting the shorts back into theaters theatrically but if anything that's the thing I would like to see Warner Brothers being boldened to do off of the success of Space Jam and New Legacy I doubt they will because producing
[02:31:51] more shorts is just more content for HBO Max which is the beast that they want to feed it would be nice if they started putting these characters the shorts that win now are so often it's like oh it's about the guy's dad was in the Holocaust
[02:32:03] that's why I'm saying if it's not a short like that and I'm very impressed with the fact that I've successfully hijacked this conversation if it's not a short like that it's a Disney or Pixar short that played before a film in theaters got a wide release
[02:32:15] and so everyone saw it it's like paper man or some shit so I feel like they could put these things in film festivals to qualify them for an Oscar and they're good shorts and they'd be competitive but I don't think they'll beat the moody
[02:32:29] personal piece unless they put it in front of a Warner Brothers movie and it actually plays well with the crap that's what I want to say it'd be nice to see Bugs win another Oscar maybe even just a unhonorary they'd just be cool if like someone else
[02:32:43] other than Pixar put a short in front of the feature who's gonna win? and Pixar is no longer putting shorts in front of features now they're just saving them for fun I think the Bucks are gonna want to get sucked I do I just think that
[02:32:53] I think without Chris Paul at the height of his shorts in front of features they'd put one before Ryan and I think also like the fun thing about the Suns having home quarter fanage is basically I know the Bucks seem like they're in great position
[02:33:07] but they have to win the Oscar then you have to win the Oscar so this is a do or die game I like the Aphor both teams and I'm not crazy about at home I think I would have to pick the Bucks did you hear that stat 10 and 1
[02:33:19] in that scenario I don't know especially as you're trying to convince people to go back to the theaters it's like let's make them feel fucking special the home team is 10 and 1 because you have every studio should have they were like fucking short film factory everyone has characters
[02:33:35] at this point that they own in Detroit that they could put back in the circulation or new characters and the spurs are just another B-Salt hits me all the time yeah I just don't put a short of it's so important they have to win I think it's good
[02:33:51] I thought the movie was going to have a cat dog short yeah and it wouldn't just be an episode I've been very happy with like Yanis you could do shit like that again even if it's only in front of totally no use
[02:34:01] but I also think that was because very positive about Yanis winning a ring a year after choosing to stay in a very small market now animated movies are two hours he's the only one who did it the first animated movie to be over 2 hours in an American studio
[02:34:19] these guys who don't play together they got hurt it's like ok that's good that's your witness at the time when it came out you didn't do that and now these run times have got bad absolutely for the nets where Luka is 90 minutes they play together 10 games
[02:34:37] all year, 3 of them something like that Kauai is showing up for half couldn't afford more than half of the game these are prominent features of these teams that are now being superseded by a player and a team doing things in a more traditional way
[02:34:55] which is a big part of their success the franchises, I'm sorry Ben this is going to be more of an editing hassle for you but I do think people will like it we are done and you all have to now leave my home
[02:35:07] and as always Pete can fucking die Pete well, I mean he could at least be defying and then die ok if we're going out, we're going out loony I'm on the quotes page it's so bad