FH Mini 26 - Oscar Noms

Elliott Kalan

[0:00] Hey everybody and welcome to the Flophouse. That's right, it's time for another Flophouse

[0:09] Miniature, or as we say, Flophouse Mini, brought to you by...

Dan McCoy

[0:13] Whoa, whoa, whoa, stop throwing so much jargon at me, buddy.

[0:17] Oh, sorry about that.

[0:18] Yeah, I'm a layman.

Elliott Kalan

[0:19] Let's introduce ourselves before I get into too much more biz terms, because we will get

[0:23] into biz terms. My name is Elliot Kalin, and tonight I'll be at the driver's wheel.

[0:29] And with me are these two fellows. Say your names, guys.

[0:33] I'm Dan McCoy.

[0:35] And I'm Stuart Wellington.

Stuart Wellington

[0:38] Yep, Dan McCoy and Stuart Jwellington.

[0:42] Has there ever been a superhero named Layman? Or Layman?

[0:47] I don't know, what would his power be to explain things?

Dan McCoy

[0:50] Maybe like the Lay's Potato Company.

Stuart Wellington

[0:53] Maybe he's a big fan of the movies of Mike Lay or Mike Lee.

[0:57] He doesn't know how to pronounce it. That's his power.

[1:00] Yep.

[1:00] You can say it both ways.

Elliott Kalan

[1:02] It's a movie podcast, right?

Dan McCoy

[1:03] Yeah. Thanks for bringing us home.

[1:07] Get around to the bases.

Elliott Kalan

[1:10] Normally, this is a movie podcast where we watch a bad movie, and then we talk about it.

[1:16] We don't watch the bad movie during the podcast, but beforehand, and you're just there for the

[1:20] talking about. But it's a mini episode, which means we can do whatever the F we want.

[1:25] And that F stands for...

[1:26] No rules.

[1:27] Wait, that F stands for famous. Because that's right, guys. Earlier this week, the Oscar nominations

[1:33] came out. You know...

[1:35] Okay. Oh, wow. That segue.

[1:38] It's Hollywood's biggest honor. And that's first, before I get into our... Let's call it a game,

[1:45] although it's really more of a concept that will annoy you. Before we get into that...

[1:49] Do you want to play a little concept?

Dan McCoy

[1:53] Funny is one of the concepts.

[1:54] You play a good concept, boy.

[1:56] The only way to win is not to play.

Elliott Kalan

[2:01] First, I want to give a little Flophouse shout-out to two former co-workers of Dan and myself

[2:08] who were nominated for Academy Awards just this past week. That's right.

[2:12] One, Jenna Friedman, was nominated as one of the writers for Best Adapted Screenplay for

[2:17] Borat's subsequent movie film. And another former co-worker of ours, Trayvon Free,

[2:21] was nominated for the live-action short Two Distant Strangers. So, former Daily Show co-workers

[2:28] really making it happen. Dan, how many major industry awards were you nominated for this year?

Dan McCoy

[2:32] Drop, drop, drop, drop. What? Sorry?

Elliott Kalan

[2:35] Sometimes. Sometimes I drop names nobody's heard of but our other co-workers.

[2:38] Dan, how many major industry awards were you nominated for this year? Because my answer is

[2:41] zero for me.

Dan McCoy

[2:42] I was nominated for an Emmy the past year. I mean, not this...

Elliott Kalan

[2:45] I mean 2021, Dan. 2021.

Dan McCoy

[2:48] Oh, wow. What? I mean, like, whatever...

[2:50] This year.

[2:50] Whenever the past Emmy was, the last one, I wasn't nominated this year, no. But that's

[2:55] not how the interviews were.

[2:56] They haven't been nominated yet.

[2:58] They haven't been nominated yet.

[2:59] So, Stuart, and how many industry awards in your industry were you nominated for?

Stuart Wellington

[3:04] I just got nominated for a Grammy.

[3:07] Oh, wow.

[3:08] For Best Grandma?

[3:10] For Best Grandma.

[3:13] That was the thing. Nobody, everybody counted me out. But you know what? I was still nominated.

[3:18] Yeah.

[3:18] That's... As long as I could shove it in the face of my haters, that's all I care about.

[3:23] I mean, I still...

[3:23] Bill hater, particularly.

Dan McCoy

[3:24] I still want to see, you know, like, evidence that you have, first of all, a child, and then

[3:30] secondly, a grandchild, but...

Stuart Wellington

[3:32] Wow. You're just naming things that you think would hold me back from taking the title.

[3:37] I know.

[3:38] Well, you know what? When I got my eyes on that bag...

[3:40] Yep.

[3:42] This was just your year.

Elliott Kalan

[3:44] Now, it turns out all you really need to be nominated for that Grammy is just the mug that

[3:47] says, World's Greatest Grandma. Just a picture of you holding it.

[3:50] Yeah.

[3:51] Uh-huh.

[3:51] Anyway, the Oscar nominations, it's Hollywood... The Oscars are going to be Hollywood's

[3:55] glamorousest night, possibly. It's one of the few awards that people care about, because

[4:02] let me tell you, my Writers Guild awards are not burning up... I can't get a table in a

[4:07] restaurant with them even before the pandemic, but here's the thing. In the entertainment

[4:11] biz, we don't have time to say whole words. That's why we say biz instead of business,

[4:15] and why we say TV instead of capitalist inequality distractor unit. So we also say noms instead

[4:22] of nominations. So this week, the Oscar noms came out, and that's why I'm starting a new

[4:27] annual tradition that I'm calling Flophouse Presents Oscar Nom Noms, where we figuratively

[4:33] chew over the Oscar nominations while also talking about what we would literally chew

[4:37] over if the Oscar-nominated movies were food. So, Dan and Stu, let's talk about first any

[4:43] general thoughts about this year's Oscar noms, and then what would you eat as Oscar

[4:46] nom noms? And they have to be tied to the movie. I can give you some suggestions or examples.

Dan McCoy

[4:52] Oh, okay. Before we get too far, I was wondering whether you were going to suggest that we call this the

[5:00] Sylvester Stallone farce spectacular, just because last year we faked people out with our Oscar episode,

[5:09] and a lot of people were very angry. They actually wanted us to talk about the Oscars instead.

Elliott Kalan

[5:15] They wanted us to talk about these awards that everyone pretty much agrees are crazy in different ways,

[5:21] whether you think that they're not accurate, whether you think it's a strange idea to pit

[5:26] creative expressions against each other in a form of competition, or whether you're just envious that you didn't get one.

[5:34] And meanwhile, Ineratu's got two back-to-back.

[5:39] So, I mean, whether it's what people wanted to hear us talk about that, but instead they got the

[5:43] our conversation about the Sylvester Stallone box office, let's say disappointment Oscar,

[5:49] his attempt at a screwball comedy set in the 30s, was it?

[5:54] I mean, it's such a natural fit for Sly Stallone.

[5:57] I mean, he does have a great line in it where he goes,

[6:00] yeah, reading is my passion.

Stuart Wellington

[6:03] Yeah, I mean, it's just tough because people went and saw it and they were hoping for

[6:08] Johnny Dangerously 2 and they didn't get it.

Elliott Kalan

[6:10] Yeah, that's true. That's true.

[6:12] So, guys, I'll start you off. Why don't I start this?

[6:15] I recently just finished watching one of the Oscar Best Picture nominees.

[6:19] The Trial of the Chicago 7, which I found to be, to me, it's kind of the King's Speech of this year.

[6:25] It's kind of the movie where you're like, all right, okay, yeah.

[6:29] I guess that's like a textbook definition of like a movie that I guess my dad would watch

[6:33] and be like, really, it would make a big impression on him.

[6:36] And while I'm watching it, I think maybe I'll dip into this.

[6:39] Trial of the Chicago 7 Layer Dip.

[6:41] The secret is there's actually eight layers, but one of them disappears halfway through it while you're eating it.

[6:47] It just disappears because it's not really that important to the plot, it turns out.

[6:51] Okay, okay.

[6:52] So that's The Trial of the Chicago 7 Layer Dip.

[6:55] Or, for instance, another surprise nominee for Best Picture, Promising Young Woman, a very controversial movie.

[7:03] And while I'm watching it, I guess I'm snacking down on some Promising Young Cumin.

[7:07] I don't know what it is, but it's full of cumin and it leaves kind of a bitter aftertaste in your mouth.

Dan McCoy

[7:12] So it's specific, I mean, all right, specifically young cumin.

Elliott Kalan

[7:18] Dan, I'm not a cumin ageist, but if you want to be, for the title, it has to be Promising Cumin.

[7:23] It has to be cumin with potential, you know.

[7:25] Can't just be your bottom feeder Cuban.

[7:27] Or cumin, not Cuban.

[7:29] Promising, actually, I should have made it Promising Young Cuban and it's a sandwich.

[7:32] I love Cuban sandwiches.

Stuart Wellington

[7:34] That would have been better, but it's too late.

[7:37] You already said the first one.

Elliott Kalan

[7:39] That's too late.

[7:40] Wait, can I use Dr. Doom's time machine to go back and erase the first one?

[7:43] Dan, can I do that?

Stuart Wellington

[7:44] Yeah, Dan, can you use Dr. Doom's time machine to erase the first one?

Dan McCoy

[7:48] Can he?

[7:49] I would say probably not.

Stuart Wellington

[7:52] Oh, wow.

Dan McCoy

[7:53] Okay, fair.

Stuart Wellington

[7:54] Not even a definite answer.

Dan McCoy

[7:56] No, no, no.

[7:56] I mean, he may.

[7:57] He may use it.

[7:58] I will allow it, but I don't think that he can.

[8:02] As a point of actual, like, a thing that could happen in this reality.

Elliott Kalan

[8:07] Okay, so guys, before I go back to some more of my best picture dishes,

[8:11] do you have any thoughts, any positive surprises?

[8:14] I know, Stuart, there was a particular acting nomination that you were very excited about

[8:18] that you were texting me about.

Stuart Wellington

[8:19] I was very excited for Paul Racey being nominated.

[8:24] Is that how you pronounce his last name?

[8:25] I don't know.

[8:26] Probably.

[8:26] Or Reiki.

[8:27] He invented Reiki massage.

[8:29] Oh, no kidding.

[8:30] Even though it's spelled differently than that, but that's okay.

[8:32] And predates him, yeah.

[8:34] Yeah.

[8:34] He was nominated for Best Supporting Actor for Sound of Metal, which I think I recommended

[8:40] on the podcast, and I think is a good, it's a good, fun old movie.

[8:45] And he has-

[8:46] What about fun?

[8:48] And he has a quite, like, he definitely has a star turn as this, I guess, counselor in

[8:53] for a home to help the lead character, Ruben, not just come to terms with his deafness, but

[9:05] also kind of his other addictive personality, you know, his bad habits.

[9:11] And I think for that, I would say I would want to tuck into a mound of, oh man, fruity pebbles.

[9:24] Okay.

[9:24] A mound of fruity pebbles.

Elliott Kalan

[9:26] I was expecting you to say mound of Melba.

[9:30] Because let me tell you, that guy's hearing is toast.

[9:35] Insensitive.

[9:35] It's an insensitive joke.

[9:37] It's very such.

[9:39] It didn't really happen to him, Dan.

[9:41] It's a fictional character.

[9:42] It's a fictional character.

[9:43] Okay.

[9:43] I was, there were, for me, there were a number of positive surprises this year.

[9:48] I think the people watching most of the movies over streaming, as people mentioned, and not

[9:52] being able to be wined and dined by the studios in person helped some smaller movies come along.

[9:58] I was very disappointed to see that Delroy Lindo was not nominated for Defy Bloods.

[10:03] Yeah.

[10:04] So I thought he was spectacular in that.

[10:06] But I was, the strangest thing was that a Flophouse movie was nominated, which was Hillbilly's,

[10:13] the Elegy, for a number of awards, when he was nominated for makeup and hairstyling,

[10:18] even though it's definitely going to lose to Mank for transforming Gary Oldman into a man in his 30s.

[10:23] Oh, boy.

[10:24] So seamlessly that it could, it just couldn't be told.

[10:28] It's just what we've seen, you know?

[10:29] Someone yanked his Mank.

[10:31] Hey, guys.

[10:32] Hey, guys.

[10:32] Mank Frank.

[10:33] Sorry.

[10:33] This is a section.

[10:35] Josh Frank yanked it.

[10:37] Now, this is a section of Oscar nom-noms that I'm calling Mankushevitz, where this Jewish

[10:43] guy is going to talk about Mank for a couple minutes.

[10:45] Because Mank, so the thing with Mank is it got more Oscar nominations than any other movie

[10:51] this year, which you have to assume, because it's a movie about Hollywood, that it's going

[10:55] to do.

[10:55] But it was still surprising to me because I found that movie just not what I expected it

[11:01] to be from what everyone was talking about.

[11:03] Now, I've talked a lot about Mank on this podcast, mainly my inability to get over the

[11:07] fact that Gary Oldman is playing a young man when he is very clearly an old man.

[11:12] And I don't know.

[11:13] What do you guys think?

[11:14] Has it made you rethink Mank?

Dan McCoy

[11:15] I mean, it's taken, you know, Oscar gold to the Mank bank, it seems like.

[11:20] I want to say, you know what?

[11:22] Here's the thing.

[11:23] The one nomination that I do not argue with, I liked Amanda Seyfried quite a lot in Mank.

[11:30] I thought she hit exactly the right sort of note of this woman who is like an ultimate

[11:40] sort of insider playing the game in that she is like an actress who has married this wealthy

[11:46] man.

[11:47] But she's also like the other character along with Mank who like sort of sees themselves

[11:53] a little bit outside of everything, like pulling a grift on Hollywood and can sort of see the

[12:00] system clearly.

[12:01] And I thought she was pretty good.

[12:04] So I guess my nom nom for Mank is some Mank flank steak.

Elliott Kalan

[12:11] Yeah.

[12:11] And I, you know.

[12:12] All right.

[12:12] Are you even trying, Dan?

[12:13] Hold on, Stuart.

[12:14] I hate to interrupt.

[12:14] Dan.

Dan McCoy

[12:16] That is, that is not bad.

[12:19] I mean, it's, I mean, it's not Mank is Shevitz, to be honest.

Elliott Kalan

[12:24] To be honest, I did.

[12:25] Well, it's Mank is Shevitz because it's a sweet tasting at first and goes down smooth,

[12:29] but it's strangely unsatisfying.

[12:30] And honestly, you're only going to break it out on special occasions.

[12:33] Oh boy.

[12:34] Yeah.

[12:35] Yeah.

[12:36] So to be fair, I also had time earlier today to think about this because I came up with

[12:39] this concept.

Dan McCoy

[12:40] So it's fair.

[12:41] This is actually Elliot's revenge on me for forgetting to send him the letters questions.

Elliott Kalan

[12:48] Okay.

[12:49] And Stu, what were you going to say about Mank?

Stuart Wellington

[12:50] Well, we're talking about Mank.

[12:52] So guys, I haven't seen Mank, but from everything I've heard, nobody involved with the movie was,

[12:58] you know, pulling a prank.

[13:01] They weren't just having a wank.

[13:03] And you know, I don't have much to say about it.

[13:05] I mean, the movie is kind of the ultimate wank, to be honest.

Elliott Kalan

[13:07] It is kind of a wank.

[13:08] But what were you going to say, Stu?

[13:10] Sorry, I interrupted you.

[13:11] Yeah.

Stuart Wellington

[13:11] I mean, other than that, I'd say my mind is blank.

[13:16] Look at Stu just freestyle on Mank over here.

[13:17] As if I just smoked some dank.

[13:21] Keeps doing it.

Elliott Kalan

[13:23] Pulls it out every time.

[13:25] But I mean, to me, wank is actually the perfect word to describe it because it is kind of like

[13:30] a masturbation movie for a certain type of person.

[13:34] Yeah.

[13:34] I thought it would be me.

[13:35] That would be the Mad Magazine parody, right?

[13:37] Well, the Mad Magazine parody, I don't know if they use the word wank in Mad Magazine.

[13:41] It would be like, it'd be like Menschk or something like that, you know.

[13:46] Oh, okay.

[13:47] Again, or they would want to use Mankashevitz.

[13:51] Now, guys, there's still a bunch of movies that I haven't seen that were nominated this

[13:55] year.

[13:55] I did recently watch Nomadland, and I really liked that a lot.

[13:59] And I was excited to see the director of that nominated.

[14:03] And also, you know, one of my favorite actresses, Frankie McDormand.

[14:08] And I think for that one, I'd probably have a Nomad Lagnap, just a little extra piece of

[14:13] candy or pastry at the end of the movie that you can have while you're spending the night

[14:18] in your van, you know, just to keep you warm.

[14:20] Yeah.

[14:21] Yeah.

Stuart Wellington

[14:23] Yeah, so this Oscar ceremony is going to be all virtual, right?

Elliott Kalan

[14:28] Yes.

[14:28] It's going to be hosted by Russell Crowe's character from Virtuosity and co-hosted by the

[14:33] Lawn Mower Man.

[14:33] Oh, no.

Dan McCoy

[14:33] He's like made up of a bunch of serial killer profiles.

[14:37] Oh, that's not good.

[14:38] That's not good.

Stuart Wellington

[14:39] Oh, boy.

[14:41] What a dumb movie.

[14:43] But so if it's virtual, does Frances McDormand still have to look super annoyed to have to

[14:49] be there?

Elliott Kalan

[14:50] She's going to be sitting at her house looking super annoyed.

[14:53] Yeah, yeah.

[14:55] It was exciting to see Maria Bakalova nominated for Borat.

[15:01] I thought she was really good in that.

[15:02] Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[15:03] Oh, yeah.

[15:04] She's great in that.

[15:05] And, of course, she's up against Olivia Colman, though, and I haven't seen The Father, but

[15:09] I will always vote for Olivia Colman in anything.

[15:14] So I guess, sorry, everybody.

[15:15] Are you going to eat some Colman's mustard with that or what?

[15:20] I was going to call it Colman's Law.

[15:22] Yeah, yeah.

[15:22] Oh, yeah.

[15:23] You take Olivia Colman.

[15:25] Shred her up.

[15:26] Add some mayonnaise.

[15:27] Don't.

Dan McCoy

[15:27] Don't.

[15:27] She's one of our treasures.

Stuart Wellington

[15:29] Yeah, I remember when Hot Fuzz.

[15:31] She's a global treasure.

[15:33] I remember when Hot Fuzz came out.

[15:35] You put up that billboard in Hollywood that said Olivia Colman for Best Supporting Actress

[15:41] and camped out in front of it, right?

Elliott Kalan

[15:42] I mean, to be fair, I put up a billboard when she was in that number-wang sketch on Mitchell

[15:46] and Webb that said Olivia Colman for Best Supporting Actress, and the Academy had to explain to me

[15:50] it was not a movie.

[15:52] Oh, yeah.

Dan McCoy

[15:53] Not even a full show, just a segment.

Elliott Kalan

[15:56] Just the sketch.

[15:57] Just the sketch.

[15:58] But, Dan, does it make you guys feel good that Glenn Close was nominated for a hillbilly

[16:02] elegy for her role of Terminator-loving grandma?

Stuart Wellington

[16:06] I mean, I will...

[16:09] Is that going to be the scene, you think?

[16:11] Is that going to be the scene they play for her character?

[16:13] It has to be.

[16:14] Brad Pitt has to say mama out loud.

Elliott Kalan

[16:17] It's going to be one of the half-dozen scenes where she's yelling at somebody.

Dan McCoy

[16:21] I mean, I maintain that that is a script and direction problem.

[16:25] I think that, you know, Glenn Close, obviously, a great actor who, if you take any one scene

[16:32] out, you'd be like, oh, yeah, it looks like she's pretty good in Hillbilly Elegy.

[16:37] Yeah.

[16:37] Because you don't have to, you don't realize that she's been directed to do every scene

[16:41] at the same level.

Elliott Kalan

[16:42] Yeah, and our nom-nom for that will, of course, be a huckleberry elegy.

[16:45] That's a huckleberry pie that you serve on a coffin.

Stuart Wellington

[16:49] Now, do you think when Glenn Close agreed to do that movie and she heard the character's

[16:54] name was Mama, she was like, oh, am I playing, is this like the sequel to the Carl Urban Dread

[17:00] movie where Lena Headey played the character Mama?

[17:03] What do you think, guys?

Elliott Kalan

[17:04] I assumed, actually, I think she thought it was the movie, it was the film adaptation of

[17:08] Mama's Family, the sitcom, which she loves.

[17:12] She's always wanted to be in it.

Stuart Wellington

[17:14] I mean, it was kind of, I mean, I remember seeing it a lot.

[17:17] I don't remember very much about that show.

Elliott Kalan

[17:20] I know Mama had a family, but I might be thinking of the Hogan family.

[17:24] Were they called Hogan on Mama's Family?

Dan McCoy

[17:26] I assumed that she thought she was teaming up with Octavia Spencer and they were both different

[17:31] Ma's working together.

[17:33] Oh, I see.

[17:35] Oh, man.

Elliott Kalan

[17:36] What a swell.

[17:36] Yeah, yeah.

[17:36] Or she was playing Yo-Yo Ma's mother in the movie.

Dan McCoy

[17:40] Oh, right.

[17:41] Yeah.

[17:42] But then it would be called Ma's Ma.

[17:46] Can't argue with that logic, I suppose.

Elliott Kalan

[17:49] Now, guys.

[17:50] It'd be a waste of time for both of us.

[17:52] Of course.

[17:52] Well, the whole episode is pretty much.

[17:54] Now, I haven't seen Judas and the Black Messiah yet.

[17:56] I'm really excited to watch it, but I want to try to watch it all the way through in one

[17:59] sitting, which makes it difficult for me to get to it.

Stuart Wellington

[18:01] And it also went off of HBO Max like a couple days before the Oscars announced it.

[18:07] Oh, that's a shame.

[18:07] Yeah, which was foolish.

Elliott Kalan

[18:08] I mean, I have a screener from the Writers Guild, but I'm, you know, this is.

[18:12] Oh, man.

[18:12] But of course, for that, I am going to cook up a-

[18:14] Elliot's flexing out here.

[18:15] Mm-hmm.

[18:15] My union membership.

[18:17] But for that, I'm, of course, going to cook up a classic Judas and the Black Shackshuka.

[18:21] That's, of course, tomatoes, onions, peppers, spices, and eggs.

[18:24] It's a classic kind of Middle Eastern dish.

[18:26] I think it would go great with Judas and the Black Messiah.

[18:28] Again, I don't know what it's about.

Stuart Wellington

[18:30] I love Shackshuka, by the way.

[18:32] Shackshuka is great.

[18:34] I mean, I watched about half of Judas and the Black Messiah, and it was a little dry for

[18:39] my taste, unlike this Shackshuka I keep hearing about.

[18:42] Oh, which will be, it's just going to drip out of your mouth.

Dan McCoy

[18:44] Eggs poached in a nice tomato sauce?

[18:47] What could be less dry than that?

Stuart Wellington

[18:49] But, uh, but David Pelley is incredible in it.

[18:56] I mean, like, I'll watch that dude do anything.

Elliott Kalan

[18:58] Oh, yeah.

[18:59] I mean, I'm really looking forward to seeing the acting in it.

[19:01] Uh, now, of course, uh, every now and then you get a movie that nobody's heard of that

[19:07] gets nominated for a ton of Oscars.

[19:09] What was the movie that was nominated this year where you were like, huh?

[19:12] I don't know that one.

[19:12] That's a movie?

Dan McCoy

[19:14] Uh, the father, I think, is the one.

[19:16] Because I was like, I thought, okay, I am at home.

[19:22] Like, surely most of these are available on streaming, knowing the year that we've had.

[19:27] Like, maybe I'll try and run through them all.

[19:30] So I was extra disappointed to hear now that I missed Judas and the Black Messiah on HBO Max.

[19:35] But the father, I looked up, I guess it's in theaters.

[19:39] It's not available for streaming.

Stuart Wellington

[19:42] Maybe I'm wrong.

[19:43] It's, it's a coronavirus release it to trick old people into leaving.

Elliott Kalan

[19:47] I think just like, uh, the hit Al Pacino classic, uh, Sim 1 or Simone, in which he creates

[19:54] a fake actress.

[19:55] I kind of think the father might not be a real movie, but instead is like, it's, was just

[20:00] created for awards.

[20:01] They were like, Hey, look, we can win some awards without making a movie.

[20:04] It's coronavirus time.

[20:05] No one's going to go out to the theater to see this.

Dan McCoy

[20:07] I'm imagining, I'm just imagining someone like Photoshopping Anthony Hopkins and Olivia

[20:12] Coleman together and like someone else walking by and be like,

[20:17] Great.

[20:17] Put it, put it out for the Oscars.

[20:18] Like, this is not actually, this is for my own use, sir.

[20:21] No, no.

Elliott Kalan

[20:21] This is my slash fiction.

[20:23] Well, it's not, you know, it's, it's my Olivia Colman, Anthony Hopkins, Stan fiction, you

[20:27] know?

[20:27] Yeah.

[20:28] Oh, what is this movie?

[20:31] It's a movie about a father.

[20:32] It's, it's, Anthony Hopkins plays a father who's, uh, dealing with dementia.

[20:36] Uh, that's all I know about it.

Dan McCoy

[20:38] Well, I mean, I probably could have guessed that from the fact that it was named the father

[20:42] and nominated for an Oscar.

[20:43] Not to be glib about like horrible things, but it's that tight.

Stuart Wellington

[20:47] I assumed he was like a priest or something.

Elliott Kalan

[20:49] Yeah.

[20:49] I assumed that he was a priest.

[20:51] That's a good one too.

[20:52] What if it was called the father and it was about a father dealing with dementia, but

[20:55] the father was Darth Vader and Anthony Hopkins is playing an elderly Darth Vader.

[21:00] Dan?

[21:00] What about that?

[21:01] What about Elliot's bit, Dan?

Stuart Wellington

[21:04] Sorry.

[21:04] Do you want me to fund it?

Elliott Kalan

[21:06] I don't.

[21:06] No, no, no.

[21:06] Thanks.

[21:06] Thanks for just leaving me, leaving me like dick.

[21:08] I apologize.

[21:09] I got too hung up.

[21:10] I appreciate it.

[21:10] Oh man.

[21:11] Looking at the father.

[21:12] Elliot's dick's just out.

[21:13] Yeah.

[21:14] Okay.

[21:14] Now guys, we all know the big one that everyone's going to be talking about.

[21:19] Documentary feature.

[21:20] So I know Dan, you're a big doc head.

[21:22] You've seen all the documentaries this year.

[21:24] Which one do you think is going to win?

Dan McCoy

[21:26] Uh, I'm going to say my octopus teacher.

[21:29] Cause it's the only one I've, I've heard of.

Elliott Kalan

[21:31] Ooh, I think it's going to be time.

[21:33] I think my octopus teacher is going to, I think people are not ready yet for a movie about a guy who has sex with an octopus.

[21:37] I have not seen it yet.

[21:38] So I think I don't really know what it's about.

[21:40] So I think time is going to.

Dan McCoy

[21:41] Is time the one that is like a bunch of old, uh, sort of home movies?

Elliott Kalan

[21:46] Some of it is.

[21:47] It's the one about the, the family where, uh, the, the husband is in, is in prison.

Dan McCoy

[21:52] Uh, yes.

[21:53] I saw that in like David Ehrlich's, uh, you know, top 10 of the year video essay, which, you know, really beautifully edited.

[22:03] And I'm like, wow, this looks cool.

Elliott Kalan

[22:05] Um, yeah, I, I would, I would like to see it actually.

[22:07] I haven't watched it yet.

[22:08] Uh, my octopus teacher, again, it's, uh, like it's, I was, I was making a joke that the guy has sex with the octopus.

[22:13] It really doesn't.

[22:13] It's about, so this octopus gets hired as a teacher.

[22:16] They think it's a guy named Mr. Mr. Otopus.

[22:21] It turns out to be an octopus, but he teaches everyone a lesson about poetry and standing up for yourself.

Dan McCoy

[22:25] Uh, against starfish.

S4

[22:30] Hey folks, it's me, James Arthur M., host of Minority Corner.

[22:35] You're home through these bewild times for weekly doses of pop culture, history, news, nerdy stuff, and more through a BIPOC, queer, and allied lens.

[22:44] Yo, we have been in a panorama for a whole year.

[22:47] The Ponda replay has been going for, we've been a Ponderosa for a year.

Elliott Kalan

[22:53] Wonder Woman doesn't even get to fly her own invisible jet.

[22:56] That was another thing.

[22:57] I was like, this is your jet.

S4

[22:58] Think about the war on drugs.

[23:00] We must think of it as a war on black and brown and poor people to only uphold the caste system of America.

[23:09] So join me and some of your new BFFs every Friday here on Maximum Fun to stay informed, empowered, and have some fun.

[23:15] Minority Corner, because together, we're the majority.

S5

[23:19] Hi, I'm Joe Firestone.

Elliott Kalan

[23:21] And I'm Manolo Moreno.

S5

[23:22] And we host Dr. Game Show, a podcast where listeners submit games and we play them regardless of quality with a dozen listeners from around the world.

S6

[23:30] We've had folks call in from as far as Sweden, South Africa, and the Philippines.

S5

[23:36] Here's an example.

[23:38] Where players must sing a Beatles song but throw in the word dog and dog related terms.

[23:44] Like, give an example, Manolo.

S6

[23:45] Yeah.

[23:46] Hey, dog.

[23:48] Dog, dog, dog, bone.

S5

[23:50] Oh, okay.

[23:52] Dr. Game Show has new episodes every other Wednesday on Maximum Fun.

[23:56] Check us out.

S6

[23:57] Check us out.

[23:59] Nice.

Dan McCoy

[24:02] Hey, everybody.

[24:03] Dan McCoy, all alone, jumping in to tell you about HelloFresh.

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[25:15] Simplicity?

[25:22] Simplicity?

[25:23] Guys, I'll stop trying to denunciate words and tell you my personal experience with HelloFresh.

[25:31] Sometimes, the people who are kind enough to advertise with us are also kind enough to send us samples so that we know that what we are telling you is good is actually good.

[25:45] And it is good, guys.

[25:47] I like cooking.

[25:50] So, sometimes in the past, I don't need a meal thing to be sent to my door.

[25:55] But these recipes are all super tasty.

[26:00] They're, like, very, you know, like, interesting, sophisticated choices.

[26:05] I had the calorie counter stuff.

[26:08] It tasted delicious.

[26:10] I like HelloFresh.

[26:13] I'm not afraid to say it.

[26:15] What was that voice?

[26:17] Go to HelloFresh.com slash Flop12 and use code FLOP12 for 12 free meals, including free shipping.

[26:28] That's HelloFresh.com slash Flop12 and use code FLOP12 for 12 free meals.

[26:39] Now, back to the Flophouse Mini, already in progress.

Elliott Kalan

[26:46] Let's see.

[26:47] What other things?

[26:48] This is one of those years I feel like I'm so cut off from the outside world that even, like, the songs in the song category, I don't know.

[26:57] Most of the...

[26:57] I don't know that I've heard any of them, you know?

Stuart Wellington

[27:01] It doesn't...

[27:02] And Pixar has two movies nominated for Best Animated Feature, right?

[27:05] It has Soul and Onward.

Elliott Kalan

[27:07] Onward, right.

[27:09] I have seen the first half of Onward, and I've seen the first 20 minutes and the last 20 minutes of Soul.

[27:17] That's what watching movies with a two-year-old and a seven-year-old is like.

[27:21] The two-year-old is constantly running out of the room.

[27:23] From what I saw, though, I think the one that I liked the most was, honestly, Shaun the Sheep Farmageddon, which I got to watch almost all of with my son.

[27:30] And it's hard to go wrong with those.

[27:32] But I know Jesse Thorne of Maximum Funnels is a big fan of Wolfwalkers, which is nominated.

[27:36] And then there's Over the Moon, which I don't know what it is.

[27:39] That's Apple Plus.

[27:41] Yeah.

[27:42] It's Apple Plus, which is why I haven't seen it.

Stuart Wellington

[27:43] I think Apple Plus is, like, the one streaming service I don't have.

[27:47] Yeah.

[27:48] You know, of course I have Shudder.

[27:50] Has anything been nominated that's on Shudder, guys?

Elliott Kalan

[27:54] Not that I was – I mean, Promising Young Woman, there's a world where that could have been on Shudder.

[27:59] Theoretically, yeah.

Dan McCoy

[28:00] You guys got any snubs and flubs?

[28:04] You know?

[28:05] I mean –

[28:05] Any snubs?

Stuart Wellington

[28:06] I mean, the big thing is –

[28:07] I keep hearing there's – I mean, obviously, there's – in Best Supporting Actor, there's a pretty obvious one.

[28:13] I mean, everybody's talking about it.

[28:16] It's a small role, but it's pretty definitive.

[28:19] It's Stuart Wellington as Tube Man in the movie Psycho Goreman.

Elliott Kalan

[28:23] Yeah, it's true.

[28:23] Yeah, I don't know how – I mean, it's rare that they nominate actors who are in just one scene, just their voice.

[28:29] But, you know, if you can win a Supporting Actress Award for network for one scene, then maybe you could – maybe someone else can, you know?

Dan McCoy

[28:36] I don't think there's an official rule that says you have to say more than one word, but I think that it's kind of an unwritten rule.

[28:47] But –

[28:47] And just for the record, that was Beatrice Strait, I'm thinking of.

Stuart Wellington

[28:50] They let a fucking dog play basketball in movies.

[28:53] They can let me win an award.

[28:54] I mean, that's an excellent point.

Elliott Kalan

[28:56] There's nothing in the rule book.

[28:57] And if a guy can win Best Actor for lip syncing, why can't you win Best Actor for just having a voice and no face?

Stuart Wellington

[29:03] That's the thing.

[29:04] Nothing will make me laugh harder in an Oscars show than when they – for Rami Malek's performance, they just showed him lip syncing.

[29:14] It's so fucking funny.

Dan McCoy

[29:16] Yeah.

[29:17] I know that in our household, there's a little disappointment that The Invisible Man got nothing, which I know in a normal year might be kind of more of a long shot thing.

[29:31] But I thought it was great.

Elliott Kalan

[29:32] A long shot is in it from the X-Men?

Dan McCoy

[29:35] He is, yeah.

[29:35] I think it's another – you've got Promising Young Woman in there, which is also kind of a genre movie – well, a movie wearing genre garb, although less than The Invisible Man, dealing with issues of life.

Elliott Kalan

[29:50] I would actually bet that The Invisible Man is wearing less clothes because he wouldn't be invisible.

[29:53] Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[29:54] Yeah, he would be wearing clothes.

[29:55] You'd be surprised, Elliot.

[29:56] Well, you'd be surprised in this.

[29:57] Okay, I mean, it's just – it's less scary when you just see a pair of tighty-whities floating around, you know, where he is, and it's just kind of silly.

Dan McCoy

[30:03] But, you know, like similar themes using sort of like genre trappings to talk about problems, violence against women.

[30:13] And The Invisible Man was terrific, and Elizabeth Moss has been on a hot streak of good stuff.

[30:20] So that's one that jumped out, maybe.

[30:23] Hmm.

Elliott Kalan

[30:24] I mean, for me, like I mentioned, Delroy Lindo and just Defy the Bloods in general, not receiving too much.

[30:32] It got like score and a couple other ones, but that was a movie that I really liked a lot, even though it was kind of like many Spike Lee movies.

[30:41] It was – there were parts of it – there were aspects of it that I liked more than other aspects of it, but I just thought that performance was really good.

[30:47] And, of course, I'd probably serve for that Delroy Lagnap.

[30:51] Again, it's the same thing I did for Nomadland, but it would be a different Lagnap.

[30:54] Maybe that one would be like a beignet, and this one would be like a licorice twist, you know, or like a peppermint.

[31:02] You know, something just to give you a little bit of a good taste in your mouth on the way out of the theater because it's such a rough movie, you know.

Stuart Wellington

[31:10] Yeah, that's – I mean, I like that.

[31:13] I feel – one of the things I like about Defy the Bloods is just how it feels like Spike Lee got to do as much as he wanted.

[31:19] Yeah.

[31:20] Yes.

[31:20] And, you know, parts of it I don't like, or it's not that I didn't like it.

[31:25] It was just – it felt a little shaggy.

[31:28] But, no.

[31:30] Yeah, it was great.

[31:31] Now, you guys have the list in front of you.

[31:33] Which cast members from One Night in Miami were nominated?

Elliott Kalan

[31:37] So, from One Night in Miami, they nominated –

Stuart Wellington

[31:40] I know Leslie Odom Jr. was nominated, and he's great in that.

[31:43] I think he's the only cast member nominated.

[31:45] Yeah, it looks like he's the only one.

Elliott Kalan

[31:48] Just Leslie Odom Jr.

Dan McCoy

[31:50] He's got a – there's an original song for One Night in Miami.

[31:53] Speak now.

Stuart Wellington

[31:54] And he's great.

[31:55] And it's crazy how he actually, like, re-recorded Sam Cooke songs for that movie, which is awesome.

Elliott Kalan

[32:05] And I'm looking forward to when the sequel, One Night in Bangkok, comes out, which is about the making of the play Chess.

[32:12] It all takes place at the world premiere performance of Chess.

[32:16] And it's going to be dealing with totally different issues, probably Chess issues.

Stuart Wellington

[32:20] And people are so into fucking Queen's Gambit right now.

[32:23] I mean, of course.

Elliott Kalan

[32:24] Chess is huge right now.

[32:25] It's finally time for me to pitch my reboot of Searching for Bobby Fischer.

[32:29] This is – now, here's the thing.

[32:31] Okay, they're searching for Bobby Fischer, and the way they find him is because of an elaborate game hidden within a virtual world.

[32:39] It's Ready Player One meets Chess instead of video games.

[32:44] And also, instead of being stuffed with references to the 1980s, which is lame, it's stuffed with references to 2018.

[32:53] Nostalgia is two years old.

[32:55] Two and a half, you could say.

[32:56] And people are going to love it because they still remember all that stuff.

[32:58] And you get the young people in because they're already nostalgic for life pre-COVID.

[33:02] It's called – I think I told you what it's called already.

[33:04] It's called One Night in Bangkok.

[33:05] But anyway.

Stuart Wellington

[33:06] I'm going to interrupt, Elliot, because that pitch was dog shit.

[33:09] I'm going to pitch you something better.

[33:10] Okay, pitch it.

[33:11] My pitch is we're going to combine searching for Bobby Fischer and looking for Mr. Goodbar.

[33:18] You find Bobby Fischer, you realize he's also Mr. Goodbar.

[33:22] Think about that shit.

[33:23] Okay, so you finally find Bobby Fischer and Mr. Goodbar, because he is a mentally unbalanced person.

Elliott Kalan

[33:27] And he does think you're part of the global Zionist conspiracy that is out to get him for chess playing.

[33:33] So, yeah, sure, okay.

[33:34] Yeah, I'm not sure about either of these pages.

Dan McCoy

[33:36] You are right, though.

[33:37] Chess is very big right now.

[33:40] I remember recently in like – it was like in a park.

[33:44] I saw these chess pieces that were like huge.

[33:48] They were like big chess pieces like a people could be on this chess board.

[33:54] Uh-huh.

[33:55] It's available.

Elliott Kalan

[33:56] I wish the listeners at home could see Dan's face as he tries to sell this bit.

Dan McCoy

[34:01] I'm trying to break Elliot down through the intensity of my trying.

Elliott Kalan

[34:06] No, and you almost did it, but instead you made me think of another reboot.

[34:09] It's called Searching for Bobby Fischer King.

[34:12] Bobby Fischer is a knight who's trying to find the Holy Grail, and he's got to get past these big chess pieces that are in Central Park.

[34:18] It's sort of an urban fantasia, if you will, in which – I mean that it's the movie Fantasia, but it's set in a city.

[34:25] So like alligators and hippos are dancing in a city.

[34:28] Yeah, I guess it's Cool World now that I think about it.

[34:31] Yeah.

[34:31] Okay, so they made it already.

[34:32] It's called Cool World.

[34:33] Anyway.

[34:34] What if it's –

[34:35] Search –

Stuart Wellington

[34:36] Okay, the Cool World According to Garp.

[34:40] Is that something?

[34:41] That – Dan, I think that's something.

[34:43] What do you think?

[34:44] Okay, what were you going to say, Dan?

Dan McCoy

[34:45] I was going to pitch my movie Searching for Bobby Fischer Stevens, where Fischer Stevens thinks that Bobby Kennedy is still alive, and he's searching for him.

[34:55] Oh, wow.

[34:56] Okay.

[34:57] That's pretty good.

Stuart Wellington

[34:58] That's better than this animated wrestling movie that Elliot just pitched.

Elliott Kalan

[35:04] I guess so.

[35:05] I guess that's true.

[35:07] And it's also better than searching for Bobby Fischer Price.

[35:11] It's just a toy that got lost, you know?

[35:13] Yeah.

Dan McCoy

[35:14] Yeah.

[35:15] Oh, boy, guys.

[35:17] That was a lot of laughing.

Elliott Kalan

[35:19] So that's Oscar Nom Noms 2021.

[35:22] I think we learned a lot about food.

[35:24] We learned a lot about life, love, the awards season.

[35:28] So now it's time for your predictions.

[35:29] Guys, what's going to win the Oscar next year in 2022?

[35:33] Now, most of these movies have not been released.

[35:35] Maybe they don't exist yet.

[35:36] What's going to win Best Picture in 2022?

[35:38] We have to have our predictions right now.

Stuart Wellington

[35:40] Does the Snyder Cut sound, does that count as 2021, 22?

[35:45] I don't know that it's actually going to play in any theaters.

Elliott Kalan

[35:48] It has to play in a theater before its television release.

[35:52] So the Snyder Cut may be disqualified.

[35:55] People are loving it.

[35:56] Four hours.

[35:58] Four hours of just heroes hitting each other over the head with urinals.

[36:02] I'll be there.

[36:02] I'll see it.

[36:04] I think my guess is for 2022, it's going to be there.

[36:07] So people are going to be back in the theaters.

[36:09] They're going to be, and the Academy voters are going to be wined and dined again.

[36:12] So it's going to be the return of the kind of big, dumb Hollywood movies that historically have won,

[36:18] but this year didn't have a chance.

[36:19] So I think the one that's going to be nominated is going to be called,

[36:24] and win the Oscar, I think is going to be called Millard.

[36:30] Millard, okay.

[36:31] Inspiring true story of Millard Fillmore,

[36:34] except what they're going to do is they're going to update it.

[36:37] They set it now, and also instead of becoming president.

Stuart Wellington

[36:41] And that's, I'm just to clarify,

[36:44] that is a world where Mallard Fillmore is a human and not a duck, right?

[36:49] Yes.

Elliott Kalan

[36:49] Oh, I should have made that clear.

[36:50] Yes.

[36:50] So it's an adaptation of Mallard Fillmore,

[36:53] but they make him a person instead of a duck.

[36:54] He still lives in a tree.

[36:55] He's still, what, a newspaper reporter?

[36:58] I know, that's Shoe.

Dan McCoy

[36:59] You're thinking of Shoe.

[37:00] He's the one where they're reporters.

[37:02] Oh, damn it.

[37:02] Mallard Fillmore is, I think he, well, wait, hold on.

[37:05] Wait, Mallard Fillmore also wears a press hat.

[37:07] I think he's also a reporter.

[37:09] But they don't live in a tree.

[37:09] They're both reporters.

[37:11] Anyway, whatever.

[37:12] Like, it's just a strip that's like Republican talking points without a joke.

Elliott Kalan

[37:18] They're both prequels to the return of Howard the Duck to the MCU.

[37:20] That's what it really comes down to.

[37:22] So, what is it about ducks and reporting?

[37:25] Why are they drawn to journalism?

[37:28] I don't.

[37:30] And Dan, any guesses on big Oscar winners of next year?

Dan McCoy

[37:35] I'm going to put it all on number 39.

Elliott Kalan

[37:41] Oh, wow.

[37:42] Okay.

[37:42] Wow.

[37:43] Well, I guess we won't find out until next year if that was a smart bet or not.

[37:46] Excuse me, fellows, I would like to make a prediction of my own, please.

Stuart Wellington

[37:53] I wonder what movie might you be interested in, sir?

Elliott Kalan

[37:57] Well, just to, I was hoping one of you would introduce me to the audience, but apparently I have to do it myself.

Stuart Wellington

[38:03] I'm sorry, Mr. Tom Brokaw.

[38:05] Thank you so much for coming out here.

[38:08] I saw you popped up on the Zoom because you're still following COVID protocols.

[38:13] And I see that your name down there, it says Tom, Dune Expert.

[38:16] T. Dune Expert Brokaw, that's interesting.

Elliott Kalan

[38:18] I legally changed my middle name to Dune Expert.

[38:21] At least for Zoom reasons.

[38:23] I now go back, I now go by T. Dune Expert Brokaw.

[38:28] And you'll think, I have an idea what might win the Oscar next year.

[38:32] There's a big movie.

[38:33] Yes, it was released on HBO Max, but day and date with the theaters.

[38:37] Very heavily looked forward to about a certain Maud Dib who enters a strange world.

[38:45] A strange world in which they have to learn to survive and also learn to form alliances to deal with the larger problem of resource scarcity.

[38:56] And that movie is Tom and Jerry.

[38:58] Now, Maud Dib technically means desert mouse.

[39:02] So, I'm referring to Jerry in this case.

[39:05] But I found that Tom and Jerry really was a star-studded film that I had always wanted to see.

[39:11] And unfortunately, there's nothing else coming out this year that I think could really compete with it for the Oscars next year.

Stuart Wellington

[39:18] Oh, wow.

[39:19] And wait, Tom Brokaw just left?

[39:21] He closed his browser?

[39:27] He left the meeting room.

Dan McCoy

[39:30] What a great improv technique, Stuart, for when you're tired and you want the episode to be over.

[39:43] Oh, it seems like all the characters have left the room.

[39:46] Well, yeah.

Elliott Kalan

[39:47] It's the Zoom improv equivalent of, what's that?

[39:50] I'm going through a tunnel.

[39:52] I can't hear you.

[39:54] I'm losing the call.

[39:56] Well, guys, thanks, everybody, for listening to our Oscar thoughts this year.

[40:00] Please remember these predictions are only for recreational purposes.

[40:05] Please do not base bets on them.

[40:06] We are not responsible if you bet on number 39 and lose everything.

[40:11] But thanks for joining us.

[40:12] I hope this year we can all enjoy not just the Oscars, but the world of cinema wherever we are, whenever we are.

[40:20] People in the past and future.

[40:22] I'm saying it to you, too.

[40:23] And guys, before we go, what is the Flophouse food?

[40:27] If the Flophouse was a food to leave people with, what would it be?

[40:31] Oh, man.

Dan McCoy

[40:33] Some sort of something gooey.

[40:36] Something real sticky and gooey.

[40:38] All right.

[40:39] I don't know why that makes sense, but it does.

[40:42] It's got to be involved somehow.

[40:44] What do you got to see?

Stuart Wellington

[40:44] Some kind of like, it's like a big old plate of nachos.

[40:48] You got your beans.

[40:49] You got cheese.

[40:50] You got sliced jalapenos for when you want a little bit of heat.

[40:55] You got a tall and sour cream in case, you know, you aren't lactose intolerant like me.

[41:03] Yeah.

Elliott Kalan

[41:05] Yeah.

[41:05] I mean, that all makes sense to me.

[41:07] Yeah.

[41:07] To be, I was looking through some movies from this year, and there is one movie that I was, now that I think about it.

[41:13] Are you going to say First Cow should have been nominated?

[41:16] No, because I still haven't gotten to see that, but I really wanted to.

[41:17] Oh, it's great.

[41:18] It should have been nominated.

[41:19] I really want to see it.

[41:21] But I think that the movie Beanpole was not nominated for Best Foreign Language Film, and I thought that was a really moving and at times very painful movie.

[41:33] But, you know, I can't think of any foods that would go with it, so I guess I just won't talk that much.

[41:39] So Beanpole, no meal.

[41:41] I mean, you won't want to eat a meal.

[41:42] It's a depressing movie.

[41:42] But anyway, guys, thanks so much for joining me on this journey into time-wasting.

[41:48] For the record, in case anyone wants to sue us for taking this time away from them, my name has been Elliot Kalin.

[41:54] I've been Dan McCoy.

[41:57] And I'm Stuart Wellingtown.

[41:59] Saying good Oscars-ing to ya.

[42:03] Bye.

[42:09] MaximumFun.org

[42:10] Comedy and culture.

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[42:12] Artist owned.

[42:13] Audience supported.

FH Mini 26 - Oscar Noms

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