Hold Up

In 1975 Terry Gilliam and Terry Jones directed the comedy classic, Monty Python and the Holy Grail. This flick tells the story of Arthur of Camelot who, along with his knights of the round table, go on a quest from God searching for the holy grail, only to find many challenges along the way. Starring the Monty Python crew of Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, and Michael Palin, The Holy Grail made $5 million from a $400 thousand dollar budget and is widely considered to be one of the best comedies of all time. But does it hold up? Listen in and Jon, Colin, and Brent debate the air-speed velocity of an unladen swallow as we decide if this classic is the Grail or just a Grail-shaped beacon.

In 1991, Terry Gilliam once again shared his special brain with us when he released The Fisher King. The Fisher King is a dramedy telling the story of a disgraced star radio shock-jock who goes on a quest to help repair the life of a man that he inadvertently ruined, and in the process, finds redemption for himself. This film made a humble $42 million on a $24 million budget, was nominated for various Academy Awards (including a win for Mercedes Ruehl), and utilized a stellar cast to bring it to life featuring: Jeff Bridges, Robin Williams, Mercedes Ruehl, Amanda Plummer, and Michael Jeter among other notable faces and names. But, does it hold up? Listen in as Jon, Colin, and Brent discuss the joys of insanity as we try to figure out if this is a worthy quest or a fool's errand.

In 1996 John Grisham’s novel, A Time to Kill, was brought to life by director Joel Schumacher. A Time to Kill tells the story of a black father on trial in the south after he takes vengeance on the two white men who brutally raped and attempted to kill his 10-year-old daughter. The town is divided as the trial commences, and the family of the murdered racist rapists pulls in the KKK, which further threatens to rip the community apart. A Time to Kill hit #1 in the box office making $152 million on a $40 million budget and is packed with talent featuring: Matthew McConaughey, Sandra Bullock, Samuel L. Jackson, Kevin Spacey, Donald Sutherland, Kiefer Sutherland, Oliver Platt, Charles S. Dutton, Ashley Judd, Brenda Fricker, and Patrick McGoohan. But, does it hold up? Listen in as Jon, Colin, and Brent debate morality as we see if this flick deserves a fair trial, or if it’s a time to watch a different movie.

In 1985, Savage Steve Holland brought to life his directorial debut with Better Off Dead. This flick is the story of a high school student who becomes distraught when his girlfriend dumps him for the captain of the ski team and he balances his attempts to get her back with attempts to take his own life. Better Off Dead stars John Cusack, David Ogden Stiers, Curtis Armstrong, and Diane Franklin, and maintains a 75% on Rotten Tomatoes on just under 30 reviews. However, it was not a commercial or critical success upon release, and it took many years to achieve cult classic status. But, does it hold up? Listen in as Jon, Colin, and Brent debate better ways to deal with your problems as we discuss if this film is better off celebrated, or forgotten.

In 2000, Jonathan Glazer unbuttoned his directorial debut, Sexy Beast. Sexy Beast is a British crime comedy featuring the story of a retired career criminal who receives a visit from an old gangster acquaintance who is determined to force him out of retirement and disrupt his happy life. Sir Ben Kingsley stars as the dreaded Don Logan opposite Ray Winstone as Gal the retired robber and is joined by Ian McShane to round out this expertly acted piece of cinema. Made for $4.3 million, Sexy Beast made a humble $10 million at the box office but received critical praise, even securing an Oscar nod for Kingsley in the best supporting actor category. But, does it hold up? Listen in as Jon, Colin, and Brent, debate spandex swimwear as we decide if we need to bring sexy back, or see if it never left. 

In 1986, Director Paul Mazursky released his off-beat comedy, Down and Out in Beverly Hills. Down and Out is the story of a wealthy Beverly Hills businessman, Dave Whiteman, who seeks to reconcile his nouveau-riche guilt by bringing the destitute Jerry Baskin into his home. But the lessons flow from the opposite direction as Jerry’s influence weighs supreme over Dave’s entire house and Dave finds himself at odds with his new guest. Starring Richard Dreyfuss, Bette Midler, and Nick Nolte, Down and Out in Beverly Hills was made for $14 million and brought home $62 million from the box office. But does it hold up? Listen in as Jon, Colin, and Brent discuss the finer notes of eating garbage as we determine if this comedy is rich, down, or out.

In 2003, Park Chan-Wook released his family drama, Oldboy. Oldboy features the story of Oh Dae-su, a degenerate father and husband who is inexplicably kidnapped and imprisoned for 15 years. Oh Dae-su is released and immediately sets off to find answers and vengeance but discovers some uncomfortable truths and learns some things about himself along the way. With a modest budget of $3 million Oldboy brought home $15 million from the box office and received a lot of critical acclaims, even winning the Grand Prix at 2004 Cannes. But, does it hold up? Listen in as Jon, Colin, and Brent discuss absent fathers and daddy’s little girl as we see if this one hammers it home or falls victim to age.

In 1999, Brian Helgeland wrote and directed his neo-noir action flick, Payback. Payback features the story of career criminal Porter and his pursuit to get back the seventy-thousand (or was it $130k?) dollars that was stolen from him by his old partner Val Resnick. In order to buy his way into the criminal organization, The Outfit, Val convinces Porter's wife to put two bullets in her hubby's back, and Porter will stop at nothing to get what he's owed. Starring Mel Gibson, Gregg Henry, Maria Bello, Lucy Liu, James Coburn, and Kris Kristofferson, Payback made a modest $161 million from a $90 million budget. But, does it hold up? Listen in as Jon, Colin, and Brent, debate the severity of cold-blooded murder as we determine if we get our money's worth, or if we want revenge for wasting our time.

In 1968, Stanley Kubrick saw the future when he released 2001: A Space Odyssey. 2001 is a story featuring huge questions that explore evolution, existentialism, and AI, amongst other big ideas all viewed through the lens of 3 different periods of human development. 2001 initially struggled at the theatre but soon people came to see something more. Its groundbreaking effects and massive philosophical questions began to open people’s hearts and minds to it until eventually, it became regarded as culturally significant and has since been preserved in the National Film Registry. But, does it hold up? Listen in as Jon, Colin, and Brent wax philosophical as we determine if 2001 was a vision of the future or has become a victim of the past.

In 2000, M. Night Shyamalan was feeling tough when he released his mature superhero thriller, Unbreakable. Unbreakable tells the story of David Dunn who is the sole survivor of a train crash and begins discovering things about himself with the help of the mysterious Mr. Glass. Featuring top-notch performances by Bruce Willis, Samuel L. Jackson, and Robin Wright Penn, Unbreakable made $248 million from a $75 million budget, received positive praise and carries a 70% on Rotten Tomatoes. But, does it hold up? Listen in as Jon, Colin, and Brent, discuss brittle pelvises and memories of being sick as we try to figure out if this flick is unassailable or as fragile as glass.

In 1999, Troy Duffy went rags to riches (and back to rags again) when he wrote and directed Boondock Saints. The story of a pair of Irish brothers who are sent on a vigilante mission from God to execute the criminals and scum of society. Starring Willem Dafoe, Sean Patrick Flanery, Norman Reedus, and Billy Connolly; Boondock Saints experienced some early production struggles as it was dropped by Miramax before eventually being picked up by Franchise Pictures. It received bad initial reviews and was a box office failure before eventually making $50 million in video sales and finding a cult following. But, does it hold-up? Listen in as Jon, Colin, and Brent discuss God’s shitty judgement as we figure out if this one is a saint or a delusion of grandeur. 

Today, we’re going back to 1988 for John Landis’s romantic comedy, Coming to America. Eddie Murphy stars in this story of an African prince who rejects the idea of his arranged marriage, so he travels to America to find true love while feigning that he’s a broke immigrant to be sure of their sincerity. Eddie is joined by Arsenio Hall, James Earl Jones, Eriq La Salle, with bit parts played by Louis Anderson, and an appearance by Samuel L Jackson. Coming to America made ~$300 million from a $36 million budget, won two Oscars, and became a classic comedy of its time. But does it hold-up? Listen in as Jon, Colin, and Brent debate the proper way to clean a royal penis as we figure out if this one is more Soul Glo or Soul No.

In 1990, Kevin Costner unveiled his directing chops with the Western epic, Dances with Wolves. This is the story of John Dunbar; an army lieutenant who requests posting to the frontier so he can see it before it disappears. When he finds himself alone at his abandoned fort, he develops a close relationship with the neighboring Lakota Sioux tribe who he ends up defecting from the army to join.  Kevin Costner stars as John Dunbar joined alongside Mary McDonnell, Graham Greene, and Rodney Grant in this expertly acted drama set against some gorgeous scenery. This movie was a monster making $424 million from a $22 million budget, winning 7 of 12 Oscar nods including best picture and best director. But, does it hold up? Listen in as Jon, Colin, and Brent discuss Bison heart, sashimi, and oral in the frontier as we figure out if this one’s got moves or two left feet.

In 1992 Michael Mann brought us The Last of the Mohicans. TLotM features a love story captured inside of a historical drama, a lodramis, one might say. It tells the story of a family of three trappers who find themselves obligated to protect the daughters of a British Colonel after the Hurons betray a truce and the dreaded Magua has his eyes set on killing the Colonel and all of his descendants. Starring Daniel Day-Lewis and Madeleine Stowe, this movie is expertly acted, made $143 million from a $40 million budget, and won the Oscar for Sound. But does it hold up? Listen in as Jon, Colin, and Brent, discuss the proper doneness of human heart as we try to determine if this is worth staying alive no matter what occurs, or is best left in the past.

In 1982, we were subjected to Dustin Hoffman in drag with Sydney Pollack’s Tootsie. When a struggling actor can’t get work due to his difficult reputation, he secures a role dressed as a woman, becomes more successful than he planned, and ends up falling for his female co-star. Tootsie was a huge financial and critical success and was nominated for 10 academy awards, winning one, and features a dynamite cast with Dustin Hoffman, Bill Murray, Jessica Lange, Geena Davis, Teri Garr, Dabney Coleman, and Sydney Pollack. But, does it hold up? Listen in as Jon, Colin, and Brent discuss how much is too much eye makeup as we try to see if this one holds up or needs a new identity.

In 1991, three friends went on a cattle drive in an attempt to kick a little excitement into their routine and what resulted was a renewed sense of self and appreciation for their lives. We are of course speaking of Ron Underwood’s City Slickers. Billy Crystal, Bruno Kirby, Daniel Stern, and Norman, star alongside Jack Palance in this story of midlife crisis and recapturing the appreciation and love for that one thing that matters most, Curly’s finger. Made for $26 million City Slickers made $180 million at the box office, won Jack Palance an Oscar, and became a comedy classic noted for its sentimental core. But, does it hold up? Listen in as Jon, Colin, and Brent debate that one thing as we try to figure out if this one is sent to pasture or the slaughterhouse. 

In 1993, George Cosmatos released Tombstone and the world was never the same. Tombstone is the story of Wyatt Earp, the OK Corral and the resulting vengeance tour taken by Earp and his buds. Tombstone has a great cast featuring performances by Kurt Russell, Val Kilmer, Powers Boothe, Sam Elliot, Jason Priestly (kinda), Bill Paxton, Billy Zane, Charlton Heston, and Dana Delany. Made for $25 million Tombstone brought back a modest $56 million in the box office and was applauded both for being one of the all-time great westerns and also a notable standout performance by Val Kilmer. But, does it hold up? Listen in as Jon, Colin, and Brent discuss what a smoke wagon is and how to skin one as we figure out if this one is our huckleberry or just jerking our pistol.

In 1994 Quentin Tarantino followed up Reservoir Dogs with his blockbuster and instant cult classic, Pulp Fiction. The story surrounds a host of interesting characters as we weave in and out of the lives of bossman Marcellus Wallace’s two hitmen/soldiers, Jules and Vincent, and Butch Coolidge, a boxer on the wrong side of his career who takes money from Wallace to take a dive. Featuring a gold star cast of John Travolta, Samuel L Jackson, Ving Rhames, Uma Thurman, Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth, Amanda Plummer, Eric Stoltz, Rosanna Arquette, Christopher Walken, and Bruce Willis, Pulp Fiction was an instant hit, won the Palme D’Or at Cannes, and made $213 million from a budget of $8 million. But does it hold-up? Listen in as Jon, Colin, and Brent, debate how much H you can safely snort as we try to determine if this one holds up or if it’s just pride fucking with us.

Today’s flick is another Hollywood classic, 1968's The Odd Couple, directed by Gene Saks and written by Neil Simon. This movie is based on Simon’s Broadway play of the same name. The Odd Couple feature Felix and Oscar, played by Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau respectively, who are a couple of divorcee buddies who decide to live together, which in the 1960s was a huge faux pas. Things take a hilarious turn as they realize what complete opposites they are, and hijinx ensue as they find out how odd their coupling actually is. Made for just $1.2 million, The Odd Couple brought home a pants-shitting $44 million in the box office and received critical acclaim. But, does it hold-up? Listen in as Jon, Colin, and Brent debate the limits of age, filth, and same-sex roommates as we try to determine if this one is a comedy of errors or an error of comedy.

In 1963, John Sturges released his POW war epic, The Great Escape. TGE is loosely based on the real events of a mass escape from a Nazi prison camp where several hundred men worked together to orchestrate a massive tunnel break-out. The Great Escape made $11.7 million from an initial budget of $3.8 million which cemented it as one of the top earners of 1963 and also featured a massive cast including Steve McQueen, James Garner, Richard Attenborough, James Donald, Charles Bronson, Donald Pleasence, and James Coburn. The Great Escape was a huge success and cemented itself into cinema history as a classic, but does it hold-up? Listen in as Jon, Colin, and Brent debate tunnel escapes and sexual innuendo as we try to determine if this flick sets us free or needs to be locked up for another 57 years.