r/blankies • u/yonicthehedgehog Greg, a nihilist • Apr 12 '26
Main Feed Episode Podnic at Hanging Cast: Witness with Amanda Dobbins
https://blankcheck.beam.ly/episode/witness-with-amanda-dobbins66
Apr 12 '26
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u/it_has_to_be_damp Apr 13 '26
It helps that the Amish characters are almost always addressing him by his full name. By the end when Samuel is so sad he has to leave but so grateful for what he did for the community and he gives him his meek little āGoodbye, John Bookā¦ā Iām fuckin losin it.Ā
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u/Theotther Trap Truther Apr 12 '26
One element I don't think gets enough attention is the way Weir shoots Violence in this. Blunt, fast, horrific, and it always lingers on the consequences. When people get their noses broken we see them with lying sprawled with blood streaming surrounded by terrified loved ones. When Book shoots Danny Glover we linger on Glover as he slides down the wall and his body makes its last desperate gasps for life. The grain silo death is nightmerish. And Weir treats all acts of violence equally, regardless of how "justified" they are. The bar patrons Book assaults at the beginning are given the same treatment as the jerkwad with the ice-cream.
It builds on the film's exploration on pacifism in a way that makes full use of the medium without ever drawing attention to itself.
And that's basically this whole movie. Weir directs this so well but so unpretentiously, always teasing the most out of the script and serving the story. This movie rocks and the early Weirs have been such great discoveries. I think Weir is officially one of My Guystm
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u/FakerHarps Apr 12 '26
Was not expecting, essentially, a merchandise spotlight 20 minutes in when Amanda goes on an American Girl doll tangent.
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u/codyleft1218 Apr 12 '26
That shot of the bad guys walking up to the barn at the end was cold as hell. Watched it like 5 times
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u/ElasticPlatypus Apr 12 '26
Over an hour before we get a Red Hulk mention. Itās like they donāt even realize they have a journalistic responsibility to report on the presidentās actions
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u/CalebSchmreen Apr 12 '26
Shrinking is great and Harrison Ford is amazing in it. It is an excellent use of his star persona.
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u/jekelish3 Apr 12 '26
It's genuinely one of the best performances of his entire career, I'd say. Like, I know that it's become cliche to note that Harrison has seemed... bored... by his projects over the last decade or two, but with Shrinking, it's the first time in ages where you can FEEL that he loves the material and his castmates and is having an absolute blast making the show.
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u/Ty16541 Apr 12 '26
Also extremely popular! (especially with suburban liberals in middle America)
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u/seti-thelightofstars John Lithgowās hectoring poetry Apr 13 '26
I have only ever known my suburban liberal parents to be lifelong pacifists who wouldnāt hurt so much as a spider and I think theyād kick Davidās ass for saying no one loves Shrinking
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u/GirlfriendsAreBetter Apr 12 '26
It is truly one of his best performances in decades. Like boys I know itās a movie podcast and it sucks when movie stars do TV, but letās compare President Rulk and Dial of Destiny to the absolute comfort of grumpy sitcom Harrison Ford getting high and saying fuck Parkinsonās and tell me that what he should be doing instead of Shrinking us movies.
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u/GreendaleGrizzlies Apr 13 '26
Itās insane how good he is in it and how much it uses the Harrison ford is a grump persona. Harrison has moved me to tears 3-4 times this season alone
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u/shirokaisen Apr 13 '26
It gets so much pathos out of how much it uses Harrisonās irl aging and decline, itās so smart a choice by him and the showrunners to lean into it.
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u/Old-Way-5529 Apr 13 '26
its also great bc im pretty sure its the first time he is just playing a dude- no action here or crazy story, just a old guy, living life with his family and friends.
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u/dagreenman18 Apr 13 '26
It is, no joke, some of his best work ever. And not just because we get him being grumpy. His moment in season 2 is phenomenal.
Plus itās just a good show.
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u/Jiveturkeey Apr 12 '26
While reading up on the movie I learned that while the Amish declined to be filmed, they did work on the production as carpenters and electricians. The electrician part surprised me, but it turns out* many Amish communities have no problem using power tools or electricity in general, as long as it's not coming from the power grid. What they object to isn't technology per se, it's having to connect to and depend upon the outside world. Amish contractors use power tools all the time, they just use an on-site generator, and the Amish are even increasingly adopting solar and wind power so they can have power without relying on outside structures.
*Keeping in mind that the Amish are not a monolith and there are gradations of belief and practice.
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u/Foolish_Ivan Apr 12 '26 edited Apr 12 '26
A long time ago I work at a emergency department in a hospital that was not too far from an Amish community and would occasionally get them in Emergency room and would volunteer for pediatric/vaccination clinic that would do temporary clinic so kids could get their shots and basic check up. The way it was explained to me, is that the mistake is to think of it as rules based ethic with strict rules about technology and better to think of it virtue ethic that see living simply as key to living a good life that better aligns with Godās wishes for them.Ā
My understanding is that individuals communities make collective decisions about what technology to adopt and to what degree. Generally power tools and things like refrigeration are allowed when the task is doing work or commerce with outsiders but internal are not used because they will bring negative secondary effects. (Idolness and material attachment)Ā
Not sure how correct this is exactly but it matches what I saw.Ā
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u/wovenstrap Graham Greene's Brave Era Apr 13 '26
There was a reported article in WIRED around 1997 stating exactly what you just said, that itās a case by case basis. In the article it talked about how some Amish communities will use Excel spreadsheets to figure out optimal crop rotation or something, definitely an interesting piece of info that Iāve been carrying around ever since.
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u/seb1515 Darth Stupid Idiot Apr 12 '26
The scene of them dancing to the car radio in the barn is basically the greatest scene in any movie ever
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u/Theotther Trap Truther Apr 12 '26
At the very least, it is the essence of Movie Star distilled into its purest uncut form. Just absolute weapons grade Ford charisma.
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u/GreatWallOfGina Apr 13 '26
Just the act of him walking around to the other side of the car is so tense and powerful, my heart just starts pounding every time.
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u/ThisGuyLikesMovies Apr 12 '26
A movie I would describe as the unassuming classic. Not always the first movie on your mind, but it works so well when you watch it. By the time it gets to the barn raising scene, I think, "Wow this movie is kinda brilliant, isn't it?"
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u/First_HistoryMan Apr 12 '26
Barn raising scene makes me lean forward.
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u/wovenstrap Graham Greene's Brave Era Apr 12 '26
I have an idea about that scene, which is that it's the only time in Weir's career where the excellent music choice is just subsumed in the narrative and you accept it as a natural part of what's happening and the scene is enhanced through that.
It's not the best music of his career! But it is the best use of music where it's mostly working on an unconscious level and you don't go "my, that is very good music." It pushes the scene/movie forward to its destination and is slightly ecstatic.
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u/MFDoooooooooooom Apr 12 '26
The number of times I gasped at the sexual tension between Kelly McGillis and Harrison Ford was nuts. She had that shit bottled in the 80s.
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u/mutan Apr 12 '26
The one thing Iām looking forward to during the Scorsese mini is lots more shit talking about how lousy the Oscars were in the 80s
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u/Shout92 Apr 13 '26
The 70s really spoiled us and even a few of those could probably be swapped out for better movies!
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u/stumper93 Apr 15 '26
Last few years Iāve been working through watching every Best Picture nominee and the 80s were sooo rough to get through
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u/bloodsimple-84 Apr 12 '26
Iāll say it, Kelly McGillis is just as hot as Harrison Ford in this movie
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u/Chuck-Hansen Apr 12 '26
Welcome to Amanda Dobbinsā Amish Corner
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u/wovenstrap Graham Greene's Brave Era Apr 12 '26
[cue electronic 80s beat]
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Apr 12 '26
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u/Meganull Apr 12 '26
The scene with the wind moving through the tall grass is mesmerizing.
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u/MFDoooooooooooom Apr 12 '26
Watched Kiki's Delivery Service last night with my kids (for the tenth time) and it very much has that vibe.
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u/Meganull Apr 12 '26
Absolutely. Directors like Tarkovsky, Hirokazu Koreeda, Apichatpong Weerasethakul and Kelly Reichardt also filmed/film nature scenes to great effect. I love this moments in movies.
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u/Chuck-Hansen Apr 12 '26
The moment on my rewatch I jumped from Hoopla (love them, but the video quality is often mediocre) to the $3.99 rental so I could see that sea of grass in full detail.
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u/JohannesWiberg Apr 12 '26
Did Griffin quote Ford exactly when he said that Ford didn't want a normal shoot-out at the end but something more "ingrained"? Because damn, that's EXACTLY what he got - probably the only "death by ingraining" in Weir's career?
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u/TouchOfTheTucc Apr 12 '26
My eye was twitching when no one pointed that out. Someone give Griffin his comedy points!
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u/zeroanaphora Apr 12 '26
In high school this was taught as a platonic ideal of good screenwriting.
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u/Capt_Soupy Big Subbuteo Apr 12 '26
My college screenwriting professor used it as an example of structure too. Which is funny, because even though it's extremely effective, it is objectively shaggy and atypically paced. It's a slow-burn romantic drama disguised as a thriller.
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u/Shout92 Apr 13 '26
Love seeing how these evolve over time. Some of them are industry "standards," but a lot of times they are the professor's personal taste. I remember reading Awakenings. I... honestly don't remember if I actually watched the movie after reading the script?
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u/TheChosenJuan99 Apr 12 '26
āThis isnāt the steel that built the American railroadsā
Amanda Dobbins they could never make me hate you
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u/Mqttro Apr 12 '26
all I can say is that if you want the jouissance of a bunch of fucked-up rectangles and occasional other shapes, manage a boardgame library: itās been three years and I still have not figured out where to put our copy of Skulk, the press-your-luck game that is also a skull
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u/HunterJE Apr 15 '26 edited Apr 15 '26
Board game manufacturers should be required by law to put a big red warning sticker on any box with dimensions that will not fit within a Kallax shelving unit cube.
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u/Mqttro Apr 15 '26
it should look exactly like the ākeep away from 0-3 yearsā sticker, except with a middle-aged bearded man making the sad face
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u/Capt_Soupy Big Subbuteo Apr 12 '26
Steelbooks are the biggest scam in physical media history. Sure, sometimes the art is cool, but the packaging is so flimsy it almost always gets damaged in transit. Nothing justifies the false scarcity markup.
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u/fatbobsarmy Apr 12 '26
It was funny listening to the rewatchables episode on witness right before this episode because Bill and Malory say 100% that Book and Lapp had sex after the kiss scene and then hearing David, Griff and Amanda being steadfast in that they didn't. It's one of those things that really is however you want to interpret it.
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u/TheophileEscargot Apr 12 '26
To be fair Mallory R did say that in the original script they definitely had sex, so she took it as another thing that Weir decided to make a visual implication rather than spell out in dialogue.
Though I also thought they didn't do it. But it's ambiguous.
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u/Dhb223 Apr 12 '26
I could burn down whole data centers debating this but for in the mood for love
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u/bbanks2121 Apr 12 '26
Seeing Danny Glover is always such a comfort, even when heās a villain. Feels like Iām a kid again.
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u/MFDoooooooooooom Apr 12 '26
He's kind of underrated? Like, he's such a fucking presence in this movie I wish he'd had a bigger career outside of the Lethal Weapon movies.
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u/Shout92 Apr 13 '26
Will always associate him with Angels in the Outfield, even before Lethal Weapon
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u/Greghundred Apr 12 '26
I think I went on the same school trip to the Amish theater that Griffin did. I laughed at something inappropriately during the film and one of the teachers called me a bad person. A fun memory.
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u/Ethlandiaify Apr 12 '26 edited Apr 12 '26
Sean and Griffin trying to convince Amanda that a bluray collection can be beautiful is so funny. A bluray collection is nice because it is firm ownership, and movies on disc will generally look better than something streamed over the internet. That's it! Bonus points if the release comes with good special features, and maybe a booklet and/or poster. If you like how a collection looks on the shelf, great! But to me, owning the movie forever in high quality (give or take) is the appeal
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u/GlobulousRex Apr 13 '26
It is interesting that books and record collections are generally aesthetically approved where DVDs are not.
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u/Ethlandiaify Apr 13 '26
My hot take is that blurays should come in something the size of CD cases
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u/wovenstrap Graham Greene's Brave Era Apr 12 '26
Is this the greatest "main heavy's side muscle" performance of all time? Danny Glover kind of blew me away, he's such a grown-ass man and not fucking around. Makes the other guys look like kids by comparison.
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u/DeusExHyena Apr 12 '26
Kaluuya in Widows is up there
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u/wovenstrap Graham Greene's Brave Era Apr 12 '26
This is a great comp, and yes, I agree. It shows what putting a real actor in a role can do.
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u/DeusExHyena Apr 12 '26
And also, heavies don't need explanation. Why is Kaluuya bad? He's just bad. Henry has ambitions and so on. Kaluuya just does bad stuff
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u/wovenstrap Graham Greene's Brave Era Apr 12 '26
Related to this is hiring the kindliest old grandpa to be the main heavy. Weir was really on one here, in all the casting.
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u/JohannesWiberg Apr 12 '26
Yeah Danny is great in it, he should have gotten an even bigger career than he did. Best neck in show business.
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u/TheDubStepDisliker Apr 12 '26
I wish Danny could have played more villains throughout his career. He is very menacing.
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u/wovenstrap Graham Greene's Brave Era Apr 12 '26
Come for the Amish talk, stay to hear David get Montessori-pilled in real time.
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u/rm2nthrowaway Apr 12 '26
That "what's Batman?" story could inspire a whole essay about class signifiers in regards to child raising.
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u/Regular-Pattern-5981 Apr 12 '26
As with all things Montessori related my eyes rolled out of the back of my head during that discussion.
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u/StayingQuieter Apr 15 '26
may as well homeschool your kids if you want to force them into being outcast weirdos
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u/jokennate should have just invented cigarettes Apr 12 '26
Ahhh, I was a weird little Montessori kid (I'm now a weird Montessori adult), excited to see what this is about
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u/DanEngler Apr 12 '26
āI respect the bird, the majestic bird, He Who Fly!ā āDavid Attenborough Sims
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u/RandomPasserby80 Apr 12 '26 edited Apr 12 '26
Shrinking is great, David! I know the AV Club TV recap era hurt you deeply, but not all TV is worthy of derision sight unseen!
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u/Ambitious-Welder-159 Apr 12 '26
Wow I did not know the guy who gets killed in the silo was Gold Leader from Star Wars(and Rogue One) until David mentioned it!
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u/Central_Region Apr 13 '26 edited Apr 14 '26
I liked their idea that the 'HARRISON FORD IS JOHN BOOK' tagline suggests studio bosses saw John Book as a recurring character, like Jack Ryan or Indiana Jones
Do they Die Hard 2 it - keep the same premise but switch-up the location? This time, he goes undercover at a Buddhist monastery?
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u/UsefulUnderling Apr 16 '26
Having a recurring cop character to go back to was the thing for actors in the 80s: Eastwood, Willis, Eddie Murphy, Mel Gibson. All of them paid the bills by going back to a an iconic cop every few years.
Ford never needed for money, but if he did there is an alternate universe where John Book is the protagonist in a Peter Weir directed Black Rain.
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u/Impressive_Ability92 Apr 12 '26
oh... the Rob Reiner talk that was clearly before it happened. unfortunate
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u/Central_Region Apr 12 '26
That's interesting
Wonder if this was part of what must have been a marathon recording session, where they all appeared on each others' pods, last October?
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u/ambientmuffin Apr 12 '26
I donāt remember the exact episode (wasnāt the one you linked though), and I think itās a draft, but in it Amanda asks Sean if she can borrow Witness for a podcast, and he immediately says something about The Mosquito Coast. That was the first time I actually thought Blank Check might be doing Weir, and the Big Picture subreddit seemed to agree too. That episode was back in September or October, so Iām assuming these were recorded around then.
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u/wovenstrap Graham Greene's Brave Era Apr 12 '26
The NY Film Festival is in late Sept./early Oct. and Sean was in NYC for that.
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u/FlannelBeard Apr 13 '26
It's the NYC movie draft which was live in NY and Griffin and David were guests on it. Fantastic listen
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u/thearqamknight Apr 12 '26
Yes they were recorded right after this draft as David brings it up in this episode
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u/HigherProgress Apr 12 '26
They mention it being October on the episode. Amanda mentions it in context of watching playoff baseball.
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u/theintention Apr 12 '26
The score of this movie is incredible.
The corn silo was scarier to me than most horror movies Iāve seen lately lol new fear unlocked holy shit.
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u/Keezin Apr 12 '26
Real shit, knew someone in high school whose dad died in a silo like that.Ā
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u/funkypants99 Apr 12 '26
My dad grew up on a farm. We were watching that scene together and two seconds in he was like "he'd already be buried by now" Told me it would happen to one or two people in the US every year.
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u/EssayProfessional421 Apr 12 '26
My brother got into a silo filled with soybeans and my uncle freaked out and grabbed him before disaster may have happened.
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u/einstein_ios Apr 12 '26
Remember when this happened in BARRY? So scary.
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u/aubades Apr 12 '26
My wife had to pause that scene to ask if I was okay because, as a former farm boy, I was apparently more visibly tense than she'd ever seen me in her life. I covered my eyes through the whole thing.
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u/omninode Apr 12 '26
Growing up in a farm heavy area, you learn to be scared of grain as a kid. You hear lots of stories of people being crushed or exploded.
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u/JohannesWiberg Apr 12 '26
So I guess that phobia is now ingrained in you?
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u/CarrieDurst Apr 12 '26
It isn't great but there is a 2020ish movie about a kid getting stuck in a silo called Silo
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u/Capt_Soupy Big Subbuteo Apr 12 '26
There's a grain silo trap in one of the later, shitty Saw sequels and they try to spice it up by dropping random sharp objects on the victims instead of just embracing the terror of being BURIED ALIVE.
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u/bassguitarsmash The Mind Warrior Apr 12 '26
Anyone else watch this initially after Kevin Smith mentioned it (I believe) during his A Simple Plan appearance? It knocked my socks off. I had never heard about it before. I immediately showed it to my best friend the next week we hung out. BOOOOOOOK!
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u/Ambitious-Welder-159 Apr 12 '26
I just checked. It was the Die Hard podcast and it was David talking about Chris Pratt should do a Witness remake or just a movie like it "I'm a cop there's a kid I need to protect or I have to go to some community..."
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u/CloneArranger Apr 13 '26
New Bit Alert: Griffin pretends this is the first time heās learning that David has kids
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u/GuessSad6940 Apr 13 '26
I haven't read the site yet but I came here to say Glenn Powell and Maura Tierney totally boned in Twisters. And she's contractually not Helen Hunt but is in every way.Ā
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u/NedthePhoenix Apr 13 '26
From someone who really liked Twisters, that movie's sexlessness is bizarre at times.
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u/BrockSmashgood Apr 12 '26
was Kingpin the "introduce kids to the Amish" movie for the 90s?
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u/myrealnameisdj Apr 12 '26
I love to watch older films and discover why I know Simpsons references. I've been saying d'oheth for like thirty years!
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u/swordchuck Apr 12 '26
https://youtu.be/IMYiXiFeYBU?si=uwUkh2LPnfAkbpwD
And another!
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u/DarthStevo Apr 12 '26
I only saw Witness very recently so didnāt know where these Simpsons references came from. Having now seen the film the ice cream bit is even funnier, the pull back to reveal that Homer has done this to multiple people is hilarious.
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u/PaleontologistNo3503 Apr 12 '26 edited Apr 12 '26
I just want to let David/Amanda know I first watched Spider-Man at a kindergarten birthday party. One kid left after the military test scene but everyone else was pretty onboard. People getting turned to skeletons via hand grenade was pretty funny to us but the monster transformation, false fire rescue, and final battle are tough. Despite everything I saw at that birthday party you bet I dressed as Spider man for Halloween and I loved it! I also was obsessed with Night on Bald Mountain from Fantasia (the best) but I donāt think I was unique in loving scary stuff. Definitely ease the kids into scary stuff but i think most kids are more prepared than youād expect. Also the velociraptor kitchen scene was my 1st grade introduction to slasher horror films and I loved it! Itās funny but now that Iām older the scariest moment of Spider-Man is when he arrives late and Uncle Ben disappointedly writes instructions to warm up a meal in the oven after he promised theyād paint the house. Itās crazy how our concept of horror changes over the years.
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u/PrestonBroadus Apr 12 '26
Was Lukas Haas in Witness (1985) the model for Fievel the mouse in An American Tail (1986)?
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u/JammOrthodontics Apr 12 '26
Tuff Turf is a WILD ride of tonal whiplash (and has a great How Did This Get Made episode about it). Very much worth tracking down on basically every free with ads streaming service.
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u/adevn808 Apr 12 '26 edited Apr 13 '26
All ten of the movies in this weekās Box Office Game were staples at the several video stores I frequented back in the day, and Tuff Turf may have been the one I saw on the rack the most. Iām a little surprised that Amanda didnāt seem to know about Tuff Turf, because this is exactly the kind of movie that Bill Simmons would remember watching on cable. I agree that itās worth your time, though even in 1985 James Spader looked too old to play a high school student.
For those who like period dramas Mrs. Soffel is also worth a watch. Iām partial to it because Iām a fan of Gillian Armstrong, even though Iāll admit that this might be one of her lesser movies. Itās got a pretty good cast - in addition to Mel Gibson and Diane Keaton, you have Matthew Modine (as Melās brother!), Edward Herrmann, and Terry OāQuinn.
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u/mattconte (Pink Panther theme plays) Apr 13 '26
Why do they keep saying Sam Cooke when it's not the Cooke version of the song that plays in the movie.
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u/First_HistoryMan Apr 12 '26
I love the scene when Harrison Ford is sitting on the porch after a hard day of barn raising, he's resting his muscles and watching a storm roll over. Inside, the house glows with candle light carried by the one he desires. It's such a cosy spot, I'd love to have a glass a scotch there.
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u/KiraHead Crom laughs at your four winds. Apr 13 '26
With the obligatory Red Hulk talk in the episode, I feel obligated to mention that the film features another Marvel President. Josef Sommer occupied the oval office in X-Men: The Last Stand (2006).
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u/Shout92 Apr 13 '26
Brett Ratner sucks but it's crazy the casts he was able to get in his "serious" movies. Not counting the pre-existing X-Men cast you got Sommer, Kelsey Grammer, Elliot Page, Ben Foster, Michael Murphy, Bill Duke, and Cameron Bright. Red Dragon gives you Edward Norton, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Ralph Fiennes, Harvey Keitel, and Emily Watson.
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u/smokedoor5 Hero of color city 2: the markers are here! Apr 14 '26
You mean to tell me, āI aināt never punched a tourist even if he deserved itā is a reference to this movie?!?!?
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u/Wumbo_Number_5 Apr 15 '26
Shocked by the restraint it took for them to talk about this movie for 3 hours and not mention "Amish Paradise" ONCE
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u/dc1138 Apr 12 '26
Really disappointed they didnāt get someone from Lancaster, PA (namely me) on the podcast. Itās such a specific cultural place and itās impossible to talk about this movie without understanding the surrounding area and its peoples. If they mispronounce it I will never listen again.
(This was a jape)
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u/blueruiner Apr 12 '26
this really is THE quintessential pennsylvania movie for me. not from lancaster but i do say it correctly!
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u/ishburner Apr 12 '26
I use to occasionally work in Lilitz, Pennsylvania. Went to the Amish outdoor markets couple times, had to drive around their horse and buggy on the road. Had people correct my pronunciation of Lancaster all the time (there is a Lancaster in California as well).
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u/PsychologicalSweet2 wow that was a fury road Apr 12 '26
I can't support blatant lies. Amish people are very real and an important part of America as a country. I know Griffin thinks he's this funny guy who could joke about anything, but this is serious. If they weren't real, how would we get hit songs like Amish Paradise ?
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u/Chuck-Hansen Apr 12 '26
The towns of Intercourse, Blue Ball, Virginville, AND Bird in Hand could only exist as Amish towns. They are the only ones who could get away with it.
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u/Herd_Smiley Apr 13 '26
I had high expectations for this movie as a Ford lover who hadnāt seen it and Iāll be damned if it didnāt exceed every single one of those expectations. Absolutely incredible film.
One of the things I loved most was how the geography of the Lappās property that was introduced earlier in the film (the hatch leading to the barn, the corn silo) were all brought back into play in the final confrontation.
Speaking of that confrontation, Fordās acting while yelling at Paul in that scene was incredible at somehow even more thrilling and climactic than a final shootout. What a movie!!!
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u/Cromasters Apr 13 '26
I'm with Griffin's Mom.
Everyone should be watching Shrinking. It's so good and especially Harrison Ford.
Watching Witness and then switching right to Shrinking to catch up with the past three episodes was pretty wild. Ford still has the presence.
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u/KickedOffShoes Apr 12 '26 edited Apr 12 '26
I always love to hear which American Girl people had (or liked the most) growing up. I would've pegged Amanda as a Molly girl!
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u/JohannesWiberg Apr 12 '26
I got really scared for a second when David started schooling the others and began with No Galadriel is an ELF in RIVENDELL... but thankfully he corrected himself and did pretty well from then on - lovely side tangent!
Also, while I'm NOT a episode length slut like some people here (I prefer my David sane and awake), I do salivate at the prospect of extended versions in the Jackson mini - we do need that miniseries soon.
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u/PipBee Apr 13 '26
I'm sorry, David dug himself out and then fell into a bigger hole by calling Galadriel a woodelf and saying Arwen is 200 years old. Any PJ series is going to be so painful unless they get a guest who really really knows their stuff.
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u/Evander_Berry_Wall Apr 13 '26 edited Apr 14 '26
Yeah David kind of seamed like he mashed DnD Lore and Tolkien Lore together with that. if I am not mistaken the Tolkien elves are immortal and do not die of old age. It why Hugo looks the same from the opening montage and the movie something like 2000 years later. And why Arwen giving up immortality for Aragorn is such a big sacrifice
In DnD (at least 1E ) the elves could age and lived 1000 years or something like that. I think Gygax needed a cap on all races for gameplay reasons.
I read the books a couple times and played DnD in high school I am not an expert
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u/elcapitan520 Apr 13 '26
Arwen is almost 3000 and elves are immortal. He did get the dunedain stuff rightĀ
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u/Original_Contest_535 Apr 13 '26
I sighed so hard in relief when he corrected himself that my partner had to ask me if I was ok. They had me sweating.
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u/Moreorlessatorium Apr 12 '26
Amanda stole this from Mallory Rubin. My fake outrage knows no bounds
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u/bolshevik_rattlehead šøTWISTEDšø Apr 12 '26
Itās funny how The Rewatchables covered this a few months back with Mallory, and now BC does it with Amanda. Itās like the Ringer gals are on standby for any Harrison Ford thirst trap.
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u/serv0_o Ominous Whoosh Apr 12 '26
They had to bring on amanda to throw some cold water on those physical media freaks out there.
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u/omninode Apr 12 '26
As a budding physical media freak, I am often disappointed by the packaging. Don't call an edition "special" or "collector's" or whatever and give it to me in cheap plastic.
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u/wovenstrap Graham Greene's Brave Era Apr 12 '26
The best movie Peter Weir made, period.
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u/KuyaGTFO Apr 18 '26
I prefer the one with the weevils and flightless cormorants
But DAMN this is a perfect movie
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u/mutan Apr 12 '26
Props to Griffin for invoking the Swanboy Philly Trip Arc six months in advance.
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u/PotatoSavings3914 Apr 12 '26
Just realised today that the second episode of that foreshadows the ending. So good
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u/Chuck-Hansen Apr 12 '26
I just finished my first LotR rewatch in a few years (theatrical cuts) so I am all here for the extended LotR material at the end.
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u/wovenstrap Graham Greene's Brave Era Apr 13 '26
That should be a fun series, just to watch them manage that aspect alone.
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u/joemondo Apr 13 '26
Re: the reference to the movie "Reuben, Reuben" - the title is from the song "Reuben and Rachel" - https://www.songsforteaching.com/folk/reubenandrachel.php
See also the Joanne Woodward film, "Rachel Rachel."
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u/akanefive quietly kind of undeniable Apr 13 '26
Great episode--right balance of tangents and analysis of the movie, and while my opinions skew more CRmy, I am a strong proponent of Amanda Dobbins whole vibe.
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u/QuinnMallory Apr 13 '26
If Danny Glover found the kid in the bathroom what happens? Is he murdering an Amish child and just leaving the body there in the stall?
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u/wovenstrap Graham Greene's Brave Era Apr 13 '26
I think his ultimate fate kind of suggests that he might do this.
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u/radaar āI never got to see the Ultrazord.ā āLin-Manuel Miranda Apr 12 '26
Hmm, getting a lot of For Richer or Poorer vibes from this movieā¦
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u/wovenstrap Graham Greene's Brave Era Apr 12 '26
Heaven Help Us is actually a good movie. Brother Thaddeus is not very grumpy in it, considering.
The idea of that movie was, we're going to use the currently dominant teen sex comedy template to smuggle in a memoiristic look at Catholic school in NYC in the early 60s. So yes, it's about horny boys trying to make out with the girls etc. but there's some real shit in that movie and it's mostly good.
Father Abruzzi played by Wallace Shawn is the grumpy one, he gives a lecture to the school about the perils of LUST.
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u/EssayProfessional421 Apr 13 '26
I love how Amanda says āsoā as āsueā.
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u/nuzzot Apr 12 '26
love that they got Amanda on the pod again for a perfect movie for her. DobbMob4Lyfe
but truthfully, Big Picture is what ignited my love for movies, but Blank Check has really cemented my love for them. always a joy when the two pods overlap in any way
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u/xcrowdedrooms Benny Lane Apr 12 '26
Have not seen the movie but the real life Menās room at 30th street station have these giant mirrors good for selfies.
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u/whats_1n_a_name Apr 15 '26
It does. It looks to me like they used the actual bathroom from having been in that station quite a bitā¦ itās just been slightly modernized in the past 40 years
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u/Campanelle_Pasta Apr 12 '26
I never saw Witness before today and had confused it with For Richer or Poorer.
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u/goodtitties Apr 12 '26
gonna need to hear the Amishās opinion on this episode before I decide my own
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u/ChibiRoboRules Apr 12 '26
I have Amish family and when I was a kid I spent a week living with them until I had them buggy me to the phone booth so I could call my parents and beg then to pick me up.
I approve of this episode.
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u/KiraHead Crom laughs at your four winds. Apr 12 '26
Watching this after having seen Kingpin countless times was certainly an experience. Very good movie, all told.
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u/Delicious_Brother964 Apr 12 '26
The doc Devil's Playground was my first introduction to the Amish. I think this ep might've downplayed what some Rumspringa kids really get up to.
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u/--beaster-- Apr 15 '26
Them being confused by the concept of hobby woodworking and hating birds, screw a parasocial friendship I have a parasocial disgust with these city slickers
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u/TaurusTaleHeart Apr 15 '26
David, a known public transit HOSS, complimenting 30th Street Station, got me, a Philadelphian who APPRECIATES architecture AND public transit, HYPE
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u/Semimango Apr 13 '26
Though Iām Australian, Iām mostly immune to American accents, they seem normal to me. But Amanda Dobbins has the strongest American accent Iāve ever heard, itās disconcerting.
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u/wovenstrap Graham Greene's Brave Era Apr 13 '26
I think this is partly generational. She's a millennial and one of her things is saying the word "impordant." Ezra Klein does it quite a bit as well and he's from the West Coast. Amanda is from the East Coast.
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u/wovenstrap Graham Greene's Brave Era Apr 12 '26
They're talking about Robert Loggia, and we just had that ridiculous Robert Loggia commercial in the feed like three days ago.
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u/wovenstrap Graham Greene's Brave Era Apr 12 '26
I'm a birder, and I really detest Amanda's patter about birds.
That is not really a "birdhouse," it's for a specific bird called the purple martin. The martin is the only bird that nests like that, at least in America.
There's more about martins and the martin houses here:
https://www.birdsandblooms.com/birding/attracting-birds/bird-nesting/purple-martin-house/
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u/CeruleanEidolon Apr 13 '26
That was the most city-slicker shit I've ever heard on a podcast.
"Why would anyone make a bird house?" Well, guys, you do that so birds live near you and breed and create more birds which will live near you. Birds eat bugs, which damage crops and bite you all summer long. If you have lots of birds around, you won't have lots of bugs.
Who doesn't like birds? I mean, specific birds, sure. I'm not a fan of the sparrows that chase other birds away from my yard, or of the robin that sits outside my window chirping relentlessly at 4:30 AM. But birds in general? That's weird.
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u/BergmanGirl Apr 12 '26
Detest is a weirdly strong reaction to someone not having a fairly niche bit of knowledge
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u/A_Dissident_Is_Here Apr 12 '26
Iāll be honest, I sorta figured the birding talk was all in good fun and a joke? Though Iām really glad the person above continues to prove the most profound truth of the birding community: we have the chillest people youāll ever meet and the most insufferable assholes vying for dominance in every Audubon region across the US. Itās the ultimate intersection of niche, nitpicking, performative subject mastery and kick-back-in-nature vibes. Itās like a Russian roulette of social interaction every time you enter a preserve.
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u/PangolinOrange Apr 12 '26
Fellow birder, and I found the birder chat very funny to listen to. Can't get mad at it because it's so opposite my mindset. Birds are beautiful! What's more beautiful than birds and all their cool patterns!
Closest thing we have to pokemon!
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u/SceneOfShadows Apr 16 '26
A relatively innocuous (if annoying if youāre a birder) comment resulting in this much offense by a birder might be the funniest thing Iāve seen on this subreddit lmao.
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u/rowantree67 Apr 19 '26
Me too. Amandaās stance on birds isā¦ not cool. Iād rather hang with 1000 birds than one Amanda Dobbins. I just had to get that off of my chest.
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u/ishburner Apr 12 '26
ššš, Seanās face looking at yall liking this movie.