Grays Almanac

Home/Episodes/Fight Club

‘Fight Club’ With Bill Simmons and Chris Ryan

July 20, 2021 · Fight Club (1999) · Crime · Drama · Thriller · 1:40:52

IMDb ↗Letterboxd ↗

Categories

Most Rewatchable Scene

Bill Simmons▶ 58:13Multiple scenes including the opening Ikea/insomnia scene, Tyler's 'things you own end up owning you' scene, Tyler's speech to Fight Club with Lou cameo, and the starting a fight with strangers montage - but ultimately picks 'the speech, the Lou cameo and the starting a fight with the stranger montage that whole section'
Chris Ryan▶ 58:05The first fight scene at the bar - 'my most rewatchable scene is just like the bar and then their first fight'

Joey Pants Award

Bill Simmons▶ 1:15:27Holt McCallany — Narrator's boss - mentions Holt McCallany as a possibility but says 'it's got to be narrator's boss'
Chris Ryan▶ 1:15:34Holt McCallany — Narrator's boss - agrees with another host's pick

Apex Mountain

Bill Simmons▶ 1:24:20Edward Norton — Yes for Ed Norton, No for Brad Pitt, No for Fincher (still Social Network), Maybe for Rosie O'Donnell, Yes for movie twists (1999), Yes for Helena Bonham Carter, No for The Pixies, Yes for IKEA, No for unreliable narrators
Chris Ryan▶ 1:24:34Edward Norton — Agrees Ed Norton was never as big a star as at this moment, thinks Rosie O'Donnell peaked fighting with Meghan McCain, agrees 1999 was apex for movie twists, thinks Fight Club started the trend of ending with pop songs

Probably Unanswerable Questions

Bill Simmons▶ 1:29:29Discusses multiple questions: narrator's name is Jack, MMA training would have ruined Fight Club by 2004, Reddit/Twitter replaced Fight Club's function, and makes Trump/Tyler Durden cult personality comparison
Chris Ryan▶ 1:30:01Agrees narrator's name is Jack, says the movie didn't create anti-heroes because most viewers see Norton as a good guy, and discusses how social media replaced Fight Club's cultish devotion

Who Won the Movie

Bill Simmons▶ 1:35:04Brad Pitt — Brad Pitt - argues Pitt needed this movie more than Fincher at this point in their careers, and it's an iconic 90s performance that pushed his career to a different level
Chris Ryan▶ 1:34:43Brad Pitt — Brad Pitt - describes it as a rock star performance that makes the movie jump up five notches every time he's on screen

Movies Referenced (50)

The Game (1997)

8 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan▶ 7:39IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Goodfellas (1990)

5 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan▶ 8:27IMDb ↗Lb ↗

The Sixth Sense (1999)

5 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan▶ 43:25IMDb ↗Lb ↗

American History X (1998)

4 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan▶ 37:14IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Boogie Nights (1997)

4 mentions · Bill Simmons▶ 8:15IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Moneyball (2011)

4 mentions · Bill Simmons▶ 35:42IMDb ↗Lb ↗

25th Hour (2002)

3 mentions · Bill Simmons▶ 38:04IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Meet Joe Black (1998)

3 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan▶ 33:36IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Ocean's Eleven (2001)

3 mentions · Bill Simmons▶ 35:38IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Primal Fear (1996)

3 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan▶ 37:07IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Almost Famous (2000)

2 mentions · Bill Simmons▶ 8:15IMDb ↗Lb ↗

American Beauty (1999)

2 mentions · Bill Simmons▶ 42:43IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Directors Referenced (9)

David Fincher

26 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan · Known for Se7en, Gone Girl, Zodiac▶ 7:39IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Sean Penn

3 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for Mystic River, 21 Grams, Dead Man Walking▶ 38:42IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Michael Mann

2 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for The Insider, Collateral, The Last of the Mohicans▶ 44:29IMDb ↗Lb ↗

M. Night Shyamalan

1 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for Signs, Lady in the Water, The Village▶ 44:32IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Milos Forman

1 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Amadeus▶ 39:08IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Richard Linklater

1 mentions · Chris Ryan · Known for Waking Life, Before Midnight▶ 5:20IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Sam Mendes

1 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for 1917, Road to Perdition▶ 44:23IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Wes Anderson

1 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for The Royal Tenenbaums, Isle of Dogs▶ 19:49IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Woody Allen

1 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for Annie Hall, Deconstructing Harry▶ 37:09IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Actors Referenced (34)

Edward Norton

35 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan · Known for Fight Club, American History X, Primal Fear▶ 2:31IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Brad Pitt

13 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan · Known for Fight Club, 12 Monkeys, Mr. & Mrs. Smith▶ 7:37IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Matt Damon

11 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan · Known for Good Will Hunting, The Martian, The Departed▶ 38:35IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Robert Redford

6 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan · Known for The Natural, Ordinary People, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid▶ 34:44IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Ben Stiller

3 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for Tropic Thunder, Zoolander▶ 16:55IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Jim Carrey

3 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for Ace Ventura: Pet Detective, Bruce Almighty, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind▶ 21:38IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Michael Clark

3 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan · Known for Kelly's Heroes▶ 43:06IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Russell Crowe

3 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan · Known for Gladiator, A Beautiful Mind▶ 42:45IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Tom Cruise

3 mentions · Chris Ryan, Bill Simmons · Known for Top Gun, Minority Report▶ 23:50IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Andy Kaufman

2 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for Man on the Moon▶ 38:48IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Angelina Jolie

2 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for Maleficent, Changeling▶ 35:46IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Chris O'Donnell

2 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for Scent of a Woman▶ 40:06IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Writers Referenced (4)

Chuck Palahniuk

3 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for Fight Club▶ 11:47IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Andrew Kevin Walker

2 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for The Killer, Se7en▶ 14:42IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Laura Ziskin

2 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for What About Bob?, No Way Out▶ 21:31IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Spike Jonze

1 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for Three Kings▶ 44:25IMDb ↗Lb ↗