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'True Romance' with Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, and Sean Fennessey

September 20, 2018 · True Romance (1993) · Crime · Drama · Romance · 1:35:21

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Most Rewatchable Scene

Bill Simmons▶ 30:30Initially prefers Clarence versus Drexel scene, but is convinced to go with the Sicilian story (Hopper versus Walken)
Chris Ryan▶ 28:44The Sicilian story (Hopper versus Walken scene)
Sean Fennessey▶ 29:23The Sicilian story (Hopper versus Walken scene)

Dion Waiters Award

Bill Simmons▶ 32:09Gary Oldman — Gary Oldman as Drexel
Chris Ryan▶ 32:41Gary Oldman — Discussed Gary Oldman as Drexel extensively, praising how Tony Scott's direction elevated the character with music, lighting, and atmosphere
Sean Fennessey▶ 32:24Gary Oldman — Praised Gary Oldman as Drexel as 'a complete Tarantino original character' where 'every single word he says is entertaining'

Half-Assed Internet Research

Bill Simmons▶ 35:29Judd Apatow said the whole idea of Pineapple Express came from loving Floyd's character - they wondered what would have happened if Floyd chased the Italians
Sean Fennessey▶ 39:07Tarantino lifts two classic movie lines: 'You're just like your mother' from Rumblefish and 'Beer's all I ever eat' from The Last Picture Show
Sean Fennessey▶ 42:35Hans Zimmer score is based on a composition from the 1500s by German composer Karl Orff, which was also used in Badlands

What's Aged the Best

Bill Simmons▶ 43:39Gandolfini
Chris Ryan▶ 43:09The way it looks - Tony Scott's neon vision of urban America
Sean Fennessey▶ 43:39Gandolfini

What's Aged the Worst

Bill Simmons▶ 43:55Smoking in movie theaters and payphones, but defends both the 'eggplant speech' and Gandolfini-Arquette violence scene as still valid
Chris Ryan▶ 44:19The Sicilian speech, but provides extensive defense of controversial elements as character-driven storytelling about morally flawed people
Sean Fennessey▶ 44:08Gandolfini beating Patricia Arquette and the Drexel character, but acknowledges complexity around Tarantino's controversial elements

Casting What-Ifs

Bill Simmons▶ 53:11Drew Barrymore — Mixed on Joan Cusack for Alabama (lacks sex appeal), positive on Drew Barrymore for Alabama (could have propelled her to A-list status)
Chris Ryan▶ 52:58Joan Cusack — Strong support for Joan Cusack casting - calls Tarantino's choice 'smart and genius', compares to his successful Travolta casting in Pulp Fiction
Sean Fennessey▶ 53:16Joan Cusack — Supports Joan Cusack's potential sex appeal (references Addams Family), acknowledges Patricia Arquette was perfect casting and hard to replace

Joey Pants Award

Bill Simmons▶ 58:31Saul Rubinek — Saul Rubinek - 'This is the iconic Saul Rubinek performance to end all Saul Rubinek performances'
Chris Ryan▶ 58:39Mentions Victor Argo and Conchata Farrell as additional candidates but doesn't give a definitive pick

Apex Mountain

Bill Simmons▶ 1:13:12Christian Slater — Agreed on multiple picks: Ruben Eck (slam dunk), Christian Slater (yes, but debated between this and Heathers), Patricia Arquette (personally True Romance but career-wise Boyhood for the Oscar), Tony Scott (yes, between True Romance and Crimson Tide period), Tom Sizemore (Heat), Chris Penn (Reservoir Dogs)
Chris Ryan▶ 1:13:55Chris Penn — Participated in discussions: Christian Slater (none picked Broken Arrow/Hard Rain), Patricia Arquette (not this movie, prefers Boyhood), Christopher Walken (Deer Hunter over early 90s period), Chris Penn (Reservoir Dogs)
Sean Fennessey▶ 1:13:53Christopher Walken — Christian Slater (Pump Up the Volume because he invented podcasting), Patricia Arquette (Boyhood - she won an Oscar), Tony Scott (disagreed, thinks Top Gun over True Romance), Tom Sizemore (Heat), Chris Penn (Reservoir Dogs), Christopher Walken (early 90s period with True Romance, King of New York, Wayne's World 2)

Best Quote

Bill Simmons▶ 1:23:13It ain't white boy day, is it?
Chris Ryan▶ 1:24:04I'm the Antichrist. You got me in a vendetta kind of mood. You tell the angels in heaven you've never seen evil so singularly personified as you did in the face of the man who killed you.
Sean Fennessey▶ 1:24:28Multiple quotes including 'You know what we got here? Motherfucking Charlie Bronson. Mr. Majestic' and several others, praising Tarantino's quotable dialogue overall

Probably Unanswerable Questions

Bill Simmons▶ 1:24:35Multiple questions: the 17/20 lying tells statistic (likely Tarantino invention), why Patricia Arquette wasn't a bigger star (market corrected by Drew Barrymore), Alabama probably working in a boatyard in Mexico while Clarence is dead, Dick/Floyd lived in Los Feliz/Beachwood area, Floyd survives the Italian encounter but dies of lung disease later
Chris Ryan▶ 1:25:18Patricia Arquette had a distinctive but not mainstream-friendly vibe, Clarence is definitely dead (probably from eye surgery complications), Alabama hooks up with Harvey Keitel's character, Floyd survives the Italians (his last line in script is directions)
Sean Fennessey▶ 1:25:46Patricia Arquette was in good memorable movies like Ed Wood and Flirting with Disaster but never a huge blockbuster, she was cooler and more hard-bitten than Drew Barrymore, the Italians wouldn't kill Floyd as it would just leave a trail

Who Won the Movie

Bill Simmons▶ 1:31:09Quentin Tarantino — Quentin Tarantino - proves Reservoir Dogs wasn't a fluke, established narrative, led to Pulp Fiction, most personal of his movies with Clarence as his proxy
Chris Ryan▶ 1:29:44Quentin Tarantino — Quentin Tarantino - it minted him and provided sustainability after Reservoir Dogs
Sean Fennessey▶ 1:29:41Quentin Tarantino — Quentin Tarantino - acknowledges it wasn't a hit but agrees it's got to be Tarantino

Movies Referenced (63)

Reservoir Dogs (1992)

21 mentions · Chris Ryan, Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey▶ 2:51IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Top Gun (1986)

10 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, Sean Fennessey▶ 0:46IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Pulp Fiction (1994)

9 mentions · Chris Ryan, Sean Fennessey, Bill Simmons▶ 6:23IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Beverly Hills Cop (1984)

5 mentions · Chris Ryan, Sean Fennessey, Bill Simmons▶ 0:46IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Crimson Tide (1995)

5 mentions · Bill Simmons▶ 13:33IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Heat (1995)

5 mentions · Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey▶ 20:59IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Boyhood (2014)

3 mentions · Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, Chris Ryan▶ 1:14:10IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Broken Arrow (1996)

3 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan▶ 1:13:55IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Pineapple Express (2008)

3 mentions · Bill Simmons▶ 35:29IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Pump Up the Volume (1990)

3 mentions · Sean Fennessey, Bill Simmons▶ 14:09IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Dracula (1992)

2 mentions · Bill Simmons▶ 30:37IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Falling Down (1993)

2 mentions · Bill Simmons▶ 23:49IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Directors Referenced (14)

Tony Scott

42 mentions · Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, Chris Ryan · Known for Unstoppable, True Romance▶ 4:04IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Quentin Tarantino

41 mentions · Sean Fennessey, Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan · Known for Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction, From Dusk Till Dawn▶ 3:26IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Michael Mann

2 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan · Known for The Insider, Collateral, The Last of the Mohicans▶ 56:42IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Robert Kennedy

2 mentions · Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey▶ 1:10:35IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Clint Eastwood

1 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for Million Dollar Baby, Gran Torino, Unforgiven▶ 21:51IMDb ↗Lb ↗

David Lynch

1 mentions · Sean Fennessey▶ 1:26:01IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Kevin Costner

1 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for Dances with Wolves, Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves▶ 12:31IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Paul Thomas Anderson

1 mentions · Sean Fennessey · Known for Punch-Drunk Love, Licorice Pizza, There Will Be Blood▶ 10:13IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Ridley Scott

1 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for The Martian, Blade Runner▶ 53:42IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Robert Rodriguez

1 mentions · Bill Simmons▶ 10:02IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Ron Howard

1 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for A Beautiful Mind▶ 59:25IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Stanley Kubrick

1 mentions · Chris Ryan · Known for 2001: A Space Odyssey, A Clockwork Orange, Barry Lyndon▶ 4:32IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Actors Referenced (69)

Patricia Arquette

29 mentions · Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, Chris Ryan · Known for True Romance, Boyhood▶ 17:11IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Christian Slater

20 mentions · Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, Chris Ryan · Known for Very Bad Things, True Romance, Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves▶ 4:26IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Gary Oldman

20 mentions · Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, Chris Ryan · Known for Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, The Dark Knight, Darkest Hour▶ 4:58IMDb ↗Lb ↗

James Gandolfini

19 mentions · Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, Chris Ryan · Known for Enough Said, Get Shorty▶ 20:22IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Dennis Hopper

17 mentions · Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, Chris Ryan · Known for Easy Rider, Blue Velvet, Speed▶ 4:35IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Brad Pitt

13 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, Sean Fennessey · Known for Fight Club, 12 Monkeys, Mr. & Mrs. Smith▶ 15:20IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Christopher Walken

13 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, Sean Fennessey · Known for Catch Me If You Can, The Deer Hunter▶ 4:35IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Tom Sizemore

13 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan · Known for Saving Private Ryan, Black Hawk Down▶ 6:15IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Joel Silver

11 mentions · Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, Chris Ryan · Known for The Nice Guys, The Matrix▶ 13:12IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Val Kilmer

10 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, Sean Fennessey · Known for The Doors, The Saint, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang▶ 16:10IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Bronson Pinchot

8 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, Sean Fennessey · Known for Beverly Hills Cop, True Romance, Risky Business▶ 20:14IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Drew Barrymore

8 mentions · Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, Chris Ryan · Known for Charlie's Angels, 50 First Dates, Never Been Kissed▶ 53:42IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Writers Referenced (10)

Roger Ebert

5 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan▶ 8:41IMDb ↗Lb ↗

William Goldman

2 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, All the President's Men, The Princess Bride▶ 10:38IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Carl Orff

1 mentions · Sean Fennessey · Known for Natural Born Killers▶ 42:42IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Charles Addams

1 mentions · Sean Fennessey · Known for The Addams Family▶ 53:22IMDb ↗Lb ↗

David Letterman

1 mentions · Sean Fennessey▶ 1:26:28IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Elmore Leonard

1 mentions · Chris Ryan · Known for Out of Sight, Get Shorty▶ 5:47IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Jerry Bruckheimer

1 mentions · Chris Ryan · Known for Top Gun: Maverick, Armageddon▶ 11:50IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Jon Favreau

1 mentions · Sean Fennessey · Known for Chef, Iron Man, Swingers▶ 41:17IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Judd Apatow

1 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for The King of Staten Island, Knocked Up▶ 35:29IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Shane Black

1 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for Predator, The Nice Guys, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang▶ 13:01IMDb ↗Lb ↗