Hold Up

The Boondock Saints

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. 

Coming to America

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.

Dances With Wolves

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.

Last of the Mohicans

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.

Tootsie

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.

City Slickers

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. 

Tombstone

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.

Pulp Fiction

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.

The Odd Couple

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.

The Great Escape

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.