Four Play

Our "Money Shot" arc features each of our hosts selecting a film that they believe the rest of the group will enjoy. We begin with MonteCristo's pick: Steven Spielberg's 1993 blockbuster Jurassic Park. Based on the Michael Crichton novel of the same name, this film opened to rave reviews and box office success. It also remains culturally relevant and memeable to this day. However, the film is not without its flaws, especially in the ways that John Hammond's character strays from the source material. How does this beloved classic hold up after over 30 years? Watch along with us and decide for yourself!

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We conclude our Four Play Spit Roast arc with a film that Roger Ebert inexplicably gave four stars, director Marc Webb's (500) Days of Summer from 2009. Richard, Thorin, and Monte all loathe this film for its poor writing, acting, and non-existent character arcs. A relic of hipster culture from the late 2000s, the hosts discuss the subculture from which this movie emerged and how it ends up as anti-art. Some consider this film a cult classic, we consider it absolute garbage.

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A campy werewolf murder mystery cut from the cloth of Agatha Christie's "And Then There Were None," 1972's The Beast Must Die mashes up blaxploitation and horror courtesy of Amicus Productions. Richard selected this movie for our Spit Roast arc and defends its virtues while acknowledging its awkward pacing, unnecessary scenes, and infamous "werewolf break." The casting of classic British actors like Peter Cushing and Michael Gambon strengthen the film, as does the standout performance of Calvin Lockhart in the leading role, but they can only do so much in a mess of a movie.

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Guy Ritchie's 2005 film Revolver is Thorin's selection for the Spit Roast arc, a film that tries to meld a British gangster caper with high-minded metaphysical themes. Allegedly caught up in spiritualism by his wife Madonna, Ritchie's creates an overloaded mess of a film that attempts to do everything at once and ends up doing it all quite badly. The criminal subplots overcomplicate a vapid and simplistic attempt at commentary on the importance of the subversion of the ego, often with direct and obvious footage and quotes forced upon the audience. Revolver never allows the viewer to form their own interpretation of the drama because Ritchie needs to spell out the film's meaning, leaving us a rather dull piece of art. Still, the film's style and performances give occasional glimmers and one can see the possibility of something greater not achieved.

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Four Play reviews "The 13th Warrior"

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Daniel Day Lewis' seminal final performance came in Paul Thomas Anderson's Phantom Thread from 2017. The film subverts expectations in the best possible way, appearing to be a 1950s period drama about a fashion designer and morphing into a bizarre love story that explores the darker sides of both masculinity and femineity. Phantom Thread is incredibly dense, nuances, and brimming with beautiful costumes and incredible performances. The movie demands multiple viewings and delves into themes of class distinction, the frivolity of high fashion, psychological needs, and more.

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The Master, released in 2012, might be Paul Thomas Anderson's best movie. Featuring stellar performances from Joaquin Phoenix, Philip Seymour Hoffman, and Amy Adams, The Master offers an artistically rich portrayal of a cult with parallels to Scientology. Character-driven and difficult, the film presents audiences with enigmatic characters, bizarre relationships, and unique symbolism. While certainly not for everyone, The Master is a remarkable accomplishment from a seasoned writer/director that continues to reward for repeat viewings.

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Paul Thomas Anderson's 1999 film Magnolia holds a special place in our hosts' hearts, serving up an ensemble cast playing loosely-connected characters in California's San Fernando Valley. This "slice of life" film is composed of a series of vignettes that reveal themes of regret, intergenerational trauma, confronting one's deep-seated problems, and more. While some may find it overly dramatic or lacking plot, Magnolia has aged well over the past 25 years and still provides an emotionally resonant experience. With an incredible cast consisting of Tom Cruise, Julianne Moore, William H. Macy, John C. Reilly, Philip Seymour Hoffman, and more, Magnolia also delivers astonishing and complex performances that form the heart of the film. Thorin, Richard, and Monte also dive into the Christian references within the movie and debate the meaning of the enigmatic rain of frogs at the movie's climax.

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Hard Eight kicks off our Paul Thomas Anderson arc as we focus on his first feature length film, which very few people have seen. Boasting a stunning cast of many actors before they became famous, including John C. Reilly, Philip Baker Hall, Gwyneth Paltrow, Samuel L. Jackson, and Philip Seymour Hoffman, the film delivers extraordinary performances. The movie was made on a small $3 million budget and therefore focuses on the dialogue and performances in intimate locations instead of extensive action. Hard Eight serves as a foundation for understanding PTA's oeuvre and we heartily recommend watching it before delving deeper into his catalogue.

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Denis Villeneuve's two Dune movies from 2021 and 2024 have created a massive cultural impact and are being considered a new generation's "Star Wars." Thorin, Richard, and Monte pierce the hype of these films after multiple viewings and discuss how they lack a thematic core and end up pedantically issuing a message instead of raising thoughtful questions or being open to interpretation. The films certainly present a shiny, compelling aesthetic, but the vibes are only skin deep and pale in comparison to the texture and depth of the novels. Unlike other Villeneuve films that reward rewatching, the Dune films flaws show up more heavily on repeated viewings and are unlikely to age well in the years ahead.

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Denis Villeneuve's 2015 film Sicario focuses on the drug trade and the law enforcement war on the Mexican-American border, leading the viewer into a morally ambiguous quagmire where the ends always seem to justify the means. An outstanding cast is led by Emily Blunt, Benicio del Toro, and Josh Brolin offering some of the most iconic performances of their careers and lending weight to a relatively simplistic story. As our hosts explain, Sicario works because of the performances, characters, and weighty themes that prop up a predictable narrative filled with tropes.

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In Four Play's second Denis Villeneuve film, we go back to the 2013 thriller, Prisoners. Starring Hugh Jackman and Jake Gyllenhaal in what may be career-defining performances, Prisoners foreshadows the first season of True Detective by exploring a terrifying mystery undercut by dense symbolism. Thorin, Richard, and Monte dissect the compelling moral quandaries that serve as the foundations of the film and dive into the deeper themes of Christian behavior and ends justifying the means. Prisoners is a must-watch film and only improves on multiple viewings as the viewer better appreciates the dense foreshadowing and complex plot.

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We start our new Four Play arc with our first focus on a director, Denis Villeneuve. Lately celebrated for his Dune films, we dive into his back catalog and begin with 2016's Arrival. Like Dune, Arrival is an adaptation of a science-fiction text, and takes an intellectual approach to the concept of first contact and the ensuring geo-political consequences. Ultimately, Arrival focuses on personal decisions made in the freedom of non-linear time and calls upon viewers to examine their ethics and the nature of life and death.

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The Robert Redford-led Sneakers from 1992 serves as an interesting time capsule to the late Cold War era and the dawn of computer hacking. However, the movie mostly fails in delivering a consistent tone and can't figure out whether it would rather be a high-stakes thriller or a comedic caper that relies on the quirkiness and synergy of its characters. Thorin, Richard, and Monte laugh at the hilarious plot holes and ridiculous final heist scene, but also point out the serious themes of remaking the world order and the destruction of capitalism that underpin the plot.

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Sidney Lumet's 1975 film Dog Day Afternoon focuses on an intimate cast of characters during a tense hostage negotiation after a robbery gone wrong. Touching on American social issues and adapted from a true story, the film provides a vehicle for a sympathetic powerhouse performance from a young Al Pacino. The movie deals with modern themes, such as the distorting power of the media and the implications of going to prison as the central crime spirals out of control. Monte, Richard, and Thorin discuss the historical context in which the film was made as well as the real robbery that inspired Dog Day Afternoon.

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The 1999 remake of The Thomas Crown Affair presents Pierce Brosnan as the slick, titular character indulging in a heist dripping in male fantasy. John McTiernan directs a film, in the downswing of his career, that could have been much more if it focused principally on the cat and mouse game between Brosnan and Renee Russo. The film is beautifully shot and revels in the splendid aesthetics of New York, the art world, and even Brosnan's buttocks. Watching this movie left our hosts questioning what could have been with a better script writer, supporting cast, and a more ambitious director.

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Michael Mann's 1995 film Heat finally arrives on Four Play, an inevitable addition to the show since it's one of all of our hosts' favorite films. Not only an excellent heist movie, Heat is unbelievably well-crafted with characters and a scope that smacks of Shakespearian or Greek tragedies. Richard, Thorin, and Monte discuss the themes of criminality, compulsion to vocation, and the satisfying conclusion to every character's arc. They celebrate the incredible cast, particularly the iconic performances of Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Tom Sizemore, and Val Kilmer whose interplay forms the heart of the film. Heat deserves your attention and multiple viewings. We keep coming back to it, and so should you.

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Satoshi Kon's seminal 2003 film Tokyo Godfathers explores the touching stories of three homeless people who have created a found family on the streets of Japan. While not as fantastical or surreal as Kon's other work, the film still indulges in the fantastical with a series of charming miracles and coincidences that befall the main characters. Tokyo Godfathers tackles a variety of taboo subjects in both Japan and the wider world: homelessness, sex work, organized crime, queer identities, alcohol abuse, immigration, and more with extraordinary sympathy. We recommend this film for everyone's regular Christmas viewings.

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Four Play revisits an all-time Christmas classic, Frank Capra's 1946 film It's a Wonderful Life. Notable for its saccharine ending and celebration of human kindness, the film provides a warm holiday glow in spite of overtly dark themes that permeate the majority of the story. Thorin, Richard, and Monte discuss the movie's many merits, its exploration of socialism vs capitalism, and provide historical context of post-war America. On the way, our hosts have a few laughs at some of the more ridiculous aspects of It's a Wonderful Life and James Stewart's character, George Bailey, but ultimately agree that the film deserves its reputation as a holiday staple.

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Bill Murray led film Scrooged as a 1988 re-telling of the classic Charles Dickens story A Christmas Carol, directed by Richard Donner. Four Play examines the success of this modern framing, which sees Murray as television station executive Frank Cross, who undergoes encounters with the ghosts of Christmas past, present, and future. The film serves up some brilliant satire and witty dialogue, but stumbles at the finish line with a wordy ending and a failure to live up to the meta-narrative the film creates. Our hosts still had fun and memorable time with Scrooged, but as the screenplay writers themselves admitted after the fact, it falls a tad short of being an all-time Christmas classic.

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