Spoilerpiece Theatre Episode 102: The Neon Demon
In Episode 102 below, we review The Neon Demon, Swiss Army Man, and McCabe & Mrs. Miller. This week Kris and I explain what “Rick Rolling” is to Charlie Nash, who is filling in for Dave. Then all three of us speculate why we think Independence Day: Resurgence (at 5:28) wasn’t screened for the press before its release. After some discussion about Jeff Goldblum, San Andreas, and Roland Emmerich disaster movies like 2012, we jump into the week’s films. First up is Nicolas Winding Refn’s The Neon Demon (at 13:44), a sick, twisted picture that we love, even though it’s fucked up and vile in every sense of the word. Our conversation about a particularly jarring scene involving a dead body allows for a convenient transition into Charlie’s take on Swiss Army Man (at 50:22), a movie where Paul Dano learns to survive on a desert island with Daniel Radcliffe’s farting corpse. Charlie admits that it feels very Sundancey for its story about a nerdy guy trying to get back to a girl, but he is surprised by how much he likes it. Finally, he wraps up with his quick thoughts on McCabe & Mrs. Miller (at 58:32), which played in Boston at the Brattle Theatre. Charlie shares why it’s one of his top five westerns of all time, and why Robert Altman’s film immerses you in a world that feels lived in.