BROADCASTS.com

On the podcast this week, Steven and Sean are pissing off L.A. tough guys, disposing of bodies, and maybe starring in a big-time Hollywood movie with the 2005 Shane Black film, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang.

We all want to be in the pictures, right? I mean, who out there doesn\u2019t? Imagine seeing your name up in lights and having crowds of adoring fans around you, asking for your autograph. You could find yourself in front of a camera lens and acting opposite a legend of the biz. You could be up there with Bogart, Garland, and all the rest. Show me someone that isn\u2019t attracted to that sort of life and I\u2019ll show you someone who\u2019s lying.\xa0

I mean, The Kinks even made a song about it, yeah? Celluloid Heroes. Even rock stars are singing about it. Erm, wait\u2026 That one had a pretty sad message, I think. How did it go?

\u201cYou can see all the stars as you walk along Hollywood Boulevard.
Some that you recognize. Some that you\u2019ve hardly even heard of.
People who worked and suffered and struggled for fame.
Some who succeeded and some who suffered in vain.\u201d

Okay, maybe we shouldn\u2019t aspire to put ourselves through that sort of near-definite torment. Sure, it would be cool to be flown out to L.A., hobnob with all the good-looking, Southern California people, and be put up in a fancy hotel for a while. Maybe you\u2019ll even be shown around by a private investigator named \u201cGay Perry.\u201d He might even look vaguely like Val Kilmer. Wouldn\u2019t that be swell?

It happened to Robert Downey, Jr.\u2019s character in this film. Harry had a pretty good thing going on. Pretty good, that is, until he lost a finger and had his balls zapped with what amounted to a car battery. Look, you win some and you lose some. At least he got to reconnect with an impetuous and knockout dame. Things ended up going pretty well for him, all things considered.

Still, though, he also got shot in the chest. That\u2019s not too great. Nobody wants to end up in the hospital because they need to have a bullet removed from their body.

Look, all we\u2019re saying is this movie is really well-done. The writing is the sort of Shane Black perfection you\u2019ve come to expect from him, there\u2019s masterful acting happening, and the story is just so damn fun. It\u2019s a modern telling of the hard-boiled detective novels everyone should indulge in at least once in their lives. They\u2019re fun as hell. They make life more enjoyable, like this movie does. Makes you wonder, Maybe dreaming of being a Hollywood movie star isn\u2019t so bad? I mean, The Kinks also sang,

\u201cI wish my life was a non-stop Hollywood movie show,
A fantasy world of celluloid villains and heroes.
Because celluloid heroes never feel any pain,
And celluloid heroes never really die.\u201d

That ain\u2019t too bad.

(Recorded on November 09, 2020)

Links to Stuff We Mentioned:

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang - IMDb

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang trailer - YouTube

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer - IMDb

Frosty the Snowman - IMDb

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation - IMDb

Jingle All the Way - IMDb

Die Hard - IMDb

Home Alone - IMDb

RATED-R Home Alone | Corridor Digital - YouTube

(The always great Corridor Digital guys made Home Alone R-rated and it is gruesome and amazing.)