Hola, Sneakers! Welcome to Episode 389! The episode where we can prematurely begin the countdown to Episode 403. Only fourteen more episodes to go! (I think. I didn’t really do the math.)
This week on Sneaky Dragon: spikeball returns; prize winners; poor reception; Reubens; character and plot; authors and thier characters; inspirations; feeling real; writing coincidences; how to stop Sneaky Dragon; Question of the Week – Sneakers respond; commercial dads; thoughts on Yosemite Sam; making our Batman pitch; welcoming new genres; opening this week; lost dogs; obnoxious Christian movies; and, finally, foreskinners.
Thanks for listening.
Question of the Week: What should replace superheroes at the movies?
Sub-question: What percent of milk do you drink? Homogenized? 1%? 2%? Skim???
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Question: What should replace superheroes at the movies?
My Answer: Original and well written stories.
I’d like to see some films that I could take my mom to that look fantastic on a big screen. She’s not into superheroes or space wars or impossible missions, so it’s hard to find a film to see together that has a compelling theme and characters she can root for. She likes stories set in different locations around the world so they could be along the lines of The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel or Life of Pi. We took her to see The Favourite this year, but although it had great acting and production values, the characters were all pretty despicable.
Speaking of despicable, I cringe when I see trailers for movies like Breakthrough. I think it’s cruel to imply that with the right kind and/or amount of prayer, you can be granted a miracle. They never answer the question of why some people make it out of comas and others don’t — other than to say it’s all part of the plan.
2%. Skim milk is just wrong.
Even though I’m still enjoying the superhero genre as if I were twelve years-old again, there is another selfish need I have in mind. Before Star Wars, Superman and Indiana Jones, I was an avid reader of the OZ books by L. Frank Baum. These were my escape much the way Harry Potter is for many these days or even Narnia.
Originally mesmerized by the MGM Wizard of Oz film at an early age, the books were my next step, but they’re different…really different. I never even considered these books as movies when I was young because of the bizarre over the top stories, so I just read them over and over and drew pictures of what I read. Many years later, Disney attempted “Return to Oz,” which was kind of a Jim Henson-ish practical effect film based on the combination of the two OZ books that follow the first original Wizard of OZ book, but it was enough to plant the seed in my brain.
It wasn’t until after I saw the Fellowship of the Ring that I realized a big production, faithful adaptation of the Wizard of OZ books could probably be produced. The Lord of the Rings was such an accomplishment, why not OZ? The answer is not even about the task of producing such a film, but the competition from it’s own beloved MGM adaptation. I don’t think audiences would embrace a Lord of the Rings-esque OZ film when they already love the MGM adaptation so much, kind of like what happened with the Willy Wonka/Charlie and the Chocolate Factory adaptations. I don’t know anyone who liked the Burton version and I think that would be the same fate for OZ. Even though the selfish OZ fan inside me still dreams of seeing a faithful adapted film, I don’t think it’ll ever happen.
Otherwise, I think I’d like to see some good western films at the forefront again, who doesn’t love a good western?
I LOVE milk, usually 2% in our house. But I can only have a little since I’m a type 2 diabetic…and that suuuucks.
As always, you guys rule the internet with your podcast and I’m hopelessly addicted, so don’t ever go away! Please!
Soy milk for tea and homemade vegan mayo. Creamy oat milk for coffee, cereal and sauces. Environmentally-friendly, cruelty free and delicious!
I’d like to recommend this movie to Louise for her mom; maybe she won’t like it – Dave didn’t like the horse part so much in the middle but also thought it was an eye-opener to a part of the horse world he had never seen before.
Me, I loved it.
Aside from the horse part of it, I kind of saw it as a love letter to the American West. I thought it was beautifully filmed. You’re probably too late to see it on the big screen, though, sadly.
Which movie though?
Huh. Aren’t you all psychic? It’s Lean on Pete, of course!
Thanks for the recommendation, Lezah. My mom and I watch those veterinarian reality shows on TV so I think she’d be okay watching the horse world part of the movie. I’ll look for it on our streaming services/movie channels.