Forbes recently released a list of celebrity billionaires and several Hollywood directors made the list. Mike decided to take a look at the Top 10 richest directors, their highest grossing movies and their impact on cinema. In the Movie Review, Mike talks about the new Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire and how he wasn’t expecting to enjoy it as much as he did. Mike talks about the legacy of the franchise, why nerds are upset about this movie and how it greatly improves from Ghostbusters: Afterlife. In the Trailer Park, Mike takes a look at the reboot of "The Crow" that stars Bill Skarsgård and FKA Twigs. And answers the questions: is this a movie that shouldn’t be remade? Mike also talks about how he met his favorite artist, Post Malone last week at the Ryman in Nashville.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hello, and welcome back to movie Mike's Movie Podcast. I
am your host Movie Mike. Today, I want to look
at the list of the richest directors in Hollywood right now,
proving that you can be a nerd and make a
lot of money. In some cases, these nerds are billionaires.
So we'll take a look at that list. In the
movie review, I'll give you my thoughts on the new
Ghostbusters movie Ghostbusters Frozen Empire and why it was much
(00:22):
better than I was anticipating in the trailer park. It's
a very controversial movie being remade. We'll take a look
at The Crow coming out later in theaters this summer,
and that I'll also let you know about how I'm
at Post Malone. So thank you for being here, Thank
you for listening. Shout out to the Monday Morning movie crew.
He Now, let's talk movies.
Speaker 2 (00:41):
In a world where everyone and their mother has a podcast,
one man stands to infiltrate the ears of listeners like
never before in a movie podcast.
Speaker 1 (00:52):
A man with so much movie knowledge, he's basically like.
Speaker 2 (00:55):
A walking IMTB with glasses. From the Nashville pod networking
Movie Mike's Movie.
Speaker 1 (01:03):
Pot I was caught off guard by Forbes latest list
of the richest celebrities right now that at the top
of that list there were two directors. Just thinking of
celebrities in general, I love directors. Oftentimes I'm more a
fan of individual directors than I am actors. That is
(01:23):
kind of how I follow movies, and I know they
make a lot of money. But when I think about
the richest people, I think it has to be people
in front of the camera, not behind the camera. Not
the case in this instance. So after seeing that, I
decided to go do some more investigative research and see
who are the top ten highest paid directors in Hollywood
(01:45):
right now. I'm gonna break down the list. I'll give
you their highest grossing movies. I'll give you my thoughts
on some of the surprises which I found while making
this list. So let's get right into it. At number
ten is Christopher Nolan, who has a net worth of
two hundred and fifty million dollars. His net worth is
only going to increase, and he's been in the game
(02:05):
for a while now, but now finally getting his first Oscar,
his rate is about to get so much higher. And
a director that has had a lot of box office
success all of his movies combined have grossed six billion
dollars at the box office. His films include Memento, The
(02:26):
Dark Knight, That Whole Trilogy, Inception Tenant Like I said,
just crushed it last year with Oppenheimer, which he was
paid an estimated seventy two million dollars. A report from
Forbes said that he was able to negotiate fifteen percent
of first dollar gross on Oppenheimer, which reduced his upfront fees.
(02:46):
But since that movie became one of the highest grossing
movies of last year, not only that one of the
highest grossing R rated movies of all time, he cashed
in big on that movie. His three highest grossing movies
so far have been well already. At number three is Oppenheimer,
which made nine hundred and fifty three million dollars. At
number two is The Dark Knight from two thousand and eight,
(03:08):
which made one point oh two billion dollars, And at
number one is The Dark Knight Rises in twenty twelve,
which made one point one one billion dollars. And Christopher
Nolan is able to walk that line of make movies
that are not only critically acclaimed but also that are
(03:28):
really popular with audiences. So if you look at his
scores online, he gets great critics scores, great audience scores.
Sometimes he'll put out a movie like Tenant and we
don't completely understand it, but we still stay in Christopher Nolan.
So I'm glad to see him in the top ten.
I think give him another two movies, especially now that
he's won that Oscar, he will easily get into that
(03:50):
top five. At number nine is JJ Abrams with a
net worth of three hundred million dollars. Honestly, I kind
of forgot about jj Abrams. I was a real big
fan of his movies when I feel like he was
one of the most in demand directors in the twenty tens.
But I feel like now he's kind of taken a
step back a little bit more on the producing side.
(04:14):
And I would always get really excited at anytime a
new JJ Abrams movie came out, and he's crossed that
line between Star Wars and Star Trek, and we still
as nerds love him all the same. And early on
he found a lot of success in TV shows, which
shows like Lost, Alias and Fringe. That is really where
I got to know his work first. But he's also
written and produced movies like Forever Young, Armageddon, Cloverfield, and
(04:36):
then directed movies like Mission Impossible three and Super eight,
and that has earned him three hundred million dollars. His
top three highest grossing movies of all time have all
been in the Star Wars franchise. At number three, Episode
four made one point oh seven billion dollars, The Last
Jedi at number two, made one point thirty three billion dollars,
and The Force Awakens is at number one with two
(04:59):
point zero six billion dollars. This one, I'm a little
bit surprised by. I think that was greatly due to
the success of The Force Awakened, which set so many
big records, had the highest grossing opening weekend and the
fastest for a movie to reach one billion dollars, as
well as other several imax records, and still making the
(05:20):
two billion dollars overall. That went down a little bit
as some people started hating on the franchise, but he
still got paid and it put him at number nine
at the list. So a little surprised with that one,
but it just reminds me that I want to see
a new jj Airbrams film soon. At number eight is
Ridley Scott with a net worth of four hundred million dollars.
(05:41):
Not even American, he is English. He is the director
of movies like Alien, so he's I would say, primarily
known for his science fiction, but he has done every
single genre really well. He's also done crime movies, historical dramas,
which the last one I didn't really love Napoleon, but
I think he will make up for it this year
with Gladiator two. But his three highest grossing movies of
(06:04):
all time are at number three Prometheus from twenty twelve,
which made four hundred and three million dollars. At number
two is Gladiator from two thousand that made five hundred
and three million dollars worldwide, and at number one is
The Martian, his biggest success, and I'm going to say
only made six hundred and ten million dollars, which is
still a lot of money, over half a billion dollars,
(06:24):
but if you look at the two directors before him,
he doesn't have a billion dollar movie. But he has
been in the game for a very long time, and
maybe for that reason he is able to negotiate more
for every single movie that he does, because I think
there has to be some other factor contributing to his
(06:45):
almost net worth of half a billion dollars. I mean,
he's a solid director, but to have him at number
eight above JJ Abrams and Christopher Nolan still surprising. So
kind of doo surprises there in a row. At number
seven Francis Ford Coppola, with a networth also of four
hundred million dollars. He's best known for the Godfather of trilogy.
(07:06):
He's won five Oscars, not only for directing but also
for writing. His top three highest grossing movies of all
time have been at number three, The Godfather Part three,
which made one hundred and thirty six million dollars, Dracula
from ninety two made two hundred and fifteen million dollars,
and at number one, The Godfather from nineteen seventy two
(07:27):
made two hundred and fifty million dollars. So again, it's
not about how much you make on each individual movie,
because his top three highest grossing movies have earned less
than Ridley Scott's number one. But man, the Coppola family
has some money because his daughter Sophia Coppola is also
a really well established director, and his nephew Nicholas Cage,
(07:52):
who was actually Nicholas Coppola, has also done really well
in his acting career. So overall, Copola fan Family eight
hurtin whatsoever. I would like to go to their family
reunion and just start asking people if I can borrow
some money. Hey, I know you're good for it. At
number six is Michael Bay, with a net worth of
(08:12):
four hundred and fifty billion dollars. A lot of explosions
probably went into making that net worth, a lot of
lens flair, a lot of overtly ridiculous action that has
been the Michael Bay brand for decades now. And he
is not a director that is going to win an
(08:32):
Academy Award, but that is fine. I think he truly
speaks to audiences that love big dumb action, and he
does it really well. He's also done a little bit
more serious movies too. He's known for movies like Pearl Harbor, Armageddon.
But really where he has made the majority of his
fortune and really solidified his identity is the Transformers movies,
(08:55):
which have grossed just that franchise seven point eight billion
dollars at the office. So this one is not surprising
to me whatsoever, because that is why he is so successful.
It's not that his movies are critically acclaimed or he
wins these awards, it's because he knows how to make
movies that demand the big screen. His top three highest
(09:16):
grossing movies are all Transformers movies. Actually, his entire top
five are all Transformers movies. So I've been doing top three,
but since his are all in the same franchise, I'll
go top five. And number five is The Last Night
from twenty seventeen, six to oh five million, and number
four is the original Transformers from two thousand and seven,
(09:37):
which made seven hundred and ten million and kicked off
this entire empire of money. At number three is Revenge
of the fall In making eight hundred and thirty seven million.
At number two is Age of Extinction from twenty fourteen,
making one point one billion dollars. The height of it,
but at number one is Dark of the Moon from
twenty eleven, making one point two billion dollars, And I
(10:00):
kind of forget that I've seen every single Transformers movie,
even the bad ones like the one with Mark Wahlberg,
is still enjoyable because he has all this big, dumb,
high flying action that is still a spectacle to see.
So even though plot lines may be filled with holes,
the dialogue might be cringey at times, and some of
(10:22):
the flashy special effects just don't really age entirely. Well,
they've all been really big blockbuster movies, so he has
gotten away from the Transformers franchise, still produces some of them,
but doesn't direct them anymore. But even still, movies like
Ambulance with Jake Jillenhall I really enjoy and still have
that Michael Bay feel. And even though he's not a
(10:44):
part of the Bad Boys' movies anymore, they still all
have his aesthetics. So he has greatly identified and showed
us what his voice is as a director, as it
continues to live on because it's inspired so many other filmmakers,
because it works. It gets the peace people going, it
gets the butts in the seats. At number five is
(11:04):
James Cameron. He has a net worth of eight hundred
million dollars, and not only that, he is responsible for
three of the highest grossing movies of all time, Titanic,
Avatar One, and Avatar The Way of Water. So his
top three highest grossing movies of all time have made
one point nine billion dollars. For the Way of Water,
(11:25):
which came out back in twenty twenty two. At number
two is Titanic, which made two point one billion dollars
and at number one still holds the record because it
was thrown back into theaters when Way of Water came
out and it was able to overtake Endgame, which they
kind of do this battle every now and then. But
Avatar has made three billion dollars three billion dollars at
(11:47):
the box office. And for the longest time, I was
not a fan of James Cameron because I didn't really
get it. And then as I rewatched some of his movies,
go back and watching like it was like Turninator, I
start to realize his real greatness. And it was once
the Avatar movies finally clicked with me. It allowed me
(12:08):
to see that nobody can do what he does, make
movies that are so big and elaborate and create really
big works of art almost out of thin air. I
feel like the average person or even a good director,
couldn't even begin to think how to develop a movie
(12:29):
like Avatar, a movie I thought was so overhyped when
it first came out back in two thousand and nine.
But now I start to see his vision and as
ridiculous as it sounds, that he has Part three, Part four,
and Part five all planned out already, and it sounds
just like, what are you talking about? You to keep
making these movies for so long, But they make a
lot of money, and they work so well internationally, which
(12:52):
I think is also a great contributor to his box
office numbers. I think the best decision he made was
making these character's blue, because they are not identifiable whatsoever
to a country or a type of person. They are
really just a blank canvas that you switch out the
language and anybody can put themselves in those movies. So
(13:13):
I think that's why those movies do so well. And
then Titanic obviously is one of the best movies of
all time, so I'm giving credit where credit is due
at number five, not that I paid him, but James
Cameron with eight hundred million dollars getting in further to
the top five. Now at number four is Tyler Perry,
who was also number eight on this Forbes list overall,
(13:34):
so he's number four as a director, but in every
single celebrity out there, he is number eight. This is
where the list starts to get crazy, and I feel
like Tyler Perry is somebody left off the list. Of
great directors. And I think the reason that is it's
unfair that some people don't see media movies as quote
unquote cinema. That's not me. I love every type of movie.
(14:00):
I think movies are supposed to be escapism. If they
distract you from your daily life, they have done their job.
They can be as ridiculous as Tyler Perry dressing up
like Medea. That's what movies are. They are entertainment. They
don't have to have some level of sophistication. If a
movie is able to bring joy to somebody, they are cinema.
And I feel like some people doing this list would
(14:22):
even leave him off because of his work. I saw
some lists leaving him off, like he is a filmmaker,
he is an actor. He is a writer and director.
So in these movies, he's doing it all. He'll write it,
he'll direct it, he'll start it. That is amazing, and
it's earned him a network of one point four billion dollars.
We have our first billionaire on the list. He's only
(14:43):
fifty four years old. He has a three decade career
in acting and TV and movies and stage plays. He
does also so much to give back. His three highest
grossing movies of all time have been Media's Family Reunion
making sixty three million dollars, Medias Witness Protection made sixty
five million dollars and is number one. Medie Goes to
(15:04):
Joe making ninety million dollars. And you may be saying, well,
that's so much lower than all the other movies on
the list, But these movies cost way less to make
than all the other movies we've been mentioning on this
list because they don't have that same big Hollywood budget.
But he has better margins and he has created this
(15:25):
empire where he is making a lot more money off
of those box office numbers because he is involved in
every single aspect. He has his entire production company, so
he is really the captain of his own ship, and
that is how you become a billionaire. At number three
on the list is Peter Jackson, who on the normal
(15:46):
Celebrities list is right above Tyler Perry at number seven,
so Therey's seven on this list, he is number three.
He is the director of movies like The Lord of
the Rings, The Hobbit, King Kong. Sixty two years old.
He is from New Zealand and he is worth one
point five billion dollars and we are now in the
top three of this list, and you're gonna see why
because they are hardcore nerds. So for me, somebody who
(16:09):
is very passionate about things that other people tend to
not care about, this brings me joy. This brings me happiness.
This also gives me hope because growing up the things
I liked were seeing is lame, geeky, and it's those
things that are just a little bit different but so
specific are what earned people so much praise because you
(16:30):
are able to identify with a different group of people
by getting so nerdy. And Peter Jackson is a visionary
director and created arguably one of the best trilogies of
all time. And I've said historically on this podcast that
I do not like the Lord of the Rings movies
all that much when it comes to my level of nerdiness,
just not my brand of movie. But I can respect
(16:51):
their greatness. I can respect the fact that they earned
a lot of money at the box office and have
also been a critics darling and earned a lot of award.
Peter Jackson has done amazing things. Movies are still just
not for me. I have been challenged by a member
of the movie crew to rewatch all those movies see
if I still feel that way about them. It is
(17:11):
about a nine hour investment, so I haven't had time
to carve out to do that, but I will do
that this year. I promise you, I will rewatch the
Lord of the Rings movies and the verdict will be
out on whether or not I still think are not
that great. But his top three highest grossing movies of
all time, only one of them is a actual Lord
of the Rings movie. At the other are the Lord
of the Rings stories, and number three is The Hobbit
(17:33):
The Battle of Five Armies, which made nine hundred and
sixty two million. At number two is The Hobbit An
Unexpected Journey, making one point one seven billion dollars, and
at number one is The Lord of the Rings Return
of the King, making one point one four six billion
dollars at the box office. He's also won several Academy
Awards for Best Director and number three. Peter Jackson at
(17:55):
number two, and also number two on the overall list
of richest celebrities, so he makes it at the top
of both. It is Steven Spielberg. I mean, when I
just think of movies and think of directors. I think
of Steven Spielberg because he has made movies that are
just all out classics that everybody has seen, what I
(18:16):
would consider to be essential films, not only for movie lovers,
but for everybody, Movies that we all grew up with
and just know to be in. Oftentimes just the mount
rushmore of movies, talking movies like Jaws Et, Jurassic Park,
Indiana Jones. The list goes on and on of iconic
movies that are all Spielberg movies. He's been on this
(18:40):
list since nineteen ninety four as being one of the
richest celebrities. Steven Spielberg is so rich that he says
he hasn't taken a salary in almost a decade now,
meaning he doesn't take any money up front. Instead, what
he does is what you can do as a director
at his level, is negotiate to get a percentage of
(19:00):
the sales of his movies. And not only that, he
still gets a slice of every ticket sold at Universal
theme parks thanks to the Indiana Jones series. So that's
a whole other level here that we're gonna see is
creating movies and owning ips that you can license out.
That is where the real money is. That is why
he has a net worth of four point eight billion dollars.
(19:22):
Is because not only do his movies make so much
at the box office, but you're talking mert celles, licensing,
theme parks, everything related to the movie. He creates worlds.
He is the fabric of imagination in America. So it's
making movies that inspire fandoms and things you not only
(19:42):
want to experience in the theater, but also go have
some kind of experience in the real world where you
can see and feel and interact with these movies. Because
look at its highest grossing movies at number eight, Jaws
and Saving Private Ryan Ready Player one, War the World's
The Lost World, Durrassic Park three or Indiana, Jones and
The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull making seven hundred and
(20:03):
eighty six million dollars, and number two is Et seven
hundred and ninety two million dollars. And at number one
is Jurassic Park making one point oh four billion dollars.
And that's just in his top eight all classics. Not
a bad movie in the top eight. I don't think
he's made a bad movie. He's made some that all right, mediocre.
(20:24):
Didn't really nail it with that one, but it's still
a good movie because you're Spielberg. He is such a
great director that I don't even need to list him
in my favorite directors. He is in a category all
on his own. He is just cinema to me, because
it almost seems unreal that one person could be responsible
for all of these classics. So at number two four
point eight billion dollars Steven Spielberg. And at number one,
(20:47):
the biggest nerd of all, who is also number one
overall on this entire Richest Celebrities list, is George Lucas,
the director of Star Wars who also created it. He
first viewed as a billionaire back in nineteen ninety seven.
And it's all because of Lucasfilms, which he sold to
Disney in twenty twelve for more than four billion dollars
(21:11):
in cash and stuck. And that is it. Like we
were just saying, it's about creating that ip, creating something
so valuable that a company like Disney would want to
buy it and create almost the fabric of their company.
That is what Disney did. They bought Marvel and completely
turned that around. I know some people say that Marvel
(21:32):
was diminished in quality when it was bought by Disney,
but that's not the case whatsoever, because Marvel was a
struggling business until Disney got involved. We wouldn't have even
been close to getting to endgame if they didn't buy them.
And I know some people don't like the new Star
Wars movies, but I feel like Disney overall has done
a really great job with everything Star Wars, creating some
(21:55):
really great series over on Disney Plus, and I want
to see the new Star Wars movies as much. Just
people hate him, but George Lucas, with a networth of
five point five billion dollars, the richest director and the
richest celebrity. His top three highest grossing movies of all
time are Star Wars Return of the Jedi from eighty three,
making eight hundred and eighty one million dollars, and number
(22:17):
two is The Empire Strikes Back making nine hundred and
twenty million dollars, and at number one the og from
nineteen seventy seven, A New Hope and my favorite Star
Wars movie, making one point six billion dollars at the
box office. So this list proves to me overall that
it pays to be a nerd. It pays to have
(22:39):
weird ideas. It pays to sit in your room and
think about how can I create a world that nobody
has seen. Characters that are memorable, that people are going
to want to costplay at at comic cons, Movies that
create big, fun action. And I bet all of these
billionaires on this list, at one point we're told they
(23:00):
were weird, they were nerdy, they were never gonna make it,
But now they are laughing all the way to the bank.
So that is the list. We'll come back and talk
about Ghostbusters Frozen Empire. We'll get into why I feel
like the Crow movie is being made in bad taste,
and then I'm gonna let you know how I've met
my hero post Malone. Let's get into it now. A
(23:26):
spoiler free review of Ghostbusters Frozen Empire. If you are
new here to the podcast or watching on YouTube where
I post individual movie reviews YouTube dot Com, slash Mike Distro,
you may not know that this is part of an
entire podcast, so if you're just watching there, I highly recommend.
Obviously I have a bit of a bias here because
(23:46):
I do the podcast, but every single week movie Mike
Movie podcast comes out, So not only do we do
a movie review, but we also talk about movie topics.
We break down trailers. So if you're watching here or
listening here, or you're not doing one of those, be
sure to check the podcast, be sure to check out
the YouTube channel. But maybe you're not that familiar with me,
and you think, oh, this is just some other movie
(24:08):
critic on YouTube who gets paid by studios to review movies.
Not the case whatsoever. I am just a guy who
loves movies. I pay to watch every single movie that
I review. Now I do have Regal Unlimited, but nobody
pays me for that. It's not an endorsement. Everything I
go watch in theaters is because I want to see
(24:29):
it personally, or I know it's going to be a
big movie and I want to share my thoughts with
you guys to let you know what is good and
what is not good. But I don't have any pressures
by any studios or anybody telling me, hey, go check
out this movie and let us know what you think.
Wink wink. Not the case here. I don't even consider
myself a really good movie critic because a lot of
(24:51):
the things I break down are how movies make me feel.
I'll always do spoiler free reviews because if you stick
to the ways that movies make you feel, you'll always
give your truth and you'll never ruin things. So I
get into very bare minimum of what the plot is about,
but more about how the movie makes me feel and
what type of person is going to enjoy this type
of movie. And the reason I'm telling you all this
(25:12):
is because I wasn't that excited about going into watching
Ghostbusters Frozen Empire. And at the time of recording this,
the movie has already been out for a couple of weeks.
By the time you hear this, it'll probably be in
its third week. And I did not go see this
movie on the first week of release. I didn't go
to any press screening because I just wasn't that interested
(25:32):
in it. And historically the Ghostbusters movies have been some
of the most iconic movies. I think it was just
a little bit before my time. If you grew up
in the eighties, were born in the early eighties, and
these movies you associate with your childhood. I feel the
fandom there. If you're a big Bill Murray fan, Dan
Aykroyd fan, I can see why you would love these movies.
(25:55):
If you watch the cartoon of the kid you had,
the toys you dressed up like that for Halloween, I
could see why you would be more passionate about these movies.
But I never really was. And when After Life came
out in twenty twenty one, I even refused to go
see that one in theaters because I wasn't that interested
in it. It felt like nostalgia bait to me. It
(26:16):
felt like they were just cranking out these movies to say, hey,
remember what we did back in the eighties, let's make
it cool again. But I rewatched that one a couple
of weeks before this one came out, and I was like,
you know what, Glad I gave this movie another chance,
because I actually think it's pretty fun. The way they
reset the story with a family member who is the
grandkid one of the original Ghostbusters. You learn all about
(26:39):
that in the first one. So you do need to
watch After Life going into Frozen Empire, because that one
really sets the stage on all these characters. But I
didn't watch that one the first time or the second time.
I rewatched it thinking I cannot wait to watch this
next one. Froze at Empire. And the reason I'm telling
you all this is because I was so surprised how
(27:02):
much I ended up loving this movie. And I don't
read reviews or watch reviews or listen to reviews going
into a movie, but people just felt the need to
tell me about this. The guy who scanned our tickets
going into the movie said, oh, I heard mixed things
looking at it now. Tends to be the temperature going
(27:23):
into Frozen Empire. Some people loved it, some people hated it.
I think the people who hate it were those that
I was talking about earlier who were a big fan
of it back in the eighties, probably because they wanted
to be like those original movies with more dan Aykroyd,
more Bill Murray, more of the original Ghostbusters, at least
(27:43):
the ones that are still living, and be just that again.
But if you got that again, it wouldn't be as
successful as these are now. And the people who love
it are buying into this new generation of Ghostbusters. Maybe
you're a big Paul Rudd fan, maybe you're a big
Fin Wolf Hert fan from Strangers Things. But I think
the direction they decided to take this one is kind
(28:05):
of marrying the two because they tried to make Afterlife
so different than the Ghostbusters. They put them out in Oklahoma.
They really changed up the dynamic of the team and
then kind of sprinkled in some of the old school stuff.
And this one they go back to New York. They're
trying just to be everyday Ghostbusters. Of course they're at
(28:29):
the threat of getting shut down again, and then all
these weird things start happening around the city. It's all
tied to one object, and a new threat opposes the Ghostbusters,
opposes the entire city of New York and really the
entire world at the risk of causing a second ice age.
Is basically what this movie is about. You see it
(28:49):
a lot in the trailer, but what they were able
to do in this one was make it so much
warmer and inviting, and I really understand what they are
trying to do here and and see why some people
are upset because at the core of it, Ghostbusters was
kind of always meant for kids, even though the original
ones there are some very suggestive things in Ghostbusters Won
(29:13):
and Ghostbusters Two. There's not even just straight up innuendos,
but just straight up sexual jokes. I think those movies
would have a much different rating. If they were gonna
come out right now, then they got back in the eighties,
and maybe the filmmakers realize it now. So what they've
decided to do and what this movie is is more
of a family movie, and it's one of the best
(29:35):
family movies that you can go watch right now. There
are some of the jokes that adults are gonna get
and maybe kids won't get. One of them even made
the trailer Bill Murray referencing the villain in this movie
as tall, dark and horny, which he does have big horns,
but obviously he's not talking about the horns when he's
saying that, And that is just Bill Murray being Bill
(29:56):
Murray and what you pay him millions of dollars to do.
I love the way that everybody else takes a back seat.
Who isn't McKenna grace who plays the granddaughter of Egon,
So that is how they are keeping his legacy alive,
because not only did he die in the franchise, he
also sadly died in real life. And she becomes even
(30:18):
more so than afterlife the main character of this movie.
It is her as a teenager wanting to be a
part of the Ghostbusters, but them essentially having to bench
her because the mayor of New York says, if she
continues to be a Ghostbuster and doing that all these things,
she's gonna end up in jail. So Paul Rudfinn, they
all still do the Ghostbuster thing, and she is struggling
(30:39):
to find her identity because this is what she wants
to do. She's really smart, really into science, and ghostbusting
is what she wants to do in her life. But
to have that ripped away, to be going through all
the normal teenage things. Her story is the forefront of this,
and I think it is such a great way to
(30:59):
content continue the legacy of Ghostbusters and to make it
feel fresh but also make it feel familiar with all
of the ghosts. You have slimer back in this movie,
and it really leans in more to all the fun
supernatural elements that is Ghostbusters and what they are famous
for and really allows it to turn into a movie
with some really great, pretty well defined characters when it
(31:23):
comes to a family film, and you also see Paul
Rudd's character evolve a little bit more of having to
have a little bit more authority over these kids. One
of them is eighteen years old now Finn the older brother,
and he is now not seen as the kid anymore,
but yet he's trying to take on more responsibility, but
yet it still feels like a kid at heart. And
(31:45):
any good movie is going to be about one thing.
So yes, it is about them capturing and getting rid
of ghosts. But a good movie is about one thing,
but it has a theme underneath it, and the theme
of Ghostbusters now is family and how they come together,
work together, love each other. It's also a bit of
an unconventional family. Paul Rudd is in that role of
(32:07):
father figure, but he's not really their dad, so you
have them actually going through things and feeling things. And
me myself, I was thinking, Man, I wish a movie
came out like this when I was just a teenager,
because this easily would have been my favorite movie. Combining
some supernatural elements. Now it's not overly scary. A part
(32:31):
of me wanted this movie to come out during Halloween
because it very much feels Halloween friendly to me. The
level of horror or scariness that this movie has, which
I really wouldn't describe it that way, but it kind
of feels like the Scooby Doo movie from the two
thousands where the monsters are a little bit creepy looking,
and maybe if you're like a really young kid, maybe
(32:52):
six in under, you get scared by it. But anything
above that, I think you would not have nightmares after
watching this film. What it does really well and what
some people maybe feel ripped off by is it sprinkles
in just a little bit all the other Ghostbusters. Dan Aykroyd,
Bill Murray. I mean you have Ernie Hudson at seventy
(33:14):
eight years old looking incredible. Dude is ripped. Dude can
still act and comparing him to dan Aykroyd and Bill
Murray who are still roughly around the same age. And really,
when you look at this cast, Paul Rudd is fifty
four years old and still looks like he's my age.
He looks thirty two like I do. I don't know
(33:35):
what these people are doing in Hollywood. They probably have
some secret potion. I don't want to say they have
good doctors. I just think it's really good jeens. But
they all look phenomenal. The visual effects in this movie
are a definite improvement from Afterlife. That one costs seventy
five million dollars to make. They spent a little bit
more here, one hundred million dollars. I feel like that
(33:55):
really shows in the villain, who had a much more
realistic look, was and as ghosty and cartoony as some
of the other ghosts in the movie, or really in
the entire franchise, because when you go back to the
very first and second Ghostbusters, the visual effects then were
just so limited, and it greatly dates those movies. As
(34:16):
beloved as they are, as much as they are classics,
it is a much better time to be making these
movies now, with the technology we have. I think they
still keep kind of some of those elements from the
original movie just to kind of give it that look.
I feel like the lions statues in this one, they
probably could have made those look a little bit better,
(34:37):
but it very much looked like that same kind of
stop motion animation style that the original movie had, So
I'm okay with that. I know it could probably make
all these characters look just like fifteen percent better and
it would be more appealing to me, but then it
would probably feel like less of a Ghostbusters movie. And overall,
(34:57):
what really made me enjoy this movie is they they're
just a really good team everybody together with the old
Ghostbusters and the New Ghostbusters all work together really well,
some really fun, well defined characters that I wasn't expecting
to feel so much of a bond to all of them.
Rarely do I say I wish a movie was a
(35:18):
little bit longer, but in this case, where it was
just around an hour and forty five minutes, I could
have made it to the two hour mark. And I
know the plan now is maybe not so much another
sequel to this, which I would love, but they're gonna
do a Netflix show that is gonna be animated. While
watching Frozen Empire, I was thinking I would love to
see a Ghostbuster show, which I know they had the
(35:40):
cartoon back in the day. But I think when it
comes to Ghostbusters, if we had a series over another movie,
I mean, give me one more of this, but then
after that turn it into a series. I think that
would have a much better life. It would also probably
expose a younger audience to it a little bit easier.
And I just got to say, Paul Rudd is so
(36:01):
incredibly charming, and I bet it's so cool for him,
somebody who grew up in the eighties to now be
in a movie with Bill Murray, which I kind of
thought Bill Murray was gonna have a little bit more
of a substantial role in this. At first, I was
worried that his appearance was gonna be a mere cameo.
(36:23):
And what they say about working with Bill Murray is
you never really know when he's gonna show up. They
would just be filming, he'd be on the call sheet.
They'd wonder is he gonna show up or not? Sometimes
he would, and it feels like once he gets there,
you gotta keep rolling. You gotta let Bill do Bill,
and what you see is what you get. I also
think that's probably why they can't do a movie focusing
(36:46):
on just those characters, because they don't know Bill Murray
is gonna be there or not. But I also think
it was a great time for this movie to come
out forty years after the original one doing okay at
the box office so far the time of recording this
and has crossed the one hundred million dollar mark, which
is good, but for a movie that also spent one
(37:08):
hundred million dollars to make. Generally you want to make
at least fifty percent, but really one hundred percent to
be profitable. They did that with Afterlife, which is the
reason we got this movie. I think eventually it could
get there with the international box office, hopefully crossing that
two hundred million dollar mark. Oh it's a struggle right now.
(37:29):
I could easily see them getting to one hundred and
seventy five. So I think that number is going to
be very telling on whether or not we get a
third film in this franchise. I'd be pretty bummed out
after really bonding with these characters. Kumal Nan Johnny was
a fantastic addition to the cast, and I think his
character really showed how much they stepped up the writing
(37:49):
in this movie, where it's a lot funnier than After Life.
It's not like split your pants, laugh out loud, fuddy ah,
that was a good one. But the amount of jokes
that they kept working in and a lot of the
situational humor and the fun, little quick one liners I
thought were so much better in this and just so
much more reminiscent and an ode to the original Ghostbusters.
(38:11):
So the fact that the comedy was there on the page,
it was met with great performances, stepped up the visual effects.
There were so many things that I just loved about
this movie, and it was also due to the fact
that I was going into it not expecting to like
it as much as I did. So it's a movie
that if you lower your expectations, change a little bit
(38:34):
how you think about the Ghostbusters franchise, especially if you
grew up with it. But if you were already a
fan of Afterlife, you gotta go see this one. I
think for the big Ghostbusters fans it is a muskwatch
in theaters just because you get that feeling again. It
is one that is fun to experience with other people.
There was a big Ghostbusters fan sitting next to me
(38:56):
who would cheer curse along with the movie. He seemed
to be having a really good time. Kelsey was sitting
to my right who watched the first one with me,
not too familiar with the old school versions, but ended
up also really enjoying this movie. But you also liked Afterlife,
so if you like that one, if you liked the
original ones, definitely see this in theaters. If you didn't
(39:19):
like Afterlife and are just hardcore about the original Ghostbusters,
probably wait for it to come out on streaming. But
I think it's a really fun time. Depending on the
age that your kids are. I do think it is
fine for kids. There is a little bit of language,
like I mentioned what Bill Murray says earlier. There's also
at least one s bomb that I remember that really
stuck out, maybe another one in there. But there's no
(39:41):
f words, no real violence. It's all fantasy action based.
But for ghostbusters Frozen Empire, I was right on the
line between a four and a four point five. If
this was a movie that didn't have any legacy attached
to it, I think it would be a four point five.
But due to the fact that I don't even know
that I would rate the original ones a five out
(40:01):
of five, I'm gonna go a strong four out of
five slimers for Ghostbuster's Frozen Empire.
Speaker 2 (40:11):
It's time to head down to Movie Mikes.
Speaker 1 (40:14):
Treylar Paul. We're continuing the theme of remake after remake
after remake, but this one just might be flat out
disrespectful on so many levels. They are remaking The Crow,
which the original one came out back in nineteen ninety four,
and this movie has a legacy attached to it that
(40:38):
is so dark and sad, and it makes the movie
itself just feel even just bigger than it is and
for the time. When The Crow came out back in
nineteen ninety four, this movie was way ahead of its time.
And what I'm referring to is that Brandon Lee died
while making the first movie. If you're not familiar with
(41:01):
this story, he is the son of the legendary Bruce Lee,
and he died back on March thirty first, nineteen ninety three,
while filming The Crow. So here's what this movie is about,
if you're unfamiliar with the story. He plays a character
named Eric Draven. He and his girlfriend get murdered by
these bad people and then his character comes back to
(41:22):
life and seeks vengeance on these people. And on the surface, yes,
that's what this movie is. That's the story about vengeance.
But at the core depths of The Crow, it is
really about love. It's about dealing with grief. But his
character now can't die that he's already dead. So in
a scene he was supposed to be shot, and there
were blanks put into this gun, but the problem was
(41:46):
there was a fragment of a real bullet lodged in
the barrel of the gun that they were using, So
it wasn't that they put a real bullet in there,
or had the wrong amm or anything like that. They
just used the gun and that probably at some other
point that the propmaster had put a live, real bullet
in there at one point and that fragment was still
(42:11):
in that gun when the blank was fired, and that
propelled the force that caused the fatal injury to Brandon Lee.
And this was not the first time somebody had died
while making a movie, but it's one of the most
famous cases. And after this it sparked a lot of
investigation on safety protocols on films. The weird thing is
(42:32):
we're having something like this that is still ongoing with
what happened during Rust and the whole Alec Baldwin thing,
which is still unraveling today. We are still dealing with
making sets safe, which is not good. This should not
be happening. It shouldn't. Brandon Lee should still be alive,
(42:52):
but he's not. Sadly, and The Crow has always been
that movie that we all remember him for because as
he did such a good job at it, and sadly,
due to the fact that he died, has probably heightened
the cult classicness of that movie because it creates so
much more historical significance. But the movie itself was amazing.
(43:15):
It has such a unique visual style. He was great
as the Crow. Just the vibe of it inspired an
entire generation of goth kids, and that is what this
movie was. It was iconic, it was important, it was memorable,
it was edgy. It was a real big definer of
the nineties, one of the most cultiest of cult classics.
(43:38):
And that is exactly what The Crow was. And I
think that that should be the legacy of Brandon Lee
because he died while making this movie. As you can tell,
I'm getting a little bit fired up and I want
to get more into this, But I got to mention
that the all reason I'm doing this is because the
trailer has been out for a few weeks now. The
Crow coming out on June seventh. Bill Skarsgard's playing The Crow.
(44:01):
Fka Twiggs is playing the love interest, essentially the same story.
The plot is. His character is Eric Draven, his love
interest is Sherry Webster. They are brutally murdered when the
demons from her dark past catch up with him. Given
the chance to save his true love by sacrificing himself,
Eric sets out to seek merciless revenge on their killers,
(44:24):
traversing the worlds of the living and the dead to
put the wrongs at right. And here's just a little
bit of the trailer.
Speaker 3 (44:32):
When someone dies, a crow carries that soap to the
land of the dead. Sometimes something so bad happens and
the soul cannot rest.
Speaker 1 (44:53):
I'm gonna cool them are the single one of them.
I've watched this trailer now a few times. The real
big difference that stuck out to me is that it
looks a lot more violent, and initially I thought that
was kind of cool. Seeing Bill Scar's guard getting shot
up very bloody, looked very over the top. I thought
(45:15):
that part was cool, But as I rewatched the trailer,
I kept getting Joker in Suicide Squad from the look
of Bill scars guard because they put a more emphasis
on his physique, which he is oddly ripped up. He
is one of those actors that you never really think
about him being so muscular, but he is without a
(45:35):
shirt through the majority of this trailer. He has all
these random tattoos on him and it just kind of
looks like when Jared Leto came out as the Joker
in the Suicide squad and they put all these ridiculous
looking tattoos on him, and he's all ripped up without
a shirt and trying to look a lot edgier and
(45:56):
make it seem more updated. And I feel like that
takes away from what made the first one so great,
which that makeup that Brandon Lee had was so iconic,
and the leather jacket, the entire outfit and wardrobe for
that movie was yes, very nineteen nineties. But the way
they decided to update it was to make this movie
(46:20):
look like a generic action movie. There is no vibe
in this trailer. It just looks like they are trying
to apply botox to something that doesn't need it. The
Crow does not need a facelift. That movie is aging
gracefully and we should let it do. So this is
(46:41):
a case where it's a movie that should not be remade.
And I'm understanding that for the most part, everything I
love will eventually be remade. It is the movie business,
and I try not to get so cynical about every
single remake. It feels like it's happening so much right now.
(47:02):
But for a movie where somebody died while making it,
and that film was still finished and it is that
actor's legacy. You can't remake it. This movie has cash
grab written all over it. Because The Crow came out
(47:25):
back in nineteen ninety four and people still talk about it.
This movie will come out on June seventh, and it
will be forgotten by December thirty one, twenty twenty four.
By the time the next year rolls around, we won't
even think about this movie. I don't care how even
good it ends up being, because it's not. Just by
the looks of this trailer, I don't think it's going
to be. It looks very just that it kind of
(47:48):
feels like The Crow. Let's slack the name on it
and get people interested in it. It just doesn't have
that aesthetic. You have the director from the original Crow
saying these exact things if this remake is disrespectful, and
I agree. Aside from that, it is also hard for
me to see Bill Scarsgard in this role. I saw
(48:11):
him play a villain in John Wick Chapter four, and
even that was a little bit hard to believe. He
is great as Pantywise, the Clown, and the it remakes.
I just don't even think it was properly cast. But
maybe it was also hard to find somebody that wanted
to take on this role. Knowing the legacy, I would
imagine somebody who could actually do the character justice would
(48:34):
probably pass on something like this for that exact reason.
So this is one oddly I might not even go
and see it out of respect for the original, because
after watching this trailer doesn't motivate me to watch this movie.
It really just makes me want to go back and
watch the one from nineteen ninety four. And I feel like,
(48:55):
I know, as a movie reviewer and podcaster, I have
a duty tea you guys, I have a duny in
curiosity to myself to see this movie, but almost for
a moral reason to stand my ground in my fight
against remakes that should not be remade. I don't even
know if I can go see this one. I just
(49:15):
think down in my heart I wouldn't feel right. So
as of now, I am not gonna plan on watching
The Crow because I think it is disrespectful to Brandon Lee.
I don't want to throw any money at this movie
unless you think that I'm being out of line here
(49:36):
and I should go watch it and I should review it.
I think I'm gonna dip out of this one. It
just doesn't feel right to me. But if you want
to see it, it's coming out on June seventh. Oh man,
I just can't see it at That was this week's
edition of Movie min Framer Bar, and that is going
to do it for another episode here of the podcast.
(49:57):
In that trailer there was actually a post alone song.
And if you are a new listener of this podcast
and don't listen to me on the radio show, I
am a head writer on the Bobby Bone Show, I
am a huge post Malone fan. I don't really have
the opportunity to talk about it here on this podcast,
even though he does have a pretty substantial movie career now,
(50:18):
so maybe I will do a deep dive on post
Malone in film. But he has been my favorite artist
for years now. The first time I ever saw him
was in a small club here in Nashville, maybe five
hundred people in attendance. This was long before he was
a megastar like he is now, before his second album
Beer Bongs and Bentley's Ever came out. He actually announced
(50:40):
it at that show that that album was coming out
later that year. But he has been my favorite artist
for so long now. I greatly identify with his music
and it has helped me through some very dark times
in my life. Kind of been the soundtrack of my
mid to late twenties to early thirties. Now. I've seen
(51:01):
him in concert a bunch since then, and he played
a show here at the Ryman Bobby Bones and the
Ragging Idiots Million Dollars show, which they put on every
year to raise money for the kids at Saint Jude.
It's always an awesome show and there's always surprise guests.
And about Monday of the week of the show was
(51:21):
going down on a Wednesday, Bobby told me there was
about a seventy five percent chance that post Malone was
going to show up, and I lost my mind at that.
The next day he came in on Tuesday and said
it was about a ninety five percent chance, and then
when he came in on the show day on Wednesday morning,
he told me it was at a ninety nine percent
chance that he was going to show up. Lo and behold.
(51:44):
That night, I was standing backstage and somebody said he
was about an hour out. Kept getting more and more nervous,
and then he finally showed up with the non entourage
of people, walked right in front of me, and I
could feel my soul leaving my body in that moment.
It was like I was standing overhead and watching myself
see my favorite artist walk right in front of me.
(52:05):
And I was nervous the whole night because I wanted
to meet him, wanted to get that picture, and I
was worried that the opportunity was going to evaporate from
my hands because there were so many people there. He
had a big entourage. The word was that he was
going to leave right after the show. He played two
songs and write as soon as he was done, he
went immediately and said hi to every single fan that
(52:28):
was waiting right there in the front row. And that
whole time, I'm standing on the stage still. I watched
the entire set side stage, and I'm thinking, oh, man,
he's gonna like duck out from the other side of
the stage. They're gonna grab him immediately. But it was
also so cool to see him taking pictures with every
single fan lying on the ground to take a selfie.
(52:48):
And I've always known him to be that person to
wait outside and meet the people who want to meet him.
He's always made that a huge priority. And then lo
and behold hepped up, saying hi to everybody. Security guard
was bringing them back to where the rest of his
crew was standing, which I was right over there in
that corner. Two and I finally got to meet him,
(53:10):
and I told him how big of a fan I was.
I shook his hand, he took the picture. He was
so nice and warm and thanked me. Didn't need to
thank me. I'm like, I should be thanking you for
so much more. And not only that, I saw that
he left his bud light can I grabbed that. I
dumked the beer out and I put it in my
jacket pocket and I now have it right here. I'm
(53:32):
looking right at it here where I record this podcast.
So that was cool, because sometimes you worry about the
people who you have been the biggest fan of for
so long if they will actually be cool in real life.
And I can say, without a doubt it's not an act.
He is that genuine and nice of a person. And
it really solidified me dedicating so much of my life
(53:55):
to being such a big fan of his music, spending
money on his tickets, buying tradition of every time you
put that in an album, I get t shirt that
he puts out that goes along with the album. So
I have a t shirt where every single album he's
put out. Literally, there's so many things in this room
that have post malone. Things I have is Cane's cup collection.
I have a pop toy. I know so much about it.
(54:17):
I'm gonna go on a sound like a crazy person.
But it was so cool to see that all come
full circle and him be a genuine dude. Finally get
to meet him. So if ever somebody says never meet
your heroes, just don't have heroes who are jerks. I
also got to meet a lot of listeners of this podcast,
and that is going to be this week's listener shout
out of the week. Everybody who I talk to, and
(54:39):
the immediate first thing that you tell me is that
you love the podcast. That is the biggest compliment to me,
because this is the thing I'm most passionate about. The
thing I'm probably known for more is the Bobby Bone Show.
Obviously twenty five Whistles and the Bobby Cast, but this
being the thing that you say you listen to first
when you meet me is the ultimate compliment because you're
(55:02):
a part of the movie crew and I feel like
this is a very select group of people that I
know who I'm talking to, and we've built this community here.
So thank you to everybody who I met on Wednesday
night of last week at the Ryman or outside of
the show as I was walking around downtown. Thank you
(55:23):
everybody who said hello and for listening to this podcast
and making me a part of your week. So until
next time, go out and watch good movies and I
will talk to you later.
Hello, and welcome back to movie Mike's Movie Podcast. I
am your host Movie Mike. Today, I want to look
at the list of the richest directors in Hollywood right now,
proving that you can be a nerd and make a
lot of money. In some cases, these nerds are billionaires.
So we'll take a look at that list. In the
movie review, I'll give you my thoughts on the new
Ghostbusters movie Ghostbusters Frozen Empire and why it was much
(00:22):
better than I was anticipating in the trailer park. It's
a very controversial movie being remade. We'll take a look
at The Crow coming out later in theaters this summer,
and that I'll also let you know about how I'm
at Post Malone. So thank you for being here, Thank
you for listening. Shout out to the Monday Morning movie crew.
He Now, let's talk movies.
Speaker 2 (00:41):
In a world where everyone and their mother has a podcast,
one man stands to infiltrate the ears of listeners like
never before in a movie podcast.
Speaker 1 (00:52):
A man with so much movie knowledge, he's basically like.
Speaker 2 (00:55):
A walking IMTB with glasses. From the Nashville pod networking
Movie Mike's Movie.
Speaker 1 (01:03):
Pot I was caught off guard by Forbes latest list
of the richest celebrities right now that at the top
of that list there were two directors. Just thinking of
celebrities in general, I love directors. Oftentimes I'm more a
fan of individual directors than I am actors. That is
(01:23):
kind of how I follow movies, and I know they
make a lot of money. But when I think about
the richest people, I think it has to be people
in front of the camera, not behind the camera. Not
the case in this instance. So after seeing that, I
decided to go do some more investigative research and see
who are the top ten highest paid directors in Hollywood
(01:45):
right now. I'm gonna break down the list. I'll give
you their highest grossing movies. I'll give you my thoughts
on some of the surprises which I found while making
this list. So let's get right into it. At number
ten is Christopher Nolan, who has a net worth of
two hundred and fifty million dollars. His net worth is
only going to increase, and he's been in the game
(02:05):
for a while now, but now finally getting his first Oscar,
his rate is about to get so much higher. And
a director that has had a lot of box office
success all of his movies combined have grossed six billion
dollars at the box office. His films include Memento, The
(02:26):
Dark Knight, That Whole Trilogy, Inception Tenant Like I said,
just crushed it last year with Oppenheimer, which he was
paid an estimated seventy two million dollars. A report from
Forbes said that he was able to negotiate fifteen percent
of first dollar gross on Oppenheimer, which reduced his upfront fees.
(02:46):
But since that movie became one of the highest grossing
movies of last year, not only that one of the
highest grossing R rated movies of all time, he cashed
in big on that movie. His three highest grossing movies
so far have been well already. At number three is Oppenheimer,
which made nine hundred and fifty three million dollars. At
number two is The Dark Knight from two thousand and eight,
(03:08):
which made one point oh two billion dollars, And at
number one is The Dark Knight Rises in twenty twelve,
which made one point one one billion dollars. And Christopher
Nolan is able to walk that line of make movies
that are not only critically acclaimed but also that are
(03:28):
really popular with audiences. So if you look at his
scores online, he gets great critics scores, great audience scores.
Sometimes he'll put out a movie like Tenant and we
don't completely understand it, but we still stay in Christopher Nolan.
So I'm glad to see him in the top ten.
I think give him another two movies, especially now that
he's won that Oscar, he will easily get into that
(03:50):
top five. At number nine is JJ Abrams with a
net worth of three hundred million dollars. Honestly, I kind
of forgot about jj Abrams. I was a real big
fan of his movies when I feel like he was
one of the most in demand directors in the twenty tens.
But I feel like now he's kind of taken a
step back a little bit more on the producing side.
(04:14):
And I would always get really excited at anytime a
new JJ Abrams movie came out, and he's crossed that
line between Star Wars and Star Trek, and we still
as nerds love him all the same. And early on
he found a lot of success in TV shows, which
shows like Lost, Alias and Fringe. That is really where
I got to know his work first. But he's also
written and produced movies like Forever Young, Armageddon, Cloverfield, and
(04:36):
then directed movies like Mission Impossible three and Super eight,
and that has earned him three hundred million dollars. His
top three highest grossing movies of all time have all
been in the Star Wars franchise. At number three, Episode
four made one point oh seven billion dollars, The Last
Jedi at number two, made one point thirty three billion dollars,
and The Force Awakens is at number one with two
(04:59):
point zero six billion dollars. This one, I'm a little
bit surprised by. I think that was greatly due to
the success of The Force Awakened, which set so many
big records, had the highest grossing opening weekend and the
fastest for a movie to reach one billion dollars, as
well as other several imax records, and still making the
(05:20):
two billion dollars overall. That went down a little bit
as some people started hating on the franchise, but he
still got paid and it put him at number nine
at the list. So a little surprised with that one,
but it just reminds me that I want to see
a new jj Airbrams film soon. At number eight is
Ridley Scott with a net worth of four hundred million dollars.
(05:41):
Not even American, he is English. He is the director
of movies like Alien, so he's I would say, primarily
known for his science fiction, but he has done every
single genre really well. He's also done crime movies, historical dramas,
which the last one I didn't really love Napoleon, but
I think he will make up for it this year
with Gladiator two. But his three highest grossing movies of
(06:04):
all time are at number three Prometheus from twenty twelve,
which made four hundred and three million dollars. At number
two is Gladiator from two thousand that made five hundred
and three million dollars worldwide, and at number one is
The Martian, his biggest success, and I'm going to say
only made six hundred and ten million dollars, which is
still a lot of money, over half a billion dollars,
(06:24):
but if you look at the two directors before him,
he doesn't have a billion dollar movie. But he has
been in the game for a very long time, and
maybe for that reason he is able to negotiate more
for every single movie that he does, because I think
there has to be some other factor contributing to his
(06:45):
almost net worth of half a billion dollars. I mean,
he's a solid director, but to have him at number
eight above JJ Abrams and Christopher Nolan still surprising. So
kind of doo surprises there in a row. At number
seven Francis Ford Coppola, with a networth also of four
hundred million dollars. He's best known for the Godfather of trilogy.
(07:06):
He's won five Oscars, not only for directing but also
for writing. His top three highest grossing movies of all
time have been at number three, The Godfather Part three,
which made one hundred and thirty six million dollars, Dracula
from ninety two made two hundred and fifteen million dollars,
and at number one, The Godfather from nineteen seventy two
(07:27):
made two hundred and fifty million dollars. So again, it's
not about how much you make on each individual movie,
because his top three highest grossing movies have earned less
than Ridley Scott's number one. But man, the Coppola family
has some money because his daughter Sophia Coppola is also
a really well established director, and his nephew Nicholas Cage,
(07:52):
who was actually Nicholas Coppola, has also done really well
in his acting career. So overall, Copola fan Family eight
hurtin whatsoever. I would like to go to their family
reunion and just start asking people if I can borrow
some money. Hey, I know you're good for it. At
number six is Michael Bay, with a net worth of
(08:12):
four hundred and fifty billion dollars. A lot of explosions
probably went into making that net worth, a lot of
lens flair, a lot of overtly ridiculous action that has
been the Michael Bay brand for decades now. And he
is not a director that is going to win an
(08:32):
Academy Award, but that is fine. I think he truly
speaks to audiences that love big dumb action, and he
does it really well. He's also done a little bit
more serious movies too. He's known for movies like Pearl Harbor, Armageddon.
But really where he has made the majority of his
fortune and really solidified his identity is the Transformers movies,
(08:55):
which have grossed just that franchise seven point eight billion
dollars at the office. So this one is not surprising
to me whatsoever, because that is why he is so successful.
It's not that his movies are critically acclaimed or he
wins these awards, it's because he knows how to make
movies that demand the big screen. His top three highest
(09:16):
grossing movies are all Transformers movies. Actually, his entire top
five are all Transformers movies. So I've been doing top three,
but since his are all in the same franchise, I'll
go top five. And number five is The Last Night
from twenty seventeen, six to oh five million, and number
four is the original Transformers from two thousand and seven,
(09:37):
which made seven hundred and ten million and kicked off
this entire empire of money. At number three is Revenge
of the fall In making eight hundred and thirty seven million.
At number two is Age of Extinction from twenty fourteen,
making one point one billion dollars. The height of it,
but at number one is Dark of the Moon from
twenty eleven, making one point two billion dollars, And I
(10:00):
kind of forget that I've seen every single Transformers movie,
even the bad ones like the one with Mark Wahlberg,
is still enjoyable because he has all this big, dumb,
high flying action that is still a spectacle to see.
So even though plot lines may be filled with holes,
the dialogue might be cringey at times, and some of
(10:22):
the flashy special effects just don't really age entirely. Well,
they've all been really big blockbuster movies, so he has
gotten away from the Transformers franchise, still produces some of them,
but doesn't direct them anymore. But even still, movies like
Ambulance with Jake Jillenhall I really enjoy and still have
that Michael Bay feel. And even though he's not a
(10:44):
part of the Bad Boys' movies anymore, they still all
have his aesthetics. So he has greatly identified and showed
us what his voice is as a director, as it
continues to live on because it's inspired so many other filmmakers,
because it works. It gets the peace people going, it
gets the butts in the seats. At number five is
(11:04):
James Cameron. He has a net worth of eight hundred
million dollars, and not only that, he is responsible for
three of the highest grossing movies of all time, Titanic,
Avatar One, and Avatar The Way of Water. So his
top three highest grossing movies of all time have made
one point nine billion dollars. For the Way of Water,
(11:25):
which came out back in twenty twenty two. At number
two is Titanic, which made two point one billion dollars
and at number one still holds the record because it
was thrown back into theaters when Way of Water came
out and it was able to overtake Endgame, which they
kind of do this battle every now and then. But
Avatar has made three billion dollars three billion dollars at
(11:47):
the box office. And for the longest time, I was
not a fan of James Cameron because I didn't really
get it. And then as I rewatched some of his movies,
go back and watching like it was like Turninator, I
start to realize his real greatness. And it was once
the Avatar movies finally clicked with me. It allowed me
(12:08):
to see that nobody can do what he does, make
movies that are so big and elaborate and create really
big works of art almost out of thin air. I
feel like the average person or even a good director,
couldn't even begin to think how to develop a movie
(12:29):
like Avatar, a movie I thought was so overhyped when
it first came out back in two thousand and nine.
But now I start to see his vision and as
ridiculous as it sounds, that he has Part three, Part four,
and Part five all planned out already, and it sounds
just like, what are you talking about? You to keep
making these movies for so long, But they make a
lot of money, and they work so well internationally, which
(12:52):
I think is also a great contributor to his box
office numbers. I think the best decision he made was
making these character's blue, because they are not identifiable whatsoever
to a country or a type of person. They are
really just a blank canvas that you switch out the
language and anybody can put themselves in those movies. So
(13:13):
I think that's why those movies do so well. And
then Titanic obviously is one of the best movies of
all time, so I'm giving credit where credit is due
at number five, not that I paid him, but James
Cameron with eight hundred million dollars getting in further to
the top five. Now at number four is Tyler Perry,
who was also number eight on this Forbes list overall,
(13:34):
so he's number four as a director, but in every
single celebrity out there, he is number eight. This is
where the list starts to get crazy, and I feel
like Tyler Perry is somebody left off the list. Of
great directors. And I think the reason that is it's
unfair that some people don't see media movies as quote
unquote cinema. That's not me. I love every type of movie.
(14:00):
I think movies are supposed to be escapism. If they
distract you from your daily life, they have done their job.
They can be as ridiculous as Tyler Perry dressing up
like Medea. That's what movies are. They are entertainment. They
don't have to have some level of sophistication. If a
movie is able to bring joy to somebody, they are cinema.
And I feel like some people doing this list would
(14:22):
even leave him off because of his work. I saw
some lists leaving him off, like he is a filmmaker,
he is an actor. He is a writer and director.
So in these movies, he's doing it all. He'll write it,
he'll direct it, he'll start it. That is amazing, and
it's earned him a network of one point four billion dollars.
We have our first billionaire on the list. He's only
(14:43):
fifty four years old. He has a three decade career
in acting and TV and movies and stage plays. He
does also so much to give back. His three highest
grossing movies of all time have been Media's Family Reunion
making sixty three million dollars, Medias Witness Protection made sixty
five million dollars and is number one. Medie Goes to
(15:04):
Joe making ninety million dollars. And you may be saying, well,
that's so much lower than all the other movies on
the list, But these movies cost way less to make
than all the other movies we've been mentioning on this
list because they don't have that same big Hollywood budget.
But he has better margins and he has created this
(15:25):
empire where he is making a lot more money off
of those box office numbers because he is involved in
every single aspect. He has his entire production company, so
he is really the captain of his own ship, and
that is how you become a billionaire. At number three
on the list is Peter Jackson, who on the normal
(15:46):
Celebrities list is right above Tyler Perry at number seven,
so Therey's seven on this list, he is number three.
He is the director of movies like The Lord of
the Rings, The Hobbit, King Kong. Sixty two years old.
He is from New Zealand and he is worth one
point five billion dollars and we are now in the
top three of this list, and you're gonna see why
because they are hardcore nerds. So for me, somebody who
(16:09):
is very passionate about things that other people tend to
not care about, this brings me joy. This brings me happiness.
This also gives me hope because growing up the things
I liked were seeing is lame, geeky, and it's those
things that are just a little bit different but so
specific are what earned people so much praise because you
(16:30):
are able to identify with a different group of people
by getting so nerdy. And Peter Jackson is a visionary
director and created arguably one of the best trilogies of
all time. And I've said historically on this podcast that
I do not like the Lord of the Rings movies
all that much when it comes to my level of nerdiness,
just not my brand of movie. But I can respect
(16:51):
their greatness. I can respect the fact that they earned
a lot of money at the box office and have
also been a critics darling and earned a lot of award.
Peter Jackson has done amazing things. Movies are still just
not for me. I have been challenged by a member
of the movie crew to rewatch all those movies see
if I still feel that way about them. It is
(17:11):
about a nine hour investment, so I haven't had time
to carve out to do that, but I will do
that this year. I promise you, I will rewatch the
Lord of the Rings movies and the verdict will be
out on whether or not I still think are not
that great. But his top three highest grossing movies of
all time, only one of them is a actual Lord
of the Rings movie. At the other are the Lord
of the Rings stories, and number three is The Hobbit
(17:33):
The Battle of Five Armies, which made nine hundred and
sixty two million. At number two is The Hobbit An
Unexpected Journey, making one point one seven billion dollars, and
at number one is The Lord of the Rings Return
of the King, making one point one four six billion
dollars at the box office. He's also won several Academy
Awards for Best Director and number three. Peter Jackson at
(17:55):
number two, and also number two on the overall list
of richest celebrities, so he makes it at the top
of both. It is Steven Spielberg. I mean, when I
just think of movies and think of directors. I think
of Steven Spielberg because he has made movies that are
just all out classics that everybody has seen, what I
(18:16):
would consider to be essential films, not only for movie lovers,
but for everybody, Movies that we all grew up with
and just know to be in. Oftentimes just the mount
rushmore of movies, talking movies like Jaws Et, Jurassic Park,
Indiana Jones. The list goes on and on of iconic
movies that are all Spielberg movies. He's been on this
(18:40):
list since nineteen ninety four as being one of the
richest celebrities. Steven Spielberg is so rich that he says
he hasn't taken a salary in almost a decade now,
meaning he doesn't take any money up front. Instead, what
he does is what you can do as a director
at his level, is negotiate to get a percentage of
(19:00):
the sales of his movies. And not only that, he
still gets a slice of every ticket sold at Universal
theme parks thanks to the Indiana Jones series. So that's
a whole other level here that we're gonna see is
creating movies and owning ips that you can license out.
That is where the real money is. That is why
he has a net worth of four point eight billion dollars.
(19:22):
Is because not only do his movies make so much
at the box office, but you're talking mert celles, licensing,
theme parks, everything related to the movie. He creates worlds.
He is the fabric of imagination in America. So it's
making movies that inspire fandoms and things you not only
(19:42):
want to experience in the theater, but also go have
some kind of experience in the real world where you
can see and feel and interact with these movies. Because
look at its highest grossing movies at number eight, Jaws
and Saving Private Ryan Ready Player one, War the World's
The Lost World, Durrassic Park three or Indiana, Jones and
The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull making seven hundred and
(20:03):
eighty six million dollars, and number two is Et seven
hundred and ninety two million dollars. And at number one
is Jurassic Park making one point oh four billion dollars.
And that's just in his top eight all classics. Not
a bad movie in the top eight. I don't think
he's made a bad movie. He's made some that all right, mediocre.
(20:24):
Didn't really nail it with that one, but it's still
a good movie because you're Spielberg. He is such a
great director that I don't even need to list him
in my favorite directors. He is in a category all
on his own. He is just cinema to me, because
it almost seems unreal that one person could be responsible
for all of these classics. So at number two four
point eight billion dollars Steven Spielberg. And at number one,
(20:47):
the biggest nerd of all, who is also number one
overall on this entire Richest Celebrities list, is George Lucas,
the director of Star Wars who also created it. He
first viewed as a billionaire back in nineteen ninety seven.
And it's all because of Lucasfilms, which he sold to
Disney in twenty twelve for more than four billion dollars
(21:11):
in cash and stuck. And that is it. Like we
were just saying, it's about creating that ip, creating something
so valuable that a company like Disney would want to
buy it and create almost the fabric of their company.
That is what Disney did. They bought Marvel and completely
turned that around. I know some people say that Marvel
(21:32):
was diminished in quality when it was bought by Disney,
but that's not the case whatsoever, because Marvel was a
struggling business until Disney got involved. We wouldn't have even
been close to getting to endgame if they didn't buy them.
And I know some people don't like the new Star
Wars movies, but I feel like Disney overall has done
a really great job with everything Star Wars, creating some
(21:55):
really great series over on Disney Plus, and I want
to see the new Star Wars movies as much. Just
people hate him, but George Lucas, with a networth of
five point five billion dollars, the richest director and the
richest celebrity. His top three highest grossing movies of all
time are Star Wars Return of the Jedi from eighty three,
making eight hundred and eighty one million dollars, and number
(22:17):
two is The Empire Strikes Back making nine hundred and
twenty million dollars, and at number one the og from
nineteen seventy seven, A New Hope and my favorite Star
Wars movie, making one point six billion dollars at the
box office. So this list proves to me overall that
it pays to be a nerd. It pays to have
(22:39):
weird ideas. It pays to sit in your room and
think about how can I create a world that nobody
has seen. Characters that are memorable, that people are going
to want to costplay at at comic cons, Movies that
create big, fun action. And I bet all of these
billionaires on this list, at one point we're told they
(23:00):
were weird, they were nerdy, they were never gonna make it,
But now they are laughing all the way to the bank.
So that is the list. We'll come back and talk
about Ghostbusters Frozen Empire. We'll get into why I feel
like the Crow movie is being made in bad taste,
and then I'm gonna let you know how I've met
my hero post Malone. Let's get into it now. A
(23:26):
spoiler free review of Ghostbusters Frozen Empire. If you are
new here to the podcast or watching on YouTube where
I post individual movie reviews YouTube dot Com, slash Mike Distro,
you may not know that this is part of an
entire podcast, so if you're just watching there, I highly recommend.
Obviously I have a bit of a bias here because
(23:46):
I do the podcast, but every single week movie Mike
Movie podcast comes out, So not only do we do
a movie review, but we also talk about movie topics.
We break down trailers. So if you're watching here or
listening here, or you're not doing one of those, be
sure to check the podcast, be sure to check out
the YouTube channel. But maybe you're not that familiar with me,
and you think, oh, this is just some other movie
(24:08):
critic on YouTube who gets paid by studios to review movies.
Not the case whatsoever. I am just a guy who
loves movies. I pay to watch every single movie that
I review. Now I do have Regal Unlimited, but nobody
pays me for that. It's not an endorsement. Everything I
go watch in theaters is because I want to see
(24:29):
it personally, or I know it's going to be a
big movie and I want to share my thoughts with
you guys to let you know what is good and
what is not good. But I don't have any pressures
by any studios or anybody telling me, hey, go check
out this movie and let us know what you think.
Wink wink. Not the case here. I don't even consider
myself a really good movie critic because a lot of
(24:51):
the things I break down are how movies make me feel.
I'll always do spoiler free reviews because if you stick
to the ways that movies make you feel, you'll always
give your truth and you'll never ruin things. So I
get into very bare minimum of what the plot is about,
but more about how the movie makes me feel and
what type of person is going to enjoy this type
of movie. And the reason I'm telling you all this
(25:12):
is because I wasn't that excited about going into watching
Ghostbusters Frozen Empire. And at the time of recording this,
the movie has already been out for a couple of weeks.
By the time you hear this, it'll probably be in
its third week. And I did not go see this
movie on the first week of release. I didn't go
to any press screening because I just wasn't that interested
(25:32):
in it. And historically the Ghostbusters movies have been some
of the most iconic movies. I think it was just
a little bit before my time. If you grew up
in the eighties, were born in the early eighties, and
these movies you associate with your childhood. I feel the
fandom there. If you're a big Bill Murray fan, Dan
Aykroyd fan, I can see why you would love these movies.
(25:55):
If you watch the cartoon of the kid you had,
the toys you dressed up like that for Halloween, I
could see why you would be more passionate about these movies.
But I never really was. And when After Life came
out in twenty twenty one, I even refused to go
see that one in theaters because I wasn't that interested
in it. It felt like nostalgia bait to me. It
(26:16):
felt like they were just cranking out these movies to say, hey,
remember what we did back in the eighties, let's make
it cool again. But I rewatched that one a couple
of weeks before this one came out, and I was like,
you know what, Glad I gave this movie another chance,
because I actually think it's pretty fun. The way they
reset the story with a family member who is the
grandkid one of the original Ghostbusters. You learn all about
(26:39):
that in the first one. So you do need to
watch After Life going into Frozen Empire, because that one
really sets the stage on all these characters. But I
didn't watch that one the first time or the second time.
I rewatched it thinking I cannot wait to watch this
next one. Froze at Empire. And the reason I'm telling
you all this is because I was so surprised how
(27:02):
much I ended up loving this movie. And I don't
read reviews or watch reviews or listen to reviews going
into a movie, but people just felt the need to
tell me about this. The guy who scanned our tickets
going into the movie said, oh, I heard mixed things
looking at it now. Tends to be the temperature going
(27:23):
into Frozen Empire. Some people loved it, some people hated it.
I think the people who hate it were those that
I was talking about earlier who were a big fan
of it back in the eighties, probably because they wanted
to be like those original movies with more dan Aykroyd,
more Bill Murray, more of the original Ghostbusters, at least
(27:43):
the ones that are still living, and be just that again.
But if you got that again, it wouldn't be as
successful as these are now. And the people who love
it are buying into this new generation of Ghostbusters. Maybe
you're a big Paul Rudd fan, maybe you're a big
Fin Wolf Hert fan from Strangers Things. But I think
the direction they decided to take this one is kind
(28:05):
of marrying the two because they tried to make Afterlife
so different than the Ghostbusters. They put them out in Oklahoma.
They really changed up the dynamic of the team and
then kind of sprinkled in some of the old school stuff.
And this one they go back to New York. They're
trying just to be everyday Ghostbusters. Of course they're at
(28:29):
the threat of getting shut down again, and then all
these weird things start happening around the city. It's all
tied to one object, and a new threat opposes the Ghostbusters,
opposes the entire city of New York and really the
entire world at the risk of causing a second ice age.
Is basically what this movie is about. You see it
(28:49):
a lot in the trailer, but what they were able
to do in this one was make it so much
warmer and inviting, and I really understand what they are
trying to do here and and see why some people
are upset because at the core of it, Ghostbusters was
kind of always meant for kids, even though the original
ones there are some very suggestive things in Ghostbusters Won
(29:13):
and Ghostbusters Two. There's not even just straight up innuendos,
but just straight up sexual jokes. I think those movies
would have a much different rating. If they were gonna
come out right now, then they got back in the eighties,
and maybe the filmmakers realize it now. So what they've
decided to do and what this movie is is more
of a family movie, and it's one of the best
(29:35):
family movies that you can go watch right now. There
are some of the jokes that adults are gonna get
and maybe kids won't get. One of them even made
the trailer Bill Murray referencing the villain in this movie
as tall, dark and horny, which he does have big horns,
but obviously he's not talking about the horns when he's
saying that, And that is just Bill Murray being Bill
(29:56):
Murray and what you pay him millions of dollars to do.
I love the way that everybody else takes a back seat.
Who isn't McKenna grace who plays the granddaughter of Egon,
So that is how they are keeping his legacy alive,
because not only did he die in the franchise, he
also sadly died in real life. And she becomes even
(30:18):
more so than afterlife the main character of this movie.
It is her as a teenager wanting to be a
part of the Ghostbusters, but them essentially having to bench
her because the mayor of New York says, if she
continues to be a Ghostbuster and doing that all these things,
she's gonna end up in jail. So Paul Rudfinn, they
all still do the Ghostbuster thing, and she is struggling
(30:39):
to find her identity because this is what she wants
to do. She's really smart, really into science, and ghostbusting
is what she wants to do in her life. But
to have that ripped away, to be going through all
the normal teenage things. Her story is the forefront of this,
and I think it is such a great way to
(30:59):
content continue the legacy of Ghostbusters and to make it
feel fresh but also make it feel familiar with all
of the ghosts. You have slimer back in this movie,
and it really leans in more to all the fun
supernatural elements that is Ghostbusters and what they are famous
for and really allows it to turn into a movie
with some really great, pretty well defined characters when it
(31:23):
comes to a family film, and you also see Paul
Rudd's character evolve a little bit more of having to
have a little bit more authority over these kids. One
of them is eighteen years old now Finn the older brother,
and he is now not seen as the kid anymore,
but yet he's trying to take on more responsibility, but
yet it still feels like a kid at heart. And
(31:45):
any good movie is going to be about one thing.
So yes, it is about them capturing and getting rid
of ghosts. But a good movie is about one thing,
but it has a theme underneath it, and the theme
of Ghostbusters now is family and how they come together,
work together, love each other. It's also a bit of
an unconventional family. Paul Rudd is in that role of
(32:07):
father figure, but he's not really their dad, so you
have them actually going through things and feeling things. And
me myself, I was thinking, Man, I wish a movie
came out like this when I was just a teenager,
because this easily would have been my favorite movie. Combining
some supernatural elements. Now it's not overly scary. A part
(32:31):
of me wanted this movie to come out during Halloween
because it very much feels Halloween friendly to me. The
level of horror or scariness that this movie has, which
I really wouldn't describe it that way, but it kind
of feels like the Scooby Doo movie from the two
thousands where the monsters are a little bit creepy looking,
and maybe if you're like a really young kid, maybe
(32:52):
six in under, you get scared by it. But anything
above that, I think you would not have nightmares after
watching this film. What it does really well and what
some people maybe feel ripped off by is it sprinkles
in just a little bit all the other Ghostbusters. Dan Aykroyd,
Bill Murray. I mean you have Ernie Hudson at seventy
(33:14):
eight years old looking incredible. Dude is ripped. Dude can
still act and comparing him to dan Aykroyd and Bill
Murray who are still roughly around the same age. And really,
when you look at this cast, Paul Rudd is fifty
four years old and still looks like he's my age.
He looks thirty two like I do. I don't know
(33:35):
what these people are doing in Hollywood. They probably have
some secret potion. I don't want to say they have
good doctors. I just think it's really good jeens. But
they all look phenomenal. The visual effects in this movie
are a definite improvement from Afterlife. That one costs seventy
five million dollars to make. They spent a little bit
more here, one hundred million dollars. I feel like that
(33:55):
really shows in the villain, who had a much more
realistic look, was and as ghosty and cartoony as some
of the other ghosts in the movie, or really in
the entire franchise, because when you go back to the
very first and second Ghostbusters, the visual effects then were
just so limited, and it greatly dates those movies. As
(34:16):
beloved as they are, as much as they are classics,
it is a much better time to be making these
movies now, with the technology we have. I think they
still keep kind of some of those elements from the
original movie just to kind of give it that look.
I feel like the lions statues in this one, they
probably could have made those look a little bit better,
(34:37):
but it very much looked like that same kind of
stop motion animation style that the original movie had, So
I'm okay with that. I know it could probably make
all these characters look just like fifteen percent better and
it would be more appealing to me, but then it
would probably feel like less of a Ghostbusters movie. And overall,
(34:57):
what really made me enjoy this movie is they they're
just a really good team everybody together with the old
Ghostbusters and the New Ghostbusters all work together really well,
some really fun, well defined characters that I wasn't expecting
to feel so much of a bond to all of them.
Rarely do I say I wish a movie was a
(35:18):
little bit longer, but in this case, where it was
just around an hour and forty five minutes, I could
have made it to the two hour mark. And I
know the plan now is maybe not so much another
sequel to this, which I would love, but they're gonna
do a Netflix show that is gonna be animated. While
watching Frozen Empire, I was thinking I would love to
see a Ghostbuster show, which I know they had the
(35:40):
cartoon back in the day. But I think when it
comes to Ghostbusters, if we had a series over another movie,
I mean, give me one more of this, but then
after that turn it into a series. I think that
would have a much better life. It would also probably
expose a younger audience to it a little bit easier.
And I just got to say, Paul Rudd is so
(36:01):
incredibly charming, and I bet it's so cool for him,
somebody who grew up in the eighties to now be
in a movie with Bill Murray, which I kind of
thought Bill Murray was gonna have a little bit more
of a substantial role in this. At first, I was
worried that his appearance was gonna be a mere cameo.
(36:23):
And what they say about working with Bill Murray is
you never really know when he's gonna show up. They
would just be filming, he'd be on the call sheet.
They'd wonder is he gonna show up or not? Sometimes
he would, and it feels like once he gets there,
you gotta keep rolling. You gotta let Bill do Bill,
and what you see is what you get. I also
think that's probably why they can't do a movie focusing
(36:46):
on just those characters, because they don't know Bill Murray
is gonna be there or not. But I also think
it was a great time for this movie to come
out forty years after the original one doing okay at
the box office so far the time of recording this
and has crossed the one hundred million dollar mark, which
is good, but for a movie that also spent one
(37:08):
hundred million dollars to make. Generally you want to make
at least fifty percent, but really one hundred percent to
be profitable. They did that with Afterlife, which is the
reason we got this movie. I think eventually it could
get there with the international box office, hopefully crossing that
two hundred million dollar mark. Oh it's a struggle right now.
(37:29):
I could easily see them getting to one hundred and
seventy five. So I think that number is going to
be very telling on whether or not we get a
third film in this franchise. I'd be pretty bummed out
after really bonding with these characters. Kumal Nan Johnny was
a fantastic addition to the cast, and I think his
character really showed how much they stepped up the writing
(37:49):
in this movie, where it's a lot funnier than After Life.
It's not like split your pants, laugh out loud, fuddy ah,
that was a good one. But the amount of jokes
that they kept working in and a lot of the
situational humor and the fun, little quick one liners I
thought were so much better in this and just so
much more reminiscent and an ode to the original Ghostbusters.
(38:11):
So the fact that the comedy was there on the page,
it was met with great performances, stepped up the visual effects.
There were so many things that I just loved about
this movie, and it was also due to the fact
that I was going into it not expecting to like
it as much as I did. So it's a movie
that if you lower your expectations, change a little bit
(38:34):
how you think about the Ghostbusters franchise, especially if you
grew up with it. But if you were already a
fan of Afterlife, you gotta go see this one. I
think for the big Ghostbusters fans it is a muskwatch
in theaters just because you get that feeling again. It
is one that is fun to experience with other people.
There was a big Ghostbusters fan sitting next to me
(38:56):
who would cheer curse along with the movie. He seemed
to be having a really good time. Kelsey was sitting
to my right who watched the first one with me,
not too familiar with the old school versions, but ended
up also really enjoying this movie. But you also liked Afterlife,
so if you like that one, if you liked the
original ones, definitely see this in theaters. If you didn't
(39:19):
like Afterlife and are just hardcore about the original Ghostbusters,
probably wait for it to come out on streaming. But
I think it's a really fun time. Depending on the
age that your kids are. I do think it is
fine for kids. There is a little bit of language,
like I mentioned what Bill Murray says earlier. There's also
at least one s bomb that I remember that really
stuck out, maybe another one in there. But there's no
(39:41):
f words, no real violence. It's all fantasy action based.
But for ghostbusters Frozen Empire, I was right on the
line between a four and a four point five. If
this was a movie that didn't have any legacy attached
to it, I think it would be a four point five.
But due to the fact that I don't even know
that I would rate the original ones a five out
(40:01):
of five, I'm gonna go a strong four out of
five slimers for Ghostbuster's Frozen Empire.
Speaker 2 (40:11):
It's time to head down to Movie Mikes.
Speaker 1 (40:14):
Treylar Paul. We're continuing the theme of remake after remake
after remake, but this one just might be flat out
disrespectful on so many levels. They are remaking The Crow,
which the original one came out back in nineteen ninety four,
and this movie has a legacy attached to it that
(40:38):
is so dark and sad, and it makes the movie
itself just feel even just bigger than it is and
for the time. When The Crow came out back in
nineteen ninety four, this movie was way ahead of its time.
And what I'm referring to is that Brandon Lee died
while making the first movie. If you're not familiar with
(41:01):
this story, he is the son of the legendary Bruce Lee,
and he died back on March thirty first, nineteen ninety three,
while filming The Crow. So here's what this movie is about,
if you're unfamiliar with the story. He plays a character
named Eric Draven. He and his girlfriend get murdered by
these bad people and then his character comes back to
(41:22):
life and seeks vengeance on these people. And on the surface, yes,
that's what this movie is. That's the story about vengeance.
But at the core depths of The Crow, it is
really about love. It's about dealing with grief. But his
character now can't die that he's already dead. So in
a scene he was supposed to be shot, and there
were blanks put into this gun, but the problem was
(41:46):
there was a fragment of a real bullet lodged in
the barrel of the gun that they were using, So
it wasn't that they put a real bullet in there,
or had the wrong amm or anything like that. They
just used the gun and that probably at some other
point that the propmaster had put a live, real bullet
in there at one point and that fragment was still
(42:11):
in that gun when the blank was fired, and that
propelled the force that caused the fatal injury to Brandon Lee.
And this was not the first time somebody had died
while making a movie, but it's one of the most
famous cases. And after this it sparked a lot of
investigation on safety protocols on films. The weird thing is
(42:32):
we're having something like this that is still ongoing with
what happened during Rust and the whole Alec Baldwin thing,
which is still unraveling today. We are still dealing with
making sets safe, which is not good. This should not
be happening. It shouldn't. Brandon Lee should still be alive,
(42:52):
but he's not. Sadly, and The Crow has always been
that movie that we all remember him for because as
he did such a good job at it, and sadly,
due to the fact that he died, has probably heightened
the cult classicness of that movie because it creates so
much more historical significance. But the movie itself was amazing.
(43:15):
It has such a unique visual style. He was great
as the Crow. Just the vibe of it inspired an
entire generation of goth kids, and that is what this
movie was. It was iconic, it was important, it was memorable,
it was edgy. It was a real big definer of
the nineties, one of the most cultiest of cult classics.
(43:38):
And that is exactly what The Crow was. And I
think that that should be the legacy of Brandon Lee
because he died while making this movie. As you can tell,
I'm getting a little bit fired up and I want
to get more into this, But I got to mention
that the all reason I'm doing this is because the
trailer has been out for a few weeks now. The
Crow coming out on June seventh. Bill Skarsgard's playing The Crow.
(44:01):
Fka Twiggs is playing the love interest, essentially the same story.
The plot is. His character is Eric Draven, his love
interest is Sherry Webster. They are brutally murdered when the
demons from her dark past catch up with him. Given
the chance to save his true love by sacrificing himself,
Eric sets out to seek merciless revenge on their killers,
(44:24):
traversing the worlds of the living and the dead to
put the wrongs at right. And here's just a little
bit of the trailer.
Speaker 3 (44:32):
When someone dies, a crow carries that soap to the
land of the dead. Sometimes something so bad happens and
the soul cannot rest.
Speaker 1 (44:53):
I'm gonna cool them are the single one of them.
I've watched this trailer now a few times. The real
big difference that stuck out to me is that it
looks a lot more violent, and initially I thought that
was kind of cool. Seeing Bill Scar's guard getting shot
up very bloody, looked very over the top. I thought
(45:15):
that part was cool, But as I rewatched the trailer,
I kept getting Joker in Suicide Squad from the look
of Bill scars guard because they put a more emphasis
on his physique, which he is oddly ripped up. He
is one of those actors that you never really think
about him being so muscular, but he is without a
(45:35):
shirt through the majority of this trailer. He has all
these random tattoos on him and it just kind of
looks like when Jared Leto came out as the Joker
in the Suicide squad and they put all these ridiculous
looking tattoos on him, and he's all ripped up without
a shirt and trying to look a lot edgier and
(45:56):
make it seem more updated. And I feel like that
takes away from what made the first one so great,
which that makeup that Brandon Lee had was so iconic,
and the leather jacket, the entire outfit and wardrobe for
that movie was yes, very nineteen nineties. But the way
they decided to update it was to make this movie
(46:20):
look like a generic action movie. There is no vibe
in this trailer. It just looks like they are trying
to apply botox to something that doesn't need it. The
Crow does not need a facelift. That movie is aging
gracefully and we should let it do. So this is
(46:41):
a case where it's a movie that should not be remade.
And I'm understanding that for the most part, everything I
love will eventually be remade. It is the movie business,
and I try not to get so cynical about every
single remake. It feels like it's happening so much right now.
(47:02):
But for a movie where somebody died while making it,
and that film was still finished and it is that
actor's legacy. You can't remake it. This movie has cash
grab written all over it. Because The Crow came out
(47:25):
back in nineteen ninety four and people still talk about it.
This movie will come out on June seventh, and it
will be forgotten by December thirty one, twenty twenty four.
By the time the next year rolls around, we won't
even think about this movie. I don't care how even
good it ends up being, because it's not. Just by
the looks of this trailer, I don't think it's going
to be. It looks very just that it kind of
(47:48):
feels like The Crow. Let's slack the name on it
and get people interested in it. It just doesn't have
that aesthetic. You have the director from the original Crow
saying these exact things if this remake is disrespectful, and
I agree. Aside from that, it is also hard for
me to see Bill Scarsgard in this role. I saw
(48:11):
him play a villain in John Wick Chapter four, and
even that was a little bit hard to believe. He
is great as Pantywise, the Clown, and the it remakes.
I just don't even think it was properly cast. But
maybe it was also hard to find somebody that wanted
to take on this role. Knowing the legacy, I would
imagine somebody who could actually do the character justice would
(48:34):
probably pass on something like this for that exact reason.
So this is one oddly I might not even go
and see it out of respect for the original, because
after watching this trailer doesn't motivate me to watch this movie.
It really just makes me want to go back and
watch the one from nineteen ninety four. And I feel like,
(48:55):
I know, as a movie reviewer and podcaster, I have
a duty tea you guys, I have a duny in
curiosity to myself to see this movie, but almost for
a moral reason to stand my ground in my fight
against remakes that should not be remade. I don't even
know if I can go see this one. I just
(49:15):
think down in my heart I wouldn't feel right. So
as of now, I am not gonna plan on watching
The Crow because I think it is disrespectful to Brandon Lee.
I don't want to throw any money at this movie
unless you think that I'm being out of line here
(49:36):
and I should go watch it and I should review it.
I think I'm gonna dip out of this one. It
just doesn't feel right to me. But if you want
to see it, it's coming out on June seventh. Oh man,
I just can't see it at That was this week's
edition of Movie min Framer Bar, and that is going
to do it for another episode here of the podcast.
(49:57):
In that trailer there was actually a post alone song.
And if you are a new listener of this podcast
and don't listen to me on the radio show, I
am a head writer on the Bobby Bone Show, I
am a huge post Malone fan. I don't really have
the opportunity to talk about it here on this podcast,
even though he does have a pretty substantial movie career now,
(50:18):
so maybe I will do a deep dive on post
Malone in film. But he has been my favorite artist
for years now. The first time I ever saw him
was in a small club here in Nashville, maybe five
hundred people in attendance. This was long before he was
a megastar like he is now, before his second album
Beer Bongs and Bentley's Ever came out. He actually announced
(50:40):
it at that show that that album was coming out
later that year. But he has been my favorite artist
for so long now. I greatly identify with his music
and it has helped me through some very dark times
in my life. Kind of been the soundtrack of my
mid to late twenties to early thirties. Now. I've seen
(51:01):
him in concert a bunch since then, and he played
a show here at the Ryman Bobby Bones and the
Ragging Idiots Million Dollars show, which they put on every
year to raise money for the kids at Saint Jude.
It's always an awesome show and there's always surprise guests.
And about Monday of the week of the show was
(51:21):
going down on a Wednesday, Bobby told me there was
about a seventy five percent chance that post Malone was
going to show up, and I lost my mind at that.
The next day he came in on Tuesday and said
it was about a ninety five percent chance, and then
when he came in on the show day on Wednesday morning,
he told me it was at a ninety nine percent
chance that he was going to show up. Lo and behold.
(51:44):
That night, I was standing backstage and somebody said he
was about an hour out. Kept getting more and more nervous,
and then he finally showed up with the non entourage
of people, walked right in front of me, and I
could feel my soul leaving my body in that moment.
It was like I was standing overhead and watching myself
see my favorite artist walk right in front of me.
(52:05):
And I was nervous the whole night because I wanted
to meet him, wanted to get that picture, and I
was worried that the opportunity was going to evaporate from
my hands because there were so many people there. He
had a big entourage. The word was that he was
going to leave right after the show. He played two
songs and write as soon as he was done, he
went immediately and said hi to every single fan that
(52:28):
was waiting right there in the front row. And that
whole time, I'm standing on the stage still. I watched
the entire set side stage, and I'm thinking, oh, man,
he's gonna like duck out from the other side of
the stage. They're gonna grab him immediately. But it was
also so cool to see him taking pictures with every
single fan lying on the ground to take a selfie.
(52:48):
And I've always known him to be that person to
wait outside and meet the people who want to meet him.
He's always made that a huge priority. And then lo
and behold hepped up, saying hi to everybody. Security guard
was bringing them back to where the rest of his
crew was standing, which I was right over there in
that corner. Two and I finally got to meet him,
(53:10):
and I told him how big of a fan I was.
I shook his hand, he took the picture. He was
so nice and warm and thanked me. Didn't need to
thank me. I'm like, I should be thanking you for
so much more. And not only that, I saw that
he left his bud light can I grabbed that. I
dumked the beer out and I put it in my
jacket pocket and I now have it right here. I'm
(53:32):
looking right at it here where I record this podcast.
So that was cool, because sometimes you worry about the
people who you have been the biggest fan of for
so long if they will actually be cool in real life.
And I can say, without a doubt it's not an act.
He is that genuine and nice of a person. And
it really solidified me dedicating so much of my life
(53:55):
to being such a big fan of his music, spending
money on his tickets, buying tradition of every time you
put that in an album, I get t shirt that
he puts out that goes along with the album. So
I have a t shirt where every single album he's
put out. Literally, there's so many things in this room
that have post malone. Things I have is Cane's cup collection.
I have a pop toy. I know so much about it.
(54:17):
I'm gonna go on a sound like a crazy person.
But it was so cool to see that all come
full circle and him be a genuine dude. Finally get
to meet him. So if ever somebody says never meet
your heroes, just don't have heroes who are jerks. I
also got to meet a lot of listeners of this podcast,
and that is going to be this week's listener shout
out of the week. Everybody who I talk to, and
(54:39):
the immediate first thing that you tell me is that
you love the podcast. That is the biggest compliment to me,
because this is the thing I'm most passionate about. The
thing I'm probably known for more is the Bobby Bone Show.
Obviously twenty five Whistles and the Bobby Cast, but this
being the thing that you say you listen to first
when you meet me is the ultimate compliment because you're
(55:02):
a part of the movie crew and I feel like
this is a very select group of people that I
know who I'm talking to, and we've built this community here.
So thank you to everybody who I met on Wednesday
night of last week at the Ryman or outside of
the show as I was walking around downtown. Thank you
(55:23):
everybody who said hello and for listening to this podcast
and making me a part of your week. So until
next time, go out and watch good movies and I
will talk to you later.
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