Theater Camp

Special guest Lauren brings insider Theater Camp knowledge to The Swamp this week, and we ponder if anyone will ever crack the case of the Molly Gordon Ben Platt Instagram Unfollow Debacle. 

I was also saying Nevada Bar Cart and meant to sat Utah, so sorry for that. 

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Transcript

The SWAMP (00:00.078)
this that bitch? Don't worry, I prompted that. I just love when he's like, he's like, you know, any other post songs you can rattle off the dome, like, Wow, congratulations, or maybe the one from the Spider-Verse soundtrack. It's just so freaking good. This movie, you can just tell this movie was written by someone who was so like had their finger on the pulse.

Because there's so many niche references like that throughout this movie that I think may get so genius. Well, I think this movie was written by four people specifically. yes, it was Molly Gordon. A group of friends, yeah. Molly Gordon, the, what's it, my God, what's their name, one that plays Glenn? Ben Platt's. The Dear Evan Hansen, Mr. Ben Platt married the man who took over

playing Dear Evan Hansen for him, which is the first time in Broadway that happened. So Ben Platt originated the of Dear Evan Hansen. And then when he was like, I'm leaving the show, as Broadway actors often do, they were like, Noah Galvin. And then Noah Galvin was Dear Evan Hansen. And then a couple of years later, they're like, we're married. So They had a beautiful wedding, actually. I remember looking at the Vogue editorial of it. Yeah, all of these people, these people that rotate in this circle.

Yeah. Gorgeous weddings. Cause I'm thinking of Beanie Feldstein's wedding. Well, Molly Gordon's now with Stunning. Yeah. Jermia, why? you seen? Still? They're like more officially. Like, yes. yes. Well, because, okay, wait, before we get into me asking about the lore, because I know Molly Gordon didn't go to Ben Platt's wedding and that was a whole thing. Yes.

They don't follow each other anymore. Can you introduce our guest? my god, yes. Hi everyone. My name's Emily. I'm one of the hosts of this podcast along with Dara. And this is my partner Lauren. Hi. Lauren's here because they are a theater person and it seemed exactly the perfect time to have them on. considering that this is like one of your favorite movies. One of my favorite comfort movies. You were quoting this beat for beat the entire time we watched this. was embarrassing.

The SWAMP (02:14.966)
It is just one of those movies that it's like when I watch Broad City, it's like they thought about even the little moments that you're not actually watching or like nothing's happening. Like even when they like zoom in on the little kids, like the throat coat scene. That's genuine throat coat. The right has always been $5. Yeah. And it's like, how much time did they spend filming this random ass scene? And it's even like the money.

that they spent with having those 500 children run when the cast list comes out. It's like, that was camera work. They were like, were like, this is, and I was saying to Emily when we watching it, I was like, that is like the most realistic part of this entire movie. Like cast list comes out and like the woman like sighing right before, she's like, The cast lists are up.

And it's like, was like, oh my God, I've been there. I've experienced this. I did also go to theater camp as a child. I was gonna say, cause you, give us your background. Cause Dara and I, everyone here knows that Dara and I were music people. We were in the music suite, but we were not in the high school, to be clear. In high school. We did high school bands. I think if you put a clarinet in front of me for my life right now, I could maybe hit you with a hot crust bun.

but not much else, honey. You can do some scales. Ooh, a B flat major scale might do it for me. But yeah, you did like little- Yeah, I I like danced for like 13 years of my life, but then in the summer, I did like the summer theater camp in like a church basement where you like put on random plays like Annie and Susie Gollin. It was like the two week fun thing.

And then in high school, I started doing tech theater. And then I was like, my God, this is so awesome and fun. And then I started doing that. And I went to school for technical production and stage management. And I worked in that. It's been awesome. But it's so funny because I always say I'm barely a theater kid. But it's because I don't listen to musicals all the time. watching that movie, I was like, the culture.

The SWAMP (04:23.226)
It sucks you in once you're in it. It's hard. Like you don't really want to leave. No. And it's even like it's it's just like it's one of those things like, you don't get it unless you do theater. You don't get it unless you do it. Well, it is a cult. And I think is fully a cult. This movie shows it off perfectly. And it's funny because this movie is like, in theory, like a parody of it. But half of it is like it's so realistic. Like the way Ben Platt's character is like, I'm head of acting and the way he's like he's like,

talking is like acting is learning and then choosing to forget. Like that's literally how like teachers are talking to you when you're like five years old. No, it was so real. Also like the camper counselor like dynamic in this movie. Also how weirdly specific camp culture is too like when you get to camp and it's like there are these weird chants that everyone knows to do at the same time. It's like very culty and

Yeah, I felt that movie also, but it's mostly because it's a bunch of people who are deeply entrenched in the real life Broadway theater scene, fully making fun of themselves in a way that I'm like, I cannot believe they're doing this with a straight face. It was brilliant. impressive. So insightful and just self-aware about how terribly obnoxious this group of It literally felt like a love letter to your childhood summer theater camp.

the way that when they all, the counselors are being introduced on the stage and the kids are screaming. Like that is another thing that I was like, I'm getting chills. Like this is so realistic because it was like, you had to introduce like, okay, here's Angela, your director for the season. And people would like scream at the top of their lungs. And I remember being essentially that like kid who's like, you know, not literally, I don't have gay dads, like, you're kind of outsider.

And then you're like, am I supposed to understand this culture? it's in the girls that are having the green screen that she has to do herself tapes. I was like, this is just, it was so funny. The whole thing, I watched it and I was like, I can't look away. It's so realistic. I feel like, I don't know, I feel like we probably sit on a similar plane, Dara, because while we didn't do the musicals or anything like that.

The SWAMP (06:38.094)
We were very adjacent. We were right there next to it though. Yeah, we were in the pit band for show choir, which this feels very adjacent to show choir. And we did the musicals, we did the, you know, we were a part of the musicals. It's very serious. We always adjacent to theater kid culture. Well, we were in it. So you see how- I harshly judged it when I Oh, the marching band kids were judging the theater Yeah, well, because we were the ones that we were just in the pit band doing like the music for. We're not like you, we're just the nerds that are in the pit band.

And we did think we were better than them. I was like, damn, y'all are taking this so seriously and you suck. There is definitely the like, the show must go on. Yeah. Well, here's the thing is it's perpetuated by the camp. mean, the teachers in our case, but those camp counselors that truly do like it's like a route like and not that I've watched a lot of RuPaul's Drag Race, but it's the way that like Ru will scream at a girl.

Yeah, I did that because I love you. Exactly. Like these teachers will like go in on your ass and tear you apart. the tear stick. Stop. That scene, could like, I would watch that over and over like when they cut and like Molly Gordon is literally like spitting up all over herself and just like get off the stick. Get off the stick.

And then it's like the cut to Amos, like later when he's saying bye to everyone and they're like, I know that you were hard on me because you care. And he's like, harness this pain in the future. Exactly. No, exactly. It's like it is life or death. You're eight years old and your teacher is like telling you, if you don't get your shit together, you'll never make it to Broadway. Yeah. No, but the way I feel like camp counselors were so serious like that talking to literal children. Yeah. I feel like theater people in particular also like

it's 100 % intensity all the time. And like also this co-dependent relationship that they show between Rebecca Diane and Amos. Like I feel like I see that so much in theater. People just like climbing onto the person next to you and be like, we are one entity. Even like the way that they introduce the like plays that they're doing. I was saying, was like, holy shit, like literally my drama teacher in high school. Like that is how.

The SWAMP (08:52.536)
she introduced what the plays we were going to be doing. was like she had all these skits and like not in a cool way. Like no one that I was hanging out with thought what she was doing was cool. It was only the actors that loved it. And I was the cool tech kid, but then she would be like acting out. Yeah, I was like, I was different. And then she's like, she's acting out like, we're doing Pippin and she's doing like circus things and everyone's like, what the fuck? And it's like a mandatory meeting.

And we're like, how do we succeed? She's been practicing this for years. For years. She like pulled you out of math to be here. You're like, dude, I'm missing a quiz. But then there's like the perspective you don't have as a child, which is like, why the fuck are these people working with children for two dollars? And it's like, it's because they genuinely believe and care about the craft. Like Amos, Amos Klobuchar.

I love that we get a firstie lassie from him and Rebecca Diane is just Rebecca Diane. Diane, oh my god. It's so, like, I wonder if this movie resonates with other people. Again, like having vibrated on the same frequency as a theater kid, you know, like next to it, so you kind of understand that whole vibe. So it's like, I understand the, you know, isms and what they're making fun of, you know, to a certain point. But I wonder if this movie resonates with other people so much as...

as it does with I do because I see these characters and I genuinely feel like they are people I knew. Like Rebecca Diane is a girl that I knew. is someone I know. I could name five different versions of Rebecca Diane right now. Like when Rebecca Diane, when they're at the fire, when they're at the fire and she starts like talking in the weird voice and I was like, I was like, I feel like you're using a different voice than you're using five minutes ago. And she's like, she's like, that's my voice.

That's how I see it. the way though that they are like self-awarely nailing that theater people do, they'll speak to you in a way that you're like, why the fuck are you talking to me like It's amazing. And I love an I.O.'s character, like totally the straight man. She's like, it's getting kind of weird in here and I think we should get more crunk. And they're like, what are you doing here? And she's like, what are any of us doing here? And they're like, no, no.

The SWAMP (11:01.762)
What are you doing here? Because it's like the thing where it's like you can't actually like she's trying to fake the fact that like she's like, it's gonna be so easy to blend in to this. But then it's like all the acting like people are in it like what? Clive, the dance teacher. my god. Yes. He is like, I wish there was more time because like when he's doing his nighttime performance and he's just doing like an old burlesque number for some reason.

And this is the recurring fact that he like used to work in more or less. And I'm like, it's so fucking realistic. Because that's all they would ever talk about. And I was like, oh, back when I was famous, all it was was like he did like one show one time. Yeah. Well, it's the whole saying as well, like those that can't do teach. Yeah. And that's exactly where it ends up being. Even when like what's what's her name? The like the really talented girl, Darla. Darla. Yes.

When Amos is like, say something objective about me, just like anything at my God. And she's like, you're an acting teacher. And he's like, it's actually wildly inappropriate and problematic. I'm a performer who teaches full time. And it's like, that is the delusion. That is the delusion that like theater people, like half the people I know that live in New York that I went to college with, like that are like, I'm working in.

New York as an actor. I'm like, no, you're not. You're a server and that's okay. But like, we're not there yet. We're not there yet, babe. But it's important to have dreams. That was the thing. It's like, these people are so famous and so beyond it now that they're able to like make jokes about it. Ben Platt, who's like, probably one of the most famous musical theater people, Broadway people that we know. Absolutely. Okay. And so can we circle back though? Yeah. So why, why, what was

the cause of splits bill between best friends, Molly Gordon and Ben Platt. Does anyone know? No one knows. No, she wasn't at his wedding and they don't follow each other anymore. That's all I think they do. I think they re followed each other because people were like, people were like praised me because this is where I found out because it was the re following. I'm like, what is going on here? Do they think it can be like, what does Jeremy Allen White have to do with this? Well, can I just say something because this is I

The SWAMP (13:24.622)
This is the kind of thing that I need Molly Gordon doing. I don't need her on the bear. She shouldn't be there. that character is just painful. Yeah, I unfortunately feel like a lot of people don't know about Molly Gordon in like actually good and funny shit because they just know her from the bear and she's so annoying in the bear that everyone thinks that she's annoying like that. I'm like, no, her character is just annoying. She's literally girl written by man. And she has no... She's somehow an emergency room doctor.

Yet she always has time for car me and she also has no personality. But then also, like with Molly Gordon, I'm like, what are the odds that her and Ben plaid just did this for funs like shits and giggles and their best friends and they're like, let's unfollow each other and like make it seem like we're fighting. I don't know. I think it's that it's the fact that she wasn't at the wedding that really like what if she was working? Maybe. But.

yeah people also speculate because she specifically was in Venice during his wedding because people were like she was posting on her Instagram story that she was on vacation but it's like she could have I don't know. yeah interesting. I don't know maybe she was working. interesting but yeah no she really ate this up and even even I remember seeing promo for this before I came out and being really not sold on it because of Ben Platt because I'm not really sold on Ben Platt.

This was the thing that I was like, all right, I can get behind it. I can get behind remarkable, actually so remarkable that this movie like basically net zeroed the I was about to say live action Dear Evan Hansen movie. That's hilarious. It basically is. That's you're not wrong. The movie version that they made of the stage production where Ben Platt is 38 years old and he's sweating in a wig looking

Busted and they're like this man is in high school and it's a Terocious like literally I think it was a humiliation ritual I think I may have blacked out that that happened in our my Lauren let me get you up to speed Dear Evan Hansen as a whole just like really hasn't aged Wasn't he like CGI'd weird or something? Yes, they de-aged him. Well they tried to de-age him, it but it looked

The SWAMP (15:35.886)
Oh, well, they did a second release. think they did a second release. think the movie came out and everyone was like, what the fuck? And then they released like a Snapchat filter version where he was a baby. Yeah. They put the baby filter on him. It offensive. It feels offensive. Honestly. his dad, those who don't know, Neppo baby Mark Platt, his dad is Mark Platt who produced Wicked, the original stage

production of Wicked, he's the producer for it. And so he's gone on to, he's really in the pocket of Disney now. He produced the Wicked movies, but he also produced like a lot of the live action slop they're doing lately, like the Snow White movie, the Little Mermaid movie, like any of those. It's Mark Platt is doing that. And the whole thing that had happened was Rachel Ziegler is Snow White and she reposted something about Palestine and then Mark Platt.

who is a Zionist and his son, his son Jonah, who's a Zionist like was calling out Rachel Ziegler and wasn't the one who like raised all of these issues. Then it was a whole thing that Mark Platt like got on a plane and fly it out.

and like met with Rachel Ziegler and was like, please delete those posts. And she was like, what the fuck is your problem? And she did this whole and she didn't. Yeah. She's like, I'm not deleting the post. Like, what the fuck is wrong with you? You're bullying a 23 year old. we're going to blacklist her in Hollywood. Like she'll never work a day again because I'm Mark Platt basically. Yeah, sure. I was kind of wondering if that was having something to do with maybe some friendship fracturing. But Ben Platt has since, you know, done as.

little as you can possibly do as a celebrity, is repost something on your Instagram story, which he did of the Hannah Eynbinder speech during the human rights campaign that she gave. That was really good. he has shared a thing. Ben Platt has separated himself from his family's values on Instagram one time. Make a little bit of that, there you will. So maybe there's a little of that sprinkled in into the...

The SWAMP (17:36.096)
Who's to say? But my disdain for Ben Platt does come from like a deep and real place, but he's so good in this movie and so self-aware that I'm like, I have to give you some credit, sir. Yeah. I, I, I'm not really interested in holding any space for Ben Platt, but I will hold space for Noah Galvin because- Sure.

the star of this movie. Literally the star of this movie. Yeah, Joan. Joan Still. That is Joan Still. The first when he's like fixing the wires and he harmonizes. his assistant stage manager is like, wow, damn, Glenn, that's really beautiful. he's like, she was the only kid I vibed with. Also, incredibly accurate representation of like the tech kids. It was just so cute. And then when he starts like

dancing across the stage. you make it harder? If I was a real dancer, that'd be really hard. I really though the first time I watched this had absolutely no idea that it was gonna be as funny. Well, no, that it was gonna be him as Joan. I literally was like, not a clue. It was brilliant. was brilliant. your second watch, you totally see the lead up to it. You're like, oh, of course. I also agree with you that that drop.

the first time I saw this movie, which I also didn't know anything about this going into it. My bestie, who I see a lot of movies in the theaters with together, he loves Amy Sedaris and we love Amy Sedaris together. And he was like, we have to go see this new Amy Sedaris movie. It's only playing at this one theater, you know, like an hour away. we were like, yeah, literally in a coma for the whole time. But I was like, yeah, we can go see this Amy Sedaris comedy. And then I look up the cast and I'm like, I don't know.

about this, Kevi, because he was a musical theater kid and I was like, is this gonna be like cringe? And literally we were howling in the theater the whole time, like instant classic rewatchability, like you said, like that subtitle watch.

The SWAMP (19:40.686)
while you're watching it the first time, you're like, I'm so excited to put this on at home with the subtitles so that I can catch every joke, because every line of dialogue is so funny. Well, because like Amy Sedaris, it's like just one of those things where you're like, she's such a good actor that even though she's only in this movie for a total of two, maybe three minutes, it's like incredible. Like when they're watching the auditions, they scream and they like scream at the kid doing splits on stage.

She was the first that seizure related incident related to Vibra. Also, can I just say the editing in this show is perfect. I'm sorry, just the cutting between her like blinking him like the strobe light. Yeah, it's just like, and she's so like even the little thing is like every time I thought this movie like couldn't get funnier, like there is never like a let down with a joke even like it's so funny that they like show her like live streaming in the hospital and she's like dead.

And you're like, oh, she's lying asleep. Like that's the joke. And then the joke is actually that's not even fucking her. They stack a joke. They just keep going. then it's like the layered joke is that she wakes up and you're like, it's like, it's just so funny. Oh my God. don't know. Like anywhere that they can put a joke, they did. And it worked so well. Cause I think there's a lot of movies, especially like Dara, we watched Wet Hot American Summer. And I think that they try to do that a lot as well.

but it doesn't pan out because it's not funny. That movie has a lot of flat jokes. Yeah. Like, ha ha, alcohol, beer, sex. Yes, yes. And the joke that is the joke is that we're pretending to be kids having alcohol and beer and sex, but that's This is not that funny. No, but it's like even with like the tear stick scene when they're like running onto the stage. It's like the joke is that they're like, she's using.

Yeah. But then it's like, no, they're jumping onto the stage via splits or they're doing like a whole barrel roll to get onto the stage for no reason. You know, it was like them being like, can we do another take? Actually, I'm going to like barrel roll. Well, I just have to assume that half of this movie is improv. It's just friends having fun. Exactly. Because also like watching this movie back, I was just sitting there thinking how much fun it must have been to be these kids pretending to be at summer camp. Because you know, they were all just theater kids. They had to be. I have seen when they're like.

The SWAMP (21:57.432)
talking about stage combat. What is it? It pushes the envelope of theater. And she's like, no, like, someone give me an answer that's poetry. a legal definition. my God. It's like it makes your heart skip a beat, but safely. And it's like, know, they scouted these kids like from theater camps. easily. I really would love to know how they cast these kids because they were.

so talented. Genuinely. Well, can we talk about the fact that the musical was actually like, would see that I would have seen Joan still. I'm sorry, the the Studio 54 scene.

Hysterical. The Glen draw. The giant nose, the giant paper machine nose. The big white feather boa that goes across the stage. Like drag queens need to seal that. That was so fucking There was a little call back to that earlier, which you don't pick up on the first watch, which is like Ben Platt's character going, giant paper machine nose.

and he's like talking on the dock to his like self-recorder and you're like, what the fuck is he talking about? And then later you see the giant paper mache nose. It's just the details. It's the details in this movie. Like one of the things that made me howl so bad is right at the end where they're doing the big final number and like.

Molly Gordon and Ben Platt are coming together and like reconcile. They're harmonizing. She goes right in the middle of it, she picks up the mic and does the background singing because the kids can't hit the notes. my god, it was so real.

The SWAMP (23:28.214)
Because we've definitely, like, I just remember having those teachers have to like step in and be like, all right, well, I got to play this part. It's like in the middle of their conversation. She's like, I'm sorry, I never meant to do this. Picks up the microphone. my God. The realest thing about Rebecca Diane to me was like that sort of like.

like hippie white woman who thinks she can do reiki type energy coming off of her and she's like holding all these healing seminars for the children. past life seminar. You are the oldest soul in this This is your last life. This is your last life. So funny. You are the first lesbian nurse. then it's like you are president and she like salutes.

I like, you are the president. I just have to assume that half of this is just improv. Yeah. Well, I was watching that the past life scene. was like, oh my God, we had those accordion walls at my church as a kid. Oh, yeah. Yeah. I was like, oh my God. It's so specific. filmed this. Yeah. Oh, yeah. Because they must have had to have filmed this on an actual cam. Yeah. Like, oh my God, everything about it. And even like Amos, when he's talking into the thing, he's like, pay mom rent.

The SWAMP (24:43.61)
my god. But the camp in the movie is called Adirondack. Wait, Adirondacks, which is like so stupid and funny. Yeah. But I was curious, so I was like Googling about it and it's based off of a real summer camp in like upstate New York or whatever. I guess there's also an Anna Kendrick movie called Camp that's also about theater camp. also about this camp. My theater friends are, I was literally when you were asking about the double features.

That was one the movies and I was like, no one's gonna know this fucking movie. it's it's like a cult movie for theater kids. Okay. Yeah. It's like very little. Because it's about, it's about theater camp. But this movie and this anachedric movie are about specifically referencing.

this New York summer camp that a lot of like industry people go to and it's called stage door manner. Yeah. I was like, my God. I was like Googling and I as of right now it costs 11 grand to attend there for the summer. think it's six weeks. And I think you probably have to like audition and they have a whole like our part of their website. That's like Robert Downey Jr. Like very like, you know, well, I'm like, wonder if this is the camps Molly Gordon and Ben Platt went to in those videos. You have to assume.

You have to see that's how they like because how else do all these famous people meet in like a? Yeah, yeah, cuz I heard about stage for manner like via People that I'd like worked with mm-hmm, but it is like the elite kids summer camp like I had one of those in my town growing up and it was definitely like Five grand at least to go there for the summer. Mm-hmm. And that's why I went to the one in the church for course. Yeah, yeah, it's just like

It is like your parents that are like or whoever is like taking care of these kids, like putting in the money to like make your kid a star one day. Oh, absolutely. And like the parents calling Troy being like, I can't believe you're going make my kid a star. My kid's going to be a lead by tomorrow. Like that's like that's real. Oh, absolutely. Like the whenever castles would go out in my high school, the drama teacher would get calls like throughout the day of like parents being like, you're going to make my kid a lead. Uh huh. And she's like, no, I'm not like what?

The SWAMP (26:52.482)
This is so bizarre. It's amazing the entitlement offering a fundraiser that went around in a music suite, dude. Yeah. Well, the music suite. This is the drama suite. the drama. You had a specific. There is the music suite and then there is the drama. We ran that town. It was the music suite. They were renting from us. No, but honestly, seeing that castless scene though did make me like it makes me tear up. It's like their whole life.

Exactly, which they get into it in the movie. It's even the little editing where it's like the music is like the waiting music as they're all looking and then it's like that. It's just the tempo goes up. It's like so. It's the sweetest thing. And I think that's the thing I really enjoyed about this month is like we've talked a lot about how there are good camp movies, there are bad camp movies, but like a lot of it is very earnest.

And I think this one does like a beautiful job of balancing it because it's so hysterical, but at the same time, really is like does. It's wholesome. Yeah, very wholesome. And it rings true. And like, what is it? The the mixer, the dance mixer. Oh my god, yes, with that camp. Yeah, with the other camp with Lakeside. Yeah, semi-records to Broadway, bitch. It's just yeah, perfect. And like that was so cute. they're like, we

you're gonna come manifest with us." And he was like, they just said that the theater kids couldn't play football. I was saying that. I was proving them wrong. But even like him, when he like sees his name on the cast list, he's like, he's so excited. And it just, I just love the like whole thing that he has gay dads and they sent him there to like, for exposure therapy. The way he comes out too. I learned to live in my truth as a heterosexual man. We knew, we always knew. But no, that's...

Honestly, and the final song, I tear up. It was, yeah, it's just like, Camp isn't home, but isn't it kind of? Kind of it is. It kind of is. think it kind of is. This movie is so good. Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers. Wait, the peppers were pickled when he picked them? Peter picked a priority. And what was the priority that Peter picked? Friends.

The SWAMP (29:11.66)
Family, connection, he picked a life. And what will we all be picking today on Chocolate or Vanilla? Jen's interim podcast segment where she says two things and much like Peter, we will pick ourselves our own priorities. I don't know, I just really like when Ben Platt said that in the movie. So I felt it was relevant to the scenario. Jen is here. Jen, is there a theme this week? There is no theme. Off the Dome. Hell yes. Emily's favorite.

And there are four of us speaking. Dara, that's me. I'm speaking. I will answer first. Then Emily, then Lauren, then Jen. And we circle back and then Jen will ask us another question. Are we ready to go? Yes, ma'am. Yes. OK, chocolate or vanilla? Chocolate. Vanilla. Vanilla. Chocolate. Chocolate, vanilla, or strawberry? Chocolate. Strawberry. Vanilla. Strawberry.

Okay, Bratz dolls or Polly Pockets? Bratz dolls. Bratz dolls are more fun and cunty and Polly Pockets, I do feel like the joke is like you could chew on the shoes and that was a really good time for everyone. But ultimately as a product, I just respect Bratz more. And when they're like Sabrina Carpenter is going to be in the Polly Pockets movie, I'm like, what is the story of Polly Pockets? I guess we'll have to find out. Isn't Lena Dunham supposed to be behind that too though?

I she dropped it. She dropped it? She dropped it. Okay, maybe never mind. I'm surprised that they're going forward with that though. I, however, I think I wasn't allowed to have Bratz dolls. Because they were hoochie mamas? Yes, exactly.

That's always what moms would say. I always feel like they're they're uchi mamas. Like we all know what you mean when you say that. Yeah, no, I was more of an American girl doll, generally, but made of money. But Polly Pockets I did have a run in with, so I'll go Polly. I'm doing Polly Pockets also because my mom said brats were slutty. Yeah, they're the devil. I do remember watching a brats movie.

The SWAMP (31:22.796)
There was a really good animated movie, but yeah, definitely. I was like Barbies in Polly Pockets. I will go with Bratz Dolls. I feel like the worst parent ever because while other moms were saying no, was like, think I was embracing the Bratz Doll back in the day. I think that makes you You're ahead of your time. So, Derek, tell me if I'm going to get this story wrong, but say it was like, I don't know.

8th birthday or something. I definitely have told this. I've told this before on the pod. Wait, About how I received a boy Bratz doll for my birthday. And when I unwrapped it, I literally looked out at the audience of people watching me open my presents and I said, what am I supposed to do with this? Because I was like, the boy wants her not fun. What the hell am I supposed to do with this?

How am I supposed to do this? It's a girl about fashion and girlhood. I'm like, I don't want a boy bra. Yeah, they give it a skateboard and that's it. Whatever. It was really rude. She cried. definitely cried. that was harsh of me. I think that's a fair criticism though. I was being a little bitch. That's what it was. Next one, Scooby-Doo or Stitch?

Scooby-Doo. Yeah. Scooby-Doo would eat Stitch. Yeah, I was a big Scooby-Doo kid, so I'll go Scooby. I have to go Stitch because I also wasn't allowed to watch Scooby-Doo. What a shame. And also isn't he like a dumb dog? Yes. is like a highly intelligent alien. So you're making your case. I'm making my case that I would pick Stitch, yes. You make a good case. And also, yeah.

Lauren, Stitch would demolish Scooby Doo, right? Stitch like kind of aggressive and violent? Oh, absolutely. Yeah. That's true. That's actually true. Scooby would get mobbed. Scooby would get looted. Yeah, Scooby would be dead in the water. Scooby would torn up into 17 different pieces. Next one is driving in a car that's way too big or driving in a car that's way too small. I am a small person, generally. I have short legs, so I don't mind a little car.

The SWAMP (33:35.246)
because I have to push the seat all the way up to reach the gas pedal anyway. So it's not like, I don't have a leg room issue, you know? And I don't like to feel like I'm 10,000 feet off the ground when I'm driving. That scares me. Why am I in a tank? So I would say a little too small. I have since having a, what did I have, a Civic, I've been converted since I now drive around four. And I love my monster truck.

It's perfect. feel like now when I get into low cars, I feel like my ass is like sliding across the asphalt. So I'll go I'll go in a big car. Um, I would go big car because I have a Honda Civic, which is essentially on the ground. And I'm also like a

I feel like could drive more dangerously. It's a big car. Well, yeah, you can cut off anyone. You're like, are you going to do? Get hit, bitch. I'm not dying. It really emboldens you. does. Yeah, that's the worry. Even when I drive your car, I'm like, wow, I'm above the world. Henry has a theory that that's why most men just own those huge trucks is just so they can cut people off on the highway. wouldn't do that. You're not using that truck bed for anything. It's so clean.

and they're lifted off the ground, they've got like the extra bumper room and they're just driving like assholes. I would literally do the same thing. I'm gonna go with I would rather have too big than too small and a RAV4 is not a monster truck. Yeah, a RAV4 is a really reasonably sized car.

It feels gigantic. It's not like okay. It's not like a Honda pilot. will admit I'm not my mom drives a Honda pilot that feels like getting into a tank But I mean, I don't know I feel like going from What do they call a sedan a sedan to like a bit like anything that has like five seat and I one. I'm not see me Thank you. Thank you

The SWAMP (35:39.732)
game-changing. I'll never see the world the same way. right, this next one's for M2 Beetle songs. Obla de Obla Da or We All Live in a Yellow Submarine? I will choose Yellow Submarine but I do find both of these songs really obnoxious. And fair, that's fair. Yeah, John Lennon hated Obla de Obla Da. Of course.

But yeah, I'll go Yellow Submarine, because that one was like meant to be a kids song where the other one was just Paul McCartney being an ass. I only have a memory of O Blood D. Like I know Yellow Submarine. I'm picking that one because I'm pretty sure it like CCD. I'm The teacher would use that as like the Jeopardy song. Yellow Submarine? No, O Blood D. OK. So that's like in your countdown. Yes. For CCD. So I'd have to pick that one for the traumatic.

memories. I'll go Oblata, I used to love that song. Next one is Lawn Gnome or Googly Eyes. I love both of these things. I'll pick a googly eye, I'm partial to a lawn gnome as well.

We just ate a diner that was fully lawn gnome themed. They're pretty basic lawn gnomes and that was underwhelming because I feel like lawn gnomes are known for being like silly and goofy and funny. They could have upped the ante. They were all just like the regular standing gnomes and I was a little... Yeah. But we did eat that one. Underwhelmed. I'll go googly eyes though. I feel like you can always get a giggle out of me if something has a googly eye on it. I was gonna say the same thing because like when you see them on like

a mailbox. Yeah. And you're like, guys, come on. I'll go with La Gnome. Dara had a period where she brought a La Gnome pretty much everywhere you went. Yeah. And I took pictures of it and it had its own Instagram account. Yeah. And it was supposed to be like the Travelocity roaming home, but like just about me and where I was going.

The SWAMP (37:54.894)
Um, it was also ceramic. It was a ceramic gnome. So I was also like, yeah, it was like really fragile. Um, I forgot about this until you just brought this up. my gosh. I wish I could forget about this. Yeah, I do. Pod, Erin also had a, you know, the place where you paint your own ceramic things. She had one that she brought around like everywhere until as a child. I was like 15 when this happened.

Old enough to know better. Old enough to make an Instagram. The next one is when someone forgets your name or when you forget someone's name. I would way rather someone forget my name. Most people forget my name because it's not super common. So I give people like

between 10 and 30 free passes, really, you have to fuck up my name. We have to be years into knowing each other before I'll say something or let it bother me at all, actually. Mostly, if people are hitting the first letter, I consider that a win. just like, like, yeah, Dana, Darla, it's like, it's like you're getting close. You're trying. I'm going to go with someone forgetting my name as well, because I like to

I feel like sometimes you can't tell, but sometimes you can watch them panic and that's kind of fun. You have no idea who I am or where I'm from, do you? Like working in a cafe, I'm confronted with both of these issues on a daily basis. I feel like when I forget someone's name, is like, it's like normal. But when they like come in and they call me a different name, it's like so incredibly awkward, like secondhand embarrassment wise. So I would absolutely pick.

like forgetting somebody else's name as opposed to someone like performatively trying to be like, I know this person who's my local barista. I'm a regular. I know you, girl. You're like, nice try. I'm like, Yeah, I would rather, I don't care if someone forgets my name, but I would not like to forget people's names, which I do on the regular.

The SWAMP (40:13.558)
Next one is in high school musical when Miss Darvitz calls it musicale or when Dara calls Lady Gaga Lady Gaga or when I definitely did not invent that. Don't credit me with that. I did not invent calling her Lady Gaga. OK, that's that. Don't put that on me. do not much greater than I came up with that one. That's trickled down.

Probably Bollinger or something. Yeah, I was about to say probably like a gay man, you know, finally made its way around to white women. That's, Or when anybody says, I'm musical, yeah, I'll pick the high school musical reference for sure. I'll go Gaga just because she's still having her moment. I say Lady Gaga regularly. It's like part of my vocabulary. So I'd have to pick that.

I'll say gaga because I thought Tara made it up. Next one is a cupcake with some kind of filling in the middle or a Ben and Jerry's with a core of chocolate in the middle or a chocolate lava cake from Applebee's. my god. My favorite thing to do is to go to the movies and then after the movies you go get a lava cake at Applebee's and you discuss the movie.

Nothing better. I'll pick the lava cake from Applebee's. That shit can be so underwhelming, but it hits so hard. don't really, the core is good, but sometimes I'm just like, want normal, or I want it to be just dispersed. I don't want to have to manage the scoop by getting the middle and then also getting the outside. I want to just do a normal scoop. Do know what I mean? then- You don't want to have to create your bite.

What was the first one though? That's the thing I hate the most. The cupcake with some kind of filling in the center. my god. Absolutely fuck that because already- show cupcake. Like it's a contest cupcake. The frosting to cake ratio on a cupcake is already abysmal and you're giving me less cake and you're giving me usually more fucking frosting inside? No. Dude, some of the time too it's like lemon curd and it's the messiest shit you've ever had in your life. one bite you get of that's just straight-

The SWAMP (42:36.442)
Exactly. It's just no good. A cupcake is just not the time and place for this. Agreed. I feel like in a cake, like, do you remember the, my God, the infomercials for the cakes with the fillings? It was like Betty Crocker or whatever. That feels more right ratio wise. But like you said, cupcakes are still just not the time or place. I'm going to go Ben and Jerry's because I like to create my bite.

And I feel like that is a good place for me to do that. A lava cake, feel like I can't get a handle on that. Specifically from Applebee's? You don't fuck with Applebee's? I don't remember the last time I've been to Applebee's, so maybe that's a personal issue for me. Like, I would pick the molten lava cake, but I've also never had one from Applebee's, but I'm thinking it's probably the same as like a Chili's molten lava cake.

Oh yeah. I'm sure it's like literally the same thing. Yeah, they get it from the same Like it's from the same chemical US Foods, yeah. They make it in a microwave. When you get it to go actually, they give it to you frozen and they just tell you like microwave it for two minutes because it just hums as a brick. Like I'm thankful you want it and I want it, I was going to say they give it to you for takeout and surprisingly it stays warm and the ice cream stays cold. So I'm like, you know that shit is fake.

Right? It's all chemicals. Sawdust. It's plastic. I will go with the fake lava cake though. Okay, the next one is from Africa. Or from Final Countdown.

I think the final countdown is overused, in Old Navy commercials and shit. I just feel like that's always... Is that copyright free or something? Can anyone use that? Probably. So I guess I'll pick the more niche Africa by Toto. But that one's also kind of annoying. Just because I think it aligns with this movie that we're talking about...

The SWAMP (44:48.398)
I'll go the final countdown because we did it as a stand tune in marching band. I think I would go for the Africa by Toto song because every time I hear that I'm transported somewhere beautiful. To 1986? Next one, Skittles or Nerds?

Skittles, I guess. But I like nerds as the clusters, but nerds by themselves are like whatever. But if we're talking about nerds products, then I would definitely go for the cluster. But if it's a singular nerd versus a singular skittle, I'll pick the skittle. Yeah, that's a great way to think about it. I don't know. I love the little boxes of nerds that you would get for like Halloween. Valentine.

Valentine, yay. We just swish it around and it really is gravel. Yeah, like the fish tanks. It's sugar gravel. I'll go nerds just because I'm having a moment here. I'm thinking of Dara's comparison of singular nerds, singular Skittle, and I would absolutely pick Skittle. Yeah. Yeah. Well, first of all,

The fact that nerds were the perfect candy to put with a Valentine's card because of the size of them, get that. But I need my candy to have a shape, so I'm going to go with Skittles. All right, last one. Sleep with your socks on or sleep with your socks off? Socks off. Even though I have really cold feet, I don't like having socks on. And I put my cold feet on Henry and he screams in the night.

He looks out at Yelp and he says, go put socks on. And I'm like, absolutely not. Why would I do that when I can just shove my feet in the crack under where you're laying? So if you sleep with socks on, you're kind of a psychopath. I'm sorry. Yeah. Yeah. That's not natural. You need to let your toes be free in the night. the night. Well, it's also like you're not going to warm up any faster. it's it's bad. You'll warm yourself up without your socks on.

The SWAMP (47:05.582)
That's the whole thing. I'm going to go with socks or without socks. Sockless. I think at a base I'm sockless. I think I would go no socks, but I have worn socks. Every and then you have I've been bad before. I'm with you. Sometimes I'll wear them to bed, but I take them off pretty soon after I get into bed. Yeah, or like while And then you just have socks in your bed. That's why I always just know myself and know that I self. I'm going to kick them off.

Cause then there's like weird little lumps and then you roll over and you're like, what's pressing into my calf? the balled up socks that I took off. But I will definitely go with off though. And that's it for no theme chocolate or vanilla. Amazing. Thank you, Jen. Thank you for having me. Love you guys. Have an awesome night. Bye, Jen. Bye.

My main note for the movie, and it's a small note, but the whole like mockumentary style of it, I think it's fine and I think it works well, but I just don't think they did like enough with it for me. I want like talking heads. Like I want like at first when they have the characters names on the screen, like and their like title and stuff, I'm like, let's do like cutaways of them like in a confessional booth, like we're doing reality TV. Like that would have been so much funnier. And then I feel like we would have gotten more like

funny one-liner moments from the other teachers and like, don't know, maybe some of the kids. just felt like there was more they could have done with it. Cause at some point I would like forget that it was supposed to be a mockumentary and then someone would do like a gym from the office fourth wall break. I was like, Oh, I'm like, that's okay. Do just use your mockumentary format as an excuse to like.

do fourth wall break jokes, that's kind of fucking lazy. I did like the bias subtitle, like captions within it though. Like when they're talking about Camp Lakeside and they're like, Camp Lakeside where they get an offshore account and personalized iPad. And it was like, it was just random shit like that. And I was like very Monty Python-esque. It was just like the random ass subtitles. But I did, agree that I would have wanted like, I think I wanted more of them showing that it was like bias.

The SWAMP (49:19.566)
Yeah, like it was just as if it was one of them making it. That would have been funny. Yeah. Oh, right. have or have the like the documentary person also be a character. Yeah. I was always the bitch film and everything. I relate to that person. Right. Like you were told to stand in the corner and do the show. But I feel like that was.

I feel like that was the point of Glenn's character though, right? That is true as well. Maybe it is Glenn. Yeah, oh my Maybe Glenn's behind the camera. Probably, I mean, he was doing everything else. I loved the scenes of him being on the radio, getting called during tech week. Go for Glenn. I will say I liked, what was her name, Caroline Krauss, the evil lawyer. She was funny. She was funny. there's the thing though, at the end, she's not totally evil.

Like you see the moment after she hooks up with Troy and she's like, you know, the documents you signed last night. And he's like, yeah, you're going to like help me out of foreclosure. And she's like, girl, she's like, even she's like, are you like, my God. But I did like her like evil girl boss, like, like, gentrification. That was my brainchild.

my God, no, I love her. That actress's name is Patty Harrison and she's in a lot of Tim Robinson, I think you should leave. Yes. That makes sense. And she just does this like really dry, I'm gonna make you uncomfortable type of character that is just so funny. And I wish we got more of that in this of her being like unwaveringly like cruel kind of aggro towards him. She reminds me of Meg Stalter kind of.

and like the I'm going to make it awkward. But like that's the humor. you're like, I'm like speaking very plainly. You do know what's happening, right? Yes. No, I love her. wish she had more scenes. I know I wanted her more like evil energy. But yeah. No, I wish we got a little bit more of what's his name? He's in that show Adults and the costume. The costume. Gigi. Incredible.

The SWAMP (51:30.926)
I wish I got just a smidge more of Gigi. I can no longer be doing Piercings in the Hut because somebody narked. Cassie's the nark. And then like the scene where he's like, Joan, Joan once said to me, you're not talented. You can't sing, you can't dance, but you always look great. And everyone's like Your skin is glowing. And everyone's like, everyone's like,

Everyone's like, that's really, wow, that so nice of her. It's like, they're all devoted to Joan. And I like seeing, I wanted, I think more of everyone's origin story with Joan. A little bit, but I wanted more of Clive, honestly, the dance teacher. I feel like that was just such a good character. my God, the scene where they're picking the cast lists.

Oh my It's a seance. They candles. They're like, how can we discuss titchabuff if we haven't picked a proctor? And it's like children doing the crucible. Oh my god. The crucible junior in the yard. Yeah. And then Clive's like, well, you took all the good ones. What am I going to have? And they're like, you can have this guy. And he's like, hmm.

All right. Like I love it's like the start of Ben Platt's like weird personal rivalry with this girl. girl, yes. Darla who they cast as old Joan and ends up you know leaving summer camp at the 11th hour to go book her big job that she did only with the help of Ben Platt or whatever cute little story art that they have. But I just love how he is so sad. That's also a way how theater

teachers will be like, vindictively, like spiteful towards a specific child. And it's like, it's cause I love you and I want you to grow. But it's like, my God, it's like literally borderline bullying. And I think when the final scene, like with the final Joan,

The SWAMP (53:31.924)
still like when Glenn has been up on the stairs on the stage. And then it's just like Ben Platt's character being like, holy shit, he's amazing. And I feel like it's it's like showing him getting softer and like being like, he's like, even his preconceptions are being challenged. But it was just so funny because like, you know that they're married in real life and he's like, holy shit, he can sing. Boy, can he sing Billy Elliot. Boy, can he dance.

No, no. Oh my God. He looks fantastic in drag. I was like, wait, that matte lip, that like pearly shine, not matte, that like shiny lip. I was stunned. I was stunned. Like, was like, wait, she's amazing. Yeah. The lash, the wig. The wig. It was amazing.

Glen now stars as Alphaba and operates his own Right. Oh my god, the foot of that little thing. Operates his own harness. Should we get into our regularly scheduled programming? Yeah, I feel like for Fuck, Marry, Kill...

Who do we put with Anus and Rebecca Diane? I mean, other adults. guess, yeah, maybe Iodibri. Or Jeanne or Clive. Because we'll just, we'll all kill We'll just do all the teachers, I guess. Yeah, we will all kill Troy. That's true. I don't know. I feel like we got, let's throw Io in because I feel like that's actually the, that'll actually make it a difficult choice. characters? I have no idea. I Janet. Janet, yeah.

I'm definitely gonna marry her obviously because I can't handle theater people like that Seriously, then I guess I'll have freaky sex with Rebecca Diane and then I'm killing Ben Platt. Yeah Unfortunately, I think that's the only real answer Yeah, it's gonna be the worst sex of my entire life with Rebecca Diane I do think Janet would be cuckoo bananas crazy in bed, but I cannot marry Rebecca Diane. No, no

The SWAMP (55:35.54)
Exactly. So you just gotta... But I do think Rebecca Diane would take care of me. If I was sick? If I was sick and dying, she would give me herbal tinctures. Exactly. But do I want her around me when I'm sick? No. Like she'd be singing to me and doing like sound bowls and I wouldn't want that. Yeah, no. It would be like weird tantric sex or something like that. Yeah. Where she wouldn't actually touch you. And she's just feeling your energy.

And she's singing the whole time and you need to be quiet. It's marrying your voice. This is how I talk. But yeah, I guess I would marry Ayo because she loves Janet. She's just, yeah, smash. Yeah, it's just Ben Platt dead. Dead. Dead as a lord. And then honestly, out of the whole movie, I'm even trying to consider...

Who else do you consider? I'm gonna marry the Airbnb guy who has the money to save the camp. course. Rita! Ooh. Oh. A romp with Rita could She would take care of me. Yeah. She does have a family in camp though. And then I do have to do What's Right for Capitalism and slash Miss What's-Her-Name. Miss Patti. Of course. her character's name here. Or just whoever.

Camp Lakeside, need to help table them down. Caroline Krauss. Caroline Krauss, yeah. Financial consultant. I would marry Gigi, I think. No, fuck. Gigi's too crazy. You think? Yeah, but she would make me close. would. I've never seen that show that they're in.

Yeah, good. They're also in overcompensating, which I also think was very good. thought adults was significantly better than overcompensating. Like significantly better. I didn't even like overcompensating. I only watched like maybe half an episode of adults, so I can't judge it yet, but I really enjoyed overcompensating. was, Wrong opinion, but. I mean, hey. But what's it called? What show is Holmes in? I just know Holmes.

The SWAMP (57:47.444)
Never mind. But Adults is like one show that I've seen that came out and they're like my age. Yeah. Right now. Okay. Yeah. And the actors are also my age. Is it supposed to be about college or? No, no. It's like the post college but you're living with all the people, like all your best friends. okay. Right. And it's like, it's all of them being like, we're adults and we have our life together. But they, they don't. They're a mess. Yeah. So that's the, what's the word?

Yeah. The irony. Yeah. See, whereas overcompensating... Overcompensating? Hailey is who I'm talking about. The character Hailey. Do you know who I'm talking about? Hailey? No. I really liked overcompensating because it was basically like about the time that we were in college, Dara. It was like set in 2016. Hailey. Hold on.

Shut the fuck You're old as fuck. You were a freshman in 2016. Wait, who's... We graduated high school in 2017. What are you talking about? We started college in 2017. Yeah, that's I'm saying. I thought you were saying 2016. was scared. Oh, I know who you're talking about. Yes, Dara. She's fantastic. You should watch her. We're alone. Yeah, I love her. She's hysterical in it. Oh my God.

They're besties with Caleb Herron and I know them from... Yeah, Caleb pops up in the show as well and he's really funny. yeah. I've seen the cami in the photos. But you're getting together with all of your theatre friends from back in the day. What are you guys eating and drinking when you watch this movie together?

I'm feeding them boys. So I felt like my idea for a little cocktail was based on the throat coat scene, I thought was so funny of him like huffing the tea bags. So I feel like you should do like an Earl Grey gin sour, you know, like a tea inspired like lemon and Earl Grey and gin cocktail because that's kind of feeling.

The SWAMP (01:00:01.358)
like that, but then I think you go the total other direction, for the food. It's like, what would Troy eat? It's like probably pizza rolls. That's a great idea. I was feeling really inspired by my time. Again, this is not band about band camp. This is about theater camp, but my time at band camp. and I was trying to think back to what I would be eating on the regular. And it was definitely a peanut butter and fluff sandwich and a bag of, what is it?

ruffled lays in particular. Both of those need to be together. And then I'm going to say you get about four Sunny D. No Sunny D, not Sunny D Capri Suns. Sunny Ds are so good though. Love Sunny Ds. you want about four Capri Suns, preferably the lemonade or the fruit punch sort of flavor. That's wrong. Pacific I'm only getting the roaring waters ones.

Yes. Strawberry kiwi. hate it. Strawberry kiwi, but. Yeah, I've seen your mom's like snack pantry. I was like, you were, you actually had snacks in your household. Your mom's an entertainer. Yeah, she is. I was like, this is impressive. She didn't have roaring waters ones. had the full sugar ones. I'm sure. What about you Wait, were the roaring waters ones healthier? The whole thing was up there in water. It wasn't juice.

So it just like flavored water. It definitely was the same thing. Oh, entirely. I'm sure it was just like Capri Sun lemonade. It was like just lemonade sugar. Sure. What if it was a boring water one? It was like watered down lemonade. No sugar or something. Okay. Yeah. Sorry. You're really opening my eyes. I never realized that. Yeah, we never got the regular Capri Suns. Yeah. hard. My friend just, she started what she like...

didn't realize that the Mormons had perpetrated, pierced through everyday culture so that now I feel like I'm always seeing the cream and the soda, the dirty sodas. Oh my God, So she was like, oh, I'm getting XYZ for my Mormon bar cart. Is that what she called it? Yeah, I think a Mormon bar cart. was like, what do you, or a Nevada bar cart. think that's what she called it, Nevada bar cart. that means Mormon. And it was just, I mean,

The SWAMP (01:02:21.889)
They, you know, she doesn't drink alcohol, but it's just like a cute little mini fridge for your sodas and all your various, cause all Mormons are addicted to soda. You know, she keeps Shirley Temple supplies in there and she keeps always a bunch of Capri Suns too. And I'm like, this is the juice fridge. Like just call it the juice fridge. But which I'm like, wow. Cause secret lives of Mormon wives popped off a little too close to the sun. And now we're integrating Mormonisms into our daily lexicon. Honestly, they're gonna win.

I can't say that I hate the Nevada bar cart though. Now that we're moving into- Yeah, I think it's a cute idea. I I love it because every time I'm at her house, I'm like, yeah, bitch, I wanna surely temple. It's the fact that Mormon lingo has now infiltrated our- Well, it's the whole thing of like, listen, and I know they're not Mormon specific, but it's very much still in the same vein. For anyone that hasn't watched that docu-series about the Duggars yet, like Smiling Happy People or something like that, watch that.

Because there genuinely is this conspiracy for evangelical Christians to take over the world. It's called Project... like, god, there's a name for it. Eugenics? Well, yes. Yeah, literally. Project Eugenics. Yeah, it's like Project Adam or probably called, like, Project White Eagle or some bullshit. It's like some name. It's like Project Jonah or something like that. And that honestly sounds weird. right? Project Jim Bob Dugger. Exactly, exactly.

But yeah, Darrow, when you say that we're letting them win, are absolutely correct. You're right. Yeah, you're right. Yeah. Also, shift towards conservatism. Lil Nas X jailed. We hate to see it. Have you guys seen about this stuff? I have seen. There was some disorderly conduct charges that basically they stacked a bunch of similar charges on top of each other so that they could get him for felony.

Yeah. Basically on purpose to target him and he has like a mental health crisis, essentially. He's like a million publicly. I feel like it's like known information. Yeah, it was. Yeah. But well, I was. I was in this movie and I was like, I'll write down that we should bring it up that they should bring their sex when they're getting ready for the. Absolutely. Well, on the same note, the rise of in conservatism is very much at least in the lesbian sphere right now. Have you heard about this?

The SWAMP (01:04:42.542)
I dare to call her a performer and songwriter. I've never heard of her until this. you seen this about Betty Who going on some podcast and spouting some bullshit about how she holds space for Renee Rapp because 10 years down the line she might fall in love with a man. just basically being so, what would you, lesbophobic? that the word? It was her whole thing of being like, it's...

The issue stemmed from her literally being like, it's almost like illegal for girl, for a bisexual girl to have a boyfriend. And everyone's like, okay, but like, let's pause for a minute because it's actually not. And it's like being like, it's illegal for this to happen. It's like, well, actually like sexuality in gender are actually being criminalized now in the United States and you are in a very safe dynamic.

that yes, you face backlash about being a bisexual girl with a boyfriend, but it's like who and when said that to you. But yes. Betty Who is a bisexual woman saying this about Rene Rapp. then that's crazy. I saw her on Broadway. She was in Hadestown. That's who it is. was like, she was famous somehow. That's crazy. What the fuck? It's just the who.

Also Snoop Dogg says he's afraid to go to the movies because he might see gay people. Fair, don't you? I agree though. That's fine. That's fine. Especially right now though, like lesbians I feel like are falling, or not even lesbians, like Lesbians, they're always the fucking scapegoat, man. I mean at the end of the day people just cannot fathom that I, like lesbians in general, don't do anything for male attention or male pleasure.

And people are like, well, what happens with one day this Betty Hooper said in this like, oh, and I was like, I'm going to be a capital L lesbian because you're forced to identify when you're queer. And I was like, girl, you are queer. I was like, this is the thing. I'm like, you're, singling yourself out. She's like, people are erasing bisexuality. And it's like, you're doing that. Like you're the reason because you're like, you're like,

The SWAMP (01:07:04.098)
weaponizing your sexuality against people being like... lesbians. Against lesbians. It's always against lesbians. It's always that, maybe 10 years down the line, I might fall in love with a man. And it's like, girl, I've given it a shot. Like these bisexual girls are falling for this rise in conservatism so easily. It's amazing. So many people were talking about how she said, like, alphabet mafia. Yep. Which is like a right wing conservative dog whistle. And it was like, my god.

But like, But it was literally her just like, I don't know, kind of preying on a lot of like compulsory, hetero, sexuality that a lot of people struggle with because she's like, she's like, well, you know, maybe one day down the line, you're going to be obsessed with a boy. But it's just like literally her being like, I don't believe what Rene Rapp is saying. She's like, cool, good for you. But I'm still going to leave space for you in 10 years when you fall in love with a man. It's it's so disrespectful. It's so nasty. And like,

Yeah, it's just, mean... It's like there's no way that anyone could actually be confident and comfortable in your sexuality. Yeah. And it was just such a little thing, but it's like when you're getting a platform, and people are hearing that, it's like more powerful than like, I was like, I don't know who this woman is, but now I know who she is because she's like spouting all this weird Exactly. I mean, hey, it's the same thing. Fuck 30 who? It's the same thing. We've been hearing it from Jojo Siwa.

We started hearing it from Fletcher, she did the same thing. Another person that I'd never heard of before. I'm like, who the fuck is this? Yeah. She has a little bit more standing in the pop world. Yeah? Yeah. I guess. But it's like, no one is like, it's always the funny thing where it's like, lesbians aren't claiming you. Yeah. We don't need you. No one like... Girl, it's alright. And it's like, it's a club that you can't get into and that's okay.

And that's okay. And honestly, feel like, like you said with bisexual women and this whole like shift towards conservatism and it is like easy to then lean into those more compulsory het things so that you are like more accepted by society. And that jealousy does come from observing it's like how it is to live free of male attention and male standards. And like they see that and cannot believe.

The SWAMP (01:09:19.106)
that you get to live in this world where you don't ever think about men. And you're like, fuck, now I have to punch towards that direction too, to be fucking shitty. That's a conversation I've had with people. It's like, you are bisexual. No one cares that you're bisexual. Live your truth. It's the fact that no one cares. That's the No one cares, but it's also like you have to admit that male validation is important to you. And that is not a bad thing. It's okay. But then it falls into the people that are like,

Yeah, sorry, I have to go home to my stupid boyfriend who I hate. And it's like, no one wants you to hate your partner. And that's actually really weird. I've known so many girls that act like that too. And they're like, yeah, if he died, I would never, I would never date another man again. I would just be a lesbian. It's like, that's weird. Do you hate him? I'm like, like, you're talking about him dying. Nobody brought that up. Also, like, dude, like if you hate your partner, don't be with your partner. It's like the assumption that like lesbians hate men. And it's like, no.

They're just not a part of my life. I actually don't spend any time thinking about how I hate men. just don't spend any time. Exactly. It's the Don Draper quote. It's like, I feel sorry for you. I don't think about you at all. It's just one of those things where it's like, wish like more people would like, it's like you're uncomfortable in your bisexuality, which is hard. Which like, I agree honestly with that Betty Hooper is saying is like,

you're kind of slotted into labels when you're queer and I felt that same way of being like, I need to have an exact label. But then you don't need to be making fun of people and belittling them for wanting to label themselves. Because that's one the beautiful things about the community is you can label yourself or you can literally just call yourself queer and that's it. And that's great. But I think she just really fumbled.

I'm sure she's gonna do some public apology soon. sure. Or she's gonna be caught seeing, wearing a red hat out That was literally my thought that I had. was like, she's gonna get scooped up. Like I said, again with the JoJo Siwa, she's either gonna be a trans boy in the next five years, or she's gonna go full-tail, She's gonna be Baron Trump's first lady.

The SWAMP (01:11:30.734)
Yes, the crowd was thank you. Yes. Yes. Yes, like me Baron. Trump's trad wife Jojo Siwa. You two seem like trad wives, you know, yeah, you guys seem like very subservient women. Yeah, absolutely. Yeah, it's like totally. Well, you know me. Yeah. As if. But also also also in did you see that a 24 is launching their AI division and that a bunch of people were looking into

their money and basically a bunch of Hollywood like production and other production companies have been wanting to buy stock in a 24 for a long time. But instead of doing that, they turn to like Wall Street banks to get their money because they're like, we don't want Hollywood money. We want Wall Street money to make our movies because they didn't want the like creative restrictions. Hollywood money comes with which makes sense for a 24 hour a lot of, you know, more cutting edge stuff.

in taking the Wall Street money, they've then allied themselves with big AI people who are now basically funding for them to open this big AI films division. What? it's like, it's like this look into it, I think it's a really bad sign of things to come, That's really sad of A24 to do that. to see where it ends up going. And I'm interested to see other like independent film production companies like Neon and

Janice films and I don't know. I'm just thinking more about those ones. I'm like, damn, if they're like where their money is coming from tells them that they have to do this shit. Like, fuck. And I'm sure A24 is also like not, know. Whoever Yermo Del Toro's studio is, whatever the name of that is. it Pinocchio or something? like that. He's never, he's like so staunchly anti AI. So at least we have one horror icon. Yeah. We got him in the, yeah. He's in the pocket at least.

He needs to rework a deal with I'm so pissed that that Frankenstein movie is it not going to be in theaters or it's only in select theaters? I don't know. like, it's happening because of I'm pretty sure him talking shit on AI. Yeah. Like that's why they're not doing a theatrical release. that's always how it works with like with like big studio collectives. It's like he's like vocally against something and they're like, OK, well, it's also probably that his movies take a lot more money. Of course, because it's so hands on, because it's so creatively driven that they're like,

The SWAMP (01:13:52.214)
Okay, it's like sort of the stuff that happened with Francis Ford Coppola's movie was that half those studios were like, dude, we are not fucking funding this because it's taking too much money. Like that was why that whole weird like rollout with that movie, Megalopolis, like sucked. It was because like no one, it was like he made this deal that it was like, we will produce the movie, but you have to do your own marketing. So maybe it's something similar on that vein of like they're making him fund it and it's weird now.

I wouldn't be shocked. But yeah, but the like absence of movie releases in theaters is the thing that I'm like, what the fuck do you mean? I can't go see it in a movie theater. have to watch it on Netflix. What the fuck? But I did have a really good experience at the theater and I feel like this is a good sign of like the K-pop Demon Hunter movie being so successful on Netflix that they then rolled out a theatrical release for it. Like, like that. You know, I hate that it has to do well on streaming first, but I like that.

push towards like when it's doing well, it's like people want to go out and see it. have you seen it at all? No, I've heard amazing things from multiple people. So I also didn't really know anything about it. And I had a friend to be like, let's go. He bought the tickets. We show up and it's a sing-along screening. the theater is packed full of children aged eight to 14 who knew every word.

to not only the songs, but also the dialogue to the film. They knew all the fucking words to it. It was so hilarious. It was so funny to see all these kids know all of this K-pop demon hunter shit. was just like, it had me cracking up. Everyone was having such a good time. The movie was really cute too. It was really nice to see kids being so engaged with something that I also thought was a good piece of media with good messaging.

that I think was glad that they were clearly receptive to. But just like a fun theater experience like that. I'm like, this should be showing that they should be putting all of their high budget movies into theaters. Like, what the hell? Yeah. Oh, no, that was theater kid energy too. That community aspect of it. This thing alone. But what would you follow this movie up with? It's really hard to top, honestly. This is kind of a perfect movie.

The SWAMP (01:16:19.178)
Mm-hmm. Yeah, it's like humor level. I don't know what would quite like make me vibrate at the same frequency that this movie does. So then I was thinking more that I felt like this movie was really underrated when it came out. Like nobody else had seen it. I didn't see too much. Like, again, it was like really niche theater community people talking about it, but just like not a lot of like movie people buzz about this movie. I was like, what the hell? Like award season obviously got totally overlooked because it's just like, it's not one of those kinds of movies. But

Another movie that I felt like was wildly overlooked that came out the same year, starring Molly Gordon's boyfriend, Jeremy Allen White is the Iron Claw. Oh yeah. He was in that. So you do a full emotional 180 and you go to Wrestle Town.

I've that's a great movie I've still yet to see. I haven't seen it in England, but I'm scared because I know all It was my snub of the Oscars for that year for sure. I think it was most people's snub of the year. I'm going to go for a hard 180 as well because again, I don't think that you can really top this movie. But I think that you go the route of when the performance takes too much of a toll on you. And what's the best movie for that? Black Swan.

Hmm. I think you go full Black Swan. You watch Darla's arc and you fill in the blanks. no. But yeah, really like child prodigy turned like cracked adult. Yes. When we were talking about this earlier, I was like suggesting multiple movies and Emily was like, well that, okay, well multiple people from that movie are also in this movie. And I like hadn't even clicked on that. was it you said? I said book smart because I feel like

Booksmart is who these kids that went to theater camp grow into. Oh, absolutely. Noah Galvin, Molly, Gordon Fletcher, I.O. Oh my God, she's No, she's not. That's the Bottoms. I'm thinking of Bottoms. But then we're just thinking... You just said the movie you just said, you were like the performance Black Swan, and then it made me think of a chorus line.

The SWAMP (01:18:34.17)
Ooh. Cause it's also like the behind the scenes like kids movie vibe. And I feel like that would honestly like pair really well. seen that stuff. Oh, that's one of the best movies. I would love to. That does make sense. That makes perfect sense. It's one of those things that you argue that like the movie is better than the musicals name which like Chicago. The Chicago movie is like incredible. it's stunning. A chorus line movie, well it has half of the original cast in it too. But it's like, it's stunning. Yeah.

It is a stunning movie. I actually am going to say A Chorus Chorus Line? That's a great movie. We'll have to watch that after this? Super modern to like flashback. I we should totally watch A Oh my god. I would love to watch A Chorus Line. It would be so good. But out of 10, what are you giving this? 8. 8? I'm going to give it, it's a 10 for me, honestly. This movie doesn't mess. I think it's, and every time I'm laughing,

Like I feel like sometimes usually with a rewatchable movie, like the jokes wear off. They really don't for me. You know, that's a great, that is a really good point. I was going to be like 9.5, but like I would give a 10 out of 10 to any movie that I could rewatch on loop and it never, I can watch it as a comfort movie where I'm not listening. I can watch it actively. Yep. I can like.

make other people walk through. Yeah, start halfway through, make my friends Do the dishes, come back. I think that is a perfect movie. I agree. Ten out of ten. Thanks for coming on the podcast, all. Huge honor. Incredibly huge. And thanks for bringing us this wonderful movie to review. had such a blast watching. I watched it twice because I was like today while I was doing the dishes, I was like, let me put it on again. And then I was like on my couch, like locked in. It's so good. Because you might as well.

Yeah. But if anyone has suggestions of their favorite movies or just movies you want to hear us talk about, drop us a line. We have an email. We have a suggestion box on Spotify, whatever. You can DM us on social media if that feels appropriate to you as well. Themes for things also we love. Please. Input. Thank you for listening. Have a wonderful rest of your week and goodbye and good night. And thanks again, Lauren. Oh, thank you.