Fabulous Film & Friends
A podcast for the true cineaste. This podcast examines the impact great or memorable films have on us both personally and culturally. If you've ever bonded with someone or joined a lively discussion circle based on your love of cinema, this is the podcast for you.
Fabulous Film & Friends
Ep. #103 - We DUTIFULLY watched THUNDERBOLTS*
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On this, our 103rd episode, Marvel demanded it and we delivered. Like good corporate citizens, we dutifully marched to the local cineplex and went to see 2025’s Thunderbolts* directed by Jake Schreier and starring Florence Pugh, Sebastian Stan, Wyatt Russell, David Harbour, Lewis Pullman, Hannah John-Kamen, Geraldine Viswanathan and Julia Louis-Dreyfus.
Why? Because well, what else is playing in theaters that has any marquee value?
My guests today are my two pals from the Treasure Valley that migrated to the great state of Utah, David Johnson DMD and Burton Brown.
And before we get down to business the synopsis.
In Thunderbolts, a rag tag group of misfits and vaguely criminal antiheroes are forced to work together to stop a calamitous, world-ending, threat.
Are we just lock-stepping goons for watching this film or was it worth a damn?
Find out!
Watch the video podcast on Youtube:
https://youtu.be/Sj7e5KzbH2s
And now it's time for fabulous filming friends. On this, our 103rd episode, Marvel demanded it and we delivered. Like good corporate citizens, we dutifully marched to the local Cineplex and went to see 2025's Thunderbolts, directed by Jake Schreier and starring Florence Pugh, Sebastian Stan, Wyatt Russell, David Harbour, Lewis Pullman, Hannah John Kamen, Geraldine Viswanothan, and Julie Lily Dreyfus. Why? Because, well, what else is playing in theaters that has any more key value? My guests today are my two pals from the Treasure Valley that migrated to the great state of Utah, David Johnson DMD, and Burton Brown. Welcome, gentlemen.
SPEAKER_03Hey there.
SPEAKER_00Uh Bert, you got me. Bert's on you. You got anything quippy to say and funny that relates to all this? I do not.
SPEAKER_03I am not a funny guy.
SPEAKER_00That is not true. Alright, give us some Huey Lewis. I want a new drug. There you go. Alright, so before we get down to business, the synopsis. In Thunderbolts, a ragtag group of misfits and vaguely criminal anti-heroes are forced to work together to stop a calamitous world-ending threat. Are we just lockstepping goons for watching this film, or is it worth a damn? Let's start. Burt and Brown. Was it worth it?
SPEAKER_03Yeah, yeah, it was worth it. Even my wife thought it was funny. Um my daughter liked it. She didn't she plays Minecraft and didn't really like the Minecraft movie. She said it was funny, but dumb. Um so this one she liked. She saw it today with us and she said it was funny. It was good. We liked it.
SPEAKER_00Dave? You're a big grading guy. What do you give this? What do you give this film?
SPEAKER_02Um I give this like a C minus, D plus. Ooh, D. That's a bad movie. D D D plus.
SPEAKER_00D plus C minus. That's still a bad movie. If you're going to D, that's so you didn't like it at all.
SPEAKER_02Uh I like um oh Florence Pugh, if that's anything. Yeah. And uh that got, you know, who doesn't love Florence Pugh? But other than that, you know, I could leave the film. I'm I'm not gonna lie.
SPEAKER_00But uh I'm afraid this podcast is gonna be like five minutes long because it I I'm I'm uh I feel like the film had potential but was meh all the way.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, I it the beginning for me was just seemed so slow starting off. And uh, you know, and I I think uh sorry, I'm gonna go off here, but you know, the DC universe with the the new Batman and the Flash has been kind of kicking ass on the Marvel uh, you know, universe movies. I because I I think those two movies, The Flash and then and the new Batman, um, I I thought those were good movies. Um I like the Batman better, but The Flash, you know, it was it was a good superhero movie and tied a lot in, but this felt more like Marvel's Suicide Squad and as bad as DC's Suicide Squad was. This kind of felt similar to me.
SPEAKER_00But yeah, well, that's for sure. That's my take. That's what I I I I so I was pushing for laughs on my synopsis of the plot. I mean, the plot was just like, okay, we've seen this a thousand times at this point.
SPEAKER_02So that that and you know, oh go ahead. Sorry, I didn't mean to catch up.
SPEAKER_00No, it's okay. But that that's that's my point is it it just had the most rudimentary bare bones plot, you know. Now the only the thing that I thought was interesting is it it veered into this whole sort of depression and and mental anguish angle that they haven't so it like it was almost clawing for depth, but they can't see that Bert, what the reason why you liked it is what sort of irritated me is David Harbour was irritating, and David Harbor playing uh the red guardian. I just thought, oh shut up. You you know, you couldn't have had like if you had made a Mexican or a black or an Italian superhero and did all those ridiculous cliches, you couldn't be more offensive. Look, I'm I love I have Russian friends, I'm hardly like pro-Russia, but geez Louise, would you give him a break? That was such a bad stereotype. Oh, we're like such a terrible like the entire like he's so stupid.
SPEAKER_01Stand by for defense measures coming up all wrong, oh my goodies, oh it's a rough music, like such look at me, oh go over here. I'm here to rescue you, but I'm such a moron.
SPEAKER_00It's terrible. So yeah, so my my big issue was like that where it's the tone of this film, you know, is it comedy or is it tragedy? So it did and it didn't mix the two well. I do you Bert, did you think it mixed it well? I I I thought the comedy was dumb and the tragedy was almost good.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, I don't think I wouldn't say it it mixed it well. I mean, again, I like the movie. Um but that it's like they didn't focus more or less on one or the other. They they just kind of dismissed you know the death of one. Um and I don't know. It just uh we like the characters in our house because my wife's Eastern European, so all the Eastern Europe jokes we just laugh at.
SPEAKER_00So should was she laughing at the Red Guardian antics? She was laughing at the Red Guardian antics? Well, more so than to me, it would have been like if there's an Italian character named Spaghetti Man who's going, hey, this thing is a sauce in the pizza.
SPEAKER_01That's what he was.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, when he said something that's about you know you're you're down, but or you're even you're you're even more down than the typical Eastern European or something like that.
SPEAKER_00Okay, that was a fine that was a fine line. She laughed at that. Yeah, that was a fine line, but the just the stupidity of them. The the the okay, the crass commercialism, the sort of Euro trash commercialism, or the it just seemed like all right, they're playing this up way too much.
SPEAKER_03You know, the accent is like very familiar. I I hear that accent a lot. Yeah, not Russian, just right.
SPEAKER_00It was just the standard style. Again, I look, I don't know. Did any of you guys ever see The Black Widow during COVID when it came out?
SPEAKER_03Yeah, yeah, we like it. I liked it. My wife even liked it.
SPEAKER_00I I thought, look, you know, I almost made you guys watch it, but I'd like, you know what? I'm not gonna pay to see that again because it was such a turkey. I thought it was Dulzville. I I thought it was sheer Dulzville. I actually let me finish my point because it's a hot one. It's a hot, it's a hot turkey.
SPEAKER_03It is hot.
SPEAKER_00But I I would have done like they did with Spider-Man 2 and Spider-Man No Way Home with uh Electro. I would have revamped the Red Guardian in this film and just had him just quiet, drinking, just the quiet bull, like the quiet, you know, the old horse who just doesn't say a word and just like, you know, just glaring at Bucky, just you know, just hating on Bucky, the winter soldier, you know, you know, like I just would have changed his character completely from the first movie. Because who even saw and who even remembered it? The the Black Widow movie. Like, do you remember a thing that happened in Black Widow? Bert, what happened in Black Widow? Can you tell me?
SPEAKER_03Well, it was a development of her of the Black Widow character. Nonsense. What happened? Give me the plot. Well, I don't know. It was her life story when she was young, and she is fine. What's the plot? Kidnapped along with Florence Pugh, and they were. What's the plot?
SPEAKER_00That's all backstory. Everybody's backstory. The plot was again as forgettable as this.
SPEAKER_02Okay, so to Alex kill everybody. It was it was the Black Widow's hero's journey.
unknownYeah.
SPEAKER_00And she except she dies.
SPEAKER_02Yeah. But okay, as as as bad as the Black Widow was, I actually like that one. I found it more interesting than this one. I'd say this one was better.
SPEAKER_00This one was a better movie. This one looked better. I think overall, this one had way better action. This had much better action. Like the scene when they first confront each other in that in that pit or in the the the vault. There it is, the vault. That was a pretty slick little action scene where they're all just sort of who's who's allegiance and who's fighting whom. I thought that was cool. And then the when Bucky shows up, except for yes, it's the winter soldier. It was cool when he shows up and kicks ass. I was like, okay, this is a well done scene. Um, then it just sort of fizzled, you know. It just did that. Those yeah, two action scenes, well done, looked good, but about Black Widow, I couldn't tell you one scene that was any good. I just remember here's what I remember the Black Widow. The taskmaster was a girl, which was lame. And that, like, I hate to sound like a backwards cap fanboy.
SPEAKER_02Ah, well, the taskmaster is a boy.
SPEAKER_00But it's just like, well, that was dumb. You know, it was just a dumb switch, which is probably why they killed her off because of all the nerds crying foul on that. So they they kill her off completely. I mean, look, I wouldn't like the character, but the way they kill her off is like, well, wait, what?
SPEAKER_04That's it, yeah.
SPEAKER_00Yeah. You know, like, all right. Uh maybe she'll come back. I don't know. She'll come back as a boy. You know, I've been reborn. But it is, I just hated that character in the first movie, as did everybody. Like, that was just so I just thought, what a dumb, boring, non non-sequitur. There, that's the word I wanted uh for for the Black Widow. So this felt a little more alive than that. Like a little more vital. But I I just would have completely told David Harper, you know, I here where I go with my cigar, here I worked with David Harbour.
SPEAKER_01But I did.
SPEAKER_00I did on a movie called uh Knife Fight. To me, obviously, to the flunkies, obviously, I'm sure it was family, he's a barrel of laughs. But with me, he just kept, he was very quiet, seemed pretty like he just wanted to be left alone, and like he was all business. And that's where if if I was a director, I'd go, yeah, hey, Davy, baby, come into your trailer. I hated your character in Black Widow. I'm starting over. You're just gonna be a quiet, teeth-grinding, bitter Russian dude who drinks a lot. And I don't and tone down the accent because it's bullshit. That's what I would have done. I would have just cut all that crap out. It'd actually be cool to have a father-daughter thing, and he just doesn't give a crap about her. Why would he? He's part of this horrible super soldier program. It's like that's the thing about Black Widow. I don't even remember.
SPEAKER_03Well, he's not the father anyway.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, he's not the father, exactly. Like it just like, why that's all this? I love you, you're the life of my life. I was like, oh, every one of those family, just turkey. I just thought, like as a sitcom. I'm always watching family ties.
SPEAKER_02So hey, uh Gene, I'm picking up the little Arnold in your accent. Will you redo that for me? Head to the chopper.
SPEAKER_00Yeah. Anyway, um I I'm talking too much. I don't know. I'm beating you, I'm brow beating you guys. Uh well, who's your favorite character, Bert? Don't tell me it was Red Guardian after all that.
SPEAKER_03No, it was not. Um, it's gonna be the Florence Pugh. I don't does she have a character name? I don't even know.
SPEAKER_00Yelena.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yelena or Yoskos. Yeah.
unknownOh no.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. Her. I didn't remember the the the Captain America guy.
SPEAKER_00Like that he was No, he's from the Falcon Winter Soldier TV show. He wasn't in TV show. He yes, yeah. So you have you would have seen that. Uh I thought he, you know, Wyatt Russell does a fine job. He's uh, you know, all these guys are given short shrift. It was so they they decided to focus on Florence Pugh, but Bucky, who's been brainwashed and had killed Tony Stark's parents and has all this tragedy, they just tidally say, Oh, I'm over that. So I thought that well, if the whole thing is about darkness and depression and assassination and you know, finding purpose in your life, that's a good idea for a a movie about about characters who've been given the short shrift. I I I don't think it was a bad idea for a movie. I just think the plot kind of inane. Um, you know, like uh so it just sort of spoilers, but didn't you think it just sort of ended?
SPEAKER_02Yeah. Yeah. It was just like that's it. I don't know. Exactly.
SPEAKER_00Like they walk through a hole, they walk through the curtain, and oh guess what? Fake out, ha ha. Yeah, and like oh, we I would have just had You can't kill me now.
SPEAKER_03You're just gonna be.
SPEAKER_00I would have just had Red Guardian just go, there's nothing I can do anyway, and just snap her neck. It's like all right, you know, he's just like what what she has them over barrel now or whatever? Like, no, yeah, no, she tried to kill them. Nope, she tried to kill us.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, that's it.
SPEAKER_00I was like, This is it, that's the end, so yeah, and then of course, more spoilers, they lead up to the Fantastic Four, which completely seemed did you guys stay to the end? Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, so you got the setup that seemed okay, Red Guardian again, that stupid suit, and two scenes of him. We too look at the weed's box, it's me, and then the other one where he's in the suit with the the Avengers of the Z. Like, not like guys, you keep banking on this character, it's not working. He's skippy on family ties. I just want him dead.
SPEAKER_02He kind of he reminds me of who's The Rock's main sidekick in movies, you know. The rock.
SPEAKER_00Oh, you're you fishing here? Are you fishing here? No, but Kevin Hart, thank you.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, he he's like that character is like Kevin Hart in movies.
SPEAKER_00Oh, but it was yeah, it was a grotesque and dumb stereotype. And it was I I was just like rolling my eyes the entire movie because I I didn't love him in Black Widow, he was far worse in this movie.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, I agree. He was better in Black Widow.
SPEAKER_00Okay, I'm a firm believer in bad guys need to be bad, and then in this case, he's he's a Soviet-era super soldier who's been given the shaft. Make him bitter, you know, like make him matter, and especially if the story is all about addressing mental illness and depression. Again, Bucky could have been part of this, John Walker could have been part of like they only focused on Florence Pugh, and I guess that's the mandate from above, like only girls are important now. So that just seemed like why are you ruining and wasting Bucky? You got this character with 15 or how many movies, at least five movies of backstory of what a bastard he was, and now he's a senator, a congressman.
SPEAKER_03Right, that was weird.
SPEAKER_00But it's it's they've been meeting up. Again, you're uh missing out on the Falcon and Winter Soldier where he decides to give back, and he it's a terrible show. Falcon Winter Soldier was as bad as you could possibly imagine. Like, like the first episode seemed a little bit like a Captain America movie, and then by the end of it, it's like this is just a TV, this is like pure television. That's why I haven't done a second, that's why they haven't done a second season of it. So this movie, the only guy who walks out of it with his head held high is John Walker, and they bring him in and they didn't they give him nothing to do, you know.
SPEAKER_02Like it's like, yeah, none of the none of them John Walker's Captain America, right? Yeah, so so and that was like, and I was like, I don't know. It's just he was just they didn't utilize him enough. It was I don't know.
SPEAKER_00No, the movie could have been at least instead of being endgame and being endlessly long, uh, they could have given the movie another 15 minutes and just fleshed out some some of the details of Bucky and John Walker, and again, I would have liked Red Guardian not to have a as big a part, but just shut up, you know, and then and then give give uh I like what's your face? Uh Ghost. You know, I don't like those Ant-Man movies. I if if I'm gonna rate all the Ant Man or all the Marvel movies, those Ant-Man movies to me are pure TV sitcom. I just don't like them. Paul Rudd, who is a great actor, actually. He specifically in the when he did the Great Gatsby on American Playhouse, he can do good stuff. He's a good actor. Unfortunately, he's just they're just letting him be lazy and play a sitcom character. So I've hated all those Ant Man movies. I never understood where they're hits. That first Ant Man, I was like, this is dumb. This is dumb. I don't have any stakes in it, it just feels like a TV show, you know. And um, so the only one I was sort of interested was her, and she they they gave her absolutely nothing to do, you know. Um, she's a good actress, she has a striking, she has striking eyes, her powers are cool. Like, okay, she's the only one who isn't a Captain America clone, by the way, in the whole deal. You know, it's like you got three Captain Americas, you got Dread Guardian, you got John Walker, and then you got Bucky, who are all variations of Captain America, yeah. And then you got Yelena, who's another, you know, she basically has the same skills as Captain America. Yeah, super soldier, but but except she's not she doesn't have a serum in her. So that's another irritating thing. Like, look how strong she is. I mean, she's dead meat. I I hate movies like this, you know, that just so so this sentry smashes her up against the ceiling, throws her on the floor, and she's and the floor looks at least 15 feet high, or the ceiling looks 15, and it's concrete, and she's totally fine. You know, I know it's movies, but it's like she just would she'd have a broken spine, she's dead, you know. All the other guys fine. They got it's explained, they got super soldiers here. But you know, don't put her in that situation where she's getting choked and throttled because she'd be completely dead. You know, it's just I hate it.
SPEAKER_02She's she she's like she's like Hawkeye to me. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Because Hawkeye has no superpowers, right? He just shoots a bow and arrow. Right. And he should have been dead numerous times, right? Right. But he still he still is, you know, still lived. And uh and why okay, I'm gonna I did not like the sentry character. I'm like, this is Superman, that's who he is.
SPEAKER_00Well, he's the Hulken Superman. He's the Hulk and Super Hulken Superman. I well, again, if you've keeping up with comics, and I just do through Osmo, I don't read them. I promise I don't read them. I'm not lying, I don't read comics. But I keep up, you know, just with Wikipedia and everything, just a who's who or whatever. And it's all like everybody's a superhero. And it's I've I've complained about this to Joe every time. Like it all, it all doesn't matter. So just every everybody's Spider-Man, Captain America, Hulk, they're all way too powerful now. They weren't like this when I grew up reading comic books, they had limitations. Captain America was just a guy in he's like Batman. He's just a guy in peak physical condition. You know, he's an acrobat. He's he can juggle, he's like a circus, he's like a circus freak with the shield, you know. He's just good. He's not like now, he's just super powerful.
SPEAKER_03They just superhuman, yeah.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, you know, the ranking was uh according to Stanley and Steve Ditko, went Hulk, Fing, Thor, Spider-Man. That was it. Everybody else was just average strength, you know, or like just regular Joes. Iron Man wasn't super his Iron Man, his soup couldn't just do anything. He was constantly having to repower it. The this comic was better in the 60s and 70s. He was constantly running out of power and having to power himself. There was a way more limitations, but the nerds now they just can't deal with it. Look, my rant is that like, yeah, Sentry's a dumb character because he's just I mean, he you're right, he's superman, but he's the Hulk too. Just to add that little twist of don't make him too mad, don't go too far, he's gonna turn evil, you know.
SPEAKER_03He'll go black, yeah.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, yeah, that was my least favorite part. I'd say that was my least favorite part is when all that happened.
SPEAKER_02The like the Yeah, and and it it felt like okay, when I when I was watching that, and uh so just so you know, like Stacy fell asleep, my wife fell asleep in the movie.
SPEAKER_00My wife, my yeah, my and wait, just real quick, Endgame was the last movement my wife left and said, I can't take this crap anymore. Yeah, left, she goes, I'm I'm never watching these movies again.
SPEAKER_02Um, but that scene when they're in the in whatever the the space, I don't know if it's his mind or whatever. I'm like, this just feels like Doctor Strange movies. Right. Now we're they're just pulling in all this stuff.
SPEAKER_00And well, it also felt like Avengers lead the Voltron. I mean, how many times are we gonna see them face to face with their fears of the past? It it you know, it was the least interesting for sure, all of that stuff, yeah.
SPEAKER_02But uh yeah, it yeah. Hence that's why I gave it the grade I did. I just you know, and I looked on IMDB and it's like 7.7 or something, like fans love it.
SPEAKER_00So well, it has a 98 or 95 percent uh tomato rating and all that and audience score. And I I I'm gonna say C a solid C. I didn't hate it. I walked out going, that was okay. But then I then I went, except for David Harbour, oh, and then except for that whole sentry thing, which wasn't I mean I didn't mind I didn't mind him being like bipolar and all that and having two personality. I didn't think that was the worst of it, but I was sort of irritated that they the government created this guy who can defy all physical and and you know all laws of physics, and he yeah, it's like well you have to be from another planet in my mind for the government to to work on that. It just seemed too much. So I don't like the character period, you know. It just didn't seem like a a great character. Um I did Bill Lewis Pullman do a good job? I think he did a good job, I think, as the character. You know, did the actor, I mean Bill Pullman's son, who was playing Sentry.
SPEAKER_02He had looks like Bill Pullman does in movies, though. Yeah, like you know, how Bill Pullman will pull that, you know. I don't even know how to do it, but uh looking kind of out of the corner of his eyes, looking like he's about to weep. That's kind of that's kind of what it reminds me of.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, yeah. Well, he looks like his dad for sure. You know, I I think he's a good actor. He was okay.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, I think he's a good thing.
SPEAKER_00But here's the deal. They didn't, you know, when the whole like the thing would have worked, see, the thing would have worked. Remember, it's all Florence Pugh. And again, they're again the directive, it has to be the girl. Why couldn't all six of them, if you're gonna go that route, have the group therapy where they like they did it in the end, where they all sort of held each other up, but they all are killers, they all have depression, they're all they've all done terrible things, right? So they can all relate to this guy. I just thought it was unfair. It's just like well, this is half of a it's like a quarter of a movie, or what how many team members? Five fifth? So it's a fifth of the movie, you know. So there's there's only one character who gets any attention, and I thought that was lazy, you know. Like, well, give give give Bucky. Bucky's got, you know, you got Sebastian Stan. Give him a bone. He's he needs a decent role, and he he seemed cool for a change. I used to hate the character Bucky when he first showed up in the Winter Soldier. I was like, oh my god, this is ridiculous. You know, that hairdo. And it's not his fault. The comic book was set up that way. I mean, the comic book has the long hair and the the metal arm, because it's a 90s creation, and where everybody has to have a metal arm in the 90s, you know.
SPEAKER_02So it just but you know, looking back on Bucky's character, because you know, there's I mean, this movie we've talked a lot, you know, about it. Um there's not much else to say on my end, except Florence Pugh was my favorite in there, and I didn't really like Julia. Uh yeah, I'm with the other I did not I it's like Elaine from Seinfeld. Yeah, yeah. I'm like she's Elaine. I'm sorry, I typed.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, no, but she but see that's a problem. Like, you know, like Jerry Seinfeld's not a good actor, right? Yeah, but he'd probably be the first to tell you that, you know. He he mugs, he but he's a good comedian. She she's on she's a good comedian, she's really funny. She was fun at Saturday Live, she was hilarious on Seinfeld. She, you know, when so she was she's I've never seen Veeep, but it's a sitcom, so she can do what she can do. But this movie it needed more than her for sure. Yeah, yeah, you know.
SPEAKER_02Um, but anyway, back to my point about Bucky, like the Winter Soldier. Uh he was kind of a badass in that one.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_02And and then I don't know, endgame. I'm just like, he just seemed like uh I mean, he's human, obviously. He doesn't well, I guess he has super doesn't hear. No, yeah, super strength. Yeah, yeah, super strength. Yeah, and I'm like, uh, you know, he was beating up Captain America and Winter Soldier. I just remember the one scene just taking everybody out and and Black Widow as well. Yeah, but and then this one, you know, he blows up the cars with the motorcycle.
SPEAKER_00I'm like, that's it, that's all you're gonna give us with this guy, because in the past he well, they showed him against you know, they showed well, they to be fair, they did show him try his his might against sentry and get his butt kicked, which of course he would because the guy's superman, you know, which is irritating. Like, okay, do you need another Superman? Or again, the rankings. So so now Hulk Hulk's now down the list. You know, who how does it work? Who's the strongest, right? Like, okay, too many all the characters are freaking strong, too strong, like lower it a bit, you know, or or just don't create them. I don't know.
SPEAKER_02I thought Captain Marvel was the most powerful. That's what I thought.
SPEAKER_00That's not the whole of everything.
SPEAKER_03Yeah.
SPEAKER_00Well, I'm talking about my era, Captain Marvel. Oh, Captain Marvel was just a a a cash grab, and nobody thought of that character until the the like mid-80s.
SPEAKER_02Oh, I thought I thought Stan, I thought that was like 70s Captain Markets. She was.
SPEAKER_00She he was. Yeah, it was a he back then. I'm telling you, they killed all the characters nobody's buying the comic book. Then they made it Ms. Ms. Marvel, and then they kept changing her cost. Like anytime you're changing the costume, it's because nobody cares. So they're constantly reinventing. Nobody cared about that character. I sure didn't. I didn't read Captain Marvel, you know, or Ms. Marvel. Like they kept kept changing it. It was just it was just a cash grab, you know. Why? Because the the name Captain Marvel was up for grabs. The original Shazam, because Shazam was Captain Marvel, if you guys are aware.
SPEAKER_02Oh, really? Yeah, I didn't know that.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, Shazam was just the word he said. It wasn't called his character, isn't Shazam. His character's name is Captain Marvel. So that they were Marvel was just being jerks, honestly, because they were like, Oh, hey, look, look what's up. Look, we're Marvel, let's get Captain Marvel. But the original Captain Marvel is the Shazam comic book, you know?
SPEAKER_02Oh. So But I still I still think all the originals are the best. Yeah. Right? Yeah. You know, DC, Superman, Batman. I'm trying to think who else was one of the originals over there. Wonder Woman. Wonder Woman.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, Superman, Batman. The three big ones in DC are Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman. The three big ones in in uh Marvel originally were Fantastic Four, Hulk, and Spider-Man. Captain Mark, Captain Captain America just came back through the Avengers. He was a he was a comic back in the 40s. He was a World War II comic book. You know, and that was oh wow. That was yeah, that was um Stanley and it wasn't J Jack Kirby, it was Joe Simon, I believe, was the artist. Anyway, uh he was dead for a while. They brought him back in the Avengers, but he wasn't Captain Marvel or Captain America wasn't a huge seller, I think, until lately, honestly. I look, I don't quote me on don't quote me on that. He was fine, but he was no Spider-Man. And he and Iron Man, Iron Man was definitely bottom tier. He was like, I think he was below Thor, and Thor wasn't. It was the the the the three big ones were scap were Fantastic Four, Hulk and Spider-Man, as I said. And Spider-Man being on the top of the heat, for first I think he was Fantastic Four, then Spider-Man overtook it. Because for years in the 80s, especially, Spider-Man was kicking everybody's ass. Now he's pre fairly low tier, you know. Um, they keep ruining the characters by making everybody spider people, you know.
SPEAKER_02Well, when everybody is, you know, on steroids, right? You know, they're all it's like who wins, right? Right. I mean, seriously, yeah. Yeah, exactly.
SPEAKER_00So exactly. It's it's boring. Um anyway, when I saw it, I walked out of the theater and went, I can't imagine talking about this film for very long.
SPEAKER_03Like and subscribe.
unknownYeah.
SPEAKER_02Well, I mean, honestly, this I I wouldn't go and watch this movie. I won't even stream this movie again for me.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I doubt it. I I mean, I again I did like the look. Maybe I would look at the cinematography again. I did think for a Marvel movie it didn't look as cheap as the other ones. Because most Marvel movies look like TV shows, even the first Avengers look the cheapest. Like this looks like cheapie all the way.
SPEAKER_03It just doesn't filmed some of this in Utah.
SPEAKER_00Oh, I saw that. I saw that yeah. So did you notice it was that I guess it was that car chase, right?
SPEAKER_03It was in Green River, yeah, which is desert. Were you there?
SPEAKER_00Hey, you're you're friends with the film commission, right? Did you did you get any scuttleboat about the movie when it was happening? Any insight baseball data that you could give us?
SPEAKER_03I haven't paid any attention to that. I didn't know they were there.
SPEAKER_02So are they are they gonna make more Avenger movies with these characters now? Is that the point?
SPEAKER_00Oh, they're all part of Avengers Doomsday, yeah.
SPEAKER_03They hinted that there was to be more at the end. No, no, no, they released you would see them again, I thought.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, but they released a little teaser uh that showed the cast, they're all in it. So they're all they they showed the direct, they showed the direct there's a there's if you go online, there's a teaser with Robert Downey Jr. and it lists the entire cast of the new Avengers movie, and it's sprawling. It's got the Fantastic Four, it's got the X-Men, and killing Patrick Stewart, who's like 99 years old. And I'm like, oh come on, you're gonna dust off Patrick Stewart and Ian McCullough.
SPEAKER_03That's Sir Patrick's to you.
SPEAKER_00Bert, did you watch Bert? Did you watch did you watch Picard season three?
SPEAKER_03Not season three. I think I've seen season one.
SPEAKER_00Okay, but season three is like, okay, Mr.
SPEAKER_01Tater, engage.
SPEAKER_00I mean, he is so frail, yeah.
SPEAKER_03Geriatrics in space.
SPEAKER_00No, it's but like you're gonna make him play Professor X again? Like James McAvoy? If it had been James McAvoy and Michael Fosman are been look again, I'm no ageist. Look at my gray hair, but it's just like no, no, no. Patrick Stewart, he can't play Professor X again.
SPEAKER_01Yes, we have Wolverine. It's like no.
SPEAKER_03So anyway, the cast like wait, didn't he die in the Wolverine movie?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, but the cast is sprawling, it's got this huge cast of the.
SPEAKER_03Well, they were sure playing up the uh the Fantastic Four. Um well, we saw the preview prior to the show, yeah. And then of course, one of the in-credit scenes was Yeah, Fantastic Four.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, with um oh, I I didn't ask the final. Would you I guess we talked about Bert, you liked it? Will you recommend Thunderbolts or were you better? Yeah, we won't I think the better question the recommend question is a weird one because it all depends. I've noticed like we recommend your father, we recommend your mother. You know, it always depends because you know some people will just hate it, right? Do would you watch this movie again? That is the question.
SPEAKER_03I would at some point. I'm not in a big hurry. Yeah. At some point I'll watch it again.
SPEAKER_00Okay, so it's a thumbs up then.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. Not an enthusiastic thumbs up, but a thumbs up.
SPEAKER_00Dave, you're a no, you're a definite no.
SPEAKER_03No, I don't plan on watching it.
SPEAKER_00I don't, I don't know. I I'm on like burp, but I was veering towards no, but like, I don't know. Maybe it'll grow on me.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, next time we talk, you're like, you know, I watched the games.
SPEAKER_00I would, but I'll tell you this. I would rather watch. I think, okay, I think I would rather watch Thunderbolts again than the Black Widow or Ant-Man.
SPEAKER_02Well, I like Black Widow, but I could see that with Ant-Man. I would rather watch Black Widow than Thunderbolts than Ant-Man. Okay. Yeah.
SPEAKER_00Alright, good enough. Thanks everybody. Bye. Thank you for listening to Fabulous Film and Friends, Copyright 2025, a Bel Air Films production.