Whatever it Takes

[00:00:00] Get ready for love triangles, grand gestures, and peak early 2000s teen rom-com vibes. This week we're covering Whatever It Takes, a modern high school twist on Cyrano de Bergeac. Let's see if this Y2K romance still makes us swoon or cringe.

[00:00:18] Welcome to the No More Late Fees podcast. I'm Jackie. And I'm Danielle, and we're just two best friends and ex-blockbuster employees re-watching some of the best and worst movies from the late 90s and early 2000s.

[00:00:41] This week, we're diving into Whatever It Takes, a teen rom-com pack with high school crushes, over-the-top pranks, and a little bit of deception. But before we dive in, let's get into some housekeeping! If you love the podcast and you want to support us, here's just a few ways that you can.

[00:01:04] If you want to help us and keep the nostalgia going, you can buy us a virtual cup of coffee on ko-fi. Every contribution helps us bring you more deep dives, fun bonus episodes, and all the Y2K goodness you love. And if you throw us 50 bucks, you can request a movie in our time frame. ko-fi.com slash nomoreladies. We'll do it. We will.

[00:01:34] Because we're whores for money. Not me paying you guys $50 to do Almost Famous so I can see you guys. We have something hard to tell you. We are covering Almost Famous. You're not! It wasn't on the list! I know because someone had requested it a while ago before we even had you on the show. I'll have to think of something else.

[00:02:04] Anything you want. Anything else you want. You got it, baby girl. All right. I can compose myself. I can do the rest of your ass. If you're looking for some nostalgic movie night essentials, make sure to check out our Amazon store where we've curated fun throwback finds, movie-inspired gifts, and more. We've even put this movie, if you're looking to get it on DVD, in our store.

[00:02:33] So head to amazon.com slash shop slash nomorelatefeespodcast to shop all things Y2K and 90s. And if you want even more of us, because why wouldn't you? Right. Head on over to our Patreon account for exclusive perks like bonus episodes, behind-the-scenes content, and much more. So become a bestie at patreon.com slash nomorelatefees. So excited to have our girl Gina back on the pod, y'all. Welcome.

[00:03:03] Hey. I am the perfect person for this task. You are. You are. A true soldier. Not all heroes wear capes. That's true. So we are so happy to have you, Gina. And if you want to learn more about Gina, check out her previous episodes of A Cinderella Story in Casper.

[00:03:31] Plus, you won't want to miss this week's bonus episode where we rank our favorite underrated teen movies, and they are extreme deep dives. So super fun. Don't judge me. Judge your mamas, but not us. So Danielle, what is Whatever It Takes about? That is a good question.

[00:03:54] Whatever It Takes is a play on Cyrano de Bergeac, where two friends make a deal to help each other win over their crushes. Ryan wants the popular and glamorous Ashley, while Chris is after the sweet and down-to-earth Maggie, who just happens to be Ryan's best friend. But as their plan unfolds, feelings get complicated, and they start to realize that love might not be about looks after all.

[00:04:19] The movie stars Shane West, Marla Sopaloff, James Franco, Jodi Lynn O'Keefe, my girl, Aaron Paul, Colin Hanks, and Christine Lakin. The movie was directed by David Rayner and written by, jerk, Mark Schwan. You can currently watch it for free on Tubi. But before we start, let's get into our ratings rewind.

[00:04:49] You know the drill. Before we get into the movie, we'll reveal the rating our Y2K versions of ourselves would give. Then at the end, we'll see if our current selves agree with our initial rating. Our scale consists of, would buy it, would buy it again. The best would play on repeat. Five day rental. Would watch again. Two day rental. Eh, okay, but nothing to write home about. And same day rental. Gabbage. Straight.

[00:05:20] Trash. So Gina, what is your Y2K rating of whatever it takes? You know, it's funny. I didn't realize I get this movie and get over it confused. That makes sense. I can see it. And so when I started it, I was like, oh wait, I kind of remember it, but not really. But I would have thought it would have been like, would watch it again.

[00:05:48] So it would be like a five day? Yeah, I would have thought it was like a five day rental. Okay. Danielle? I don't own this one. The only thing I have attached to this movie is that, you know, I love a teen movie. Don't care who was in it, what was going on. And I remember you loving this movie. So like, I associate this movie with you. So I'm going to say five day rental. Okay. At the time.

[00:06:18] Begrudgingly. I just, it's because I really like rewatching it. I knew everything that happened, but I had like no real emotional attachment with it because it is one of those movies that just got kind of caught up in the teen movie surplus we were living in at the time, you know? So, but it wasn't like a favorite, like drive me crazy or she's all that for me where I bought it and watched it. If it was on TV, I might've watched it, but that was it.

[00:06:49] Jackie? The reason I brought you all here today is that Y2K Jackie was obsessed with this movie. I just have to. Do you remember why? I know. I have no clue why. And usually I like have a weird thing about faces. Like I, I never have that thing of like, oh, they were in whatever it takes and now they're super famous. Like James Franco.

[00:07:19] Like James Franco was brand new to me, even in like when he was doing all of the movies with Seth Rogen. I was like, oh, this is a new guy. No clue. But Aaron Paul's face. As soon as I saw Breaking Bad, I was like, hey, that's that kid from whatever it takes. That's what stuck with me. I did not remember him from this at all. And Colin Hanks like threw me for a loop also. Which is why I think we confuse it with Get Over It because he's in both of those movies

[00:07:48] playing very similar roles. On their both like the Shakespeare twists that like they were doing one every year of those for some reason. Yeah. There was a lot of retellings during this timeframe. Yeah. Yeah. I'm going to say it with my whole chest and own it that this was a would buy, would buy it again. I own it. I purchased it for like $4.99 on iTunes. So I would forever have it.

[00:08:17] So I was hardcore for whatever it takes. There's no shame in your game, baby. That's fine. We love what we love. Yeah. Now let's tear this bitch apart. Let's go. I can't wait. So tell us about the box office. Maybe start the downfall of whatever it takes. We'll go slowly. So the budget for this movie was $32 million.

[00:08:47] Where? What? I don't know. Is that high school? That's all I can think. I don't know. But it only made $9 million. I guess. I read that actually and my jaw drops because I was like, surely. Because I looked it up on like before this and I was like, oh, that has to be a typo. There's no way that's possible. I did a double take as well. At first, you know, I had Chatubiti pull up the stats.

[00:09:15] I was like, oh, this bitch fucking up again. And I went to go look it up. I was like, oh, shit. It really only made $9 million. Shocker. I didn't look hard. But I don't think Lil Raj wrote something about this. But A.O. Scott of the New York Times, he criticized the film's predictable plot and pointed out that the script's way of handling its romantic complications was unusually obtuse and insensitive.

[00:09:44] Not wrong. Scott said that the film's treatment of the Ashley character, who was humiliated for laughs, he said that it struck an ugly, misogynistic note. I want y'all to remember that because there's going to be things that we talk about that brings back to that. So, yeah, that's the landscape of it all. But before we get into cast and crew, let's hear a message from our pod pals.

[00:10:19] How many times have you heard somebody say the book is better than the movie or that you should read the book before you even watch the movie? Ever wondered how true that is? Well, here at Box Office Books, we try to settle the score. I, Abby, watch the movies. And I, Sarah, read the books. So you don't have to. And then we compare, contrast, and argue, discuss about which one did it better. So if you've ever been personally victimized by a bad book-to-movie adaptation, or if you've only seen the movie and you want to know what you're missing, or if you just enjoy some good old-fashioned sibling banter.

[00:10:47] And by banter, she means me trying to keep this podcast on track while she tries to derail us. Somebody has to keep things interesting. Well, then Box Office Books is the podcast for you. You can find us wherever you listen to podcasts. New episodes are released on Friday, so join us. And tell us which one you think is better. All right. You guys ready? Ready. To dig in. Oh, I've been ready. Ready.

[00:11:17] So time has passed. And now we know that there are people who were a part of this film. Trash. That did not fare so well. So whatever it takes was James Franco's first starring role. This was before Freaks and Geeks and Spider-Man. This is how he was introduced to us.

[00:11:41] All I know is as much as Y2K Jackie loved this movie, I was baffled that he was chosen as the hot popular guy. His mouth is so wet all the time, and I just cannot stand it. Even before I knew he was trash, I'm like, ugh. Like, no. Gross. Why does your mouth move like that? Why are you always full of saliva? Like, I cannot stand him.

[00:12:11] I didn't find him attractive in this movie. I know I thought I liked him in Freaks and Geeks. And then Spider-Man again, I just didn't care. Like, that was the only time that I was like, okay. I like it. And I just felt like these two male leads, like, looked so similar. We couldn't have had, like, any type of diversity whatsoever. Like, they were two, like, white, brown-haired dudes.

[00:12:40] Like, they had such a similar look to them. And he didn't stand out to me at all as, like, Brian. Ryan was supposed to be the geek, and he's supposed to be the cool guy. I'm like, okay, why? I'm not following. I'm glad that you said that, Gina. Because as a black woman, and Jackie, I've talked about this thoroughly through many episodes, where I laugh at the fact that in white movies and TV shows and media,

[00:13:09] the idea of diversity is hair color a lot of the time. Right. And I'm shocked that maybe this is why I didn't do well. They all have brown hair. Even the lead. Oh, you're right. I didn't even think that. The girls didn't have a different, like, that never happens. Never happens. There's always. They all could have been related. Yeah. Right. So I was just like, oh, there's no diversity in this one. No, at all.

[00:13:40] No diversity from the standards that we're used to. They're all cousins, and they're these. Except the director is a black man. Really? Blew my fucking mind. His name is David Rayner. He is actually an actor-turned-director. And this was his second movie. His first movie was one of my favorites, Trippin, from 1999. So, yeah.

[00:14:11] Shocked. That. Because I know the only black person I saw in this movie was Nick Cannon in the background in the cafeteria scene. The chess kid. Yeah. So, but I understand. Like, maybe he didn't have the power to actually cast his own movie. I don't know. But, yeah. No diversity. Brown hair everywhere. Ugh. Um, so, I'm going to open the floodgates with this fact. Okay.

[00:14:42] Writer and producer Mark Schwann went on to create One Tree Hill. He also created one of, like, one of my favorite movies, and it kills me, Coach Carter. Yeah. I love that movie. And I hate that he's attached to two things I love so much. I really do. Yes. So, I did not know this. Like, I didn't, I did the notes after I rewatched the movie.

[00:15:07] And so, when I started watching it, and as soon as the credits came on, and I saw his name, I said, I know. Ariana, what are you doing here? That's how I felt like, I know that's not the same Mark Schwann from One Tree. I know it's not. I was like, look at this kismet nonsense going on here. Because as I started to watch the movie, now I had, like, the lens. Yup.

[00:15:32] That it came from him, and how many parallels, because I, too, hardcore One Tree Hill watcher for a long time. I think towards the later seasons, I wasn't watching, like, as regularly, but then I went back later and rewatched them. But the parallels between these characters and the characters in One Tree Hill, it's, it's like, some writers write themselves every fucking time.

[00:16:01] The way women, he writes them so, like, one-dimensionally. Like, even Marla's character, she, basically, like, he makes, he writes women like they can't think for themselves. No. Not at all. Like, even the compliments about her, there was nothing about her intelligence. Even when it came to Shane's character, it was about, oh, she's, he realizes she's beautiful. Like, oh, I can't with him.

[00:16:27] The way he, like, over-sexualizes Ashley. Yup. Embarrasses her. Embarrasses her in comparison to, like, Brooke Davis. Like, you can't tell me this is a Brooke Davis-coded character. And then, like, Marla's character, Maggie. I don't know if she's, like, necessarily Peyton, but probably more of a Haley character.

[00:16:53] So it's like, I kind of want to go back into his past and find out who these archetypes are, because he continues to just keep vomiting them out, essentially. And the One Tree Hill women have, like, said countlessly that he would write himself in, like, he wrote himself into Lee Norris's character on One Tree Hill. And, like, obviously Shane's character is meant to be, like, this, like, kind of nerdy guy. Nice guy.

[00:17:20] And now this popular girl is, like, fawning over him because he's being mean to her. And, like, I was like, oh, my God, he's writing this, like, through his lens of, like, he's getting to reject this, like, pretty popular girl and embarrass her. It's just so obvious once you know. Like, once I saw that on the screen, one, I was like, I know exactly why we are gathered here today. It's, I couldn't unsee it once I saw it. I almost wish I found it out afterwards because I could only see it through that lens.

[00:17:50] I, same. Like, again, when you pick this movie, I was just like, okay, whatever. I just, I hadn't seen it in a long time. But the moment I saw that man's name, it totally changed everything. And then I got really excited about talking shit about him the whole time because I, it makes me also wonder, I hope people who were on that set with him were safe as well.

[00:18:12] Because literally, not only did writers and the actresses come together, I think it was like, what, 18 people that came together to write a letter. If you, if you like One Tree Hill or the podcast drama, was it drama queens? Yep. They, they talk about a lot of the things, you know, poor Hillary Burton, like all of them, obviously. But the things that he did to terrorize those women on the set.

[00:18:42] And the women from the Royals, the show he did after, said the same exact thing about him. What you would think, fool, would you not learn anything? So it said on November 12, 2017, TV writer, Audrey Wachow? That's what it looks like. She wrote on Twitter that her and a female writing partner were sexually harassed by Schwan while they were working on One Tree Hill.

[00:19:12] And like I said, female cast members supported the allegations Hillary Burton and Danielle Harris alleged that they had also been sexually harassed by Schwan. The male stars of One Tree Hill released their own statements supporting their female co-stars and crew members. Schwan was also accused by the cast members of the Royals, like Gina said.

[00:19:31] 25 female cast and crew members of the show released their own open letter stating that they too had been subjected to sexual harassment by Schwan throughout the run of the show. And in light of the allegations, he was suspended and ultimately fired from the Royals. He has no production credits since 2017 and has not publicly addressed any of his past actions since then either. Like just quiet.

[00:20:01] But if you do watch that podcast, Drama Queens, like it is quite sad to see how he did it. I think a lot of times when we think of like sexual harassment or assault, like we think of it as like a very violent act of one off. But he was meticulous in how he would do it almost daily. And he was also, you know, he took retaliation anytime the girls did anything. And they were so young when they got that show.

[00:20:30] Sophia talks about how, you know, she kind of went straight from like a high school situation into this show. Not, you know, really. I think she went to an all-girls school or something. So she didn't have the experience of being like around a lot of men and stuff like that. So they all really went through that shit like crazy. He was so good at manipulating them. So they didn't trust each other to go to each other.

[00:20:55] So they felt like they had no one to even go to talk to about it. It was just like he totally isolated them from each other. Right. That's how he probably got away with it for so long. And if you remember, it's not like they were filming in Hollywood. They were filming in North Carolina. When Dawson's Creek left, they decided to film the show there because they had already had like the setup and everything.

[00:21:23] So they were isolated from everything else. So they made the girls kind of compete with each other, which was great why they had the podcast later on. Now there's drama there again. But, you know. We ain't got all day to go through the Long Tree Hill lore. I would love to, though. I know. Sicko. Anywho. Ready, Jackie? Ready. So we open up the movie.

[00:21:51] We are introduced to Shane West's character. And I can't remember his name. Let me go to the credits. That's how memorable it was. It's Ryan. It's Ryan. Oh, yeah. Because we're Brian. Yeah. Shane West's character, Ryan, and his best friend, Maggie. And they have like a witty banter between them. And it seems like they've been friends their whole lives. They live next door to each other.

[00:22:18] And they have this very like Romeo and Juliet like balcony situation where he can literally jump from his balcony onto hers. Like how close were those houses? Pretty close. But Jackie, I have a question. Sure. Was Taylor Swift a fan of this movie? Because You Belong to Me video gives very much vibes of this movie. That's true.

[00:22:45] I feel like she pulls a lot of inspiration from things that she likes. So I would not be surprised at all if that was the case. Wait, I have to ask. Did you guys notice who was singing in the beginning of the movie? Like the opening song in the movie? Did you recognize the voice? Mel, see? Yes. Yep. I was like, I know that voice right away. How has I ever noticed that before? Yes.

[00:23:13] She was the only good thing. I'm taking back from this movie. Badly. Or not. We are also introduced to, well, we get the slow hot girl intro. With Jodi Lynn O'Keefe's character, Ashley. And so she walks in and not a single outfit she wears would be allowed at school. Yeah.

[00:23:43] At one point when she's having the party at her house and it's just like a sheer overlay of like a bandeau bra and panties. And Ken was watching her and he's like, what is she wearing? Like that's not even an outfit. It was overkill. I saw like a quick interview of Jodi Lynn O'Keefe where she's like, yeah, I'm playing the mean popular girl. I guess I'm really good at it.

[00:24:13] Because literally the year before, because I think she's all that came out in 99. She was playing my dear Taylor Vaughn. And this is like another iteration of that character. So I, and I say this not lightly and not judgingly, but Ashley has a mental illness that she needs to have explored.

[00:24:41] Like the way she's hot and cold. And then like even the scene where she was like going to take a shower, why don't you join me? And then she's like freaked out that he did. Like what is happening? It was taking an everything shower. Literally everything. She's bleaching her mustache while she has a gentleman collar in her bed. Like no woman does that. Ever.

[00:25:11] That whole scene. Well, that's not Ashley's fault. That's Mark Schwann's fault. Because. And that's what I like. I agree. But in the context of Ashley. The character, yeah. Yeah. It's just like, she has something seriously wrong with her that she needs to go and consult a mental health specialist for. Even when they were at like the, the carnival and she was like, so amped up to go on that ride. It's like, calm down.

[00:25:40] And then. And then. But because she's the hot girl. We know nothing about her. Ryan knows nothing about her, but is in love with her. From afar. Because he's just a nerd with an accordion. Who wants to get laid. Now here's my issue with Shane West. He's a nerd in this movie, supposedly.

[00:26:10] But like, the it boy in A Walk to Remember and Get Over It. Yeah. And I'm just like, I need y'all to tell me what this, who he is. Because I don't know. Either way, I don't, it's, it's not believable for me on both sides. Like, I've never, if we ever have him on the show, I apologize. But I've never been attracted to this man in the slightest.

[00:26:34] But funny enough, though, I know Chad Michael Murray and him, like, I think Chad Michael Murray is attractive. I was going to say, there is no comparison. Gina's eyes are so big. But to me, I feel like he's very much a precursor to Chad Michael Murray's character in One Tree Hill. Height. Yes.

[00:27:03] Even though he has famously said that they wanted him to play the brother, the other brother, Nathan. And he wanted to play Lucas because he had been like the asshole in all the other movies he's, he was, and TV shows he was in. But to me, I'm like, not that far off. I know, I know Chad Michael Murray is cuter, but I don't, I don't. The character type. Yeah. But Shane West, I don't get it.

[00:27:33] And anybody who loves Shane West, hit the comments because I don't know what to tell you. I just, I don't see it. I mean, I, like, he was not, like, the top of my list or anything. But I was like, he's cute. I don't even have, like. I don't have ink for him to be on my list. I ran out of paper. I don't know. I mean, in my mind, he's same level as your beloved. Don't say it, Jackie.

[00:28:01] Jackie, Joshua Jackson and Shane West do not look alike. That's criminal what you just said. Thank you. I didn't look alike. And, well, I don't know. Get your, I know you got glasses on, girl. So tell me how you're seeing this. I put that shit on the internet. When she had said it to me in another episode, I said, word? Okay. You think it's just me? I put that shit on the internet and people were lighting her ass up talking about. Fine. What you're talking about?

[00:28:30] Not one person said, I agree. No, no, no. Get your eyes checked. Because it ain't it. And they don't, they don't even come close. They don't. Sorry. Moving on. To an even more unattractive person, we are also introduced to Chris Campbell, who is supposed

[00:28:55] to be a jock, but we see more of Ryan playing sports than we see Chris playing sports. Not necessarily well, but he's playing. I don't understand like the Franco boys because his brother looks, I think way cuter than he is. Yes. A hundred percent. Dave doesn't have wet mill, which is the whole difference in my mind.

[00:29:26] And we've all written, just in case you didn't get the memo, James Franco has turned out to be a very problematic person. We can put him on the list with Geroletto. I mean, but where's the burn book? Put James Franco on the burn book and his wet mouth. Why did I? Why did I open this book? And it says James the Nasty Franco.

[00:29:55] He's already in there. He's already in here. Put James Franco's wet mouth in a separate line. So, Gina, we started this burn book during our Mean Girls episode. And so now anytime we have like a random hate for anything, it goes in the burn book. So it is very eclectic. I'll read you some entries just to catch people up.

[00:30:23] John Schneider is a fugly cunt. Lil Raj, how could you? Question mark, question mark, question mark. Baps, zero stars. Disloyal bitches. Rugs in the bathroom. Juliana Margulies is a cunt. Boomers who watched Bewitched, the 2005 movie. Oof. Yeah.

[00:30:50] So anything your heart feels you need to get off of your chest and put in the burn book. What do you want to say about Mark Schwan? Mark Schwan is a fugly... I mean, I don't even know if there's a word that exists yet for what he is. Mark Schwan, exit immediately.

[00:31:18] Exit stage left into the cage of piranhas. Oh, good one. Thank you. Don't know if I spelled any of that right, but that's fine. It's a secret for us anyway. So we find out that Chris likes Maggie. We don't know why.

[00:31:48] I think it's just because it's something he has not... It's because she keeps saying no and he's not used to it. We have all been chased by a really hot, dumb jock who keeps trying to get into your pants year over year over year. And you keep saying no and they don't get the hint. We've all been through that. Agree. Yeah. I just hate him so much.

[00:32:17] I'm still thinking about Mark Schwan too. I'm trying to get that. So now the little deal is made. Chris goes up to Ryan, never calls him by the right name, calls him Brian and is like, hey, you're friends with Maggie. I want to bone Maggie. Help me and I'll get you together with Ashley. Done deal. Cousin? Question mark? Is she? Yes. Is she? Yes.

[00:32:47] She's his cousin, which is what makes it so fucking weird. He tells her all... Like, I have cousins, close guy cousins, and they don't know what I like to date and who I like and all this other shit to give. Like, I would be... The way I would strangle Brandon, if I found out he got some loser to hit on me by giving him trade secrets, knowing that all the guy wanted was to get into my pants.

[00:33:15] And telling him to be awful to me. Right. Yeah. I would murder him. You hear that, Brandon? Gone. He would never do that. My sweet boy. No. But... I miss Brandon. Yes. But I do want to say that Ryan falls into that, like, nice guy trope.

[00:33:38] And this is how, like, you can see Mark Schwann's thought process of not being completely grimy and gross. That he has put this pretty woman on a pedestal. Somehow he thinks he's entitled to her. Yep. He pretends that... Oh, like, he thinks he's better than Chris because he's got the nice guy thought. Like, when Chris tells him to be an asshole, he's like, oh, I could never do that.

[00:34:07] Protest, protest, but then does it. Like, you are not any better than this asshole that you're sitting and judging. And I think that happens so much in media where... Why so many men, I think, think that it's okay that if you're just the slightest less shitty... I bought you a meal. Right. Like, the bar is in hell. Right. No. Like... Which we argue with Nick all the time because it's unfortunate.

[00:34:36] Like, I think a lot of men, especially men who consider themselves to be nice guys, they latch onto these characters because they think that is, like, okay. But I think we have to get to a point where men see other shitty men and hold them accountable for their behavior. And not just kind of say, oh, not all men, it's not me. But no, you have to, like... The call is coming from within the house. You know? Yeah. Inside the house.

[00:35:04] I feel the same way about white women when, you know, I saw a video about Karens, how white women talk about Karens and laugh about it. But it's really a word that Black people came up with to describe a situation. And instead of white women going back to their community and saying, hey, this shit is not okay, they try to separate themselves as if it's not them being a part of the problem. I think the same thing for men.

[00:35:30] And even remember that there was this scene where he... And this is when I was like, oh, he's gross. I knew it immediately. Right. He paid that... Well, the Aaron Paul's character paid... Was that even a teacher? Who led him into the women's locker room? That was... Who was that character? That was, like, a grown man. That was a security guy. Yeah. Yeah, something like that. And he's... Instead of being like, what am I doing here? I don't belong here and leaving. He was staring at her being a peeping Tom, a creep.

[00:36:00] Like, you're a grossie. You're not a good man. It would have been so great if his mom caught him doing that shit. Like, especially to be raised by a single woman or, like, a single mom household. Like, you know better, Ryan. And she's a nurse. Like, there... You should know.

[00:36:24] That scene where they have the assembly and because his mom is a nurse and she's talking about condoms. She says, like, abstinence is the best, but if not, you need to have condoms. And there is this fucking life-size penis. I love it. And then she's, like, in front of everybody. He's so embarrassed that I cracked up. But that was something that made me laugh, for sure. I did appreciate that being in the movie. Talking about safe sex.

[00:36:54] Talking about, like, yeah, abstinence is the best, but we know you're probably not going to do that. So be safe. Like, I like that that conversation... At least we got something in the movie. Yeah, I feel like even though in the 90s and 2000s, and even back in the 80s, everything was so sexualized.

[00:37:14] But I think in the 90s and 2000s, because of the AIDS epidemic, and we've talked about this before, that there was way more uses of condoms and safe sex in media that kind of drilled it in our generation's head. And I don't think it's the same now. Like, I think almost people are afraid of being not PC enough or, like, trying to get away from sexualized behavior that they don't do it. They don't talk about sex as much.

[00:37:44] And they definitely don't even show condoms as much anymore. Well, I think it's a couple of things. Well, and, like, I go back to, like, even in Never Been Kissed, they're in, like, health class, and they're having the same discussion about how to safely put on a condom and stuff. It was just something that you learned. And, yeah, it was after a huge epidemic where, and STDs were on the rise and stuff. So we were having these conversations.

[00:38:10] But I think now, I kind of feel like with the political climate, you don't want to isolate any one group of viewers, unfortunately. And so they just don't put those things in the movies because, oh, we're not going to talk about condoms and safe sex because you should be abstaining and that's it. And I think it's just because they want to appeal to the broadest audience possible.

[00:38:40] They just don't even talk about it, which is unfortunate. Which is crazy because certain audiences aren't going to watch that shit anyways. Yeah. Like, they already think that those platforms are very liberal anyways. And a lot of the times it's very conservative Christian people who aren't watching that shit. So just stop it. Like, we are at, we're getting closer and closer to an epidemic level.

[00:39:05] Like, the amount of HIV and STDs that are on the rise right now is alarming, especially in the Black community. So, for me, normally Black media is, like, Black people can be very conservative but traditionally very, like, vote liberally. So I really don't see why they shouldn't put more of that stuff in the media.

[00:39:33] Like, I think I was watching Insecure and that was, like, one of the first times that in a long time I was watching something. And Issa, the main character, was having sex on a carousel and she just jumped on that dick. And I was like, oh, so we don't use condoms anymore. We're just bareback now. Right. Which was, like, it blew my mind. I felt like an old lady. Oh, yeah. You know? Clutching your pearls. Yeah.

[00:40:01] But I was just like, oh, this is disappointing, you know? Because it's like, yeah, like, we know that teenagers are going to experiment and, like, they got the hormones and, like, shit's gonna happen. But just be, like, smart and be safe about it. Right. And a really good, easy way to remind them of that or teach them that if they're not getting it at home or school is through media.

[00:40:29] And so we're doing this generation a disservice by not putting those good examples in movies and TV shows. Yeah. And you think about, like, shows like Euphoria and things like that. Like, they're so bold and they're so out there that there's no, like, if you can make shows like that, you can make shows talking about kind of safe ways. Yeah. And I loved that in our media.

[00:40:59] It wasn't even, you didn't even have to talk about it. You didn't have to, you would, it would just be a part of the process. If you're going to have a sex scene, oh, let me go get, you know? Or even in this movie, it was used as comic relief. Right. Like, but it was still getting a point across. Mean Girls was the same way. Like, it was, yeah. Yeah. Not everything has to be like a Degrassi special. Even though I love Degrassi. Not too much of my girl.

[00:41:29] Not too much of my girl. I love some Degrassi. Not in my show, but. When, when Emma got, what was it? What did, what, did she get an STI or something? Oh, yeah. From Jay. Because she was giving beeches down by the ravine. Yeah. For a fucking bracelet, Emma? Be fucking for real. My first episode, you're, you're going on the internet to meet an older man trying to rape you. And now we giving BJs to the dirty motherfucker in the car for bracelets?

[00:41:58] Not even Taylor Swift bracelets. Give me a break, Emma. She was always, but she was too good for everybody and everything. Right. She always had Manny's fucking name in her mouth. And she out here dirty skanking and shit, getting STIs because she's at the ravine giving BJs. Never in my life. And at the end, don't end up with fucking Sean. That, don't even get me started on that. Spoiler alert.

[00:42:28] Sorry if you didn't watch it 15 years ago. She ends up with Spinner. What? It doesn't make sense. I wish I never even watched that. I just, I want to stop it right before JT dies. That's it. Like, I don't need to see nothing else. Yeah. JT. So back to this train wreck. Back to Shane West and his underwear.

[00:42:56] Some people, we just spoke a whole nother language. Oh, I, I have no clue what you're talking about, but I love the passion. Thank you. Fucking friendship bracelet. Unreal. So yeah, we, we are also introduced to Ryan's friends. So there's Cosmo played by Colin Hanks. And I don't even remember what Aaron Paul's name. Aaron Paul's name is. Weirdo.

[00:43:25] Taking pictures of girls. And they're making you. Floyd. Yeah. But by the way, I don't know if my eyes were deceiving me. I should have rewound it, but I felt like Aaron had a little bit of junk in the trunks. I didn't see that. I didn't notice. I just, oh.

[00:43:49] And we have this whole side story, which is actually way more interesting than the main story of how Floyd, it's their senior year. And they want, he wants to go down in history is like pulling off an absolute amazing prank where like for decades to come, they're talking about the prank he pulled. And there's this statue. There's a statue that has no neck.

[00:44:14] And so he always looks up to the guy who came before him who removed the neck of the statue. I can't even remember his name. I remember nothing tonight. It's Doolittle. Thank you. It's not you. It's the movie. It's Doolittle. But I have a. Virgil Doolittle. I do have a question. What's the name? What was, who was that kid that was just always just there in the scenes? The stoner? Yes. The stoner kid? My favorite character in the whole movie.

[00:44:44] Yes. He was played by. I don't know if I see him on this list. I had Eric Kushnick. What other movies was he in? Because that was bothering me the whole time. So it looks like, hold on. I had him open in a tab because I knew I was going to need to express my love for this stoner guy. He doesn't even have a name. He is literally, his credit is stoner.

[00:45:13] So he was on five episodes of P&P. Okay. As he should. Right. One episode on the other train wreck that is Seventh Heaven. I feel like he was one of Lucy's boyfriends or something. Probably. He's literally been on like one episode of like a bunch of different. TV shows. TV shows, including Felicity, Danielle. That's probably where you saw him. You know. I love that show.

[00:45:43] And he has not acted since 2002. I don't like something. Maybe it was this movie. I could not be. I was like, I've seen him somewhere before. He has a familiar face. He did. Okay. Well. A real presence. I loved that. He just kept showing up randomly.

[00:46:09] And then at the end, he like, that was a questionable scene. But the fact that he just found a room key on the floor and just like went into a random room. I was laughing. I was laughing. I was laughing, but I was also like sexual assault. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I don't disagree with that. I also definitely wouldn't land today. But no, not at all. He he played pit stain on Pete and Pete.

[00:46:39] Oh, I want to talk about some of the other back. The other like background players, I guess you could say. So Christine Lakin was in this who like for me, step, step by step. That's how I remembered her. Kip Pardue.

[00:47:04] And now I thought I kept thinking sunshine from remember the Titans. But he's also in because I'm a cheerleader. And then Scott Bicker. I don't know how to say his last name. Sorry. I'm gonna call him Scott V. Now, I remember him because he was either on Breaker High or USA High.

[00:47:30] I think it was Breaker High, which I love because Ryan Gosling was on that show. Do you guys remember that show? I don't. It was on UPN. I think it used to come on. I don't remember if it was like a Saturday morning show or if it was on like primetime. But yes, it had Ryan Gosling on it. It literally was like the episode, the season of Road Rules where they were on the cruise ship.

[00:48:00] Or semester of three. Yes. Or precursor to Zack and Cody when they went on the boat. But yes, it was a whole show of them, a bunch of classmates being on a boat. And one of the characters was played by Persia White who was on Girlfriends and Vampire Diaries. So, yes. Yeah, I think that's what it was. Christine Lakin was also Susan Knight in Veronica Mars.

[00:48:29] Oh, right, right, right. Sweet knees. I almost said sweet knees. And then I was like, no one's going to get that. But Danielle, we were right there along with each other. And she's also in Boltneck, one of the other movies we did. Gina, if you have not seen the cinematic greatness that is Boltneck. I highly recommend. It's not good.

[00:48:59] It's horrible. I'll trade you the biggest fan for Boltneck. Yes. Watch off. If you watch Boltneck, we will give that movie a try. Boltneck is only available on YouTube. Yes. It stars Ryan Reynolds and Matthew, what's his last name? Lawrence. Matt Lawrence. I like Matt Lawrence. I'm so sick of Ryan Reynolds, but okay.

[00:49:28] He's not great in it. No. Shocker. Yeah. And oh, I did see a video of Matthew Lawrence talking about how the producers of Boltneck were mad at Ryan Reynolds the whole time because he kept on trying to like Jim Carrey it or whatever they were saying. Like they thought he was doing a bad parody of Jim Carrey.

[00:49:54] Like you do not have the comedic skills to be doing this shit and being off the cuff. And so Matthew Lawrence was like, well, you know, that's a genius of Ryan Reynolds. Like he was doing that bit, that Deadpool bit back then. You mean he was doing the same shit in every movie until something stuck? I saw that. I saw him talking about that on the podcast and I had no idea what movie he was talking about that we were into that they were in together.

[00:50:24] So you just connected the dots for me. You're welcome. Now I really need to go watch. Yes. Or you could just listen to our episode. It'll be fine. I should probably watch it first. That's probably why I didn't listen to it. I'm like, what the fuck is wrong? That was during the strike where we were trying to find movies that were not associated with any of the struck production company. You were doing charity work for both men.

[00:50:54] It was actually one of our favorite episodes to do. It was so much fun. Because it's so stupid. And then I'll listen because that'll probably be the most enjoyable part of the experience. Oh, God. Oh, gosh. Whatever it takes. We're trying to avoid this movie so hard. Like the plague. So now we have this bros agreement. Chris. Yeah.

[00:51:23] Chris is telling Ryan like, hey, you have to be really mean to her. That's what chicks want. It's like, okay. So they go to the nurse's office. It's his mom's office. Use her computer to send a horrible email to her. Yeah. And I'm just like, but I forget how hard it was to like get to the internet randomly at school during that time. So.

[00:51:49] And then at the same time, apparently Maggie has this test that you have to take to see if you're compatible with her. And so Ryan helps Chris answer all of the questions. And I would have, if I received this test back from this bozo jock that wants to get in my pants and he says every single one of my favorite things. Right.

[00:52:18] And my best friend is like pushing me to date him. I'm going to be like, you gave him these fucking like Maggie is smart. Why is she not connecting? Because she would never believe that Ryan would betray her in this way. And like, honestly, I really think that she just would not even come to her mind that her best friend of how X-Men, since he was little, since they were children would do something

[00:52:47] so nefarious. But she also, go ahead. No, I also think she thinks he's like actually a good person because you see, even when he starts to like adapt and be nasty to his friends, like the reaction that she has to that is almost like, who are you? Right. Yeah. She thinks he's a decent human being and totally forgets that he's a teenage boy with raging hormones and playing the nice guy thing. Who was written by a man.

[00:53:17] And these women characters were written by a man. Right. And Maggie's character in this test very much gave like a little bit more of Peyton with the kind of things that she liked, you know, the obscure music being the cool girl kind of thing. Just very random. But also like Maggie kind of puts herself like if you watch her behavior with the other women, which I think is weird.

[00:53:44] I always think it's weird when girls don't have female friends. I think I immediately am like danger. I don't, I don't want to fuck with them. And that also gives again, the Haley and Lucas Lucas relationship. So rehashing does the same shit. Yeah. But she's talking about like, oh, like I, you think like, I want to hang out with you and the guys every weekend.

[00:54:12] Like I, it's very right. Daily on the river court with the boys. Right. Why? What? And it's not like Ashley's character is mean to her. So we don't see any interactions with other girls that where Maggie is ostracized by these girls. She, it just looks like she's judging them from the get go. Like when they're at that party and she's at the table getting food and she's hearing them laugh.

[00:54:41] She's, she's like above them and she, she hates them or whatever. But yeah. And later on when they go on that group date and Ashley's actually nice to Maggie. So it's weird. That, that was the confusing part of Ashley's character because at point she was just, she was normal. She was nice and stuff. And then like this weird switch flipped and like at the cafe where she's just being really

[00:55:08] mean to the waitress who is a little overweight. And so I'm like, this is not the same character. No. At the beat from the beginning of the movie. And it's almost like they're trying to put, to make it seem like, oh, this is who she is. But Ryan never knew it because he had her on a pedestal. It's, they do this so many times in rom-coms when there's like that other partner and to prove

[00:55:38] that the other partner that they're supposed to be with is a better match. They make that person that they were yearning for an asshole, either they're an asshole or they're boring or whatever it may be. Instead of just being like, no, that other person is just a better fit for me. You know, like completely tearing down the character. Yeah. I hated that scene. And like, why did she have chocolate on her teeth through the whole thing? Girl, you would feel that. Yeah. Yeah. And the feet thing, the fungus. Yeah.

[00:56:08] Also like, okay, your girl got fungus. It happens. Now she's disgusting. For sure. But like, if you had like a rash on your feet like that, would you be like rubbing it on someone and then be like, her first hopefully sexual interaction with them and then being like, oh, it's no big deal. Like she didn't want him to see her with Nair, but she's putting her rashy feet on him. Like I'm not buying it. And apparently she has a hairy back because her friends say that too. Yeah.

[00:56:37] And like some of that stuff, like the hairy back, I'm like, she literally wears tank tops and spaghetti straps the entire movie. There is not an ounce of hair on her back. Like, and she's not getting waxed every day. Maybe, maybe she has ass hair and that's what they were referring to. But she was wearing that sheer dress with just panties on. Like, like there was no way, like, why even put that in the movie? Because a man wrote it.

[00:57:08] And apparently body hair is thrown. Not just any man. That man. The worst man. Can we also talk about how the PE teacher played by Richard Schiff from West Wing. That's how I remember him. The teacher trying to like hit the kids with the baseball. Like what's happening here? Yeah. Yeah.

[00:57:33] Like, but that goes back to that, that idea or that trope or that toxic, toxic masculinity that was so prevalent during that time of like, I have to toughen these men, boys up to be men. Oh, okay. And so I'm just going to yell at them and degrade them and hit them with baseballs because they need that to be a man.

[00:57:58] And apparently this Ryan kid is soft because he plays the accordion and is nerdy. Which is so fucking random. I want to know what made, how they got to, you know what, he's going to play the accordion. And I don't know many other characters that this is something that they do. Danielle, you know who played the accordion for a time in her day? Oh, Jackie.

[00:58:27] Sweet Mama Terry. How does someone pick up the accordion? Like, where are you where you're like, you know what, this seems like something I could easily. Let me text her right now and ask her how she came about playing the accordion. I need answers. Yeah. Why did you, when did your mom play the accordion? I think like in high school or something. Like, was that an option that they gave out? I guess.

[00:58:58] I don't know. She never ceases to amaze me until he was. I asked my Nana the other day if there was an instrument she ever wanted to play. And she said the violin. And I said, oh, you remember when I played the viola? And she said, you did. She went to a concert, Jackie. Oh, Myrtle.

[00:59:26] Oh, Myrtle. Okay. The question has been asked. Let's see if mom responds. Okay. So where are we now? Like, oh, Chris has a hard time getting Maggie to agree. Like, yes, he did the test. But her instincts are constantly saying, I don't trust this dude. But then instead of just saying that she has instincts that this dude ain't shit, it turns around that Maggie is insecure.

[00:59:56] Because now Chris, who is this hot, she can't fathom him liking her. I just, you were always too good for Chris, Maggie. Don't, don't doubt yourself. Oh, my gosh. So we get this, the classic trope of someone on the phone and someone beeps in and we're going back and forth and we accidentally conference them in.

[01:00:25] And so it's like Ryan coaching Chris on what to say to Maggie and he accidentally conferences Ryan in. And so then Ryan has a whole like sound studio set up in his bedroom for his accordion. And I was like, wait a minute. Is this even possible? Like, what are you, the scream killer now? What's your favorite movie? Like, come on.

[01:00:54] And like, I guess it is feasible because we do get like some exposition where it's like his dad played the accordion, which is why he plays it. So I could kind of see maybe his dad had that equipment. So he just moved it to his room after his dad passed away or something. But beyond that. You put a whole lot of story in this one, Jackie. Look who's giving backstory now, Dania. I know.

[01:01:23] So yeah, we get Ryan uses his equipment to lower his. Mom just responded. What did you say? In high school, I think, because it looked cool. Same with. The piano, flute, clarinet, guitar, and trumpet. Those are all instruments she tried. She didn't land on a single one.

[01:01:53] Aw. Bless her heart. It looked cool. That's why she tried it. I mean, does anything look cooler than what's behind you right now? I mean, like, look at this. Could you get any cooler? It's the only good part of this movie. I do really enjoy the accordion, play that funky music, white boy. And then I also do enjoy that it's I'll Melt With You by The Cure. Yes.

[01:02:23] Also, the additions of him doing it in his boxer shorts with a cowboy hat. Cowboy hat? I was like, is this cowboy ugly? Maybe. Nothing funkier than boxers and a cowboy hat. What's the name of cowboy ugly? Coyote ugly. I was like, are you? I know you think he's ugly, but jeez. I thought you were asking, is this cowboy ugly? I was like, I know you think he is.

[01:02:56] Oh, Danielle. So, like, your subconscious is just throwing things out of your mouth at this point. This is the only part of the movie I remembered. Only part I remembered of this whole movie. I was like, oh, wait, I have seen this movie. The accordion in the boxers. So now it's just a lot of, like, we go to the fair or whatever, because there's always a fair.

[01:03:27] I love a fair. Yeah, me too. And this is when, like, we start seeing weirdo, bizarro Ashley is, like, the hyped up, I want a lemonade, but I want to ride the, like, insanely spinny ride. And so I'm going to chug this drink. And then I'm going to, like, puke on this guy that I'm randomly on a date with for the first time. And then I'm just going to be like, oops, yuck. Like, what? She doesn't act embarrassed at all. No.

[01:03:56] There's nothing there. All this tells me is that men will do absolutely anything to get to the punan, because what do you mean she threw up on you and you still were trying to ogle her? And she sealed it all. You threw up on someone? Yeah. I ended up marrying them. I'm not anymore. But for the first time hanging out, I got really drunk and I threw up on him.

[01:04:24] And he came back. So I think that's a sign of something's wrong with the other person that you would pursue that. But you didn't do it on your first date, did you? No. We were out, like, a group outing. And he asked me out on a date after that, which honestly is even worse. Whoa. Little Gina lore for you.

[01:04:53] We're learning so many things tonight about each other. So many things. Miss Terry played the accordion. Gina puked on her future husband, now ex-husband. Yeah. You know what? And we have this movie to thank, because really, for the first half of it, they were like nothing was even happening. No. Like, not a thing. And then when they get home to drop off Maggie and Ryan, Ashley gets out of the car to get in the front seat.

[01:05:21] But instead of just, like, giving Ryan a kiss, she takes his finger and sticks it in her mouth and slowly, like, sucks on it. I do really like that then they show Chris in the car with Maggie and he's doing this. Like, again, if. All I had to think of was all the things, germy things he touched that night. Yeah, thank you.

[01:05:49] And I'm thinking, if I saw my cousin do that, I would die. Okay. What the fuck was that? That's the first thing I would say when you got in the car. Like, are you fucking kidding me? I'm telling your mom that you did some shit like that. Oh, you're off. Some ho-bitty moves right there. What the fuck? You feel like Brandon was sucking on some girl's fingers tonight.

[01:06:19] Oh, nasty. Oh, no. I do really love that it's a very, like, you're immediately sucked back into the time frame because the shirt he wins to replace his shirt is a baby T Furby shirt. I wanted that. Right? It's real cute. A nice lavender color. It was cute. I love, like, how his boxers are, like, bunched up at the top.

[01:06:52] So now, like, Maggie starts hanging out with Chris, but Chris still needs help. So this is where you really see that, like, Sierra now come in. And so she's working on a set piece for a play, and Chris goes to talk to her, and Ryan's crouched down and, like, whispering things. But then, like, says out loud, she is really beautiful. And then, like, Chris says it. And I'm like, you're now, like, give me a fucking break.

[01:07:19] I feel like men will always know if they're attracted to someone. I just don't believe that all of a sudden he has this epiphany. I just, I don't get it. Like, the theater lighting did it. Like, I'm just. Yeah. Because even, like, your friend, you're like, yeah, they're hot or not. Like, it's just something that you, like, think about. Yeah. And she's got great boobs.

[01:07:48] So at the very least, you should be like, nice rack, Maggie. Right. It was so weird in this movie seeing Marla play, like, a nice girl because she had always been, like, a mean, bad girl. And I love that for her. Like, let's get back to our roots. Like, fuck all this nice girl shit. It's not doing well. No. So, yeah, Ashley has a party at her house, which we talked a little bit about before.

[01:08:15] That's when she gets the, she's in the weird sheer dress thing. And Maggie's acting above all of the, like, teenage girl doing teenage girl things. And then what else happens? Well, now after they've had the date, now we can see that, like, Ryan is not as interested in actually as he thought he was.

[01:08:38] And he also finds out from rumors of, like, people talking that the only reason Chris is going after Maggie is because he wants to do her at prom. Which, so much of this issue's all that. But anywho. And that's when he realizes that, like, he wants to save Maggie from big bad Chris. But now Maggie is too far gone. He's also ghosted Ashley at this point. Like, he's full on in on Maggie.

[01:09:08] And now Ashley is, like, chasing him, essentially. She desperately obsessed over why I can't figure it out. Not sure. Not sure. And now she's outside on his lawn in a bikini trying to get him to go to prom with her. Take me to prom! And he's like, hi! Yeah. So. It was such a degrading role for her.

[01:09:34] I feel like it's from, like, who she, to be honest, I always get her and Rebecca Gayhart confused. I don't know what it is about. Yeah, something about them, like, I always think she's Rebecca Gayhart. I guess because, like, she had a bigger career, obviously. But, like, her character in She's All That, like, yeah, she was, like, not the nicest. But, like, she wasn't a horrible person. But she had, like, a strong personality. It's just, like, this is so pathetic. It, like, upset me. Yeah. Facts.

[01:10:04] How dare you do this to Taylor Vaughn? Yeah. How dare you? I will never forgive Mark for just that alone. Because she deserved better than this. It was such a horrible characterization. Like, either make her a full-on bitch or make her misunderstood or something. Like, what the fuck? And it wasn't even, like, oh, she's dumb. It's just she was erratic, I guess is the only word for it.

[01:10:29] He was just, like, like the reviewer said, there was a lot to embarrass her. So then there's this whole scene in the cafeteria where Ryan is put to the test because all the cool kids are, like, you hang out with losers. And instead of just, like, letting that shit go because he was already teetering on I Like Maggie. Yeah. He says horrible things about his friends. I would have never forgiven that.

[01:10:59] Alphabetically. Yes. Which is how you know he's a nerd. Yes. Literally. And this is where we get the Nick Cannon one second playing chess and yelling out a synonym for loser. Right. I was like, is that him? It was that quick. It was.

[01:11:22] So now Ryan has isolated his friends and he's taking, I almost called her Taylor. He's taking Ashley to school during the day or in the morning. And he always picked up his friends and took them to school. He leaves them on the side of the road. He is lower than shit at this point.

[01:11:45] And also, he tries to tell Maggie about Chris and she ain't having it. We see her trying on her prom dress, which is pretty cute. Yeah. And then at some point, he's at Taylor's house. And this is what, like, he starts thinking of, because Taylor and him are, like, kind of fooling around. This is the scene where she's in the shower. Join me.

[01:12:15] She's, she's, this whole scene was, like, so icky. I, I wanted to fast forward it. She's like, I bought some new underwear. And the, the thought process too is that, yes, I know teenagers are, they, they're sexual. They have sex.

[01:12:33] But I just think about, like, how mind-dumbingly stupid I was at this time that I could not even imagine myself trying to show some dude my underwear and, like, that I bought this and go take a shower. Like, it was just, it was a lot. But I felt very uncomfortable watching this whole scene. And then he's, of course, thinking about Maggie and Ashley alludes to him not being able to get it up. And then she, like, again, erratically just gets up.

[01:13:02] Like, it was just, it was weird as if she had no feelings or was a person, you know? But also, this house, it felt like a hotel or, like, she lived in the pool house or something. Yeah. Like, it, like, you didn't, you walked into her, her room from a sliding glass door that, like, faced the, like, it was very, I was very confused. I didn't even think about it.

[01:13:31] And it's like, as they were, they weren't, it looked like they weren't even inside yet to me. And then she's, like, throwing her shoes, throwing her bag. I was like, you're leaving that stuff outside? Are you leaving inside yet? I was, yeah, it was very confusing. Funny enough, this movie also takes place at the same high school, Torrance High School, as She's All That. I mean. They might as well just call this She's All That, too.

[01:14:01] The Hidden Files. Might have done better. Maybe not, but maybe. Maybe. Maybe. So, what happens after this? I think he goes and apologizes to his friends, right? He tries to get them back. Well, no, I think he confesses to Maggie that he likes her. And she's just not having it because she's like, you're so hot and cold. Like, you're, like, essentially, you're being a dick right now. You convinced me to go out with this guy. And now you're saying you like me.

[01:14:31] Like, what the hell is happening? Like, I don't know you. So, the way he treats his friends, blah, blah, blah. But when he goes to the friends, it's less to apologize to them, if I'm remembering. Again, because this was, like, I was trying to stay awake. And more about, like, oh, to save Maggie. We need to help Maggie. Get him up. Get her away from him. And I love how Maggie, like, tarps her house as if she's got termites.

[01:14:59] Like, she puts this thing over her window so he can't see her anymore. And then prom happens, which he takes. He does still take, what's her face? Ashley. Ashley. Not Taylor. Not Taylor. Ashley. And they get to the school or whatever. I didn't realize that this, again, this gym where the floor is opening is also the same place they filmed A Wonderful Life.

[01:15:29] It's A Wonderful Life. Oh, wow. Because there's a similar scene. Yeah. Where the pool opens. I've never seen It's A Wonderful Life, but I've seen that clip. Yeah. I don't know if it's taken place at the same place or if it's just the premise of the same scene is in this movie. Where they got the idea from.

[01:16:19] Mm-hmm. Yes. Had they ruined my prom dress and my hair. Yeah. I know. The Titanic theme for a prom was, like, kind of wild. Yes. Although I do truly, truly love the scene in the pool where the two guys are reenacting the Jack and Rose door scene.

[01:16:48] I get such a kick out of that. But also, I'm like, this is so dangerous. Like, it's a far drop. Yeah. People are falling in on top of you. Tables are falling into the pool. What if someone can't swim? They put up the gate. And can't get up. Yeah. They put the gate up so it's harder to get out. And he dives in. When he dives in, Ryan, it looks kind of scary.

[01:17:16] Like, he was, like, going to hit somebody. Because the room, the circle for him to dive in was very small. Yeah. Yeah. So we see Ryan has to do something big to get Maggie to notice him. And so there was this whole conversation earlier about how his dad used to play I'll melt with you for his mom on the accordion. So he breaks into the music room to get an accordion and then plays it for her.

[01:17:46] But, like, as she's, like, having this, like, second thought, Chris, like, drags her out of the gym. But they're, like, on opposite sides of the gym with the pool in the middle. And so he jumps in to swim to the other side to get to her. But they've already gone. But apparently the entire school booked rooms at the same hotel.

[01:18:12] Not like our prom where they were giving us a hard time kicking people out. And we played it smart at our prom. We got daddy to get us a hotel room at a completely separate hotel where we could go back to and be all by ourselves. And we went and just fucked up everyone else's night because they all got kicked out of their rooms. And we're like, peace. We'll see you later. We're still not sorry. She wrote.

[01:18:42] No, we're not. Mm-hmm. Fuck you. She wrote. Anywho, besides our little inside joke. Sorry about that, guys. Then he, Chris, Brian, Ryan, Ryan. Ooh. Ryan tries to get to Maggie. Maggie's already peeped game. She has now handcuffed and blindfolded Chris.

[01:19:09] And then she leaves the door open. And then all the girls at the party start writing all over him with lipstick? Question mark? I don't know what revenge this really is, per se. She does take a picture of him. Yeah. But I don't know, like, what that does. She hands it to someone. Like, I would be keeping this in my arsenal. Right. Just in case. Also, I'm not wasting my lipstick on you. Ever.

[01:19:40] I would have punched him in the nuts and then left. So Ryan goes back home. Well, and then we get the scene where this, sorry, backing up. What's her name? Ashley drags Ryan into the room because they're going to bone. And she's like, don't talk. Don't do anything. Just bone me. Pretty much. And then he's just like, no.

[01:20:09] And so he leaves and, like, throws the key card at the door and just goes to find Maggie. But then he finds out Maggie already took care of it herself and left. And this is when we get the stoner wandering around and, like, party on the top and, like, cash on the bottom. Yeah. And he goes in a shirt and tie and, like, suit jacket up top and then, like, board shorts and flip-flops down below.

[01:20:39] But he, yeah, he just, like, finds the key card, wanders in, and then you just hear Ashley say, like, don't say anything. Just have me or something. And then later he comes out with, like, hickeys and all disheveled and stuff. Oh, can we also not forget about Colin Hanks, like, middle-aged woman, Framzee, that brought her kid? What was that? Literally, what was that?

[01:21:11] Like, okay. So she's probably, she was probably younger than we are now. But if a kid came up to me, and I don't even have children, but a high school student was like, I'm having, I'm going to prom. I'd like you to go with me. Sir, what? What? In the actual fuck? Like, as your chaperone? Like, what do you mean? And on top of that, not only does she say yes, she brings her child with her to the prom.

[01:21:40] And she says, mommy told you to wait over here. Like, be fucking for real. What is happening? She calls him daddy. And she's like, remember I said that's not daddy. That's mom's date. What? She's dressed to the nines. She bought a new dress. She went to the salon and got her hair done. I'm sure she went to Sephora and got her makeup done. Like, she was ready to party with this 18-year-old.

[01:22:08] Sure, he kind of looks like Tom Hanks, but okay. No. It's so fucking random. And then also Floyd gets arrested, which is what he wanted. Yeah, and that is the one sliver of redeeming quality of Ryan is he sees that the cops are like, whoa, we don't know who did this. And they're, like, about to leave.

[01:22:36] And Ryan's like, he knew how important this prank was to Floyd. So he was like, I saw the whole thing. He did it. His name is Floyd. Blah, blah, blah. And then Floyd's just like, ah, you got me. And then, so now they're cool again because Ryan turned Floyd in, which is what he wanted. But then we get this whole other, like, side scene. So everyone's at the hotel, except for Floyd, who's in the back of a cop car.

[01:23:04] And I could only ever see him as a character from Out Cold, the actor that plays the cop that's like, I'll handle this one. Takes him out into the middle of the woods. Floyd's like, what's happening? Is this protocol? And he just, like, takes out a shovel and he's like, dig. Dig. So Floyd digs till he hits something metal.

[01:23:31] And the cop, like, pulls it out of the ground, puts his name badge on it, hands it to him, and just, like, seemingly leaves him in the middle of the woods. And it's, it's the fucking neck, which I don't understand, like, why. Like, this was a great prank. Why are you returning the neck? It was anticlimactic for me. Like, this is stupid. But I think it was, like, passing the torch, so to speak.

[01:23:58] And, like, showing that he respected the game. Yeah. But we do see Floyd does put the neck back on the statue, but then he puts the head back on backwards. And so, like, there's, there's layers to this prank now. There's generations. He should be expelled. Is that the word? Expelled. For the, the pool thing. I'm very upset about it. It was dangerous and not cool.

[01:24:27] I would be his ass. You don't mess up a woman's hair. No, this is prom. Like, this is an important thing for some people. You might not respect it, but, like, that's not cool. Hold on, Danielle. How much those dresses cost? Hold on, Danielle. What? It should be respected. But someone wouldn't take a prom photo with me at prom? Jackie, I said I was sorry. And one day you and I are going to redo it. Just like the Beyonce concert. We will make a prom.

[01:24:57] You can Photoshop it. Thank you. I want my prom pose in front of the backdrop. And then we'll go eat shrimp with Chad from Newfound Glory. Like, that's all I wanted to do. We did the Chad thing. I mean, that's a pretty good night. It was. Had a great time. Really did have really good time at prom. We really did. Yeah. It's great.

[01:25:26] Better than these people in the pool. Yes. So now Ryan is back at home. He needs to talk to Maggie. She has her set up. Her tarp. Her tarp that says go away on it. And he's not respecting boundaries. Why would he? And runs and jumps into her balcony. Crash boom bangs. Knocks down the tarp. I'm like, there could have been furniture under there.

[01:25:54] Like, you could have seriously hurt yourself. You could have missed the balcony. And tumbled to your death. Yes. But instead she's standing and she's like, you again. And, but then he just like confesses and pours his heart out. And, and then she's like, okay. Because her character is written by a man.

[01:26:18] And they make out because apparently that's what teens do. I would have never forgiven him. That was some fucked up shit. But I don't know. That, that is whatever it takes y'all. We did it. Whatever it takes to get through this movie. I could have used an edible. A lot of things. A copious amounts of wine. A therapist.

[01:26:48] All of them. And not surprisingly, we don't have that many fun facts about this movie. No. To review. James Franco and Marla Sokoloff did date for five years. Don't know how. They met on this movie. Yeah. That makes me question her. Yep. 100%. I do side-eye that whole situation. The original title for this movie was called I'll Be You.

[01:27:17] There was an entire article written about when this movie was, before it came out, about how Hollywood had gone completely crazy about remaking classic novels and whatnot. Shakespeare plays and stuff like that. So I thought that was funny. Yeah. All right.

[01:27:38] Well, before we get to our ratings again, let's just want to remind everybody, if you have any hot takes, if you have any funny takes, or if you just want to say hi, don't forget to hit us up at NoMoreLateFees on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, Twitter, YouTube, and threads. And Gina, why don't you tell everybody where they can find you? You can find me on TikTok mainly.

[01:28:02] Also on Instagram, same name, There G Goes, like the song There She Goes, There G Goes, G-I. Love it. All right. We'll start with you. What's your present day rating? Oh my God. Like the lowest of the low. Like honestly, wish I could unwatch it. So it's a same day rental for you, huh? If I have to rent it at all, it's a same day rental.

[01:28:34] If you're forcing me. I'm forcing you. Same day rental. Same day rental. All right. Jackie? Yeah. Yeah. It's a same day rental. And it, it hurt my heart. I was so excited to rewatch this movie. Like, I'm like, I love this movie. Let's go. And at the end, I was like, what even happened? Like, why did I not see the red flags? Like what in the world is this movie?

[01:29:03] I still appreciate Floyd's character, but that's about it. I was terrified that you were going to be 10 toes down of like, I love what I love with this one. Nope. And I was like, oh, but it's, it's so bad. Yeah. Glad to see you saw the light on this. Yeah. It's the same day for me. And no bueno for sure.

[01:29:27] I feel like this movie might have, might be like the, the furthest ratings have fallen after a week. Because yeah, like I was, I would have been prior to rewatching it 10 toes down. Like, yeah, whatever it takes is a great movie. I used to love it. Blah, blah, blah. And now I'm like, oh, who hurt you? White UK Jackie. It's going to be so interesting when we post about this movie, how many people are going to be like, love this movie. Yeah.

[01:29:56] But haven't seen it maybe in like 20 years. Facts. Yeah. I'm going to ask them every time. Like, when'd you last do this? Yeah. There are not many movies. I'm sure if I really sat and thought about it, there are, but like not that many where I'm like, oh, it's fallen like that badly from my. Yeah. Tell us what you think about whatever it takes or play the accordion for us. Yeah.

[01:30:26] 909-601-6653. Twat us at the Twitters. Hum us at the threads. Butterfly in the sky at Blue Skies. And you can be featured on a future episode. Join us next week as we get dolled up with Queen Latifah and the crew in Beauty Shop. And Gina. It was so lovely. Thank you for watching this movie for us. And avoiding talking about this movie for two hours.

[01:30:54] Honestly, this made up for the hour and a half that I had to watch it. As always, be kind and rewind.