The Big Picture · Discussion
August 3, 2021/ 25 min/ Brian Raftery
Episode 4 of the 'Gene and Roger' series, on how the blockbuster '80s turned Siskel and Ebert from public-TV underdogs into million-dollar corporate assets. Covers the 'My Dinner with Andre' rave that filled theaters, the sequel-and-slasher glut, and the Disney deal that poached them.
46 films across 6 segments.
AI-generated This episode was transcribed and analyzed with AI models. The matches aren't perfect — expect the occasional misheard title or a link to the wrong film.
When a rave could fill a theaterthe thumbs at full power
Louis Malle's 90-minute dinner conversation between Wallace Shawn and Andre Gregory. Gene and Roger's late-'81 rave sent it from empty houses to a year-long New York run; a 15-year-old Alonzo Duralde saw it repeatedly and bought the screenplay.
Paul McCartney's fantasy-musical Hollywood breakthrough. Gene interviewed him and opened by saying he didn't like it; the film flopped that same weekend.
Raftery's cautionary tale: a week's allowance blown on a bad sequel, back when word of mouth was all you had to go on.
One of the low-budget films the two kept championing.
Another small film they pushed.
John Sayles indie on their list of movies worth keeping alive.
The decade of the blockbusterbudgets went up, so did the risk
Cost under $1M, proof a smash didn't need a fortune behind it.
Produced a decade later for 30 times the budget.
Nearly $200M in theaters plus home video, the payoff that seemed to justify the spending. Also the episode's namesake.
David Lynch's expensive flop.
The disastrous sequel to Gene's beloved 'Saturday Night Fever'.
Gene's favorite; 'Staying Alive' undid it.
Proved nine-figure grosses were possible and changed what studios chased.
Another '70s mega-hit that reset expectations.
Both critics loved it; the blockbuster template it set still did damage to the Hollywood they knew.
Backdrop to Gene and Roger's viral 'Nightline' spat with New York critic John Simon over whether Star Wars was just for children.
Ruled the culture the year ticket sales hit a record $4B.
Same record year, the kind of hit that pulled more viewers to the show too.
Sequels and slasherswhat the '80s kept selling
The 'Part 5' in a single episode where Gene and Roger reviewed four sequels and dragged out Aroma the educated skunk.
Another of the four sequels reviewed that day.
Third of the four.
The fourth sequel of that lousy day.
The '70s classic they loved, the counterexample to the slashers they went after.
Target of their 'Extreme Violence Directed at Women' special.
Same broadcast, built around a girl home alone and a phone that won't stop ringing.
Duralde's gotcha: Roger co-wrote it, so his slasher outrage rang a little hollow.
The film Duralde won't hear them condemn, given Roger's own résumé.
The thumbs that broke the patternverdicts you couldn't have guessed
Roger panned it as the most nauseating thing he'd seen on a screen; Gene, to Roger's visible shock, liked it.
A Gene thumbs-up that scrambles the 'Gene was hard on popcorn' story.
Another Gene endorsement.
Gene compared the breakdancing drama to 'Saturday Night Fever' and only wished more of the dancing were shot better.
The '70s that spoiled themthe bar the decade set
The kind of film they could expect to walk in on early in their careers.
From the same era, held to the same standard.
Bergman, more of what made the '80s a letdown by comparison.
The '80s they actually lovedthe decade wasn't all bad
Off Raftery's own all-time '80s list.
Made Gene and Roger's best-of lists. They were never snooty about smart popcorn.
Another of their best-of-the-year picks.
Robert Townsend's satire spoofed the pair as the 'Sneakin' in the Movies' critics.
Not films filtered out: TV, games, ads
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