The In-Laws 1979
One of the funniest movies of the 1970s; recently the subject of a three-way movie swap on the show.
The Big Picture · Hall of Fame · Discussion · Auction
The 2023 Movie Auction Returns!
July 7, 2023/ 106 min/ Sean Fennessey · Amanda Dobbins · Chris Ryan
Sean, Amanda, and Chris Ryan draft five second-half-of-2023 movies apiece with a $1,000 budget, snake-style, 30 seconds a bid. Plus, remembering Alan Arkin, and what Mattel's Hollywood ambitions mean for movies like Barbie.
A sale of 15 lots across 3 paddles, $2,972 at the hammer.
Top lot: Priscilla, to Paddle 2, $727.
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.
Remembering Alan ArkinThe four-time Oscar nominee died last week at 89
Argo 2012
Amanda's pick, an underrated late performance.
Little Miss Sunshine 2006
The role he won his Oscar for; a Bill Simmons favorite.
So I Married an Axe Murderer 1993
Part of Sean's introduction to Arkin: reliably great for six scene-stealing minutes.
Grosse Pointe Blank 1997
Same era, same trick.
Glengarry Glen Ross 1992
Sean's favorite: George Aronow, on the receiving end of Alec Baldwin's speech.
Catch-22 1970
Mike Nichols' film is due for reconsideration; Arkin plays Yossarian.
Freebie and the Bean 1974
New to Amanda: James Caan and Arkin as two extremely immoral cops.
Mattel, Barbie, and the future of IP filmmakingPrompted by a New Yorker profile of Mattel's push into Hollywood and blunt quotes from a UTA agent about Greta Gerwig's career
Barbie 2023
Greta Gerwig's adaptation of Mattel IP, the film at the center of the profile.
Jurassic Park 1993
Sean's counterpoint: it became merchandise after starting as a story, rather than starting as a toy line.
The paddles who spent what
Paddle 1
Sean Fennessey
$972
5 lots · $28 unspent
Paddle 2
Amanda Dobbins
$1,000
5 lots
Paddle 3
Chris Ryan
$1,000
5 lots
The board this sale, by hammer price
- 01
$727Priscilla 2023No.2 Amanda DobbinsSofia Coppola adapts Priscilla Presley's memoir; Cailee Spaeny as Priscilla, Jacob Elordi as Elvis. The bulk of Amanda's budget.
- 02
$345Quicksand 2023No.3 Chris RyanA Shudder original: a married couple gets trapped in quicksand in the Colombian rainforest while their marriage falls apart around them. Spent his entire remaining budget.
- 03
$311The Iron Claw 2023No.1 Sean FennesseySean Durkin's Von Erich wrestling-dynasty biopic; Zac Efron, Jeremy Allen White, Harris Dickinson, Stanley Simons, Holt McCallany.
- 04
$300The Creator 2023No.1 Sean FennesseyGareth Edwards (Rogue One) directs; John David Washington as an ex-special-forces agent hunting a sentient AI, with Gemma Chan, Ken Watanabe, Allison Janney.
- 05
$250The Bikeriders 2024No.3 Chris RyanJeff Nichols' first film in seven years, following a 1960s Midwestern motorcycle club; Tom Hardy, Austin Butler, Jodie Comer, Michael Shannon, Boyd Holbrook, Norman Reedus.
- 06
$225Anyone But You 2023No.3 Chris RyanSydney Sweeney and Glen Powell in a will-they-won't-they wedding rom-com; Will Gluck (Easy A) directs.
- 07
$185The Holdovers 2023No.1 Sean FennesseyAlexander Payne's first film in six years, reuniting with Sideways star Paul Giamatti as a boarding-school teacher stuck babysitting over Christmas break; Da'Vine Joy Randolph, Carrie Preston.
- 08
$175Hit Man 2024No.1 Sean FennesseyRichard Linklater directs; Glen Powell, who also co-wrote, and Adria Arjona.
- 09
$160The Zone of Interest 2023No.2 Amanda DobbinsJonathan Glazer's Auschwitz-commandant drama out of Cannes; Sandra Hüller and Christian Friedel.
- 10
$100Apartment 7A 2024No.3 Chris RyanNatalie Erica James' Rosemary's Baby prequel; Julia Garner.
- 11
$80Nickel Boys 2024No.3 Chris RyanRaMell Ross adapts Colson Whitehead's novel about two boys at a brutal Florida reform school.
- 12
$73May December 2023No.2 Amanda DobbinsTodd Haynes; Natalie Portman plays an actress shadowing the real-life inspiration, played by Julianne Moore, for a role loosely modeled on the Mary Kay Letourneau story.
- 13
$20All of Us Strangers 2023No.2 Amanda DobbinsAndrew Haigh; Andrew Scott and Paul Mescal, with Claire Foy and Jamie Bell.
- 14
$20Passages 2023No.2 Amanda DobbinsIra Sachs; Franz Rogowski's filmmaker upends his marriage to Ben Whishaw by falling for Adèle Exarchopoulos.
- 15
$1No.1 Sean FennesseyHayao Miyazaki's reportedly final film, released with almost no marketing in Japan under the working title How Do You Live?
Titles link to TMDb where a confident match exists. Unlinked entries are too new to be cataloged or aren't films.
Passed in raised, no bid
Poor ThingsThe Last Voyage of the DemeterMeg 2: The TrenchWonkaThe Exorcist: BelieverAquaman and the Lost KingdomThanksgivingRebel Moon - Part One: A Child of FireSaltburnDumb MoneyStraysDrive-Away DollsBob Marley: One LoveThe Boys in the BoatI Saw the TV GlowLa CocinaBlue BeetleThe MarvelsCaptain America: Brave New World
Previous sale January · first-half slate
Sean Fennessey
Amanda Dobbins
Chris Ryan
- Maestro —
- The Killer —
- Dune: Part Two —
- Challengers —
- Havoc —
Also mentioned raised along the way
Already seen, sat out under the show's honor system Talk to MeFair PlayEileenAfireBottoms
In passing ElementalAnatomy of a FallTriangle of SadnessUnder the SkinSexy BeastLiar LiarThe GorgeThe BrutalistWe're All Going to the World's FairIndiana Jones and the Dial of DestinyRye LaneLong ShotTicket to ParadiseTenetRogue One: A Star Wars StoryBeckettAmsterdamRosemary's BabyIndiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal SkullKraven the HunterElvisThe Lost Daughter
Not films filtered out: TV, games, ads
TV AndorTrue BloodJustifiedJustified: City PrimevalNeon Genesis EvangelionThe BearSecret InvasionDead RingersSouthcliffeThe White LotusDaisy Jones & the SixSuccession
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