Welcome everybody to the Polarize Podcast. Hey, glad you made it here. This is a podcast about polarizing movies. Polarizing in the sense of rotten tomato scores. Sometimes critics love it. Sometimes they hate it. But here at this podcast, we talk about those movies. Today we're talking about where the crawdad's saying. It's a polarizing movie. You're just joining us for the first time. Hey, welcome. Glad to have you here. I'm your host Brandon Stables.
We're going to be talking about this movie. Where the crawdad's saying has a rotten tomato score. Critics 35%. Audience 96%. And I'm not the only host of this podcast. Now I'm going to introduce the co-hosts sometimes referred to as the forever guest. Mr. James Lensie, how's it going? Hey, how's it going? What's up? Hello, everybody. Welcome to Polarize Podcast. Hey. Where are those crawdad's singing today? Let's find out. We're talking polarizing movies. Let's go, baby.
Wow. So you brought the opposite energy of what I was bringing to this episode. So, yeah, you know, we don't normally start the podcast with this type of voice. Me, me introducing things the way that I did. But, you know, just like how this movie introduced itself, it's just going to be a nice, sultry video over what's happening. And James, on the other hand, decided to bring the exact opposite. Let's fucking go another episode of Polarize Podcast. Woo! Yeah! I can't wait. I can't wait.
I'm fucking jerk. I guess wait the fuck up because we're here to polarize in your ear. Yeah, we're polarizing your ears. Your right ear is going to hate your left ear. They're going to be polarized. So, James, what do you think? Your brain's going to be in the middle. Do you think I like kind of matched the setting and the mood of the movie? You nailed it. You nailed it. Thank you. I'm not saying big time. Big time. Big time. You nailed it.
I think I was already, feel like I was being shaken awake at the beginning of this movie like, hey, hey, there's a movie you should watch. Here we go. Let me introduce you to a very terrible CGI bird. While I say Martian a weird way. My first note of the movie, James, was what was that word she just said? Because it sounded like Warsh. But then I was like, is it Marsh? Is that what she's saying?
I just already was said on this path of the second this movie started with, wait a minute, what was that word? And wow, that bird looks like shit. You're making me think that I should instead of trying to say Warsh, I should just say Warsh sauce. Give me some of that Warsh. Warsh sauce. Yeah. Warsh girl. Warsh. Yeah. So I had heard before this movie that there's horse girl. You know. Now there's girl dinners and there's a couple like. Stereotypical girls, I guess, out there in the world.
I believe it. It's not that I don't believe in there like Bigfoot, you know, it's just you come across them once in a while. But I guess, you know, speaking of Bigfoot and once in a while, there's the Marsh girl. I'm not familiar with this term that it seems like everybody in the movie just understands it as just the common thing to say. You haven't grown up in the bayou. Oh, James, are you killing me? We got to call you the boy, boy, king, because I had no idea.
You haven't heard them crawl dead singing. So yeah, I have a point of contention already, too, with the name of this movie. Because yeah, like. Oh, that's enough crawdads, right? Now worth it.
That final line was like so poetic, like a lot, a lot of the lines in this movie definitely lifted from the book and and they're and they're nice and their narration and everything sounds nice and as well written and everything is just like kind of jumbled together in a way that doesn't fully have the connective tissue that reading a book would. But that final line, I don't know. It wasn't as satisfying as I wanted to be like the title fitting with everything. But it is.
I mean, it is a. It's a fine title. I guess, especially for a book like, you know. Sure. Overall, but just when you like when you hear the title in the movie, like your your ears perk up and you're like, oh, they said it. And that the way it did at the end of the movie wasn't. I made me do that. But then not as satisfying of a way as I would have wanted. I wanted to fucking. Then like saying, and can you see? Can you feel the love tonight? Oh, sure. While she goes with a punky mccunxter.
Down like the two boats, they hold hands like in the condom commercials or no, not sure. The erectile dysfunction. Commercials where they're in the bad tubs, Edie Edie. But they're in boats and they're just holding hands like that. Oh, OK. So there's so many, there's so many boats, so much boat stuff. Put that on a bumper sticker. But before we get fully into it, James, I wanted to start off. I wanted to start with a new segment. New segment before I'm bringing all the energy.
Before we get into the actual movie itself is I want to know what are you watching? What are you watching? Oh, I like this. This is great. Yeah, let's talk about movies just by and large before we get into it. Because yeah, I think we're, you know, if you're tuning in, if you're tuning out like we did for this movie, either or. I'm sure, you know, you're liking movies. You're into movies and doing stuff.
So I think it's worth, you know, before we dive deep into the marsh, we talk about what we're vibing on. Maybe it's a vibing on vibing on movies. I don't know. It's a working segment title. Hmm. What is one of my more recent viewings? It's been collateral. I watched that this past week. Yes, tell me about that. It's like a new edition on Netflix and I really enjoyed it. I really had a good time as far as a thrill. The way that it's movie shot is very cool.
Yeah. Oh my God. There's a lot of people in it. Like it blew my mind. I forgot because Jason Statham is in one scene at the very beginning. I mean, he hands Tom Cruise a package. Ruffalo is the lead detective of the whole thing. I love Ruffalo in a position like that. Yeah. And he's got a, he's got a goatee. He's got his hair slicked back. I love it. I love love love. Love it. Love it. A specific inquisitive Ruffalo is my favorite Ruffalo.
Yeah. I mean, that's Zodiac in him and that one is, is a might be my favorite spotlight. Might be my favorite. Oh yes. Yes. Definitely. And then who else? Oh yeah. Javier Bardin is fucking in that movie too. It's crazy. It was just blowing my mind. I was like one after the other. And then fucking was it Jada Pinkett Smith? No. I forget who else someone else was in it too. Speaking of Javier, you had just sung a while you were alluding to Hercules.
I think say you're in love was a little bit of that melody you were alluding to earlier, right? Oh, can you feel the love tonight? Oh no, can you feel the love tonight? That's lying king. I don't know why I did. Can you feel the love tonight? I feel like I was, I should have said kiss the girl because it would have been Kermit and then like a closest thing to a crawdad and a Disney movie singing. That's what I should have said. But that's what my brain Disney wires mixed.
That's what my brain naturally did. Cause what I was going to say is, is I just saw Javier Bardin in the new little mermaid. That's why I was bringing it up. So daddy, daddy, daddy, daddy, daddy, daddy, daddy, daddy, daddy, man. His beard is just flowing. All the hairs is flowing in that movie. It's so distracting in that movie. The, the, and it's just, you know, we talked in length on the episodes where, and if anybody's listening, want to go hear my longer take, I would say on this is that the
making real these reboots of these cartoon Disney movies, it is so distracting. The parts that need to be real. If you're going to do it real. And the water stuff where the hair is in water is so fucking distracting because it's just, it's like moving all the time and it is CGI and you can tell. And it just, it's just tough, just like with the Lion King, what I said on that episode is when you're just trying to make something real, it is, takes a lot of time.
It just, when you have to make it real, it loses a lot of a part of what was good about the original series, which is animating characters and animals in a way that is expressive to what's happening. So it just seems so fun. And so vibrant because it is just, you know, orchestrated that way. And just like with this movie is there were some really fun songs. I also think it's really funny because this was, I didn't know this, but Little Mermaid was another Lin man.
Yeah. While Miranda joint and it's just funny to me how much of a guy he is. Yeah, that's their guy. Disney, right? Like everything and. It must be nice. I mean, it must be kind of a dream job. Yeah. Oh my God, it has to be to it, right? You know, you get paid just dumb amounts of money to make you make great songs. I mean, all the more. Amazing in my mind. I love Moana and all the music is a big part of it for sure. Yeah. And I think in contos really good too. And I think that is as well.
But yeah, Javier Bardem. So funny to just see him in that role because he can be such a scary guy. Such a commanding presence and that is a requirement of. Who is who is he? Poseidon Poseidon. Is that who it is? Oh yeah. Yeah. Such a commanding presence, but it is so fascinating in that movie in particular where he is such a loving father. You know, I didn't see him in that role as it's was really interesting because yeah, he can.
Be so scary and such a big guy like a brute almost and he's just so he's his eyes are very cutting. Yeah. Even with all the CG shit going on all around him and everything can still see his eyes and you can do so much with that. For sure. But yeah, it's another polarizing movie actually and that's kind of fits the mold of our first episode was the Lion King version. We kind of talked at length about all that kind of stuff too.
And it yeah, works for some people doesn't work for others and they continue to make him and they continue to be polarizing, but it keeps their keeps their IP and everything in check and they're going to keep on coming up with new versions of those those stories as long as they can in my mind.
So yeah, we've I mean those those are a couple things I know there's there's some shows I've been I got you know been doing some anime more lately in my life and doing trying to get through Hunter Hunter almost almost finished with that. The show Silo on Apple TV plus or whatever is a good book and the show's been good to have a couple episodes left. I love Rebecca Ferguson she's she's a lady Jessica. Yeah, so fantastic. There you go. That's it. That's an awesome new segment.
I love I love it is. Yeah, let's get into this goddamn movie. My first note also CG bird. CG bird. My second my second note. You'll pay for this. I was just like I'm going to write this down. I was like I'm going to write this down. They just called that person Marsh girl. Little did I know that the big part of this they should call the movie Marsh girl. I think you should. Maybe the book where the crawdeads sing but this movie is called Marsh girl. They say Marsh girl.
In this movie conservatively a thousand times. It is it gets to a point where I'm just laughing at how many times in a in a scene she will be referred to as Marsh girl and yeah.
It's why it's so funny is because everybody treats it like you're saying is a common saying of somebody and us as an audience members like I've never ever heard anybody be called that but every single like level of person in this town refers to her as Marsh girl like it's just yeah that's the thing and it's almost like town idiot or something and to be honest I think it's a very common thing. It's like a town idiot or something and to call someone that's town idiot.
I don't know it just seemed like such a yeah such a like a derogatory term too. Yeah. Yeah I know like her whole family disappears and I guess everyone forgets her name and her last name and everything she never comes out. But that happens quick and this is already you're you're starting to feel the difference between a book and a movie even if we haven't read the book.
And these are moving at a pace that is not given the chance to breathe when it should and then other times it's like breathing in ways that you know could maybe be expedited or at least made more a little more interesting and in other ways to or have a little bit of edge and in terms of like not being so melodramatic and like a soap opera but you know.
Yeah this movie reminded me so much of like the way the notebook is visually to and how what it focuses on and it just the movie itself I don't know about the book in particular. I know my mom really likes the book she was telling me about this word the crowd at sea. That's why I was excited to do this movie because she was like oh the books really great. Yeah. You don't know what she thinks about the movie.
I don't think she's ever seen it like my mom's very weird like that where she's just like it just because a movie comes out of it isn't you know is like oh I got to see that now you know she's like I read the book enjoyed it and that's all I need to do. I mean I'm not sure. Yeah I mean there's some annotations where I might steer clear of as well. Totally. And I read some of the dark tower books but I saw that trailer that movie I'm like you know. It's not good it is poopy doobie snoopy.
That is funny though to just talk about the difference like how a book would be in comparison to how movie would be because I'm assuming that the book would have a lot more interior into each one of the characters of what they're thinking about the things that are going on. Right. That's not something during the romantic scenes that would be great to have that internal monologue shared with us because that's you know to hear her internal monologue that's not overdone narration.
That's what makes the yeah the romance really really worked that I mean the chemistry is is pretty much there I don't know what do we think of the performance of the main main character. I think she is perfect.
Yeah. Absolutely yeah because this movie I think does really well and is probably really attractive to women because the you know what is her name Emily Emily or Daisy and Daisy Edgar Jones has really big eyes and she plays this like confused reserved girl very very well and I think that's attractive to the female audience of like somebody who is very smart contemplative sensitive emotional and really also has is very capable to I think she handles all of that really well.
So I don't know I would. It is a lot to ask to be the marsh girl and to a moat these these things of just being yeah lost confused misunderstood wanting but not understanding how to get those emotions across and everything. It's some of the some of the things she does get a little repetitive to me but that doesn't necessarily mean that they're bad decisions as an actor but it's well yeah it's just that sort of she's she doesn't that thing where she's her eyes yeah her eyes do.
Yeah it's super repetitive. I mean this movie has a position that it puts her in as well yeah. It was like it was so funny as a you know anybody listening who doesn't know what I look like I'm a white guy and it was so funny. I'm a lizard man actually yeah busted.
That I had white guy blindness in this movie where the guy so this movie is structured in a way where there are two romantic relationships one is leading to like one place and the other one is like creating a level of trauma and understanding to get to the to that relationship and it's played by two dudes that look so fucking similar. Interesting.
It really was tough for me where I'm like these guys are so fucking similar looking where I for a second got whiplash was like wait who because this movie moves through time in a way as well where like that's true as well and the transition from one to the money to me where I like Taylor Johnson and Harris or Taylor John Smith and Harris Dickinson are really pretty similar to me look wise but the you know obviously what they mean to Kaia is different. Oh you mean Marsh girl.
But I could recognize that yeah it was just so funny that they yeah I made a note of it and where I was like man it's just two very similar white guys and she definitely is the type is what I was thinking the whole time I was like she really has a type it's this you know job tall white dude with brown hair.
I mean they are styled very similarly at this time in right you know American fashion you know I got the white T's and it's so yeah all the fashion of this movie is so funny because to go back to the plot of this is we start off with her whole entire family leaving us one by one and man there's some brutal because
quick it's like fuck you just feel so emotionally drained by the I know like someone's with murder she's been wrongfully accused you assume or not I don't know you know I'm not really sure what to assume that you know you definitely assume yeah for sure. And then you want yeah you watch her immediate flashback the flashback is like quick in this movie because it's like wrongfully accused get her in interrogation and then like let me tell you my story.
Yes, so stereotypical and then you and by the guy who just moments ago said he's retired. That's that was already something up off the battle is like, where's that there's missing a scene in the movie they forgot to edit that scene in we just like talking with his wife, looking at the newspaper about Marsh girl and being like hey we remember that family. Remember that girl.
Don't we care about them like come back for one final case and put things right and save the Marsh girl that never happened he just like shows up. I was like I was like you said you were retired why are you coming back you can it showed him like see it at the bar on the news or something like that but there's no conversation and I was yeah because you end up understanding a little bit more must be expanded on and the book of the lawyer care a little bit I don't know.
Oh no absolutely yeah I mean and that's how the book and that's what we're talking about is like the way this movie like translate the book to the movie. It, it, it's feelings are that is so weird that she all of it leading up to the situation is weird, because you don't understand why this girl is like diving into the Marsh she's around there. Then she gets caught. And then you're right.
Crime scene is kind of interesting you know of them like looking around at the top and the great and the great and everything. It's really not like when you okay so when you go into a movie like this you're like oh there's going to be a mystery. And so when that happens it's like oh at the okay at the bare minimum it's giving me like these cops. Have found a body, no footprints. Oh interesting. The great. What's happened. Oh, it could have.
Which and then like going into like the CSI about all of like, yeah, they're like, well if which way was he facing when he got pushed off like, and then at the very end when he's like well even if, and I thought that was like one of the more effective parts of the movie is was him as the like giving that whole speech at the end of like strat harm from Godzilla one and two King of Mines.
But he's like if even if she were she would have to drive all the way have this last episode have this meeting with the publisher and then come back murder somebody and then come back in the morning like that was such a great speech by him that gave me that
kind of reaction of like a procedural mystery sort of thing, but then you get the romance drama all mixed into it too there's a lot of, which is 75% of the movie, right, which makes sense in a book is like you can reach all those different points.
It just is like it. It's such a slow burn, and it focuses so much of the coming of age element of bias character, which is interesting. But since it is also hanging its hat on a courtroom drama, like I just wanted so much more out of that side of the you would go like 35 minutes stretches of her just casually having a romance with this guy which is like.
They didn't even question the shopkeepers. I don't know. I love them. I mean they were great at the in the courtroom and everything didn't they didn't question them they didn't question his like her like love interest that I need to get these guys names down. Jump in and Mabel are the shopkeepers. The shopkeepers and then Tate is is like the good dude and Chase is the bad dude.
Essentially, but Tate. They didn't question Tate, you know, either like they those like it was such a weird pacing in this movie because incredibly weird they come in at the end like they're the like star witnesses those like the two shopkeepers Tate and his dad all walk in and there's
this moment editing wise where it gives them the full picture. Everyone looks at them. They're like, OK, one if not all these people are going to get questioned and they don't. And this is like stuff missing. I don't know. It's so weird. So because because where the movie cares and places its attention is in this melodramatic love story that then evolves into this. Prisoner, very like.
It's like a toxic relationship. Yeah. Yeah. And that's all the movie kind of really cares about. But it has this courtroom drama, but it could not really give a shit. That's about it. Yeah. And it's just so apparent because every time like you're saying that it would cut to the courtroom shit. I was like.
Can we like get some evidence that isn't just the mother of the deceased and like just like some you know, you and me have been talking offline and it would introduce characters in that moment to that was like. It's like facing to is like, here's the publisher and here's this like other guy that saw her leaving after. Oh my God. And then he was like this Fisherman that was just there and was like, oh, we're getting it.
Oh, look at this guy. Like look at these colorful cast of characters that you know it could have been that sort of thing too. But it did do a lot with the romantic drama toxic relationships side of it all which paid off. And the other effective moment of the movie we're just jumping around like it's fine. No, no, no. But like when you find out he's.
Double married. Like that was an effective part. That was like that was like it. I had a nickel for every. It was a double married situation. I'd be a rich man. I feel like I could have called that like a fucking mile and a half away. Yeah, like it was so goddamn apparent like it was gonna drive like the foot it was gonna be like he was his real nature was gonna come to reveal itself eventually.
Real nature was always there. Yeah, big time big time. It was so obvious. But he had the night he liked that. That moment of like seeing him with her at the in the in the like her just running home and all that stuff like that was what the movie and the book I'm sure like is a big climactic moment and I thought it was overall effective for that.
His rebuttal was just so intense to and drawn out in its own fucked up way that was not enjoyable to watch naturally so and then that stuff is sure it's just it's gratuitous to a to a point to I don't know. Mm hmm. But it's it's it is it is isn't necessary I mean like. For dramatic. Yeah, I mean, isn't it so fascinating though, a movie that is like written produced directed starring women that the focus of the movie isn't the courtroom of it all or the procedural elements of it all.
It's just about toxic relationships and the effect that it has on a person. I've, I was, you know, trying to give the movie credit because I think there is credit for it was really focusing on her perspective. For sure. It was very much like her experience through all of, you know, the courtroom and and all of her relationships and everything and being thrust into this courtroom and having it all just be decided around you and for you and you can't really in your voice is
kind of less voices kind of taken away and her and then you get to see her journey of kind of finding finding your power. Yeah. And in her identity and her power and strength and very so much so that she learns how to read in this movie. You know what I mean? Like talking about finding your voice. That was pretty. That was wholesome. I mean, there were. I'm not saying it's bad. I'm their romance at the her and Tate at the beginning. Yeah.
I think that I paid that I noticed in this movie again, because I feel like it's directed and written by women that the intimate moments of this movie are really tender and sweet and had a great kind of perspective of it. I was really into, you know, like when whenever I go out, I just like to put my lady in the middle of a of a marsh and drive around on my boat while she was in there. Make a way for.
You know, you know, speaking your truth on this. All right, baby, in the middle, I'm going to drive around, make some waves. Yeah. Six pack of Budweiser. No, but I just it was really noticeable in this movie where the camera was pointed in the intimate moments between. Kaya and like, Tate or chase or whatever. Like I was really into the fact that the camera would be like on certain parts of her body that were like not so.
Because like if a guy directing this, you'd be like, let's just, you know, you want to see all of it. But it was so careful and tender in those moments where we just focus on like really kind of obscure quote unquote parts of the body that would elicit a lot of really great emotion. And I. Sure. Love that element of it. But it. The thing is, is that this movie has a has a like a thing to say. And it just more often than not is so meandering.
Like I time and time again in this movie, I was like, what are we doing? Like, where are we going? Like, we're like, let's move this shit along. Because I get it. You know, it is a coming of age story. A woman's coming of age story that has had a very. In particular, it makes it very apparent that love did not exist in her household. And so for her to open herself up to love is like, God, such a monumental thing. She doesn't know how she should be treated.
Absolutely. Well, she's only experienced treatment and in a particular way. And there are moments with Tate in particular where he is treating her in a way and you could see it on her where she's like, I don't know. I never felt this way or I've never received love in this way. And I think he's a true catch. Like he's a true, right? Like top to bottom. Like he's doing everything right. He gets her feathers and notes teaches her how to read.
He fucks up big time once and he and he like endlessly apologizes for it. And then his reasoning is stated well, too. As to why he missed out on it. But I've yeah, I'm OK. I'm in love with Tate, but the extent that this movie spends on like the middle part, like the Tate stuff is fun. And naturally you don't like to be with Chase. This fun.
But the chase stuff is just like, it's like, I know it and it's like it's got to have a commentary on like, you know, the rebound of coming out of a relationship and wanting to and you're getting that attention from someone else. And you can see her, you know, rebuph him at multiple points.
But she maintains she stays in the relationship, the toxic relationship, and it's just that's like a drawn out frustrating part of the movie because it is paced directly after a previous relationship where she just was courted and went through this whole thing. So now you see the kind of the Mr. Hyde, the bad the bad version of it. And it's just kind of drains you because right. It's so close to the thing that just happened and so similar. But so much worse. Right.
Like the, like the chase stuff should be cut between the courtroom drama stuff way more quickly. We don't need as much of the him courting her chase. I like, you can already tell he's a bad dude. You can and then like, I don't know, like, you can narrate that away. Like I got with another guy that treated that like gave me attention, but didn't treat me in the, you know, whatever. And then. Sure. I don't want to say how to do it.
No, no, it's fine. We're talking about a movie that we've there are things I like about it. Yes. Like, but there's just a lot of stuff that I'm like, you're, you know, I think it's going to be a reoccurring phrase in regards to this movie of like, there's something missing. Like there needs to be more of something, you know, you're, I understand why you're focusing on this, but like. In order for it to be like really interesting, you need to have more of a bunch of other.
Honestly, this this connective tissue and just befuddling missing things and stuff that I question, whether it is for artistic effect or just. Over oversight, or it can't be a two and a half to two hour 45 minute to three hour movie so we have to find a way to cut things down. But the things that they choose is, is, is just weird and we keep saying it but like I'm jumping to the to the end as well but like. I don't.
The other unsatisfying part about it and and this is maybe more the artistic side of things is why they chose not to just show her exactly how she did it. And how she killed him. Yeah. And got him there with no footprints and the great and all these things that are just like these bread crumbed out from the beginning. That you get the narration at the end and you know her like it's her and like them growing old together is really sweet. I like that that is that is in the good moment.
And he loved it. Yeah, and him finding the letter and all that stuff and. But. It just I wanted that mystery side and courtrooms maybe I think maybe we're wanting a little bit more of that and maybe that speaks to our proclivity towards some of those things.
But I like, I don't know, I like romance as much as anyone and I really like the Tate stuff but it's just it's a strangely paced and strangely edited thing that is unsatisfying, frustratingly so and in a lot of like key moments because they even wanted like, yeah, that that conversation between them and like, oh, I'm his fiance like I wanted to let that burn even a little bit more like she ran away I was like,
I just wanted to like sit in that even longer some of them, some of the more dramatic things so it's it's it's kind of constantly me hitting those frustrating moments with this movie when I'm wanting it to lean more in a certain way and it goes a different direction and kind of can't or maybe can't make up its mind.
I think it's just overall the priorities of the movie are so much more interested in the like abuse and relationship stuff and it presents these ideas which then elicits from us a want and interest and about like what the town is more like little interior into the town. We also just get so little interior into the family dynamics of chase, like I get it that his family wants him to have this, you know, woman this life and all of that but it's just all of it is so like
I mean, he doesn't care about it. Show you any chase shit because then you'd find out he double married but you see enough of him like with with her and enough people know that he's spending time with her too so that's that's a strange thing that his fiance wouldn't catch wind of that. Sure. And if anything she's nice to her she's like oh I know your name oh she's like oh hi Marshall I mean I'm sorry. Hi Clark hi kaya Clark. That's I remember your name.
I dress as she's dressing her down the entire time when she's yeah so it's not like you know we don't want to give her too much credit for you know trying to you know get away from calling her the derogatory term Marshall so okay.
Let's talk about marsh girl just as a concept again. Because so much of this movie I was holding myself down. Because I was so wrapped up when like how she like as a marsh girl. How does she understand a lot of this things that she's, you know, kind of pursuing I think specifically, you know I think one thing
in mind if I were to look at my notes would be like how does she know about a boyfriend and like why does she want a boyfriend and like there's that's that's a concept that's a social concept that you predominantly experience through going to school and watching media is these like what it means to be boyfriend and girlfriend and like the pursuance of that. Oh, you know, and everything related to that. And that is one example but there's like a bajillion I feel like where.
How does she know what any of that means, because she's living by herself as a child till she's a adult and time and time again I'm like, how does she know about what that is, and why does she want that, and it drove me nuts, because I would always just be like, I can pull up my notes but I'd love to hear your opinion on it if you ever noticed that where you're like, wait, why how does she know that that's a thing.
Yeah, there's, and that's again, I think the connective tissue and all you really see her connections are the shopkeepers, her father leaves the last one to leave and she's got to be what like 10, 8 to 10 10 or 11 I would say yeah and then she immediately picks up her muscle hustle and you dirty dog starts hustling the muscles. Yeah. And then Tate is the only other one that she's been connected to and he doesn't start teaching her to, you know, to start reading until high
school age. And there is a lot missing there, and a lot of interesting stuff as to how to survive as a child into high school age in a marsh and take care of yourself, you know, even sanitary wise like I would expect her to show up to take a precious precious like looking like, you know, like grungy teeth and just like un unkempt but who knows. Yeah, but I bet yeah she got to the age 10 saw enough of her as dysfunctional as shit as it was her family and everything and maybe maybe she found some
a way to self sustain. But a lot of social thing I'm I agree with you as like, if it is there in the movie and in the book, it's not in the movie but if it is in the book and it is there. As far as the story element goes then we don't see it unfortunately as to how that happens and it maybe it is going to the shop every day. She said she only goes to school one day, and then she's over it because
they bully the shit out of her and so how she socializes beyond that is not shown in the movie and is a fun kind of a funny concept. It's such a funny thing to think about to be a marsh girl and yeah, I don't know. She's she looks all right to me.
Yeah, it's it's such a glaring like you're in a movie quality about her where she is dressed in a way that's like has a sense of style, but it's like being dressed by a stylist is really it's so my mind she's trying to be her mom like she she's just looking at her mom's dresses all the time and wants to emulate that and you know there's a lot of and that whole that was like the emotional moment for me when she dies and and has that whole connection with her mom as she's dying at the end and
the whole like cross generational thing and seeing her as herself as a child reaching out to her mom and all that like all that stuff was really was really nice and subtle and ways that this movie is not subtle in other ways but there are other things that are nice and details that seem like they would come from a good place and that's where I think like the text must have a story there that it has a variety of like interesting characters and I think that that would have
helped this movie a lot too I think you mentioned earlier about about seeing the town and the more like the cast of characters and having it be an ensemble thing could have propped her up as a character as well because you don't need to have her experience and narrate it the
whole time you could have oh yeah I remember seeing Marsh girl come through town and you know she'd stop by for a spell and have a soda pop and like ask me questions about what it's like you know to go to school like I don't know or like and then you could have people on the courtroom answer those questions about like oh here I me as a lawyer I'm gonna build her character and ask more people about and he it's essentially what he does but it's just not enough I want more I like not close
close and we haven't really talked about her her hustle besides the muscle is the all her beautiful drawings and I think that's a great detail as far as a realized part of who her character would be and why she would be so good at that makes a lot of
sense because all of the things we've criticized as being a marsh girl maybe you wouldn't know about you you could draw a fucking you know wildlife and mushrooms well if you spend enough time with it and that's you know you have a lot of time in your hands by by yourself you're
gonna draw what's right like that's not actually not a naturally figure out and I love it just how the drawings look I was sad when she ripped him apart and they're all over a place to and they're so beautiful yeah there was a moment where they're in the
court the courtroom and she's getting so stressed out about things and the lawyer like gives her a pen to draw right she just goes town and it's such a wonderful moment of like that is her happy place to just be in the marsh to admire the wildlife because
that's all she's had that's a big draw of this movie I think too I just just the idea of like being a marsh girl there there's a certain like I don't know admiration for it or like you fantasize it a bit of like I lived in the marsh and I was a and I was a marsh
which and where people called me which or whatever but I did what I wanted and I and I have all my drawings and I'm and I'm self sustaining you know I don't really need anybody don't need to go anywhere I got my marsh that's all you know and and that's
there's a certain amount of strength that she exudes that is attractive for for people like Tate and chase is attracted to her for all the wrong reasons I think but for for Tate seeing who she truly is is there is an attractive quality to that and his yeah is I mean that was the
dramatic part to as and I'm a I was a sucker for it but it was like yeah I tried I went to school I got a job and it didn't matter I just wanted you in the end like all that stuff is so cheesy and awesome but it's there's a party me that's still
a movie like this and knows that I'm gonna get some version of that and the murder mystery and everything and I'm looking for those things and and kind of satisfied when I at least have those climactic moments of someone professing their love and in a way like that it's like oh okay
I'm getting something here but yeah beyond that I think this movie kind of rang hollow and a lot of other ways and I'm happy to move on to some some reviews if you're down yeah that's great let's take a break final notes yeah if you want to take a break I'll read through some of my notes while you while you if you're gonna do a bathroom break or you can just let's just take a break.
Yeah, let's talk notes. So yeah flashback. Oh yeah this ambient sound is nice amazing tree. There's something going on with that. I think I just started writing down lines with it said March girl. She's the Grinch question mark I don't know should they search they just felt like she was the Grinch of the town. That leaf dance. That was like that was kind of rough to me it was it was played to be so I know so romantic. Oh my god but it was like I just started laughing really hard.
They just go oh it was like like yeah that sort of thing of like what you think humans would do if you're an alien or something it's like yes aliens love when leaves fall from sky and they immediately dance in a rapturous way it was just so immediate like yeah like you just they like clocked the it was like a tornado of leaves and they're like well you know we have to do is we have to go dancing it.
Maybe I maybe I'm just too cynic I need to be more like that. No that's a marsh girl would know that when you see you know it does double of leaves you have to go dancing it. Yeah that's I yeah that's my fault in my own. You can't run away from every whip stitch. That's something they say I said the same thing to. I didn't look to what a whip stitches. Do you know what a whip stitches. I have zero idea but somebody said it like it was a thing.
In a sewing stitch pass over an edge or a sling an instant a moment. Can't run away from every moment. Immediately after that I put three Z's snooze I was snoozing. relationship I was like yeah and he called he at one point he says she's free as a dangale and smart as a whip. A dangale that's what I say about you Brandon call me courthouse can't oh that brandini he's free as a dangale and. Whip whip. Three three thrust and done chase.
You just like I know my know was I didn't know what kind of books you wrote so I was just like is it a kids book is a narrative book is it a scientific book. I was so it looked like family like it could it could like anyone can. Anyone can learn something from this call it like family family it's like family like Vin Diesel would love it. But yeah, she's to the thing where he's just like looks like family. Alright then that was such a big thing to say. Everybody has a bow.
Yeah that point that he just rolls up and sees both of them there was like everybody's just boating around. They have the pigly wiggly I just love that name it's I'm not I love California California guys and. So cal server dude are there are there still pigly wigglies don't tell us yeah I think so reach out. Chase what the fuck she didn't know her own birthday I thought was really interesting that was I like that.
That was cool but that code and she said don't cut my name on the birthday cake because that was like special to her like having name. Not mars girl not mars girl yeah there's oh man. I want to like this movie. Oh yeah. The books gotta be gotta be much better. And yeah you can't get double married jumping I thought that's a cool name jumping. That sounded like that reminded me when they said that of what is it walk hard.
Yeah that's what I'm saying that's what I've been referencing this whole time. Right when I mean that scene is so dramatic and I still think it's effective of like seeing the fiance and everything but it's just like I just want to. Just yell at Chase in the middle you can't get double married chase. So I can't build you a house of chocolate milk in the sun. If it never rains.
They're judging themselves I thought that was like a poignant thing of you know that's that was where the poetic side of a well written book comes through in a movie but otherwise I think it's very difficult. Let's check out what some critics have to say on the 35% critic side again 35% critics 96% audience very very fucking spicy and very wintery cold. It's very polarized ladies and gentlemen. And that's like we love that over here. We love that.
We just like yum yum yum yum polarize kingdom yum yum bring it through the gates. There's two things we stand for on this podcast is polarizing scores and tape. Oh we stand tape. Yeah. Oh yeah. Tates a hunk from Peter Bradshaw at the Guardian gives it a one out of five plays like an all white reboot of to kill a mockingbird with Edgar Jones somehow getting to play scout and Tom Robinson at the same time. The ending is an outrageously evasive cheat. And it is such an interesting comparison.
I think that's I think that's what like Reese Witherspoon had said about the movie like why she wanted to produce it was. Yeah, pairing it to kind of like a to kill a mockingbird when she when she read it. And then she's like a to kill a mockingbird from drama thing a misunderstood person that's framed. You find out from Empire magazine Sophie Butcher two out of five a flat flare free and uninspiring adaptation. From the awesome Chronicle Jenny Nolf two out of five.
Easygoing allure isn't enough to bind where the crawdad sing together, though leaving the film a generic dole outing. Yeah. Do one more let's see. From real views with James. No actually let's do Kyle Smith with Wall Street Journal. Nice from the lush nature writing in the book the stories plot beats stand exposed as bland contrivances familiar from a thousand romance novels about plucky adorable damsels versus snaky and duplicitous men. Essentially, yeah, just calling it generic.
Let's see what audience. Oh, there's this one. Here's one funny positive one from tie burr if you want to call this pie positive. It is dot dot dot acceptable. Two out of four. All right, well, let's warm up here and check out some positive audience reviews. You can't. You just can't run away from every whipstitch Brandon. You can't fucking times have to tell you but. Well, I'm a marshal. Yeah, you're right there. Right there. That's why I do it run from whip snitches because I'm a marshal.
Yeah, well that excuse is only going to work so far when you find yourself in a pickle. And you got to defend yourself against throwing a man off of a tower. I hope you covered up your footprints. Well, it shows her coming up the footprints the whole time and that's kind of that's kind of yeah, that's yeah, yeah, acceptable as type of. Yeah, no it is. From a non seven five stars. Titled intriguing story with a twist at the end. The acting is good and the story well developed.
Shocking opening shows family broken by abusive father then follows life of one child who experienced tender moments. Loneliness, generosity, love and other people's greed. The climax is a very interesting twist. Enjoy. Enjoy with me. Okay, all right. Five stars open wide from Mr. Pickles and there's a picture of Mr. Mr. Pickles the cartoon. Oh, titled wife made me watch it. Was a pretty good movie. Five stars. It's so funny to me. Yeah, she made me do it.
That's titled that yeah it's like hey all you guys out there. Yeah, she made me so I didn't want to watch this but you know hey, hey, why is am I right. Essentially the title was one big asterisk like that's my reason from P. Bat 26 titled great movie five stars. Little sad but shows the resilience of a young lady who's had many hardships and how ignorant some people can be. I recommend watching it. I also think prime should lower its price to rent.
If it weren't for free shipping, I wouldn't pay for prime. I haven't found any free movies for quite a while. Amazon can afford it with all the customers they have greedy. Yeah, I agree. Brandon agrees. From wood burner five stars. Ooh, this sounds like a martial girl titled read the book first. Enjoy the movie or read the book first enjoyed the movie. I thought this movie was well done. Having read the book. I know there were parts that were necessarily left out.
Don't know how it would have held up if I hadn't read the book, but I enjoyed it, especially the way they managed to sneak in the surprise who done it information at the end. Just yeah, just really just threw it in there right at the end. Oh, from Randolph B five stars titled fabulous a beautiful novel mystery love story and a coming of age story in the midst of adversity a wonderful story with a great ending. It's a lot of five stars here.
There's a. Yeah. For on the on prime video, there's 30,000 ratings. 84% of those ratings are five stars. Like the audience like really, really loves this one. There's a there's a I don't know, probably like a pulpit this fun sort of ride with the book. The book readers are coming out in full force in the comment section. So it seems like and knowing. Yeah, I wonder if you're forgiving a lot of this movie because you know so much more. You've you've been provided context that we just don't get.
I imagine it would be hard to go in completely on bias in some ways, but also there's got to be some people that are going in with it. Even more critical eye. Because they know so much, but I really like that last one of those last audience reviews were it's just like, I know that there were cuts like necessary cuts. And that's true with with any adaptation from a book.
So that's that kind of made me feel a little bit better hearing that from that one person, I guess that they were okay with what was what was cut. But for my enjoyment as just a movie was it was a little different. I was going to read a little bit of this NPR article. Just for a last little minute thing before we do our final thoughts.
Questions linger over where the crowd at sink author is film adaptation is released by Mandel it they'll barco where the crowd at seeing tells a fictional story blah blah blah and it took wildlife scientists this is the author delia Owens a decade to write where the crowd at sing her first novel has now been on the New York Times bestseller list for 168 weeks actress with Reese Witherspoon
loved it so much she added it to her popular book club and produced the new film adaptation quote it just blew me away. It felt like when I was reading to kill a mockingbird or just any sort of classic Southern literature she layers on this thriller element. There's a murder and murder a real life murder in the mid 1990s is the big elephant in the room with the film's release.
News has resurfaced that 73 year old Owens is still wanted for questioning by Zambian authorities as a possible witness co-conspirator and accessory to federal crimes. At the time she and her then husband Mark were living in Zambia as animal conservationists trying to save elephants from poachers.
Journalist Jeffrey Goldberg first wrote about this for the New Yorker in 2010 and more recently the Atlantic magazine where he's now editor in chief his reporting suggests that Owens set up a brutal operation to go after anyone who was a threat to the elephant reserve. In fact an ABC News crew documenting the Owens work in 95 actually captured the execution of a suspected poacher. Quote the bodies of the poachers are often left when where they fall for the animals to eat.
I was hanging by narrator Meredith Vera said on the show turning point conservation morality Africa. You can hear the gunshots but the shooter of the identified man was never seen on camera body was never found and no one has been formally charged with the crime. According to Jeffrey Goldberg some witnesses reportedly implicated Mark Owens and his son Christopher but the journalist says their attorneys have issued statements of denial in the killing.
You quoted Delia Owens saying she had nothing to do with it. Taylor Swift wrote in saying on the film soundtrack saying on Instagram she wanted to create something haunting and ethereal to match this mesmerizing story. She's faced social media backlash for her involvement in the film and in an interview the director and star of the movie both told me they didn't know anything about this product part of Delia Owens pass. Though they did say she has a cameo in the film.
Pretty pretty pretty wild stuff. Yeah, it's pretty wild stuff. I just had to share that real life implications are happening. I have no real commentary of myself to say besides just like hey she's at the center of a little murder mystery of her own and the reasoning behind it is like a movie in itself. Right I just hopefully that they focus more on the mystery of the murder and the prosecution of it because then we would be loving it we'd be loving it.
I would watch a movie of like a mystery writer turned poacher hunter. I'd watch totally. I'd watch some hunting poachers like whatever you feel about that like as far as like an interesting story would be would be interesting for sure. Yeah. Interesting story is very interesting. Gotcha. I'm trying. I love it. It is an interesting story to know that my co-host is now annoyed with me must must say that the listeners must be as well over my. That's not true. I'm just giving you my redundant.
No they love it. They love it and I love it because I had no idea about that and I'm sure people had no idea as well but it's so funny the button on that. It's great. Yeah, that's let's put a numerical value to this bad boy. What are you thinking? I love the casualness that was just entered into this portion. Yeah, it has this kind of you know I'm going to go you're going to go who's going to decide but I feel like we're just like we can have toss out numbers. I'm kind of feeling that too.
Just go like you know hey this is why I like it. So I'm going to give this movie a 43%. Oh my God. You were one off of what I was about to say. I was honest to God about to say 44. I was like 45 or 44. I was going to say 44. 43 for me man. It's definitely 40 range. Can I just say this like as one my review was going to be like if it was more theatrical is. We can rewind. No. So what this movie made me think about is how movies like Cobra have existed.
I've never seen Cobra. So Cobra is a very silly movie starring Sylvester Stallone where he just shoots a lot of people but like protects the city and you know has this whole like just proposition behind him but he just really fucks up the bad guys and you know and that's such a guy movie. It is made by guys starring a guy and it appeals to guys. This movie is a movie made by women. Starring women written by women. That obviously appeals to women.
And as somebody who is going to not live in a totally heterosexual sexual place or like a stereotypical male perspective. You can understand why like there are some really sensual like romantic relationship stuff in this movie. That's awesome. Like and I and I don't deny it. But yeah like so. Okay. So and that's the period. I think it is. Yeah. Successful and putting you in her perspective. Exactly. Absolutely. So yeah. And that's kind of where I would leave it is but.
Anybody who wants to cobras like this isn't a fucking this isn't a you know a good movie necessarily but is it a fun movie or isn't an enjoyable movie in its objective to court the audience that it's going after 110%. And so. Yeah like. I think it's really funny to think about how. Reese Witherspoon with yellow jackets is another situation where it is somebody who's been in Hollywood who knows how to like make him like produce a movie and like. And it's not like this movie didn't make money.
You know it like did its job in like courted the people that it was out to get and they went and fucking saw the movie and liked it and we're talking about that from a score standpoint and. You could she could legit just keep doing this shit like anything that is on a bestseller book list that's really interesting. Be the producer and make this movie happen and go after the exact audience you know is going to like it and continue to fucking do this.
And I really appreciate this movie to a degree for what it is because it's not a bad movie. There's just things I wanted out of this movie that I didn't get. Okay well you know what this movie wasn't made for me. I'm getting this. I got the sense of maybe they wanted me but. I think it's just sneaky suspicion that they didn't that they had a particular person in mind when they made this movie to go see it and everybody came out and went and saw it so yeah I as who I am.
I'm not going to give this a really poopy score but would I recommend this I don't know I think there are better versions of this but I understand what it's doing so yeah. Let's end on some Cobra reviews. I was gonna I want to hear what you wanted to say. Okay. No I can I can do well. I don't have to do Cobra reviews. I want to hear some Cobra reviews so just. I feel like I mean I went into this with the most open mind possible because I really didn't know what to expect.
For what I enjoyed of it I think were those key points in the movie of what they really were the most important scenes was the opening murder and investigating of it was caught my fancy for for a bit some of the romance stuff with Tate caught my whimsy as well. Oh hashtag we stand Tate hashtag catch my whimsy. I'm gonna stand Tate. The courtroom stuff let courtroom stuff led me a little wanting but I did like the performance of David straight straight there.
However you say his name some some other good performances like the shopkeepers were like the heart of the movie in a lot of way and like. So much more of that stuff like what their family yeah like I want to hear just like that or something like I want to know so much more about this has to have more loving people than just the two shopkeepers to know that like this whole family not even them fully it's such a minimal I'm sorry.
I just a little like community stuff and a little bit of the fleshing out of an ensemble sort of cast but you don't have the time for this already two hour movie. The places that I thought it dragged was definitely all the chase stuff I feel like there's a way to to rally through a toxic relationship where it doesn't have to be so so gratuitous with the drama there.
If that's a movie that you want to make then yeah maybe that's a situation like you're saying not for me it's not for me and maybe it is really trying to illustrate what it's like to be like be a woman and the sort of domineering relationship where you don't know what it's like to be treated with love and empathy from from a significant other and you're still learning your way to even have a proper friendship or communicate with somebody and he is giving you attention.
But the evils of even your father and stuff like start to rear their head and a lot of that stuff I know will hit home for a lot of people and I in my mind would just come through better in text with internal monologue, a little bit more of a back and forth between the courtroom stuff and that I can see going chapter by chapter like the bare bones are the things that work for me and the bare bones I imagine are the things that were lifted almost directly from from the book and see
the fiance in the street and stuff like that. But there's something that rings super hollow about this movie that I feel like is also very forgettable, and nothing really stands out that sets it apart from other murder mystery
romantic drama movies that I would be into and the thing that would be is yeah maybe the marsh girl element, you know, of being a being a marsh girl. I think some of that stuff also like made me interested about about her independently as a person, apart from these guys and
the way she's doing and even just more so how she learned to survive in the marsh on her own. It's a little bit more interesting to me as like from the age 10 to 16 like what was that what were those years like and everything like besides just catching
the fossils and selling them to the shopkeeper and all that stuff and then also yeah I wanted a little bit more out of like the fall is ruin that murder you know and and and how exactly it happened but they're telling me it doesn't matter it's just the you're
going to find out years later when she's already grown old and died and then her secrets are going to come out. And then you're just going to get a little whiff of like what what really happened but you're never going to know the full truth. I get the artistic merit and that too.
The way that it was leading I don't know is it left me a lot of this movie left me wanting in certain areas. So yeah I really feel like it's on the colder colder end for me and not something that I would revisit let alone recommend wholeheartedly to
you. Yeah. And I'm I have to check out Cobra. Can you read. I love that. That's the that's the comp from a G singe gave it a five stars. Another masterpiece by sly and unfortunately reason is that good movies that come between that came between Rambo and Rocky franchise till the end of 1990 didn't get much light but the movie is really a must watch crime slash action. The dialogue in the starting scene which is you are a disease. I'm the cure is one of the best deliveries ever.
Moment you will become a fan of love this movie. The most badass cop you will ever witness. Mary on Cobra the Cobra. Fuck yes. Yeah. And there's there's plenty more where that came from even though it at Ron I mean Ron Tomatoes for a movie that came out in 1986 doesn't really apply but 18% by critics 43% by audience. I don't know I want to do some more of these 80s movies and find find some some older movies but for now I will be announcing our next movie it's a little bit further back.
It's it's got I think this has a very similar 80s vibe. I agree. I think it is from a bygone era these this kind of movie. It is a little picture called Con Air from 1997 start Nicholas Cage and a shit ton of other fucking excited about this people speaking of a man. A movie made by men. Yeah or men. It's a real you know but that's what this podcast James is about is this you know we were living in a balance.
We're polarizing to establish a balance. We're going to both polar zones constantly constantly swinging back and forth between all sides of pop culture and we're trying to keep up we're trying to wade through and put our own mark on on everything going on out but there's just there's so much stuff and sometimes we got to visit a little comfort food if you know what I mean.
Well that's a little teaser of how we're feeling about about Con Air but join us next time as we talk about a 58% critically reviewed movie versus a 75% audience reviewed movie. And we hope you've enjoyed your time here today at the polarize kingdom. Please validate with the brandini on the way out. Please bring your tickets to me. Yes right this way and reach us at polarize the pod at gmail.com if you want to send us anything there.
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He's wearing like John. He's got some. This is so this is the kind of shit you would get if you watch us on Twitch. You should really be seeing the sun the glasses that the great brandini is wearing on the silly faces he's making. I'm going to be looking forward to the silly faces that one Nicholas Cage will be making as well. I've thoroughly enjoyed myself. I hope the same for hell yeah. Hope the same for you guys out there. We'll see you next time. We love you all. Bye.