Claire Hooper and Weird Science

Good Day, Peter Hally here, welcome to you Ain't Seen Nothing Yet, the Movie podcast, where our chat to a movie lover about a classic or loved movie they haven't quite got around to watching until now. In today's guest comedian Claire Hooper, I'll have what she's having. You will always remember this as the day that you were almost caught, Captain Chack. I know it was your afraid. You broke my heart.

You brought my heart.

The happening right now.

You ain't seen nothing new.

Claire Hooper has been making Ozzie's crack up for coming up to twenty years. She announced herself as a Team Captain on the Good News Week reboot. On top of her killer Melbourne Comedy Festival gala spots, Claire is now the Coke Queen of Baking, a titled she shares with their great mate and co host Melbuttle on The Great Australian Bake Off, which has been a huge hit for foxtoel I'll gig with Claire from everywhere from the Karafa in Western Australia to my kids' school fundraiser, and she

Ah say it was worth it. I was like, do you want me to leave the room?

No?

Stay Hi, I'm Claire Hooper. My three favorite films. That's right, Pete. My three favorite films are Naked by Mike Lee number Bard.

That's the trouble with everybody at all.

So Bard, call me by your name.

I just put it. The Buzzoni would have pleaded if he'd altered List's version and.

Anchorman, do you know who I am? No, I can't say that I do, and you should never stop at three.

But then he goes stopped, And until this weekend, I had only ever been allowed to watch the first ten minutes of Weird Science.

Electricity Weird Nerd Revenge Fantasy. Weird Science is one part Frankenstein, one part Revenge of the Nerds. As Gary and Wyatt played by Anthony Michael Hall and Elan Mitchell Smith, are constantly humiliated by the cool dudes of Sherman high Ian and Max pre Rehab, Robert Downey Jr. And Robert Rustler. They quickly come up with a scheme to build their ideal woman with their chipbox of a computer enter Lisa played by Kelly LeBrock, who could be the original sex robot.

Yeah, No, I definitely existed before your fantasies.

Of me, Pete. So yeah, I'm flesh and blood and.

You'll appreciate you're wearing your bra on your head though.

As Weird Science reference, Yeah, yeah, we okay. So this because this is a.

Really big deal for me because when I was a little kid, me and my two little brothers got bundled into the car and we went to the drivings for a double feature and we watched the first film. I can't remember what that was. I feel like it might have been a Muppets movie, but I can't remember. And then the second film came on and it was Weird Science, and five to ten minutes in my mum pulled the pin.

She was like, we're out of here.

And as the kids' faces were pressing against the window, just trying to get the last little like like the last little dregs of that film, like we just weren't big enough to watch Weird Science. And for some reason, I've always I don't know, I've always taken my mum's lack of permission. Seriously, I've just never gone back, Like I've always been so curious, like what happens in that movie?

And I've never watched it?

How weird does a science get? I need to know, I need to know. Well, I look forward to hearing what you what you made of Weird Science from John Hughes. But let's go back to your other three films a world away from Weird Science. It's fair to say Naked by Mike Lee is a splendid film.

You've seen it?

Yes, yes, only sorry. I would have seen it about six years ago, I think, so I.

Worried that it would age badly?

Was it?

What was it like watching?

Because it's because it's got that real like it was that real, you know, that autourish filmmaking. That was a bit scrappy, like it wasn't polish.

I saw it because I love one of my favorite films, you Secrets and Lies.

Oh, what a great one. My favorite is that one of your is that one of your top three?

My top three?

You don't have a top three you.

My top three is I say Godfather Parts two and one in that order, but I count them as.

One film, and then we all have top three teats.

Yes, you can make apologies and special mentions and planes, trains and automobiles. Another John Hughes movie says.

They are so good.

That's I mean, like, that's the thing when you try and run through to find your top three, you just like it's it's actually this beautiful experience of being, oh, that's right, that was so good and that was so good. And I think I assume everybody does this with their top three. You just try and find three that represent whole groups of movies, and you just pick the one that most represent.

I think I think you're right. Godfathers probably represent you know, like for me, that kind of the classic movie, the absolute classic movie Playing Change and Honorabiles is probably the nod to John Hughes and a lot of those warm hearted comedies, which I love.

Because Three Amigos was nearly on my list because that and it was that school of like just a really great, fun, silly fascical comedy.

So quotable, so many great lines, so many great lines. I was shocked to hear recently that The Three Amgos was considered the massive flump in the US, because here in Australia, I feel like everyone around that time.

Oh, I don't know anyone that didn't love it, and we watched it so many times.

That's a male plane.

Tiny balls.

Oh my god, so good.

I feel you so full of lead using your dick as a pencil. I'm not sure it's so great, such a good movie, and critically but it wasn't well received. And it was Mark Shaw's first film, and I think it was Chevy Chase and Steve Martin was so massive over there and everyone was very excited to see them work together for the first time. Both SNL legends it kind of underwhelmed people, but I think it's grown, you know,

Yeah.

How extraordinary that it was considered a flop. Maybe it isn't AUSSI maybe it's more to Aussie tastes in some bizarre way.

It's been ahead about, you know. Famously, according to Madonna. We were the first to embrace Madonna. There you go and.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, but that was Molly Meldrum, that was his doing.

But but yeah, three Amigos, Maybe there's something about maybe maybe just at the time, it was ever so slightly distasteful to say these film stars are idiots. Maybe America was like, film stars are idiots and Australians are like, yeah, film stars are audiots.

Maybe that just that core premise worked better.

For us without like you know, like the tall our love of Tall Poppy.

Yeah you know, it's it's such a funny fem' seen three megoes check it out. But they can just go back there, okay, yeah, sorry, yeah, we know we can. We can get off, go off on tangents. That's what this show's about. But yeah, you so that Mike Lee style of Oh yeah.

I loved it.

Was the first time I'd seen David Thullis and he's incredible and went on to have a phenomenal career, and he was so raw in that and I loved I mean, I knew a little bit about Mike Lee's style of filmmaking. You know, these people work up. It must be really hard work for an actress. It's not like, here's the script.

It must be, I reckon, Mike Lee. It's probably introduced people, like a whole bunch of people to these new actors, and then they you become lifelong followers of these actors like they were frueleus, like you said, like Brenda Bleath and it was for me in Secrets and Lies and oh gosh, she was so good. Yeah. And Timothy Timothy I'm going to google Timothy Spall.

Did I get it?

Yeah? I think you get Timothy Spall.

He's amazing.

He's amazing, and like, you just feel for those characters so much. And I interviewed him a few years ago, and I was one of those lovely things we get to do sometimes when we get interview people. We get to say, hey, I you know, I thank you.

I've loved you since yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah naked. So I mean the thing with favorite films as well is sometimes you can't separate, you can't separate from their context in your life. So for me, I just turned eighteen and I had to drive. I had two mates in the back of the car, and we decided to.

Go see this film.

And it was a long drive, and we got a bit lost trying to find this indie cinema that it was playing at, and so we were rushing in and we nearly didn't get in because it was our and they were there were question marks about whether we were actually old enough, and so by the time we got in, we'd you know, like like we'd had we we sort of already had some adrenaline going into this film.

And then it was brutal.

And also, you know, like I was pretty young and innocent to be watching something that's like it's.

Incredibly witty and incredibly.

Thoughtful, but it's got some like some hardcore like toxic sex relationships, you know, like it's really really dark and miserable, and yeah, and so I don't know, I just I think it was I think, you know, it was eye opening because it was the first thing like i'd watched a lot of our art house movies, but kind of more like curious Italian comedies, and you know, it was so it was it was the bleakest thing I'd ever watched, and so it hit really hard. I'd watched I think,

Yeah, yeah, I'm not sure which came first.

I feel like it did.

I feel like i'd seen it already, like I knew, I knew of Mike Lee. Yeah, and there was always a bleakness to what he did.

Yeah. Well, I mean like, because I would have seen Sigarets and Lies, I've got a feeling that may have come out. Oh, I would guess ninety seven.

Maybe I love that neither of us has reached for our phone. We're like we're resisting. Oh okay, So maybe I'm wrong. Maybe it was something else that i'd seen by Mike Lee before then. I've definitely seen something, yeah, because you.

Know, so I would have been twenty one, twenty two. I think when I saw Cigrets and Lies and the idea that I could me being twenty one twenty two seeing Secrets and Lies by Mike Lee nineteen ninety six. It was confirmed. So I was a twenty one year old seeing Secrets and Lies, and I'm sure I saw it by myself. And that kind of film, like Michael's not making that for a twenty one year old, you know, twenty.

Year old year old.

It's twenty one year old kind of like fit like comfortably living white young man in Australia. Yeah, yeah, I mean, I mean the whiteness. They's nothing to do with it. And I think you're a bit like me. Like I was growing up in Perth. We were rich, but we were like we're pretty. We had a pretty blissful childhood. So yeah, to see how miserable life could get, yeah, was yeah.

But it's funny because sometimes you can I can watch a movie like that and the like appreciate or feel the grimness of it or the the downbeat nature of it, but then come come out quite inspire.

Yeah. Yeah, absolutely.

But don't you think Naked didn't do that? Secrets of Lies absolutely did. And then Naked was just naked relentless. Yeah, it was like not sorry, nothing good at the end.

Yeah, and I love I must say, I do love that little bit of hope at the end of another film doesn't have to be even to be honest. I watched the last half hour of Magnolia last night and I love Magane.

Sorry, why did you? Was it on TV?

He's on TV?

Yes, because that feels like a curious thing to do. Pull it up on Netflix, jump to the last twenty TV I.

Let you flicked it on and it was on and I thought, well, I'm watching. I'm watching the last twenty minutes and I love it was one of my favorite films. And I just also watched The Nightstalker on Netflix. I needed I needed something. And you know, there could have been more cheerier things I could watch more than the Magnolia, but I just watched the performances and the artistry in that movie, and.

Do you know what, I've seen it and it is wonderful.

Yeah. And my favorite performance in the whole film is by Malaura Waters, who plays Claudia, the daughter who's been abused by Jimmy Gator and she dating John c Riley in it, and she goes on a day and she has that great line which I think from an if you're on her Apple song where it's you know I something like, ah, I'm having a great time, but dear mind if we never see each other again or something

Yeah.

So all right, So I put it in my I put it in my top three, and yet it might be one that I you know, like I haven't watched it yet, Like I think I've watched it a couple of times in my twenties, but I don't go back to it now. And yet I'm still loyal to it

Got the I don't know, you've got the courage for that sort of viewing.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, I mean once you have kids, you're like, Okay, what what's going to put me in a good mood or a good space something?

I know.

And I was talking to a couple of mates yesterday about their COVID viewing, and it's so it just comes up over and over. People are rewatching things that they've watched before for comfort. People are watching specifically things from their childhood. Like Ivanna Ristagett, a comedian, was saying he was watching he was seeking out stuff that was in his native language, you know, like so so like just

But yes, you don't. You don't necessarily.

You know, there'll be all these movies on your list that you know you really want to watch, but night after night you're like, I'm gonna just tonight, I'm just going to pick something easier.

And you do that every night.

Yeah. Yeah, There's one on my list, which is Once upon a Time in a Manner, and I know I should watch it because the Godfathers are my favorite films and this is in the live in that kind of world. But it's a really long movie, and I do need to find a night where I can just must be alone and watch it because I'd feel too much pressure if like Bridge was watching watch it with me, because you know you want to, Yes, yeah, that pressure.

You feel you need you need professional cruising to come back, or you need to accept a TV shot job that requires you to quarantine for two weeks.

You need you need the space. You need the space.

But also what Naked I think speaks to you as far as why it's still in your top three is because it's a viewing experience that you remember. Like often we kind of like there is only probably a handful of films where you kind of go, I remember the day, and I remember sitting down, I remember being blown away. And sometimes we see a film like I do remember seeing Sideways for the first time. But I must say

Oh that's so interesting.

Yeah, where I watched two years ago Gatesye and myself got our dates wrong, especially a new movie that was coming out. It was coming out the week after, so we ended up seeing Harold and Maude and we just were blown away. And Yeah, one of my favorite recent movie experiences in that film, and we discussed it last week with Jordian Hickey, is that, I would say my top ten. Yeah, extraordinary film.

I haven't watched it since I was in my twenties, I think, and I remember loving it, but I should watch that again. I will add it to my extremely.

Long list to revisit. Call Me by Your Name was a wonderful film. I saw that in the cinema with Timothy Schalla May and the man who's turned cannibal or.

Something what Arnie Armie Hammers turned cannibal.

Well, he's been I think it even goes a bit more than that. He has been on a private account on Instagram where he's been quite vile and requesting cannibalism and wanted to eat people's rib cages.

And oh K, that's really interesting. It might do a shuffle around.

Okay, so.

Let's talk about it as a film, because let's.

Talk about it as a film that's it's not his film.

He was lucky enough to be cast in such an extraordinary film. Timothy Shall Mate was the first time I'd seen him, and he's phenomenal.

That last like.

The credits just just I mean, you talk about that Magnolia moment, it's really similar in that it's I mean not that it's this incredibly hopeful moment, but similar and that you cannot take it is so static and there's but there's so much going on and you cannot take your eyes off him.

What kid like he is young when he made that film.

He seems like he's he's arrived, perfectly formed. Yeah, you know, like he knows that he's got a wisdom to him. He's so great. Also in Ladybird, I think they came out the same year, which is a great film.

I haven't seen it.

He's not as big and it's a different kind of film, but he's really good.

There is no self consciousness to his performance.

No, no, man, he's incredible. Big stuff. To be dealing with a big thing, yeah, big scene, physical scenes.

Well to be that young, have the confidence to do the peach scene and her you know, yeah, so to have that much bravado or you know, like confidence in front of a whole film set, but still be able to access the kind of tender innocence of the first kiss. Do you know?

Do you know what I mean?

Like? How can you?

How can you be that brave but be able to show someone so scared?

You're a parent and you have the same thought going. He's got good parents, like Timothy Shallamy has good parents.

Holly Molly. Yes, much better than I.

He's what can he can speak on billion languages and play the piano perfectly and acts like that.

Shut up, yeah, yeah what I'm mister and missus.

Job shallow mate, raised a good job.

The scene I loved the most is towards the back end is that Michael Stilberg see with the dad. Oh god, that is just you talk about scenes in movies like that is just one of my favorite scenes of recent times. It's extraordinary.

Yeah, I completely agree.

And there was something there was so much to take from it for everybody, you know, Like it was it was like life advice to everybody sitting in the cinema. So that movie I had just had relentlessly recommended to me by a bit of a friend of mine, who's too prone to recommend things like she's very she's a bit too confident in her recommendations, and I love her very much, but.

She just kept telling me to see it, but.

You know, like, and I'd be like, she was staying, she's staying in town, and I was making some apricot jam on toast. I'm like, I love apricots, and she went, you love apricots, you will love and it was like the third time, you will love call me by your name, and I'm like, all right, I'm absolutely never going to watch this film. And then went to the Nova with a friend one and it was like the only session time and I.

Was like, oh my god, I don't want to watch this film.

So I loved.

I was determined not to ever watch it or like it, and she was right. It was very much my cup of tea. And I ended up watching a second time in the cinema as well.

Yeah, wow, so real.

It was a ripper.

It was a ripper and well played, well played.

Friends. Do you do that when people are like, you know what, you would love? You like? I bet I wouldn't and I will never try it. Are you that contrary?

Yeah? Not that I would never try what. I usually have a like on the fifth or sixth recommendation, and I sometimes say to the person, I said, okay, you're the recommendation is now put me in the spot where I need to watch it now. Yeah right, And there are probably people who if they recommended there, I have a heightened view of their opinions.

It's true.

Yeah, and I think I'm more likely to try TV people have recommended. Oh look, I just I mean, I just think that there was just something a little bit two. There was just a little bit too much smugness in the recommendation. Yeah right, Like I can't trust you to find this itself, so let me help you out. But also, can I just say I love this French just in case she's listening, love her deeply, Okay, okay.

And the Lightning up Now with Anchorman.

Okay, well I had to put it in because that's that's that's a really.

Like significant movie for me.

And like, can I just say I feel like, I feel like top three movies is a bit rude, and you should have one movie per decade of your life, and given them in my forties, I actually should be allowed five.

But whatever that's final, I allow this, yeah, Anchorman, because.

I was about I was about twenty eight, and I just finished dating this guy who was divined by He was a film student and we only ever, you know, I don't we do only ever watch quality stuff. And I remember thinking, this is not what I need. I don't need another artist. I need somebody who I would feel comfortable suggesting a Will Ferrell film too. Like that's what I need to stop.

I need to stop choice and life decision.

Yeah, I need to stop. It was a really active choice. I need to stop dating people who I try to impress, and I need to start dating people who I'm comfortable being at ease.

Around, you know what I mean.

Like it was just this really big moment. And so when I met Wade for the first time, I was entirely unimpressed and blew him off. And three weeks later he gave it another crack late at night and he was very drunk and I was not in the mood, and he said, do you want to come back to my place and watch Anchorman?

And I went, oh, hang on a minute.

Pretty much we were engaged within five weeks, Like it was just from the Anchorman suggestion.

It was on and thank.

God, because we're still together fourteen years later, Like it worked out.

That is so brilliant. I love that. I love that, and absolutely I'm so and I think it happens when you get older, Like I really love people who are so comfortable in their own skin that they don't exactly what you said that Anchorman is not. There's no shame in loving a command. When we're doing the film I

It, yeah, yeah, Like this is too easy to like genuinely, Like it's too easy to like, so it has to be ironic.

Adam Christie, Canadian comic and my best Canadian friend. He he was saying, how embarrassing it is that everyone's favorite filmy Star Wars. Everyone just just shut up and say their favorite filmy Star Wars like people. And I'm embarrassed because it's not in my top three despite the fact that I, like you've watched it any other film.

It's really good and I'm.

Completely there for any Star Wars you want to give me. I completely love it, but for some reason, I don't put it in my top three. Yeah.

I know it's so tricky because the top I mean like, I'm trying to be honest about my top three, and it's true, but you also do feel like you must tell something of yourself in choosing your top three.

And the problem with Star Wars is it's.

Not it's not giving anyone in any insights into you because everyone likes Star Wars.

Yes, yes, it's almost like it's almost like it's a given. Is a given that was there somewhere.

If you're going to put three words on your Tinder profile, don't put I like Star Wars because everyone likes Star Wars.

This is not helping us filter you out because you also, I think.

One two when you mentioned to three films, Yeah, you hope that the person you're telling all the people who were listening, like, Okay, well I hadn't had playing strengths and rebills on my muscive comedy list, but you know, maybe I will now we have a comedy that to chat about.

Oh, I know, we've talked too much about good films. It's time to chat.

About there's maybe a little hint. Let's have a quick word from our sponsor and we'll come back with weird scientific Clay Hooper. Okay, I'm intrigued. This is a film which was obviously it's totally an eighties film. I think it's nineteen eighty four from Memory, maybe eighty five, written by John Hughes, a film he wrote in two days, and at times it shows did hear? Yeah?

Well that was my experience. I was like, where was the drama tag on this script? Let me eat, I'll side it up a bit.

Yeah, I don't. I wouldn't rate this with his other films.

I feel this is John Hughes light. Yeah.

I mean, but it was a bit purpose written and maybe it was an ode to his fourteen year old self or something, you know, just like I'm just going to indulge this one, like this one fantasy of from my childhood or something. But yeah, so my mum, I would have been about nine years old. I would have been under ten when she drove us out of there.

Like, oh my god, that's where you know you've been married for as long as you're fourteen years. It's like, nah, I'm not doing weird scientist.

Now I can't do. I into it. He'd already been scrolling on his phone.

Then he's like, Noah, like it was it was actually anyway, So I don't think it's I don't think it's irredeemable.

Is that would that be the right way of saying there?

There are a few things in it that are glorious, and I really love a little you know, like I love a David and Goliathy can't or you know, like like little nerds come good.

I love that there's an idea.

Yeah, But as a female, what I'm just watching, it's like it is a very male story because the women are just like they are tokens of success, you know what I mean. Like there's it's like where do I fit in as a girl, and especially Kelly LeBrock, who uses phrases like you own me, what do you want to do with me?

And where you're like, oh god, this is not aged well. So I think, like I really tried to give over to it because it.

Was it was a genre that I mean, like I loved John Hughes films and I love a little guilty pleasure.

But I've definitely.

Unfortunately I've had kids, two girls, and I was like, don't you dare you know what I mean?

You know what I mean, like as in, so your only.

Way you know, like you all right, so you've gone from the bottom to the top, and the way you've done it is by possessing a hot woman who you you know, who others want to borrow off you, winning winning your enemy's girlfriends off them again, just like like women as property or as an indication of success, and then you know, telling the bad guys that they're the F word, you know, like there's so much in it

Yeah, I know, and I'd forgotten that the F word and we're not talking about the usual F bomb, but oh no, that's right, the other one.

We love the F bomb.

Yeah, absolutely bring that on, so that that certainly ages. I mean, yeah, the clear one is the object objectification, you know, of women, and there is no even the girlfriends of Ian and Max are not they're not particularly interesting, and.

Yeah they don't and there's no.

Reason why I don't wonder why the boys are really even into them besides the fact that they are the cool guys' girlfriends.

Yes they are, just I mean, so, I feel like this is the actual correct use of the word token. They are a token to be exchanged when you go from being the popular boys to the losers in the story, and the losers become the winners, then the tokens are exchanged.

So you don't really know anything about what the girls like or what their personality is. They have no story.

They are just there to be exchanged as an indication of when the losers have become the winners. Like so, and I mean, it's all in good fun and it's very light, but it was, you know, it was enough to rankle me. Yeah, which is and I feel like such a Yeah, I feel like such a cranky bitch.

But I'm like, nah, it just I'm sorry. It's just too far across that line for me.

It's get the I mean, and Middley, I watched this is one of the films I had on VHS, so I would have seen this maybe ten times. I had not seen it for a long time, so I hadn't revisited. I had a feeling this was going to be an interesting conversation and a viewing experience. Last I like it. And it's really hard not to put the twenty twenty one lens on the films, and it's and we should and we should.

And we should and it's okay too, but it makes the chat heaps less funny and a little bit more school mistress.

Yeah, you know, and I'll get to the you know, any points that you know, things that may may have made you laugh. Certainly the things that made me laugh. But I think that watching it back and this is it's a film that does not take itself too seriously. If it maybe it doesn't take itself seriously enough when the initial idea is set up, the premise of building this and it's literally I mean, it's a big thing to do to build a woman with your computer, but

Know that, But you know we can.

We can use it. We can ask you questions.

We can we can put it in real life sexual situations and see how reaction Like we're sick the manage it, you'd love it?

Well, what about your girl in Canada?

She was in Canada? The girls no morals?

You know, I don't. I don't like that on a girl's rough having those kind of relationship. You'll see Anyway, get to work so yeah, it's very lightly covered with the.

The science is the science is really interesting. Actually, the science is really interesting. But also can we just can we just acknowledge that they that he was Garyrus referring to it as it. It's not even her get it to do all kinds of sexual stuff all right.

After when you were about to have a baby, you know, referred to it as it.

So it's true it is an unborn sex to way.

Yeah, but the science was magnificent, wasn't it. Because I was because coming into it, I'm like, hey, this is mid eighties and we didn't have the Internet, so how are they even going to begin to because in some ways it was quite like prophetic, you know, like they hooked into a government agency to get extra power, and you're like, okay, well that's really interesting. The idea of hacking into a government agency. That's really early Internet stuff.

Yeah.

Yeah, that's before we were.

Like the internet was in our homes in the early nineties really, so like in eighty five to have that kind of that science, and also, you know, three D printers and stuff like the stuff they're talking about has almost kind of that you you know, like that you do this three dimensional drawing on the computer and then you can actually build it in a plastic material.

It's great stuff.

Yeah, great stuff.

The science is great.

The science is irrefutable. This is my favorite site from a science perspective. I have it above the Theory of Everything. Just Stephen Hawking bi pic is.

Some amazing science.

Also should we should we acknowledge how great Bill Paxton is as the older brother?

There is no doubt about that. Bill Paxton and I at the sad moment where I watching it, I'd forgotten that he had passed. And then I was watching watched a comic Con panel which was only done a couple of years ago with the three main actors, and yeah it was built backs and died a couple of years ago. How did he pass cancer?

I think, oh, man, that's right, it's I think you're right. I think it was cancer.

And it's and but also like you saw him do heaps of stuff and he always had a twinkle in his eye. But you're watched him in this and you're like he was funny, like it was it was really like, well, he.

Became such like such a warm, comfortable presence on our screens, like you trusted him in whatever position he was. It's amazing. One of his earlier performances was.

Out and out asshole, but it's over the top two.

It was so much fun felt like the flat top was his idea. He got it without consulting John.

That's funny.

It was so flat that it looked almost bald at the top of the forehead.

It was. It always had like a little dip in it like it was so it was so basif as a flat tip flatop would have been a great idea. But he's gone, He's found another few layers at the flat.

Top, like an inverse, a concave flat top.

Let's have it to listen. Actually, while we're talking about Bill Paxson and as he grills the boys, so you guys think you can pull one over on me, huh huh. You got everybody saying to the same bullshit story. This isn't bullshit.

This is a Persian missile chip.

It's Chat. My name is Chat. And I didn't think it was a whales deck. Honey, so good, so rank, so good, so over the time.

I mean, like, I love that audio clip, but also the physicality of this guy, like the pouting, and they're like, yeah.

Facial it's almost like Jim Carrey s some of it.

Yeah, you're right, you're right, there's a there's a there's a Jim Carrey quality.

Yeah.

He's really fun in that movie.

And I was on this panel that I watched Elan Mitchell Smith, who played Whyet, who seems like a quit acting at twenty two, returned to it recently to do an episode of The Goldberg, which is like an age.

Yes, that's right, Yeah, yeah, because I was obviously doing the thing that we do now, which is like, what's he doing now?

Yeah, so quit acting at twenty two and yeah, and seems really happy and it's just like a lovely guy, by the way, And he was saying that Bill Paxson, out of everything he ever did, was the nicest guy he ever met. And he said and he said, like he's sitting next to Anthony michaelholl and Kelly LeBrock saying, you guys, I love you guys. You guys were wonderful. But without a doubt, Bill Paxson was just the nicest guy and most the helpful, most helpful guy.

That's really sweet. That makes me so happy he does.

And it's just so funny with that character chat we love you.

Well fun but you I mean, you heard Kelly LeBrock talk in that. And what's really interesting is the few little things I read were like talking about how she's the best thing in the film and she's really good, and I'm like, oh my god, like.

Here's proof of the power of hot.

She's not that good, but everyone's she's I mean like she's fine, but she's.

Not good nice, she's not because she has some you got found a little bit inconsistent. I found like there are some scenes where I thought she was good and she wasn't.

Quite hidden some scenes out of the park, and then yeah, some scenes she kind of delivered setups for punchlines in a way that didn't really help the punchline or you know, And sometimes I was like, is that editing or is that her? But yeah, she wasn't. I mean, you can tell she's super hot, and I finally see it because people are always like, oh, it is Kelly Brock, and

But she was not particularly good guy.

No, no, she was originally played they Demi of their e stats in Back to the Future, where they really a model called Kelly Emberg was originally.

Oh my god, you know so much about this film.

Yeah, the a little bit diving, and she had already shot a couple of scenes and then it's not working and they approach Kely lear Bronc, who's apparently holidaying in the south of France and having a great time, as you imagine Kelly le Brock would be doing in the eighties, and she eventually said, yeah, okay, come, I'll I'll come and do it. It is a pretty good arrival when she arrives with the daughter's about the leaning break break for women.

So yes, yes, so cool.

I mean, like there's some good little touches and she's just leaning on the door frame, like elbow up as high as her head, leaning like really kind of like the most affectedly casual pose anyway, she I mean, like she's really fun.

You know, it's it's really fun watching.

What she.

I mean. I was trying to I was trying to express this.

Before this thing where you're like, but that is an eighties that's eighties hair and eighties clothes on an eighties lady, But she's twenty two. Because you know, like if you're our generation, you grow up associating that hair and those clothes and that esthetic with people in their forties who haven't let go of their hot child or their hot youth or something. But then, yeah, so I had to keep going, Yeah, like the face didn't belong in the clothes and the hair.

Because do you know what I mean?

You know when you go to like Slash comes to town and you go and see Slash, and there's a whole bunch of women that look like that, but their face doesn't look like that. Not in a bad way, but do you know what I mean, Like they're just a different age group. Now, yes, sorry it sounds like I'm being mean, but yeah, it's just like I just kept staring at.

Her, going, she's only twenty to two.

Yeah, because because most of most of the signals are most of the messages I'm taking from the s forty two, but she's twenty two.

Yeah, yeah, And I when I watched originally I would have had her. I can't remember thinking how old do I think Kelly Lebrocki is or Lisa is in this role? But I thought she was quite a bit older than that. And then and there is a slight weirdness that it's a fifteen Oh.

My god, exactly, she's showering with them and they're under eighteen. It's like, I know, you've just been born, but surely you know that this is a legitimy ize a little lore.

I know, I know. And you know World one John Hughes for not shooting trying to shoot a sex scene, you know, the kissing scene. That's what we see between the Laan and White and Lisa, and you know it's it's it's tender enough.

Yeah it is. Yeah.

It is a really cool thing that I like that it's been scripted so that these guys are too nervous to actually follow through with her.

Yes, And all she does is.

Create, is kind of create the adventure that brings them out of their shells enough to win the hearts of the girls. They actually did like that is great. Structurally that works because it makes you not have to watch them both route them like the sex toy they share.

Yeah, yeah, and I think the points you made bang on totally. But this could have been a way worse version of this film. There's a there's a creepy it's an even creepier version of this film.

If they were having Yeah, that's that's John Hughes's end of the first day draft.

So thank god he put in the second day.

Always do that second day and you sooner.

Take a day and be like, actually, we'll definitely take this out.

A little fun fact, Kelly LeBrock actually was married to Steven Siegal.

She did a film with him. Did she get married to.

Him half to I think it's around that time, so that's cute. She did the Gene Wilder film Woman in Red, Yes, the Great Dream Wilder around this time. I think she'd either shot it or maybe shot it straight after wed Science, and then there might have been another film I think she did, but then Hard to Kill I think in the nineties, and then she didn't really make any other decent films.

Well that's I mean, because she wasn't more models. Yeah, she was a model rather than actress. So yeah, there was a yeah, and she was a great model, Like I don't think she was just hot.

I think she was good at modeling, yes, and you know, just.

Okay and acting. Yeah. Around that time, I think there's more models who have have taken I think back then they were just modeling and then if they got off at a role because they were a model, they Yeah.

Cameron Diaz, she took it and ran with it.

Yeah. And I think those people like Cameron Diaz and you know, more recent models who have turned acting, I think they take it more seriously earlier on that. They probably think get the coach.

Yes, that's right there.

Their modeling agency is like, okay, you know, like their managers, this is going, well, do you want to do some weekend classes with this really good acting coach.

Let's get you ready for your Hollywood career.

Yes.

Yeah, it is probably the.

More Emily rhousekis or it's a.

Name that I oh, the acting coach is that.

No, No, she's like an real hot model. She's in the Benethletic girl that you know, the murder one.

I'm not going to be able to help you.

Oh, gone girl, Gone girl. Yes, Girl on the Train, Gone Girl. She's in that. She played the midst he was having a fair with with her. So there's models like that who are kind of doing, you know, I think, the work to become better actors.

And that's great, but also back off.

You know, there's some really average looking women out there who are phenomenal actors, and you know, like, just give them a go to do the thing they've desperately wanted, you know, like they've been passionate about acting all their life and then you just whilst in your like they have done for weekends of acting training and I'm super hard, So rack off.

Let's just I.

Don't know if it's I don't know if it's my own insecurities, but god, it's a joy when you watch somebody normal looking on screen or I mean, and I know that people we call normal looking you see them in person, you're like, gouh oh, you're really beautiful, do you know what I mean? Like normal on screen is actually still real world stunning.

But you know, like gets a lot of that, doesn't She gets reviews kind of saying, oh, it's got to see something.

See some of them normal.

She goes, well, you know, I mean eight.

Yeah, yeah, that's right.

Yeah, like on screen six is real world nine for sures, but still is it honest? Every now and then you come across a TV show or a movie where there'll just be a few more slightly more normal faces or even heaven forbid, kind of like pretty ugly, you know, like those you know, like odd faces, and God, I just feed something deep inside me. It's like there's room for the rest of us in the world, you know.

The role was also anymore auditioned?

Oh really?

Yes? And Robin Wright, Oh.

Well, I feel happy for her she didn't get it. I feel like her career is better without that stain.

I think, yeah, I think we science is better with Kelly LeBrock in it for everyone. Yeah, and I do also feel that there needed to be like that.

It actually is. Yeah, it's better that she.

She's almost like that kind of model playbook cover of Playboy kind of look about her.

She's got to look like a model. Obviously, that's in the script altunately. And then yes, it actually is kind of fun that her lines are not delivered with a massive amount of power, that they kind of just trip out of her mouth like she's reading a menu, like that actually works for the for the sex toy concept.

Yeah, yeah it does. Hey, yes, Ethie Michael Hall passed on doing European Vacation to do this movie because he was, of course Rusty Griswold, the best Rusty in my humble opinion, and he he passed, which is funny because John Hughes wrote vacation. I'm not sure if you wrote European Vacation.

Oh interesting, all right, yeah.

So he passed on that, which began then what became a tradition that the Rusties and Audgeries were always played by different characters.

Yeah right, yeah right right.

A little fun fact, good.

Good fun fact.

The movie starts, obviously, with Elan's parents gone away. Did you have any kind of when the Missters Mississippi went away? Do you have we like the party house.

Or the only happened once? And they weren't away on holiday. They would never go away on holiday. I was the eldest, oldest, not eldest oldest, two younger brothers, so I was not going to have them leave me and two little kids in my party prime, do you know what I mean? So I reckon that's that sort of stuff happens when you are as why it was the younger sibling. Right, when there's no and when there's no one younger than you to look after, then your parents are like, you

We had some mates over, like I had. It wasn't a party party, but it was like maybe ten mates and a girl had an asthma attack or an anxiety attack, not sure, you know. A girl with asthma had trouble.

Breathing and had to call mama dad home, and her mum didn't know that my mom and dad weren't going.

To be there, so there was all that fallout.

And so it was only once and it wasn't a fun party and it ended badly with people being annoyed at each other. Right, yeah, anyway, so so was that a good Did.

You have any good?

Oh? Well, yeah, once we had a pretty good party at my place where mum and dad were. Were nothing really broken or anything like that. I remember we had like a back like a back room with like an archway which went into the rest of the house. They had like yeah, what you might call a rumpus room or a living room.

How good to rumpus.

I love a rumpus room. Yeah, and with a bedroom and a toilet kind of out the back. So I remember getting our b table. It was one of those not one of it you could collapse easily, you know, not you know, you could get the legs out of ye but you can move it easier. Not one of the you know, you know, kind of plated, kind of poor tables. And we put it up against the arch. We said no, we could go through to the rest of the house. Amazing, So I thought that was pretty responsible.

Not as good as Whitt's party, but pretty good.

No, it wasn't as good as whites party. Yeah, it was just good at like just the excitement of being around girls, like nothing was nobody was anything like that.

No, I loved it.

Man.

You didn't even need the parents to be gone.

It's just just work around the outskirts with your mates.

Yeah. Yeah, I remember one mate being like a bit like phantom pissed, you know, and maybe looking back, he actually maybe he was a little bit pissed because we were fifteen. You know, we don't need too much to drink to get us pissed, but like falling off the cat, oh a bit fish mate on your second beer. But yeah, so that was that was fun. But I do kind of think back going if that didn't happen, it probably would have delayed us drinking and probably then binge drinking.

Yeah, I don't know what to Yeah, I don't know what to think about that.

Surely you would have found a way if you were inclined, surely, Yeah, I don't know.

I was.

I was an odd duck because you know, while my friends drank, I was never really into it, and I continued into me.

I don't know, for a long time, I was like, what's wrong with me?

And now I'm like, Hi, I am so lucky not to be somebody who has a hankering to drink, right, And I feel really grateful that I was confident enough not to as well at school, you know, like because it was kind of hard sometimes, I think smoking where you were like, yeah, set myself up for this habit.

Yeah, good on you.

Good like because it yeah, when your mate are doing something, it's a weird thing to be like no anyway, but you know, we had another mate who was who'd never drunk before, and then at one of the parties, he obviously just went all in in a like I can't you know, like I've got to do this. Yeah, and he and we ended up having a call an ambulance because he was comatose, and his parents were so heartbroken because he came from a family of teetotalism.

You know what I mean, Like, yeah, yeah, so but.

But I mean, like what I saw was him going, well, I'm gonna have to so I've got to get.

This over with, which is so it's so sad. Pean Fresh is so sad, isn't it?

And I really thrilled my eighteen year old doesn't drink what no interest?

Was that the story? Or is that for reals?

No, that's real, that's real, Like, oh my goodness. Yeah.

Another one of us with such rare flower is we little non drinking.

Well, the kids are drinking less than they used to. They I think a lot of us got to do with gaming has become a bigger thing, and they just feel like that they get their kind of fix of you know.

Oh my god. And it's not like alcohol helps you game, does it?

No? No, exactly exactly right. And the other thing I think is the social media and everyone's got phones, so that lack of control. Lee, my oldest is also like has asthmatic and has allergies on top of his allergies. Now he's not as bad as he used to be, but I think this that so when you grow up with allergies and asthma, not having control, I think is a genuine, you know thing, Like, so they the fear of not being controlled. He that I think that's my

But he texted you to check in about it. Hey, you've done a good job, or as good as the shell amount.

We had the kids over at our house, so he asked, and then I said, you can, but I'm texting tell me who's coming, and I'll text their parents and say this is happening. So you're only sixteen, like this is not yea and yeah, and that a great night. They all stayed the night and had a fun night.

And no ambulance.

One of the kids left at about like one o'clock or something, and I was like, okay, I'm going to text your parents. Let you know this. Yeah, yeah, you just want to be you know.

Look at this, I mean, look at this teenager last that's ahead of me.

Where you get to.

Stay up like because because first of all, you're the guy, You're the person who stays up till five New Years Yeah, and then you become the person who's like, I'm old enough to go to bed before midnight if I want to.

And then you become a parent of teenagers and you're like, I.

Have to start up till five in caretaker mode, like the worst?

Why is this thing? You think once they get older, I'll be the freedom will have. But then you think, by the way, can you drive me to basketball like thirty on a Saturday night. It's like, oh, well, there you go.

Yuck.

That happened on the of the weekend as a result, So I got home at like nine thirty from the basketball game, and the bridge got home and she had made a martini and I wasn't going to drink. I was like, oh, I have a martini. You're gone. You have for making one. And then before we know it's three o'clock and tist we had the later start.

Oh my goodness, well that's great, congratulations, Oh my gosh, you're staying.

Up till three.

It's all you'll get it back.

Yeah, I will never get it back.

Yeah. The movie opens the dacking scene. Daking was very big boys culture. Is there a female?

Is there a female equivalent? No?

I mean there's been some great comics that have done gear on it. But you know, the female equivalent of dacking is just spreading a terrible rumor that you gave some guy a blowjob, or looking at it and look or looking in your eye with a kind face, telling you something that you need to fix about yourself.

Girls are the worst. So guys, just get the job. It's very over, it's very overt. Yeah, the covert operations are going.

Don't pretend that boys aren't giving each other insecurities about their bodies or spreading rumors about each other.

You get it all. Don't pretend it's just But I do think.

Girls are particularly good at those really like potent gas lighting moments.

You know.

Yeah, it was just like do you like your hair like that? Ah? You know, just stuff like that anyway, great times. Do you know what's the worst. The worst girl thing is just complete silence. You know when you walk past a group of girls and they go silent and just look at you. Oh wow, that's brutal power games going on so hard.

Yeah, you'd like, if you knew that a group of particularly frightened girls were in on one corridor, you would go the long way around to a class to not walk by them, because you just feel so coming up to them is hard, but walking away from them you feel so vulnerable.

Maybe you know, the childhood and the guys that I grew up with, we had a really good year level, like we just kind of all real good.

Yeah, it was the girls in the year below me that were there, like right, toxic pictures, Like there were just these couple of girls that were really well, there was one and her friends. Yeah, it wasn't the girls in my year.

I feel like I feel like in a level and I'm sure there were some people who felt that this is not how it was their memory, but I feel like there was less intimidation across you know, like groups you know that we go one where I feel like I know and like I said, I'm sure there are a handful of people.

Who who had a bad time.

I had a bad time, no doubt about that. But I feel like when I speak to my wife about her growing up that even sometimes like the girls who were confident and had their group of friends were still intimidated by certain people within the year. Level. Yeah, such a which is a great mate, who's who's gorgeous and who's confident and is now successful. And she tells me that she, you know, this horrible time with this group.

And yeah, oh no, I mean like there is and it's maybe a bit of old school of me, but there's a level that's probably helpful in terms of preparing you for just work life in the regular world. You know a little bit of people playing power games and you learning that you can get through this and still turn up the next day, you know, like a little bit.

But yeah, there's when you have to change school. Yuck. How do we get onto this? How did John Hughes take us here?

Is what John does? That is what John does? I think, because you know, there's less to really delve into science, maybe the father parts.

So what you're suggesting is we've probably finished talking about weird science.

Well, one of the things what are the sort of the things that made you laugh. Like the biggest laugh I had again was when they were in the bathroom and the girls were at the front and White said that Gary is taking a ship. That made me laugh out loud. I had a big laugh at that.

What did I laugh at?

Oh?

Yeah, I mean yeah, I guess that moment was all right.

Also, when the guys came in with the motorbikes and then they got rid of them, and the guy who I forget his name, but I think he's from the original, the hills have eyes kind of creepy looking dude.

Yeah, the ball do that's odd looking?

Yeah?

Oh yeah, that was a good line.

Keep this between us. I could lose my teaching job.

Yep, that I reckon. That might have been the best line of the film.

It could be, Yeah, it could be.

That was really good. I enjoyed them.

Also, one of the the guys at the motorbikes was for Mad Max two.

The lord come with the Aussie accent righton.

Wells, Yeah, so he he and he looks If you did a side by side of how he looks in Mad Max two, it's pretty much exactly. So there's a theory some people have that. Lisa kind of brought him because he she kind of figured that the boys had seen Mad Max two and was summoning the character.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, fair, okay, cool, I kind of, I mean, like I appreciated, although I appreciated the performance of Wyatt's grandparents. Yes, that woman was in you know, she was, yeah, she was. She was a delightful old theater trained woman.

I think. So I was pitched pretty high and I really enjoyed it.

And then of course the two grandparents frozen in the pantry, you know, so kind of yeah, like that was a fun thing just there the intensity of her performance and then her with a smile frozen on her face in the pantry.

Charming.

It was very charming. I like check when he arrived home getting out of the car carrying a dead duck. Yeah, that wasn't even in the boot. It was actually he just had it there and it was just oh yeah, was dead duck, Like he was driving with it on his lap. Yeah. A little behind the scenes that the rocket scene. They had like once to get that because of their budget, and apparently Anthony Michael Hall farted just during us during a take, which kind of broke everybody's

And oh he's great and this he's no Charla made, but he's really he is actually really like for a young man, he's got he's got range.

Yeah, and like comic range. Absolutely like that that scene where we played before when he's talking about, you know, his girlfriend lives in Canada, you know, yeah, morals because she lives in Canada. It's genuinely, genuinely.

Well delivered, really well delivered, really.

Well delivered, and and he does it constantly in vacation and there's a great delivery of lions. I've always wondered where he went and what he did and he quick I thought he must have quit, but he's still acting, and he was watching the panel with him like Elan is really lovely. Kelly the Brock seems you know, no, she knows she's Kelling the Brock, which is yes, she seems nice enough. Anthony Michael is very confident, like he's

He knew I was going to ask you.

So he played Mike Engel Mike and I've seen that that might plenty of times and I did not remember seeing him.

So so he's gone from really it seems like maybe he's had the good fortune of going from somebody who has a really distinctive look to as an older man looking a bit more looks very Geneus background. Yeah, because because if he kept the floppy blonde hair from Weird Science, you'd be like picking him out at every moment. But yeah, maybe he's maybe he's had that like that thing where his face.

Broad it it's a pretty soul of God.

Yeah, because yeah, Okay, that's good, because that's what you need if you're going to if you're going to be in Weird Science as a kid, you can't be forty still looking like that kid, or you're not going to get any more work.

No, but I'm glad he's still working. He's also hand jim.

Oh yes, oh my goodness.

That one comes back to you.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, where you're like, yeah, I think I can see that it looks like him.

Yeah. Yeah, So I'm really glad he's still working because I think he's so good. He's one of the best I think child actors. I think you know, yeah, we're saying, and I don't know, I particularly fond of Rusty.

It is funny, though, how do we do that thing of like, I'm so glad they're still working when actually there's something to be saluted about actors who do it for a while and then go, oh, this isn't making me happy.

Absolutely yeah. Yeah.

But because we're.

Performers desperately holding onto the spotlight, we're like, imagine giving up that would be such an embarrassing felure.

Well, it would be tough to be you know, imagine anything michaelhol going and working at Target and the amount of people who come through and they, ah, yeah, that's I think.

That's that's why we have to stay in the industry people, because we can't work at Bunnings.

Now. There's it's partly true now you get, once you get to a certain level of you know, profile, you're like, okay, this is I remember thinking this, this is it.

Now I can't I'm painting into a corner now. Yeah, I feel like they do What would I do?

It's crazy? Okay, Well, I any final words on on on Weird Science.

I'm just you know, I would do encouraged listeners to have a think at home and a conversation about whether, you know.

Like.

Whether team film almost that portray women in these ways however lighthearted? Is it still safe for our children to watch them?

I think it's a really good ques. I think it's if you're going to watch it, have the conversation, Yeah, that's right, Like, yeah, that's because it is fun. This film I don't think need I'm not sure where you stand on cancel culture. You know, I don't think this film needs to be.

We don't need to cancel it. Just see it as an artifact of a time.

Yes, that's I think that's always the best way to And the reason we evolve is we can see the things that could be done better, and then when we're making stuff, we do things better. I hope. So that's hope, Bloody hell, all right, thank you so much for watching. I'm going to glad you watch this one because it was ninety minutes.

And nice and shot nice short enough for wait got through.

I wonder if you had a lot because you you had nominated the basic instinct. Yeah, I know. He weighed more, stayed around for a bit longer.

Yeah he was.

He was like, great, I've seen it, can't wait to see it again. I was like, actually, no, I've changed it to weird Science.

Thank you so much. And of course you can sectly on the on the project. I've got to mention that in the I've.

Been stealing his shifts when you're off galivant.

To my chair, very warm. I appreciate it. You're a legend. Thank you so much.

Thanks Pete.

That was Danny Elfman there and Claire Hooper at this point act Danny Elfman apparently hated that it was becoming embarrassed about the work that he did on that song and said it was very hard to come home with it. Of course, he is one of the great composers of recent Hollywood history. Thank you so much. It was so much fun with Claire Hooper. She is awesome to choose Weird science and like I said, I I really appreciated it. A ninety minute film. It took me back. But yes,