S19.E11: Alex Padilla; Heather McGhee; Reihan Salam

[PrincessPurrsALot]

Guests:  Senator Alex Padilla, Heather McGhee, Reihan Salam

Original air date 2021.04.09

[Caseysgirl]

The excessive cheering,clapping, whooping & applauding was annoying and undeserved for the most part. Bill must have a bunch of new interns as his audience.

[Pete Martell]

I happened to see some of the "New Rules," which amounted to Bill making ain't-I-adorable faces at the camera like he was still a guest star on Alice, as the audience seemed completely unsure about when they were supposed to applaud, only that they knew they had to make sure they did, no matter what.  

Moaning about Oscar nominees being depressing is so old Bob Hope had monologues about it for years. The main difference is Bob Hope did not go around blasting escapist films as some part of the destruction of America. A few years ago, the very same type movie Maher suddenly praises (Godzilla vs Kong) he was citing as the reason why Trump was elected. Is it now OK to not "give up the kid stuff", Bill, since you give them your seal of approval? "Adulting" is now a bad thing, right?

When you spend all your time trying to show everyone you are the most morally righteous, wisest, wittiest, and bravest boy around, that means your complete lack of integrity makes every word out of your mouth meaningless. 

Edited April 10, 2021 by Pete Martell

[Pete Martell]

I forgot to say that if you have not seen movies like Minari, Promising Young Woman, etc. yet, and you do not want to be spoiled, then you shouldn't watch the New Rules. He gives away all the major plot points and the endings. 

[tessaray]

Bill has an upcoming gig in Vegas, so obviously all is now well with the world. rme

[Liamsmom617]

1 hour ago, Pete Martell said:

I forgot to say that if you have not seen movies like Minari, Promising Young Woman, etc. yet, and you do not want to be spoiled, then you shouldn't watch the New Rules. He gives away all the major plot points and the endings. 

IKR? Jeez, Bill.

4 hours ago, Pete Martell said:

I happened to see some of the "New Rules," which amounted to Bill making ain't-I-adorable faces at the camera like he was still a guest star on Alice, as the audience seemed completely unsure about when they were supposed to applaud, only that they knew they had to make sure they did, no matter what.  

Moaning about Oscar nominees being depressing is so old Bob Hope had monologues about it for years. The main difference is Bob Hope did not go around blasting escapist films as some part of the destruction of America. A few years ago, the very same type movie Maher suddenly praises (Godzilla vs Kong) he was citing as the reason why Trump was elected. Is it now OK to not "give up the kid stuff", Bill, since you give them your seal of approval? "Adulting" is now a bad thing, right?

When you spend all your time trying to show everyone you are the most morally righteous, wisest, wittiest, and bravest boy around, that means your complete lack of integrity makes every word out of your mouth meaningless. 

ALL OF THIS. YES.

[iMonrey]

I have to say I agree about the Oscar nominees. I've literally heard of only one of those films and have zero desire to see any of them. Then again, it was slim pickins for movies in 2020. They should really just skip the year altogether. These award shows over Zoom are a letdown anyway.

[sugarbaker design]

I have to say when it comes to film criticism I won't be listening to Bill.  I've seen all the movies nominated, and I would recommend any of them to anyone who likes adult movies.  Now I don't know this for a fact but I'm sure it's true, Bill hasn't seen any of these movies, he's only read twitter posts about them.  Maybe he should see the fucking movie first before he critiques and spoils them.  

It's been widely reported that the Oscars will not be typical Covid Zoom snoozefest.  I look forward to seeing artists celebrated for their moving and enlightening work, such a welcome antidote to endless bellyaching from a privileged 1%er.

Edited April 10, 2021 by sugarbaker design

[aghst]

New CA Senator said he's "pissed" that the people pushing recall vs. Newsome are the same ones who enabled 4 years of all kinds of shenanigans from Trump, giving him on pass on the horrible handling of the pandemic.

He could have just said that they were Republicans trying to recall Newsome.  But he spelled it out better.

[biakbiak]

5 hours ago, iMonrey said:

I have to say I agree about the Oscar nominees. I've literally heard of only one of those films and have zero desire to see any of them. Then again, it was slim pickins for movies in 2020. They should really just skip the year altogether. These award shows over Zoom are a letdown anyway.

Almost all of the movies were actually widely available for the first time ever do to being on several mainstream streaming   services before the nominations were ever released meaning that they were more widely available for free to a crazy wide audience. For those that were only released ONDemand it was typically cheaper than paying for public transport (assuming that was an available option, gas and parking if it wasn’t) and a a single ticket. Bill Maher is so looking for a grievance he makes the shit up!

The films from last year that got nominated before a pandemic:

1917, Ford v Ferrari, Joker, Once Upon A Time...In Hollywood, Parasite, The Irishman, Little WomeN, Jojo  Rabbit, Marriage Story.

The most mainstream (even though no one saw it) and feel good picture in that run is Ford v Ferrari and Matt Damon and Christian Bale still hate each other’s guts and try to be the shit out of each other. 

Sorry his elitist racist ass friend’s  JD Vance movie  didn’t get much traction but it’s not the fault of the films that did.

Edited April 10, 2021 by biakbiak

[Milburn Stone]

For the last several decades, practically all Best Picture nominees have been movies that exposed a social ill or created empathy for a disability. This is not new. The phrase "Oscar bait" has been around for years. That's what it means.

And Hollywood is making plenty of escapist fare as it always has, some of it quite decent. It's not what ever gets nominated for Best Picture, but that doesn't mean "the industry" has turned its back on it.

Finally, I've seen five out of eight of the nominees so far (Judas, Nomadland, Promising Young Woman, Sound of Metal, and Chicago 7) and while all were about serious subjects, I didn't find a one of them depressing.

His complaint made no sense.

PS: If I had my druthers, Malcolm & Marie would have received a nomination. Not a laff riot either. (Although, I concede, not about a social ill or disability.)

PPS: If you add in movies about Hollywood (like Mank), you'll probably cover every Best Picture nominee of the last fifty years.

 

 

Edited April 11, 2021 by Milburn Stone

[IvySpice]

You have to be freaking kidding me. Who spoils the Oscar movies? WTF? We were planning to rent Minari tonight and made the mistake of viewing Real Time this afternoon. We were still impressed by the movie, but it would have been a lot better without the spoiler. Every single actor in Minari was better at their job than Bill Maher.

[Pike Ludwell]

I agree Bill should not have done the spoilers.

The Oscars have definitely been rewarding socially conscious movies for years, but this year that phenomena seems on steroids. I don't like the sound of any of these nominees. I tried to watch Nomadland but quit after 5 minutes, it was so dreary and depressing. I get Bill's point about the lack of good quality dramas which do not involve social commentary, or, I would add, are not super hero or Marvel stuff. There have only been a few movies made in the last few years that I've wanted to see. There used to be many. As an example, look at HBO Max. Of all the releases this year, only one serious adult drama - The Little Things - and it was a piece of junk.

As to the guests, I guess the reason Bill wanted the CA Senator on was to criticize the recall effort. Beyond that he was worthless. When asked why Democrats are losing more of the minority votes, the Sen. went into evasive mode, with milquetoast Senate speech and fillibustering. Total boring non-answer. What did Bill expect?

Edited April 11, 2021 by Pike Ludwell

[Avaleigh]

On 4/10/2021 at 12:11 PM, iMonrey said:

I have to say I agree about the Oscar nominees. I've literally heard of only one of those films and have zero desire to see any of them. Then again, it was slim pickins for movies in 2020. They should really just skip the year altogether. These award shows over Zoom are a letdown anyway.

I've heard of all of the films but have only seen four. I agree too with the poster who said that Bill is probably shitting on a bunch of movies that he hasn't even seen. I also agree that he was wrong to spoil most of these movies for unsuspecting viewers. 

While I disagree with Bill's argument that this group of films is depressing, I do agree that this was an underwhelming year for movies. 

31 minutes ago, Pike Ludwell said:

The Oscars have definitely been rewarding socially conscious movies for years, but this year that phenomena seems on steroids. I don't like the sound of any of these nominees. I tried to watch Nomadland but quit after 5 minutes, it was so dreary and depressing. I get Bill's point about the lack of good quality dramas which do not involve social commentary, or, I would add, are not super hero or Marvel stuff. There have only been a few movies made in the last few years that I've wanted to see. There used to be many. As an example, look at HBO Max. Of all the releases this year, only one serious adult drama - The Little Things - and it was a piece of junk.

There was definitely a time where I always wanted to see the films that were nominated for best picture. Lately I've felt disappointed with the group of films that are supposedly the "best" of the year. And no, this doesn't mean that I want more films like Godzilla vs. Kong or whatever superhero flavor of the month is on offer. Off the top of my head, of the past four years or so, The Irishman, 1917, The Favourite, Hereditary, Little Women and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood are a handful of movies that were (for me) memorable and worth talking about. The last year where I thought there were a lot of great movies that were nominated for awards was 2017. (Get Out, The Darkest Hour, The Shape of Water, etc.)

I don't think that Bill phrased it well, but I do agree with the overall point that there seems to be more of an emphasis on the social commentary in a film as opposed to the first priority being that of entertaining the audience. 

For me, of the films that I saw, Mank and Promising Young Woman were probably my favorites but I can't say that I've recommended either of them to people. There also isn't a single film of the bunch that I would want to see again. I can acknowledge that they are good movies but that's about as far as it goes. 

I'd just like to have a few more movies on offer that are somewhere in between mainstream popcorn fare and bludgeon-us-over-the-head with whatever social commentary messages the filmmakers are eager to push. I like commentaries on social issues. But can we also have a healthy dose of entertainment factor mixed in with the overall message?

[iMonrey]

Reihan Salam is one of those insufferable motor mouths who thinks he wins an argument by talking fast and never letting anyone get a word in edgewise. The minute he said the Georgia voting law actually increased voting access he proved himself nothing more than a shill for right wing talking points.

[biakbiak]

7 hours ago, Pike Ludwell said:

As an example, look at HBO Max. Of all the releases this year, only one serious adult drama - The Little Things - and it was a piece of junk.

Judas and the Black Messiah is an adult drama that was released on HBO Max and nominated. As for spoilers two were history and the other wasn’t very accurate. 

[Hanahope]

2 hours ago, iMonrey said:

Reihan Salam is one of those insufferable motor mouths who thinks he wins an argument by talking fast and never letting anyone get a word in edgewise. The minute he said the Georgia voting law actually increased voting access he proved himself nothing more than a shill for right wing talking points.

Thankfully Heather McGhee was having absolutely none of it.  I wish she had gone into more details to show just how wrong he was.  
 

[sugarbaker design]

11 hours ago, biakbiak said:

As for spoilers two were history and the other wasn’t very accurate. 

Asshole Bill spoiled Minari and Promising Young Woman.

[iMonrey]

Quote

Thankfully Heather McGhee was having absolutely none of it.  I wish she had gone into more details to show just how wrong he was. 

Yeah Reihan was actually somewhat subdued - for him. Maybe he was intimidated by her.

Speaking of Heather McGhee, I have mad respect for her, but it's actually getting to the point where I'm starting to lose respect for people just for being on this show! Such a dilemma. You want good panelists, but the show has devolved into a never-ending and repetitious rant from a stilted old codger who keeps bitching about the same damn things week after week. You'd think the more serious panelists would start to shy away.

[BrownBear2012]

4 hours ago, iMonrey said:

Yeah Reihan was actually somewhat subdued - for him. Maybe he was intimidated by her.

Speaking of Heather McGhee, I have mad respect for her, but it's actually getting to the point where I'm starting to lose respect for people just for being on this show! Such a dilemma. You want good panelists, but the show has devolved into a never-ending and repetitious rant from a stilted old codger who keeps bitching about the same damn things week after week. You'd think the more serious panelists would start to shy away.

I suspect Heather McGhee is on PR tour to promote her book...probably the only reason she agreed to come on the show. When she was on a few years ago Bill scolded her for something she said, I can't remember what it was but it was not a controversial or over the top comment at all. She seemed to be very taken aback when he admonished her like she was a errant schoolgirl. At the time I remember thinking...she'll never come back. He did the same thing to Michelle Goldberg of the NY Times...his misogyny was on full display that night. Michelle Goldberg has never been back.