Feb. 13, 2026

Best Romance Movies (Classic, Modern & Anti-Romance Picks) (with Nikki Novak)

In this episode of Pop Culture Weekly, Kyle sits down with Fandango correspondent Nikki Novak for a deep dive into one of the most enduring genres in film: romance. But you know we're not just doing the the predictable, airport-chase, “we met three days ago and now we’re soulmates” kind.

We’re talking about the full spectrum from sweeping gothic love stories, modern anti-romances, nostalgic ’80s classics, prestige Oscar contenders, twisted psychological relationships, and even horror with a love-story core.

This is your guide to the best romance movies, anti-romance films, and complicated love stories worth watching around Valentine's Day or anytime of year.

Big-Screen Romance & Theatrical Experiences

Why Wuthering Heights (Margot Robbie & Jacob Elordi) feels like a modern gothic epic
The unexpected romantic tension inside crime thrillers like Crime 101
Revisiting John Hughes–era classics like Pretty in Pink and why they still resonate decades later

Modern Romance That Hits Different

The emotional power of Past Lives and why it became an instant classic
Why Blue Valentine remains one of the most honest depictions of love falling apart
The Notebook vs. La La Land: traditional romance or bittersweet realism?
Lost in Translation and the beauty of fleeting connection
Why Bridgerton continues to dominate pop culture with evolving love stories

Anti-Valentine’s & Complicated Love

The Break-Up and why it feels uncomfortably real
The dark, obsessive romance of Phantom Thread
Horror with heart: when love and tragedy collide in unexpected ways

Plus:

A behind-the-scenes Bill Murray Golden Globes story
What makes certain romance films timeless
Why audiences crave both fantasy and realism in love stories
And Kyle’s ongoing (and very funny) skepticism of rom-com clichés

Whether you’re a hopeless romantic, a cynic, a horror fan, or just someone who appreciates great storytelling - this episode explores how love has been portrayed on screen across decades and why these films continue to matter. Because the best romance stories aren’t just about Valentine’s Day.
They’re about connection, obsession, heartbreak, timing… and the moments that stay with us long after the credits roll.

🎬 Follow Nikki Novak: @NikkiNovak

If you dig the show, subscribe, rate, and share - and tell your friend who's always stealing your streaming passwords.

📍 Watch now on YouTube or listen on your favorite podcast platform

🎧 Subscribe for more celeb interviews, streaming picks and pop culture deep dives!

🗣️ Want to be featured on the show? 📱 Leave a voicemail here!

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WEBVTT

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Welcome to pop Culture Weekly with Kyle McMahon from My

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Heart Radio, your pop culture news, views, reviews and celebrity

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interviews on all the movies, TV, music, and pomp culture

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you Crab Weekly. Here's Kyle McMahon.

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I am here with Fandango correspondent Nikki Novak, and I'm

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so excited to talk to you, Nikki about Valentine's Day,

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you know, the films that we can go out and

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see in theaters and as well as like kind of

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the evergreen stuff that we can watch, you know, at

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home in the comfort of our own home, especially with

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this cold weather if we're going to be staying in

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So welcome. Thank you so much for joining me.

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Thank you. I have to point out that you're wearing

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a sweatshirt that says what I love horror movies. So

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are you like the anti Valentines person?

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I am? This is so. I actually just launched some

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merch store and this is in the first collection, which

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is all about horror. Thank you. So yes. I you know,

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it's funny because I I'm not anti love or anything,

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but I just find so many romance movies like so cliche,

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like you you see, you know, Oh, I just met

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this guy yesterday and now I'm completely in love and

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oh he's going back to his small hometown and he's

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broken my heart. And oh but right before he goes,

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you know, on the plane, he's decided that, you know,

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he's going to stay and we're gonna get married. And

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it's like, bro, you you met last week, Like, can

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we relax a little?

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It sounds like my perfect relationship. What are you talking about?

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It's my dream.

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It's just you know, And and of course I'm kind

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of characterizing. You know, not every movie is like that,

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but I just feel like the genre tends to do that,

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and so I'm just not a big fan.

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But you know, it's interesting that you say that, because, like,

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for a while, I don't know if you remember, there

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was all the movies that were coming out, these rom

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coms that were like a rom com, but we're going

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to turn it upside down. It's not what you thought

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about rom com for that exact reason that people found

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them very cliche. Then there was this whole wave of

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like Hallmark movies got really popular again where people like

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really leaned right back into it. When the pendulum goes

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one way, the pendulum always goes the other way, and

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then anyone but You came out with Sidney Sweeney and

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Glen Powell, which was right back to sort of that

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traditional rom com. But I thought very well done. I've

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watched it multiple times. I don't know if you liked

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it or saw it, but that sort of like kick

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started this idea of, hey, maybe we should go back

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to doing more romantic films because it did so well

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at the box of office. But like, yeah, we're going

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to talk about a couple today that are, you know,

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coming out in theaters. One of them that I wouldn't

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call it a It's not a rom com by any

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stretch of the imagination, but yeah, it's I can't wait

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to dive in and talk to you about it.

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Well, well, now I need to know what it is.

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Well, Wuthering Heights. Yeah, so that's coming out day before

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Valentine's Day, And I know, have you heard about all,

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like all the buzz that is happening for this movie

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with Margot, Robbie and Jacob A little?

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I have, And I will say so, you know, obviously

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I've seen the trailers and stuff, and I haven't watched

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it yet, but I'm actually interested in seeing this.

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Yeah, well, if you like, I mean, they seemed like

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a cinepas. So like if you love, if you love

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Emerald Fanel movies, you know that she's going to take

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something and she's gonna twist it a little and make

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it dark. So it is. And I hate using these

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types of phrases because like sometimes they don't age, Like

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I go back and I go, oh, did I really

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feel that way? But I truly think it's one of

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the greatest romantic films I've seen. Wow, and it's it's

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I just think she just had I mean, she obviously

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loved the book. I actually interviewed the whole cast in

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December in London, and I asked her about the fact

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that the film was in quotation marks. And you know,

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this is the Emily Bronte novel from eighteen forty seven,

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and you know it's been done a couple of times

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in film and p people who are you know, book

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lovers are very precious about the book. But she is

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one of those book lovers. And she said to me, look,

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it's so dense the book. It's this is not even

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an adaptation. This is my interpretation. This is like me

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reading the book and what I glean from it, But

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I just feel like, not only is it excellent, but

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it's hit the zeitgeist in a way that like Barbie did,

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where people are already planning their dress. It like what

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they're gonna wear to the theater where it's going to

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be like an event. It's going to mean more than

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a movie. It's gonna be an event. Jacob A. Lordie's

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having a moment. You know, he was nominated for Frankenstein

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for an Oscar. People love him. He's delightful. But they

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just did a really good job with this film. It's

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so gut wrenching. It's one of the most stunning, like

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not even it's you know, sometimes people say, oh, the

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movie's pretty and it's gorgeous to look at, and that

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doesn't say a lot, but it's the way she sort

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of weaves to get the story into the shots that

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she chooses. I can't say enough good things about it.

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But Alison all of Her, who plays this sister, people,

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mark my words, this is a name that she's going

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to get cast in a million things off this. She

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is like a scene stealer. She plays this crazy character

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like and you talk to her and she's this English flower,

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like really sweet and her character's so over the top,

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but yeah, it's kind of got everything.

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Well, now you have me actually excited, because it was

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already abnormal for me to be like, here's a trailer

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for a romantic movie that I'm interested in. So I

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was already kind of like, you know what, maybe I'll

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see that. Yeah, But now with with you know how

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you're hyping it up, now I'm like, okay, like maybe

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I'm going to make a point to go see this

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in the theater early opening weekend sort of thing.

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I do. I do think it is a theatrical movie.

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It's one of those you really have to see it,

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Like even the way, like there's one shot in the

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film I'm like, I don't even know how she did it,

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but you know it takes place on the moors and that.

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But it's I think the reason too, Like it's it's romantic,

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but it's very dark. I mean, if you know the story,

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it's a very dark story. It's not necessarily a romance.

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It's more about obsession, class difference, that kind of thing.

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And I just I sort of love I mean, I

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like Sultburn, I liked her other films, but this is

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definitely my favorite of Emeralds movies.

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So okay, well now I'm super hyped. What else can

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we expect in theaters for people you know, kind of

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looking for that, for that type of theater experience, date

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night on you know, Valentine's weekend sort of thing.

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So this is a good one if you don't want

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to go and see a traditional romance. But there's romance

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in it, so it's crime one on one. It stars

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Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, who we know from Marvel very well,

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also stars Halle Berry and he plays this jewel thief.

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It's really like a nineties throwback to like the ninety

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these heat movies. It's kind of like I went into

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it being totally honest, and I'm like, it's probably not

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gonna be that good. Hadn't heard much about it. I

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walked down and went and one of my colleagues had

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seen it, and we text each other and we're like, wait,

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that was amazing. And so anyway, Chris plays this jewel thief.

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He's a peaceful one. He's not committing, like, not hurting anybody,

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but he you know, he has this boss that he

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works for he doesn't like, so he decides to go

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off on his own and do this one last heist

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to set himself up for life. He meets Monica Babara,

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the actress Monica Babarro's character, but his whole mantra has

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been like I am flawless at my job because I

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don't have personal relationships. And then he meets this girl.

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But really the story so there is a bit of

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a romance. So it's perfect for Valentines if you want

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to go out in a daylight night, like if you're

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going out as a couple and the guy's like, well,

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I don't I want to see an action movie and

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she's I don't want to see a mental movie. This

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is movie. Okay, that's kind of about both. But the

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thing I'll say most about it, it's one of those

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when you're you know, when you're watching a movie and

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you go, I really hope they stick the landing, Like

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I hope the ending is as good as this thing

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is because you're on the edge of your seat, and

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if the payoff isn't good, the whole movie falls apart.

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The payoff is phenomenal.

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Awesome, Yeah, awesome.

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Mark Ruffalo plays a cop, which he does a lot,

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but he says, you know, he's got all those mannerisms.

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Yes, great. Have you seen Dracula A love Story?

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I haven't seen the new I haven't seen that, Yeah,

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the one that came out earlier this month.

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Yes, so I love it. I'm a huge horror fan obviously,

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and and this take is extremely interesting, you know, I

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love I've watched all of the kind of Dracula interpretations

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over the years, and this is more romance focused. Actually, yeah,

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it's more you know of It's more of a Dracula.

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You know, his love, the love of his life has

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passed away and he is waiting, you know, four hundred

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years later we essentially meet him, and this whole time

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he's been trying to figure out how do I bring

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the love of my life back?

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And this sounds like Withering Heights by the.

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Way, Okay, oh I love that. Okay, yeah, yeah. And

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so this it was a super unique take that I

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had never seen before. I had always kind of seen

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Dracula as the villain obviously, or the anti hero. And

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you know, I was telling I had interviewed the cast

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and all, and I was telling calib Landrie Drones plays Dracula,

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and I love him. He always dives into you know,

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his character, and I was like, you know, I don't

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know that the lengths that you go through in this

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movie for a love like I mean, I really love tacos,

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maybe like I would do it for tacos or something,

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but like, I don't know that I could go to

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the lengths like you have to love somebody so much,

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and obviously I do, but but it's very it's way

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it's a way different take than you know, the traditional

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kind of Dracula story, is it, And so it's really

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fresh and interesting and I absolutely love it. And I

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was surprised going in. I mean, they kind of were

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putting on a love story subtitle and then taking it

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off in the promotion, and I think they ended up

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dropping it for the release. But it really is this

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take is really a love story and talks about, you know,

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how far will we go for the people that we love?

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You know, it's interesting you say that, And maybe that's

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sort of what is gripping people about that movie and withering,

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is that it sort of harkens back to people like

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who're just hopeless romantics and that's the focus of their

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life and they will go to those lengths because I

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feel like we live in this society where people are like, oh,

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I don't like the way you ate that, Chip, I'm out,

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you know, like dating, like all of like online dating.

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So maybe it's people are just craving that, like all

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encompassing love. I have to ask you, then, did you

217
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like Frankenstein the Germo?

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I love everything Gharama does. Uh, and and that was

219
00:11:18.799 --> 00:11:22.320
that was no different. I love the interpretation of that.

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I as soon as I heard that he was signed

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on for it, I was excited because I feel like that,

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you know, if there was a project I could choose

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for him, it would be that, it would be Frankenstein.

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And so I just think he absolutely nailed at Jacob

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was amazing. I mean everything. I love that movie so much.

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I thought she was amazing. She is that she was

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perfectly cast. Yeah, and she doesn't get as not as

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many people are talking to her. I think obviously Jacob

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was sort of like the breakout star of it. What's

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your favorite Del Toro movie?

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Ah, I would say either Frankenstein or war Pans Labyrinth.

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Yeah, that's the classic. Yeah, everybody chooses. I really loved

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the Shape of Water. I thought that was beautiful. You

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get some backlash, but I loved it.

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Yeah, so I have mixed feelings. I do love it,

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and I do you know, I love him, but I

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felt weird because I'm like, I know it's like metaphorical

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or whatever, but I'm like, it's a it's like a

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fish man, Like that's kind of weird. But then it's like,

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but then I have to think, like, okay, beauty and

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the beast and that sort of thing. But mate, it

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was one of Tom Hanks ohlas flash yes, yeah, oh,

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I never even thought about that. Geez. Yeah. So I

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had to kind of keep saying to myself, Kyle, it's

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not a real fish man, Like she's not, you know,

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making love to a fish man. I kind of had

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to but she is. Yeah, so I kind of had

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to be like, let's go a little bit more metaphorical, Kyle,

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Like it's all.

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Right, that's how yeah. Yeah, And I just I also

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loved I think the visuals on it, yeah, or stunning, stunning, yes,

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00:13:03.240 --> 00:13:08.399
like some of his best, but Frankenstein really maybe maybe

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topped it. I saw I went to the premiere of

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that one, and it was like I saw it at

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the Academy Museum in LA and the Academy Museum is

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the most insane theater of course, as you would expect

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it to be. And it's brand new and it's called

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these red Velvet Chairs and it's very classic but new.

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The sound of the whole thing it was unbelievable.

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Yeah, that would it sounds like it would be the

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perfect place to see that. Yeah, what else? What else

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are you thinking? You know, people would be interested in

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for like the Valentine's Day holiday timeframe.

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So okay, So there's a couple more if you really

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want to lean into, like eighties nineties nostalgia. Pretty in Pink?

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Have you ever seen Pretty in Pink?

267
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I have not.

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I know it's I had a feeling, That's why I asked.

269
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So.

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Pretty and Pink is one of my favorite romantic films

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and it starred Molly Ringwall, Andrew McCarthy, John Cryer, And

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00:14:10.720 --> 00:14:14.840
it's back in theaters. It's celebrating its fortieth anniversary. So

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it's back in theaters just February thirteenth to sixteen, oh,

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just for the Valentines. And that is what I am

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going to see in the theater, because you know, when

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you have the opportunity to see any of you love

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that much back on the big screen, you're so used

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to seeing it at home, and it really does make

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difference to see it that way. So yeah, so i'd

280
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recommend that one.

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Is that really quick? Is that John Hughes?

282
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Yeah he wrote it, okay, correct. Howard Deutsch directed it

283
00:14:45.600 --> 00:14:48.879
and he wrote it. I there was like a twist. Yeah,

284
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so yeah, so that's it's such a classic. Do you

285
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like classic films? I am, yes, but probably not the

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wrong gaming But yeah, I would say, like people always

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talk about sixteen Candles being like the greatest sort of

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teen angst love movie of all time, but I think

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Pretty in Pink blows it away.

290
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Okay, it's yeah, all right, so it is something I

291
00:15:13.279 --> 00:15:16.039
should check out. Okay, I will, I will.

292
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I feel you will?

293
00:15:18.279 --> 00:15:20.279
No no no no. If I say well, I really will?

294
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Yeah yeah yeah yeah. And then and then the other

295
00:15:24.600 --> 00:15:27.879
thing you can watch at home would be Bridgerton, which

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just came out with its fourth season and they're breaking

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it up into two parts. So the first half of

298
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it dropped at the end of January and then they

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announced you know, I had like forty million households watched it.

300
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Of course, it's like the number one movie on Netflix.

301
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But I don't know if you've watched Bridgerton. But every

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season they have kind of like the same cast of characters,

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00:15:51.039 --> 00:15:53.720
but they focus on a new couple, okay, and so

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what they've really managed to do like you know when

305
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you watch a show and you're really into the characters, yeah,

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you love and no, and you want to see what's

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happening with them. So they had a huge task because

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the first season, the couple that they had were so

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successful and became you know culturals, you know, pop culture

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z eitegeys kind of thing that people are like, Oh,

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I don't want to not see them in season two

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because it's gonna be a whole new couple, whole new storyline.

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They're going to be in the background. But then they

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did it again and like they had another couple that

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00:16:21.600 --> 00:16:23.919
like popped and they've so this is the fourth season

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and I had to I think this might be my

317
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favorite one. Oh okay, yeah, because it's kind of a

318
00:16:29.799 --> 00:16:34.240
Cinderella story where this this guy, Benedict Bridgerton, who's part

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00:16:34.279 --> 00:16:37.840
of this prominent family, goes to this ball and the

320
00:16:37.919 --> 00:16:40.360
queen every year picks a diamond, she picks a female

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00:16:40.399 --> 00:16:42.159
where she's like, Okay, you're going to go off and

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meet all these men and then you're gonna be engaged

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by the end of the season. Well, for the first time,

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she picks a guy, and at the same ball, he

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meets this woman who's like wearing a mask because it's

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a masquerade ball, and they like he looked. He's like

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mesmerized and he's like a complete like party boy. Before that,

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00:16:58.519 --> 00:17:01.080
he won't settle down. He sees his girl memory Mesmeriz

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00:17:01.240 --> 00:17:03.759
turns out she's like crash the party. She's a maid

330
00:17:04.359 --> 00:17:07.440
and in those times, this is not happening, and so

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she takes off and so then they meet again and

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00:17:10.720 --> 00:17:14.720
he doesn't realize it's her. That's the part of you

333
00:17:14.880 --> 00:17:17.480
have to like suspend your disbelief because you're like, there's

334
00:17:17.519 --> 00:17:19.519
no way he doesn't realize it's her, right, But they

335
00:17:19.680 --> 00:17:22.200
still get you because it's so good. I don't expect

336
00:17:22.240 --> 00:17:24.960
you to watch that one. But Bridgerton fans out there

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00:17:25.799 --> 00:17:28.240
four more episodes to go at the but we have

338
00:17:28.279 --> 00:17:31.039
to wait till after Valentine's are not dropping on Netflix

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00:17:31.119 --> 00:17:34.279
till like February twenty six, but you know they drop

340
00:17:34.359 --> 00:17:36.519
them like the first four just in time left us

341
00:17:36.559 --> 00:17:41.039
on a cliffhanger that you have to like, you know, yeah,

342
00:17:41.160 --> 00:17:42.759
you gatta, you gotta wait for it.

343
00:17:43.599 --> 00:17:46.599
What what are some of your favorites like at home?

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00:17:46.720 --> 00:17:49.799
Like you're kind of classic, you know, you decide you're

345
00:17:49.960 --> 00:17:52.799
staying in it's a snowstorm in LA for some reason,

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00:17:52.920 --> 00:17:55.440
or you're out in New York and and you're staying in.

347
00:17:55.839 --> 00:17:57.720
What are some of your kind of favorites that you

348
00:17:57.799 --> 00:18:00.599
know we could flip on fandom and go at home

349
00:18:00.640 --> 00:18:02.640
and fire up some some good stuff.

350
00:18:03.920 --> 00:18:08.160
So I'm going to start with one that's maybe maybe

351
00:18:08.240 --> 00:18:11.519
not well that well known past lives. Okay, I don't

352
00:18:11.519 --> 00:18:21.240
know if you've heard it. Is that Jolie Ah, it's Selene. Yeah,

353
00:18:21.279 --> 00:18:22.880
Selene's song was the director of it, and then she

354
00:18:22.960 --> 00:18:24.319
did Materialists after that.

355
00:18:24.599 --> 00:18:27.880
Yes, yes, m but it's this.

356
00:18:28.119 --> 00:18:32.720
It's based on her life story and she grew up

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I want to say South Korea. She grew up in

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00:18:36.440 --> 00:18:40.640
South Korea and she had this childhood friend and they

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were like best friends. And then her family moves to

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00:18:44.039 --> 00:18:48.400
the United States and she never doesn't see him, like

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you know, back then, no social media, none of that

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sort of stuff or connecting through iPhones or whatever. And

363
00:18:53.720 --> 00:18:55.920
then she ends up getting married to this guy. This

364
00:18:56.000 --> 00:18:58.160
is not a spoiler. She ends up married, getting married

365
00:18:58.200 --> 00:19:02.079
to this guy, and then her childhood friend finds her

366
00:19:02.160 --> 00:19:04.839
online like twenty years later. It's like, I'm coming to

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00:19:04.920 --> 00:19:07.680
the States. I'd love to see you. And it's this

368
00:19:08.160 --> 00:19:14.519
crazy story of how she just sort of like is

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00:19:14.680 --> 00:19:18.400
torn because she sees him and they fully have like

370
00:19:18.720 --> 00:19:22.400
you can tell they're fully like if they weren't torn apart,

371
00:19:22.920 --> 00:19:26.000
they would have married each other. They are soulmates. But

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00:19:26.160 --> 00:19:29.799
she deeply loves her husband, and the sort of not

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00:19:29.920 --> 00:19:33.279
a twist, but is that the husband fully embraces like, no,

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00:19:33.519 --> 00:19:35.200
you need to go and hang out with him, and

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00:19:35.720 --> 00:19:37.680
while he's here, and then they all go out to

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dinner one night and it's like the most awkward but

377
00:19:43.400 --> 00:19:46.319
it's I don't even know if I'm doing it justice.

378
00:19:46.759 --> 00:19:50.119
But you know those movies that you watch and you go,

379
00:19:51.079 --> 00:19:52.720
this is gonna be one of my favorite movies of

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00:19:52.759 --> 00:19:53.119
all time.

381
00:19:53.240 --> 00:19:55.359
Yeah, yep, it's that movie.

382
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It's that good.

383
00:19:56.279 --> 00:19:56.519
Wow.

384
00:19:56.799 --> 00:19:59.000
It was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture.

385
00:19:59.720 --> 00:20:03.200
So a romance, but it's just beautifully done. I liked Materialists,

386
00:20:03.240 --> 00:20:06.720
I didn't love it, but this one is just phenomenal.

387
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Okay, one of mine. Have you seen Blue Valentine? Yes,

388
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was you say it was the last part?

389
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I said, Oh, you mean my Rye Ry Yeah, yeah,

390
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I mean I.

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It is. So it's definitely I feel like kind of

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an anti Valentine's movie. But but I think it is

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so masterfully done.

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Uh and.

395
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I that's one that I would fire up on, like

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Best Romance Movies (Classic, Modern & Anti-Romance Picks) (with Nikki Novak)

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