Patreon Sneak Preview - At Close Range

0:26 Hello Patreon subscribers, and welcome back to nineteen eighty six. It was a limited series on a film buy, and it is currently enjoying its renaissance here on Patreon. As always, if you like what you hear, just keep subscribing. I will say it's been a while since he's joined me in nineteen eighty six. These days, he's spending plenty of time in nineteen seventy nine as well as on the bridge of the Enterprise. Welcome back, David. So this is what nineteen eighty six looks like. I've kind of forgot. It's good. It's good to be back. Yeah, this is this is the first time we've had you on the Patreon the lost episodes of nineteen eighty six as we've been calling them. Yeah, I'm happy to be here, man, I'm happy to have you back. I'm feeling out that you missed out. Yeah, We've had some We've had some fun ones, you know.

1:19 I'm glad. I'm glad that you're back, and cause, uh we I think we got a fun one today, actually I think so. Listeners, crack open a Cult forty five and join us as we talk about the crime drama at close range and is there a big Brad? Who is he? He's my father, a man too dangerous to get close to, a boy too dazzled to break away. Sean Patt, He is Brad Whitewood Jr.

2:00 Yeah, family, good Dad, I love you? Is that what you want to hear? Sean Penn Christopher walking like father, like Son, Like hell at Close Range featuring Madonna's hit song Live to Tell. So, Dave, we always start off with first impressions. M I know we were talking about this one you had. This is the first time watched for you. It is you were you had some some uh raw deal witchboard iron eagle type concerns, as I recall, yeah, nothing maybe nothing made me happier than when I read this. Uh this is this is a this is a great review for the movie At Close Range. Well whole I'm quoting here, Well, holy shit, that was a damn good film. David Burns are David Burns. That's a that's a quote from Ardavid Burns. So we don't even have to worry about you struggling with this one. Who enjoyed this one?

3:14 Right? I did? Yeah? I mean when you told me about it and I watched the trailer report, I'm like, I don't know if I'm gonna like this one at all, and then then I'm glad to be wrong. Jeff, I am glad to be because this was a pleasant surprise of a film. I wasn't It wasn't too many years past ninety eighty six when I first saw this one, and it would have been on cable. My first impression, like when you when you when I hear that, when I think of the title, the first thing that pops in my mind. I have to imagine pops in the minds of most people. Madonna's Live to Tell. Oh, Yeah, absolutely one of the incredible songs. Aside from that, though, Christopher Walkin's mustache. You know, Christopher Walker always has that evil look to him. I mean he can pull it off so well.

4:00 Yeah, man, does he look evil in this one? Good for anyone? You know, when we think Christopher walking nowadays, we immediately think white hair sticking straight up, kind of kind of ghostly. In this film, though, he's he's got this this quintessential eighties villain mustache. He's kind of like a white trash kind of a oh he's degenerate, look at her. Yeah, I mean Yeah, he's he's definitely on the fringe. And yeah, this is a this is walking like we've never seen it now. Yeah, I think even you know, yeah, I think this is this is less than ten years after Deer Hunter. Yep. And that's like that's like the baby face Christopher walking, like when his whole life was ahead of him. Here we got Christopher walking where he's just a little bit uh, a little bit worn, a little more haggard, a little more villainously better picked anybody you better to play that role, I'll tell you that right now, which we'll get into a little bit later too. Well, we'll get to it, but first, Dave, as you remember public service announcement, So got a fun one for you. And this this is obviously very close to the date that this that we're dropping this episode on Patreon but on March twenty sixth. In nineteen eighty six, Madonna releases Live to Tell as the first single from her True Blue album. Song goes on to be her third number one hit on the Billboard Hot one hundred and coincidentally, the music video

5:31 was directed by James Foley, who just so happened to direct this film. How about that for a public service announcement. That is fantastic. Man, what a great connection to this movie. It's got Yeah, I'll tell you. I know some people know this as the Sean Penn Madonna left the Tel movie and they're like, you know, I think I've seen it, but I'm not sure. Dave. Let's grab the VHS tape, Let's flip it over. Would you please please read the back of the box. I would be honored to read the back of the box. Sean Penn an Academy Award winner Christopher Walken star as a deadly father and son combination in At Close Range, a fierce film of spellbinding actions. At Close Range is the true life story of one family's bizarre life of crime. Young Brad Whitewood Junior has finally discovered why his father has been missing for so long. As the head of a family operated national crime syndicate, Brad Senior is a ruthless ringleader and his son's newfound idol. Brad Junior and his brother Tommy form their own gang of hudlums to gain their father's respect and become part of the family business. Instead of respect, Brad Senior fears he is losing control of both the gang and his sons. He formulates a plan to take them out of the picture permanently.

6:55 That's one of these synopsis that you read on the back of a VHS box and then you watch the movie and you say, hey, that is exactly what I was I was expecting exactly is this is crime drama? Dark crime drama? M like like, I mean, there's so many great examples of it, but this one is one of the better ones from the eighties, and it just it pains me. It pains me, honestly that we didn't cover it in our initial run for nineteen eighty six. I agree with that. I'm kind of sad that we didn't, to be honest with you, Yeah, we would have had a good we would had a good conversation or we're gonna have a good conversation with about it today. But yeah, I just feel like this is one we shouldn't have been asleep on. Yeah, honestly, And when you mentioned crime drama too, it's kind of funny that this one takes place like out in the country, you know, a farm land and stuff like that, something you really don't think about when you think of a crime drama, right, No, Well, you know, I'm glad that you say that, because crime drama in like a rural area and this movie takes place in Pittsburgh. I'm sorry, where's it at chester Chester? Swimmy Swammy Swammy, Samsonite was off off like Chesterton, Sunton Bucket.

8:15 Don't think I'll I'll just drop that. Chester County, Pennsylvania. What is it, Dave, Chester County, chester Chester. It's Chester County, Pennsylvania, right, Yep, that's correct. You saying that though, reminds me like when I when I watched this movie or when I well, when I did a rewatch of this movie, it gave me some real wisdom vibes. The Wisdom which also came out in nineteen eighty six. I know, Jason Colvin and I covered that one on Patreon. You know, you see Sean Penn and you see Mary Stuart Masterson and I kind of get that. Emilius it is to mean more type of feel to it. Yeah, I could see that. Yeah. Absolutely. Uh. This movie, the title card we open up with based on a true story of nineteen seventy eight, and we got to immediately look at the fact that it is in fact based on the actual crimes of a guy named Bruce Johnston Senior. He's he's kind of heading up one of the largest crime families in Chester, Pennsylvania during the sixties and seventies. And in the end it was his son who did in fact testify against him, like we see Champagne at the end of this movie.

9:28 Yep. Can we I know, we can't stay too long on this book. Can we talk about this? This just huge cast. Oh my gosh. Like when I was watching this movie and I hadn't looked at IMDD or anything like that to look at the cast. I was just watching the credits role at the beginning of thing, Oh my gosh, who's not in this exactly? You know, in nineteen eighty six, this was this was two maybe three established actors and then a bunch of people that we had never heard of. Right, But when you watch it now and it's a it's on two b uh if you want to catch it listeners. When you watch it now and you see these these opening credits, you're like that guy and that guy and that girl and that guy. You know, huge cast.

10:11 Let's start with Sean and Chris Pinn brothers. Yep, they're playing brothers in the movie. This is the only I can't believe this, but this is the only time that they ever were in a movie together, which that amazes me with the body. What a miss what a missed opportunity. Yeah, I agree, I don't. I don't even know how that happens, you know, I don't. I don't know. And it's just if you've seen these people's careers and you go back and see this kind of movie. And for me, since this was my first time watching this, looking how baby face these people were, Oh gosh, yeahs could you? I mean, let's you talk baby face. Like Chris Pinn, who we're used to seeing is like the larger, brooding, playing cut guy. Here he is.

10:54 He's young, he's lean, he's got that long curly hair. Yep, and he looks so much like on Pin in this. Yeah, it's it's incredible. I loved I loved what they did on the screen though. Honestly, oh yeah, absolutely, I thought they did an incredible John And you know, they're they are real brothers in real life, so they didn't have to fake that. So when they're on screen together, you can see the chemistry there because they truly are brothers. The chemistry is undeniable. Yeah, I love, I love every moment they show on the screen. Honestly, someone who I have to admit I did not enjoy on the screen every time. And it's just because the character is a total scumback. Let's talk walking Christopher walking like you're never gonna see him before, right, This guy is like the scum of the the of the earth man. He is the dirt on the bottom of your boot. Some of you definitely don't want to hang out with, that's for sure, and some of you definitely want to be your father. And well, fortunately, you know, Brad Junior and Tommy find that is their father. Yeah. But here's here's the great thing about this movie, because I think it's fair to say that this as much as it is a crime like a noir crime type film, it's definitely a father son oh yeah, without a nout relationship type type of film. You know, these these two they've never had a relationship with their father. They don't know why they haven't, and then he kind of comes back into their life and then they realize he's he is deep into this this crime ring, you

12:28 know, stealing things, and he's in he's got he's got drugs running. He's running drugs, he's doing all this other stuff, and they idolize him immediately, like their poor mother wants you know, she what can she do? Right? I think she can't keep she can't keep away from him, because so, yeah, they're they're idolizing this guy. They want to hang out with this guy. They want to they want to prove themselves to this guy, and he is the worst kind of guy. But the amazing thing about this film and what James Foley does, the director, I kind of feel up myself feeling like like like the Penn Brothers, like, yeah, he's so cool, Like look at these these muscle cars he's got, he hangs out, he looks cool. I mean, he's he's obviously he's a bad he's a bad guy, right, he's he's got he gives up that bad boy vibe. But you're kind of he's he's definitely it's almost spellbinding the way he the way he looks at him and then talks, because he's not he doesn't act like the tough guy, right, he's very smooth, very persuasive, and he's gonna he's gonna take the attention of his son immediately.

13:31 No, matter who he is, because you know, he gives him that car. You know, here, here, take this car. He hands him money. You know, that's why he shows up. You know, from the first time that we see him, he heeds what like three hundred bucks or something. Yeah, He's like, he's like, hey, your mom needs some money, Like how about one hundred, two hundred, three hundred Yeah, like it's nothing. Yeah, I know. Uh. This movie obviously does not have any bit of a comedy to it as far as I could find. But I'll tell you what. Some of these scenes, these early scenes when he kind of shows up in the in that cool ass car and kind of motions him to come along, and the mom is just and the grandma are just very disapproving. He definitely gave off like a Reese Bobby like taligate taligated nights like Gary Gary Coleman's character. He's I was like, this is Reese Bobby. Yeah, let's get the car. Let's let's go do some crime. Yeah, he's reesed Bobby. Let's let's call it what it is. Dave. I got to ask you, Christopher Walking is fantastic in this movie. I wouldn't wouldn't change a thing, but I would ask you the role was initially offered to both Jack Nicholson and Robert de Niro.

14:41 Do you see this movie better with either of those two or was this walking from from the get go? This is walking from the get go? When when I read that those two were up for it, after I saw this movie, I was like, there's no. I mean, don't we get those two actors are incredible and I know they would bring their a game in this performance as they always do or as you know it's but Christopher Walkin just brings that Christopher Walkin. You know that you just can't get around that that it's it's tough to beat that. So no, it is his role and his role only. I'll challenge you this now. He was never in contention for the role, but the only other person that I could see doing this role justice aside from Christopher Walkin