Finally listening to this and first things first. You both have great voices.

Nice job fellas.

The end segment regarding discussing art opinions with others was most interesting to me. Have either of you ever had a disagreement over art so intense you weren't sure if your friendship (or marriage) was going to survive it? I mean more of the heat of the moment type emotions those conversations can bring on and not legitimate thoughts of separation or abandonment.

One of my two really close friends and I have had some heated discussions for sure. I thought he was going to punch me when we were arguing about Godzilla in the parking lot of the theater at which we saw it (he was overtired that night, which exacerbated the situation), and there were a few weeks of lingering tension after an argument about Gone Girl.

Not really, no. A friend of mine had a big argument about Woody Allen's alleged abuse. That got pretty fierce. But nothing really about a movie or an opinion of a movie.

I'm listening to this now.

Happy to hear the love for Brooklyn early on. I knew Joey loved it, but didn't now Verm did. Sort of surprising.

I like that ET was a foundational film for you. I suspect that's true for a lot of us 80s kids.

I agree that music is more immediate than most other art forms, but I'd argue that food is the most immediate (incidentally, it's also the only art form that demands use of all five senses for its creation).

I also agree about the last paragraph of The Road. Incredible stuff. I remember when I finished that book, I just kept reading that paragraph over and over again. I did the same thing with Blood Meridian.

What do you mean by your former view that "film is a bastardized medium -- it offers nothing on its own"? I don't totally understand this.

The Michael Bay portion only lasted 90 seconds!

We love the same things about Birdman.

I think I understand this better, now that you're talking about how Fight Club could only be as effective as it was as a film.

Verm, I think it's interesting that you A) don't care about plot and B) like visual boundary-pushing films like Cannibal Holocaust, yet you disliked Mad Max: Fury Road. I feel like there's a disconnect there. Also, are you at all excited for The Greasy Strangler? I really am.

Guys, your gripes with latter-day Tarantino? I've never felt closer to you both.

Joey, have we talked about True Detective? I love it. I agree that the first season is just full of poster-worthy imagery.

Nice interview, guys. I sort of lost interest during TFA portion at the end. That movie is fine. It's totally fine. Rogue Squadron is gonna be awesome. But as a lover of film, I struggle to see why so many people put so much emphasis on anything Star Wars outside of the OT.

I listened to the McP one when that first went up, but none of the others. I gotta get caught up. Thanks Verm!

Thanks, Trag. I appreciate the listen. This series is one of my favorite things in RM history. I'm happy to have been a part of it. And I look forward to every new installment.

There's a lot to discuss in what you posted but I don't think we can go any further until I stress that food is not an art form.

You've never seen me eat a bowl of Pho.

Food can absolutely be art, you rube.

Oh boy...

It's odd to me that trag takes the food is art view when he hates chefs and food culture so much.

That thing that you hate so much about food culture, trag, that very thing... IS the mistaken idea that food is art.

Oh boy...

here we go

You're not wrong, verm. Anything can be art.

Oh, that's not true at all. I never really explained my hatred of that pic beyond a couple snide comments. But basically my hatred has to do with an industry that treats its employees horribly (especially those in the back of the house, and women), and the way that industry has colluded to sell an image of "the rockstar chef." This attitude has brought a lot of hardworking, good-hearted people into the field, often carrying debt from an expensive culinary school, and it usually isn't until some years later that they realize there's no growth opportunities beyond GM or Sous Chef -- the number of people who actually get to own a restaurant or execute a menu is mostly limited to those with the ample financial resources required to do so. With a few exceptions, I feel like most of the big-name restaurants are a sham perpetrated on the youthful ignorance of how shitty it is to get old...And then all of a sudden you are old, and your knees hurt, and you're making less than $40K/year, and there's not really anywhere else you can go.

That food is an art form has nothing to do with the above gripe. My gripe is with the business side of things.

This series is, yeah, the best thing of RM these days.

Ah.

Thank you for clarifying. That makes sense to me. I'll have to digest and think about all of it before I dig into whether or not I totally agree. But for now, I'll just say what you're describing is a lot (most?) industries. Seems weird to single out chefs/food culture.

Yea, you're probably right. But food and music are the only two industries I know intimately, so that's where most of my vitriol goes.

Oh, of course. I totally get that. I have no experience with the music industry outside of being a customer. I do have a fair bit of experience and a decent relationship with the food industry. It can be infuriating and sexist and awful. I don't disagree with you in the least.