Transcript

Toys w/ Drew McWeeny (HDTGM Matinee)

From How Did This Get Made? · Episode page · Watch on YouTube

· 59 min · 12,681 words · 302 timestamped sections

This is the full, timestamped transcript of "Toys w/ Drew McWeeny (HDTGM Matinee)", an episode of How Did This Get Made? published December 9, 2025 (59 min, about 12,681 words). It mentions 6 people, works and ideas, including Drew McWeeny, Michael Gambon, Good Morning Vietnam, HitFix, Thomas Dolby.

Who speaks in this episode?

What is discussed, and when

  1. – 5:00: Michael Gambon, HitFix, Toys
  2. – 10:00: Thomas Dolby
  3. – 20:00: Toys
  4. – 25:00: Michael Gambon
  5. – 40:00: Good Morning Vietnam
  6. – 50:00: Michael Gambon
  7. – 58:31: HitFix

Notable quotes from "Toys w/ Drew McWeeny (HDTGM Matinee)"

  • Imagine a less charming and more preachy Willy Wonka. We saw toys, so you know what that means.
    about Toys · at
  • It. we are joined by a very special guest. he requested this movie, as a matter of fact. please welcome Drew McQueeny. You know him from his website, HitFix. I'm a huge fan of…
    about Drew McWeeny · at
  • Is resentful of his ex. I was like could you really did you have to hire Michael Gambon? Was that it?
    about Michael Gambon · at
  • By the way, the author of that song, Thomas Dolby. Oh, there you go.
    about Thomas Dolby · at
  • Wait. No wait no let me talk to you about this. All right. So, Good Morning Vietnam was 87, right? Yep.
    about Good Morning Vietnam · at

Who and what is mentioned in this episode?

People

  • Drew McWeeny — Person · Main guest · 2 mentions
    Invited guest who requested the episode’s movie and provides production context (screenplay history, Levinson’s career arc) while reacting to scenes.
  • Michael Gambon — Person · Referenced actor (film under discussion) · 4 mentions · first at
    Highlighted as an odd choice for the villain/general role; the hosts repeatedly question why he was cast and cite his scenes as emblematic of the film’s tonal mismatch.
  • Thomas Dolby — Person · Referenced songwriter/composer (film music) · 1 mention · first at
    Credited in-episode as the author of a song used in the film; referenced to contextualize the movie’s strange musical choices.

Books & papers

  • Toys — Book · Referenced work · 2 mentions · first at
    Mentioned in the context of discussing the movie 'Toys' and its bizarre plot elements.

Companies & orgs

  • HitFix — Company · Affiliation · 2 mentions · first at
    Drew McQueeny's affiliation, mentioned as the website he is known from.
    Special guest. he requested this movie, as a matter of fact. please welcome Drew McQueeny. You know him from his website, HitFix. I'm a huge fan of him and I've gotten a chance to bump into him many times over the year.

Media & podcasts

  • Good Morning Vietnam — Media · Referenced work · 2 mentions · first at
    Referenced as a previous successful collaboration between Robin Williams and Barry Levinson.

Full transcript with timestamps

Imagine a less charming and more preachy Willy Wonka. We saw toys, so you know what that means.

Now it's time for this. We're going to have a good time celebrating failure, not just cuz you know you wonder how to throw in the mediocrity of some art. Perhaps we'll find the answer to the question, how did this get made?

Hello, people of Earth and welcome to How Did This Get Made? I am Paul Shear joined as always by uh Jason Manzukas. How are you Jason?

I'm good Paul. How are you? Very good. And June Diane. Oh, she is not here. Sorry. I could

I'll do Hello, Paul. How are you? Uh unfortunately June cannot be here today. Uh it's very sad. Uh but there's no conspiracy. Uh all right, we have a very

or is there guys get to the forums? Maybe maybe the June with her back turned photo in last week's picture.

June is dead. Is just part of this conspiracy. Um Oh man. Oh man. Okay. I I was going to talk about this. Well, forget it. Okay. We're not worth it. Not worth it. Um we are joined by a very uh special guest. Um he requested this movie, as a matter of fact. Uh please welcome Drew McQueeny. You know him from uh his website, HitFix. Uh I'm a huge fan of him and I've gotten a chance to bump into him many times over the year. You are a true film fan, amazing film writer. Uh we're excited to have you.

Thank you, man. Very good to be here. Um but [ __ ] you for making me watch this movie.

I do. I apologize right up front. I say I'm sorry. Oh boy. Drew sent me a list of movies that we could talk about and um and each one of them were were great and I'm sure we'll steal some of them for the show. This one definitely jumped out at me because it was 1992 when this came out as a kid. I love comedy. I love Robin Williams. And I was like, this is like, you know, and this is like the era of time when Robin Williams was blonde. I feel like that was a couple movies or at least I don't know in my mind. And I was excited to see this movie. And I remember being so confused leaving it.

Oh, yeah. And and uh and I just didn't know what to expect. And this movie I does I mean it's still confusing. This is an insane movie. Just to give you some background on it, uh Barry Levenson wrote and directed this movie or co-wrote and directed this movie. Took him 10 years to write this movie. That's crazy.

Yeah. This cuz I feel like this movie, if you had equally had said, oh, Barry Levenson had 104 fever for two days and he wrote this movie, I'd be like, "Yep, I buy I believe it."

This is this is the crazy part. This script for like 15 years was on every list of the best unproduced screenplays in Hollywood. Everybody loved this thing. There were people who wrote about it constantly and it was going to be his first film before Diner.

Oh, really? That's how long he was working. And literally, literally, they ran out of the money and went made Diner instead. And thank God cuz his career, if this had been the first thing,

that would have been done. There would have been no Barry Levenson. Oh, absolutely.

Yeah. It's It's crazy because this movie, I mean, you want to talk about plot or I mean, like, there's no the It's I wrote at one point I was like, well, they don't care about pace because like the first seven scenes are really long and just like

it starts with a ballad. It starts with a musical number that's a ballad. Just like hit him hard and

a Christmas ballad. So it's really sugary. It's like Nutcracker Light. I was like, are they trying to make this like a Christmas movie? Nope.

No. And it it like it's always I mean I just didn't quite I mean I don't even I guess at the root of this movie I mean let's I'll just set up the basic premise. Um, there's a very a very famous toy factor.

I want to listen to how you do this. A very famous uh toy factor called Zeo and is run by a wonderful man, a very loving a man who celebrates innocence. He has two children, Robin Williams and Joan Cusack. They also are very equally loving and open and love toys. And um the guy who runs the factory, he has a brother who is a British general. Now, no one else is British. He's an American general who is has a British ex this and is resentful of his

ex. I was like could you really did you have to hire Michael Gambon? Was that it?

That was my question to hire Michael Gambon. I don't know why. My question is was it like a chicken before like was it like was it in the script as a British actor and then they

and then I wonder about the LL CoolJ casting because there's a whole other level of I'm sorry what?

Yes. So the American So the American who has a British accent also has a black son uh who is LL Cool J

whose mother was evidently a Vietnamese spy at one point who looked enough like Jane Fonda.

No no she looked like Jane She was a spy. Well she went into she went oh she for our side. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yeah. Right.

Oh my god. So again you see the movie getting off track but basically uh it's two brothers. One's a peaceful loving toy maker. The other is a uh a hardcore general and the peaceful toy maker dies. The general takes over and starts making war toys and that is basically the end and all of the end of the movie which is that's the premise toy people versus people were making war toys.

I think like in the beginning when you said like that I think the thing to keep in mind on top of that is that the entire movie takes place in a kind of Wonka-esque universe where everything is a toy. ever like houses the houses are popup books the you know everything is like everything is fantastical

and I'm going to mispronounce his name but it's McGreet which is I guess so it's very heavily influenced by McGreet's work and it like the the look of it and it's it is beautiful.

Yeah. I do feel like though if he saw the film he would probably break his hand slapping Harry like because it is such a weird appropriation of his work.

It really Yeah. It's It's not I mean it's almost like you go, "Oh, I wonder if that painting could talk." And if it did, it was bad. I don't want to hear that painting.

Unfortunately, not only do I get to hear that painting talk, I get to hear it sing like um a bad talking heads or um a man Without Hat song.

Uh by the way, uh the author of that song, Thomas Dolby. Oh, there you go. Who also composed the Howard the Duck song. Uh a classic uh song that we revisited just a little while. You know who the crazy um Jamie Girtz look alike at the beginning that sings is right.

Who is it? That's Wendy from Wendy and Lisa from from Lisa. Uh yeah. Yeah. Oh, that's funny. Wendy.

Such a strange Lisa. Oh my god. And and and by the way, I'm jumping ahead. I'll save this. I'm going to write down what I'm holding on to. Um yeah. So this movie, the way I also think about it is it's a comedy,

I guess. I mean, it's trying to be but it's like imagined as a drama. Like that's how I kind of it's like it's sort of like I because it's kind of trying to be a comedy.

There's about 40 minutes in the middle where I counted not one attempt at a joke. Like they don't even try for a stretch which is the strangest choice.

It's and Robin Williams like Robin Williams character in this movie is a very innocent young you know idealistic man who then all of a sudden is making jokes so much though.

Yeah. And then it turns out you think he would Yeah. He's almost like a really weird child like Peter Pan type character, but then he like wants to get laid and he and Robin Wright. [ __ ] And you hear it and

like this movie, by the way, not for kids. Not for kids. It looks like it's a movie that's for kids. It's like big and poppy and bright and toys and but it is not even like there are multiple sex scenes in this movie. And the sex scene, by the way,

and I think we listened to him lose his virginity at one point, which is the creepiest thing that ever happened.

100%. And by the way, Robin Wright really gave it up quick. She was like, he's like, I want to be hugged. And she's like, let me take off my shirt. Like, whoa, can I stay here tonight? And she's like, how about looking at my titties?

Now, at that point in the movie, uh Robin Williams has uh has kind of started to figure out that the the bad brother is making war toys. And I thought for sure that that sex scene was a diversion because they were being watched by a camera. Jamie Fox, by the way, in his first ever on-screen role, watching Robin Williams hump Robin White right pen. And I thought, "Oh, that brought over the thing." No, no, no. It's just a sex scene. It's there's nothing there to it.

But the craziest part of that whole explanation is that evidently Donald O'Conor hired her specifically hoping she would end up [ __ ] his son.

Yes. And Donald Oconor is the nice uh brother. Yeah. Is the dad. So, it is like the biggest lawsuit in the universe just waiting to happen.

And then it finally does. And it's creepy and gross. He not only he not only hires her, he b he he says to her according to her, you're really going to my son's really going to like you.

Yeah. And then Joan Cusack when he se when she sees that Robin Wright and and she goes, oh, he finally found her. I was like,

it's it's appropriate that he makes that crazy Michael Jackson joke because this has that same mix of supposed innocence and creepy sex predator vibe. It's perfect. But there's something funny about him in the sense that Robin Williams again I feel like at certain points are like just improvise have fun with this scene cuz his character drops I mean again his character is all over the place but his character makes Robin Williams jokes but then for the rest of the movie he's like

did you pull the um did you pull the uh Gettysburg address? I mean we can get to it later but like that is the quintessence of [ __ ] you Robin Williams for doing this. I have a lot of the songs from the movie as well if we ever want to uh dig into that. Um

their first lunch scene feels like they must have shot like 6 hours of them flirting and all of it is him doing bits. That's awful

and her laughing which is such a like a sign of a bad comedy movie. I hate that thing where it's like the funny guy with the hot girl and the hot girl just goes, "You're funny." And that's how they they connect

it's worse than that when he walks in smoking. Joeack actually goes smoke that's funny just like she had to underline it just in case we didn't know it was supposed to be funny

and I love there there's also like some weird like I mean I I I'm not one to pick on the fantastical elements of the movie cuz obviously yes their house is a story book that opens in a plane you know but then there you know so I'm not going to pick on that kind of stuff but

well the visuals a lot of the visuals I will legitimately say are amazing yes they're beautiful like really beautiful visual stuff happens in this movie and I remember the trailer kind of selling the that element of it and you and it looked like wow that's kind of remarkable to look at

and I kind of I mean by the way we played this on the mini episode one of the trailers for the movie is just Robin Williams in like a field going hello I'm Robin Williams and I think you should see the movie oh just doing voices advertising the movie with no clips just doing crazy Robin Williams voices

I think that was in theaters right at the same time that Aladdin was out so he was at an alltime high where it was like Robin can do no wrong and let him riff And I think that's what that was trying to tell me.

Fantastic. It's it's really really nuts cuz I was like my basic question was I get it's fantastical but what's the baseline? What is the real thing? What's not the real thing? Because it just I didn't know if there was a real world outside of this world like

didn't seem like if there is we barely see it. Yeah. You don't see any. We never leave. There is nothing juxtaposed to their world right there. We never leave their kind of idyllic weird world. The only time you leave it is when the kids are in their military training programs and they're clearly bombing and destroying major metropolitan cities that look like ours. So like So there is a real So basically there must be Yeah. There's just basically a very large field. It's like a Microsoft or Apple campus but only with like one very small building on it that has a a elephant blowing bubbles out of its nose.

I think one of the things that and you guys have done a couple of these now. One of the biggest gamles you can do is this kind of worldbuing movie. Yes.

Cuz when it goes wrong, it's nothing but trouble or it's Nash or it's this where

nothing about the world is interesting. Nothing works and it's such a mess before you even get to what's happening in it.

Oh, completely. Well, and by the way, this movie took 10 months to make. That's a very long time.

Is that right? Yeah. 10 months. Um, and I feel like that that that thing they were talking about with

How many mayonnaise sandwiches do you think Joan Cusack had to eat in that time?

Joan Cusk, her character trait is she likes sandwiches. You like sandwiches that are just bread. Sometimes two slices of bread with mayonnaise, but that's it.

Well, well, here let's hear her order another sandwich. Uh, we have this clip right here.

Cheese, turkey, uh, chicken salad, shrimp salad. You know, Joe, I'm very disappointed that you never once had an applesauce sandwich on your menu.

Applesauce, miso, the sandwich will get all saggy. Oh, I don't mind. I'll make you one tomorrow. Okay.

Okay. Thank you very much. That's a scene from this movie. Movie. That's not It's not like something we recorded to poke fun at how bad this movie is. That is actual dialogue that apparently took 10 years to write.

There was a script supervisor behind the camera going, "Yep, we got it." There was a cut, different angles on that scene.

Let's go again. Yeah, that was Let's go again. When they were looking at the 2-hour length, they were like, "No, leave that scene in. Does it pay off?"

No. Never see her eating an applesauce sandwich. Yeah, that guy lied to her. And in and almost every scene, especially in the middle, I have no idea what they connect to or why they're there. There's so many scenes that are like them sitting on the couch doing the Woozy helmet, which plays no part at the end of the film. The Woozy helmet. They they put it like three times so you know it exists.

That's the thing is nothing comes back, you know, like all of I mean like he's got the smoke jacket which could have been used later in the movie when they go to war. The sound effects jacket, the the helmet, the fake fake puke and diarrhea, although that did make me laugh.

Did you like the novelty test where they're going out in the field and testing?

That was so stupid. It was like they're in a room. They're like in an R&D room watching like like old like eight like almost looks like 8 mm footage of like Robin Williams wearing very big ears in a supermarket going we're testing out the big ears and like what is he just walking around the supermarket like what like I just I I mean that is just a great dumb thing. It's like oh yeah they test out these things. it it like the idea that it took him just the more I think about the idea that it took Barry Levenson 10 years to make to write this makes me depressed because this is what he came up with. Well, to me it's like but what is this?

This is what he was honing. But like but from minute like I would say from after the first couple of scenes which are very long but you were set up that the military guy wants to make military toys and Robin Williams does not want to make that. And then there is no other plot complication really.

I think that's why they give so much time to the Robin Wright pin thing because why not? They need to do something to kill time.

That's their be story. And the be story is not really there's no real obstacle. He meets her. They fall in love pretty instantly and then they consummate it just a couple scenes later and then at the end it's cool. It's like there's that it's just kind of like

flowing. You're just kind of like ah look at like why does she dress like a crazy person? Why do they I mean they all dress like crazy.

She dressed like Sher from Clueless. I felt like Robin Ray. Yeah. But it's at one point she's wearing like a Scottish out like like aentric camo shant. Yeah. Everybody else is like normal and in wearing like all the other toy people are wearing like lab coats and blah blah blah and she's dressed like a [ __ ] maniac like a like in one point she's wearing like a sergeant Pepper's jacket or something. I was like what the [ __ ] is happening?

Well, she's in charge of the duplication room. Uh the uh the duplicate I do have that scene as well. LL Cool J. And now this is what I'll tell you that I remembered from the movie thinking LL Cool J was hilarious. I was like I was like I love the fact that he disappears. He's like in the wall. Like basically LL CoolJ is a very um highly trained military guy. He can blend into anything. He's uh and I just thought LL CoolJ was

the best. He was super cool. And uh and and now it did not hold up for me. I thought he was like full of laughs. Uh

Oh yeah. No, I mean this movie this movie I don't I don't even know. I I want to dig into it and I'm just like I just keep on thinking back to scenes like the scene with LL CoolJ and Michael Gamin around the fire talking about basically Michael Gamin coming up with the idea of drone ships. Like he's like that's basically the premise of the movie. He's like I'm going to create little drones.

You think that drones, our current military drones were inspired by somebody watching this movie.

Well, that's what I said. This movie this is this is it. This is the this is the foreshadowing. Barry Levenson was right. It was took 12. He figured it out. Man, oh man. That's the thing. I wonder if there was ever a draft of this that was more normal, that was more like a strange love that actually understood toys and war toys and cuz it seems like that would be maybe interesting. But then you layer all this other stuff on top and it just gets so busy that you can't even get to that.

Here's my issue with with movies about toys in general and not like Toy Story, but like movies that are Santa movies. They're never making the toys that most kids play with. Nobody would play with these. They're nightmare machines, most of them.

Yeah, they really are crazy. Oh, speaking of nightmare machines, they do one thing where they're testing out like one doll and they're pulling it by all the arms. It's the last temptation of Barbie. Robin Williams makes that joke. It's like, all right, so in this world, the last temptation of Christ exists. He has seen it and he is familiar with it. So again, where's the [ __ ] baseline? Is he innocent?

Where is reality? Yeah. You know, he's cuz he's got a million he does a million weird like Robin Williams references that I'm like, what the [ __ ] is like has he ever been outside this compound?

And if he's hyper innocent, how does he have all of this in his head? Cuz it seems like there's no way he's this innocent, naive character with all this also bouncing around in

making dick jokes the next second. I mean, but like that's the other thing, too.

The devil puppet has got to be the creepiest thing. Oh my god, I want to get laid. Yeah, that's so wrong on every level. And he was carrying it around just in case.

Just to make the reference, it looked like Oh, yeah. And and by the way, he's stalking her.

He's clearly she's riding her bike home and he drives right out. He's like, you know, he's like a real pervo.

It's it's it's super creepy. And again, we'll say the movie is called Toys. The logo for the film has like rubber duckies on it and stuff like that. It is not a movie for children. I swear to God, I think every single person in this movie is on the spectrum.

You know what I mean? Like there isn't a person. I don't disagree with you. And J is just saying about the vegetables on his plate.

How weird was that? I don't want this touching that. I don't want this touching that. That was crazy.

I'm a military man. I'm like a military plate. Yes. By the way, I was saying that that is

What's a military plate? Does that exist? Is that a real thing? I was actually saying that that was my go-to monologue when I was auditioning for theater

cuz it was so like prepare. It was so like I don't like this touching that. I don't like to say. It was such a like like I feel like uh like he really got into the meat of that scene. Um let's hear LL CoolJ interrogate uh Robin Wright Pen in the uh in the duplication room.

Are you Miss Cornell? I'm doing some routine questions. We'd like you to cooperate. All right.

Okay. Does any duplicating going on around here when you're not present? Uh h huh.

Yeah, maybe. Do you duplicate alone? I think that's kind of a personal question.

You're lacking, Miss Tyler. Are you taking my duplication investigation seriously or are you disrespecting my duplication investigation?

No, no, I'm not I'm not disrespecting. I'm just saying that there's no real way I can check, you know, because I leave at a certain time. I I'm not

duplicating is taking place. And when duplicating takes place, that means there's more than one. It may be two or three, Miss Tyler. Two, three, or four.

What? What is going on? What is going these are scenes. These are lines these actors memorized. They said them in front of Barry Levenson, the writer director, and he was like, "Yes, just like I wanted it. Thanks, guys."

And like that that's hearing these scenes without the visuals make it even crazier because it really is. It's like what is the purpose of that scene again? Something that doesn't come back. The duplication room, is it just word play? Is that what that why that funny?

I think that's what it is. I think that's it's just like it's meant to be funny word play.

Uh meant to be maybe. I don't know. I don't know cuz otherwise I don't know what the point of the scene is. His investigation never yields anything.

No. She never duplicates anything. No. And nobody duplication is not even like a thing in the movie.

And that by the way, you would think any of you would think anything would come back or they would use that duplication room at the end when they have the war of the bad toys and the good toys. There's so many things I also felt like were fixed in ADR too. Like they like there's one scene where Michael Gambon is out there talking to LL CoolJ and they're like having this heartto-heart and um he's talking about his dream to get children to fly airplanes and massacre people and that would be the new military and he's doing this in passion speech and then all of a sudden these flares start going off in the sky.

Not only do flares go off but then we lose them in the sound mix completely. SO GAMBON'S GOING in the background and there's flares from nobody and there's smoke and he's on a it's the weirdest staging.

He's clearly not launching those flares flares coming from and then all of a sudden you hear like this 80 yard line from Robin Williams like always carry a flare. It's like wait he WAS SHOOTING IT WHERE WAS HE? HE wasn't even in this.

No no no wait I thought Michael Gamon 80 yard that line. No Michael Robin Williams says a flare line underneath it. No.

So Robin Williams I rewound it. So like in my mind it was like oh he's also in the field shooting flares.

No I thought oh whoa that's weird cuz you would see No I thought it was Michael Gambon who had looped that. Oh that's

I'm like I'm like 90% cuz I rewinded cuz it's like cuz I I rewind it cuz I was like where are these flames coming from? Cuz you would show him shoot gun.

I saw I thought the exact cuz I thought in my mind I was I thought they were fireworks.

Yes. That's why I thought there was because he's like giving this like big impassion kind of rah rah rah military speech and fireworks start going off and I was like, "Oh, okay."

So, there's fireworks going off. Well, maybe a bit maybe this is just a bit of I'll you know what in this [ __ ] movie I'll buy a bit of of magical realism. Whatever. I don't what I don't know what's happening. So, WHY WOULDN'T there be fireworks? And then somebody I thought Michael goes always carry a flare gun or whatever. And I was like whoa whoa wait. See, like I I like to me I thought that was like the they were bridging the date scene with Robin Williams and Robin Wright Penn. They were going to go back over to them because they were out in the field. I don't know. Um but there's also just moments like I mean Robin Williams also is I mean there's so many things about this movie.

I I have a question. The scene early on where they're all working and you see the factory floor and they play that awful Tory Amos song

that they're all dancing to. Yes. So, they're obviously listening to it on the factory

and they're singing along. And they're singing along. So, then when Michael Gambone takes over, suddenly there's the hip-hop remix of that song.

Are they playing that in the factory, too? And is that to let them know that he's now a bad guy and that everything has changed and it's awful?

I'm assuming. Yeah. How weird is that? Because those people are all singing along in the beginning with that song, which I thought was very strange.

So, he actually went in himself, remixed the song that they listened to, and then started playing that on the factory floor.

Well, as much that's Yeah. Go ahead. as much as he got them to make a camouflage clown costume for him as well because he also went from being a military he outfitted all of his people to be like pretend Nazis and then he put on a like a colorful military man outfit.

He's got like a Yeah. He's he's got like fatigues that are the the camouflage colors are bright poppy toy colors.

Yes. like we've seen those conversations then if we had to watch terrible conversations why not those at least

I mean because he I mean and because also it also goes against everything that he's setting up because when you're in his office his office is taking out all the color and putting up stark black and white almost propaganda like images in his office of war but then he's in this colorful thing and he's running over people. Do you want to hear the happy worker song for a second? We'll just hear a second of it. wish.

So that goes on for like 4 minutes. It goes on for like 4 minutes and this is what everybody this the presumption because then you see people singing along with it on the factory floor. The presumption is this plays all day. Yeah.

Constantly there. It it is like it is like a weird FA Schwarz world. And these people and by the way these people are coming in workers don't live there. They're coming in cuz that's when they take over the factory, they're being scanned and outfitted and everything like that. So yeah, they're going insane. This is an insane asylum. Like this is that they get paid to go to every day.

Yeah, they're going there. They're like, I got to go to [ __ ] work. I got to sing that song all day and then have an applesauce sandwich.

I got to make I'm going to kill myself. You said FAO Schwarz. How much do you want to bet when Robin Williams delivers that FAO Schwarzoff line? What do you bet Barry Levenson was high-fiving himself? That was like that was that line is you're like the whole thing exists for that line. It's so not worth it.

It's the longest drive possible to get there. Schwarz. Well, I do want to bring up if I if you know, Drew, you might actually run into J.J. Abrams. So, I think this is a great chance for you to ask him, did he steal that Mission Impossible 4 gag from this movie?

I was going to say it's the hallway gag is exactly like the one in the last movie. It's just that there's the good version that doesn't somehow involve a terrible music video.

Basically, all right, here's the plan. Why don't the Okay, let's you explain it and then I've got real questions. Robin Williams, the MTV logo.

Oh, the MTV logo. And Robin Williams needs to break into the bad guys side of the factory cuz he's taking over the factory slowly but surely. And they come up with an idea that they just go, "Ooh, MTV." But that's the answer. How are you going to get in? They're asked, "How are you going to get into the restricted area?" MTV. What? Now, by the way, also going against the morals of these characters because you wouldn't think that these characters are watching MTV. We haven't even seen a television.

Never. So, they create an elaborate thing where they just like Mission Impossible 4 set out a screen in a hallway um where the security hallway is and anyone can help me out to describe this. And then they are broadcasting a video on that screen. But to dist what this is all to distract the security camera which they have planted a fake MTV logo on. So we would say like security security.

So like the two guys the two guys who are sitting at the security desk are looking at a bank of monitors. You don't realize one of them suddenly changes completely.

And the one that the monitor that is for the restricted area suddenly is MTV. Just suddenly has an MTV logo on it. It's changed.

Must be MTV then. Must be MTV. And they go I guess it's part of the cable. And the other guy goes, "We have cable

now." Meanwhile, again, what? These are security cameras. These are not broadcast. This is not These are not TVs.

If you were at your If you were at your cubicle right now and listening to this, just imagine all of a sudden someone just putting an MTV logo on the bottom of your computer. You would not be confused that your computer is no longer.

You wouldn't look at a a thing, a screen you've looked at for a long time. You wouldn't look at it and be like, "Huh, MTV,

this is MTV now." So, that was their big plan to create an MTV music video. Now, here's my version of that plan, which is just bypass the chords and broadcast the signal on it. That is MTV. No, they're doing A LIVE MTV MUSIC.

I GOT A BETTER ONE for you. Then they got in front of the screen to perform instead of using that time to sneak into something.

It's Robin Williams. It's Robin Williams and Joan Cusk. two people who are they're perform they're performing as Yolanda and somebody else Yolanda and Steve

Yolanda and Steve is the name of that group gave himself I'm sure they're performing their hit song whatever and the two security guards are into it and they don't seem to recognize that the two people who are the owner's son and daughter who ARE THE THE TOP TWO most important people at this company are Yolanda and Steve they never SAY LIKE HEY ISN'T THAT What's his name? And who's Muzzi?

There's only two people that are It would be like I was thinking I wrote this down. It would be like if Obama put on a red hat. You're like, "Oh, who's that gentleman singing on MTV?" Obama. HE CAN DO ANYTHING DIFFERENT. EVERYONE KNOW WHO THESE PEOPLE ARE.

They are they are the head the figureheads of this company. Now I want to This is what I want to try and explain. Okay. So, so, so when they push the screen in front of um they push the screen in front so that that the so that they can mask what they so they can go behind a door behind them, right?

Yes. And when they push the screen in front, the first image that's projected onto the screen is a mirror image of the door of the hallway and the door. So, it looks unchanged. Now,

that and that's by the way the Mission Impossible version just now rather than just leave that. So when the guys look at the camera, what they're looking at is the the same security feed and it looks fine. They could have gone and done way more super sleuththing and spine. They take 10 minutes to perform an MTV style music video

that would have never played on MTV. That would have never played on MTV that MTV would never be on THE SECURITY. LEAVE THE FIRST THING WITH THE DOOR IMAGE BY [ __ ] IDIOT. They have figured out that much of the technology to already get away with it.

Yeah. and that they got to help themselves. They're like, I want to It must have taken them days to make that music video. Ridiculous.

All those visuals and all the special effects. By the way, again, I will point out I will trump your thing and say or we've already talked about it, WHICH IS THEY PERFORM IT LIVE. They they shouldn't have done that. They should have just if they wanted to do the projection, the MTV plan, if we if we agree that the MTV plan was a solid one,

they should have just projected the video. and by the way had other videos to follow it. They they basically had one video and Robin Williams and Joan Cusack are both heavily involved in that video. Then he has to wait.

So they don't have time to go AND SPY. HE'S GOT LIKE 12 seconds of workable time to get out and get inside.

She has a guitar solo. Let's let's let's hear a little bit of this song just so you get a taste of it. These are the people you haven't even met. Looking forward into the old days.

You don't need to hear more about that. THAT'S A REAL SONG in the movie. IT GOES ON FOR AGES. IT'S EVEN CALLED back later when other security guards are watching it. Jamie Fox is watching it and they're like, "Where'd you get that?" And they're like, "Oh, we taped it off of a security feed FROM AN OLD WHAT?" SO, by the way, these guys are taping security feeds and just passing them. No, this is a viral video.

This invented viral videos only at Zebo Factory. By the way, I will buy that when when they wrote this originally in 19 Well, I guess it would be 1980. This would have been a video that played in 1980 MTV. So, that I guess that makes sense. But 1992, I mean, this is on the ver actually grunge. We're in grunge era at this point. We're in

Oh, yeah. We're past Nirvana. Yeah. Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins, that's all 91. Um, can we talk about Randy Quaid who pops up in the movie for a scene and a half?

Wait, I missed it. Where? Randy Quaid pops in in the room when he's shooting the gun at his foot.

That's Wait, no. No. You know who that is? That's Blake Clark. Oh, okay. Good. I'm sorry. All right.

And that I think some of his earliest work he was cast as military cuz he was Blake Clark used to be military.

Okay. Okay, good. Cuz I was like I I thought the was Randy Quaid just around that day. Oh, get in there. Oh,

get in there. Get in there. Do this scene, Quaid. Get in there. And the scene, if you're talking about the scene with the fly right?

Yes. Another scene. How does that connect to anything? Isn't this guy a three star general?

Yes. Yes. This guy actually made it to three star general and yet he's dumb enough to shoot his own foot to try and kill a fly.

No, [snorts] he's going And by the way, at that point in the movie, he's going crazy.

Oh, yeah. Um because you have the two-minute opera scene first, but there is also where he's singing along to the opera. There's also no reason for him to really go crazy because I guess he has he basically has a plan to meet up with the the military, pitch this idea of children killing people.

Yeah. Children operating remote controlled like toys that are actual killer drone weapons.

Meanwhile, Jamie Fox and his partner are watching on in a van where they're they're basically 3D and their skeletons. That's odd. Uh I won't get into the fact that

Also, there's a sea monster. Also, they've invented a sea monster. The sea monster. Yeah, we got to know. Got to get to that sea monster.

Don't know. There's But if you're wondering if there's a sea monster in this movie, there is. Yep.

Um and and we're not even quite Yeah, that sea. All right. So, the he he pitches the idea to the government. The government goes, "Ah, we got to think about it." To which immediately he starts choking this man. Yes.

Choking him and trying to kill him. But that that psychotic break seems to be not really um founded in any way. Like he's only been successful. It looks like these kids are doing a great job at killing people.

Um, everything seems according to plan. But when you talk about them being on the spectrum, that scene where he goes to see Jack Warden, which by the way is saddest, creepiest use of Jack Warden between the first one and then the last one where he just pops up and goes war.

That is so upsetting if you ever like Jack Warden ever. Oh yeah. But yeah, that that whole scene he's playing it like he's an infant. Like he's

Oh, like he's a little boy like having a temper tantrum. It is so strange the way they do that. Is that on purpose? Like everybody's supposed to be a kid.

But that's the thing. They aren't though. Like sometimes they aren't like that. It the it fluctuates from scene to scene.

What about Debbie Maer? Debbie Maer. Can we talk about Debbie Mer's character both the dad [ __ ] both the military dad and his son Jamie Fox?

Well, but no, no. sonj loo hinges on the idea that he figures out that he [ __ ] his dad that she [ __ ] his dad and that's why he finally helps the good guys

because they're right he tells him that his dad killed his dad is responsible for killing his mom by sending mom

have appendicitis right disguised as Jane it is but that never would have happened if she hadn't made the mistake and said oh yeah I [ __ ] your dad too

well yeah I that's like that coincidental like everything hinged on this one he's like just about to have sex with her and she calls him the wrong name, which I feel like is such a movie trope. I

can everybody write in and say on the message boards or whatever, have you called someone or had someone call you the wrong name during sex?

Yes. I I buy that. That is just in movies and and that is and that moment that basically hinges that if that moment doesn't happen,

none of the ending does. None of the ending does. Yeah. None of it does. Oh, no. because that's the only thing that drives LL Cool J to help the to help the Robin Williams gang

and help him he does by basically saying we'll we'll have a a war we'll have a war of toys

because it's BASICALLY AT THIS POINT the movie turns into like good guys versus bad guys like a kids game except that there's real stakes because all of the bad guys toys have real guns in them like there's a little a little doll that pushes a little baby in a carriage and then the baby's bottle raises up and is a sick shooter and starts shooting at them

and then where would that and Joan Cusack goes that's a bad baby like you were almost just killed. I thought that Joan Cusack was sick the entire movie. We'll get to what she

You said that in the mini episode. I said I think the sister's sick and I started laughing. I'm like oh he hasn't watched it again.

No, she's cuz she's like so like I was like oh she's going to be No, we'll tell you what she is in a second. Um,

that fight sequence is 40 minutes from when they decide to go to war to when they stop the war. Oh, yeah. After that insane plane sequence, it's 40 solid minutes.

And and of a 2-hour long movie, a two plus hour. Yeah, I feel like I fast forwarded through part of that.

The I that that end sequence. Yeah. I couldn't deal with it. I was uh cuz I legitimately was like, "What the [ __ ] is this?"

I was playing a little bit of Simpsons stabbed out during some of I was like uh the uh I will say that the again the conceit of this is an interesting conceit which is kids uh uh flying drone ships and and killing because they're really good at video games. Oh. Oh, we didn't talk about it when he goes to the video arcade. Uh

oh, the general the general goes to a video arcade in one part of the movie and like he's Oh, what are these video games? And he starts playing a video game and like oh you have to help protect the UN trucks. Yeah, you have to shoot tanks and don't shoot the UN trucks.

And he just started shooting the UN trucks cuz he hates the UN. Yeah. And he's super awesome at this game.

He's got the the spit on his chin the whole time. Like Michael Gambone was so disturbing in his career before this. When you look at the cook, the thief is white or the singing detect or Yeah. Any like he was so disturbing. The idea that they cast him in a comedy was like somebody had an aneurysm while they were in the casting process. I this whole movie is weirdly I mean and this truly is like and I don't have any answers like I this really is how did this get made like this is a true like there's plenty of movies we do that I'm like I get it I get why this got made I get what the it's a failure or it's a mess or whatever but I genuinely look at this movie and I'm like I don't know why three words I know how it got made.

Oh really? Oh wow my gosh. Good Morning Vietnam. Oh really? because they had just done a comedy that was set in an active war with Robin Williams and Barry Levenson. It was a huge critical hitting commercial and they said now I can finally make my dream movie. Got it. But dream movies almost always blow by the time they finally made it. So because people have overthought them and they've had them bouncing around their heads for so long

or it's a movie that there is a dream but everybody thought it was bad so people were like no we're not going to do this. Let's do that other movie you want to see.

Wait. No wait no let me talk to you about this. All right. So, Good Morning Vietnam was 87, right? Yep.

Then he did Rainman, then he did Avalon, then he did Bugsy, and then he did Toys.

Yep. Really? Yes. Oh, I would That's interesting. I was building clout. Like he he such a role at that point. And then he finally got to say, "Here's this thing that's been in my drawer.

I'm going to do this now." And I want Robin because Robin and I can do this. We can pull this tone off.

And now here's the thing. Like he made Wag the Dog in 97, which is a funny commentary on war. and politics because it knows something about war. This movie it's like he doesn't even understand the army. How is LL CoolJ who's evidently active military hanging around and [ __ ] off with his dad and nobody cares and it's he doesn't it's like he doesn't get how the army works. So why would you try to make a military satire?

Well, and I feel like people are going it's like strange love. It's like strange love or like that's what like but it's like no no no no no. This is not This is not uh

Strange Love is about how the reality is so [ __ ] crazy that it's hilarious because everything in that movie is real. Everything.

And this movie is just It's sort of like the most um And this movie is like what if hilarious was reality.

It's like the opposite of that. Well, I was saying like I wrote like it's like a psychiatric ward put on a show and it was like exactly it's just it has those feelings like and then we'll talk about an applesauce sandwich and then then we'll have the duck and he'll fire weapons because again the the toys that he's setting up

are they make sense. The drones make sense but the baby carriage with the machine gun. Where is that going?

Um we're going to take a quick break. We'll be right back to talk more about this war scene.

So anyway, they decide that the only way to win this war of the toy factory is to have toys verse toys and Robin Williams must uh I guess empower the toys which we didn't really realize are alive.

No, it gives them the patent Henry V speech and it's insane. Let's take a listen to this speech and I left the whole thing in because it's

plug please. It's so worth it. In four stores, many Christmases ago, my father brought forth a factory conceived in innocence and joy, and squeezable fun for everyone. But today may be beginning of the end or the end of the beginning, beginning of the beginning. And when you go fourth today or fifth depending on your order in line, we are here today to put you in harm's way because we determine today in this warehouse the future of toys as we know it.

Trying to imagine what toys and being excited. Oh god, we done. Trying to imagine being like junk like a Robin Wright and having to do take after take of this while he just does this. faces and all that.

I mean, and by the way, this is a man speaking to toys that we have never set up in this whole movie have any life or personality to.

And I don't think by the end we're supposed to believe that either. I think it literally is just he gives a rallying speech to toys that they wind up and push out.

Yep. That's all it is. And then when you watch those toys, they get decimated like Saving Private It's like Saving Private Ryan without the emotional stakes because you're watching like heads get blown off like little football men just getting destroyed. Ultra violent. It's ultraviolent, but yet again, no one is really The toys are getting hurt.

Yeah. I don't know. It's the lowest stakes war humanly imaginable. So, the war scene is getting out of control at this point. Uh, dolls are dying. The sea monster's been activated.

Oh, and the sea monster cuz we want to talk about the sea monster, too. Um, well, I don't know. We should talk about Alise. Uh, what Alice say? Is that how how you say your name? Uh Jung Cusack.

Oh. Oh. What? I guess basically the war is almost over and then um Junk Cusack gets uh hurt um and we find out that Junk Cusk is a robot.

Yes, Junk Cusack [clears throat] is a robot. I'm saying that again. You thought in the movie that she was just kind of a fragile kind of autistic maybe like on the spectrum kind of oddball girl. A sheltered kind of homebody. Um, nope. Total robot.

A robot. She's a robot. No, no, no. I just I just need people who are listening to the podcast

to know. Just take it in. the Joan Cusack character who's been one of the main charact we've seen eat multiple sandwiches. She's eating sandwiches with vitamins in them which she did say though they go through the system.

She said they see they easily go through my system which now means something. She's an godamn robot. Which by the way, here's the other thing. Everyone knows

everyone knew that she was a robot but us, the audience was like, "Oh yeah, she's a robot. My dad created her for me because my mom died early. Wait, wait, wait. Okay. Like, like this.

How is this possible? AND AND HOW IS THIS? NO, NO, NO. HOW IS IT POSSIBLE? WELL, THAT'S THE QUESTION.

SHE CAN'T GROW. Have they been building a new robot every year that's a little bigger?

But no, because LL CoolJ goes, it looks like she's always been the same age. That's creepy.

That's insanely creepy. So, when he was like 10, he had a 30-year-old sister. Yeah. I mean, what the [ __ ] IS GOING ON?

AND AND BY THE WAY, their relationship is he takes care of her. Yeah. Which you would THINK WOULD BE THE OPPOSITE.

You know, he doesn't have a mother. Let me build him something that's going to be a burden and responsibility for the rest of his life.

It's some next level craziness when that is revealed. It makes when her absolutely it's infuriating. When her head came off, not only did I stop it, but then I had to like go, wait, wait. I rewound it again because the crazier thing about her head falling off is no one reacts to it as if like, "Oh my god."

Yeah. They go, "Oh, wow. Okay, it's over there." And oh, and by the way, there here's You want to take out the stakes of it? It's fine. We just rebuild her.

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And and if that's the case, why not send her into war immediately?

YOU KNOW, like why protect her? Why not just be like robot go? She gets taken out like a wimp. She gets taken out by just a stray bullet to the head. She should have done much something. She should have like touched electrical equipment. She should have done something powers.

Yes, she's a robot. Why doesn't she have strength? Why doesn't she have why why

cuz she's not getting the applesauce sandwiches. She needs that for the proper strength. and and and and okay, so she gets her head blown off and at which point uh Michael Gambon right runs away to be kind of targeted by this sea monster that has like a robot.

It is the weirdest. They never remotely explain the explain slug thing. It the sea slug. We don't know really what it is, but it

it's a defense mechanism, but you have to fall into a hole. You have to fall into a pit of water that nobody would fall into. having it there to monitor it and then they would eventually unleash it on people in the in the society like almost like um and my this is how I drew it that it was like a dolphin like one of those dolphins that finds minds but it is actually a dolphin that is like a mine that's how I kind of thought

you gave it more thought than they did you really thought this out way more thought than they gave

I was just trying to make up for monster oh nice call that's good good but that is really what I did think uh the um but that that sea monster is loose at a certain point and he on land of course

on land of course and he's targeting uh the bad brother and he's like targeting targeting so he's part robot the sea monster too the sea monster I guess is a toy

and and uh I don't think so I think it's like a war thing and then he quotes the day the earth stood still at it

to get it to stop but then the screen just goes to white it still fires and it looks like it kills him

right and so you think he's dead until the very next scene when you're like, "Oh, that's kind of crazy." Like they the movie kills two characters and they then they immediately take that back and they go, "Well, no, they're both not

everybody's fine." Yeah. JK guys. JK. And not only are they not only are they fine, but he's now next to his dad, Jack Warden, in the bed, and they're both in the military hospital, which is just in a room in the house,

and uh with Debbie Mer, and he's kind of now gone like full like he's moved up on the spectrum.

Super. So that's the rest of his life now. What a horror movie ending that is. So

he's in that bed and it's just a a conveyor belt of like little action figure or warman figurines coming across.

So upsetting. This movie is a [ __ ] And then they have a happy Christmas song again. And a happy Christmas

just to make sure that they leave you on some weird note of So has a year passed in this movie?

Yes, I believe a year has passed. Everything is back to normal again. Um, and Joan Cusack has still got some learning to do.

It's a bummer. It's a movie. Bummer. Thanks a lot, Drew. The crazy thing is I know people who defend this and I have a defended

I have a theory that any movie that was on HBO constantly when you were between the age of 8 and 12, you think is great

because it's Stockhold. We got we saw it over and over and over. I encountered that Spice World was one of those movies that really people reflect and you're like, "Oh my god, my skull wasn't hard yet. What was wrong with me at that age that I love this?"

Well, I mean, again, I remember laughing at like LL CoolJ thought he was really funny. I don't remember any of this other plot. I I don't remember the toy fight. I don't remember uh you know, but I mean, man, there was there anything that we didn't cover that I'm just looking through my notes. I wrote at one point, "My pen is breaking. I'm taking so many notes." Uh because they were just like

I did too. I took tons of notes on this just because you Oh, see I didn't take barely any notes because I started taking notes and then I was like, "Fuck this movie."

Um I do want to I do want to tell you, well, let's I do have some information. I owe you at some point.

You you do. Godamn I'm glad that you you brought it to our attention. Uh we needed to see it. This is the one movie that on Twitter I've gotten the most negative response to by people like, "Why are you making me watch it with screen grabs of the movie? It has been so great to watch that come out." Um,

considering what you've shown, that's that's a high high endorsement. Yes. Well, it was easy to get. Now, obviously, we had an opinion about this movie, but there are other people who have uh they think it's a little bit better, and this is now time for a second opinion.

Second opinion. opinions. Okay, here we go. There are so many good ones. I may just read you samplings from them. This one is from Brit Sharonhousen and he says, "I describe this movie as whimsical." That's a nice way of saying that most people won't like it. You're definitely not going to like it if you have no imagination or you expect your movies to make sense. Like any work that strays far from the mainstream, it's going over the top sometimes. But let that slide and enjoy the bits that do catch your fancy.

Wow. Five stars. Five stars. What? Come on, man. How about this one from Adele Thompson Tinky uh from New Jersey. She writes, "I like the scenes." She spells scenes sens.

Wow. I like the scenes that they do in the movie is good. Wait, what? Yep. Oh, that's real. I'm reading it real.

Um, I like the scenes they do in the movie is good. Like how they made this big room with all these toys. I'm not talking about the story line. I like this movie for ideas. I saw the buggy and horse that have Ken and Barbie on it in Disney World. It displayed in the Cinderella castle and I remember when I just turned 17 then. I have a good memory.

Whoa. Five. Five out of five. There's a lot going on in that review. Is it Disneyland? 17.

That might have been that might have been someone that worked at Zeo. Oh boy. Um and these are now I'm just going to um Okay, this is another one. Possibly the only film next to Peter Sellers's The Mouse That Roared. This has to be the most ingenious film of all time. It's simply a shame that they have yet to release it on DVD, yet they carry all of Adam Sandler's films. That should tell us something about the intelligence and sophistication in America. Oh well.

Wow. Oh well. Well, I guess I just have to buy another copy of this film and press it to DVD myself. Uh, right. So, that means

that it inspires that much passion. Seriously, I'm going to make the DVD. And you know what? [ __ ] you, Sandler.

The only Let me let me make sure to get a slam in on Adam Sandler here. Also, she's been watching the VHS so much he's got to buy another copy. The only trouble with this film is that since Barry Levenson took his time writing it, it shows wit and compassion on so many levels that I doubt the average American intellect could understand the film. Most people in that I enjoy being around find this to be one of the funniest films in existence. Five stars.

Oh my god. And I just wrote these are two more that are good. Imagine what if you were like on a date with somebody and they were like, you know what my favorite movie is? Toys. I would straight up punch that girl.

You go base first. You first you go, oh Toy Story. Yeah, I love Toy Story. Oh, me too. I love toys. Toy Story, too.

Toys. What? Toys? I believe in the state of California, you could shoot somebody.

Totally just uh Curling River says, "The war between the good toys and the war toys is heartbreaking and oddly very realistic." No. No. And no. Five stars there. And finally, and I know I'm reading a lot, but

airplane that looks like it's badly blue on. Oh god. This is my one of my favorites here, too. Um, okay. This is the best from Gilbert G. Gilbert. I'm not a fan of rap by any means, but I really got a kick out of LL CoolJ's performance, and it's fun to watch his character develop into a toy factory loving guy. Robin Williams brilliant as always, and the rest of the cast is enjoyable as well. I think the most important scene in this movie is definitely the fake vomit testing room that turns into a potentially deadly crossword puzzle.

Wow, that's a totally different read than I had. That is the most important scene. That scene feels like they went in for re-shoots like [ __ ] Um, we didn't have anything. We need a scene where you guys just improvise about fake vomit for 5 minutes. Like

that scene actually I did enjoy forever. I mean, we have that on tape, too. But they basically just

I like when the guy goes, "Oh, that's diarrhea. That shouldn't be in here." They sit around a fake V. Oh, that's our Wolf Gang Chuck. That's our Maui Heave. And we need to add fake carrots in there. And then the room is basically coming in on them. Uh because as they expand, I guess the walls are flexible in this world.

Oh yeah, because the cafeteria walls more room. Yes. Yeah. Um guys, Drew, I appreciate you bringing this to our attention. I I

don't Drew because you and I are enemies. That's fine. I do believe though that this is if we had to vote on it, this is the number one movie of How Did This Get Made? Because it really How would you sell it? How would you pitch it? And I think you're right. The only way you could have done it is based on Barry Levenson was just hitting them out of the park. Yeah. Boom. Consistent, consistent, consistent. And then it was like, and this is my dream pro. Like, do you know you you probably have a a memory of this. What are some other like of these dream projects that have gone horribly wrong? Like, are there any that come to mind?

Oh, man. Um it's uh not a not a fan, but yeah, it's one of those things that it's almost always a red flag when you hear a filmmaker say I've for 20 years this has been the thing that I've wanted to make and they make it finally.

Yeah. Uh it just seems tough. I want to see because like James Cameron also talked about Avatar and writing it and they weren't ready for it. But like I want to see Barry Levenson throughout those 12 years like taking that script out of the shelf, you know, off the end the drawer and going, "Okay, let's get back into it. I think we need a fake vomit scene. I did some good work on toys today.

It was him and his wife at the time, Valerie Curtain, who was his coowwriter for like And justice for All and Old Friends and there was a whole series of things and then he went off and started making movies and just kind of held on to it as his thing that I wonder if she saw the final film and was recognized anything that they

That'd be interesting. Yeah. I would love to hear Barry Levenson talk about this movie cuz I don't think he has. I

was it received well? No, no, it wasn't. Right. It vanished quickly. Yeah, it was it was

How much did it cost? It It actually cost quite a lot. I'll tell you right here. Here we go. The movie uh the movie the budget was $43 million which in 1992 was a lot of money.

That's a lot of money. And especially a movie that's pretty much all on sets. It's it's not you know and it uh it only made $23 million.

That's worldwide. That's worldwide. Really? Worldwide. Wow. This was between Aladdin and Miss Doubtfire. Oh, he was as hot as hot got at that moment.

Holy cow. And again, when you see that and and the way I mean the the the tagline for the movie is laughter is a state of mind. It's everything about it is making you go, "This is fun."

Yeah. As I as I'm looking at this poster right now on online, I'm going I think my dad had this on laser disc cuz I think he was like, "You like Robin Williams? We'll watch this."

Oh, funny. And Yeah. And I I remember just like maybe it's adult. I don't get it.

Uh but uh I mean I remember I did I I think I saw this in the theaters. I'm I mean I was 20 at the time. So

yeah. Wow. Wow. Wow. I want to get if anyone knows Barry Levenson and you I would love to hear him speak about this movie cuz I feel like now with perspective

I I wonder if he defends it. He did win was nominated for best Rzzy award and the movie won was up for an Oscar for best art direction which it should have been. Great beautiful visually beautiful. If a painting came to life, you wouldn't want to see it. That's how I describe toys. Thank you guys so much for listening. Uh, as always, uh, you can uh you can check us out in in all different ways. Drew, uh, what what's the best way people can see you and check out your stuff.

Uh, they can follow me at drew hitfix on Twitter or um, hitfix.com is the website where I uh, review films and write about everything that's in production.

And I got to say that is uh, there are many sites out there and that site is is a great site. I love the iPad app for it. I uh, I'm a fan. I am a fan of that site and you guys do great stuff there. If you have not checked out that site, check out that site. Uh you can follow Jason, you can follow me on Twitter, Paul Shear. Jason.

Yeah. No, no, you can't follow me on Twitter. Of course not. You guys know better.

And um Jason and I are in the league. Uh this week on the league, Dirty R Dirty Randy and Rafie have their own adventure.

The whole episode. This going to be crazy. None of the characters from the league are in it. It is a solo adventure of those two characters. Check that out Wednesday 10:30. And as always, oh actually very big week for NTSF, our London episode. We went to London. We shot in London with amazing people. Anthony Stewart Head, Julian Barrett, Colin. Yeah. Giles. Colin Salmon. Uh Saskia Reeves from Luther. Amazing. Amazing people. We doing We're doing a half hour long episode all in London. Check that out. Adult Swim Thursday night. Please watch that. It starts at midnight this week.

And also, this show would not be complete without thanking everybody here at Earwolf. Give it up for our engineer, Frank Capella, who cuts this show. Does an amazing job every single week. and also all of the interns who have been working so tirelessly to help this out. They are Nathan Kylie, uh, Averil Hi, Katie Dyer, am I pronouncing that right? Katie, Lyanna Waldron, and Sonia Wiser. These people have worked their asses off to make sure that I have the most up-to-date info about these terrible, terrible movies. Thank you guys so much for all of your help, all of your creativity, and we couldn't do the show without you. Uh, all right. Thanks so much, and we'll see you next time.

Questions about this episode

Who speaks in "Toys w/ Drew McWeeny (HDTGM Matinee)"?

Drew McWeeny (Guest).

What is discussed in "Toys w/ Drew McWeeny (HDTGM Matinee)"?

In order: 0:00 Michael Gambon, HitFix, Toys; 5:00 Thomas Dolby; 15:00 Toys; 20:00 Michael Gambon; 35:00 Good Morning Vietnam; 45:00 Michael Gambon; 55:00 HitFix.

What is mentioned in this How Did This Get Made? episode?

6 people, works and ideas are mentioned, including Drew McWeeny, Michael Gambon, Good Morning Vietnam, HitFix, Thomas Dolby, Toys. Each one on this page links to its own page with every episode that mentions it.

How long is "Toys w/ Drew McWeeny (HDTGM Matinee)"?

The episode runs 59 min; the transcript is about 12,681 words in 302 timestamped sections.

More from How Did This Get Made?

About this transcript: the episode's spoken words as captioned on YouTube, split into timestamped sections. Reclip.Me locates every person, work and idea in the text, keeps the time it is first named, and quotes the words around it verbatim. Last updated January 24, 2026.