037 - Demolition Man (1993) Predicted the Future Better Than We Thought
Episode notes
Did Demolition Man (1993) call the future with swearing fines and Taco Bell fine dining, or does it only work because we were kids?
Everybody files this one under dumb 90s Stallone fun. Then you check the credits. The big rewrite came from Daniel Waters, the guy who wrote Heathers, who pitched it as an action version of Woody Allen's Sleeper and banged it out in two and a half weeks. That's how a movie with a 300-foot bungee jump out of a Chinook ends up with cops singing the Armour Hot Dogs jingle on patrol.
Behind the camera it was chaos. The 72-day shoot ran to 112, Lori Petty was fired after two days, and the budget swelled from $45 million to $77 million. It opened at #1 anyway and pulled $159 million worldwide. Ebert gave it a thumbs up, Siskel a thumbs down, and Sandra Bullock landed a Razzie nomination for the role that made her a star.
Now 2032 is six years away, and the jokes keep looking like forecasts. Video-screen bosses, no-touch greetings, a city that fines your mouth. The satire has aged better than anybody expected. The final-act brawl with Wesley Snipes? That's where the goggles come out. Jeffrey, Michael, Andy, and Mike (The Deuce) fight it out, then cast the vote. Be well, Nostalgia Hunters.
📖 CHAPTERS 📖
00:00:00 Intro
00:03:03 Who's seen it before?
00:06:23 What was COOL?
00:20:20 What was NOSTALGIA?
00:31:55 Sequel/Remake ideas
00:38:22 Cool vs. Nostalgia results
Is It Cool Or Just Nostalgia? dives into the ultimate pop culture debate: which classics are still cool today, and which only feel great because of childhood memories. From Ghostbusters, Star Wars, James Bond, and Super Mario to Star Trek, Marvel vs DC, Nintendo, retro arcades, and throwback songs of the 70s, 80s, 90s, and 2000s — we put every nostalgic favorite to the test. Each episode, hosts Jeffrey, Michael, Andy, and Mike (The Deuce) explore and debate a classic retro topic and votes: Cool or Just Nostalgia? Expect lively arguments on everything from classic video games and blockbuster movies to TV cars, comic books, and iconic songs. New episodes every two weeks — subscribe to join the conversation and cast your own verdict on pop culture history!
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