The thing about Jessy Isengard, he's got lifeless eyes, black eyes, like a doll's eyes. When he acts he doesn't seem to be livin'... until he overacts, and those black eyes roll over white.
Honestly, I think Channing Tatum probably would have done a better job as the main character. He's got good comedic timing, doesn't take himself seriously, and him being so buff would make the twist of "he's a sleeper agent!" so obvious it's actually funny. You'd have some ripped giant selling people slurpees.
I mean its fair. Most people say stomach ache to mean abdominal pain, when their intestines are hurting. Stomach and abdomen are interchangeable in common conversation, even if stomach is also the name for the organ
I rented this movie years ago, fell asleep almost immediately and didn't wake until the credits. And just returned the DVD to Redbox the next day. It did everything it needed to.
Max Landis complained later that this was marketed as a stoner comedy. Unfortunately the cast seemed to be under that impression too. Maybe the problem's with the script, Max.
I can't think of three people I'd be less excited to see on screen together than Jesse Eisenberg, Kristen Stewart, and Topher Grace. Certainly not for a full price ticket. Now, Rich Evans in Half-Ass Bad Ass? I'd happily see that.
The opening five minutes of this episode are SO GOOD. I've never laughed so hard before. I remember watching Half in the Bag pre-Movie 43 episode and wondering if Mike was ever going to break and laugh. Look at him now!
8:47 "can you imagine if The Dude suddenly became an action star?" Yes, I can. It's Steve Zissou when the pirates attack and Iggy Pop's "Search and Destroy" plays.
Max Landis doesn't understand how something works? Color me surprised. He definitely hasn't shown that repeatedly, especially when it comes to not abusing women.
+Jerry James That's a very apt description of him. Watching him through the entire BotW episode was a mix between second-hand embarrassment, him being a hamster on crack and the occasional funny or interesting line coming from him.
+bananian different context. he's OP but it's part of the story and he has a massive truggle and his life ruined because of his abilities. Rey is OP and just negates every other character's skills (why have other pilots in the movie like Poe and Han when Rey is better? why have Finn when Rey is better at fighting than him despite him being a soldier and even navigates his own base better than him? why have her go to Luke for training when she's already far better at using the Force than he was by the time he sought Yoda?) so Eisenberg's OP status is part of the plot and is used to move the plot forward, and his skills actually make his life far worse than it would otherwise be, giving him a huge uphill struggle. meanwhile Rey's OP status negates her own struggles, negates the point of other characters and their abilities, and makes everything low-stakes.
Especially considering that Jessie Eisenberg in American Ultra is literally an author-insert for Max Landis, and the term Mary Sue originated from Star Trek fan fic where the author essentially inserted themselves as the main character.
Basically that because they aren't "in the industry" their comments are opinions at best. He completely ignores their criticisms (especially the one about him refusing to take any blame in the critical failure), and simply cites their other reviews on other movies (the hobbit, Jurassic park, ect) as to the quality of their meager "opinion." Essentially, he takes everything he could possibly learn about why the movie tanked and just blocks it out of his mind with his ego, because if he disagrees with their "opinions" they must have little merit.
I love that trick where the badguy who's trained in professional killing approaches someone under cover with a ranged weapon, right fucking next to them rather than any amount further away where they could get off a clear and obvious killshot. Not infuriating in the slightest, and so goddamned subtle a cheat that I have never once noticed it.
I think the basic premise for this movie; average joe slowly discovers he's a brainwashed super badass secret agent killing machine, would have been an amazing idea for a Leslie Nielson movie.
Max Landis is a whiner. And here's the DEFINITIVE answer why: His entire line of argument is basically that there is no real reason for American Ultra to have failed so miserably, other than because it is an original movie (Max Landis on Twitter: "it has stars!~ it has [some] good reviews!~ it is a good movie!~ why did it fail? it makes no sense :'("). Therefore there is no point to writing original scripts anymore (unless you're Tarantino or Nolan), since they will probably fail. This is incorrect. 1. The film has an uninteresting title, uninteresting leads, uninteresting premise. So already we're off to a bad start. 2. Then it has pretty bad reviews. Max is trying to go the "glass half full" route, by saying half the audience and half and half the critics like it. But c'mon... 48% rotten with critics, 56% rotten with audience, B- cinemascore (which is awful in cinemascore terms unless you're making a film of high artistic caliber, which this is not). Sure that's better than Hitman's 8% and Sinister's 12%. But let's be real here. Why would the audience go to watch a rotten movie that half the audience hates, when they can go watch Straight Outta Compton (90%), Mission Impossible (93%), Ant-Man (79%), Man from Uncle (67%), Jurassic World (71%), or (another original film) The Gift (93%)? War Room (91% audience) and No Escape (72% audience) overcame bad reviews and American Ultra by being crowd-pleasers. So that's two more options for the audience to rather go to. 3. Sinister and Hitman overcame bad reviews and bad word of mouth by being a sequel/adaptation of something that people already like. This is how a lot of adaptations, sequels, prequels, reboots, etc manage to float by even if they suck. It was linked to something that they like. The point is... there has to be a reason for people to go see your movie. Either the title/premise should be something you want to see. Or the stars should be able to draw crowds (i.e. not Eisenberg/Stewart). Or it should be well-reviewed. Or it should be a crowd-pleaser even if it is disliked by critics. Even being obliquely related to something people like works as a draw (sequel, prequel, adaptation etc.) THERE HAS TO BE SOMETHING THAT APPEALS. With this movie, there was nothing that appeals. And that is why it failed. 4. So ultimately, his doomsaying that 'writing original films is a waste of time' is idiotic. Especially in an year when we HAVE had original hits like: Inside Out, Spy, Home, Trainwreck, Get Hard, San Andreas. And also had a recent high profile bomb like the adaptation/reboot Fantastic Four (which even piggybacked the Marvel name in the trailers), which also had the same problem of having no appeal to anyone. He just can't accept the fact that he wrote a film nobody wanted to see, so he's throwing a melodramatic tantrum about the state of cinema. You are never entitled to an audience. You have to earn one. You can either take the relatively easy way out by making an adaptation/reboot/sequel of something that's well-liked, or you can take the hard way, start from scratch and create something with fresh appeal. But if you take the hard way, don't fucking whine about it. NOTE: It goes without saying that just because a film is an adaptation/reboot/sequel doesn't mean that it will automatically be of poor quality (eg. Mad Max). And it also goes without saying that just because a film is original doesn't mean that it is automatically of good quality (eg. American Ultra). So Max Landis should really get off his "I had the audacity to make an original movie" high horse. Because his original movie sucked.
+Tim Jingoro Your third point makes me think of all the movies with Melissa McCarthy they cranked out after Bridesmaids. She was really funny in a movie and there was some joke about her being a secret agent, so they went with that idea and people were hooked by that. Eisenberg and Stewart aren't well known as either comedy actors or action actors, so you're completely bust in that department. In fact, is Stewart known as anything other than a girl who can't emote? I would think the only roles she'd get is stuff teenage girls want to see.
+NDfor SPDadsdas Yeah, that confused me for a while too, but when people say "original movie" what they mean is something not based on pre-existing material. So anything that is not a sequel, reboot or adaptation would be considered "original".
+Tim Jingoro Well said. Remember Jeff Who Lives at Home? That was an original piece of shit. I heard, I didn't see it because I wanted to see Argo. That sucked too.
+Tim Jingoro Well said. Remember Jeff Who Lives at Home? That was an original piece of shit. I heard, I didn't see it because I wanted to see Argo. That sucked too.
Thank you guys so much! Recently I've been so distraught over the horror that is Max Landis, and I have a friend who doesn't seem to understand what a dick Max Landis is. He tweets about how Hollywood is damaging the industry while he profits of the dismay he contributes to. So thank you, Red Letter Media. Thank you for calling him on his shit!
+jeff emerson He's too busy bitching about their old review of Chronicle on Twitter. Apparently, "found footage" was entirely his idea, since that's basically the only thing they complained about in that movie.
SV67943 Yeah, I think he said something on the line's of "They didn't love chronicle, they just said it's the bare minimum of a good film". I have no clue what he's on, but I'm kind of embarrassed to say I'm a fan of his now.
+jeff emerson So he basically wanted them to say "Chronicle is the apex of all films and Max Landis is a God who is better than Linklater without even taking 12 years to make something".
With all that crying from the director and writer it sounds awefully similar to the drama around the "Red Tails" release. Did they just pull a George Lucas?
What do Josh Tank and Floyd Landis have to complain about? Chronicle was a semi-original idea, well-reviewed, and financially successful. Not every movie you make is gonna be pure gold, guys.
If they had Michael Cera instead of Who Gives a Shit Eisenberg, it would be a little better. I always think of Jesse Eisenberg as Michael Cera but not funny and he thinks he's a serious actor.
I don't know why I'm writing this here, but that one Landis tweet about scale really made me want to rant. So he is really only comparing to the biggest movies. If you want to appeal to the broadest audience, you need the blandest product. McDonalds isn't the peak of culinary achievement, but it is the food that is most appealing to the largest group of people. If Landis is trying to complain that blandness has broad appeal, then he's pretty fucking late to the party.
Also, I kinda liked this movie. I felt like the absurdity of the violence was a part of the joke, making the movie a lot funnier, but then again I laughed like a child at Taken.
I love being an audience member watching this video and my brain automatically fills in a cheap word association joke and then the person in the video immediately fills in the same cheap word association joke. A fuckin Tone Lōc Jōc, amazing pull.
This isn't even original. I can think of two movies off the top of my head that had a similar theme of an everyperson suddenly having mad skills. Total Recall and The Long Kiss Goodnight. Yet I'm hearing in the comments that Max Landis, apparent whiner, is saying his movie was "original." My ass
+Son of Tiamat Alias. Chuck. Condorman. The New Adventures of Beans Baxter. Get Smart. Spy. Totally Spies! Jake 2.0. Greatest American Hero. Meteorman. My Own Worst Enemy. Psych. Just off the top of my head.
+Son of Tiamat (formerly known as tiakpark) Isn't American Ultra basically just a bad ripoff of the Bourne series of films? It's fine to explore new areas in a tired genre, IF you do it well, but to simply trot out the "Super Agent Reactivated!" cliche with such bad directing, casting, and writing is simply begging for your movie to be demolished by critics and fans alike.
+Son of Tiamat (formerly known as tiakpark) by original, he means not based on a book, tv show, video game, reboot or sequel. Nothing is ever truly original.
I think what Mr. Landis and Trank Stamp can take away from this is, just because your born into the industry, or you just so happen to be an industry darling, that fact alone does not entitle you to success. And I think this is probably hitting Max the hardest because of the fact that this is kinda his first industry stinker, cuz think about it, every film he's written pre-American Ultra has been received with mostly positive reviews but now that's he's more well known there's more weight to the decisions he makes as far as what kinds of films he makes. And his behavior on Twitter strikes me as someone who probably has never had his work vetted by his piers. So I consider myself to be a writer, I have written about three scripts but no one has ever read them because my daddy never worked in Hollywood *SHOTS FIRED* and I've been writing stories and scripts ever since I was a teenager, and during those years I remember getting into arguments with my friends about my ideas and how sometimes they thought my ideas sucked and looking back at those scripts 10 years later, I realize that those ideas did in fact suck. But it was that vetting period that helped me move on and grow as a writer and I have since put down the things of childish follies and moved on to write better more mature scripts. Landis has probably never done that, and considering the fact that he's of old blood makes me believe that he's probably gone his whole life just having everyone kiss his ass. And this nonsense about "Meh people don't like original Ideas!" give me a break! It's not like the guy was trying to make something like Jodorowsky's Dune, it's a fucking spy movie plot that's like something out of a Saturday morning cartoon. Go Fuck Yourself Maxie!
i made it through approximately an hour of american ultra. i gave up and came back to watch their review again. i should've listened to them the first time.
Comment section on every RLM video is: 1.YOU HACK FRAUDS!!! 2. It took twelve years to make 3. OHHHHHHHHH MYYYY GAAAAAAAAAAAWWD 4. It's so dense The fanbase is becoming more lazy then Mike and Jay! YOU HACK FRAUDS!!!
Max Landis should consider his "awe inspiring original idea" as nothing more than recycled spy garbage. This is original...? If he were a rapper he would rhyme garbage with larbage and call that shit fresh.
Did Max Landis really use Tarantino and Nolan as benchmarks for the success of original ideas? Unless my history is way off, it took damn near two decades for Tarantino to become a household name and before that he mostly had a cult following from a couple of very niche films. Even now, Tarantino's work is widely disliked by a LOT of people. And Nolan... I'm pretty sure Nolan didn't become a household name until The Dark Knight and Inception. Again, decades before he got big, mainstream recognition. Landis has been making stuff for what, ten years? If you count really minor shorts and shit in the earlier 2000s? He should be thankful he has the level of success he does in that short amount of time. Most creators' careers that have any sort of long-term fame to them take decades to get traction and even then, it's a slow build-up of recognition. I feel kind of bad for the guy cause it seems like he is expecting to become a household name by making a couple of decent films and that's just not how it works. That kind of "quick fame," when it happens, is not something you want because it doesn't last and people hold you to a standard befitting the position, before you're ready for it (see: J. K. Rowling - great book series, but her career as an author post-HP is largely a wash). The money is nice, I'm sure, but that level of expectation is a horrible position for a creator to be in, when they don't have the confidence of a long career to keep them on an even keel. Landis does not realize how shitty it would be.
I started listening to these reviews when I try to sleep, now I can't sleep without them. And I wake up having biases to movies. 10/10
Bryan Singer's Superman Returns is also good to watch when trying to fall asleep
You.. you are... me.
I watch them first thing in the morning right after or during breakfast...sometimes right before bed.
VariantNode
Lol same, even the ones I've seen already. Best routine ever! 👍xD
Helps me sleep with my depression right now.
Nothing better than genuine laughter from Mike.
Eh
Lights up my soul dude
@thequestion8697 eh
I would totally watch Half-Ass-Bad-Ass starring Rich Evans.
+Victor Yoon 2 and 1/2 hours of his laugh. No breaks. :D :P
Nope, it has to have Leo Fong reprising his role as Joe Wong from Low Blow. Along with his shitty car
+Victor Yoon The Blu-Ray should come with a special episode of Half in the Bag called Half in the Ass
They already made it, it's called Space Cop
The thing about Jessy Isengard, he's got lifeless eyes, black eyes, like a doll's eyes. When he acts he doesn't seem to be livin'... until he overacts, and those black eyes roll over white.
This is my favourite comment on UA-cam
You start kicking and hollering and screaming and sometimes Jessy goes away... sometimes he wouldn't go away.
The blackest Eyes…. The Devils eyes….
Ah yes jesse isengard, son of saruman isengard. My favourite orc actor
Bravo. Extra props for causing me to hear it in Robert Shaw's voice.
“A filmmaker should absolve themselves of any responsibility if their movie tanks.”
Oh Jay, you’ve unknowingly predicted the next Hollywood trend!
Only if the characters are women
Honestly, I think Channing Tatum probably would have done a better job as the main character. He's got good comedic timing, doesn't take himself seriously, and him being so buff would make the twist of "he's a sleeper agent!" so obvious it's actually funny. You'd have some ripped giant selling people slurpees.
@He-Man ! immediately 73% better as a movie. Even imagining it is more fun than watching the clips.
@He-Man ! plus the action scenes would make sense seeing as Channing could actually beat up another person.
🤢
And then he can take off his shirt and its gonna print money
Soooo Total Recall?
I'm so glad we're referring to Jay as Susan still. I hope this never goes away.
Stfu Xavier
instablaster
Who's Jay?
@@heatherperleberg7816 The child in the adult beard costume.
I’m Susan
Landis once tried to argue with me that the stomach is an area rather than an organ.
So, yeah, maybe ignore him.
The stomach is a social construct.
The stomach is a funnier character than we’ve had before
Jeez, don't ever explain to him what our skin is.
@@salvagemonster3612 The hammock district.
I mean its fair. Most people say stomach ache to mean abdominal pain, when their intestines are hurting. Stomach and abdomen are interchangeable in common conversation, even if stomach is also the name for the organ
Mikes laugh is like a diamond. Rare but precious
I rented this movie years ago, fell asleep almost immediately and didn't wake until the credits. And just returned the DVD to Redbox the next day. It did everything it needed to.
"We're gonna find Nima in his car with the gas running" Still crying with laughter. ;D
Max Landis complained later that this was marketed as a stoner comedy. Unfortunately the cast seemed to be under that impression too. Maybe the problem's with the script, Max.
Everyone who reads my script doesn't understand my vision. FFS Holly wood is so bad now
I can't think of three people I'd be less excited to see on screen together than Jesse Eisenberg, Kristen Stewart, and Topher Grace. Certainly not for a full price ticket.
Now, Rich Evans in Half-Ass Bad Ass? I'd happily see that.
I don't know why, but this is easily the most comfortable episode to rewatch for me.
For me it's the Ready Player One Half in the Bag Episode.
Watching this feels really different knowing that Landis has probably watched this review several times.
Feels even more different knowing that Max is a π@¶!$÷
"I wanted more of a spunky, funnier girlfriend character - who has some charisma or charm. Like a Chris Pratt."
That finding Nima riff is some of RLM’s best work ever
The opening five minutes of this episode are SO GOOD. I've never laughed so hard before.
I remember watching Half in the Bag pre-Movie 43 episode and wondering if Mike was ever going to break and laugh. Look at him now!
This video is now much funnier after their conversation with Max.
MUCH funnier.
And now?
@@McLovin1138 like the finest of wines.
Why what happened?
@@TheLakabanzaichrg Sex pest happened
@@TheLakabanzaichrg fake news got him canceled. Since he's an insufferable guy, losers who pray on other people's downfalls are running with it.
8:47 "can you imagine if The Dude suddenly became an action star?"
Yes, I can. It's Steve Zissou when the pirates attack and Iggy Pop's "Search and Destroy" plays.
You guys are joking about C.I.Gay, but I'm pretty sure that's on deck for Happy Madison in the next 10 years
I don’t know how I missed this one, but I can’t remember ever hearing Mike laugh this hard
Max Landis doesn't understand how something works? Color me surprised. He definitely hasn't shown that repeatedly, especially when it comes to not abusing women.
He'd prefer if you spelled it Colour
"The CIA operates like the mob in this movie" So just like in real life then.
@Up To The Wolves yes
Up To The Wolves you a real one
Nah, the mob cant give that much coke to inner city people
Like a cult
CIGay*
"Because I guess the word monkey, you can get a lot of comedic mileage just out of the word,"
Mmm.... _monke_
I love how they make each other laugh so much in this ep 😆
6 years later, this review still holds up
Any of their videos ever holds up.
Their The Force Awakens review kinda aged poorly but it is an insane nitpick, everything else is completely on point.
Hands down the best movie reviewers on youtube.
Thinking of the BOTW episode, Max Landis seems exhausting just to be around.
Gnarl Sagan Hes exausting just to watch
You can probably label Max as the 'constant talker' type of emotional vampire
+Jerry James
That's a very apt description of him. Watching him through the entire BotW episode was a mix between second-hand embarrassment, him being a hamster on crack and the occasional funny or interesting line coming from him.
@@heinzerbrew You mean "don't lock me in a coffin with them".
@@jerryjames4090 emotional vampire is such an apt description
ironic how the protagonist in this movie is a gary stu while max shits on force awakens for having a mary sue.
+bananian different context. he's OP but it's part of the story and he has a massive truggle and his life ruined because of his abilities. Rey is OP and just negates every other character's skills (why have other pilots in the movie like Poe and Han when Rey is better? why have Finn when Rey is better at fighting than him despite him being a soldier and even navigates his own base better than him? why have her go to Luke for training when she's already far better at using the Force than he was by the time he sought Yoda?) so Eisenberg's OP status is part of the plot and is used to move the plot forward, and his skills actually make his life far worse than it would otherwise be, giving him a huge uphill struggle. meanwhile Rey's OP status negates her own struggles, negates the point of other characters and their abilities, and makes everything low-stakes.
Especially considering that Jessie Eisenberg in American Ultra is literally an author-insert for Max Landis, and the term Mary Sue originated from Star Trek fan fic where the author essentially inserted themselves as the main character.
Phillip Morris joke was gold.
Mo
Mike's laugh can make your day.
"original ideas don't money". That's great.
I love the copy of “the day the clown cried” just sitting around like it wouldn’t be gold to actually have a copy.
I havent seen Mike and Susan laugh that hard in a long time!
"We'll talk later, Max" indeed, they did.
And now they just wish they hadn't.
we all wish they hadn't
?? Context?
"How do I use a guuun?! I'm a homosexual!"
Had to come re-watch this after their interview with Max Landis video that just went up.
Landis' tweets about RLM's review just shows that he cannot accept criticism.
Basically that because they aren't "in the industry" their comments are opinions at best. He completely ignores their criticisms (especially the one about him refusing to take any blame in the critical failure), and simply cites their other reviews on other movies (the hobbit, Jurassic park, ect) as to the quality of their meager "opinion."
Essentially, he takes everything he could possibly learn about why the movie tanked and just blocks it out of his mind with his ego, because if he disagrees with their "opinions" they must have little merit.
He and some of his supporters are talking shit about RLM fans as well. Assfucks
He ignores that they’ve made a fucking movie!
Max can't accept women saying no either :/
@@keepinpemdazaliv heyooo
I love that trick where the badguy who's trained in professional killing approaches someone under cover with a ranged weapon, right fucking next to them rather than any amount further away where they could get off a clear and obvious killshot. Not infuriating in the slightest, and so goddamned subtle a cheat that I have never once noticed it.
Mike's reading of those tweet was nothing but inspiring
You guys should really add a "blood alcohol content" meter on all your videos that tracks your drunkenness throughout the episode.
Beer counter? I'm down.
Yes
You just need to look at Mike
If mike is throwing around "cunty"s then we can assume he's shloshed.
Having just finished the last of my case I can now recognize the Spotted Cow bottles you guys are always knocking back.
Mike's twitter reading has to make it as a highlight
Wow. It's really nice to see just how much the two of you are enjoying yourselves in this particular episode.
+Fallen Prime They are drunk!
Daniel Rocha I mean, that goes without saying.
We need to get Max Landis working, because he's a funnier character than we've had before
I think the basic premise for this movie; average joe slowly discovers he's a brainwashed super badass secret agent killing machine, would have been an amazing idea for a Leslie Nielson movie.
literally you couldn't pick two actors with less charisma or humor with Stewart and eisenberg.ugh. destined to fail. can't stand either of them.
Why are they trying to push them so hard
'Max Landis: Maximum Whiner!'
The new completely original concept from the 100% original, one-man writing machine, Max Landis!!!!
Mike reading the whiny max Landis tweets are the funniest thing ever
This will always be a hysterical historical episode
the boys truly reveling in the failure of this abysmal shit pile brings joy to my cold, dead heart.
Would Max Landis ever have gotten off the ground if he wasn't the son of Landis Snr?
He's not the first disaster his dad was responsible for...
@Sh3p 83 -explain if you can- Nvm i read about the crash.
No
Max Landis is a whiner. And here's the DEFINITIVE answer why:
His entire line of argument is basically that there is no real reason for American Ultra to have failed so miserably, other than because it is an original movie (Max Landis on Twitter: "it has stars!~ it has [some] good reviews!~ it is a good movie!~ why did it fail? it makes no sense :'("). Therefore there is no point to writing original scripts anymore (unless you're Tarantino or Nolan), since they will probably fail. This is incorrect.
1.
The film has an uninteresting title, uninteresting leads, uninteresting premise. So already we're off to a bad start.
2.
Then it has pretty bad reviews. Max is trying to go the "glass half full" route, by saying half the audience and half and half the critics like it. But c'mon... 48% rotten with critics, 56% rotten with audience, B- cinemascore (which is awful in cinemascore terms unless you're making a film of high artistic caliber, which this is not).
Sure that's better than Hitman's 8% and Sinister's 12%. But let's be real here. Why would the audience go to watch a rotten movie that half the audience hates, when they can go watch Straight Outta Compton (90%), Mission Impossible (93%), Ant-Man (79%), Man from Uncle (67%), Jurassic World (71%), or (another original film) The Gift (93%)?
War Room (91% audience) and No Escape (72% audience) overcame bad reviews and American Ultra by being crowd-pleasers. So that's two more options for the audience to rather go to.
3.
Sinister and Hitman overcame bad reviews and bad word of mouth by being a sequel/adaptation of something that people already like. This is how a lot of adaptations, sequels, prequels, reboots, etc manage to float by even if they suck. It was linked to something that they like.
The point is... there has to be a reason for people to go see your movie.
Either the title/premise should be something you want to see. Or the stars should be able to draw crowds (i.e. not Eisenberg/Stewart). Or it should be well-reviewed. Or it should be a crowd-pleaser even if it is disliked by critics. Even being obliquely related to something people like works as a draw (sequel, prequel, adaptation etc.) THERE HAS TO BE SOMETHING THAT APPEALS.
With this movie, there was nothing that appeals. And that is why it failed.
4.
So ultimately, his doomsaying that 'writing original films is a waste of time' is idiotic. Especially in an year when we HAVE had original hits like: Inside Out, Spy, Home, Trainwreck, Get Hard, San Andreas. And also had a recent high profile bomb like the adaptation/reboot Fantastic Four (which even piggybacked the Marvel name in the trailers), which also had the same problem of having no appeal to anyone.
He just can't accept the fact that he wrote a film nobody wanted to see, so he's throwing a melodramatic tantrum about the state of cinema.
You are never entitled to an audience. You have to earn one. You can either take the relatively easy way out by making an adaptation/reboot/sequel of something that's well-liked, or you can take the hard way, start from scratch and create something with fresh appeal. But if you take the hard way, don't fucking whine about it.
NOTE: It goes without saying that just because a film is an adaptation/reboot/sequel doesn't mean that it will automatically be of poor quality (eg. Mad Max). And it also goes without saying that just because a film is original doesn't mean that it is automatically of good quality (eg. American Ultra). So Max Landis should really get off his "I had the audacity to make an original movie" high horse. Because his original movie sucked.
+Tim Jingoro Your third point makes me think of all the movies with Melissa McCarthy they cranked out after Bridesmaids. She was really funny in a movie and there was some joke about her being a secret agent, so they went with that idea and people were hooked by that. Eisenberg and Stewart aren't well known as either comedy actors or action actors, so you're completely bust in that department. In fact, is Stewart known as anything other than a girl who can't emote? I would think the only roles she'd get is stuff teenage girls want to see.
+NDfor SPDadsdas Yeah, that confused me for a while too, but when people say "original movie" what they mean is something not based on pre-existing material. So anything that is not a sequel, reboot or adaptation would be considered "original".
+Tim Jingoro Well said. Remember Jeff Who Lives at Home? That was an original piece of shit. I heard, I didn't see it because I wanted to see Argo. That sucked too.
+Tim Jingoro Well said. Remember Jeff Who Lives at Home? That was an original piece of shit. I heard, I didn't see it because I wanted to see Argo. That sucked too.
+Tim Jingoro #1) I'll agree with you about the Title. If you know about M K ULTRA the title will make sense, but many many more people don't.
I've never seen Mike laugh so freely and earnestly, more than just a chuckle, as here!
Oh my god Mike can fucking laugh??
There already is an animated series about a half assed badass. It's called Archer and it manages to combines dark comedy and action well enough.
Why do I have the feeling that Max Landis is going to show up in a future episode of this show?
+Benjamin Hedrick Well he is a fan of them, so there's that.
+jeff emerson You mean """"""""""""""""fan""""""""""""""""
Benjamin the Oracle
They all succumb eventually
You know it’s a quality movie when you’ve seen it and legitimately don’t even remember the rough outline for the plot until they say it.
the freudian slip with the head shake after "also she's a wonderful actor"
The emotions are so dense, every scene has so many feelings going on
Thank you guys so much! Recently I've been so distraught over the horror that is Max Landis, and I have a friend who doesn't seem to understand what a dick Max Landis is. He tweets about how Hollywood is damaging the industry while he profits of the dismay he contributes to. So thank you, Red Letter Media. Thank you for calling him on his shit!
Good to see Mike and Susan back at it again! I look forward to more videos
I'm just waiting to see if Max Landis show's up. This is pretty much the most fucks that anyone's gonna give to American ultra anyway.
+jeff emerson He's too busy bitching about their old review of Chronicle on Twitter. Apparently, "found footage" was entirely his idea, since that's basically the only thing they complained about in that movie.
+SV67943 what an inventor! takes a real original mind to make a super hero movie using found footage and ripping off Akira!
SV67943 Yeah, I think he said something on the line's of "They didn't love chronicle, they just said it's the bare minimum of a good film". I have no clue what he's on, but I'm kind of embarrassed to say I'm a fan of his now.
+jeff emerson So he basically wanted them to say "Chronicle is the apex of all films and Max Landis is a God who is better than Linklater without even taking 12 years to make something".
+jeff emerson lol you were right..
Susan seems to think the CIA doesn't operate like the mob. lol
RLM's editing of interviews is half the fun.
With all that crying from the director and writer it sounds awefully similar to the drama around the "Red Tails" release. Did they just pull a George Lucas?
What do Josh Tank and Floyd Landis have to complain about? Chronicle was a semi-original idea, well-reviewed, and financially successful. Not every movie you make is gonna be pure gold, guys.
If they had Michael Cera instead of Who Gives a Shit Eisenberg, it would be a little better. I always think of Jesse Eisenberg as Michael Cera but not funny and he thinks he's a serious actor.
I don't know why I'm writing this here, but that one Landis tweet about scale really made me want to rant.
So he is really only comparing to the biggest movies.
If you want to appeal to the broadest audience, you need the blandest product. McDonalds isn't the peak of culinary achievement, but it is the food that is most appealing to the largest group of people. If Landis is trying to complain that blandness has broad appeal, then he's pretty fucking late to the party.
Also, I kinda liked this movie. I felt like the absurdity of the violence was a part of the joke, making the movie a lot funnier, but then again I laughed like a child at Taken.
I actually forgot that American Ultra was even coming out to theaters till I saw the Half in the Bag for it XD
I think I must be the only person in the world that actually loves this movie.. Guilty pleasure every time! :o)
It's my two favorite pretend friends!
+J Wizard Phoenix
You know what to do
+Dendelin007 Use the meat cleaver, and swing hard to break the bones...
:(
I genuinely think that just like how someone can be tone deaf, other people are taste deaf. They just can't see why something is bad.
Their laughter is infectious
Man wouldn't it be awkward if Max Landis confronted them about these comments? Good thing THAT will never happen!
I love being an audience member watching this video and my brain automatically fills in a cheap word association joke and then the person in the video immediately fills in the same cheap word association joke. A fuckin Tone Lōc Jōc, amazing pull.
This isn't even original. I can think of two movies off the top of my head that had a similar theme of an everyperson suddenly having mad skills. Total Recall and The Long Kiss Goodnight. Yet I'm hearing in the comments that Max Landis, apparent whiner, is saying his movie was "original." My ass
+Son of Tiamat (formerly known as tiakpark) also the TV show Chuck - nerd becomes spy.
+Son of Tiamat (formerly known as tiakpark) But this one has weed in it! That makes it edgy and cool!
...
Right?
+Son of Tiamat
Alias. Chuck. Condorman. The New Adventures of Beans Baxter. Get Smart. Spy. Totally Spies! Jake 2.0. Greatest American Hero. Meteorman. My Own Worst Enemy. Psych. Just off the top of my head.
+Son of Tiamat (formerly known as tiakpark) Isn't American Ultra basically just a bad ripoff of the Bourne series of films? It's fine to explore new areas in a tired genre, IF you do it well, but to simply trot out the "Super Agent Reactivated!" cliche with such bad directing, casting, and writing is simply begging for your movie to be demolished by critics and fans alike.
+Son of Tiamat (formerly known as tiakpark) by original, he means not based on a book, tv show, video game, reboot or sequel. Nothing is ever truly original.
Just the clips shown in this episode of the movie were stomach churningly bad. Thank god you guys can make anything entertaining.
A copy of "The Day The Clown Cried" sitting on the counter. haha nice
Oh shit, they have The Day the Clown Cried. The only copy left in existence, on loan from the Smithsonian no doubt.
Just finished the film on Prime. Had no expectations at all. It is indeed Stoner Bourne Identity.
I didn't even finish this movie. Glad to hear I didn't miss anything.
Correct me if I'm wrong but I think this is the first AND ONLY episode where a beer is spilled
Just got into RLM recently, I've been binge watching it and it's making me incredibly cynical.
KingsCountyLightHaus we welcome you.
Don’t get too cynical
I was already cynical but I don't have to watch movies now. I just watch RLM and I can save time.
I love when they go full-tilt and rip the movie apart!
The ending is surprisingly prophetic.
I don't know how this whole Susan thing got started, but... *thumbs up*
They wanted to make a Hot Fuzz type film that shifted in tone but they didn't pull it off.
I think what Mr. Landis and Trank Stamp can take away from this is, just because your born into the industry, or you just so happen to be an industry darling, that fact alone does not entitle you to success. And I think this is probably hitting Max the hardest because of the fact that this is kinda his first industry stinker, cuz think about it, every film he's written pre-American Ultra has been received with mostly positive reviews but now that's he's more well known there's more weight to the decisions he makes as far as what kinds of films he makes. And his behavior on Twitter strikes me as someone who probably has never had his work vetted by his piers. So I consider myself to be a writer, I have written about three scripts but no one has ever read them because my daddy never worked in Hollywood *SHOTS FIRED* and I've been writing stories and scripts ever since I was a teenager, and during those years I remember getting into arguments with my friends about my ideas and how sometimes they thought my ideas sucked and looking back at those scripts 10 years later, I realize that those ideas did in fact suck. But it was that vetting period that helped me move on and grow as a writer and I have since put down the things of childish follies and moved on to write better more mature scripts. Landis has probably never done that, and considering the fact that he's of old blood makes me believe that he's probably gone his whole life just having everyone kiss his ass. And this nonsense about "Meh people don't like original Ideas!" give me a break! It's not like the guy was trying to make something like Jodorowsky's Dune, it's a fucking spy movie plot that's like something out of a Saturday morning cartoon. Go Fuck Yourself Maxie!
i made it through approximately an hour of american ultra. i gave up and came back to watch their review again. i should've listened to them the first time.
Comment section on every RLM video is:
1.YOU HACK FRAUDS!!!
2. It took twelve years to make
3. OHHHHHHHHH MYYYY GAAAAAAAAAAAWWD
4. It's so dense
The fanbase is becoming more lazy then Mike and Jay!
YOU HACK FRAUDS!!!
Juancho Corleone And now it's fucking Susan
Its like poetry. It rhymes.
+Filmfixer12 It took 12 years to make that list!
+Filmfixer12 I bet your real name is Rick. What is it with Ricks?
+Filmfixer12 These men are PAAAAAAAWWWWWWWNNNNSSS!!!
I never see anyone mention this but the premise and a lot of the plot is straight up stolen from Chuck...
Well, Max's dad made his share of financial failures. But one of them is now regarded as one of the greatest horror films of all time.
The look of pure joy when Mike smashed that phone down.
Max Landis should consider his "awe inspiring original idea" as nothing more than recycled spy garbage. This is original...? If he were a rapper he would rhyme garbage with larbage and call that shit fresh.
Three years later and still waiting for the film "Half As, Bad Ass"...
This is much more entertaining than the interview with Max Landis. I guess Landis is just too original.
I think me and Jay got the 'I love you Phillip Morris' joke at the same time.
Did Max Landis really use Tarantino and Nolan as benchmarks for the success of original ideas? Unless my history is way off, it took damn near two decades for Tarantino to become a household name and before that he mostly had a cult following from a couple of very niche films. Even now, Tarantino's work is widely disliked by a LOT of people.
And Nolan... I'm pretty sure Nolan didn't become a household name until The Dark Knight and Inception. Again, decades before he got big, mainstream recognition.
Landis has been making stuff for what, ten years? If you count really minor shorts and shit in the earlier 2000s? He should be thankful he has the level of success he does in that short amount of time.
Most creators' careers that have any sort of long-term fame to them take decades to get traction and even then, it's a slow build-up of recognition. I feel kind of bad for the guy cause it seems like he is expecting to become a household name by making a couple of decent films and that's just not how it works. That kind of "quick fame," when it happens, is not something you want because it doesn't last and people hold you to a standard befitting the position, before you're ready for it (see: J. K. Rowling - great book series, but her career as an author post-HP is largely a wash).
The money is nice, I'm sure, but that level of expectation is a horrible position for a creator to be in, when they don't have the confidence of a long career to keep them on an even keel. Landis does not realize how shitty it would be.
+TransparentLabyrinth Plus Tarantino made his name with an unauthorised remake of "City on Fire", so he's not a good example either.