Ep. 019: The Amateur (2025) Twins, Bullet Points & Jack[ed] Ryan
Microsodes 2.0 | The Amateur (2025) Spoiler-Free Movie Review
Movie Reviews...from two different perspectives.
Join us as we discuss the latest movie we streamed: The Amateur (2025). With a nod to the actual CIA, stealth missions, and the power of vengeance, we’re sharing what we thought about the movie.
What to expect: Black Mirror connections, a Finland cameo, Rami Malek’s not-so-secret twin brother, Bobby's ACDC "Back in Black" rendition, similarities to Jack[ed] Ryan, delusions of grandeur, the cacophony of silence, and what Bobby really thinks about using phones in theaters. (Plus, don’t forget to Ask Ashley about her exhaustive list of disclaimers.)
Let us know what you thought of the movie!
Email us at microsodespodcast@gmail.com, leave a comment, or write a review! We would love to hear what you think.
Thanks for listening!
Transcript
This podcast does not contain spoilers.
I don't want to know what you'd do to us.
Yeah, exactly. We wouldn't exist anymore. And we never would have existed, like Bob Lazar.
Yeah, someone would drive to the house and it'd just be like an empty lot.
Yeah. Welcome to Microsodes.
Welcome to another Microsode, I'm Ashley.
And I'm Bobby, welcome back.
We're so glad you're here.
Oh, I was talking to you. You were just in the kitchen.
Oh, right. What movie are we discussing today?
It's going to be a movie called The Amateur, a remake of a 1981 classic.
How exciting.
I know.
Now let's learn a little bit more about the movie.
All right, so once again, we're watching The Amateur, a 1981 remake. It was released on April 11th of this year, 2025. The genres that this movie falls into are spy, action and thriller.
Nice.
The rating is PG-13.
Okay.
It has a runtime of two hours and three minutes.
Quite long.
A little bit longer than the movies we've been watching lately.
Is this the longest movie we've watched so far?
I don't think so.
I thought maybe Mickey 17 or even maybe The Electric State.
Oh, right. Okay. Okay.
Maybe one of those, but it's up there.
It's a little bit longer than a lot of the ones we've been reviewing lately.
So the director. Interesting.
So the director's name is James Hawes. Fun fact, he has also directed two episodes of Black Mirror.
Wow. Yeah.
So he directed Hated in the Nation, season three, episode six, and also Smytherines, season five, episode two.
That's pretty cool.
Now, are you ready for those platforms that you can watch it on?
Yes.
Yes. You can watch it for free on Hulu or Disney Plus. And we've had this conversation multiple times.
I'm pretty sure Disney Plus just carries Hulu. So I think you've got Disney Plus. Cool.
If you got Hulu, cool. You can watch it for free on there.
Yeah. If you have either one or both.
If you'd like to rent this movie, you can rent it for $3.99 on Amazon Prime Video or $5.99 for these other platforms that I'm going to say to you right now, which I thought was very weird. I thought they would all be $5.99, but they weren't.
Yeah. Oh, you know what? Amazon Prime Video might have ads.
Oh, but if you're paying for it.
Yeah, you're renting it.
Yeah. I don't know.
At any rate.
If you would like to pay more, these are additional platforms.
If you'd like to pay an additional $2, these are the platforms that you can pay an extra $2 on. Google Play, Movies and TV, Apple TV+, and Fandango at Home.
All for $5.99?
Yeah, those ones were for $5.99. If you want to do the $3.99, once again, it's Amazon Prime Video. And if you have either Disney Plus or Hulu, then you can watch it for free.
And if you want to pay $20.96, you can get it from Blockbuster.
You can't. You cannot get it from Blockbuster.
I keep telling everyone that we live in the abandoned Blockbuster. I don't understand why you keep saying that. We can definitely get it.
I just have to go into the time machine and go.
Yeah, that's why we have a higher price tag. $20.96.
That's right.
Very specific.
Exactly. All right. Well, those are all the movie details.
What do we got going on next?
Next, we're going to move on over to the trailer.
Move on over.
Welcome to Ashley's take on the trailer. That's me. I'm kidding.
Do you know what that's from? No. I'm blah, blah, blah, what is it?
It's time for Ask Ashley. That's me.
I have no idea what that is.
Oh, Amanda from All That, I think, Amanda Bynes.
Oh, so just so everybody knows, I'm a little bit older.
You're not old.
Yeah, but I wasn't watching Amanda Bynes show when I was 13 and you were seven.
Oh, well, I don't know what year it was.
It doesn't matter. Our age difference is that. So you were watching a totally different shows at totally different times.
That makes a lot of sense.
So if everyone was so excited about that, ask Ashley segment. Now we're moving on to Ashley's take. So, OK, this is what happens in my brain.
I watch the trailer and as I'm watching the trailer, I take notes.
OK.
And then I'm like, oh, well, now I'm building this entire store. And again, I do not watch the movie before I write this.
Right. Can I ask one question?
Yes.
Just really quickly.
Of course.
The trailers are two minutes and 34 seconds. So do you just pause it right when it starts and start writing notes like if the if the intro is coming? Wow, that's really cool.
I didn't know her. This is news to me. I don't know her process for this.
So it's really cool.
I have one browser tab open with the trailer. And then I do like a split screen with another browser tab where I write my bullet points in Google Docs.
Oh, wow. OK.
And so then I pause it if I'm like, oh, I think this. And then I write my little bullet points. And then it's very long.
So then I have to like consolidate it. And I tried my best to consolidate this, but I think it might actually be longer than the other one.
Oh, I thought you were going to say I thought it was going to be longer than the movie.
I was like, well, that would be real bad. It's probably longer than the trailer.
Well, we can't wait to hear it.
OK.
We're waiting with bated breath.
Oh, bated breath over here.
Oh, yeah.
This is Ashley's take on The Amateur from 2025.
Nice.
When a CIA also, I'm so sorry. I have a lot of like disclaimers. This is just what I imagined.
This is not the actual synopsis.
This is no, I will. I will actually read you the synopsis that is on IMDb. Ashley is going to tell you without knowing any portion of it, what she saw in the trailer with her own eyes and what that translated to into her mind.
So if you were out there and you, she starts saying something about like transformers or whatever else happens, you never know, but we'll all get there together.
Exactly. I appreciate the explanation. Thank you.
Of course.
Okay.
Let me start again. Let's see if we can do it one take.
Let's do some one take wonders.
Okay. When a CIA intelligence analyst discovers that his wife was murdered, he wants revenge.
However, like any other employee in 2025, he is demoralized and ridiculed by his boss when he requests an assignment to do a mission, even though he's the smartest one in the room.
And the CIA probably couldn't even start any of their missions without the information he collects on their targets. Now, without assistance from his coworkers, he quits his job and sets out.
It's, if you're out there listening to this, if Ashley ever decides to repost this, I can, I swear to you, I a hundred percent promise, we did not watch this movie before she watched that trailer.
She watched the trailer yesterday and we watched the movie this morning. And I cannot believe what in the world's going on. Also, right before she starts her segments, like Ashley's Table Talks, That's Me or whatever she wants to call it.
She needs to put a disclaimer in there that she isn't a ChatGPT monster. Cause this is like outrageous.
Oh my gosh. I have to tell you, I wrote to ChatGPT and I said, you know what? My husband thinks I'm giving you these prompts and you're writing it for me.
How can I let the world know? No offense, ChatGPT. And they were like, no offense taken.
What you should do is say, Bobby still thinks this is written by ChatGPT, but I'll take that as a compliment.
That's what it said?
I don't know. I have some other ones too. I can't remember what it was.
That was the best thing that it could come up with.
These little AIs are in a little bit of trouble.
Yeah. I don't even put these anywhere near ChatGPT.
No.
It is very easy to do that. Oh, please make this more concise, but no, I never do it.
Never.
Just for you listeners, to make it the most authentic, original experience you could ever imagine.
Exactly. Like Macho Man, Randy Savage snapping into a Slim Jim.
Oh, yeah.
Nice. Was that it? It's pretty good.
Hell yeah.
You got pretty close.
So I knew what his catchphrase was.
Yeah.
He's the same as the Kool-Aid guy. It doesn't make any sense, but it's cool.
Aid.
Nice, all right, you have to finish the rest of your synopsis here.
Okay, here's the second chapter.
Okay.
Without assistance from his coworkers, he quits his job and sets off on a mission of his own. But before he enlists, oh. But before, what?
Oh, you're just laughing?
I just, yeah.
But before he does, I should have put a comma there. Anyway, but before he does, he enlists help from a newly acquainted mentor.
Someone who can train him to be stronger, quicker, and more comfortable with the thought of actually murdering another person.
With his limitless intelligence, exceptional critical thinking skills, and adrenaline-fueled desire for retribution, he will outsmart, outwit, and outlast anyone he encounters. Who needs brawn when you've got brains? But final questions remain.
Is his wife really dead? Has she been working as a double agent, and she's fooled even her husband? Or is she still alive and held captive, fearfully awaiting an undeniably horrifying future with the highest bidder?
Uncover the truth in The Amateur, now streaming on Hulu and Disney Plus. Never underestimate the power of vengeance. That's it.
I mean, I don't know if I could give you a round of applause.
Maybe you could just punch that in there, like, woo, and the confetti goes off, and everything else like that. That was incredible.
Okay, everyone, start clapping, everyone.
Start clapping, studio audience. The ice machine goes off.
Exactly. I would really love to know the actual synopsis.
Okay. One of his supervisors at the CIA refuses to take action after his wife is killed in a London terrorist attack. A decoder takes matters into his own hands.
That's it.
See, if I was a copywriter, that's what I'd write too. But I treat Ashley's take as a creative writing assignment. So if you hate it, just fast forward if you want.
Vocabularic tapestry of magnificence.
Of adjectives and magnificence.
Magnificence.
Got it. All right.
What a synopsis that was. Short, sweet and to the point.
Thanks IMDb.
Next, movie facts.
Welcome to Movie Facts with Bobby and Ashley.
For my first movie fact, The Amateur movie is adapted from Robert Little's 1981 espionage novel, The Amateur. But it wasn't the first movie. They also, well, okay, the 2025 version is a remake of a 1981 movie called also The Amateur.
And it was first announced for the remake in 2006.
Okay, so it took them 20 years basically to make it.
Exactly. And they were originally going to cast Hugh Jackman as the main character. And I am glad they didn't.
I wouldn't have.
I don't think it would have played out the same way at all.
Yeah, we wouldn't have been able to believe it. Like it just it was like Tom Cruise playing Reacher. Right.
Well, I mean, he did play Reacher, and he did a pretty good job in the first one.
But yeah, to the Reacher now, that's like this series. It doesn't compare because I read all the books and they're incredible. Wow.
I mean, there's a lot going on there.
Yes. Oh, additionally, a woman named Marthe Keller.
Okay.
She was one of the actors in the 1981 movie, and she played the florist in Paris in the 2025 movie we just watched.
Oh, she's the one that he went and bought all the flowers from and stuff?
Yep.
Wow.
Yeah. So she was also in the 1981 movie. So I thought that was kind of cool.
Yeah.
They get to like give her a little bit of a throwback or a nod to the first movie that she was in.
Exactly. And her name is M-A-R-T-H-E. But I looked at a pronunciation online and it said Marta.
Interesting.
I think I'm saying it correctly.
Okay.
And if I'm not, please let me know.
You can email us and or comment and tell me how wrong I am.
Or you can send us some free flowers. I mean, she was a florist.
Exactly.
Awesome. So in this 2025 remake, they actually included a nod to the past because you know, me and I love history.
Of course.
So the original Amateur was put out in 1981. The very first director of the CIA was actually sworn in in 1985 and her name is Gina Hapsal.
It didn't say how long she served for, but the directors and the writers wanted to make sure that it was kind of a nod to when that movie originally came out.
That's pretty cool.
So yeah, in this movie, I think the woman's name was Samantha O'Brien. She was the director that kept going out to talk to the press. So yeah, it was pretty cool.
So did they not have a director before 1985?
They had a director, but she was the first female director.
Oh, oh, oh, that's pretty cool.
Yeah.
I like that.
Some people online found it very similar to Tom Clancy novels because, let me quote this, because it features a, quote, desk-bound analyst thrust into action. So I guess a lot of Tom Clancy's books.
Yeah, I mean, he's the one who wrote Jack Ryan.
Oh, he did. Oh, I should have, I should have, like, I think so, at least that makes a lot of sense.
I mean, I'll have to fact-check myself right now. Keep reading the rest of the review.
That was it.
That's the only thing that they said.
I mean, I, I didn't go much further. I didn't interview anyone.
No, no. You said the reviewers, right?
Yeah. Well, people who wrote articles or reviews, I guess, you know what? It's probably those important or influential reviewers.
You know, like on Rotten Tomatoes, it's like, oh, the official people's rating. And then, oh, the lay person's rating.
Yeah, the lay person. See, that wasn't chat chippy tea out there. She just really said lay person in everyday conversation.
I didn't know what else to say. I did fact check myself. Tom Clancy did write Jack Ryan.
So when they're saying, oh yeah, it's like that. Well, yeah, it's kind of like that, but also in everything else, I mean, maybe I haven't read any of the books, so that isn't fair for me to say.
Jason Bourne?
But in the movies, yeah. They just run, I mean, Jack Ryan's out there. I mean, John Krasinski too.
He's out there running around kicking ass. This guy is not running around kicking ass.
No, this one seemed a lot more realistic.
Right.
In a way.
Right.
What is your next one? Oh, was that the last one?
I was going on to what you were saying. I didn't know if you were done yet or not, because your first one was so long.
My first one was very long, and then I said Tom Clancy's novels.
OK, and then you're good?
For now.
OK. Fair enough. All right.
So my second movie fact. I don't know if you knew this, but I probably didn't. Rami.
I'm so sorry.
So good.
But Rami Malek has an identical twin brother.
In real life. I mean, I guess that makes sense. Yeah.
OK. I also learned something about twins today, but continue. I'll tell you after.
Thank you.
His brother's name is Sammy. So Rami and Sammy.
OK.
And somebody asked him on a television show, I guess, a couple of years back when he was playing Freddie Mercury for the Queen movie, they said, Oh, did you guys ever get yourself in any kind of troubles or anything else like that?
And he actually went to his brother's class at USC and pretended to be his brother to do this whole, like, monologue from Hamlet because he said that that's the only way his brother was going to pass the class.
What?
And he did this whole thing. And so then the teacher said, hey, kind of, like, looked him up and down, like, that was so good. Can you come back and do it again next class?
Did I get the credit to pass? Yes. Okay, well, I'm double parked.
I got to go.
Oh, oh, to stay and do it for, like, yeah, for the next class. I thought they meant, like, the next class of theirs.
Oh, no.
And I was like, he's probably like, I got somewhere to be. I don't like to actually take this class.
Right, exactly. But that's how his brother graduated from USC.
Wow. So what did he learn about public speaking? Sammy?
I have no idea.
I evidently not.
And they're identical?
They are, but as they got older, they didn't, they started not looking the same, which is very strange.
Was it because of facial hair?
No, it's just like one of them grew a little bit differently than the other. When you see them when they were younger, they look exactly the same. And now when you'd see them, you're like, huh.
They look like they could be brothers, but not identical.
Interesting.
Yeah. So luckily he got there at USC before they started looking too different.
Exactly. He picked a good age.
That's right.
Also side note, this is very interesting. I learned this today about twins.
Okay.
So the difference between identical and fraternal twins are obviously identical twins are identical, right?
Right.
But identical twins are actually made. And I know this is going to be very like, I don't know. It's not in depth.
Anyway, I'm sorry if you get triggered by pregnancy. It's not a bad thing.
I'm triggered.
But identical twins are made from one egg that splits into two. So identical twins never actually run in families. However, fraternal twins do because they actually are made from two eggs.
And most women do not produce two eggs at a time.
Whoa.
I know.
I mean, that's big time.
Let go your egos. Sorry. I don't know.
Only one or two.
So maybe hold on to one or release the other two. You can give fraternal or roll the dice. Maybe identical.
Yeah.
I just thought that was very interesting.
It was. Why were you looking that up?
I wasn't. It was YouTube. The algorithm showed me another short.
And this girl was like, I have identical twins. And a lot of people ask me, do they run in my family? And now I realize I should probably clear that up online for anyone else who's interested in knowing this information.
Yeah.
And she said, so basically, fraternal twins are genetic, identical twins are black magic.
Whoa.
That's big time.
I mean, then she said black magic. And I was like, well, it's not evil. Maybe just say, it's a miracle.
There it is.
Are you done?
I think so.
I'm not done.
I thought you just said you were done.
No, I have another one.
Okay.
Okay.
My last movie fact, my second to last movie fact. I'm kidding. The main character, well, Charlie, his name is Charlie in the movie.
His house with his wife was in a Black Mirror episode called Beyond the Sea, season six, episode three.
Wow. Oh, well that makes sense because of the director.
Yes.
He probably knew or he got he has connections. I mean, when you guys see this movie, you're going to see it's filmed everywhere.
Yes.
So I think they just did a really good job.
Yeah. Oh, I'm so sorry. Yes, it was filmed in England, France, Turkey, and Latvia.
Whoa.
Yeah, they didn't film in Russia or Romania.
They didn't film in Istanbul.
Oh, Turkey.
Yeah, I think. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Sorry.
England, France, Turkey, and Latvia. Wait, what was that? What am I missing?
Oh, I just said Istanbul.
Oh, Istanbul is in Turkey.
Okay.
I don't know why they kept saying this is different. They kept making it sound like it was a different country.
Oh.
They were saying like, get me the Russian consulate in Istanbul.
Well, wasn't that other girl Russian? Oh, Istanbul, you're talking about, you're not talking about Russian. Yes.
Yep. Also, another thing that was very cool to me, and this is the last one, but for all those Finns out there, Finland is mentioned at the end of the movie. This is not a spoiler.
It's not a big part, but they are still mentioned.
Hey, give it up for Finland.
Finland. I also looked up, I could say hey, which means hello, or huvasti, which means goodbye.
Huvasti?
Huvasti.
Wow. Nice.
Thanks. I thought that was very cool.
That was really cool.
I almost forgot to mention that one.
Well, I'm glad you didn't. Well, there you go.
Those have been our Movie Facts of the Day.
Movie facts, movie facts, movie facts.
Okay, so we're back with The Amateur.
Oh, we never left.
We never left.
We're back, like what? We're back in black, like ACDC? Back in black!
No.
I hit the sack!
It's been too long, glad to be back, yeah. Hit the nose! Cut the nose from the nose!
That kept me hanging around! Are you ready to dive into the movie?
I am.
Review?
I am.
So I went last time. Do you want to go first this time?
I would love to. I wrote everything in bullet points, but I think I wrote it in a way that I would read it. And I can take this out, but I'm just going to read it.
I think everything that you write is in bullet points.
You've said that multiple times.
Because it's difficult for me to read a paragraph other than, like I can't skim it.
You could just say, let me tell you what my notes are. Or you could, I mean, you could keep going on with bullet points.
I guess that makes sense.
You just keep telling everyone, listen, these are what my bullet points say. This is bullet point one, bullet point two. Like, okay.
Okay.
For story, I found the plot to be very engaging and easy to follow.
So I really liked the story and I noticed it didn't jump around to unnecessary plot lines like some of the other movies that we've seen recently, like Electric State or some of the other ones.
Yeah, it seemed like it kind of wrapped itself up in all the ways that you were, like an audience would want to.
Right, I agree. And even though the story was very clear and like straightforward and I guess linear, we didn't jump around to different timelines.
Right.
I think it still was engaging. It wasn't boring.
No, I wouldn't say that at all. I mean, when you see how somebody else's mind works, I always think that that's a really cool thing. I mean, you know, we've watched Suits and this movie.
When you see somebody who almost seems like they're one step ahead of everyone else, it's very interesting to see the way that that person views the world.
I agree. And that's why I think I liked this movie more than some of the other ones, where it's just people that fight. It's like we see a ton of movies with people that fight.
Oh, right.
This guy really used critical thinking skills and intelligence.
Right.
It reminded me. I know you've never either seen the movie or played the video game, but it kind of reminded me a little bit of Hitman, because a lot of what you want to try to do in that game is make things look like it's an accident.
So a lot of it's like sneaking around. And so one of the missions that I remember is you're supposed to serve like poisoned sushi to this mob boss who loves it.
So really what you do is you kind of like sneak through the guards, you knock out the chef, you put on the chef's uniform, and then you do all this stuff and then you serve it to him and then you leave. And then that's the whole thing.
Is this a video game? Oh, okay.
Yeah, that's the reason why I said I know you've never seen the-
Hitman.
Right, I know you've never seen the movie or played the video game, but I said one of the video game levels.
Oh, oh, oh.
Was that.
Is that the movie Hitman that came out recently where he's changing into different characters?
Yeah, there's a bunch of different ones. So they had one that had Timothy Oliphant in it, and then they released a couple other ones as well.
Just called Hitman?
I think one was called Hitman, the other one was called Hitman 47, Agent 47, because that's what his agent number is in the video game. That's about all I can say about that. Okay.
I thought it was the one with the guy, I don't know what his name is, but he dresses up as different people and pretends to be a Hitman, because he actually works for the cops or something.
Oh yeah, you're talking about the one with Glenn Powell in it, the guy from Top Gun?
Yes, yes, yes, I never saw that.
You weren't talking about that one.
No.
Okay.
It's an older, or they've had a couple of movies in that, like, I guess, universe, but the first one had Timothy Oliphon on it, and then they had a couple other people play that, but it was a very popular video game.
And the whole thing of it is trying to make things look like an accident, or doing things where you don't get caught. And so this kind of, The Amateur kind of reminded me of that.
Yeah, because you have to think...
Because he was creating a bunch of stuff and rewriting programs and doing all kinds of things.
Exactly. And using, like, science and physics for different scenarios.
Right.
Which was pretty cool.
I agree.
Do you think he put the intelligence in CIA?
Well, it was there before he joined.
I guess that's true.
But, you know what, that's probably what they try to do. You know, they try to recruit the best and the brightest.
That makes a lot of sense. So ultimately, I think it was really cool.
Yeah, I was kind of on the same wavelength that you were. I thought it was a really, really good story. I've seen it before, right?
Jason Bourne, Spy, Mission Impossible, those kinds of movies.
Are you talking about Spy with Melissa McCarthy?
Yeah.
Oh, that was a great one.
I know.
But that was more funny. Well, oh, you mean the basis of it?
Well, in The Amateur, he tries to go into field training. In Spy, she goes into field training.
OK, OK, OK.
So I thought, oh, those kind of go together.
I see what you mean. That makes a lot of sense.
Yeah. So I've seen it before. But not really done the way that it was in this.
There was a lot more. I would say contextually, there was a lot more like governmental influences that were going on here. Yeah.
And so I was like, that's kind of an interesting take. The only thing I didn't like was I felt like they didn't go into the backstory enough. I got the whole premise of it.
It's in the preview. So not ruining anything, but his wife gets killed. But there's actually this whole spiderweb that he kind of untangles.
And you don't really know that much about these people.
I guess that makes a lot of sense because for me, overall, the story was very easy to follow, but we never went into detail into any of those like specific people. So yeah, you're right.
Yeah, they just kind of said, oh, well, these people are part of this and this is what's going on. And he knew that the guys that were above him and, you know, it's in the preview that something was off, but you just didn't really get into it.
And so I was like, I really wish that would have been because there's a lot of other portions of the story that I think that they could have cut out.
Yeah.
Instead of having it be this whole other thing. And they could have filled that in with a little bit more character development. I think that would have put it over the top for me with the story.
I agree.
And I guess going back toward the end, I feel like they kind of cut the end short. We had this huge like journey or whatever. I don't know.
Right.
An epic.
An epic. Yeah. And it felt like it just kind of ended.
Right.
And I know I, well, I read this in a viewer review, which I'll probably read later.
Nice.
But I can't take credit for this.
It was another viewer. But they mentioned going into more backstory, which is what you said. And also, what if they made it into a limited series instead of a movie?
Because then you could go into the backstories.
Right. I mean, but there's so many, there's so many TV shows that are out there like that now. I don't know if that would have really worked.
So, you know, something like Jack Ryan, or for me, like Mobland or Andor. You're right. You can't fit it all in there.
The backstories might have made the story a little bit more like, yeah, I can't believe they got that guy finally.
But I feel like you could have done the same thing in the same amount of time and just cut some of the other stuff and filled in a little bit more back story. And it would have been, you wouldn't need a limited series for it.
It would have been just improve the movie a little bit more.
That makes sense. And it's easier to sell a movie to an audience, like market it to an audience. Because you're right, there are so many limited series.
People are probably like, well, I don't want to sit down for a limited series. I want to just one and done this movie. Yeah.
And I mean, sometimes you get into a good series, like I said, Andor for me.
I know that they're like the pretty fire fly lies. What's the one that you really like to watch?
Oh, the little fires everywhere?
Yeah.
No.
Yeah.
Oh yeah.
I just didn't remember what the name of that was.
I even watched that one in a while.
I know, but you watched it.
It was very good.
Yeah, you watched it, but it's, you know, you get into things like that and sometimes you're like, well, that's a huge commitment. It's, I mean, and or the first season, I believe was 13 episodes. It's like, it's a lot.
Right.
And so maybe you don't want to commit that much time to something.
You just want something quick. But I mean, it could go either way. I just feel with a little bit of tweaking to the story, it would have just put it over the top for me.
I agree.
Awesome.
So moving on to acting.
Oh, yeah.
I think, is it Rami Malek?
It is. Rami?
Yes.
I think he was perfect for the role.
Could not agree with you more.
Not only the actual performance and the emotion that you could feel from him, but physically, his body language seemed to really emulate the character Charlie.
Oh, yeah. Definitely. It just, yeah, you know, that's not to if you're in CIA intelligence out there, I'm not trying to I'm not trying to throw any shade at you guys.
It's just in your mind is just an everyday American. You would imagine that somebody who works in the CIA intelligence wouldn't be like jacked like Thor. Yeah, I'm not expecting him Jacked Ryan.
Yeah, exactly. I'm going to expect Jacked Ryan to come flying in through the door after he's been analyzing, you know, what people are drinking in Mogadishu. But I just it's just very interesting, you know, because I I completely agree with you.
It's just he. You it was very believable.
Yes, he really like personified the character. And I feel like you could feel the grief he had.
Oh, yeah.
And you could feel the numbness in certain instances. It's like that negative space of emotion where he felt numb because he probably in his brain turned his brain off to feeling sad and focused all of his energy in that moment to revenge.
Yeah. And just like he just became like a single purpose person. And everything else was just going to be in the purview until he accomplished that goal.
Yes.
Yeah.
I could not agree with you more.
And I think everyone else, all of the supporting characters or supporting actors did a great job. They were all very believable. I don't think there was one that made me feel like they shouldn't be there.
Right.
I agree. For acting, I put no notes from me.
Wow.
I said the actors were perfectly cast. But selfishly, just a little bit, I'm a huge Jon Bernthal fan because he's the Punisher. And he's just been in so many incredible movies.
I really appreciate him as like an actor. It almost seemed like he was a little bit of an afterthought. And that would be the only thing.
That would be my only critique, because I think everybody else was perfectly cast. It wasn't that people were stealing scenes from one another. You could feel that grittiness and everybody seemed to...
Yeah, it was very intentional.
Yeah.
And that's a perfect word for it. But I just, I'm a huge fan of John Bernthal. So I was just like, oh, I really wish it, just a little bit more.
And I don't think it's specifically a spoiler, but John Bernthal, he was in the trailer, I think twice or was it just once?
I haven't seen it in a while, so I would have to rely on you.
At least once we saw him in the trailer.
Okay.
And so, yeah, you're right.
I expected a bigger part.
Yeah, it just, this isn't going to spoil the movie, but he's only in basically like maybe two to three scenes.
Maybe, yeah.
And that is, that doesn't say anything about the acting. It doesn't say anything about the story.
It doesn't say anything about how he interacts with the story either.
Right. So I was just saying selfishly, I kind of enjoy him as an actor. And I, when I hear his name attached to projects, it makes me a little bit more interested in it.
Well, also it like seeing him, you see him at the beginning, at the very beginning of the movie.
So I feel like throughout the movie, we were kind of waiting to see him again. And it took forever before we saw him again.
Exactly. Exactly. But that was, those were my notes on acting, because I really thought that they did an incredible job.
I, like I said, there wasn't a whole lot of wastefulness in there.
Agreed.
You want to head over to Writing and Dialogue? Just drive your little amateur car over there.
Drive my, I don't know, nevermind.
Fly your airplane, stay out of the clouds.
Stay out of the clouds. OK, so this might sound weird, but the writing felt, and I don't, this is a really weird word to use, but it felt clean, like detailed without being confusing.
OK, I think in the immortal words of the song from the 90s, how bizarre, how bizarre. OK, can you explain that, elaborate on a little bit more?
It felt like when we heard anyone talking about something, it was very detailed, but it was clear. It wasn't like word salad.
Right. OK.
It's like everything was very intentional. Just like you said, intentional with acting and intentional with the storyline. I feel like the dialogue was also very intentional.
Well, I wish that I could take credit for that, but you're actually the one that said intentional in acting.
Well, I said tension because you could feel that tension in the grittiness.
But you said intentional. And I was like, oh, that's even better.
Pretty sure when you go back to this, what you're going to say is that all the actors had a lot of intention. And I said intention, intentional. That's a great way to put it.
But I think because I don't want to I don't like to steal credit for things that I don't create.
I don't either. That's why when I mentioned the limited series, I said, oh, it was a viewer. It was not me.
I cannot take credit.
It was not me.
Yeah. Mr. Gold stars said it.
Okay. And I guess I didn't notice any lines that specifically pulled me out of the movie or confused me in a way that I couldn't understand what was going on.
Yeah.
Like there are some movies that we've seen or even TV shows. They'll say things and they'll make it so convoluted that my brain kind of tunes out. And this one, everything they said felt to me engaging or felt clear.
Yeah, you didn't need to.
I mean, nobody needs to have gone to an FBI Academy or CIA headquarters to understand what people are saying.
Yeah.
In some movies, they go so over the top with the jargon that they put in there. You're like, do I need some kind of subtitles in this? What's happening?
Yes.
And it's not like they spoke in, I don't know, like a sixth grade language. No, I mean, they used eloquent vocabulary.
Yeah.
But they said everything in a very clear way.
Yeah, I think I think I completely agree with you. I think what they did was a lot of times in movies, they try to be super technical because they wanted to feel accurate.
But what they do is they have to put in scenes where people are explaining what's happening because the audience gets lost.
Right. And this one didn't need that.
It didn't need it because they told the story so well. And it wasn't like it was over the top, but it also wasn't, like you said, like elementary. It wasn't for sixth graders or something else like that.
When you're watching it, you're like, OK, I can understand why he's doing it, what he's doing, what the intentions are, what the goals are.
And I and they're throwing some stuff in there, but they're not saying, like, I don't know what would be like the the target package in Longitude 34, blah, blah, blah, is going to be crossing the Earth's equator at this time.
So we need to get the submarine from Wolf Bay Alpha. And you're like, what is what happened? I thought I was watching a movie about a UPS delivery and a guy landing on an island.
Sponsored by Amazon Prime.
Yeah, exactly.
We aren't. Don't sue us. You guys have too much money.
That was part of our fake infomercial.
If you can have a 700 million dollar wedding, I don't want to know what you'd do to us.
Yeah, exactly.
We wouldn't exist anymore. And we never would have existed like Bob Lazar.
They would just someone would drive to the house and it'd just be like an empty lot. Yeah. Did you want to add anything else to that?
I think you said it very well.
Once again, we're pretty much in line with this.
I wrote that it was superb. There was a lot of lines that hit home with maybe some of the clandestine agencies that are out there that they went through and kind of mentioned in this movie.
And as you're watching it from a civilian standpoint, you're like, hmm, maybe there's something to this. And so I thought they did a really good job.
I'm not overstating things, but trying to bring a story, a bunch of people, a bunch of coworkers together. And so I thought the writing dialogue was excellent.
Oh, that was very veiled.
Yeah, if you want me to say what I really wrote down, I said it was superb. A lot of the lines hit home with the clandestine agencies that are supposed to protect us.
But there's a very endearing scene that talks about dealing with silence with someone that is gone, that really hit home for me as well.
You know, it reminds me of Andor, and it reminds me of a bunch of other movies that we've talked about, Unfrosted, where people are alluding to what's going on in the current state of our world.
And so I think a lot of the writing and dialogue hit a lot of those points for me with the...
Timeliness.
Timeliness of the release of the movie. And additionally, I think what you see, what kind of media you consume via like all different kinds of things. This isn't a political podcast, so I'm not going to get into any of that.
It's just a lot of the writing and dialogue seem very poignant. And I guess, apropos for our times.
And there was one really, really endearing scene where they talked about, and this is very weird for me because I don't think about this very often, but I'm because I'm a very happy guy.
But there was a very endearing scene that they wrote in there where they talk about the silence of not having the person that you're best friends with.
Yes.
And it really hit me in a very, very deep way because of my childhood and my past and even thinking about losing you or losing any of my co-workers or something else like that.
Having that silence and what they talked about, I was like, whoa, this is fantastic writing, because I think a lot of people could, I mean, whether it's another human, an animal, a pet, something, when it's you're used to that routine and you don't
have it anymore, nothing prepares you for that. And I thought that that was really cool and really, really well done.
I agree. And it's not even the silence based on someone talking. It's like the silence of even the presence of the person or animal with you.
Absolutely.
Yeah.
So that stood out to me too.
Yeah. It was just, I don't know who wrote that or for what real purpose, because I don't know. We've seen movies where people lose people and, you know, those kinds of things.
It must have been written by somebody that had a really big loss in their life. And I think that that was really cool to have them highlight it, kind of like say it out loud for other people who might have been feeling the same exact way.
Yeah. And it's kind of a feeling that you might not even know how to put in words.
Right.
So I like that they did.
Yeah. So kudos to whoever wrote the script and the dialogue. So you did an excellent job.
So kudos and a snicker bar for you.
Oh, kudos and snickers. What did you kudos to those writers?
Very well done. Kudos to those writers.
And what did you think about the direction and visuals?
I put A plus. You're probably going to be like, wow, he must have really liked this movie. I did.
A lot of different things for you to see. A lot of different sets. Nothing was stagnant or like stale.
They were constantly moving to different places.
Yeah.
And I think that goes back to what you were talking about with where they were filming it.
Yes. Yes. Yes.
And so for that reason, I thought there was very, very limited CGI.
Yeah.
A lot of it was just kind of that you get that Jason Bourne kind of feeling to things where it's right up in your face.
It's very gritty. It's right there. Everything that he was doing seemed plausible.
Yes.
So it wasn't over the top.
Yes.
And I really, really enjoyed it from, like I said, from the moment it started.
I think usually Ashley and I sit and talk for probably like an hour in between movies.
Yeah.
For this, I think we might have paused the movie for maybe seven to eight minutes.
Yeah.
Because we were just so, yeah, because we were just so engaged. There's so much for you to see and it doesn't feel stagnant or stale. So I loved not only the direction because I felt like the story was very linear and fluid.
And I understood what was going on, but also the visuals and knowing that I wasn't going to see the same thing more than once.
Exactly. I mean, as always, the visuals definitely stood out to me.
Of course.
I loved seeing different locations, different environments.
Right.
Like we saw outside, we saw inside, we saw in a hotel, we saw in an office, we saw at a bedroom, we saw in a boardroom.
I don't know. Yeah, and a barracks.
Yeah. I mean, you could see everything.
And an airplane.
Yeah, and feeling the different environments really support a scene, I think.
I completely agree with you because there's been some movies that we've watched where someone's been on an airplane, and it feels like they just went down the hall, shot that airplane scene, and then went right to the next soundstage. Yeah.
But this felt like he actually went places.
Yeah. I liked when he would walk down a street or walk... I don't know.
I like being able to see him.
Right.
It's just very cool. And I noticed that each scene not only was visually appealing, but the lighting and the costumes and the coloration of each scene really represented the emotion. Like, when he was with his wife, it was bright.
And then when she wasn't there anymore, the flowers died and everything looked very, like, muted.
Right.
And then when...
His sunshine went away.
Yeah. Oh, that's so sad.
Sorry. That's... It shouldn't...
We're supposed to be an uplifting podcast. Sorry for the insightfulness today, I suppose.
Well, I also noticed that, like, the wardrobe. It's like even the small... They paid attention to even the smallest details, and his clothing also seemed to reinforce his sadness or, like, feelings of invisibility.
Right.
Because specifically, he was in a therapist's office and the couch was navy blue and he was wearing all navy blue.
Yeah.
Or they were sitting...
He and another character were sitting, like, on a beach, and there was some kind of wall or fence behind them, and their sweaters or jackets or shirts, I can't remember what they were wearing, but they were all that rust color.
Like, that burnt ochre. So, it was like... You could see how...
specific the art direction was, too.
Right.
So, I really liked that.
That's awesome.
And the practical effects looked great.
Yeah.
They seemed very realistic, and there's specifically a scene where someone has scratches on their neck, and it looked so real.
Yeah, and they did a great job with the continuity with it, as well, because it kept, like, fading as the movie was going along.
Yes.
So, whoever was in charge of that, another kudos bar to you. Kudos to you.
Yeah. What kind of kudos? The peanut butter chocolate?
Peanut butter chocolate or the cookies and cream?
I don't think I ever had the cookies and cream.
Oh, it was aces.
I had the peanut butter and then I feel like there was also mint chocolate or something.
Yeah.
I don't know.
Never mind.
Well, no, it's, listen, it's from our childhood. Do they still make those anymore?
I don't think so.
Oh, really?
Maybe because they marketed them as granola bars.
Maybe they marketed them for breakfast, I think. Yeah.
The healthy snack covered in chocolate and dipped in more.
Double fried.
Double fried, double frosted. So, moving on to our overall scores.
Oh, yeah.
What did you rate The Amateur?
Well, based upon everything that I've said today, I know that people are expecting me to give it a 1.0.
Yes. We all think you hated it.
Yeah, absolutely. No, I rated it a 4.8 out of five.
Wow.
I thought it's one of the best, even with the concept being something that I've seen multiple times, it was just done so well. It just reminded me of the first time that I'd ever seen Jason Bourne.
And I think that all the components came together and they made a beautiful story. And like I said, the only thing that I would have changed, it would have given it a 5.0. I think if there was more character development in the background.
Yeah, about the bad guys and kind of what happened at the end.
Yeah.
But outside of that, I don't have very many notes for this. I think it was incredible. They did an excellent job.
I agree.
I gave it a 4.5.
Okay.
And I thought the movie excelled in every category, but the ending just left me unsatisfied.
Yeah. It's like a little bit more.
Yeah. It was weird. Like maybe an more in-depth look at the aftermath of everything that happened.
Like I kind of want to know what happened after.
Yeah. It's interesting because they always talk about, you know, in sports, they always say, oh, it's always about the journey, not the end. And so I felt like maybe that's a little bit of what you're feeling.
Like it was a long journey getting from that to where he ended up, and it would have been more rewarding, I guess, for an audience to feel like there was a little bit more.
Right. And I think it was specifically because he had such a big motive.
Right.
Like if his motive was finding treasure at the end of a rainbow or in like, you know, finding Trevor and treasure.
I think I've seen that movie. Is it called Leprechaun?
The Leprechaun child. No, I'm kidding. Thanks.
But I think if he had more casual reasoning, the end could have been short. But because it was such an impactful reason why he went on this journey.
Right.
I feel like I just wanted a little bit more in the after.
I could I can totally see that for me, one of the best movies we've seen in quite some time. So, yeah, we've actually been doing a pretty good job of picking out some pretty good movies. Hopefully, you guys out there are really enjoying it.
Yeah, I'd say I would recommend it to anyone who likes Jack Ryan, Reacher.
Yes, definitely.
I would say this is for me, I would highly recommend anybody see it. I don't know if it's a repeat watcher. I don't know if you would watch it multiple times.
Like, I know your dad loves Reacher, and so I'm sure he's seen the seasons like four or five times.
I don't know if you need to watch this movie four or five times, but if somebody hadn't seen it and it was playing at their house, I wouldn't tell them to turn it off. So I think that's always a good start for me.
I agree.
But, there's a person that doesn't agree with us, and then a person that does.
Oh, okay.
So, why don't we look at a couple of movie reviews.
From other viewers.
Amateurs.
Oh, other amateur viewers too.
No, I don't know, the tomato meter and all that stuff, who knows how that works.
I agree.
Okay, so I'm gonna read a one-star review.
Okay.
Literally, the most unintelligent intelligence-themed movie ever made. Leslie Nielsen flicks The Naked Gun are more thought-provoking. This film was clearly written by a high school dropout with ADHD and delusions of grandeur.
End of review.
It's very interesting because if I were to say someone had delusions of grandeur, I wouldn't say ADHD, I'd say bipolar disorder. Also, I have it so just in case anyone wants to come at me, it's a thing that I have.
A one-star review?
Bipolar disorder.
Oh, right.
I also have ADHD, so I can relate to that post a lot, but not to the review.
Yeah, you can relate to the people who struggle with those things, but not the review.
Yes.
Yeah, that makes sense. By the way, movies and TV shows, people who are bipolar don't just flip on a switch on and off. Stop showing them like that.
It happens like that, but that's not how it happens.
Right.
If you know, you know.
If you don't, you might now. If you don't, you still might not.
If you don't marry a person that has bipolar disorder, then you'll see when they show the movies and somebody's throwing things across the kitchen and then kissing you the next minute, that's not what happens. Right. Did you have a review to read?
I do.
I have two. In fact, I will read my one star review first.
I can't wait.
I'm really excited for my five star, though.
Me too.
OK, so this is a one star.
Now, this is someone who didn't agree with us.
They did not agree with us. One star. The title is Boring and Nonsensical, period.
Whoa.
No capitalizations.
OK.
OK.
Boring and Nonsensical 1. I really need to read these warnings more carefully. A lot of people review based on emotions rather than objectivity.
This film is absolutely nonsensical. The plot makes no sense and the behavior of the characters are unrealistic. It is so hard to follow this story as it dives into a bunch of nonsense technobabble that are unnecessary.
Then, it just makes no sense no matter how smart he is, he is able to blackmail the whole CIA agency. Come on. It is like a film that tries to be realistic, but is as cheesy as a comic book.
The music and tone is unmemorable. The action is lame and predictable. One for wasting my time.
Period.
I mean, at least, at least you put a one for wasting his time. I was worried about what the one was going to be for, like, the story or something else like that, but it's just for wasting his time.
Exactly. And so then I went on to this person.
And I have to say you went on to this person's profile page.
Yes. Yes. I'm so sorry.
I went on to this reviewer's profile page. And I looked at a couple movies that they put a 10. Oh, OK.
This is technically one out of 10 because I got it from IMDb, but I'll say one out of five, right?
Sure.
OK. So guess which one he gave a 10 out of 10. And we have seen it.
It is one of the movies that we have seen.
Transformers Age of Extinction.
Another one. I should have been more specific.
She's never seen that. I just figured I would bowl something random out.
So is that...
Salem's Lot?
No.
OK.
You have two more guesses. It's one that we've reviewed on the podcast. So Salem's Lot was a good guess.
Caddo Lake?
No.
It's later than that.
Until Dawn?
That was a great guess. But no, it was the electric state.
He gave it a 10 out of 10.
He gave it a 10 out of 10. But he gave this one a one out of 10.
What? I mean, for someone to say that comic books are lame.
I just also this did not feel like a comic book story at all. It feel, it feel, it feel like it felt a lot more realistic than half of the movies. I mean, the electric state, what was he expecting?
Well, I mean, he said nonsensical multiple times throughout the whole thing.
Maybe that's the only big word he knows.
That's it.
So the technical jargon. What technical jargon? What was it that was overwhelming that you couldn't understand?
A person was using his phone and technology to hack into cameras and change things. Oh my God. They didn't explain it.
They just did it. Like if the guy said, oh yeah, I'm going to hack into the main frame and he's talking like one of the guys from Mission Impossible, I get it. But that's, I don't know.
Everybody has their own opinion. And so that is that person's opinion. I wouldn't agree, but here we are.
Okay.
So now you have another review.
I do. Now this person agrees with us. This is a five star review.
What a great movie. Great acting, great plot. It was captivating from the beginning to the very end.
It was stimulating and refreshing. Unexpected twists and turns, but not too many. A great spy thriller.
My husband and I both really enjoyed this movie. End of review.
That was so nice. Very sweet and very like...
Pretty concise.
Yeah, they gave a good explanation. Yeah.
Highlighted a couple different things. I completely agree.
I am so ready for my final review.
I hope it just says five stars. This movie rocks.
Rocks my socks off.
Exactly.
Here is a viewer review. Ten out of ten or five out of five. The title is, I never took out my phone.
Whoa.
I know.
Now, you ready?
Yes. I had to put my phone down.
So, yes, I know. Faux pas. But seriously, it didn't happen the entire time.
But this really is a big deal because of my ADHD.
Nice. I thought you were going to say because he was a doctor, so he's like on call.
It's the only one. I turned my phone off when I was on call. Okay.
Honestly, this is the first movie I've been to in theaters where my phone stayed in my pocket the entire time. I was 100% entertained.
I wish the wife had a tad more character development at the beginning, but she was given some more as the time went on. But you knew from the start, Charlie's wife was his 100% everything.
Absolutely.
This isn't Jason Bourne. There won't be sequels. This isn't a franchise.
I mean, there really wasn't good music. But this movie has everything that you're looking for in an, in a, well, okay, okay. Everything you're looking for in a low to mid-budget action drama light suspense movie.
I don't know why they said that, so I might just take that part out.
I was going to say, I think it's an ADHD thing.
But this movie has everything you're looking for in an action drama light suspense movie.
Huh, light suspense, okay.
I will be watching this movie at least once a year, probably buying it on Amazon when it comes out. I'm still in shock I never took my phone out. Maybe you won't take your phone out either.
Hollywood, please make more of these types of movies. We are here and we are asking for them! Exclamation, exclamation.
That was it.
End of review?
End of review!
First of all, fantastic review. Just to throw it out there, don't take out your phones during a movie, unless you're a doctor or there's some kind of emergency. That is so rude.
I agree.
It's the rudest thing.
I mean, they used to have the commercials at the end.
The dancing people, or no, the dancing.
Let's all go to the lobby. Let's all go to the lobby. Let's all go to the lobby.
And buy ourselves some snacks, but also silence your cell phones.
Yeah, or this. What did this one say? It said.
Oh, we just saw a movie the other day. We'll be talking about it later. But anyway, we saw a theater.
We saw weapons and we will be doing a million percent.
We'll be doing a podcast on that.
Yes. And we will not be spoiling the ending.
We are not saying anything about anything because I that's exactly how we went into the movie. We saw previews and we're like, what the heck is going on?
Yeah.
And then we went and saw it and we still think what the heck is going on.
Yeah. We saw weapons and you'll have to see if we liked it or not.
That's true.
But while we were in there, they said, silence your mouths or whatever it said. Didn't it say like, be quiet, don't talk.
Said, shut your mouth and know your role. No, it gives you a warning at the beginning of every movie. Please silence your cell phones.
Don't record. Please don't talk. So I understand that you have ADHD and I understand that there's things, certain things that you can't control.
Maybe just leave your phone in the car.
Oh, I agree.
Because if you pull out your phone in the middle of a movie, it's just, I guess it's a big faux pas.
I mean, that's the beginning. Yes, I know, faux pas.
Well, I mean, at least they admit to it, but if you're going to do that and you know ahead of time, what are you going to pay to watch a movie and then midway through the movie, you're just going to start texting your friends and going on Instagram?
I agree.
Then just get up and leave the theater.
That's why in my brain, I think, oh, they always sit in the back row.
I hope so.
Yeah. That's how I'm imagining it.
If they are or if there's a wall behind them, maybe. Okay.
Especially if they know that they're going to do it.
Yeah.
Like if this is the first one he's been to in theaters where he hasn't taken out his phone.
Right. Anyway.
Or they. I'm not sure.
Fantastic review. I agree. I didn't take out my phone at all.
I didn't either.
So a lot of really well said points.
And I think in both of our five star reviews and in our one star reviews, a little touch and go.
Yeah. But we don't know what kind of personalities these people have. I mean, but if you didn't like it, you're entitled to your own opinion as well.
Absolutely.
We're not saying you're bad.
We're just saying your choice in music. Your choice in movies might differ from the ones that we prefer.
Your choice in music and movies is trash.
I like the part in this. It says, this movie has, oh no, what did it say? It's not, where was it?
Was it not this? Oh, this isn't Jason Bourne. There won't be sequels.
This isn't a franchise. I mean, there wasn't good music. But then he says, but I'm going to buy this movie immediately when it comes out.
I'm going to watch it every year.
I should say they, they are going to buy it.
They're going to watch it every year.
Well, that's an excellent review. And I think that ends this Microsode.
We're closing out.
Closing up shop. We're going to head home and we're going to work on providing you with some excellent new content. Where can they follow us Ashley?
microsodespodcast.gmail.com if you'd like to email us.
Or you can listen to us on any podcast platform that you probably have. And if we're not on there, feel free to email us and maybe we'll add ourselves.
If we can.
If we're allowed or if we can. We'll try our best.
Well, thank you again for another awesome review. I always enjoy doing this with you.
I always enjoy it with you as well.
And we always enjoy that you guys are out there listening to us. So please keep reviewing, subscribing, downloading, and emailing us.
And we'll see you on the next Microsode.
