Scrapper, Young Love & It Lives Inside

Full transcript of Scrapper, Young Love & It Lives Inside.

0:00KT: It's another week in the For Your Reference household, and it is another Reference Max, where we cover screenings, uh, and screeners that we have been given access to. we also have a Patreon as well as a subscription feed. if you're interested in that as well, let's get on with the show. Howdy ho friends and lovers. Welcome back to the For Your Reference podcast. You got your host, KT.

0:30Oti: And Oti.

0:31KT: And like we said, this is Reference Max, this is an interview Ref Max sandwich, Oti, if you're nasty.

0:38Oti: Oti,

0:39KT: Open up wide. I know you need a stretch after all that old man action with that chicken wing De Niro. Uh, friends and lovers go and check out our Equalizer episode. for all of those listening in a linear timeline, uh, WGA.

0:54Oti: still the WGA

0:55KT: SAG-AFTRA strikes. so for the most part, if we have been covering, big major studios, we've been using Oti's big bank,

1:03Oti: YG

1:04KT: YG, Oti, and all of that sort of thing. if you haven't already checked out, I did have the opportunity to interview Charlotte Regan, the writer-director of Scrapper, which is the first review that will come to today. Shout outs to the team at Nixco, for setting up the interview as well as access to the screener, as well as Madman Films, it's nice to start off with some working class joy, isn't it?

1:31Oti: Sure is.

1:32KT: I like to think I'm Julian Dennison, but I think you're the Ricky Baker and I'm not talking about Boyz n the Hood Ricky Baker.

1:42KT: think I fit more of the grumpy old man aesthetic, but, let's get into the review, with the format, uh, I guess, unless you want to talk about in the other reviews, but this will be non spoiler. Yeah.

1:55Oti: unless

1:57KT: All right. You want to kick us off with your overall first impressions?

2:01Oti: Yeah. A poignant tale of rediscovery. Dickinson and newcomer Campbell shine in this gritty, yet heartwarming father-daughter narrative. A testament to resilience, growth, and the ties that bind. Oh my word, I love this movie.

2:16KT: Wow, I love that. What a beautiful way to kick off our Ref Max today. Scrapper has the charm to burst through the coldest of hearts and win you over with whimsy, bants and working class joy.

2:32Oti: Oh! Facts.

2:34KT: Oh, you know what? Every so often, no, really more than often. It's nice to be able to watch a film through the lens of a child, you know, and like even being able to talk to Charlotte Regan. and you know, there's so much shit that, you know, as kids you go through, especially in working class sort of environments that you don't even realize is potentially fucked up or at least, you know, way too much than a kid should have to handle. obviously I want to talk a little bit about grief, in this film, but it's like, It's so cool to just like link up with your mates, you know, maybe borrow a bike that isn't yours, you know, like just get into some nonsense.

3:23Oti: Yeah. And I think the way they just laid out the story, it flowed quite well, the highs and the lows. I was rooting here for, you know, I, I don't think I've been taken to on such a emotional roller coaster throughout. I, I really did love this movie. Just was amazing.

3:44KT: Yeah, oh absolutely, Lola. I just love how, you know, I might've even said it in the interview, but if you know, you know, right, you don't need a cultural consultant. You don't need someone to be able to translate experiences that maybe are yours or maybe tangentially, are associated with you, but there are some lines in this film that are just so fucking effortless that speak to the parts of us that have never been repaired to, Oti.

4:14Oti: repaired to, resonated.

4:18KT: That's called projection, friends and lovers. but you know, there was a line here with Georgie saying, you think you can turn up with flowers and think everything will be all right.

4:26Oti: will be alright?

4:27KT: 12 years. Why are you doing here after 12 years? Like, I also love the pacing. In this film, it's not a spoiler, if you've read the synopsis, if you've watched the trailer, it is about reconnection, it is about, coming together in grief, in love, in, I guess, sort of understanding, and I love how we got to where we needed to go very quickly.

4:52Oti: 100%.

4:55KT: Even in the interview, you know, Charlotte was talking about Harris and Lola and, you know, Lola wasn't necessarily sure. She's like, you know, I think he's cool, but you know, he'll have to win me over. And that's kind of how it felt in the film. And I think it's a, it's a beautiful way to, to lead, you know, lead with curiosity, but also, you know, keep your wits about you. Keep your head on the swivel, so to say. It's just so great. you know, great pairings all around. I did say it at the end of the interview that Charlotte is my favorite Charlotte. Uh, eventually we will get to Aftersun. I know that's an A24 Letterboxd hashtag film Twitter darling. but for now I'm just happy to stay in the waters of Scrapper.

5:38Oti: Nice,

5:40KT: All right. Are you ready to move on to the next review, Oti?

5:44Oti: I am.

5:45KT: Okay, so love splooshes to Matthew A. Cherry and the team that worked on Young Love. as well as through Binge, we also got screeners from Max as well. so first off, right off the top, we just want to lay our love and appreciation. Thank you so much for including us as a way to be able to review Young Love as well. For those that are unfamiliar, this is associated in the cinematic universe of the Academy Award winning short film, Hair Love. you know, we've got such a talented cast in way of Issa Rae, and I could really stop there, but obviously we won't keep stopping there. Kid Cudi, Sheryl Lee Ralph is also on this, Tamar is on this.

6:33KT: as well. And the rising talent of Brooke Monroe Conaway. wow, wow, wow, wow, wow. How are you feeling about having this series, being able to watch this series and for everyone else to experience this series? Young Love will be available on September 21st in Australia as well as the US.

6:54Oti: Steering through the whirlwind of millennial parenthood and societal pressures, Young Love presents a captivating journey of the Young family. Its wit, charm, and raw insights make this series not only an essential watch, but a relatable treat for viewers of all ages.

7:12KT: Young love that. I absolutely love that. And, you know, unfortunately, The Wonder Years got cut. But I, I thought of The Wonder Years the same time that we were watching Young Love.

7:23Oti: Right? As well.

7:25KT: Because it's nice to have. you know, there can be more than one, maybe not, but

7:30Oti: Apparently

7:31KT: yeah, but

7:32Oti: not. Yeah, but you

7:33KT: you would hope that they can be more than one. And, you know, even reflecting on when we first watched Hair Love and how emotional. It was watching that and, you know, I'm not black, so I don't have that sense of, you know, they even covered it in, in the show as well of having a hair journey and, you know, even while we're here, shout out to Matthew A. Cherry, and, you know, and working on Swagger cause they talked about a hair journey as well, but there were so many universal themes that I could also latch onto as well that made this show so fucking beautiful.

8:05Oti: You just do it until you see the swoosh on my head next time. Baila, baila,

8:10KT: baila, baila! There aren't many shows with a young audience that doesn't talk down or water down issues and dialogue. Young Love will find its way into your hearts with its assured pen and dynamic performances.

8:28Oti: Oh, nice.

8:29KT: I cannot overstate how much I loved, enjoyed, and cannot wait for people to experience this show. we, we are lucky enough to get access to screeners to the point where it's hard to keep up with the screeners that we get. and you know, sometimes we try to align the embargo dates and the release dates and that sort of thing. But we, we finished these 12 episodes in like one or two days. It was so easy. It was so beautiful and that's how it should be.

9:05Oti: It is. And he sort of... I know you talked about watching The Wonder Years and the sort of vibe it creates, you know, that easy go to feel good sort of TV that it feels like it's been ages since we were given anything similar. Like it's

9:21KT: Go to feel good and also talk about real shit.

9:24Oti: Yeah, right. And to cover it with so much care and responsibility. It felt refreshing and ah, it was good hearing Issa's voice as well. Yeah.

9:36KT: Oh yeah. Oh, absolutely. I'm looking forward to Across the Spider-Verse.

9:41Oti: Oh.

9:42KT: well, let's talk about a little bit about the themes, uh, you know, that are introduced throughout the show. we have a beautiful, gorgeous family unit. Zuri is at the center of it. Uh, and it's, it's a lot of fun. And again, like for all of the family. There are so many layers throughout this, but it is funny, like, it is a lot of fun watching Zuri and her ridiculous adventures because she has a lot of, like, like, she's the most active on Recess.

10:15Oti: Ha yeah.

10:15KT: We're just throwing it back to all the animated classics, Friends and

10:18Oti: classic for a different reason. Mm hmm.

10:23KT: Oh, she's the animated classic for a different reason. Shout outs to the ever loved and lauded Regina King. but you know, understanding the power that she holds as a young black girl. And I guess the sort of misguided or perhaps deliberate, you know, sort of power that you can use for advocacy and protesting she does for very frivolous reasons. but also very understandable as well. I also think there are some universal themes in regards to Zuri where it's just her being a young kid. I think it was, it was interesting for me because I didn't come from the biggest Tongan families. Like there was only four of us siblings, which is very, very relatively small for a Tongan family.

11:11KT: but even then. I knew, if I may quote Rosie Perez from White Men Can't Jump, I too know what it is like to thirst.

11:23KT: You know, they talk about struggle building character, having siblings definitely built character, so it was very interesting watching Zuri navigate the space as, you know, an only child and seeing whether she can share or whether she prefers not to.

11:39Oti: Oh, she can share for sure. No, but like, you know, it's delving through those sort of issues and the ways they unveil or uncover that it's done so elegantly, even going through the journey of Stephen, you know, his struggling, there was a lot of decisions he was making that I wasn't a fan of.

12:05KT: you know? He was moving mad fam. Is that what you're saying?

12:09Oti: He was moving Mad's

12:10KT: done, right? Everyone's got a journey.

12:14Oti: family, that's what

12:14KT: this has nothing against Kid Cudi, but I couldn't help but think of Kid Cudi and House Party.

12:23KT: So I was like, if we don't get much character development, then that makes sense.

12:28Oti: Yeah, I see that.

12:30KT: I think it was really cool following the journey of what it's like to be a music producer and I guess, navigate the new world and the new sort of talent.

12:40Oti: new world and expectations of what dope beats means now.

12:44KT: and expectations of what 50th hip hop anniversary, Oti.

12:46Oti: Oh, yeah. I've been there from the start.

12:50KT: Are you Bobby Browning it on the dance floor or are you Mary J. Bligey on the dance floor?

12:54Oti: Oh, Mary J. all day. Oh, shit.

13:00KT: How about Angela's character?

13:02Oti: Yeah, she was, I felt she was the most grounded, most times,

13:07KT: I thought she had the most catching up to do, I think.

13:09Oti: rightfully so, you know, there was a minute where she wasn't there, but we're not spoiling anything, but it's more seeing her trying to catch up and trying to, trying to make up for lost time and all, you know, it, it sort of makes you think, right, there's a lot of things that it brought up, at least in me that I thought, Oh, Maybe I need to do ABC. Yeah, because life isn't one dimensional, right?

13:39KT: Seeing her trying to, and there will be moments of joy and frivolity and nonsense, and there will be moments where. You know, unflinching or not where it's you, you just need to face it. And this show definitely went through that as well.

13:53KT: And also spanked me on my ass, Oti. I forgot to say Loretta Devine. Her voice was off screen and I'm like, of course, we've got Loretta Devine. How great is that? I want to talk about, I guess, the layers of generations that we have here. Because, Angela's parents, Gigi was cool, but Russell was a bit, how's it going, especially in regards to Stephen.

14:19Oti: Oh, yeah. Like even at Stephen's lowest moment, Russell was still up there giving him grief. Yeah.

14:29KT: There was no winning.

14:32Oti: Oh, there was no winning. Yeah, there was no winning. At least even when it got to a point where Stephen felt like there was no more, like there's nothing else he could give, that's when Russell would be like, oh, yeah, actually, actually. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. But yeah, I think there has to be some give and take a bit more when it comes to that relationship.

14:54KT: Oh, absolutely. But oh, it was, it was so, it was so beautiful to be able to experience this and you know, if, if you are the type to wait and binge it, I would just say, watch the episodes as they come out, because it really is such a great experience to be able to, get into and also support black creatives and black storytelling, weaved into love, you know, precious was a time, but we need to support black storytelling now,

15:28Oti: Uh huh.

15:29KT: ain't that right, big daddy?

15:31Oti: Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow.

15:36KT: Is there anything else you want to say about Young Love before we move on?

15:39Oti: No, it was just exciting to see it and hopefully we do get a second season soon. I'm jumping the gun here, but yeah, it'll be really good to continue with this journey.

15:49KT: Thank you for the grace and love and humor to Matthew A. Cherry and the team and everyone that worked on Young Love. Mwah!

15:58KT: All right, well, let's get to, the last of the reviews in our Ref Max today. I kind of feel like I might want to dabble into spoilers, but I guess we'll see how, how much of an appetite Oti has. And I guess how much of his appetite lives inside if you're nasty. shout outs, love and splooshes to Liv from Madman Films, uh, for the screener too. It Lives Inside. there isn't an embargo. So if you do want to go into spoilers, we can, it will be in Australian cinemas from the 21st of September. Thoughts, feelings, inner demons, maybe?

16:36Oti: It Lives Inside offers a unique blend of Hindu mythology and modern horror. While it treads familiar ground, the cultural narrative adds a fresh spin. Worth a watch. Just wish it carried the same intensity through to the final act.

16:51KT: I think I could have predicted that final sentence when you said worth a watch, that was a verbal shrug.

17:02Oti: No, it wasn't like I was excited about this movie. I was really excited. And

17:07KT: Producer of Get Out as well.

17:09Oti: yeah. And it started so strongly and I was like, yes, I'm here for this. It felt fresh. It felt new. And as we continued, it felt like it just removed or it shed off. And Some of the originality that he had brought to the table that I felt that was so unique to the movie that I wanted for it to continue carrying it through by the final act, it just felt like we were watching any other horror movie.

17:40Oti: And while I did enjoy this to a point, I just felt like it could have gone way harder than it did. And it to what I thought made it feel so original.

17:53KT: Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. You, you pretty much, got my first impressions, but let me get into mine. There was promise of weaving Hindu mythology through the very relatable immigrant experience. Slick visuals carried the vision, but leaning on tropes refrained the overall payoff.

18:15KT: I just wish. I just wish. Is that okay? To wish for more? I think before we even talk about the film... We need to talk about, I guess, the constant sort of, you know, conflict that we're at because we're at the intersection of black and brown watching of a brown horror film. because they are two different things, you know, supporting a film and critiquing a film. are two different things, right? I wholeheartedly support this film, but I also would like to discuss what worked and didn't work with it. But then we also live in a world of people that don't want to even watch it at all.

18:58KT: So, on balance, I understand that. And again, I hope not to be in the same room as the sweaty non gendered film bros.

19:07Oti: But

19:08KT: I might also end up there, unfortunately, because we live in a fucking binary world.

19:14KT: but I guess what I want to say about that is it's not just because of Get Out that everything gets compared to Get Out and everything is the sunken place, right? Even though, you know, there is mention of the producer of Get Out, you know, working on this film. But I think... Just to do the thing isn't enough to, I guess, have a commentary on the thing.

19:37KT: I agree with what you're saying. If we, uh, is there anything you want to say in general about the commentary of by default, feeling like you have to love something and potentially not being able to discuss it? Is there anything you want to say about that?

19:50Oti: like I feel like I struggle with that through a lot of the things that I watch.

19:56KT: Everything gets a plus 10.

19:59Oti: Ha ha ha ha. No, like it's, it is a real thing that you have to consider. And while I was watching this, you know, there's, there is that support that you have to give, you want to give. And whilst I did enjoy this movie, I can still say that there were aspects where I thought, or there were moments in the movie where I thought it didn't really reach the heights that I expected it to. Especially with such a strong start. And that's sort of sad because I really was eager and excited and for it to just sort of peter towards the final was disappointing, but it's a journey, isn't it?

20:43KT: Life is a highway. Am I right, Oti? Oti? Mm hmm. I guess while we're also here, love and splooshes to writer, director,

20:51Oti: Bishal Dutta.

20:54KT: I would love to, watch slash read interviews about how he approached the film because I do wonder, but it is an independent film. So I'm not sure if there was any sort of additional notes or that sort of thing, but we're going to get into storytelling now. eventually I do kind of want to spoil near the end or maybe even now. So I guess Oti, you can be our spoiler conductor.

21:17KT: But I want to talk about storytelling because I think for both of our initial first impressions of this film is that it had something very special, you know, unless you're a Shah Rukh Khan baby and you're watching all of the Bollywoods, you know, even for us in our household, we are very new to Hindu mythology. Right.

21:39KT: So. It is a unique, perspective in regards to film as well as the horror genre. So that is very interesting in and of itself. And you know there's going to be a lot of great lore in regards to that. When... I talk about the storytelling in this film, there was, when I talk about the tropes, I talk about not just the immigrant experience, but just like the not fitting in, putting down other people around you, getting bullied, trying to, you know, get your little kisses in your smooches on the swing and that sort of thing.

22:15KT: Right. That. Can really be any other film, which is not to say that it didn't need to be in this film in particular But I felt like there were so many more compelling Moments that we could have touched on in this film instead

22:34Oti: I agree with that. I think there were moments where, like you said, the aspects where they covered, even something as simple as having another brown girl in school in a predominantly white, you know, school, it's a thing and they covered it a bit and it shows that they And how did she

22:53KT: White, you Tamira?

22:54Oti: Heh, heh, heh, heh. Right. Those, all those aspects and yeah, I think raising it was raising it just the end all like now that we've raised it, that's it and you don't have to reference any of that afterwards or is it just some, I mean, of, you know, ticking the boxes.

23:18KT: but then that could have just been a middle America, white bread, American horror movie. It didn't need to be It Lives Inside because evidently it lives in Haddonfield. It lives on 13th street. It lives everywhere. Can't

23:35Oti: reference Haddonfield with the way you came for the last movie.

23:40KT: Just show him your tits! You have to show your text. I guess before, cause I do kind of want to talk a bit more deeply, so I'm going to say spoilers soon, but before we do that, I want to, I want everyone to be able to hear love and splooshes to Betty Gabriel, wherever we can see her, be it Get Out, be it Upgrade, be it, It Lives Inside the, the love of Betty Gabriel lives inside of all of us, friends and lovers. This isn't a spoiler. I just want to say, even though I am very new to Hindu mythology and the lore and demons and that sort of thing. even I had some sort of expectation, right? And we're going to get into spoilers because we're going to talk about character design and that sort of thing. You know, all I have of like two references, the first one is the goddess of war, I believe, and destruction, and how fucking cool is that?

24:41KT: Kali and she's like, she's holding scalped heads and shit. She's like got necklaces of like sculpt heads and shit. And that's one of the gods that they worship. So I was like, okay, I'm in for this friends and lovers. Let's get into it. I could only imagine what the demons would look like. And then my other reference was the Neil Gaiman TV show adapted American Gods. We had Mama-Ji in there.

25:08KT: How cool was her character design? Right. So spoiler, spoiler, spoiler. Pishach, Pishach,

25:17Oti: Mhmm.

25:18KT: Let's talk about the character design of the demon, the Pishach in It Lives Inside.

25:24Oti: Yeah. You wanna start us off?

25:28KT: I was very underwhelmed. We were getting the Bird Box edition.

25:35Oti: Did it not create, uh, tension? Did it not

25:39KT: Answer that question yourself. Did it create tension for you?

25:42Oti: No, maybe, I don't know if it did for you though. That's what I was asking. Like you can tell there's certain tools using movies to do certain things. In this, maybe it raises a bit of tensions, suspense, which it didn't really, you know, Up until the moment we got to see him, it just felt flat for me.

26:04KT: I think there was a lot of great camera work that was done. even when it, to me, it was like, okay, we need to reveal the Pishach because it's like, show us now. But even then the camera work was really cool. I thought it was really cool in regards to, especially the opening scene because the opening scene was really something that I thought was going to carry throughout the film. And then it kind of turned into like, Never Have I Ever, that's a reference. For me, for some reason, Never Have I Ever, but, yeah, I just, it, it was a Bird Box edition of the Pishach and then even when we saw, so let's talk about when you actually see the Pishach, the demon, what did you think?

26:46Oti: It just looked like any other demon.

26:48KT: Right. Little alien predator situation.

26:56Oti: What did you expect to see?

26:57KT: Again, I told you, I only have like two instances. Kali, as well as Mama-Ji from American Gods, that alone gave me some sort of expectation. And even then, it was a very small expectation.

27:12Oti: Alright, alright, I hear you. Part of it was, how it was done, was to elicit, I think, a bit more fear of people with how scary it was supposed to look.

27:24KT: Yeah.

27:24Oti: thought, hey, it did look scary. Did it not to you?

27:28KT: Ryuk from the American live action Death Note looks scarier. That's a burn if you're a weeb and you understand the reference.

27:39Oti: Yeah, I can, I can, as much as I can see what you're trying to say, I, I still feel that

27:44KT: saying it didn't make or break the

27:45Oti: It did not. Okay. Because

27:47KT: because that's the way you're talking. That's the way it sounds to me.

27:50Oti: way it could have been, I felt like by that point, Everything that had happened already. Cause we, I think we see him close to the end.

28:00KT: yeah, yeah. So

28:01Oti: it doesn't really do anything for me at all.

28:04KT: Uh huh. Okay. All right. you were also the one, you were also the one that pegged like the, the name of the film and the conclusion of the film.

28:19Oti: like the, only way it makes sense. Doesn't it? Because it can't go back to a jar. It's inherently nothing like that.

28:28KT: Than seeing, you know, Ryuk live action way of, uh, It Lives Inside, but you're right. It didn't, it didn't make or break it, but it was very confusing because, you know, this is what we're leading up to this. This is the moment I liked the visual sort of vessel of having a jar. Tamira is really the one I was rooting for, to be very, very fair.

29:10Oti: was rooting Samidha,

29:12KT: known as Sam, she was very happy just to be in her own little world and I'm like, you need to help Tamira. She's the one that needs to make it out.

29:21Oti: Yeah, she was moving like, I don't even know at what point does the duty of care of the teachers or friends needs to come into the picture. What do you mean? Betty

29:33KT: Yeah, she was calling her late at night to read her lore that she should have known herself. It's like, it's like, you were watching Candyman and a man was walking with a rotten arm, you know? Out in the publics, his whole arm. Yeah, so. Yeah, talk about this thing. yeah, I think I wanted to see a bit

29:57Oti: You know, interaction with Sam in that regard.

30:02Oti: And when it comes to Joyce, Betty Gabriel's character, I think

30:06Oti: her proximity or at least her closeness with Sam showed that Sam would rely on her for early troubles, but then I was like, okay, cool. You've talked to Sam and the, and this is the issue, right? Because the mom, and I think maybe this is a lot of the, because there was already conflict with the mom, right? From the get go, the mom was just always down on Sam. You could explain his culture. How so? Sam

30:34KT: So Sam was way too, I even wrote it down. Spoiler, spoiler, spoiler, but I even wrote it down. Why did you come here? If you're going to just be a desi housewife that cooks and cleans, fuck off little

30:45Oti: that was not right. Exactly! But she was smothering her. Like, every single aspect of Sam's life she had to comment. She had to be like, No, you can't do this, that. That's the job

31:00KT: of an immigrant experience, my love.

31:02Oti: but... Times change, man.

31:05KT: Not for immigrants.

31:11Oti: Succinctly

31:12KT: child of immigrants. I want to talk about Joyce. I don't just take notes about the film. I take notes of things you say, Oti. And this is where Betty Gabriel's character Joyce, she's talking to Sam about Tamira and you said Betty Gabriel's character telling her to look out for Tamira is something a white teacher couldn't do. Can you explain that please?

31:32Oti: Yeah, because a white teacher wouldn't know that, wouldn't know the, the, the onus of being the only other person there. So it came from Joyce being like inherently feeling as if, You need to look after, you need to look out for one another. And she had to tell Sam that because Sam was moving mad, you know, and Was that her Michelle Pfeiffer's Dangerous Minds movement? Yeah.

32:00Oti: Yeah. And that's, that's the thing, right? There had to be a minority in that position for them to be able to say something like that.

32:08KT: like that to someone. That's the only reason. I also got something else that you said while we were watching the film.

32:19KT: I the only one that's mouthy during these screenings if

32:23KT: The storytelling let the pacing down.

32:25Oti: I think I felt at the moment where we were diverting attention to a lot of unnecessary things that didn't build on the story, or at least it felt like a distraction from. Uh, like my example before, we were talking about Sam and the relationship with the mom. All that is sort of solved quite quickly when Sam actually just opens up to the mom and then it's like, bam, done.

32:54KT: Okay. So I've, so I've got my own note here. The ethnic logic doesn't make sense because if she told her parents, they would understand.

33:04KT: There's not many things that my. Brown, but Pacific Islander Tongan parents. There's not a lot that they would understand or have an overlap with my life growing up in Australia. But whenever I told them I had some dream that they could be able to interpret. Whenever I told them I saw an owl, which is very auspicious in our, culture, that was something that was understood. That was shit that you didn't play with.

33:30Oti: Mhm.

33:31KT: Bobby Brown might play with it, but we don't play with it.

33:34Oti: Wow.

33:35KT: So that's, so that's something that I didn't understand watching this film because she was being haunted by a Hindu demon of all of the things your family would understand. It's that, and also the way, even the way that the dad explained that that other family disappeared because they were shamed and they were, you know, being possessed and all that sort of stuff. First off, shout outs to the dad sharing and even being able to talk and communicate. but second of all, that even shows you that they would be receptive if you were to tell them.

34:12Oti: Yeah, but I think the level of receptiveness is not what I expected. Like, I don't know, maybe it's my mind. That's a bit weird because at least when I, uh, when someone's introduced to a while and they fight it because the logic doesn't conform with what they think they know, I'm usually like, just buy into the world, you fucking dickheads. With this their mom was like bang no questions. Let's solve it. Let's go

34:42KT: Yeah.

34:43Oti: I was quick.

34:45KT: Yeah.

34:45Oti: Did you not feel like it? Did you not send it? Did you not make you feel a way like

34:51KT: No, I told you. Like, that, that makes complete sense to me. My ethnic senses are tingling.

34:59Oti: I just thought some questions of oh Are you sure? I don't know. It's something else. I, I don't know. It just felt

35:09KT: told your parents. That you saw, uh, East African slash Kenyan demon. Wouldn't they believe you immediately?

35:17Oti: No, they'd be like, bro, you're sick.

35:19KT: They'd be like, bro, you're looking in the mirror. I'm

35:25Oti: Who am I supposed to stare at?

35:31KT: But

35:32Oti: But yeah, like, fair play. If you felt like it was natural and it vibed, I just felt it was like, we spent so much time with the Betty Gabriel stuff and because Betty Gabriel gave us that aspect of it. Oh, you must be seeing things or do you need help?

35:53KT: She was also telling Sam stuff that Sam coulda Googled herself. But anyway, unless Betty Gabriel's using Don Cheadle's Algae Rhythm internet.

36:02Oti: Yeah. Yeah, but go to the Mount Foss Dam and this movie is half, half an hour long, because it's all sorted.

36:12KT: man. But even, I'm even remembering like through the, like through her wardrobe, in little moments you'll see those eyes and how fucking scary it was. You know what I mean? Like the building of atmosphere really worked in the first half of the film. Such a shame.

36:29Oti: Yeah. But, gotta say, I loved, uh, Sam's relationship with the dad. I felt like it was, it was, you know, just someone to listen to her without all the judgement. I feel like a lot of people need that. I guess that's why you're the mom, bro. Man, even in this I'm out.

36:59KT: out?

37:00Oti: I guess all black characters die fast every way.

37:03KT: Did you think you were Betty Gabriel in this? You're, you're Jonathan Majors. Come on, man. Stop fighting, man.

37:19KT: Now I've just dated the episode. friends and lovers. I don't know if there's anything else you want to say, but I just want to quickly talk about. I know you said it wasn't a make or break and this will probably apply to this too, but it annoyed me that the power of friendship saved the day. I

37:34Oti: I thought it was better implemented than Martha. So

37:37KT: Still hurts, hey?

37:38Oti: it does. Oh,

37:44KT: is there anything else you want to say about this film?

37:47Oti: No, overall a good movie with some comms. It, it started off so strongly and you buy into the characters and the world quite quickly. And the way it was shot, you know, it did build suspense and tension and it felt like it was going to be the it horror movie. and it felt like it was going to be something really special. but it's stopped at good and good is, is, is still was, yeah,

38:16KT: Good is okay.

38:17Oti: good is okay.

38:19KT: well, we hope you're good and okay, friends and lovers. Thank you for joining us another week in the For Your Reference household. upcoming, we have the interview. With Zoë McIntosh for the film documentary Stylebender. and we also have some more Ref Maxes, uh, screenings and screeners, that we'll be catching up on as well. If you would like to run up, pull up, catch up on us on Twitter, Instagram, and Spill, oh, and Bluesky, we're @ForYourRefPod.

38:50Oti: Write us an email at hello@fyrpodcast.com.

38:54KT: We're also on Oti is the Kenyan demon podcast, if you'd like

39:02Oti: hear me. I need to, tattern the ship.

39:06KT: I'm not even going to touch that. if you'd like to leave a rating or review and we'll see you guys next week,

39:11Oti: See ya.

39:12KT: bye.