Load Bearing Beams: A Movie Podcast Roth Stokes

Laci and Matt are at war with each other like the gunters are at war with the villainous Nolan Sorrento in the Oasis of Ready Player One. And it’s all because they can’t agree on this movie! Is this the first BAD Spielberg movie the show has covered this summer? Or is it another classic?
 
First we get into the history of the movie, starting with the career of novelist Ernist Cline. From his humble beginnings as a slam poet in Austin to his screenwriting career working with Harvey Weinstein on the film Fanboys, to writing Ready Player One and creating bidding wars for both the publishing and movie rights, Ernie is a true American success story. And then he got Steven Spielberg to direct the thing! Wow! Will Spielberg use this opportunity to do some crucial self-examination about the role he has played in shaping pop culture, in emphasizing nostalgia and sentiment and comfort amongst moviegoers everywhere, keeping them in a perpetual state of adolescence? Or does he just use the cool toys and giant budget to make a really cool-looking movie?
 
Then: The movie itself. Has there been a wetter paper towel of a leading man than Tye Sheridan? Future megastar Olivia Cooke is right there, man. Give her the reigns. Anyway, enough editorializing. This episode is having some Ready Player FUN.
 
Next week: Our Indiana Jones TikTok Live will appear in the podcast feed on August 2. We’ll be back with a regular episode about Catch Me If You Can on August 9.
 
Watch this episode in full: https://youtu.be/fYs-nYD7SuA
 
Time stamps:
00:00:49 — Our personal histories with Ready Player One and our big-picture thoughts on the movie
00:10:28 — History segment: Ernest Cline and his novel Ready Player One, and how the movie came to be with Steven Spielberg; who the heck is Tye Sheridan?
00:29:00 — In-depth movie discussion
01:33:05 — Final thoughts and star ratings
 
Artwork by Laci Roth.
 
Music by Rural Route Nine. Listen to their album The Joy of Averages on Spotify (https://bit.ly/48WBtUa), Apple Music (https://bit.ly/3Q6kOVC), or YouTube (https://bit.ly/3MbU6tC).
 
Songs by Rural Route Nine in this episode:
“Summer of Spielberg” - https://youtu.be/yglAqqLEaoI  
“Winston-Salem” - https://youtu.be/-acMutUf8IM   
“Snake Drama” - https://youtu.be/xrzz8_2Mqkg  
“The Bible Towers of Bluebonnet” - https://youtu.be/k7wlxTGGEIQ   
 
“Summer of Spielberg” theme song credits:
Words and music written by Matt Stokes
Performed by Wade Hymel (drums/guitar), Laci Roth (vocals), and Matt Stokes (vocals/guitar/bass)
Produced by TJ Barends, Wade Hymel, and Matt Stokes
Engineered and mixed by TJ Barends at Bare Sounds Studio in Ponchatoula, Louisiana
 
Sources:
“Ernest Cline is the luckiest geek alive” by Ellis Hamburger | The Verge (2014) - https://bit.ly/4fgvyMO 

Is A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001) Steven Spielberg’s best movie? It’s certainly his most misunderstood. A.I. Artificial Intelligence is best remembered as a curious Stanley Kubrick project taken over by Spielberg, and the movie does indeed feel like a strange hybrid of the two filmmakers. But that’s part of its magic, because there is no other movie like this.
 
It’s a movie all about the horror story that is life. Even artificial life. We are cursed by our bodies and brains, folks. Life is a prison. We are in a cage.
 
But have fun with David (Haley Joel Osment), this child robot who’s out here looking for love, and his best friend Gigolo Joe (Jude Law), who’s also out here looking for love (of a different kind, wink wink). And don’t forget about Teddy (played by himself), an adorable little animatronic bear who stumbles around after David. These three are on a divine quest to talk to God and ask Him what the hell, man.
 
Watch this episode in full: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Vs9gXxAUNmmX8gJq76hOg
 
Next week: Ready Player One (2018)!
 
Time stamps:
00:01:23 — Promo for our Indiana Jones livestream
00:03:00 — Our personal histories with A.I. Artificial Intelligence and our big-picture thoughts on the movie
00:20:57 — History segment: The short story “Supertoys Last All Summer Long” by Brian Aldiss, which served as the basis of the film; Stanley Kubrick’s long history with the project; Kubrick’s death and Spielberg taking the project over; production of the movie
01:00:26 — In-depth movie discussion
02:17:50 — Final thoughts and star ratings
 
Artwork by Laci Roth.
 
Music by Rural Route Nine. Listen to their album The Joy of Averages on Spotify (https://bit.ly/48WBtUa), Apple Music (https://bit.ly/3Q6kOVC), or YouTube (https://bit.ly/3MbU6tC).
 
Songs by Rural Route Nine in this episode: 
“Summer of Spielberg” - https://youtu.be/yglAqqLEaoI  
“Winston-Salem” - https://youtu.be/-acMutUf8IM   
“Snake Drama” - https://youtu.be/xrzz8_2Mqkg  
“The Bible Towers of Bluebonnet” - https://youtu.be/k7wlxTGGEIQ   
 
“Summer of Spielberg” theme song credits:
Words and music written by Matt Stokes
Performed by Wade Hymel (drums/guitar), Laci Roth (vocals), and Matt Stokes (vocals/guitar/bass)
Produced by TJ Barends, Wade Hymel, and Matt Stokes
Engineered and mixed by TJ Barends at Bare Sounds Studio in Ponchatoula, Louisiana
 
Sources:
“From Kubrick to Spielberg: The Story of ‘A.I.’” by Tim Greiving | The Ringer (2021) - https://bit.ly/3WuCwWf 
“Regarding Stanley” by Rachel Abramowitz | The Los Angeles Times (2001) - https://lat.ms/3WbbIKh

Unlike lots of people their age, neither Laci nor Matt grew up with the Indiana Jones films. But at least one of them has fallen in love with the franchise as an adult, especially this first film. The two talk about the origins of Raiders of the Lost Ark on a beach in Hawaii in 1977 as Steven Spielberg and George Lucas built sandcastles together. One imagines they were very well-crafted and functional sandcastles, Lucas’s a little too clinical, Spielberg’s a little sappy. Still, they were good castles, is what we’re saying.
Matt recalls his first time watching Raiders of the Lost Ark at the relatively late age of 16, while Laci has mushed all the Indiana Jones movies together and experiences all of time as one instant. But she loves Harrison Ford as Indiana Jones! He’s doing a lot of work, she says. 
Then the podcast goes very thoroughly through the film, recapping Raiders of the Lost Ark in excruciating detail. Harrison Ford and Karen Allen are great, of course, but Paul Freeman as René Belloq kind of steals the movie. 
Does the film do enough with Indiana Jones’s fear of snakes? Is the Raiders of the Lost Ark car chase the best in movie history? Is the plot of this movie too hard to follow? This and much more is litigated over this spirited two-hour Raiders of the Lost Ark movie review. 
 
Watch this episode in full: https://youtu.be/tZNfFFFYhkQ
 
Next week: A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001)!
 
ALSO catch us on TikTok Live talking about the entire Indiana Jones franchise on July 19, 2024 at 9:00 p.m. EST. Join the discusion! https://www.tiktok.com/@load.bearing.beams
 
Time stamps:
00:02:21 — Big-picture thoughts on the Indiana Jones franchise
00:10:16 — Our personal histories with the Indiana Jones franchise
00:17:19 — History segment: The origins of Indiana Jones with George Lucas and Philip Kaufman; Lucas brings Spielberg on board in 1977; the two hire Lawrence Kasdan to write the script; casting Harrison Ford and Karen Allen; production, release, and legacy
00:46:38 — In-depth discussion of Raiders of the Lost Ark
01:47:39 — Final thoughts and star ratings
 
Artwork by Laci Roth.
 
Music by Rural Route Nine. Listen to their album The Joy of Averages on Spotify (https://bit.ly/48WBtUa), Apple Music (https://bit.ly/3Q6kOVC), or YouTube (https://bit.ly/3MbU6tC).
 
Songs by Rural Route Nine in this episode:
“Summer of Spielberg” - https://youtu.be/yglAqqLEaoI  
“Winston-Salem” - https://youtu.be/-acMutUf8IM   
“Snake Drama” - https://youtu.be/xrzz8_2Mqkg  
“The Bible Towers of Bluebonnet” - https://youtu.be/k7wlxTGGEIQ  
 
“Summer of Spielberg” theme song credits:
Words and music written by Matt Stokes
Performed by Wade Hymel (drums/guitar), Laci Roth (vocals), and Matt Stokes (vocals/guitar/bass)
Produced by TJ Barends, Wade Hymel, and Matt Stokes
Engineered and mixed by TJ Barends at Bare Sounds Studio in Ponchatoula, Louisiana
 
Sources:
The Complete Making of Indiana Jones: The Definitive Story Behind All Four Films by J.W. Rinzler - https://amzn.to/3LipUfr 
Steven Spielberg: A Biography by Joseph McBride - https://amzn.to/3xzYOx1
George Lucas: A Life by Brian Jay Jones - https://amzn.to/3XX2rI8 
 

The first leg of the Summer of Spielberg is behind us, and we're taking a scheduled week off. But we have another curated clip show for you! This time both Matt and Laci are taking you through it. And this clip show actually features like 25 minutes of brand-new audio from Laci and Matt, relitigating the arguments documented in these clips. 
We'll be back with a regular episode in one week (July 12, 2024) with an episode all about Raiders of the Lost Ark.
Time stamps:
06:43 — Clip from episode 44 (Hocus Pocus)
15:27 — Clip from episode 7 (Death Becomes Her)
25:42 — Clip from episode 12 (2001: A Space Odyssey)
36:53 — Clip from episode 23 (Back to the Future Part 2)
48:47 — Clip from episode 45 (Psycho)
57:04 — Clip from episode 10 (Drop Dead Fred)
01:08:23 — Clip from episode 15 (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)
01:18:54 — Clip from episode 77 (Wild Wild West)
01:26:46 — Outro music: Matt's demo for the "Summer of Spielberg" theme song

Has there ever been a movie better at predicting (hey!) the future? Swiping, pinching to zoom, targeted ads that follow you everywhere, optical identification, and constant facial surveillance? Hey, it’s like we’re living in some sort of Philip K. Dick nightmare! But it wouldn’t be so bad if life could be as fun as the movie Minority Report, Spielberg’s first of two collaborations with Tom Cruise.
 
This was supposed to be a Jurassic Park-level blockbuster. Instead, it was merely a solid hit. And it’s very well-liked, but Load Bearing Beams is here to tell you it’s one of the best movies in Steve’s entire career!
 
Watch this episode in full: https://youtu.be/MiEkZQEiEDI
 
Next week: We’re off! But there will be another curated clip show hosted by at least one of your Load Bearing pals! Look for it on Friday, July 5, 2024. And then, on July 12, 2024, we’re back with an episode about a little movie called Raiders of the Lost Ark!
 
Time stamps:
00:05:41 — Our personal histories with Minority Report
00:13:42 — History segment: Philip K. Dick and his short story “The Minority Report”; Spielberg’s ill-fated attempt to launch a new studio—Dreamworks—in the late ‘90s; development and production of Minority Report 
00:34:18 — In-depth movie discussion
01:59:02 — Final thoughts and star ratings
02:04:20 — Outro music: Matt's acoustic demo for "Dino Lab"
 
Artwork by Laci Roth.
 
Music by Rural Route Nine. Listen to their album The Joy of Averages on Spotify (https://bit.ly/48WBtUa), Apple Music (https://bit.ly/3Q6kOVC), or YouTube (https://bit.ly/3MbU6tC).
 
Songs by Rural Route Nine in this episode:
“Summer of Spielberg” - https://youtu.be/yglAqqLEaoI  
“Winston-Salem” - https://youtu.be/-acMutUf8IM   
“Snake Drama” - https://youtu.be/xrzz8_2Mqkg  
“The Bible Towers of Bluebonnet” - https://youtu.be/k7wlxTGGEIQ   
 
“Summer of Spielberg” theme song credits:
Words and music written by Matt Stokes
Performed by Wade Hymel (drums/guitar), Laci Roth (vocals), and Matt Stokes (vocals/guitar/bass)
Produced by TJ Barends, Wade Hymel, and Matt Stokes
Engineered and mixed by TJ Barends at Bare Sounds Studio in Ponchatoula, Louisiana
 
Source:
The Men Who Would Be King by Nicole LaPorte - https://amzn.to/3XGCD2V

The Summer of Spielberg continues as Laci and Matt were able to buckle their seatbelts in time for their helicopter to land on Isla Nublar, where they meet up with AJ & Kristie from the In Love With Horror podcast to talk about Jurassic Park (1993). The four team up for a rollicking podcast so good it’ll have you shouting “Hello John!” at total strangers.
 
First of all, this famous action/horror/sci-fi/disaster epic has like 50 incredible lines of dialogue! So we just spend some time saying these lines at each other. But eventually we get into it, talking about the history of Michael Crichton’s novel and its adaptation by Steven Spielberg. Then we take a close look at the movie, wondering just how bad of a boss John Hammond must be and what exactly is the nature of his relationship with Ian Malcolm.
 
Also, apparently John Hammond was originally intended to sing a song explaining how Jurassic Park works? Instead they did the Mr. DNA thing, but we would love to hear that song. Who knows... maybe we will.
 
Please check out the great In Love With Horror podcast on Apple Podcast (https://apple.co/4b80RX2), Spotify (https://bit.ly/3KYfbXe), or YouTube (https://bit.ly/4btwtqp), and support them on Patreon (https://bit.ly/3VV0jzy). 
 
Watch this episode in full: https://youtu.be/o2RueFt2rC8
 
Next week: Minority Report (2002)!
 
Time stamps:
0:01:29 — In Love With Horror
00:07:41 — Our histories with Jurassic Park
00:28:05 — History segment: Career overview of Jurassic Park author Michael Crichton; overview of Spielberg’s career since 1982; and a brief overview of the production of the movie
00:46:16 — In-depth movie discussion
01:11:14 — John Hammond's deleted musical number
01:52:35 — Final thoughts and star ratings
 
Artwork by Laci Roth.
 
Music by Rural Route Nine. Listen to their album The Joy of Averages on Spotify (https://bit.ly/48WBtUa), Apple Music (https://bit.ly/3Q6kOVC), or YouTube (https://bit.ly/3MbU6tC).
 
Songs by Rural Route Nine in this episode:
“Summer of Spielberg” - https://youtu.be/yglAqqLEaoI 
“Winston-Salem” - https://youtu.be/-acMutUf8IM  
“Snake Drama” - https://youtu.be/xrzz8_2Mqkg
“The Bible Towers of Bluebonnet” - https://youtu.be/k7wlxTGGEIQ
 
“Summer of Spielberg” theme song credits:
Words and music written by Matt Stokes
Performed by Wade Hymel (drums/guitar), Laci Roth (vocals), and Matt Stokes (vocals/guitar/bass)
Produced by TJ Barends, Wade Hymel, and Matt Stokes
Engineered and mixed by TJ Barends at Bare Sounds Studio in Ponchatoula, Louisiana
 
Sources:
Steven Spielberg: A Biography by Joseph McBride - https://amzn.to/3xzYOx1
“'Jurassic Park' screenwriter David Koepp reveals the origin of the film's most quoted line” - by Tom Butler | Yahoo! Entertainment (2019) - https://yhoo.it/3VySSwv