WEBVTT - The Monstrefact: The SPOILER from “NOPE”

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Stuff to Blow Your Mind, a production of

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<v Speaker 1>My Heart Radio. Hi, my name is Robert Lamb and

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<v Speaker 1>this is the Monster Fact, a short form series from

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<v Speaker 1>Stuff to Blow Your Mind, focusing in on mythical creatures, ideas,

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<v Speaker 1>and monsters in time. If you haven't caught Jordan's Peel's

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<v Speaker 1>new sci fi horror film Nope yet, I recommend you

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<v Speaker 1>go watch it right now, at least if you're a

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<v Speaker 1>fan of Peel's previous films, as well as that feeling

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<v Speaker 1>of being utterly creeped out in a movie theater and

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<v Speaker 1>even more creeped out when you leave that movie theater.

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<v Speaker 1>It's not for the faint of heart, but I think

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<v Speaker 1>it's must see viewing for sci fi and horror fans.

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<v Speaker 1>But don't worry, I'm going to make sure that there's

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<v Speaker 1>a clear line in this episode between non spoiler and

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<v Speaker 1>spoiler content as we proceed here, because this is one

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<v Speaker 1>you really want to go in fresh on if you

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<v Speaker 1>choose to see it. First of all, generally speaking, I

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<v Speaker 1>really enjoyed this film. Peel is one of the most

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<v Speaker 1>interesting directors working today, and Nope is the sort of

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<v Speaker 1>picture that would generally captivate me if it had come

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<v Speaker 1>out in any previous decade, though the social nuances would

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<v Speaker 1>have been different for sure. For instance, I can imagine

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<v Speaker 1>someone like Larry Cohen having done a picture like this

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<v Speaker 1>in the nineteen seventies. One can easily imagine the nineteen

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<v Speaker 1>fifties variation as well, And of course our two version

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<v Speaker 1>is perfectly poignant as well skeletally. It is a B

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<v Speaker 1>movie sci fi feature with a great twist, but there

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<v Speaker 1>is some great flesh on those bones as well, in

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<v Speaker 1>the form of Peel's social commentary, a top notch cast,

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<v Speaker 1>and exceptional cinematography. Okay, now let's get to the spoilery stuff.

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<v Speaker 1>You've been warned. Here we go three two one. It's

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<v Speaker 1>various reviewers have already pointed out Nope is a movie

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<v Speaker 1>of society's relationship to spectacle. All the main characters have

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<v Speaker 1>film industry connections, and Steve Young's character Ricky is the

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<v Speaker 1>one I found the most poignant. As a child actor,

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<v Speaker 1>it's revealed the character experienced a terrifying and traumatic experience

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<v Speaker 1>on the set of a nineties sitcom. The show's central

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<v Speaker 1>chimpanzee actor snapped and killed or mutilated all of Ricky's

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<v Speaker 1>co stars before security finally moved in and put the

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<v Speaker 1>creature down right in front of young Ricky. As an adult,

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<v Speaker 1>Ricky has found ways to profit off of that event,

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<v Speaker 1>but clearly hasn't fully dealt with all the underlying trauma.

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<v Speaker 1>But now he has a new obsession. A UFO is

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<v Speaker 1>abducting horses on his California ranch, and he's decided to

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<v Speaker 1>spend this phenomenon off into a live, kicketed spectacle, the

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<v Speaker 1>star Lasso Experience. In the film's great twist, the UFO

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<v Speaker 1>descends early during one of these live events, and a

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<v Speaker 1>startling revelation occurs. It is not a ship but a

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<v Speaker 1>single predatory organism. It proceeds to suck Ricky, his family,

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<v Speaker 1>and all of the audience members up into itself and

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<v Speaker 1>consume them in a horrifying sequence that I found and

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<v Speaker 1>still find particularly unsettling. This plot twist reminds me a

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<v Speaker 1>lot of the twist in the nineteen sixty eight Jeffrey

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<v Speaker 1>Household novel Dance of the Dwarves, in which an anthropologist

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<v Speaker 1>in South America thinks he is attempting to communicate with

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<v Speaker 1>a tribe of pygmies in the jungle, only to realize

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<v Speaker 1>far too late that the beings are in fact a

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<v Speaker 1>species of predatory giant otter with a taste for human blood.

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<v Speaker 1>In both Nope and Dance of the Dwarfs, protagonists set

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<v Speaker 1>out under the assumption that the spectacle they chase is

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<v Speaker 1>something that can be if not communicated with, then at

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<v Speaker 1>least controlled or even exploited to some degree. The anthropologist

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<v Speaker 1>character thinks he can offer beads to the mysterious dwarves

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<v Speaker 1>in the forest. Ricky thinks he can keep the UFO

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<v Speaker 1>at arms length and pacified with horses. Notes. Central characters

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<v Speaker 1>O J and Emerald Haywood played by Daniel Kaluya and

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<v Speaker 1>Kiki Palmer likewise see the UFO is something they can

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<v Speaker 1>capture or film for profit. They all finally realize, and

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<v Speaker 1>again so much too late, that their theory of mind

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<v Speaker 1>is incorrect in this matter, and that they face a

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<v Speaker 1>predatory animal intellect that only sees them as food chilling stuff.

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<v Speaker 1>Now that we're discussing note purely as a monster film,

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<v Speaker 1>and it is a very memorable monster film, let's talk

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<v Speaker 1>about the monster itself. We see more and more of

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<v Speaker 1>the monsters. The movie progresses, as is, of course, the

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<v Speaker 1>law concerning these things and it's revealed at last to

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<v Speaker 1>be some manner of billowy air creature that brings to

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<v Speaker 1>mind some of the alien art of Wayne Barlow and

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<v Speaker 1>concepts of the sorts of sky jellies that might conceivably

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<v Speaker 1>live within the clouds of gas giants. And while this

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<v Speaker 1>is entirely speculative biology here for an aerial creature, it's

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<v Speaker 1>anatomy does bring to mind various creatures that thrive in

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<v Speaker 1>aquatic capitats of the natural world. Plus, its method of

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<v Speaker 1>inhaling its prey through a vortex brings to mind the

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<v Speaker 1>suction feeding method of many fish. They rapidly expand the

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<v Speaker 1>inside of their mouths to create a pressure gradient to

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<v Speaker 1>draw water and prey directly into their gaping maws. The

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<v Speaker 1>speed at which some fish performed this feat is incredible.

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<v Speaker 1>Consider the bay pipe fish, which can inhale small crustaceans

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<v Speaker 1>and other prey in as little as two milliseconds so

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<v Speaker 1>in a sci fi horror film like Nope, in a

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<v Speaker 1>scenario that involves the surface world, this feeding method is

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<v Speaker 1>entirely horrific. In Earth socians, lakes and rivers, however, it's

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<v Speaker 1>just business as usual. Tune in for additional episdisodes of

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<v Speaker 1>the monster fact or the artifact each week. As always,

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<v Speaker 1>you can email us at contact. It's Stuff to Blow

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<v Speaker 1>your Mind dot com. Stuff to Blow Your Mind is

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<v Speaker 1>a production of I heart Radio. For more podcasts for

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