Midnight Run (1988) First Time Watching! Full Movie Reaction!!

Yeah, I agree. I never found myself annoyed with The Duke. However, I was well versed in Charles Grodin's sarcastic antics at that point.

Philip Davetas

Yeah, I think part 2 is where they really found their footing. Riggs was supposed to die at the end of part 2, but the Powers That Be allowed him to live. It's actually kind of interesting. I don't think a lot of people know about this, but the first movie opens in Long Beach. A city I grew up in so I was well aware of many of the locations. Then they go off into different sections of LA to run their antics. And in part 2, they start off in the bowels of LA, but the final conflict is back in Long Beach, so in many ways you can see how the two movies were originally supposed to be bookended. Then Jeffrey Boam, RIP, took over the franchise with Donner. Unfortunately, Boam had fallen ill and had left the planet. Speaking of which. It's a little old, but Jeffrey Boam's solo venture as a show creator did a series with Bruce Campbell called THE ADVENTURES OF BRISCO COUNTY, JR. which is ridiculously underrated.

Philip Davetas

Wow I didn't know young Vito Corleone was a bounty hunter 😁😂

dieselbeast

What! Duke is the best! Him and DeNiro going back and forth is straight comedy, love their chemistry

Ken Veader

Sam, Dan....give us some credit, were we right or were we right when we said y'all would love this movie? This is one of those "buddy cop/road trip" movies that lives in its own era that you can't duplicate anymore. It was directed by Martin Brest who also did the first Beverly Hills Cop so you have a director that knows how to make that kind of script work especially when you have the right actors for the role. I wish movies like these still existed today but the action-comedy genre seems to be dying off, nobody wants to take chances anymore. But great reaction guys. I've been asked what I want for a Christmas gift and I think I'd like to buy a years worth of subscription to your Patreon. Y'all have been going with a lot of my favorite films over the years and it's been a lot of fun rewatching these classics with y'all and I'm looking forward to a new eventful year with you.

Sweet! 2 is even better!

Odd Thomas

Thanks for the recommendations! -Sam

TBR Schmitt

Omg hahah we were not on the same page -Sam

TBR Schmitt

😂😂

TBR Schmitt

Lots more DeNiro to get to! So glad we could watch this one though -Sam

TBR Schmitt

Very cool! Thank you for sharing! -Sam

TBR Schmitt

Haha thank you! He came around to liking him at least haha Daniel thought everyone was evil in Rosemary’s Baby 😂 -Sam

TBR Schmitt

Oh man, I’d love to check out those interviews! I’m sure his delivery is perfection -Sam

TBR Schmitt

Thank you! Lethal Weapon is coming soon! -Sam

TBR Schmitt

Wow so many connections to other films here with a ton of great recommendations! Thank you! -Sam

TBR Schmitt

Oh no way! I knew we’d seen them before haha -Sam

TBR Schmitt

Yes!! This will definitely be on our list of films to re-watch! The characters are so fantastic. Ugh yes a gut punch! -Sam

TBR Schmitt

Aww I love that! Oh I had no idea there were sequels haha Lethal Weapon coming soon! Thanks for the recommendation! -Sam

TBR Schmitt

Oh no way! Looking forward to it! -Sam

TBR Schmitt

Agreed! A great film! -Sam

TBR Schmitt

It’s coming! -Sam

TBR Schmitt

If we're talking 80s buddy movies, Lethal Weapon needs a watch; and it's set at xmas so perfect timing...

Odd Thomas

Ronin. Hell yes.

Steven Montano

Great reaction! I've had a soft spot for this movie ever since I saw it back when I was in the 8th grade. Funny, exciting, touching, tense, and just so well done. Not really a weak point in the entire film, and still a ton of lines I quote today without even realizing it. Just a genuinely engaging and enjoyable film, and I'm so glad you guys got a chance to see it.

Steven Montano

Sam and Daniel...the bail bondsman Eddie Moscone is played by Joe Pantoliano. He's been in a ton of great movies, but you will soon be watching him in The Sopranos. Great actor

Mr. Chumpus

Man, I'm so happy you guys did this flick. I never saw it in the theatres, but a year later on VHS and since it has been a personal favourite. I can't go into that right now. But reading your guys' T-day message, I think this will now be my new T-day flick. Because it's about people with destroyed families who have found new bonds for better or worse. Believe it or not, there are sequels, but in the form of TV movies starring Kevin McDonald as Jack Walsh in ANOTHER MIDNIGHT RUN, MIDNIGHT RUNAROUND and MIDNIGHT RUN FOR YOUR LIFE. No great shakes to say the least. But someone mentioned before the LETHAL WEAPON series. Really? You guys haven't seen that? Damn. STAKEOUT is another great one in line with this flick.

Philip Davetas

There are so many great lines that I still quote all the time to friends and family. My top 12, or so, in no particular order. “Is this moron number one? Put moron number two on the phone.” “I’m a white collar criminal.””I know how to say hello in a lot of different languages—not yours, but a lot of them.” “Feel free to mingle with the passengers. They’re a higher class of people. Your class. They’re probably all embezzlers, too.” “You know why you have an ulcer? Because you have two expressions: silence and rage.” “Here come two words for you: Shut the fuck up!” “Are you gonna propose?” “Why don’t you quit? It’ll be cheaper for both of us.” “Sidney, sit down, relax, have a sandwich, have a glass of milk. Do some fuckin’’ thing?” “I’ll get up and bury this telephone in your head.” “I’ll stab you through the heart with a fuckin’ pencil.” RIP Chuck Grodin. RIP Dennis Farina

Robert Livingood

Such a great movie, and one of my all time favorites. It’s kind of amazing to me that it’s become semi-forgotten. It was a decent hit at the time of release and was on cable non-stop in the 90s and early 2000s. Also, I think it is actually a perfect movie (there are such things, see Jaws and Back to the Future, to name two others). That doesn’t mean it’s the best film ever made, but there are no real plot holes, it doesn’t drag anywhere in its pace, it’s smart, funny and tense and the writing and acting are without a single false note, and it’s touching in.ways that are totally earned. Every character, even the very minor ones, seem fully developed. Repeat viewings are an utter joy. Oh, and Sam, I’ve seen this movie a million times, and I always get choked up when Jack’s daughter tries to give him her babysitting money. It’s such a gut punch. I’m not sure any other scene in any other movie devastates me quite like that one.

Robert Livingood

They had thousand dollar bills in Cliffhanger. I think back before money was exchanged digitally, thousand dollar bills were generally used for international exchange.

Vwlss Nvwls

I love this movie. This was the first time I ever saw Rober De Niro do any comedy, and that part when he takes the badge and does the little turn around and flashing the badge about made me fall out of me seat when I saw this in the theater. :D The scene with his daughter has made me want to cry since the first time I saw this, even before I had my own daughter. I always loved Charles Grodon, he makes such a great straight man with his dry humor.

Vwlss Nvwls

Love Midnight Run and I was thrilled to see it on the schedule. The score was by Danny Elfman, who in addition to being a famous composer, has a band called Oingo Boingo. A couple of years after the movie, he took the score he'd written here and added lyrics to create the wonderful song "Try to Believe," which I love because I also love the score. Charles Grodin is in a number of great movies, although he would be most famous to younger audiences as the dad from the first two Beethoven movies. One I would *love* to see you watch on the channel is called Heaven Can Wait (1978), which stars Warren Beatty and was co-written by Grodin's frequent collaborator Elaine May, who directed a couple of her own classics, A New Leaf and Mikey and Nicky. He's extremely funny in Heaven Can Wait. Midnight Run was directed by Martin Brest, who also directed another '80s action-comedy classic, Beverly Hills Cop, which also co-stars John Ashton, who played Marvin Dorfler in this film. Dennis Farina, aka Jimmy Serrano, was a legendary character actor who had a lot of roles in cop and crime movies. I have already recommended Out of Sight, which has a nice little connection to Jackie Brown that you'll love, and he has a fun supporting role in that movie. Jackie Brown and Out of Sight are both adaptations of Elmore Leonard books, and Farina also has a major role in the third greatest Leonard adaptation, Get Shorty. I especially liked how moved Sam was by the scene with Walsh's daughter. I think that's one of the scenes that takes this from a fun and good movie to a great movie. De Niro plays the scene with such sincerity and as Sam said, it's heartbreaking and gives the movie some powerful heart. In a slightly bizarre twist, there are three sequels to Midnight Run, with a *big* catch: they were all made for television, airing on the USA Network. Unsurprisingly, Robert De Niro did not return for them, with Christopher McDonald -- aka Shooter McGavin from Happy Gilmore! -- taking over the role. In the late 2000s, De Niro did some development on a true sequel that would have reunited him with Grodin, but it never happened, and Grodin passed away in the middle of last year. For another unconventional De Niro like this, I'm sure many have already recommended Analyze This, although personally, I'm most looking forward to Brazil or Ronin in your ongoing De Niro series.

Tyler Foster

Great Reaction Guys!! I love the Buddy Cop Movies in the 80's !!! The Best is for me The "Lethal Weapon" Series and don't forget Beverly Hills Cop !!!

Florian Meier

Great reaction. I rented this because I wanted to see your full reaction so bad. Regarding Charles Grodin; I like to think of him as Larry David of the 70's & 80's but a very dry sense of humour. He was one of David Letterman's favourite guests.

Mark M

Another reason you guys are the best: Daniel was annoyed by the Duke but enjoyed the movie anyway! 😂 A couple thoughts from the outro: one thousand dollar bills are no longer printed but they are still legal tender. They are mostly held by collectors and museums at this point. I didn't think Grodin's character in Rosemary's Baby was evil. I think Dr Sapirstein was so respected in his profession that Dr Hill (Grodin) just didn't believe Rosemary's story. Thanks for another great reaction!

Marcus Cato

Couple of nerdy tidbits: • $300k in 1988 is equivalent to about $750k today • the largest denomination of money ever printed in the US was the $100,000 bill, which was only used in transfers of funds within the government and never released to the public • the actor who played Serrano was a cop in real life, in Chicago, for 18 years before becoming an actor, and had made it all the way to detective in that time. I love this movie for sheer entertainment value, especially the writing with so many well developed side characters and subplots that all culminate at the end in a very satisfying way. It's 34 years old and still so much fun. Glad you guys watched it and enjoyed it.

Mark

Woo-HOO!!!🤘

ShadowVessel π

Really glad you liked this one. It's such a slept on film. I think you're the first to react to it. Some other De Niro films where he doesn't play "the tough guy": The King of Comedy, Brazil (very small role tho) Awakenings, A Bronx Tale, Wag The Dog, and Silver Linings Playbook. Also wanna mention Angel Heart where he plays a very different role, just leaving it at that.

Shehab Dawoud

I love how Dan and Sam are realizing how easy identity theft in the 80s was

Jason Dolan

Dan: I'd have just knocked him out. Sam: With NyQuil? Dan: ...with a baseball bat.

Jason Dolan

The Director Martin Brest would go on ten years later to make the masterpiece... Meet Joe Black (1998) with Brad Pitt and Anthony Hopkins. But I would definitely recommend first watching Legends of the Fall (1994) with Brad Pitt and Anthony Hopkins. Both GREAT films for this channel.

Jonathan Patrick

This movie is brilliant!! Doesn't get the recognition it deserves and is criminally underrated. It is funny, clever, wholesome and, keeps you engaged from the beginning to end. This movie should be a classic of the action/comedy genre and, should be aired way more on the screens. Also this movie ages so well, it doesn't matter when you watch it. One of the best, if not the best, buddy-cop movie, ever made. Great chemistry between De Niro and Grodin. Sam- Another underrated low-key comedy film you guys should check out since you're a De Niro fan, like myself, is "Mad Dog and Glory" with Robert De Niro, Bill Murray and Uma Thurman .. the film's truly unique in its own special way because it shows a little bit of comedy mixed in with tragedy and romance and touch bit of triumph. TO CLOSE IT ALL OFF WHAT I CAN SAY IT ITS FILLED WITH EMOTION AND YOU WILL FIND YOURSELF BECOMING ATTACHED WITH THE CHARACTERS ON A DEEP LEVEL. Two great actors in their opposite castings. Bill Murray is scary and you will love a vulnerable De Niro. An underrated gem. BTW - the thousand dollar bills were real and still legal to use today if you're lucky to come across one in circulation even though they stopped making them in 1969

Joe Lazarus

De Niro is great in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein - I hope this is on your De Niro watchlist too!

Odd Thomas

Great movie! If you fancied a fantasy version with witches and magic you should check out Stardust too, which come to think of it also stars De Niro!

Odd Thomas

I think this might be one of my favorite DeNiro performances, only because it's so different form most of his others. He's so loose, and fun, and angry, and spectacular. And Grodin is, as always, a fantastic straight man. Love this movie. Good shit.

Steve Mercier

FINALLY!!! Thank you for this and sorry I’ve been harping on this since becoming a patron a year ago. In my top 5 comedies of all time. Looking forward to watching it tonight.

Angel Pagan

This is going too funny 😂 and I am already looking forward to watching the YT cut 💯👍

Jens Pfennig

Haha! We're getting posts up so we can watch the game! -Sam

TBR Schmitt

Between Natalie Gold's KNIVES OUT reaction and this, my Black Friday plans are set.

Jason Dolan

Charles Grodin ❤️ miss him so much. "I got 2 words for you, "Shut the f up!" LOL Deniros great in this

Jonathan Patrick

All I remember about this movie is chorizos and eggs. Looking forward to watching it again.

Tostito Buddy

Come on, guys… just as England are about to play against the US😬😫

Shehab Dawoud