The propoganda machine helps I think.  Disney Plus, Hulu..whatever streaming service is connected to these films.  Free advertising for the 21st century.

I don't really want to go off on this topic but fuck the "mid tier" film has been totally eliminated in the last 5-10 years or so.  You had your blockbusters/franchises, then you have another types/sets of film, that may or may not star an A lister, but it was different from the franchise/blockbusters in that is was creative/had a hook.  Then you had the indie stuff and the direct to DVD stuff.  This was like from 70s to maybe the 2000s. The Matrix probably qualifies as one of these types of films.

Now?  Franchise (superhero shit usually), then indie stuff, then DTV stuff from fading icons looking to make a buck for whatever reason.  Dramatic drop off in quality.

Honestly, I think they got lucky here.  I can't see Roberts, Madonna, Wright, or Lewis in the role.  Roberts wasn't playing a heel killer coming off Pretty Woman and stuff like the Pelican Brief.  Madonna never had the acting chops.  Wright, maybe?  But maybe she doesn't do Forrest Gump as a result of this.  I think she made out ok in that trade off.  I could see Moore pulling off the role.  Skeptical about Winona, as much as I like her and also she was also very skinny as well.  She went to do an "oscar bait" film w/Scorcese in 1993, probably not a loss for her in missing out on that film.

Rewatched Heat.  What a wonderful and beautiful film.  I can't really say enough about it.  There's actually a bunch of plotlines in this and they all work.  And the wolf analogy that is mentioned in the film is accurate.  The 3 main characters are all wolves (including the Val Kilmer character).  And wolves hunt alone or are drawn to others like them, which is why the coffee shop is so revered.  Those 2 share a kinship, understanding, and intimacy in that they can reveal their true thoughts about their lives/philosophies to each other.  Mann's films are often about the outsider/criminal trying to fit into society and into a normal lifestyle (this is very prevalent in Thief as well) and it just doesn't happen and the two don't mix.  There's always a major conflict there. They are meant to be alone and lonely.   Vincent (Pacino character) realizes this and accepts this, which is why his marriage is on the skids.  Neil deludes himself into thinking he has a future w/Eady (after she finds out he's a thief/criminal) and that's kinda his downfall.  She was basically done with him after that plus he went against the Heat "creed".

Oh one fucking hilarious part I never realized.  After Vincent finds his wife cheating with some jobber at his house, he goes balistic and steals the TV...then dumps it later on in the street.  Pacino had a nuanced performance here.  He's channeling some of his "scarface" over the top stuff along with the character.  You can see some of the pompousness here, but it's never overwhelming.  But he balances it out with some character moments like offering sympathy to one of the victims of Waingro/ and or his relationship with his stepdaugher.

This is where I really hate Hollywood's double standards.  Guys can go into the same leading man roles into their 50s.  Women?  Once you get close to 40, they are going to be writing grandmother (ie shittier) roles for you.

Silverstone is a great example of someone who broke through and got the "rocket push" and did nothing with it. Or maybe she never had the box office power .  If we are using wrestling terms, she was a mid carder and not main event material.  Looks at some of those bombs she starred in post-Clueless.

Neve Campbell and Love Hewiitt probably had a better box office track record/success than Silverstone.  I love Silverstone but it's obvious that she was best suited for jailbait and snobby girl roles.

Miller's Crossing; I should like this but it was ok and really dragged in the second half to the point where I started falling asleep.   There's nothing wrong with it but I just don't connect with it

Vengeance; revenge thriller w/Johnny Halladay.  Not bad.  Liked a lot more this viewing.   It had a nice meditative, "western" feel to it.

I've never really gotten how Hollywood chooses either. It's easier to explain how they move actresses down: age, box office success and attitude.  Let's face it if you have a rep for being difficult and you're starring in a few bombs, it's far easier to blacklist you. 

To this day, I'm not sure what the appeal of Julia Roberts is.  I mean she's not that good looking and her acting isn't that great.

I listened to Old Skool for the first time in months and the cut and paste aspect of it was obvious, even to my untrained ear.  But it is what it is.  If this is the only way to get new music from these guys, then so be it.