Half in the Bag Episode 48: Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters and Jack the Giant Slayer

[@matthewmarin703]

Man, the days when the big trend was turning fairy tails into gritty action movies seem so quaint now...

[@MelanismSeis]

Tell me about it

[@ldmt1995]

We aren't getting any better now we have sony with it's monster movie cinematic universe and DC with it's awful movies every year because all the studios are like "turn everything into a franchise there is millions to be made from that" because they fail to realize that the only reason MCU is popular it's because they are actually good movies And you know that if these movies where made now there'd be a studio calling it the Grimm brothers cinematic universe or some such which would make them extra pathetic.

[@stpastabeard]

@@ldmt1995 calling marvel movies good is a stretch. they're competently made, they look decent, and none of the characters are offensive or obnoxious. that's all that can be really said. they're like cinema mcdonalds

[@ldmt1995]

​@@stpastabeard I completely agree there are fewer good marvel movies than bad ones at this point by now it's pretty obvious that they are one note but at the start they where more than decent not only with visuals but with character development the captain america and iron man 1,3 to me are quintessential hero movies otherwise they would have never been this popular and made so much money my point is other studios only see that they made money and don't understand what got them there.

[@Icetea-2000]

@@stpastabeard That was probably more true in 2015/2016 and there is still a lot of trash that Marvel releases these days like Black Widow, Eternals, and so on. But then you also have movies like No Way Home, and it’s actually great on its own even though I thought it would only be nostalgia bait.

[@greggkenshin360]

"watch out anne hathaway youre gonna end up a witch" HOW ARE THEY ALWAYS RIGHT

[@TheElectricMayhem]

It’s really unfucking believable

[@guigoGOGO]

Yoooo wtf you are right

[@JoeChillton]

I was about to post a comment, but ya beat me lol

[@gray8885]

@@JoeChillton beat you by almost a year

[@ratcathotsauce32]

@@gray8885 you beat me by a day

[@InventorHQ]

10:48 - "Watch out Anne Hathaway, you'll end up as a witch" October 2020: "The Witches" by Robert Zemeckis, starring Anne Hathaway as... a witch

[@theguy801]

10:57 once again RedLetterMedia predicted it all: Anne Hathaway has been cast as the lead witch in Robert Zemeckis' remake of the 1990 movie The Witches

[@ElArto95]

Every day that passes gets us closer for the time that people will be nostalgic about these types of movies

[@calebmalpin6926]

These have the same tone and mood as D&D stuff, so I can see those types going for it.

[@fellow8085]

To clarify, "Jack and the Beanstalk' was one shorter story from the longer canon of stories of Jack. Jack the Giant Slayer typically starts with the jack and the beanstalk story, minus the golden goose and singing harp and all that. Sometimes with a guardian spirit/fairy/ghost who explains that the castle was Jack's birthright. Jack is then called upon to outsmart and kill various giants ravaging britain, often grieving relatives of the ones hes already killed. But it isnt like the movie.

[@zenlocke]

Very late comment but Ewan Macgregor says both 'I've got a baaad feeling about this' and 'the high ground' within 20 seconds at a point in the film. That's how I originally even noticed it was him.

[@Batinthebelfry7]

I gotta disagree with the idea that The Chronicles of Narnia was put into production by the success of Harry Potter. I feel like it came from the success of The Lord of the Rings. Disney wanted their own LoTR-esque series, and adapting C.S. Lewis' (a good friend of J.R.R. Tolkien) family friendly fantasy tales was a natural choice.

[@carnifex2005]

@@Visitormassacre Thank god for that.

[@salomaonplanetsaturn674]

Narnia is boring crap. Never understood who can like it

[@Bozogumps]

I'm gonna have to disagree with you there. It was definitely made to capitalize on the Harry Potter train

[@Icetea-2000]

@@salomaonplanetsaturn674 Excuse me, the films don’t do the story justice. It might not be on the level of Lord of the Rings, but don’t disrespect CS Lewis like that

[@patches5681]

The fact that Jay says that women over 40 can only play witches and Mike brings up Anne Hathaway is crazy now that Anne Hathaway literally plays the lead in 2020 version of The Witches

[@futterkulcha]

Mike and jay have certain things that divide them: heroic classicism, wonder and heart for mike wins over the nefarious studio elements of cynicism, technology etc. I feel like jay is more concerned about the latter and doesn't excuse a movie just for having heart hidden somewhere. It shows that Mike in a sense is pessimistic about change and just doesn't give a fuck about the corporate stupid elements of films and just finds what he likes from childhood and hangs on to it while jay wants to change the system. Together, they make the perfect contemporary Hollywood critic, I love you guys so much

[@futterkulcha]

timkinss that's not what I said, please read carefully. I said excusing corporate meddling if a heroic element --heart--is hidden in the film shows that he doesn't expect there to be any dramatic changes in Hollywood and will enjoy what he can get.

[@dash4800]

I love when Mike reenacts things

[@YungM.D.]

Newest movie trend: bland young adult romantic thrillers set in "unique" dystopias.

[@YungM.D.]

MrSnowy665 The villain also must be some sort of powerful figure, and go from calm, reserved, and boring to mustache-twirling supervillain at a moment's notice.

[@ElBrocoStudios]

Also make sure that the lead actress has exactly 2 expressions: 1. mouthbreathing and looking in awe (looking more like a cow after lightning struck) and 2. cry-face

[@YungM.D.]

Nemesis Potato With this formula, a box-office success and multi-media franchise is guaranteed

[@YungM.D.]

John Beaird Precisely!

[@abeoma814]

Well that lasted entirely too long

[@Janae.citizenofearth]

“We saw this film in a theater, while it was projected on a screen.”

[@mariecarie1]

Is that what theaters were like? From the Before Time?

[@QuestionableObject]

Why do the main characters in both these movies look so insanely out of place. Like Hansel and Gretel look like Blade extras and Jack looks like the "Hip teen" archetype

[@PIOQWERTY]

I saw Hansel and Gretel tonight and I couldn't agree more. I was expecting it to be horrible but actually kinda liked it. And I too thought of The Evil Dead while watching it.

[@hoho330]

Mikes sarcastic rant at the end always gets me.

[@ian_b]

Mike's action sequence is way too long. Did Peter Jackson direct this episode?

[@tigertoonist2718]

But there is a sequel to Jack the Giant Slayer, it's called the BFG.

[@Davvg]

Tiger Toonist Big Fuckin’ Giant

[@CosmicUndeadElf]

I wonder if they cast Famke Janssen in this movie after seeing her performance in X-Men: The Last Stand, where it seemed like both her and the director thought Jean Grey was a witch, because obviously nobody on that set had ever read the Phoenix Saga

[@GhostCrusaders]

So was hot buttered popcorn a real thing or were they bombarded with questions regarding the song from episode 47 where they destroyed Plinkett's TV (also titled : Hot Butter - Popcorn)?

[@Alter292]

I'm asking the same questions, but I tried putting in the website without the rlm at the end and it was selling for $5,500. A steal to be sure.

[@Expo-]

RLM has never had an sponsors as far as I know (Check out RLM Patreon video) but this was definitely just a joke.

[@clearskies2822]

it was real

[@peteyoung3124]

2019/2020: the new trend is "what havent we rebooted or remade for the 20th time?"

[@ldmt1995]

I mean that's been going on since 2010 now the magic word is "cinematic universe"

[@xandermagne2141]

Did they ever explain Rich Evans-Plinkett vs Mike Stoklasa-Plinkett?

[@RegulatedMilitia]

+Xander Magne they are two separate characters

[@definitelynotofficial7350]

+Vorpals No they aren't... When did they say that?

[@RegulatedMilitia]

on half in the bag

[@definitelynotofficial7350]

Vorpals Yeah when? Which episode? They're the same character as far as I know.

[@davistoa]

+DefinitelyNotOfficial Watch the Crystal Skull review trailer. It pretty much establishes that they're two different characters.

[@Garlannd]

I love this series always great to watch and relax to.

[@mariecarie1]

Seven years later, and this statement holds up.

[@dentonw6ir0qf15]

@@nunzioification 11 years later and im drunk on ciders suck my fuckin di

[@ryanmitchell2185]

Hansel and Gretel is the perfect example of a movie that benefits from not taking itself too seriously

[@ylasko]

The reason they make fairytale movies is because fairytales are public domain so they dont have to buy the rights for them. case closed

[@tastyloaf5487]

That, and the hundreds of marketing think-tanks that get paid to analyze cultural trends.

[@williamskay109]

That’s just icing on the cake. The main reason is name/title recognition.

[@Spaceodin0]

I could watch Mike do sound effects all day.

[@CaptWesStarwind]

This episode has more continuity than the Star Wars prequels and sequels combined.

[@GrubStLodger]

The Brother's Grimm seems like an earlyish version of this story - though it didn't do so well.

[@TehMorbidAtheist]

Glad to hear Mike enjoyed the Jack movie. I loved it.

[@pquijal]

Just watched this one; I laughed maniacally at Mike's Hansel and Gretel sword-throwing action impersonation and Jay's locked-on reaction shots. XD

[@SeachelleMichelle]

One thing I couldn't get over watching the Jack the Giant Slayer movie was how every scene shot with both Ewan's character and Jack looked like it was filmed with stand-ins. They would flip back and forth with the camera during the scenes (particularly when they're up in the Giant's lair thingy on top o' the stalk and subsequent escape) and all I could think was 'those are stand-ins' and that Ewan didn't film half of the scenes his character was in. Did anyone else notice this? I thought RLM would mention it but since they didn't maybe I was just imagining it.

[@taylorbond5442]

They really called it with Anne Hathaway playing a witch!

[@Boppper]

30:07 I love it when Jay tries to nod/keep a straight face.

[@OzymandiasIII]

Just as predicted, Anne Hathaway played a witch

[@johnnyzen4282]

That Anne Hathaway prediction though...Mike got me shook.

[@ekuhn44]

Well they nailed the Anne Hathaway witch prediction

[@sambathelionking]

The remake fairy tale trend is from nineties children / young adult literature. There was a big move to flip the fairy tale genre. For example there is a three little pigs story from the perspective of a wolf in pig jail who claims he just had a really bad cold and really wanted a bowl of sugar. I would assume the film industry noticed this after Harry Potter success.

[@flamingleg]

I know the golden compass / chronicles of narnia comparison was a joke, but I still couldn't help but be insulted. bravo!

[@leoncoals]

An absolute madness that these boys predicted that Anne Hathaway would star in the remake of The Witches

[@fkirfirt9606]

When Mike is explaining why he liked Jack the Giant Slayer so much, Jay is looking at him with a "wtf...really?!?" expression. haha

[@cBe9999]

When talking about where movies come from, they forgot another method: when a mummy writer and a daddy writer love each other very much...

[@setlik3gaming80]

The battle added at the end was wild and not expected, I enjoyed it.

[@spacetortoiseentertainment9090]

10:46 and then anne hathaway recently starred in a movie literally called the witches where she plays a witch

[@filmfangirls9163]

I enjoyed both but I loved Jack the Giant Slayer. Nicholas Hoult won me over in Warm Bodies so I saw it for him and had a great time.

[@chinchinovskypole]

Oh man i really need to see these films they look quite entertaining!

[@Tatti12321]

Does anyone feel that these movies are all trying to be Lord of the Rings? It feels that way to me.

[@JonnyCrash]

10:45 They totally called Anne Hathaway ending up as a witch.

[@setlik3gaming80]

I really enjoyed watching Jack the Giant Slayer, especially with my kids.

[@jonathanschmidt7874]

I have a soft spot for that Hänsel and Gretel movie... Guilty pleasure of mine

[@revmotor]

The beat-box sound effects around 17:00-ish were fantastic.

[@cristiansuciu3691]

That thing about Kristen Stewart and Anne Hathaway to become witches in future films. Hathaway played a witch last year already... Kristen Stewart remains for the prophecy to be complete.

[@KenoshiAkai]

Bridge to Teribethea was NOT a Harry Potter knockoff....the trailers made it look that way, but the trailers lied about what the movie was about.

[@benjammin1304]

It's 2021 and I just found red letter media. All I can say is AWWW LOOK AT BABY MIKE AND JAY!

[@DarthHater100]

They point out how there's multiple actors from The Phantom Menace and Trainspotting, so I'm surprised they didn't notice that there were two villains from Pirates of the Caribbean movies.

[@oscargarcia2364]

I thought Bridge to Terabithia was a movie in the 1980's or something like that. That is well before Harry Potter. Oh, I see, there is some kind of remake movie more recently and it was a novel in the 70's too, are there any new ideas?

[@Belgand]

Ironically L. Frank Baum added a big battle sequence with two all-female armies and several other elements to the first Oz sequel, 1904's "The Marvelous Land of Oz", after the massive success of the 1902 stage musical adaptation of the original book. Even contemporary reviews noted that the female armies felt like something intended to be played by sexy chorus girls in a future stage production. So it's not just modern adaptations throwing this stuff in. The original author almost immediately started finding ways to pander and writing it in when he found out how much money there was to be made.

[@ElOchentero]

Robin Hood was never a fairy tale, it was a very violent novel. Some of the first filmic adaptations are campy, but that's like thinking that Dracual is a fairy tale because of The Count.

[@Parzivial]

+ El Ochentero Most fairy tails were original pretty dark and violent though.

[@tastyloaf5487]

Yeah, most fairy tales were easy ways for parents to tell their children the world is a dangerous place. (Especially during the Middle Ages.)

[@olotocolo]

"Robin Hood was never a fairy tale, it was a very violent novel." No it wasn't. It was a local legend/folklore that creeped it's way into stage plays and first machine printed books. But it was a local tale first. For more info I suggest Overly Sarcastic Productions

[@troyleiren]

Called it: Anne Hathaway is now in the the movie Witches.

[@michaelm2618]

Wow! Mike and Jay predicted Anne Hathaway as a witch!

[@marcvienneau239]

2020- Anne Hathaway plays a witch! Mike's precognition shines again.

[@mrdan5493]

What else have I watched this year? Oh a Haunted House? It's a close call on that one! lol Best part

[@dugite007]

Ha Anne Hathaway is literally playing the grand high witch in witches... they saw into the future

[@KungPow12321]

Who put the Greeley Estates picture on the corkboard? I'm guessing Jay.

[@Kassenbo0n]

10:45 in 2020 Anne Hathaway is 38 years old and starring as a witch in "Witches" 😱

[@Reenactor359]

For some reason I find Jay's "ehhh" at 4:32 hilarious.

[@lemuntpicard7482]

Just a little correction the cheesa cake that is Beauty & the Beast with Kristin Kreuk and ''What's his face?'' is in fact a reboot of the 80' séries of the same name with Linda Hamilton and Ron Perlman... For the little that i was able to watch without gaging, it has more of a Smallville's Sci-Fi soap after taste. ^_^

[@monkeymagic00001]

Lol, coming back to this video, the warning to Anne Hathaway about her future of playing witches came true lol.

[@DarlingDaintyfoot]

I can’t believe no one has mentioned that fairytales were originally a lot darker than the stories we know.

[@hebanker3372]

Well the problem is that people are familliar with the more recent versions of them(19th onwards)were they were toned down by the storytellers.For example,in the older versions of the Red Riding Hood,the girl gets eaten by the wolf.Such ''versions'' wouldn't do well in the humanist age of Romanticism.

[@DarlingDaintyfoot]

@@hebanker3372 Or how about the original Sleeping Beauty? Yikes. If you like old school fairy tales, look up the story The Willful Child by the Grimm brothers. I used to read this to my daughter all the time & she loved it! Lol It's really dark. We have an odd sense of humor. Edit: The Willful Child is very short. I'm not recommending some crazy long story. It's something like three paragraphs.

[@hebanker3372]

@@DarlingDaintyfoot Thanks,I'll give it a shot.I for one suggest you check Bluebeard,if you hadn't already.A very sinister fairy tale with an even more sinister inspiration.

[@DarlingDaintyfoot]

@@hebanker3372 I went & read it immediately! Lol What was even better was one of the morals cited from a book written in 1899. "Apply logic to this grim story & you will ascertain that it took place many years ago. No husband of our age would de so terrible as to demand the impossible of his wife, nor would he be such a jealous malcontent. For what ever the color of her husband's beard, the wife of today will let him know who the master is." What a sense of humor! I'll have to look up the inspiration. I also strongly recommend The Juniper Tree, once again by the Grimm brothers. I have a big book of their original stories.

[@Aryanaut]

10:58 Spot on with the anne hathaway prediction. she was in the new terrible witches movie

[@glp4477]

I forgot about this , wasn't this the period when Jay was auditioning for harpoonsmen #4 in th 3 rd Moby Dick reboot? Didn't get it as I recall , kept messing up his lines and saying " where's the blow" .

[@dumpvideo]

"Watch out Anne Hathaway... you're all gonna end up witches" HBO Max: The Witches starring Anne Hathaway!

[@TheZombiejohn75]

Indeed it was, but most people outside of the horror community dont know about that film at all. The general knowledge regards TBWP to be the first because it sparked so much interest publically, while the CH film was released during the home video revolution, never got a theatrical release in the U.S., and faded into obscurity until the dvd release a few years ago. Good comment though :)

[@mezalos]

Hansel and Gretel is the best fairy tale remake ever.

[@BagOfMagicFood]

I liked the battle of coming up with the next great nursery-rhyme movies in the bonus video.

[@SuperScaryMonkey]

Hansel and Gretel was better than I thought it was going to be........and that's all

[@SpartanDeluxe]

Me too...at the beginning I really didn't care at all about HITB, but now it's actually one of my favourite shows about movies.

[@Kaldobsky]

@10:56 Anne Hathaway is the lead witch in the Witches reboot for 2021 lol

[@arrozmundi82]

Haha, when they both said "perfectly balanced" 23:52 , I was expecting a..."as all things should be"...then I'm like wait wrong year😆

[@ShadeWMD]

I've got some hot, yellow liquid for your popcorn. And it's non-dairy!

[@zetetick395]

Oooh! fuck it Just pour it into me! :P

[@WayneManor666]

Kung Pow reference, have my like.

[@mikemackay86]

My nipples look like milk duds.

[@YadenSamsara]

Two Woman is one of the finest beers around, cheers guys!

[@superzario1000]

Looks like hot buttered popcorn lis no more 4 years later edit: *is

[@zetetick395]

Next year: Hot Buttered Soylent Green. :P

[@atom_gray]

this year: hot buttered unemployment...

[@matternicuss]

Before I saw No Country in theaters, I made sure I knew as little about it as possible. I knew that it had garnered critical acclaim, and that it was loosely a Western. That was enough for me, and I went in with no expectations, and I enjoyed it much more for that. The same could be said for 'Blood, and many other art house flicks. With say, a Star Wars film, I want to know what it contributes (or takes away) from the franchise; how and if it works within its genre.

[@TheMaestroso]

The extra layer of antithesis just made it that much funnier to me, haha

[@theatlastech8792]

Waaayy late comment, but I think this trend had started with the Van Helsing movie and the Brother Grimm.

[@youngybhoy1988]

loved hansel and gretal, always hoped for a sequel but looks doubtful now

[@carlosmehicano8052]

dark action versions of fairytales probably started with van helsing

[@Regulith]

why does that troll's second head look like the evil nerd guy from megamind

[@DarkeningSkies1]

Even before Mike says anything, he makes me want to laugh.

[@RizyThis]

Ann Hathaway ended up being a head witch after all

[@zarrg5611]

I kind of wish that Hansel and Gretel: Witch hunters was set in the weird desert that featured in the epilogue.

[@mrpiccolo7231]

I rewatched this episode today and you guys weere soo right. Anne Hathaway did play a witch in The Witches remake. You called it. No roles for an actress over 40 except for a witch. Hahahaha

[@tommyc4641]

And Amber Heard plays an evil witch in the saga of Heard vs Depp.

[@ikefromsmashbros9237]

I hate to be "that guy", but Jack the Giant Slayer is actually based on a different fairytale including Jack and giants. It's called "Jack the Giant Killer" and it's about a guy named Jack who goes around, you guessed it, killing giants. It's a classic.

[@stcredzero]

Abrahan Lincoln Vampire Slayer's author was always aiming for the kind of schlock that does take itself very, very seriously. It's supposed to be tongue and cheek on a meta level -- by having the premise be completely over the top ridiculous. Apparently, it didn't work in the movie.

[@johnwerner69]

Its a book!? I must have that!

[@Crimsonwolf1923]

Thanks for making a honest review. Not like movieblob.

[@lukecairns3559]

Watching this again in 2020 where Ann Hathaway plays the head witch in "the witches" remake

[@derman077]

The Oz the Powerful part made me realize I am living in the movie Idiocracy. These guys should review Idiocracy.

[@boxingfocus]

The giants were all Scottish. I am curious if there is supposed to be some parallels to the Scots invading England (with the crown representing, I guess, Scottish Kings/Queens).

[@jeremiahfelder]

Isn’t it funny how Anne Hathaway is now the main witch in that movie witches.

[@matternicuss]

I think it's more complicated than that. When it comes to fantastical creatures in cinema, there has never been a time where I could not tell what the effect was. For example, I could tell that the trolls in The Hobbit were CG, just as I could tell that the creature in the Thing was animatronic; and both looked fantastic. The real issue, I feel, with CG is the animation itself, and getting it to sync with live action footage.